sigh* I wanted to like this one so much more than I did!

Its not bad by any stretch of the imagination. I adored the presmise and both of MCs. I loved that its a fat normative world and the discussions on book banning. And, I really resonated with Harmony's "leave them before they leave you" vibe bc: same girl, same. The buildup and miscommunication were done well. And I loved how we got two different types of autism rep. What a beautiful tribute to the diversity and breadth of this neurodivergence.

That being said I did have a few issues with this one. Like others have noted, the ending felt way too rushed and I'm sad that the mayor didn't get his comeuppance! I know its implied that she'll become the new mayor but I still really wanted to watch him burn. I get why that decision was necessary but I was still looking forward to it lol I also was so disappointed in the sex scene. I can't believe I'm saying this, but I wish it were fade to black. AH! Like the makeout scene in the library was so hot and this man is obsessed with her body so I expected that to carry over to when they had intercourse and...it just didn't! Part of this is more personal preference—I'm really craving stories where fat FMC's are worshipped—and part of this was just that the PIV was boring AF.

I would definitely be willing to try this author again, though I'd get it from the library versus purchasing.

If you're a theatre nerd, love books with quality fat and autism rep, and are looking for something with a touch of female rage, this is for you.

Rep: fat FMC, autistic MMC and side character, queer side characters

This was a me author for me and I really enjoyed this book. I’m a big fan of reading plus sized romances. This one was so sweet! I enjoyed it a lot! I def recommend it!

In My Kind of Trouble by L.A. Schwartz, con woman Harmony Hale returns to her home town with revenge in sight. Her latest mark is the man who ruined her father’s life, and she’s determined to make him pay for it. She doesn’t expect to find herself caught up in a book censorship case or fall in love with the cute librarian championing the cause. When things get complicated, Harmony finds herself split between revenge and a happy ever after.

I loved every minute of My Kind of Trouble! As a fan of Leverage and Hustle, the grifter angle appealed to me, and as a neurodivergent reader, I loved the representation. Schwartz has a real flair for writing romantic comedies, and the dialogue is as hot as the sex scenes. Harmony and Preston sizzle together, and the way she makes him flustered is adorable. A full cast of well-developed secondary characters supports them, adding depth and meaning to every scene.

The topic of book censorship in libraries is incredibly relevant right now, and it works well alongside the plot of Harmony’s con. Preston and his sister are both autistic, and the age gap between them allows for Schwartz to highlight the lack of change over the years regarding support for disabled and neurodivergent students. Schwartz is writing from her own lived experience, and it was wonderful to see an authentic representation of autism, especially in an educational context. The battle for support in schools for neurodivergent and disabled students is something that many people will recognise.

⭐⭐⭐¼ | 🌶️🌶️ | When chaos meets calm in the most delicious way

The Story: When con artist Harmony targets a small-town mayor who stole her father's music algorithm, she needs to convince local librarian Preston to lease his land for her fake festival scheme. But Preston—autistic, book-defending, sister-raising Preston—might just see through all her carefully crafted lies.

This was such a cute romance that had me completely smitten with Preston. His autism representation felt authentic and tender—watching him navigate love while fiercely protecting his library programs just melted my heart. Harmony felt surface-level compared to his beautifully layered character, though their chemistry absolutely sizzled.

The pacing rushed through emotional beats I craved to savor, but the small-town warmth celebrating libraries had me charmed. The spice delivered with steamy encounters that made this bookworm blush.

Vibes We Are Tracking:
📚 Grumpy librarian meets sunshine chaos
🎭 Ethical con artist redemption
🏘️ Small town, big feelings
💕 Beautiful neurodivergent representation
🔥 Steamy stacks sessions

I received this book for free for an honest review from netgalley. Unforgettable romance . So sweet and bookish.

First of all we love the representation of an autistic guy and a fat women !

It was a very cute romance, with a librarian and a conwoman, very healthy. I’m not a big fan of small town romance tho. I didn’t really feel attached to Harmony but her back story was really interesting but I loved Presto, he’s so lovable and cute, he plays and teach piano and he’s really sweet with his sister !

The plot was kind of classic at first with the librarian who wants to save the library and a new women arriving in town but then it turns out very different from what I thought would happened !

Although I was a bit taken back by the end ??

I wanted to love this one!! A gender swapped retelling of The Music Man with an autistic hero and fat heroine sounded PERFECT to me. However, I got both bored and frustrated repeatedly until I sadly had to DNF.

The main character, Harmony, is a conwoman pulling her penultimate con on a man who had a significant negative impact on her father’s life. However in order to pull it off, she needs to be in the good graces of the towns’ grumpy librarian.

Part of the charm of The Music Man is that Harold Hill, the conman, is so charming and enigmatic you can’t help but root for him, though you know he is lying and stealing from people. However, I didn’t get that feeling even remotely with Harmony, the main character of this book. She clearly was good at endearing people to her, but as a reader she bugged me at worst and bored me at best.

Again, the autistic and fat rep is great, as well as the older sibling parenting trope, but it wasn’t enough to keep me reading.

If you aren’t a character driven reader and want a romance/lit fic with an added element of a con, or may enjoy a retelling a of Broadway show, this could be for you. But sadly, it wasn’t for me.

(I did receive an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.)

I loved these two characters. Interesting, layered and I loved their interactions. The storyline was a touch crazy for me and there were a couple of things that, by the end did not quite make sense.

I enjoyed the writing style overall, too. I would be open to trying more by this writer in the future.

As an autistic person I think the autism was dealt with tastefully in this book, which was great to see. I also really liked their relationship too, sweet and true.

My main issue is a struggled to be engaged by this book. As a romance lover you’d struggle to find me typically taking more than 3 sittings to finish a romance this size. I had to take quite a few breaks. I think more focus on the main romance would have kept it more engaging for me.

This book was such a fun surprise! I was instantly hooked by the premise — a conwoman trying to take down a corrupt mayor by faking a music festival? Yes, please. But what really kept me turning the pages was the heart behind the story.

Harmony is such a bold, chaotic, lovable main character, and Preston? Oh my heart. A quiet, autistic librarian with a love for piano and a deep loyalty to his little sister — I adored him. Their opposites-attract dynamic was done so well, and their chemistry felt natural and sweet with just the right amount of spice.

I also really appreciated the thoughtful neurodivergent rep and the way the story didn’t shy away from deeper themes while still keeping the tone light and hopeful. Small town romance, a little chaos, and a lot of heart — this one had all the ingredients I love.

If you're into rom-coms with substance and characters that feel real, definitely give this a shot. I’ll be keeping an eye out for whatever L.A. Schwartz writes next!

3 stars

A charming must-read for library defenders, involving a world in which common sense and a well-built community triumph over panicked reactionaries seeking to block services for those who truly need it. In that sense it’s a cute little fantasy, one that provides the reassuring sense that nothing will truly go wrong in the course of the story and goodness will prevail, which is exactly the sort of escapism I think a lot of us need right now.

The plot, inspired by The Music Man, follows the expected beats, and the obligatory romance novel third act breakup is thankfully brief. Props go to Schwartz for two good depictions of autism, which are neither stereotyped nor overdone. Our female lead’s pushiness can get a little uncomfortable in the novel’s first chapters, but she gets better over time. The dialogue suffers from heavy therapy speak, but I think that’s again part of the comforting fantasy that the book is trying to feed you, even if it comes off a little scripted.

It's not my favorite, but it’s cozy and cute, and I appreciate that it didn’t let me ever feel anxious about things ending happily for all.

I didn't get the chance to finish this book but the things that drew me to this were the fat representation, the librarian main character, and the small town romance vibes. I really want to finish this title.

This was a decent read with an interesting premise and some enjoyable moments. The characters had potential, and there were a few engaging scenes, but it didn’t fully pull me in. The pacing felt a bit uneven, making it hard to stay invested at times. It’s an okay read if you’re in the mood for something light, but it didn’t leave a lasting impression.

I didn’t hate it but I also didn’t love it. Definitely won’t think about or have any desire to reread.

Despite being a con woman by trade, Harmony Hale has principles. To avenge a betrayal that triggered her father’s downward spiral to an untimely death, Harmony needs to pull off her biggest con yet, which brings her and her flashy red convertible to the tiny California town of Brookville. It is in Brookville that Harmony encounters Preston Jones, a skeptical, autistic, activist-librarian who appears to be immune to her charm. Harmony needs Preston’s cooperation for her elaborate con to work, but while trying to get his signature for her scam, Harmony discovers Preston’s genuine goodness and the battles he fights as the guardian of an autistic child, while being autistic himself, all while staving off book censorship battles from local parents. As Harmony gets closer with Preston, she begins to reconsider what a successful life would look like, and whether the revenge she sought would be worth it after all.

As a fat librarian with an autistic partner, this book hit very close to home for me. I often saw Preston and Harmony behaving in ways my partner and I behave, which speaks highly to the author’s understanding of the social aspects in the book. L.A. Schwartz expertly handles some extremely sensitive topics, like autism, bullying, parental loss, queerness and homophobia, fatphobia, and church abuse of minors, all of which are noted in a content warning at the beginning of the book. Despite the intense topics, this book was written in a way that made it easy and fun to read; throughout the story, I could picture myself in Brookville with Harmony, Preston, and the rest of the gang.

My primary critiques would be that Harmony sometimes feels like a caricature of herself as the voluptuous, vivacious blonde con woman, but I think that characterization is intentional and more a matter of personal taste than actual issue. The ending seemed to come together a little too conveniently, with Preston’s random celebrity connections and the forgiving nature of the people of Brookville. I love a happily ever after, but definitely had to suspend belief toward the end for it all to wrap up so smoothly.

I wholeheartedly recommend this book to adult readers looking for a romantic comedy that does not shy away from some of the unpleasant realities of our world. I do, however, highly recommend any potential readers check out the content warning before beginning to avoid potential triggers.

My Kind of Trouble was the kind of book I was looking for as a palette cleanser and to get me out of my reading slumps. It didn't do that. If anything, it put me further into a reading slump.
Now, to be fair, at first I was hooked. The characters are likeable and you instantly became engrossed in their story. But then the plot holes started popping up left and right. And with so many plot holes, came even more questions. I wanted to like this book so much but it fell flat for me.

This was a cute gender-swapped modern reimagining of The Music Man! The middle (once they got together) fell kind of flat for me, and I found myself skimming a lot, but I really enjoyed the beginning and end and the little homages to the musical throughout!

(Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review. Any quotes are taken from an advanced copy and may be subject to change upon final publication.)

My Kind of Trouble by L.A. Schwartz is a fun story with a good plot and a fast pace. I enjoyed the character development throughout the story and it touches some interesting points, such as autism and the negative effects of banning books. The spice was good and the ending was enjoyable. However, i felt like Harmony's confession was a bit rushed and it made things happen a bit to fast. But overall, i enjoyed this story and continue to recommend it.

What happens when a conwoman and Autistic librarian and piano teacher met? You get my kind of trouble Harmony's a conwoman who needs to run a con but in order to do so she needs the person who owns the land for a fake festival enter Librarian Preston. What can I say I'm a sucker for a librarian hero. And I loved the whole opposites attract.

Loved this story. It was a fun mix of The Music Man and Heartbreaker. Had a few small twists that I didn't predict. I wish we saw more of Preston's interactions and relationship with his sister. The discussion of autism was something I didn't know I needed in this book.

I entered this book with zero expectations but wow!...Harmony is a movie character, a boss woman who has her objectives very clear, to plan the best music festival she can imagine and make the mayor pay with his entire fortune for the damage he did to her in the past
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But to achieve his goals she needs to convince the sexy librarian to be on board, nothing strange since it is only part of the plot to get the town on board with the idea of the festival and manage to catch the mayor.
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But for that Preston has to stop and listen to her, except that from the first moment he sees her he decides to stay away from all temptation. Especially with his time completely occupied with raising his little sister and some library patrons criticizing his book choices and methods
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But no matter how hard he tries, Harmony is nothing if not determined to get what she wants and Preston is in her sights
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I love the way L.A. Schwartz described every sensation and thought going through Preston and his little sister's neuro-divergent minds, so conscious and very well thought out
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It really surprised me and I really liked the development and ending of the story, the only thing that I can complain for maybe the pace, it was a little slow in the middle
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without any doubt I'll be looking forward to her next books
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Thanks to L.A. Schwartz and Alcove press for give me a copy of this beautiful book in exchange for my honest and voluntary opinion