After her delightful Boston Classics series, set in 1980s Boston featuring an interconnected group of actors, Karen Grey jumps a decade to 1998 Wallington North Carolina (there is an novella which servces as a bridger between both series).

You Get What You Give is a delightful, fun retro romance with two characters oozing with chemistry.

When casting director Violet has a one-night stand with visiting Californian Nate, little does she realise that he's her professional rival.

Every bit of this book was delightful. Karen Grey writes entertaining character-driven books, no doubt from her decades of experience as an actress. Sparks easily fly between Nate and Violet and I loved how both of them grow through their relationship, even if its rocky at times.

If you like your romances steeped in a little of joyous nostalgia this is the book for you.

Thanks to Netgalley and Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op for the ARC. Apologies for the delay posting this :/ I have bought the book.

I am always here for a good enemies to lovers story, and I adored this one. Great characters, great steam level, so quick to read. Great book

this book was so incredible!! i am so thankful to netgalley for letting me read this book early! it was just such a fun and precious read. loved it so much!!!!

This was a great light read with great chemistry between Violet and Nate. Their chemistry made the story so much better. I think how they each handled their business and their own personal lives was great. I really hope to see more of their story in future books. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced reader copy.

i honestly dont know what to say besides the fact that i enjoyed this book i was confused at first but at the end of the day i loved it .Much thanks to the author and Netgalley ,

I was lucky to receive an advance copy of You Get What You Give by Karen Grey from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for my honest review and opinions. This book was amazing and such a good throw back book to my younger years. So fun to read! You will absolutely love this!

As a fan of the insta-love, lovers-to-enemy-to-lovers trope, this is another book to remember! A great read that’s filled with love, family, and friends drama. I can’t wait for book 2!

Thank you, NetGalley, Publisher, and Author, for the eARC in exchange for my honest review.

Violet, a casting director, just met the new kid in teon, Nate, in a bar. He's hot, she's into him, and she's not the kinda girl to go for a one-night stand, but... And now, she knows why she prefers to get to know a guy before jumping into bed with him: she just discovered that he is also a casting director... from a rival agency, right next door to hers!
This had me laughing out loud (which is hard to do, a book rarely does more than get a smile out of me!). It was a fluffy and quick read, but I loved it! The characters are great, the '90's nostalgia is on point, with a lot of references to Dawson's Creek. This insta-love, lovers-to-enemy-to-lovers trope is filled with family and friends drama, and it is book 1 from the Carolina Classics series. Beware, it does end on a cliff hanger... Now I HAVE to read book 2!
I received an advance review copy for free from NetGalley and Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

This was a fun read with such great characters!

Small town girl, big city boy, one night stand... what could go wrong? I suppose it depends on if that big city boy is staying in that girl's small town. Is he opening a business that is in direct competition with the girl's business? And does he show up with one of her close friends at a gathering? If the answer to those questions is yes then a lot could go wrong. And it does.

This is essentially a Dawson's Creek fan fiction book with similar story lines to episodes from Dawson's Creek. I couldn't decide if I liked that or not, but I enjoyed the characters so much that I could look past the fan fiction aspect.

There was some enemies-to-lovers here, but it was very low key compared to some other enemies-to-lovers tropes I have read. Overall, this is a nice, clean, romance book that I think is entertaining and enjoyable.

This was a very easy, quick read. The characters were okay but nothing extraordinary. The plot seemed really interesting but the writing was a bit dull for my liking also I am not a fan of chapters written in the POV of each character which changes throughout the chapter and written from first person POV. Otherwise it a cute book to read if you are a fan of Hallmark books.

Book 1 in the Carolina Classics series, is incredible! I have loved absolutely every book Karen has written, and this is definitely one of her best (I still adore the Boston Classics, but this is so good)!

It picks up about 7-8 years after the prequel novella (I’ll Stand By You, about the friendship of the five), and is about Violet living her dream of being a casting director in the Carolina town of Wallington. The current big project she’s casting for is Lawson’s Reach (a take on Dawson’s Creek), but suddenly, that cute guy she met at the bar last night moves into the office next door and happens to be a rival casting director for a competing company…

Now, cute guy Nate goes from being a one night stand with potential for more, to being the new work enemy, for a company looking to drive Vi completely out of business. His father and uncle’s rivalry is actually at fault, and hopefully something can be done to fix things before it’s too late for everything…


As always, Karen’s writing is at the top of her game, and this is an absolute must-read. I definitely recommend picking up the prequel novella first (I’ll Stand By You) so you get a bit of the group of friend’s background and what the boys are fighting about and why the five all went their own way so many years ago, but this is a complete stand-alone if you opt not to read it. You’ll be hooked and like me, chomping at the bit for the next book in the series!


(I got a bit of a taste of reading something special, a behind-the-scenes if you will, so stay tuned for when Karen announces a special project as you will absolutely have to read it, to get more inside information on other side characters here, with a concurrent timeline!!)

I received an advance copy from Karen Grey, Home Cooked Books, NetGalley and Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op, and this is my honest feedback - thank you so much Karen!

After a one night stand, Violet Davenport’s life is thrown into a spin, when her dream job as a casting director vanishes. It appears that Nate Fowler, is not what she expected him to be when she spent the night with him. He turns into her arch nemesis, when his father’s business threatens to take away her job in the small town on Wallington NC, where she had hoped to establish her career. Yet their attraction might be worth more than their jobs.
This was such a great read and I loved not only the intense relationship between Nate and Violet, but also Violet’s friends, who I imagine will appear in future stories, or I at least hope so. Nate and Violet’s relationship simmers throughout the story and it was lovely to see their trust grow as they work together. I look forward to reading more in this series.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Huge thanks to NetGalley, and Karen Grey for providing me with an ARC of You Get What You Give!

Nate is a “master at the art of time suckage” according to his father. Wallington is his chance to prove he can be the adult his dad desperately wants him to be. Violet had no clue she’d slept with the enemy, and now she shares an office building with him. Seeing him each day shouldn’t be difficult, but it is.

You know what I love? That Karen Grey can make spice feel classy without making it awful to endure. I love that her books including You Get What You Give are full of wit, and so much humor.

Karen Grey is phenomenal when it comes to writing throwback romance! What I’m Looking For is another great example of this. I loved that You Get What You Give was full of 90’s/00’s nostalgia, reminding me of Dawson’s Creek, 90210, Friends and The OC. I loved that you could feel how close Violet and her friends were, how they’d do anything for each other. If you enjoyed Karen’s Boston Classics series, I definitely recommend grabbing You Get What You Give!

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an e-arc. I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Absolutely loved the book. Looking forward to its complete publication. The plot overall was very fun and nostalgic to read. Would definitely recommend it.

Sadly this wasn’t for me. The book pretty much opens with a several chapter explicit sex scenes which put me right off, as I prefer some sort of storyline and building of heat before the characters get down to it. I did try reading a bit after this but I just couldn’t gel with either character so called it quits

I have really really enjoyed Violet's and Nate's love story...
When Vi ends up one night in Nate's hotel room she couldn't have imagined that the very next day they will become competitors... Both they run casting offices but there's only room for one... in the small town Vi lives
Anger, disappointment but also lust are some of the feelings they both feel... which will the feeling that will win?
Vi and Nate is a awesome couple... with unbelievable chemistry... and sexual tense...
Vi is a very strong character with values... she loves her friends as family , she loves her job and her grandparents and just can't stop thinking of Nate...
Nate on the other hand isn't the bad boy with the classic meaning of the word... he love to surf... he is trying to fit to his family and he has some problems with settling down to one place for more than a few months... but also loves Vi ... one hurricane is it possible to help them solve their problems?
Violet's and Nate's story is a sweet rom-com story. The kind of story that makes you feel good... makes you feel comfortable and of course makes you fall in love...
Plus I can't wait for the second book because the end was... something that I didn't really expect...
Highly recommended by me ... for sure ♥️

This ARC was provided to me via Kindle, Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op and by #NetGalley. Opinions expressed are completely my own.


Easy read, quick, perfect for the beach or vacation. The enemies to more genre is predictable yet fun.

This book has a light and breezy feel. It's steamier than I expected. I liked the coastal North Carolina setting.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received. This is my honest and voluntary review.

This was a cute easy read.

I really enjoyed the characters Violet and Nate. The chemistry between them are amazing. This book brought me back to my teenage years with some of the nostalgia within it. It had some humor, and a some spice. Being I am a Carolina girl this hit home for me with a lot of things brought up within the book. This was my first book by this author and I enjoyed it. I felt like I was right their with the characters during the beach trips and such.

Thank you NetGalley and Karen Grey for the ARC.

What starts out as a spicy one night stand turned out to be a life changing experience for both Violet & Nate! This sweet throw back romance takes place in a small coastal town in North Carolina. Violet, a fierce, hardworking, girl-boss recently started her own business that is just making ends meet. Nate, a hunky surfer dude comes from a wealthy family and wants to make a name for himself within his own family. Nate is unknowingly threatening to take Violet's livelihood away but they work together to make sure that they both come out on top. Through all of their ups & downs, they discover just how much they have in common!

I absolutely loved this nostalgic romance! It definitely takes me back in time! I loved the characters, they are very relatable. I loved the bantering back and forth between Violet & Nate (as well as the others). And while I loved Violet's spunkiness and the way she cared for her family/friends, Nate was my absolute favorite character in this book. He stood his ground for what was right.

This was a great start to the Carolina Classics series! I cannot wait for the next book to see what is in store for this crew!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Karen Grey for allowing me to read this advanced copy for my honest review of the book.