Eva calls out Rylie for his hypocritical dating advice. The public call-out spirals into an unexpected collaboration, and what follows is banter-filled and surprisingly thoughtful. It tackles the double standard for men and women online.

Eva’s reluctance to trust Rylie dragged on a bit. While it’s understandable given their history, her emotional progress sometimes stalled in ways that tested my patience. I appreciated that the core conflict wasn’t about the relationship—instead, it focused on the very real emotional work both characters had to do. The fact that Rylie took her to therapy to process their baggage was refreshing.

Read if you like:
•Enemies to Lovers
•Second Chance
•Sunny vs. Grumpy
•Workplace Romance

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ Explicit Open Door: At least two intimate scenes, explicit language with a variety of sexual acts.

This was such a great book! I read my first book by Mazey Edding last year. She writes a great swoon worthy romance. This one is super fun and has enemies to lovers vibes. There is some real snark and attitude with this one. Eva is straight up mean at time. And Cooper is a sucker for her. Enemies to Lovers is one of my favorites so this one Ioved. The chemistry with the characters was so good. The cover to this book is also so cute!

Thank you to @stmartinspress for giving me the opportunity to read this ARC!

“To fuck around is human, to find out is divine” tea

This book was kitschy, and weird, and kind of ridiculous, and still addicting! Mazey Eddings somehow took us from chicken shop date romcom to a very righteous story about the toxicity of media and your lack of a right to privacy when your life is expected to be constant content for the masses- and honestly I was here for it. Social media is the most wonderful tool of human connection that ruins our lives every single day, and as someone trying (their hardest) to stay off of it right now, this book gave me a second wind on my journey 🫡
I’m not usually a fan of a second chance romance (bc sometimes two people just shouldn’t be together even when you try again) (but I also feel that way about a lot of first time contemporary romances, like I knoww divorce rates are sky high in downtown booktok city), but this one really worked for me! Hurt is inevitable when you carry the learned flaws of your relationships with your parents into your approach to dating at a young age, so it felt very human and understandable. These lovely (deeply flawed) individuals really got a chance to fix a ‘right person wrong time’ relationship because they actually worked for it!! And their painful finding their way back to each other just filled my chest up like a hot air balloon

I’m sure I have critiques somewhere rattling around in my brain, but I really just can’t say more than how much I enjoyed reading it! The well-timed (very crass) humor earned it like 3.5 stars, and the brutal therapy chapter earned it that half more. Can’t give it five stars for making me lose so much sleep (Mazey, I’ll be billing you<3), and for the whole “kitten” thing that persisted way longer than it needed to (ok yeah found it, that's my critique. I had to pretend not to see it on the page while reading so I could still stand Rylie) anyway 4 stars.

Thank you to netgalley and st martins press for the arc!!

Well Actually, I might love every book that Mazey Eddings writes. This book is so Andrew Garfield and Amelia from Chicken Shop Date coded and I. Am. Here. For. It. Eddings manages to write characters that lift off the page and feel like they could be someone that you know. I loved how Eva and Rylie got thrown together and the growth that Rylie proved he had made since college. Second chance romance is one of my favorite tropes but it is so hard to be pulled off properly and Well Actually does it. You understand the draw they felt in the past as well as the present, the reason things didn’t work out is believable, and the change to why things work now in the present just works.

Thank you net galley for the arc in exchange for my review!

I absolutely loved the first half of the book. It had some very funny moments. To me it felt a little repetitive after 50%.

I mean, I'm a vegetarian! I don't even LIKE hot dogs. But you better believe I was craving hot dogs the entire time! Mazey Eddings delivered with this one—black cat x golden retriever energy was off the charts, and I ate it up. The premise is a little wild (think spicy Chicken Shop Date vibes), but it totally works and had me laughing out loud. Eva was so relatable, and Rylie? Absolute dreamboat. Where’s my golden retriever boyfriend, huh?

The writing, the characters, the banter—and that cover?! I’ll be grabbing the paperback the second it drops.

Huge thanks to NetGalley & St. Martin’s Press for the ARC!

Mazey Eddings does not miss! This may be my favorite of her books yet. The banter and teasing between the love interests
*swoons* and spice was SPICIN'. All that tension and longing paid off nicely. Rylie Cooper is such a great MMC - his slutty little glasses & his overall golden retriever demeanor and his humanity and compassion - I was won over instantly and gee to love him even more. Eva Kitt was a great character in her own right as well - a lot of people may be put-off by her personality and attitude, but that's on internalized misogyny.
Eva is traumatized, lacking a strong sense of self-worth and simultaneously intelligent, passionate, quick-witted and dedicated. I could go on & on about how much I loved this book, but I implore you to read it for yourself. So worth it.

This was cute story and fast read. I would recommend this as something just fun. I will say I didn’t fall in love with the characters though, I loved the LGBTQ representation and plot of the story. Honestly the FMC was kind of insufferable at moments. I think this book is definitely meant for those in the their early 20’s to read.

From the very beginning this was hilarious. The banter between Eva & Rylie was everything & some of the best I’ve read. The way she would completely DOG him and he would be like “you’re so lovely.” IM SCREAMINGGGGG 😭😭😭 I related a lot to Eva when it came to feeling like she wasn’t important enough for anyone to love her- even in her own family. I saw a lot of myself in her with that aspect. Was she a little too harsh with Riley at times??? Sure but that’s real life! Everyone has flaws and I love when stories portray that. & there was even a part where she was a little too mean and she said something like “why can’t I ever say the right thing?” Which made my heart sad.

I. love. Riley. I will go to battle for this man. I’m feral for a man that blushes in romance books- it gets me every time I fear. He was so enamored by her- and he just wanted to show her that.

this was a lot more than just the romance & banter though. This was a story that had the very important message- that no matter WHAT type of job you have or who your boss is, sitting back & expected to be silent when you are being bullied is NOT part of your job. You deserve kindness, and just because you aren’t the boss or manager or supervisor doesn’t mean you aren’t important.🖤

Overall, 4 stars. I loved the sincerity of the book, Rylie’s self-realization, the banter between Rylie and Eva, and Eva’s career and personal journey. The banter of this book was laugh out loud hilarious. Rylie was the real MVP of this book; I absolutely loved the work he put into healing himself first before attempting to help and educate others.

One of the things I didn’t like was Eva never processing her own trauma (abandonment, attachment, of her upbringing, the relationship with her parents and siblings), there was so much to unpack, and it never happened. We learned all about Rylie and how he changed but Eva also has a lot of stuff to process.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the eARC!

This was the cutest book ever. I had some doubts because I don't really like the flat sarcastic humor style very much, but past the actual talk show it isn't that bad. I absolutely loved this and will definitely look for more by this author.

First, I would like to say I think this book just wasn’t for me, but because I received it as an arc I wanted to give it a full chance. That being said, I think it’s a solid story just not my style.

My problem with it was the characters seemed so immature for their age. Constantly making sexual jokes and innuendos, and that’s not to say adults don’t, but it felt more collage aged jokes than late 20’s. After about the half way mark is where I felt it gathered itself together.

Altogether good just not my style.

But also seriously look up the trigger warnings. The author has them at the beginning but, even then. There are some heavy topics covered (and covered well) but they are there not just a passing mention.

I didn't love this one. I think the characters are well thought out and their chemistry works well, but I didn't really like Eva. She's snarky and kind of mean. I get that she's trying to make her way in the world.
I might just not be super in tune with the social media world, so I didn't totally relate.

Thanks NetGalley for this ARC.

As a person who typically hates current/pop culture references in books I was really surprised to like this as much as I did!

I think a lot of that is due to the fact that I LOVE a mean, defensive, snarky woman. I related so much to both Eva’s inner and outer dialogue. I loved that she stood up for herself, even when it was scary or vulnerable.

I think the main characters were well thought out, their stories made sense for their behaviors and I was really rooting for both of them despite my initial hesitations about Riley. There were definitely some things that still made me cringe (kitten, and the baby girl joke,) but not enough to distract me from enjoying myself.

I’ve never read anything else by this author, but reading this made me want to.

Mazy eddings has given me life with Eva. I love a no nonsense FMC and Eva was exactly that!! I know some may hate that in an FMC but I devour tropes like this. This was second chance but that actually delves into the emotions and doesn't hold back from confronting their past. I absolutely adored this story and highly recommend if you love second chance, with absolutely amazing funny banter.

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for the arc.

I am a huge fan of Mazey Eddings' other books, especially LATE BLOOMERS and THE PLUS ONE. The conceit of a thinly-veiled fanfiction of the Chicken Shop Date between Amelia Dimoldenberg and Andrew Garfield was what originally drew me in. However, I came to appreciate our main characters outside of these comparisons to Amelia and Andrew. I especially liked the male protagonist, and his insistence on being a good guy. Sometimes, the female protagonist's guardedness and hard shell became tiresome, and I grew frustrated with her inability to see the AMAZING guy in front of her. But Eddings made it still feel realistic enough, that I could see my friends in this character. As always, Eddings weaves her characters' mental health throughout the story. I think the couples therapy scene was a bit heavy-handed, but appreciate the focus on building healthy relationships in a romance novel. I really liked the supporting characters, and wish we'd gotten a bit more out of the friendships, particularly since the big finale is set at the male protagonist's friend's benefit. Additionally, Eddings does a great job of implementing the characters' queer identities, despite it being a cis-hetero relationship. Overall, I'd probably give this 3.75 stars. Nothing insane, but a nice romance, and really well-written spicy scenes.

Thank you so much for an early copy of this book. I LOVED THIS. This is my first Mazey Eddings book and I will be here for anything they write in the future. This was very fun and flirty and I ate it up in one sitting. Highly recommend!

if you love chicken shop date, you're going to love this book.

this was very cute! i loved the romance between the characters and the characters themselves. eva is unapologetically herself-- mean, snarky, stands her ground and we need more of that! if you love black cat x golden retriever dynamics with some second chance sprinkled in, i def recommend this book. their banter is top-tier and rylie is swoon-worthy. he's such a great MMC and plays off eva's personality so well. ty to st. martin's press and netgalley for the ARC!

I debated what to do here... knowing this book hasn't been published yet and how important reviews are, should I rate it up and change it later? Or be honest? At first I thought I was too Gen X for this. It was heavy on online/social media commentary, part of the storyline, really, and the trauma/conflict seemed very... millennial boo hooing. 😂 But then i realized... wait, millennials will also find the MC super annoying. She's super mean at first, and I get she has insecurities, but she was completely spinless for someone who in the beginning was dishing it out. The relationship insecurity was moving, I liked the general premise at first, and I liked the first time they got together but then she completely flaked out. I dont know... so it was a 3 then a 4 in a middle section and then a 2.

3 stars

Thank you NetGalley and St. Marten's Press for the chance to read this eARC.

Eva Kitt hosts a semi-popular talk show (think Chicken Shop Date but with Hot Dogs) and ends up forced in to a social media agreement with former lover/current anti-toxic masculinity good boy, Rylie Cooper after a drunken rant confessing that Rylie isn't all he's cracked up to be. She interviews him on her show, where she agrees to go on 6 dates (the same number they went on in college) to see if Rylie can change her mind and convince her that he has changed from the frat boy he used to be.

Eva is a feisty one and holds nothing back. She's witty, fierce, and has amazing comebacks. Rylie, for his part, seems like such a cinnamon roll. He's supportive, encouraging, and says all the right things. I really enjoyed the banter between these 2- there were moments that I was laughing out loud from their back and forth and could just imagine the tone in which what they were say was being said (skim milk anyone??) Also, great amount of spice. Love that for us smut girls.

However, as much as I really liked Eva and her wit, she really could have benefited from some therapy like Rylie did. I felt like there was this constant cycle of "I hate Rylie" > Rylie sharing feelings/them talking about feelings > Eva running away because she can't trust her feelings > Rylie saying the right things > Liking him > "I hate Rylie" and so on and so on. She was so stunted from her first mini-relationship with him in college that she wouldn't allow herself any mature relationships until he came back in to her life 6 years later.

Another thing that drove me insane was the switching of calling the MMC Rylie and Cooper. There were times I almost forgot Rylie was his first name cause Eva would talk about him as Cooper like that was his first name. Maybe I'm the only one that was bothered by that IDK

One last thing, William and Landry can go to H-E-Double hockey sticks. They were disgusting (IYKYK)

TW: LBGTQ+ is a big theme in this book. There are trans characters and bisexuality is a main plot point. If this is a topic that makes you uncomfortable in any way, I would avoid this one.