Wedding planner Ali is trying to make a name for herself after returning to her hometown. What she doesn't need is to be planning the wedding of one of the most influential names in the Baltimore hotel business who also happens to be her college one night stand,

Hameroff is so good at creating romcom characters and plots that just suck you in! Here's what I loved with this one:

Ali: She is my spirit animal. The humor she brought to this story was amazing. I rooted for her while I laughed out loud. She's a perfect romcom FMC.

Graham: Book boyfriend for sure. He's one of these guys that will always do the right thing, no matter how hard it is. I loved seeing him tackle how to help his family and friends while also falling so hard for Ali. The two of them balanced each other out so well.

The cast of characters: This takes place in the same universe of Hameroff's previous novel and it was great to see all of those characters again. Along with them, I adored Ali's family. They are loud and hilarious.

All in all, an amazing romcom!

Thank you to the publisher and author for the gifted copy!

Read this if you:
*love a classic second chance romance
*loved The Wedding Planner movie

Ali moves back home to try her hand at wedding planning. While she's helping on a big wedding that might really advance her career, the fiance walks in - and he's the man she had a fling with (and got matching tattoos with) in England years ago.
But he's getting married and that's the end, right? Wrong.

Cute, fluffy romance in which both characters are growing up and trying to find themselves and their place in the world. I enjoyed it.

Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for the arc of this book. All opinions are my own.

I really loved this one! I am not the best at writing reviews sometimes, but sometimes books take you by surprise and this one did just that. I got invested a few chapters in and couldn't put it done. It was so good! I highly recommend this one. It brought my heart so much joy. It was the perfect romance to read inbetween all the fantasy and I really enjoyed it.

This is Lindsay Hameroff at her funniest and most banterful. Also her most angsty?? There's quite a bit of angst. But while I adored our main characters, the side characters really shine here. I loved everyone, and I loved the Baltimore setting. It was all around just a fun read and, dare I say, even better than her debut?

4.25 stars

Most of the time new authors are hit or miss for me, and last year I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed Lindsay Hameroff's debut novel, Till There Was You. I jumped at the chance to read this one, following Ali, one of Lexi's best friends from the first book. During her last night of a study abroad semester in London, Ali meets Graham, and the two end up getting matching tattoos after a bar bet gone too far, and end the night together. 10 years later, when she is back living with her parents in Baltimore after a string of failed careers, she shockingly runs into Graham in a coffee shop, who has family ties to the city as well. Now a wedding planner, Ali is even more shocked when the new groom she is working with turns out to be Graham as well. But things aren't quite what they seem on the surface, and the two rekindle their friendship anyway. This one did opposites attract right, with Ali being a bit of a mess, but in a realistic way where she wasn't overly chaotic, and Graham was the stereotypical repressed Brit. Ali's family dynamics were warm and sweet, and showed a lot of Jewish representation. I felt for Ali being in an impossible situation, and related to her feelings of not wanting to be anyone's back up plan. The pacing was quick and kept me engaged with relatable characters and even though the plot was somewhat far fetched, it still felt like a feasible enough story.

Never Planned on You kicks off with a fantastic meet cute! Luckily I hadn't recalled the synopsis (which I thinks gives way too much of the plot away), so I was just as surprised as Ali when she bumped into Graham many years later. I absolutely loved the Jewish representation: everything from foods to traditions. And also, we get two scene-stealing amazing grandmother characters.

However, I struggled a bit rooting for Ali and Graham's happily ever after and that is primarily due to the gray-area cheating and secrecy. For the majority of the book Graham was not forthright with Ali and that made it difficult for me to enjoy their chemistry and romance.

Swoon worthy second novel for this author and i really liked it. I was anxious for a romance and this hit the spot. Enter Ali who dives head first into life and then, Graham measured and sometimes grumpy- mix together and wow, amazing chemistry.
They have a humorous shared past incident with a lasting result. Add a bit of The Wedding Planner to this fun second chance romance and you have a hard time putting it down . Thank you Netgalley and St Martins Press for this story

I love a sweet romance novel. Are they predictable? Sure, but I have fun getting from point A to point B. What twists, turns, roadblocks, and hiccups are going to come up along the way?!

As much as I wanted to love this book, it ended up falling flat for me in the end. I loved the characters. I loved the setting. I just didn’t love how it all wrapped up in the end. Sigh.

Thank you NetGalley and St Martin Press for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Funny, sweet, and 100% swoon worthy!

• Opposites attract
• Second chance romance
• British accent (I mean duh 🥵)
• Marriage of convenience

The chemistry between Ali and Graham is busting at the seems and I here for it! We need a round two!

Thank you NetGalley and St Martins Press for my digital copy!

This book is a delightful romp through my favorite romance tropes! The characters are absolutely hilarious, and Ali’s occasional immaturity only adds to the charm. Graham, on the other hand, is the perfect match for her, and their romance is as smooth as a jazz saxophone. Together, they bring out the best in each other, making their relationship a joy to watch. But beware, they stumble into a bit of a pickle that will keep you flipping pages to see how it all wraps up!

So I don’t read summaries anymore when I like an author.

When I found out she was a wedding planner and her one-night stand she sees from 7 years ago my stomach already clenched up. It was so bad I got a cramp. I knew what was coming.

Yet I was still thrilled and gasped and laughed at all the moments. Also, I love Ali and Graham. As separate characters and together

I enjoy their banter and the way they bring out different sides of themselves. I really enjoy Lindsay Hameroff and this didn't disappoint.

It was an emotional rollercoaster of emotions but the HEA is no less than what the couple deserves. I would just read a whole book about their shannegians

This was a fun, laugh out loud romance book that I did not want to put down. There was a so much chemistry between Ali and Graham and I was here for it! I think this is a must read for romance lovers!

💕ARC BOOK REVIEW💕
Never Planned On You by Lindsay Hammeroff

💐What a fun, light-hearted romcom, with a unique trope twist and an incredibly lovable cast of characters!

💕Ali and Grant had a one night stand in London. Eight years later they run into each in Baltimore, have a sweet date, and discover there are still sparks between them. Two days later Ali goes to meet her new wedding planning clients, and the fiancé turns out to be none other than Grant. Ali needs this wedding to go well, so she's determined to be professional. But the sparks that exist between her and Grant refuse to be denied.

💐I have to start by saying that I'm not a fan of the cheating trope. If you're not either, trust me this book is still for you! Grant is truly the sweetest, kindest and most caring man. It was hard to watch him struggle with what he should do versus what he wants to do. Ali is a sweet, impulsive, fun loving woman, who wants to finally settle into a career and be taken seriously by her family. She tries so hard to bury her feelings for Grant and do the right thing. But sometimes the heart just won't be denied.

💕I read this book so fast! The writing style sucked me in, there was amazing chemistry between the characters, and I really needed to figure out what direction the story was going to go. I was surprised by how much I loved Claire, Grant's fiancée. That little curveball made the book even more interesting!! I feel like it's hard to review this one without giving too much away, so I'll conclude by saying that you should read this if you're a fan of grand gestures, second chance, he falls first romances with fun twists!

💐A huge thank you to Netgalley and St. Martins Press Griffin for the e-arc of this book. Never Planned On You will be published on Feb. 18th.

If you are local, she will be at @midtownscholar with @sarahadlerwrites on, 2/19 at 7pm. Hope to see you there!

Thank you @stmartins for my early reading copy of Lindsay’s new novel, NEVER PLANNED ON YOU, out February 18, 2025. I was surprised how much I enjoyed this novel!

If you know me, you know there are certain topics that I do NOT read: cheating is one of those. I will go ahead and give you a head’s up that there’s the implication of this in the novel, BUT, my gut just didn’t settle with the implication and I am SO GLAD I stuck with it!

I loved that characters from Hameroff’s first novel make cameo appearances, but this is truly its own storyline, and can definitely be read as a standalone novel.

Ali is adventurous and willing to chase what makes her happy, much to the chagrin of her family. She’s basically rendered speechless when she runs into the Brit, Graham, at a local Baltimore coffee shop after 8 years and one wild tattoo night later. What she doesn’t bank on is having to plan his wedding to the funniest fiance character ever: Claire.

If you like the following, then you will enjoy this novel:
British accents
Mr. Rogers level nerding
The Price is Right
All things Baltimore
Jewish family dynamics
Familial comparison complications

Claire gave me some flags that intrigued me enough that I kept reading, way too late into the night in order to find out what really happens. You know that’s the mark of a great book in my opinion!

Do you like novels that involve deep details/characters that dwell on food?

#neverplannedonyou #lindsayhameroff #romcom #localauthor

If I had one word to describe this book it would be “fun.” It’s not to say this book wasn’t serious and didn’t have conflict at times, it’s just that so much of this book was filled with joy and humor that made me laugh out loud and all different types of love that made me so happy!

All of the characters were incredibly likeable and well written, especially Ali. She was relatable, endearing, and her internal monologue was actually hilarious at times. Her one liners were too good. We also saw a lot of growth from Ali which added a layer of depth beyond her witty personality. Ali was never upstaged by the secondary characters, but I loved her relationships with each of them and how the other pieces of her life were perfectly intertwined in the romance plot of the book. From her family, to her career, to her friends, and her love life, I really enjoyed getting to know Ali.

And of course, I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention how much I loveee second chance romance and the “one night together meeting again by fate” vibe of this book was soo good! I loved that we got little glimpses of their night together throughout the story that lead to their getting together in the end. It really did seem like Ali and Graham were a great match, and the slow burn was satisfying but not unbearable. Such a sweet romance!

AND THE ENDING WAS SO CUTE!

Thanks so much to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press- St. Martin’s Griffin for the ARC in exchange for my honest review!

This book is full of tropes, but it WORKS. Full of pop culture references and both lead characters are so damn well written. It was a joy to read!

I really liked this fun rom-com. Ali, the FMC, cracked me up with her snarkiness. I also loved the buttoned up, cardigan wearing MMC Graham. I definitely want to go back and read the author’s previous book as I enjoyed her writing.

The Wedding Planner movie but with a new twist as two people who get matching tattoos and have a one night stand meet 10 years later when she becomes a chef... for his wedding. Ali is spontaneous and when she gets a matching tattoo with a hot British guy on her last day in London and has a one night stand with him she'd never in all her years think she'd ever run into him again.... until she does as his newly hired chef for his wedding. Ali never expected to see Graham again and of all places she definitely did not expect to see him as the groom for the wedding she's been hired to work at. Yet the moment they meet its like the sparks never left and they can't stay away from one another. Ali and Graham know they shouldn't be feeling what they do with each other as the wedding looms nearer and nearer and the secret Graham is hiding might change everything. What are you suppose to do when the person you're in love with is getting married to someone else? So one thing to know about this book is that it deals of course with the very specific trope of cheating, and yes they explain it away later but its one trope I dislike so much. In this book it just feels so unnecessary and kind of just useless. I didn't care for it and yeah its a kind of Wedding Planner (J-Lo movie) vibe but I just don't care for it. I would highly recommend you read the blurb of the book to check for this specific trope before reading because if you dont like cheating, and if its not explained in a good enough way, this book is definitely NOT for you. If you like the cheating trope then yeah, give this a go, if you like the "complicated relationship" trope or "missing the one and meeting them again in a more complicated scenario" trope then yeah absolutely pick this book up.

Release Date: February 18, 2025

Publication/Blog: Ash and Books (ash-and-books.tumblr.com)

*Thanks Netgalley and St. Martin's Press | St. Martin's Griffin for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

This book was undeniably cute, but the whole situation with him being engaged and not telling his marriage-of-convenience bride about it really rubbed me the wrong way. It just felt uncomfortable and off. However, the story did have some charming, Hallmark-esque moments—the prologue was probably my favorite part, along with the ending!

Ultimately, I bumped up my rating by one star thanks to the ending. The grand gestures and the nod to The Price is Right definitely earned it!

4 stars

Ali has a carefree spirit, so much so she makes a bet with some random guy in London and ends up with matching tattoos. She leaves her job as a chef in NYC to head home to Baltimore and work as a wedding planner, often thinking back to her tattoo-twin. Her suddenly serious need to succeed at work, her tattoo-twin shows back up and hires her to plan his wedding.

Cute read, even if predictable in places. But it doesn’t detract from the story. Characters are easy to like and relate to, with flaws all their own. Easy to digest.