Do you know those social media clips of men doing pilates for the first time? How they struggle and are ultimately humbled by the strength it takes? That’s immediately what I thought of while reading ‘Up Close and Personal’.

I’m very much like Silas the lead male character in this novel. I’m skeptical of influencer culture, fitness clubs, and the exclusivity around the world of “wellness” that actually isn’t “all well”. Let’s just say it made my eye twitch, for a bit. However, this was such an enjoyable read. It’s fast pace, the characters are well thought out, and has the charm of New York. But, the dark side of the fitness world? The physical toll it takes? I never ever thought about it and exploring that through Jo was really nice.

While Ana Holguin insists Haven, the ultimate luxury fitness club where Jo is a superstar soul cycle lead is built on inclusivity….I think every woman has a story to share about visiting a workout studio like Haven. There’s clearly an exclusivity culture ingrained in the wellness culture. It’s the work out clothes, the smoothies, and the overall ‘gym aesthetic’ that’s completely ignored in this book. It was a missed opportunity that I wish Holguin actually acknowledged. But if you’re ok suspending those beliefs for a romance novel then you’ll enjoy this book.

Thank you Forever for the ARC!

I initially picked this one up because of its comparison to Jessica Joyce and Abby Jimenez. I am happy to say, those comparisons were right! I flew through the pages, it reminded me of Yours Truly but with a FMC with anxiety. This was such a cute romance with a deep look into mental health, specifically anxiety disorder. As someone with anxiety, I truly connected with that storyline. This was a slow burn romance that focused more on Jo's desire to reveal more of herself to the world, while slowly falling for skeptical journalist along the way. I loved both Jo and Silas and I could feel the tension rising straight out of the pages. I also loved the Pelton-esque of Jo's life, as someone who tried one spin class and declared never again, it was interesting to see the other side to a fitness influencer life. If you are a romance fan that also enjoys a story that goes a bit deeper and discussed mental health, definitely make sure to add this one to your TBR.

Thank you to NetGalley and Forever for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Wow! This is a new author for me and I am absolutely in love! This book is more than a romance; it’s a deep dive into personal image and online perceptions and self-worth. It’s beautifully written and swoony, with a wonderful main character to root for! I cried a little and laughed a lot. I will definitely be picking up more from Ana Holguin!

It’s romcom season and I just finished a good one. Up Close & Personal by Ana Holguin was a great time! Watch for this one!

Jo es una famosa instructora de spinning, prácticamente una celebridad. Todos quieren estar en su clase, parece que su vida es perfecta y glamurosa, pero no todo es perfecto: guarda un pequeño secreto. Su trabajo ya no le satisface y está buscando un cambio.
Silas es un periodista conocido como "el hombre que odia todo" por el tipo de reportajes que hace. Ahora ha puesto su atención en Jo, a quien cree falsa y piensa que solo busca sacar dinero de la gente y la fama.

Jo ve el reportaje como una oportunidad para que la gente la conozca mejor y tal vez volver a amar su trabajo, mientras que Silas quiere desenmascararla. Sin embargo, no contaba con que, al pasar tiempo juntos, hacer ejercicio y tomar café, descubriría que todas sus ideas preconcebidas estaban equivocadas. Ahora deberá esforzarse por demostrarle a ella que es digno de su confianza.


Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I absolutely loved this debut by Ana Holguin! From the very first line, her voice grabbed me and didn’t let go.

Jo is a spin instructor for Haven, a Peloton-like company. She started out as an in-person instructor, but her life completely changed for the worse when the company began selling an at-home bike and streaming classes. She’s stuck in a rut and contemplating her future with Haven when she encounters skeptical journalist Silas, who’s been assigned to write a profile of her.

I really enjoyed their budding friendship and attraction. Jo is anxious and reticent, and Silas was so kind and patient with her. Their romance is a slow burn, but Holguin does a great job of building their relationship, showing them gradually getting more comfortable with each other. I also liked that while Silas started out thinking he was going to write a hit piece, as he got to know Jo and took in-person classes, he changed his mind on her and Haven. It felt natural and true to his character.

The mental health representation was also well done. Jo has had generalized anxiety disorder her entire life, and Silas has a history of depression. As someone who has both anxiety and depression, I really appreciated seeing characters dealing with mental illness in a way that didn’t feel heavy-handed or unrealistic. Their mental illness wasn’t portrayed as something they had to “fix.” It was just part of who they were. I also appreciated how Jo’s anxiety tied into the exploration of how sudden fame can change someone’s life.

There was a lot to enjoy about this book! I’m looking forward to reading this author again.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC, which was provided in exchange for an honest review.

⭐⭐⭐⭐ – Spicy, Smart, & Surprisingly Emotional

Ana Holguin delivers a fast-paced, heartfelt, and sizzling debut with Up Close & Personal. This rom-com brings together grumpy/sunshine, forced proximity, opposites attract, and a bit of enemies-to-lovers energy, all wrapped up in a spin-class-meets-journalism showdown.

Jo is charismatic, confident, and battling burnout, while Silas, the skeptical journalist, isn’t just here for the story—he’s here to challenge everything she believes about herself. Their banter is electric, their connection is undeniable, and the tension? Whew. Holguin also tackles mental health, anxiety, and imposter syndrome with nuance, making Jo’s struggles feel deeply real rather than just a plot device.

My one gripe? Silas, my guy, why keep that secret so long?! It felt unnecessary and slightly out of character. A little more groveling wouldn’t have hurt either! WE LOVE A GOOD GROVEL!

Overall, this is fresh, funny, and full of heart. Huge thanks to Ana Holguin and Forever Publishing for the ARC—I’ll happily ride for this one! 🚲❤️

This was really cute! I immediately thought of how popular Peloton got and could relate with the cynic in Silas. I loved that there was development in the characters and the back story behind why Jo did what she did. There is such truth to the fact that people really are drawn to people that are open and vulnerable so loved this as why people were drawn to Jo. It also addresses some great issues about being someone with fame, the good and the bad. Loved the importance of friends in the whole storyline too. The messiness at the end was a bit predictable but I enjoyed it nonetheless. I can see other characters getting their own stories in the future!

Up Close & Personal was deeper than I expected it to be. Looking at the cover of the book, I assumed this was going to be a quick and easy romcom. I was surprised by how layered and realistic the main characters were. I liked that they were flawed and vulnerable. I especially enjoyed the anxiety representation with Jo's character. I liked watching Silas and Jo's relationship develop. I did feel like their relationship could have been sped up a bit. By the time I hit the half-way mark, I was starting to lose interest in their relationship. Although they were compatible partners, I didn't fully feel the chemistry between them. I liked that Holguin didn't drag out their conflict towards the end. I thought the side characters were developed and added to the overall storyline. The Haven plotline was interesting. As for the pacing, it could have been a little faster. Overall, this was a decent read. Thank you to NetGalley and Forever for the ARC.

3.5/5 Stars

In “Up Close and Personal,” Jo De La Cruz is a super popular spin instructor at Haven. Her classes and class waitlists are always packed and her rides are streamed to thousands of people. And even with all of that, Jo feels burnout and unfulfilled. Silas Anders is a journalist who is assigned to write about why some fitness instructors are so popular. What is that X factor that makes people follow Jo to the end of the earth and create an Instagram page for her hair? Silas is skeptical but soon finds that he may be converting into a Jo devotee. They meet for his article but soon start catching feelings. Which is less than ideal for Silas who wants to have some semblance of journalistic integrity. This all leads to a really fun ride (cheesy pun intended) with lots of slow burn romance!

I thought the mental health representation in this book was super well done! As someone with anxiety, I think Ana Holguin did a really great job of showcasing how anxiety can manifest in a person with an anxiety condition being super high functioning while also being debilitated by it at the same time. I appreciated that the characters talked about their mental health journeys openly and with care.

I really enjoyed the plot and the freshness and now-ness of it (thinking celebrity and spin and para-social relationships). What I struggled with a little was that Silas and Jo’s POVs and inner monologues felt so similarly written sometimes I felt like I was reading about the same person just with different plot points. I know that Silas and Jo were meant to have a lot in common, but I think I would have benefited from their internal thought being written to show more differences so that the characters would have been just as interesting as the plot. All in all though, a lovely debut from Ana Holguin!

Thank you Forever (Grand Central Publishing) and NetGalley for providing this eARC! All opinions are my own.

What a lovely and charming debut! Up Close & Personal follows Silas, as he writes a magazine profile on Jo, a wildly popular cyclist instructor.

First, the romance was incredibly sweet and it was the perfect amount of slow burn! The tension was a gradual build and I loved the moments that just felt like it was going to EXPLODE! The chemistry Jo and Silas have is soooo well done. Between their banter, longing looks and glances, vulnerable conversations, and sexy moments, the romance is obviously a huge highlight.

I also really appreciated the large focus on mental health. There's serious conversations about depression and generalized anxiety disorder. Even though Jo is a huge media star and lots of people can't necessarily relate specifically to that, it doesn't mean you can't relate to what she's thinking or feeling and how she deals with that. It's talked about as something that ebbs and flows throughout life rather than something you can just magically fixed and I loved that.

Other things of note I really enjoyed: the friend group, the nyc setting, the emotionally healthy talk about physcial fitness, dual pov.

Thank you Forever and Netgalley for this arc!

Up Close and Personal was an easy book to get wrapped up in! I could not put it down once I started.

Our main character, Jo, is a celebrity fitness instructor (think Peloton) who strikes a bargain with Silas, a disgruntled journalist, to tell her story. Silas has expectations of what Jo will be like from the start, but this is immediately proven wrong as the two get to know each other and find more in common, especially with their mental health struggles.

I found both characters to be so real and likable in this story, and I loved their easygoing dynamic. There was so much character growth while Jo and Silas learned to lean on each other for support. I also appreciated this book's honest depictions of mental health and how much support and love played a role in Jo’s journey.

P.S. Jo might just inspire me to start cycling classes!

Thank you to Netgalley and Forever for the ARC in exchange for my honest review!

Loved it from start to end. This was a beautiful friends(?)-to-lovers romance between Jo, our famous fitness instructor, and Silas, our stoic cynical journalist. There was something really earnest and respectful about the way Jo and Silas treated both themselves and each other, and the heavier real life issues that each character faced that was really tender. Plus, that slow burn? When the characters decided to give way and give in to their undeniable attraction and chemistry to each other? Such a good payoff.

That said, you could see the main conflict/third-act breakup from a mile away. I was basically waiting for the shoe to drop the entire time, so that felt a little flat when it happened (though no less devastating for the characters involved).

All in all, a wonderful debut from Ana Holguin. I'd be sure to look out for more from her.

I really enjoyed this! First off, a Latina FMC will always get me through the door. But I really loved seeing the friendship between Jo and Silas grow. They were both really open with each other very early on. I found the conflict to be very obvious from the start, but the author's writing style kept it very interesting and I definitely want to read more from her! Cute, fun, and lil bit of angst. ;)

Up Close & Personal was such a great debut from the author, Ana Holguin. The book follows a celebrity cycling instructor, Jo and a journalist, Silas tasked with writing an article about her / the large cult-like following of the fitness studio at which she works. Silas, a bit of a grump who was sure he was going to expose a scam in the celebrity fitness word in this story, was able to get in touch with Jo through a mutual friend and while initial intentions are kept secret (for too long), Silas was surprised by what he discovers both about Jo in her professional life as well as a person. The story he initially set out to write ended up taking a completely different turn and allowed Silas and Jo to connect in a very meaningful way. This book contains mental health rep and open discussion, personal character growth and a third act breakup. A book that involves a trip to and inside joke about the Times Square Olive Garden will always be considered a great read by my standards.

Thank you to the publisher, Forever (Grand Central Publishing), NetGalley and the author for an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. Will definitely be looking out for future releases from the author.

wow, this was amazing. i love that this story follows a fmc with a diagnosed anxiety disorder because i to have that and am constantly running through ‘what if’ scenarios and overthinking so i felt i truly connected with jo. i also relate to silas in the fact that im always in my head running through a thousand thoughts and also have battled depression. i really liked how this book covered anxiety and depression with empathy and support throughout the characters lives. this book really spoke to me with the mental health representation and holds a special place in my heart.

other notes: i enjoyed the dual pov, the backstory, the nyc setting, and the slow burn between silas and jo. what a great debut novel!!! i can’t wait to get my hands on a physical copy! highly recommend this one!

I am not a fitness gal.
You could put me in a room with a famous peloton-esque instructor, and I’d have no idea who they were.
Up Close and Personal is a book about two people who seek like they couldn’t possibly have anything in common, but it turns out they have more in common than they realize.

I loved this book. It spoke honestly about mental health (the fmc has anxiety, and the mmc has a history of depression). The characters were likable, but they weren’t too perfect or too imperfect. They were just… right.

All opinions are my own.

What a fun romance debut 💕

Up Close and Personal was one of those feel good romcoms. The anxiety representation was on point and the mental health representation was appropriately placed throughout the book.

The characters felt real. Normally, I have difficulty relating to “celebrity” characters (which seems to be the trend of romance books these days) because frankly, I just can’t relate to that struggle. Ha! But Ana made Jo feel like such a normal person even though she is a star within the Haven (similar to peloton) community.

I adored our MMC. Ana’s descriptions were spot on with a normal guy but add in lots of sex appeal!

My only beef was why did he keep his secret so long? That part felt a bit immature to me with everything else around his character. It would have solved a lot of problems. Regardless, I would have liked a bit more groveling, especially with how he knows how deep her mental health struggles run.

The writing was fun, real and relatable. If you are a peloton person who loves a feel good romcom you need this book! 🚲🌶️📚

Here are some of my favorite quotes!

“I’ll take whatever you give me.”
“This place doesn’t serve what I want to give you, Jo.”

“She goes in for a hug, giving me extra time to admire her legs, which I’m fairly certain are shaped the goddess Nike herself”.

Up Close & Personal is the debut rom-com novel from Ana Holguin.

The book follows a popular fitness instructor and the grumpy journalist who is determined to expose her fitness empire that he sees as a scam.

Our two main leads battle serious topics such as depression, anxiety, self-love, and mental health. We also get insight on the complications and expectations of the influencer world.

Overall, an easy and charming read that also tugs on your heartstrings. I can't wait to read Ana's next novel!

Thank you to Net Galley and Hachette for the eARC!!

Silas is a contrarian set out to expose the celebrity fitness world by interviewing Jo, a popular fitness instructor. Once he starts getting to know Jo and her work, Silas becomes surprised by what he uncovers and begins to have real feelings for her.

Silas is kind of a grumpy person in the beginning, but becomes a total softie after he becomes completely enamored by Jo. From early on, it's clear that they are attracted to each other, but prepare for a slowwww burn. The author writes their emotions so beautifully - Silas and Jo's make-up scene was especially heart-wrenching to read, with their pain and love for each other being so clear and heartfelt. These characters are also deeply developed, with both struggling with their mental health and trying to break free from a cycle of unhealthy patterns. Through Silas's article on Jo and their own experiences with anxiety and depression, the book also addresses the stigma of mental health and the importance of seeking and accepting professional help when needed.

An excellent debut novel by Ana Holguin.

Thank you to Forever and NetGalley for the ARC!