What You Made Me Do was such an addictive college sports romance. The enemies-to-lovers tension between the main characters grabbed me immediately, and the mix of rivalry, forced proximity, and emotional vulnerability kept me invested the whole way through.

I really liked that the conflict between them felt layered instead of forced. Their banter and constant back-and-forth had a lot of chemistry, but underneath all of it there was genuine emotional depth, especially as more of the FMC’s fears and past trauma came to light. Watching her slowly trust Nox — especially in the scuba training scenes — made the romance feel earned and believable.

Nox was also exactly the kind of MMC I enjoy in sports romances. Confident and competitive without losing the softer, protective side underneath. The dynamic between them shifted naturally from irritation to understanding to something much deeper, and I thought the pacing of the slow burn worked really well.

The college setting and competitive athlete atmosphere added a lot to the story too, especially with the pressure both characters were under academically and personally. It gave the romance higher emotional stakes without becoming overly dramatic.

Overall, this was an emotional, tension-filled sports romance with strong chemistry, great banter, and a really satisfying slow-burn relationship. If you enjoy enemies-to-lovers romances with emotional depth and competitive college athlete dynamics, this is definitely worth reading.

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

Thank you NetGalley and Kay Marie for the eARC of this book.

This might be my favorite book of 2026 so far. I could not put this book down and it pulled me in from page one. The emotions and story were conveyed so well that I could see every scene in my mind and it just made the story that much better. Kay’s writing is simply gold. I am a huge reader and it is rare for me to have a book pull me in so quickly and keep me interested from cover to cover. The writing was so real and the situation was so raw that you could feel it on every page. The friendships between Clara, Willa, and Nova are the friendships of dreams. And their friendships together with Nox, Logan, and Grayson were just so beautiful that it really reflected what the college years are about and how you take those friendships and carry them into your life.

The chemistry between Clara and Nox was beautiful. You wanted them to be together from their first interaction at the lake and the YEARNING that took place over freshman and sophomore year which culminated right before the end of sophomore year was everything. You just wanted them to finally say it and act on it and when it happened, it was fireworks. Nox is my favorite MMC of this year. I cannot wait to see what Kay does with books 2 and 3, and I am here for it. I am going to tell every single one of my reader girls to read this book. To miss out on this is a crime! In all honesty, this book was just so well done and I’m still sitting here thinking about how much I loved it.

Congratulations Kay on this amazing book. I just loved it so much.

Kay Marie has such a gift for tension — the push and pull between the characters had me reading way past my bedtime. The chemistry was electric and the emotional beats hit harder than I expected. A must-read for anyone who loves a good second-chance story with real depth.

6️⃣⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This absolute gem literally fell into my lap after I requested an ARC from NetGalley on a whim due to the book blurb.

Let me tell you, this was hands down an infinite-star, one sitting read for me. Everything about Clara’s & Nox’s story was absolute perfection.

At first glance it’s your typical enemies-to-lovers college romance—but a deeper dive will show you that it’s so much more. It’s a telling of first love, second chances, and emotional healing that deals with heavy topics like anxiety, depression, loss, addiction, and survivor’s guilt. It’ll make you laugh, cry, and clutch your heart in delicious angst as you watch the slow, consuming way that Clara and Nox fall in love.

Written entirely from Clara’s POV (with the exception of a bonus chapter that you can read by subscribing to the author’s newsletter) this story is so beautifully written and will leave you reeling from start to finish. Your heart only grows when you face Clara’s demons with her, and every single part of you will yearn to reach through the pages to give Nox a hug when his own struggles emerge. These two characters are strong, human, and beautifully flawed.

I cannot wait to read the next book in this series. 10/10 would recommend this for any readers who love a deep, emotional story.

Thank you to the author, Kaitlyn Davis Publishing, and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

i’m OBSESSED. i didn’t have any expectations, honestly just wanted to read something cute and fun and WOW what a lovely surprise.

this book has everything I LOVE. STEM, sports romance, slow-burn, uni setting. and it’s nailed perfectly. i got easily pulled in and it was honestly hard for me to stop reading. i almost finished it in one night!

clara is the type of fmc you just have to love. we meet her right after an awful accident that left marks on her. she struggles and the worst thing? she’s terrified of water that used to be and still is a huge part of her life. her journey to getting better and facing her fears is sometimes sweet, sometimes heartbreaking. but her strength is what i admire the most. she never gives up and pushes herself towards her goal.

and nox? this book would be nothing if it wasn’t for him. he’s hard to understand at first. i couldn’t quite figure him out. but once clara starts spending more time with him it’s evident he’s a softie. i also admire his determination to be the best at swimming. i need that kind of discipline, honestly.

their relationship? let me tell you that this book should be set as an example of slow-burn. i can’t even explain how i felt when i read this. yes, i was screaming at my kindle for them to finally do something, but that’s exactly what i loved. the yearning is just written on point. the banter? the longing? the growing tension? i absolutely loved every moment.

this is not just a love story. there is so much more. we not only follow the main characters clara & nox, but many scenes also involve their friends and it’s so fun. you know it’s a good college romance if you get to know more characters and you grow to like them. i adore their friends group so much ahh.

the book also includes heavy topics, but kay navigates her characters through the tough times so brilliantly. of course my heart was sometimes breaking, but the conclusion was so worth to go through it.

one tiny flaw to point out has to do with the writing. i think the chapters deserved to be divided sometimes as the author usually flew through a longer period of time in a longer paragraphs and i think separating them would have worked better as i was sometimes a little confused where we were.

but overall, i loved this and i enjoyed the experience so much. and i want more!!!!

thank you NetGalley and Kaitlyn Davis for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!