The narration of this was good. Not great but good. There were times where it was a bit confusing as to decipher what character was speaking.

The authors writing I found that it was very heavy on narrating the story versus actual dialogue and for me it was a but hard to keep up my interest.

ABOUT

This is a sequel and a second chance romance. In book one, we saw how this couple got together and it ends with the characters still in University.

In Sweet Heat, it has been 7 years since where we left off in book one. So much life has happened and we are dealing with much more adult characters with adult problems, which might be why I actually loved this story even more than book one (rare for me).

Must read Honey & Spice before enjoying Sweet Heat!

REVIEW

Bolu outdid herself with this book. Just like in book one (Honey & Spice), culture is front and center in Sweet Heat. It is a shining beacon of an example of how specificity is stunning. It does not explain itself to an audience that isn’t from that culture, AND IT SHOULDN’T.

The narrator performance was stunning, just like in book one. I was blown away. 10/10! This was an incredible listen of an earnest and vulnerable performance.

I was frequently stunned by the beauty of the writing. Whether it was yearning, grieving, tension inside friendship, complacency, sense of responsibility, loss of and rediscovery of creativity,or feeling lost - I felt it so deeply. I cried multiple times. Highly recommend!!

The dialogue in this book was poetic. I found myself taking notes of the words and phrases Kai and Kiki said to each other because they were so emotional and profound, filled with love through all their "will they or won't they" moments.

The narration by Weruche Opia was nuanced, giving each character their own identities and deliveries.

While I binged this book and found it entertaining, I didn't find myself feeling emotionally connected to Kai or Kiki which made it a little harder for me to feel fully invested in how their relationship evolved. I enjoyed it as an outsider, but wasn't fully immersed in the story itself.

All that to say, the writing was unique and intentional, and I look forward to reading more from Bolu Babalola.

I didn’t love the narration on this as the speed was inconsistent making it harder to understand at times.
The story was okay but not my favorite, it never fully dragged me in and I found myself easily distracted.

Oh my god, oh my god, I didn’t think I could love Kiki and Kai more and yet here we are. This book was fantastic and absolutely worth the wait. I cannot wait to have the physical one in my hands in less than a month Bolu is a genius. I loved getting to see how much they grew.

4.5 stars rounded up. I had to sit with this one for a minute to fully process everything that happened within these pages. Bolu Babalola put Kiki (and Malakai) through it in this one. It was emotionally heavy, but in a really powerful, beautiful way. The friendship and the banter and the heat that were all a part of Honey & Spice were all still present as well.

While this book was a romance (we’ll come back to that), it was also largely about Kiki, where her life was at, and where it was going. At the point when the book opened up, her relationship with Kai was three years in her past. She had moved on, but life was throwing her curveballs and derailing everything she had built in that time. Her best friends getting engaged and bringing Kai back into her orbit served to put her further in a tailspin. What followed was a lot of introspection, soul searching, and facing hard conversations and deep hurts for Kiki to find the new direction that was going to satisfy her spirit. So much of it was raw and emotionally charged without even touching on the romantic relationships in her life.

When the romance did come into play, that raw emotion dug in even deeper. There wasn’t much with Malakai in the first half, which really (for me) emphasized how much there was to Kiki’s life without him and then reinforced what her life had been and could be again *with* him. The fallout from their breakup was there, but we don’t actually experience it until later in the book, and when we do…it shredded me. The pain was visceral and really reframed how I had viewed so much of what I’d read to that point in a powerful way. Kiki and Malakai were both deeply hurting, and the way their hurts played out in their time apart and how it made its way into their present was initially something I had a hard time with but became something that I felt needed to be part of their story. There were so many difficult points to face, but it made them finding their way back to each other and to the other side of it all that much sweeter.

I had the audiobook with the ebook and Weruche Opia did a great job with the narration. I felt like the performance added to the depth of the story because I was immersed in the accents, emotional tones, and overall atmosphere of the story.

This book was a journey, and it was one I’m glad I took. Thank you to William Morrow for the eARC and HarperAudio Adult for the ALC, both via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.

Sweet heat by Bolu Babalola
ARC from William Morrow
Release date: Sept 2nd 2025
-if you’re in your 20s figuring out your life like me I think you’ll relate with Kiki also if you’ve been or going through heartbreak
-I love Kiki she feels so raw, relatable and really funny
-love the drama, tension , forced proximity
-love the different tone of voice and sound effect
-They’ve been through so much the past and present timeline makes me understand and connect with Kiki and Malachi
-Them dancing 🥰 I’m giddy and nervyyyy
-so much healing ❤️‍🩹
-their connection and passion feels souls deep
-some moments sound like poetry
-“he’s my favourite kind of trouble and I’ve never know how to resist “ 😩
-“loving you is like muscle memory from a time before I even know I existed”😭
-this second chance romance was everything 🥹

rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

thank you NetGalley and William Morrow books for this ARC!

Sweet heat is everything I look for in a romance. The author does a beautiful job of creating characters who feel authentic and real in their personal struggles and triumphs. The pacing was great and the story never felt drawn out. I look forward to story continuing to read whatever book Bolu Babalola writes.

Weruche Opia was the best part about Sweet Heat. Her voice is soothing and interesting to listen to. She brings characters to life with attention to the nuances that makes each character unique. Unfortunately, the rest of the book was not for me. I tried really hard to care about Kiki, but I just didn't. Unfortunately, I can't put my finger on why this is, but Sweet Heat was not for me.

Loved this book. There are very few second chance romance books that I enjoy but this one is by far my favorite. I was rooting for Kiki the whole book. I read Honey and Spice awhile ago so I don’t remember as much as I wanted but the story is so well written that it doesn’t feel like you needed to read it first to understand what is going on.

I’ve never been a fan of second chance romance but this book has proved me so wrong.

This story was so beautifully written. The author had me rooting for the characters separately and together. I loved them each as their own person. I think that’s the hardest and most beautiful thing to do is have your readers rooting for your love interests individually and together.

The family. The success. The love. The reunion. It was all so beautiful.

I’ll be thinking about this book for a while.

Also the narrators voice was amazing.

Sweet Heat is a second chance romance where it is so obvious that Kiki and Malakai are so incredibly right for each other but circumstances made it wrong to be together. There is lots of drama, a beautiful cast of friends and family and amazing Nigerian rep. The writing is beautiful and really sucks you in the story and the audiobook narration by Weruche Opia is incredibly good. I loved this book and kept putting it down because I didn’t want it to be over even though I kept wanting to know what happened next. Amazing story!

Whew, this was everything I want in a second-chance romance. Kiki Banjo is THAT girl...smart, sarcastic, slightly spiraling, and trying to hold it together while her ex (who is still fine) shows up as the best man at her best friend’s wedding. The tension?? The banter?? The unresolved feelings that bubble up at the worst possible time??

I was rooting for Kiki the whole time. She’s layered and complicated in a way that felt so real, and I loved watching her slowly peel back all that “I’m fine” energy to figure out what she really wanted not just in love, but in life.

Malakai is charming and knows it (which should be illegal), and Bolu Babalola writes their chemistry like she’s trying to ruin your day. I laughed, I blushed, I wanted to yell at both of them (on several occasions)....so basically, I had a great time.

If you love mess with heart, exes with unfinished business, and heroines who are doing their best while quietly falling apart? This one’s for you.

Sweet Heat is hands down one of the best second chance romances I’ve ever read. Bolu Babalola delivers stunning writing, layered storytelling, and deeply felt emotion that hits from the very first page. Kiki and Kai’s love story is full of passion, humor, and heartache, and I was completely hooked, feeling every twist and turn of their journey. The entire friend group feels so real and lovable, I genuinely wanted to hang out with them. The emotional growth, the aching tension, the small but powerful moments (yes, even the comment about wearing his scent!) it all builds into a rich, unforgettable romance. The chapters may be long, but trust me, you won’t want them to end. I need more, ASAP.

4.25 ⭐️
3 🌶️

🎧 ARC Audiobook Review

This book was so good. I listened to the audiobook and honestly, it made the experience even better—Kiki’s voice felt so real, and I was fully pulled into the story.

I already had high hopes after loving Honey & Spice, but Sweet Heat somehow went even deeper and hit me right in the feels. It follows Kiki and Malakai as they reconnect years later, and watching their journey unfold was just beautiful. The tension, the emotions, the angst—I was hooked.

This is one of those books that really makes you feel. I found myself replaying parts, just to hear certain lines again. The writing is gorgeous and lyrical, and I just connected with it so much.

What stood out most was how real the characters felt. Kiki especially—she’s confident, messy, brilliant, and completely lovable. I also really appreciated the way the book touches on being in your late 20s and figuring life out—career stuff, friendship stuff, relationship stuff. It was all relatable.

The romance itself was slow-burn, full of history and second chances. You could feel the love and the hurt between Kiki and Malakai. The flashbacks added so much, and I was just rooting for them the whole time.

And yes, the spice is there. Mature, emotional, and so well done.

💫 Tropes + Themes:

Second chance romance
Forced proximity
Dual timelines / flashbacks
Friends-to-lovers (with a break in between)
Black joy, culture, and identity
So. Much. Pining.

This book was full of heart, heat, and truth. It did have some parts that felt a little long for me, but I really loved it. If you like emotional second chance love stories that go deep but also give you butterflies—add this one to your list.

Thanks to NetGalley, Bolu Babalola and William Morrow Books for the ARC!

Sweet Heat is literally the (dare I say it) PERFECT sequel to Honey & Spice!!!

This audio book took me back, to when I first read Honey & Spice. Especially the fact that Weruche Opie is the same Narrator.

I don’t know how on earth Bolu Babalola could have possibly made this book better then Honey & Spice but this book gets an easy 5 Stars from me.

As a reader that always wants more from any of the books I read, I am always up for a good sequel!! I love a good Happily every After but its still never enough for me. Let me tell you that Sweet Heat was the PERFECT sequel to Honey & Spice!!! A sequel I didn’t even know I needed! This book begins I want to say a good 5/6 years after the original book. The FMC “Kiki Banjo” and MMC “Malikai Korede” are 2 years post break-up and are now thrown into Maid of Honor & Best Man duties. They must work together to make sure their Best Friend’s (Aminah & Kofi) wedding goes off without a Hitch. Although this story is just told from one POV I feel like we still get all the emotions from both Malikai and Kiki. I feel like they have a magnetic pull that no matter where they were in their lives it may have brought them back into the same vicinity. I LOVE that all of the friends were still close (Kikiola, Aminah, Ashanti & Chioma) and the funny banter between them still make you giggle to yourself.

This was the perfect Second Chance Romance! It was Romantic, had some humor, but “for me” when it got to the emotional parts I sobbed like a baby!! And when a book can bring out my tears it makes me love a book ten times more.

I am a reader from the Front of a book to the Back of a Book…. And Bolu Babalola in your Acknowledgements you stated “I firmly believe that your next book should always demand more from you than your last one. That you should grow, evolve, and challenge your craft and skill with each new creation.” Please know that you have done that and more!! I feel like you gave Sweet Heat your all and it shows. This book surpassed my expectations tenfold. I can wait for the world to Read it/Listen to it!

Thank you HarpoAudio Adult & William Morrow

This book was significantly different than first one and part of me struggled with fully getting into it because I played compare and contrast for the first few chapters. It took reminding myself that Kiki and Malakai aren’t who they are in the first book anymore so comparing the versions of them from 6 years ago would be doing a disservice the reading experience.
Bolu Babalola masterfully captures the essence of coming-of-age, not as a one-time event, but as a continuous evolution. this story feels like summer: warm, nostalgic, full of friendship and joy. but it also carries the weight of accountability and the quiet devastation that comes from unhealed grief. it’s a reminder that love, in all its forms, requires space to grow, and hearts need time to mend. I honestly feel like the audiobook captures this story in a completely different light. I was fully immersed in Weruche's buttery delivery and her ability bring a story to life is a talent that I wish more people had.
lovely audiobook experience, would highly recommend.

I adored Honey & Spice, so I’ll admit—I was a little nervous about a sequel. But Sweet Heat did not disappoint. Kiki and Kai were made for each other. Even when they lost their way, their journey back felt so honest and full of heart.

Watching them grow from young adults to full-on adulthood was beautiful, and the same goes for their entire circle of friends. This wasn’t just a romance—it was a story of self-discovery, risk-taking, and stepping into who you’re meant to be.

The romantic soulmates had my heart, but the platonic ones? Just as powerful. The love between the best friends was everything. I was invested in everyone’s story, and this is one of those books I’ll be recommending over and over again.

Oh Kiki and Malakai, how dear this characters are to me.

Sweet Heat was wonderful because it honestly felt like I was picking up where we left off in the universe of these characters. Obviously it is a few years after the story of Honey & Spice and our faves are little bit older now. They’ve gone through big changes in their lives from relationships to careers. This was a second chance story between Kiki and Malakai, but the story was so much more than that for me. Bolu Babalola is so good at writing romance, but she is always amazing at portraying friendship and its ups and downs.

I always say how I love a story about mid/late 20s to early 30-somethings because they always resonate with me. Everyone is growing and lives are changing and they’re figuring out how to navigate that. I feel like in general people are experiencing a lot of change in their lives, and while some might seemingly have it figured out where things are going smooth, many are still trying to get a grasp of things often leading to a quarter life crisis. Times are stressful. This book felt relatable in that way and it really hit the spot.

Kiki and Malakai’s journey as they were brought back together was beautifully written and their stories were perfectly intertwined. There was so much angst and yearning. I was screaming at the book because I just wanted my faves back together, but the pacing and events that occurred for their journey flowed perfectly.

As always, Bolu Babalola’s writing was phenomenal. That prose was chefs kiss. She will always have a reader in me!

I’m really happy with the audio. I’m glad they used the same narrator back for this novel. The audiobook version is performed so well and makes the story even more engaging!

Thank you Harper Audio!

Bolu Babalola is a wordsmith. The way she weaves sentences into the story they'll become is so seamless, that I can't decipher one from the other. I cant' tell if I prefer her at a prose/line level or as a storyteller—she's so strong at both. I am a fan. I will be loud about it lol