This book made me feel all the feels. Crying, laughing, giddy. Love a good friends to lovers and the author delivered this 100%.

I'm a big, big Ellie K. Wilde fan from her indie days, so I couldn't be more excited for this series. The tropes in this specific installment tend to push my buttons in the worst way (personal preference!), but the writing was as good as ever and I loved the vibe. There's some great emotional depth, plenty of sexual tension, and "it's always been you" vibes. Their history was a little messy for me, but anyone who loves a second chance romance is sure to enjoy it. And I am absolutely looking forward to more from the series!

The best line..... “𝑰 𝒅𝒐𝒏’𝒕 𝒖𝒏𝒅𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒉𝒐𝒘 𝒚𝒐𝒖’𝒓𝒆 𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒍𝒆.” “𝑰’𝒗𝒆 𝒏𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒃𝒆𝒆𝒏 𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒍𝒆. 𝑰’𝒗𝒆 𝒃𝒆𝒆𝒏 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒔.”

This one hits alot of your favorite tropes.
-Brothers best friend
-sports romance
-he falls first
- second chance.

This one was a rollercoaster of emotions for me. I loved everything about it. and No Third Act Breakup!!!

4.5 STARS ⭐

Only in Your Dreams by Ellie K. Wilde was such a fun start to the Oakwood Bay series. If you love small-town, brother’s best friend, sports romance this one may be your cup of tea.

This was my first book by Ellie and I loved listening to the audiobook and reading along. Melody Woods is back in her small hometown of Oakwood Bay after being gone for 10 years. Her life is turned upside down, her boyfriend of six years dumps her, she's broke, and on top of that her twin brother, Parker is pushing her to take his spot on a camping trip.

Zac Porter has been pining for his best friend's twin Melody since they were in their teens. She has always been off-limits, after messing up his chances ten years ago, Zac believes he's lost her for good. But life works in mysterious ways, when Melody shows up at the campsite instead of Parker, he knows he must fight and prove he's worthy.

Gosh, these two were so cute. Their chemistry and banter were top tier. The way Zac was obsessed with Melody was everything 🙂‍↕️. Only in Your Dreams was sexy and funny with wonderful secondary characters. I'm excited to read the next book in this series.

This is a great brother’s best friend, enemies-to-lovers story with plenty of spice. After leaving a six-year, mentally abusive and manipulative relationship, Melody has nowhere else to go but back to her hometown — a place she hasn’t been in ten years. Staying with her twin brother, Parker, is her only option.

On a camping trip, Melody reunites with Zac — her childhood crush who broke her heart after graduation. Forced to share a tent, they have no choice but to get along. Zac, who has always had feelings for Melody, had kept his distance for years out of loyalty to his best friend’s wishes to stay away from his twin.

Watching their connection slowly blossom as they spend more time together (while trying to keep it a secret from Parker) was so much fun. Their chemistry felt natural, and the tension between them made it impossible to put the book down.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the free advanced copy. I’m leaving this review voluntarily.

Only in Your Dreams was a really sweet book. I was a little frustrated that it took them this long to find each other again. It wasn't super believable that this guy would be pining after her for all those years, would try once, and then drive away. I still enjoyed their story though.

4.75⭐️ 3🌶️ 🎧4.75

Relationship dynamic: MF
Tropes/Microtropes/Vibes/Reps:
🏡 Small town
🏈 Sports (he’s a coach)
🧢 Brother’s best friend
🫶🏻 Childhood friends to lovers
💖 Second chance
♾️ It’s always been you
💞 Mutual pining
🧎🏼‍♂️He falls first and hard
🤫 Secret relationship
🏕️ One tent

Book Publisher: Atria
Audio Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Narrators: Carly Robbins + Teddy Hamilton
Narration type: dual
Writing perspective: first person, dual POV
Standard length (pages): 431p
Standard length (time): 12:38
Listening speed: 2.5x
Listened via: LibroFM
Read via: Kindle
ARC/ALC provided by: Atria + NetGalley / Simon and Schuster + LibroFM

📖 I loved this book! ‘It’s always been you’ is one of my fav tropes and Ellie absolutely slayed here with Zac and Melody. Zac really, really epitomized the idea of pining and he hit the “he falls first” twice over. And after what Melody went through she deserves someone like Zac to absolutely worship her. I loved their friend group, and Mel’s sneaky twin. The camping trip at the start of the book is truly exceptional! I laughed so hard, I had second hand embarassment, and I also had to fan myself. This book had all the vibes!

🎧 Carly and Teddy sounded amazing as Melody and Zac. Carly has such vocal clarity while maintaining a softness to her sound. She also has such a great pitch range, with a rich medium tone that can easily drop lower for male voices and also goes higher for female dialogue.
Teddy sounded naturally cast as Zac and did a fantastic job expressing Zac’s grumpy demeanor and complex emotions surrounding his job and Meldoy. I highly recommend giving this a listen or diving in for an immersive experience!

Melody Woods left the small town she grew up in with a broken heart and a determination to get over her brother's best friend. Finding herself back after 10 years due to a breakup that has her realizing she's not happy with her life was not in those plans. Neither was being thrust into the arms of the boy that broke her heart via a camping trip gone wrong. Zac Porter became a college football coach for the local university after staying in the hope that the girl he fell in love with but couldn't have would return. She's his best friend's twin sister; he already let her down once, but he's not letting her get away again.

This book has so many tropes that it would probably be easier to say which ones it doesn't include, but it's the predictability of the plot that made it so enjoyable. The stakes never feel too big because you know they're going to end up together and happy no matter what, so as they go to silly lengths to keep secrets from friends and loved ones and push each other to attain what they want even if it will break them apart, it's just the bumps along the road that make the trip fun.

Zac and Melody are great together, and the light sprinkling of other characters Wilde introduces manages to inject different voices to keep things from getting monotonous. It helps open up the story and make it about more than just their drama and doubts.

Very happy thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for the fun romance read!

A wonderful read!
This novel drew me in from the very first page and kept me hooked until the end. The characters were vibrant and relatable, the writing was engaging, and the story had just the right balance of heart and humor. Highly recommend!
Many thanks to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for my ARC. All opinions are my own.

✨Only in Your Dreams by Ellie K. Wilde✨

Genre: Romance
Pages: 432
Series: Oakwood Bay, Book 1

📚Ten years after one of the most heartbreaking nights of her life, Melody Woods is back in her small hometown of Oakwood Bay, broke, jaded, and unceremoniously dumped by her big-city boyfriend. To top it all off, her twin brother, Parker, is pushing her to take his spot on a camping trip with the one guy she’s spent a decade avoiding.

For college football coach Zac Porter, his best friend’s twin sister, Melody, has always been off-limits. And after fumbling his chance ten years ago, a devastated Zac was sure he’d lost Melody for good. So, when Melody shows up at the campsite instead of Parker, Zac realizes that now is the time to prove to her that they were always meant to be, no matter how long it takes to make up for his teenage self’s mistake.

Reeling from the truth of her last relationship, Melody plans to stay in town just long enough to get back on her feet. Then, she’s gone again. Meanwhile, Zac is facing an uphill battle to coach his team to its first winning game in years, to show Melody how she deserves to be loved, and to keep Parker from ever finding out. Maybe then, being with her will be more than just a dream.

📝A small town, sports romance that was pretty spicy! Now, do we buy the initial plot line of the MCs being stuck together at a campsite for days because their friends forgot them? No we do not, but we are going to accept it because I love a good forced proximity trope😂

Tropes: small town, second chance, forced proximity, sports romance

💫Thabk you @atriabooks for my #gifted copy 💫

This book was so adorable! I loved how much Zac helped Melody and encouraged her to be her own person after her previously emotionally abusive relationship. I love their love story and just couldn’t get enough of them!

I was zoned in the story as soon as I began reading. Melody hates Zach for standing her up ten years ago while Zach decided to let her go after five years when he sees her holding hands with a guy. These knuckleheads are clearly not over each other but have a lot of growing to do in order to keep the other. A favorite trope of mine, brothers best friend or best friend’s sister, with fake dating but not with the MC and it was hilarious.

This book was cute. I’m a sucker for a forbidden/best friend’s sister trope. I enjoyed reading it. Would highly recommend to anyone looking for that trope or a cute football type romance.

"Only in Your Dreams" is a delightful blend of second chances, brother's best friend, and small-town charm. The story centers around Melody Woods and Zac Porter, pulling readers into a heartwarming journey of rediscovered love and personal growth.

Ellie K Wilde crafts a narrative that is both cute and sweet, striking the right balance between romance and personal exploration. The chemistry between Melody and Zac is palpable yet tender, making their interactions thoroughly engaging. While the book isn't heavily spiced with romantic scenes, the ones it does include are expertly and tastefully written, adding depth to their emotional connection.

I would highly recommend "Only in Your Dreams" to anyone who enjoys a captivating second-chance love story, especially those who appreciate the themes of brother's best friend and the allure of small-town life.

I adore small-town romances, so the chances of me enjoying Only in Your Dreams were pretty high—and for the most part, it delivered. Ellie K. Wilde gives us a trope-filled treat with small town charm, brother’s best friend, sports romance, forced proximity, and yes… one bed. Add to that a stunning cover and a perfectly intriguing description, and you’ve got a recipe to pull in romance readers.

What I appreciated most was how the story tackled psychological abuse in relationships—highlighting how it can often be disguised as care. That kind of emotional depth isn't always explored in romance, and it stood out here. Plus, no third-act breakup? Yes, please.

That said, there were a few things that didn’t quite work for me. The characters' behavior often felt much younger than their age, more like college freshmen than adults nearing 30 which made the relationship dynamics feel more YA than I was expecting. Melody, especially, was a tough character to connect with, and her indecision got frustrating at times. Her brother came across as controlling, which didn’t help things. Zac, on the other hand, was definitely the highlight; loyal, patient, and the most grounded of the bunch.

Also, the book felt longer than it needed to be. A little trimming could have made the pacing tighter, especially since some plot beats became predictable over time. The spice was plentiful, but I found myself wishing for more balance with emotional build-up and pining.

All in all, it’s a solid read. I think fans of Hannah Grace or those who enjoy trope-heavy romances with a high spice level will find a lot to love. It wasn’t a perfect fit for me, but it still had its enjoyable moments.

A great second chance, sports romance! Zac and Melody are so sweet, I loved them and all the side characters! Perfect quick read for many, and with Teddy Hamilton on the audio, not sure how it gets better than that!

I have never read anything by this author, but I will be looking out for other books they write in the future. I really enjoyed the story as well as the pacing of the story.

I thoroughly enjoyed this spicy, brother’s best friend second chance romance! Melody and Zac are reunited when they unexpectedly end up at a campsite together. They haven’t seen each other in years and didn’t part on the best of terms. Melody is only planning to stay in town until she gets back on her feet, but is as drawn to Zac as ever. Zac was such a good guy and so down bad for Melody. This had a perfect amount of spice and their feelings were obviously strong for each other. If you like audiobooks, I highly recommend the audiobook which Teddy Hamilton and Carly Robbin’s narrate. I can’t wait to dive into Only Between Us (which is their friend Brooks’ story!)

I adored everything about this book! Ellie has become one of my favourite authors - she always gets the yearning and the spice just right. I love a man who will do anything to get the girl, and Ellie always delivers with the swoon. The character development from start to finish is done so well too!

I've read a lot of hockey romance so it was nice to switch over to football for a change! I loved, but also found it a bit hard to believe, that Zac was still so hopefully in love with Melody after about a decade. I enjoyed reading about how they each helped each other to find their happiness again.

Thank you to Ellie K Wilde, Atria Books and Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.