I will admit I had not realized this was part of a series/saga (the way romances are) and that Sarah Adams had previously written When in Rome....based of this book I will be snatching up the first title pretty darn quickly. This was full of quirks, banter, and most importantly....COMMUNICATION. We love a bad boy who feels he is unlovable and unable to give love in return who falls for the sweetest lamb in the town and then that town is nosey (a la Gilmore Girls) and manages to butt in at every single turn. This was adorable and well worth the read.

I love this series and how this author writes. This was definitely a cute story. I enjoyed being back in Rome, Kentucky.

Definitely excited to see where the rest of this story goes

Highly recommend if you enjoy small Town romance books. Also this can be a stand alone

Sarah Adams does it again. This was amazing, adorable, steamy, everything you want in contemporary romance. I laughed, I cried, I cringed, I cheered on the characters. The book makes you feel good about humankind - a fun, feel good love story. I wish I could transport myself into the pages of this book and into Rome, Kentucky!

Sweet Annie is looking for her perfect love, but struggles on every date she goes on. When Will, a flirtatious, tattooed, bodyguard starts tutoring her on how to date. Will these two opposites follow the rules they place - or will the lines they have drawn begin to blur, and will passion take over?

Thank you Netgalley for my advanced reader copy.

“some part of me has always known I would love you”

i don’t mean to be dramatic but this is quite literally my perfect book. if i could have hand picked all of my favorite tropes, lines, characters, setting etc and put them into a book, it would be this. i am not and will never be over Will Griffin 😍🥰

Sarah Adams has done it again and continues to remind me why she is a favorite, auto buy author.

I was given the ARC by Netgalley, but all reviews and thoughts are my own 🌸🥹🩷

This book is ADORABLE! I loved so many things about it:

- male main character bodyguard
- the flower shop
- social anxiety rep
- dating practice
- sizzling slow burn with steamy moments, but closed door!
- deeper profound moments for the characters
- constant honest communication

This book checked all the boxes for me, and I loved how it was a quick read that I could fully immerse myself in. I can see myself rereading this every summer!

Writing Aesthetic/Style: 5
Plot/Movement: 5
Character Development: 5
Overall: 5

Thank you, Ballantine and NetGalley, for the arc!

Trigger/Content Warnings: past parent deaths, toxic childhood with emotional abuse recounted, kisses

This was my first book by Sarah Adams and definitely won’t be my last! The story is told from a dual POV. Annie runs a local flower shop in a small town of Rome, Kentucky. Will is a bodyguard temporarily back in town. I found myself laughing out loud throughout the book. I enjoyed the sweet, swoon worthy moments. I loved the open and honest communication between Annie and Will. The closed-door romance was really well done and Sarah sure has a way with words. This was such a fun and happy book!

okay I really really wanted to like this one, but sadly, I'm beginning to think that sarah adams just isn't for me :(

the setting and the vibes of the plot were just boring to me. it didn't have any of the charm of a typical hallmark style romcom, and I couldn't connect to any of the characters in the town at all! I think there was potential there (obviously or I wouldn't have picked it up lol), but the fast-paced instant-love connection just wasn't for me.

at the root of the problem, annie and will, the two MCs, have instant love, which is all of the "love at first sight" and none of the cuteness behind it. for two almost thirty year olds, they acted like they were still in high school or college at best between their dialogue, miscommunication, and assumptions about each other. the tropes of the two MCs were stereotypical between the FMC wanting to settle down and start a family and the MMC wanting to live his life out.

I think stories like this one are cute in theory, but do absolutely nothing for the society of women who want to also live their dreams beyond settling down and starting a family before the age 0f 30. annie acted like it was a huge deal to not even consider a life with will if he wasn't willing to change his ways, and it was a bit cringe at times.

for those looking for a quick and easy read, however, definitely give this one a shot!

thank you to netgalley and random house for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review!

rating: 2 stars
wine pairing: virigina rosé (pinot noir)

Annie Walker leads a quiet life running a flower shop in the town of Rome. She is the sweetheart of the town and even her siblings call her "Angel Annie" a moniker she really does not enjoy. Annie feels like something is missing in her life and she thinks finding the perfect match might be the answer. She decides to go on a date and very quickly realizes it is not going well, so, she excuses herself to the bathroom to regroup but on her way back she overhears her date on the phone saying that she is unbelievably boring. This forces Annie to wonder if she just might be the problem. Enter Will, a tattooed executive protection officer who is back in to protect Amelia Rose as publicity around her upcoming nuptials has resulted in paparazzi presence in town. Amelia is engaged to Noah, Annie's brother. Amelia decides that Annie needs some practice and that Will is the perfect person for the job. Will wants no part in the shenanigans but doesn't want Annie to be practicing with anyone else either. He agrees to help but knows that a straight-laced guy will not make this sweet girl happy. The more practice they do the more the lines of their friendship blur.

Practice Makes Perfect was absolutely perfect! I loved it and couldn’t put it down! There was so much romance and cute humor throughout the book and it was such a fun read!

I loved this book so much. I loved the characters and I loved the side characters. The side characters really just make this story so much better and the unity in the community is admirable. Rome seems like such a lovely place to live. I love how we had dual POV’s so that we could see Will fall in love over the course of the story and Annie becomes more confident in herself. What a romantic town and what a romantic story. He was soooo in love with her the whole time I was yelling at my Kindle being like “WILL YOU LITERALLY LOVE HER YOU IDIOT!”

I absolutely loved how much of Noah and Amelia we got in this book. Because even though they are now side characters, I loved how often they came up in the book and in such a subtle way too. The sense of family love was so touching, especially when Annie finally came clean to her siblings about how they were making her feel.

I honestly lost count of how many times this book made me actually love out loud. During Annie’s little league date with Brandon, when Amelia’s showed up wearing a fake mustache, I literally was cracking up. Such a fantastic book, I can’t wait to read more by Sarah Adams.

In Practice Makes Perfect we return to Rome, Kentucky and follow Annie, one of the sisters from When in Rome. While “inexperienced virgin” is not my favorite trope, when I forgot that part of the plot I really really enjoyed this book.

The communication and banter was top notch and Will Griffen makes an EXCELLENT reformed bad boy. You know what’s going to happen as soon as you start the book in that perfect rom com story arc way and you’ll find yourself smiling as you read along.

While this is easily read as a stand-alone it was fun to revisit the characters from the first book and there’s the perfect set up for a third in this interconnected series. I would recommend this book as well as the other in this series. Thank you Random House and NetGalley for the advanced e-copy of this book.

I'm a sucker for a cartoon cover romance book, and this book did not disappoint. Only after I finished it, was I told it was a sequel! Which, I will go back and read because I enjoyed this story so much. All that to say: I didn't need to have any knowledge from the first book to make this book enjoyable.

I love the fake dating trope, and if you toss in a grumpy/sunshine trope, I'm all in for the story. I could have used more spice, but it being closed door didn't deter my enjoyment of the story. I love how fleshed out each of the characters were, and the small town element with everyone in everyone else's business always make me laugh, because that's exactly how the small town my parents are from is. This was adorable, and funny, and I'm sad the story is over.

This is a cute, fast read, and will have you smiling from ear to ear as you're reading. The ending really had me laughing and I would love to know more about Annie and Will's life after this.

I was given access to this book in exchange for my honest review.

I was lukewarm on Sarah Adams first book, it was a little too hallmark for me, but I liked this one better. There was great banter and I thought it was so funn

This was the cutest and most light hearted book I’ve read in a while!! Loved that there wasn’t a lot of miscommunication and it’s a unique take on fake dating. Plus all the side characters are amazing, need to go back and read the first one while crossing my fingers that more are coming! There was a stretch of the book where I got tired of the will they won’t they, but it redeemed itself shortly after.

Thank you to Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I read the prequel to the book, When in Rome, about Amelia & Noah’s love story. I found this to be a fantastic follow up book because my favorite part of that book was the small town & busy-bodied characters especially Mabel and Noah’s sisters. This story is about one of Noah’s sisters, Annie, and Amelia’s bodyguard, Will. Although the premise of their ‘practice dating’ is a bit unrealistic, I was hooked with the story from the very beginning and really enjoyed this sweet story. My only negative feedback would be that I need more steamy details! I definitely recommend reading When in Rome first, as the character development is very enduring and adds my to the story. I believe the author has hinted that James and Maddie may be her next story and I can’t wait to read it!

this was adorable, very silly and cliche but in the most fun way! Closed-door and Hallmark-esque, I found the MC very relatable and loved going back to the town of Rome, KY. This was even more fun if you have read When in Rome. I plan on reading any book Adams publishes!

thank you so, so much netgalley and random house publishing group - ballantine/dell for the advanced reader copy. i feel so bad that i read this after the publishing date, but i went out and got my own physical copy since i absolutely adore this book. this is my top 1 book of 2023 and i stand by that. so you all know this is an automatic 5 ⭐!

i requested the arc very early (february-ish) and i saw that netgalley and the publishers accepted my request during the last week before this book was about to release. however, i cannot believe this was my first sarah adams book. i was planning on reading "when in rome" but i wanted to save that for summer. this book can be standalone, but there were some characters from "when in rome." 🍂🥧🏡🌾🐦

i cannot tell you how much i love the main character, annie, because i strongly relate to her. i never highlight anything in my kindle, but i was highlighting annie's thoughts (all throughout the book) because i just found her so relatable. like i know sarah adams wrote this book for the introverted people who are misunderstood, but in all honesty, they just want to be seen and heard and have this magical fairytale of a love story they see in romance books. so thank you for making a relatable character, sarah adams. 🌼🌹🌺🌷💕🌈🌸

furthermore, in my opinion, i thought this book dives deep into the characters. adams was able to talk about annie and will's (the love interest) backstories and why they are the person they are at that time. personally, i love those storylines because even if i love a good romance, i also love a good emotional connection. by doing that, both characters had amazing character development from start to finish. that is where i perceived the romance portion to be the subplot of the story. the romance was just put at the right moments (i don't even know if i'm making any sense since i don't want to give spoilers).

will griffin! he is in contender for best book boyfriend. i love how he was just so caring and smitten towards annie. like i wish i can write a whole essay about how he and annie were made for each other. for instance, he bought apology flowers and made her favorite soup. like WHAT, that is so cute. will becomes annie's dating tutor/coach to help with her social awkwardness during dates, but we all know that they like each other (it's complicated though once you read more into the book). the communication was just key in the book, if something was wrong then communication to the problem was resolved instantly. additionally, there was spice in the book but it was more tension building up between annie and will. there were not any explicit scenes, it was more of fade-to-black scenes which i found kind of romantic knowing both characters' personalities.

and i love the "when in rome" references, like i did not read the book but i can tell noah and amelia are couple goals and are in love with each other. i feel like there will be another book in regards to the rome, kentucky series by how sarah adams set it up near the end. i'm probably wrong though. but this book is now my new joker and my new personality. overall, this book was giving reputation vibes by taylor swift, alongside out of the woods. 🫶🫶🫶

thank you netgalley, random house publishing group - ballantine, dell, and sarah adams for giving me an arc and for writing this amazing book! if you love a dual-pov, good small-town romance, love at first sight, and fake dating trope then this book is for you!!!! the book is already released, so go get your copy (if you want to!) i'll never forget about this book, will probably re-read it during the summer.⏰☀️👒🌷🌸💗

I had no idea how much my soul needed this book. Will and Annie are perfection.

The writing was enticing, the banter was on point, I laughed way too many times, the steam was absolute perfection, and it had some very poignant and endearing moments. I loved the realizations each character went through and the fact they could effectively communicate these realizations to others around them.

I related to Annie so much, and seeing her finally overcome the stereotypes that were put on her was such a powerful journey. Her being misunderstood and put into a box for so long was frustrating, but watching her finally come into her own made me ecstatic. Will's character growth was equally as satisfying; I do loves me some gruff men who aren't afraid to be vulnerable.

The ending was exactly what I wanted, too. It was different than previous SA books have been, and that's what really pushed this to a 5 star for me. I love more realistic endings, even in my romance books, so having this one defy the expected was right up my alley.

Read if you love: good girl/bad boy, friends to lovers, fake dating, small towns, bodyguard romance, fade to black/closed door romance.

I savoured this book. I didn’t want it to end. It had me smiling like crazy and just was the sweet, cozy read I’ve come to expect from Sarah.

Annie and Will were so fantastic together. They had beautiful chemistry and great banter. Annie just bloomed with him and Will was able to open up.

I swooned and giggled, but I also got teary eyed and emotional. It was wonderful. Probably my favourite of her books I’ve read!

Oh my gosh!!!! I don’t even have words!! Annie and Will were just…… amazing. The banter between the two, the romantic tension between the two, the hilarious antics, the meddling town, the dating coach lesions, town meetings, morning jogs through town, watching little league, going out to the bar, Noah and Emilia’s wedding. It was all amazing. I absolutely love Sarah Adams and this book was no exception. Annie’s character was amazing. I could feel me in so many actions and feeling that Annie had. Annie is so relatable on so many levels. There are so many hilarious and favorite parts I felt like I was highlighting the whole book.
It was so great to see the continuation of Noah and Emilia’s love story and I can’t wait to see what sister is up next and who she’s going to be paired with.
Please don’t tell Bre and Nathan but I think this might be my favorite Sarah Adams book!!!!! Shhhhhhh
Thank you to the author for my advanced copy. These words are my own.