I adore this book you guys have no idea. Like the second Logan appeared on the book, I was invested to see where his story went and the banter was top tier!! I had so much fun with this one that it is one of my favorites now :)

5!! This book was so good, I had to read the ARC twice! I absolutely loved it, just as much as Dungeons and Drama. This story follows Quinn Norton, who has recently moved to a new town and is eager to make friends. Luckily, she stumbles upon a group that plays Dungeons and Dragons and livestreams their games to the public. However, she quickly discovers that Logan Weber—the cute, charming boy she met on her first day of school—is part of the group, but he’s acting like a total jerk. While Quinn is bothered by his attitude, she chooses to ignore it to preserve her newfound friendships.

What I love so much about Boyce’s books is how well she captures the authentic high school experience. In some YA novels, the characters can come across as cringey, but I found these characters incredibly relatable, especially in the challenges they face. The drama of friend breakups felt very real and reminded me of things many of us could gone through in high school.

As for the romance, I was giggling and kicking my feet the whole time! From the moment their meet-cute happened, I knew this would be an exciting read. Although things were rocky at the beginning (Logan, I forgive you), the slow burn was absolutely worth it. Every scene where they spent time alone together had me holding my breath, wondering what would happen next. Their connection felt so much deeper than a typical young romance—it’s one of the rare YA love stories where I could genuinely imagine the characters having a future together.

I HIGHLY recommend everyone read this when it releases on January 31st!

Thank you to NetGalley and Delacorte Romance for this eARC in exchange for an honest review!

A SIX star read!

This book was so insanely cute. As a tabletop gamer myself, I was completely invested in this book. Yes, there were some points when it was a tad predictable, but that didn't even matter to me. It was lighthearted, funny, the cast of characters was so lovable, and I now want my entire gaming group to read this book, even if it is a little young for them.

This was so stinking cute! I absolutely loved this book. The characters are super relatable and Kristy Boyce is able to convey that high school butterfly in the stomach feeling really well. I was transported back to my high school crush and how things made me feel. The writing was just so spot on. I loved Quinn and Logan the moment they were introduced. I was like Quinn in high school and saw so much of myself in her. Being the new girl is always tough but it's only as tough as you make it out to be. Her brother Andrew was easily lovable. I would love another book that follows him around as he explores his feelings. I don't want to give too much away.

Thank you so much to Netgalley and Random House for an early copy in exchange for an honest review!

This was such a cute YA romance! Fellow DnD players will truly love this one. It had the perfect amount of game play, romance, and friendship building. This story depicted high school so realistically it’s insane. I felt like I went back in back and was reliving some of my high memories through these pages.

Social media review will be posted on release day.

Firstly; how cute is this cover? Secondly, how could I NOT read a book about D&D?

It was just really well done - loved the game elements and aspects and gave me even more of a desire to look into leagues close to me to join!

Also loved the YA cutesy romance - it was a slow burn, but it was so well done.

Thanks to NetGalley for this e-arc in exchange for my honest review

This was a cute and very quick read!! I loved the DnD premise, and it makes me want to read the first in this series! I’ve heard that this felt more juvenile than the first, which is always a risk you take with YA since it can encompass so much in terms of maturity. I found this one more juvenile than I typically read, but that wasn’t a bad thing!

I had never read Kristy Boyce before but I definitely will be reading her other books after this! This is exactly the type of book I would have loved to read when I was in middle school or high school. The friendships and relationships in this are great as they develop with Quinn being new to the group. It was very low stakes with the main obstacle being the "no dating" rule but so much fun with the D&D aspect.
The characters really took me back to high school, and the romance felt completely age appropriate for its target audience. Being nerdy is cool again and this book solidifies that!!

Kristy Boyce just gets me. As an almost 30 year old woman, I cannot help myself from loving these characters and relating to them. Sometimes reading YA books as an adult makes you feel old, and sometimes it brings you back in time and heals something your teenage self didn't even know was hurt. From what I remember about Dungeons & Drama, I think this book was much heavier in the D&D theme (which I loved) but didn't actually go into to much detail of the campaign storyline.

I loved seeing the FMC Quinn make new friends and I liked the conversations of how difficult it can be joining an existing tight knot group, I loved how her new friends made her feel valued and welcomed and stood up for her when needed. Our MMC Logan was a great character as well. He low key flirted a little too adult for his age, but I'll let it slide. I enjoyed the push & pull between Quinn & Logan, but I mostly loved the meddling from Quinn's grandma. Grandma is a sassy lady and might be my new hero.

Thank you NetGalley & Random House for the e=ARC. I absolutely plan on buying a copy for my shelf and fingers crossed for a 3rd book in this series.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC!

I really enjoyed Kristy Boyce’s previous novel, Dungeons and Drama, so I was super excited when I received the ARC. Both this book and the last one are D&D inspired, and even without ever having played it, I was easily able to follow along with the campaign.

I liked how well developed the side characters were. Everyone had a unique personality and relationship with the main character. There were so many different plot points, but it wasn’t hard for me to keep track of. I also liked the family dynamic a ton. The entire family felt like they were needed characters, which is not often done in a YA novel. The grandma and brother especially were prominent characters, even moving the plot forward at several points.

Romance wise, I really liked Quinn and Logan, but it felt a little instalovey to me, which is not a trope I enjoy to read about. I appreciate that they were often in a group setting because that made it a little more realistic and bearable for me (due to that trope).

One thing I didn’t like was the fact that Quinn’s feelings about being less special than her brother got overlooked. I was waiting for a conversation between her and her parents potentially as sort of the lesson learned in the novel, but it never really got a good resolution. Everything just ended happily as she slowly learned that her entire family watched the D&D livestreams, but I was still looking for more of an explicit ending to that subplot.

Overall, I really loved this book a lot!! It was a fun ya romance to read with really likeable characters! I’d definitely recommend both this one and Dungeons and Drama

dating and dragons | kristy boyce

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️✨
💋 kissing only
_____

A new school, new friends, a new D&D group - and a "no dating" rule that is begging to be broken!

Kristy has given us another adorable YA romance novel that is appropriate for younger teens. Hooray! No aging up the characters or teetering on the new adult line. I'm excited to share this one with my 13 year old!

Overall this is a light and easy read that makes you smile, giggle, and brings on the butterflies.


THINGS TO LOVE:
+ dungeons and dragons
+ supportive friendships
+ "no dating" rules
+ live streams
+ dice jewelry
+ a meddling grandma

{a gigantic thank you to Kristy Boyce, Delacorte, and Netgalley for the advanced copy!! Out 12/31!}

I was so excited to read Dating and Dragons since I enjoyed the first novel in the series but it didn't meet the same fate; it was just fine. The high school romance between our MC is cute but very YA leaning so I was a bit bored with the plot. Kristen Boyce does a great job at painting fun adventures during D&D sessions which was the highlight of the story for me. 3/5.
Thank you to NetGalley & Random House Children's for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I am completely serious when I say that this is my new standard for YA romance books. I have no idea how Kristy Boyce managed it but I swear I was transported back into my high school aged self with all the anxiety and uncertainty that our female main character, Quinn, goes through. While this book is a romance it is also about friendship and family, both found and biological.

For fans of Dungeons and Drama, this is not a continuation or the beginning of interconnected standalone books. While I was a bit disappointed to part with Riley and Nathan the new party that Quinn finds is easy to fall in love with as well. There is a bit more dungeons and dragons in this book but I would not worry if you have not participated in a campaign yourself as it is easy to follow. The release date for this book being right before the new year is not a coincidence and is the perfect book to start your 2025 reading challenges.

Thank you to Netgalley for a free ecopy of the book in exchange for an honest review!

I absolutely loved Dungeons and Drama, so when I saw this one, I knew I had to read it. Dating and Dragons delivers a fresh story with new characters, and I couldn’t get enough! Quinn moves to a new school, hoping D&D will help her fit in, and ends up joining a livestreamed game with strict rules, such as no dating fellow group members. But of course, that only makes the tension between her and Logan even more electric. I loved every member of the group and how they helped Quinn get over her past toxic friendship. I was cheering on Quinn the entire time!

The forbidden romance angle is so fun, and watching Quinn and Logan go from bickering to something more was such a treat. Their chemistry is undeniable, and the way they get lost in the world of D&D and high school is so relatable. I also loved Quinn's grandma. She was hilarious and such a great addition to the story.

Absolutely delightful JUST like the first one in the series. While they're connected by the love of D&D, they're not related in terms of character or setting. Just another juicy YA romance. This one a little enemies to lovers as Logan meets Quinn, a new girl in town. Both love D&D and when Quinn joins the group after being welcomed by a girl at school Kashvi, there's probably got to be a reckoning because one of the rules of their group is that no one can date another in the group. It's why Logan seems icy to Quinn even though Quinn hasn't done anything to Logan, in fact, Quinn's grandmother keeps bringing them together because she sees the spark that Quinn is trying to deny.

There's a lot of creativity again in sharing bits about the campaign for those that don't play D&D as readers. The group is also different because they livestream their campaigns which adds a layer of complication toward the end of the book that I enjoyed as a diversion (along with the comic relief of the grandmother). Also particularly well done is the sibling relationships-- Kashvi's twin is part of the group so they have a close bond but also fight like brother and sister. As well as Quinn's bickering with her brother Andrew.

Boyce is a new favorite YA romance writer because of her unique blend of romance and geekdom in addition to the strong character development and simple REALness of it all. Kudos!

This book perfectly captures the tension, mutual pining, and complications of falling for a friend in your friend group with the added fun of having that friend group play Dungeons and Dragons.

I absolutely ate this book up and finished it in one sitting. It is YA (zero spice) and the banter, sexual tension, and slow burn is amazing! The two characters that fall for one another are so likable, funny, and cute.

They can’t help falling for each other and you won’t be able to help fall for this book! Also the meddling grandma is top notch.

For those of you who normally read adult romance or are picky about YA romance due to the maturity of the characters, you’d enjoy this one as a fun, quick, romantic read ❤️

This was such a cute YA romance! and cute is definitely the right word for it- sweet and charming and i love a good dose of D&D! Logan was so swoon worthy. Easy quick read with some will they won’t they where he falls hard!

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. I thank NetGalley for offering me the e-ARC of this title.

Well this is just the cutest teen romance that I have read in such a long time. Teen romances are so hard because they either are too young or too old (and then creepy). This was perfect. It was angsty without being weird, it had a major focus on friendship and family dynamic which I just love. I am a huge suckers for a quirky grandparent and this grandmother was so perfect. A matchmaker and a meddler I love how she kept throwing Quinn and Logan together.
I really felt for Quinn as she navigated a new high school and tried to fit into a new circle of friends. Her old group had left scars and she needed this new group of people to really come together and be there for you. It gave the perfect reason that she would be really nervous to date/fall for Logan creating the perfect forbidden teen romance. It created this perfect "will they, won't they" moments through out the story.
I love the family story line, as Quinn's family is dealing with her grandmothers declining health, the sibling rivalry that comes with brothers and sister that have two very different passions. It all created a wonderful story where we get to see Logan and Quinn fall in love.

Super cute, super fun YA romance. Highly recommend for lovers of YA romance with quirky characters, coming of age stories with friendship/family dynamics and just a super fun story.

Thank you NetGalley and Delacorte for the ARC!

I enjoyed this book more than I thought!
Initially, I was a little thrown by the fact that it was very YA (the MC is still in high school), but what was the big surprise to me was how detailed the D&D adventures were! I truly enjoyed that, since it's been years that I played.

The romance itself was ok, and the overall story plot was basically around that romance and friendship.
IK give this a 3.5 stars.

I wanted to read this YA romance and I was not disappointed! This sends you back to high school in the best way (or makes you wish your high school experience was like this).

This is a quirky and sweet romance filled with lots of banter. I loved the slow burn between the MCs. The friendships built through the book are also endearing, I loved the sense of community through D&D. Overall a lovely book I’m glad I got to read! Thank you Net Galley for the ARC.