*Thank you to NetGalley, The Book Guild, And Miranda Seymour and J-P Jones for this Digital Arc Copy*

Okay so, I’ll start by saying I really, truly wanted to love this book. It had the premise of being a possible favourite of mine, however it unfortunately let me down.

At the start of the book, it was feeling repetitive. I felt as if I were reading the same thing over and over and the book didn’t seem to be going anywhere. It got to a point where Alex was going on about her ex so much that I said out loud “Omg…him again?!” I wanted to go into the book and physically shake her for idealising such a mediocre, toxic, lowkey abusive man. (I understand why this was done but I felt like I was reading about him in every chapter.)

In the middle, we meet Ryan and Sir John. Now, if you had told me that out of those two characters I would end up loving the grumpy old Tory, I would’ve laughed in your face. However, Sir John seemed to be the best part about the whole book; he was funny, straight to the point and had a great relationship with Alex. Now, when it comes to Ryan, he unfortunately felt very one dimensional to me. It’s as if he were an after thought. Every time we almost learned something else about him other than architecture, Alex would start talking about herself again. It felt like there was no connection between the two…(she called him her boyfriend at one point and I genuinely had to skip back in the book to see if I had missed something, but we just never got to see their relationship evolve.) And she was STILL going on about her ex even during moments when an ex should never be thought about (if you know, you know).

At the end of the book, I was so fed up with Alex’s lies. There was just no need for some of them. Like, Adam being on the Westend for example….Why? Just why? I also didn’t like how we never actually got to read anything that Alex had written about Sir John. The man seemed to have lived so many lives and we only got to hear about a small portion of it because Alex was too busy lying to anyone and everyone. At the end of the book, I actually really hoped that Ryan didn’t go back to Alex, because for the life of me I could not see how you could get past everything that she had done. But hey, maybe I’m just too cynical.

All in all, it was an okay, quick read but I don’t think it was for me.

Reading Dear Alex felt like stepping into an emotional time capsule, where each letter carried the raw weight of hope, heartbreak, and connection. I found myself reflecting on my own relationships and the unspoken words I’ve wished to share. The way Miranda Seymour and J-P Jones crafted these letters is both tender and real, drawing me into the lives of the characters as if they were close friends. It was a journey through vulnerability and the beauty of reaching out, even when it’s messy. This is one of those rare reads that sits with you, making you think about the power of a single letter to change everything.

3 Stars

I really thought I was going to love this romcom. The summary sounded interesting and it was going to be my first “dating with different identities” plot. Unfortunately this just fell a little flat for me. I struggled to bond with the characters as I was reading; there was character development, but not enough that I was really drawn in to rooting for them to get together. I tended to agree with the family and friends who constantly told Alex to just tell the truth. After a while her whining about the lie just became annoying. I really wish we had gotten more background and growth from Ryan, I think I could have really grown to love his character if we had more background on him.

Now I would have LOVED more of the story to show us the dynamic between Alex and Sir John. Their growing friendship was great to follow and I wish we had gotten more of it.

I liked the premise, and the character growth, but the characters just felt too two dimensional and boring for me to really invest.

Thank you to Netgalley and The Book Guild for the ARC in exchange for my honesty review.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!

I loved the idea of this book when I read the summary but it kind of fell flat for me. Don’t get me wrong, I love a good romcom and dating under false identities. But….I agreed with everyone in Alex’s life. Just come clean already. And Ryan was fine, your typical nice guy MMC in a romcom. But I don’t know much of anything about him because we never dived deep into who he is. It was a quick read but I did find myself needing to actually think like ‘okay you need to sit down and read this now’ and not my usual excited to read and can’t put the book down. Despite that there was some good character development it just all felt flat and short for me. 3 stars ⭐️

My first read by this author but not going to be my last. Picked this on a whim because it sounded good. And I did enjoy it from start to end.

this one was really cute! she FMC is kind of a hot mess but in a cute way and I really liked her even though she made some obvious mistakes lol. The connection between her and Ryan was really sweet and I was on the edge of my seat waiting for her to finally come clean so they can just be together!

Thank you for the opportunity to read this book. I did enjoy a break from the typical romance books I had been reading. This book offered a wide variety of relationships with the main character, all of which helped her develop throughout the story albeit minor and late in the book. I found the beginning a touch slow and hard to get hooked but once Alex began to connect with Sir John and help him on his journey I became a little more invested, The use of her articles was a unique way to give insight into her character and personality as well. As a Canadian it some times took me a moment to sort out some of the British slang and what it meant but it came together in the end. I would recommend this book to readers who like books that don’t solely revolve around a romantic relationships or have a soft spot for old curmudgeons like me.

I'm gonna start this by saying that three stars feels too little, but four feels too much so I guess this one actually lands on 3.5.

Now this book took me three days to finish, which is the main reason why it's getting a lower rating. I'm not sure if it's a reading slump, the predictable plot or me not being that interested in a single character but I did not get that "omg I wanna get back to reading" feeling and actually had to force myself to sit down and devote time to this.

I will say though, it was written very well! I really liked the phrasing, the banter, the way characters stayed separate and didn't melt into one general description. The plot didn't drag on too much and the dual storyline kept it more fresh. That is probably what kept me reading to be honest.

But like I mentioned before, the characters were just kind of.. meh. The FMC is in desperate need for money but ends up in an overpriced cafe on every walk? The old man is grumpy, the love interest is shy, the maid is kind, the roommate is a manwh*re.. All felt very stereotypical in a sense and I simply didn't care for any of them. That emotional separation made me not root for the storyline and made the overall experience a bit more meh than I would've wanted.

But seeing as I really did enjoy the writing style, I will still be on the lookout for more works from this/these authors. Sadly this particular one just didn't hit the spot.

Thank you to Netgalley for providing this advanced copy in exchange for an honest review!

Struggled with this book. It dragged on and on. Was pretty boring. Maybe because of that ghost writing bit,maybe something else was at fault. Liked the ending though.

The premise of this looked fun and original and it was that.
Down on her luck with her own writing career plans. Alex agrees to write as an agony Uncle instead. There she comes across Ryan. And her helping him swings and turns into so much more. For both of them. But Alex isn't telling the truth. And so can their relationship heal from being built on a lie.
I loved the building of personality and relationships. Both together and apart Alex and Ryan had things to work on. Their growing bond was really sweet,witty and fun. I really liked them together.
Alex as a character helped iron out some real life clichés and tropes which I think was clever.
This was a good book. A bit more humorous than my previous choices so that was nice.

Alex, struggling with multiple jobs in London, lands a role writing an online advice column for a men's magazine, where she gives relationship advice to Ryan that leads to unexpected complications. As the two grow closer, Alex conceals her true identity as his "agony uncle," but their romance is built on a lie. Simultaneously, Alex is ghostwriting the biography of a retired MP with his own secrets, and as her life spirals, she must figure out how to fix both his and her own unraveling world.

This RomCom had me laughing at loud at the banter and tearing up at certain points. This book just HIT for me. The characters were very well developed and I was completely invested in the story. I could not get enough of Alex’s relationships with Ryan, Adam , and Sir John. I would highly recommend this quick, fun read! My only note is that I want MORE of Ryan & Alex!

I received a complimentary copy from the publisher and all opinions expressed are mine.

This was an interesting premise. It follows Alex who lives paycheck to paycheck until she gets a job as an agony uncle. Her advice doesn’t go well for Ryan and by trying to fix it sparks fly. Interesting premise and would be a huge hit for fans of slow burn.

This was a sweet read! Alex is quite the writer and liar. Ryan is such a a sweet architect. I felt like there were some holes in the story and quite a few time jumps.

I'm happy👍🏽 that despite the start, there was definitely character development💫 throughout the book. With Alex's situation with the men’s advice emails💻. I couldn’t help but feel frustrated😤 at how she forgot that she’s supposed to be a man🥸. Like, dudes are messaging other guys for advice, not some woman coming in and giving the same advice their girlfriends would💥🗣️. There’s also this whole thing with Alex complaining about how girls have to put up with guys having best girlfriends. It didn’t sit right with me because not all guys are like that, and girls have done it too😕. But then, as I read on, Adam basically said what I was thinking, and I could see that this was a problem that would be explored🗻 and overcome 🏁.

I liked how Alex and Adam came together🤜🏻🤛🏻 to rewrite the emails. That moment felt genuine✨, and I could see them working as a team. I also have to respect Alex for doing her research💯—props to her for taking it seriously. Though I would have liked it if they stay led writing the emails togrther.

I didn’t feel any connection💫 between Alex and Ryan. Maybe it’s just me, but it didn’t feel like there was enough to really pull me in.

Lastly, the letters. I wish we’d seen more of Alex’s letters📃 throughout the book. If we could’ve had one every chapter, it would’ve added more depth and made it feel less like the emails were just randomly thrown in. Right now, they don’t feel as integrated into the story as they could’ve been.😔

Thanks Netgalley for the ARC 👏🏻 💝⭐

thank you to the publisher and netgalley for the e-arc!!

uhhh okay where do i start with this. i liked the premise of dating under false identities, but sometimes i feel like it should stay in the fanfic zone and not in books because this didn't work for me. perhaps it was the length of it, but i didn't connect with any of the characters.

Alex is just a full blown liar digging a bigger and bigger hole for herself and i totally get everyone around her telling her to just come clean. i liked Ryan as a character as well, but he didn't feel particularly developed, he was just a really nice guy who loves architecture. that is all i know about him. i had no idea how long they were even together when suddenly the truth is out and wham i am hit over the head that the lie has gone on for.... THREE MONTHS. i'm pretty sure Ryan spent a bulk of that overseas, and they are already in love?? absolutely no frigging way.

also, Ryan forgives her way too easily. Alex shohld have grovelled more. blueprints to a chapel for his birthday should not do the trick, no matter how much of an architecture nerd he is. but still, the overall story is cute, though i can't shake the feeling that i've seen all this before.

i am more interested about the plot of Sir John and his daughter Ophelia, but it is a very B story kind of plot. Alex's ghostwriting is very quickly sidelined and i think we read more of her writing on reptiles than Sir John's autobiography. we barely see any of this plot and i wanted more!! or better yet, make this the A story. please, it would fix this book.

Bea, Adam, Emma and Javier are also very interesting characters. unfortunately they got downgraded to wither Alex-supporter or Ryan-supporter. i needed more!!

those last three words are basically how i felt about this book.

Margo has Money Troubles meets a Dear Abby-esque columnist

Alex is a down on her luck freelance writer who is in desperate need of money and in a late night haze comes across a job listing for 'Agony Uncle' an anonymous advice column for men and applies. With the help of her cousin Alex secures the job and chats with Ryan who needs some confidence when it comes to dating. Alex takes it upon herself to boost his confidence in real by pretending to be someone else. What started as an innocent plot to her a stranger turns into 1, 2 and many more dates.







This book was good, but I didn't connect with the romance or even really like Alex. I feel like Alex and Ryan met too soon and there was a lot of implied through the characters in person conversation that Ryan and Agony Alex exchanged a ton of communication about Alex's alter ego. I did enjoy the story line with Sir John, but I wished Alex's passion for writing was seen more like how is the book coming along. It was a lot of telling rather than showing that caused parts of it to drag on for too long. I think had this not been marketed as a romance and rather a literary fiction expectations would have been appropriately met.

Thank you to NetGalley and The Book Guild for an Arc of this book in exchange for a review.

I found this one really difficult to get into and can't remember what happened however. I can see others enjoying this. It is just too slow paced for what I personally enjoy.

I unfortunately dnf'd this one two chapters in. There were so many words - it was a wordy book for no reason! The dialogue was painfully cringe and hard to follow. Ugh. I had high hopes for this one but it read like a messy debut novel!

Thank you net gallery for the opportunity to review Dear Alex

My pre thoughts:
Opposites attract romance book

Post thoughts:
This is a lovely quick read romance novel.

The Relationship between the FMC and the MMC develops though the novel, with memorable side characters integrated in to the story line. It did take me a little while to become invested in the characters, once about 1/4 way though it was quote a breezy read.

Sir John is iconic and is a great grandfather figure for Alex.

Overall this book was a great rom-com read.

3.5 stars

This was another quick and cute little romance novel!

The writing style is super easy and helps to make it feel like the book is flying by (I know that's such a random thing and such a personal preferences, but I really do think it makes all the difference in the reading experience).

The characters were relatable, but they felt a bit two-dimensional to me, despite making the kinds of references that should make them feel real to me, they didn't feel totally real. The characters were funny and that is always so important to me. I like to have a little giggle moment when reading a romance, I think it should be a requirement! So yay for that!

I just wish there was a little more oomph. I wish we got a little more with the characters, giving them more depth and making them feel like real people (but that could be a personal thing, others might read this book and not share that same sentiment).

Thanks to NetGalley for the e-ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review! My Goodreads review is up and my TikTok (Zoe_LIpman) review will be up at the end of the month with my monthly reading wrap-up.