Emotional whirlwind of a romance!

Swooning doesn't even begin to cover it. This book had me feeling all sorts of things, and I was obsessed with it. Super enjoyable and very easy to read.

This book was something else. It was fun, and it felt like the perfect summer-romance read! I will say the pacing was a little all over the place. There were places that read really smooth, but there were a handful of times were the story seemed to drag. Pacing at the beginning was the most chaotic in my opinion. I felt it really smoothed out towards the end. Now for the good stuff... the ROMANCE! I loved it...probably more than I should have. Did it have it flaws? Yes. But overall, especially by the end, I didn't care. I was just so in awe of the passion and intensity of the love story. Jack is book boyfriend of the month! The spice was also giving! (would've loved a little more intensity, but overall it was decently good). The confessions and the use of past and present was just a masterpiece to me.

Overall, this book had a few lows for me, but in the end I was obsessed with the energy this book was giving. The romance, the FMC, the MMC, just everything was great and enjoyable! Totally would recommend this book to anyone looking for a quirky, fun summer romance!

I would like to thank the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this e-ARC in exchange for my honest opinion. All thoughts and feelings are my own.

Rating: 4.7/5

Despite DNFing this one around the 50% mark, I’m rating this one a 4 because it was a me problem and not a book problem. I had to put this one down, not because the writing was lacking, but because I struggled to connect with the characters and their dynamic. The setup is great: a fake PR romance between former co-stars reunited after thirteen years, complete with unresolved tension and a documentary crew following their every move. There’s a lot here that fans of second chance romance, enemies-to-lovers, and behind-the-scenes drama will enjoy.

In hindsight, I didn’t realize this was a companion to Under Your Spell, which follows the same friend group. That’s likely part of why I had a hard time engaging with Cynthie and Jack—I was missing some of the emotional context from the start. That’s entirely on me, and I plan to circle back and read Under Your Spell first. I’m confident that with that background, my experience with this book will improve and I’ll connect more with the characters and their journey.

This wasn’t the right fit for me right now, but Laura Wood’s writing is strong, the concept is fun, and I do think this will hit the mark for many romance readers—especially those familiar with the first book.

Loved loved loved this book! I loved the characters, setting & plot! I enjoyed the two timelines. Can’t wait to read more from this author!!! Thank you!!

In this companion novel to Under Your Spell follows Theo’s best friend Cynthie as she is forced to make a movie with her arch nemesis, Jack Turner-Jones - and pretend to date him for publicity.

Thoughts: This book is so fun! I love a Hollywood romance with behind the scenes of filmmaking, plus there are a bunch of other tropes that I love. Written in a dual timeline format, the storyline gives readers insight into the characters’ history and a depth to the romance. There is a great balance of romance, chemistry, humor, and tension. I didn’t love it quite as much as Under Your Spell - it was missing the magical realism charm from that book. But still so good and so fun!

Read this if you like:
🎥 Hollywood romance
🎥 second chance romance
🎥 fake dating
🎥 enemies to lovers
🎥 dual timelines

This was a great read. I read this without having read the first book - which is fine as they are loosely related - but it made me want to go back and read more of Wood’s work. I liked all of the characters and the dual timelines worked well. Normally I get annoyed when two adults won’t just talk to each other to reveal their feelings but it worked in this case as they were so young in the first timeline and their motivations were made so clear. I liked seeing their growth between the timelines but it was clear they were the same people, which I think demonstrates how good of a job this author does.

Let's Make A Scene was such a pleasant surprise! I'm usually skeptical about dual timeline romances but this one was great. The author does a great job with the setting and it was so interesting watching the two characters fall in love in that type of atmosphere and then get to watch them reconnect. The book just does a good job of drawing you in and you really feel like you're on set with the characters, which is what makes it so fun. There's a sense of youth and excitement when they're young adults starring on their first film together and the side characters really help set up a sense of family. I wish we went a little more in detail about the fmc's past and her parents but I do think what we know allowed us to make sense of why she was so hesitant to do certain things and why she was afraid of genuine commitment. I would definitely recommend this to someone looking for a light, romance that brings something new!

Well I had the time of my life reading this rom com! (iykyk)

I don't usually like enemies to lovers, or fake dating, or Hollywood romances, but this book was the exception! Mostly it was due to the genuine, relatable and humble FMC Cynthie, one of my new favourite romantic leads!
LET'S MAKE A SCENE is centered around a cold-case romance, which bloomed 13 years ago and then blossoms in the present, stimulated by a fan-initiated campaign for a sequel (so on trend),

Thank you Atria Books and NetGalley for the digital review copy.

I didn’t realize this was a companion book when I started it but nonetheless I was able to enjoy it! My favorite trope of enemies to lovers is hard to resist. The movie plot of this story was a delight as I’m an avid cinephile. I truly think this is going to be the perfect summer romance for readers to throw in their beach bag. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for my ARC.

The celebrity romance trope is one of my absolute favorites, and Let’s Make a Scene totally delivered! I loved Cynthie and Jack. They had such great chemistry and tension. I usually don’t love flashback scenes, but the ones in this book were so well done and actually added to the story in a really fun way. The push and pull between them felt real, and I was just as invested in their personal growth as I was in their romance. An easy 5-star summer read that I’ll definitely pick up again!

i loved this book! felt real and towards the end i was sad it was gonna be ending so soon. havent read the first in the series but will definitely go back and do so!

Second chance romances are some of my favorites, so I was curious about this one. I only realized later that it was actually a sequel, but that didn’t affect how much I enjoyed it. The story had a great balance of humor and emotion — there were parts that made me laugh out loud and others that really pulled at my heart.

I liked seeing the characters get another opportunity to work through their past and find love again. The way the story unfolded felt natural, and the chemistry between the characters was believable. It wasn’t just about romance — there were moments that made me feel swept up in the emotions and the ups and downs of their journey.

Even without reading the first book, I was able to follow along and stay engaged. The writing was smooth and kept me interested throughout. This book gave me a good mix of lighthearted fun and meaningful moments, which is exactly what I look for in a second chance romance.

Simply put, it was fine, but it did not rekindle the spark I had when reading Under Your Spell, which was magical.

Not the book for me. Too slow of a burn and too much back forth. I didn’t read the first one but think they are more stand alone books.

4.5 Stars I knew that I was going to love Let's Make a Scene after Under Your Spell was one of my favorite reads last year! Just like Laura Wood's debut novel, Let's Make a Scene is utterly charming and will have you in its thrall the entire time you're reading.

Over a decade since actress Cynthie Taylor's first movie debuted and she faked a romance with her costar, she's being pulled right back to where she started. A sequel to the movie and another PR relationship with her rival--Jack Turner-Jones. The son of two of Hollywood's elite stars, Jack is arrogant and annoyingly handsome. Though sometime in the last 13 years, he seems to have settled into himself and Cynthie is surprised to find that her real feelings for Jack haven't gone away after all this time. Not just the annoyance or "hate" but the actual romantic feelings. Having been recently burned romantically and picked apart by the press, Cynthie needs some good PR. So a fake relationship with Jack can't hurt, right?

The alternate story lines (plus the movie storyline) in this were so good! Sometimes going back and forth between past and present drives me crazy, but it worked so well in this one. And I'm so glad it was dual POV because we needed Jack's POV to see how he didn't really hate Cynthie, he was just aggravated by his feelings for her. The chemistry and banter between Cynthie and Jack were on point. The author did a spectacular job building up who these characters and showing how they had and hadn't changed over 13 years apart. There was just something so addictive about this book that I couldn't put it down!

Also, does anyone else wish that we had A Lady of Quality movie in real life? Cause it sounds amazing!

Thank you Laura Woods and Atria for the ARC! Let's Make a Scene releases July 1st!

4.5 stars. I really loved this book. Both characters grew differently in their 13 years apart and came back more mature and ready to handle their feelings with each other. I loved the found family with Cynthie and her friends as well. Half-star off because I felt the flashbacks interspersed throughout were unnecessary and messed with the pacing. The book could have been done just as well in chronological order. Also, there’s a banger love letter and a very sweet grand gesture. Bless this book for getting me out of a reading slump.

Thank you so much to Atria and NetGalley for the ARC!!

Let's Make a Scene drew me in from the description because I love reading celebrity romances.

This one takes place in "Then" and "Now" timelines with Cynthie and Jack at the start of their careers and then reuniting for a follow up movie thirteen years later. Cynthie is a young actress who is cast last minute for a film opposite Jack, who has grown up in the film industry with two A list actors as parents. Their on screen chemistry is magnificent but off screen they despise each other.

Structurally the "Then" chapters dominated the first half while the "Now" chapters dominated the second. While this somewhat makes sense, the majority of the past timeline is spent with these characters bickering incessantly. It became so annoyingly unpleasant that I had trouble picking the book up until I reached the 50% mark.

The characters experience big changes in maturity as they are in their 30's in the present day timeline and it was much more enjoyable to read. Yes, they have baggage but they also leave openings for each other as a relationship develops. Unfortunately having to suffer through the constant fighting in the first half with little reprieve left a bad impression for me.

This book felt very long. In some ways it had to be in order to develop these enemies to lovers characters enough to come together at the end, but in other ways I felt like certain scenes or plot points were dragged out. Overall this book missed the mark for me.

3.5 stars
If you love serious enemies-to-lovers romances, this is one you need to read. This story starts off innocuously, and then things explode, and we witness a serious hate between two people for much of the book.

This was adorable. I loved the entire premise of the book, the dual timeline, the fake dating, and the almost second chance romance.

Cynthie and Jack have such great chemistry and I loved seeing how their relationship grew and evolved over the course of the story. The found family aspect was precious and the heavier aspects of the book were dealt with well without overwhelming the book. Super cute, quick and fun read. Thank you so much to the publisher and NetGalley for the eARC - all opinions are my own!

I wanted to love this. and I tried...but I DNF'd at 15%. I'm generally all for an enemies-to-lovers trope, especially with fake dating. But, I found myself putting it down... and then not feeling the urge to pick it back up. The spark between the characters felt more referenced than felt. I couldn’t connect with Cynthie, whatsoever.

There’s definitely a great premise here, and I know a lot of readers will enjoy the celebrity drama and second-chance tension. But for me, it was missing the magic that makes these tropes sing. I finally had to admit defeat and DNF.

Maybe it's a “me not the book” situation, but I’m tapping out with no hard feelings and moving on to something that grabs my attention.

Thank you NetGalley and Atria Books for an ARC of Let’s Make a Scene, the second book in Laura Wood’s Theo and Cynthie series. I have not read the first book in the series but when I read the blurb about what this book was about, I thought it sounded interesting and was looking forward to reading it.

Thirteen years ago, Cynthie and Jack made a movie together. During the movie, they had an explosive relationship, as they say, there is a fine line between love and hate. Both had confusing feelings for the other but thought the other hated them. After an awkward situation which led to an even worse confrontation, they stopped speaking to each other. Now, 13 years later, Cynthie is in the middle of a media nightmare and needs some good publicity. She has been asked to do a sequel to the movie she made with Jack and has been once again asked to fake a relationship with Jack. The book switches off between different times telling the current story as well as what happened in the past that put them into the situation they are currently in. It also is told from both Jack and Cynthie’s points of view.

I’m not going to lie, it took me a VERY long time to get through this book and I am not sure why. I’m not sure if it was because I wasn’t interested in the book, I just had so much going on that I couldn’t focus enough to sit down and read, or it was something else. The one thing I do know is that I didn’t finish the last 2 books I read and I was determined to finish this one and I am glad I did. I liked the chemistry between Jack and Cynthie once I was actually into the book and the push and pull of their relationship. I loved the family that Cynthie made with her crew since she didn’t have a family of her own. Due to my inability to get into it for whatever reason, I am giving it 3 stars.