Thank you to NetGalley and to Harper Perennial for this e-arc in exchange for my honest review.

This was a cute fun read - it had the romance, the legalese talk, the mystery - it was captivating and quick to read!

Sydney is on a jury of a reality TV star who is accused of killing her husband - Sydney happens to love the reality show so she's just extra giddy (it was amusing to find someone downright happy to be picked for a murder trial!) and then comes the first day of the trial and she meets the other jurors. All is fine until she discovers that one, Damon is on the jury also and let's just say - their friendship didn't end on the best of notes. However, their reconnection was adorable, and being able to read the courtroom transcriptions all throughout made for a FUN read. It was quick and had just enough of everything to be really good - a good palate cleanser to use between heavy reads for sure.

unfortunately, I DNF'd this one. I'm finding I struggle with genre-benders--I always think there's not enough of either. Alexander's writing is great, but this concept wasn't for me. giving it two stars for what I did read!

Thank you Harper Perennial for an EARC of this book in exchange for my honest review

I didnt love this book but I also didnt hate it. I liked the court story more then the romance. There was just something missing from this that would of made it a little better.

If you love Bravo drama, you will love Courtroom Drama. I had such a fun time reading this delightful, un-putdownable story.

I loved this book so much. I loved the second chance relationship between Sydney and Damon, especially with that little dash of it being forbidden in it.

Plus, it was so much fun getting to go through the trial process with them. I could definitely tell that there were some liberties taken with it, but it was still fun.

The synopsis of the book drew me in right away. However, I was more invested in the case itself than the actual romance. I feel like it would have been better if it was just the trial and how Sydney dealt with her favorite reality tv star on trial.

This book is a gavel-banging, jury box slow burn that delivers guilty pleasures with a side of emotional depth—and I loved every messy minute of it.

Think Legally Blonde meets 12 Angry Men but make it reality TV, unresolved childhood feelings, and a murder trial that somehow also manages to be deeply romantic. Sydney Parks is the kind of heroine you root for from page one—clever, self-aware, and fully prepared to take her civic duty very seriously… until her long-lost best friend (and maybe one-time almost something) Damon shows up on the jury too, looking like the exact kind of mistake you’d risk a mistrial for.

Between the Real Housewives-style scandal, the delightfully unhinged sequestered jury shenanigans, and the slow, achy unraveling of Sydney and Damon’s past, this book perfectly balances screwball comedy with real emotional stakes. It’s sexy, smart, and more addictive than a marathon of Authentic Moms of Malibu.

If you love forced proximity, second chances, friends-to-lovers, and chaotic courtroom flirtation that borders on contempt of court—Your Honor, I submit this book as Exhibit A in the case for your next favorite rom-com.

I wanted to like this but as someone who doesn’t watch Real Housewives the level of obsession with people from those kinds of shows went over my head and made this not a fun read for me. Good premise, just not for me

Courtroom Drama is a second chance romance that takes place during the trial of a reality star (à la the Real Housewives). Sydney is a huge fan of Margot Kitsch, OG cast member of Authentic Moms of Malibu, and wants to ensure she receives a fair trial. At jury selection, Sydney runs into her childhood best friend Damon, who broke off contact 10 years prior. They both end up on the jury and are forced to sequestrate for the high profile trial, providing a lot of time for Sydney and Damon to secretly become reacquainted.

First, I must comment on the unique and interesting setting for this novel. While I have never watched an episode of the Real Housewives (of any locale), I am still excitedly waiting to receive a jury duty summons. When I learned the premise of this book, I knew I needed to read it. Romance novels so often have very similar plots due to the nature of the genre. But when I hear about one that is completely new, I jump at the chance to read it. And Neely Tubati Alexander definitely delivered! She expertly crafted a story that built a romance and included the inner workings of being on a jury. The storylines were intricately woven so that it is hard to image one without the other.

If you often read my reviews, you will know that I am typically not a fan of a second chance romance. I find that authors too often rely upon what preceded the book (the first iteration of a romance) and fail to sufficiently build the on-page romance. Courtroom Drama is a second chance romance I could bite into, since the feelings and chemistry built overtime as the two protagonists became reacquainted. Because Sydney and Damon knew each other growing up but had not spoken in a decade, they needed to learn who the other person is as an adult. This provides the perfect opportunity for readers to learn about the protagonists, their past, and their present as well as Sydney and Damon to fall for each other.

This is the first novel I have read by Tubati Alexander and was impressed by her writing. In fact, Courtroom Drama is one of the best written romance novels that I have read in some time. The narrative flowed well without any uneven pacing. The characters felt like real people with distinct traits and personalities.

I do not usually expect a romance novel to make me think, but I found myself pondering while reading Courtroom Drama. The book brought to the forefront how odd I find people’s allegiance to celebrities, like these famous people have directly and purposefully gifted them something. Sydney’s parasocial relationship with Margot fascinated me and led me to question how common such feelings are. As someone who has never followed or fixated on a certain celebrity, I definitely reached a better understanding of others’ feelings and interactions with famous individuals.

Overall, Courtroom Drama is a quirky, unique romance with an engaging plot and an unusual setting. I really enjoyed all aspects of the book and definitely recommend it, especially if you have grown tired with the typical romance storylines.

I loved this story! My little lawyer heart is so happy with legal-based novels, and I absolutely LOVED this premise of jurors love story. Sydney and Damon are so cute in their second chance story here. I love how they can reconnect and respark their relationship while sequestered on a jury, and especially as they are able to rehash old hurts and reconnect on a deeper, more mature level. I really loved this story, I was so excited to go buy on audio when it published!!!

I also really loved the chapter titles beginning with legal terms then framed in what’s going on in the story, it was so fun! The only issue I had with the story is I felt it lagged in some places, adding too much filler that I wanted to skip over.

Thank you for the ARC!

(Actual: 2.75⭐, rounded up) Unfortunately, this one was a bit of a miss for me, especially considering I liked Neely's last two novels wells enough. In this case, I feel like this book had just.... way too much going on? It felt so bloated! And yet, ironically, I also felt like not much happened by way of the eponyomous "courtroom drama," nor in the romance supposedly featured here. I wish I had more to say, but truly, neither concept (while promising) was executed properly nor to their fullest potential - this was a chore to get through, but I will still remain optimistic for whatever Neely comes out with next!

The premise of this story pulled me in, but regardless of how you look at it you’re reading what feels like two stories, one with FMC being a part of a jury with her once best friend that she hasn’t seen in 10 years and the story of a reality star being accused of murdering her husband. When starting the book I realized how important the murder trial would be, while I thought it would just be the backdrop of where the characters reconnect, it actually became an important point in the story either because the FMC had such a deep love for the reality show/star or because the story invested so much time in the court proceedings (I’ll leave that up to you), the fear that the main story would suffer from how much time was invested to tell the other story became very real. and if you really look at it, both stories don’t get a satisfying ending. We don’t really get a conclusion to the murder trial and in many ways that’s fine since this isn’t a murder mystery story but even more disappointed, I wasn’t convinced that the main couple would stay in their HEA. I don’t feel like we got that convincing end, we didn’t get the character growth that lets a reader know the past fears and obstacles wouldn’t come up again. Additionally, there was so much telling from the book and not a lot of showing and while it might have to do with where the story is located (courtroom and hotel) even the end when they see each other again to confess their feelings it’s a lot of telling me about how they’ve had conversations and it's changed their perspective of how they viewed relationships now and not showing the reader that they have changed. Unfortunately, the book became too ambitious in what it wanted to tell and suffered for it.


3 stars

Thank you Netgalley and Harper Perennial and Paperbacks for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Neely Tubati Alexander has done it again! She's crafted a love story with a strong female lead and Courtroom Drama might be favorite book of hers yet! The description of Legally Blonde meets The Real Housewives is spot on and this is one trial I would have loved to be a part of in real life.

Sydney Parks is a mediator who is obsessed with a reality TV show called Authentic Moms of Malibu. Sydney is absolutely thrilled when she's selected for jury duty for the murder trial starring Margot Kitsch, one of the moms on Sydney's favorite reality TV show. She's determined to prove Margot's innocence. However, as Sydney is sequestered for the trial, she learns one of her fellow jury members is no other than Damon Bradburn, her childhood best friend and first love.

I loved the juxtaposition between the seriousness of a murder trial and the lightheartedness of Sydney and Damon repairing their friendship. If you love second-chance romances mixed with suspense and soapy drama, this book is for you!

Thank you to Harper Perennial for the e-ARC!

Calling all Bravo fans and murder trial enthusiasts, be sure to grab this book from your local bookstore or library! It is a legal drama and Housewives loving book. The characters feel real and authentic, like most Housewives. The storylines of the novel feel authentic and not at all fake, though the D.A. in the story does try to spin a winding web of motive and intent of the accused Margot Kitsch, the Authentic Mom of Authentic Moms of Malibu.

This novel is a love letter to Bravo fans. The countless Easter eggs are glorious. I really want to go back and count them, though math is not my strong suit. There’s a reason I choose reading over counting… 😊.

Courtroom Drama follows Sydney Parks who’s a die-hard fan of Authentic Moms of Malibu, mediator who longs to have a interesting story to tell. Like many individuals of today’s expensive world, she is burned out from being constantly at work. She’s a workaholic and cares deeply about making sure that one of her favorites gets a fair trial. Sydney knows the rules, read them a thousand times over and strongly believes that she knows what’s to come.

In walks in Damon Bradburn, the protagonist’s old best friend who left her life over a decade ago do to events out of their control. Damon is older and muscular than ever. Sydney was not expecting him, so she’s thrown for a loop because of his presence. Plus his present tattoos that are a roadmap that Sydney desperately wants to figure out.

Granted Sydney fantasized about unleashing her anger on Damon, but decides better of it, especially after he says the words she’s longed to hear. So the next weeks of the trial are going to be interesting. While sequestered, they grow closer and do a bit of chit chatting about anything other than the case, since its against the rules. Rules are broken and old feelings resurface, and now old wounds need to be dealt with despite the murder trial going on. The stakes are high as the feelings.

In the end I loved this book. The description of the novel and the dedication pulled me in while the words and great storytelling made me stay. I loved this book!

Love the concept but not so much the book itself. It just kind of dragged on and on with the knee brushing and not saying things. I wanted to love this, so it’s a little bit of a let down!

Sydney is a big time fan of AMOM (Authentic Momwives of Malibu) think of (Real House Wives) and so when Syd discovers that Margot Kitsch is on trial for the murder of her husband Joe, she has to be there to know if she really did it or not. The jurors are sequestered in a Motel and don’t have any access to the outside world.

during her time in the trial she reconnects with her childhood best friend Damon. They haven’t seen each other in more than 10 years. there’s so much about them that is explored during the two week trial period. There’s a lot that Sydney wants to relearn about Damon and so much about their families trauma is unlocked during their stay.

this pitch is amazing. so fresh and unique. I cracked open the book and was sorely disappointed, and literally fought for my life to get through it.

the author got something up her sleeve though. I absolutely loved the ending. and girly, you ok? that trauma scene was actually a straight up nightmare sent from Satan (iykyk). and I loved the cute openings to each chapter. again, I found this to be very fresh and different from anything other authors are doing.

Tubati alexander did make some very unexpected choices with her plot. the prose were immaculate. but I absolutely did not connect to a single character here. I don't know why. this book just wasn't for me. but honestly, I really think it was a me problem. I will still. Make an attempt to try out her next novel ;)

What I liked: Estranged teenage sweethearts reunite 10 years later while sequestered on a jury for a celebrity murder trial of a Reality Housewife

What I disliked: Sydney’s obsession with Damon’s cologne that smelled like a horse was weird

I really liked the courtroom jury/trial part of the book. All the other stuff I just wanted to skim. I did not like the choices she made while a juror (rule follower!) I enjoyed the creative chapter headings and I loved the ending. Mild swearing and two sex scenes.

Sydney is a huge Authentic Moms of Malibu fan (think Real Housewives) and so she is thrilled when she gets put on the jury for one of the star’s murder trial. Since the case is so high profile, the jury is sequestered - they are put up in a motel with no electronic devices and only each other to talk to (and limited topics to talk about). The isolation was not was Sydney was expecting and to add to her drama, Damon, her childhood best friend (well, crush), who she hasn’t spoken to in 10 years (there was an event that changed their lives) is also a jury member. During the trial Sydney realizes that the trial is more complicated than she originally thought, but also so is Damon.

This was adorable - it hit all the spots for me. First of all I am a Real Housewives’ fan (certain franchises), second I’m a lawyer (although not that kind of lawyer) and third well the romance was just great. I loved the ancillary characters (i.e. the other quirky jury members), the light mystery that stemmed from the trial and the backstory of the two main characters. I read this about as quickly as I can read a book. There’s a bit of family drama in the novel but it was mainly just the exact light summer read I was looking for after reading a few thrillers and historical fiction.

4.25 stars

Thank you to Harper Perennial and NetGalley for the ARC to review