Its adorable! It is cozy, funny and so so good. I haven't been able to find a physical copy in any local bookstores but I will definitely be on the look out. This one is worthy of a re-read.

As an Ali Brady fan since their debut novel, The Beach Trap, I am happy to say Battle of the Bookstores is another winner by this writing duo! This book is an absolute treat for book lovers, full of nods to beloved books and authors. And while I love their earlier books, this one leans a bit more romance than women's fiction, which I personally loved.

Battle of the Bookstores is like the perfect mash up of You've Got Mail and Sally Thorne's The Hating Game. It makes for the perfect enemies to lovers mash up IRL with lots of tension, sharp banter, and undeniable chemistry (though they aren't quite ready to admit it). But online it's a totally different story. Josie and Ryan are the best of friends, connecting over their love of books and able to open up to each other while hiding behind their online personas. It was refreshing when their digital and real lives came together, and Josie and Ryan were finally able to show up for each other offline the same way they had online.

I did initially find Josie's prickly personality and inability to communicate frustrating, but the authors did a good job of peeling back the layers and showing us why. She has great character growth over the course of the story, and I ended up liking her character a lot! Ryan, of course, was the perfect book bff - no notes.

Full disclosure - while I did love all of the book references, there were A LOT - it felt tired after awhile and overdone. I'M SORRY - I know this is a book literally about books, butttttttttt still...

ANYWHO, if you're finding you have some gaps in your summer reading list, make sure to grab this one! You won't be disappointed!

Josie, the meticulous and literary-fiction-devoted manager of Tabula Inscripta, and Ryan, the laid-back manager of Happy Endings, a romance bookstore. These two bookstores exist on the same street. A new owner decides to merge their two stores together, but only one will get to be manager after a summer competition of the highest sales.

This book was written for booklovers! Two rival bookstores, the You’ve got Mail vibes, the bookish lingo…it was just perfect. The tension and rivalry between Josie and Ryan was swoon-worthy. Their relationship was real and raw and the built up was perfection. I especially adored Ryan and his romantic gesture! I loved every minute of this one!

Oh my god, THIS BOOK!! Battle of the Bookstores is an excellent exercise in enemies-to-lovers and a beautiful ode to book lovers everywhere. Josie and Ryan felt so authentic, and their banter was off the charts. I especially loved the emphasis on the community aspect of local bookstores. Highly recommend!

Sadly this was a DNF for me. Knowing the authors are real life bookstagrammers it feels awkward how many times they’ve eluded to things only
Bookstagrammers would know like terms, tropes, even outright saying “listening to my audiobook on Libro FM”.
It feels clunky and like they are just trying to check boxes. I read 30%

Thank you to the Berkley Publishing Group and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book.

This book felt like the best of multiple worlds - it was all the things I love about romance books but also addressed many of the things that can go awry in the over-the-top fandom of the genre. At the same time, the authors adeptly delve into some of the reasons why some readers love (and despise) different genres.

As with most romances, the main male character is quite idealized, but he was presented in such a way that I wasn't rolling my eyes every 10 pages or so. I appreciated the real-world challenges that the characters needed to navigate (both emotionally and practically); as a result, the novel felt like it was grounded in the real world rather than a false, cookie-cutter one.

As someone who used to live in Boston, I enjoyed the references to the various location mentions since they provided me with an additional connection to a concrete time and space.

This ones for all the book lovers and for those who still believe in love!

This book was so cute! I loved Josie and Ryan going from enemies to more. They were such polar opposites of each other. I felt like through their texts it seemed so obvious they should have known each other. Overall, this one kept me entertained the entire time.

A love note to all the book lovers out there, this was a quick and cute read with You’ve Got Mail vibes. Since You’ve Got Mail is one of my favorite rom com movies, I was excited to dig into this. I loved the fact that it was a black cat/golden retriever romance, with a romance book loving hero and a serious heroine. It plays with a few tropes in different ways, and I liked that they connected over their love of books both in person and online. It never quite hit the mark for me - there was something missing - but I was entertained. It ended up sitting somewhere between 3 and 4 stars for me, a fun yet forgettable read.

I thought this was a fun sorry for book lovers, especially romance readers. I loved the last half of the book with the anticipation of whether or not things will implode or work out right away. I was pleasantly surprised with the “third-act”.

I came for the bookstore vibes, stayed for the enemies-to-lovers chaos, and left with a suspicious craving to alphabetize my TBR and fall in love anonymously online. This was super cute! Battle of the Bookstores gave me the cozy, banter-filled romcom I wanted, with a little sprinkle of bookish magic.

Josie is the queen of Serious Books™, and super anti-romance, Meanwhile, Ryan is out here selling bodice-rippers. He's pretty much a golden retriever with a bookstore. Their rivalry is full of silly sabotage, petty events (I loved it), and those delicious moments where you're like: “They hate each other so bad. They're going to kiss so soon.” And, they do.

But my favorite part? The online friendship. The fact that these two are falling for each other IRL and in an anonymous book forum gave me some You've Got Mail feelings, which I am a sucker for. It’s soft. It’s geeky. It’s exactly what I want when I’m wrapped in a blanket thinking about fake book boyfriends.

The pacing dragged a little in the middle, and I do think Josie’s snobbery about romance books took a bit too long to thaw (like ma’am… are you really gonna gatekeep love when you're falling in it???). But I did like how the book ultimately challenged the idea of “serious” vs “fun” reading. All reading is valid!!

This is how you do contemporary enemies to lovers!!! Josie and Ryan are battling it out to see who can make more sales to keep their bookstore open by the end of the summer. But they actually have a deeper connection than either of them know as they’re secret pen pals. The shenanigans that ensue during their summer sales completion was so much fun to read! I also loved the text exchanges they had. Ryan was down bad for Josie and I loved watching him get flustered.

I do wish that Josie had a bit more trust and compassion in the third act, but it was needed for the two of them to come back together.

🎧 the audiobook was phenomenal. This is my first book narrated by Brandon Francis and it will not be my last. He read so perfectly for Ryan. This was also my first audiobook by Karissa Vecker and she did similarly perfect as well! They both brought these characters to life and I really enjoyed the audio.

Thank you so much berkley romance and penguin random house audio for the gifted copies!

Battle of the Bookstores is my first book by Ali Brady and it was such a wonderful read. I loved all the references to books and the whole bookstore scene. The characters were loveable and the banter was witty. It definitely has You've Got Mail vibes. I highly recommend!

Synopsis:
Despite managing bookstores on the same Boston street, Josie Klein and Ryan Lawson have never interacted much—Josie’s store focuses on serious literature, and Ryan’s sells romance only. But when the new owner of both stores decides to combine them, the two are thrust into direct competition. Only one manager will be left standing, decided by who turns the most profit over the summer. 

Efficient and detail-oriented Josie instantly clashes with easygoing and disorganized Ryan. Their competing events and contrasting styles lead to more than just frustration—the sparks between them might just set the whole store on fire. Their only solace during this chaos is the friendship they’ve each struck up with an anonymous friend in an online book forum. Little do they know they’re actually chatting with each other.  

As their rivalry heats up in real life, their online relationship grows, and when the walls between their stores come tumbling down, Josie and Ryan realize not all’s fair in love and war. And maybe, if they’re lucky, happily ever afters aren’t just for the books.

Thanks to NetGalley and Berkeley for the advanced digital copy of the book.

MY THOUGHTS:
I’ve read and loved all of Ali Brady’s books, this one just might be my favorite yet. It’s a total treat for book lovers—packed with fun bookish romance references and brimming with heart. If you’re a romance reader, this truly feels like a love letter to you.

Josie and Ryan had such incredible chemistry. Their banter was sharp, sweet, and addictive—and the secret identity plotline added so much charm. I especially loved Ryan’s internal struggle over being jealous of himself (his online alter ego)—and Josie’s wholehearted acceptance of both sides of him was so touching.

And let’s talk about that knitting event—absolutely hilarious. IYKYK. 🪢

I listened to the audiobook and highly recommend it. Karissa Vacker (a favorite of mine!) and Brandon Francis brought Josie and Ryan to life in such a vivid, heartfelt way. Their narration elevated an already fantastic story.

WHAT YOU’LL FIND:
📚 A love letter to readers
💘 Enemies to lovers
📩 You’ve Got Mail vibes
💬 Witty banter
💖 A romance-loving MC
🔄 Dual POV

If you love romance reads, books about bookstores and book lovers, movie You’ve Got Mail and are in a market for a bingeable, adorable read, you better add this one to your summer bag! At this point I know Ali Brady books are auto-buy/auto-read for me and this one just confirmed it! Also this cover was such vibes and I was as obsessed with Josie’s red shoes as Ryan was.

Josie and Ryan run 2 extremely different bookstores in the same complex and are told by the owner that they have to compete for a single management spot! They both love books and their respective jobs but have vastly different approaches both in their management style and in choice of books! And of course from the get go they seem to have a knack for pushing each other’s buttons!

Read this if you love:
💘 Enemies to friends to lovers
💘 witty banter
💘 books about books and bookstores
💘 slow burn romance
💘 just one bed
💘 a touch of spice 🌶️
💘 tall MMC who loves romance reads

This is the kind of book I love to have with me on vacation so I can read it without interruptions. Even if you’re not on vacation, beware temptation to finish this in one sitting. Oh and now I absolutely must reread Princess Bride!

Thank you for my free book @BerkleyPub

New-to-me author pairing and I really enjoyed this. This gave me You’ve Got Mail vibes with a modern twist—two indie bookstores battling it out. Even more so, it’s a love letter to reading and bookstores.


—
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This genuinely was a nod to book lovers everywhere!

I loved our main characters—Ryan and Josie. While they don’t exactly get along at first, you can tell they’re intrigued by each other. Their boss pits them against each other to see whose bookstore can earn the most profit: Ryan’s Happy Endings (a romance-focused shop) or Josie’s Tabula Inscripta (more general/literary fiction vibes).

They may be opposites on the surface, but deep down, they’ve got more in common than they realize. I really enjoyed their dynamic—the banter, the tension, the storyline!! Everything was so well-paced and entertaining. I especially loved the anonymous messages sprinkled throughout. And even with a kinda-not-really third act conflict, both characters stayed true to themselves.

𝐑𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠: 3.75 ⭐ Rounded to 4.0
𝐒𝐩𝐢𝐜𝐞 𝐋𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐥: 2.5/5.0 🌶️

🆀🆄🅸🅲🅺 🆃🅷🅾🆄🅶🅷🆃🆂

This was my first book by these authors (Ali Brady is the pen name for two writes (Alison Hammer & Bradeigh Godfrey)). The first thing that drew me to the book was the cover. It was absolutely stunning and if I could jump through the cover and go visit the bookstores/locations on that cover…I would. That is how pretty it was.

So let’s talk about the inside of the book. 😆 I actually really liked the book. We have Josie Klein and Ryan Lawson who manage bookstores on the same street in Boston. Josie manages a literary fiction bookstore, and Ryan manages a romance bookstore. While Josie is rigid and organized and always has a plan, Ryan is a little bit more laid back. He just goes with the flow. Both stores are owned by Xander whose top priority is money. He wants to consolidate the stores and have only one manager so he can increase his profit margins. Xander wants to let the best man, or woman, win, so he gives Josie and Ryan a few months to prove which store is more profitable and which manager can make him more money. Thus begins the competition between Josie and Ryan who were already rivals, now they are fighting for their jobs!

The enemies-to-lovers trope is guaranteed to bring some amazing banter, and this is exactly what you will get from Battle of the Bookstores. Josie and Ryan’s banter was funny, competitive, and flirty and made for a cute, lighthearted read. I loved their online interactions, and this book really gave the “You’ve Got Mail” vibes.

I would recommend Battle of the Bookstores to all romance lovers. It is an overall lighthearted read, with a little bit of spice, and it will keep you laughing, will give you a little sneak peek into the background work in the literary world, and you will get some amazing book recs in the process. The audiobook version makes it so much more enjoyable so if you have the option, get the audiobook.

This was a great intro into this writing duo and I really look forward to reading more from Ali Brady in the future.

🆃🅷🅾🆄🅶🅷🆃🆂 🅾🅽 🅰🆄🅳🅸🅾🅱🅾🅾🅺

**𝐀𝐮𝐝𝐢𝐨𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐑𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠: 5.0 ⭐
𝐍𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐬: Karissa Vacker & Brandon Francis

I got to read the actual book in advance through an ARC copy and then after it was released, I purchased the audio book and reread the book that way. The narrators did a really really really good job, and I loved them. They kept me engaged and I think they not only brought the characters to life, but they made them even more likable and created more of a chemistry between Josie and Ryan then I originally felt when I read just the E-Book.

✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨

⬇️ SOME SPOILERS MAY BE FOUND BELOW ⬇️

🅴🆇🆃🅴🅽🅳🅴🅳 🅳🅸🆂🅲🆄🆂🆂🅸🅾🅽/🆃🅷🅾🆄🅶🅷🆃🆂

One lesson that we got from the book was how our preconceptions of people can keep us from getting to know the real them. Both Josie and Ryan disliked each other in real life but what they did not know was that, they knew and were friends with each other on the internet. Yes, Ryan and Josie were part of a bookstore owner website where they talked to each other every day but did not know that because everyone on the website kept their identities hidden. It shows that though these two had so much in common and liked each other online, they never gave each other a chance in real life, or they would have liked each other then too. So it teaches you to not judge a book by its cover and give everyone a chance. I really liked that aspect of the story.

I also enjoyed the way the authors weaved Ryan and Josie’s backgrounds into the story. Why doesn’t Josie like Ryan? Well, because he runs a romance bookstore and Josie thinks romance and love makes you weak. We learn that this has a lot to do with her mother and the way she grew up. Ryan, on the other hand, has always had to deal with imposter syndrome and not feeling like he is “good enough” or comparable to his siblings. He is searching for a forever love like his parents, but will he ever find? The authors did a good job with showing us how the way we grow up affects us as adults and affects our ability to trust others, be vulnerable with others, fall in love, and just overall how we present ourselves to the world.

One of the main things I loved about Battle of the Bookstores was the book recommendations. I literally had a pen and paper to write down all of the books they talked about in the story. So, if not for any other reason, read Battle of the Bookstores for some amazing book recs.

In that same vein, reading this book felt like getting a behind the scenes view of how the publishing, bookstore world works. As a reader, I just know that a book comes out, I see it, I read it. But there is so much more to the story and so many players behind the scenes and in this book, we get to see how they all come together to bring us the beautiful books we love so much.

Battle of the Bookstores was a slow burn and, in my opinion, a little repetitive. Though I enjoyed it, I felt like the middle part of the book was stagnant. Nothing was really happening, and I think they did not really become lovers until maybe the last 5 chapters or so and in that time span, they fall in love, have a third act breakup, Josie and her mom solves all of their issues with each other and they live happily ever after. For how slow the beginning and middle were, the ending felt really rushed and I kinda felt a little cheated.

Though I have said all of this, overall, this was a very good read.

🆆🅷🅰🆃 🆃🅾 🅴🆇🅿🅴🅲🆃
📚 Enemies to Lovers
🩷 Online Banter
📚 Opposites Attract
🩷 Only One Bed
📚 He Falls First and Hard
🩷 A spicy romance that brings the heat 🌶️

🅵🅰🆅🅾🆁🅸🆃🅴 🆀🆄🅾🆃🅴🆂/🆂🅰🆈🅸🅽🅶🆂
📚"Of all the books I've ever read and all the fantasies I've ever had, none of them hold a candle to the reality of being with you. Yo are what I've been waiting for."
🩷 It's not that love makes everything work out perfectly--but love can create the perfect environment to face our fears."
📚"It's not about the happy ending--it's about believing that you're worthy of love."
🩷 "I didn't really know what love was until I started loving you."

✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨
* 𝑶𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝑹𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈 & 𝑺𝒑𝒊𝒄𝒆 𝑳𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒍 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒐𝒏 𝒂 5.0 𝒔𝒄𝒂𝒍𝒆
**𝑨𝒖𝒅𝒊𝒐𝒃𝒐𝒐𝒌 𝑹𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒔 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒃𝒂𝒔𝒆𝒅 𝒔𝒐𝒍𝒆𝒍𝒚 𝒐𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒏𝒂𝒓𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒐𝒓’𝒔 𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆.

Rating: 4.5⭐️ | Spice: 2.5🌶️ | Audio: 5🎙️
What to Expect:
-You’ve Got Mail Vibes
-Enemies to Friends to Lovers
-Fake Dating(ish)
-Forced Proximity
-Only One Bed
-Hidden Identity
-Online Chat
-Dyslexia Rep

Thank you so much @prhaudio for this gifted audiobook and @berkleyromance for the free book!

“I think I fell in love with love stories because I knew one day, they would lead me to you”

Review Title & Vibes:
{LOVE IS A BATTLEFIELD} but this one contains all the yumminess of You’ve Got Mail put in a contemporary package. Meet - Josie Klein - the buttoned-up, reliable, bookstore manager of “Tabula Inscripta” specializing in literary fiction and select non-fiction. Her nemesis - Ryan Lawson - a tall, glasses wearing, manager of “Happy Endings” a romance-only independent bookstore. Both are thrown into a (potentially career ending) competition by the dreaded owner, Xander, only concerned with the bottom-line. While Josie and Klein bicker in real life, their anonymous online bookstore forum convos are another story.

I ate this book up! It’s so cute but displayed surprising character growth and trauma healing.

Things I Loved:
-The hidden identities (and the big reveals) - I loved getting to know these characters from surface portrayals to deep-seated insecurities/desires.
-Ryan reads romance and GETS IT. The man knows how to listen (once he stops being stubborn)
-Josie and Georgia - I love a good sister bond.
-Ryan’s staff members and furry friends - a total delight complete with sex-positive octogenarians.

Audio Notes:
(dual) You cannot go wrong with Karissa and Brandon. Karissa performed the best guarded yet insightful Josie. Brandon crafted a swoon-worthy rendition of Ryan. I felt each emotion (positively giddy) throughout the entire story. I high recommend this audiobook.

Recommended to...  
All the bookstore babes who love an romcom take on enemies-to-friends-to-lovers.

Narrated by @karissavacker @brandonfrancisnarrator
Produced by @prhaudio

Battle of the Bookstores is everything I love in a rom com!

First we have bookish characters! Josie and Ryan manage 2 very different bookstores. Josie’s store is full of classic and contemporary literature, while Ryan’s store specializes in romance novels. When their owner decides to combine the stores they must now compete for who will stay as manager of both and who will be out of a job ( and the community and life each has built ), What they don’t realize is their annoying rival IRL is their online favorite person and support. 💘💘

The bookish banter between all the characters is delicious. Yes please, talk about your favorite books! Yes please, make the MMC the reader of romance novels. She’s the grumpy, he’s the sunshine. Add a pen pal trope where they can each be their authentic selves instead of the public faces they wear at work to hide their insecurities and I am 100% here for it. It’s slow burn perfection 💘

🎧 The audio is read by Karissa Vacker and Brandon Francis and really brings the character banter to life with the dual POV.

This is not just a great romance, it’s a love letter to books, booksellers, and book communities that create spaces for human connection. Battle of the Bookstores will definitely be one of my top romances of the year!

Wow wow wow! This is a book lovers dream! As someone who can definitely see herself in both main characters, I loved every minute of this book!

Josie is the example of a bibliophile and I loved the twist of her not being the romance reader! She appreciates a good fiction book, which I’m honestly not a fan of, but the way she showed us how to appreciate them, I might have to give them a shot!

And then we have Brian-I mean Ryan! He’s kind, considerate of others, someone who will fight for what he believes in, and loves to read romance! Literally my dream man!

The rivals to friends to lovers was done so well in this story and while I was worried about a certain piece of information being kept secret and it blowing up like I’m used to, it was dealt with in a believable way and I loved it because of that! I loved seeing the growth between Josie and Ryan, and I wish I could already reread this book for the first time!

Thanks Berkley Publishing for this eARC in exchange for my honest review!!