This was really different from the other stories I have read from Emily McIntire.

I didn't realise this was Book 3 in a series but I didn't find that it affected the story. It can be read as a standalone.

This is a age-gap forbidden romance.

It took a while to get into it but I really enjoyed it.

The narrators were really good

Beneath the Hood by Emily McIntire completely stole my heart. From the moment Jackson and Blakely’s story began, I was hooked. What I loved most was how real and emotional their journey felt—it wasn’t just a love story, it was about healing, self-worth, and finding someone who truly sees you. Blakely, with all her pressure and hidden struggles, felt so relatable, and Jackson’s quiet strength and protectiveness made me fall for him instantly. Their slow-burn romance was full of tension, tenderness, and genuine connection. I laughed, I cried, and I was cheering them on the whole way.

The narrators, Brooke Bloomingdale and Liam DiCosimo, absolutely brought these characters to life. Brooke captured Blakely’s bubbly influencer persona perfectly, while also showing her vulnerability in a way that hit me hard. Liam’s voice as Jackson was warm and steady, and he nailed the emotional moments—I could feel the pain and love in his words. Together, their chemistry was electric, and I felt like I was living the story with them, not just listening to it. Their performances made this audiobook so immersive and powerful.

Overall, this audiobook was an unforgettable experience. The story was emotional, raw, and full of heart, and the narration took it to a whole new level. I didn’t want it to end, and I know I’ll be thinking about Jackson and Blakely for a long time. If you love romance with depth, healing, and characters that stay with you, Beneath the Hood is a must-listen. Five stars without hesitation!

This took me too long to read. It was hard to get into it. With that said, I do love the mental health representation in this book. The struggles are real and have always been dismissed by society. What bothered me was the FMC and her teenage habits and behaviors. As a mother of three daughters, I get enough of it at home, ha! I was selected for the ALC and the narrators did a fabulous job. At first I couldn’t adjust to the male narrators voice but over time it grew on me. You know how somethings just don’t jive with your preferences? That’s what this was I think.

This book missed the mark with me. This breed si many trigger warnings. I think the think that got me the most was the constant disrespect.

Many thanks to Net Galley and Blackstone Publishing for an audio ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶️.5

This was not my usual cup of tea but I loved it! At first I wasn’t sure if I was going to like the FMC as she’s so young and an influencer. I typically don’t love the celebrity / influencer romances, but this was so good! Emily knows how to write perfectly flawed characters who really develop throughout the story.

The story follows Blakely, daughter of an entertainment mogul and a huge influencer herself, as she gets involved with Jackson, a specialty mechanic who restores classic cars, hired by Blakely’s dad to restore cars for an upcoming project. Somehow she ends up opening up parts of herself to Jackson she doesn’t show anyone and Jackson sees her like nobody else.

I loved how the relationship developed through the story and Jackson’s ability to be exactly what Blakely needed. Although I don’t love the third act breakup, it was necessary here particularly in Blakely’s growth through her struggles. There were a couple of portions of this story that felt a little rushed, but overall I could not put it down and finished it in one sitting! The audio is dual narrated and I thought was well done with the female voice actually sounding the appropriate age.

I love the characters and the mental health rep in this book! It's got all the tropes- secret dating, mild enemies to friends to lovers, age gap, forbidden romance. The characters are well thought out and fun to watch interact. It's a sweet (and spicy) romcom that I would totally recommend.

I loved the character journey and growth in this book. Blakely is 19 and has to navigate being a commodity as an influencer. She works through battling others opinions, panic attacks, issues with her body and food, as well as an absent father. Jackson goes from standoffish toward his boss’ princess daughter to being the only one that understands her. It’s an emotion book that battles demons, but it does it in such a beautiful way.
Thank you Netgally, the publisher, and authors for the advanced audiobook. All opinions are my own.

I enjoyed a large majority of this book. The story, the characters and the lessons. The only issue I had was that I dropped the ball and didn’t check the trigger warnings. As someone who personally has struggled with disordered eating and OCD, I had a hard time when it was described. HOWEVER— the author did the work and did a great job realistically portraying it. I could relate and that’s what made it more difficult than not. I really appreciated the story as a whole!

There’s just something about an audio book that captures you. These narrators capture Blakely and Jackson perfectly. The emotion and realness that Blake was going through tugged at my heart. The love between them was beautifully written. Can’t wait to drive into the next book in the series!

Thank you to the author, publisher, narrators and Net Galley for providing a free e-audio of this title in exchange for my review.

This one was so-so for me, and maybe it's just my age vs the book. I'm so tired of influencers, and it all just makes me feel old. The Mental Health representation was pretty well done, though, so a saving point. The romance didn't do it for me, though, so really only the Mental Health aspect was worth reading for me.
Maybe because I was listing to the audio vs reading the print version, I felt lost a lot of the time for 'is this a conversation or a thought process?' and that really took me out of the story.

2.5 stars, rounded up

“So I’ll stay in my spot. And I’ll keep coming back, so she isn’t alone. The lighthouse to her darkness, guiding her through the shallow waters.”

I was not sure how to feel about this book when I first started it. I was convinced it was gonna be a 3 stars at best but I changed my mind! This book is filled with a shit ton of issues but they were described and worded so well that I just had to go 4 stars.

This book follows Blakely. Blakey is a famous instagram influencer/model who got a career thanks to her dad being extremely famous in the Hollywood industry. She takes her job very seriously but does not get taken seriously herself. The people around her see her as “just a 19 year old girl” and presume she has no idea how to handle the real world because in their eyes she’s a kid. Everyone around her treats her the same. Resulting in Blakely feeling very lonely and misunderstood. Everyone, but one single guy. His name is Jacks.

Jacks seems like the ideal guy. He understands her problems and takes the time to listen to her and offer help the best he can. There are only two problems. First of all, he’s 28. A liiiiiittle too old for 19 year old Blakely. Second of all, he’s her dad’s employee. Neither of these things seem to stop them though. Jacks is currently heartbroken because the one girl he’s ever had feelings for, chose his best friend over him. He’s desperately looking for ways to get over her. Moving to California was one of those ways. Sleeping around with random women is another. Overall though, he is very tentative and kind hearted. I could not find a single red flag about him except his age. Age cap is not really my kind of trope and it was very upfront in this book. It got mentioned about every other chapter which got a little on my nerves.

Blakely had OCD which results in her obsessively checking what she eats, marking her calories and spending hours upon hours a day in her gym. As someone who tends to struggle with food, this was kind of hard to read sometimes. There were moments where I resonated with Blakely a lot and there were moments where I felt very triggered by things that were said and done. Blakely also had extreme panic attacks which in my opinion were written perfectly. Reading this felt very realistic. I guess it didn’t at first which is why I was hesitant on my rating. The eating thing felt very exaggerated but as I kept reading I’ve come to realize it’s not. I am so proud of Blakely for the girl she has become and I hope she’s gonna start loving life the way every human deserves to.

This book is cute, heartfelt, sweet and fluffy but also extremely heartbreaking and sad. I wanna keep these characters save forever and make sure nothing and no one harms them. Also I do recommend reading these books in the reading order provided by the author. This was the first book in this series that I read and I do think that my reading experience would have been more fun, had I read the first two books first. especially towards the end when a certain thing happened and I felt very clueless and confused because I had no idea what it was about. This series is definitely worth your time!

I want to say thank you to Emily for giving accurate OCD and anxiety representation. I have never felt so seen within a book. Emily never fails to give us well-written and emotional books, I will never pass by her books. The age-gap was realistic and not outrageous which added to the story. I was happy to hear that Jackson was trying to fix Blakely and make all her “issues” go away. I will never pass by Emily’s books.

This amazing book is book 3 in the series. It’s truly filled with emotional depth and a lot of heart. Blakey quickly became my favorite character. I loved the characters and the narrators who embody them! This book kept me hooked from start to finish! I love all the stories Emily McIntire writes and this one is no different! Thank you for the opportunity to listen to this book!!

Thanks to Blackstone Publishing for the ALC of this book! I have read other books in this series and I was excited to immerse myself in this world again. I enjoyed this book for the most part, but I did have a hard time with how young the main character is and the age gap present in their romance. That being, I was still picking up the book to read it and excited to see what happened next. I think that Emily McIntire writes great romances and I will continue to read her books in the future. The audio for this book was also very well done and easy to listen to. I would definitely recommend it!

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC of this audiobook.

I have to say that I went in to this book completely blind. I have not read the first two books in the series, but was instructed it could be read as a standalone. I want to preface this by saying that had I read the first two books, my opinions may have been different. The opinions below are from the POV of a reader who has no context for the series or the characters.

I met these two flawed characters for the first time. I felt like their relationship developed fast, but kept telling myself that they likely met and interacted in the previous books, so I couldn’t hold the pace against the author.

Jackson wants to work on cars that are featured on film and in television. He works for Blakely’s Dad. Blakely is a rising social media influencer.

My first impressions of the characters
Jackson: Still in love with his ex-best friend, seems to be drawn to women/people who could use saving. 28 years old. Has said, ex-best friend in his phone as “Sweetheart.”

Blakely: A wealthy, social media influencer at 19 years old. Constantly flirts with Jackson until Blakely’s Dad asks Jackson to keep an eye on her at her paid influencer gigs. Clearly struggles with body image issues, panic attacks, anxiety disorder and clearly has an unhealthy relationship with food. She also shows signs of OCD, but I did not see that listed in the trigger warnings.

I rated it three stars. The book has its moments, but I found that there were times when I would zone out because it failed to keep my attention. In the majority of the book, the FMC is trying to prove that she isn’t aloof and naive just because of her age and then during the third act b/u, she showed her age. I felt like Jackson not realizing that he is trauma bonding women was a missed growing opportunity for him.

Tropes:
-Age gap
-Trauma bonding
-Character building narrative more than plot focused

Published March 18, 2025
Trigger Warning: OCD, Disordered Eating, Anxiety, Mental Health, Parental loss, PTSD, panic attacks

Beneath the Hood by Emily McIntire was so emotional, raw and beautiful. This is the third book in the Sugarlake series, but it is also an interconnected standalone book. This book stole my heart, Emily really knows how to write about love. I love Blakely and Jackson. Blakely is so relatable with her struggles, she puts a mask on so others think she is perfection and has no problems. She is a social media influence and her father wants her to get serious about life, so she has to work in his shop where Jackson works. Jackson was friend zoned by his long time best friend so he ran to Sugarlake to live out his father’s dream of building cars for movies. This is where Jackson falls for Blakely, who really knows how to push his buttons especially with the age gap between them Blakely being nineteen and Jackson being twenty-eight.
Emily really knows how to portray mental health issues in a book. It was raw and real adding so much to this book. The angst between Blakely and Jackson is wild, both think they aren’t good enough, yet they would do anything and everything for those they love, even if it means they will break their own heart in the process. I really hope there is a book 4 in thus series because I need to know what happens next I can’t take it with cliff hangers. But I loved this book and couldn’t stop listening to it.

Thank you Netgalley and Blackstone Publishing for the ALC audiobook. This review is voluntary and all my own words.

Emily McIntire’s Beneath the Hood is one of the best ALCs I have ever received. Beneath The Hood is book three and an interconnected standalone book in the Sugarlake series. There is no way Beneath the Hood won’t steal your heart and remind you what true love is really about. This book isn’t just a spicy rom-com, although it has its moments of hilarity. But there is so much depth to this book that isn’t always found in a romance novel. When you think of the age of the two MCs, 19 and 28, it makes the heavy subject matter all the more intense that these two deal with throughout the book. Loss of parent, mental health issues, and eating disorders, only to name a few. As with any McIntire book there is lots and lots of good spice to be had. This is an age gap trope but it’s not a dirty age gap trope, if you get my drift.

The narration by Brooke Bloomingdale and Liam DiCossimo was EXCELLENT! In dual narration I prefer the female to speak all female parts throughout, etc. instead of during the MMC’s chapter, he speaks even the FMC’s part. But in Beneath the Hood I didn’t notice that lack of shift, which I was grateful for as it didn’t pull me out of the story. Full of angst and grief, Bloomingdale’s was able to keep the FMC 19 without making her a child. DiCossimo kept the MMC a caring, warm 28 year old without becoming demanding and domineering.

A beautifully done narration of a book with seriously important topics to discuss.

I received an ALC of #beneaththehood from #netgalley in lieu of my honest opinion of the book and its narration.

Emily McIntyre is an absolute goddess. I don't think that there is anything she could write that I wouldn't read. Just like its predecessors, this book was a slow burn to happily ever after that left the reader wanting more.

I am going to wait to post a social media post because I want to do something for the entire series.

Complete honesty, I was not a fan of book 2 in the series so I went in cautiously optimistic that this one would be better, or at least not as bad as the previous one. I gave the author another try and I have to say this one was better, not great, but still an improvement. 3⭐s is being generous

In the book we meet Jax, a recurring character on the first two books in the series, who works restoring cars for movie sets. Now if you didn't read the first book in series, it will be kind of difficult to understand his relationships with the characters in his hometown. We get snippets here and there of his life and his past trauma, but it does not dive in his issues as if you were meeting the character for the first time, thus making it harder to connect with the character as a whole. Blakely is a wealthy socialite and social media influencer, who nobody seems to take seriously.

Jax (28) is tasked, by his boss, to follow around his daughter, Blake (19) and keep her out of trouble. While I normally don't have an issue with most age gaps, it made me feel some type of way that they kept calling her a "child" or "kid". Just.... no.

Jax seems to think of Blake as a thorn on his side, just annoying and in his way, when all of a sudden he finds her irresistible and can't seem to stay away, though they don't try very hard. I wish there were more of a build up to their relationship, more chemistry, instead of a light switch they just magically seem to find on a random day.

I like how the author handled Blakely's undiagnosed OCD and eating disorder. I know it is a delicate subject to broach but she did a good job describing Blakely's daily struggles and triggers. We see Jax being so caring and patient with her when she has her panic attacks. It was good to see how significant others handle their loved ones with such compassion during difficult times. Now if real life mental health issues don't just resolve themselves in 30 days in rehab, like in the book, but we do see her making a conscious effort and putting in the work.

The last quarter could have been written a little better. Jax calls Blake out on her issues, she leaves very upset and then encounters her father who gives her an ultimatum, stay with Jax or save his job. Knowing how important it is to Jax that he fulfill his father's dream, Blake decides to make it seem as if she has moved on from him. He didn't even fight for her, or try to COMMUNICATE! He just packs up his things and goes back to his hometown, all the while she's in rehab. He takes no responsibility for his words or actions and has the nerve to tell blake "I forget how young you are" insinuating that Blake and her age have been the issue all along. He then tells her than he doesn't know if he can forgive her all the while never apologizing himself for the hurtful things he said to her.

Be sure to check for trigger warnings as there are quiet a few in this book.

*Thank you Netgalley and Blackstone Publishing for the ALC in exchange for my honest review.

Okay every time I close an Emily book it’s like my brains wipes out how much I love her writing!

How she immediately sucks me in and I feel for the mc’s. This book is absolutely no different. I loved both Blakey and Jackson.

This was my first of the Sugarlake series so I obviously have some others to read but if this is how they all are easily sold.

I devoured it in like 6 hours. I felt such a connection to Blakey, her issues. Wow Emily just wow. Thank you for the mental health representation. I cried of course, I laughed and I swooned.

And let’s not forget the spice. Phew is it hot in here? Nope it’s just the spicy parts. *fans self off*

Now for the nitty gritty:

I enjoyed the audiobook, the narrator for Blakely really nailed it. The emotional part were great, the part that made you giddy all of it I felt it right along with.

The narrator for Jax- well I enjoyed it but the accent was a bit rough to listen to. Because of the accent I was pulled out of the story a bit but it was easy enough to get back in.

Overall if you are an audiobook listener and a fan of the series, I’d recommend.

Thank you Emily McIntire and Blackstone publishing for the ALC in exchange for an honest review.