3.75 ⭐️

Emmy works as a data analyst for a professional baseball team. She’s up for a promotion to senior analyst, but there’s a catch—she has to compete for the position against her coworker Gabe, whom she absolutely cannot stand. Her love life is a mess, but one day, she receives a text from an unknown number. It turns out that a man her age texted her by mistake, and they continue messaging each other. The chemistry between them is undeniable, and over time, Emmy falls for this mystery man and invites him to her sister’s wedding.

I really enjoyed this story! Yes, the plot feels like a mix of other books (The Hating Game, The Spanish Love Deception) and the movie You’ve Got Mail, but that didn’t make it any less fun to read!

The characters are sweet and likeable. I really loved their text exchanges and banter—how they slowly opened up to each other and let their guards down.

Emmy works in a male-dominated environment and faces certain challenges because of it, and I also appreciated that the author addressed this topic—how women still have to prove their competence in professions where men are the majority.

The only thing I didn’t love was the third-act breakup—I think the story could’ve worked just fine without it.

It’s a light and fun romance that will leave you with a warm, happy feeling.

𝐓𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐬:
✓ workplace romance
✓ slow burn
✓ rivals to lovers
✓ one bed
✓ banter
✓ it's always been you

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyager (Avon) for this eARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

This was a fun rom com with work place rivals who go from enemies to lovers! I loved the "texted the wrong person" trope and the pay off was definitely worth it!

This book was fun! I loved the premise of falling in love with someone who texted you by accident but this story was so much more than that. Emmy and Gabe are driven, family focused main characters who balanced pushing each other to grow and providing unconditional support to each other. A little bit of enemies to lovers, a little forced proximity, some fake dating, a only one bed trope, and of course the desired happily ever after are all included in this story that will make a fantastic beach read. Thank you NetGalley and Avon for the ARC.

Under the pen name Holly James, I’ve already read three of this author’s books—and enjoyed every single one! In fact, she even references the plot of Name Your Price as the reality show Emmy watches at home, which made me smile. She’s an auto-approve author for me, and this book had all my favorite tropes: enemies to lovers, workplace romance, forced proximity, You’ve Got Mail vibes, witty dialogue, undeniable chemistry between Gabe and Emmy, and a refreshing twist with a female sports statistician in a male-dominated field. It’s a formula I absolutely devoured!

It all kicks off when Emmy Jameson receives a random text: “Last night was fun!” Assuming it’s from her useless landlord, she responds—only to discover the guy on the other end was actually ghosted with a fake number by his date. But instead of ending the conversation, Emmy keeps texting him. He’s funny, sweet, and adorably awkward. They quickly form a quirky rapport—she jokingly saves his number as “Axe Murderer,” and he calls her “Bird Girl.”

Meanwhile, Emmy’s struggling to keep her cool at work with her arch nemesis, Gabe Olson—a charismatic ex–baseball player and fellow sports statistician. He constantly seems to get credit for Emmy’s hard-earned successes and is her main competition for a big promotion. Emmy knows he can play dirty, and in their male-dominated field, she’s determined to fight tooth and nail for what she deserves—without letting him intimidate her.

As pressure mounts to bring a plus-one to her sister’s upcoming wedding—and with the added sting of her ex attending with his new girlfriend—Emmy makes a bold move. She asks her mystery texter (a.k.a. “Axe Murderer”) to be her date. He’s the unexpected bright spot in her days, and she likes him more than she anticipated. But when she finally agrees to meet him in person… surprise! Her texting buddy turns out to be none other than Gabe. All the signs were there—they just both missed them. But hey, desperate times call for desperate measures. Emmy can’t show up solo to her sister’s big day, and what happens in Mexico stays in Mexico, right?

Well… maybe not. And maybe—just maybe—her arch nemesis might be the one guy she shouldn’t let slip away.

Overall: This is a sweet, entertaining, heartwarming romcom that I wholeheartedly recommend!

Many thanks to NetGalley, Avon, and Harper Voyager for sharing a digital review copy of this gem with me in exchange for my honest thoughts.

another solid romcom. enemies to lovers. sports romance. workplace romance. this has it all? i loved the banter between emmy and gabe, especially when they were texting. i found that i enjoyed them both more as characters when they were together or interacting, did not love them solo. but this was cute and funny and i had a great time reading.

This was such a fun read with 90s romcoms feels. An accidental text to the wrong number causing two coworkers that don’t get along to connect and develop feelings. I really liked that the storyline loosely centered around baseball. The story was everything you’d want in a workplace rival storyline - good banter, tension, attraction, and a heartwarming storyline.

Thank you to Netgalley and Avon books for the ARC.

The comps on this one, a mix of You've Got Mail and The Hating Game, totally caught my eye, and they were absolutely accurate. It was a fun book from start to finish, and a breezy read that would be perfect for summer afternoons or a beach day. Also love that it's publishing right in the middle of baseball season!

I really enjoyed the back-and-forth between Emmy and Gabe throughout, but especially in the first half and when they were texting. The adorable-yet-dorky banter was legimitely delightful. Some of the conflict toward the end was a little unbelievable, but not enough to take me out of the story, and honestly I expect some of that with romcoms now and then.

Ultimately, loved getting to escape into their world for a couple days!

What a fun, sweet romance! Enemies to lovers, only one bed, workplace AND sports romance? A whole plethora of well done tropes. In the beginning, I wasn’t sure about our main characters. Emmy seemed a little whiny and Gabe seemed a little too smug, but I quickly warmed up to them as their relationship unfolded. The rainstorm makeout was definitely one for the books. Then as their relationship built, both their insecurities were revealed, and I couldn’t help but fall for them.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity for an early read!

Emmy works in analytics for a MLB team, where she is a girl living in a man's world. Her last relationship ended because her boyfriend didn't understand her dedication to her job. She is also up for a promotion against Gabe Olson - a former college baseball player that has serious math and intuition skills. She is determined not to lose to him. However, when she begins a texting relationship with a wrong-number messenger, she realizes that she might be able to have it all - a relationship and the promotion. But when they agree to meet up, she realizes that her new love is really her nemesis - Gabe Olson! Can she reconcile her feelings for Gabe and her texting beau? And can they survive her sister's destination wedding and despite who wins the promotion??!!

Loved this one! I was suspect of this trope, since I have read it before, but I loved reading this one!

Rivals to getting fake-numbered (a word I think the author can credibly claim as hers) to lovers. Lol the hottest new trope.

I loved this workplace romance that was perfectly paced and beautifully balanced.

It’s got it all - humor, hearty and baseball 💕

Thank you to NetGalley, Avon, and Harper Voyager for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Oh my god, I loved this book. I stayed up so late finishing it because I just couldn't put it down, and I wish I had taken my time because I want to have the experience of re-reading it for the first time.

The description is right—it's like if You've Got Mail and The Hating Game had a baby, this would be it. There were so many moments where I was internally screaming, "Just kiss!!" but Holly Michelle is a queen at slow burn. I've never read her before, but now I'm definitely on the lookout. Emmy (FMC) and Gabe (MMC) have struggles and insecurities, but watching them slowly take down the walls brick by brick is super sweet. Additionally, the banter between them is hilarious. There were numerous times when I was laughing out loud.

P.S. I need Beth and Pedro's story ASAP


Read if you like:
- Witty banter
- Workplace Romance
- Enemies to lovers
- Only one bed
- Single POV

I couldn't put this book down. It covers a lot of tropes: enemies to lovers, workplace romance, women in STEM, destination wedding, one bed, misunderstanding due to overhearing a conversation, accidental texting, mistaken identity, and probably others that I can't think of at the moment.

The story is cute and it moves quickly, especially after the mistaken identities are revealed.

Plus there is a fun reference to "Name Your Price" by Holly James (who also writes as Holly Michelle).

Thank to Avon and Harper Voyager, via NetGalley, for sharing this ARC with me.

This was a very nice little rom com! Thoroughly enjoyed it!

The writing is solid and the characters are believable and nicely developed. It’s loaded with tropes….enemies-to-lovers, fake date, forced proximity, one bed….and they all worked for me. Emmy and Gabe are a smart, snarky, fun couple and they gave me all the feels. The premise of meeting and building their relationship through a wrong number text was really cute.

Both characters have challenges and baggage, of course, but the storylines are handled well and add nice depth.

Two things in particular worked for me. First, it’s like two books in one. The first half of the book certainly plays out like The Hating Game meets You’ve Got Mail. But that storyline sort of works to a conclusion nicely and you get stepped into the development of the relationship and a whole new setting and scenario. It kept momentum and built my investment in the relationship. That leads to the second really positive aspect - there was no rush. Even with the classic late-in-the-game crisis, nothing about the story or the writing felt rushed or like a scramble to bring it all together. The story was well-developed, nicely paced and sweetly concluded. I really enjoyed it! Nice debut - looking forward to more by this author for sure!

All around a cute rom com novel.
Enemies to lovers workplace rivals.
I love that their meet cute was an unintentional text message because Gabe got ghosted and given a fake number but what are the odds it is rival?

I enjoyed their bantering and as they got to know each other, they found they had similar style of humor and interest.

There is a destination wedding.
Third act break up.
Excellent groveling
Happier ending

Emmy and Gabe are work place rivals and up for the same promotion. They unknowingly end up texting and connecting after a wrong number exchange.

I thought this was cute and fun. Maybe a little cheesy at times but I couldn’t put it down and really enjoyed it. Even though it had a 3rd act breakup, it didn’t drag and was resolved fairly quickly. I would definitely read more by Holly Michelle.

Unfortunately this didn't work me. I couldn't connect with the characters or their chemistry. Only thing I did enjoy was the You Got Mail theme with the emails and texts. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early ARC for a honest review.

This was such a fun read! I’m glad I caught it as a “read now” on NetGalley. I really loved the baseball aspects of the story, perfect for this time of year. I thought that the story handled the topic of women in male dominated fields really well. I loved how strong of a character Emmy was. I found myself smiling almost the whole time while reading this. Gabe and Emmy had such great chemistry and banter. I absolutely loved the texts between them, I thought that was a nice touch. Definitely check this out when it releases! Perfect for summertime and baseball games.

Thank you Avon and NetGalley for the advanced copy! All opinions are my own.

I received Last Night Was Fun for free in exchange for my honest review. I really really enjoyed it. It was predictable and I could definitely see where it was going, but I enjoyed it just the same. I really enjoyed the AxMurderer. lol.

Real talk: I almost gave up on this one before our texting paramours even “met” in person, simply because their texts are SO BORING. This is the stuff that made them fall for each other?

Fortunately, once Emmy and Gabe find out the truth and spend actual, non-work time together, it picks up immensely. I’m happy I pushed through.

Still, I was also oddly disappointed that the number thing was totally random and not some contrivance by Gabe. Insane to think of the odds of this, especially in a book about people who analyze data all day.

This book gets a thumbs up from me. The dialogue is humorous, flirty, and fun. It was an easy, enjoyable read, well-written, with an interesting and engaging storyline.