I listened to the audiobook. It was narrated by Grayson Owens and Patti Murin. They did a great job. Their voices fit the characters and they captured the personalities and emotions of the characters well.

This was a sweet story. I loved the characters. Wes and Mo were great. The banter between them was really good and had me laughing. I liked the situation of them competing for the chance to publish their adaptation of a book they both loved. I found that unique. It didn’t really feel like they were rivals to me though. It didn’t take long at all for Wes to show support for Mo. The chemistry between them was there and it was good but, I would have liked to have had more of the rivalry with it. I also felt the story dragged on for a bit. It was enjoyable though and I liked how things turned out with a happy ending,

I give the story 3.75-4 ⭐️, the narration 5 ⭐️ and the spice 1 🌶️

Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to this ALC!

It’s 3.5 rounded up.

It is much like the Ali Hazelwood/ Em Hen type romcom. You get some plots, some spicy time.

Wes & Mo huge nerd of a past work and fighting for the right to reinterpretation. But nerdy love was too strong. So are they enemies, nerds w/ benefits?

I had the audiobook, of course having Patti Murin & Grayson Owen can’t go wrong. Love their interpretation, the different voices and emotions are well done.

My only thing was that you can see the 2 MCs physical and intellectual attractions, but their emotional match even when they finally got to the same page, the feelings are still lukewarm. Towards the end it felt better but still feel a tad off. Listen, I got my HEA, so no complaint here.

Thanks to NetGalley & Spotify Audiobooks for the ARC.

Two rival authors competing to write an adaptation of a well treasured classic. While each try to prove themselves, Mo and Wes realize they have more in common with each other than original thought.

This steamy book centric book had a good premise and a lot of great book references, but really failed to grab or keep my attention. The pacing seemed slow and I didn’t feel the burn between the two main characters. The story was good, but not great.

3.5⭐️'s
I listened to the audiobook which was narrated by Patti Murin and Grayson Owens. They did a fantastic job.
I really enjoyed the premise of this book and it was well written. It definitely had some nice gems.
This is the story of Mo who is an author with an agent, but no published books and no connections or money. She has always loved the book The Pride and The Lost. She wrote a retelling and is going to get to pitch it to the former's author's daughter, Estelle. Estelle has not allowed for any retelling in any form to this point. The hitch is that she isn't only hearing Mo's retelling, but the famous editor, Wes's as well.
These two find themselves in a situation fraught with angst and tension, but find another tension too strong to ignore.
What ensues is a cute story about accepting and believing in yourself.

I really enjoyed the rivals to lovers tension within this book! Maureen and Wes certainly seemed like opposites at times, but they sure were the absolute right pairing! I always love dual points of view as well as I really feel like seeing the situation from multiple people's perspectives helps to round out the story! And the narrators really brought the story to life!

🎧⭐⭐⭐⭐🎧
Thank you to NetGalley & Spotify Audiobooks for allowing me to listen to and review this book.

🔥Enemies to Lovers Done Right!🔥

This book had me hooked with its delicious enemies-to-lovers trope.📖 The writing? Smooth, engaging, and super easy to devour. I was totally swept up in the suspense,😱 the romance,💞 and the mystery of what twist was lurking around the corner. It kept me on edge and gave me emotional whiplash, in the best way possible.
🗽Set in New York, the story follows two rival authors, Mo and Wes, who each write their own spin on a beloved classic.📚🖋️ But only one version will make it to the shelves... and that’s where the sparks start flying.⚡️🔥

As they clash and compete, something unexpected happens: they begin to understand each other.💬👀 A bond forms, one that’s confusing and thrilling all at once.💓 But just when things start to feel real, life throws them curveballs that test their connection.🧩💔

A must listen, because the narration was incredible, you won't regret picking this one up.🎧

I really enjoyed this fun romance, and the narrators were outstanding! Writers Wes and Mo are completing for the chance to publish their books, adaptations of a classic novel. Of course, their rivalry quickly turns into infactiation. Wes’s lack of communication was frustrating at times, and I couldn’t always understand his thinking. However, I found myself engaged throughout the book, wanting to know how they would resolve their conflicts. The ending was perfection!

Rivals to Lovers is a steamy story about two writers, Mo and Wes, fighting for permission to publish their adaptation of their favorite classic novel. I really enjoyed elements of this one, but some aspects felt a little heavy handed. The characters seemed to have character traits rather than feeling fully fleshed out to me, and I found the third act break up frustrating. It didn't endear me to Mo. And some of Wes's actions towards the end of the book confused me too. That said, I did think many of the characters conversations were funny and I enjoyed seeing them get to know each other and fall in love.

I think both audiobook narrators elevated the material for me. I adore Patti Murin and she did a wonderful job with Mo's character. As far as I know, narrator Grayson Owens is new to me, but I would definitely listen to books he narrated in the future. He brought a sweetness and vulnerability to Wes that I loved. I think I liked this book on audio much more than i would have if I'd read a physical copy.

Rivals to Lovers is exactly as it sounds, a rival to lovers romance. With captivating imagery throughout and undeniable chemistry between our FMC and MMC, Elise Wayland has crafted a contemporary romance that is not only a fun read but a narrative that will constantly have readers self-reflecting at any given moment.

Maurine "Mo" Denton is a wedding caterer who has adapted her favorite classic novel, The Proud and the Lost, hoping to bring a fresh light to the story with a modernized setting. Wesley "Wes" Spencer is a literary agent who has also adapted The Proud and the Lost, just from the male main character's perspective. The two are pitted against each other, by Estelle, the daughter of The Proud and the Lost's late novelist. as only one adaptation will be published. Spending a weekend at Estelle's estate, "The Hill", Mo and Wes realize that while they had vastly different upbringings, the two have shared passions.

After the weekend, Mo and Wes navigate their rivals to lovers situation in the ways they each know how. Teetering between friendship and something more, lies and secrets start to drive a wedge between the two, only they can't write themselves out of this one.

Narrators Patti Muran and Grayson Owens are very articulate, capturing the energy of the story, bringing the characters and their respective anxieties to life. Even at faster speeds (1.5-2x), they are still very clear and easy to listen to.

Thanks to Spotify Audiobooks and NetGalley for the advance listener copy.

Narrators Patti Murin and Grayson Owens really brought this story alive. I found myself trying to find more things to do so I could keep listening to this story. Mo and Wes are rivals trying to get a single book deal. They are so very different yet they can’t help but be interested in the other. I loved the growth of their relationship and the sweet ending this book had.
Thank you to Netgalley and Spotify Audiobooks for giving me the opportunity to listen to this audiobook early!

i think the plot of this book had potential to be really, really great. i loved the dual POV, but i have a really hard time listening/reading 3rd person pov. i like that there was bi-rep in this book. i also liked the overall idea of mo & wes trying to create their own adaptations of their favorite classic novel. overall, i think it was *fine*, but it was more of a 3 star listen for me.

Two yet to be published authors with vastly different upbringings become rivals over a weekend to get the chance for the rights to print their adaptation of the same formative book from the 1920s. Overall I enjoyed the book. I felt there was a lot of detail and background information. The characters were realistic and relatable. I wouldn’t suggest if you are looking for pulling and the heartstrings but it is cute. I felt the chemistry through Wes and MO’s conversations and liked how the author addressed some social issues. I don’t know how well it will age with some of the references but hope for the best.

Mo Denton, an aspiring writer has just given her new novel an adaptation of "The Proud and the Lost" to her agent. Mo wants to get approval from the writer's estate to have the book pusbished. Unbeknowest to Mo, Wes Spencer has also written an adaptation of "The Proud and the Lost" and also have submitted it for approval. Estelle is the daughter of the late novelist and oversee's her estate. She invites both Wes and Mo to her house for a weekend to read the books a loud and at the end of the weekend Estelle will decide which book will be published. Before the weekend ends Estelle is rushed to the hospital and Wes and Mo are sent back home. They have formed a friendship and try to keep it casual but can't seem to stop thinking about each other. When Wes messes up, Mo has to decide to end it with Wes or to forgive him. This was a cute book and really enjoyed listening to it. I would like to thank both NetGalley and Spotify Audiobooks for letting me listen to an advanced copy of this audiobook.

I love the enemies to lovers tropes. The plot was great, the banter was fun, the spice eh. The anticipation was lackluster. I prefer more build up and explosive spicy scenes than what this gave. overall it was a cute story.

Thank you to #NetGalley and #SpotifyAudiobooks for an advance listening copy of #RivalsToLovers. Two authors compete for the opportunity to publish their adaptation of a classic novel. 4 stars.

Thanks to Spotify Audiobooks and NetGalley for the advance listener copy. The narrators were great and the story was interesting. The premise of competing authors was well done and their chemistry was strong. The setting was great and both the main characters had interesting emotional arcs and I felt the FMC development was more well rounded than the MMC. My main complaint was that both could come across as whiny and the MMC’s privileged background did make it a little difficult to take his complaints seriously.

This was a good rivals to lovers romance story! I loved the overall concept of this book. Two authors who each wrote their own adaptation of a favorite classic book end up competing to be chosen to get theirs published and sold in stores. This created a lot of tension that was great to watch unfold.

I do wish that the main characters stayed rivals a little bit longer than they did. It felt like their chemistry took over a little too soon and they became lovers pretty quick.

This was a fun book though and I really did enjoy the ending.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the advanced copy of the book.

I had high hopes but this book was just mediocre. Maybe I had my sights set too high, or maybe it just wasn’t that good. The characters felt flat and the story got boring. I loved the narrator though.