Three Months in Accra
By L.B. Gaines @lbgainestheauthor

This was such a refreshing love story. The details of the beautiful country and the love scenes with the right amount of spice had me hooked.

The story takes you through the journey of Kofi and Liza as they explore Kofi’s home country and experience their blossoming love for each other.
Things take a turn and heartbreak comes.

Will the love that they built in such short time stand the test of time?

I enjoyed this short story. And would recommend it if you’re looking for a love story with some very good spice.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
Thanks @netgalley for this ARC ebook!

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. This was kind of far outside of my comfort zone especially since the typical romances I tend to read focus within Central America. The setting being Ghana, was so immersive for me. I loved being able to learn about this area and its culture through these pages, and I couldn't have asked for anything better. This book was so sweet, and I loved the connection between the two characters.

Now, on a structural level, this wasn't my favorite to read. For starters, despite it being a novella, the pacing was kind of off for me, as well as some of the page breaks. I definitely think certain aspects could have been fleshed out more, and I feel like this changed the whole atmosphere of some of the scenes and kind of flipped me all the way around in some instances.

This was such a remarkable review for this author and honestly this makes me look forward to reading more books by them in the future.

First let me say, this book was out of the norm for me. I am a dark urban romance girly but this love story was so pure and authentically written that I feel in love with the ideal of Kofi and Aliza kind of love. I identified with Aliza on some many levels and I hope to one day to meet my Kofi. I also want to go back home and experience that sense of peace and release that Aliza felt. This book was will written and I really enjoyed reading it.

I loved loved this novella!! Kofi and Aliza’s love story was so soft and beautiful. It had me deep in my feels. 🥹

Aliza came to Accra as an exchange student from Howard, hoping to connect with the culture, the people, and most importantly, herself and her ancestors. Baby, she had only been in Ghana for like 10 hours when she locked eyes with Kofi in the club and that was it. Sparks. Chemistry. Vibes! The rest was history.

Kofi is book boyfriend material okay! He fell first and he fell hard. Their connection was instant, but it didn’t feel rushed it felt real and magical. He gave her the real Accra experience, and I was eating it up. 😍

Gaines’ descriptions of the city were so vivid I felt like I was right there. I could see the colors, feel the energy, taste the food I was transported.

Short, sweet, and full of heart. I need moreeee!

3.5/5 This novella was both a refreshing and nostalgic read. Having studied abroad in Ghana as an undergraduate, this intimate portrayal of Ghana and the experience flooded back to me. This book is perfect for readers who also love to travel, immerse themselves in culture, and don't mind the instalove trope in a romance. The writing is descriptive yet clear. The atmosphere evokes a flurry of summer romance. There are some cons for me. The transition structure or layout was a bit confusing. There are spaces between paragraphs that indicate a time jump; however, there are also multiple areas with spacing that do not signify a time jump. There are also times when a character reaction feels disproportionate to the level of detail given. Lastly, there are a few typos (club luna or club bloom; 3 days or 3 months; mispellings). I did love how this book had a full circle moment and ended where we were first introduced to this romance. I believe this is going to be a standalone love abroad novella series, and I look forward to reading the other stories and seeing the growth in this author's writing.

This was such a quick, sweet, refreshing novella. I love how Kofi stood on business when it came to Aliza. He did not let the plans his family had for his future deter what he wanted in the end. There were quite a few grammar errors that need to be corrected. But beside that I gave the read a 3.75 stars.

For a debut novella, this book was really well written! 🙌
3 Months in Accra was such an amazing read. The story follows Aliza, a history student from America who travels to Ghana for a semester abroad at the University of Ghana. On the very day she arrives, she meets Kofi, a smoking hot and ridiculously handsome guy 😍.

Somehow, they fall in love… but not without challenges. There are tensions and unexpected threats that make you wonder: will love be worth fighting for, or will they eventually part ways?

You’ll have to read this beautiful story to find out when it’s officially published in July!
I already miss Aliza, Tasha, and Kofi so much 🥹💕
I’d rate this book a solid 4 stars!

This was a nice and sweet debut novella. Aliza went to Ghana to further her studies for three months and only focus on school but that all changed one night when she went out and met Kofi.

What I truly enjoyed about this story was learning more of the culture in an African country such as Ghana. I love how a black American was able to go back to the motherland and learn more because I feel as though this is such a thing that many black Americans do not get to experience so I do appreciate that aspect being told within the story. I also loved their insta love connection, though at times I wish we would’ve gotten a little bit more of Kofi’s point of view when it came to certain things. What else I loved was the author highlighting how once you find a love the distance you’ll go to make it work i.e. being long distance.

I will say, as much as this book was nice and sweet. there were also some things that I noticed while reading. The first being that some of the page breaks kind of felt unnatural to me as a reader. Normally with page breaks were in a different scene or the mood is set differently, but in some instances, we were still within the same scene and that felt off. There were also a few spelling errors which to me I can move past, but for my fellow readers, they may be distracting and it may cause them to DNF the book. And the last thing was, I know this is a novella, but there were things that could’ve been a little bit further explained or shown more on page such as Aliza and Kofi ex exchanging numbers, Kofi’s conversation with his parents about running the business, and also more with her friend Tasha.

This was a great start for this author, and I do look forward to reading more in the future from them.

Overall rating 3.5 (rounded to 4 on Goodreads)

Thank you to Netgalley and L.B. Gaines for this ARC. Review of this book is based on my own thoughts and reactions.

Three Months in Accra is a beautiful love story! I loved every bit of it. I also loved the playlist *chefs kiss*

Kofi & Aliza were meant for each other. All it took was three months for them to know they were for each other. This read is worth 1000 stars. Five stars does not do much justice!

I spent six weeks in Ghana in 2001 on a study abroad program. Reading this novella felt like stepping back into the hum of Accra—markets buzzing, music drifting, the weight of history at Elmina Castle, and yes, the longing for jollof rice done right.

I chose Three Months in Accra for the promise of taking me back to Ghana and the chance to fall in love with the country again.

Aliza and Kofi’s story is tender, bittersweet, and deeply human. Their chemistry is effortless, and I was rooting for them from the start. But the real magic here is how L.B. Gaines captures Ghana itself—not as a backdrop, but as a living, breathing presence in the book. The food, the heat, the laughter, the heaviness of history, the beauty in everyday moments—it’s all rendered with care and detail.

No, I didn’t fall in love on my own Ghana trip—but reading this made me feel like I got to anyway. Aliza and Kofi were the perfect guides, and I’m grateful to have taken this journey with them.

A good first draft of a novella, I wish there was less exposition from the characters and more plot events, as well as more believable interactions/dialogues - it perhaps needs to be novel-length to allow the plot to take form and for the characters to have an actual development, rather then telling us they had.
I overall enjoyed the novella, and the spicy scenes are fun.
On a personal note, I lived this exact situation myself, alas with a different ending, and I thought the real repercussions on going against ancestral cultural and tribal traditions is very much glided over, in order to give an happy ending to the story. I appreciate this aspect, yet it could have been explored more realistically.

Thank you to NetGalley and Love Letter Collector Press for the advanced copy.

Three Months in Accra offers a charming cultural romance that succeeds as light entertainment despite some narrative shortcomings. The characters are likeable, and I thought the exploration of the cultural connection between African Americans and Africa provided genuine appeal. The plot ending where it began created a satisfying closure. However, the romance felt underdeveloped and rushed. The couple's love developed too quickly to feel entirely believable. The female protagonist's tendency toward whining becomes grating, and several elements of her backstory feel extraneous to the main plot. Additionally, the male protagonist's reentry into her life lacks credibility, especially in the speedy way he is able to quickly resolve all the problems that kept them from being together. Despite these flaws, this is an easy, enjoyable read that works perfectly as a palate cleanser between more demanding books. The cultural themes feel relevant and engaging, making it a worthwhile light romance for readers seeking something uncomplicated and pleasant.

This novel was a beautifully crafted love story that was written without extreme fluff and pretense. (Soft spoiler) Kofi, fell first, hard and was Aliza’s forever soft place for her to be her best self from the very beginning. I loved him for her and rooted for them both all the way through. In love with this story and intently looking forward to the next read from Ms. Gaines. 10/10 highly recommend!

You ever wanna take two characters and just shake them while yelling JUST TALK TO EACH OTHER... yeah that was this book 😂

This story had such a natural chemistry between the leads like, from the moment they met, their connection felt like it just clicked. It wasn’t just surface-level attraction either. We got to see those long, layered convos that make you fall for someone without even realizing it. Their bond felt earned, not forced, and that made their romance actually believable (and mad cute too, let’s be honest)

What I did wish was that we got a little more from the side characters. I feel like Tasha had potential to be way more involved, and even those mean girls at the beginning could’ve added more depth if we saw them pop back up. And some things felt like they wrapped up a little too quick, especially the situation with Kofi and his parents. That deserved a bit more time, and honestly, I think seeing that from his perspective would’ve elevated the emotional weight significantly. However, it is a novella so I can definitely see why a ton of detail wasn't added.

Now look… this is definitely a miscommunication trope, which y’all know is not my fave lol. And to be honest, it didn’t fully land here because the main couple had already been so open with each other. So after all those deep convos, the lack of communication kinda just felt a little off, like they suddenly forgot how to talk?

But I will say I loved the cultural tension between the characters. I loved how different cultures experience and reaction to specific themes was mentioned and how there was even a bit of history that played into the story. It added weight to things without dragging the pace.

Overall a good read, I give it 3.5 stars -- rounded up to 4 for GoodReads


Thank you NetGalley and L.B. Gaines for providing me with an ARC of this novella. This review is based from my own thoughts and reactions to this story.