My second book by Ali Brady and I'm a fan! What a nice, entertaining, light-hearted romance. So cute! Two bookstore managers, Josie and Ryan, work at Bookstores on the same street in Boston. Their stores are completely different. Hers sells serious literature and his sells romance. But the new owner wants to combine the two stores. But only one of them can be the manager. So there is a competition with who can turn over the most profits. Things heat up not only on the chaos at the Bookstores but also between them. Such a great summer book to escape into. I loved this swoony romance. I loved the characters, the plot, the setting. It was just an overall enjoyable read!

Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for the gifted copy. All opinions are my own.

One of my favourite romcoms of all time is You've got Mail so of course I had to read this book!! Everything about this was AMAZING!!! I loved it all. I loved the main characters Josie and Ryan and how it's Ryan and not Josie that owns the romance bookstore. Like how cute ?!??! I'm glad there was a happy ending!

I had so much fun reading this! I'm a big fan of the secret online friends trope, and this book absolutely delivered.

Josie and Ryan couldn't be more different. She's pretty uptight and devotes her work to literary fiction. He's way more laidback and loves romance novels. They get stuck competing for the same promotion, which gets really chaotic. But what they don't realize is that they're venting to each other about each other online, and it is so entertaining! Watching them fall for each other twice, online and then in person, was beautiful.

Their banter and slow buildup kept me completely captivated. They're both hilarious, but their serious moments hit just as well, and they learn a lot from each other in really meaningful ways. The book also does a wonderful job showing how all kinds of books matter. If you like enemies-to-lovers or secret identity stories, you have to read this!

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for the opportunity to read an ARC of this book! All opinions are my own.

What’s better than a book about bookstores??? How about a one with a very tall, dark and nerdy manager filled with lots of romantic moments and a bit of spice 🔥

In BATTLE OF THE BOOKSTORES, Ryan and Josie are told that their two bookstores must merge into one. Only one manger will be left standing sooo they have the choice to work together or work against each other. That’s when the story gets really good!

This book had all the feels - including more than just butterflies! It was full of fun, witty banter and such poignant thoughts. It was perfect! The book touched on all the typical romance troupes including my favorites - fake dating and enemies to lovers!

Thanks to @alibradybooks for sharing an ARC with us. It has been loved on by 15 of us in 9 different states. ✈️ I was sooo excited to see that the new bookstore was named Beyond the Pages and even more excited to see my name in the acknowledgements. Thank you @thishammer and @bradeighgodfrey for my birthday message last month AND for the fun message in my copy of the book 😍. You are the best!

Favorite lines (besides the pins and bookmarks). IYKYK

“I am the product of every book I’ve ever read, and every experience I’ve ever had, each heartbreak and failure, every moment of sadness and joy. The people I’ve met in the characters I’ve encountered, the events that challenged me and the narratives that have stretched me - all of this inscribed on my soul”

“It’s not about the happy ending - It’s about believing you’re worthy of one”

“Falling in love is something that happens to you, sometimes even against your will like being struck by lightning or catching the flu. But staying in love? That’s a choice”.

“ … there’s a book for every reader and a reader for every book”

#falling.beautiful.endgame #HEA #happilyeverafter #btptravelingarc #btpbookclub #aileenonbookz #bookpeoplearethebestpeople #toomanybooksnotenoughtime

Battle of the Bookstores is a super cute, rivals-to-lovers romance that I adored! Josie and Ryan manage two totally different bookstores. Hers is all serious literature, his is romance only. When they’re suddenly forced to share a space and compete for one manager position, sparks fly. She’s uptight and organized, he’s chaotic and charming, and their banter is top-tier. Add in the fact that they’ve unknowingly been chatting anonymously in an online book forum? Chef’s kiss.

This one has all the cozy, feel-good vibes of a classic rom-com but with a fresh, bookish twist. The competition leads to some seriously fun sabotage (and a little flirting), and their chemistry builds in a way that feels sweet but also super satisfying. It’s the perfect read if you love stories about opposites attracting, bookstores, and falling for someone when you least expect it.

Josie is the stoic cynic who loves literary fiction because of how the books make you work for the enjoyment of them. Ryan is the hopeless romantic who loves a romance novel for the hope and growth and happy ever after. They both run bookstores, sharing a single neighbor - the coffee shop between them. All three businesses are owned by Xander, who decides to combine the three to make a bookstore with a coffee shop inside. And whichever bookseller has the highest sales by the end of the summer gets to be the sole manager of the whole thing.

This is an enemies-to-lovers, with a pit-stop at friendship first. The characters also meet online through a book lovers forum, which leads to a You've Got Mail situation as well. They even steal a line almost directly from the movie.

The romance is sweet and yes, kind of predictable. But I appreciate the way the identity reveal happens. Honestly, the way Josie's character is, I expected more fireworks than the book actually gave. In other words, she acted like an actual adult.

There was a point that I forgot to mention about this book that I really liked. Most romance novels have a "third act breakup" section, where the couple breaks up because some secret gets out, or one character feels like they're getting too close and needs to step back. This book calls that out, and Ryan said that he likes to think of that part of the book as the "decision point," and I LOVE that. The third act breakup drives me nuts, but thinking of it as a point at which one of the characters (or both) has to make a decision is a great way to see it.

That said. I got another book through NetGalley that is titled VERY similarly to this one, which I find hilarious, since they're coming out within a few months of each other. I've finished that one now too, and frankly, I liked this one better. I like the dynamics of this couple better, and while I liked the other outcome better, I like the character development here better as well.

I received an Advanced Reader Copy via NetGalley in return for sharing my thoughts on this book. Thanks to the author and publisher for this opportunity!

𝐀𝐋𝐂 𝐑𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰
𝐁𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐥𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐞𝐬
𝐀𝐥𝐢 𝐁𝐫𝐚𝐝𝐲
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶️🌶️

•𝑊𝑜𝑟𝑘𝑝𝑙𝑎𝑐𝑒 𝑟𝑜𝑚𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒
•𝑅𝑖𝑣𝑎𝑙𝑠 𝑡𝑜 𝑙𝑜𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑠
•𝐼𝑛𝑑𝑖𝑒 𝑏𝑜𝑜𝑘𝑠𝑡𝑜𝑟𝑒𝑠
•𝑆𝑒𝑐𝑟𝑒𝑡 𝑝𝑒𝑛 𝑝𝑎𝑙𝑠

Shout out to for the ALC of this one! So much to love here- a light, fun book about books 😍 So many references, quotables, banter…but also aspects of unbelievability in a MMC 😂

Dual narration kept me quite entertained, with moments of endearing qualities and relatable inner feelings. A fun modern spin on You’ve Got Mail for sure 💌

Thanks to @berkleypub and @berkleyromance for the gifted e-ARC and to @prhaudio for the ALC!

This delightful book was my 100th read of the year! And it had all my favorite things— Delicious banter. A romance bookstore with very suggestive pins and bookmarks. Quirky side characters. That fine line where hate turns to passion. The You’ve Got Mail plot where enemies are secretly friends online. A one bed situation. Secret pining. Bookstores that hold awesome events. And lots of book reading and reviewing. I mean, isn’t that the perfect book right there?

Ryan and Josie are bookstore managers. Ryan’s is romance themed with a perfectly diverse product line and staff. Josie’s is highbrow and minimalist with literary fiction and no staff at all. When the owner of their stores decides to combine them and lay off whoever has the lowest sales, they go from mutual dislike to competition. But the contest brings them into close proximity and sparks fly. They both have baggage, from family trauma to learning disabilities. And watching them work through those issues and learn to trust each other was delightful.

It’s a dual narration, with each narrator reading the chapters with their character’s POV. They both did a great job. The characters really came alive with their voices.

If you love books and bookstores, you have to read this book. It’s like a big warm hug to book lovers everywhere.

I don’t really read a lot of contemporary romance ( maybe 2 or 3 a year) but I’m so glad this one made it to my TBR

This story with all the “You’ve Got Mail” vibes is a witty, funny and sexy enemies to friends to lovers story that I enjoyed from beginning to end and didn’t want to put down and even though it is pretty long at over 400 pages, it never really felt like it

My rating 4.5 ⭐️

This book was enjoyable little romp with fun references to you’ve got mail. It was interesting seeing the role reversal in which our FMC loves literary fiction and our MMC love romances, as I think Brady did it in a way that felt not too heavy handed.

This is a fun and breezy read. Josie and Ryan are rival bookstore managers: Josie’s bookstore specializes in literary fiction, while Ryan’s exclusively sells romance. They both lowkey resent each other, a dynamic that becomes even more toxic when the owner of both their bookstores tells them he is merging their stores and only one of them will get to keep their job. Josie and Ryan begin a fierce competition, but they don’t realize that they’ve been anonymously DM-ing other for months.

There were parts of this book that felt pretty trite to me, and although the characters were often tongue in cheek about the various tropes going on, sometimes it felt like a bit much. But overall, this was a really fun read. There’s a lot of talk of different books and authors and bookish things, which I enjoyed, and the characters are interesting and dynamic. I always love an enemies-to-lovers story, and it was enjoyable seeing the sparks fly between Josie and Ryan and both of them slowly reconcile their misconceptions about each other with the reality. Overall, I enjoyed this one!

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for an advanced reader’s copy in exchange for an honest review!

Really loved this book! The nods to romance tropes were a cute touch. Having grown up in the area, I loved the references to places in Massachusetts/Maine. Would def read more of her books!

I wanted to love this book so so bad. The FMC was just so insufferable and it was hard to get past that. It made it feel like a chore to listen to the book. I will say that I did really like that the audiobook was narrated by a man and woman. The details about running a bookstore and the stress that comes with it was fun to listen to since I run a bookstore.

Sadly I just don’t think this was the book for me. It was just a bit too cringy. Probably more of a 1.5 ⭐️ rating for me.

This enemies-to-lovers romance, with a swoonworthy bookstore setting, unfortunately is more of a miss than a hit. The romantic plotline follows trope after trope, and while there are some cute elements and plenty of book-love, the overall story feels pretty basic. I loved this author duo's previous books, but this one doesn't deliver the same emotional payoff., and simply isn't as interesting a story.

This is a fun romance between two competing bookstore owners. Josie and Ryan are in a competition to see who can outsell the other to become the manager of one bookstore that will encompass both of their current businesses. Their landlord has decided to consolidate their stores into one space. They both sell different genres than the other and don’t really see eye to eye on their business ideas so there was already some friction between them. As the competition continues they slowly begin a romantic relationship. It turns out they anonymously already know each other online but they initially are unaware they are unknowingly confiding in each other. This was a cute story with great dialogue and an interesting plot. Who doesn’t love a book with bookstores? Josie and Ryan were perfect for each other and you are invested in seeing their attraction grow. Overall a great romance story!!

Thank you to Berkley and NetGalley for the ARC opportunity.
Abby Jimenez blurb on the front sums it up perfectly—modern You’ve Got Mail.
3/5 stars
Favorite Supporting Character: Eddie
I enjoyed the characters and the plot. There were a few major moments I wish would have lasted a little longer or went into more depth. I do think it is a title our public library will purchase.
Now I want to go to a literary conference and get physical ARCs!

Y’all should have told me HE was the romance enthusiast!

Ryan breaks every preconceived notion by being a giant supporter of romance—I mean that literally. The man is 6'7"! But since he hates the size-difference trope, I’ll move on in solidarity (but omg omg omg).

Two neighboring bookstores are being forced to merge by their new, money-hungry owner, putting managers Ryan and the prim-and-proper Josie in direct competition. Only one of them will get to stay on and manage the new store. Josie, a die-hard literary fiction bookworm, tends to lean into the “literary snob” stereotype, while Ryan couldn’t be more different. In person, they clash at every turn... but online? They’ve actually been anonymous book besties for years!

The magic of this story lies in the bold, laugh-out-loud chemistry between these two as they battle each other—and their own biases. As a proud member of Team Romance, I loved every trope Ali Brady (the author duo) managed to weave into Ryan and Josie’s enemies-to-lovers relationship. I usually cringe at meta references, but here they felt like a celebration of romance readers. It was playful, joyful, and made me feel "seen."

The lust? HEAVY in the air. Like, bring your own O2 mask! This is a slow burn, but the yearning is absolutely salacious from beginning to end. And when they finally give in, Ryan puts all that romance knowledge to very good use.

It’s not "just smut" (eye roll). There’s real emotional growth and development too—but you’ll need to read it yourself, or we’ll be here all day listing all the great elements packed into this book. That said, special shoutout to the epilogue because THAT is what reader dreams are made of.

Also, I listened to the audiobook and HOLY HELL. Karissa Vacker is already an auto-listen for me, but Brandon Francis? Genius-level casting. I’d never heard him narrate before, but turns out he also voiced Nordika Knight’s "Garron Park" series (iykyk). He’s now my new audiobook bias.

This book is a cute, hopeful read for all the book-ish people out there! While cheesy at times, there was so many fun references and nods to beloved books, the amazing community, reader interactions, etc. If that's the love story you are looking for here, you will be very pleased.

It seems like a few others agree that the beginning of this book was a bit rough - to me, the romance between Josie and Ryan initially felt forced with sometimes random out-of-pocket internal dialogue. But once I hit around the 45% mark, I was invested. The main characters really grew on me as they opened up to one another, and by the end, they felt far more grounded and real.

I also ended up really loving the role reversal with the man being the romance fan and the woman being more into literary fiction. Did it always feel realistic? Maybe not, but their individual reasons for loving each genre were both so valid and precious.

Thank you NetGalley and Berkeley for providing this E-ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I think the biggest issue with this story for me was the MMC- anytime there was a thought of the FMC it was overtly sexual for no reason? and he spoke like he was texting (I.e. saying "loml" and "tbh") which totally through me off. Another concern is the way the characters speak regarding books, they mention big named authors and tropes/sub genres which is totally fine, but I think it alienates potential readers who are not chronically online or in the booksphere of social media to understand everything they're discussing, like mentioing the omegaverse or saying bookish acronyms like MFM, knotting etc. I understand the love for this book, it was truly made for the book lovers, but unfortunately for me the characters felt surface level and had a bit too cringey of dialogue for my liking. I'd definitely still recommend this to my followers and other fellow readers, as I think there's a huge audience for this story, just wasn't for me.

Thank you PRHAudio for the audiobook and Berkley for the advanced reader copies.

Looking for a love letter for a bibliophile? This book will make you bite your lip and smile. Battle of the Bookstores has a way of highlighting so many bookish things like ARC reading, getting to know people by reading from their favorite book lists and some reading faux pas like reading the last page of a book before finishing. This book had me constantly repeating - just one more chapter.

Literary Fiction lover and bookseller at Tabula Inscripta, Josie must compete against Romance reader and bookseller at Happy Endings, Ryan to see whose store can get the highest sales for a summer. Whomever wins gets to keep their jobs. In a wonderful enemies to friends to lovers this book has all the fun. From flair lanyards with pins to match your wine to your book to crocheted bookish items, this book has it all.

Karissa Vacker & Brandon Francis did a fantastic job bringing both Josie and Ryan to life. I am adding them to my favorite narrators list. I am grateful to both PRH & Berkley for allowing me to read via audio and ebook.