This book was so weird to me. Everything at the beginning happened way too fast, and then the middle was wayyy too slow. This book also definitely fell into the “we discovered sex and now that’s all we do” issue that I hate so much. So much could have been solved if they just came up for air and had a conversation with each other and their friends.

Everything also fell into place wayy too easy. There was like no struggle for any conflict, it all was resolved within a few chapters. I kinda liked them together, and I liked Melody standing up to her ex at the end (side note - she realized that relationship sucked and came to terms with it way to fast to be realistic), but overall, not a favorite.

Thank you to Atria and Netgalley for the advanced copy!

4.5🌟

thank you Berkley romance, Netgalley and Ellie Wilde for this free arc copy of this amazing book!! i had the best time reading this, i laughed and honestly felt connected with the characters. Melody and Zac have known eachother since they were little, they both felt something for eachother but never acted on it. And the one time Melody asked him to actually kiss him he leaves her and doesn’t come back that night before they leave for college. 10 years go by and Melody 6 year relationship ends and she’s back in her hometown. Zac never left his hometown just to see if she’ll come back. when they get stuck on their camping trip everything slowly starts to change. the way they grew their relationship was beautiful to read. i truly loved how they both were there for once another and finally got to speak on the subject that happened 10 years ago. their love was so powerful i just loved it!!!

Okay so normally I'm more of a hockey girl, but this football romance caught me and swept me off my feet!! The vest friends brother trope is literally one of my favorite and this one did it so well!! I just wish I remembered my login stuff before now so I could have reviewed sooner!

I loved this one! The MMC was one of my favourites, the chemistry was so well written, just all around amazing! I love a good brothers best friend trope! I would’ve liked a bit more explanation on why he waited so long, howeverrrrr that opens up the ability to do a prequel novella!

“I’ve never been single. I’ve been yours.”🥹🥹 I received this and an ARC and thank you! Even thought this is a football book (hockey girl through and through) I really enjoyed this! Zac & Melody were high school friends who may have had more than a crush on each other. One night right before Melody leaves for college he breaks her heart! Now it’s ten years later and she is back in town after a break up. She is getting into a new chapter of life but also old too Ed never die! Their sexual tension is really good plus all the back and forth they have I am here for! It was a cute romance with a decent amount of spice!!!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read a free copy of this novel in exchange for my honest opinion!

Sports romance novels aren't usually my thing, but both of the books in her Oakwood Bay series are five star reads to me! This book featured a trope I haven't read too much of: brother's best friend. From start to finish, this book was just so well-written and fun to read. I cried quite a few times, I can't even lie, the touching moments were just so sweet and touching. PLUS, a huge bonus is that the side characters will (hopefully) all be getting their own books and they are all super compelling as well. Ellie K. Wilde, keep writing and I will be reading!

Thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for the ARC of Only in Your Dreams by Ellie K. Wilde!

So, I have mixed feelings about this book. Let's start with the pros:
The "Brother's best friend" trope is one of my favorites and it was well executed here. Not to mention the forced proximity (hello camping!)
Zac for me is another very important pro, a grumpy par excellence. After behaving a bit badly (I don't want to swear), he finally
has a second chance with Melody, and this time he knows what to do and is no longer afraid. I love characters who are grumpy but then turn out to be very sweet and super available.

The cons: too long, lately romances are becoming too long, it's not possible that there is so much to say.

DNF - it was a faster burn than I like to see in a second chance romance. I am sure many will love this book! So many good tropes!

Really liked this book. Was a quick read. At first I didn't really like the camping trip because it didn't really seem believable but then the characters fell in love and I thought it was cute. This book was trying a little too hard in the tropes but it made me laugh and feel butterflies so that's good.

I enjoyed this book so much! I'm such a sucker for brothers best friend and second chance romance and this book hit! Zac was just swoon! Zac and Melody haven't seen each other in 10 years and he is still obsessed with her. This was funny, fast paced and they had such good banter.

The best part? NO THIRD ACT BREAK-UP!!!

Wilde creates a slow-burn romance that is both heart-wrenching and passionate. Zac’s determination to win back Melody, despite the mistakes of his past, makes him a deeply swoon-worthy hero. The tension between them is palpable, especially as they confront their unresolved feelings amid beautiful, emotional moments.

This was a lovely sports romance and I enjoyed it very much. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for gifting me this arc.

This book has it all. A great best friend brother sports romance with forced proximity. I spent great hours reading it and swooning between pages. The MMC giving the space and time to our FMC to work out her feelings was chef kiss.

This was fun and entertaining. I like how Melody grow thru the whole book, also how Zac is helping her without putting restraint on her to relearn again what she wants. I do love also how Melody helps Zac to find his sunshine again . You can see the connection from both characters thru the whole book , how it takes its time to get them to know each other again and makes it even more enjoyable. Definitely will be recommending .

I've enjoyed Ellie K. Wilde books before so was excited to read this new series from her. I enjoy a second chance romance as long as it's based on a strong history and not on something dumb like cheating or bad communication. Because of that, this one at least made sense as two high school friends who were afraid to say how they felt about their crushes because of siblings and other friendships. In general, this was funny and fast-paced and I enjoyed their back and forths and communication growth. Honestly, the main cringey thing (knocked this down to 4 stars) was the tattoos and the meaning behind them. The clovers didn't really make sense to me and there was no real explanation of how that began. But overall, it was a sweet and fun read!

I really enjoyed this one! I loved the relationship between Melody and Zac. I loved the way they reconnected and Zac really worked for Melody's approval and love. I loved how much he cared for her and careful he was with her. He helped her recover from her toxic relationship and restore her relationship with her brother.

Rating 3.5

This was my first time reading Ellie K. Wilde.
It was a cute book for sure but didn't quite nail the mark for me in the sense that it didn't feel like it was grown up.
The FMC, Melody, felt very childish...maybe entitled.
While I did enjoy the redemption arc of Melody re-discovering herself after an extremely toxic relationship and Zac was there to help her through it all, I was still left with something to be desired.

Zac was also very meh. He was an okay book boyfriend, but there was nothing that made me gasp and giggle. I did enjoy that Zac was 100000% down bad for Melody, but tbh the way she led him on kind of made me not enjoy him. I love a MMC that pines after the FMC, however, this was just too much??

Overall, I feel like this was just an okay read. It wasn't my favourite, but it wasn't terrible that I wouldn't recommend it to folks who love a simply cozy small town romance with hints of fake dating, and second chances.

A big thank you to Atria for providing me with an advance Galley of Only in your Dreams.

This book is full of all of the tropes I love- brother’s best friend, friends to rivals to friends to lovers, and a little bit of second chance.

Melody is a strong, focused person who lost a lot of her confidence after being in a relationship with a very manipulative and domineering man. She knows what she wants and is determined to get it, even if seeing Zac again stirs up the feelings she had for him as a teen.

She knows that Zac ghosting her has caused some distance in her relationship with her twin brother Parker and best friend Summer, since she avoided coming home. But it seems like something happened between Parker and Zac as well. They’re still friends and hang out as a group with Summer and their friend Brooks, but things seem strained between them.

After a disastrous camping trip, Melody and Zac reconnect and discover they need each other, at least to sleep. At first.

Miscommunications, fake relationships, old hurts, secret love, exes who can’t take no for an answer, and some very steamy moments make this an incredibly fun read.

I’m looking forward to book 2 in the series (Brooks’s story) and hope we get to see Summer and Parker get their happily-ever-afters as well (together maybe??).

Disclaimer: I was invited to read an eARC for review consideration by the publisher in partnership with Net Galley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I love the lovesick puppy trope. He was pining over her for 14 years! The camping trip tension was CRAZY and I will never get over the chipmunk attack LOL. Parker sucks and I’m sad he was such a loser and was forgiven too easily but I’m rooting for him and Summer to end up together. Also kinda sad Zac literally built their dream house just for them to buy an apartment in the city.

Melody and Zac had the funniest reuniting I think I have ever read. Having her brother set her up with her ex-crush after moving back home when getting out of a six year relationship probably wasn't on Mel's bingo card, but it certainly worked in the rom-com world. If Zac could, he would have kissed the ground she walked upon and let's face it, he probably did off page. It was a great reverse grump x sunshine romance and I really enjoyed these two characters. There were a lot of parts that got boring in the middle, and then end was something I skimmed because it felt too long. Other than that it was a joy to read this book. It's funny, got some great banter, really cool side characters, and so much longing I was on the edge of my seat waiting for their first kiss (again).

Thank you NetGalley for giving me a copy of this book and all opinions are my own!