This was... interesting. I liked how the book was paced, from them being strangers to friends and eventually lovers. The 'will they, won't they' vibes was well done and I actually enjoyed it. However, I just did not feel like the characters, Silas especially, were fleshed out past their jobs. We got to see more to Jo, got to glimpse her struggles with anxiety and depression and got to see her with her friends, which I appreciate, but we got none of that for Silas except for his friendship with Derek.

The book is your basic stereotypical romance in the sense that I was able to guess to a T what was going to happen, and I found the 3rd act conflict ridiculous, but overall it was still a pretty solid debut in terms of writing.

Since I listened to the audiobook it went by pretty quickly. I liked listening to both narrators although the volume went up a couple notches everytime the male narrator came on and I admit I jumped everytime.

<i><b>Thank you to Netgalley and Hachette Audio for the ALC in exchange for an honest review</b></i>

A wildly popular spin instructor’s carefully constructed life is upended when a cynical journalist, who initially seems to be her opposite, unexpectedly challenges her perceptions and potentially her heart. But is his interest genuine, or is he planning to cash in on her life story?

I loved this smart and funny novel. It’s compelling and heartfelt, with characters I couldn’t help empathizing with. I enjoyed the audiobook narration.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received. This is my honest and voluntary review.

Absolutely loved this book!
Jo is a popular spin/fitness instructor who meets Silas, a grumpy journalist assigned to write an article about Jo and Haven Fitness. Silas thinks Haven is a cult and thinks yelling from a bike all day is ridiculous. As he gets to know Jo, his thoughts about her and her job start to change.
I loved seeing Jo and Silas’ relationship develop. His care for her and her mental health was so refreshing and I loved seeing Jo open up while battling with her anxiety. Overall this was such a fun book that also touched on some important topics. A great debut from Ana Holguin! I look forward to reading more from her.

Thank you to the author, Forever, and Hachette Audio for the ALC!

Well I devoured this one quickly! This was a contemporary NYC romance between a popular spin bike instructor and the unconvinced journalist writing an article about her. Being a member of the cult of Peloton myself, I really enjoyed that part and loved all the (fictional) behind-the-scenes details. Beyond the largely predictable romance, I totally adored the FMC’s relationship with her 2 best friends and appreciated the focus on mental health.

Thoughts on the audio: I love duet narration. Both narrators were super clear and crisp. At first I wasn’t sure these were the right narrators for the story, though I knew I’d love to listen to other books by them both. By the end they won me over.

2.5 stars

Our two main characters take on anxiety, depression, self-love, and the wild rollercoaster of post-crisis recovery—and honestly, those parts were written with care and a good dose of realism. I will say the pacing had me checking how much was left more than once. Not terrible, but definitely not my favourite either.

Now, Jo and Silas as a romantic pairing? Ehh. I wasn’t exactly swooning. Their chemistry felt more like lukewarm tea than sizzling tension. I just didn’t buy into the spark they were selling, especially since their conversations consisted of discussing either their work, mutual friends or mental health.

Silas’ development also felt a little undercooked to me. We got a deep dive into Jo—her friendships, her mental health, her whole emotional roadmap—but Silas? He kind of stayed on the surface. I would've loved a bit more insight into his internal world, especially around writing the article and what it meant for him to shift his perspective.

Where to start well I’ll start by saying I truly enjoyed this book so much more than I anticipated. The book had such a fun and interesting storyline and it immediately got my attention. The story follows Jo, a well known and prestigious Spin class instructor, and Silas a journalist that believes her to be just another pretentious and shallow influencer and decides to take her class to discover her true self and intentions. His goal was to write an article to reveal the true Jo but in the midst of his research he discovered more than he bargained for. The book was such a cute rom com with many serious elements and real life problems expressed by the characters but it was very well executed. I laughed and smiled and even cried at point throughout the story. If you are a fan of Abby Jimenez books I think you will really enjoy this one. Overall this was a great book and I highly recommend it. The narrators were also great in this audiobook! This was a 4.25 stars rating.

Thank you to NetGalley and Hatchett Audio for the Audiobook Arc in exchange for my honest review. The review expressed my thoughts and feelings after reading this book.

A spin class instructor and a self-proclaimed contrarian journalist start developing feelings for one another when forced to collaborate on a project.

While I appreciate characters being passionate about their work, I was itching for more romance and banter. The focus heavily leaned towards Jo and her career, making Haven's classes front and center rather than the developing relationship between our main characters. Additionally, the audiobook narrator for Silas was disappointing, delivering emotional scenes with a monotone quality. The novel has its enjoyable moments, but didn't make much of a lasting impact as far as a romance story.

An appealing romance that cleverly taps into the Peloton craze from several years ago. Both Jo and Silas are interesting main characters, and I like the premise of him as a skeptic of her wildly popular spin classes spurred to investigate and write about her, thus bringing them together. The story nicely incorporates mental health by highlighting the anxiety and depression that these two grapple with, which helps them understand each other better and meaningfully connect. While I admire Silas' strict adherence to journalistic integrity in holding off on starting anything with Jo until after he finished his article and how this allowed them to get to know each other so well, there could have been a bit more heat between the pair in the form of angst and pining to make the moment when they finally come together really pay off. There is a niggling plot thread dangling over most of the story that predictably leads to the final act conflict, but I appreciated the efforts made by both to heal and improve afterward, resulting in a satisfying resolution at the end. This was an enjoyable debut and the audiobook is well narrated by both Maria Liatis and Kellen Boyle, who do a terrific job bringing these characters to life.

I absolutely loved this book! Ana Holguin has such a knack for writing characters that feel vibrant, real, and utterly captivating. From the very first chapter, I was hooked by the raw emotion and the sparkling humour that balanced so beautifully throughout the story.

The audiobook experience? Great! The narrator brought very moment to life with the tone on the voice and the energy on delivering the book. This story made me laugh, get slightly angry, and maybe a little bit emotional.

The relationship felt a bit slow and then quickly developed, it had tension, connection, and interaction. I could listen even more of this book.

4.5 stars.

I loved both characters and their development throughout the book. The narrators of the audiobook were great. Jo's voice fit her perky spin instructor personality and Silas's voice was perfectly cynical and dry. Originally, I felt like Silas was the main character as we kind of got to know Jo through his eyes, but it took a while for us to know him personally. Their chemistry was great, undeniable and despite the questionable start to their relationship, I totally believed in their evolution. Also a fun peak into the spin cycling phenomenon.

Highly recommend.

Thank you to Net Galley and Hachette Audio for the ARC.

Incredibly slow and no chemistry for a romance. I loved the idea of a reluctant celebrity having a journalist try to write a hit piece on her but then he falls for her; that was cute. However, the chemistry just wasn’t there. If I have to be told they’re falling for each other rather than feeling it through the writing, then it’s not really there. This would have done better as a single POV as Silas’ added nothing to it. I wanted to love this as the cycling guru angle was fun but it just didn’t work for me.

I wasn’t sure at first, but this story really grew on me! Jo and Silas’s slow-burn connection strengthened throughout the book, and was heartfelt and believable. The story also touched on important and timely topics like the impact of social media on mental health, and handled them with honesty and sensitivity.

Read if you like: Cult-following fitness empires, SSRIs, strong female friendships

One note - I listened to the audio version, and didn’t love the male narrator. Not in an “I can’t even listen" way, but he had a way of speaking that sounded a little cheesy.

Thanks to Netgalley and Hachette Audio for providing me with a copy of the book.

Thank you so much to @readforeverpub for the eARC and to @hachetteaudio for the ALC!

This book was excellent. I’ll admit that much like the MMC, Silas, I wasn’t super into the idea of focusing on a Peloton instructor type. I could not have been more wrong. While I’m not a fitness fanatic (don’t get me wrong, I see the benefits of exercise and get the Peloton or home work out appeal - I just would rather do about anything I o get out of cardio) this book dealt with something that I can absolutely resonate with: anxiety and depression. Jo was such a realistic portrayal of that and I found myself identifying with her experience quite a bit. Silas was a great character as well and I appreciated his journey and self-reflection on his actions - he took accountability and that’s attractive. I love a love interest who knows when he messed up and realizes he has a gem.

This book had authentic emotion, steamy moments, cute inside jokes (when you’re here, you’re family 😂 iykyk) and a couple that I couldn’t help but root for. I loved this book and can’t wait for more from this author! This was such a great novel, hard to believe it’s her debut!

Thank you to Hachette Audio & Netgalley for the ALC.

This was a heartfelt, but flirty slow burn book between a well known spin instructor and the journalist interviewing her for a magazine feature. This story featured themes of mental health, anxiety, and career burnout in a relatable way.

I appreciated the slow build up of chemistry/tension between the main characters without the usual insta-love/lust that is prevalent in many romcoms.

My only gripe is the inevitable third act breakup/conflict that felt a bit contrived. It was a miscommunication that could have easily been solved earlier. I didn't love that Silas didn't come clean with Jo before they were intimate.

I thought both narrators did a good job and kept me engaged with the story.

First line of the book: “I’m getting bangs” - I thought this had such potential and was excited for that first line but I struggled through this. It was very slow to me and I was bored.

Our two main characters battle anxiety, depression, self love, and the recovery process it takes after a mental health crisis. Which I think was written nicely and accurately for the most part.

I honestly didn’t feel the connection between Jo and Silas in a romantic way, the chemistry didn’t feel believable to me.

*Narrated by Maria Liatis & Kellen Boyle*
11 hours & 35 minutes

The narrators fell flat for me too, it was hard to stay concentrated on the story.
I’m not sure if it was just me, but they sort of sounded too similar to each other?

Thank you NetGalley, Hachette Audio & Ana Holguin for the ALC.

I read this because I impulse downloaded it when it was read now one day. I thought it was fine but I didn’t love it. The characters grew on me and had some growth, but there were things that irked me and the pacing was off. Not awful but not great.

Audiobook specific, I did not care for the male narrator for narrating romance. When his first chapter started it was immediately off putting. Would be totally fine with him in general fiction or like sci fi maybe but not here

Overall, I enjoyed the experience with this book. I liked Jo I resonated with her a lot with her for how her anxiety is portrayed as well as Silas with his depression. Jo is a spin class instructor at the haven who doesn't know what she wants to do with her life anymore she is very unhappy in her current profession. Silas is a writer for the metropolitan who was tasked to write a article about jo and the haven. He has it set in his brain that they are just a scam artist. So, he uses a method to meet jo thru a mutual friend and tries to trick jo into thinking the article was her idea. After getting to know Jo he starts to understand her and inevitably falls in love with her. I did totally see the third act breakup coming and called it in the beginning.

🎧 Dual Narration

This book is 27 Dresses but in 2025 and with peloton. I loved this book, it felt like the 00s romcoms and was such a fun read that I just couldn’t put down!

I loved how this book has a really good representation of mental illness (anxiety, depression) I didn’t realise it and showed it in a real honest and realistic way. It made Joe’s journey so much more powerful unbelievable it also made her a much more multi layered character. I would’ve liked maybe a bit more description/filling out around the medication as it was quite quickly glossed over. But in general one of the best representations of mental illness I’ve seen in a book.

I also really enjoyed the romance. It was a tension building, believable romance that was really enjoyable to read. The spicy scene was done well, and fit with the characters and feel of the book.

The only thing I felt that we lacked was Silas’s development. We got an awful lot around Joe, her friendship, her mental health etc. I felt like Silas’s this was a little bit lacking compared to that. Also, there wasn’t much description around him trying to write the article maybe some other struggles he faced having to change his mind. Nothing massive, but I think that’s the area that could’ve been improved on.

I must also say the audiobook was so enjoyable! Maria Liatis and Kellen Boyle did a great job, they pulled you into the story and make it believable and enjoyable! The production was well done and the 2 narrators were easy to understand.

I would highly recommend this book for any fellow romance readers

Thank you to NetGalley and Hachette Audio for the audio Arc for this book.

I enjoyed this listen a lot! The narrators were great and I really loved the mental health rep. I also enjoyed the concept of "celebrity" and influencer and what that means these days. I also like the take on celebrity trainers, which we have also see a lot more these days. I think it also sheds light on the pressure that befalls these people and that under the persona that people see or perceive online there is a real person, who is dealing with real issues just like everyone else. I liked the connection between Silas and Jo and how it built from their very first meeting.

Here's where things didn't work for me. The 0 draft he wrote with his preconceived notions and before he really knew ANYTHING about Jo or the people who do what she does, what so obiovus. I knew as soon as he wrote it that it was going to be the cause for the main conflict or third act break up. The fact that he kept it made it so obvious and also the fact that he kept it open as a "reminder" every time he wrote so it was just lingering there throughout the whole book, I just felt it detracted so much from the story because as I've said it beyond obvious!

That in itself took a whole "point" off for this book which would have been a 4.5 star read for me otherwise.....everything else was there and so well done! If the author didn't think the reader would notice, then they must not think their readers are very smart....it was glaring from the second it was mentioned!

4.5 ⭐ 1 🌶️ 5 🎧

This was so stinking cute. I absolutely loved Jo and Silas and watching them fall in love. Sure, the third act miscommunication break up is there... But I saw it coming from a mile away and was able to prepare myself 😂 Ultimately, they came back together so sweetly that I was able to give them a pass and melted into a puddle during their epilogue.

The mental health rep in this story was phenomenal. Ana really hit on anxiety and depression being the monsters they are and I felt so seen. The most innocuous of things can trigger a breakdown, and even though you know it's not true, an anxious brains lies and Jo really showcased this perfectly. I really loved them so much.

The audio was fantastic as well. Maria Liatis and Kellen Boyle were great and I loved this listen.