A charming and sweet (but steamy) romantic comedy. Especially loved the local theater setting and how both of the characters grew together by the end of the novel.

I loved the conclusion to this fantastic trilogy!

It's probably my favorite of the three, just because I love Iris so much and I find her so relatable. She's got a lot of trauma from previous relationships, and even though she loves love, and wants to be loved, she denies herself that. I also love Stevie (excellent representation of anxiety disorders, btdubs) and enjoyed her journey as well.

One of my favorite messages of this book is that your safe space is not always where you need to be- Iris loves Bright Falls and the people in it, but she needs to be with Stevie. Stevie has her friends and a steady life in Portland, but she needs to be pursuing acting in a bigger city. Want vs. need is big in these books, and I love seeing the characters get to where they need to be.

I also loved the plot- Stevie getting intimacy lessons from Iris, and Iris getting romance from Stevie was fun and I like how it intersected with Stevie's growing need to be independent and find her confidence. There's a point at the end of the book I love, where Stevie gets asked out by a pretty girl she likes well enough, and at the beginning of the book, she might have just said yes, even if she wasn't ready to date. But, because of her growth, Stevie knows she's too emotionally raw, she has found where her boundaries need to be. That was a nice touch.

The places where the book didn't work for me are small, but notable. I felt it was a bit too meta, I am a known hater of romance novels with romance novelist protagonists. I love the parts where Bright Falls characters come in organically, and how Iris interacts with her friends, but I didn't love the way Iris' nearest and dearest deal with her meltdowns. Her family seems to just treat her like a joke, and even when they're supportive they find a way to screw it up. Her friends give her space, which can be good, but it did feel a bit like they weren't seeing the real problem. Iris' issue is that she is afraid of being hurt by love again, and she needs to open up to romance. I didn't see any of her friends really addressing that, just kind of nagging her, which never works. I feel that this is realistic, certainly, but I didn't like it.

Lastly, the third act breakup/romantic gesture. I am a noted grand gesture hater as well, though this one isn't one I hated, I just hate it on principle because I think it's kinda lazy writing. I already believed in Iris/Stevie as a couple, and Stevie didn't need a gesture. I like this gesture in theory, but I would have much prefered Iris get her head out of her ass earlier and make it unnecessary.

This was the most memorable of the Bright Falls books. I thought Stevie and Iris were so well matched, and I spending a bit more time with the whole gang. Overall, a great romance series.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

This was another excellent entry into the Bright Falls series, and a very satisfying conclusion to the story of these friends. The romance, as always, was top-notch and I related a lot to Stevie's struggles with anxiety and Iris' struggles with intimacy. While third act breakups are never my favorite, the reasoning behind this one felt more believable and justified than you sometimes see in romance, which redeemed it a bit in my eyes. Overall, this was such a fun series and I look forward to reading more sapphic romance from this author.

I keep picking up this series and finding myself more disappointed than I expected. I've read more interesting varieties of this story of fake dating, even of "sex lessons," which is not a trope I want to see happen. I loved the play idea, but there wasn't enough of that. It was Stevie who vomits over tits because she's so nervous becoming a top in the bedroom? This felt full of things I would like.

I thoroughly enjoyed this one so much! I’ll be honest, I had mixed feelings about the very first book in the series and I wasn’t sure that the author would be able to stick the landing but I am happy to say that I’m really satisfied with this one.

I have to say I am a huge fan of Ashley Herring Blake ever since picking up Delilah Green Doesn't Care. Her characters are so relatable and I just love that she handles the spectrum an nuances that can come with queer identity and sexuality. Iris Kelly Doesn't Date was no disappointment! Blake seemed to get bolder and steamier in her intimacy scenes but the representation is just so fire! I really appreciated the meta aspects of Iris being a romance author trying to get over writer's block, too... although I hope that Blake wasn't experiencing writer's block when she wrote this one... in any case, it works! Write what you know, right?

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for getting an advanced read on such a gem of a book!

I think this may be my favorite in the Bright Falls series. Iris was my favorite character in the previous two and it was lovely to see her so much more flushed out.

What can I say about this book that likely hasn't already been said? Bright Falls is a fictional place that I would visit in a heartbeat, wow. And this friend group?? I don't think it gets much better than this.

No one does sapphic love stories quite like Ashley Herring Blake!!! Obsessed with this trilogy! Iris is my FAVORITE character!! Thank you to the publisher and to NetGalley for the opportunity to read in exchange for a review!

BERKLEY SENT ME AN ARC IM CRYING

I did not think it was possible for me to love a story more than Delilah Green Doesn't Care when it came to the Bright Falls trilogy, but the amount of love I have for Stevie is endless–we were literally given the best love interest on a silver platter. I mean, I don't know anyone who wouldn't want a shy lesbian theatre nerd in their life.

Also why do I have absolutely zero recollection of Iris being a romance author before this book?

Whilst I loved the first two installment in this series, this third one didn't quite wow me. I found it very hard to root for Iris.

I have truly enjoyed the Bright Falls series, and this is no exception! Though Delilah and Claire will forever be my favs, I have loved Iris's personality since the first book. While I didn't particularly care for the romance in this one, the energy of Bright Falls kept me coming back, and the pacing was fast enough to keep me engaged. I love that I've gotten to know the characters over these books and how the side/former main characters still find time to shine even when they aren't the main couple. This one did feel in line with others in the series, so if you loved the first two as I did, be sure to pick this one up as well!

cozy and extremely heartfelt! This book is such a fun continuation of the series. I love this friend group so much, and I'm so glad we are getting all of their stories. I will gladly handsell this title all day long.

My least favorite of the series but still a very cute conclusion. I found myself so not-into the romance, and I’m not really sure why, except I felt like it was lacking a bit of depth. Maybe it was the fact that I listened to it? Who knows. Still very enjoyable! Just didn’t hit the same as Delilah and Astrid. Thank you so much to Berkeley for my copy!

Herring Blake effectively wraps up the Bright Falls series with this entry! All of the love interests in this series are great, but I think that Stevie may be my favorite.

The fact that I read this after the disaster (for me) of the second book is a miracle. Full disclosure, this was a book club pick, so I had to.

I was pleasantly surprised! This book had fast pacing, great character development, and a realistic ending. It felt authentic and the connections felt real and the chemistry was amazing.

Stevie wants to be a state actress. Iris wants people in her life to take her seriously and stop bothering her to get a partner. When the pair meet at a nightclub and have a disastrous attempt at a one-night stand, they both think that's the end of it. But when a queer community theater production of "Much Ado About Nothing" has Stevie and Iris playing romantic leads, they are thrust back together again. Stevie asks Iris to pretend to be her girlfriend to save face in front of her close friends (including the director of the play, Stevie's ex who is now dating another member of their friend group). Iris agrees, as she needs romantic inspiration for her second book, and she's all out of ideas.

Stevie struggles with generalized anxiety disorder, and she wants to be able to hook up with someone without vomiting (which is what she did to Iris in their failed fling). Stevie also wants to break into real acting, to do it as her job, but the Portland scene is too small for that. Iris wants everyone to leave her alone, to accept her as she is: not interested in marriage or babies. Her family keeps on setting her up with blind dates and her closest friends have all coupled up and think she should, too.

Iris agrees to give Stevie "intimacy lessons" so she will feel more comfortable in the bedroom with future partners. Stevie learns to be more assertive in bed and it's VERY effective. (There's a strapon! It's fantastic!) In turn, Stevie takes Iris out on dates in her own "romance lessons," that quickly become Stevie wooing Iris, showing her that she's worth love and all that comes with it.

Their relationship is believable and Stevie's experience with anxiety feels authentic.

However, some characters super suck in this book and they deserve the worst. Perhaps it is realistic they get away with their shitty, insensitive behavior, but that doesn't mean I have to like it. Stevie's ex, Adri, broke up with her six months before the start of the book. Two months after that breakup, she starts dating Vanessa, another member of their close friend group. Then she makes out with Vanessa AT STEVIE'S PLACE OF WORK. She also convinces Stevie to take on a role in her play, even though Stevie has given up community theater because it doesn't pay and she wants to break into professional stage acting in a real way. Adri is awful to Iris; it's clear that Adri doesn't want Stevie to be outside of her sphere of influence, regardless of their romantic connection. She talks down and over Stevie, infantilizing her because of her anxiety. Vanessa isn't actively awful, but she was there at the makeout sessions, too! Ren, the fourth member of their friend group, steps over boundaries and doesn't help Stevie push back against Adri's awful behavior. And Adri gets away with, water under the bridge. Gross.

Iris's family also thinks her life isn't worth much because she is single. Iris's ex broke up with her because he wanted kids and marriage and Iris didn't. Her family still brings him up. They think she's not successful, even though Iris got a two-book deal with a publisher and has an agent. Iris's youngest sister doesn't even come to her book launch in Bright Falls. There is no confrontation where Iris can express these things to her mother and father, and they actually absorb what she's saying and promise to do better. Gross.

Still, despite all that, I liked this book a lot! I think there's more room in Bright Falls if the author wants to continue with it in some capacity. This is the last book planned in the Bright Falls universe, though, and even if it is, this was a great conclusion for the friend group.

If you've read the others in the series, you know what to expect. A darn good-enough entertaining queer romance with a super likeable cast of characters. Does it do everything perfectly and have all the representation possible and done correctly? No. But does it allow some marginalized groups to see themselves in print? Yes, and that's good enough for me.

The perfect ending to this cute series! I loved Iris and Stevie and the way they started fake dating. Add that to the fact that the story Iris was writing coincided exactly with what was happening IRL in the book?? SO FREAKING CLEVER.

I don’t know anything about theatre but I feel like I should go watch a community play after this 🎭 Stevie and Iris were so good for each other and they worked through their fears together which I loved. The ending was also a huge green flag because they made amends and figured out what they wanted for themselves before putting the other one first. Loved the maturity.

This was my definitely my favorite of the series and the ending was too cute. If you’re fine with reading series out of order - I’d recommend this one first 😊

Yet another smash hit from Ashley! I enjoyed every minute of this book. Iris is seriously so awesome. This was funny, lighthearted, and steamy. I currently have it on display for our romcom table.