I love the banter in a good enemies to lovers and this was well done. I also really liked Logan and Tyler as side characters - some of their responses in the text chains had me actually snorting in laughter. They had great character depth, but I found the female side characters lacking personality.

I liked the idea of including excerpts from the manuscript they’re writing together, but I wish they differed more from Aiden and Rosie’s actual conversations. I understand the intent is that it’s supposed reflect their relationship, but the dialogue is almost verbatim and it’s repetitive to read the same conversation again, even if there’s the addition of the internal monologue. The excerpts also have the same voice, whether it’s written by Rosie or by Aiden. Since they have opposite styles, which is so central to the plot line, that should be reflected in their writing. It’s a unique idea, but it needed work.

Thank you to NetGalley and Alcove Press for the ARC!

Not in My Book was cute! I actually had a lot of fun with Rosie and Aiden's banter, their academic rivalry, and the romance. I genuinely was giggling and kicking my feet as I read the novel. It was easy to get sucked in and fall in with their story!

However, there were definitely some things that—personally—took me out. I think for me, the crux, was the story they wrote being almost a fanfiction of their life; while I understand why Katie Holt chose to do this, there were moments where I was just like 'this feels a bit weird.' But, it wasn't something that I always felt; it really kind of came and went based on the situation. Sometimes the dialogue also felt a bit unrealistic. My biggest complaint, though, is that the ending felt fast and abrupt. I feel like we needed at least another chapter/another maybe 20-50 pages to get a little more into it and properly wrap it up.

But, I love that Holt wrote such an ode to romance novels + rom-coms and I had so much fun reading this!

I really enjoyed Not in my Book the debut novel by Katie Holt. Not in my Book is such a sweet love story and I hope K. Holt writes additional books. She knows how to keep you hooked in the story. I had to know how Rosie and Aiden’s story turned out. This book will appeal to new adult and adult romance readers. Fans of Emily Henry, and Sarah Adams will enjoy this story. I will certainly be recommending it to patrons in my library. Thank you to net galley for the eARC.

Honestly one of the best romances I have read in a long time.

This book was an ode to the romance genre in so many ways - it felt like romance inception! A romance book about a sunshine romance author writing a romance novel with a HOT, grumpy litfic author, and it WORKS.

I don't always love the grumpy x sunshine trope, but this one really hits because the author has given us such depth in the character's backstories that their personality makes sense and the chemistry really shines. The head to head banter and bickering at the beginning of the book felt childish, but once the MC's started spending time and writing together, this book felt like it gained depth and maturity quickly.

I laughed, I squealed, I giddily kicked my feet, I greedily flipped pages because this book had one of the most compelling spice scenes I've read without the characters actually even TOUCHING. The laptop and speakerphone scene where they write the manuscript's love scene together....speechless. Beyond that, Aiden could do no wrong when it came to finally breaking the intense tension and buildup....the man has a mouth on him.

I am still thinking about the richness of detail in this book, from sensory details to side characters to character development and loved every moment.

For all the readers who defend their love of romance for all it gives us, this one's for you. I gobbled this up and you will too.

I added this to my list because I thought the cover was super cute and I slept on it for so long until Netgalley gave me a time crunch and I am so happy I got myself into gear and read it as it was very sweet. I do wish there was more to the main character and character development other than just her thinking of her love interest all the time, I know it's a romance but why I love Emily Henry books so much is her FMCs are relatable and have a life outside of their partners, this just felt like she was a young tween obsessed over her crush talking and thinking about him in every chapter. I however absolutely loved the book excerpts at the end where you can see his point of view, I thought that was a new take on showing the MMCs POV. All up quite enjoyable and can't wait to handsell this!

Thank you to Alcove Press and Netgalley for gifting me an ARC of her book in exchange for an honest review!

Listen, I am a sucker for both a rivals to lovers story, and a he falls first story. So this was a win-win-win to me.

Rosie and Aiden were SO GOOD - they had such believable and palpable chemistry, both in their rivalry and in their relationship.

I loved how she was completely oblivious to him being OBSESSED with her and their banter snd stolen glances had me legitimately giggling and kicking my feet. Let alone when they would write together????? SWOON.

I could’ve read two more books worth of their story alone.

I am 100% sure that if you love romance, you need to read this book. It’s like if Beach Read

I recommend this read if you like:
📚 Romance
📚 Rivals to lovers
📚 Higher ed romance
📚 Author romance
📚 Fake dating “for the plot”
📚 Forced proximity
📚 He falls first
📚 Secret cinnamon roll MMC

not in my book is described as “the hating game meets beach read” and that’s so true!!

I LOVED this book! The plot line drew me in and the characters kept me reading for more. Rosie (my namesake) is literally me? Loves Taylor Swift loves romance books fancies tall men who wear peacoats

Would definitely recommend this book to anyone looking for an easy, cute, spicy, romance book with a literary setting

In this fun and steamy romance, Rosie, an idealistic Peruvian-American from Tennessee, heads to New York, determined to make her dream of writing romance novels a reality. Things quickly get complicated when she finds herself in the same class as her ex-crush and literary rival, Aiden. Aiden, a New Yorker with a complicated past, has his heart set on writing serious literary fiction, and from the moment they meet, the two clash hard. Their constant back-and-forth finally pushes their professor to give them an ultimatum: co-write a novel, or fail the semester.

As they begrudgingly start working together, their hostility starts to melt away, and they begin to genuinely connect. Their co-written novel becomes a space where they open up about their lives and develop a real chemistry. Just as their relationship starts to heat up, a big career opportunity reignites their old rivalry, putting their budding romance in serious jeopardy….. leaving them to figure out if they can overcome their old rivalries to make things work.

The writing is sharp, the character development spot-on, and even the side characters are so much fun. It was a truly delightful read!

Thanks to NetGalley and Alcove Press!

Rosie, an idealistic and passionate Peruvian-American who has grown up without strong ties to her culture, leaves her Tennessee hometown to pursue her dream of making it in New York as a writer. But her plan is derailed when she ends up in class with her arch-nemesis and ex-crush, Aiden Huntington—an obnoxious, surly, and gorgeous literary fiction writer who doesn’t have much patience for the romance genre, or for Rosie.

Oh this was sooooo good!!! The chemistry and angst between the two main characters was the best part of the entire book.
Some scenes were extremely hot under the collar and I loved it, the interconnecting book that is being written by the main characters alongside their actual own love story was such an interesting concept and I was eating it up. I read this in one sitting and could not put it down.

I rated this 4 stars and would definitely recommend to my fellow angsty romance lovers!!!

An easy 4.5!!!
I loved this so much. I was hooked from page 1 and probably would’ve finished it in one sitting if I didn’t start it at 10pm. This is a genuine enemies to lovers in the best possible way. I went in thinking this would be a funny little romance, but no. It delivered so much more. Highlyyyy recommend this read. Thanks for the ARC netgalley.

Before I begin PLEASE KATIE I NEED A SPINOFF BOOK ABOUT LOGAN I AM BEGGING!


Ok. I LOVED THIS BOOK! It was so swoon worthy and THE TENSION! Aiden was a drool worthy fmc and Rosie was so whimsical and fun. I loved this story so much and I think all contemporary romance readers would really enjoy it

This exceeded my expectations! I expected a fairly standard romcom (which I love), but this just had and extra touch to it that made it so unique. The concept of the two writers being forced to write a book together and then getting to read excerpts of their writing was really unique (at least to me!).

I really loved this enemies to lovers book about two writers who can't seem to get on the same page. I thought that the characters were fun and well developed and I really enjoyed reading this!

This was a really great debut and the fact that it was pitched as a cross between The Hating Game and Beach Read definitely sold it to me. It had the perfect mix of banter, spice and romance and I loved that it was an enemies to lovers too!

The premise of this book was fun and definitely had me looking forward to reading it. I understand this is a debut novel, so first of all, congratulations to the author, as a debut you really swung for the fences, so bravo. As such I’ll be kinder than I generally am when reviewing, because even my favorite authors had some clunky moments at the beginning of their writing careers.

I loved the idea of two burgeoning authors who are contemptuous of each other’s work, style, and plot points being forced to work together on a novel as a requirement of continuing in their post-graduate program. I really loved the way the author incorporated snippets of the work in progress at the end of each chapter as a vehicle for revealing the MCs feelings toward each other. I loved the group texts of the friend groups: they added humor and helped to move the story forward.

I enjoyed the book a great deal. I do have some criticisms, however, in particular the vitriol between the MCs in the beginning that’s not truly corollary to the differences between them. Likewise I felt that the last minute/third act event was unnecessary,

Overall this was a very good read and I look forward to more from this author in future.

I was furnished an advance reader copy from NetGalley, and I’m sharing my honest review.

Rosie and Aiden, rivals in an NYU writer’s course, clash due to their stark differences. Rosie is a romantic longing for love who writes romance but is afraid of vulnerability; Aiden is a disillusioned litfic writer who rejects romance due to his troubled past. Their constant arguments disrupt class, leading their professor, Ida, to nearly kick them out of class. Instead, she decides to force them to co-write a novel—a romance without a happy ending.

Not In My Book was my favorite contemporary romance read of the year (5 stars!), combining beloved tropes with emotional depth. Expect an enemies-to-lovers, open door slow-burn romance with themes of opposites attract and forced proximity. The integration of their novel into the main story added a unique layer and a glimpse into Aiden's head. Some Spanish dialogue without translation was occasionally confusing but did not detract from the overall story. Overall, it was a gripping, emotional read that kept me on my toes and had me swooning.

I would recommend this to fans of Ali Hazlewood, Emily Henry (especially Beach Read) and Heather Fawcitt's Emily Wilde series.

5 stars!

This is Katie Holt's first novel and it's brilliant.

Aiden and Rosie are in the same writing class and are constantly at each other's throats. They like different genres and don't get along at all. The professor assigns them to write together. The beginning may not be the easiest, but slowly they get to know each other, and through their texts they are also able to talk about their feelings through their characters.

The story was so well constructed that it was a joy to read. The plot moved along smoothly, and the characters were realistic with their faults and weaknesses. The book has a third act break up, which I usually hate. However, in this book it was resolved so smoothly that even that didn't interfere with the reading pleasure!

I definitely recommend the book to everyone who likes romantic literature. I look forward to Katie Holt's future books!

WHAT TO EXPECT:
* Book about books
* Dirty talk
* Enemies to lovers
* Forced proximity
* Hea
* One bed
* Open doors
* Opposites attract
* Point of view: FMC 1st person
* Slowburn
* Steamy
* Third act: break up

“I’m not good at romance like you are. I don’t have the right words to make you understand how completely wrapped around your finger I am. I didn’t believe in soulmates, and for the longest time I didn’t believe in love at all—until I met you. But I do love you. The shoot for the stars, shout on rooftops kind. I accepted my fate a long time ago. I don’t think I could ever love anyone else but you.”

This book follows our FMC Rosie (sunshine personified and believer of all things romance) and our MMC Aiden (grumpy writer with no belief in said romance but a soft spot for a certain romance lover) in their masters program at NYU. Because of their inability to work together amicably in a writing class, they are forced to write a book together, one that pushes and challenges them each in ways they never expected.

First I have to say, this book surprised me in the best way. I was definitely impressed considering this is the authors first novel, how hooked I was. The beginning of the book maybe started out a little rocky, but about a quarter of the way into the book I was absolutely ENTHRALLED! The banter between Rosie and Aiden had me unable to put the book down (like literally I finished the whole thing in less than 24 hours) and straight up giggling.

I loved the NYC setting, especially at Christmas time🥹 The way I could envision the Christmas lights, the snow falling on Christmas Eve, walking around the booths at the Christmas market. It just made me so warm and fuzzy inside and I loved every second of it.

The use of the quotes from the book within the book was confusing in the beginning, but as the story unfolded I wound up LOVING the use of storytelling through Rosie and Aiden’s writing (especially that spicy scene IYKYK). It turned out to be one of my favorite aspects of the book and such a creative way to further the plot and reveal certain thoughts from our main characters that they were unwilling to come forward with themselves.

I love a grumpy MMC and Aiden lived up to my fave kind of grumpy turned obsessive man. Obviously there were some moments he could have handled better and I wish he would have handled the third act break up better than he did to show how far he had come, but I do think he made up for it and his romance hero moment had me kicking my feet and on the edge of my seat like “PLEASE FORGIVE HIM ROSIE🥺”. Also the MOUTH on that man during spicy scenes had me like 🤤

There were so many relatable things about the FMC, her love of romance and her optimism along with her stubbornness. Her love for the city but the need to retreat to her TN home. Definitely felt a kindred spirit with Rosie and loved the way her character grew from the romance obsessed girl in the beginning of the book to the Rosie who saw love as work and imperfect but still worth it. It was a beautiful journey for her AND Aiden and I was pleasantly surprised at the depth and growth I saw from both of them!

There were a few small inconsistencies in some scenes and a few typos but nothing that stood out in a way that took me out of the story completely.

Overall, I ended up LOVING this book, these characters, unable to put it down and would absolutely recommend it to any book friends who love:

Enemies to lovers
Forced proximity
Grumpy/Sunshine
Only One Bed
NYC

**Thank you NetGalley, Alcove Press and Katie Holt for sending over an arc in exchange for an honest review!**

Super fun read, absolutely love the enemies to lovers trope but this was giving more rivals to lovers which I also love. Will say that throughout the book I kept thinking to myself how the vibes were very similar to the Hating Game and I absolutely loved it. The characters had a very good progression to their relationship, where there was the perfect amount of tension and yearning where I literally could not put the book down because I could not wait for them to finally get together. Yes I did read this in one sitting, and yes you should too!

listen as soon as I saw the hating game meets beach read, i immediately requested this.

I enjoyed reading this book.

the banter.
the tension between Aiden and Rosie was everything.
the slow burn was BURNING.

Now Aiden was literally EVERYTHING. The things he did for Rosie.
I really like Rosie’s character but I did find her annoying sometimes.

Overall this was a good and fun read.

Thank you netgalley & aclove press for this arc.

Read this if you like :

- rivals to lovers
- workplace romance