Banter, Banter, Hot Dogs, Banter!

Mazey Eddings has quickly become one of my favorite authors solely from this book! Well, Actually is funny, witty yet compelling. Eva is a journalist who interviews B list celebrities while eating hot dogs. She aspires to be a serious journalist but feels stuck in life. She drunkenly posts a video bashing her now influencer ex Riley. From that day on, her world is turned upside down as her bosses force her to interview Rylie as part of a segment on her show. This is a second chance romance with a lot of clever banter, spice, but also deep topics that help you better understand the characters.

I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to have a great laugh and read some goooood spice.


Thank you St Martin's Press & NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Mazey Eddings gave us a fun second-chance romance with Well, Actually. This book follows Eva Kitt, a journalist whose job has her interviewing B/C-list celebrities while eating hot dogs. A late-night drunk TikTok rant that goes viral brings her college ex, Rylie Cooper, back into her life. I absolutely loved the banter – Eva being the black cat & Rylie being the golden retriever. Once we get to know Eva, I understood why she was so guarded and snarky. Cooper was a great MMC - supportive, persistent, emotionally available, communicative. He was a great match for Eva.

This was a charming and funny read. It wasn't my first Mazey Eddings book and it won't be my last. Definitely recommend!

Thank you St Martin's Press & NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

There were some great one liners. I’m not usually one to utilize the highlighter while reading but I was cracking up at some of the witty bits and needed to make note of them. I really loved the FMC personality. Definitely a cute book.

a second chance romance you don't want to miss. second chance romance isn't usually my
favorite but i liked this one.

This is a cute romance story. Was it anything special, no. Did it give me what I needed in a romance, yes. This story was predictable, but I love sprinkling in romance in between fantasy reads.

A second chance romance that follows Eva, the fmc who is stuck in a job she hates and Rylie, her ex who has a popular social media following. When Eva calls out Rylie online, it starts a chance for a re-do relationship, but both sides do not have the same end goal.

The premise of this book sounded fun and enjoyable, however the fmc was overly rude, borderline cringe and the mmc had little to no personality, I honestly don’t remember much about him. The book started off great with some solid banter and tension, but fell flat halfway through and just seemed to drag on.

Thank you, NetGalley for the ARC read!

Well, Actually is the first book I've read by Mazey Eddings, and I was absolutely blown away. I haven’t laughed this hard and consistently while reading in a long time—I devoured this book. It’s comical, witty, passionate, and relatable.

At first, Eva came across as rude—and to be honest, she is. But as the story progressed, I began to understand her better, especially her dynamic with Rylie Cooper. My boyfriend and I share a similar banter—what some might consider rude quips is just how we show comfort and affection. Eva pushes the boundaries at times, but I honestly loved her more for it. You do you, boo.

Eva is thrust into an impossible situation, forced to navigate the whims of corporate nepotism. I loved how she could throw verbal punches when needed. And Rylie? I adore him. His charm and quick wit brought the heart that Eva’s character sometimes lacked, making their dynamic work beautifully.

The spice was spicing, and overall, I loved rooting for Eva and Rylie. Quick, light-hearded read with the promise for a good laugh.

ARC Review!

3.75 stars!

Let me start by saying, this second chance romance is a slowwwww burn. I think around 60% is when Eva (The FMC) finally gave in some. There were times where I wanted to scream through the pages to just be honest and talk to each other and explain feelings already. However, the banter was comical and so fun!

I do believe Eva was a little too mean at times. Rylie (The MMC) was such a golden retriever boyfriend. He was emotionally available and a literal sweetheart. I did have trouble picturing him in my head visually, but I’m not sure why. Eva made me role my eyes a few time by how much she was fetching for compliments. Mainly because it feels as though she never returned the compliments. Despite all of this, I understand her reasoning for having her guard up and I don’t think anyone would be able to match her energy and break through that barrier other than Rylie. That makes them complete perfection together.

The spice was also very much there. Top tier. It is not closed door, so just beware in that is not something you enjoy reading.

This has a lot of progressive themes such as the MMC is bisexual (but it’s just talked about nothing spicy is known) and the FMC is pansexual I believe. But again, nothing is discussed other than that she is and explains what it means. Also, one best friend is transgender. But again, nothing discussed further than she used to be a male. So, it is discussed, but not so heavily that it dictates the whole book.

Overall, it was a sweet read that I thoroughly enjoyed!

Thank you so much NetGalley for this ARC!

I love love this cover so much! I enjoyed it. Fun and quick but I wanted more complex characters. Will read future titles from the author though, it was fun!

Well, Actually
By Mazey Eddings
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Eva Kitt, social media personality and blogger, is unfulfilled at her job, eating hot dogs with b and c list celebrities sometimes even d-list ones on socials for clicks. One night while polishing off a bottle of bubbles, she finds a podcast about toxic masculinity from her first ex, the frat boy who gave her all her firsts and began a cycle of disappointment in her relationships. Of course, Eva thinks it’s an amazing idea to create a stitch calling him out for his frat-boy behaviour to her leading to them fake dating for clickbait on the site she works for.

The first half of the book was amazing. Lots of banter, lots of physical humour, lots of tension. Halfway through Mazey Eddings breaks your heart with backstory. Then she pieces you back together only to have you absolutely melting into a puddle of sexy goo. Multiple times. I really liked watching Eva shift from prickly to vulnerably soft with Rylie. And I loved that Rylie actually listened and learned from his toxic past behaviour. Were there some times when I wanted to shake Eva and yell at her to be honest with herself and Rylie? Yes. Were there some times that I wanted to yell at Rylie that he was being too real too fast and dropping unexpected truths way too soon? Absolutely. Did either of those things mess with my enjoyment of this book that deals with some pretty deep and painful topics? Not even a little.

Things I loved:
- Bi and Pan representation!
- Second-chance romance
- Therapy normalization!
- The banter
- The sexual tension
- The resolution of the sexual tension (omg edging)
- Partners who are honest with each other and talk about hard things
- How they both actually listen to one another

Pick this one up if you love any of the above. You won’t be disappointed!

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the free e-ARC in exchange for my honest opinions.

When i first received this arc I went into it thinking of Chicken Shop Date and Amelia, and it's not too far off in the beginning. If it were done under deplorable working conditions.

I love me a good golden retriever/black cat trope. And this black cat came with some seriously ferocious claws, but not so terrible that she was unlikable. The banter between Eva and Rylie was great. I seriously loved these two.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for sending this book for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

This was my first book by this author, and I enjoyed it! It very much had chicken shop date vibes.

Spoilers Ahead:
I did feel like the hero and heroine reconciled a little too quickly. The hero felt he was owed a chance to make it up to her, and I don’t feel like there was enough time or basis before she came around to it. And they both cared a lot about each other very quickly without really knowing each other, either from the past or in the present. I also felt like her workplace was toxic to a cliched degree. It’s hard to imagine them forcing her to do some of the things she did and being willing to fire her if she didn’t comply, so there could have been a little more nuance there. And him bringing her to therapy and asking her to be extremely vulnerable with a therapist in front of him felt like it was crossing a line.

Eva Kent and Riley Cooper went on just four dates in college. 6 years later, while doom-scrolling one night and sees him giving advice on how to rid your life of toxic masculinity. She may or may not have had a drink (or two) and stitches his video determined to set the record straight about how he really is. She puts him on blast for how he treated her when they were dating, but doesn’t think anything will come of it, that is until the next morning when her phone alerts her to the new viral status of her video. Now she has to host him on her LIVE-STREAMING INTERVIEW SHOW and he proposes a plan to take her on 6 dates to turn his red flags from college all to green.
This book was funny, there were so many laugh out loud moments that had me in stitches. It’s was also a great reminder to give second chances.

I really enjoyed the female empowerment and discovery in this book. This second chance romance follows two characters who had previously dated, and now were dating again for a show and podcast. Eva hosts sausage talk, which is basically like hot ones but with hot dogs instead of hot wings. And Riley runs a successful social media account. They are thurst together once again when Eva drinks a tad too much and bashes Riley online.

There is plenty of spice throughout this. Lots of confrontation and uncomfortable moments our FMC needs to overcome. Through the support of her friends, Riley, and rediscovering her self worth she comes out the other end much better.

Eva is an up and coming journalist, trying to make her way through a complacent position. After a few drinks one night, she reacts to a social media video of her college ex, which goes viral and changes the trajectory of her career and relationships.

There were many aspects of this story that I liked and respected: LGBTQ representation and awareness, grief, college decisions, etc. However, I would have like to know the trigger warnings before reading, and I hope that readers pay attention to them.

I did receive a digital galley from NetGalley and St. Martin's Press (thank you!) so my copy was still in the editing process. After another round of editing and some character arc clean up, I think this could be a great story that many readers will enjoy.

I heard great things about Well, Actually, but really didn’t know what to expect. Now I know that my first Mazey Eddings will certainly not be my last.

I flew through this book and I’m saying this as a compliment. It’s very rare that I forget to check where I am in a novel as I’m reading, so when I realized I was getting to the end, I couldn’t believe it. I was having so much fun and I was so in love with these two and I didn’t want it to end.

Also, let me just say, I am constantly amazed by authors that take a fun, potentially silly idea and turn it into something so deep and meaningful. This is not just a book about two social media personalities and a hot dog talk show. Mazey uses the premise to delve into much more serious topics plaguing our capitalistic, queerphobic, and sexist society in such a delicate and introspective way and I think it’s really important!!!!!!

I’m gonna stop yelling now, but please read this book because I loved it and so will you!

Thank you to @youhadmeathea for the early access in exchange for an honest review!

Kudos to the palpable chemistry between Eva and Rylie. Again, you know a man is good when a self-proclaimed lesbian is wishing to be a part of his life adventures. I shifted from being seduced to getting a little bored at their relationship progress. I love Mazey Eddings characters, but occasionally I roll my eyes at how convenient a plotline presents itself. Love the nod to Tilly from her debut YA (my favorite book of hers!).

Mazey Eddings is such an underrated author. I think her characters are so captivating and real. Eva was intolerable at times, but I saw myself in her and I know that’s why I was so frustrated by her. Her walls were built up so high and she’s so afraid to let anyone in at all. I really related to her fear and use of sarcasm as a defense mechanism.

The real star of the show though was Riley Cooper. He’s Mazey’s finest work so far. He is everything a girl could want from a man. He is so down bad for Eva at every turn, and his unwavering support for her decisions is so beautiful. I really enjoyed how open and honest he is as it parallels how closed off Eva is quite nicely.

I didn’t super love our supporting characters in this book as much - not you, Lilith, I love you. They just felt a bit one dimensional and Eva’s friends kind of sucked in my opinion.

Overall, Mazey handled sensitive topics so eloquently and wrote a really great love story. I loved reading this and read it in one night. I will definitely be recommending this one non-stop.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC! It was not my favorite book I’ve ever read, but it was still cute.

It's so refreshing seeing an FMC who's so unapologetically herself (aka bitchy in the best way) and a man who encourages that.