This is a sweet friends to lovers romance that mostly takes place on vacation. There is a lot of background drama and angst, though the romance itself is cute. It is a nice summer read.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher.

This book was written so thoughtfully and inclusively, which I adore and admire greatly. This was to be expected after the first in the series, but it was just as amazing to read in In the Case of Heartbreak! Ben was the sweetest, most precious main character who I simply could not get enough of and was rooting for the whole time. However, this story did not quite live up to my admittedly high expectations from the previous in the series, and the romance itself just fell a bit flat for me personally.

Cute and quirky 2SLGBTQIA+ romance. If you like baking shows, romance, and hot musicians, then this novel is for you! I found this novel light and enjoyable.

great romance book! the characters had great chemistry, love me some baking theme hotny banter. i took a long time reading it but it was because of personal reasons (uni), and if it wasn't for that i think i would've liked it even more.

thanks netgalley, kensington books and courtney kae for the arc!

great romance book! the characters had great chemistry, love me some baking theme hotny banter. i took a long time reading it but it was because of personal reasons (uni), and if it wasn't for that i think i would've liked it even more.

thanks netgalley, kensington books and courtney kae for the arc!

In the Case of Heartbreak was such a sweet Hallmark-esque story. Ben and Adam are adorable together and I also loved all the side characters in this book (especially Gma!). The small-town vibes and general softness of this book had me hooked.

I’m usually not a pure romance reader… I usually need a Fantasy/supernatural aspect to it… But this book was so good!
Yes, it was super sweet and fluffy… But written in a way that had me unable to put the book down and constantly had me emitting little squeals!

This book is full of representation, from sexuality to race. Full of mental health issues that were so relatable but handled so beautifully!

I am also now a Adam Reed stan! The way he handled Ben’s anxious brain telling him lies was just *chef’s kiss* and consent.is.sexy!

I just have one question… Where can I get myself a G-ma? 😂

Well this was syrupy sweet. The idea is lovely, a world where everything is easy. But it’s not realistic and took me out of the story. Absolutely not one hint of angst here. The mental health struggles were nice but … the writing just didn’t work for me. I appreciate what Courtney was trying to do here but overall this was a boring, albeit sweet read.

In Case of Heartbreak is a tooth achingly sweet & fast paced queer romances that is utterly un-put-downable (not a real word, but I'm making it one :P) that I absolutely adored.

This book is a cinnamon roll! No, literally, it's a sweet dessert of a novel that readers are going to love!

In the Case of Heartbreak is the story of Adam and Ben. Two humans who might just have to face some difficult struggles if they are going to fight for the love they share for each other. Ben Parrish, our baking protagonist, has harbored some secret feelings for Adam Reed for quite some time. Adam Reed, guitar genius, initially spurns Ben and it shatters Ben.

All in all, this book is super adorable and I found myself smiling and genuinely laughing out loud at various scenes. It's heartfelt, it's romantic, and I know Rom-Com readers are going to devour this story and hunger for the next installment in the Fern Falls series.

Check this book out - it's the sweet treat you need this summer!

A sweet romance about two people trying to grow and heal and be better for themselves and each other.

I loved how Ben and Adam communicated with each other and how therapy was normalised. I enjoyed the character arc of Ben and how he was eventually to accept the reality of his past and embrace his future.

I did feel like there was a lot of telling the reader exactly what was going on rather than showing and allowing the reader to fill in the gaps. I also wasn’t entirely convinced of Ben and Adam’s friendship prior to dating. There was a lot of talk about how they were good friends but it always seemed distant and awkward. Maybe this was established more in the first book in the series (which I haven’t read).

Once they started dating they were so sweet and the way they communicated and genuinely wanted the best for each other was so beautiful. There were a lot of great minor characters in here too!

Thanks so much for the eARC. I enjoyed my time with Ben and Adam.

3 stars because I like what the author was trying to do with this book, but I just wasn't a big fan of the execution. This was a very fast paced, sweet read. I enjoyed following Ben and Adam's story, and as long as I didn't think about it too critically, it was a fun read.

Where it fell short for me though was the writing. While I get what Courtney Kae was going for with this story, it just wasn't working for me. I loved the representation of different mental health struggles and the diversity of the characters (both in sexual orientation and ethnicities), but it felt a bit overdone. Almost every character was described by skin colour and hair colour, which seemed unnecessary. It just seemed very showy about being diverse when it didn't need to be quite so in your face.

I know the authors goal was to create an fully accepting atmosphere, but it felt very forced. I feel like Ben and Adam didn't have any conversations that didn't end up being a deep declaration of the other being good enough or them getting emotional and crying. While I think that type of support is beautiful, it would have been nice to have a mix of light hearted conversations or basically anything with a bit more variety. It became very repetitive, very quickly. That said, I did really love the mental health representation and how therapy was shown as a normal, acceptable thing.

Like I said though, I loved the concept of this story, I just think the writing style was not for me. I like a bit more angst, a bit more of a slower burn, and a bit less over the top sweet. For people who love a low angst, adorable read, I would definitely recommend this one!

Thank you to Netgalley and Kensington for an arc of this novel in exchange for my honest review.

I really wanted to like this book. I had read the previous book in the series and loved it. In the previous book, I loved Ben. He seemed like a great friend and supportive person. But in this book, it was so hard to like him. His lack of communication was so hard to read. It felt like the romance went from 0 to 100 really quick too. The entire first half of the book, Ben spent all his effort avoiding Adam, not talking to him, etc. Then at about the half way mark, suddenly everything switched and they are talking about marriage and a forever.

I absolutely loved Adam though. He was so supportive and understanding. He also seemed a lot more interested in communication, which was amazing. Best character in the book

I loved this book so much, I don't even know where to begin writing this review. 🥺

This book is about Ben, a pastry chef, running his family business in the small town of Fern Falls. This is his journey of letting go of the past, accepting he isn't to blame for other people's actions, a journey of healing, overcoming his abandonnment issues and understanding that doing his best is always enough. Ben, I see you.

Ben is dealing with a lot of childhood trauma at the beginning of this book. He's putting so much pressure on himself, going outside his comfort zone, trying to prove to himself that he can do things on his own, without the help of his meddling family. But ultimately, he realizes that his family and friends are what really matter anyway. He accepts himself and his limitations, his family's help and the love of his forever crush.

That brings us to Adam. Aaaah. Sweet, wonderful, supportive Adam. That man is a dream. The way he talks to Ben, the way their friendship turns into more, how in tune to Ben's needs he is, how respectful of his insecurities and anxiety. He's dealing with his fair share of trauma, but my god, he's wonderful.

Friends to lovers is my kryptonite.
I was bawling my eyes out he moment they confessed their feelings for each other, when they decided to start dating. The intimacy they shared was absolutely perfect. The way they communicated about their feelings, their doubts and fears, their plans for the future. It was so beautiful. I cried. A lot.

I didn't think I'd ever like a third act breakup, but this made so much sense, I would have been mad if it didn't happen this way. The selflessness these two guys posses was sexy as hell. To see them care for each other so much that they're willing to give up on their relationship just to see the other thrive and succeed. Gaaah.

That ending was perfect.

This was not for me.

By reading this book, you can tell that the author is chronically online and probably obsessed with self-help books. This corny, fluffy, and cheesy narrative is proof enough (at least the fluffiness is well executed). It's partly my fault that I was not too fond of this book since I haven't read the first part of the series. I wasn't connected enough with the characters to feel sympathetic for their rich white problems. Maybe because of the same, it seems that the chemistry with the love interest was forced and superficial and that the dynamic with his support group was baseless. I highly recommend reading the first part of the series if you want to read this book for its beautiful cover (like I did).

Regarding the plot, there's no actual conflict, and when there is, it is solved in a ridiculously easy way. I don't pretend to be mean, but the main character is constantly drowning in a glass of water that is not even half full! I'm all for emotionally vulnerable men, but that doesn't mean they have to be extremely pathetic.

Thanks netgalley for the eARC!! This one was so cute and lighthearted, definitely a must read for summer!

I thought this one was just okay. I read the other book in this series and I liked it better. But it was a cute read.

Ben is a bakery owner cast on a (live?) reality television show. Adam is his longtime crush who has seemingly broken his heart on live television. When Ben's shady, absentee father also reappears to disrupt Ben's life and success, Ben leaves for a two week vacation at his grandmother's house to celebrate G-ma's birthday. However, G-ma has invited Adam to play guitar at her birthday events and housed Ben and Adam together in a guest cottage. G-ma and her interference may have been one of my favorite parts of this book, by the way.

The romance happened very quickly, and went from zero to forever in no time at all. The obstacles were just swept away.

I did enjoy the communication between the two main characters. They were open and largely honest with each other. I also liked that it showed Ben going to therapy to work through his neglect and abandonment issues.

I received an e-arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

And honestly, this wasn't one of my favorite books. I was very excited for it, because I loved Ben so much in the first Fern Falls book. But, ultimately, found it rather underwhelming.

In the Case of Heartbreak is a sweet and fun MLM romance filled with cheesy romantic gestures, a great healing journey, and seriously makes you crave a cinnamon roll.

This book was good. I wasn’t over the moon about the VERY descriptive writing. It seemed to be too drawn out. I found myself getting bored at some points. I did, however, enjoy the tender moments between Ben and Adam. And the steamy moments were a treat! I especially loved how Courtney Kae portrayed both Ben and Adam’s healing journeys.

I also appreciated the pansexual and bisexual representation in this! And also how Ben referred to new people as “they” instead of assuming their gender and pronouns. That made me super happy.

The ending was great because the third act breakup wasn’t really a breakup at all. It was Ben trying his best to heal and Adam respecting that. It was super refreshing to read about a relationship that didn’t feel toxic.

Thank you to Kensington Books and Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review!

One of the most obvious five stars of the year. This book deals with heavy topics as both Ben and Adam have suffered a lot because of their parents, but their romance is the softest and easiest thing. I LOVED this aspect of the book so much. After years of pining, once they finally confess their feelings, there’s no added anxiety or drama. Their love is like a safe net where they can just be honest and explore the feelings they’ve been hiding. The romance was my most favorite part of the book.

If “shitty father” could count as trigger warning, I would add it. Ben’s father is the worst. There’s a paragraph that talks about how trauma can sneak up on you and make you feel like you have made zero steps towards recovery, and I could relate so much. Daddy issues issued truly hard in here. Adam was so loving and caring, always listening and comforting Ben. He also had some unresolved trauma, and the third act was exactly what they both needed to start healing properly.

I also wanted to mention how utterly cute Adam was! This is a big sunshine/sunshine romance, and Adam was the sun incarnate. He literally said he wanted to court Ben. My HEART nearly exploded. He was so romantic and soft! Please! Soft boys will always be above alpha heroes, sorry not sorryyyy!

This beautiful love story deserves to be read by everyone.

TW: Emotional abuse, alcoholism, depression, parent abandonment

Rating: 5/5
Steam level: Open door, 1-2 scenes, medium level of detail

ARC provided by Kensington, Courtney Kae and NetGalley. Opinions are my own!