Every time I read a Kayla Grosse book, she cements herself even more as one of my go-to comfort authors. I’ve loved every single one I’ve picked up, and I Like You Like That is no exception.

This story follows Birdie, a rockstar dealing with a dangerous stalker, which means she needs a bodyguard. Her new protector turns out to be her high school best friend, aka the guy who broke her heart years ago.

This is such a fun and swoony bodyguard romance, with just the right amount of forced proximity and emotional baggage. The stalker subplot adds a good dose of suspense without overshadowing the romance.

I really enjoyed the audiobook. Grayson Owens and Angelina Rocca did an amazing job bringing Birdie and Liam to life.

I Like you Like That by Kayla Grosse
Narrators, Grayson Owens, Angelina Rocca
Where to begin? I know, with the fact that this couple badly needed therapy both as a couple and separately. So many issues, insecurities, and misunderstandings. They were in their late twenties but their behavior and conversations were still like the teens they were when they met.
They had great sex and a lot of it but the rest of their relationship was a mess. They did work on it towards the end but too little too late for me.
Plus that third act split was ridiculous. After all those complaints the story was compelling enough to keep me reading till the end. It helped that the narrators were both good. Not fabulous but good considering what they had to work with. I wouldn’t likely read this author again.
3.5 stars rounded up to 4
Thanks to NetGalley

This was an enjoyable listen, and the narrators did a good job.

There were a few plot points and moments that didn’t quite hit for me, which contributed to the rating—it felt like all of the elements were there, but it didn’t quite come together cohesively.

This was a great second chance romance! Love a plus size curvy heroine with a sexy MMC. I wish we could’ve seen more of the trauma the MMC experienced but it was interesting to see if play into the relationship with the fmc.

The narrators are great. Loved their performance!

Second chance romance
Friends to enemies to lovers
Singer x bodyguard
Second chance
Plus size FMC

Dual narration - Grayson Owens & Angelina Rocca

This was a fun easy listen. I love Kayla Grosse writing is always so good. The spice was chefs kiss. Love a plus size FMC moment.

Birdie is a now famous singer who has a stalker and needs a bodyguard when a mutual friend suggests a guy. Birdie has no idea that it will be the boy that broke her heart is school.

Liam is a former police officer who now works in private security when his friend Ben convinces him to be the bodyguard for Birdie, his high school best friend turned enemy(ish)

Great quick listen that is a fun time.

I have read and enjoyed several books by Kayla Grosse in the past. I DNFed this one at 40%.

This is the line that did it for me, "I wonder if I have a sign on my forehead that says I'm available and don't require commitment. I admit that screwing a random woman who is into me isn't an unusual occurrence."

I may not have been so triggered by that particular line early in a book (we are at 40%) when we have a reformed playboy arc for the H. But we are nearly half way.

This is not the first time Liam has rubbed me the wrong way. Before leaving for his job, he had to meet up with a random woman for sex at lunchtime. Who does that?

Basically, the H is a douchebag and I had enough. I don't even care if he has a redemption arc.

I received an advance audio copy in exchange for an honest review.

Forced Proximity
Friends to Enemies to Lovers
Bodyguard x Rock Star
Second Chance(?)

I Like You Like That started out really strong. I was listening to this thinking, why are its ratings not higher? Then as I continued to move through the book, I started to see what was going on.

The whole idea here is that we’re a confident, plus size rock star who is unknowingly stuck in an agreement with her unrequited love from childhood to act as her bodyguard.

My first issue is that they both seem to be bad at their role here- he leaves her alone, something bad happens. She has someone comment or otherwise just look at her wrong and her confident persona crumbles.

The thing I couldn’t quite let go of, though, was this woman cuts herself open and bleeds for this man repeatedly and he just does not care. Then suddenly he does? He could not have been more apathetic about this Queen outside of him being her bodyguard but suddenly he just makes a move? There’s no real awakening or realization to bring on this change outside of sudden proximity. ✨THEN THERE IS A THIRD ACT BREAK UP✨ because he’s still being a weenie.

This was the audio version of the book and I really loved the FMC narration. She was able to swap her voice to his perspective and it not give the ick (you know exactly what I’m saying haha).

I was very grateful to receive this Audio-ARC from NetGalley because this had been on my TBR for quite sometime.

Audiobook was very well done. Love the choice of narrators for both the fmc and mmc.

The story was fast paced and keeps your attention. Not my favorite from this author but still an entertaining read. Sometimes I felt that too much emphasis was made about fmc's weight and in trying to be body positive they went a step to far. The third act breakup felt unnecessary.

Thank you net galley, the publisher, and Dreamscape for the copy of the audiobook.

Quick Summary: A Second-third chance romance

My Review: I Like You Like That by Kayla Grosse is a body positive, contemporary romance. It is scheduled for release on 7/28/25.

About the Book: "Birdie Wilder and Liam Miller haven’t spoken in ten years—but that’s all about to change."

In My Own Words: Friends from days gone by are reunited when a bodyguard work assignment to protect his former best friend is called into play.

About the Characters:

Birdie Wilder - > Artistic, challenging home life, protective & nurturing to those she cares about, bruised from past hurts, loves hard

Liam Miller - > Former athlete, retired law enforcement, PTSD, bodyguard, troubled home life, friend to those he cares for, scared and scarred concerning relationships and matters of the heart

About the Conflict: There were several points of conflict in this story, which kept things interesting. Relational, conversational, and familial difficulties and misunderstandings largely ruled. While there was a deranged, dark tone to the underlying threat, it was not so horrific that it detracted from the story's main romantic focus.

About the Audiobook: This novel was narrated by Grayson Owens and Angelina Rocca. They were able to present this story in an entertaining way. It made for an easy listening experience.

My Final Say: This story was certainly remarkable, in its own way. I liked it well enough, however, I was not a fan of the relationship between the main characters, in all truth. Birdie and Liam, at times, appeared to be immature with their behaviors and responses. Ten years should have matured them, yet they often came across as a bit wet behind the ears. It also seemed like they wanted to scratch and itch more than they wanted to resolve what was wrong between them. In the end, it all came together, but...yeah. Some of the things they did were a bit off-putting.

What I Liked:

- Plus size representation
- Second-third chance relationship
- Close proximity
- Work related romance
- Performer & bodyguard
- Friends with benefits situationship
- High school BFFs
- HEA

What I Did Not Care For (Coded & abbreviated, so as to avoid spoilers):

- Liam's choices, as well as some of Birdie's choices
- The loose threads related to the antagonist angle
- The ETOH link
- The trickery surrounding the placement

Overall, this gets a mixed plus rating. I think it will be received well by those who have a high interest in reconciliation romances. With that said, I do believe that it may not jive with some.

Other: Readers who like stories of reuniting with the one who got away should like this book. I believe the story will appeal to the new adult reader group.

Note: Potential readers should read any and all author/publisher content warnings.

Rating: 3/5
Recommend: Yes +/-
Audience: NA
Status/Level: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice Level: 🌶️🌶️
Triggers: Yes
Audiobook: Yes
Narration: +
Cover: +

Appreciation is extended to the author, to the publishers (Dreamscape Select | Fat Babe Publishing INC.), and to NetGalley. Thank you for providing access to a audio ARC of this work in exchange for an honest critique. I enjoyed listening to this novel, and I am grateful for the opportunity. I look forward to reading more from this writer. I was pleasantly surprised to find that she features plus size leads in her romances. Salute.

I honestly can't get over the female narrator being the PERFECT choice for Birdie. I wish there was no 3rd act breakup because the other drama was enough, but that's personal opinion. Very cute book and will definitely be purchasing all versions.

Thank you NetGalley and Dreamscape for the audio ARC

4 ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️

🎧 AUDIOBOOK REVIEW 🎧

I really enjoyed this audiobook. I really loved the narrators. Not sure I’ve ever listened to them before but I will be looking for other books they have narrated for sure. The audio books flowers nicely and all around i just really enjoyed it.

I’m a huge Kayla Grosse fan and I’ll read anything she writes. I love how she writes spicy but also with a plot cause if a book doesn’t have a plot with spice it’s just a waste of time. I loved the second chance romance vibes with this one too. It had me hooked from the first word!

4 stars! I mean come on did we expect any less from me when the bodyguard trope was in play 😘.

I’m so happy I got a chance to listen to I Like You Like That in its new audiobook format. As soon as I saw it on NetGalley and saw that Angelina Rocca and Grayson Owens were narrating. My grabby hands came out and Dreamscape Media came through. I then proceeded to immediately listen to nothing else and devoured it in less than 8 hours.

First and foremost Kayla Grosse did not disappoint. I had an absolute blast with this audio ALC! Kayla always writes amazing and empowering plus size female characters. And to top it off she always writes the best swoon worthy men. Now I did have one smidge of gripe about our MMC but not enough to deter me from loving this book.

Speaking of that gripe let’s get it out of the way. It all boils down to my least favorite trope. MISCOMMUNICATION. To top it off both characters had the brains of horny teenagers so of course putting those two things together is never going to go well. All of their angst could’ve been solved if they both pulled their heads out of their butts and spoke to each other. But then again because they didn’t do that, we’d also have no book.

Now back to the best parts of the book. The bodyguard trope. I love this trope, Birdy and Liam perform it perfectly. Plus I love that this wasn’t just your standard bodyguard falls in love with client. We actually had some mystery and suspense for our team to solve. And part of that ending reveal I didn’t see coming.

Another thing I loved about this was Birdy and Liam. I loved their relationship from beginning to end. And their steam scenes are 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️.

Overall, I highly recommend this book and any book by Kayla Grosse. Also if you can listen it as an audiobook even better! Big thank you again to NetGalley & Dreamscape Media for providing me an ALC to review!

CW: mentions of fatphobia, body image, kidnapping, and stalkers

This was was just okay. Good for an afternoon or while you’re cleaning and need something to listen to.

I want to start by saying the narrators were great. They had clear voices that could lull you to sleep but were able to make the words jump off the page with their tone. It worked for me.

Now, I wasn’t a fan of Liam. I thought he was gross and mean. While he was truthful as a teenager to Birdie, he could have been more sensitive. As an adult, he treats women like trash. The day he sees Birdie again, he made sure to sleep with another woman to take the edge off. He then fantasizes about that woman a couple times while body guarding Birdie. Ew.

I liked Birdie, but I think she could have been stronger. I also think it’s weird that people toss bras and thongs at her while she performs. I’ve been to quite a few concerts and have never seen that.

I did like the plot though. It was easy to follow.

*An ARC was received in exchange for an honest review.