dnf @ 30%

Okay, I was really excited for this book, this premise seemed like a dream, but honestly I struggled a lot to get to 30% of the book and I couldn't get past that. Why on earth did the protagonists act so much like they were 16 year olds? Impossible to continue reading until the end. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an arc in exchange for an honest review!

Let me just start by saying thank you to NetGalley for sending me this book in exchange for an honest review.

I really wanted to enjoy this one, really. This was my first Evie Alexander book and it sounded so promising. I mean, enemies to lovers, steamy romance with a strong FMC... I was genuinely hoping this was going to be a perfect fit for me. However I DNF it around the 40% mark. I just didn't seem to connect with the characters and the pacing felt a little weird to me. To be honest I should probably have stopped reading before but I trying so hard to push through because the writing was good and I liked the premise. But the enemies part of it all didn't really hit the way I wanted it to and I was even kind of confused as to how they were really enemies... Idk the reasoning just felt bizarre and more so with the characters' behaviour, which was a little too childish for me at times. Overall just not the book for me.

I loved this book. I was drawn to the cover first and foremost as I had not read anything from this author before —and I was not disappointed. I loved the characters and their rivalry, and the writing was also very pleasant and easy to read. The story was engaging, if not a little long at times. I have given it 4 stars because of that last bit; as I sometimes struggled to keep on going with the story with how drawn out it was at first, and how long it took the characters to finally get over their differences. Still, I really liked it and I had a great time reading this!
Thank you again NetGallery for the advanced copy.

James and Estelle’s story is a sexy one with old family rivalries and a driving force bringing them together against their will. It was interesting to see how these two bounced off each other, with the sparks flying, and to see how they’d misunderstood each other. As they begin to open up and learn more about each other, feelings grow, though the fighting isn’t over! Estelle’s “gifts” for James were funny and kept the story light but I did find the whole thing was incredibly slow and could easily have been 20% shorter as it seemed that there was a lot of miscommunication which dragged out in the book but not much really happened for most of it. It was good fun seeing these two together and how their relationship developed but I needed it to be shorter or have more going on for it to be a higher rating from me.

I received a free copy of this book. All views are my own.

This was a super fun and enjoyable romance. The plot was fun and this was enemies to lovers (sort of), but I don't want to give too much of the plot away. A delightful read.

3,5/3,75⭐️

Tropes:

-Enemies-to-lovers (kind of)
-Small-town romance
-Office romance

First of all, thank you NetGalley and Emlin Press for the ARC.

"The Upper Crush" by Evie Alexander is the third book of the Foxbrooke series.

This was my first book written by this author and, even though it can be read as a standalone, I suggest reading the previous books before in order to understand better the characters and their relationships.

Honestly, it took me a bit to get into this book, but I'm glad that I didn't DNF it.

I loved the banter between Estelle and James and the family dynamics.





(Spoiler)

At the same time, I don't really consider them enemies and James fell for Estelle right away, but nevertheless, it was still a pretty enjoyable read for me once I got into it.

Big thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Alright, this book was truly captivating! I adored Estelle and James/Kevin - his instant affection and her internal conflict were brilliantly portrayed. While the book was quite lengthy, I truly found it interesting to read, the characters quirky, humorous, and supportive, and the narrative beautifully highlighted various forms of love - from self-discovery to friendships, family bonds, and romantic entanglements.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

OK - This book was fantastic! I loved Estelle and James/Kevin - I loved his insta-love, and her struggle with her feelings. The book was VERY long - it could have been shorter and still had the same effect (that's the only reason I'm knocking off a star).

The spice was spicy, the characters were weird and funny and supportive, and this book really showcased so many different types of love. Love for our own journey in life, friendships, family, and romantic love. It surpassed the love of material things, and really was just an enjoyable read.

This book is a fun read, it keeps you entertained the entire time with the friend group’s shenanigans or Estelle and James’s parents who are an absolute hoot. They are both so similar and yet have a ton of preconceived notions of the other that keeps them at odds for the bulk of the first half but they have great pranks and banter that you are just waiting till they flip to lovers.

Introducing James to this group, while not for the first time, but more permanent adds a lot more as they navigate the past mistakes he has made makes the side characters feel more three dimensional, even if I haven’t read the previous books, I could easily pick up the gist of their story as well!

The ending of this book is the best as I tried to figure out how it would all work out with so many possibilities!

Rating 4/5 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Spice levels - 3/5 🌶️

The Upper Crush by Evie Alexander is #3 in the Foxbrooke series but as someone who hasn’t read the first 2 books (yet) I can gladly say this can definitely be read as a stand-alone!

I slowly fell in love with Estelle and James and their distinct personalities really shine. Their chemistry had a nice build with an explosive ending! I also love the inclusion of an index with all the sexy scenes so you can reread or skip if you want!

There wasn’t as many “country girl x City Boy” dynamic as I expected but that didn’t take away from the experience.

The spice was excellent and the dual POV really adds to it! This book had me blushing all the way through!

If you enjoy workplace romance enemies to lovers rom-coms you will definitely enjoy this book!

I will definitely be going back and reading the first two books in this series and maybe rereading this again! Thanks so much to NetGalley for the ARC !

*4.5

The beginning was a little confusing but I ended up really liking this book. James didn't fully realize it but he was so in love with Estelle from the start. I understood her reasons for hating him and it was fun to watch her fall in love. I do think that the part where he goes to China was a little muddy and I wanted them to talk more but I still liked it.

I received an arc through netgalley.

This was more of a 2.5 star read but rounded up to 3 because there were some really good elements to the story.

The back bones were there for something fun but ultimately it got lost. This is an almost 600 page contemporary romance that really could have done with some good editing. The characters were fun but I don't feel as if they were totally flushed out and the way the author went about trying to flush them out with kind of cringey internal dialogue did not help. This was marketed as a potential stand alone novel and I don't really know if that is the case. I don't know if it was the fact I didn't read the first two books or the writing but it took a long time for this book to get going. In the first 20% of the book I was about to DNF cause it was just so odd. The characters were being weird, the set up was weird, it just didn't make a lot of sense. I do realize this could be an issue of not reading the other two books but when the book is marketed as potential standalone it should change how you start a novel.

The spice was good and having the index in the back was a good addition. The concept of a music festival gone wrong is a really fun idea that I haven't seen done yet.

Lady Estelle Foxbrooke has a plan to save her family’s estate, but it means working with her twin brother’s worst enemy, James Hunter-Savage. James had had to abandon his life in London and return to the Somerset countryside to live with his parents, whilst working with Estelle. As Estelle and James jockey for position to turn a business venture into a success, they begin a tumultuous relationship. With neither one committing to their true feelings, their future begins to look doubtful.
Whilst this book is part of a series, I did not feel that I couldn’t understand the connection between characters. This was a great enemy to lovers s tory, with plenty of passion to spice things up. I enjoyed learning about what made these two characters tick, as I believe they did, with the witty dialogue between them. An entertaining read.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

One of my favorite tropes is the enemies to lover, and the author did a fantastic job with it here. I loved seeing Estelle's hatred for James turn to love, as well as seeing another aspect of him and learning about his past.

Evie Alexander was a new author to me when I read The Upper Crush; I was drawn in by the lovely cover, but I remained for the amount of fun I had reading it. The words effortlessly flowed from Evie's writing, and I think it's safe to say that I've discovered a new romance writer to love.

Thank you NetGalley and Emlin Press the ARC.

This was a strong third book in the Foxbrooke series, it had everything that I was hoping for and enjoyed the romance novel. The characters were wonderfully done and enjoyed the concept of the romance. It had everything that I was looking for from the other two books. Evie Alexander writes a strong story and glad I got to read this.

I really enjoyed this book! It was funny and engaging, with the perfect amount of smut! The characters were very interesting as well. I am definitely going to read more from this author!

The book was hilarious. The banter was on point and the slow burn was excellent. It’s enemies to lovers but I use the enemy word lightly as they’re enemies because he is her brother's arch nemesis. Jake’s is cocky and deff gives off bde(lol). But deep down there’s more to James. Estelle is a badass. I just loved her.

Overall it was a solid fast fun read I recommend trying it even if you haven’t read the other books in the series.

dnf at 37%

i really, really wanted to love this book and while there was so much of it i liked (primarily the FMC) i just couldn't connect to anything else in the book, and it felt a little insta-love-y from the MMC. i hope to come back to this at another point and give it another chance, because i feel like i could really like it.

Love this one and all the fun banter! A great enemies-to-lovers romance and I love that its based in modern British society! There is chemistry between the two characters but it's a spicy slow burn. Both James and Estelle fight hard for what they want and it's a rollercoaster the entire way!
Thank you to the author and publisher for this arc.

This book is HILARIOUS - not only does it have the classic banter that you can expect from an enemies-to-lovers rom-com, but it also has plenty of humor throughout the descriptions and family dynamics!

Estelle Foxbrooke and James James Hunter-Savage - the archenemy of her brother - are forced to work together to save their family's economy. Estelle spends her days trying to annoy him, and he spends his days trying to impress her!

This book was everything I could expect from a rom-com with plenty of tension, forced proximity, great banter, and delightful characters that can’t wait to transition from enemies-to-lovers!

The family dynamics were everything in this book; the scenes where they are all together are extremely funny and made me laugh out loud a couple of times! It reminds me of a 90s sitcom.

I loved Evie Alexander's writing and her sense of humor.
Solid 4 stars for me!

Thank you Netgalley for the chance to read this book in exchange for an honest review!