🌟🌟🌟💫 (3.5 stars)

Okay, confession time: I’ve never played Dungeons & Dragons before... 🎲🐉 But after reading Roll for Romance by Lenora Woods, I kind of want to grab some dice, build a character, and jump headfirst into a campaign! 😄 This book totally surprised me—in the best way.

The story follows Sadie, who’s down on her luck, between jobs, and unsure what comes next. I love how she used the opportunity to rediscover her love of art, something I also love to do! After heading to Texas to visit her best friend, she ends up joining his new D&D game... and that’s where things get interesting. Enter Noah 💁‍♂️—real-life cutie and in-game Bard 🎶. Their connection grows both in the campaign world and in the real world, and it was super sweet to watch it all unfold. 💕

One thing I loved: the book runs two storylines at once—Sadie’s real life, and the fantasy world of their D&D game. And honestly? I found myself super invested in their campaign quests! ⚔️🧝‍♀️ The author did a great job weaving in D&D terms and gameplay without making it overwhelming for newbies. It was just the right amount of nerdy magic. ✨

That said, while I enjoyed it, the story didn’t grab me as hard as I’d hoped. It was cute and clever, but a little soft around the edges when it came to big emotional punches or memorable moments. Still, it’s a feel-good, creative read that blends romance and tabletop fun in a really unique way.

If you love quirky romances, nerdy vibes, and adventure—this one’s for you! 🧡🎮📚

Big thanks to the author, Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Dell, and NetGalley for the eARC!

This was a very cute book. It was difficult to understand when it bounced between the D&D session and what was the real storyline. Once I was able to get the difference between the two it was easy to understand where things where going. I do like the way it ended with Sadie figuring out what she wanted out of life. She made her decision solely based on what was going to be best for her and not factor in Noah. You get to see the joy that Sadie has for life through her progression through the campaign. She was able to find herself in the end.

This is a good book for a very specific audience. I don't think you need to know how to play D&D to understand what's going on in the game. I liked the D&D aspect, even though I don't play. It was like a book within a book, which was fun.

That said, I didn't feel like it was a complete story. The D&D element of it was probably a third of the book and the other two thirds were real life, where the D&D aspect really took away from the relationship development between Sadie and Noah. I didn't really feel their chemistry both in and out of the game, so I needed more from both aspects to really believe their romance.

As an aside, I tend to struggle with books like this, because there are more characters than I can easily keep track of, so I have to write down a list of characters. It gets especially more difficult when multiple characters' names start with the same letter or sound similar, such as Morgana and Marlana.

🌶️🌶️ - Mildly-descriptive scenes that rarely happen; Moderate tension.

Thank you Lenora Woods, Random House, and NetGalley for the ARC.

Roll for Romance had a unique premise, blending contemporary romance with a fantasy subplot, which definitely caught my interest. I really enjoyed the real world storyline, Sadie’s journey of self discovery and building new relationships was heartfelt and engaging. However, the fantasy elements within the DnD game didn’t quite land for me; the world building felt rushed and the transitions were a bit abrupt. Overall, it was a creative concept with strong moments, but it didn’t fully come together in the way I hoped.

4 stars!
Crunchy granola bartender meets artsy girl from the big city through a silly game of role playing. But maybe some of the role playing leaks into the real world with real feelings...

I really loved a dnd themed book and the way it was incorporated with seperate chapters/sections to explore what the dnd characters are doing vs the "my character did this" type of writing made the experience so much better. I will say some of the constant references got a bit cringy. But instead of being completely put off I did laugh a lot while reading it. The "America's Ass" drawing and references to fanfic and RPG live chatters was unique and something I haven't seen brought into a book. They're very real things and it felt almost nostalgic. This was a fun and lighthearted read that I very much enjoyed especially since my own dnd campaign recently ended!

This was such an incredibly sweet and charming nerdy romance! Sadie is my favorite type of contemporary romance main character. She's a bit lost, a little messy but also on a journey of discovery to find out who she really is and what she really wants. Sadie and Noah compliment each other so well and it was so much fun to watch them fall in love as both themselves and their D&D characters! I've never played D&D but I found myself catching on to the game mechanics as the book went on and even googled local game spots by me after I finished the book! The book alternates between the "real world" with Sadie and Noah and chapters in the game universe. I was just as hooked on the "real world" story arc as I was with the game play!

I think there is a lot of pressure to follow certain expectations for yourself and when that doesn't work out, to consider yourself a failure. But there are lots of different ways that success can look and I adored following Sadie as she went on that journey for herself. Noah is along for the ride, and who doesn't want a charming companion to take you on elaborate dates as you decide what to do with your future!

A fantastic debut by Lenora Woods and a fun, nerdy read I would recommend to romance lovers everywhere!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and the publisher for letting me read an early copy in exchange for an honest review.

Had so much fun with this one! As someone who is new to the dnd world and just started playing I think it made it even more entertaining to read. Noah and Sadie were super cute together, and the balance between role playing and the rest of the plot was a very unique new way to story tell.

Read if you like:
💌friends to lovers
💌small town romance
💌slow burn
💌found family

This was a cozy, feel good romance with a found friends group that felt like drinks around a fire. A low angst story, the conflict was really about the two MCs personal growth journey while allowing the reader some delectable steam in the mean time. An enjoyable debut and I’ll be looking out for their journey through hell.

Obviously TTRPGs (table top role playing games) are gaining popularity recently and this read is very much a love letter to playing these games. Our MCs are both fairly new to town and have a mutual friend who is starting a TTRPG for beginners and invited them both (and others) to join. The two become friends and soon romance is blooming both inside and outside the game. An interesting element of this read is that we get chapters from inside the game. When it first happened, I found it jarring and since I'm not really a fantasy reader, I wasn't super interested. However, as the story went on these gameplay chapters were some of my favorites because I was invested in that sub-plot as well as how our MCs were interacting via their characters. The romance was on the slower side and I didn't feel any real chemistry until the 25% or so point. Despite the slow start, I did end up really enjoy our MCs and how they were so different but also so similar. I also enjoyed how the main conflict was handled and thought both MCs were being very mature and reasonable. This was a great debut and I look forward to reading more from Woods in the future.

I love all things cute and nerdy. This book hit that spot, my husband and our close friends play dnd so I knew I had to read this book. I liked it, it was very magical to me. I know when I get the funds I am going to buy a physical copy of this book.

Thank you to NetGalley for access to the ARC.

I very much enjoyed this book. It was a nice, easy, cozy read. The main characters were charming and effective. I wish there was more of the story within the story, or more interaction between the characters as they actually played. The romance was sweet, and the spice, though limited, was well done. ;)

My only real complaint... There was also a little too much explaining of the nerd stuff in it. The rules of the game, references about the decor and things. It loses the fun and relatable feeling if you have to explain it too much. I get wanting to do so for people who don't understand D&D, but the majority of the people who are going to be interested in this book are already going to be a little nerdy enough.

Overall, it was super cute and I definitely recommend it!

This was a very solid read! I really enjoyed how the book went back and forth between the characters lives and their D&D characters lives. It felt so immersive and really helped me understand the game more overall.

Cozy love story blended with Dungeons and Dragons role play. I really enjoyed the D&D element because I knew nothing about it and so I quickly learned so many things I was very ignorant about. It’s such an interesting, addicting and creative game.

The author was able to switch perspectives between real life and D&D gameplay perfectly. There were a couple of very spicy scenes but I prefer closed door romances.

Thank you NetGalley Lenora Woods and Dell Romance for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

3 stars!!! ⭐️⭐️⭐️

This was such an utterly delightful romance I found myself smiling at the page like a fool!

The thing about Roll For Romance...for me is the dual timeline between the game & real life was SO FUN. I loved watching our main characters fall in love in the Dungeons and Dragons world as well as real life. It made it seem like maybe we do need a little bit more magic in our daily lives. Sadie and Noah's romance was so real and just plain adorable. The concept of their D&D characters falling in love alongside the real them is PERFECT. This book reminded me of what it was like to be a teenager hanging out in my friends basement and just enjoying life. It was the perfect summer read & I'm so glad I got a copy!!

If you like anything gamey or D&D or just want to read about having a little bit more magic in your life as an adult- I recommend this book to YOU!

Thank you to Dell, Lenora Woods , and Netgalley for the advanced e-copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own!

I wanted so badly to love this book. The premise sounded so good and the cover was so cute I thought for sure it would be amazing....However, this book spent so much time in the D&D world that it took away from the actual story. I wanted more from the main characters as they seemed interested on their own. I found myself spacing out every time they went into the D&D realm, which was far too much of the book to justify finishing the story. Maybe it gets better towards the end? Idk but I couldn't push through any further. And it's not for lack of the D&D realm being boring, but that I couldn't focus going two totally different worlds. I think if it was purely about the D&D realm or purely about the real world characters I would have loved this book as both on their own were ok, but together it made it very hard to enjoy. I'm sure some people will absolutely devour this book. It just was not for me.

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Oh my LORD! What a delicious, lovely, fun book. I love me a FMC that finds herself at what feels like the bottom and goes “Well, we can only go up from here!”, and that’s Sadie. I love her so much. I *get* her. Freshly fired from her NY ad job that was burning her out (honestly? Good riddance girl!), she moves in with her bestie in TX to take a much-needed break. Said bestie introduces her to his friends—a latest motley crew of companions who become Sadie’s found family in and out of their DnD campaign—including dreamy Noah (our world wanderer / golden retriever / jack of all trades)

This book features: Nature! An indie brewery (The Alchemist, if you please--fun nod to DnD and other RPG/fantasy tropes there)! Summer heat (in more ways than one)! Fun activities that can be undertaken in a camper van! More nature! Like only one bed? How bout only one tent?

The story has two plotlines: Sadie and Noah’s love story through which Sadie also rediscovers who she is AND the tabletop game plotline—which is so fun in and of itself.

Lenora Wood, please write us more love stories. The world needs more!

Thank you to NetGalley, Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine | Dell, Lenora Woods for this free, advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

Roll for Romance is a unique, fun, and sweet romance book! I loved all of the characters, both in their “real” and “fantasy” worlds. I don’t know much about D&D but it was fun to feel like I was playing the game right along with the characters. Sadie and Noah’s (and Jaylie and Loren’s) friends to lovers romance was really sweet! This book was just so adorable, nerdy, and charming! I loved it!

DNF @ 30%. I think the concept of this is very cool but I just couldn’t get into it. I couldn’t seem to care about what the characters were doing. Felt like little chemistry.

Full disclosure, I did need to DNF about 35% in.

I liked incorporating the Dungeons and Dragons campaign into the story, and seeing the tabletop roleplaying game bringing the characters closer together.

However, I had a difficult time reading about the main character and the "woe is me" attitude (which, admittedly is totally on par with the situation). There also seemed like a whole lot of pressure about a story event that the character only thought about when alone, but then suddenly wasn't a concern any other time of the story.

I'm positive there are readers out there who will enjoy Roll for Romance. It has the characteristics of being a cute, fun read, and especially for those who have an outside interest in TTRPG games.

This was such a fun romantic romp! In this story we follow Sadie, who has just lost her dream job in her dream city, but she hasn't told anyone what really happened. To lick her metaphorical wounds, Sadie goes to visit her childhood best friend in Texas, where he coaxes her into joining a D&D campaign with a few other locals who had never played before. Sadie is cautious, but immediately finds her niche in the storytelling and creative effort of role playing, which is made vastly easier by the handsome and funny Noah at the table. With a romance at the table, real life won't get confusing, right? Ultimately, Sadie must decide what is it she really wants, and what will she do to get what she wants.

One of the biggest strengths of this book was the D&D campaign playing out concurrently with the actual story. I could have read an entire book that was only the D&D campaign. I also appreciated that you could come to this book without knowing any of the mechanics of D&D, but still understand what was happening and get a basic sense of how the game was played. However, if like myself you are familiar and play D&D, it wasn't so pedantic that it was slow or annoying.

The romance itself was very sweet (and surprisingly a little spicy, thank youuuu), and I enjoyed Sadie's introspection as she figured out what she really wanted to do with her life. The "is my dream job not actually my dream job?" felt very relatable, and I loved that we got to see her do what she really loved. I think for me, while this was a well written and fun story, I wasn't so emotionally connected or invested in the two MC's or their romance, and so not bumped up to a 5 star. However, again, I really enjoyed this and had such a fun time reading.

Thank you to Penguin Random House for the ARC and letting me read this fun story early!