Willow Grove romances continue to be such a fun romp. I was a little hesitant about the romantic plot device - girl thinks she’s communicating via text and email with one guy, but it’s actually another - but I think DeLuca makes Daniel’s motivation to do so compelling enough.

This was a bit of a disappointment for me because I loved Well Met so much, but Well Played felt like such a regression in originality that the first story had. Don't get me wrong, one reason I love romance is my love of all things trope-related, but this was just not it for me. I did like Stacey's struggle with becoming who you want to be while feeling trapped in your hometown, but the actual romance parts of the book were weaker and the plot was telegraphed from a mile away. I knew what was going to happen as soon as Stacey sent the email. SO this was just an okay read, but it didn't really wow me and lacked the memorable factor that made Well Met a favorite.

I received a copy of the book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed that the protagonists had a text/email affair that started off as a no-strings-attached deal but turned into something more. The characters were fun and the writing was well done. So cute!

In this second installment to the series, we return to the beloved Willow Creek Renaissance Faire where another beer wench is reevaluating her life.

Having been introduced to Stacey Lindholm in book one, she always seemed like a woman who enjoyed a good time and didn't take things too seriously. With her POV in this book, we learn a lot of that is fake, or is fizzling out as she witnesses the love story of her fellow wench, Emily. To be clear, she is 100% supportive of her friend and her sage advice to her friend does not go unnoticed.

But Stacey wants her own love story.
Is that so wrong?
And she finds it in an unexpected place.

I'll note that the synopsis gives away a major part of the plot as the man Stacey thinks she is falling in love with, is not the man she thought he was. Having known this as a reader, I think it was pretty clear who the secret admirer actually turned out to be. So there isn't any major surprise with the revelation. Instead, we follow Stacey as she adjusts to this new truth, and new possibilities which put the pep back in her step.

This story does follow a formula, so like book one, there are some sweet highs, and just when you think you'll get that HEA, the hero messes up. While this slows down the pace, I did like that the author doesn't drag out drama and things are resolved without waiting an unreasonable amount of time.

Overall, this was a fun addition to the series. I'm hoping April (Emily's sister) gets a story next. . . . we shall see!

I was so excited to return to the Willow Creek’s Renaissance Faire! 

I adore Jen Deluca’s writing style.  Like Well Met, her voice shines through in the protagonist’s inner dialogue.  This is definitely a feel-good novel, and the book is chock full of humorous observations and witty banter.

Unfortunately, the romance was lacking for me in this book.  It seemed a little too easy, and, quite frankly, Daniel was bland.  I loved Simon Well Met. He was a strict rule follower, had a sense of obligation to continue on his brother’s legacy, but he gradually revealed a playful side when he played his part of pirate in the Renaissance Faire. But with Daniel? I really couldn’t tell you much about him, other than the fact that he feels like he’s trapped in his cousins' shadow and he kind of likes cats. We only get Stacey’s point of view in this novel, and unfortunately we weren’t privy to any scenes where Daniel may or may not have talked about his likes and interests while they were falling in love.

That said, there are some sweet moments, particularly when they’re still in the long-distance, lies-riddled, texting/emails stage of their relationship.  

Stacey’s decisions were also a little foreign to me.  She is far too forgiving of Daniel’s lies, and to be honest, he didn’t even expect her to forgive him. He never really fights for their relationship, even in the climactic scene, when this burden lies on Stacey’s shoulders. The word that comes to mind when describing Daniel is “passive”.  He’s very nonconfrontational, dispassionate, and... boring. Sorry!

That said, Stacey is a compelling and three-dimensional protagonist, and I did love reading her perspective and revisiting this captivating world that DeLuca has created. I'm hoping that Emily's sister will be the one to find love in the next book!  (Maybe with Mitch???)

I recommend this book to those who want to return to the Willow Creek Renaissance Faire for another romantic getaway.

*This review will be posted to https://powerlibrarian.wordpress.com/ and other platforms on September 22, 2020*

I LOVED Well Met, so I was a little disappointed in this one. The first part, which consisted of a lot of emails, texts, and Stacey feeling bad for herself while also being an incredibly basic white girl, dragged for me enough that I was thinking about how much longer it could go on before I was going to stop reading. I don’t think I would’ve, but it really dragged for way too long. And the twist was very obvious to me from the beginning of the book. That was honestly the part that dragged for me the most. <spoiler> I knew that it was Daniel the whole time. Spending all that time getting to know him as Dex just felt like an attempt to get us invested in Dex before pulling the rug out from under us, but because I had already guessed the twist it was just a lot of building up.</spoiler>

After saying all that, I will say that the second half of the book was better. <spoiler> Daniel was pretty frustrating for me. He NEVER fought for the relationship. Every time Stacey was mad or they had a fight, he just gave up and assumed they were going to break up. If he was so in love with her, why didn’t he try?? </spoiler> The relationship was really sweet and I loved that Stacey began to feel happier with her life, and that she was so comfortable in her skin (she’s not a twig but she recognizes that she’s beautiful and is happy with her body, thank you Jen DeLuca for a character who actually loves her body). This sounds so condescending, but I also loved that these characters were happy with the lives they’d created for themselves. Romance novels so frequently portray characters that have to be the best at what they do or who are famous or incredible people, but these characters were normal people who were happy being with the people they loved doing something that they loved.

Sooooo devourable. Jen DeLuca writes books that are meant to be read in one sitting. No joke, I started this around 10 pm and finished it around midnight. It came at the perfect time because this is when the Michigan Ren Fest is starting up and I’m so sad that I’ll won’t be partaking due to the COVID pandemic. So, this book was good for the soul. The first book in the series was Well Met and it followed a different main character. Well Played didn’t hold quuuuite the same 5 star magic as book one because it had already established the Ren Fest set up in the first book, but the romance was cute and engaging. I loved Stacey’s way of connecting with D.M. and the romance was steamy but not super smutty. It is safe to say that Jen DeLuca could get me through any book slump I’ve been in, simply because she’s a FUN writer. She solves conflict believably and doesn’t leave her characters to stew for too long, which I greatly enjoy. I can’t wait to see more from DeLuca. Maybe April and Mitch next?


Bookstagram post and Blog post will be up later this week.

I wasn't as enthused about this title as the first in the series. Describing a heroine who "isn't into books" so much doesn't do much for me as a reader and lover of books. Couldn't get into this one as much as I enjoyed the first in the series.

While I did overall enjoy this one because this series as a whole is just so! much! fun!, I did have a few issues with it. The relationship at the center of the book is established by a year-long catfishing scenario and the heroine just kind of... gets over it immediately as if that isn't a horrible thing to do to someone for AN ENTIRE YEAR????? Granted, that is in the synopsis so I knew what I was getting into, but the pacing of the whole situation felt really off and it just didn't work for me. So that combined with me not really liking Stacey as a main character kept me from loving this one like I hoped I would. With all that being said, I still very much intend to carry on with the series because I CANNOT WAIT for the pairing that the next book is going to follow.

TW: catfishing

<i>Well Played</i> is disappointing, especially when compared to its predecessor. <i>Well Met</i> had a killer, convincing, chemistry-laden relationship at its heart, so I didn't care so much that the world around them (anything outside of the Faire) was shallow and one-dimensional. Sadly, <i>Well Played</i> suffers from the same lack of development of the wider world, but also suffers an unconvincing, bland romance.

Falling in love via letter (or in this case, emails, texts, and facebook messages) is one of my favorite tropes. I love the idea of two people falling in love purely with each other's thoughts and personalities. Considering the letters make up half the book before the couple meets face-to-face, I'm honestly shocked how little impact on the relationship the "letters" had on building this relationship. I got to know Stacey very well by virtue of being in her POV for the entire book, but I don't feel that I know Daniel at all.

The other issue I have with <i>Well Played</i> is how easy everything is. This is a relationship built on lies. That's the whole point. Our heroine spends literally <b>half the book</b> believing she's writing letters with a man she previously had a... "relationship" with, but it's actually his cousin with whom she's never shared anything more than small talk! When she finds out, I was expecting a <b>RECKONING</b>. And it just kind of fizzled. There's barely any fallout and suddenly they are "in love."

Hmm. I'm not convinced. Even later when there is yet another secret/ lie revealed, Stacey forgives and forgets so easily. Then she changes her whole life to be with this guy. It's semi-believable that she would do that, but it needed more development. Why have so much page time discussing her past dream of a career in fashion merchandising to literally do nothing with that?

One other minor issue I had with Stacey's characterization... the more we get to know her, the less likely it seems that she would have ever had a benefits only style relationship with Dex. Literally no other part of her life or personality or other relationships meshes with that.

I still love the elements of the Fair (though it isn't nearly as present as in the previous book) and I loved every moment we spent with Simon and Emily and the other members of our motley crew. I sped right though this and enjoyed the reading experience. I'll also absolutely read April and Mitch's book when it comes out. But I definitely had issues with this one and am disappointed with how everything goes down.

Stacey’s plans to start a career in fashion in New York got derailed after graduation because of a family illness, keeping her in the small town she grew up in. At least she gets to act out fantasies as a tavern wench at the local Renaissance Faire for a few weeks each year. When most of the performers move on and she goes back to her day job at a dentist’s office, she begins a months-long text/email affair with a guy she had a no-strings-attached fling with. Or so she thinks. When the performers come back to town, she learns that wasn’t who she’d been texting the whole time.

I liked Stacey and her friends and the other characters and the writing was good, but some parts of this didn’t work for me, and the ending wasn’t as satisfying as I would have liked. But this is a cute story.

Thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to review this novel, which RELEASES SEPTEMBER 22, 2020.

I absolutely adored this book. I love Stacy and Daniel's story.

Jen will be on the What to Read Next Podcast on publication day chatting about the Well Met series and fun book recommendations.

I had highly enjoyed Well Met, so I was looking forward to the next book in this universe! While I did enjoy this book, it was lacking the tension and spunk that Well Met. It didn't pull me in as much. I enjoyed Stacey as the main character and though Daniel was a great love interest, but the trajectory of the relationship didn't feel believable to me. I loved getting a peak into Emily and Simon's life (and engagement!) but missed the story from their POV. This book is fun and easy to fly through but lacks the magic of its predecessor. Thank you to the publisher for my copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

3.5 stars

Last year, Well Met was one of those books that completely took my by surprise with how much I enjoyed it. I immediately put Well Played on my TBR list and was very happy to receive an advanced copy.

And while I liked Well Played, it didn't wow me as much as the first book.

I liked Stacey, I adored her love of Ren Faire and how she throw herself right into everything about it.

I liked Daniel for the most part, however I hated how he kept things from her, and spent most of the first half of the book waiting for the other shoe to drop.

I also didn't really feel the romance between Stacey and Daniel. I felt more through the correspondence than when they were together. To me, it kind of felt forced between them.

I did like getting more of Simon and Emily from Well Met, and will I read Well Matched? I certainly will!

I look forward to Mitch and April's faire tale.

I want to shout from the rooftops how much I absolutely adored this book! I gave it 4.5/5 stars. This book had me constantly grinning because it was just too dang cute and I ended up binging it in one day.
Stacey is such a great character and I love that she talks about being plus size but is still a confident character. I also really enjoyed that this was technically the 2nd in a series but could be read as standalone if you wanted to. It was great getting to see the rest of Emily and Simon’s HEA and getting to see some of our favorite characters pop up again. I’m voting for an April and Mitch romance for the next book.
If you’re looking for a binge worthy, lighthearted, romance, you should definitely pick this up when it comes out on September 22nd!
Thank you to the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for providing me with a free e-book copy in exchange for an honest review.

I absolutely adored Well Met when I read it last year so when I first seen this book mentioned I was so excited and knew I had to get my hands on it ASAP!

Short Synopsis: This story follows Stacey who is small town girl who feels a little confused and “bleh” in life after her friends Simon and Emily get engaged etc. She’s craving some change and wondering if she’s missing out on anything staying where she is the most comfortable. She decides to spontaneously message her Renaissance Faire “hook-up” Dex, online one drunken night. They talk for months and begin forming somewhat of a more emotional relationship. Then it’s summer and the Ren Faire is about to start back up again and she finds out Dex wasn’t at all who she thought she was talking to.

I loved being back in Willow Creek and the magical feel of the Renaissance Faire setting! I also loved seeing little bits and pieces of Emily and Simon from the first book and the planning of their wedding etc. (I love them so much.) This story was super cute and I really enjoyed it although I didn’t love it as much as Well Met! I will be reading book #3 too though and do recommend it!

Follow-up to the very enjoyable Well Met, Well Played follows Stacey, one of my favorite characters from the first book. The author Jen DeLuca takes time developing the relationship between Stacey and her romantic interest with much comic relief along the way. This book was just as much fun as the first and I can't wait to read the next in the series.

I am so thankful to have had this chance to return to Willow Creek and get to know Stacey, who is a side character in Well Met, so much better. There's not a whole lot to her character in the first book in this series, so it was great to get her story. Also this book has one of my favorite tropes - mistaken identities. It's an online romance with a Cyrano-ish vibe - which I was TICKLED PINK to have the characters bring up as well! I knew I needed to be best friends with Emily, she knows my favorite play! Which clearly means I need to be best friends with Jen DeLuca now.

Stacey's reactions didn't really sit well with me at several points, mostly when she's upset about the truth coming out about who is really emailing her and how he handles it. (I am trying to avoid spoilers here!) She is extremely upset (as she has a right to be) and then is over it but still puts on a show of being upset because she wants him to ... grovel? woo her back? chase after her? Basically she brings on a lot of her own heartbreak. And then she has to do basically ALL the emotional heavy lifting of making their relationship work. Also, the big reveal comes at about the 50% mark, which had me going "HOO BOY and uh oh, what the heck happens in the second half of this book?"

Regardless of my dislike of the way Stacey handles things, it didn't feel like poor writing so much as a part of how Stacey is as a person. She forces a smile onto her face so she can be the happy, bubble, upbeat cheerleader one - even when she's not happy at all. And then there's [redacted], her love interest. Ohhhhhh, [redacted]. I liked him SO MUCH, except there were some key points where he needed to be a Romance Novel Hero and fight for love and he just... doesn't. It kind of made me like him less overall.

I loved the exchanges between Stacey and [redacted] - the witty banter, the sweet sentiments, the serious bearings of the soul. There's so much there. Also, the identity of who was writing to her was super obvious, but JUST IN CASE I'm not putting it in this review. ;) You'll have to read it for yourself.

This is the second book in the Well Met series, and while it could technically be read as a stand alone there are some spoilers from book 1, Well Met, and you're really just better off reading the whole series anyway because it's AMAZING, so you may as well read them in order. That's my 2 cents. Also! The third book, Well Matched, is Mitch and April's book and I CAN NOT WAIT.

Oh my geez what a fun ride. I thought this book was more lovely than even the first one and really showed the evolution of writing for author Jen DeLuca. Makes me excited for books 3 & 4 within the same world.

Plus, my catnip is when characters are writing or texting each other to get to know each other and the fun and longing and falling in love are all there on the page. Delicious.

This book really captures that feeling of being stuck in your life really well. Stacey sees everyone in her life moving "forward" feels like she has nothing going on. This is thrown into sharp relief by how alive she feels at The Faire and by the false cheer she puts on for all her friends, keeping her true feelings secret from everyone.

Enter Dex, the lead singer of the Twisted Kilts, and her two summer hookup. She feels like she's going to miss him, but really, she misses the feeling of being someone else, of being an insider in the Faire and like she belongs. She begins a year-long correspondence with Dex (she thinks), but really it is with his cousin Daniel, the tall, rangy, ginger manager of the band. I wanted Daniel to fight for Stacey more at the end, however, I did like that she took the reigns and didn't wait for him or pine or hope, she decided that she wanted him and the life he was offering and went after it. With her best buddy Mitch and April in tow!

Hope we are getting Mitch and April vibes for book 3!!

McDreamy to McSteamy: McGinger Dream

Classy to Nasty: Vanilla

Hero rating: 🍆🍆🍆🍆 I forgave him for the initial switcheroo because he loved her and wanted to get to know her. While it was a lie, it was also romantic and he really listened and supported her in their year-long courtship. I didn't like the 2nd thing he keeps from her, or that he doesn't even try to fight for her at the end. But his letters were dreamy and he likes her just the way she is.

Heroine rating: 🍑🍑🍑🍑 I liked Stacey but also wanted her to get outta her shell more during the year in between Faires! She forgives Daniel real quick and I woulda made him GROVEL and also been mad he didn’t try to convince me on his reasons.

Overall rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Definitely recommend. Dip yourself back into Faire life and see how you can change your life and choose to embrace who you want to be until you are. And learn that love is just around the corner and while a hot body is great for a while, you want the man who makes you laugh and feel like yourself to hang around forever.

I usually try my best to read my NetGalley books as close to pub date as possible, but I held off as long as I could with Well Played. Thankfully Berkley Publishing granted my request for a free e-copy for an honest review.

Well Played follows Stacey, Emily's tavern wrench bestie. She put her life on hold a few years ago when her mother got sick and moved back home. Now that her mother has recovered, Stacey feels stuck. The only thing she looks forward to is the Renaissance Faire that Simon puts together every summer.

At the end of another season, Stacey feels lost and aimless. She makes a vow to herself that she will figure her life out. In a drunken haze, Stacey Facebook messages her Renaissance Faire fling to see if there could be something more there. To her surprise, he messages back and seems to be a completely different person than the persona that she has grown to know every summer.

Are your Spidey senses tingling? Because mine sure were.

I really liked how everything unfolded for Stacey, even if her Spidey senses aren't as strong as they really should be.

I loved that the book still centered around the Faire. It gives the story so much charm. I also loved seeing so much of Emily and Simon without it overtaking Stacey's storyline.

A good follow-up to Well Met and I can't wait for the third book.

4/5⭐️

Out September 22nd