Readers will either love this book or hate it. There won’t be much middle ground. Why, you ask. Eva, the FMC. She’s not going to be everyone’s cup of tea, but, boy, is she mine.

The Eva you see and the Eva you get are the Evas she chooses to show you. The host of a pop culture podcast, Eva makes a living being crass, irreverent, and sarcastic. She has a quick wit, sharp tongue, and unlimited supply of snark. It’s not her dream job of being a hard hitting journalist, but it pays the bills. One night and a few glasses of bubbly in, she stumbles across a podcast hosted by the college boyfriend who ghosted her. His entire schtick is about fighting against toxic masculinity —the exact opposite of the frat dude he was in college. She rage records a rebuttal and, oops, somehow it goes viral. Her bosses see it as an opportunity to capitalize on her 15 minutes of fame and arrange for her to interview Rylie Cooper; her nemesis. Rylie claims to be a changed man and proposes a series of dates to prove it. Hold on; it’s about to get hot in here!

HELLO!!!! From the moment Eva and Rylie are reunited it is like setting off a barrage of fireworks - or dynamite - or TNT. They are each other’s perfect foil. Their chemistry is off the charts and their banter electric. More perfect dialogue has not been written. (It’s particularly delicious in the audio format where you can literally hear the sarcasm dripping off every word.)

I loved so much about this book. The aforementioned banter is sharp, witty, and hot as hell; but for all its bite, it is surprisingly deep. Rylie is the ultimate cinnamon roll. His heart is all soft and mushy and he is determined to win over Eva. The spice is spicy, spicy, spicy and might cause swooning or, at the very least, require fanning oneself. The slow unraveling of their messy pasts is done with tenderness and a gentle touch. There is a big moment that occurs that might be one of the most touching I’ve read.

But the biggest reason I love this book is EVA. Oh, lordie, do I feel seen. Eva surrounds herself with a hard shell. She is caustic and sassy and uses her sharp tongue as a shield. Beneath that impenetrable veneer is an insecure, vulnerable heart that never feels good enough or important or special. You know the type - the uncertain introvert who projects as a confident, has her act together extrovert. That’s Eva and never before have I related to a character more. Some will find Eva unlikable and angry. I found her to be a kindred spirit.

So, should you read this book? Absolutely, yes if you love smart dialogue, incredible growth arcs, well written consensual steam, and positive LGBTQ+ representation. This book took me entirely by surprise with its depth. It is among my favorite contemporary romances of all time. Give Eva a chance. She may surprise you.

Thank you to NetGalley, Macmillan Audio, and St. Martin’s Press for the advance copies. All opinions are my own.

I just couldn’t feel the chemistry and connection with these two.. the MFC is literally so mean 🫣 and I understand it’s a coping mechanism and I do love the way he verbally combats her and turns her mean comments into more flirtatious ones.. but I just couldn’t see past it.

Well, Actually…I fear Mazey will never write something I love as much as her A Brush with Love series🙃🥲 BUT this was an improvement over Late Bloomer for sure!!

✨hate to love
✨fake(ish) dating
✨workplace romance
✨bi + pan rep
✨inspired by the insane chemistry between Andrew Garfield + Amelia Dimoldenberg + chicken shop date
✨black cat x golden retriever

I think the idea of this one was great - I highlighted a lot of relatable quotes! BUT the FMC was a smidge too mean for my taste and the second half of the book was almost entirely smut so I got a bit bored. And I also hate the pet name “Kitten”🥴

I think you need to be chronically online to enjoy a lot of these references (and they likely won’t age well) but if anything else I hope people take from this one that NO JOB is worth this mental warfare and treatment!!🫷

Well, Actually features Riley and Eva. The two MCs meet in college, where they had a brief relationship before the MMC ghosted the FMC. Six years later Riley, the MMC, is a successful podcast host who discusses dismantling toxic masculinity, while Eva, our FMC, is chasing her dream of becoming a serious journalist with the journalism-adjacent job of interviewing B-D list celebrities while eating hot dogs. When Eva drunkenly posts a video about how Riley fumbled their relationship and intimate encounter, they get swept up in a social media viral windstorm...which reunites them and offers them a chance to redo their failed college relationship. Eva is certain it's for publicity...but it becomes more!

This new book by Mazey Eddings is a single POV, second-chance, slow-burn romance, featuring queer MCs and a boatload of personal and family trauma. One of the best parts of the book is the way the author depicts the trauma each of the characters carries. It feels authentic and the characters are fully realized. The story is compelling and I couldn't put it down. It's my first book by this author and I'll definitely be exploring their back catalog.

Thank you in advance to the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book.

Thank you NetGalley for the ebook. Enemies to lovers she’s makes a video post making fun of a college one night stand saying what a lousy lay he was, and when it goes viral her work place decides to use the media to their advantage and makes her do a live show with him. He decides while their live that he should be able to redo his mistake and go on 7 dates.

Ex's to lovers
Fake dates
Second chance
Set in New York

I was given an early copy of this from NetGalley, and this just really, really wasn't for me. The cover and the premise were both fantastic, but I did not like either of the main characters. The side characters were one-dimensional, and the storyline was unpleasant. I managed to drag myself to the 50% mark when he said he was going to take her to couples therapy as their third date and I reached my breaking point.

Smart, sexy, with just the right amount of angst! I loved this one and the banter and chemistry between Eva and Rylie was absolutely delightful.

Single narration, but each character had a distinct voice. Even Eva’s regular voice vs deadpan stood out.

Banter, meet spice. This was so fun and definitely a twist on the whole second chance/workplace romance trope. The hot dog puns? LOL. I loved the give and take, and how Riley dished it back too.

One major complaint and one minor- MAJOR: okay I LOVE a good grumpy/sunshine, but towards the beginning Eva takes it too far on the dates. MINOR: ummm when she is thinking about the night before their first time and it’s mentioned Riley is literally crying over an ex, and you still sleep with him the next day?? No confirmation of who the ex was, or if was even about an ex at all.

Thank you to NetGalley for the eARC and ALC.
Unfortunately, I wasn't able to get into this one. I really enjoyed Lizzie Blake and The Plus One, and I was really excited about this concept. Sounded a little like Chicken Shop Date and i absolutely love that!
For me, the pacing was off. It really didn't flow well for me. I found myselt zoning out constantly, rather with the ebook or the audio. I originally thought maybe the audio was the issue (the narrator felt a little monotonous) but I ended up having the same problem with the ebook as well.
Overall, points for concept, because I think that the premise is very intriguing. However, execution was off for me.

I will never miss a chance to read a Mazey Eddings book! Well, Actually is a second-chance romance between Eva, the black cat, and Rylie, Mr. Sunshine. As per usual, Mazey Eddings's banter between her MC's is *chef's kiss* and had me laughing out loud. I'll admit, I was a little unsure of the context of Eva's job at first, but then my FB feed became flooded with clips of Amelia Dimoldenberg and her YouTube series, "Chicken Shop Date" and I could immediately picture what Eva's job entailed (so.... thank you to the algorithm deities? meta? big brother?) Unfortunately, Amelia's YouTube persona proved to be much more likable than Eva's personality, She was a bit insufferable and I tired of her negative energy and anger - she was so reluctant to give Rylie a chance even when he proved himself over and over again. I understand where she was coming from and get that the whole thundercloud/black cat mentality was part of her "charm" that drew Rylie to her, but it was honestly exhausting for me. Not enough to dissuade me from finishing (and enjoying!) the book, though. Another great Mazey Eddings novel to add to my collection!
Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

4⭐️

**Thank you St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the eARC**

Eva hosts a pop culture beat called Sausage Talk where she interviews b-list (or lower) celebrities while eating hotdogs. She hates it. Her dream is to report on hard hitting journalism topics. It seems to be in reach when she accidentally goes viral for drunkenly raging about her college ex who is mildly internet famous. They’re thrust together to better both their careers and feelings fly.

The story is unique because of the jobs and way the character fall for each other through their work. Big second chance romance. There’s good humor, great pacing to the story. The FMC is harsh. Full of barbs and sometimes just comes across mean and rude. Not really my cup of tea. Some moments were hard for me to like her. But I believe some of it is her defense mechanisms and she redeems herself by the end. Enjoyed the story!

Another great contemporary romance from Mazey Eddings. This novel follows Eva, a journalist floundering through her humiliating job interviewing B and C list celebrities over hot dogs, and Riley, her situationship from college turned anti-toxic masculinity influencer. When Eva posts a drunken video exposing Riley as a f*ck-boy who ghosted her, it goes viral. Rather than being furious with her, her bosses want to capitalize on her indiscretion by having her team up with Riley for a series of interviews and podcasts. Riley wants to make up for his past wrongdoings, but Eva is hell bent on protecting her heart.

Things I loved: Eva's backstory and how it made her who she is, her hard exterior but soft heart, her friend group, Riley's back story and growth (but not making excuses for himself AND Eva not offering him an out), Riley's friend group, wonderful inclusive representation, the storyline showing a toxic and sexist work culture, Eva and Riley's chemistry.

Things I didn't love: the hot dog talk grossed me out a bit.

4.5 stars rounded up to 5.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press | St. Martin's Griffin for the free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book. Wow. I don't really know if I have all the words to summarize how phenomenal this book was Eva (Kitten) and Rylie (Baby Girl) were everything I wanted - I say this because I related soooo much to Eva and her relationship with Rylie felt so much like my relationship with my husband. I adored our girl - she's hard, strong, and shows her love through acts of aggression and verbal borages. *swoon* This is definitely a book where if you don't like it or the FMC, please dont tell me. It will hurt my feelings (and also we probably shouldn't be friends). 

Ths book did so much right. Rylie was such a sweet cinnamon roll. It drove me crazyyyyyy wanting to know what went on with the couples "then"-college storyline and we we got it, I just wanted to give our boy a tap-tap on the head for everything he went through. (That’s how I show my love). THE GROWTH!!! I mean going to couples counseling for a date? Idk how that was a swoon, but it was and I looooooved it.

"You are the sharpest, fiercest person, I know. I have never been more off-kilter than when you let me into your life. I can’t even begin to predict what godless thing you’ll say or do next, and I have a very healthy fear of your bad side. And, fuck, I love you. I want to spend every day, listening to you being an absolute shithead to me. at the end of my life, someone asked me what I do with one more hour, one more minute, I would fight with you. Argue with you. Kiss you and hug you and hold you. Anything for one more second with you.”

🌭Second Chance Romance 
🎙️Black Cat x Golden Retriever 
💛BANTER, BANTER, BANTER 
🎙️Workplace-ish 

"You cant even raw dog vision so I'm not particularly eager to take life advise from you." I SCREAMED 🤣

P.S. I’m already doing a reread of this book with the audiobook (thank you Macmillan Audio) and Ariela Crow does an AMAZINGGGGGG job voicing Eva & Rylie and adding sass, anxiety, and emotion into all the scenes. This audiobook is serving as a comfort re-read and I’m gonna be rereading this book a lot. Calling it now!

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for an eARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Well, Actually is a second chance romance between two college exes whose love story ended horribly (the first time). 💔

So when Eva, a woman who hosts an internet interview show where the guests chomp down on hotdogs 🌭, gets a bit tipsy and sees her ex pop up in a self help TikTok video, she’s had enough. She creates a takedown video. The video of course goes viral, leading to their reconnection as he hopes to make up for his past bad behavior.

The two main characters have some great banter and you really feel for each of their personal stories. However, Eva is just a bit too relentless as far as her anger and poor decisions go. She grew on me, but I have a feeling that people might not enjoy her personality. However, that’s kind of part of their love story - she is an acquired taste that he certainly can’t get enough of. I was engaged throughout the book and appreciated there were other issues that popped up in Eva’s life outside of the romance. But I also felt like most of the side characters sort of disappeared at the end.

Rating: 3.5/5 ⭐️

🧡 Well, Actually 🧡

what a fun lil read this was!! I flew right through and it & loved the balance of humor, emotion, and spice 😚

check this one out if you like...
🌭 second chance romance
🌭 social media personalities
🌭 men in glasses
🌭 bi and pan rep
🌭 he is obsessed with her
🌭 copious amounts of hot dogs
🌭 she is so mean & he LIVES for it
🌭 black cat × golden retriever vibes

thanks to @mazeyeddings @macmillanusa & @netgalley for the advanced e-ARC! check this one out August 5th if you're looking for a good time 🤭

I received a digital copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I have some complex feelings on this one because there are a lot of things the author did well and there’s an equal amount that didn’t work for me. I think that’s partially my own fault, expecting this to be chicken shop fan fiction-esque, which it wasn’t.

This book was very very similar to tell me how you really feel by Beth Cayoutte which also didn’t really work for me. One of the main focuses is working in entertainment, and dealing with workplace sexism and exploitation, which I think was pretty well done in this book.

Unfortunately, our FMC was insufferable for a lot of the book and well she has some reasons to be that way it was sometimes painful to read. If you enjoy Bobbi on TikTok, I do think that’s who this character was loosely based on personality wise in terms of being very rude and deadpan in her interview approach.

However, some good things that I was not expecting going into this book was the talk about deeper issues. Our MMC have some previous trauma that affected his actions, and he seems to be focused on growing as a character and genuinely wishes to improve as a person. We can see this a bit when the two main characters actually go to therapy together and discuss their feelings about their original dating experience.

Another positive was the focus on LGBTQ+ rights. Both our main characters are pan- and bisexual and there are supporting trans and gay characters that have their own minor subplots. It’s very clear that the author wants to create safe spaces for queer people and one of the main sub plots focuses on a banquet to raise money to support LGBTQ+ individuals.

So while this was not my favourite romance book as I don’t think the main characters had a lot of chemistry, I do think from a contemporary standpoint the social justice issues that are discussed are important and relevant.

First off I'll start off by saying that the banter in this story was fantastic. Also, the date ideas great! Def a little slow burn happening with the second chances. The premise of the book was good.

What kept me from giving this a higher rating was the FMC. In the beginning her snark didn't really bother me when it was the point of her work but after a while it got old. Rylie is clearly putting in the work and Eva just felt like didn't even try. Just was not a fan of how she treated him. I also felt like her trauma really wasn't worked through? It was just frustrating.

Thank you for the gifted book.

Overall I enjoyed this story. I’d really rate it more 3.5 stars. There were times I felt the negative themes really overtook the storyline but I appreciated the lack of third act drama. Mazey Eddings is also one of the best authors I’ve read in incorporating diverse topics and representation. She blends them in seamlessly without making them feel just sprinkled in.

Overall, I would recommend this book!

This is an ARC review. I want to thank Mazey Eddings and St. Martin’s Press for allowing me the chance to read/listen to this book ahead of release day! This book is relatable for all readers and embodies the ability to change and grow over time.

Eva Kitt and Rylie Cooper have a not so great history that came out in a VERY public way due to Eva’s very public humiliation of their previous dating history. The fact that both of them ended up in the social media entertainment business is highly coincidental. But mostly the fact that their past has truly affected them in different ways. Rylie really just wants a chance to win back his kitten and I am here for it. While the initial winning back did NOT go as planned, Rylie is consistent and persistent in his pursuit. Seeing Eva’s walls break down for him and process through both of their traumas was the absolute highlight for me. Every girl deserves a Rylie to show up for them when they don’t believe in themselves.

If given the chance, please pick up the audio version of this book! The narrator is absolutely perfect for this. She did a great voice conversion for all characters. So well you might even think that there’s multiple narrators!

THIS BOOK!! MAZEY never disappoints - this book will have you hooked, I promise.

First, the opening dedication: “To all the hot girls, especially those that rise to the occasions hen men need to be taken down a notch” - hell ya let's go!
Second, the messiness that Eva gets herself into at the start of the book sets the tone for the rest of the book and you wont want to put it down
Third, the banter in this book is unparalleled. The connection between Eva and Coop is continually smirk and feet kicking worthy.

Eva Kitt - Sausage Talk host that interviews celebrities - accidently has a crash out about an ex that goes viral, therefore she needs to solve it before the fall out gets worse. Enter Rylie Cooper, said ex and popular podcast host (about deconstructing hypermasculinity). Forced to confront each other live, Rylie offers Eva a deal - allow him to take her on dates to prove that he's changed. WHAT COULD GO WRONG RIGHT?!

THOUGHTS:
- the bff dynamic between Eva and Aida is truly unmatched - I love them
- the banter is BANTERING and I was having the time of my MFing life
- their podcast episodes are just UGH so good
- their first date is a DISASTER AND I LOVE IT - aka having the time of my life
- I think its incredibly important to emphasize the MAN THAT RYLEE COOPER IS - let my feelings not be misplaced. he is incredible. the quips back at Eva, his cute slutty little glasses, his ridiculous sweaters, his ability to considerate & caring at all the right times - the mac n cheese - just everything
- these two have so much unresolved bagged (you can tell throughout the book) and the way that all of it just comes out and they resolve it is so carefully done in a way that suits the story and these characters perfectly!
- their nicknames for each other are constantly changing and always perfect: creep, head strong fruit loop, contrarian witch, kitten etc.
- the therapy in this... crying
- the way this book ends and their story continues is so satisfying and rewarding, even though the journey through is harrowing and incredibly emotional - but both Eva and Coop come out the other side better and happy and my dear dear heart!!

I think its easy from all the points above that I was incredibly abscessed with this book, the characters and the romance!

Fave Quotes:
" Stop being so charming or I might fall in love with you"
" Because now I’m so deep in this, I would crawl through hell on my hands and knees over a bed of broken glass before I let you go again

Thank you netgalley for the ARC!
This book is out August 5, 2025!!