This was such a refreshing, exciting read. I knew 23% of the way in that this would be a 5 star read for me no matter how it ended. Starting off, I can relate to Brynn, the MFC, in regards to almost everything in her life. While I don’t have a hunky roommate, it’s very easy to relate to her and feel all of her emotions. The nostalgic feels through the entire book were heavenly. If you watched One Tree Hill, The OC, Laguna beach, dawsons creek, etc etc then this book will be right up your alley! Brynn “celebrates” her 30th birthday and ends up getting trapped in her favorite show, Carson’s Cove. Enter every teen drama from the 2000’s, I think the author added in at least one tidbit from each show! She finds out quickly that her roommate, Josh, was also sucked into this alternate reality. They work together to figure out how to leave and go home. Through the book, the characters both develop and find themselves/work through their respective issues. I don’t want to spoil anything but this will most definitely be a book I recommend to ANYONE. I’ve already pre-ordered a physical copy, this will forever be one of my favorite books ever written.

Will post this review to Goodreads, Amazon, & instagram when it gets closer to release date.

This story has a lot of promise. I was interested in the plot originally but it was much different then I expected, though that isn’t the authors fault. I just feel I could have went without a few things. Firstly, I did not like the Sheldon character. I understand he was needed to transport our main characters to their new book land but why did he have to be weird and evil? Why did they have to act like other people? I think this was my disconnect with this story. I just wasn’t a fan of the kidnapped/being blackmailed aspect. I did however love our main characters, their relationship progression and the overall idea for the plot!

No shame I read this book in less than 24 hours and loved it. One of my comfort movies is Jumanji: Next Level, and this book has that kind of vibe. It had me laughing out loud at moments and then tearing up at others. Robb weaves little easter eggs from everyone’s favorite 2000’s TV shows into Carson’s Cove that will bring a nostalgic smile to every millennial face. The book feels like a warm hug and I can confidently say this is a new comfort book for me. Brynn and Josh’s journeys into finding their own happiness both in Carson’s Cove and back home is uplifting with a nice dash of spice it is TV worth itself. For every OTH and Riverdale fan this book is a MUST READ! I’m excited to see what Kate Robb has coming next!

I plan on posting this review on Goodreads, Amazon and instagram closer to the release date.

I absolutely loved this book!! I couldn’t put it down.
I just loved all the characters. I highly recommend this book.

What a fun book! While getting stuck inside your favorite angsty teen drama sounds like it would be a blast it ends up being an actual nightmare for Brynn & Josh. Being tricked into resurrecting these tv characters forced our main characters to dig deep and do the right thing. Kate Robb nailed it with some fun banter, rekindled friendships, and some spicy spice. Looking forward to reading more of works. Thank you to netgalley & Random House publishing for letting me sneak a taste.

"Prime Time Romance" by Kate Robb offers a fun premise, drawing inspiration from nostalgic TV dramas, but the execution falls short. Brynn's adventure into her favorite TV show, Carson's Cove, is an intriguing concept, blending contemporary romance with magical realism. However, the character development for Brynn and Josh feels lacking, making their insta-love romance hard to buy into. Despite some entertaining moments and nostalgic references, the story feels uneven and underdeveloped. Overall, it’s a light, enjoyable read but doesn’t fully live up to its potential.

3 ⭐ 1 🌶️
While Kate Robb says this book is inspired by the 1998 movie, Pleasantville, I am Gen Z, so actually this book is inspired by Teen Beach Movie.

Brynn Smothers is an almost thirty divorceé who loves to watch the teen dramas of her past. <i> Carson's Cove </i> [loosely inspired by Dawson's Creek], is a fantasy world that Brynn can escape into, a comfort show for all of her good and bad days. On the eve of her thirtieth birthday, a mysterious stranger delivers a birthday cake. But when Brynn wishes to finally get her perfect happily ever after, she never imagines that the next morning she'll wake up in Carson's Cove, playing the role of the perfect girl-next-door, Sloan Edwards. Even more crazy? Her roommate, Josh, is here too, playing the role of the town badboy, Fletch.

Even though Brynn has spent her entire life wondering what happens to her favorite characters at the end of their final seasons' cliffhanger, Brynn realizes throughout her time in Carson's Cove that maybe the ending that is expected is not the ending that the characters deserve.

Wooooooo. I have a lot of feelings about this story. First, I think that the main plot of the book is phenomenal. I love Teen Beach Movie and I love how Kate Robb mixes contemporary romance and elements of magical realism and fantasy. However, I think the execution was weak.
There are so many references to Carson's Cove and the plot of the fictional tv show to pay attention to which doesn't allow for much actually character development for Brynn or Josh.

Speaking of Brynn and Josh, this is insta-love central. When they declared their love for each other (despite not being friends prior to be stuck in a tv show and barely knowing each other), I had to laugh. Their relationship had no foundation and it was absolutely ridiculous. They had little to no chemistry and when they have sex, I was cringing. Absolutely no sizzle. Kate Robb does not do well with sex scenes.

Honestly, it makes sense that in the author's note and acknowledgements that Kate Robb based a lot of this book off of different tv dramas, like the aforementioned Dawson's Creek, but also 90210, Buffy, and Riverdale. Because holy crap, was this book a hodge podge of tropes and stunted dialogue! This book is a hot mess and I think it could be classified as Robb's sophomore slump. After looooving my ARC of This Spells Love, I am surprised that this was such a flop!

I was so excited to read this and it did not disappoint. I loved Kate Robbs debut novel and knew as soon as I saw she had a new book I had to read it. I loved this book so much and the characters were amazing. The one complaint I have is pretty mild and it is just I wish we had more time to get to know the two leads. I feel like we didn't get a ton of background about them that told us what made them work together. They definitely did have chemistry and I was rooting for them the entire time, I just wish there was a little more on them. But this was such a a fun read and I enjoyed all the references made throughout especially as a Buffy fan. I cannot wait to read whatever Kate Robb writes next because I'm sure it will be as fun and comforting as her first two.


Thank you to Kate Robb, Random House Publishing Group and NetGalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review

Overall, I thought this was a worthy romance read that has a new twist that feels refreshing and exciting to read. I wish there had been more time or chemistry-build up between our two main leads, but ultimately, felt like this book had a beautiful arc, from introducing and giving us a vibe for Carson's Cove and why it was important to Brynn's life, and then giving us an ending that felt natural and honest.

The premise was very cute, but unfortunately this just fell flat for me. I lost interest in the characters and the tv-show world about 30% of the way through.

After recently finishing This Spells Love, I was so excited to receive an ARC of Prime Time Romance. I enjoyed the characters and general premise of the book, but I found it strange that the main characters were “acting” while the other tv characters were themselves. It made me confused throughout the book. It’s still absolutely worth the read, especially if you loved a good 90s tv drama like Dawson’s Creek. So much nostalgia for comfort tv shows!

Thank you to Kate Robb, Random House Publishing Group, Dial Trade Paperback, and NetGalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for the arc!
This was the first book I read from this author. I‘ve never really read books with magical realism in them until I discovered Ashley Poston and I‘m excited to know Kate Robb writes those books too!

I started going into this book without knowing anything about it so I was confused at first. I really liked the roommate aspect, that Brynn and Josh lived together and only really got to know each other because of the predicaments they found themselves in after Brynn‘s wish.

That both of the mcs personal problems were included in visiting Brynns favorite series was a nice touch. I also liked that they and especially Brynn learned that not everything and everyone is as perfect as it seems.

Sheldon gave me such creepy vibes, didn‘t like Poppy at all, I‘m glad Brynn stood up for herself and others, Luce was such a good friend and a great side character.

Also the small town vibe of this series reminds me soo much of gilmore girls!!

With that being said I enjoyed my time reading this but it didn’t really catch me. I found myself getting bored and not wanting to continue reading this, thats why it‘s just a 3 star rating but I am intrigued to read another book by the author!

This book was like a warm hug! I thought that this was such a cute idea. If you love Dawson's Creek, you will love this book! Once I got into it, I couldn't put it down. Thanks so much Random House and NetGalley for this ARC!

Have you ever wanted to just hop into your favorite show and give it the ending it really deserves? Or wanted to give it an ending overall since it got cancelled?

Imagine being transported into your favorite television show and living out the main character's life. I adored this premise because I have felt the same way at one point in my life. This novel alternates between Brynn's and Josh's points of view. Both are characters that you can fall in love with. Brynn is struggling with her new life which means the loss of her best friend after her divorce and a roommate, Josh. Josh is a bartender struggling with the loss of his father and his family's bar. They both get transported into Brynn's favorite television show, which was canceled years ago. What follows is a magical rom-com that I adore.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House for this ARC. Prime Time Romance is a cute, easy, sexy read - perfect for a cozy weekend or little escape when you need one. Brynn has a slight obsession with her favorite old TV show Carson's Cove (which I basically assumed was similar to Dawson's Creek, not that I watched much of it) where high school kids fell in and out of love, did things they shouldn't have and learned the consequences, had some scary moments and some exhilarating moments. Throughout it all there was that one couple that seemed perfect and meant for each other. It was Brynn's comfort watch until she ended up actually in Carson's Cove with her hot, bartender plutonic roommate.

Being forced by a demented, and somehow magical, background character/actor to take the lead role in the show many years later - Brynn, now Sloane, is meant to find her happy ending with Spencer. But Brynn quickly finds out that the TV happy ending she's been longing for all these years isn't really what would make her happy anymore.

I liked the story and it was a bit fun to enter into the world of Carson's Cove but nearly everything was predictable. Again, it is a fun, easy read for when you want something to escape into. Ultimately, it just isn't one I'd rush to tell my friends that they had to read.

Dawsons creek coded
Make a wish and have the wish come true but it isn't what you wanted
Grand gesture

Wouldn't it be fun to wake up in a tv show? But what if it's not what you imagine and everything isn't as perfect as it is on tv? The town good girl falls for the town baddie

Thank you NetGalley for the arc!

dnf'ed.

the premise sounded so cute but for some reason this did not hook me at all. i didn't enjoy the MC, the characters didn't really feel like real people and i couldn't believe the "i know nothing about my roommate" to now we're instantly flirty and into each other right at the beginning.

maybe i will try to revisit this in the future to get further in the plot, because it sounds SO cute, love the ode to the early 2000s movies/tv shows, but this just fell flat from the beginning to me :(

I was surprised by how enjoyable Prime Time Romance was, it is definitely one of my favorite reads of the year so far.. This story starts off quickly and just keeps going - there were no lulls where I found myself getting bored.

I've not watched Dawson's Creek or a lot of the other nostalgic shows that the author mentions at the end, but I could really feel and understand the connection that was intended with the comfort shows.

I really enjoyed the dual POVs of both Brynn and Josh - rather than feeling like we were re-hashing the same story, we really got to see their different takes and struggles with the world we were thrown into. Brynn wasn't my favorite at first, but I did enjoy her growth as a character throughout the book. Without spoiling the story, she really does become a great character to read while she see's things in a new light.

The "magic" that transports them is never really explains (and something feels a bit sinister) but that made me enjoy it more.

Rated 4 stars. Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the ebook ARC.

Do you have a comfort show you always go back to? Bryn definitely has one since she was 16. Bryn is now recently divorced. She just turned 30 and no one really remembered her birthday except for her mom. At midnight, a mysterious birthday cake arrives. When she wishes to get “her perfectly ever after”, Bryn and her roommate Josh then wake up inside her favorite show where everything’s perfect. The show got cancelled with the biggest cliffhanger. Forced to impersonate the show’s main character, Bryn realizes the show’s main characters’ lives may not be as perfect as she thought.

I actually went in blind into reading this one. I received an email from the publisher with the suggestion, and decided to give it a try. The first three chapters got me intrigued. Then I got to uber guy / cake guy, and his “I’ll send you home once I get the ending I want”, and I’m not sure how I felt about it. I didn’t really feel much chemistry between Bryn and Josh. Often times I felt like there was a lot happening too fast with the plot and not enough at the same time. I didn’t really connect with the story, nor the characters. I’m sad to say this one didn’t work out for me.

Thank you Random House and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

2.25/5 stars
I really wanted to love this book. It started out with such promise, but very quickly turned… weird.

Brynn, a divorcee with no real friends, makes a wish on a candle for her 30th birthday and is transported to the world of her favorite teen drama from her childhood. With a sudden cancellation, the show never got the ending that the audience wanted, so she has been sent, along with her roommate, Josh, to live out the perfect ending for the main character of the show.

The “magic” is perpetrated by someone who is a real person in the real world somehow and isn’t explained at all. There isn’t any allowance for growth of the characters, since every time they experience growth, they are threatened since that isn’t the “happy ending” the characters are supposed to have. And there was too much time spent on the pageant and Spencer, the male lead from the show that the main character “should have ended up with”, which meant less time spent building the relationship between Brynn and Josh (or even between their “characters” on the show - Sloan and Fletch).

Overall this book had some good moments, and I liked Brynn and Josh. Unfortunately, for me several things just fell short, and I felt the focus was less on the romance and more on a fake character arc (i.e. Sloan’s rather than Brynn’s),

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing for the ARC of this book!