The Book Proposal by K.J. Micciche

Gracie finds herself newly single after her fiancé sleeps with their wedding planner. After a drunken night with her friends, she emails her old high school crush, and shockingly, they continue their correspondence, leading to him helping her resolve her writer’s block based on his recent divorce. Chaos ensues.

I’m left with mixed feelings on this one. On the one hand, I liked the chaos. The plot builds to a Shakespearean-style mix-up that I thought was pretty entertaining (though I think that’s in part because I didn’t really care about the characters that much). On the other hand, I have several critiques.

I think a lot of the intended humor and comic relief in this book didn’t quite land. There’s a shocking amount of potty humor that doesn’t add anything to the story except some major cringe. Relatedly, I felt like it unfortunately misses a lot of the charm from little moments because so much attention is paid to the plot. The whole thing happens in a short period of time, and it feels like we’re being told what’s happening instead of being shown.

Lastly, there is a noticeable tension between the characters’ ages and how the book reads. It feels like reading a YA novel about characters in their 30s. This felt especially noticeable in the context of the relationship dialogue. I often forgot that these were whole ass adults who had been engaged/married before.

All that said, I was still entertained by this one! I can’t figure out the best way to describe it—it’s just slightly unhinged and unbelievable in a really fun way. It’s a fine read if you want to just sit back and be entertained—but you’ll likely feel underwhelmed if you’re reading with too critical an eye.

Thanks to @netgalley and @sourcebookscasa for the digital copy in exchange for an honest review. This one is out now!

📖: (3.5/5) ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Grace grew up as a wallflower, she didn't have many friends and she definitely was not popular. She had a huge crush on a boy named Colin in high school who was popular and a jock. In present times Grace is a mildly successful romance author and after a drunken night with friends she goes home and looks up Colin and writes him a mean email. Colin is a successful attorney, and when he reads the email he politely responds and it sparks them exchanging emails back and forth for a while. The email thread may spark some romantic interest between them, but they both have a lot of baggage that might complicate something really special between them.

Honestly this idea was fun, and I really enjoyed the male love interest. But Gracie was not likeable in my opinion. She felt overly quirky to the point It felt like she was written to overly relatable. I cringed at a lot of the dialogue, and everything felt too over the top. Also this being a closed door romance when Gracie was an author who writes smutty romance was a questionable choice. A lot of the side characters felt like caricatures and made the story feel superficial. Over all I had an okay time, and I think as the author grows, her writing may improve.

Thank you netgalley , sourcebooks Casablanca and KJ Micciche for giving me an eARC.

It took me back to high school days. Where you have that undying crush on your high school crush. That crush you write secret love notes. But instead of confessing your love you basically tell them what you want to do with them. Yeah you heard that right.

I just didn’t love it. Like truly loved it. It was good. But not love good.

The characters were 30 year olds but acted like teenagers.

This was cute, witty, and sweet but didn't really hold my interest. These two were kind of all over the place at times but they were fun... just wish there was more to their dynamic than just superficial, surface-level "crush" vibes.

This was cute and easy but nothing I’ll remember in the long term. I liked the authors writing and the style but wish the characters had a little more depth in the end.

I would like to thank netgalley and SOURCEBOOKS Casablanca for a free copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

An enjoyable high school nerd and jock as adults romance.

I loved everything about this book!!!
The pleasant surprise in this book was the humour. The book had me laughing out loud at times. The romance was cute and sometimes steamy but it's not your ordinary spicy romance.
In the story I liked that Gracie was a secret admirer of Colin and that she sent him in high school many many steamy love letters. The two of them together were like a power couple.
I hope the author will continue writing romance books because I'm looking forward for her future works.
If you are looking for a quick, funny, second chance romance then you should read this book.
I wanted to thank the Netgalley and the publisher who granted me such a wonderful book 🫶
(Ps.: I'm soory about spelling and grammar mistakes)

There were aspects of this book that I loved and then others that I absolutely did not. I laughed and I cringed.
The felt the storyline was fun and it was definitely a short read, but I couldn’t make a connection with the characters. I did like the authors writing and hope to read another of hers in the future.

I might not have connected with this book, but I believe others will.

I want to thank NetGalley, KJ Micciche and SOURCEBOOKS Casablanca, Sourcebooks Casablanca the e-ARC of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are honest, my own and left voluntarily.

This one was better in theory. I like the premise and it could have been a good rom com. If the heroine had actually been likable it would have been a much better book. And the fact that she couldn't let go of grudge. But the guy didn't do anything to her other that not knowing she existed.

This was such a fun and humorous read! Always enjoy a book that has a bookish element to it. The second chance romance in this was also done really well! A great book to fly through.

Thank you to Netgalley and Sourcebooks Casablanca for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The cover, the description, the title --- all of it sounded perfect, and I requested this book so quickly it's a little pathetic. Unfortunately, the book didn't live up to my expectations. The characters felt extremely juvenile, which is disappointing as I am roughly the same age as them. The jokes were awkward at best and cringe-worthy at worst, and I honestly almost DNFed. Perhaps people in their late teens/early twenties would enjoy this book, but I didn't find it relatable in the least.

When I saw the premise of the book, a romance author and her unrequited crush from high school teaming up to write a novel requested it immediately, however, there were some parts that I felt should have been developed more throughout the book to show the characters growth. I also had a hard time believing that Gracie ever really had feelings for Colin the way they interacted felt very superficial.

Overall, this wasn't a bad read it just lacked some of the story development and character growth that I think could've made this novel a 4 star book!

I have mixed feelings about this book. It was laugh out loud funny at multiple moments and the MCs were intensely likable. However, the plot felt incredibly fast paced. The entire story took place over just the course of a very weeks. It would have been much more plausible for the timeline to have extended.
Additionally, the third act breakup and the reasoning behind it felt completely impossible. It read entirely too much like a soap opera. That can sometimes be fun in a kooky sort of way but in this book it was just a bit too unbelievable.
Ultimately, I stuck with the story and rated it 3 stars simply because I did really enjoy Colin and Grace. Their chemistry was apparent and they were both funny and flawed characters. I was rooting for them the entire time, which is always important in a romance. This was a fun read, if a bit sloppy in its overall execution.

I wanted to love this book, but sadly I didn’t. Gracie was super cringe and basically wrote fan fiction about her high school crush and GAVE IT to her crush. The Alfredo shart portion of the book was too much for me. I had to read it twice and then read it out loud to my mom so she understood what I was going through. I would’ve liked to see more from Colin’s POV maybe about him noticing Gracie in high school? Idk, overall I just wasn’t super impressed. Ends with an HEA though!

When I saw that this was a book about a romance author and her crush from high school teaming up to write a novel, I was so intrigued by the concept because I was expecting angst and slow burn, but I was just disappointed by how this book came out. The entire story takes place in a course of like a week or two.

Both the characters are 30+, but they are so immature and irrational that I feel like it would've been better written as a high school romance. I didn't see any character development. The thing that pissed me off the most was a lot of uncomfortable jokes made in this book. I tried to ignore it a few times but it happened so much that it got hard to ignore it. Once again, if they were teenagers this would've settled better with me rather than 30-year-olds. I can't focus enough on the weirdness of jokes made in this book and I just do not like it and it's not something that I liked.

Thank you to Netgalley and Sourcebooks Casablanca for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was a fun and light rom-com with a unique premise. The main character was really immature, but I think that’s relatable to anyone that remembers how they might have been when they were her age. This could have had more depth, and a bit more character development, but it still an entertaining read.

Gracie is a romance writer who desperately needs to get some progress in her latest novel, but it just isn't happening -- until she meets Colin, who has an amazing, appealing story. She can't resist using his story for her work, and that gets her into all kinds of trouble. A great romance that I look forward to recommending.

Gracie and Colin have both been through A LOT. Cheated on, dumped, humiliated, stressed out at work. One night, after Gracie has reached her breaking point, she drunk-emails her high school crush. What happens next...well, it had a lot of potential.

I thought this book was really cute, but definitely had it's share of problems. Gracie was FUNNY but their emails back and forth were so wooden. I had a hard time picturing Gracie and Colin in their 30s when they act/talk like mayyyybe 19 year olds. And Gracie is "big" and "curvy" at 5'6 and 145 lbs. Hahahahahahahahaha NO. Overall, this one had a lot of potential but ultimately fell flat.

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

3 stars. Two words: alfredo shart.

I swear, this is an actual thing mentioned early on in "The Book Proposal" by KJ Micciche. Trust me when I say that I am SURE this is the moment at least 50% of readers checked out and signed off from reading this book. I am *not* a *prude,* so I kept reading. I personally think *more* romance books should be *more* real when it comes to women, you know, functioning as actual human beings with real-life bodies, and if alfredo sharts are the way to do it, by all means, shart away! Have you never actually met an adult who acts like a teenager? I know several! They DO exist! I enjoyed the main character, Gracie, and I appreciate the fact that her life is an absolute mess. She's a little judgmental, but it didn't bother me. She teeters on "not being able to care for herself as a functioning adult" territory, but hey, some people are just terrible with money?? Does this sound like an excuse? Maybe so. I didn't love Colin as a character. Some of the stuff he says early on in the book is sexist, fatphobic, and downright rude. It sets the tone for him going forward. I couldn't for the life of me understand why Gracie wanted to be with him apart from the nostalgic feelings she had about him in high school. He sounds like a real douchebag. Because of this, I did not find myself rooting for Gracie and Colin to get together. The writing is a little all over the place. There are too many side characters who contribute nothing to the overall plot. The story is also very predictable. Luckily, you can push through this book in a day or two because it's a fast-paced read. I will admit, I skimmed a few chapters towards the end since I knew where the story was going. I rarely if ever do that, but I just wanted to be done with this book. I won't recommend it to anyone, but I think people are being way too harsh about the potty humor aspect of this novel. Stop being prudes and get over it.

Thank you to NetGalley, KJ Micciche, and SOURCEBOOKS Casablanca for providing me with an ARC copy of this book! All opinions are my own, and I was not compensated for my review.

A sassy, provocative, unlikely love story. This novel was filled with the best niche tropes: dual POVs, a former high school crush, email flirting, strangers-to-friends-to-lovers, and of course, the extrovert v. introvert romance. This is a wonderful modern parody of "You've Got Mail," with the hilarious emailing back and forth between the main characters. Grace is such a relatable protagonist and I love that she stated outright all of her insecurities for the reader to understand. Her dating history is annoyingly universal and her high school bullying story made this novel stand out to me. Her relatability and self-deprecating humor really struck a chord with me. This is the perfect read for nineties romcom film lovers and young people in their twenties who are just trying to get their act together.