Skip to main content

Member Reviews

I will be honest, the cover is what attracted me to this cute book!! The book follows Sophie Lyon who had a little luck with her first book, however, she is struggling to make her second book happen and has been given 6 weeks to get it done or lose her contract. Her problem is, she can’t write a happily ever after for her characters when her own luck in love has been not so good. After a video of her going viral, drunk and proclaiming that love isn’t real, she knows she’s ruined any chances of finishing her book.

While Dash, her best friends brother as well as her landlord, isn’t looking for something serious, Sophie is. Dash comes from a famous family and has his own struggles with sobriety. Throughout the book, their relationship grows closer and they both realize they’re better together. Sophie never felt cared for in her previous relationships, and I love how she’s pansexual- and with Dash, she’s able to be herself.

This is my first book by Erin La Rosa and it was sweet and an amazing read!! I would definitely recommend this book if you’re looking for a cute and quick romance story.

In case of trigger warnings, there are mentions of sobriety/alcoholism.

Thank you NetGalley and Harlequin for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my review!!

Was this review helpful?

I loved this book so much! I really didn’t know what it was about when I started reading it, but I quickly was obsessed! The characters are well developed, and I couldn’t help but love them all!

Was this review helpful?

First let me thank netgalley, Canary Street Press and Erin La Rosa for the opportunity of receiving an eARC.

The book cover was the one that caught my attention. A girl with a book next to a guy with tattoos. I’m sold.

“The truth is that I am in love, but the person I love is dealing with a lot of personal things they have to work out. And as much as I’d like to be with them, I’m giving them the space they need. I don’t know if we’ll be together at the end. But I do know that I have my happily ever after, because I love them, and that’s all I need.”

The book revolves around Sophie and Dash. Sophie is an author and dash is actor from a well known family. His famous brother is the top actor. So he is famous more famous that Sophie.

Let’s say Sophie and Dash like each other but because of the best friend that happens to be the sister they never allowed those feelings to get out that’s it until Sophie goes famous on tiktok.

Let’s the games begin. You will enjoy it as much as I enjoyed reading the book. Friends to lovers type of story.

Was this review helpful?

Obsessed with Dash and Sophie! Erin’s writing really does it for me and this book was no different than her first. I could not stop turning pages from the moment I started because she has a great way of writing banter! This book was funny, emotional, witty, and overall such a heartfelt romance. Not only did this book have a little forbidden trope but it also had neighbors trope, bff brother, and childhood celeb tropes involved that made this a 5 star for me! Omg how can I forget a one bed trope!!

Dash’s story in dealing with his alcoholism was written with care in my opinion and could be hard for some folks to read so please read with caution.

I feel like romance readers will be able to relate to Sophie’s character so much as she goes on the tour of the ex’s to find out why none of her past relationships have worked.

I hope you enjoy this book as much as I did!

Was this review helpful?

A cute rom com for any rom com lover where a former child star with a famous family and a struggling romance author cross paths.

I did like the main characters and found both Dash and Sophie to be unique and interesting. I like that Dash’s story and complicated relationship with sobriety highlights the difficult journey battling addiction is. It’s not easy to talk about, but I found his story to be handled gently and empathetically, especially in regards to the isolation that addiction can cause regarding relationships and friendships. Sophie was a fun and gentle soul of a character who was adorable and so supportive of Dash. I really liked how well they respected each other and how despite having their own conflicts and issues with communication, they were very supportive and clear with each other for the most part. I also really liked having a main character with a pacemaker as us younger generations with heart issues are often overlooked and underrepresented. I also really liked that Sophie was pansexual and how it really shaped her story. It was nice having some positive representation!

As for the writing, while it was good and kept me interested for a lot of the book, there’s still a lot of editing that needs to be done. The story itself felt rather tropey and felt like the tropes took precedence in development over the plot and characters. There’s also a heavy TikTok influence and while I don’t mind pop culture references, it has to be done right and it felt a little cringey at times, even if it played a large role in the story. The side characters were okay but I didn’t really get invested in any of them as they felt rather underdeveloped and very much side characters.

Overall, it was a cute story with unique main characters, but it was just okay and rather unremarkable to me. The representation is what stood out to me the most, but I do wish the story itself would’ve been stronger and more captivating. After some more intensive editing, the flow of things should improve as well.

Was this review helpful?

Erin La Rosa did it again! I loved the other book in this series and loved this book as well! The relationship between the main characters were amazing, and it was great to see the female main character that was so vulnerable and transparent about the issues she was facing. It was also great to see a main male character struggling with his own problems but not letting that bleed negatively into the relationship. This was great for alcoholism awareness and it brought light to the potential lives of child actors. This book was amazing and I can’t wait to purchase it in store for my collection!

Was this review helpful?

God I love romcoms. Anyways, if you are also a fan of cheesy romcoms with some moderate spice to them, this is THE book for you. As a fan of Emily Henry, Elena Armas, and any other romcom author that writes romcoms about romcom authors, I absolutely flew through this book in less than three days, devouring it every free (and sometimes even not free) second I had. Whether I was sneaking this book on my computer during class or pulling my phone out to keep reading on public transport, I couldn't stop thinking about it from the moment I started it. Every character is so lovable and feels like a true person, not just a pale imitation of one. Additionally, while this is the second book in a series, I hadn't read the first, and still felt as though I knew the characters well, which is often something authors don't do as well, relying on their first book to be enough introduction to their "cast," so to speak. However, I now can't wait to read the first book, and am already hoping for more! Erin La Rosa is soon to be a must-read author for me!

Was this review helpful?

Very enjoyable read. This is the first romance book I’ve read with a Short King. Which I love! I wish the cover hadn’t heightwashed him.
Sophie’s storyline is one I’ve read so many books with the same story Romance Author who has never been in love, tracking down exes to figure out what went wrong, documenting the journey on Tik ToK (which I could use much less of i I’m being honest).
I found Dash one of the more interesting Male Main Characters I’ve come across in a rom-com lately. He’s a former teen heartthrob and member of a Hollywood family dynasty. He’s also no longer acting and in recovery for alcoholism. Much more complex than a lot of the rom-com love interests.
Plenty of fun steamy scenes including a very happy ending massage.

Was this review helpful?

Such a cute romantic comedy. I loved the premise and the characters. Their story felt true and heartfelt. The FMC is sunshine personified and the MMC is her grumpy broody landlord. But he is also her best friend’s brother.
The story brings both out of their shells and has them deal with realistic problems without magical solutions. I didn’t love the miscommunication and secret keeping of the characters. Yet, it did seem to make it seem a bit more realistic.
The feelings that they both experience and the pain that they endure causes you feel for both characters. I did love that the FMC was a romance author who had never been in love and was struggling to write the happy ending for her book couple.
I would definitely recommend this book; it is a nice and fun read.
Be aware that the book does deal with alcoholism and that may be a trigger for some.

I received an ARC of this book for free. I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Was this review helpful?

Disclaimer: I have not read the first book in The Hollywood Series, and I didn't realize this book was a part of a series when I requested it. That being said, nothing was lost reading this as a standalone. It did make me want to read the first book, because Nina's story seems interesting. I enjoyed this book. It was easy to read and the characters were pretty adorable. That being said, they didn't seem too 'real'. I think the author set out to do a lot, which was bold, and a few things may have fallen short. To have two protagonists who weren't 'perfect' was refreshing, and to have Sophie's pansexuality be an important part of her but without any sort of fanfare was great. I also got the impression that she wasn't a model-thin woman, which I appreciated. Dash's struggle with his sobriety was really valuable to see, and it was nice to see him recognize the toxicity of his family and draw boundaries with them. It started to seem that every character had a lot going on, which isn't unrealistic, but it took away from some of Sophie and Dash's plot points. This was an enjoyable book, I just think it could've done a bit more. Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for this ARC.

Was this review helpful?

Very sweet story! Erin La Rosa is 2/2 for me and I will be eagerly anticipating her next release. I will say there are a few trigger warnings to take into consideration. Definitely worth the read.

Was this review helpful?

I didn't hate it. It gave what you'd expect from a romantic comedy! I really loved all the different tropes and cliches especially when that is exactly what you're looking to read.

Was this review helpful?

This started out with sooo much potential.. It had everything I love, grumpy-sunshine, close proximity, best friends brother, neighbors, and even a one-bed moment?! But it really fell flat for me. I felt the relationship was lacking pining/angst/build up. I am a very quick reader (a book a dayish) and this was a really slow read for me. The bones of the story are amazing. I loved the thought of booktok/TikTok being talked about helping an author. Loved how the FMC used her personal love life to work on her own book. But there just wasn't the connection I was hoping for with the two main characters.

Was this review helpful?

Interesting book. It had too much spice for me so I ended up having to DNF it. But that doesn’t reflect on the characters or story, I think they were good and set up for a great arc I just didn’t want to read that much spice.

Was this review helpful?

A good read -- I thought the characters were well-developed and I really enjoyed their dynamic/chemistry.

Was this review helpful?

Thank you to Netgalley, the publishers, and the author. I have enjoyed this author before, and I was not disappointed this time! The Romance gave what I needed and I loved the book. I loved that both protagonists were 30 years old. I also found that the author did a great job of creating a FMC that was relatable. 4 stars

Was this review helpful?

This book was so refreshing to read. I used to love reading romance novels, but the formulaic writing of new novels began to wear me down. Although Plot Twist is a traditional romance (more of a rom-com), I didn't feel like I could predict every action and piece of dialogue made by the characters. It felt authentic. They seemed real. And their love was beautiful. And spicy!

Also, this book switches points of view, and I think this author beautifully wrote from the perspective of a man as well. It wasn't some a-hole who speak about his love interest like a sex toy but an authentic male view.

Great job Erin La Rosa and I hope to see more of your works in the future!

Was this review helpful?

A romance author who’s never been in love who went viral on Tiktok letting everyone know as such. Currently having a hell of a writers block decides to reunite with her exes to learn why she’s never fallen in love. But of course you’ve got to add in her former teen heartthrob landlord offers to help her on her social media quest. Who also has a lot of secrets up his sleeve.

Normally I try to stay away from books that are to in the now. Like with the use tiktok and trends. But I LOVED this book. It’s the perfect rom-com blend with bits of seriousness that hit me to my core. I did not want to put this book down but I also didn’t want to finish it! The realness this brought was amazing. Like the title, there was definitely some plot twists I wasn’t expecting at all! We also love a short king mmc. I never read the first in the series but I definitely will be!

Was this review helpful?

PLOT TWIST by Erin LA Rosa comes out in November, but I was able to read an eARC from NetGalley (🙌)

The sequel (ish; we need better terms for these loose series) to FOR BUTTER OR WORSE, and I might have actually liked it better than the first one. Two flawed characters with trust issues trust each other and fall in looooove. Do they both need some therapy? Yes. Do I wish they would just taaaaaalk about their feeeeeelings instead of keeping them bottled up? Heck yes! But it just makes them realistic characters, because who amongst us, you know?

Hilariously, it name checks Abby Jimenez and her ability to write romances that make you cry, because this had some heavy stuff too. And yet it's also sweet and funny and hopeful.

The plot deals significantly with alcoholism/sobriety/relapse, so take care if that is something that's hard for you.

Was this review helpful?

This was a cute and funny read, I absolutely loved the two main characters, Sophie and Dash. There were several parts of this book that had me laughing out loud and smiling. I enjoyed the premise of the book and found the TikTok references hilarious. Both of the characters are working through personal struggles. Sophie who is experiencing writers block with a deadline quickly approaching and Dash, who is fighting to maintain his sobriety. I loved how supportive these two characters were for each other and I felt like this book had just the right amount of steamy scenes!

Was this review helpful?