B.K. Borison has made a name for herself with her delightful Lovelight Farms series, creating small-town romances that blend whimsy, warmth, and relatability. Naturally, I approached First Time Caller with high expectations, drawn in by its ambitious premise and promises of a classic romantic comedy. Unfortunately, this novel did not meet those expectations and stands out as Borison's weakest work to date.

The story begins on a melancholic note, introducing readers to Aiden, a man navigating the complexities of his emotions and professional life. The opening chapter is captivating, full of promise, and sets the stage for what could have been a compelling journey. However, beyond that initial intrigue, the narrative falters.

Lucie, the female lead, lacks the depth and charm that Borison's characters are known for. Typically, Borison excels at crafting endearing, relatable protagonists who feel authentic and emotionally nuanced—even when their experiences are far removed from our own. Unfortunately, Lucie falls flat, and the writing itself lacks the maturity and finesse evident in Borison's earlier works.

Another shortcoming lies in the tone. While First Time Caller leans heavily into its romcom roots, its reliance on cheesy tropes feels excessive and detracts from the story’s potential emotional resonance. For readers who enjoy lighthearted, trope-heavy romances, this may not pose an issue, but it wasn’t a fit for my personal tastes. Additionally, the book might have benefited from tighter pacing or a shorter length, as its current form feels overly drawn out.

While I remain a fan of Borison’s work and appreciate her creativity, First Time Caller failed to capture the charm and emotional depth I’ve come to expect from her. My thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing an ARC. Here’s hoping Borison’s next release returns to form.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I felt this book deep in my chest—the kind of romance that makes you smile uncontrollably, kick your feet, and tear up in all the best ways!! First-Time Caller is pure magic, a warm hug of a story that wraps you up in the nostalgia of a ‘90s romcom while delivering a fresh and heartfelt love story!

Lucie is the kind of heroine you root for—an incredible single mom who’s given everything to her daughter and at some point stopped taking chances on herself along the way. The motherhood aspects in this book? So tender, so beautifully done, and so real! And then there’s Aiden, the darling, broody radio host who thinks he’s fallen out of love with love… until Lucie enters the picture. Watching him fight his feelings (and lose spectacularly) had my heart soaring. Tears were shed more than once!

And can we talk about the chemistry? Off the charts. Add in the friendships, the found family, the support systems—it’s all one big, romantic chef’s kiss. If you love Nora Ephron movies (Sleepless in Seattle vibes are strong here!), this book will sweep you right off your feet.

I read this one twice—first digitally as an ARC and then on audio as an ALC—and both experiences were a solid 5/5. The audiobook brings Lucie and Aiden to life perfectly, and I highly recommend it!

Simply put: I adored every second of this book. If you’re looking for a romance that makes you believe in love all over again, First-Time Caller is it! 🩷

Dare I say that was perfect? This was honestly just a perfectly constructed romance book and I couldn’t find a flaw. The plot was unique and I loved it. This book starts with Lucie’s daughter calling a romance hotline radio show to try to help her mom’s love life. Of course we have grumpy “I don’t believe in love anymore” host Aiden is on the other end of the line, the interview goes viral, and you can guess where it goes from there. The storyline was so much fun. Every character was funny and lovable. Aiden and Lucie had the best banter and chemistry. Aiden was so down bad for her I loved him. I also loved the little radio show bits at the end of every chapter I thought they added so much. I was just grinning at this book the whole time!!

Some of Aiden’s struggles actually hit so deep for me and seeing those on paper was something I never thought I’d get out of a cute romcommy book. Both of them were going through individual struggles that added so much to the story and we got to see so much development while having a great time reading it. This was really just so good and I enjoyed it from start to finish.

Thank you Berkley for the free copy!!! Everyone run to get this on 2/11 it’s a must for romcom season!!!

Thanks to @berkleypub and @berkleyromance for the free ARC and to @prhaudio for the ALC!

I loved this romance. It starts just like Sleepless in Seattle, with a daughter calling into a radio show on behalf of her single mom Lucie. The show sees a ratings spike and asks Lucie to join host Aiden Valentine as he tries to help her find love, even though he doesn’t believe in love himself.

Their on air banter and off air chemistry were delightful. I was very invested in their relationship right from the start. I loved the daughter as well as the unconditional family Lucie had. I want more of their stories!

Unexpected surprises drove the plot, with lots of forced proximity moments including a very hot closet make-out scene! The spicy scenes had great buildup and a satisfying payout.

I both read and listened to this one, and I thought the audiobook really brought the story to life. The bits of radio dialogue were done in duet with sound effects which helped drive home the radio vibes. I loved the voices the narrators used for the various characters.

Lucie is an amazing mom and a great character and I loved watching hers and Aiden’s story unfold. I will be buying this one for sure.

Gifted an ARC by Netgalley and publisher! I am obsessed with this author. I feel like I have never read a dual perspective story where I am invested in both characters equally! The way she is able to express these deep emotions about love and self reflection while also maintaining the humor is amazing. The family dynamics here are perfect and the author has a real gift with writing side characters that you fall in love with in just a few sentences. The spice scenes are also top tier and I can't wait for book two of the series!

All the stars for Lucie and Aiden! This book was the perfect way to kick off B.K. Borison's new series.

Aiden is the host of Heartstrings, Baltimore's romance radio show and he gets a call from Maya who is looking for dating advice for her mom Lucie. When Lucie overhears Maya, she ends up talking to Aiden and admitting what she is looking for in a relationship. Their segment goes viral, and in an effort to boost the ratings for Aiden's show, his boss wants to follow Lucie's journey as she goes on dates and potentially finds the love of her life.

I just loved watching these two slowly fall in love with each other. Aiden says he doesn't believe in love and is anti-relationship due to personal family reasons, yet he is so drawn to Lucie and wants her to be around him in any capacity. As Lucie figures out that her dream qualities in a man are maybe not what she really wants, she can't help her feelings for Aiden continuing to grow. She loves her life with her daughter, with her best friend Grayson, Maya's dad, and his husband Mateo, and her job as a mechanic, and she thinks maybe that is all she needs, yet Aiden, even when he is being grumpy, keeps pushing a way into her heart.

The banter in the book was great and I loved all the characters and am hoping book two will be focusing on Jackson! The tears did not stop flowing towards the end and I was said when the book was over and I had to say goodbye to Lucie and Aiden, hopefully only for now since the hope is they'll have cameo's throughout the series.

BK Borison has yet to disappoint! First Time Caller is so full of heart, love, and adorable moments. I love Lucia and Aiden with my whole heart, and the people around them bring even more love to the table.

It's always harder for me to talk about why I love a book than it is to talk about why I don't, so read this book if you love

- forced proximity
- slow burns
- "fuck it"
- the location as a character
- found family
- heartfelt moments
- hilarity

I loved this book so much, and BK Borison has cemented herself as an auto-buy author for me. 5 stars!

Thank you Berkley Romance for the free finished copy!

I had a feeling I would love this book because I love everything B.K. Borison writes but this was even better than I expected. Lucie and Aiden had immaculate banter and chemistry. I found their romance to be very believable and beautifully written. The side characters were also wonderful. I didn't love the third act break-up but I liked the rest of the book so much that I could look past it. I was afraid that 448 pages would be too long but the pacing worked for me.

Read This Book If…you love Sleepless in Seattle!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫/5
First-Time Caller by B.K. Borison

Genre: romance
Series: Heartstrings # 1
Spice Level: 3/5🌶, 1-2 explicit scenes
Setting: Baltimore, MD
POV: dual, 1st person, present tense
Tropes: single mom, grumpy/sunshine, he falls first, slow burn

My Thoughts:
I love a jaded man doing a full 180 to “if he wanted to, he would”! There were so many great moments between Aiden and Lucie and tons of tortuous slow-burn chemistry.

I loved Lucie’s daughter and the co-parenting situation, but I would have loved to see Aiden interact more with Maya. Lucie having an unconventional career was fun and I really liked both of their backstories.

Overall, I think this is some of BK’s best writing and I cannot wait for the rest of this series!

Memorable Quote: “I can be brave enough for the both of us. I can make my own magic. You just have to give me a reason to.”

Thank you to the publisher for my advance copy!

That was so so perfect and the quotes 🥰

He keeps a list of her favorite things in his glove compartment and makes himself like pineapple on pizza because it’s her favorite and he wants her favorite to be his favorite.

this is now my favorite bk borison book i fear!!! i was obsessed with the concept right from the beginning but watching aiden and lucie cohost the show together and slowly fall for each other AHHHH

i LOVED lucie’s character and everything she said the first time she called in was so relatable and her searching for “magic” in a relationship gah i just love her sm! and AIDEN i love how he’s a little bit grumpy but still so sweet and how he memorizes lucie’s favorite things and the pineapple pizza scenes pls i need him!!! his angst honestly got me and seeing him realize that he’s been distancing himself from everything so he never gets hurt was a LOT

lucie and aiden’s whole dynamic in general was EVERYTHING!!! their flirting and tension and banter AHHHH i love them sm <3 also all of the side characters were SO GOOD (im seeing hints of stories for jackson and maggie hmmm) but also maya is the true mastermind in the whole book i love her!!!

overall this book was everything i wanted it to be and tysm to netgalley and berkley for the arc!!

This was so cute and romantic! It felt like an early 2000s rom-com which I loved so much. The plot was so unique and fun! Lucie’s daughter calls into a radio station asking for dating advice for her mom, and the interview goes viral. Lucie joins Aiden on the radio show and their story is so sweet. They had instant chemistry, great banter, and the slow burn was perfectly done. The list that Aiden kept🥹🥹🥹

The only reason it’s not 5 stars is because I felt like I couldn’t personally connect to the characters that much, but they were still fun to read about! I just felt myself getting a little bored at some parts. But I especially loved the dual POV, grumpy x sunshine, and forced proximity. I would definitely recommend this to any romance book lover!

4.5 stars! (rounding up) wowowowow
This book officially made B.K. Borison an auto buy author for me!

-Rom com
-Meet cute
-Single mom
-Grumpy x sunshine

This book was so deeply romantic, it had me swooning!
Lucie & Aiden were literally made for each other and no one can convince me otherwise!
Aiden has a tough time taking down these walls he’s built around his emotions because of his past life experiences. It was beautiful to see the way his character evolved throughout this book. The way he cares for our FMC is literally the STANDARD. The list!!!!
Lucie’s character felt like such a breath of fresh air. She was so sure of herself, so genuine & in tune with her emotions.
I’m not usually one to care too much about side characters because I feel like somethings they’re just THERE? The side characters in this book added SO much to the story & I loved seeing them in specific scenes.
The overall plot/setting of this book was so cute! I loved the way we got them on the calls after each chapter!

This book was made to be read when it comes out, the perfect Valentine’s day read!!

Absolutely loved this. Honestly now in my top 5 fave books of all time.

It's so romantic and nostalgic. I felt the magic you feel when you watch a rom com.

I will never get over this book.

First time caller. Can a single mom , looking for love that is magic and a jaded heartstrings dj, both find the hope of romance

*Thank you Berkley for the NetGalley approval*

Absolute stunner of a romance novel.

Borison truly shines with her writing, never fails to make me fall in love with her characters and coincidentally leave me with a good ache in my chest.

First Time Caller is full of love, apprehension, sneaky pre-teens and letting people in. From its first page to its last it’s a tale of two romantics, one who denies loves existence and the other who’s aching for it.

Lucie’s take on romance and her desire to want to find the magic in a dating pool of, ‘you up?’, texts was something real. That take, her want to find the magic in love still, winds her up on a radio show about said love with a host who’s all but given up. Aiden Valentine can deny it all he wants, but I’ve got a folder of highlights to prove he’s just of a romantic as the rest of us. It’s just buried beneath the fear of letting people in, the fear of loss which in return results in walls so high no one can climb them. The both of them tumble into this journey, guised under content for the radio show, and the reader just can’t help but root for them (and Maya iykyk).

So much of this book screams, ‘to be loved is to be seen’. It screams the magic is in the small details, the remembering your favorite things *hint hint there might be a list scene in which I continue to think about,* the just because I wanted to see you smile—moments and more. It’s a comforting hug, a happy teary eyed smile, and I enjoyed every page!

If you’re on the edge of picking this book up to quench your rom-com thirst… this is me pushing you off the edge! (lovingly)

4.25🌟

first off thank you B.K Borison, Netgalley and Berkley Romance for this free book!! i was so excited to read this book and getting the arc of this was so exciting ❤️ first off i wanna say i love how Lucie knew what she wanted and how to communicate her feelings. it took Aiden some time to learn what he truly wanted and open up about what he was feeling. i loved the whole radio show about romance and how both Aiden and Lucie met because of it but really met because of Lucie’s daughter calling into the show!! it was so fun reading about these horrible dates Lucie had to go on but you just knew the chemistry between Aiden and Lucie was too good that you just wanted them together already!!! 🤭

I love this book with my whole heart.
B.K. Borison whatever you infuse your books with, please keep doing it. I need them.

The growth we see with both the characters felt so realistic and necessary. I loved seeing Lucie & Aiden’s relationship unfold. This is a slowwwwww burn but that’s my favorite kind of burn. We see the frayed edges and missing pieces they both have to figure out before they can be together, but it makes it all the sweeter.

The overall message that neither has to be perfect or all the way healed in order for them to be together... it seems simple but…

I loved all the side characters so much and I can see so much potential for this to be a series. Pleaseee let it be.

Aiden is the sweetest to ever exist and I treasure his character. Everything he’s been through and despite it all, the love he’s willing to give and receive… I cannot.

Will never stop thinking about this one.

So cute! I really loved this. I've enjoyed Borison's previous books, but this was a level up from those. Just so fabulous!

Aiden is the jaded radio host of a call-in romance advice where a teenage girl calls in, asking for advice for her mom. Once Lucie, the mom on question, gets on the phone, she and Aiden wind up having an hour-long conversation. Within a week, Lucie is joining Aiden on the show, and he's helping guide her toward finding love for herself.

The Sleepless in Seattle vibes are SO strong here, especially at the beginning, but without the sad of "dead wife/mom" that Tom Hanks's character has going on. Lucie has a great found-family type of situation going on, and a ton of support. I love that she's got an unconventional job, too, especially for a rom-com. Not many mechanics floating around.

I do wish the guy the author uses as the catalyst for the third act breakup was more of an organic foil for their relationship, rather than how he's used here. They have a really fun meet-cute, and I wanted to see him do something about it in person, rather than how it shook out.

I also really loved the solid references to Baltimore as a city, especially after having spent so much time there myself a a kid. Every mention of Bertha's made me grin like an idiot.

This was such a fun, lighthearted book, and I love the whole ending of it, contrived as it was. It was perfect.

I received an Advanced Reader Copy via NetGalley in return for sharing my thoughts on this book. Thanks to the author and publisher for this opportunity!