Thank you to Netgalley and publisher for this ARC! I loved Riley Cooper so much! Every woman with walls around her heart and a determination to succeed deserves a Riley cooper in their corner. Eva was harsh and exactly the kind of character to highlight an interesting conversation about the way women are viewed when they don’t fit into a neat little box of “nice”. I wanted more of a resolution for Aida and Eva. I felt it wrapped up too quickly and they needed more of a fight!

Thank you so much for the advanced copy! It was a privilege to read this novel prior to the scheduled publication date, and I’m happy to share my review here and for my Goodreads followers. I’ll be rating Well, Actually a 4/5 stars.

Well, Actually is a unique and snarky novel with a likably unlikable FMC Eva. She is jaded towards her career (understandably) and her relationships (made understandable over time). The story begins with Eva drunkenly trolling her ex on social media, and the story unfolds with the aftermath. This is a unique example of the reach anyone can have online and the consequences of “going viral.” Eva and her ex reconnect, it gets messy with Eva’s journalism career, and it gets even messier as they rekindle things and unpack the hard truths of their initial relationship.

Overall, Eddings does a wonderful job giving voice to her characters while also highlighting mental health, sexual identity, toxic career cultures, and the power of reinventing oneself. I had a personal connection with the FMC - especially during a couple monologues centered on feeling invisible and unworthy of love.

My only critique is related to Eva’s spite feeling a little forced at times, but it’s still quite funny on the page. I look forward to recommending this one come August; specifically, to readers who enjoy a pop culture romcom that reads easy and even offers some authentic spice.

Overall I enjoyed this book. It was a fairly easy read. While I did not quite feel the chemistry between the characters I found it enjoyable.

LET ME SAY SOMETHING
LET. ME. SAY. SOMETHING.
HOT TAKE BITCH
THIS BOOK SAVED ME FROM HATING ROMCOMS
Sometimes I read books, and I can TELL what the author was aiming for.
This book, I KNEW
THIS AUTHOR WROTE LIKE SHE WAS TIRED OF THIRD ACT BREAK UPS
(GIRL ARENT WE ALL)
MADE A MMC THAT WAS ACTUALLY (shock to the world) UNDER SIX FEET!!
OMG THEY DO MAKE MEN IN DIFFERENT SIZES (woah) (crazy) (why are they all ridiculously tall for no reason?)
AND GUESS WHAT!!
THE FMC WASNT USELESS AND PITIFUL!!
(Like real women!!)
AND
OMG
WAIT FOR IT
SHE WAS OVER 5’6!!
!!AND IT WAS ONLY MENTIONED TWICE!!
(It’s like they make women in different sizes too!!)(it’s like you her height doesn’t need to be her personality!!) (it’s like she actually is a real person!!)
AND SHOCK TO THE WORLD
THEY WERE BISEXUALS!
IN A STRAIGHT RELATIONSHIP
AND IT WAS ACKNOWLEDGED!!
NOT JUST ROMANTICIZED 😮😮😮😮
In all seriousness, the whole romance genre has really been pissing me off lately with how every single book follows the same format.
Two super straight people, one seven foot man and pint sized woman, both with loads of daddy issues and abandonment problems, have sizzling chemistry because he’s just freakishly large and she’s SO SMALL. Grumpy x sunshine but the grumpy one is always misunderstood and jaded while the sunshine has deep trauma that follows her around for no apparent reason.
I think Ive ready fifty of those books.
But I’ve never read a book like this.
This book kept all the traditional sparkly aspects of a good romance, but added in its own creative twists. A woman whose personality is a constant state of agitation because that’s who she is, and she has a PERSONALITY. A man who wasn’t scared to make a fool of himself pr be cringy. Point being: the whole book added up to a breath of fresh air. A story Ive never read before.
Five stars.
btw thank you netgalley for the arc, I love you guys and I’m so behind on all of my books ❤️

When I say this book had me giggling and kicking my feet, I mean I was ACTUALLY giggling and kicking my feet. Very alarming for the people around me, I was asked if I was okay more than once.

Eva Kitt, host of an internet talk show where she interviews B-list celebrities while eating hot dogs and delivering deadpan puns, wants nothing more than to finally work her way up to a serious career in journalism. After a night of drinking and doomscrolling, she stumbles across a video posted by beloved internet personality, Rylie Cooper, who also happens to be her ex from college who ghosted her. On a drunken whim, Eva decides to post a video calling Rylie out on his past behavior, which goes viral overnight. Eva, whose new boss thinks it’s best to utilize the spotlight on her, finds that she now has to confront Rylie live on her show. Rylie, wanting to prove that he has changed for the better, offers to take her on a series of dates where she can then debrief/publicly mock him on his own podcast afterward. Eva, hoping that this will finally lead to a promotion, agrees to Rylie’s scheme.

The relationship between Eva and Rylie can basically be summarized by the Nick Miller quote, “Stop being so mean to me, or I swear to God I’m going to fall in love with you!” Eddings doesn’t shy away from making her characters messy and weird, making them so much more interesting and relatable.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Griffin and NetGalley for providing me with an eARC in exchange for my honest review!

3.75⭐️ (rounded up) This was such a fun and unique story idea!!! I love Chicken Shop Date and I love Amelia Dimoldenberg!

Eva, as an avoidant girlie, please know that I see you and understand you!!!! That being said, the way she was so mean to Rylie made me incredibly frustrated BUT he continued to show up every. single. time. without fail!!!!!!! Speechless.

Rylie, my nerdy, emotionally mature, patient, witty, sexy, slutty glasses and ironic crewneck-wearing little soft pookie….. I love you so bad. Need him in my real life asap, if I could build a man……

Let this story be a testament to how every person deserves to be seen and loved. You will never be too much for the right person🥲 it was a joy (albeit a painful one) to witness Eva’s character development.

The banter was top tier and Mazey’s writing had me loling!!! Also, her spice is truly unmatched just wow. Yeah.

*thank you SMP & NetGalley for this eARC in exchange for an honest review*

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was fun and funny and lots of nods to the Meg Ryan rom com era. The FMC was pretty insufferable but the MMC was delightful. This one comes out this August for a quick summer read!

Loved it! Such a fun read! It will probably be re read by me at least once more before it comes out.

Debating between a 3 and 3.5 so let’s call it 3.25 stars.

That being said, although it was pretty basic, the story always works. The banter in this book is better than most which warrants the 3 stars in itself. I love a black cat fmc and LOVED that there was no 3rd act break up. The ending was good but really rushed. There was so much more that i wished happened. I also cringed a lot at the firing scene bc of course she deserved to be fired??? It would have been a lot more powerful if she saw them for the a**holes the are and quit on her own.

All in all a good read, but felt there was soooo much more potential. I would definitely pick up another book by this author because it really was some of the best banter i read in a while.

In the beginning, Eva was a bit cringey. There was a lot of secondhand embarrassment, going on. She's a millenial, working a joke of a job were she's the punchline, in the city. But, by the time Rylie comes in and both character's histories start coming out, both as a couple and as people, I really started feeling for them and understanding were Eva was coming from.
It's a nice second chance love story, about finding the right person at the wrong time, and letting yourself be loved, flaws and all.
Personally, I do wish the ending had pushed a little more into the future, just to see a resolution to what was going on, but it's fine.

I first requested this book because it reminded me of Andrew Garfield on the Chicken Shop Date. It totally didn’t disappoint!!

I was SUCH a fan of Eva and Rylie. I enjoyed how Rylie redeemed himself by realizing his mistakes and how this book normalized people (especially men) going to therapy. Sometimes Eva was a little insufferable, however, with her family history I can see why she turned out like that.

I had a really fun time with this book and recommend it if you’re wanting something you can eat up because this book left me hungry for more!

Well, Actually by Mazey Eddings is a heartfelt and refreshingly honest romantic comedy that explores neurodiversity, identity, and the search for belonging. The protagonist, Gemma, a neurodivergent woman navigating a new chapter in her life post-divorce, offers readers a deeply relatable and endearing lens through which to experience personal growth and vulnerability. Eddings masterfully blends humor with emotional depth, creating a narrative that feels both light and substantial. The romance is sweet and well-paced, but it’s the nuanced character development and representation of mental health that truly stand out. This is a smart, compassionate, and empowering read that lingers long after the last page.

4.6 ⭐️ I think I loved everything about this story. The characters growth, their complexities, their stark differences but yet how they complemented each other so well. Riley's growth and want to be better was so healing for every girl who has been heart broken by a situationship before. I did get a little confused by the back and forth of calling him Riley vs Cooper, not sure why she went by his last name so much but I'm still here for it. I LOVED the LGBTQ representation in this story. Showing how different/difficult it can be coming out really was comforting to feel seen. I wish there was more of the side characters in the story than the brunch/fundraiser. Like Riley's other roommate, where did he go? Eva's character growth for me was almost better than Riley's, and I think a lot of readers can resonate with her. The sex scenes were also very well written, and not too much/little. Perfect balance of spice/story. I personally cannot wait to purchase this book after release!

I received this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This was an engaging read! I enjoyed the plot and would read it again.

To be perfectly frank, I sometimes struggle with a heroine who puts up a front to hide their gooey center. BUT, Mazey Eddings did such a fantastic job creating a heroine that I understood, was proud of, and just really wanted to hug! Seriously, by the end of this book, I was just so damn proud of Eva and her character growth! I adored Rylie, our male lead, especially when I learned WHY he ghosted Eva those years ago. I literally guffawed, loudly, several times while I was reading this book and it absolutely brings me so much joy when I can laugh whilst reading romance books. The spicy scenes were wonderfully descriptive (we're talking a whole chapter for the first scene), the villain was an absolute tool that was easy to hate, and the third act drama was resolved pretty quickly and satisfactorily (which I ALWAYS REALLY APPRECIATE. There's no need to drag the drama out). Do yourself a favor and add this book to your TBR. It was fantastic!

Thanks to Netgalley and St. Martin's Griffin for an ARC of this book. I absolutely loved it!

Well, Actually is the first book I've read by Mazey Eddings, and I am in love. I dont think I've laughed this much while reading in a long time. The writing is so good! I even had a few tears. Give me more Eva and Cooper

Eva Kitt is the host of Sausage Talk - where she interviews almost celebrities while eating hot dogs. One night, she posts a drunken rant on social media about her ex, Riley, who runs a platform about deconstructing toxic masculinity. During an interview, RIley convinces Eva to go on a few "dates" to try to make up for how he messed up long ago.

I loved the banter (Eva is SASSY!), the LGBTQ rep, the unfolding story, and the absolute golden retriever with a dirty mouth that was Riley. I NEED to hear this in audiobook format....

I devoured this one - I had been in a rom-com drought and this gave me life.
Thank you so much to NetGalley and St. Martin's press for the ARC!

thanks netgalley for the arc!

i dnf'd this around 75%. i cannot care enough about this book to finish it. this isn't to say that it's all bad. i was actually really rooting for it but unfortunately, it didn't meet my expectations for a few reasons:
1. the plot. it's a very creative idea but it felt obvious that the author had this plot set in mind and then had to create characters to back up the tropes. i'm not saying this is wrong. it just felt inauthentic to me. on their first date (spoiler), cooper plans to take eva on a helicopter ride and she freaks out. he comforts her. this should be so romantic! but we just met them! this could have happened many chapters later and it would have felt more genuine, cute, and real.
2. therapy. do i believe therapy is an important and necessary tool in life? yes. do i believe we had to read a chapter of couple's therapy? no.
3. my own personal bias against podcasts. cooper's podcast resembles justin baldoni's "man enough" podcast, which for reasons concerning his professional misconduct, is a major turn off for me. i see the significance of having media like cooper's fictional pod to counter all the toxic masculinity and andrew tate incel brainrot out there, but cooper's therapized wisdoms are not connecting with me. neither are his quirky sweaters. nor the jean comforter. which leads me to
4. the characters and their chemistry. i did not feel for them as individuals or together as a couple. i'm also writing this review over a month after i stopped reading so it's likely that there were parts that i was enjoying myself during and i just don't remember them. however, i wrote this point on their chemistry while reading.

i can see why people love this. yet sometimes books you want to love you just can't! and that's okay!

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for this ARC!

In this second-chance, black cat/golden retriever, enemies to lovers, its-always-been-you, Mazey Eddings delivers yet another stunning love story that had me cackling and swooning at the same time.

After a rough "breakup," Eva is shocked to see the reputation that her ex, Parker, has created for himself as the God of dissolving toxic masculinity. A drunken video is posted online, and their unlikely reunion creates a tense, charged, and beautiful reconciliation.

I. Loved. This. Book. So much. I loved everything. I loved the relationship between the two main characters and how they evolved, I loved the workplace setting, and I loved the spice.

More than anything, I LOVED the banter between the two main characters. It felt unbelievably real and joyful. I was so thrilled with the HEA.

I want to read this book over and over and over again.

Not going to lie, this book had me at Sausage Talk, which is why it earned a spot on my most anticipated new romance books of 2025 list, and it did not disappoint.

This happened to be my first Mazey Eddings book, and I was SO impressed, not only by the storyline, but also by the quality of writing, the humor that is top-notch, the rawness of the characters, and more.

Mazey uses a fun story about a podcaster and journalist who’s stuck in a pop culture interview show eating hot dogs to explore important topics such as toxic-masculinity, sexual exploration, communication in the bedroom, as well as workplace and cyber bullying.

Much to my surprise, the humor and snark are what captivated me with this novel right from the start. Who knew that Mazey was this funny, y’all?! I mean Eva could really dish it out, and Rylie would honestly just take it with a smirk and occasionally dish it right back just as good. I loved their banter, and it was totally their love language.

Their first date was so atrociously bad that I couldn’t help but laugh and feel so bad for Rylie. Mazey must have had so much fun creating that scenario.

As much as I liked this book, Eva did start to get a bit on my nerves, but my feelings about a character shouldn’t take away from how good this book is. I felt like she was pretty harsh with Rylie throughout the book but hey, if he liked it, then who am I to judge? But I did enjoy how Mazey gives us some of Eva’s introspection to understand why her guard is up and to see her growth throughout the book.

Eva’s backstory, that you get glimpses of, was truly heartbreaking given how she was never shown any love in her family so it was understandable how she’d be crushed when Rylie ghosted her and how she was always wary of being pushed to the side and/or left.

Rylie’s backstory was just as heartbreaking, though I truly liked how he wouldn’t let Eva push him away, and he was so earnest in his attempt to make up for past wrongs and do right by her this time around.

This book was so enjoyable, and I highly recommend it!

*I received an advanced reader copy. All opinions are my own.