2.75⭐

LIKED:
- I found Eva to be a successful departure for the more typical Mazey Eddings style FMC (who I also generally like, fwiw). She was very sardonic and dry and, honestly, quite embittered by the world around her, which makes sense for who she is and how she’s gotten to that point in her life.
- I can also always rely on stellar bisexual representation from Eddings and this is no departure from that (with the added bonus of Eva being pansexual and Rylie being the bisexual rep, love to see it).
- Mazey Eddings will always be a queen of dialogue. While this one wasn’t my favorite of hers, it is still very much a skill she exceeds at.
- Absolutely stunning cover. I love the color palette and the story it tells about the dynamic between the characters in the story. It’s very very good.

LAMENTED:
- This story just didn’t do it for me. It felt really disjointed and I struggled to feel invested in anything that was happening. The fake dating felt forced to me and I wish there had been more of a focus on the journalistic aspect of the characters (or maybe their stylings on-air, rather than necessarily journalistic). And the last act is a race to the finish, leaving the resolution pretty unresolved and underwhelming.
- Rylie was paper thin to me in regards to substance. He didn’t feel like he had any actual flaws except having some trauma he had been working through when they first dated. I found him really grating for that reason, not quite positive enough to be a golden retriever or an actual sunshine to Eva’s grump.
- I also just don’t believe that these two would be attracted to each other on anything beyond a surface, vanity level. I don’t believe there is even an “opposites attract” aspect. Why would they be pining after each other for nearly a decade? There wasn’t enough fleshing out of that relationship and how it left such an impact on either of them.
- The side characters are deeply unlikable to me, especially Eva’s producer and so-called best friend who is so unbelievably antagonistic towards Eva under the guise of Eva being selfish and unsupportive? Like yeah, Eva didn’t care about the job and she did, but I had no loyalty to that character and could not have cared less where her story landed by the end of the book.
- What…is this title trying to say? The phrase has nothing to do with the story and is not very illustrative of anything the book entails. I don’t know, I feel that Eddings is normally quite a skilled title drafter, so this was a disappointing one for me.
- This isn’t necessarily the worst thing in the world, but this book is going to feel dated quite quickly. There are fair amount of pretty timely references (eg., Sausage Talk being a riff on Chicken Shop, and if anything had happened to TikTok it would have been dated even before being published).

LONGED FOR:
- A more cohesive plot that fulfilled more of its goals and didn’t end so abruptly
- More believability and substance to Rylie
- Confidence that these two would stay together

Will I read the next one? : Yes. I may not have loved this one, but I will continue looking forward to her new releases.

This book was such a delight! The banter was incredible (and definitely one of my favorite parts of this book. I have so many highlighted quotes!)

I giggled. I swooned. I kicked my feet. I teared up. Finally my heart was warmed. It was an emotional read - but in the best way.

I always appreciate a well written book that has characters with rich personalities, actual character development, and real honest feelings. Mazey certainly accomplishes that with Riley and Eva. She also displays the realities of adult relationships and how it's not always "sunshine and roses".

**Thank you NetGalley for providing an ARC of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Oh Mazey Eddings, how I love you.
I laughed out loud. I cried. I smiled wistfully to myself. I ranted about the patriarchy. What else could you want out of a novel?

It was such an absolutely ridiculous premise, and I loved every minute. Eva and Rylie's black cat / golden retriever energy is incredible. I do love how Eva explicitly talked about wanting to 'not have to be strong' all of the time (hence the aforementioned tears). Eddings is such an expert at weaving in mental health and therapy to her books in a way that seems natural.

3.5/5
Well, Actually has a little bit of something to offer everyone, workplace drama, celebrities, talk show, romantic banter, funny and witty FMC.

This story is about Eva, who has her own talk show. She hosts a show where she eats hot dogs while interviewing and talking to lesser-known celebrities. Eva had been hoping for things in her life to change and she's wanted to be known for more than eating hot dogs. Her wish is granted when
she publicly calls out her ex-boyfriend for being bad in bed and it goes viral. Everyone wants to know more about them, and he is suddenly thrust back into her life and wants a chance to redeem himself. You know what they say, Be careful what you wish for.


"Satirically interviewing low-level celebrities over hot dogs wasn't your dream career. . . So what? You're at least in the field that you want to work in, even if it's a different beat- You don't have to have it all settled and perfect. Life marches forward regardless of your plans."

"Stop acting like all your dreams need to be manifested before you've even had a chance to strive for them."

"It isn't easy to learn about someone else's pain, then have to explain your own. It can feel like the trauma Olympics and everyone loses."

"It doesn't do you any good to swallow your feelings altogether. You were swept up in a storm of his grief and were injured by the whiplash. It doesn't make you a bad person to admit that you were hurt by the actions of someone else hurting."

Thanks so much to NetGalley and Headline Publishing for this ARC

(3.75)

☆☆Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. ☆☆

I'm not going to lie I definitely requested this book thinking it'd be inspired by a certain YouTube channel and it definitely felt like it was for a good second there until the actual plot kicks in. This book definitely had me laughing out loud at some moments and internally cringing at others. There's just a nickname that's used unionically that I just couldn't get behind even though it technically made sense.

The main couple arc is actually really cute and I really enjoyed their communication and transparency once the biggest barrier between them crumbles. There is essentially no miscommunication after that and I really really enjoyed that openness and honesty instead of some festering resentment. It a cute and fun novel for the most part but at some points takes a turn at more serious issues but they're all clearly outlined in the content warning at the beginning so it was expected.

Overall it was cute but definitely not what I expected like at all.

This a quick, fun read about second chances using social media as their reuniting platform. Although I would not expect a second chance romance like this one to start by drunkly calling out an ex, but I guess you just never know.

The sarcastic banter between Eva and Rylie kept everything moving when there were moments and there were a few surprises in the end that I didn’t expect.
1) You never know what someone is going through
2) When you feel supported, sometimes it is easier to be brave and shoot for your dreams.

I’ve been meaning to check out this author for awhile, but a thank you to NetGalley and St. Martins Press for giving me the opportunity with this one.

thank you to netgalley and SMP for the e-arc! 🤍
i am completely and utterly obsessed with this book and these characters 🥹 i truly don’t think i’ve ever related more to an FMC the way i’ve related to eva kitt. she is the snarky black cat to rylie cooper’s sunshine golden retriever and i love them so much 😭 rylie and his slutty little glasses - the only man worthy of owning a podcast microphone in my eyes. the banter between these two was everythinggggg.

i love a second chance romance, though my one gripe with them is dual timelines. this is a second chance done without dual timelines but we still get to see everything that happened between them.
also - if you love chicken shop date i highly recommend you pick this up when it releases 🤭

I was excited and honored to receive an ARC of *Well, Actually: A Novel* by Mazey Eddings. Thank you to NetGalley for this opportunity. This is the third book I have read by Eddings, and I am a fan of her writing. I appreciate how she addresses mental health diagnoses in an honest and realistic way.

Eva Kitt went to college expecting to become a hard-hitting journalist, not the host who interviews lower-than-B-list celebrities while eating sausage. Eva feels as though everyone around her is moving forward while she is stuck in the basement, both literally and figuratively.

One night, Eva encounters her college ex, Rylie Cooper—the one who broke her heart—who has now transformed into an internet sensation and a successful podcast host, a stark contrast to the guy he was back in college. After a disastrous social media post, Eva finds herself forced to interview Rylie, leading to a fake dating situation as part of a cross-promotion, which reignites all her old feelings in this second-chance romance.

This book is a must-read for romance lovers looking for some twists on the typical HEA. I particularly enjoyed the twist where Eva is the grumpy character, while Rylie is full of sunshine. The writing is witty, emotional, and entertaining, featuring banter that will make you laugh out loud. The spice level in this book is surprisingly high, especially compared to Eddings' other works. It will make for a fantastic summer read!

4.5⭐️
This was such a fun, cute, hot story!!!
The premise of the story gave me chicken shop vibes and our FMC Eva Kitt was the perfect character for this take on it! I absolutely adored Eva and Rylie so much!!!

They had such great chemistry and banter that there was never a dull moment within the story. Eva comes off icy but that’s for a reason and it’s led to her having her walls up and hesitant to letting people in and instead pushing them away but we have our sweet MMC Rylie who just wouldn’t take no for answer and was relentless in both his actions and words to ensure Eva that she was enough and worthy of everything good and I just couldn’t help but to swoon and love him so much!!

This book made me laugh and clutch on my heartstrings and I just loved it so much!!! So good!

This was fun! When I read the synopsis I caught the chicken shop date vibe and immediately had to read.

Eva and Rylie had a disastrous “relationship” in college centered around both of their insecurities. Six years later Rylie is a podcast-bro detoxifying masculinity and Eva eats hot dogs with celebrities. This is a modern day love story if I’ve ever read one.

I loved Eva’s “take no shit” snippy attitude and clever quips. I adored the way Riley took them in stride and was not afraid to dish it back out to her. They balance each other so well. The banter was so fun and I really loved watching Eva let her walls down and finally let Rylie in. My man had to WORK for it. Eva’s hard exterior made it so special when she finally allowed herself to be vulnerable with Rylie. Also, I loved that her last name being Kitt set up for her nickname to be Kitten. It was really cute. The couples therapy date is one of my favorite scenes I’ve ever read in a romance. I thought it was really well done and really fleshed out both characters. I was so much more invested in their relationship afterward.

Rylie was such a good guy, and you could tell he put in a lot of work to pull himself out of a terrible situation and become the person he wanted to be. Eva, on the other hand, didn’t really seem like she dealt with or overcame her insecurities. By the end of the book, she still falls into the spiral of not being good enough and depends on Rylie to pull her out of it. Which is cute for the romance aspect, but doesn’t give much in the way of character development. I really think if she had stood up for herself in the final meeting with her bosses, it would’ve shown more growth.

Overall, this was a really fun story of a girl who went from “I hate all men” to “I like this man”. And that’s the kind of story I can get behind.

I’m giving this 2.5⭐️. I did enjoy Eva’s snark. The premise of the book seemed good as well. The execution of it though wasn’t for me. There’s a lot of baggage between the two that I think needed some resolution before a current relationship could be believable. Ultimately I just wasn’t invested enough in the characters or their relationship and I skimmed the last 20% of the book.

Thank you to Net Galley and St. Martin’s Griffin for an advanced copy!

Book Review: Well, Actually by Danielle Prescod
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4 stars)

Well, Actually is a smart, funny, and surprisingly heartfelt exploration of internet culture, redemption arcs, and the lingering sting of a college breakup. Eva Kitt is a refreshingly sharp and cynical narrator, stuck in a dead-end job hosting Sausage Talk—until a viral moment with her ex, Rylie Cooper, gives her the kind of platform she's always dreamed of (and a whole lot of unwanted attention).

Rylie, now a reformed “feminist influencer,” offers Eva a bizarre bargain: go on a series of public dates and discuss them openly on his channel as proof of his personal growth. Eva sees it as the perfect opportunity to mock him—and maybe reignite her flailing career. But as the line between performance and reality begins to blur, Well, Actually turns into more than just a second-chance romance. It’s a witty takedown of performative wokeness, a tribute to messy growth, and a story about how healing sometimes comes in the most unexpected packages.

With sharp dialogue, great chemistry, and a media-savvy twist on the enemies-to-lovers trope, this book hits all the right notes. A touch predictable toward the end, but the emotional payoff makes it worth it.

Perfect for fans of social satire and rom-coms with a bite.

Rue is such a relatable and refreshingly honest protagonist. Her sharp wit and inner strength had me rooting for her from page one. Eddings brings nuance and authenticity to Rue’s experience with chronic illness in a way that’s both validating and illuminating. Her relationship with Rafe is tender, supportive, and absolutely magnetic—the kind of slow-burn, emotionally rich romance that makes your heart ache (in the best way).

The dialogue sparkles, the representation is thoughtful, and the balance between humor and real-life struggles is masterfully done. It’s romantic, it’s feminist, it’s vulnerable—it’s everything I want in a contemporary romance.

This book made me laugh, cry, and cheer. Easily one of my favorite reads of the year.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Griffin and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review!

Thank you NetGalley for this eARC!

I thought this book was amazing! The pacing was perfect! And the banter between the two main leads had me giggling and unable to put the book down! I truthfully was incredibly thankful to read a book that didn’t have a third act break up, it was like a breath of fresh air!

I highly recommend this book to anyone who likes real world problems, witty banter, and a FMC who doesn’t change for the MMC!

⭐️⭐️⭐️
Eva and Rylie did NOT end their relationship on good terms. The past is over and done with...or is it?!? Fast forward many years, and Eva and Rylie are both celebrities in their own rites. One night she spouts off about him, and it goes viral. The best thing for both of their careers is to attempt to make nice, publicly. Rylie really does want to make it up to her. Eva just wants him to pay. Can she do whatever it takes to further her own career if she realizes that maybe their second chance could actually end in love?!?

I adored the way that the author takes these two characters and makes them multi-faceted. This book doesn't come out until August 5th, but it would have been perfection during Pride Month because of the fact that both characters are LGBTQIA+. (Though any chance to learn about diverse people is a welcome one!) The pining that our hero does is fantastic. The scenes relating to their careers/public personas felt so real. It was fascinating!

Unfortunately, I had a bit of difficulty rooting for our heroine. She was a little too rough around the edges for my taste. I found myself far more fond of Rylie, as I'm a cinnamon roll fanatic. 🤣 Because of the acidity permeating much of the pages (due to Eva), I found it hard to sink into the romance.

Trigger warnings: online bullying

I'd like to thank St. Martin's Press and Netgalley for the eARC of this book. All opinions expressed are my own.

As a huge Chicken Shop Date Stan, I was so excited when this book was announced. We have a celebrity interview show called Sausage Talk, an FMC who is an absolute vibe, and a second-chance romance all rolled into an amazing read!

Eva is a bitch in the best way, but also vulnerable and in desperate need of someone she can be soft with. I absolutely ate up all of her snarky banter in the book and the way Cooper took it like a champ. Their relationship dynamic was fresh and kept me turning the page, laughing out loud, and getting in my feels as the story progressed.

For fans of:
* black cat x golden retriever
* Second-chance romance
* Queer rep
* Being mean as flirting (in the best way)
* Mental health rep

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Griffin for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Eva, the host of the Sausage Talk podcast goes on a public rampage about her college ex that goes completely and unexpectedly viral. Her ex Rylie is a well known and loved social media figure who has built his entire platform on dismantling toxic masculinity and Eva’s complaints about him don’t match his supposed beliefs at all. Eva agrees to have him on the show and go on a series of dates so he can make up for his past behavior before they talk about their experience online for their audiences. Can he prove to her that he’s changed?

This was funny, cute, and I’m left weeks after finishing it still thinking about the characters. I love a flawed and realistic FMC and that’s what we get with Mazey’s writing. I can see why not everyone will love her but as an incredibly flawed human myself, I really enjoy her characters. They’re far from perfect and still loved. I hated the nickname though lol.

Thank you so much to Netgalley, Mazey Eddings, and Saint Martin’s Press for providing this free ARC. This is my honest review! This publishes on August 3rd.

I always find it awkward when fiction books are so obviously based on a real-life person (Amelia Dimoldenberg in this case) so I was a liitle put off to start it. I just don't like modern references, which this book has a lot of.

I loved Riley though - the definition of "I love a girl who's mean to me"

thank you to st. martins press, netgalley, and the author for an ARC !

this is my first novel by this author and unfortunately this one wasn’t really for me. i enjoyed the premise and plot of the viral tik tok video leading to a second chance but the execution just didn’t hit for me. the romance felt really rushed. eva’s lack of ability to talk about things without bailing out of conversations was extremely frustrating, especially after she would initiate many of them. i liked cooper but sometimes his character felt he was boiled down to just smiling all the time and being a simp for eva (ex. when eva would say something rude i wish he would address it instead of just thinking she’s attractive and liking her). i liked the idea of eva’s character being more blunt and witty but i wish she had more character development because that fell flat for me.

i tried to like this book but after the 60/70% mark, i was forcing myself to finish. i can see myself trying another one of this authors books but this one wasn’t meant for me.

at times i didn’t hate it, but ultimately i couldn’t get past how forced it felt. to put it briefly, i couldn’t help but cringe at the pet names, the constant media references (which will make this book feel outdated fast), and the smut. all the characters fell flat for me —they just felt boring and lacklustre. most of the side characters seemed like they were added purely for the sake of “diversity,” without any real depth or development to them.
thank you to the publishers for the e-arc.