Ashley Jordan’s debut, Once Upon a Time in Dollywood, is a heartfelt romance about Eve, a playwright seeking a fresh start in Tennessee. Hoping for solitude, she instead finds unexpected sparks with her single-dad neighbour. Their slow-burn connection—full of warmth, wit, and real emotion—makes the story shine.

Jordan’s writing is genuine, her characters feel authentic, and the Dollywood setting brings extra charm. The pace drags a bit in the middle, but the ending pays off. This is a sweet, thoughtful story about healing and new beginnings.

The story flowed well and the characters were well developed. I recommend this book and look forward to more from this author.


****Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an ARC in exchange for my honest review****

Eve Ambroise is an up and coming play writer whose career is taking off in the best way while her personal life is spirally in the worse way. She retreats to her safe space to write and escape her problems when she meets a handsome single dad living next door. He throws a monkey wrench in her plans to solely focus on work and his presence forces Eve to face her past and officially close those doors in order to move on to the future her heart desires.

The story illustrates how Black Women must find their own joy. Black women are conditioned to take care of everyone sometimes at the expense of ourselves. I loved the way the author brings the characters evolution and growth full circle and they learn to not seek perfection but seek what’s real, what’s healthy and what’s equally beneficial.

The pressure society burdens women with to wives, mothers and have successful careers while simultaneously judging them for having one or the other or even striving for them all. The story highlights the importance of paving our own paths regardless of who supports us or even understands us. An eloquently written story about the power of forgiveness, love and self identity.

Whewww—emotional roller coaster is an understatement! The tagline did not lie: this was not your typical rom-com. This book dove deep into grief, infertility, trauma, and self-reflection. I thought I was ready…but babyyyy, this one was heavy.

Eve left her whole life behind in New York—her engagement, her career, everything. She’s overwhelmed and trying to write a new play, so she heads down to Tennessee, where her grandmother used to live, to find some kind of peace. And listen…Eve’s been through it. Some parts were honestly really sad to read because she was out here feeling so unseen by the people who were supposed to love her.

Then here comes Jamie—her grandmother’s old neighbor and your classic friendly Southern guy—trying to be kind and connect. But Eve is not in the mood. She’s shut down emotionally, and I get it…but whew, she wore me out a bit. Sis really needed to be on somebody’s couch. But she wasn’t ready.

Jamie was sweet, but I kept yelling “STAND UP!” He was out here accepting crumbs in the name of love. He was also struggling too. But honestly? That’s life. People are messy. And this book showed that perfectly. Sometimes love shows up at the wrong time. Sometimes it’s not enough if you haven’t done the work to heal yourself first. I truly believe they trauma bonded in the beginning—even if Eve wasn’t fully open about her pain.

This story was a kind of a tough read, but it was so introspective. It really made me reflect on healing, timing, and what it takes to actually see and love someone fully. I really enjoyed it. 💛

This book surprised me! I love how Eve and Jamie's story was not cookie cutter. I love how I got to see them both grow first hand and I also loved watching them navigate through life and their trauma. HOWEVER, there was some things left unanswered for me. I needed closure for some things but once again I believe the way the story line ended up was perfect for Eve and Jamie. Ive never read a book that felt like a real and raw cut relationship. We got to to see the lows, the highs, the lows again and it made the experience that much greater.
I will say it took some time to get used to Eve and not want to choke her at every turn. My love for Jamie was instantaneous!
Now is the perfect time to read this!

Such a moving debut! I loved Eve and Jamie and the Tennessee backdrop. This is such a “grown up” book, dealing with many heavy topics but letting readers know to remain hopeful. Already adding Ashley Jordan to my “automatic reads” pile.

✨ Once Upon a Time in Dollywood by Ashley Jordan is a heartfelt, slow-burn romance that aches in the best way. If you love small-town charm, emotional depth, and characters learning to love again, this debut is for you.

Eve, a rising playwright recovering from heartbreak, retreats to the Tennessee mountains—only to find herself living next to Jamie, a single dad with his own baggage. What starts as a guarded friendship slowly turns into something deeply moving and unexpectedly healing.

Expect:
🎭 A messy, relatable heroine
👨‍👧 A sweet single dad
🌄 Cozy mountain vibes
🔥 Fling-to-forever tension
💔 Honest themes of grief, growth, and second chances

This book is like a quiet country song—gentle, emotional, and unforgettable. If you're craving a romance that feels real and restorative, pick up Once Upon a Time in Dollywood. You won’t regret it.

At the beginning of the book, the author said she cried.
She said the reader might cry. I cried.
This romance has so much depth and pain. The character growth is so good. Were there things I would change, yes, but there are things in my own life I would change and I like romance that is more realistic and raw.
Make sure you read the trigger warnings first - miscarriage, teen pregnancy, religion.
Get ready for all the feels. |

Eve and Jamie were two people with an airport terminal level of baggage, but the the progression of their relationship was so moving and realistic. Their character development throughout the book was incredible, especially Eve. She starts of the book with some pretty severe depression and they way she starts to flourish throughout the story was beautiful to read and I loved that the author didn't make Jamie and their relationship the reason she got better. She really works on herself and your heart breaks for her at multiple point in the book. I also loved that Eve made bad decisions and treated a lot of people poorly particularly her ex-fiancé, it was something that made the book feel so rooted in reality because a lot of romances tend to shy away from making their FMC the bad guy in the ending of a previous relationship. And Eve was the bad guy, her instincts are to run when things get overwhelming and that tends to hurt the people around her, some who deserve it and some who don't

The fact that this is Ashley Jordan's debut is astonishing, if I didn't know I could have sworn this was written by a seasoned author with a few title under her belt. This is an amazing debut, and I will for sure be looking out for future works!

Eve needs a break from her life. She's runs away from the fiancé she just left and her parents and goes to the only place she thinks she can find peace: her grandmother's home in the Tennessee mountains. Eve hopes to write her next play there, but she is soon distracted by her neighbor, Jamie Gallagher. The two find themselves in a romance that neither of them are ready for.

WOW! This book was AMAZING! This book gutted me in the best way. It was about the complicated nature of relationships, both familial and romantic. It was about people making choices to change for the better and forgiveness. It was about two people who went on an unexpected journey of healing while falling in love.

I have to admit, I don't know if I liked Eve for most of the book. I wasn't sure if I believed she deserved love and happiness. Jordan revealed her layer by layer, showing us why Eve was so self-destructive. In the end, I was rooting for her to get her HEA. Jamie was also a complex character and although he had the high emotional intelligence that we all want in a partner, he still had open wounds that he needed to heal.

The most beautiful thing about this book was that it was messy. Just like real life, things weren't black and white. There were shades of gray that made Eve and Jamie and their families feel like real people. I found myself questioning what I would do in their situation or how I felt about the choices Eve and Jamie made. The dialogue was intense, raw, and at some points shocking because of how it felt like a punch in the gut.

Ashley Jordan is going to be a rising star in romance. I went into this book thinking it was going to be one thing, but it turned out to be more than I had hoped for. Jordan's writing is profound and her voice is uniquely captivating. I can't wait to see what she has next in store for us!

I'm having a hard time getting all of my thoughts out coherently for this review, but hopefully I've convinced you to read this book. It's going to be one that you won't want to miss!

Steam level:🔥🔥🔥
⚠️: miscarriage, grief, depression, panic attacks, forced adoption

Once Upon a Time in Dollywood was definitely not your typical romance, and I don’t know if liked that. It was interesting watching Eve navigate her life, but it felt like it was just barely hanging on. You start to doubt her as a narrator due to her state of mind and she behaved in a way that I don’t think was acceptable even given the circumstances.
Now Jamie… whew. He was way too nice if you ask me. Almost too forgiving toward people. Even the way he was with Eve in the beginning was sort of unrealistic to me. It’s understandable that he felt they may have some connection, but if you just left one toxic situation and you are looking for a peace it doesn’t make sense to deal with the cranky girl next door. His brother and his son were great characters that made his story more acceptable.
Honestly, it seems like neither of them were ready for a relationship and they were trauma bonding. I know that relationships can be toxic IRL, but when I read a book that’s not necessarily what I’m looking for.
I do appreciate the book showing real life situations like infertility and custody battles, I just wished that their romance was more healing.

This is a cute little romance between people who seemingly come from different backgrounds but are able to find some common ground. Evie and Jamie have gone through it and I love that they were able to find some happiness withon each other. The book talks about some heavy topic but honestly it makes the characters feel more real. It makes you feel like these are people you know and have bonded with and it just pushes you to want to keep reading to see where its going

Honestly, I didn’t know what to expect going in. The author’s note made it clear this wasn’t your typical rom-com and wow, that was no exaggeration. I was not prepared for how deeply this story would hit.

This is a story about the kind of trauma that cuts the deepest. The kind caused by the very people who were supposed to love you unconditionally. It’s about loss, the kind you never truly move on from, and the ache of carrying grief long after everyone else expects you to be fine.

It explores depression with quiet honesty. How isolating it feels when no one truly understands, and how exhausting it is to keep showing up for others when you feel shattered inside. When you're expected to make them feel okay, even as you're barely holding it together. It feels like drowning, like you’re stuck pretending everything is fine while you silently fall apart. You keep pushing it down until one day it all unravels.

Eve Ambroise escapes to a cabin in the Tennessee mountains hoping to recover from heartbreak and reconnect with her writing. The last thing she expects is to form a connection with Jamie Gallagher, the quiet single dad next door who is going through struggles of his own. What unfolds between them is a slow, heartfelt journey full of vulnerability, healing, and unexpected tenderness.

Ashley Jordan’s writing is honest and intimate. Every detail feels intentional, from the mountain setting to the quiet ache of starting over. Eve is a deeply relatable heroine, full of creative longing and self-doubt. Jamie is kind, complex, and refreshingly grounded. Their chemistry is subtle but strong, and watching them slowly open up to each other was incredibly satisfying.

A stunning debut full of heart and honesty. I am already looking forward to whatever Ashley Jordan writes next.

Tropes:
💔 Emotional Healing
👨‍👧 Single Dad
✍️ Playwright with Creative Block
🌄 Small Town Escape
❤️‍🔥 Slow Burn Romance
🫶 Found Family Vibes
🧃 Grumpy x Guarded FMC meets Soft x Steady MMC
🎢 Second Chances
🎠 Theme Park Whimsy (Dollywood Magic)
🪞 Introspective Self-Growth

Thank you to Berkley Publishing and NetGalley for the advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review. I’m so grateful to have read this beautiful debut early — it felt like therapy in book form. I already know this is one I’ll return to, highlighter in hand.

The Only Good Thing
Once Upon a Time in Dollywood by Ashley Jordan cannot be described as an easy read but I believe that readers will find it well worth the emotional toll it takes. This book is Ashley Jordan’s debut novel, and she imbues it with passion, angst, a measure of toxicity and places our two very different characters on a redemptive arc. After a searing loss, playwriter Eve Ambroise is DONE. Done with her current romantic involvement, done with her passive aggressive parents, done with almost two decades of mourning, done with the stress of producing another play so she walks away from her current life and returns to the place that was the setting of arguably her greatest heartbreak: her grandmother’s cabin in Tennessee. Evie is not able to articulate to herself what she is seeking; she is certainly not looking for romance or companionship. Jamie Gallagher personifies the adage that “nice guys finish last”. Wealthy, handsome and unfailingly kind, Jamie should have been anyone’s “boyfriend” goal. However, he finds himself in a custody battle with his cheating ex-girlfriend while struggling with the hurt of her betrayal and maintaining his dignity. Perhaps spending some time at his cabin will alleviate the world of hurt he lives in. Evie and Jamie meet and discover a commonality, her grandmother. Jamie is instantly attracted to Evie, but she doesn’t have the mental bandwidth to offer much in return. Evie can certainly recognize the sweetness of Jamie’s character and his worth, but at this point she is unable to reciprocate or build on those feelings. Thus begins an off-and-on, hot and cold situationship with no clear path to a stable connection. Will they ever be on the same page? “Hot mess” Evie has so much unfinished business and unaddressed trauma and Jamie is too nice and accommodating. By the story’s end, both characters had demonstrated tremendous growth, and while Ms. Jordan doesn’t neatly wrap up her story in expected packaging, I was satisfied with the sense of closure and hope she gave us but would happily read more on future Jamie and Evie.

This is some of the most beautiful writing you will ever read. Period. From the very first page, Ashley Jordan grabs you by your emotions and never lets go. The story is heartbreaking and beautiful and real. So why three stars? The "multicultural" this was categorized in simply meant a Black and white interracial couple. And I simply have no interest in that dynamic. I'm a bit saddened by it too because Jamie is such a well-written character that we don't get to see Black men written as in romance. I read the book for the sake of this review but probably would've stopped reading the moment I discovered this was going to be an interracial romance.

That being said, if you're a writer looking to be inspired by another writer's writing then definitely read this book!

“You’re not just a fantasy.”

Once Upon a Time in Dollywood is another five-star read for me. When I say Jamie and Eve had me giggling while also giving me heart-wrenching comfort? I mean it. Ashley Jordan beautifully captures how love is often an arduous journey—and how we frequently bring our own unresolved trauma into relationships. Healing, growth, and even therapy are sometimes necessary before we can fully love ourselves and others. Relationships take work, and in BIPOC households, that work can look very different.

One quote that stayed with me:

“Black folks rarely got to concern themselves with their version of happy. Didn’t ask for much beyond safety, financial stability, and family. Black happiness was too often rooted in plain old survival.”
This line hit me hard—and it's one of many that showcases Jordan’s deft exploration of generational trauma, love, and joy.

It's rare to find romance novels where communication is prioritized and the characters actually behave like adults. But Jamie and Eve do. You witness them grow—not perfectly, but honestly. Mistakes are made, but you stick around because they're worth it. This isn’t an easy love story, and that’s exactly what makes it so powerful.

I laughed. I cried. And I absolutely adored that Eve came from a Haitian family. Huge props to Ashley for how she also delves into the ways faith can be weaponized “in the best interest” of a community, while ultimately causing more harm than healing.

With Once Upon a Time in Dollywood being associated with Reese’s Book Club, I know many eyes will be on Ashley Jordan. My one request to readers? Go into this book wholeheartedly and blindly. Let it move you.

My thanks to Berkley Publishing Group for the digital ARC. This book has been on my radar for a while, and I’m so glad I got to read an early copy. Out later this summer—don’t miss it!

This book! The forward in this book let me know that this wasn't a light happy romance. The characters aren't light happy people. I went into this book expecting heartbreak and redemption. I expected spice and of course, romance. What I didn't expect was how profoundly this book affected me. I was uncomfortable with how I felt with the words on the page.
Eve has anxiety and depression. When we meet this character, she is in a couple's therapy to discuss her recent miscarriage with her fiancé. This being Eve's second miscarriage, she breaks, and leaves. The way Eve leaves stuns her family and severs her engagement. She decides to go to Gatlinburg and stay and write in her grandmother's cabin. Eve represses her feelings, and she is not always sure how to feel about anything- good, bad, or indifferent.
Jamie also is running, but for a different reason, he's co-parenting with a narcissist, and he wants to take a break on a weekend to his cabin in Gatlinburg.
These two characters were the wings of the same flightless bird. Circling the sky and not able to decide where he wants to land, if wants to, or even if flying is worth all the bluster. Clearly, this is an overblown metaphor for people who feel stuck. Stuck in the rigamarole of daily life, resentment toward loved ones who hurt them, and how to process feelings.
It was so clear that they were right for each other, but I wasn't always sure if these two people would get in the way of their own happily ever after.
It was well-written, emotive and insightful. It really made me appreciate therapists. And seeing what growth could look like when things started hard.

Thank you to Netgalley and Berley Publishing for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I absolutely loved this!!! I laughed, i yelled at the FMC because she was working my nerves, and my heart was touched by the love scenes. I love it when i can feel the emotions and it's not all about sex but an actual connection. It also gave a great lesson on healing and forgiveness in its own way. Very good story ❤️🥰

Once Upon a Time in Dollywood was definitely a different kind of romance story than I am used to. It was interesting seeing the dynamics of Eve's life in its current 'barely existing' state due to her reaction to the environments she'd been in. She in a sense became an unreliable narrator because of her depression guiding her own renditions of what she was experiencing. But it also put the reader in the mind of what she was feeling when she was so caught up in her own mind and misgivings.

Jamie was too nice of a character in my opinion. He had too much grace for people in his life that wronged him and I hated that for him. I understand having trust issues after what he went through, but to continue to allow the cause of the trust issues the capacity to invade your peace is absolutely wild. I can only appreciate that his brother and son were his saving graces until he met Eve. He was also pretty resilient because Eve was so mean their first interactions, yet he continued to engage with her. It made sense since he was friends with her grandmother so he was initially just trying to connect the dots.

It felt like their relationship was one where they trauma bonded without sharing what their trauma's were (or at least Eve didn't) until after they were already in what looked like the makings of the beginning of a relationship. I did enjoy the toxicity of their dynamic, especially the text sequence of Eve when Jamie had enough. It was very real life how you hear of men acting with women so it was very interesting to see it portrayed in the opposite.

This book was an automatic 5 star read for me not even halfway through the book. Eve and Jamie are two characters who have been through massive amounts of shit in their lives and when they meet, it almost felt like fate. And I never could have guessed Dollywood to be so romantic as it is here.

Jamie is seemingly dealing with unprocessed rage and anger towards his mom for cheating on his dad in his young adult years, leaving him to step up for his younger brother. When Jamie’s own ex Lucy cheats- even though they have a child together- it seemingly amplifies that anger while also creating a soft spot for forgiveness.

Eve- or Evie for those who love her- has religious and familial trauma wrapped up with a nasty bow of infertility and hating the man she was with. When she leaves to escape another miscarriage and leaving her ex-fiance, Jamie magically appears.

I loved that this book delved into some really heavy topics in such a way that felt incredibly real and raw. The characters were immediately loveable and relateable, showed immense growth, and ultimately showed a real-world love story that I am happy to have experienced.

I appreciated Jordan’s attention to the details when it came to the intersections of race, class, religion, and familal makeup with both characters. Setting up Jamie’s character to look like a stereotypical MAGA man at the beginning really threw me for a loop and I thought I was going to dislike the character and his storyline, but the way that Jordan worked through his character’s backstory alongside Evie was absolutely amazing.

Similarly, though I know this book was set in a very specific time frame, I wish we had gotten more of Evie’s story from her college days at Spelman. We know her experiences in the South are a true mixed bag- especially with her grandmother and teen pregnancy- but I wished I would have been able to see some of the joy that Spelman and her found family brought to her after such a dark period in her life. Even if this book wasn’t showcasing that period of time, I do truly appreciate Jordan’s attention to detail and how she frames that period of Evie’s life without delving all the way into it.

The love that Eve & Jamie share is absolutely stunning, and I truthfully never imagined I would fall in love with the characters as much as I did. I truly hope Jordan continues this world of characters and their experiences together. I wholeheartedly believe that Ashley Jordan is going to be a best selling author when this book publishes, and I hope to continue seeing her work in the future.

Thank you Berkley & NetGalley for allowing me the opportunity to read this in advanced for an honest review.