I loved the Renaissance Festival setting. It definitely feels like the setting is its own character. Well Played is a story of mistaken identity and how you can fall in love with a person via distance. I loved that you got to see Staci grow as a person and figure out what she wants to do with her life, even if that is different than what she originally planned.

I really enjoyed this book and the series. When I began the first book in this series I didn’t expect to like the Ren faire aspect but I really found it interesting. This was a good light romance read. I’m definitely looking forward to reading the next in the series.

I really, really enjoyed the first in this series, so I was very excited to go back to the world of the Willow Creek Ren Faire. And it was an enjoyable romance, on the fluffy side, with what I thought was a satisfying resolution.

There were two points that made it only a three star read for me. One was the main female character's internalized fatphobia. She describes herself as plus size, and there's a dress trying on scene that reads like a million things you've read before, zippers not zipping, sausage in a too-small casing, etc. etc. I just hope we're really past that kind of lazy self-deprecation in writing these days. Fat characters don't have to feel great about themselves all the time in every book, but if there's going to be that kind of negative self-talk, I think the plot has to dedicate some intention/dynamics/resolution/purpose to it. Otherwise, it's just sitting there upholding fatphobic ideas.

The other thing is how extremely predictable the plot "twist" is. It's hard to even call it a twist because the cover illustration clearly shows who the two main characters are! So for the first chunk of the book, I was reading kind of quickly trying to get to the point where the main character knows what I already know, and I don't think that's an ideal way to read. Maybe if that section was paced differently, or was just a little more delicious of a read, I wouldn't have minded.

All that said, I'm charmed by the world of this series and I will be coming back for the third book in this series, no question.

Well Played by Jen DeLuca was an enjoyable, quick, fluffy read. While there are some faults - the Stacey in this book felt a little more negative than how she was portrayed in the first book - I don't think it draws anything down. During the first half of the book I kept saying to myself that it felt a bit like Cyrano so when Simon said “What kind of Cyrano de Bergerac bullshit is that?” it elicited a hearty chuckle from me. I had some issues with the Dex/Daniel/Stacey dynamic and I felt like Daniel should have had to work a little harder to win Stacey back but overall I enjoyed the book.

This felt like promotional materials for men trying to get women to forget about their red flags. A very gentle read with some steam, I will be reccomending it for fans of penny Reid with the caveat that it’s very fluffy and not very well written character development.

This was just kinda eh. I didn't hate it, but I didn't love it. It was honestly a bit disappointing since I remember loving Well Met. The first half was not great, and overall I found the writing style a bit annoying and repetitive. It redeemed itself a bit in the second half which is why it still got a decent rating.

Such a cute quick read! Lots of cross over with Well Met and loved being back at the ren fair! Stacey felt real and her conflicts were clear and Daniel was precious!

This book started at 2 stars and ended on 4. Stacey was a very hard to relate character. She felt like she was born from the land of tropes and never really progressed. Feeling stuck, clock ticking (in late 20s, yuck), afraid, sick parent, lost sense of self, jealousy of friends romantic entanglements but yearning for a VERY clear hook up only from a year ago.

What's weirdest is this "no one wants to see serious/ sad me" mentality. I don't know if it's meant to be author's commentary on social media or mental health or what.

These all go from character traits to background noise, and it's hard to love, connect with, and root for Stacey.

I really really loved WELL MET and the sequel is just as good (maybe even better!). Stacey is just such an earnest and vulnerable character figuring out her life, and her struggles feel relatable. Her and Daniel are just the sweetest, and the ending is perfection. I can't wait for April and Mitch's book next!

I loved the idea behind this story but I had difficulty bonding with the main character and I think mostly due to a personality clash than poor writing. I couldn't stand that she sat in her car idling with the air conditioning on and I couldn't fathom why she was so concerned about slipping on some wet stairs in her heels when she could just go barefoot! Argh! One good steamy scene but otherwise I didn't get excited about the romance, felt pretty sappy and not much humour in it.

Stacey has been involved in the Renaissance Faire for years with her best friend Emily as tavern wenches. They are familiar with most of the acts, one of which is the Dueling Kilts, a trio of handsome brothers, the MacLeans who played Irish music. Stacey has hooked up with Dex, the guitar player of the group. After the Faire had closed Stacey met with her friends at a bar and found out Emily was engaged to be married the next year at the Faire. It was time for Stacey to "get a life." After much wine, she sent a text to Dex wanting to know more about him. This started a routine of shared texts and Stacey found she was falling for this person.

The behind the scenes activities of the Faire are fascinating. I felt as though I were experiencing the activities. A totally enjoyable read.

Despite my struggle with Daniel's deception throughout the first half of this book, I did enjoy it. I liked Stacey and getting to see all the characters from Well Met again. Overall, a sweet and fun story!

2.5 stars rounding down…

‘Well-Played’, just like its predecessor, goes with the idea of love found at a Renaissance Faire, even if it involves a woman, two cousins as different as night and day and a few years of lust, lies and re-discovery.

What I really remember of Jen DeLuca is her very accessible, very breezy writing that makes the book so easy to go through and ‘Well-Played’, written in the first-person and exclusively through Stacey’s POV is pretty much that: the same intimate look at a woman’s life journey forward after life has seemingly stalled.

DeLuca takes a risk here with a trope that admittedly is always cringey for me. I was uncomfortable with the direction that it took for the first half, with epistolary deception playing a huge role in driving the story onwards and continuing for a year before the waters started to get muddy. More ominously, the more appropriate and updated term is better known now as ‘catfishing’, when someone assumes the identity of another person for fraudulent purposes—ironically so as well because it’s often associated with online romance scams.

DeLuca does soften the blow nonetheless, by making it easier to sympathise with Daniel who’s never had that fighting chance of romance next to his showy and muscular cousins, who’s never been and likely will never be in the limelight. As the one who’s resigned to his backstage life as band manager, Daniel is the beta all-round nice guy who has made a (huge) mistake and now finds himself at the losing end. He did however, come across as bland and somewhat unmemorable, balanced out by a kind heart of gold that simply wanted the best for Stacey.

There’s also a bit of an ick-factor as Stacey moved on from Dex MacLean to Daniel MacLean: one cousin she’d hooked up with, while the one she falls in love—both of whom work closely together. It’s not my cup of tea personally; in fact, I do sort of detest this ‘Cyrano de Begerac’ sort of reference when taken to this extent, and that proved yet another downer for me.

So while I loved ‘Well-Met’, I’m mixed about this and actually thought that Simon and Emily—who do turn up here quite a bit—were actually the saving grace of ‘Well-Played’. The continuation of their story, the development of their relationship, no matter how indirectly written here, made Stacey and Daniel pale in comparison and it was for them that I finished the book.

**Review will post September 17th, to my sites!**

SO SWEET.

I am all over this series by Jen DeLuca. They’re adorable and easy to enjoy and get a few smiles out of me.

In differentiating from Well Met, this book follows Stacey as she goes through a lot of big life decisions. Some cards were handed to her unplanned and now she’s found herself stuck in a slump, wondering what to do next. I struggled with the way Stacey talked about herself at times. I liked that she had a good evolution over the book about finding her way. Learning to take those leaps of faith and following something you know you love.

Okay, Daniel? TOTES ADORBS. I mean, from the get go. Absolutely loved him. So flippin’ cute. He warmed my heart 100x over and was such a match for Stacey. I liked the way the initial conflict (trying to avoid spoilers) happened between them. The communication and understanding that went into seeing both sides of the story really set me up for loving this ship. And this was a continual theme that helped

Another magical setting at a Ren Fest and I am once again wishing I could go to one this year! I love the writing and magic I feel between everyone. Getting to see Simon and Emily again was also absolutely amazing. I did like Well Met more, ONLY because it had more of an enemies to lovers vibe (which is my favorite trope ever). This is more friends to lovers and I found it very sweet watching Daniel and Stacey fall in love.

And low-key, STOKED for the next book in this series and the fact it’s about Mitch and April.

Overall audience notes:

Contemporary romance
Language: a little (strong when used)
Romance: kisses / make-outs; a full chapter open door scene

If you’ve read and liked Well Met, you’ll like this one, too. I struggled with the Faire aspect, and I found myself forcing myself to finish it. It’s a good story, but I just wasn’t engaged.

I absolutely loved Well Met, so I was extremely excited for the follow-up, Well Played. Well Played was a fun book. I enjoyed it, and I probably will pick up the next book set at the Ren Faire. I'm not dying for another book in this world, though. This book has a lot of the fun in Well Met, but the pacing feels off. This is partly chronologically, with a lot of time passing very quickly at first and then a lot more slowly later in the novel. This is partly due to the 'mechanics' of the book, I'd say, where the bulk of the world works around the Ren Faire. Still, at one point, it definitely went from like August to the end of fall in a chapter, so a bit too sporadically paced. I also found a major plot point a bit irritating, but I don't know that I can criticize it without disclosing spoilers, so, I guess I'll keep that to myself.

This was...not as good as I had hoped it would be. A friend and fellow reader said this book toed the line a la Cyrano when it came to the protagonist's love interest. My opinion is that the line is so far gone that we can't even see it. I was seriously annoyed at how the arc of this story went and sew-sawed between being low-key irritated at Stacey and pitying her. I thought she was a sympathetic character, but not one that I could connect with at all. There was also a lack of chemistry between her and her LI. He effed up quite badly and we don't even get a grovelling /redemption scene. I am not a fan of yours, Daniel MacLean. Not sorry at all.

And there wasn't much Faire in this! Part of what made the first so charming was the description and the atmosphere of the Faire. Maybe the next book can spark some of the magic back?

I loved Well Met, the first book in this series but I was wary of Well Played at first because I didn't really care for the character of Stacey and wasn't sure I would like her as the main character. My worries were misplaced and I ended up loving this book, maybe even more than the first. Stacey is given so much more relatebility and depth in this book and I love her dedication and love of the Ren faire life. It was fantastic to watch Stacey slowly fall in love through a series of emails and texts over the course of a year and not just have some insta love fling. It was also a great coming of age story for adults where Stacey slowly learns what she wants to do with her life and how to find her own happiness. This book was fantastic.

Well Played by Jen Deluca

4 / 5

** Thank you to Netgalley, Berkeley Publishing, and of course, Jen Deluca, for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I DEVOURED WELL MET! I also recommend it to so many people if they want something cute and fun to read, So when I saw that Jen was coming out with Well Played in September based on Stacy, I KNEW I had to get it in my hands as soon as possible.

The Stacy that I understood in Well Met was not the Stacy I came to love in Well Played. I was so pleasantly surprised to see the character development of Stacy take a turn I did not expect after following her around in Met.

What I expected - the stereotypical former cheerleader who never left home. Beautiful and Homely, and the unorganized girl we met when Emily signed up for the Faire.

What I got - SO MUCH MORE! Stacy’s Character arc broke the first expectation I had from the prologue and first chapter.

Now, Let’s get to Daniel. Daniel is the epitome of what I wanted for Stacy. I did figure out the twist pretty quickly but was still so excited and shocked when it came to light. As a fan of Simon, it is pretty obvious to know my type as a stan for Daniel ;). Plus, Dex annoyed me so so much I hated how much power he held over Stacy. Everything about Daniel was great - Jen did a great job of showing his pros and cons as a human being, as she did with Stacy as well.

Returning to the Faire was also an easy thing for me. I absolutely loved the setting and how it continues to intertwine in Deluca’s books.

Now, Jen, WHEN ARE WE GETTING WELL MATCHED?!?!?! (Gotta love that foreshadowing in the final few chapters ;)! )

This is a cute series. Both titles so far have been about finding love while volunteering or working at a local RenFest. Both have meet cute setups and were light, satisfying reads.