This book has been on my Netgalley for a bit and I haven’t picked it up. I haven’t been into romance in a minute, so I’m not the right person to review it anymore.

🥞𝒜ℛ𝒞 ℬℴℴ𝓀 ℛℯ𝓋𝒾ℯ𝓌🥞

Till There Was You
Lindsay Hameroff
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

𝒯𝒽ℴ𝓊ℊ𝒽𝓉𝓈
Blueberry pancakes, celebrity romance, and navigating grief? Say no more! I loved this book. Lexi, grappling with her mother’s death and navigating adult life as a 20 something in New York, had me rooting for her the whole story. Her dreams of making it as a chef while simultaneously juggling her boyfriend, Jake-a famous singer, had me engaged throughout the book. I absolutely loved the chemistry between Jake and Lexi, it seemed very organic and burned steady throughout. Without giving it away, I loved how the book ended. It felt very wrapped up in a bow for me, which is how I like my romance books. Not only that, but the ending was very original. Overall, I really enjoyed this book and it will likely be one in my top favorite romances!

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the advanced copy, out now!

A chef, a musician, and a second chance at love? You had me at chef, to be honest :)

Lexi is a stressed out culinary student who spends an amazing weekend with Jake, who she quickly loses touch with until he ends up on the radio singing a song about her! Then he ends up on her doorstep and Lexi needs to decide what she is willing to sacrafic.

I received a copy of this one by Lindsay Hammeroff from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review--thank you so much!

This was a very sweet and spicy read! It was a fun insta-love book. I’m not usually into insta-love books, in a way it read a bit like a YA, but only sometimes. I did really enjoy the “different worlds” aspect of them seeing as she’s a baker and he becomes a breakout pop star. If you’re looking for a cute and spicy little book to read, this would be a good one to start with.

Thank you NetGalley for this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

A fun romance novel

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for this review copy and the opportunity !

2.5

This book reads like fanfiction, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but it’s not what I was expecting. It also very much reads like it was written by a millennial, like there’s multiple references to Twilight and someone thirsting after Justin Bieber. Which again not a bad thing, but not what I was expecting. I also think I have gotten used to romances being dual perspective, so it really threw me off when we were only in Lexi’s head.

Lexi is a culinary student, who has an amazing weekend with Jake, a musician she met at a dive bar. He is getting ready to fly to LA to record a demo and they promise to keep in touch when all of a sudden he blows up and becomes famous and because of romance book miscommunication, they don’t talk to each other again until he comes back to New York over a year later. When they reconnect, Lexi has to decide if giving Jake a second chance is really what she wants.

I think this book does a great job of highlighting the downside of celebrity. We see Jake struggle with being famous and with not being able to be “normal” because of people trying to take his picture or leaking gossip about him, and we see how that impacts Lexi when she’s photographed with him. We also see how challenging Lexi‘s job as a chef makes maintaining a relationship, and some of the negative sides of working in the restaurant industry. That being said the plot was all over the place. I’m still unclear on how much time this book actually took place over because events happened in a blink of an eye. It made the relationship feel very insta love, which then made me question Lexi because she had to have known her life was going to change by being in a public relationship with a celebrity, but it’s like she never actually thought about it and it felt like they’d only known each other a week.

Overall, I can’t say this was a good book but I can say there was potential and that I devoured it in one sitting and am planning on picking up Never Planned on You soon.

A steamy weekend with Jake Taylor is all Lexi Bergman needs to become hooked on him, but when their lives go on separate paths the instant connection between them might be lost. Lexi is focusing on her dream of becoming a Michelin-star chef and Jake is about to make it big, becoming the next overnight sensation. Over the next few months the pair focus on themselves, never expecting to see each other again but when their paths cross again the instant connection is back stronger than ever. Will they be able to make something between them work or will their different dreams and passions get in the way?

The description of this book sounded good and I knew I needed to give it a try. I was hooked on the first few chapters and saw myself loving this book, but then a few of the twists and turns lost me along the way. I really enjoyed parts of this book and wasn’t a fan of others. I felt the same way about the characters, there were moments where I loved them and where I couldn’t stand them. Those moments lined up with the parts of the story I loved and didn’t love. The story was well written and it wasn’t hard to get through, but all of the ups and downs and drama were too much for me at times. This book had so much potential in the beginning that I found myself wondering why it had a low star rating on Goodreads, but as I got into the book I started to understand. This wasn’t a terrible book by any means, but to me it was a little too dramatic and there were a lot of moments that I couldn’t get into. With all of that being said, I don’t regret giving this book a try and would check out more by this author.

I laughed out loud when reading this one. I enjoyed the plot, the characters and the overall vibe of the story. I recommended this one to my book club!!

DNF'ed as a "will try again later." The writing and story is not currently grabbing my attention but will come back to this at a later period

2.5 for me sadly. Their relationship fizzled out pretty quickly for me and they just got to be annoying. They felt far too insta-lovey for me. Lexi busts her butt in culinary school, to ultimately flub the opportunity she earns over a guy.

Jake is constantly forcing her into his life with no consideration for it will affect hers in return. Expecting her to drop everything and go with him every time he mentions something.

I DNFed around 18%. I tried to stick with it, but Lexi was hard to care about in general. The breaking point was finding out she had been accepted to and graduated from culinary school with never having worked in any type of restaurant. Yes, we knew she came from money, but even suspending reality made that too unbelievable.

Till There Was You by Lindsay Hameroff is a heartwarming and emotional romance that explores the complexities of love, second chances, and self-discovery. The novel follows two characters with deep emotional baggage who must confront their pasts in order to build a future together. Hameroff’s writing captures the tender moments between the leads, and their chemistry is undeniable.

However, the plot sometimes feels predictable, with a few clichés that may not stand out for readers familiar with the genre. Despite this, Till There Was You offers a satisfying, feel-good story with relatable characters, making it a great pick for fans of contemporary romance looking for an easy, enjoyable read.

Till There Was You is a story about Lexi, a culinary student and aspiring chef, and Jake, a musician trying to get his big break. They have a whirlwind weekend then lose touch as their lives go in opposite directions. A year later, Jake shows up at Lexi’s door hopeful for another chance.

This was sweet and kept me hooked the whole time. Lexi was a well rounded character, I liked her group of friends, and I felt like I was in the kitchen cooking with her. Jake was decent, but I don’t think the rockstar love interest is for me. And I didn’t necessarily care for the added drama with his dad. There was already enough going on with the story.

Overall, I enjoyed Lindsay’s writing style and would love to pick up her new book, Never Planned on You, when it’s released in 2025.

Thank you St. Martin’s Griffin and NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Second chance at love as well as chef vibes?! That is a recipe (lil pun intended) for a feel good romance read. Quick, fast paced and fun to read ( because the chemistry was really working for me)

4/5

I did not expect this to be as wonderful as it was.

Immediately pictured Luke Grimes as Jake. And the rest is history.

Love the chemistry, the second chance, the aspects of the music/celebrity world.

Wish I hadn’t waited so long to read this one.

Sweet romcom with some LOL moments courtesy of Lexi’s besties. A quick and enjoyable read for romance fans.

Thanks, St. Martin’s Griffin and Libro.FM, for the arc and ALC!

“And in that moment, I know Jake Taylor and I will never be just friends.” That’s the line that hooked me in the first chapter of TILL THERE WAS YOU by Lindsay Hameroff, and I knew I was in trouble of finding a new romance book I would love. Was I right? Yes. And this is another book I’m happy I waited for the audiobook to read!

I picked up the arc a few times but never caught on to reading it, even with that line in the opening chapter. When I heard it on audio, it was like a totally different book, and I was excited about it. And that line, along with the rest of the book, was so well narrated by Erin Bennett.

I liked how Hameroff spread Lexi and Jake’s situationship over time. Sure, some of it was frustrating, but it let them grow as individuals and together. Plus, we got to know some great side characters that I hope we might see later 🤞🏻

I don’t mind miscommunication if it’s necessary and done well. I saw why it was needed in this story, but I think it could been executed better. That was my biggest frustration.

Otherwise, I enjoyed the book. It made me smile and feel the love. A great romance debut - I can’t wait to read what Lindsay Hamerhof writes next!

Content warnings: familial death, cancer, sexual harassment, bullying, grief

Thank you Netgalley and St Martin’s for the arc in exchange for an honest review. Despite this book having some tropes I don’t initially lean toward, I found the premise of this story enjoyable. There’s something about not expecting to meet someone and then spending the weekend with them that, while not realistic for me, pushes on that little romantic kernel of hope deep inside my chest.

I look forward to reading more from this author in the future!

Till There Was You by Lindsay Hameroff follows Lexi, an aspiring chef, and Jake, a rising music star, as they navigate the complexities of their careers and their budding relationship. If you're looking for a feel-good romance with a sprinkle of celebrity drama, Till There Was You is the perfect choice.

Many thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for sharing this book with me.

This was a cute read that just fell a little flat for me. I liked the premise and was surprised that I didn't mind how the timeline of the book was laid out even with the couple time jumps that happened. I did kind of love the insta-love which is something that can go either way for me but played into the story quite nicely, and also love that Jake never pushed too hard when he came back into Lexi's life. I appreciate that he always tried to respect her wished to the best he could even with how he felt for her the whole time. I will say I think there could've been more open communication between the characters, there wasn't that much miscommunication but there did feel like there was just a lack of communication happening. If things didn't feel easy they often gave up a little too quickly instead of trying to work through things and talk to each other. I do think there's more potential in Lindsay's writing and I would be curious to read more in the future.