I thought this book was very sweet and fun. I really appreciate a f/f romance with a happy ending. I liked the characters a great deal, the dialogue felt snappy and realistic, and the story moved along quickly. Sometimes in fact I felt that it moved a little too quickly, jumping between some major topics and important scenes in a way that almost seemed to minimize their impact. On the other hand...the romance was a slow, slow burn. Perhaps too slow? Regardless of the overall pacing, I had a great time with this book, and I look forward to Wilsner's next novel.

Something to Talk About might need to be renamed Something Miles Past A Slow Burn, Like Embers that Just Aren’t Finding Their Footing, because, dear readers, it was delightfully EXCRUCIATING. Wilsner is a master of the almost-kiss, the not-quite-kiss, and the kiss-that-doesn’t-count, as well as a real champ at “tension that could cut your gay ass in half,” a speciality for which she stands above the rest. Lovers of the slow burn rejoice, others may find the pacing slow.

Something To Talk About takes place in Hollywood, on the set of the award-winning TV show, The Innocents. The show’s head writer, Jo, is a child star turned script writer, who found such success as a child star that she never needs to look at a receipt another day in her life. Her life is crazy busy - her assistant, Emma, shoulders the burden of making sense of Jo’s life on the day-to-day, and does an excellent job of it. When Jo is in the running for a big film project and rumors are flying that she isn’t ready for it, she asks Emma to accompany her to the SAG Awards. Emma accepts, and a rumor is born: the two are dating. Look at the way they could see no one but each other on that red carpet!

As a debut, Wilsner’s writing shines - the book is expertly plotted, a stream-of-consciousness third person that allows even the most straight of them into the minds of two extremely chaotic gays. But that chaotic writing is an acquired taste - for those that prefer more structure, it might be hard to follow this book into its more deliberate moments. Still, for those looking for sapphic romance novels that delve into feminism, racism, and a lot of pining, this is for you.

Something to Talk About really brings the slow to slow burn. For the majority of the book, Emma and Jo are not pursuing a romantic relationship with each other (are they interested? Sure. But Emma works for Jo).
I struggle as a reader with slow burns where they get together at the end because I want to see how the relationship can work. This is alleviated somewhat in that Emma knows Jo very well but I can't really say that was reciprocated. Then Jo becomes friends with Emma's sister, Avery, and doesn't tell her. This causes Emma to struggle as Avery has always been the one who gets everything right while Emma dropped out of film school and didn't find her path right away. Now Avery knows Jo in a way Emma doesn't and Emma takes that as a sign to be less personable at work; she thinks her feelings are showing too much and doesn't want to make things awkward.
Emma is Jewish and Jo is Chinese-American. I can not speak to how these are covered but Chinese New Year is not mentioned, at one point Jo thinks about how she last talked to her father at Christmas, which seemed odd. The book takes place over a year so it's not as though it wouldn't have come up, particularly as it could be around the same time as awards season, where the book starts.
It's awkward with how Jo refuses to comment on being with Emma on the red carpet, because the fallout for it falls on Emma's shoulders. She's the one who gets sexually harassed by another director, because he assumes she does favours for work (also, he's a jerk). She also has to deal with her family and work friends constantly speculating on her relationship with her boss when she's not even sure of her feelings for her boss.
I find it hard to judge this as a romance. It's more getting two people to a point where they acknowledge they'd like to give a relationship between them a go. I hope we get more f/f romance in the future as it is a major gap in traditional romance publishing.

I overall definitely enjoyed reading Something to Talk About by Meryl Wilsner. The first third of this novel was very entertaining and I thought it was really easy to get into the story. I also really liked the premise of the novel because I don't think I've ever actually read a f/f workplace romance and was very excited for it since it sounded like a book I'd love. Unfortunately though, I ended up having a few problems with this novel.

My main problem definitely was that I feel like we just never really got to know either of the main characters Jo and Emma. For most of the novel they only spend time together at work going about their usual routine and I just feel like I didn't learn enough about them to actually figure out whether they'd fit well together. Thus, I was just never actually rooting for their relationship or waiting for them to finally get together. At first it actually didn't bother me too much because I thought it would get better at some point but around the halfway point of Something to Talk About I kind of began struggling with it and had to push myself to actually finish the book. That was mainly due to the fact that I didn't really care about Jo and Emma's relationship since I still didn't know them well enough to say whether they'd be a good couple and so there wasn't really anything about the novel that still kept my interest at that point.

Furthermore, I also think this book was too much of a slow-burn romance. I'm usually a huge fan of the whole slow-burn thing but due to the fact that we mostly saw Jo and Emma interact with each other in work situations and nothing really happened between them, I think the book would've benefited from them falling in a love a bit earlier. That way they would've spent some more time outside of work with each other and I'm pretty sure the book would've kept my interest for longer if I'd just cared about the main characters a bit more.

However, I really liked Meryl Wilsner's writing style and I think they did a good job with their debut novel, so I'll definitely be keeping an eye out for future releases. I also liked the thematisation of sexual harassment in the work place in Something to Talk About because it's unfortunately a very current problem and I liked seeing how Jo was using her position in Hollywood to help people and how seriously she was taking the topic.

Such a lovely debut and overall romance! It was the perfect witty, escapist read for both springtime and the ongoing quarantine. Very sweet, slow burn and the payoff by the ending makes it so worthwhile.

Emma Kaplan loves her job as a Personal Assistant. Every day presents a new challenge as she works with the biggest movers and shakers in Hollywood. But the very best part is getting to be close to her boss – the incredibly talented Jo Jones.

Emma has long harbored a bit of a crush on Jo. Not only is she one of the strongest female voices in the business, she’s also generous and beautiful beyond words.

So when Jo requests that she accompany her to a prestigious award show, how can she refuse?

"“Um,” Emma said. “Ms. Jones.” She paused. “Have you by any chance seen TMZ this morning?”
“I have not,” Jo told her honestly.
“There’s – well.” Emma took a deep breath. “There’s some speculation. About why you took me to the ceremony last night.”
“Oh?” Jo was being unfair. She should’ve made this easy on Emma. But she rather enjoyed watching her work her way through something.
Emma seemed to decide that the direct route was best. She dropped her hands to her sides and stood tall.
“They think we’re in a relationship,” she said.
Jo pressed her lips together. “How novel,” she said. “This is perhaps the first time two women seen together weren’t labeled as gal pals.”
Emma offered a tight smile. If she were anything else, she would joke with Jo about it, her goofy grin coming easily.
“What are we going to do?” she asked.
“What are we going to do?” Jo parroted back at her.
Emma flailed more than shrugged. “How are we going to deal with this?”
Jo told Emma what she told Amir. “I’ve never once commented on my love life,” she said. “I’m not about to start now.”"

Jo Jones grew up in the business and she knows exactly how the fame game is played. Emma has been her lifeline in the years that they have worked together. Now Jo finds herself dreaming that they could be something more.

Battling both guilt and uncertainty, Jo denies her heart to make sure that Emma can finally spread her wings. But sometimes you have to take a chance on love if you truly wish to fly.

"“Sometimes things are hard,” Jo said. “Really hard. Sometimes you have to work at them. Sometimes you have to fail first. But that doesn’t mean they’re not worth doing.” She gestured wide enough that Emma pulled her wineglass closer on the table, just in case. “Go for what you want. No matter what anyone says, no matter what anyone thinks. I know you, Emma, and if you put your mind to it, you can do anything.”
Emma grinned. “Good pep talk, boss.”
Jo beamed at her. Emma’s heart did a somersault.
Jo had been in Hollywood for so long, she was probably quite used to modulating her behavior and expressions. Emma didn’t get to see Jo smile like this often, full and wide without a self-conscious bone in her body. With it directed right at her, Emma couldn’t look away.”

Something to Talk About promised to be a much-needed breakthrough combination of comedy, Hollywood drama and slow burn romance. While Meryl Wilsner did deliver on the slow burn – and I do mean SLOW - I was left wanting so much more for her characters.

Both Emma and Jo were strong capable women in their own right. They deserved a connection that was far deeper than one filled with miscommunications and misunderstandings. I longed for something to spark pure and bold between them. Something that could be felt as well as read.

In this book, the stage was set for such amazing greatness. But it fell just a bit short for me….

Something to Talk About is Meryl Wilsner’s debut novel, and I really enjoyed it. But reader beware, this one starts out slow. So slow, in fact, that I almost gave up on it. I’m so happy I didn’t. I ended up loving so much about this story and I love a good slow burn romance!

Emma is the assistant to Jo Jones. Yes, that Jo. Jo has been in Hollywood for decades. Starting off as a child actor, then moving on to other behind the scenes things such as writing. Jo takes Emma to an awards show to run interference on some questions she doesn’t want answered and the two get caught on camera smiling and laughing. The picture is innocent, but it starts a huge rumor about Jo dating her much younger assistant.

Now, there is this tension vibrating between them. They slowly start to both realize they have feelings for each other, but neither one of them know what to do with them. It’s a tricky situation, as any boss/employee relationship would be.

I adored watching Jo and Emma start to fall for one another. Their flirty and cute moments were so sweet. I also loved that both characters were so different. Jo is more standoffish and a bit tougher of a nut to crack, but she’s really soft underneath it all. And I just loved Emma. I also really liked the relationship they both had with Emma’s sister.


There honestly wasn’t much I didn’t love about this book, aside from it being almost painfully slow. I do love me a good slow-burn, but this was slower than I’m used to. Still, in my opinion, the payoff was worth the wait. I'm so glad I read it!

I only needed to lay eyes on that cover to be interested in this book. It definitely is the best illustrated cover out there and I love it.

I really liked Emma and Jo. They’re both loyal and strong and truly good people. I loved Emma’s sister Avery and Jo’s BFF Evelyn and am absolutely ready to read books for those two women. They added support and levity when it was needed.

Plot wise it was good, but slow. There’s a lot of inner monologue at times, loads of push and pull, and I wanted to jump in and shake the both of them for always assuming what the other wanted instead of asking. There’s also loads of women supporting women, horrible men, and enough tension it may actually choke someone.

Overall, it was very easy to root for these characters and while the slow build up was satisfying, I did want just a little more from the epilogue.

FYI: sexual harassment and homophobia

**Huge thanks to Berkley for providing the arc free of charge**

There are some books that make you smile just thinking about them and that’s exactly what Something to Talk About does for me. Meryl Wilsner’s debut won me over with their endearing characters and a lovely slow-burn romance that made me sigh.

Jo is one of my favorite kinds of heroines: the secret softie. Jo is a Hollywood powerhouse with brains, skill, and savvy you have to admire. But even after three decades in Hollywood and a number of Emmys to her name, as a Chinese-American woman Jo still faces racism and sexism constantly, especially now that she’s been announced as the new writer/producer for a James Bond-type franchise. Jo knows how to navigate Hollywood, but she’s had to build high walls to protect herself. Underneath those walls is a marshmallow heart and a spine of steel. Jo shows her caring in actions rather than words and she made me melt more than once. As for Emma… A bisexual Jewish cinnamon roll? Yes, please! Emma is so kind and caring, an emotionally demonstrative heroine who frequently made me smile. She’s got a strong work ethic and is a quick study, but she is unsure of herself when it comes to what direction she wants to move professionally.

As individuals, Jo and Emma are fantastic characters, well-drawn and an endearing mix of strength and vulnerability. Together their chemistry is fabulous and makes the pages of Something to Talk About fly by. The romance between Emma and Jo is extremely slow-burn. Both Jo and Emma are wary of risking their hearts by revealing their feelings. Jo is also very conscious of her position as Emma’s employer and the power disparity that results from that. Added to that she’s aware of the age gap between them and the racist and ageist blowback from some corners of Hollywood that she may face. Emma also faces comments, innuendo, and outright sexual harassment because some people think she slept her way to the top. Given the characters’ histories and the events of the story, the fact that the romance takes so much of the story to build worked for me. Jo and Emma’s love story felt solid by the end of the book, which may sound staid and boring but it’s not; I loved these two together.

Emma and Jo are the heart and soul of the book but the supporting cast rounds out the story and helps bring it to life. I loved Jo’s friendships that were depicted, both with her lifelong best friend, Evelyn, and with Emma’s sister, Avery. And Emma’s relationship with her family – complete with their teasing – warmed my heart. All in all, Something to Talk About is a book that can lift your spirits and make you smile. Jo and Emma are both strong, intelligent heroines with kind hearts that make them easy to root for. Their love story builds piece by piece in an organic way and the result is a lovely, fulfilling romance I cannot wait to enjoy again and again.

I had such a fun time reading Something to Talk About! This is Meryl Wilsner’s debut novel and Berkley Publishing’s debut F/F romance novel. It follows a famous showrunner, Jo Jones, and her assistant, Emma, as they navigate paparazzi attention after accidentally fueling a rumor that they’re dating.

I really liked the Hollywood setting of this novel and how it managed to be lighthearted overall while still serious about issues like the #MeToo movement and representation in media. Though this is a romance novel, the majority of it takes place at work and it was fascinating to see the workplace’s dynamics (though I know nothing about Hollywood so I can’t speak to how accurate it was, lol). Jo was an excellent character and her backstory was riveting. It was so refreshing to read about a boss who genuinely cares about her employees, treats them with respect, and supports their growth within the industry. She was easily my favorite part of this book. I loved the way she handled every situation with such precision and did what was best for her employees no matter what.

Emma was sweet, though I got frustrated with her a bit throughout the novel, as I didn’t always feel like she was very understanding of Jo’s position. However, her heart was always in the right place and I was so happy for the way her career flourished and felt like she really grew into herself.

The relationship between Jo and Emma was sweet, but there was a bit of an age gap between them which I didn’t love. But it was fully addressed and worked through, as was the boss/employee power dynamic, and it was handled well enough that I could overlook it and enjoy the book. But readers should be aware going into this book that these things are factors.

Overall, Something to Talk About was a truly fun read that also tackled serious issues with grace. If you like romance, workplace dynamics, or Hollywood settings, this book is definitely up your alley.

Disclaimer: Thank you to Berkley and Netgalley for providing this advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

Meryl Wilsner’s debut romance Something to Talk About was such a fun read for me. It centers on Jo Jones, a showrunner for a popular TV series who is now looking to make her move to the big screen when she signs on to pen the script for the next installment in a hugely popular action series. Hollywood being what it is, there are plenty of people lined up ready and waiting to gossip about how Jo’s not up for the job. Jo is already tired of fielding questions about the new film and whether she’s the right person for the job, so when she has to attend a major award ceremony, she asks her trusted assistant Emma to accompany her and serve as a buffer to drive away the reporters. An innocent moment between Jo and Emma is caught on camera and the rumor mill runs wild with it, declaring them a couple and trying to spin it into a scandal worthy of the tabloids.

We watch the story unfold from the alternating perspectives of Jo and Emma, and I thought this was very well done. I liked seeing how each woman reacted to the growing scandal, and, in particular, how worried they were for each other. Would Jo be deemed as a predatory employer taking advantage of her assistant? Or would Emma be seen as trying to sleep her way to the top? Ever-present paparazzi and on-set leaks have both women on edge, second guessing their every interaction and who might be watching them. It makes for some very awkward moments between them, especially since the more closely they work together to make it look like they aren’t romantically involved, the more they begin to realize they actually do have feelings for one another. I really liked both Jo and Emma so I was definitely cheering them on, both to beat back the rumor mongers and to take the leap to coupledom.

Something to Talk About is an entertaining read that also takes a hard look at some of the more toxic elements of working in show business. I loved this aspect of the story, especially since it featured Jo kicking butt and taking names, reminiscent of today’s Me Too movement. About the only real downside of the book for me was that it felt like the actual romance I was looking for and expecting took a back seat to everything else. I don’t mind a slow burn romance at all, but I felt like I was nearly finished with the book before we really started to get a hint of any potential romance between Emma and Jo. If that had happened, just a little sooner, it would have been an even better read for me. Even with that though, I would highly recommend Something to Talk About to anyone who enjoys women’s fiction and an inside look at Hollywood culture.

This was such a cute and sweet love story. I was able to connect with the characters and felt invested in their relationships. I enjoyed the inclusiveness of this one. There were so many diverse characters in this one. This one gets 🌟🌟🌟🌟

Thank you to PRH International for the galley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

I always read M/M romance and they always end up my favorite reads. So I asked myself why not try an F/F romance? This was my first time reading a book about queer women falling in love, and I learned that Something To Talk About is also Berkley's first sapphic romance. Initially, I was drawn into this book when I saw V.E. Schwab, a.k.a. my favorite author, read this on Goodreads. I got curious, and I was glad that I had the opportunity to read this.

Set in Hollywood, the story was about two women who got caught up in a rumor. Jo Jones wad a Hollywood showrunner, and Emma Kaplan was her personal assistant. When the two were photographed while Jo was making Emma laugh to help ease the latter's nervousness, a rumor about them being a couple sparked. While Jo and Emma convinced everyone that the rumor was not true, the gossip spread more that it started affecting other aspects of their lives. They got more close, as Emma knew what Jo needed, and Jo slowly opened up to Emma. Now, both of them couldn't help but wonder if the rumor were not really baseless afterall.

This novel is well-written. There is a balance between not too overly cheesy and not too overly dramatic. I also liked the alternating POVs of Jo and Emma. Their feelings, worries and thoughts were effectively conveyed. A delightful surprised happened when the two main characters were actually Jewish and Chinese-American. Diversity in a book is a big turn-on for me. Moreover, the romance in this book is slow burn which is one of the things I am very fond of. Seeing how Jo and Emma's relationship progressed despite lots of difficulties made the story more interesting. Also, issues such as sexual harassment were also tackled. I commend the author for handling and wrapping them up really well.

Although I really like the slow burn romance of this book, I wished there were more happy couple moments for Jo and Emma.

Overall, Something To Talk About is a well-done sapphic novel. I liked the romance and the representation in this one.

3.5/5 stars!

I liked this! It was charming and thoughtful in terms of the way the boss/employee dynamic was handled and I was surprised in many instances by the sweetness, but I agree with fellow reviewers in that the slow burn felt a little TOO slow for my liking. The first half of the book also seemed stronger to me overall, but the big misunderstanding that temporarily throws a wrench into anything progressing between Jo and Emma seems to be more of a plot contrivance to keep them apart for a longer period of time. But overall this was an enjoyable debut and I hope more people read it so we can get more f/f romances from big publishers, please!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Fans of romance will enjoy this book. It includes several typical romance troupes. High points of the book include that neither of love interests attempt to change the other, rather they appreciate each other's talents and abilities and that is what draws them to each other. Another decent element was a #metoo movement side story, which was timely, but seemed to be solved a little too easy. Still, I think this title will find readers in those who love the romance genre.

I was given an early release copy of this book from the publisher, on Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

This was one of my most anticipated books of the year, and I ended up being pretty disappointed with it.

It's pretty rare that a book charms me the way this one did, only to fizzle out so hard later on. Usually if I'm going to dislike a book, I know almost right away. But really, the first third of this book was great! Jo Jones is a Hollywood powerhouse, a childhood star who worked her way into being a writer and creator, and now runs one of the most successful, award-winning TV shows on the air. She's also in line to write a script for a famously masculine movie series, Agent Silver, and is already getting flack for not being able to handle it, just because she's a woman. She takes her assistant Emma, who is very competent and wants to be a director someday, to the SAGs as a "buffer" so she doesn't have to talk to anyone. But after years of taking no one to any award shows, and never commenting on her love life, when a suggestive picture starts making the rounds, rumors flourish that Jo and Emma are dating.

Jo is a no nonsense Chinese American who has worked very hard to become as successful as she is, and she holds things close to her chest. Emma is beautiful and too qualified for her job. They have always gotten along really well. But the rumors throw things into upheaval, mostly for Emma, who is on the wrong end of the power differential. (That's one thing this book gets right; it's very conscious of the huge power difference between the two of them, and steps carefully.) She's the one who gets hounded by paparazzi, joked at even by her supposed friends after repeatedly telling them to stop, and worst, made to seem like she is sleeping her way to the top.

If all of this sounds interesting, well just wait for the middle section of the book, where the author decided to have the two characters stop communicating with each other almost entirely, and have them by turns become upset and completely overreact about trivial matters. Jo and Emma have always had a friendly, professional relationship, but when Jo does one thing wrong, Emma acts like she just isn't going to take this anymore! Wait, I have a quote:

"Emma had forgiven too many people in her life too easily. She was finally learning to stand up for herself."

I get the feeling that line was meant to land hard and make us like Emma more, but it had the opposite effect. The author spent zero time before this scene establishing that Emma was a doormat. In fact, the opposite. She is portrayed as smart, competent, efficient and articulate. Zero mention is made of any self-esteem issues, or issues with people bullying or tearing her down. That line is also preceded by Emma thinking that she didn't need to apologize to Jo (for an accidental drunken kiss on the corner of her mouth; Emma had been aiming for her cheek; it's as dumb as it sounds), that her actions were enough. Immediately following this is Emma's thoughts that Jo needs to apologize more with her actions. I basically hated Emma in that moment.

It's just chock full of artificially inflated conflict, and it almost made me turn on the book completely (the biggest source of "conflict" is that Jo befriends Emma's sister Avery at a baseball game for Jo's nephew and Avery's kids and neither of them tell Emma right away. Upon finding out, Emma doesn't speak to Jo for a week aside from acknowledging her professionally, i.e. "Yes, Ms. Jones," kind of thing). My liking of the first section made me keep going, though. I get that the author was going for a slow burn, quiet pining sort of thing, but there are much better ways to do that that don't involve your leads not talking to one another for extended periods (romantic pairs getting to know each other in new contexts is the entire point of romance as a genre, and we need to see it! not pages and pages and endless pages of them stewing in their own heads over nothing), and making mountains out of mole hills. In romance, if you don't see the talking and the feelings grow yourself in authentic interactions between the characters, you're not going to feel it, and I didn't feel it here. There is also such a thing as too slow of a burn, and that was also the case here.

Also, it was weird and slightly annoying that Emma called Jo "boss" all the time.

The rest of the book was less frustrating, but it was still full of them not talking to each other, and stupid misunderstandings (like Emma assuming Jo's best friend is her girlfriend, when in real life Jo would have introduced her, like, "Emma, this is my best friend, Evelyn, we grew up together in Chinatown," not what actually happens, where no one tells Emma that Evelyn is Jo's girlfriend, she just assumes, and then gets butthurt about it). News flash to authors! Nobody likes reading about characters misunderstanding everything about each other! It is not fun! Also, when your main characters spend more time talking to other characters about each other than they do actually having conversations, maybe rethink some things.

Anyway, this wasn't great, and I'm sad about it, and when is there going to be a good f/f romance that I can actually swoon over?

[2.5 stars rounded up, because I feel bad giving it two, and it did recover somewhat by the end]

Y’all know how much I freaking love illustrated covers—and, if you don’t, you should—which means I barely had to think twice before requesting this on NetGalley. And, while carving out time to actually sit down and read has been something I’m not doing all that frequently, I did manage it for this book. (It was a really good decision.)

Something to Talk About is a lot of different things, mushed into a really sweet romance. First and foremost, though, it centers around “queer women falling in love.” While I’m usually drawn to heterosexual romances (just because that’s how I see the world), I loved that it doesn’t matter that Jo and Emma are the same gender. Their story is how they fall in love, not that they fall in love.

Although I really did enjoy Something to Talk About—and will 100% be putting Wilsner on my radar—this book was hella slow. (Not that I need every romance to be r-rated, but not having the leads get their ~*sexy time*~ until 95% of the way in was pushing it.) But, then again, the slowness let there be so much pining—and y’all, I LIVE for pining. That bone-deep ache when you catch feelings for someone and over analyze every single tiny interaction because you want to be super sure if they are maybe feeling vibes back? Omg that is my shit. And the best part of this book was that our two leads were so in it that they were feeling it at the same time but only we knew.

The other big “ummm” I had was the way in which Wilsner used sexual harassment as a plot device. The harassment itself wasn’t gratuitous, but it did spur a Moment of Reconciliation—which isn’t my preferred way of forcing character development. And I also think that the harassment and a character’s reaction to the harassment was enough; I didn’t then need the character to basically create the Times Up movement. Being made aware of how men of privilege take advantage of women is important in fiction, but sometimes I don’t need to have an analogy so closely align to the real world, you know?

So, while Something to Talk About deals with some heavy shit, if your thing is a friends-to-lovers office romance between two adult women, you need to read this book immediately.

I stopped reading Something to Talk About at 48%. I couldn't continue because I kept losing interest in the book. I was upset that I couldn't finish the book because it was my first F/F book. I wanted to like it, but unfortunately, I'm not a big fan of slow burns. I do like some, but this book has to be the slowest burn book that I've ever read. I also couldn't connect well with the characters, Jo and Emma. There were times I liked them, but other times I wanted to knock some sense into them. I wanted some more romance in the story. I did like how Jo and Emma took care of each other in the book. Emma is Jo's assistant, and Jo is a tv/movie screenwriter. I wanted to enjoy this book. Maybe, later on, I'll try to reread it, but I'm going to dive into another book until then.
Although this book didn't get, my attention doesn't mean other readers won't enjoy it. I recommend it to readers that love to read LGBT Contemporary Romance books. I also recommend it to readers that love slow burn romances.

(I will not be posting my review on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or Bookbub since it is a DNF for me.)

Such an absolutely lovely book. I was excited for this story from the description but it ended up taking a path I wasn’t entirely expecting. This was not exactly the fake dating trope I was thinking it was going to be but it was absolutely wonderful just the way it is. This is probably the epitome of a slow burn and lower heat but that works so perfectly for the story. Jo and Emma have such a beautiful and rock solid foundation for a relationship as a result. I really liked how things were handled throughout the book. There were a couple of projects of sorts that were introduced during the story resulting from the plot that I felt were a bit forgotten by the end - which is unfortunate because both ideas were awesome - but it didn’t really detract from the book. Overall super enjoyable and I’m glad I read it.

I really enjoyed this book overall. Great characters especially Jo’s friend and Emma’s sister, the discussion of power dynamics and the setting. This story is very slow burn so if you like that you may enjoy this! However, I could have used a bit less angst and more time with the characters once they came together but overall I really do recommend this book and hope readers give it a try!