I was really looking forward to these two when we were first introduced to them in In the Event of Love. Unfortunately, I didn't love this book like I'd hoped I would. But first - the good: I really loved the characters as well as the anxiety rep and the emphasis on taking care of yourself and your own mental health both within and outside of a relationship. I loved all of the relationships with friends and family, as well as the couple.

My biggest issue with this story was the dad's involvement in the plot. I felt as though my frustrations with everything going on with the dad and the show really overshadowed the romance, which left me feeling unfulfilled at the end.

That said, I believe this is still worth checking out if you are intrigued by the synopsis and I do still plan to continue this series (if there are more coming), but this wasn't my favorite.

3/5 stars

Thank you to netgalley for providing me with a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

thank you to netgalley for the advanced reading copy. I really enjoyed this and will be getting copies for my shop.

I was captivated by the premise of this book. However, it did not appeal to me as much as I would have liked. There were some elements that hindered my enjoyment of the story. Nevertheless, I am pleased to have completed the book.

The best way to describe this book is queer Hallmark. I did enjoy it but I would only recommend if you're in the mood for it.

Take it as you wish.

This book started out well, but overall, it lost me a bit of the way through. I thought the writing felt a bit repeated at times and the connection between Ben and Adam didn't feel entirely believable

This book was a quick, pleasant enough read. I think the most successful elements were Ben’s struggles with trauma and his father. The descriptions of flashbacks and self-care taken were excellent. I also found the imagery of food well-done.

However, as with many romantic comedies, the plots were needlessly intertwined and weakened both aspects as a result. If the story cut the conflict of Ben’s father re-entering his life, the drama of Ben’s overcoming his trauma and building a relationship with Adam would have been stronger. Or, vice versa, if the conflict with the father and dealing with trauma were the focus and the relationship with Adam cut down, then the other aspects would have been stronger.

In Case of Heartbreak, is a charming followup on Courtney Kae's debut novel In the Event of Love. In the Event of Love is an adorable winter romance set in a small town about two friends coming back together after a falling out. However, It’s possible I loved the second book even more than the first because it’s a summer book about two “cinnamon rolls” who finally realize that they’ve been in love with each other forever when one of them ends up on a reality baking contest show because of his family’s delicious cinnamon rolls.

If you like friend to lovers and stories about being true to yourself, you'll love this book. It deals well with past trauma and complicated relationships within families. I highly recommend this lovely MM romance.

In the Case of Heartbreak is a delightful, queer, summer romance. In this second installment to the Fern Falls series, baker Ben suddenly finds that his childhood crush on his friend, Adam, might be more reciprocated than he previously thought. It is full of fun and romance and I couldn't put it down!

Ben & Adam's romance felt like the perfect addition to the Fern Falls series (despite taking place largely outside of Fern Falls). What can I say, I just really love romances that follow side characters from the previous book. And since we were already introduced to Ben & Adam in the first book I felt like it helped avoid the problem I had with Morgan & Rachel's relationship in book one not feeling developed enough.

It's not all just sweet cinnamon rolls though. The book addresses anxiety and abandonment in a very thoughtful way. I appreciated that the characters were able to discuss their issues and be so open about what they needed.

Thanks to TLC Book Tours and the publisher for an advanced copy of the book!

I found the beginning of this book to be quite heavy. Specially when you go into the book expecting a light romcom it gets very dark with no real relief for the first 20% of the book. It needs some comic relief or something to lighten it ever so slightly or I feel like it had the potential to discourage readers before they have reach the romcom part of the book. I also had a few issues with the characters. I found Adam to be a very strong personality and some of the love scenes could range into cringy rather than cute. I also felt like I didn’t really understand some parts of Bens personality like the scene at the end that his family organized was really cute but also they where so stressed about how he would react under the camera the first time but then they sprang another tv appearance on him and just expected him to be ok with it.

I loved going back to Fern Falls for Ben’s story!

This book is so full of queer joy: found families and representation. I noticed that small, unnamed characters were referred to as “a person” instead of assuming a gender. Multiple characters use they/them pronouns.

I went into this book knowing that there was a pretty heavy plot line having to do with a parent who deserted the main character as a child. And I knew there was going to be depression representation. So I thought I would have to take this one slow and it would be fairly heavy. But even with those themes, I thought this was overall a very joyful book and it didn’t feel heavy. (I did just finish two heavy books the week before, so maybe my taste is off.)

Overall this was a sweet and satisfying love story!

3.5 stars rounded up to 4!

This was a super sweet summer time romcom, and it had some of my favorite tropes, friends to lovers and forced proximity!

Ben Parrish is trying hard to win a baking show, but when he seemingly is shoot down by his long time crush on live TV, all he wants to do is hide from the world. Fortunately, Ben has a meddling grandma who knows exactly how to sort things out, all while celebrating her 80th birthday at a week-long bash!

I absolutely loved when Adam said to Ben "I want to court you" and "my feelings for you are not fragile". Was the perfect combination of swoon worthy and cheesy!

One negative I did have was I did not realizing this was book 2, even as a standalone, I think may have contributed to my disconnected feelings towards the town and some of the side characters, which I assume were introduced in book 1.

I also felt their were just too many plot lines? The baking show, grandma's birthday week event, Ben's absentee father causing problems, and the financial troubles of grandma.

Overall, was a cute read and would recommend to those looking for a quick, fun, sappy romance!

4 stars

Warning: Don't start this book when you are hungry! I wanted a cinnamon roll the entire time I was reading this.

Ben is working at his bakery and trying to step outside his comfort zone. Then his long time crush, Adam, tells him they're just friends... while on national television. Poor Ben tries to hide out at his grandmother's beach side house. She was delightfully meddling and chaotic and I love her. Of course she hires Adam to play with a band for her birthday party. Ben and Adam finally expressing their feelings and getting together was so good.

Bad parents are a sore spot for me reading books, and Ben's dad was no different. He was awful and helped explain a lot of the insecurities Ben held. When people stood up for Ben it made me want to cheer.

This was a sweet story and I enjoyed it a lot. I'll definitely be reading more of the authors future works. Thank you to Courtney Kae and Kensington Books for the arc. All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.

I unfortunately thought this was slow and boring. I didn't realize it was part of a series so I missed some backstory that I think would've made the story better.

Unfortunately, I didn’t read the first book in this series and didn't notice until most of the way through that there was actually a previous book and not just discussed backstory. Despite a lovely romance, it did feel a bit directionless overall, but its very possible this would have been fixed if I had known about the first book.

3 stars.

"In the Case of Heartbreak" by Courtney Kae is fine. It's not the best nor the worst book I have read this year. I loved the quiet angst between the main characters Ben and Adam, including the long-oft glances and the ooey gooey sweet cinnamon rolls (in breakfast AND human form, lol)! I appreciate and adore this world Courtney Kae has created full of diversity, acceptance, and unconditional love. I really enjoyed the small-town setting(s). There is also an interesting conversation being had about familial trauma, and I think this aspect hits and misses at different points in this story. Unfortunately, I do think this book drags on a bit too much. It feels too long, and there is a lot of unnecessary and/or repetitive exposition. I found it difficult to find the connection between Ben and Adam at first as their introduction to readers starts off pretty rocky. I was sure that Ben and Adam did not feel the same way toward one another and that this book was going to be much sadder than I anticipated. I figured Adam didn't reciprocate Ben's feelings but would eventually fall for him along the way, so it surprised me and was a little shocking that he *did* feel the same way because I just didn't sense that connection in the writing of these characters. The longer the book went on, however, the more attraction and chemistry there was. Adam is not really given the proper amount of time to become a fully-formed character. We know bits and pieces about his life and can ascertain who is from there, but that's it. It sort of felt like he was just a random body there to keep Ben warm when and if he should need it as opposed to someone he has pined for from afar for years and years. Don't get me wrong - this story is enjoyable, sure, but I have read better books.

Thank you to NetGalley, Courtney Kae, and Kensington Books for the complimentary ARC of this book. All opinions are my own. I was not compensated for this review.

Such a fun and easy read. It was absolutely perfect for the end of summer. Highly recommend for anyone looking for a easy and yet endearing read.

This was okay, I really wish some things were a little more fleshed out - but it was an okay read nonetheless! I’ve seen a lot of people giving this good praise on Bookstagram so I think it just wasn’t for me

I absolutely LOVED In the Event of Love, so when I saw that Courtney Kae had another book coming out set in the same town as her first book, it was IMMEDIATELY added to my TBR. Add on top of that, it has Ben and Adam? YES! PLEASEEEEE!!!

In the Case of Heartbreak takes us directly into Ben’s world as he’s being filmed for a reality baking show with his mother’s family Cinnamon Roll recipe. Plus, getting his name out there makes it even better for a small business owner. With all of the trouble his family has had to deal with over the years, he wants to be the one to help them out.

While filming, the cameras see him making a move to FINALLY ask out his best friend Adam, but it seems to everyone (including Ben) as if he’s turning him down… which in turn sends him spiraling. All the way to his G-Ma’s 80th Birthday Celebration in Maywell Bay! Where low and behold, Adam and his band, Forced Proximity, are the main act.

This book is full of honesty and pain and absolute love! It has an incredible diverse cast of characters (from which I’m trying to figure out who will be leading book 3) and features the Best Friends to Lovers trope, amongst others… including Forced Proximity… you know. Like the band name. 🤣 I am only recently starting to enjoy Friends to Lovers. It’s been growing on me a lot. So to read this now was the perfect time.🤷🏻‍♂️

I can’t wait to reread this when it comes out on July 25th. I think it’ll be even better listening to the audiobook. 😍

DNF’ed but may return at a later date; the romance in this book is sickeningly sweet, which I usually love, but I haven’t been in the mood for it lately. Really love the setting; Courtney does a fantastic job with creating a queer-normative world.

It's a nice and cute story. I enjoyed it but the characters are bit underdeveloped even if I rooted for them
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine