Thak you NetGalley and Atria Books for this eARC.
This was a very sweet sports romance story. Sudenly it felt like a YA novel, because, I think the autor was focused on the personal growth of the characters (particulary Melody), but it worked out very nicely.
I love second chance romances because there´s always so much tensión between the FMC and the MMC, this was not the exception, I always enjoy when the MMC is still in love with her. Ithis was a very enjoyable story with a nice open door spice.

The description of this book is so good! Definitely great to the point that it would hook any reader! It gives the reader enough information as to what to expect, but also leaves enough room for the reader to imagine what they want to imagine. Literal perfection!

Also, can we talk about the cover for a moment? It is literally gorgeous!

And then not having a third-act breakup is a huge win in my book!

I think I had a little problem with it being a little slow at the beginning, but at the same time, it may just be because the story needed time to pick up.

Honestly, I would say that it is a solid read!

Thank you to Ellie K. Wilde, Atria Books and NetGalley for this arc! 💕

Only In Your Dreams is a second chance romance done right! It is the perfect mix of plot, banter, angst and spice. Zac and Melody’s story spans over 14 years but more so the last decade they have spent apart. During that define apart one has spent the time and done the work in hopes the other will return home & a second chance will happen. The other took what happened one night, turned a friend into an enemy and never planned to look back. You know what they say about the best laid plans…

Melody’s world seems to be crashing down when she is forced back home to live with her brother after a breakup. Coming home means facing her past, something she never hoped to do. When Melody and Zac are forced together in ways outside their control, Zac sees this as his opportunity for a do over and decides he will find any way to spend time with Melody! As time goes on you see Zac show his cards- the house, the daisies, his words and actions! This man is a simp and he wants everyone to know in.

Melody and Zac are the definition of opposites attract- he’s the sunshine to her grumpy. He embraces her sass & brat attitude, in fact he encourages it knowing that when those features come out Melody is herself! Zac’s words were utter perfection, the way he just lays it all out there for her and shows her how a healthy relationship works! I will never be over “I’ve never been single. I’ve been yours.”

This is absolutely one of the best second chance romances I have ever read and that says a lot because so many are not done right. That is not the case here- this is absolutely a must read if you love a good second chance! I’m so looking forward to seeing more of these two in Brooks’ story and I have my fingers crossed we see Parker & Summer here together soon..

Only In Tour Dreams is for you if you love:
- second chance romance
- brother’s best friend
- friends to enemies to lovers
- forced proximity
- sports romance
- “it’s always been you”

Thank you NetGalley & Atria for the early read!

Only in Your Dreams by Ellie K. Wilde

“I’ve never been single, I’ve been yours”

Thank you Atria Books for the free advanced copy. All opinions are my own.

This was such an adorably sweet and spicy sports romance. If you are a fan of brother's best friend or second chance then I definitely think that you should give this one a try!

Melody finds herself back in her hometown of Oakwood Bay after she is dumped by her big-city, love bombing boyfriend. As she begins to pick up the pieces, she finds herself on a problematic camping trip with the one person that she has spent a decade trying to avoid, her twin brother’s best friend. For Zach, Melody has always been off-limits but she is also the only person who has ever captured his heart.

Only in Your Dreams was definitely a fun read! Lots of spice but it was mixed with a very sweet and loveable MMC. The love and care that the characters felt for each other was a strong and consistent theme, which I absolutely loved. The writing was also very well done and I enjoyed the side characters immensely. Definitely hoping for a Noah story in the near future!

If you are in the mood for a charming rom-com, then you should check this one out!

I don’t know where to begin but I will start with this I LOVE Zac Porter!! What a character! He was very much giving Noah from the notebook in how thoughtful and sentimental he was. My heart swooned more than a few times at how much he cared for Melody. Although as someone who lives in a small town the odds that the hottest man ever somehow remained single in a small town is very unlikely, I loved that he stayed just to wait for her. Melody as a character was very likable, her realization that her ex boyfriend was gaslighting her and controlling every aspect of her life in the guise that he was just supporting her felt real. And I loved that although Zac hated her ex boyfriend he let her talk through her realizations and emotions about it without being jealous. This book had its fun moments (camping trip), great spice, prime yearning and a lovable couple. In general I did love that these two didn’t have some 3rd act breakup, the miscommunication holding them back was predictable but I liked how they worked through it. Devoured this book in less than 24hrs, staying up till 2am cause I couldn’t put it down. Looking forward to reading the next book!!

Sorry. This book was not it. Both of the main character were annoying and insufferable. The spice was just cringey and forced. DNF at 40%

Only In Your Dreams is a spicy read featuring a broken hearted Melody coming back home to Oakwood Bay after she fleed a decade earlier from an awkward encounter with her brother's best friend, Zac, who is now the local football coach. I enjoyed this book, I haven't read a ton of football themed romance novels, but I may now try to read some more! Both main characters are very likable, and you can't help falling for Zac's enthusiasm for Melody. Lots of spice, and the plot is pretty good too (always a win).

Thank you to Netgalley and Atria books for the ARC.

DNFing this one at a little over 30%. Unfortunately, I found the execution on the main plot points to be unrealistic. I am not a fan of miscommunication trope and it became obvious that's what this book would revolve around. I'm sure others would enjoy this one but it was not for me.

Thank you to Atria for this gifted ARC.

Thank you so much Ellie K. Wilde and NetGalley for this ARC!

5⭐️//3🌶️

This book has become an absolute favourite of mine and I will be forever recommending this book, as it contains some of my favourite things:
✅ Hilariously fabulous banter
✅ Yearning & groveling
✅ Boy obsessed
✅ Sassy FMC

Zac has been "desperately, pathetically, feel-nothing-unless-she's-in-the-room in love with Melody Woods for fourteen years". When Melody returns to her hometown after being broken up with by her boyfriend of 6 years, Zac takes it as a sign that their timing is finally aligning. Getting stuck in a rain storm, while camping, with no way of getting back home was not the plan Zac had in mind on trying to prove Melody that he didn't mean to break her heart 10 years prior.

Melody is freshly single, trying to make sense of a relationship that was controlling, and that stripped away any of her individuality, agency, and choices. Taking some time to evaluate where it all went wrong, Melody moves in with her twin brother, Parker (Zac's former best friend), to try to get her life back on track. Fate brings Melody and Zac in close proximity to each other, so Melody's hatred towards Zac starts to ebb, when she notices all the ways he has changed in the years she has not seen him.

I love how supportive they are of each other, in various aspects of their lives. How Melody encourages Zac with his football coaching career, and how Zac supports Melody in finding herself and learning what she wants to do with her life. I love how Zac let's Melody grow on her own, while being patient, and caring. These two just work so well together, and it's so heartwarming to see their second chance at a happily ever after.

Favourite scene: Phone call with Zac's mom 🥺
Favourite 🌶️ scene: The walls really are thin 🤭

Thank you to Atria Books for this ARC! Only in your dreams was such a good book, I truly devoured it. Watching Melody find herself again after a break up with her abusive ex boyfriend, while also rediscovering her chemistry with Zac kept me wanting more. I loved so many of the characters in this book, especially Melody’s friend group standing by her at every turn. And the chemistry with Zac was full of so many perfect squeal worthy moments. I’m highly recommend this book and am excited to see more from this world!

I honestly requested an ARC because of the cover for this book. I actually didn’t know it was a republish, but thank you to NetGalley for the ARC of Only in Your Dreams.
This book dealt with more substance than I thought it would. An emotionally abusive/manipulative ex.
Melody, the girl still heartbroken over her first high school love—brothers best friend.

Zac pines for her and is such a simp for her. He’s 10/10. But also dumb for letting her brother have such a chokehold.

Clovers? Shoelace? Loved.

Will be reading the next one!

I'm here for all of the brothers best friend books…If you know of others…Please share your recs in the comments!

The story follows Melody Woods, who returns to her small hometown after her life in the city falls apart. Dumped by her long-term super douche boyfriend, she’s heartbroken and broke. Her twin brother crafts a plan to get her out of her post break-up funk: a trip with the one guy who broke her heart a decade ago—Zac Porter. Zac, now a football coach, is determined to win back the one who got away and win back Melody’s trust...and hopefully his team to finally win a game, too.

The chemistry between Zac and Melody is obvious! Their banter is witty and endearing, and it was so fun watching their second chance unfold. Melody’s journey of healing from her past heartbreak, and learning to trust Zac again, was so inspiring. She was able to rediscover her self-worth and trust in others through the love and support provided by Zac. It was a great reminder that the right person can help you find the strength to move forward.

The secondary characters were a fun addition to the main storyline and we hope that we get Parker's story soon!

This was light-hearted, and super sweet. If you love the small town or second chance romance genre this a cute pick up!

A lovely second chance romance! This book had me hooked from the beginning! Melody Woods reunites with her childhood crush, Zac Porter after 10 years a tough goodbye between the two, but little does Melody realize that Zac has never been able to forget her.

This story brought the tension, ache, laughter, and a delicious medium slow burn. Zac Porter was a swoony pining fool for Melody & all the little things that he did to win her over had me kicking my feet!

This is a true “the one that got away” & the sweetest second chance! I cannot wait to continue this series!

Thank you NetGalley & Atria Books for the free copy!

This was sooo freaking cute!!! I loved this story so much, Zac and Mel are seriously the best characters!!!! This was one of my favorite second chance romance reads so far. The banter in this book is also 10/10. Side characters are so well written! I would definitely recommend this book.

Thank you NetGalley Ellie K. Wilde and Atria Books for the eARC!

Realistic Rating: 2 ⭐️

”I’ve loved you since we were kids. I’ve wanted you since I figured out what it meant to want someone.” - Zac

I kind of had high hopes for this book as a sports romance book lover, but was left disappointed. I just found that the book was boring after like 40% being done and the book in general was way too long. This book is very fast paced which can be good, but I wish that Melody stayed mad at Zac for a little longer rather than completely falling for him again. There was no tension between them and they hook up in MUD on the campsite which is disgusting. Also the second half had so much going on like; football games, trainings, family stuff, idk it was hard to keep up and I was losing interest.

Tropes:
🏕️ Brother’s best friend
🏕️ Sports romance
🏕️ Second chance
🏕️ He falls first
🏕️ Childhood friends to lovers
🏕️ Forced proximity (one tent)
🏕️ Small town romance
🏕️ Secret romance

Characters:

Melody Woods gets dumped and moves back to her hometown Oakwood Bay after 10 years. She reunites with her childhood crush Zac Porter aka her twin brother Parker’s best friend. She has a lot of anxiety going on and a lack of self-confidence due to her past relationship, but I found her to be a bit boring. Parker and Summer had more interesting characteristics that I wanted to know about.

Zac Porter is a Football coach and has been in love with Melody for fourteen years. He is the reason they stopped talking, but he never fell out of love with her. He is such a sweet character, but like Melody he was just not interesting to me.

Pros:
- No third act breakup
- Zac is such a sweet character
- THE SIDE CHARACTERS: Parker, Summer and Brookes—I love them.

Cons:
- The pacing was too fast. I wish Melody stayed mad/angry at Zac longer instead of just immediately falling for him again after 10 years.
- Clover tattoos—so cringe
- How did nobody notice that Zac and Melody were left behind at the campsite…
- Chapters and the book in general was way too long
- The reasoning behind his 10 years of silence…so dumb, like he could have texted her.

Overall, it was not a book for me. However, I see that book 2 is about Brooks and I am seated for that and cannot wait to read his story.

Thank you NetGalley and Atria Books for this copy in exchange for an honest review!

・₊✧ Quotes ・₊✧

"I am in love with you, Melody. I have been in love with you. And frankly, given the way the past fourteen years of my life have gone, I don’t see a way out of it. This is it for me. You, with all your—your inability to start a conversation with a simple hello. Te way you don’t give me an inch make me work my ass off for the ghost of a smile. I will never stop working for it, working to earn you, because that’s what you deserve. And I’m so utterly and completely gone for you, anyway, that I wouldn’t know what to do with myself if I weren’t.” - Zac

TRULY A SLOW BURN.

For me personally, while I wanted to know how everything unfolded in the book, it was a really slow read for me.
And I am not generally a slow reader.

This doesn’t take away from the book itself or the rating I am giving it, at least not for me.

I know, I sound contradictory.


But hear me out!

Yes, it was slow-er, than I am used to. That is a slow burn, sloow.

I NEEDED to know how this all unfolded.
I needed to know how they got together, if the ex ever tried to win her back.
Third act break up?
Any surprises?
What couple will the next book in the series be about?

I needed to know all the things.

Slow Burn, Brother's Best Friend, Small Town Romance, One Bed, Football Coach, He Falls First

All of my fave tropes, so needless to say, while it was slow, I needed to know how all the things happened and unfolded. I enjoyed this read and I can't wait to read the next book in the series!

Thank you to Ellie and NetGalley for the chance to ARC this!

With my first book from this author, I was so excited to dive into more sports romance! I have never really read a true football romance, and what really interested me was the second chance romance that was incorporated. Within the beginning, it was interesting to hear Clover and Zac, and what their story was.

It was a cute sports romance with the best aspect of childhood friends, with the perfect mix of the challenges of major league sports!

Overall, a cute, second-chance sports romance - fairly trope-reliant but are we mad about it? Melody returns home to her small town after a tough break up, only to be reunited with an old crush, Zac, who also happens to be her brother’s best friend. At first, I found the plot to be a bit lackluster and was not engaged with the characters at all. Somewhere at the 50% mark, it picked up for me and I was entertained through to the end! 3.75 ⭐️

Thank you Atria Books for the #gifted copy and thank you Simon Audio for my #gifted listening copy of Only In Your Dreams! #atriabooks #atria #AtriaPartner #simonaudio #OnlyInYourDreams #EllieKWilde

𝐓𝐢𝐭𝐥𝐞: 𝐎𝐧𝐥𝐲 𝐈𝐧 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐃𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐦𝐬
𝐀𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫: 𝐄𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐞 𝐊. 𝐖𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐞
𝐍𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐬: 𝐓𝐞𝐝𝐝𝐲 𝐇𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐭𝐨𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐂𝐚𝐫𝐥𝐲 𝐑𝐨𝐛𝐢𝐧𝐬
𝐏𝐮𝐛 𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐞: 𝐉𝐚𝐧𝐮𝐚𝐫𝐲 𝟐𝟏, 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟓

𝟰.𝟱★

With Melody back home after a breakup, she plans to only stay in town long enough to get back on her feet. Ten years ago, Zac Porter lost his change with Melody, the twin sister of his best friend. Now, Melody has randomly shown up at a campsite instead of his best friend Parker. Zac is convinced it’s his chance to prove that he and Melody are meant to be together.

Talk about a fun brother’s best friend romance! The banter was off the charts! I thought the pacing was perfect and it was so well done. I also like how light was placed on the mental and emotional abuse Melody faced in her past relationship.

🏈Brother’s Best Friend
🏈Sports Romance
🏈Open Door
🏈Second Chance
🏈Forced Proximity
🏈Dual POV

🎧The dual narration between Teddy Hamilton and Carly Robins was perfect. I could not ask for a better duo to narrate this book. Whether you read this one with your eyes or your ears, you can’t go wrong! Hamilton and Robins brought this story to life, and were so dynamic!

Posted on Goodreads on January 20, 2025: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/144922955?ref=nav_profile_l
**Posted on Instagram - Full Review- on or around January 21, 2025: http://www.instagram.com/nobookmark_noproblem
**Posted on Amazon on January 21, 2025
**-will post on designated date

Melody and Zac meet when they’re teenagers and become great friends, but they have a falling out right before Melody leaves for college. Fast forward ten years, Melody is now back in her hometown after a long term relationship comes to an end. Her situation only becomes worse when she is forced to go on a camping trip in place of her twin brother, and who else would she be in close quarters with other than Zac Porter. From there the story takes off as these two navigate through unresolved feelings, finding themselves, and sorting through some miscommunications.

This was a cute read and the beginning hooked me immediately. As soon as the camping trip takes a 180, I was invested. However, I feel like it did drag a bit in the middle and kind of lost the plot. The amount of times they go back and forth without resolving their past issues started to get to me. I’m also just not a fan of second chance romances, so it could just be me. This one does end with a happily ever after though, so that’s always a plus. Also, I’m hoping to get Brooks’ story next because that man also deserves a HEA.

Thank you NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.