This story put my emotions through the wringer! It gave us this crazy emotional roller coaster for two people who needed to be together but just couldn’t figure themselves out enough in order to get there. I will also appreciate how Ava Wilder’s writing sucks you in and gets you fully invested in the world she’s created. I was on the edge of my seat, desperate to know how things ended for these two MCs that I grew inexplicably attached to over the course of the book. I definitely felt the push and pull between the MCs as implied by the title, but did wish to see a bit more chemistry between them.

I was given an ARC by NetGalley and Random House. All opinions are my own.

Read if you like:
🎥 TV Stars
✨ Celebrity Gossip
💋 Enemies to Lovers
⏳ Past and Present
2️⃣ Dual POV
🗣️ Micommunication

This one is filled with angst as we get Lilah and Shane. They have the chemistry for days and you can tell from their connection the way it comes off the page even when they are enemies that they have a papable connection that is just undeniable.

This one is definitely heavy on the tension and the back and forth as we time jump around to the different parts of their 9 years of knowing each other whether they were hooking up, falling in love, hating each other, or just flat out denying themselves happiness that they could have together.

With this there clearly is miscommunication but the way it is done with Lilah unable yo let anyone in and let anyone love her with Shane being a freaking cinnamon roll was so well done for me.

It did take me a bit to get hooked and through this one so that’s the only part where I feel my rating is decreased but otherwise it was an enjoyable steamy and tension filled read of soulmates trying to figure out their shit so they could be together.

Thank you so much to the publisher, Dell for my ARC in exchange for my honest review!

Third "SNL" reference in a romance this year, what's up with that?

Is this lovers to enemies to lovers? Is "get out of your own way" a trope name? I love to watch people grow and bring that growth to relationships, so this book was absolutely for me. You don't have to know the couples, shows, and fandoms that inspired it, although it's funny when you do. You don't have to be invested in Hollywood to enjoy the relationship, although it does feel a little behind the scenes for those who are into that. All in all, just a very fun book about two people with incredibly chemistry who act like fools for a while, and don't we all need that kind of escapism every once in a while?

Lilah and Shane do a fantastic job of convincing world they are in love on their hit TV show.  The twist? In real life, they can't stand each other.  Through nine years, we see their relationship play out through "then" and "now" timelines.  How did they get to this point, and will they be able to keep putting aside their differences?

The chemistry and angst between Lilah and Shane were off the charts. As the title suggests, there was an intense "will they, won't they" theme of the book that never got old.  The past was mixed in the present to keep things fresh, and you got perspectives from both of the characters to understand why things were so bad between them.  The banter (one of my favorite things about romances) was pretty decent.  The pull between them was intense.  Both characters have flaws that inevitably leads to misunderstandings and miscommunications that dooms their relationship in the earlier years. Being forced to work together brought them closer, but personal growth and maturity helped them later on.  The book spans about ten years, so you really see the ups and downs.  I was overall very entertained by this (I read it in a day) and I can even see it being a successful movie if it ever comes to that (just putting that out into the universe) .

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

The second chance trope isn't always my favorite, because by the nature of the trope the reader already knows the MCs are going to end up together. That said, I didn't dislike this book.

There are a couple of really good things about it:
*Nice character development. Lilah, the female MC has anxiety issues and, at the start of the book, it causes her to be extremely unlikeable. Shane is *not perfect* by any means, but his nature is such that Lilah can relax, and becomes confident enough to be herself around him.
*Celebrity done well. I've said in other reviews that I usually try to stay away from "celebrity" books. This is because usually they're one-sided, and the perceived power balance (be it popularity, wealth, political influence, etc) is so skewed. In this book, however, because both characters are celebrities, they are pretty even with regards to their fame. This made their relationship more believable with regards to give and take.
*Pacing was really good. There was time enough to develop the relationship well (and to deal with the past), while still moving the story forward.

Overall, this was quite a fun read, and I would definitely recommend it to those who like contemporary romance, and especially those who appreciate the second chance romance or celebrity romance tropes.

Please note: this was an ARC provided to me by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Genre: contemporary romance
Setting: Los Angeles
POV: dual, 3rd person, past tense
Tropes: lovers to enemies to lovers, second chance romance, dual timeline, celebrity, hate sex, one bed 
Spice Level: 4/5🌶, 3-4 explicit scenes

What I Thought: This book has so many of my favorite tropes and I adored this author’s debut novel, so I was super excited to get this ARC! I thought Ava did a great job showing how hurt people can hurt people, as well as the importance of therapy. One of the characters has anxiety and as someone who also struggles with that, I appreciated how it was handled! This story spans nearly a decade and I loved seeing the character mature and take their relationship from just a physical connection to a really emotional one. The chemistry and tension is SO HOT!

Read This Book If…you love characters who mature before your very eyes!

Memorable Quote: “I don’t want to lose you as a friend.” “We’ve never been friends, Lilah.”

When I read Charlotte’s DIK review of Ava Wilder’s début romance novel, How to Fake it in Hollywood last year, I was intrigued enough to want to read it, which I did – in audio – a few months later. I enjoyed it a great deal, so when the author’s next book – set in the world of television - came up for review, I grabbed it straightaway. I’ve always been a sucker for TV shows where the UST between the leads leaps through the screen, so the premise of Will They or Won’t They – a second chance romance between a couple who are the stars of a popular TV show - was right up my alley.

Lilah Hunter and Shane McCarthy meet for the first time at a ‘chemistry’ audition for a new paranormal TV series called Intangible. Lilah started acting in school, the security of having a script in front of her, and being able to slip into someone else’s skin something she found helped her to deal with her anxiety issues. She went on to study at Juilliard, and when the book begins, is twenty-two and doing her first rounds of TV pilot season auditions. By contrast, Shane has no acting experience and was literally ‘spotted’ while waiting tables at a popular restaurant; he still isn’t quite sure why he’s even there. Right from the start, there’s a spark between them; Lilah is instantly drawn to his dark good looks and his unaffected manner – he’s self-deprecating and his charm is completely natural, unlike many actors she’s met - and she can’t deny the thrum of attraction she feels, even though she’s sure acting on it would be a bad idea.

Nine years later, and with the ninth season of the show set to be its final one, Lilah is returning to Intangible after an absence of over three years. She left at the end of season five to make a movie that, for a number of reasons not to do with her performance, bombed, and which affected her career and reputation negatively. She’s worked since, of course, but hasn’t landed anything particularly good or high profile, so when she’s asked to rejoin the cast of Intangible for the final season, she isn’t really in a position to say no. Needless to say, most of the cast and crew aren’t jumping for joy; those who were around when she left feel as though she abandoned the people who gave her her big break and aren’t above nursing a grudge now she’s come (as they see it) crawling back after the bigger and better things she’d left them for didn’t pan out. And chief amongst them is her co-star.

Shane is still hurt, not only at Lilah for leaving, but for some of the things she said and did when she left. Through a few well-placed flashbacks, we learn that the chemistry Lilah and Shane experienced at their first meeting and audition quickly translated into hooking up, and then to hanging out with each other so that by the end of the first season, they were pretty much inseparable. When Lilah realised that what had started out as ‘just sex’ was starting to turn into something else, she ended things between them, much to Shane’s bewilderment. For the next four years and four seasons, the pair of them avoided each other where possible and fought like cat and dog when it wasn’t, while somehow managing to continue to burn up the screen whenever they were on it together. (That reminded me of Bruce Willis and Cybill Shepherd (Moonlighting), who reputedly couldn’t stand each other yet had the most incredible on-screen chemistry.)

Lilah’s first few days back on the show don’t go well. It’s not that she’d expected otherwise, but still… it’s tough, especially with Shane being such a dick. But she’s a professional and is there to do a job; she and Shane managed to work together before, and they can do it again – but it’s not long before the higher-ups notice that something is wrong, and the two of them are basically ordered to attend some couples therapy sessions to try to work through whatever is causing the friction between them. Neither of them relishes the thought of a stroll down memory lane with each other, but they can’t refuse and attend with very bad grace. At least to start with. But slowly, they start talking, really talking, and we see them starting to take down barriers and allowing themselves to become more vulnerable to each other as they start to air their grievances and to get a better understanding of where they were both coming from back then. The honest communication leads to character growth, a new appreciation of each other and – hopefully – a way to repair their working relationship. But what happens when the feelings they’ve both tried so hard to forget and ignore turn out to be not as dead and buried as they’d thought?

Lilah and Shane are appealing characters, although I have to admit that I found Lilah hard to warm to. I liked a lot about her - she’s talented, driven and intelligent, and she’s thoughtful and kind (to everyone except Shane!) - but she’s also guilty of one of my pet peeves in romance, where one character doesn’t see why or how the other can possibly love them, and because of that, completely invalidates that person’s feelings. As the story progresses, the author shows exactly why Lilah is like that, but it takes her a long time – well after she and Shane have repaired their friendship - to realise that she’s still dismissing his feelings.

Like Lilah, Shane is at a career crossroads. He doesn’t know where he goes from here and worries he’s a one trick pony – he doesn’t know if he’s cut out for an acting career; he doesn’t know if he even wants to continue to act. Shane is a sweetheart, despite Lilah’s assertions to the contrary; easy-going and affable with a good sense of humour, and a willingness to be vulnerable that makes him very attractive. My other quibble with the book is that Lilah’s hostility towards Shane seems really over the top – I couldn’t work out what he’d done that was so terrible, and as she’s usually the first to say something unkind or unwarranted, I couldn’t really blame him for retaliating. Lilah is so tied up in knots trying to protect herself from him – and feeling angry with herself for still wanting him - that she often assigns motives to him that he doesn’t have and blows up the slightest thing into a huge affront.

I generally like second-chance romances; the idea of a couple facing up to and addressing the misunderstandings and misconceptions that led to the breakdown of their relationship and finding their way to a new, stronger and more mature one is what draws me in, and Ava Wilder does a spectacularly good job with this one. As in How to Fake it in Hollywood, the author explores the negative sides of fame and celebrity culture and the danger of falling for a co-star, showing that neither Shane nor Lilah was really prepared for the way their lives would change once Intangible became such a hit, and how Lilah, especially, hated the idea of their relationship becoming gossip fodder. The chemistry between Lilah and Shane is some of the most intense I’ve ever read, and there’s a palpable undercurrent of tension running throughout the book as we get to know them and how they see each other, and as they both realise that there’s still the potential for much more than a good working relationship between them.

Will They or Won’t They is an emotional, heartfelt romance between two people who have to grow up a bit to realise they’re made for each other, and I was glued to it from start to finish. The ending does feel a little rushed, but that didn’t stop me from enjoying the hell out of it and putting it straight on the keeper shelf. Highly recommended.

🦇 Book Review 🦇

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

❝ She suddenly understood, with a nauseating surge of regret, what a precious thing she'd been so careless with all those years ago, too blinded by distrust and self-loathing to see it standing right in front of her, if she'd only been brave enough to reach for it. ❞

❓ #QOTD Who is your celebrity crush? ❓

🦇 Synopsis

❝ The point was that he loved her now...The kind of love that cast a warm glow back through time, all the way to their first meeting, reframing the past through the lens of the present. Powerful enough to illuminate the protective shell she'd thought surrounded her heart, revealing that it wasn't a shell at all, but a cocoon. Her heart hadn't been calcifying, it had been biding its time, breaking down and rearranging at the molecular level until it was finally safe to burst free and reveal itself, trembling and brilliant and brand new. ❞

💜 From the first chapter, Ava Wilder does an outstanding job at creating the type of sizzling tension and undeniable chemistry of a book you would expect with this title; the type of chemistry that will keep you reading page after page, starved for more. The true feat here is Wilder's tendency to take, restructure, and defy rom-com tropes that easily would have made this story predictable. There's insta-love, but not in the boring, obvious, or nauseating sense we're accustomed to. Focused on the present, the story is an enemies-to-lovers second-chance romance, but when you rewind to the true beginning, it's far more complex than that. There's even a third act break up (which, at the first indication of it, made me put the book down for a second), but NOT; a twist that's so beautifully compromised that I'm shocked I didn't see it. Lilah and Shane have layers upon layers of characterization, making them real and painful and raw in ways that make empathizing with their decisions easy (once you see the whole picture). Lilah's social anxiety gives the story a mental health focus that seems natural amidst the behind-the-scenes chaos of the film industry (and my gf works in film, so I hear about it plenty). Meanwhile, Shane's people-pleaser demeanor is a guise for his insecurities. While they've both earned their fame, we see the double standard between men and women, too. Wilder touches on so many real-world concepts without blatantly telling, instead showing through Lilah and Shane's shared (and separate) experiences. The character growth between them is stunning, but better yet, Wilder leaves them in a place that demonstrates they'll KEEP on growing—whether together or apart.

🦇 Though I have a long list of pet peeve tropes, a miscommunication-powered plot is one of the biggest. The entire story relies on Lilah and Shane failing to express how they're feeling, or saying the wrong things out of anger, or making assumptions because of their failure to communicate. However, I deeply appreciate the solution to put them into couple's counseling, to force them to recognize what they're feeling, and how to communicate it. They progress from therapy to saying the smallest things unprompted outside of therapy—you see their growth and willingness to try as time goes on. However, anyone who's watched Ted Lasso knows good stories don't need to rely on miscommunication; there's real talent in writing adult characters who are beyond that.

🦇 Recommended to fans of sweet, blistering tension, the harsh but tantalizing bite only enemies to lovers can provide, and second-chance romances you can't help but root for.

✨ Vibes ✨
💔 Lovers to Enemies to Lovers
🎥 Dual POV & Timeline
🎬 Mental Health Focus
🎥 Immediate, Constant Chemistry
💔 Second-Chance Romance

🦇 Major thanks to the author @avawilderwrites and publisher @randomhouse for providing an ARC of this book via Netgalley. 🥰 This does not affect my opinion regarding the book. #WillTheyorWontThey #Netgalley #NetgalleyReview #BallantinePublishing #DellPublishing #AvaWilder

True to its name - Will They Or Won’t They kept me on my toes the entire time. I loved seeing Lilah and Shane’s relationship and the whole rollercoaster that it was. I could really connect with Lilah’s anxiety and how Shane falls so hard so quickly. There was a lot of miscommunication and that always breaks your heart for the characters who have undeniable chemistry. This book was so perfect with the pacing and the flashbacks and I loved every minute of it!

5/5 - Thank you to @netgalley, Random House, Ballantine Books and Ava Wilder for an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review! OUT JUNE 27TH and I’m telling you right now you best be on your way to pre-order it!

You guys I read this in two days. And I could NOT put it down. The angst! My god! Second chance romance is my favorite type of story, but add in a dual POV, lovers to enemies to lovers and a celebrity component and I'm hooked. Honestly the title and cover threw me off because I thought this would be lighter than it was and I’m SO glad I was wrong. I ended up highlighting a lot and there are passages that I’m still thinking about.

This is my first book by Wilder (I’ve since put her first novel on hold) and I absolutely love her writing style - every scene felt so real and layered and detailed. She has a gift with language, that’s for sure. The tension and build between Lilah and Shane was intense but so was the emotional unraveling. These two are complicated and stubborn!

I loved how therapy was a big part of this story and that both characters had to unpack a lot individually and together. Lilah and Shane are famous, but they are also incredibly relatable - their struggles, fears and insecurities about themselves and their relationship are universal. And their chemistry! Gah! The intimate scenes were super sexy - like, smoldering - but written with such passion, intention and tenderness.

There were also great themes layered in about double standards for men and women generally but especially in Hollywood, being vulnerable with yourself and others, and taking risks. Overall this is a top read of mine and I can’t wait to read more from Wilder!

Such a cute story. The only reason I took a star off was because it was written in 3rd person and whenever I read a book written that way, which isn't often, I find it harder to connect with the characters. I also have a harder time feeling the characters connect with each other. But, that's a me problem, not the authors. I also took that 5th star away because as much as I enjoyed the story, I wish the conflict was due to something other than miscommunication. I think that's fine if it's not the entire reason or if it doesn't get out of control, but unfortunately it was. The chemistry and sexual tension between Shane and Lilah was really great though, so that helped. Overall it was a good, likeable story and I'm glad I received an early copy to read through netgalley.

4.5 stars

Synopsis: Lilah Hunter and Shane McCarthy were co-stars in a hit paranormal TV show, Intangible. On camera, they spent years pining over one another, but off camera, their complicated personal relationship resulted in them hating each other. When they're brought back together to film a ninth, final season, Lilah and Shane are forced to confront their past so that they can sell their characters' happy ending.

Thoughts: Both Lilah and Share are richly created characters who have dimension and flaws. The backdrop of film/television was also fun, and allowed the reader to have a glimpse into the "behind the scenes" elements such as intimacy coordinators. I also liked the incorporation of mental health and therapy-- in fact, I had hoped for a bit more of their "couples" counseling, as I enjoyed these scenes the most!

Thank you to Ballantine for my gifted copy.

After reading Ava Wilder's first book, seeing this on my netgalley page had me running! Wilder has a way of writing that seems like a cut above the rest of our popular booktok authors. It is descriptive and develops the characters without becoming too much or giving too much for the reader to disgust and remember. The plot was interesting with some of our favourite booktok tropes thrown in.I'm really excited for this book to hit the shelves because a physical copy is in order! (I ONLY purchase physical copies of books I love). Also this cover is EVERYTHING.

Bravo Wilder and thank you Netgalley for the chance to read and review.

I loved this book so much! Ava Wilder's debut, HOW TO FAKE IT IN HOLLYWOOD, was one of my favorite romances of 2022, so I was especially excited to read WILL THEY OR WON'T THEY. And I think I may have enjoyed this one even more! Celebrity romance and enemies-to-lovers are two of my absolute favorite tropes, so I was all in from the very start. WILL THEY OR WON'T THEY follows Lilah and Shane, stars of a hit TV show who reunite to film its final season. It's true love for their characters—but in real life, the two can't stand each other. Will they be able to put their messy history aside in order to give the show the ending it deserves? And in the process, could Lilah and Shane find their own happily-ever-after, even when it seems practically impossible?

Lilah and Shane's chemistry was so well-written and palpable—from romance to angst to drama, each aspect of their connection was given so much depth and development. And, of course, their banter! Their interactions! The pining and tension! As their relationship evolved, they also matured as characters, which I enjoyed reading about just as much. I personally loved both the Jewish rep and the anxiety rep we got with Lilah's character. Her struggles with self-sabotage, letting others in, and realizing that she was deserving of love and success were also painfully relatable, even at their most frustrating points! Shane's growth was perfectly done, too—his journey to stop people-pleasing and living for others, and figure out what he truly wants, was really relatable and meaningful to see. I was rooting for both of them from start to finish, as individuals and as a couple, which made the ending even more satisfying. Ava Wilder has become an auto-buy author for me—definitely add her latest to your shelf this summer! Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Thanks to Netgallery for providing this book in exchange of an honest review.

This one makes me sad. I'm always excited and grateful every time I am given an ARC. This one in particular was very exciting. The whole premise seem fun and entertaining. However, the miscommunication trope is TOO strong in this book. I couldn't seem to see any chemistry between the characters, and they were just toxic together. I didn't find them likable at all. The internal monologues were very long and repetitive.

I wish I liked this book more, I really do but it was so hard to get through.

What I do want to say, is that the anxiety representation on this book was good. It felt real. Other than that I can't recommend this book.

Again, thanks to Netgallery for the ARC.

How do I feel when my heart is crushed yet repaired at the same time? That’s how I felt throughout reading Will They or Won’t They?" It’s such an angsty second-chance romance with a messy past and these messy characters.

Let’s start at the beginning. Will They or Won’t They starts off with Lilah and Shane reuniting again after not seeing each other for several years. And it’s not great between them. They have a history with each other. It’s messy and raw between them. And I am loving every second of it. If I am going to read about a second chance romance, then it needs to be full of emotions. The more angsty it is, the better the redemption. That’s my motto for a second-chance romance book.

But let’s get back on track. Lilah and Shane may not have seen each other, but they still have feelings for each other, even though they hate each other at the moment. We don’t get the full reasons for their breakup in the beginning, but we surely will when they start having therapy sessions. It may be inconvenient for them because they can’t stand each other in the same room, but it’s necessary since they have a full TV season to film.

These therapy sessions between them are the perfect tools for them. They have so much built up between them that they can finally express all of their feelings. It may not be pleasant at the time, but it’s necessary. Nothing is white or black in a relationship. There is always some miscommunication that can create resentment or fallout in relationships. And that’s what Lilah and Shane are going to realize as they progress into their therapy sessions, aka their pasts.

I will say that their past is messy. Like really messy. But that’s expected between them when you start a relationship when you are younger and work together. That will create a lot of miscommunication and tension in any relationship. It’s a good thing they have therapy. But expect a lot of tears, frustrations, and happiness while you journey with them as they revisit their past together in their therapy sessions. I know that I did.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for the ARC!
This follows the story of Lilah and Shane, who are costars on a paranormal TV show brought back together for one final season after Lilah's several-year hiatus. I normally am not a fan of celebrity romance tropes, but this one was a fresh take on it. Throughout of the book we see the progression of their "hate/love" relationship, with flashbacks of where it all started when they were both starting out on the show.
liked the themes of them both working through their mental health and personal issues. Sometimes they frustrated me to the point I wanted to tell them to both shut up. But the way it ended was perfect! I really enjoyed this one!

This was a fun and steamy second chance romance with a Hollywood setting. These costars just could not figure out what they wanted. It was painful at times to watch them fight each other, but when they were on, it was so good.

I often felt like it needed to speed things up a little, but I really liked the ending.

3.5 rounded up

This book has some of my favorite tropes (second chance, enemies to lovers, forced proximity), but at first I was unsure I that was going to be able to connect with the characters OR even root for them to find their HEA. This changed throughout the story, and I am glad that their development as individuals was not rushed.

The tension, and constant will they wont they, had me on the edge of my seat with my heart racing. The twist at the end had my heart dropping, but was such a perfect addition.

The premise of this book sounded excellent, but unfortunately I found the main characters to be very bland.