This was well on its way to be a 4 stars until the main character, Eden, became a total b!tch for no reason. Like zero. None. NADA. The chemistry was pretty good, if I must be honest, and I was having fun up until maybe the 60% mark and from then on, I felt like strangling the woman. The guy whose name I've forgotten was fine, not amazing or memorable but not a toxic alpha male bullish!t type of love interest either so that's a win a this point. 2.5 stars

This was fun, it wasn’t anything super memorable or earth shattering but it was fun.

Brennon was pretty hard to like at the beginning of this - he gave off the stereotypical grump in the story and just wasn’t all that likable but the author did a good job at making his character have a lot of depth so you did and up liking him by the end of the book.

Eden on the other hand felt very likable during most of the story but around the 75/80% mark her hesitation and just overall “run” demeanor felt totally opposite of who her character was portrayed as the entire first 3/4 of the book.

Overall, i did enjoy it but felt like the last 20% had an almost different tone than the beginning. I enjoyed the setting being on a musical/broadway type atmosphere and definitely enjoyed it overall.

The side characters also added a lot to the story and they were very likable.

The Stage Kiss by Amelia Jones is a good book, a romance story between two actors who play Darcy and Liz Bennet on stage. The story begin with an argument amongst Eden and Brennon but an unexpected event brings changes on stage and Eden is the one taking the lead role.
Obviously Eden and Brennon start to get to know and like each other.
The story is good but I think it is too long. Characters are ok but nothing special.
I'm a big fan of Pride and Prejudice and maybe I would have preferred something better. There are some references and I appreciated that, but the rest of the story didn’t completely convince me.
However, I think is a nice book to read and a pleasant way to pass time

A rehashing of the Classic Pride and Prejudice, it is a fun tromp into theater and musicals. I was a little peeved by the miscommunication, but isn't that the whole premise of Pride and Prejudice? 😂 So not exactly unexpected. Brennan and Eden were sweet and were able to show each other their true selves!

this story was fun, energetic and i found myself so invested in the characters. I would 100% recommend this book, especially if you are a fan of the theatre like me.

The Stage Kiss is promised as a sort of modern telling of Pride and Prejudice which got me happy because I love P&P. The Stage Kiss was good until about 3/4 of the way through. It just 180ed on me. I was left disappointed.

Brennon was a good MMC. He started off rocky and a bit rude with the excuse of being drunk which happened again in the story. Brennon did get better as a character but he fell really fast for Eden. The way that he couldn't communicate was again rushed with an excuse of a parental death and other parent not caring/boarding school. It was mentioned once and that was it. Eden started off nice and you were excited for her big break but then she turned into a diva who acted like she deserved better than anyone else. The other characters were okay. I totally got her roommates bitching at her because I wanted to as well, lol.

The book was a little steamy with a wonderful build up but I think the characters needed more work along with the epilogue which I could have done without. It took place less than a year after and seemed to want to rush all relationships in the book.

I did finish it and got closure but was not sure if I liked the way any relationship ended.

Thanks to NetGalley and Alcove Press for the e-ARC of this book. This review is my own opinion.

This was a FANTASTIC, enemies to lovers showmance between a stuck up veteran actor and a rising actress trying to make it on the broadway stage as they are forced to work together as the two leads in a Pride & Prejudice musical revival. Full of sizzling chemistry and a great cast of queer secondary characters, this was a spot on P&P retelling that I couldn't get enough of!! Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review!

I really enjoyed reading this book.
I read it over a few days, and couldn't wait till I got free time to read it more.

This was a good adult contemporary romance, and I really like the cover of it!

I received an e-ARC from the publisher.

It takes an awful lot for me to like a Pride and PRejudice retelling. It is my all time favorite book, so I expect a lot. I liked this a lot for nearly 70% of the book, then Eden turned into a terrible character. I could not stand her. It didn't fit any of the earlier portions of the book and it really ruined the whole thing for me. I loved the premise and the musical theatre aspects, but this went to from a 5 star read to a 3 star very quickly.

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

As someone who is OBSESSED with Broadway and musical theater this book was right up my alley! This was a sweet love story, I loved the characters and banter. Would definitely recommend!

I really enjoyed this for a couple reasons, I love musicals and so I loved the behind the scenes of a musical. And then they won me over with Pride and Prejudice references, discussions and even some archetypes. I liked Brennon but I wish we had even more of his personality showing and particularly his backstory. Eden was fun although her mother was a character and I really would have liked to explore all that a bit more. But it was enjoyable and I took my time with it.

This was an absolutely adorable read!! The world needs more theater romances, and this one was perfection. Eden and Brennon were so much fun and I loved their banter

One of the fun things about an Austen-inspired contemporary novel is watching how the author maps her narrative onto an already familiar arc. Amelia Jones did a great job of using the tried-and-true P&P framework to create an enjoyable modern enemies-to-lovers romance that kept me reading well into the night. It was fun knowing who the villains were without knowing exactly how their true colors would be revealed or if/when they would get their comeuppance.

The novel's dual-third-person perspective really lets readers understand what's going on in the minds of both Brennon and Eden. I especially loved how this allowed us to see Brennon's character growth without making it seem like his core personality traits changed. Like any Darcy character worth our time, he comes across as a judgemental elitist in the beginning, but the narration style of this novel lets us see that he's consistently prone to saying the wrong thing, even after he realizes that he needs to prioritize people over prestige. Brennon is as flawed at the end of the novel as he was in the beginning, and I for one love him the more for it.

I also enjoyed the Adam & Maddox subplot, although it maybe could have been developed a bit more. There wasn't quite enough there for me to fully buy-in to Maddox's level of pining through most of the novel. That being said, I was thrilled with their reunion and careful approach to reconciliation.

Overall, The Stage Kiss is a fun and enjoyable novel that ticks so many boxes for me: it's well-paced with believable characters and plenty of spice. This will definitely go on my recommended reads list for steamy romance lovers.

This was a lovely surprise- a Pride and Prejudice inspired love story between two actors playing Elizabeth and Darcey in a stage version. I loved the theatre/musical vibes and the intensity of characters working and living as a cast. It had the angst of a regency romance whilst being in a modern setting. I also appreciated the fact that both characters made major missteps in their relationship, rather than the usual storyline of one person causing some sort of misunderstanding.

What to expect:

- Pride and Prejudice vibes
- enemies to lovers
- he falls first
- slow burn
- quite spicy

I loved everything about the main couple’s romance, from their sexy banter, to their arc and growth to the delicious slow burn. Everything about this book was phenomenal!

If you like enemies to lovers, this book is for you! This book was so much fun! The acting was part of my favorite scenes, and I really enjoyed it.

I enjoyed this book so much and it wasn’t until I finished that I found out it was a modern retelling of pride and prejudice, so with that premise you know what to expect but still it surprises you and satisfy you

I enjoyed this one! It was fun and as a theatre fan myself I always love books set in the theatre world! It just wasn’t a favorite, and not something I think I would reach for again. But I do believe it has its audience out there for it!