I enjoy reading any of Alexa Martin's romance books. They always have some romance trope elements that makes the read so much better.

Better than Fiction is more than a romance book. I will say that it leans more toward women's fiction than romance fiction. It’s about Drew learning to forgive herself as she struggles with her grief process as she navigates her grandmother's bookshop. Drew's love life is not the main focus; it’s more of a sideshow.

Drew may be the only one who doesn’t care for reading. It’s not her main focus since she is struggling to keep her grandmother’s bookshop on a float. And it doesn’t help that her estranged father keeps trying to get the bookshop from her. Her life is a bit hectic that she is forgetting to process her grief and her loss of her career passion. Running the bookshop was never in her plan, but it’s something she cannot leave. It’s part of her grandmother even though she passed away.

It was really difficult to see Brian as a love interest when he was such a bully to Lizzie therefore it made it difficult for me to enjoy the book.

Sidney Halston's THE VALENTINE"S HATE is an entertaining contemporary romance. The plot is super predictable, but who cares? It's executed well and while you might roll your eyes at times, the story and characters hit the spot. It's a decent comfort read. My only reservation about the novel is that there's an "I'm not like other girls" type of comment (when Lisette is getting ready to go and Brian asks, "How did you get ready so far? Women take forever." and Lisette responds, "I'm not like every other woman, I suppose."). So unnecessary in 2022.

Damn. This is an excellent novel! I didn’t want to put it down! Even though it centers on Valentine’s Day, it could be read at any point in time. I adore Lizzy and Brian together. The flashbacks and shared history just added to the depth of the story and were masterfully done. I loved the addition of Spanish in the book, both with the Cuban heritage, Miami, and Mexico. The plot was excellent and I loved how original it felt. The chemistry and romance was off the charts! The supporting characters added so much to the storyline too! This is such an excellent book and I’m excited to see more from this author! 2.5🌶

I had a fun time with this. They have a scene where they wash each other's hair and that gets me every time. I wish there was an epilogue so we got to see more of them together.

I received an arc through netgalley.

I’m thankful for being able to read this book before it was published. This book was adorable and I love the relationship between the characters Brian and Lizzie. This book has some of my favorite tropes in it (enemies to loves and fake dating). They find each other unexpectedly in Mexico. Lizzie is there for a wedding and Brian is there for a book tour. Which leads to their adorable and sexy fake relationship.

Love love love this book! I haven’t been able to really get into a book in a while but I finished this one in one sitting. I love a book where the characters have some history and this one did not disappoint. The backstory between Lizzie and Brian was sweet and I loved how everyone knew what was going on before they did. I will always have a soft spot for a childhood “enemies” to lovers arc and this one was done perfectly! Their relationship and difficulties getting to that point played out so well and it was overall just a very entertaining story and had me hooked from the start. Would definitely recommend!

What first caught my attention was the title, then my eyes landed on the image of the MCs AND I saw a version of myself. That was a pleasant surprise so I went into this book feeling pretty good.

This read was a delight. I'm a big fan of alternating POVs. It makes for an easier read.

The POC rep was appropriate and true to the immigrant journey.

Usually fake dating trope can get frustrating. Luckily, the author keeps it fresh enough to keep my annoyance low.

Will definitely be giving it a reread around Valentine's Day. Especially for the spicy parts.

Thank you to Avon and Harper Voyager and NetGalley for providing an eARC for a honest review.

★ ★ ★ .5/5 & 🌶🌶/5 --From childhood enemies to adults who can barely function around each other - Lizzie and Brian are an adorable enemies-to-lovers couple!! Their story is a perfect palette cleanser, complete with whirlwind romance, a dash of the miscommunication trope, and a pinch of spice!

A Short Preview:
After spending a few years being somewhat bullied by her childhood classmates and stood up at prom, Lisette Alonso (Lizzie) goes on to become a talented force in the world of business mergers and acquisitions. Brian, her childhood nemesis, goes on to become a successful writer. Cut to a chance meeting at a resort where Lizzie's best friend is getting married and Brian is promoting his books being turned into movies - and what do you get? Instant unresolved chemistry!!

A Few Things I Liked:
- I thought it was cute the way Lizzie hadn't really seen a boy with blonde hair and blue eyes in her primarily Hispanic Miami neighborhood before. So funny what kids see and find interesting!
- I love a second chance romance. I think too many stories have characters meet and there's not enough history to really know if that true love will prevail past the HEA and a baby written by the authors.
- Both characters were successful in their own right! Sometimes I get bored when characters, especially the female character, is down on her luck and has to be saved by the white night? The Valentine's Hate is so refreshing!!

A Few Things I Didn't Like:
- The guy being a commitment phone is a bit of an eye roll. I get annoyed when men in stories are wishy-washy... lol we, as the females of the species, deal with that enough in real life!
- The main characters are decently developed, but none of the other characters, and that's fine for a short story like this one - I wish there had been a little more to their backstory. It felt really quick, and I wish I had gotten the prom scene from the kid's POV? I think it really would've added to the story.

Favorite Quote:
"Having shitty boyfriends is, unfortunately, part of life. How would you know when the perfect one comes along if don't have the shit ones in comparison?"

Notes:
- Alternating POV
- Jumping timeline
- Story touches on Cuban immigration and the challenges faced with being new in this country.
- Sassy and humorous throughout
- Love the cartoon cover
- Easy to read and listen to as an audiobook!
- Single mom trope
- Fake dating/ Fake engagement trope
- HEA ending

Thank you to Netgalley and Avon/Harper Voyager for the review copy!

Enemies to lovers romance: they were next-door neighbors as kids and hated each other all through middle and high school. When they run into each other as adults, they still push each others' buttons, but they might be able to help one another out... *Cue the fake-dating & forced-proximity tropes*

Unfortunately, this one really did not do it for me. Both of the main characters were irritating as hell. Brian especially came off like a smarmy dick most of the time (and not in an endearing but-he's-secretly-a-softie kind of way). The sex scenes were awkward, and just in general the way sex and bodies were talked about in this book was really crude and off-putting. I generally like when romance authors just say things directly instead of being flowery about it, but it came across like weird locker room talk sometimes, maybe because I didn't buy the attraction between the characters.

I also thought the timeline from them being frenemies to frenemies-with-benefits to falling-in-love was absurdly rushed (they fall in love over like 3 days). And of course, the whole thing blows up because of a dumb miscommunication that then becomes even bigger because no one talks to one another like adults. 🙄

Skip this one and watch 13 Going on 30 instead.

this was such a fun little read!! i'm so thankful to netgalley for letting me read this one early!! if you like sweet and cute characters, then pick this one up!!

This book was so cute, and I love the backstory and flashbacks that show what led to the relationship dynamic between Lizzie and Brian, although I do wish we could've gotten Brian's POV of it as well so it didn't need to be explained during the meat of the book. The enemies to lover trope is always a good one, and the premise of what made them enemies made the book cuter. I do wish there was more of a slow burn and back and forth between the couple, as I feel it was more of just a flipped switch from enemies to lovers, but altogether, it was a great love story.

I think that I ended up hyping this one up. That it ended up falling flat for me. But readers who like this kind of book will enjoy the book.

Was super excited to receive an arc for this book! I do not usually read books written in third person but I really enjoyed this book! Giving it 4 stars! The story follows Brian and Lizzie. Let's just say Brian ruined one too many valentines days for Lizzie. Not seeing each other for years... Lizzie runs into Brian as shes in her best friends wedding on non other than Valentines Day! They both have people they want to keep off their backs.. so why not fake date? We love a fake dating trope! This was a very sweet story with some spice thrown in! I read it in one day and recommend this sweet story to everyone! It comes out next month, check it out!

A spicy romcom perfect for Valentine's Day.
The Valentine's Hate was a super quick read. The writing was fun and the characters interesting.
I really enjoyed the first half. Enemies to lovers banter is the best kind of banter! Lizzie and Brian totally dislike each other and have for about 15 years. A chance meeting, a wedding and a book tour requires them to fake date. The fake dating part of the book didn't last long but it was hilarious to watch these two try to act like lovebirds. Halston really nailed the humor here; I definitely laughed out loud quite a lot.
The chemistry between the characters is good and I enjoyed their dynamic. I was surprised by the steam level too! I wasn't expecting this to be that steamy, let me tell you!
Overall, this is a funny fast-paced read that you can finish in one sitting. Would recommend for those who like: enemies to lovers, childhood rivals, fake dating, romcoms and steamy romances!

The Valentine's Hate is a classic enemy to lovers romance with fake dating thrown in as well. Brian and Lizzie grew up next door to each other never getting along each thinking the other was to blame. As adults they are thrown together at a friends destination wedding after not seeing each other since high school. I liked this story it was quick read very light and had some spicy scenes in it as well. I would recommend this one give it 3 starts. I want to thank Netgalley and Avon and Harper Voyager for a digital arc in exchange for an honest review.

The Valentine's Hate is a cute, fast-paced rom-com with lots of spice!

I'm a sucker for holiday rom-coms so I was really excited to be approved to read this eArc! Thank you NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyager for the free digital copy in return for my honest review.

What I loved:
I loved the trust that was built between the two MC's, Lizzie and Brian. Their romance was formed out of convenience but really blossomed into one of support, trust, and love. I also loved how easy, fast, and light-hearted this story was to read - sometimes that is exactly what you need in a book!

Why I didn't give this book a higher rating:
The romance between Lizzie and Brian was so fast-paced, it didn't really seem realistic. I also felt that there were some details missing in parts that would have made the plot seem a little more whole, specifically between Lizzie and Brian.

At less than 300 pages, this is a great rom-com that includes enemies-to-lovers, miscommunication, and fake dating tropes.

Thank you NetGalley and Harper Collins for the ARC! And thank you Sidney Halston for this delight!

I adored this, and it was one of those delightful, and easy reads that is guaranteed to get you out of a slump (which I am kinda sort of in). I’m a sucker for a good enemies to lovers trope.

Lizzie is such a headstrong and lively female lead, and Brian is the perfect contrast. The story read pretty seamlessly, and it was so fun to be able to read both Brian and Lizzie’s POV. The prologue sets you up with the perfect background into Lizzie and Brian’s relationship!

My only hang up is how the dual POV is organized in single chapters. It could very well be better in a physical book, but it seemed very back and forth in the ebook.

Other than that, this was such a wonderful romance that I can’t wait to share once I get my hands in a paperback!

First of all, this book was really cringey. But there could be an explanation for this. One of the genres that this book was categorized in was Satire. So I think that maybe that’s why the book was cheesy and just all-around cringey. That’s also why I gave it 2 stars instead of 1. Because maybe the book was purposefully like that to fit into the genre. I really don’t know.

But yeah, the book was terribly cliched and I just didn’t like the writing. It has really good ratings though so I don’t know if I would discourage you from reading it, it just wasn’t for me.

Lizzie Alonso and Brian Anderson initially met on Valentine’s Day in second grade. He was the broody new kid and she was confident and kind. She gave him a valentine and he tore it up in her face. And this unfortunate non-meet cute set the tone for the rest of their relationship until the end of high school with key angsty events typically occurring on Valentine’s Day throughout the years.

Fast forward years later and Lizzie is now in her thirties, works in mergers and acquisitions, and lives in London. She is flying to her best friend’s wedding and who does she happen to sit next to on the plane? Well none other than Brian Anderson who she hasn’t seen since high school graduation. And the problem is, he is now sexy as hell and happens to be on a press tour for his hit book series which is being made in a major motion picture. And this is a problem because she is supposed to hate him like she always has, right? And Brian has no interest in Lizzie because they are enemies, even though she happened to be the highlight of his world for most of his childhood and she is incredibly smart and talented and still ever so beautiful, right?

Well when they end up together in the same hotel room and start fake dating for their mutual benefit, the sparks start flying and then you wonder, did they ever really hate each other to begin with? You’ll have to read to find out! And in the end, Lizzie and Brian make you realize that love is not easy and that is exactly what makes it worth fighting for.

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon Books for sharing this ARC with me in exchange for my honest review.