Eva doesn’t quite have the career she wants and after an evening wallowing in a bottle of red wine, she finds a traumatic ex giving advice to men on how to please women. The video reply she makes goes viral. Her boss uses it for ratings and the ex, Rylie, uses it as a second chance.

This was so much more than I expected it to be. It was a very sweet story and I loved Eva’s biting sarcasm and how sweet and accepting Rylie was. If I had one criticism it’s that there were about 4-5 open door scenes and they seemed a little repetitive by the third one. I just skimmed the rest.

4.5 - I LOVED this book!! read if you want a fun romance inspired by chicken shop date…with amelia and andrew garfield (or at least thats what the cover gave). I LOVE mazey’s romances and this is my favorite so far. It was HOT, super emotional, there was great queer/bisexual representation and I just loved the connection Eva and Rylie had. Two extremely witty and sometimes brash characters but the affection they had for each other was so cute :)

Well, Actually follows Eva and Rylie, who both work in media and are Internet personalities. Eva one night, posts a TikTok drunk ranting about Rylie, talking about how he was the worst first boyfriend she had in college and that he had no idea how to have sex and please a woman. the video goes viral and Eva/Rylie's team decide the best way forward is to capitalize on the attention and force Eva and Rylie to do a podcast together where they talk about their past dating and go on dates.

Eva is one sassy, angry FMC and I LOVED her!! I feel like a lot of people are not going to love her character because she is not the typical demure, kind, gentle female character. But I loved her spunk, how openly she felt her emotions, her ambition, and how she couldn't get over what had happened with Rylie in college (I too am someone who can never let anything bad go). And COOPER?? That is my MAN!! I was so so down bad for this kindhearted, endearing, nerdy man. The way that we slowly learn about Cooper's past, all the hardship and grief he was going through when he first met Eva, and how he took the time to explain himself to Eva and make amends/better himself, was just exactly what I want in a man. His character development, even off the page and before we are introduced to him was EVERYTHING.

Eva and Cooper's relationship was SO HOT, full of tension, banter, definitely some hating, and all around so fun to read. You could tell that both Eva and Rylie had lingering feelings from when they first dated and they both continued to get their feelings hurt from miscommunication. But Cooper PUSHED and showed up for Eva and they slowllyyy made their way to a wonderful relationship. I just had so much fun reading this one!!

Thanks to St. Martin's Press for the free book!!

Book Review
Well Actually by Mazey Eddings

What Its Got
✅ Enemies to lovers
✅ Second chance romance
✅ Podcasts
✅ Social media journalism
✅ LGBTQIA2S+ rep
✅ Witty banter
✅ Spice and sass
✅ Pop culture romance

FMC
Eva Kitt aka Kitten aka Evil Kitten
Uses humour as her shield and sarcastic snide comments as her weapon of choice
Self proclaimed bitch who owns it
* unlikeable, unreliable, and off putting and yet managed to capture my attention and admiration

MMC
Rylie
Soul searching self healing path leading to Eva and the opportunity for a relationship do-over
* I loved the random details about his crew sweaters/shirts- I needed a soft white kitten or a unicorn one to complete the set

Overall
This book offers readers a glimpse at our MCs personal growth and romance magnified by a social media lens- an entertaining and relatable read.


Publishes August 5
Thanks to @netgalley and the publisher @stmartins for my digital ARC in return for an honest review. Opinions expressed are my own.

To be 100% honest, I did not have high expectations when I picked up Well Actually by Mazey Eddings. I thought the concept sounded cute and I loved the cover, but aside from that, I never really cared for second chance romances. I have never been happier to be wrong! This book was absolutely everything to me! I fell madly in love with FMC Eva Kitt, and honestly? She is the best type of FMC – the one I’m always excited to read about. MMC Rylie Cooper took time to grow on me, but he did and I just absolutely loved this!

For possibly the first half of the book, I did not care for Rylie Cooper. I think it wasn’t until he actually shows up for Eva did I start to like him. He’s a tale of two characters – younger, college age frat boy Rylie who was an absolute douchebag, and modern, matured Rylie who believes in therapy and communication. Knowing that he has changed from who he was in Eva’s past wasn’t enough to make me fall in love with him though. I needed him to actually stand up for her, choose her first, before I could get on board. Eva, however, I fell in love with her instantly. She isn’t your quiet, demure doormat. There is a deeply relatable desperation and melancholy within Eva that really speaks true to who we most of us are in our late twenties. Trapped in a demeaning and humiliating job that is a far cry from her dreams and unable to form meaningful romantic relationships, Eva finds herself close to spiraling when she lashes out at ex Rylie. I loved how acerbic she was and that she didn’t just roll over for Rylie and his “good boy” act. She held onto her spite and resentment and God, it was so good to read an FMC that didn’t immediately give in. Eva made Rylie work for it, which is the only reason I was able to get behind him as her love interest.

Pacing was pretty quick. I never felt like this lagged. The tension between Rylie and Eva was great. The romance was the plot – learning to trust again, to forgive, to love. I especially loved the subplot of learning how to be an adult in the workplace and realizing the way business works in the real world. It feels like something that can only be learned through experience, and watching Eva experience it? Heartbreaking. Realistic. Validating.

I absolutely recommend Well Actually by Mazey Eddings. This was such a great read with amazingly relatable characters. I think Eva might have already made it to my list of top FMCs. If you like FMCs that are simpering doormats, you won’t like this. But if you want to read about a character that is flawed and guarded, this will be amazing.

Eva Kitt, host of the not-so-viral Sausage Talk (basically Chicken Shop Date but ruined by a Buzzfeed-esque corporation), is frustrated. She wants to do real journalism but her company is making a joke out of her and layoffs are looming. Eva tries to toe the line hoping she'll prove herself and move on to covering more serious issues. Until her frustration boils over when her ex Rylie Cooper, pops up in her feed one night. Eva's experience with Rylie was far more bitter than sweet, and six years later he's made a career calling out toxic masculinity and teaching men to be better in relationships. Eva calls his bluff based on their time together and it's suddenly the most popular thing she's ever done. Her company jumps on the opportunity for more exposure and brings Rylie on Sausage Talk - where he challenges Eva to let him have a do-over. She agrees in hopes that it will be a career boost but instead finds herself spinning plates that include her feelings for Rylie, her career, friendships, and her own self-worth.

In my humble opinion, Well, Actually is Mazey Eddings best work yet, Eva Kitt is a total badass who seems completely confident on the outside but on the inside she just wants what most people want - to feel worthy, loved, and wanted. Eddings does a fantastic job of showing that duality in Eva. In my experience, people think a women with a tough shell is tough everywhere but usually there are many reasons that shell has developed in the first place. Well, Actually takes the reader on Eva's journey to trust and be vulnerable with someone who hurt her - and she fights those instincts almost every step of the way. And it's so hard to not like Rylie - even though we all know white men with podcasts who say they aren't toxic usually are - he might be the exception. Ultimately no matter what Rylie does, Eva has to overcome all those feelings that can so easily eat a woman alive. Rylie keeps showing up and doing the work, but Eva has to be the one to let the walls down.

You can look forward to witty and cutting banter all around, a collection of cheesy crewnecks, and a true male villain getting what comes to him. I've read this ARC twice and can see many more rereads in my future.

This book had me laughing from the beginning. This had a good mix of second chance romance, she’s grumpy and he’s a golden retriever.

Eva is the host of Sausage Talk. She had high hopes for her journalism career however she has settled for interviewing b list celebrities over Luke warm hotdogs. As a character I think she is just grumpy all around. She doesn’t seem to enjoy where she is in life and I feel like she is grumpy to everyone around her. She stitches a social media post from her now famous college Ex Riley Cooper. In college he was a womanizer. He ghosted her and that upset Eva. Now he has proposed to give him a second chance so he can prove he has changed. He is the host of a podcast that helps men deconstruct toxic masculinity.

Eva is an ass to Riley really in the beginning. I feel like she doesn’t give him a chance but Riley also doesn’t seem like he is paying attention to her likes and dislikes.

I just didn’t love this book and that’s ok! All books aren’t for everyone.

I want to thank St. Martins Press for the ARC!

4.5⭐️/2🌶️

Thank you to St Martin’s Press and NetGalley for an ARC!! I was screaming when I saw this approved for me!

I’m such a sucker for second chance romance! Eva and Rylie have insane chemistry from chapter 4 itself. I was cackling at their banter woww. Eva is so passionate and funny, I really like how it delves into her past which shapes the way she reacts to things. Also loved Rylie he’s so golden retriever coded it hurts. He’s absolutely perfect and I loved how obsessed he was😍😍

I really wish this was a dual pov, that would’ve been perfect. The way they portrayed corporate media was interesting because I’ve never read anything like this before. Also loved the pacing in this book, it was perfect for a romance.

4.5 stars! Thank you to NetGalley, Macmillan Audio, St. Martin's Press, and St. Martin's Griffith for this advanced copy! You can pick up Well, Actually on August 5, 2025.

Mazey Eddings' writing was absolutely delightful in this book. Her banter and dialogue were whip-smart and had me genuinely laughing out loud. I wish I could meet Eva and Riley in real life just to see their dynamic play out before my eyes.

But the heart of this book isn't wittiness and one-upping rival journalists. In reality, we see two people who were very hurt in their past attempting to reconcile and acknowledge how far they've come as adults. Eva is one of the most guarded characters I've ever read, and while I understand why her emotional walls are in place, it was wonderful to see her becoming more vulnerable with Riley. And, in a similar vein, it was heartwarming to see a man who hides behind charm and humor emerge from his shell and be vulnerable in return.

Their relationship was so electric (as were their spicy scenes), but it didn't get to that point easily. I wish Eva hadn't let her fear and anger control her behavior toward Riley for quite as long as it did, especially when he did nothing in the present to deserve it. But again, I understand where she's coming from and why she was reluctant to accept that he'd changed.

Overall, if you love a rivals-to-lovers, second-chance romance with the biggest black cat and golden retriever dynamic imaginable, then pick up this book! Also, if you love the vibes of Amelia from Chicken Shop Date and Andrew Garfield, this is your book.

First thank you to st martins press and NetGalley for an e-arc in exchange for an honest review

⭐️⭐️⭐️

Synopsis: Eva is a pop culture journalist doing a podcast that asks celebrities questions while eating hot dogs. Not her favorite but is launched into it when she goes online and critiques a former boyfriends style. This leads to a collaboration between them that will give him a second chance to whoo her.

What I liked: I’m in the minority here but didn’t connect with Eva. I found her very unlikable and was not rooting for her. She came across like the people on the podcast describe her and it is possible to be a strong woman without being a jerk. Because I didn’t find her likable I really wasn’t into the romance and thought the way she handled work was not professional

🔥🪭 Whew — I had to grab a fan after finishing another FIVE STAR sizzling romcom from Mazey Eddings! And honestly, I’d love a sequel about Eva and Rylie — I’m not ready to say goodbye to them yet!

This book checked all the boxes for me:
✅ A wild social media post gone totally wrong 📱
✅ Dark humor, sarcastic jokes, and hilarious banter 🗣️
✅ A black cat vs golden retriever romance vibe 🐈‍⬛🦮
✅ Great representation of characters from different backgrounds

And what made it even better? The audiobook narrator, Ariela Crow, was amazing! She brought Eva and Rylie to life and made their back-and-forth banter even more fun to listen to!

I first discovered Mazey Eddings through her A Brush with Love series, which I also totally recommend. I seriously can’t wait to see what she writes next!

Huge thanks to NetGalley, Mazey Eddings, Macmillan Audio, and St. Martin’s Press for letting me read this charming and spicy book before it comes out on August 5th, 2025!

.📅 Publication: August 5, 2025
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
📚 Well, Actually by Mazey Eddings

I really loved this one. The second-chance romance was full of banter, tension, and real emotion. I felt so much for these characters, Eva was strong, sharp, and easy to root for, while Rylie had that sweet golden retriever charm with real growth. Their chemistry was everything and kept me hooked the whole way through. Such a fun, heartfelt read, Right now it’s a 4.5, but the more I think about it, the closer it gets to a 5 stars

Thank You, NetGalley and St. Martin's Press

The publisher provided ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review

I spent a lot of this book not liking Eva because she was stubborn and avoidant and needlessly mean. Even knowing the reasons why didn't convince me to like her, but also, reading about how insidious corporate social media is now really bothered me, and I understood where Eva was coming from. I absolutely loved Rylie on the other hand. He was a cinnamon roll from the start, and supportive and loving and open to change, and it was really nice to see. These two characters are the embodiment of black cat/golden retriever vibes.

Back to the social media though, I actually was very uncomfortable at how realistic it seemed portrayed. I'm glad it was, and I'd recommend that book for anyone who is tired of posting and needs a reason to say no thanks to giving everything to the gram, but it was also hard to read because corporate bullshit is always going to get in the way of creativity and self-advocacy.

Some Will Love It, Some Will Hate It, Nothing Objectively Wrong. This is one of those hyper-"progressive" Gen Z TikTok obsessed romances where how you identify with the characterization of the book itself earlier in this sentence largely tells you how much you're going to enjoy this book, at a very broad, general level at least. Obviously everyone is different and even those generally inclined to love this book may actually hate it or vice versa, but at a review level to give you, the reader of my review, an idea of what you're considering getting yourself into... I think it is a completely fair generalization here.

The author has "content warning" spoilers at the beginning of the book - always a mistake to my mind, as to me, they should be available on the author's website with a message in that spot to look there. This is at least in part because these spoilers are impossible to avoid on eReaders in this location in particular, and I and at least some other readers prefer to go into books unspoiled. Now, even if one wants to try to argue back at me "but aren't you doing exactly that in this very review"... 1) It isn't at the front of the book at hand. No matter where you are reading this review, you actively came here away from the book. You're not reading it immediately before reading the actual text of the story. 2) I'm also not being anywhere near as specific in my warnings as the author did, intentionally to avoid spoilers while also allowing readers of this review a chance to better determine if this book may or may not be something they are interested in spending their money and time (but I repeat myself) on.

For what it is, it works reasonably well. There's lots of (progressive/ Gen Z/ TikTok style) banter, there's habanero level "spice", there's a fair amount of "coarse language" yet also a metric shit ton of "therapy speak", there's some literal laugh out loud level comedy, and there is ostensibly a romance in here that will hit harder for some than for others - same as pretty well any romance book out there. In short, if you can withstand the biases and worldview of the story itself (or even actively agree with them), you're probably going to like this romcom as much as you do a "generic romcom". There's nothing wrong here - but the only things that make it stick out from the pack at all are also the divisive elements that will attract some readers and repulse others, so those elements come out as a wash to my mind as an overall judgement.

Because my "subtractive method" of rating, wherein every book starts at five stars and I need specific, describable, and *preferably objective-ish* reasons to remove stars explicitly states that star removals need to be based on something resembling objective criteria, I have nothing to hang a star removal on here. Again, all flaws here are incredibly subjective and utterly dependent on the reader's worldviews and even moods at the time of reading this book. Some will see no flaws at all, others will want to defenestrate the book almost from page 1. I hope I've done enough here to give you an idea which you may be, and if so I think I've done my job as a reviewer.

If you do choose to read this review, please do also leave a review of it in the same place you're reading this one. I'd love to see what you thought of it, and all reviews help the author sell books - and help the author *not* sell books to those who might not enjoy the book, thus helping the author to avoid further negative reviews where possible. No matter what you think of the book and no matter how you write your review, *someone* will think you're an idiot and buy the book to spite you and your review, and *someone* will think the author is an idiot and choose not to pick the book up to begin with. Yes, that even includes people reading this review and concluding that *I* am the idiot in question. ;)

So hey, if you're all about the progressive/ Gen Z / Tiktok / therapy talk vibe... absolutely pick this book up, I really do think you'll enjoy it. If you're not completely opposed to those things, pick this book up and give it a try. I think it is at least plausible that you'll like it. If you're more solidly/ completely opposed to those things... maybe just skip this one and avoid the headache. There are other books out there more your style, and I can help you find some of those too. :)

Recommended.

4.25⭐️ Thank you so much St. Martin's for the arc in exchange for an honest review!

I've had a copy of the arc sitting on my kindle for awhile now (for shame) and got approved for the alc recently and opted to listen to 'Well, Actually'. I will say, Ariela Crow did an excellent job narrating Riley Cooper. I typically don't like a female narrated male, i.e. I never have, but WOW did she have me blushing and giggling and fanning myself! She also definitely brought the sass and attitude that was Eva Kitt, almost too well lol. To the point that I almost would have preferred to read this and create my own version of Eva in my mind, but it didn't take away from the overall experience and please don't let that deter you! I would absolutely recommend the audiobook.

This is a story about two hot nerds getting a second chance at a relationship in a completely unconventional, but also modern and relatable, way. And I had an absolutely amazing time. Mazey Eddings writing style is witty and sharp, but she also has this way of fleshing out the most guarded and vulnerable emotions in her characters. I could see how other's couldn't move past Eva's mean exterior, but I am glad I gave her chance, because it was ultimately just a facade. Eva has hurts just like any woman, man, or non-binary individual and she just hasn't learned how to efficiently cope with them. Which I get was pretty annoying. Especially at 70% in, I was thinking, if this girl does not get on board with this man who is so clearly down bad for her...I might well, actually lose it lol. She and Riley were perfectly matched for one another, however. Like I said, two hot nerds. I liiiiived for their banter and the spice wasn't too bad either, hehe. Eva's work environment was infuriating, but I'm sure a completely 100% accurate representation of corporate America. Eddings does a great job of making that the central conflict (thank god no third act break up) and in that way I think so many women will be able to relate. Here's to hoping that they can just find a Riley Cooper to cheer them on ;) I will be purchasing a trophy copy on August 5th ♡ ︎

When I started reading this and saw the warped homage to chicken shop date I thought I was going to hate this. I actually put it down and came back later when I was in a more forgiving mood. SO GLAD I gave this one another shot. Premise aside, the main characters were flawed but loveable, the villains were villianing and the romance was romancing!

Giving this one a 3.75 because of some of the premise was annoying and I wish we got more character development from some of the side characters but ultimately this was a totally solid swoon worthy read!

WELL, ACTUALLY is a black cat/golden retriever romance between Eva, an aspiring journalist who hosts an interview podcast (think Chicken Shop Date or Hot Ones) and Riley, a rival podcaster with a big following who is known for working against toxic masculinity.

Eva and Riley dated (barely) in college and he ghosted her. Six years later she’s not over it and posts a drunken stitch with one of his videos detailing their relationship. To counteract the bad publicity her video attracts she agrees to go on six dates with Riley so he can prove that he has changed.

The bones of a great story were there. I just didn’t like Eva. She was so over-the-top mean and sarcastic for a good 80% of the book that I had no sympathy for her. Even though Riley repeatedly said that he liked her sarcasm, I found her hard to root for.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Griffin for an eARC. Opinions are my own.

Loved this book! Second chance romance, enemies to lovers, a witty FMC and golden retriever MMC! The banter was LOL funny. The spice was hot. I appreciate the issues represented in the book because they were real! Highly recommend!!

Eva gets ghosted years ago by college guy she's dated a couple times. He is a semi-famous podcaster and she is an internet personality who interviews b-list celebrities. She hates him. He has had her on his mind since the fateful ghosting.
This enemies to lovers is so swoony.

2.5 / 5 stars

“You’re brutal.”
“So?”
“It’s very alarming how much I like it.”

this was funny and eva and rylie had good chemistry and banter. i have no complaints about the romance part of the book. eva was mean to rylie and he liked her more when she’s mean, and especially when she’s meaner. they were hot and fun together!

that being said though, i don’t know. a lot of the conflict of this story has the whole ‘show, don’t tell’ that is seen in lots of stories and it wasn’t enough for this one. but i think that happens a lot when the protagonists’ employment is in social media like eva and rylie’s were. this book will also not age well with all the pop culture references used in it, and some stuff are already outdated.

moreover, the biggest conflict of the book was eva’s job, where she was objectified for clicks, faced constant workplace bullying and misogyny, then she unjustifiably gets fired. for a ‘mean girl’, eva never standing up for herself was disappointing. like there just wasn’t enough growth for her as a character—she described herself as a ‘hot girl’ (per the intro to this book, a hot girl is a mindset found at the intersection of empowerment, enthusiasm, anger, freedom, excitement, defiance, and happiness) so i just wanted to see her finally stand up and demand more for herself and i don’t think the ending was enough or satisfying, like i wanted to see her eviscerate that workplace.

rylie on the other hand, was too perfect which made him kinda bland. also this is a nonissue and is a me thing, but i don’t like the name rylie cooper lol

I found myself smiling while reading Well, Actually a lot. Like a lot.

Man did I love Riley Cooper. His growth (hello therapy), his love and the second chance he was hoping for with Eva. I equally loved Eva. Her sarcastic comebacks and quick wit, although her coping mechanism, made me laugh.

“Attaching meaning and emotion to events is the most necessary part of living. It’s your story. It’s your narrative to write and rewrite and revise as you see fit, but, at the end of it all, it’s yours.”

My first book my Mazey Eddings was Lizzie Blake’s Best Mistake (which I really liked), so seeing her pop up in this one, with a little update was such a fun crossover/cameo. Also the Slutty Little Glasses comment/reference was spot on.

Also this one is def 🔥🌶️ and I read most of it on the plane flying across the country. This also made me smile, and I kept wondering if anyone else was glancing at my kindle (👀) bc I had it on the little holder on the back of the seat in front of me.

Thank you St Martins Griffin for this eARC copy to read and review.