This book had a promising premise: Aspen is a one-hit wonder author who had tremendous success with her debut novel. Everything she has written since has been a bust, and she is feeling pressure from her agent to produce. Aspen moves in with her sister temporarily to a beach town in North Carolina in order to get inspired. It's there that she meets Brick, and offers him a deal: date her and break her heart for the summer to provide inspiration for her next book, and she pays him so that he can renovate his failing tourism business. Here's the main problem: Brick is outright rude to her, and Aspen is both pushy and insecure. The character development is wanting. And then immediately once they shake on this deal, he takes her on a date, and they lust after each other. The "chemistry" comes out of nowhere, so it's hard to believe. If you are looking for a very simple beach Romance, you might enjoy this although I did not.

Thank you NetGalley for the free digital ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Such a great story! Full review on goodreads to come! I laughed and cried, such a great relatable story!

Book of the Month didn't work for me but I appreciate that I might not be the target audience. I tried a few times to get into the story but I found the characters bugged me and it didn't hold my attention.

I did DNF at about 30% so perhaps it picks up after that.

Thanks to Blue Box Press and NetGalley for the ARC!

I just finished “Book of the Month” by Jennifer Probst, and I was completely wrapped up in it! The story grabbed my attention from the very first page, and I found myself racing through the chapters, eager to see what would happen next. Probst has a knack for creating relatable characters and a plot that feels both fresh and engaging.

The blend of romance and personal growth kept me hooked, and I loved how the themes of passion for reading and the power of stories were woven throughout. It’s the kind of book that makes you reflect on your own life while also providing a delightful escape. I finished it so fast because I just couldn’t put it down! If you’re looking for a captivating read that will keep you entertained and leave you feeling inspired, I highly recommend this one!

This is a story about a writer who is desperate to write a best seller like her first book but needs some inspirational heart break. She ends up using the town playboy for inspiration and they work through their trauma and challenges to make then double think the whole relationship pact.

I could not put this book down! Definitely one of my favorites now. The story is up to date and a modern millennial love story that really does twist and turn, but then is steady. In modern romance writers you always wait for something perfect to be going and then BAM the writer has something dramatic happen that throws the couple for a loop. However, in this novel the writer actually lets the story stay good, and doesn’t insist on the couple going through extreme drama to get there.

The writer definitely did a lot of research for this book because it’s the most realistic and perfect relationship I have ever read and I loved every second of it. For example, they go on beach dates and he packs her snacks! It’s so cute yet realistic that you get attached to the couple as a reader. There are some parts where you might get embarrassed for the character, but clearly that was done on purpose. Which leads me to my next point.. the romance scenes WERE SO GOOD! The cute little tit-for-tats and hilarious dialogue between the characters when you least expect it just mad it that much better. The spice is maybe a 3.95/5 so they aren’t filthy, but they are still pretty good. The only con to them was the immature language that was used, example “heat”.

Loved this one. As far as bookish romances go, this one checks all the boxes — a scenic setting, a smart girl that feels like she could your friend, a hot guy with a sensitive side, nursing a bruised heart, rounded out by a colorful ensemble of local characters.

If there's one thing about a book... if it's about books (or books adjacent) then it's an absolute must read for me! If it's about authors, screen writers, publishers, librarians, booksellers, editors... it doesn't matter.. CONSIDER IT READ! Imagine my excitement when a book about books called Book Of The Month comes across my Booktok page?! YES PLEASE!!! Aspen's heartbreak story turning into a bestselling novel was probably the last thing she expected, but now she's out of ideas (and experiences) to write about. Until Brick's fine ass comes along! This fake dating, grumpy/sunshine, emotional, but flirty and fun book will definitely keep you turning pages and rooting for Aspen to find not only her next big story, but the love of her life! Looking forward to reading more from Jennifer Probst!

I received this Advanced Readers Copy from NetGalley. This review honest, unbiased, and completely my own.

The synopsis sounded fun but this one didn’t work for me and I decided to DNF. Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the free ebook.

I really wanted to love Book of the Month by Jennifer Probst, I subscribe to the Book of the Month club and love a good romance, sister dynamic, starting over novel. Unfortunately, this one was not for me. Not only could I not get into the story, but it did catch my attention while reading at all. I stuck with this one and finished it but I started not to care what happened because the ending was so obvious. The connection was there and the love scenes were ick!

Thank you to NetGalley and Blue Box Press for my gifted copy in exchange for an honest review.

The writing is accessible and quite easy to get into but the book switched between being good and being just okay so many times, I genuinely have no idea what rating to give.

It seems as though more effort was spent on explaining the book/ touring industry and a bunch of other things compared to the MCs' relationship. Some plot points were plain unnecessary and some I could see coming from a mile away. The moment Kane was introduced, I knew he had history with someone in the group. And the thing with Zany Zoo - I predicted that too.

Something I noticed right off the bat is the repetition. I swear, the line: 'Fifty Ways to Leave Your Lover' was such a hit. or some variation of it was present in the book way too many times.

The relationship was kinda cute, and both MCs' motivations for accepting the 'fake-dating' set-up were understandable - their reasons did not seem absurd. But I'll be honest, the fact that Brick was so sure Aspen would not go back to NY and stay with him if he just asked bothered me a bit.

A fab read, the story of Aspen and Brick. I love books about books, and really enjoyed reading this one.

Spicy, quick read. 3.5 stars rounded up!

Book of the Month is a story about a NYC author, Aspen, desperate to write another bestselling novel. She had great success with her debut novel, but fell short with the 2 thereafter. Aspen thinks this is because her first novel was written after a major heartbreak and she is on the hunt for another. Aspen decides to get away from the city for a while and stays with her sister in OBX for the summer. Enter Brick (sometimes I do wonder about these romance book names though). Brick is the local OBX heartthrob who is more than capable of getting the job done.

Loved: Watching the internal struggle of an artist who can't produce. Details and descriptions of the beach setting. Brick, even though I don't think his name is a real name. These two also had some swoon-worthy dates. The emotion both MCs were showing. The sister!!
Didn't like as much: Some of these chapters got LONGGGG and I am all for shorter or popcorn-esque chapters in my romance books. I liked the amount of spice in this book, but... lets just say Probst unfortunately used every description those bodice-rippers of our passed did and it felt a bit cringe at time. Don't get me wrong, not cringe enough to stop reading the scene though.

Ultimately, I would recommend this book and I cannot wait to read Kanes story next!

I enjoyed this one. I liked the premise and found the characters to be entertaining. It was a nice light read at night to wind down from work.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for advanced copy, and I give my review freely.

What a fun and happy book! I liked the idea of this ridiculous fake dating plan, and this book didn’t disappoint! What a fun read.

I am sorry but I dnfed it. Thank you to netgalley for letting me read this e arc in exchange for an honest opinion

DNF @ 22%.

I wanted to like this so bad. I’m a sucker for books about books and the premise of this was so good! Unfortunately the FMC was so annoying I couldn’t handle reading anymore. There’s a difference between being assertive when pursuing someone and harassing them. Which is what she was doing. He was so clearly NOT interested. If a man was doing what she was doing it would be deemed absolutely unacceptable!

Anyway. Sad to DNF but I just couldn’t do it.

Transition Romance!!

Aspen is visiting her sister in the Outer Banks from NY, trying to shift her writer’s block. Her first book after a heart wrenching breakup, cannot seem to be repeated. Brick spent a few summers with his Grandpa Ziggy, and has now inherited his tour company.

Brick has an unwarranted bad reputation, and Aspen thinks he can help her feel. It’s always revealing, and entertaining, when an author writes about being an author. Small-town rumors, wild horses, sea turtles, competition, struggle, and romance.

An entertaining read.

Book of the month by Jennifer Probst was enjoyable hilarious entertaining and I'm grateful that I was able to read this I love the banter the characters were interesting and this was a good time.

Aspen Lourde is a down-on-herself writer. in New York City After finding success with her first book, Aspen's second flopped and she's on a tight deadline for her third (and possibly final). Her solution? To visit her sister in the Outer Banks and get her heart torn apart in a summer fling with the hope of inspiring her next novel.

Brick Babel is a gruff former suit-and-tie turned OBX townie after inheriting his grandfather's flailing tour company. He's also known for being the town's absolute heartbreaker.

When the two meet, Aspen makes a deal: she'll loan Brick the money he desperately needs for his business, and all Brick needs to do is break her heart. Sounds simple, right?

The chemistry between Brick and Aspen, which you would expect to be the best part of this book, didn't quite hit the mark. Considering this was a take on a grumpy/sunshine romance, Brick's immediate obsession with Aspen was a little hard to swallow. The side characters, such as Brick's neighboring business owners and Aspen's sister/friends are what made this story more enjoyable (so much so that I'm looking forward to Sierra's story). Some pieces of the story were also cringy: a club for women whose hearts were broken by Brick? Yikes. The writing could also be a bit cringy and repetitive at times, and the story really seemed to drag on for longer than it needed to be. If it were a bit more succinct, I would have liked it more.

Overall, this was a fun summer read that at times really spoke to the desperation that women, particularly successful women, struggle with, and the imposter syndrome that comes along with that success.

Thank you to NetGalley and to the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The title and summary drew me into this book. I really enjoyed the Outer Banks setting and the community engagement. The main female character, Aspen, is an author and I liked reading about her process with publishing. I questioned her plan to get over writers block which I think made me not enjoy the book as much as I expected to. It was a little slow moving at times for me, but overall was a nice escape read. Thank you Blue Box Press for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley.