I always love a second chance romance, I found this story so sweet and it was an easy read. I enjoyed how even though it was in third person, you were able to get both the characters perspectives which drew me in. I love the growth you see between Dawn and Callan. It touches upon experiences that are so real, such as trauma, grief, friendships, work and struggling to figure out where you’re meant to be in life.

I received an arc through NetGalley, for an honest review. Thank you for this opportunity as well, Katherine!

I wanted to love this, but I DNF at 18%.

I strongly disliked both main characters. I felt like it was very repetitive, I didn’t feel like I really got to know any of the characters and what I did know was shallow and boring.

I really wanted to love this book, but I just couldn’t get into it.

Thanks to NetGalley for providing me a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I received this e-ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I thought this book started out fairly strong but then it lost me. I liked being able to experience Dawn and Callan's meeting after their falling out and wanted to explore that more but instead the story traveled back to when they first met and proceeded to spend more than 20% of the book talking about it. I really was not interested in that long of an explanation. I would have been fine with just a summary and then experienced their current relationship.

On page 14 there was some errors due to misprint. Dawn and Callan were messaging each other, and all the messages were cut off halfway and were shifted too far to the right of the screen. Not sure what happened there.

I could not stand Dawn's decisiveness when it came to Callan. Callan had his own demons and Dawn was picturing him proposing to her and their future. "She cared so goddamn much about him; did he even deserve it?" Miss ma'am said this after he had a scary panic attack and mentioned he would seek help after her mentioning to do so. This girl was awful to him and after all the crap he had went through, he did not deserve her judgment. Yes, Callan did some bad things when it came to Dawn, but it felt like Dawn never actually was there for him nor wanted to help in any way she could to get him better. The only thing she would say is for him to get professional help. I also completely understood why Callan acted the way he did when Dawn shared that he had panic attacks to her boss. That was such a dumb move and also betrayed Callan's privacy. Like I mentioned, she really didn't care. Very into the doing and saying sorry later.

This was a miss for me.

I really liked this book! It started off just a little bit slow, but once it picked up I really enjoyed it and I loved their relationship!

3.5 ⭐️
This was a cute romance read and I really enjoyed the main characters! Although it was fairly predictable, it was still a fun book & I loved that it was set across different cities. It was an easy read and you’ll enjoy this book if you like second chance romances, long distance romance and a dual timeline.

The title makes it seem like this will be a light-hearted fun read, but it's so much more. It starts in the present, where you see Dawn and Callan "reconnect" unexpectedly and that leads you to the past to get their whole story - then brings you back to the present to resolve all the things. Dawn is ambitious and career-focused, love an afterthought. Callan is an entrepreneur trying to stay numb to his past - specifically around love. In a cute coffee-house meet cute, they hit it off and start to realize they are uncharacteristically falling for each other. The plot is great, banter is fun, but the story underneath is tragic. So while I was loving all the tension and fun of them getting to know each other, I also was ugly crying at the end. I thought the author did a great job bringing very realistic and sensitive topics around mental health into this book. It doesn't take it over - just gives it a bit more substance. You are drawn into the world of Dawn and Callan so the subplots don't seem as important, but are useful to bring the story along. Overall a great read.

This was an okay read. The writing wasn’t something that surprised me. 3rd person POV is not something I usually enjoy, as I find it harder to get into the story. I feel like of this was narrated in a first person POV I would’ve given it a better review.

I LOVE second chance romances!! Especially when there is a significant gap between when the characters see each other again. I really liked that this was a bit heavier than I was expecting. I loved Dawn and I related to her a lot. Callan was a bit harder to love but by the end I was rooting really hard for him to get his happy ending. Another bonus of this story: it had a legal setting background which I always enjoy, Overall if you’re a second chance lover you should definitely pick this one up!

3.25/5 stars! The cover of this book didn't set the stage for much with this story, but the premise was promising. I did enjoy Callan and Dawn's story. Their chemistry was on point and I loved watching them come back together in this second-chance romance. Where I struggled was the time hops. Going back and forth between the past and present got confusing and slowed down the pacing of the story. Overall, a cute romcom.

I received a free copy of this book via NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving a review

this book gave me the feels. i was drawn by the title of the book and then i was sucked in completely. really liked this and want to find more of her books.

There are a couple of things that I didn’t really like about this, but overall this book was actually a surprise!
⭐️⭐️⭐️💫/5
What I didn’t like:
1. Althoug I understand the way the book is structured, I think it started rather abruptly. I think I’d prefer if chapter 5 was the first in the book because the way it ends is the perfect cue to the way chapter 1 starts. Callan does not want a relationship so he’s like ‘I haven’t been with anyone in a long time and this girl is only staying in London for the summer so what could go wrong?’ then tan tan tan tan…. CHAPTER 1 🤗🤣
2. Callan referring to Dawn as ‘his’ women after such a short period of knowing her. People are not things, no one owns anyone and I hate this type of internal dialogue
3. The ‘it’s not you it’s me goodbye’ after they almost do it when they reconnect in DC
4. During their first summer together, although Dawn tries to explain her decision to stay in London as something to do with her career, it’s clearly because of the dude and that’s not cute. Same thing about Jane not wanting to work to be a mom… women can do both and I didn’t like both female characters to put their love life before their career
5. I also didn’t like the insta-love type thing. I mean, 6 days and she’s “already thinking about the rest of the summer with Callan – and maybe even the rest of her life with him” ugh that’s terrible!
6. The fact that Dawn forgives Callan so easily

What I really did like:
1. The memories from London, the way they met and they’re time together
2. The fact that he thinks of her fondly and that he doesn’t feel a pull towards her only because of their mutual sexual attraction. We see that a lot in romances but there was more to it between this couple and I loved that
3. The whole thing about Callan’s past, which makes me want to forgive his shitty behavior although I’m torn if I should lol. I thinks it’s the characters depthness that I like
4. Back in the cabin in London, when they’re by the fireplace watching the fire he looks at her, grabs her chin and says “Dawn, I’m going to kiss you now. Thoroughly” wow 🤩
4. I really liked how the story alternates between Callan and Dawn’s POV in a lot of the scenes instead of it alternating in between chapters
5. The way Dawn stands up for herself and does not let Callan make her feel embarrassed by her own feelings during their big fight
6. The couple’s chemistry
7. Gemma 💞
8. Everything about the freaking epilogue!!!!!! From the way that it’s written in first person, to the fact that he’s facing his demons by writing to his daughter 😭

Overall, as I said, this was a surprise and I really enjoyed it. And I’d love to read more about the author!

What a pleasant surprise! A Second Chance trope is not something that I would be reading but this one is delightful to read
There's enough angst, steam and mystery in this book.
Dawn is a lawyer interning in one of the reputable firms in New York while waiting for the result of her bar exam. Callan is a British entrepreneur who wants to expand his business in Europe and deal with US investors who appointed lawyers from Dawn's firm to work with. So when they meet each other in NY, all the stories from when Dawn was enrolled in a summer law program in Cambridge last year came out to the surface with full force.
There are two timelines in this book, the summer of last year and the present
Dawn and Callan are both likeable characters, the conflicts are not too crazy, but the pull and push are pretty relatable to whoever has ever been in a fling and long-distance relationship.

There is a little bit of technical error in my kindle in Chapter 14, loc 1988 around 40% mark. The Alignment was off.

Thank you for NetGalley, the Publisher and the author for the ARC in exchange for my honest review

JUST A FLING is a steamy, second-chance love story that gently touches on loss, trauma, and panic. The description drew me in along with the emotional unavailability and baggage the characters Dawn and Callan must learn to navigate, and the book did not disappoint. A fun read for this author’s debut!

Thank you to The Wild Rose Press and NetGalley for the ARC.

I could not put this book down!

This book goes back and forth between the present day and past relationship of Dawn and Callan. The time lapse is so helpful in understanding their current relationship, or lack of. It created a depth to their relationship which made the story that much better.
I loved the back and forth between them and it wasn't an instant fall in love, happy ending story.

Highly recommend to anyone who loves second chance romances.

Such a cute book! I love the cover. It’s so romantic and sexy. Great beach read. Look forward to more books by the author.

Honestly, this cover wasn't the thing that grabbed me; it was the synopsis that reminded me of those early New Adult romance days of our blog. It looked like it had that love-hate that can really make things entertaining. So while the cover wasn't doing it for me, the two for one story really did.

The story of Dawn and Callan starts in present day--a year after they had an intense summer love affair--and all we know is that something went terribly wrong and Dawn is a bundle of hurt and angry feelings. We quickly learn that Callan carries a lot of guilt and continuing infatuation of Dawn and when he initiates contact, things get tense very fast. After one really heated and angry/sad exchange, we get flung into the backstory, hence the two for one story.

A vast majority of the midsection of this novel shows us the story of how Dawn and Callan met while she was studying abroad in Oxford. Their attraction is instant and what starts as a fun fling-y type thing, it slides into a thing that has growing feelings, much to their consternation. Dawn is really into the idea of continuing the relationship, though hesitant to bring it up due to Callan's weirdness about certain things. And Callan tries very hard to be in denial that this is anything but a fling even though it's glaringly obvious that he cares for her...is probably in love with her but cannot let go of his tragic past to see a future with anyone, including Dawn.

Once we get that story, we return to present day where we understand, now, why she's so pissed and he's so flaky. It seems like normally, this would be where their story zooms to a quick conflict/resolution but Katherine Grace gives us even more story...and I'm really glad she did; I wasn't ready for their story to end. Their present day story isn't any less complicated, though they try to make it easy, and before you know it, they are saying hurtful things and we're back to hurt feelings and silence. All of that builds to a final scene that finally gives these two the happiness they so desperately deserve.

I really enjoyed Just a Fling and am looking forward to the next book in what looks to be a series (maybe Gemma's next?). I appreciated the time and space Katherine Grace gave her characters to allow them to develop.

A great weekend read.

A really funny story with some great characters.
The timeline does play with your head a little but once you get into the story, it all comes together.

I really appreciated the dimensions that were put into Dawn and a Allen’s relationship. It wasn’t a basic, surface level relationship. It had real-life ups and downs. Situations that genuinely could cause there to be struggles and a breakdown in a relationship. I feel that the way they navigated their whole relationship felt authentic and realistic, not cookie cutter like most romance novels portray.

My only complaint would be some of the words used when describing intimate moments were pretty cringe. Otherwise, I really liked this book and would recommend it.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

American law student Dawn and British CEO Callan meet in Cambridge and have a summer romance. Dawn develops feelings for Callan and he has emotional trauma that makes him purposely not have relationships anymore. He leaves her broken hearted, as she makes her way back to New York.
Fate brings them together again, both wanting more.

I really enjoyed this book.m! I flew through it in one day. I thought this book had great character growth. I loved Dawn and had a love/hate/love for Callan! There was a lot of personal and professional up and downs and missed communication, which made this book feel very real. This book was emotion, beautifully written, and a little spicy. I love a second chance romance and this was done well!

I definitely recommend this book and look forward to reading more from Katherine Grace!

📘: Just a Fling by Katherine Grace
🗓 Pub Date: April 5, 2023

Thank you to NetGalley, Katherine Grace, and The Wild Rose Press for this ARC!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

*Reviewed on NetGalley and Goodreads. Will review on retail once published!

Second chance romance, which is a great, easy read. The author did an amazing job of making the characters feel real and genuine.