This was an adorable romcom that brings in the social media aspect of today’s world. The audio was really good! I loved the multiple POV but that each narrator voiced their own characters the entire time. I also thought this author did a great job discussing mental health issues. Lucy is very funny and Fletcher felt a little mysterious at first but I ended up really liking him. Workplace romance meets online romance where both clash when Lucy and Fletcher realize both worlds are actually the same.

The misunderstanding, miscommunication, and secrets did bother me in this one more than I expected it to. Lucy was pretty stubborn when she finally found out Fletcher had already figured out she was his online bestie. When she didn’t want to listen to his explanation I just kind of felt myself check out. The ending was cute and it did feel like we got resolution.

Flirty little secret was such a fun read start to finish. It was a quick-paced and engaging story with loveable yet flawed characters, interesting conflicts, and witty humour. I thoroughly enjoyed this book, and really only had issues with a couple little moments. I enjoyed Fletcher and Lucy's romance, and found its progression to be well-paced and the stakes were predictable in a good way. The side characters didn't fall flat for me which is always a bonus.

My only real issues with this story were the way it treated its teenage characters, in mostly obnoxious stereotypes and bland characterization. The teenage girl stifling her intelligence to be an influencer was cringeworthy, and the dialogue between Lucy, Fletcher and their students was the hardest part to read, aside from one scene between Lucy and her sister when her sister made vulgar comments about screwing her sister and then proceeding to lick her? I get that it was written to be like family humour, but it was jarring and I definitely had to reread it to make sure I'd read it right.

I fell in love with the characters in this story. It was so fun to see a Jewish FMC. This was such a cute story and I had a lot of fun reading it. I think the author wrote the character so any girl can relate to Lucy! If I could I’d rate it 10/10!

Unfortunately, I'll be DNFing this one.

I really appreciate the author, publisher, and NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for my honest thoughts.

I struggled really hard to get into this one. The meet-disaster was comical, but it became the center of the book for the first quarter, and I was bored. There was also a lot of deep introductions to people and places and things and history and anxiety (so much talk about anxiety).

I loved the account that the FMC runs, but it didn't feel genuine to the person she was IRL, and I struggled with that a bit.

Also, being married to a male teacher, I just didn't super connect with the MMC? It just didn't speak to my own lived experiences in a way that I thought it would.

This was an excellent debut novel and I loved the Jewish representation in it! Just like's its title it is a fun read and I loved that it took place between coworkers, and I loved their messages to each other.

This was a cute book. The characters found themselves in the end even though it took a little but to get there. At times, the main female character wasn't my favorite but in the end I liked it.

I love when an author can so accurately convey the emotions and feelings behind mental health issues, not feeling like you can be yourself around the people that know you best.

I enjoy alternating POVs and when done properly… and this book did that!

Thank you netgalley for the eARC in exchange for review.

I received a DIGITAL Advance Reader Copy of this book from #NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this book. Lucy felt like one of the most real characters I've read in a very long time. She is not a perfect main character and I loved that. I am also obsessed with the side characters in this book. If the author decided to make this into a series and make a book for each of Lucy's sisters I would read it in a heartbeat.

I also loved the Jewish representation in this, I was not expecting that.

This was so cute & fun to read! I enjoyed it so much! The exchange of text messages! The banter was great! The story flowed so swiftly and I could not put it down

Thank you to NetGalley, Forever (Grand Central Publishing), & Jessica Lepe for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This one is out now!

This was a cute workplace romance between teachers and mistaken identity romance. We see our MC’s lives inside and outside of school. I’m not going to lie, this one struggled to hold my attention. Reflecting, it was a cute story. I definitely recommend giving it a shot if you’re looking for a light RomCom.

DNF - I’m sorry, the KKK stuff just really put me off. I grew up in Detroit and neighboring areas with a lot of KKK marches and just. Cannot.

I enjoyed this book but it was a bit unrealistic. The premise doesn't really make sense, but it was wonderful to get lost in the characters. I especially appreciated the mental health focus of the characters.

Although the concept was interesting, the story felt very juvenile to me. I stopped at 69%.

Thank you to Forever and Netgalley for an advanced copy for review consideration.

There was a lot that was frustrating about this book for me. I typed out an entire review and then lost it, so to sum-up: the author should have consulted with an actual School Counselor to write this book because she got a lot wrong. The “KKK” club was a ridiculous example of outdated curriculum. “Tribe” is not a problematic term to use when expressing a bonded group, and books/authors/general public should stop projecting offense where there is none. College is not the only option after high school and forcing students/readers to think that it is the best option is misleading; especially given the current state of student loan debt and unemployed college graduates.

The romance was okay, the family banter and characters were entertaining. I felt for Lucy’s struggles. But that was all overshadowed by the aforementioned issues.

Going in to Flirty Little Secret as one of my most anticipated new releases of the year, I had high hopes and I was NOT disappointed.

I don’t know if I’ve ever related so strongly to a character the way I did to Lucy. Her struggles with anxiety, depression, and ADHD were some of the most realistic I have ever read, and it felt so beyond wonderful to see myself so represented in a book. That feeling of wanting love but not being sure you deserve it? Knowing that isn’t apparently just a thought in my brain and is something people struggle with, but can still be loved for all their brain’s quirks (and frequent crying) was very emotional. I am so excited to recommend this book to friends going forward as a great depiction of the realities of having mental health conditions and being neurodivergent, and for the precious love story.

POV: dual first person

You can expect: teacher MMC, guidance counselor MMC, pen pals, secret identity, he falls first.

Rep: Mexican/Moroccan/Jewish FMC, anxiety, depression, IBD, ADHD.

Spice: 2/5

CW: off-page grooming of a child (NOT done by a MC, brief and non-descriptive. Nothing physically happens to the child), microaggressions, cheating (not done by MCs, off page)

3.5 stars rounded up! A teacher and a counselor with a messy meet cute find themselves drawn to each other, but they're both not being completely honest. Lucy can barely keep herself together in real life, but she doles out advice as the picture perfect Instagram persona @TheMissGuidedCounselor.

Fletcher is the new history teacher at her school and she can tell he's probably interested in her, but her anxiety and depression are keeping her from being willing to take the chance with him.

To make things worse, Fletcher happens to be one of @TheMissGuidedCounselor's closest confidantes online. He figures it out first, but waits and waits for the right time to tell her...until it's too late.

This romance did a great job showing how mental health struggles can impact all aspects of your life and it was refreshing to see Lucy being helped through that by her friends and family.

Ultimately, the story dragged a bit in some places but the romantic relationship between Lucy and Fletcher felt rushed and lacking depth. This would probably be a more impactful read for anyone working in the education system or struggling with those issues themselves!

Thank you Forever for the ARC in exchange for a review. I liked the premise; it was definitely unique. I was enjoying this but the multiple KKK jokes made me uncomfy. Risky joke. 5 stars for a DNF because I cannot comment on the overall quality of the book.

I always enjoy the chance to read debut authors, and I look forward to reading future books by Jessica Lepe. I'm a sucker for the "You've Got Mail" vibes when a couple knows each other online - under an alias - and also in the real world, but don't know that they are one-in-the-same. I thought the Instagram friendship and the IRL friendship were both done well and the reason for the online alias was very believable. Lucy's family was a joy to spend time with, I appreciated the diversity and mental health rep, and there were some genuine LOL moments. I was happy to see growth in the kids from the confidence group, Georgia's relationship with both Lucy and Fletcher, and even in the cheating father relationship.
I'm never a huge fan of miscommunication and third-act breakups --- so I didn't really enjoy those aspects of the story. And I understood the initials of the confident kids club being there to emphasize the embarrassment, but I think it could have been done without invoking those particular initials and the negative associations that go along with it.
Overall, I enjoyed this read. I am thankful for the chance to read a review copy and I will definitely be interested to read future works by this author.

DNF at 20%. I was so looking forward to this book because I heard there was great Jewish and mental health rep. But I could not get past the running joke about a children’s school group called the Konfident Kids Klub, or the KKK as they said and joked about multiple times. DO BETTER. How did this go through multiple rounds of reviews and editing and no one thought, “Eh. Maybe we should go a different route?” Racism isn’t a joke.

Immediate DNF once I realized the author chose to name a club in the book the “KKK” and allude to the teacher of said club as the “grand wizard”. As a young black reader it was just unacceptable to me, and I couldn’t look past it.