This was such a cute concept. I think this was a little too sweet and cozy for how little of a plot there was though. I wasn’t connected to this couple at all and they felt very basic and flat with hardly any defining characteristics to make me care what happened to them. I dnf’d at 68% after the romance amped up and I still wasn’t interested. I didn’t hate this at all and it probably would’ve ended up at a 3.5-3.75 stars if I finished it.

This book was a fun read. I've never played D&D before; I enjoyed being taken into the game with the rest of the players. I loved seeing Sadie start to come alive again when she was painting. The dynamic between the characters, all of them, was great.

Thank you, NetGalley, for an eARC copy in exchange for my honest review.

Roll for Romance by @lenorawoodswrites
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ARC eBook
Roll for Romance is a delightful blend of contemporary and fantasy romance, told through a dual-storyline Dungeons & Dragons campaign. This slow-burn is packed with nerdy charm, heartfelt moments, and a party of memorable characters. Grab your copy and roll out on July 15!

Sadie, burned out from her NYC job, moves to Texas to room with Liam, her childhood bff/DM, while hoping to recover and rekindle her creative spark. Noah, taking a break from van life, makes a pit stop to help his old CU Boulder buddy run a brewery and figure out his next adventure.

What makes this book stand out is that D&D isn't just a nerdy hook, it's a clever storytelling device: the campaign parallels the characters' real lives and their in-game personas development, adds to the themes of found family, small-town connection, and how to discover or experiment with another version of yourself.

You don't need to know D&D mechanics to enjoy the rich world-building or recognize that, like in life, sometimes you just get a bad roll of the dice. The supporting cast shines too, especially Liam and Morgan, who totally deserve a side-quest of their own (Maybe book two or bonus chapters?!)

Whether you're a die-curious newbie, a seasoned DM, or just love a smart, slow-burn romance with humor and heart, Roll for Romance is a campaign worth rolling initiative for. Bonus XP for diverse characters, emotional growth, and joyful geekery.

Big thanks to @netgalley and @penguinrandomhouse for the ARC and the opportunity to share my thoughts!

DNF @ 34%

I was drawn to Roll for Romance because I’ve never read a book centered around Dungeons & Dragons, and I thought the concept sounded fun and unique. I was really hoping to love this one, but unfortunately, I ended up feeling pretty lost. The book puts a heavy focus on the D&D aspect without much explanation, and I often felt confused. During the in-game chapters, we were getting the point of view of the characters' in-game personas, which made it feel like a completely separate fantasy novel. It was very immersive, but without knowing much about the players or their characters, it was hard to follow and even harder to care about what was happening.

The transitions between the real world and the D&D sessions also felt clunky. One moment the characters would be living their everyday lives, and the next they’d suddenly be deep in the game, often without much warning or context. That made the story feel disjointed and difficult to track.

Because of that lack of backstory, I found it difficult to connect with anyone. I didn’t feel invested in the story or the characters, which made it tough to stay engaged. That said, I did enjoy the flirting and banter between Noah and Sadie outside of the D&D parts, and I think they had good potential. I wish the book had focused a little bit more on their romance and less on the game world.

Thank you to Dell and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review! Unfortunately this one just wasn’t for me. If you're a big fan of D&D and love immersive game sessions in fiction, this might be a better fit for you.

3.5 stars rounded up to to 4

I enjoyed most of this book and I was really excited to read it. However unique the concept was I couldn’t get into the dungeons and dragons storyline. It felt flat and boring. While I love fantasy and d&d, the game just did not interest me at all and I found myself wishing for the scenes focusing on her game to end. I really enjoyed the actual romance aspect of the book with the real characters but I found myself not at all interested in the “game characters” story. This is the reason why I would rate it a 3.5. Worth reading but not a show stopper.

*4.5

These little cuties. Everyone knows that they should be together and that made my heart happy. The D&D play was inserted in really well and I was invested. It was nice to see her fall back in love with creating art and although we can't see the mural she made I just know it was beautiful.

I received an arc through netgalley.

As soon as I seen this cover I knew I had to read this. I adore D&D romances. I loved that through the book you get to be apart of the sessions and they feel so realistic! I felt like I was on a campaign. Also, the side characters were fantastic!

I really loved Noah and Sadie's relationship. Both new to town and the game find friendship and more through out the game and in real life. Noah's charismatic personality was so fun! I really liked Sadie and her trying to pick herself back up.

Check out if you're looking for a fun romance.

Thank you Ballantine for the gifted ebook.

Thank you, Netgally and Ballantine, for an ARC of this book.

In this story, we follow our FMC Sadie. When she gets fired from her job in New York, she decides she needs a break. So she takes a trip to Texas to visit her best friend Liam and decides to join his D&D campaign. During this campaign is when we meet our MMC Noah, and they hit it off right away. Throughout the story, we follow Sadie, trying to navigate her burnout and Noah helping her rediscover herself and what she truly wants to do.

This story is so uniquely written that I have truly never read something like this before. Woods did a great job balancing the real life story line and the D&D storyline and keeping it very engaging and not confusing at all. I loved both Sadie and Noah. I would consider Noah book boyfriend material.

Also, if you don't know anything about D&D, don't let that deter you from reading this book. The D&D portions just feel like you are reading a romantasy novella within the story.

I will be sharing this review on Goodreads and Instagram when the book releases on July 15th.

This was incredibly nerdy and cute!

Sadie is down on her luck after losing her job so she moves in with her best friend for the summer, who happens to be a seasoned DND game master. When he sets up a new campaign, Sadie starts finding herself falling for Noah, both in the game and in real life.

I thought the premise of this book was so refreshing. I loved that we got the DND campaign and the irl storyline. I happened to find myself a bit more interested in the campaign (who knows what that says about me). The will they/won’t they friends to lovers arc between Sadie and Noah felt a bit too drawn out for me and I found myself a bit bored in points. Overall, though, this was such a cute read and I can’t wait to see what Lenora writes next!!

Thank you Dell for the gifted arc!

First of all the cover is gorgeous!! I’ve personally never played D&D but I’ve always been so interested in it. This book helped me understand the game more. I loved the character interactions and even the flip between fantasy and real life. I did think it was a bit slow and I wasn’t feeling the romance very much at first. I think overall it was a fun, cute, unique romance. Some of the things that bothered me was the abrupt change between the real world and the game world. I wish there was a better transition between the two. Thank you NetGalley for an earc in exchange for my honest review.

♡ Thank you for the free ARC, Dell Romance and NetGalley.

As a D&D nerd/gamer girl, I dutifully added this book to my TBR as soon as it hit NetGalley. I thought this was a really strong debut novel. I enjoyed the D&D references, slow-burn romance and personal growth. The cover is adorable, too.

This was so, so fun! I'm ready to play D&D again and live in a fancy world. The characters were great and I loved the friendships and romantic relationship. I loved the mix of real world story and their D&D campaign story. I'm obsessed and I'd love more of these characters!

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing for the ARC.

Contemporary romance isn’t usually my first choice but the spin with D&D really peaked my interest since gaming and reading are my two hobbies. I have never played D&D before but I am now wanting to search out a group to try it out. The author did this amazing job of weaving together two stories that are separate genres almost. It switches between the the main story of Sadie and Noah both finding there way in a new town and growing closer as they both start to evaluate what they really want in life; and the underlying story of the D&D game where they get to play characters they wish they could be and go on an adventure to save the girl. I couldn’t help but to fall for Sadie and Noah; especially Sadie as her struggling to deal with burnout and find her joy again is something I think we have all dealt with. Overall I highly recommend.

I received an advanced copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

Look, I don't know why we're suddenly in a heyday of DND/ttrpg romances, but I LOVE IT.

This was so CUTE. Roll for Romance will have you in the game shop looking for rulebooks and soon you'll have more dice than Laura Bailey (that's a lie--i don't think it's possible.)

When Sadie gets fired from her fancy New York job, she moves in with her best friend and reluctantly agrees to play DND with him. He's got a table full of newbies, and they all come to love it. Also at the table, is nomad Noah, who is currently working at a local brewery. The story progresses two-fold, between Sadie and Noah's relationship irl and through their characters. So we get half contemporary romance and half fantasy, which threw me off at first because I wasn't expecting it, but it ended up working out! I definitely recommend this for Critters, gamer girlies (nongendered) and fans of books like Love Across the Tabletop by Kait Disney-Leugers or Playing for Keeps by Tristen Crone.

Thanks to Random House Publishing - Ballantine | Dell for the ARC!

“You’ll figure it out. We can’t control the wind, be we can always adjust the sails.”

A very cute romance.

What I liked:

I really enjoyed this cast of characters. Not just our MCs, but the supporting characters as well.

I love me a small town romance. I do wish we got a little more about the town.

Sadie & Noah are very cute together, and they did have some good chemistry.

What didn’t work for me:

There was a bit too much of the D&D campaign for me. It seemed to take a bit away from the romance and the story as a whole. I would’ve preferred a bit more relationship progression and less of the campaign.

Thank you, NetGalley & Random House Publishing Group/Ballantine, for the eARC of Roll For Romance 💘⚔️🎲

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ / 5
Spice level: 🌶️🌶️ . 5 / 5

I was immediately interested in reading Roll For Romance when I saw the cover! It’s seriously one of the cutest book covers I’ve ever seen! 🤩

I became very immersed in just about all the characters, but mostly the FMC’s development throughout the story. The MMC is an absolute cinnamon roll! I usually opt for books with a dark and mysterious MMC but now, I think I need more cinnamon rolls!

This novel was flirty, sweet, and humorous at the right times. It’s a contemporary fiction story with a fantasy/romantasy subplot. If you don’t play D&D or don’t care too much for fantasy, I still think this book would be an enjoyable read for you. You don’t have to know how D&D works to read this and enjoy it! BUT if you have played D&D, you will enjoy this book even more!

I really enjoyed this read! Although, some of the details felt a little repetitive and unnecessary. For example, there was a page and a half’s worth just about running. Things like that that had me thinking, “ok, get to the point” 😮‍💨 But overall, this story was cute, fun, swoon-worthy, and exciting! The spicy part was also immaculate 🙂‍↕️🤭

DNF @ 5%

I wanted to love this book -- I love a nerdy romance and have played DnD myself. But something about the way this was written felt stiff, and there was too much info dumping/set up in the beginning. Also I'm confused about the best friend being a man if he is not the love interest? But maybe that would have been explored further if I kept reading.

I think this would be good for people looking for a quick and easy read!

Thank you to NetGalley, Ballantine, Dell, and Random House Publishing Group for this advanced copy! You can pick up Roll for Romance on July 15, 2025.

I am absolutely loving the rise of D&D romances, and this book def scratched an itch I've had since Dungeons and Drama! Sadie, a burnt-out marketer who moves down to Texas to live with her high school best friend, is invited to join his summer D&D campaign to help get her out of her funk. Along the way, she meets some wonderful new friends, starts to feel like she belongs in a small-town community, and pursues a passion she's set aside for years in order to climb the corporate ladder.

And, of course, she meets a sexy lumberjack-esque brewer who loves camping and being a chaotic nomad.

I love how Lenora Woods made the characters match up with and inspire the personalities of their D&D characters. We see bard-like tendencies in Noah, our MMC, while Sadie exemplifies the more cautious, supportive friend in her cleric character, Jaylie. Their romance was sweet and adorable (both in-game and in real life), and I loved the ending. As a burnt out corporate girlie, I hardcore resonated with Sadie's struggle!!

Def pick this up if you love nerdy romances with soft cinnamon roll MMCs who can turn on the spice!

Nat 20! Consider me charmed ;)

While I’m no D&D expert, I thought using a campaign to explore relationships through different perspectives and experiences was such a clever storytelling device. It made the whole book feel fresh and brought in an emotional tie on multiple levels.

As someone who’s also had to figure out who she is outside of her career, Lauren’s journey really hit close to home. Watching her rediscover herself and step into something because she loved it was both relatable and beautiful to watch.

And let’s be honest, Noah is adorable. He had me grinning like I had a crush of my own. I loved every second of the dynamic our MCs had, especially those late night writing sessions!

The vibes? Sweet, adventurous, and just the right amount of geeky charm. If you're looking for a feel-good romance with heart, humor, and a dash of d20-esque magic, I highly recommend it!

4.5 stars rounded up to 5. Okay I loved this!! The sort of dual timelines with real life and the D&D game was *chef’ kiss* and so fun! I loved the found family that Sadie created for herself in Texas. The romance between Sadie and Noah was so sweet with a little spice. I really really enjoyed seeing their romance flourish. As a person that related a lot to Sadie, Noah’s character stressed me out a bit with how freewheeling he was, but I did love the character too. This was just super cute and I would recommend!

Thank you so much to the publisher and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.