I absolutely adored this book. I love that Margot is a secret curmudgeon on love and happy endings. When she stood up and forgot she was not wearing pants on her video podcast had me simultaneously laughing and cringing. Every time something happened to her with Forrest that became a “stereotype” trope had me giggling. The fact that he carried her down a mountain was my favorite. Loved the disability representation with Margot’s sister as well. And I love books with a setting in Alaska! Would definitely be one I would read again!

I really like reading this book, but I wouldn't say its in my top-top reads for the year. I could pretty easily recommend this to a ton of friends though! It was unique enough to stand out in my memory, warm, cute, with a bit of spice and the prose/writing style was really enjoyable. I look forward to Victoria's next release!

Likes: Winter/cabin setting, Alaska, the premise, the MMC, the supporting characters

The premise of a romance author secretly writing alternative endings for her happily-ever-after books and those being leaked getting her cancelled, is unique enough to really stand out in my memory. Although, I do think it might be a little far-fetched to actually happen since I would eat it up if someone like Rebecca Yarros released alt endings haha.

The characters are complex, there was good banter and funny moments. Forrest was an absolute dream of a book boyfriend, too. My biggest beef is that they seemed to fall in love a bit quickly.

I’ve heard a ton of praise about this debut that comes out in April. The author put a fresh spin on some well worn romance tropes. I loved the authors sense of humor, the Alaska setting, the main characters devotion to their families, and the chemistry. This is a fabulous debut for me it was slightly unbelievable that she would have been cancelled and it dragged slightly for me. A solid 4 star read that I enjoyed. I think this will be a huge release in the spring! A huge thank you to Victoria Lavine, atria books and NetGalley for the early copy.

Thank you so much to Victoria Lavine and Atria Books for the eARC of this title. This is such the perfect winter rom com and sucked me right in. I absolutely loved reading Margot and Forrest's story. I liked how she used all types of tropes in this book as well. I can't wait to read more from Victoria! Highly recommend.

This book is a gift - Margot is a successful romance author who writes happy ever afters who (horror) doesn't belive in them and is outed- this is a big deal do off she goes to Alaska to get away from it all with no wifi (another horror) but their she meets Forest (could there be a better name with the circumstances) who is there workimg the resort, as he takes care of his father - he's every MC she's written and every trope comes at them hard and fast - it's a easy book to read in one sitting both main characters love their families and do what they need to do to help them- will they get their happily ever after or is Margots view on them correct! Check this out and be prepared to love it as much as me!!!!

THANK YOU NETGALLEY FOR THIS ARC FOR AN HONEST REVIEW!

Any Trope but You is the perfect winter rom-com! I loved how Victoria Lane was able to take fun cliché romance tropes and write them into a book with so much heart. These characters really cared for and understood each other. I specifically loved how they were both caretakers for family members and able to fully understand the sacrifice and dedication that takes. I found Margot's relationship to writing and her fans very interesting. You can tell the author has a deep love and respect for the romance genre and it's readers. While I didn't love the couples hot and cold tendencies throughout the book, in the end I was rooting for them and believe they did truly belong together. Overall a wonderful winter rom-com with a fun plot, lots of heart, and engaging characters.

Thank you Atria Books and NetGalley for the arc!

OBSESSED!!! This book hit me in the feels!!! Can’t wait to read more by this author!!! I loved the character development and the love they had for each other!!

This was a great debut and I cant wait for more from Victoria Lavine! It fell nicely in the romance genre but had a lot of aspects that aren't usually there like being set in Alaska or the impact of their family members. I appreciated the balance of serious and funny moments, it made it feel like a realistic story and kept you pulled in.

This book was so much fun in how it addressed the whole concept of romance tropes, and it was deeply satisfying to see the author line up a trope and STILL make it feel organic to the story. I love a dinged and damanged heroine who makes good in the end, and this one was outstanding.

Such a cute story of romance within several romance tropes. Author Margot, well loved by her readers suffers an epic fail. Her sister sends her off to the Alaskan wilderness where she meets Forest. He embodies every trope there is. Lust and love bloom and there is a lesson to be had.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of the book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Any Trope But You is a cute rom-com about Margot, a jaded and disgraced romance author, and Forrest, the man who unknowingly embodies all the tropes you so often find in romance books.

I enjoyed how the book started poking fun at all the romance tropes. You couldn’t help but laugh and roll your eyes with Margot as another trope was revealed. But somewhere in the middle, the tropes stopped being cute and funny and became more forced and serious. Forrest started out as a believable character but eventually fell a little flat. The situations that were meant to bring tension and further the story didn’t live up to the build up.

That being said, this debut novel by Victoria Lavine leave a lot of promise for future books. The emotional shift in the book made a lot of sense after reading the author’s notes about going through a personal health crisis while writing this. She has a beautiful way of writing feelings into her words and I’d like to read more of her work.

Thank you Netgalley and Atria Books for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

As a romance book lover, the use of all the different tropes in this read was perfection. The characters ended up being super likable and you really root for their romance as well as their family members. I loved the added drama of the hikes in order to get access to a letter.

ANY TROPE BUT YOU is a love letter to the romance genre and the devoted readers who find solace in a Happily Ever After.

Margot’s career as a best-selling romance author is derailed when her jaded feelings about love in the form of a “Happily Never After” document are leaked to the public. While Margot feels this document that gives alternate endings to every Happily Ever After reflects her lived experience of failed romance, her readers feel utterly betrayed. In the aftermath of this scandal, Margot’s sister whisks Margot to a remote lodge in Alaska to reinvent herself where she meets a domesticated moose, a fun cast of characters, and of course a man ripped from the pages of one of her own romance novels.

This open-door romance surely brings the heat to the Alaskan wilderness, but also touches on heavier topics as well. Debut author Victoria Lavine completed her novel while undergoing breast cancer treatments. Her story touches on the selfless act of caregiving and the lengths we go for our loved ones who face health complications.

READ THIS IF YOU:
• believe romance novels give hope to the hopeless
• prefer the term “retro cut” to “granny panties”
• love a meta story that comments on the romance genre as a whole

RATING: 4.5/5 (rounded up to 5 stars)
PUB DATE: April 1, 2024

Many thanks to Atria and NetGalley for an electronic ARC in exchange for an honest review.

It was like reading the "inception" version of romance novels.

This book was absolutely enticing and addicting. It flowed so well, Any Trope but You had me kicking my feet, giggling, and swooning throughout the entire book.

Any Trope but You had a magical feel to it, all of the romance tropes, all of the emotions, the spice, processing grief, and relatable concepts. I could not put this book down, I had to keep reading and find out what happens next for Margot & Forrest.

Thank you NetGalley, Atria Books and Victoria Lavine for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

When Margot Bradley's romance fans find out that she doesn't believe in happily ever afters, she's ostracized in a very viral way. Her publisher drops her, and she and her agent decide she should take her writing in another direction: murder mysteries. So, her sister Savannah, to whom she's been a caretaker for years, sends her on an Alaskan adventure to find herself and write a novel in this new genre.

What Margot doesn't expect to find is Forrest, the embodiment of all romance heroes, running his family's Alaskan resort after his father sustained a life-changing injury. Margot and Forrest keep getting caught in different romance tropes together, which she, as a romance author, notices and comments on. At first, she rolls her eyes and laughs; eventually, she thinks maybe these tropes really can lead to a happily ever after.

Margot and Forrest fight the attraction as long as they can, but eventually give in and fall hard for each other. But, the romance has an expiration date since Margot has to head back to California to care for her sister, and Forrest needs to stay in Alaska to care for his dad and the resort.

This book was fantastic! The banter, the antics and the tropes were all top notch. The mutual understanding that Margot and Forrest had for each other as fellow caregivers of loved ones is what made this book. It wasn't just that they kept getting stuck in romantic (and sometimes hilarious) situations. It was that they had a deeper level of understanding of each others' struggles. They really opened up to each other after staying closed off for years. It was beautiful!

I can't believe this is Victoria Lavine's debut novel! I'll be reading more of her books as soon as they hit the shelves!

Tropes:
City girl/country boy
Fish out of water
Alaskan adventure
Dual POV
Both MCs jaded about love
Both MCs caregivers
Just about every romance trope you can imagine: meet-cute, instant attraction, one bed (or sleeping bag), snowed in, etc. Etc.

The concept of writing about romance tropes as the main character, a romance author, is experiencing them was very fun and meta. I loved it.

This book gave me everything I wanted from a rom-com, the characters were well formed, the setting made me jealous (the hiking and snow camping!) and it is was spicy!

Great debut and I’m excited to read anything from this author!

A contemporary romance that turns the genre on its head? Count me in! In this clever and heartwarming story, the female main character is a best-selling romance author who doesn’t believe in happily-ever-afters—talk about irony! What could possibly go wrong when a romance writer who scoffs at love is faced with her own slow-burn romance?

This book had it all—engaging, witty, and full of depth. It balanced humor with heart, diving into some serious moments without losing its charm. Both the FMC and MMC were incredibly relatable, and even though their relationship unfolded at a deliberate pace, the slow burn only made their chemistry that much more satisfying.

I particularly loved how the author playfully called out well-known romance tropes, offering a smart commentary on the genre while still delivering exactly what readers crave. As an exclusive romance reader myself, this book was an absolute hit!

*ARC kindly provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest and truthful review..

What a great start to 2025 reading! This book is such a strong debut and I'm looking forward to more from the author in the future. The setting was unique and lovely to imagine, and the whole cast of characters was delightful. The main characters had such depth, and the spice was spicy. I thought the pacing was good, and I devoured the whole book in no time at all.

One minor critique is that I think Margot's big scandal wasn't so believable. I would be so amused to know that a favorite author had written alternate endings to their books - I'd be curious to read them!!

Thanks to Atria Books and Netgalley for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

this was absolutely phenomenal and so much more than i ever could have expected. when i requested this arc i was like oh! a cute little cover. this sounds like a fun time, but little did i know this would be filled so much raw emotion. i’ve had this arc since october and im currently beating myself up for not reading it the second i downloaded it!! i’m in complete shock and awe that this is a debut novel. victoria lavine has truly blew me out of the water with her first book! i can’t wait to see what her future holds and what she’ll write after this. i truly see this book becoming such a hit and such a big seller. i know i’ll be purchasing a physical trophy of this one based on how much i loved it!! don’t let the cover fool you, you could read this any time of year and absolutely adore it. it’s not a holiday read like i originally assumed!

This was such a great read I was pleasantly surprised I loved it as much as I did! I love reading books about authors so much. I loved how both main characters had unwell family members who were basically trying to kick them to the curb so they could live there life.