This was a great story!! I loved the banter and the background history of Xander and Ashleigh. This was such a different romance book but it was wonderful. I have no notes. I really enjoyed this book.

Ashleigh needs the extra money and Xander wants to figure out how to sleep better. They are forced to fake being a couple after their past one night stand so they can join a sleep experiment. They try and see if they can get away with the fake relationship to stay in the experiment. This was an okay read but it felt like the romance and relationship was lacking.

Read if you like:
🛌 Enemies to Lovers
🛌 Fake Dating
🛌 Forced Proximity

Thank you to the publishers and NetGally for this Advanced Release copy. I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Thank you to NetGalley and Alcove Press for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Bed Chemistry is a good time! After losing her job Ashleigh needs money and ends up at a sleep study. She runs into Xander a friend turned one night stand she ghosted in college. They realize the sleep study is only for couples and quickly decide to fake a relationship. Thirty nights of one bed, forced proximity, fake dating shenanigans ensue.

I instantly loved Ash (and her best friend, Em). Xander was pretty swoony from the start. Their relationship was cute, even if sometimes frustrating because of Ash's warped views on love that she got from her parents. But every story has to have a bit of conflict and this one had a happy ending. A fun read for sure!

time of DNF: 2% - Honestly from the author’s note I had a feeling this wouldnt be for me, but in actuality the writing was what made me realize it indeed was not

thank you so much to netgalley and alcove press for this arc to review nonetheless!

I found this book on a whim, and THANK GOODNESS I did. This was so much fun, tension-filled, and so funny, with a healthy dose of mommy issues.

Our FMC, Ash, is a commitment-phobe with some serious divorced parents trauma, who runs into her ex-friend? situationship? hook-up? and realizes that not only is he still hot, but the chemistry that she's been in denial about since their "moment" 11 years ago, is still very much present. She is hilarious, a little frustrating, a lot pent up, and just a little messy. Xander is hot, horny, and has way more self-control than anyone should.

Anyone who loves tension, a one-bed trope, and a man with floppy hair, this is a must-read.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Set in the Los Angeles area, high school chemistry teacher Ashleigh has just lost her job. She needs to make rent, so she signs up for a sleep study. The problem? Only couples are needed at this point. Good thing her one night stand from eleven years ago is also there, desperate for help sleeping. Ashleigh and Xander haven't seen each other since that night, but surely they can pretend to be a couple for four weeks?

This book examines hook up culture and the emotional scars that family can leave. Ashleigh has been living her life by her mom's manifesto, but not finding real joy or happiness. Xander has always been the one that could have been if she ever did love. They have immediate physical chemistry (lust) with the relationship building over the book (love). I found the discussion of the two very interesting.

This premise was also perfect for those awkward, cringe moments. Ashleigh just couldn't catch a break sometimes. It was a little surprising that the sleep study scientists didn't notice more issues between these two. Ashleigh's best friend was a delight. The absolute best moment was when Xander picked apart her mom's book to her face, priceless!

If you liked Overruled by Lana Ferguson or Below Zero by Ali Hazelwood, I think this could be a good fit.

This romance features:
🛏 Second Chance
🛏 One Bed
🛏 Golden retriever MMC
🛏 One-night stand only FMC
🛏 Sizzling sexual chemistry
🛏 Forced Proximity
🛏 Single POV

Open door / spicy!

3.5 / 5 stars

Thank you to the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for this eARC!

What a fun read, an absolute joy.

*Second chance romance
*One bed
*Fake dating
*Banter

Ash is a chemistry teacher who doesn't believe in love. After watching her parents go through a horrible divorce, she decides it's not for her and protects herself the only way she knows how.
The rules are simple, no dating, no sleepovers and no repeat partners.
Xander was the one who made her doubt herself, but she was never going to see him again, so it didn't matter.
11 years later after getting fired and needing cash, Ash signs up for a sleep study where she runs into Xander again. They don't need any more single participants, so they team up and pretend to be a couple. The chemistry is still there and now they have to sleep next to each other for a month.

I absolutely love that Ash was so open and unapologetic about her sexual needs. She didn't feel the need to pretend that she didn't have a libido and that is refreshing. I loved that she was imperfect and that she had some growth. She was literally a woman doing her best to survive after the people that were meant to protect her when she was a kid, let her be caught up in their divorce. It sucks for her that her response was so extreme, but we all react differently to stuff. Ash has a lot of layers and the way you see more of who she is as the book progresses was cool.

The banter between Ash and Xander was so fun. Their chemistry was off the charts and i really liked that they were consistent in their behaviour and interactions with everyone. I liked how they got to know each other during the sleep study and how natural it was. No info dumping at all.

The story is fast paced; it's an easy read. It's fun and enjoyable. It has some glaring plot holes. Absolutely nothing about this book is based in reality and if i was to think about those plot holes for more than a second, it would have massively impacted my experience when reading the book. But I didn't select this book to think, i picked it because it looked fun and easy. And it was exactly that.

So, if you are looking for an easy, fun read with sexual chemistry to spare, this book is a safe bet. If you need the timeline to make any sense and have any internalised misogyny, then I would skip this one.

2.5
Second Chance
One Bed
Grumpy/ Sunshine
When I read the premise of the book I was excited it seemed like a fun classic rom-com type book. I just didn't like the FMC much. Ashleigh a chemistry teacher who is wrongfully terminated from her job and doesn't do relationships because of a truckload of baggage from her parents divorce and her mom's self- help philosophy. Other than her loyalty to her best friend I didn't find her having many redeeming qualities.
Xander the MMC was so sweet and honest and knew what he wanted. He deserved better from her. I honestly don't know why he kept coming back.
Bed Chemistry leaned heavily on the sexual chemistry and needed to develop the characters a little more. Thank you Netgallery for ARC!

Flirty, heartfelt, and full of charm—Hold Me For Now is a warm hug of a romance. The chemistry pops, the characters are easy to love, and I couldn’t stop smiling. So fun and feel-good.

This was a funny book! Ashleigh was great! If you like an Ali Hazelwood, you’ll love this. It’s cringy in the right way - imagine sharing a bed with your ex 🤪

2.5 ⭐️

ARC REVIEW COURTESY OF NET GALLEY FOR AN HONEST REVIEW.

TROPES:
🩷Fake Dating
🩷Second Chance
🩷Tension And Pining
🩷 Hate To Love
🩷Close Proximity

This was a quicky, witty read with lots of banter between our main characters. When chemistry teacher Ashleigh is fired, she enters a sleep study to make some money..the problem? It’s couples only. And who walks in? Xander Miller, the one that she got away from. After a One night Stand turned their friendship on its head 11 years ago, both Ashleigh and Xaden agree to help one another. By pretending to be a couple. Only issue is, Ashleigh does not date, she does not get involved and she does not fall in love.

The potential this book had was huge, close proximity, tension and pining with a second chance love interest has all the makings of an amazing Rom-com with witty banter and that wholesome ending. However the sleep study and plot line had a few plot holes that really took me out of the story, this was a couple who had supposedly been together for 11 years. Yet they showed up separately and left separately every time. They turned around to change in front of one another too, which is just unbelievable. There are cameras in this room, and yet when they argue, are monitored for heart rate spikes ect, it’s never actually heard? I thought a recorded sleep study would record sound too? Also they were able to drink within the study? It just didn’t make sense to me that a scientific study would allow variables such as drinking ect.

I think it’s sad notion that Ashleigh lives her life by the book and words of a scorned woman and whilst I understand her issues stem from deep rooted trauma. It was hard that we didn’t have this massive explosive moment of realisation or grand gesture to get Xander back. No grovelling? However my favourite part of the whole thing was Xander picking apart her mother’s book, to her face. Some parts felt rushed and unexplained, and in times the plot holes were just too much and too neat for me.

But I can see why a lot of people would love this and it would make for a light easy read when you need a reset.

Thanks again to NetGalley

Thanks netgalley for the arc!

The writing was solid, the premise was unique and pacing was great.

Not so good- Ashleigh the main character. She is the worst. She’s delusional about healthy adult relationships, has no redeeming qualities, and acts very immature for someone around 30(graduated college 10ish years ago). No way would she be promoted to principal. Her friend Emily and love interest Xander seem normal and nice. No idea why they’re drawn to such an emotionally stunted person.

I really enjoyed this book. It was a very light, cozy read and I really liked the characters and their relationship. The writing could have been a little bit better, but it's still pretty decent and I think the author really has a potential.

What I enjoyed the most is Ashleigh's quips on her life whether it be her announcing she is dressed like an English royal with a dirty mind of a stable boy or living her life as a screenwriter singing to LeeAnn Rimes regarding the Moonlight. This book is hilarious but reflective as how much one can lose in love while acting as it is impossible and only through immediate gratification such as Bone It, does any type of interaction makes sense. Ashleigh has always loved Xavier since she commando crawled out of his apartment. Of course they had the connection due to Oxytocin, but he made her feel loved and heard. Em did not need a penis parade to confirm. I adored this book. It makes one believe in romance and the timing of it and why it is worth the wait. Her Mom's book wad incorrect as well as Ashleigh living that life for eleven years. Love and lust are not inseparable.

This book was a character study, with a slightly unreal storyline and without much of a plot. That is not to say it was not good or enjoyable.

It was hilarious. And I was pleasantly surprised to have a main character with the same name as me. However, it was almost painful to see how stubbornly set some of these characters were — it got to the point at times where it felt unrealistic. I understand the premise of the concepts expressed, but I do enjoy a slightly more realistic, if not, relatable romance novel.

This might also be because I’m not a big second chance romance girl. But again, there are very specific cases in which second chance romance works out healthily in the real world. I don’t see this as one of them, because I can’t really imagine it at all.

I also felt that the beginning and the middle of the novel did a pretty good job of integrating the reader into the characters’ worlds and mindsets, but the end felt slightly rushed. After all of that instability, it would have been nice to study the MCs relationship in a more stable state. Or even to understand the point and the outcome of the study. Why was it distracting for heart rate monitors to go off — are couples generally not excited by each other? It doesn’t really make sense to me.

Then, the best friend seemed to have a plot line that was just detailed enough to peak my interest, but so vague that it was confusing as to why we’d get any real details about it.

Thank you #NetGalley for this ARC

Amazing book loved the characters and plot. I couldn't stop reading I stayed up all night. I loved the book so much thank you for the arc.

I would definitely recommend this as a fun, banter filled, second chance romance!

The concept of the story is so intriguing and such a fun spin on the one bed trope. I did however feel that the characters were too surface level and therefore some of their connection didn’t feel as believable. I found it odd that Ashleigh (being a scientist) never checked for evidence to corroborate the entire theory she built her life around. I also think maybe getting Xander’s POV would have been beneficial in believing he felt so deeply so quickly for her.

I think some people would absolutely LOVE this book, and there were definitely certain aspects of it that I did!

I can definitely see how this had the potential to be a cute and funny romcom. The setup was there, and the banter between the characters was honestly the highlight of the whole book. Unfortunately, that’s pretty much where it stopped working for me. The characters felt flat and lacked any real development, which made it hard to get invested in their story. The plot itself didn’t offer much depth either—it felt surface-level and predictable. Overall, it had a fun vibe but not enough substance to really leave an impact.
Thank you Net galley for the book in exchange for a honest review

I can see how this would be a cute and funny romcom but the characters left a LOT to be desired and there was hardly any depth to the story itself. The only good part was the banter.

I was really excited for this one but it fell short from the start. I gave this one the best chance I could but at 40% I DNF it. I can see where this could be a great read for some just not for me. I think when it comes out on audio I'd give it a second chance.

Thanks for the ARC