Jennifer Probst’s “Book of the Month” is a delightful beachy romance. Main character Aspen is an author whose debut book, “Fifty Ways to Leave Your Lover,” was a surprise mega best seller. She’s settled in a comfy New York City life, but her second and third books didn’t have the same appeal, probably because the first was emotionally-charged and very autobiographical. Now she’s at her sister Sierra’s out of the way home in the Outer Banks of North Carolina, where wild horses really do roam, trying to figure out how to recapture the writing magic. Aspen sets her sights on the local notorious heartbreaker, Brick, in hopes of being inspired when he inevitably, um, dumps her. She’ll return to NYC and write her new bestseller.

However, Brick isn’t the awful cad she expected and Aspen slowly realizes that she might need to write from the experience of joy instead of pain. Brick also realizes that even though their “arrangement” requires him to end the relationship, he ups his seduction skills as he starts to understand Aspen. Contractually, this is supposed to be an unhappy ending for them and only a happy-for-now for her, but circumstances are shifting…

Did I mention guarding baby turtle eggs from predators overnight on a beach while dancing to Billy Joel?

I truly enjoyed Aspen and Brick’s banter and the ups and downs of their relationship.The main characters are well written and the supporting cast was a lot of fun, too. This was the quick read romantic comedy I was looking for! 4.5 stars!

Literary Pet Peeve Checklist:
Green Eyes (only 2% of the real world, yet it seems like 90% of all fictional females): YES Turtle protector Judy and Kane have green eyes.
Horticultural Faux Pas (plants out of season or growing zones, like daffodils in autumn or bougainvillea in Alaska): NO The descriptions of the dunes of the Outer Banks was accurate.

Thank you to Blue Box Press and NetGalley for an advanced reader copy!

The premise of this book was more interesting than it's execution. An author wants to get her heart broken to write another bestseller and pays a local heartbreaker to do it. Cliché writing, metaphors, tropes abound in this book. I couldn't care less for the characters. This is nowhere close to realistic dialogue or inner thoughts of a man. Who says "she didn't have eyes as blue as sapphires... she was perfectly average, but I like her anyway?" Really? I just cringed too many times. Apparently this writer is a NY Times bestseller and maybe this is a thinky veiled fantasy or exploration of he life but I didn't like all the publishing stuff, mainly because of the lack of introspection and accountability from the FMC.

Perhaps I'm not the best audience for this book, it just wasnt for me. Thanks to Net Galley and Blue Box Press for this eARC in exchange for my honest review.

This book was such a sweet romance yet spicy story!

•grumpy vs. sunshine
•fake dating
•small town romance

The main character, Aspen, is so compelling. She is an author who makes a deal with grumpy Brick to help him revive his business in exchange for a heartbreak that she can use as her muse to write her next story.

As they fall head over heels for each other, it’s not enough for Aspen. She wants to finish her book, which results in the biggest heartbreak for both MCs.

I fell a little in love with them reading this story and my own heart broke for them both. 🩷 I really enjoyed this one!

This was just fine. Parts of it were boring, and parts of it were oddly graphic for people who were supposed to be talking in public, and the discussions of book publishing were SO SPECIFIC it felt out of place. But I liked Aspen and I am interested in what happens with her sister and Brick's friend.

I received a free ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

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

First, I loved the cover and title of this book. That is what got me excited to read this book. Unfortunately it did not work for me. I liked the concept of this book, but I found the writing and dialogue between the two main characters very juvenile.

Having never read any of Jennifer Probst book I was unexpectedly happily surprised by this cute love story. The fake dating troupe went a step further and took me on a journey of falling in love with two characters I wanted more from. I absolutely loved this book and can’t wait to gift it to family and friends.

Love this book! Fun read. Characters are interesting and spot on. Can’t wait to read the next book in the series. I was given an advanced reader copy of this book by NetGalley and I am freely sharing my review.

Thanks for the opportunity to read this advanced copy. I loved it! Heart break = a hit book. No hits since. Guess will have to get heartbroken again for another hit. Loved watching this relationship play out and seeing both sides of it. Super fun read.

This one just was not for me. I liked the idea of the book, but I could not connect with the main character. I will probably go back and give another try, maybe I am in a reading slump and the review is biased. Based on others reviews they have loved it.

Thank you for the opportunity of reading this book! I’ve rated it 3 stars for me. I think the story was cute, the grumpy/sunshine thing I love, I loved how much Brick wanted Aspen and once he let his guard down how much he showed her. I did however find it cringey in some places and some references I just found a bit random (Disneyland rides etc) overall it was a good read and a cute storyline

This book was a fast paced spicy read, the chemistry between the main characters felt a bit too forced and over fictional (too good to be true) however I really like the relationship between Aspen and Sierra (FML and her sister), it felt organic and true. The whole hate club thing was very cringey as it was built on nothing and a few chapters felt unnecessarily written.

I enjoyed this read! It is a bit cringy and predictable at times, as most romance novels are. Overall, a quick lighthearted read. I enjoyed the tropes, grumpy x sunshine, fake dating, and small town romance. The MCC was the best and I even thought his side of the plot (saving family business, saving the local wildlife) was the most interesting. There’s definitely some hints at storylines for other books, which I would be interested in reading.

I had a hard time buying into the premise of the book, but I really like the characters. I think this might be a winner for fans of Abby Jimenez or Tessa Bailey.

3.5 stars! This book was a lot of fun and a super quick read! The story is about Aspen, a best selling author who is looking for a way out of her current writing slump. She decides to get out of the city and visit her sister where she meets Brick (not my fave name) and there is this insta-sizzle. They strike a deal for him to save his business and her to get the “heartbreak” she needs to write her next bestseller. Lots of great tropes here, “fake” dating, city girl/country-ish guy, nosy neighbors, others’ happiness and expectations vs. your own. I enjoyed the witty dialogue and sexual tension but couldn’t give this more stars because the ending was too rushed. I needed it to have more depth and more time! Def recommend this book for a vacation or beach read!

Thanks to NetGalley and Blue Box for this ARC!

This book was so refreshing as I’ve been in quite a reading funk lately. It was such a sweet romance, and I will think about these characters forever.

•grumpy vs. sunshine
•fake dating
•small town romance

The main character, Aspen, is such a BABE! She is so empowering, and you all know I love an empowering woman character. She is an author of a best selling book, but her past few books have been duds and can’t compare to her first romance novel. She moves to the beach at her sister’s house for the summer, and makes a deal with a grumpy local to help him remodel his touring business in exchange for a heartbreak so she has the heartbreak to finish a sequel to her best selling story.

Aspen and Brick fall head over heels for each other, but in the end it’s not enough for Aspen. She wants to finish her book, which results in the biggest heart break for her and Brick.

You will fall in LOVE with their relationship… the sex scenes are STEAMY! 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️

ALSO, CAN’T WAIT FOR THE NEXT BOOK WITH SIERRA AND KANE!! Bonus points for another story in OBX with these characters 😎🏖️

Thank you, NetGalley, for the opportunity to read this ARC!

This is a heartfelt romance between author Aspen and local heartthrob Brick. These two flawed but likeable souls and the unique plot make for an enjoyable read. What starts out as a business arrangement turns into something more. It is an emotional ride with drama and steam, humor and charm, sexual tension and chemistry, twists and turns, and engaging secondary characters. Entertaining.

I received an Advance Reader Copy of this book from Valentine PR and am voluntarily leaving my honest review.

Read this one as an ARC (thanks NetGalley!) but ooooof I wish I liked it more. I’m not sure if it was the characters or style of writing but the whole book just came off kind of cringey to me? I’ve read this trope many times before and have loved it, so that’s not the reason I didn’t like it.
There would be moments where I would start to like the characters and then the story would progress and I would get the ick from them.
I think the main issue is that it didn’t feel real to me. Obviously romance books tend to be on the more on the unrealistic side so that’s expected. However, I’ve read billionaire-mafia-marriage for convenience books before that have felt more realistic than this. The chemistry just wasn’t there for me to overlook other aspects of the book
2/5 ⭐️
2/5 🌶️ spice wasn’t terrible but since I didn’t have that chemistry it made it “meh”

This was a very cute and different romcom. At first I loved the way Aspen and Brick were written falling in love. It got a little cheesy towards the end but overall I liked it. I will probably read Kane and Sierras story!

I’m not quite sure I completely believe that fake rumors could go on so long in such a small town, so the whole thing where Brick’s reputation is that he’s such a bad boy heart breaker was weird to me buuutttt I digress.

I thought these characters had chemistry, which was good. Sometimes in shorter books, the chemistry feels forced, but Aspen and Brick seemed to have good chemistry from the start. I just felt like there seemed to not be that much happening in this book. The stakes didn’t feel high enough. And i kept forgetting the plot lol.

It was okay. I got through it but it did drag some.

Loved this romance and really loved all the characters. It was an easy read that wrapped everything into a nice neat bow the way a good romance should. My only complaint is that some of the NC references were incorrect. Marijuana is still illegal in North Carolina and Duck Donuts is found all over the world just not in Duck.