For those who love romance with characters with love hate relationship. Quite fast summer read that once it is finished you had a feel good moment to a long day. The story is nothing new and honestly it just what it appears to be.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the advance copy of Noelle Adams Carpool

4 stars!
I liked this simps story by Noelle Adams. It worked for me. Maybe because, at one point, we lived in a small Vermont town like this one. I know how hard it is to get from point A to B. Carpooling with someone is a necessity when there is no public transportation. The story Jennifer and Marcus was a slow burn, but worth it. You see Jennifer open and grow when it comes to giving Marcus a real chance.

Growing up in a small town, you get to know your neighbors and the kids around you. You also grow up knowing which ones are good and the ones to avoid. For Jennifer, growing up she always had a thing for Marcus Greene. The thing though Marcus was a bad boy and one of those bad seeds that her grandmother and others warned her not to get involved with. As they grew older, she watched him from a distance as she loved him but knew she could never be with him. Now they are both older and working at the same college - Milford College. She is in the financial aid office and he is the Maintenance Director. When Jennifer's car ends up conking out, she is forced to ask Marcus for help as he is the only one who lives close to her and they work the same hours. The pair start carpooling to work and within the forty-five minutes there and back, they start to get to know one another and eventually you see the sparks fly and that makes Jennifer nervous as she cares what others think as to her - the small town of Sterling is her family. Can Marcus in order to be with Jennifer prove to her and the town that he has changed and that he is no longer the resident "bad boy" they still perceive him to be? Find out in this cutesy quick-read instalove novella by Noelle Adams today.

Jennifer was raised by her grandmother is a small Virginia town. She put herself through college and works at as a financial aid advisor at a private college. She doesn’t feel financially secure as much of her income goes to paying for a nursing home for her grandmother. She longs for a loving and secure relationship but fears that she may never find one.

Marcus spent years honing a reputation as the small-town bad boy, but eventually outgrew that phase, becoming the director of facilities at the same college that employs Jennifer. Unfortunately, many people in their small community still see him as the irresponsible boy of his youth.

When Jennifer realizes she will need to carpool to work due to transportation issues, she asks Marcus if he would be interested. This is their first real interaction despite being neighbors. Eventually, they form a genuine friendship, opening up to each other in ways they haven’t with others. Can the good girl and the bad boy find happiness together?

What is good about this novella is really really good. Noelle Adams is a master at managing to fully develop a relationship within a small number of pages. Marcus and Jennifer get to know each other beyond their years' worth of misconceptions on their daily drives together. Their attraction to each other is palpable as is their uncertainty about each other's feeling. I really liked them both and the beginning half of this novella had me so hooked that I could hardly bare to put it down and head to work. The second half worked a little less well for me. The writing flowed less smoothly and the emphasis on being "bad" or "good" felt so juvenile. The lack of communication that resulted in more than one scene of angsty misunderstanding wore on me as well. I still enjoyed being along for the ride (I know, I know... horrible pun) and Adams is someone I always look forward to reading.

I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Carpool was a sexy and fun novella. It is the first in the Milford College series and what a great start it was. This novella follows the enemies to lovers trope. Jennifer and Marcus have known each other since they were kids. They just never became friends because they lived different lives. It’s not until Jennifer needs a ride to work because her car needs repair that connection is made between them. They start a very bumpy ride. They liked to push each other’s buttons, but they were actually presenting their true self to each other. They both believe they only want a physical relationship since both are afraid to admit to what they really want. Lots of sexy times, but also some sweet moments.

I look forwards to the rest of the series!

Thank you to the publisher for the ARC given through NetGalley for review.

Review will be shared on Goodreads now and on Amazon on release date.

When good girl Jennifer’s car breaks down, she has no choice but to ask Marcus, her nearest neighbor and hottie bad boy from her childhood, if she can carpool with him to their jobs at small Milford College nearly an hour away. Growing up, her grandmother warned her away from him, and she’s always felt that he treats her with disdain, so the thought of having to spend so much time with him over several weeks fills her with dread. Is it because she doesn’t trust he’ll behave or that she really doesn’t want him to?

When you pick up a Noelle Adam’s book, you generally know what to expect: a short, sassy, steamy novella full of either second-chances, friends to lovers, brother’s best friend, or any other number of familiar romantic tropes. This story is no exception, and is a delight to read. Fans will eagerly await book two featuring Jennifer’s colleague and friend Beck.

I received a complimentary ARC of this book from Victory Editing through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed are completely my own.

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I was first introduced to Noelle Adams when she wrote under the name Claire Kent. I loved her book “Escort.” Even though “Carpool” is not an erotica like Escort, Adams still had me captivated by the main characters and I wanted to see how they would resolve their conflict. Marcus Greene and Jennifer are opposites. Where she was the good girl, Marcus was the legendary bad boy. They always had a bit of conflict between them. Jennifer always saw Marcus as unnecessarily difficult although very attractive. When Jennifer needs a ride to work he becomes her only option. Jennifer hates to ask Marcus for the help but other than moving out of town and closer to their common place of employment she has few other options.
During their shared commute they slowly start to peel back their layers. During the 45 minute commute back and forth they begin to get to know each other. Marcus confesses that his reputation sometimes frustrated him but he stuck around his hometown to help his parents. In a similar situation, Jennifer is in a similar situation. She is also taking care of her grandma who is in a nursing home and facing health issue. Although Jennifer is attracted to Marcus she is not aware of his attraction to her. Marcus takes it slow until he is sure that Jennifer is open to taking their friendship to the next level.
Overall, this was a short and fun read. Adams provided enough tension and chemistry between the main characters. She also added enough substance to their personalities to make them likeable. The conflict that arises is small but enough to help them see that they both have strong feelings for each other. Another aspect that I really like is that even though this is a short read, I am already looking forward to the next story in the series, “Office Mate”. “Office Mate” is about her friend Becky and her new office mate, the new English Professor. The immediately dislike one another and I immediately wanted to read the story!

Another grat read from Noelle Adams

Jennifer is having car trouble and needs a lift to work until her car is back on the road. She ends up having to ask Marcus for help, given he lives nearby and works at the same college as she does. They have never been friends, she is a good girl and he has a bad boy reputation. They get to know each other on the journey to and from work, and soon are more than friends. Will Jennifer take any notice of the town gossip about her or will she give Marcus a chance?

A short, fast paced and enjoyable read.

Looking forward to the rest of this series.

I really enjoyed this one. For a short story, it felt complete and I felt like I understood the characters and had enough back story to be invested in them. Great writing. My only issue is that I don't feel like the cover matched.

You learn a lot about a person when you’re stuck in a car with them day after day - even if you think you already know everything there is to know about them to begin with. That’s the premise behind Carpool, a sweet and steamy novella about two neighbors who have known each other for much of their lives but don’t really see each other completely until they are forced to carpool to work. The story follows Jennifer, a good girl who was warned to stay away from bad boy Marcus in her teens. He seems to love picking on her and though they’ve never really spent any time together, they live in a small town where people know each other’s business. When Jennifer’s car breaks down and she asks Marcus if they can carpool to work together for a few weeks, they break down the walls between them and have open and honest conversations that dig deeper than surface level.

I loved the first half of this novella - Jennifer and Marcus’ banter is great, and the chemistry between them is apparent. The story is told exclusively from Jennifer’s point of view, and every time I thought it was obvious what Marcus was thinking, the author threw me for a loop. When the focus of the book shifted off of the carpooling and onto what follows, that’s where the story lost me a little bit. Their conversations and chemistry are really the selling point of this novella, so I was hoping that would be the focus of the story. I think seeing things from Marcus’ perspective would’ve really enhanced the book and taken this to another level, though I understand why the author chose not to go there. Thank you, NetGalley, for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review. I enjoyed reading about these total opposites who found that they’re not so different in all of the ways that count. This story has a little bit of everything and leads off a promising new series.