Oh wow, Laura Wood’s romcoms are criminally underrated! I was so pleasantly surprised by last year’s rom com Under Your Spell, so when Atria offered me a free arc I immediately snatched it up!

And Let’s Make a Scene was everything I wanted and more!

This is a second-chance enemies-to-lovers-back-to-enemies-to-lovers celebrity romance with fake dating – and honestly, each one of those tropes (which are some of my favorite) are executed flawlessly.

It’s in the same universe as Under Your Spell but absolutely can be read as a standalone.

I’m not going to bother telling you the plot, because the plot did not sell me on the book. It’s the writing. I was literally LAUGHING OUT LOUD, chuckling and chortling to myself while reading this on the train and by the pool on my recent trip to Italy. Then I was gasping and groaning out loud, as well as kicking my feet and giggling.

If you love Emily Henry and Abby Jimenez romcoms, you’ve got to pick this one up. It’s genuinely funny, but also the TENSION is absolute perfection. There’s also fantastic character growth that we see the characters go through, a journey of healing and self-discovery.

All the stars for Let’s Make a Scene! It publishes July 1st and would make the perfect vacation/beach read.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice: 🌶️🌶️🌶️
Tropes:
* Fake dating
* Second chance romance
* Divorce and betrayal
* Found family
* Romance on set of a Regency movie (I just kept picturing Jack in Anthony Bridgerton’s costume and his smolder while on horseback! 🫠)

Thank you to NetGalley, Laura Wood , and Atria Books for the eARC in exchange for my honest review!
I truly enjoyed this book and read it within a day! This was a wonderful follow-up to her adult debut “Under Your Spell”. I was happy to see Theo and Clemmie again!

I love dual POV books, and this one was a good one! I also like how it’s broken up in the present and then moments in the past. I like how the past scenes mirror what then happens in present scenes. Especially as they show how they both have changed, how they’ve matured and both are trying to make things work this time around. They work to fix the mistakes of miscommunication and mistrust that they had done before.

Their banter and fighting back and forth in the past is fun to read, even though I wish they would both stop with the interjections from her and the defensiveness from him! His doubts about her were cruel, and he should have just apologized…but he let his ego AND attraction to her get in the way of that. He likes em feisty, but she clearly doesn’t like how riled up he makes her.

The karaoke scene was such a sultry, fun one. I liked that they both surprise each other, because they both always judge each other so poorly and it gives them a chance to see more that’s there than they thought.

Their first time together was a powder keg of frustration, just waiting to be lit and bursted wayyy too fast the first time they hook up. 🔥

But I like Jack way better when he’s letting things stay simmering, giving her what she wants with subtlety and teasing and kindness in his advances towards her. Present Jack has matured, and he’s kind and seems to want to start fresh by being better to Cynthie. I especially liked when he calmed her down so quickly from her panic attacks.

I loved the scene of her meeting his family, and the steamy chapter that occurs after! He’s so head-over-heels for her as she continued to volley back and forth against his parents’ criticism. He’s grateful for her. She now sees what he’s gone through and isn’t judging him so poorly. 84% in and we get to see in much more vivid detail how good they can be if they take things slower, and it was sooo satisfying 🔥

I like that afterwards, Cynthie lets Jack speak. It gives her the clarity she’s always needed. HE’S PERFECT and careful and patient and supportive. And he gives her the space and time to express and understand her own feelings. It’s all that she needs considering how badly things have affected her with Shawn. I think Jack is my new book bf 😍

The ending film montage of their love story brought me to tears! I could picture it all. So heartfelt and sincere to really show Cynthie it’s always been real for them both. One of the most romantic endings I’ve ever read. An amazing grand gesture created by all those that love her. 🥹

When Cynthie gets her first big acting job, there's one issue: Her costar seemingly hates her and wants her fired. Cue the miscommunication, a "let's bang it out and fake date for the publicity" type deal, and then they never speak to each other again. Thirteen years and a cult following later, their Pride & Prejudice-esque movie gets a sequel... and they have to fake date all over again.

Miscommunication is my least favorite trope every single time. I hate it. Blame my Bachelor's in Communication. I didn't realize this was a companion until I saw it listed as such on Goodreads. It didn't' rely too heavily in plot points on the other book, but there were vauge references.

I liked it. It was cute. Will I remember the plot a month from now when I do my June reading wrap up on Instagram? Who knows.

Thanks, NetGalley!

as a fan of second chance romance, stories that take place in the entertainment industry, and years of romance and yearning that could only be pulled off by secretly in love rivals-to-lovers, i had a feeling i would enjoy this book, and i am very glad to have taken the time to read it and be proven correct. cynthie and jack oozed chemistry from their very first scene together. even though so many misunderstandings and misinterpretations kept them apart, it was obvious even while reading flashbacks of them fighting with each other that they both desperately wanted the other to confess feelings so they could reveal that they shared the same sentiment. while that doesn't happen until 80% of the book is over, it was delightful to read their journey.

the dual timeline seemed a bit experimental, but overall, i think it accomplished what it set out to do: to add context to cynthie and jack's relationship in the past so that their actions in the present make sense, and their growth very clear. although i personally would have wanted to see more about what caused this change in jack because he's so much more different in the present from his past, i did appreciate the way the author made clear that the reason those characters didn't work 13 years ago is because they were both dealing with their own issues that made them misinterpret everything. the fact that jack was so concerned about winning his parents' approval when he was 24, and never becoming a huge film star in the end because he started choosing more fun projects he genuinely enjoyed working on, juxtaposed with cyn becoming a world renowned actress who needs to remember how much she enjoyed the craft was a fantastic contrast. i genuinely enjoyed the back and forth between these characters, and even though i do wish there was more on the changes jack endured, i had a blast getting to know them and watch them re-enter each other's lives and irrevocably fall in love.

cynthie and jack were adorable, but my favorite aspect of this book was actually the incredible cast of secondary characters. the book stated multiple times that the film these two worked on is what catapulted their film and tv career and set them on course to have the success they have 13 years later, but the other reason that film meant everything to them is because it set them up with their team and their close friends. a found family indeed. hannah, cyn's stylists, their directors, their assistants and ADs all played a role in cyn and jack's love story, and i loved that retrospective film at the end with their past and present thoughts watching these two fools in denial dance around each other. i also like the point the book made with shawn. that plot point was being set up from the beginning in the midst of this romance, and though i stopped expecting it to be expanded upon by the time brooke wanted to speak to cyn about it, i'm glad it went there. it was also a great explanation for why cyn feels the way she does, and her emotions leaped off the page so vividly, her hesitation with jack made perfect sense. i think some of the dialogue focusing on directors who take advantage of young actresses and abuse their power came across as a bit preachy at times, but i cannot think of a better way the author could have expressed those views than having jack and cyn's cast and crew explain to her that she was taken advantage of. this conversation mostly entirely existed via dialogue and it wasn't random, as it was fueling cynthie's panic attacks, so they fit seamlessly into the story. i also liked seeing cyn slowly recover her voice, and the emphasis on mental health was a fantastic touch.

overall this was a very fun novel touching on romantic tension, banter, yearning, and some serious industry themes. i love the idea that your background and experiences can cloud your judgment and cause you to misinterpret so many scenes and miss out on a relationship for 13 years, but also be what allows you to grow and become the person you were meant to be. there's a moment where cynthie laments on the time wasted, but jack comments that they needed that time apart to grow into their own, and that the versions of themselves from the past would never have worked together, and i think the author did a fantastic job demonstrating this. timing is everything, and brings about a change of perspective. that glimpse of these two in the epilogue, truly in love and content, was all the payoff i needed, and i felt so satisfied reading this book.

thank you to netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read an ARC. i truly enjoyed it.

3.75 stars/5

Just finished Let’s Make a Scene by Laura Wood and honestly, I loved it! It’s such a fun, feel-good rom-com. The story follows Cynthie, an actress trying to make it big, who ends up fake-dating her co-star Jack for a documentary—only problem is, they don’t exactly get along.

Their chemistry is amazing though, and the slow-burn romance had me totally hooked. Watching them go from annoyed with each other to something real was super satisfying. The whole behind-the-scenes documentary angle was a cool twist too—it added a lot of drama in a fun way.

The side characters were great, the banter was spot-on, and Laura Wood’s writing just flows so well. If you’re into fake dating, enemies-to-lovers, or just want something romantic and fun to escape into, definitely give this one a go.

4.5 out of 5 stars

A Charming Tale of Second Chances and On-Screen Chemistry

Let’s Make a Scene by Laura Wood offers a compelling narrative of rekindled connections and the blurred lines between fiction and reality. Cynthie and Jack’s journey from estranged co-stars to navigating a staged romance is both entertaining and emotionally satisfying. 

Highlights:
• Character Development: Both leads exhibit growth, making their reconciliation believable and heartfelt.
• Authentic Setting: The depiction of the film industry adds depth and realism to the story. 
• Emotional Depth: The exploration of past grievances and personal insecurities enriches the narrative.

Considerations:
• Familiar Tropes: While the fake dating scenario is well-executed, it follows a predictable path.
• Initial Pacing: The beginning may feel slow, but the payoff is worth the wait.

Thank you to Simon & Schuster and NetGalley for providing an ARC of this engaging novel.

This is a really cute enemies-to-lovers with second-chance vibes. This is an actor x actor romance, so there is a lot of behind-the-scenes moving making which adds a nice layer to understanding what these characters are going through, plus add in the dual timeline with the dual POV & you really are pulled into Cynthie & Jack's world. Both of them have these emotional character developments that give them this multi-layered depth. Add in the fake dating, a wonderful supporting cast of characters, and a small touch of spice, this is super entertaining. It mixes humor, emotion & some great tension that makes it such an enjoyable read.

💖 Enemies to Lovers
💋 Second Chance
⭐️ Actor x Actress
✌🏻 Dual POV with Dual Timelines
💕 He Falls First
🫶 Found Family

5 ⭐️

Tropes: dual timeline / POV, second chance romance, enemies to lovers, fake dating, forced proximity, found family

If the list of tropes alone doesn’t convince you to read this, listen to me when I say YOU NEED TO READ THIS! 😍 It was romcom magic WITHOUT a third act break up scene 🙌🏼 Jack Turner-Jones was absolutely swoon worthy and you’ll have yet another man to obsess over! The tension, the banter, THE chemistry was chefs kiss 💋! The enemies to lovers hit HARD and it had me screaming “just give in already d*mn it” and when it finally happened it was everything!

Cynthie Taylor and Jack Turner-Jones hated each other almost instantly after they met on the set of the movie that launched both of their careers. They wanted nothing to do with each other but they had a job to do and as professionals that’s exactly what they did but….the chemistry on screen was so amazing the producers wanted them to fake date for extra publicity. Again they did what they had to do and vowed to never speak to each other again after that nightmare ended. Fast forward 13 YEARS and a case of deja vu they are back filming a sequel and fake dating again but this time their careers on the line and with more to lose…

This was my first book by Laura Wood and I’m so happy to learn this was a sequel to “Under Your Spell” and that will now be going on my TBR! Her writing was so much fun and I absolutely loved everything about this book; I HIGHLY recommend!

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I listened to the audio book of Laura Wood’s first book Under Your Spell so I was primed and ready to love this one and I did. Other than being a tad bit long in my opinion, it was a delightful read with both an enemies to lovers and second chance romance plots. It does a good job of showing and not telling with the flashbacks to Jack and Cynthie’s first movie together, retracing what transpired then to set the scene for them reuniting 13 years later.

I especially loved the cast of characters from the film set and the humor and camaraderie that they added to the story. It was also fun to see Theo and Clemmie pop up and see the full circle of the vampire TV show references.

I’d definitely read more my this author.

4.5 stars.

This took me a while to get into, which made the journey to get out of my reading slump a little harder.

When it did finally pick up, it got me good and wouldn't let me go until I finished it.

Second chance romances along with dual timelines can be a little bit difficult to me, which is where I also struggled for a bit. Some of the flashbacks cut in through where I was finally picking up and enjoying the book.

I absolutely LOVED MMC. Jack really did the work and put in the effort throughout the entire now timeline and I loved him all the more for it. It was amazing to see the growth between both flashbacks and how he was doing his best to do right by Cynthie now.

This would've been a five star read had it not been the rough pacing at the start. I did very much enjoy it once it was all said and done. I do hope we get to see more of this found family because I really loved the world as much as I loved Jack. (Okay, maybe I loved Jack a little more, LOL)

Thank you to Atria for the eArc in exchange for an honest review!

3.5 ⭐️

I’m such a sucker for a celebrity romance, especially when it’s set on a movie set. This was very sweet, kind of enemies to lovers and kind of second chance romance with some loose fake dating thrown in there?

Although the romance was cute, my favourite part of the story was the gang of side characters - the found family was everything!

I wish we got a bit more about Jack and Cynthie’s family dynamics because I feel like it wasn’t really explored in depth or resolved.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the advanced reader copy in exchange for my honest review.

After receiving an invitation to read Let’s Make a Scene on NetGalley in March, I attempted to read the novel multiple times, but stopped every few pages or so. Perhaps it was because I was bogged down with work and couldn’t focus solely on the novel itself. However, the beginning seemed quite slow and it was a bit difficult to relate to both Cynthie and Jack. To be fair, at the time, I hadn’t read the first installment, Under Your Spell. Switching to that novel once Theo made his debut in Let’s Make a Scene definitely helped revive my momentum. That said, now having read both, I can’t help feeling a bit shortchanged by the robust characterization Clemmie and Theo received throughout the whole of their novel and the development of such depth only occurring for Cynthie and Jack in the back half of Let’s Make a Scene.

Cynthie wasn’t as endearing as Clemmie until Wood introduced the manner in which she dealt with her internal struggles. Nor was Jack as charming and relatable as Theo until the novel strayed from the flashbacks and solely focused on the current timeline. To me, Wood’s writing shined in Under Your Spell because the characters and their relationships with one another were the plot. Here in Let’s Make a Scene, the filming of the movie and the documentary usurp too much time and attention. If there is another entry in the series, I hope Wood simplifies the plot and wholly focuses on the characters.

That said, the MTV Movie Awards scene was fantastic and brought me right back to the moment during which we were all captivated by Rachel McAdams and Ryan Gosling’s electric reenactment during their Best Kiss acceptance speech.

I loved this book so much that I devoured it in just 1 day. It was such a fun read and is a perfect summer beach read. Cynthie and Jack are great main characters and I loved reading from both of their perspectives.

DNF at 100 pages. The story was just not grabbing my attention. I typically dont mind dual timelines but this has all been focused on the past and I am just not interested.

Thank you @atriabooks for a copy of the book.

I cannot stop grinning or thinking about this book. As a huge fan of Under Your Spell, Cynthie’s story was one of my most anticipated new releases. I love a well executed fake dating trope. Laura delivers.

There are major 2000 rom-com vibes. 🥰I giggled, gasped, kicked my feet, squealed and had a blast with this book. Laura Wood, I officially nominate you as an auto buy author.

Top notch humor and heart come thru this story. The dual timelines helped set the stage for character growth. I dare anyone to say that they are the same person at 20 vs 33 or 24 vs 37. I will call you a liar. 13 years is a lot of opportunity for personal growth and growing into your own skin. The side characters evolved with our MCs. Cynthie and Hannah built their own industry family. The whole group embodied the loyalty, love and soul of core friends who are family.

Logan made me LOL in both timelines. And like Cyn I am absolutely willing to be a card carrying member of the Jasmine Gallow fan club.

Jack Turner-Jones is a dream book boyfriend. Especially 37 year old Jack who is self aware and displays situational awareness and amazing EQ. I love him. (Side note: Laura, please tell me we get a story with Nico? Pretty please 🥺)

I loved the Theo and Clemmie callouts. This book is in the same universe as Under Your Spell and can be read as a standalone but you are going to love Clemmie and Theo so just do yourself a favor and read both.

Elements of Make a Scene I adore:

❤️ fake dating
❤️ celebrity romance
❤️ found family
❤️ dual timelines
❤️dual pov
❤️ no third act breakup

5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️


ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review

4.75⭐

LOVED:
- This book just heckin’ worked. It was such a fun premise, such great characters and side characters, such great tension an romance, and such great character arcs for the MCs. Just loved it. Jack and Cynthie are so great.
- The growth and maturity differences between the characters in the present and their 13-year-younger counterparts was really well done. You could definitely see that these were still the main characters but also how they had grown and what lessons they had learned, etc. It was especially great to see Jack more grown up since he was such a brash young 20-something that you just wanted to shake some sense into. Cynthie obviously was young and dumb, too, but their was more of a naivety to her.
- I am not the biggest fan of dual POVs in general (I think a lot of the time it takes away from one character’s story more than it adds to the other) and while I love first-person POVs, dual first POVs are my least favorite of the lot. But this one just nailed it all around. Just 10s across the board. So good.
- The fact that they are filming an Austenian inspired period romance is just fabulous. You can see the inspirations, and knowing that the author is a scholar on the era subject makes total sense.
- I loved that we see a shared journey of panic attacks and anxiety between the two leads. It helps us understand younger Jack through the lens of older Jack better (genius) and then it added a layer to Cynthie’s renewed confidence and inner turmoil that grounds her a lot. It also helps connects them in their relationship (or ultimate relationship rather) that I really appreciated.
- The awards show scene?? The a w a r d s show scene.

LAMENTED:
- The pacing between the flashbacks and the present were a bit abrupt or shortly spaced towards the beginning of the book which did make it a bit hard to invest in the present timeline version of the characters. This did get remedied a bit with the flashbacks more or less wrapping up around the 50-60% mark, but I think I would have liked the flashbacks to not have been as front-loaded.
- I found myself taking awhile to get through this one. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, because I greatly enjoyed the time I spent with it so it was was mostly a not wanting it to end sort of feeling, but with how fast I read, that does end up feeling a bit discouraging sometimes.
- We didn’t get a lot of time with their first fake dating scenario. Which was disappointing. I would have liked to see that.
- While I don’t hate this cover by any means, it’s just very meh. I love the colors and the references to the gala scene, but it’s just meh. The title is also nothing to write home about but that’s neither here nor there.

LONGED FOR:
- More time with the characters in their initial fake dating set up
- A few less quick jumps between past and present (or more consistency at least)
- This book to never end omg if not for the pacing issue I mentioned this would be 5 stars easily

Will I read the next one? : 100% absolutely and I hope it’s Jack’s sister and friend. Also I have not read Under Your Spell but I am hands down going to.

If you are into the rivals to lovers genre, this is the book for you. I had no idea that the had a companion read, Under Your Spell, also written by Laura Wood. Told in dual points of view, from two different time periods (13 years apart), this rom com has you laughing and cheering for these two leads the whole time. Can they come together and work even though they have a lot of history? Can they pull of the faking dating trope? All while being filmed for a documentary too? Does it sound like too much, because it was all just enough and just right!

Thank you for this ARC in exchange for an honest review! I am working through my backlog, and will be momentarily posting reviews for the stories I have yet to get posted but have finished reading.

Perfect second-chance romance. Funny, tender, sexy--expect to laugh aloud often and happy cry at a few points in the novel.

After this sequel that manages to top the stellar Under Your Spell, Laura Wood is officially a must-read for me.

Loved everything about this. Just *chef's kiss.*

4⭐️ I’m giggling and I actually almost shed a tear too, it was a close one. I had so much fun with this read, whenever I didn’t have my kindle in my hand I was wishing I did so I could get back to the book. The chemistry, insane. The spice, nothing special but not cringey. The plot, SO FUN. Let’s Make a Scene follows Cynthie and Jack, in current day while they film the sequel and 13 years ago when they filmed their first movie together. They fake date, they argue, they fake break up, they fake date again. We love it. I live for when a woman hates a man and he is obsessed with her. Give me more. THE KISS AT THE AWARDS. YEAH. There was exactly one single thing wrong with this book and it’s totally personal preference… (I hate when authors write in parenthesis as frequently as Laura Wood did).