To say that I loved this book would be an understatement. Will and Annie definitely made their way in to my top 5 fictional couples for 2023.

This book was feel good and heartwarming in the best way. It's a dual POV romance that you do not want to miss.

I loved how this book completely whisked me away to small town Rome, Kentucky. So many parts of this book will be living in my memory completely rent free because Sarah Adams knows how to write adorably captivating content. I felt like I was there with Will and Annie in the grocery store throwing Imodium in each others basket. I was sitting at the table right across from Annie when she observed John's phone call. I feel like I stole a few of Annie's steamy pirate novels too... they are most definitely not in a box under my bed if anyone's reading this. Don't look there, you won't find them.

Practice makes perfect has been one of my absolute favorite romance books I've read this year. I would and will recommend it to pretty much anyone that will listen. Everyone needs a "touch her and die" romance featuring a good girl and a hunky tattooed bodyguard in their life. This is a hill I will die on.

Please read this book if you like:
-Small Town Romance
-Touch her and die
-men with good communication
-good girl/bad boy
-Tattoos
-Laughing until you wheeze
-books that you wish could go on forever

Sarah Adams couldn't have said it better when she dedicated this masterpiece to the softies, the tenderhearted sweeties, and the introverts who are afraid to shine. This book is the one you didn't know you needed but you absolutely do.

I can't wait for my physical copy to arrive. I had to pre-order it IMMEDIATELY.

Thank you so much NetGalley, Sarah Adams and Random House for the ARC of Practice Makes Perfect in exchange for my honest review.

practice DEFINITELY makes perfect!!!
will and annie’s relationship had me kicking my feet up, giggling and swirling my hair. i’ve been in a deep reading slump for the past few months and within the first 5 pages, i was trapped. i loved when in rome, so i already had high standards when it came to this book. i was blown out of the water, absolutely phenomenal and i cannot wait for the next book!!!

I didn’t love this one. There were parts that I liked. I liked all the different names Annie called Will. I also like him taking care of her when she was sick. There were several other fun scenes but overall I thought the story was too focused on physical attraction and sex. I didn’t like how “hooking up” was casually discussed among some characters. I’ve enjoyed Sarah’s books in the past, but I feel like she’s definitely upping the spice in her newest books.

Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for the eARC. All opinions are my own.

It was so fun to back in Rome, KY with this cast of characters!!

Annie loves her quiet, small-town life where she owns the floral shop of her mom’s dreams, lives with her sisters, and secretly reads spicy pirate romances. But she wants more, and she hopes a marriage just like her parents had will do just the trick. The problem is she doesn’t know how to date. Enter Will Griffin, an executive protection agent (NOT bodyguard) with reputation as a ladies man who does not do relationships. Who better to teach Annie how to date?

This book felt like a love letter to the introverted and socially anxious. I was so proud of Annie’s growth throughout this book and the way she learned to stand up for herself. I laughed, I cried, I cringed, I highlighted quite a few quotes. I was glad to see Noah and Amelia (from When in Rome) still played a significant role in this story as well as all the sisters and wonderfully nosey townspeople. Also just a note that this one was definitely a little spicier than typical for Sarah Adam’s novels. If you loved When In Rome, you’ll love this sequel publishing May 2! Can’t wait for more in this series!

“This one’s for the softies, The tenderhearted sweeties, The introverts who are afraid to shine” 🥹

This read was oh so very cute. I absolutely loved Annie & Will and their honest communication was so refreshing when it comes to this genre. A small town vibe can be tiring at times, but this one was so well done that I enjoyed it. It wasn’t overbearing! I’d 1000% recommend this to any fans of an ultra cute and sappy read. I hadn’t read the first book in the series before but now I’m convinced that I need to! I’ll be adding this author to my list of “must reads” for sure.

Thank you to the publisher for the gifted ARC.

In honor of this book being released on the 2nd here is my review of the ARC. I LOVED this book!! There was so much angst between Will and Annie it was hard to not get sucked in. There were a few moments I could have lived with out. Overall, I felt those this book gave me all the feels and I highly recommend reading it!!

This book was so cute and I couldn’t put it down! Annie was such a quirky character and I loved being able to see her thoughts! Will was so sweet too loving every part of Annie and him not wanting her to change her personality one bit. But he did want her to change her fears and wanted her to become who she was always meant to be. Super cute, fun, easy, lighthearted read.

Practice Makes Perfect follows Annie who is on the quest to find her perfect match. After a bad date, her friend Amelia thinks that she just needs a little practice with dating. Will who is Amelia's bodyguard agrees to be Annie's dating coach. They both promise not to get feelings for each other, but fate has other plans. Are Annie and Will going to give in to those feelings, or will they deny themselves?

I am such a fan of Sarah Adams and I was so excited to get an advanced copy of this. I LOVED THIS BOOK SO MUCH!!!! This might be my favorite book by her. This was such a cute read. If you have not read When in Rome I would suggest reading that one before reading this one. Just due to the fact that this book had a lot of callbacks to that one. I also loved that book. I loved Annie and Will's relationship. This was one of those books that I did not want to end. I can not wait to get my physical copy so I can reread this one. I would highly suggest this and all of her books.

Thank you Sarah Adams, NetGalley, and Random House for the ARC of this book.

Practice Makes Perfect, a novel by Sarah Adams, available May 2, 2023!

First, this is an interconnected series with When in Rome, which follows Amelia and Noah’s story. I started reading Practice Makes Perfect before reading When in Rome (which was perfectly fine), but I wanted to go back and read WIR first to better grasp the whole town’s relationship and history with the characters. And I’m glad I did! But there is no reason you cannot read this book on its own. Sarah Adams does a great job recounting features from the first book, so you could read this as a standalone. However, you will find that this whole universe is so sweet that you will want to get lost in it as much as possible!

Practice Makes Perfect follows the story of Noah’s sister, Annie Walker, and Amelia’s bodyguard (errr…executive protection agent) and commitment-phobe, Will Griffin, as they fall in love under the guise of Annie needing dating practice to secure a husband. Annie and Will learn that there’s more to discover about themselves in the process, including realizing that what they actually want may be different than what they thought they always wanted.

Like WIR, this book was fast-paced, super sweet, had several laugh-out-loud moments, and made me swoon over their interactions. I loved Annie’s introverted personality, but she had this secret sizzle-ly side as a closeted romance reader. Will was a softy-at-heart (stern brunch daddy!) with a jealous, protective streak and several touch-her-and-you-die moments. As in WIR, I’m willing to overlook the fade-to-blacks. I would have taken on a different angle if there was more detail, so I respect that decision. Regardless, I loved this story, and their relationship woes and grows.

Don’t go into this book thinking you are getting a deep, pining, prophetic love story. It is just what anyone would need if they’re looking for a good, quick read – potentially a great palette cleanser in a book slump! I was grinning ear-to-ear reading this and cannot WAIT for James and Maddie’s story (which, I am proud to say I predicted even while reading WIR!).

Thank you so much to Dell (Penguin Random House) and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read an advanced (e-)reader copy and a chance to rate and review this book!

4 ⭐️ 0 🌶

This was so sweet and swoony! This one felt more Gilmore girls like than the first. A clean romance between Annie, the shy flower shop owner and Will, the tattooed bodyguard! Practice dating and adorable moments!

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review!

Practice Makes Perfect by Sarah Adams
Publishing May 2, 2023

🌸 Dual POV
🌸 Grumpy/Sunshine
🌸 Small Town

I was instantly drawn into this story, and had a hard time putting it down! I love the beginning and how we are introduced to Annie and Will. It was very entertaining and fun to read.

I did like the romance- it was very cute- but it did feel very insta love (which is not my favorite). I wish the story had taken place over a few months versus just one month. However, the dual POV was done very well, and I liked knowing what both characters were thinking and feeling as the romance developed.

I did really enjoy the small town setting and all of the side characters. I also really enjoyed how Annie and Will both grew and began to find themselves throughout the book.

I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys a cute romance!

I would like to thank NetGallary for giving me an ARC of this book!

I honestly haven't read too many of Sarah Adam's book but I did like The Cheat Sheet but wished that it was more "spicy." I would say this book is slightly more spicy compared to the Cheat sheet - the scenes are more fade to black. Overall - I enjoyed this book and it was a quick cute read. In the beginning I was not a huge fan of the FMC - she was a little too quirky and naïve for me but she honestly grew on me as I continued to read the book. I really liked the MMC and the way that him and the FMC worked together and COMMUNICATED throughout their relationship. The way that he treated her and was so patient with her was absolutely swoon worthy.

Overall nice fun cute read and recommend checking it out once it comes out!

Thank you for the opportunity to review this new novel.

I've enjoyed several other books by Sarah Adam's but this one was a disappointment.

Annie was totally unbelievable as a character. An almost thirty woman but acts like a teenager, so naive. Has she been living under a rock? How in the world can she own a business when she can't talk to people? Things don't add up in this story...

Thank you so much to the team over at Dell for this e-ARC and to NetGalley for supplying it to me!

This book single-handedly got me out of a reading slump, and for that, I am forever grateful to Sarah Adams.

This book drops you right into an awful first date that the FMC, Annie, is on… and if you’ve been on a cringey, awkward, overall BAD first date, then you’ll definitely relate to this scene. We quickly learn that Annie is looking for her future husband, but has little to no experience in the dating world. Cue the handsome, bad-boy love interest: Will.

This book is a bit insta-lovey, but I didn’t hate it. There’s really no slow burn here, and it does have one or two fade-to-black scenes, so if you’re looking for a smutty book, this isn’t the one for you. However, I found myself routing for Annie and Will’s relationship, even if Will wasn’t the most well-developed character out there.

My absolute favorite part of this book was Annie’s journey to self discovery. I found myself relating to her a lot in the second half of the book, and I appreciated how she really turned into her own person by the end of it.

Overall, this book was a really strong three-star read for me. A little cheesy, a little quirky, but a fun and easy read.

Check out my TikTok account (@gennysbookclub) for a more thorough review on the book’s release date, May 2!

Why the heck did it take me this long to pick up a Sarah Adams book?! It’s because I’m an idiot that’s why. This book felt like eating a huge cinnamon roll and then snuggling up with a cozy blanket.

I flew through this story. Everything about it was so perfect and sweet. I loved Will and Annie so much. They will forever hold a special place in my heart. I loved how mature their relationship was and how well they communicated to each other. Getting to see how they grew into themselves as individuals and as a couple made the story a hundred times better. And we can all appreciate a sexy man who can cook!

If you love a small town romance and bad boy/good girl main characters then please I’m begging you to pick this up on release day!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me a chance to read this beauty before it was released. It’s going on my favorite books of 2023 for sure.

This was perfect.

Annie and Will are perfect. That is all. I absolutely loved everything about book.

I absolutely adored this book. This is my third book by this author, and so far it’s my absolute fave. The characters felt realistic and authentic in their character wounds. I could relate to Annie and I even laughed out loud with her a few times. The banter and flirting between the two main characters had me swooning and laughing. I gave this 4.5 stars only because I like more spice (even though I know there won’t be much spice in the books)

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT brings us back to Rome, Kentucky for another fun, rompy rom-com experience, and this time it's with Annie Walker and one all-to unavailable bodyguard. I loved the set-up for this book and the way that the romance developed from friendship to more in a way that felt natural. So many books these days are billed as "rom coms" but this one truly made me laugh at times, which I appreciated.

Sarah Adams has a knack for making this *spicy* romance loving girl enjoy the softer, closed-door romantic world, and though we get some intimate scenes, I found myself not missing the spice at all.

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT is so bad it’s good — kind of.

Sarah Adams introduces us to Annie Walker, a sweet and innocent girl-next-door protagonist, and Will Griffin, devilishly handsome, bad boy extraordinaire. They meet, tailor a type of arrangement where one instructs the other on the ‘art’ of romance, and an entirely predictable storyline ensues.

But the biggest drawback to this is the outdated, ultra-traditional roles our protagonists are typecast into. Between the two MCs alone is an entire trove of stereotypes and relationship characteristics that gives the book an almost late ‘90s kind of feel. And not in a good, nostalgic sort of way.

Case in point: Womanizing Will is, of course, both emotionally unavailable and covered in tattoos, while a, quite literally nicknamed ‘angelic,’ Annie doesn’t wear a lick of makeup, nor does she have the first idea on how to seduce someone. Will is a traveling celebrity bodyguard, while Annie was born and raised in a small-town — where she’s a beloved community member and, you guessed it, flower shop owner. Will has tons of experience in the bedroom, while Annie needs to be “taught” everything. (You catch my drift.)

Is this readable? Yes. (Adams is a talented writer and it shows.) Will you roll your eyes an uncountable number of times over the many *tired* tropes deployed? Almost certainly.

*Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC.*

firstly, you’re telling me this had a virgin fmc and the only sex scene we got was a fade to black? that literally should be illegal

anywho… i’m a little on the fence about how i feel. this honestly gave off ‘enchanted’ vibes, like annie and will reminded me soo much of giselle and robert, which i kind of love. annie definitely felt way too ditzy in the beginning for me though. i know she had a whole personality transformation when she realized she wasn’t happy, but even then it was a little too much for me. and will was a classic “i don’t do relationships they bring nothing but pain i’m happy on my own” mc which is lowkey getting old to me 🤧

the storyline was also pretty dragged out in my opinion, i was like really ready for this book to be done with by the end. the whole idea was that will would be “teaching” annie about dating and whatnot and i feel like that was not really emphasized on. there were a couple of scenes and that was it, but it was basically just an excuse for both to be with each other without like actually being with each other. maybe i’m kind of just growing out of the fake dating trope or something but i was just feeling pretty eh about it all. and both characters communicated, which was great, but they were both like so set in what they wanted and what they wanted was completely different so clearly they’d never work out. and neither were really that eager to like… change their wants for the other person. and sometimes i get that, but idk. to me it’s like, if they genuinely wanted to be with each other, they would’ve made it work.

obviously they did in the end, but it wasn’t really a fun journey lmao. i loved all the amelia and noah moments, they are such an adorable couple and i’m so glad their wedding was included in this! that kept me reading lol. i honestly haven’t been too big of a fan of the other sisters, so i’m not too sure if i’ll continue reading their books if they’re published. we’ll see though.

overall, this wasn’t a horrible book despite my mini rant lol. there were definitely some cute and entertaining scenes, but i guess this just isn’t what i was anticipating. which is okay! still really enjoyed my time reading it and i’m so happy i was able to read it early! <3