“Had Big Opinions on whether Joey should choose Dawson or Pacey in the end.” In this dedication, I feel seen 😂

There’s a nostalgic tone to this book. With all the reboots and cast reunions of all the shows I grew up watching and adoring as a child, teen, and young adult, it felt as if I was reading a book and reminiscing about my rememories about this fictional show. I loved how to showed all aspects and behind the scene tidbits of what it takes to film and show.

I love characters with an unresolved past and this author has a way that just sucks you in from the moment you read about Liv and Ransom. You can feel the longing and angst from the moment they reconnected and all throughout the story. There is enough depth to the story so that it’s not too fluffy, but I do wish it was a dual POV. Ransom has such an interesting storyline that I wish was explored. This book truly was delightful to read and I cannot wait to see what is next for this author. Thank you to Atria and NetGalley for this eARC

This was such a fun fluffy romance💞

I’d love to see this turned into a movie. I could see this being super freaking cute and fun! Loved the concept and loved Liv and Ransom as a couple on and off screen! A few parts were a little wordy for my liking and drawn out, but this was a 4 ⭐️ for me!

This is the first book I have read by Kayla Olson and it was such a lighthearted, cute story.

I loved the relationship between Liv & Ransom; their chemistry was so good. Their characters were so sweet and likable. The supporting characters were great too.

I would love to see a follow-up book with the secondary characters.

The blurb for this book caught my attention right away, and the rest of the book lived up to the description!

Liv and Ransom played high school sweethearts on a hit teen television show. Behind the scenes, they were best friends, but never anything more. Now, it's been ten years since the two last saw each other in person, and they're set to star in a reunion show together. Old feelings long buried bubble to the surface and Liv questions whether they can be friends, something more, or are better off nothing at all.

Who doesn't love a good celebrity romance? I love a look behind the curtain, a peak into the world of high-paying drama. And when the romance is between two celebrities, it feels so much more plausible. Liv and Ransom made a dynamic duo in this novel, and the rest of the cast was just as engaging, playing their supporting roles to the hilt. This book hit all the right emotional notes, though I'll admit given how long the characters had pined for one another, I would have preferred it have been open door! Such a slow burn for essentially no payoff. But, to each their own! It's still a truly excellent read I'm betting I'll pick up again.

Thanks to NetGalley and Atria books for my eARC! All thoughts and opinions are my own.

5 stars - 9/10

If you liked Birds of California by Katie Cotugno, you need this in your life. Liv and Ransom met as kids when they starred in the hit tv show Girl on the Verge. As their characters grew and fell in love with each other, the same happened for them. They became the best of friends, but Liv was secretly hoping for more. When their show wrapped, so did their relationship. Over a decade later, the cast is brought back together to do a reunion special episode and potentially re-launch the show. There’s only one problem: when Liv sees Ransom for the first time since they shot the last episode, all her old feelings for him rush back.
I absolutely loved everything about this sweet, closed-door romcom. The characters had depth, but the storyline also steered away from the dark or heavy topics. Even though I just finished it for the first time, it feels like a comfort read already. You really fall in love with these characters; they feel almost like what I imagine the Boy Meets World gang was like during the original and reboot series. They felt so real to me that I almost tried googling the different magazine cover shoots that they did so I could see what they were talking about. The last time that happened to me was with The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo!

Thanks to NetGalley for an advanced ecopy in exchange for my honest opinion.

Sweet, heartfelt, exactly what I needed.

Kayla Olson's The Reunion has finally ended my streak of DNF'd books! With winning characters, a soapy glimpse into celebrity lives (in the best way), and a romance that manages to be BOTH a second chance AND friends-to-lovers, I adored this one. I also really enjoyed the secondary cast of characters: almost all of them felt fully realized, even if their on-page time was slim. I really appreciated the strong and varied women :)

Thanks to Thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for the opportunity to read this ebook ARC. All opinions are mine alone.

4.5 Stars
I loved this book! It was a fun twist on a romance because of the setting! It felt nostalgic, slow burn, and good look at the behind the scenes of TV but also had a few deeper themes that it didn’t feel like stuck up Hollywood. I really enjoyed this one but I’m a sucker for second chance romance and friends to lovers romance tropes. I had lots of nostalgic feelings reading this too! Loved it and I think many other will too! I also really appreciated that it was pretty much a closed-door romance and not very descriptive when it came to the physical stuff. This was just really refreshing and you never know when you are doing an ARC for a new author!

Thank you Net Galley for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my review!

I’ve been in a true reading rut and this ARC brought my love of romance back. I adored Liv and Ransom’s second chance story against the backdrop of Hollywood. Nostalgic for teen dramas, sexy chemistry between these two, and just enough realism to balance the dreamy story. I especially enjoyed the author’s writing style. Thank you for the arc in exchange for an honest review. This is out in January!

Well, I'm sad to say it, but this was kind of a disappointment.

I was SO excited to start this book and up until around 40% of the story, I was absolutely loving it. I mean, two former child stars who starred in the same hit tv show as teens (where they played each other's love interests) and were best friends at the time, reunite after years of not seeing each other to film a reunion special for said show??!! Second chance and childhood best friends are two of my favorite combos in romance and I had never read a book with the child stars concept either, I couldn't wait to start it! And from the very first chapter, I was truly enjoying this story (4-5 star worthy, really) but something changed for me after the first 40% of the book.

Let me start off by saying I loved the characters from beginning to end. That was something that never changed for me. Both Liv and Ransom were great characters that I love getting to know and that I truly rooted for. Liv was, in my opinion, a very well written character (which is great, considering the entire book is written in her POV) and I loved following her journey as she struggled with the choices she had to make throughout the story. Ransom was a literal cinnamon roll, and I love male characters like that. A sweet, animal loving, blushes-every time-Liv-is-close hero that everyone deserves.

But see, my problem lies with the romance. I did feel like they had chemistry, but the development was definitely lacking. They hadn't seen each other in 10+ years, and I felt like the writer barely took the time for them to get to know one another again before they started dating, and after they started dating, they were barely on the same room with one another for more than like 2 scenes! Truly, overall, I can think of 2 scenes between them after they got together, and then the drama/fighting already started, and it was hard for me to care about that when there was barely enough set up for the romance itself. Not to mention how much I think the story would've benefited from some flashback scenes of them when they were teens. I always feel like, with second chance, the romances I get the most attached to are the ones were we get some flashbacks of the times when they were dating/friends etc years before, and this one, in my opinion, definitely would've been better with it. The past explained in more of a tell don't show aspect didn't do justice to the connection these two characters are said to have.

Not to say I didn't think they weren't cute: they were, and I think that's what upsets me the most, because I saw the potential of this romance and there were some really sweet moments between them, but they would've been even better if the couple had been better developed.

Lastly, another thing that pissed me off was the female animosity between Liv and Sasha-Kate... I'm so tired of that in media. I understand the hostility in the past, but by the end I truly thought they would part ways being at least amicable with one another. I didn't need them to become besties or anything, but at least a conversation where they talked to each other and told each other how they felt would've been better than what we got.

I did love the plot of them filming the show, and it definitely made me wish i could watch Girl on the Verge. Also highkey hoping for a Bre and Ford book. I loved the author's writing so will definitely pick up her future books and i hope she writes in this universe more.

Overall, this wasn't what I wanted it to be, and the romance wasn't as amazing as I was expecting, but I won't lie and say i didn't have fun reading it. Not a favorite, but also not a terrible read, and I think it would be an AMAZING movie.

This was a super cute closed door romance, and I loved the second chance romance vibes. I have been into the Hollywood romcoms lately! After each chapter I really liked the little news or social media segments. It was a nice way to break up the story. The only thing missing was getting some chapters from Ransom’s POV!

Every element of this book was AMAZING. I adored the characters, plot, and all the little articles and tweets sprinkled between the chapters that truly helped flesh out the entire story.

I loved Liv and Ransom! Them reuniting for the first time after so many years made my heart race. I could feel the warm familiarity that the author was writing about between Liv and Ransom and it was so cute to read them fill in the years they missed between with wonderful, new memories. (THERE'S A BEACH SCENE THAT WAS THE ABSOLUTE CUTEST. I was ROMANCED out of my mind---where can I find my own Ransom?????)

Being in Liv's head as she reacquainted herself with being in the limelight was a whirlwind. I actually loved reading the day-by-day things that Liv was doing and going through as she readied herself to film the reunion episode. Falling back into her old life and adjusting to being in the public eye again was such an interesting layer to the story that made Liv a super well-rounded character.

Thank you to Atria Books, NetGalley, and Kayla Olson for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review!

Rating: 4.75 out of 5

The Reunion has a promising plot and set up. It is a light, quick read and features the miscommunication, second chance, and celebrity dating romance tropes.

Liv Latimer has been in love with her former costar Ransom Joel for twenty years. They used to be best friends, and played romantic interests on a hit teen TV show. Towards the end of their sixth season, Liv and Ransom had a falling out that has troubled her ever since. She hasn’t heard from him in fourteen years but as they are both slated to film a reunion episode of their hit show. Will sparks still fly? And will Liv finally tell Ransom how she feels?

The story has all the ingredients to make a delightful romance but a few things didn’t work for me. Liv and Ransom are in their 30s but acted more like they were in their late teens. We don’t really get to know either character and there are a lot of repetitive thoughts regarding Liv’s internal monologue and feelings toward Ransom. I’m not sure I bought their chemistry and longing for each other - again, probably because we don’t get to know either character very well. This is a steam-free, clean romance which isn’t a dealbreaker for me but given the age of the characters and how long they’ve been in love with each other, I expected a bit more romance.

The behind the scenes scenes of filming the TV show were enjoyable and there are some charming moments throughout. 2.5 stars. I recommend it to readers in the mood for a fluffy, easy read and those who enjoy celebrity dating, second chance, and miscommunication plots.

Thank you to Atria Books for the opportunity to read an ARC via NetGalley. This is my voluntary review.

Wow!! This book was SO GOOD! Once I started, I couldn’t put it down! I loved the relationship between Liv & Ransom. Their characters were so sweet and likable. The supporting characters were great too. Would love to see a follow up book with Ford , Bre, and Sasha Kate! I really loved this book and look forward to reading more from Kayla Olson! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️


Look for “The Reunion” by Kayla Olson, on January 17, 2023!

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for this arc!

It has been 20 years since the premier of Girl on the Verge & now it’s time for a reunion show. Liv is excited about it but it also means seeing her romantic co-star Ransom for the first time in years, since he told her they couldn’t be best friends anymore. Will sparks fly or what will happen when they are reunited?

I really enjoyed this one. If you’re a fan of reliving what it would be like to see one of your fav teen shows have a reunion, pick this one up! Nestled between each chapter were media articles that I so enjoyed and brought out more details about the “behind the scenes” of the past and present actors of Girl on the Verge. Ransom & Liv are just the sweetest and I enjoyed watching their reunion/friendship unfold. If you’re looking for a fun closed door romance with the movie star life vibes, pick this one up!

Ahhh I loved this book! It was sweet, romantic, funny, and compelling and it kept me hooked the whole time.

Thank you to Atria Books and Netgalley for an ARC of this book which I voluntarily read and reviewed. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I am a complete sucker for famous person/famous person romances (of which there are far too few!), so when I saw Kayla Olson’s THE REUNION, I immediately hit that request button and then celebrated when I was approved.

After finishing it in a day, with a break for, you know, sleeping, my pop culture-loving heart is full of warm fuzzies because THE REUNION was everything you want in a friends to lovers/second-chance(ish?) romance between two celebrities.

After starring in smaller, but critically acclaimed roles, Liv Latimer is set to film a twentieth reunion episode of the show that made her a household name along with the entire original cast, including the boy, now man, who played her love interest (and captured Liv’s heart, even if he didn’t know it back then), Ransom Joel. The two quickly slip back into not only their roles, but their places in each other’s lives, even as drama on and off set threaten their personal reunion.

One of my favorite parts about THE REUNION is that it includes many aspects that really play up the celebrity aspect of the book, like articles about the cast members, social media posts, and portions of the script, which only made the narrative feel juicier and more exciting. And though I definitely would have loved the inclusion of some spicier scenes, I didn’t miss them too much because Olson writes in such a way that you can really feel the connection and attraction between Liv and Ransom.

I loved THE REUNION and have my fingers crossed that Kayla Olson continues writing these beautiful love stories that are so easy to get lost in.

A solid four star novel leaving me with all the nostalgic Dawson’s Creek vibes. Liv Latimer and Ransom Joel played opposite each other in the teen drama Girl on the Verge. Now, fourteen years after the show wrapped, they’re back to play Honor and Duke. Will their relationship pick up where it left off or will Ransom insist on keeping his distance— again?

I really enjoyed this one. It was a fun and easy read. I do think that a dual POV from Ransom’s perspective would’ve added a much-needed break in the text from Liv’s one-sided affections. I liked the use of media to impart another side of the fame aspect, but I really wanted to be in Ransom’s head!

This book was a quick, lovely read. If you like the hollywood romance trope or second chance romance then you'll enjoy this. I love teen dramas and this book was all about an old famous teen drama and the reunion show they have 20 years later. The two leads were love interests on screen and best friends off.

I wished they held out on the tension longer instead of things progressing quickly. it had a lot of potential but started to fall flat towards the end for me. I did love the two main characters and how the shows reunion episode paralleled the characters journeys.

Kayla Olson's romcom debut is a quick, beachy second-chance romance between co-stars Liv and Ransom, who headlined a Gilmore Girls-type show when they were teens before becoming estranged for twenty years. Now their show is back--a reunion episode is set to film with all the stars returning for final bows, which means Liv and Ransom are forced to face each other again and grapple with why everything fell apart in the first place.

The set up here is everything I want in a romcom, but I found myself mostly skimming this one. The plot hinges on the miscommunication trope, and the characters still feel like teenagers (especially Ransom, whose problems and character development make him seem more like a young adult trying in vain to free himself from an overbearing parent). All of that pulled me out of the narrative. I also found myself less interested in all the Hollywood glitz (red carpets, promo shoots, etc, sound interesting in theory but they just couldn't grab my attention here), including the gossip news interludes, but that's just me.

I do still love the concept, because this is fan service at its finest and there's something super appealing about what's going on here, so I'm sure this will appeal to plenty of others.

Liv Latimer and Ransom Joel are no longer the teenage starlets who first met on set over a decade ago. Thrown back together for a one-hour reunion episode, the two quickly find that sparks are still flying. Is it possible Liv's love is no longer as unrequited she perceived it was years ago?

When the tensions of fame and Hollywood paparazzi threaten to destroy what almost-is, Liv and Ransom find a way back to one another.

A heartwarming tale of realized love and second chances. This is a story I can't wait to recommend to my high school students.

**I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review