4.5 ⭐️

When Pacific Public Radio is on the brink of nonexistence, devoted producer Shay pitches an idea to help save it. This is it. Her chance to be a host, in front of the mic instead of behind it, just like what she always dreamed of since she was a kid. A show about exes talking about failed relationships and dating advice... with a serious reporter, her coworker, one she loathes (but also finds attractive), and definitely one she has never dated, Dominic. Live in 3, 2, 1 is... The Ex Talk.

An age-gap, forced proximity, hate-to-love romance with a refreshing twist on fake dating, Solomon breathed in a lot of life into this contemporary rom-com. With public radio, the relationship built between Shay and Dominic, and the “internalized misogyny” and “unspoken hierarchy” made for an enjoyable premise. I loved that the story was told in Shay’s POV and the subtle reminders of Dominic’s age made their relationship just so believable. My favorite element had to be the show transcripts, and my most favorite part was when Shay’s mom’s shared her handle on grief.

Shay has grown up listening to public radio and recording with her dad, who died when she was younger. She's worked for her local station as a producer for 10 years but never made it on the air--and is resigned to that because of her squeaky voice that isn't really radio ready. When Dominic arrives at the station after completing his master's degree in communications, he's viewed as a quick study by station manager Kent and Shay immediately views him as her nemesis (even though she can't stop looking at his gorgeous forearms--why won't he cover those up?)

When Kent asks for ideas for new programming, one that Shay throws out is for a former couple to talk about relationship issues. When Kent decides that she and Dominic should be the co-hosts, neither is thrilled, but Shay is sort of excited about the idea of being on-air. She just needs to convince Dominic to agree--and to overcome their mutual animosity toward one another.

3.75 stars

Fun and funny romance featuring a public broadcasting radio station as the setting. Shay Goldstein has wanted to be on the radio ever since she was a little girl and she and her late father used to do faux broadcasts together. He died when she was in high school, but she got a job as a radio show producer and has been there ever since. Her equilibrium is upset when the station's new hire arrives. He reminds everyone that he does have a master's in journalism from Northwestern and acts like a big-shot investigative reporter.

They get thrown together by a wild programming idea -- they pretend to be ex-boyfriend and girlfriend and host a show, heavy on the banter, about relationships. The fact that they never were together is top secret. We can see where this is going -- they do become an actual couple and they have to be stealthy. She commits too early, he's only had one relationship -- there are a lot of pitfalls. A few serious issues are touched on in a positive way - friendship, grief, loneliness and some ethical questions.

Enjoyable read with very likable characters. Thanks to the publisher and to Net Galley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Rachel Lynn Solomon has a way of making the most relatable characters with the wittiest of banter and this is seen perfectly in The Ex Talk. For a adult romance debut, I could’ve been fooled that she has been writing and publishing these stories for decades!

4.5 stars

Rachel Lynn Solomon’s venture into adult romance was an absolute delight and I hope she gives us more!

29-year old Shay was in the midst of a quarter-life crisis. Her career was stalling, her mom entered a new relationship, and her best (and really only) friend was looking for new opportunities outside of Washington. When her job was on the line, Shay suggested a new show for the radio station. She was quickly partnered with 24-year old up-and-coming Dominic Yun.

I can’t think of other words to describe The Ex Talk besides delightful. Shay Goldstein was a character that anyone could relate to. She was a disaster millennial who was looking for more direction in life and her voice resonated deeply with me. Dominic, while a bit annoying at first, was someone I grew to love and their chemistry was downright palpable.

In addition to crafting a smoldering romance, Solomon tackled adult friendships, grieving a parent, and sexism. All of these issues felt natural in Solomon’s storytelling and created a more in-depth world.

The audiobook narrator, Emily Ellet, has become one of my favorite narrators based on this performance alone. Not only was Ellet’s male narration well done, but she gave each character a slightly different voice which made it easy to follow along. Ellet had a fantastic radio voice and her sultry narration captured the steamier scenes perfectly.

The Ex Talk is one of my favorite releases from this year and I can’t wait for everyone to read it!

I don’t read a ton of contemporary books, but this book makes me want to change that!

The writing was fun, witty and engaging. I didn’t want to put it down. I loved the banter between Shay and Dominic and like their listeners could listen to them chat for hours.

The book was set at a Radio Station which brought a really cool element to the story. It was fun to learn more about behind the scenes at a radio show, I've never read any books like that. It was also great having the few parts written as a podcast or twitter feed. I found that really engaging.

The romance was really well done. It was a good build up and their chemistry was evident even when they hated each other.

Shay is super relatable as a women in her late 20's who doesn't quite have it figured out. I loved getting to watch her grow and discover who she is, in and out of a relationship.

Though it was slightly predictable, I find most romances are, I still loved it so much and give it 5 stars.

Friends, I’m so excited to be sharing my thoughts on The Ex Talk! This upcoming adult contemporary romance debut from author Rachel Lynn Solomon is essentially about two rival coworkers at a public radio station – producer Shay Goldstein and journalist Dominic Yun. The radio station needs a fresh idea to grow their audience, and Shay comes up with a great idea for a show where two exes deliver relationship advice and share their experience on air. The show is greenlit with one catch: Dom and Shay must pretend to be exes and host it together. Their lie is agreed upon, the show goes on air and becomes popular incredibly fast and our cohosts end up slowly developing real feelings for one another. But what will happen when their lies fall apart? I had a really good feeling about The Ex Talk before I started it, and it totally lived up to my hopes. It’s a very cute romance, and I enjoyed the heck out of the shenanigans (romantic or otherwise) as well as the moments that warmed my heart. It was sweet watching the relationship develop between Shay and Dom, from that one-sided rivalry to cohosts to friends to lovers. I enjoyed their banter right off the bat, and it was lovely to watch their affection, respect and love for the other person develop as the book went on. The other aspects of this story – family and friends, their other coworkers, the work drama, the radio show/podcast – simply added more charm. My only teeny tiny nitpick is that I do think that Dominic should have done a few things differently at the end. But this book was still so good, and I’d definitely recommend checking out The Ex Talk!

Thank you to the publisher for the eARC.

I really really enjoyed this enemies to lovers story. The premise of the couple meeting at public radio was great. I liked seeing Shay and Dominic open up to each other as they became closer as friends then more. Another aspect I enjoyed was the age gap and how that played into their relationship. I liked seeing Shay question where she was in her life and realize it was okay to not be sure and completely settled.

I would definitely recommend this one to people looking for a new contemporary romance.

{CW - talk about death of a parent}

•Great representation of characters
•Slight age gap, older woman
•Excellent banter and tension
•Millennial culture

I enjoyed this book. The idea of fake ex’es instead of fake dating was a unique twist. I also enjoyed the setting of working on a talk radio/podcast show. An excellent, smart romance!

Romance doesn’t get much sweeter, steamier, or Beanie Babier than Rachel Lynn Solomon’s THE EX TALK.

My full review will be going live on FreshFiction.com, and I will update with the link once it does.

Super engaging romance with a peek into the world of public radio. All of the characters were well rounded and the romance was very believable. Definitely have library patrons in mind and will be recommending this title.

Romance is slowly becoming my favourite genre (not that I ever disliked it!) and as a fan of Rachel Lynn Solomon, I knew I had to read her adult romance debut. I am very pleased to report that I was not disappointed at all! The Ex Talk quickly became one of my favourite reads of last year which means I can spend this year pushing it onto everyone I know.

The Ex Talk has a twist on the fake dating trope in the most fun way. Shay and Dominic both work in public radio and have contrasting opinions on the platform. Shay is interested in human interest stories while Dominic is a journalist who’s more interested in uncovering facts and scandals for the public good. As their station is experiencing cutbacks, they are asked (more like forced) to do a radio show together where they give their experience as a former couple. The only problem? They never actually dated. I won't say more for fear of spoilers but rest assured that this ends exactly how you think it would.

I loved Shay and Dominic. While the novel is in Shay’s POV, I felt that we really learn about Dominic’s life in depth as well. I really admire Solomon’s ability to turn loathe to love so easily. I wasn’t sure if it would be possible at first because of Shay’s strong opinions about Dominic but I felt that Solomon really pulled it off! The chemistry between the two was just amazing and I really loved it.

The other part that I enjoyed about this novel was the public radio aspect. While I can’t say I have ever really been interested in the subject before (I am an occasional podcast listener), I really enjoyed both character’s passions for the craft.

Overall, The Ex Talk is definitely a romance novel I’ll be hyping for anyone who’s a fan of the genre. This book rekindled my admiration for the author and it inspired me to go back and read the author’s backlist (which I was neglecting for no reason!!) and I have zero regrets. If you’re looking for a great new book to start the year off or for a great new author to become obsessed with, you can’t go wrong here!

*my review will be posted on January 20th!

The Ex Talk is a great romance that Rachel Lynn Solomon knocks out of the park. This is her first adult romance book and I loved it just as much as her YA books. I hope she will continue to write both YA and Adult books in the future.

I think there is quite a lot to enjoy from this book, though it in all honesty a fair amount of it didn't quite appeal to me. Nevertheless, I can see why this enemies-to-lovers romance will likely be a hit this year.

Two rival journalists in the field of public radio are strong-armed by their supervisor into faking a relationship on-air in a human interest afternoon radio show called "The Ex Talk." It is evident that Rachel Solomon is very familiar with the ins and outs of public radio and all that takes place behind the scenes to make newscasts and shows successful. The details that go into shaping the stories of Shay's and Dominic's careers is my favorite part of the book. Shay is a diehard human interest news fan. She lives for her career and has worked at the Seattle public radio station her entire adult life since interning after college. Equally driven is the young upstart political report, Dominic, who values his sense of ethics and integrity as much as his belief in his investigative skills and his academic bona fides. At the start of the book, both sneer just a bit at each other's specializations, though Dominic, more than Shay, sharply changes course and comes to appreciate the intrinsic value of storytelling. This is also a book filled to the rafters with adoration for podcasts and the art of making them. As a sometime-podcast listener, I was fascinated by the sheer number of podcasts out there and learned a lot about the making of them.

Despite the deep dive into public radio and podcast production though, the biggest drawback to me is the shallowness of the faux show itself, "The Ex Talk." For one, the book paradoxically brushes off the ethics of creating a faux show between "enemies" in order to center a romance at the heart of the story. Sure, both characters have misgivings from time to time about lying to their audience, but their lies don't penetrate the heart of the book and remain surprisingly superficial, almost like, "what a bummer we have to lie to everyone, but isn't our show fun and popular?" I couldn't shake the bad feeling I had that fans would be appalled when they discovered they were deceived - and you know that the truth is going to emerge as surely as you know an HEA is coming for the main couple. The resolution of all the lying, however, was pretty dissatisfying too and something I'm still pondering.

I also felt that the show about two exes discussing general relationship pitfalls as well as the failure of their romance on-air was a let down. There is surprisingly little actual "ex talk," on display during recording of the show even while we are assured that fans are riveted to Shay and Dominic's every word and campaigns to reunite them are trending on Twitter. While I had actually been curious to read about exes debating the fallout of romances, instead this is a romance where we're supposed to root for a couple based on the voyeuristic appeal from their fan base and because quite frankly we're told repeatedly that these two people belong together. To that end, I did feel that there was an awkwardness in the writing where I could, alas, see the narrative scaffolding behind every scene.

A number of smaller elements did endear me: the adorable and skittish Chihuahua named "Steve Rogers" that Shay adopts from the shelter in order to feel safe in her new home; the mantra "what would a mediocre white man do," or "WWAMWMD" Shay and her bestie adopt to motivate them in life; the vast diversity of the cast of characters; and ultimately, the sweetness of Dominic - much misunderstood at the start of the novel by an unreliable narrator. There's a lot to appeal in this book and I struggled with my grade because I enjoyed reading it. Still, I couldn't shake some serious misgivings, and so this one ultimately didn't really work for me. I would though read another adult romance from this author.

"It's your typical coworkers turned enemies turned fake exes turned cohosts turned" … lovers? kind of a story.

Probably a 2.5 but would've been a solid 4 if it weren't for just a couple of things. First, what I liked: That ridiculously complicated enemies-to-lovers trope with not just fake dating but fake ... ex-ing? I've never read that before and was initially intrigued by it. The nerdy public radio setting in the Pacific Northwest with pop culture and podcasting references galore. A strong, smart, struggling female lead who is Jewish (Shay) with a love interest costar who is Korean American (Dominic), a foot taller, and five years younger than her. The strong writing, the humor in the narration, and the banter between couples. The depiction of grief and failed relationships and loneliness and casually devastating everyday sexism and precious weird shelter pets and friendship and misread cues.

Unfortunately, the things I didn't like made this a bit of a can't-look-away train wreck of a read. First, I never completely warmed up to Shay even though she's the kind of complex, stumbling-into-adulthood character that I usually love. There was a streak of self-centered callousness in her that I just couldn't work with. (*view spoiler below) And about that fake ex-ing thing. Setting a fake relationship story in the arena of public radio and casting a serious journalist in that role feels pretty icky in this era of fake news and antipathy towards the media. And the resolution fell short for me. (**view spoiler below)

But I think I'll be in the minority on this one and most of the readers who pick it up will love it.

Content notes: Sexism and racism, death of a parent/partner (off screen and in the background but significantly featured throughout), anxiety/panic attacks, stage fright, lying, fake dating, steamy sex scenes, strong language

*Shay's callous dismissal of Dominic's stage fright and anxiety before the conference ("Well. He'll just have to deal with it.") and her response afterwards killed any connection I had fought for throughout the first 3/4 of the book.
**People do stupid things for love and job security but the way the relationship lie was presented and accepted here made me really uncomfortable. I hated the feeling of waiting for the shoe to drop and I did not like the way Dominic, especially, was made to set aside journalistic integrity. I try not to judge a book on my own expectations, but I really, really wanted Dominic's return to the station to somehow result in his taking down the manipulative sexist asshole that was running the place. Why laud his investigative skills in the first part if he isn't going to use them when they'd really come in handy? I appreciate a sweary on-air tirade/declaration of love/resignation as much as the next person, but it just didn't feel quite right here.

One of the best "hate to love" trope books I've read. I've been really excited about this one so thank you so much to #NetGalley for this advanced reader copy. The Ex Talk centers around Shay and Dominic, two individuals who work together and find themselves constantly together doing a weekly live radio show/podcast called The Ex Talk. While some "hate to love" trope books are incredibly cheesy, this one was endearing and special. SHAY + DOMINIC FOREVER. *If you loved The Hating Game, this is the book you've been WAITING FOR!*

Okay, I want to buy a house now. Shay has one and she didn't make it sound great, but I'm in a suggestible mood, so off to Zillow I go!

Sorry, back to the book. Our heroine, Shay, is doing the job she loves and is content where she is in life. Then (as the RomCom gods foretold) the hero (Dominic) comes in and shakes her life up. They start a radio show together as exes who give out relationship advice which (for spoilerific reasons) they aren't qualified to give out. The story overall is quite good, and I felt like the faults that both displayed were believable. The writing was excellent and I love love love when the heroine is older than the hero, though I do wish it was less of a Thing. Dominic's vulnerability, Shay's blindness to herself and her place in the world, and their mistakes and humanness all made this just a really wonderful read. Would def recommend.

What is this book about?

The Ex Talk by Rachel Lynn Solomon follows Shay Goldstein who has been a producer at her Seattle public radio station for almost a decade and can’t imagine working anywhere else as this has been her dream job ever since she was a kid and pretending to host radio shows with her dad and has a feud with her new coworker, Dominic Yun who’s just graduated from a master’s degree in journalism and thinks he knows everything about public radio.

When their boss reveals that the station is struggling and needs a new concept, Shay comes up with a show called The Ex Talk where two exes will deliver relationship advice and try to figure out why their relationship failed. Their boss likes the concept and suggests that Shay and Dominic should co-host it and while both of them are hesitant at first, it’s either co-hosting the show or being unemployed.

After they start cohosting, the show grows and so do their feelings and both Shay and Dominic have to choose between the success of the show and their relationship.

Overall Thoughts:
Overall, this romance had #ownvoices Jewish representation, had a main female character that was messy, complex and still figuring out her life, was very diverse as Dominic was Korean and both his and Shay’s cultures were prevalent to the story, and the side characters were of different nationalities and had different sexualities and was full of sex positivity.

Furthermore, grief and mourning were portrayed and explored realistically and family and friends were very involved in Shay’s & Dominic’s romance and weren’t just side characters.

Despite this, the pacing of this book was off as it moved slowly during certain parts but then went too fast at other parts of the story and was hard to get into at first. Lastly, there was not enough chemistry between Shay and Dominic and the romance was borderline instant love.

Overall, this was an interesting romance that didn’t shy away from tough topics but could have been better. 3.5/5


Who would like this?:
Anyone who enjoys enemies to lovers romances, fake dating, Jewish romances, feminist romances




Favorite Quotes:
• Cool is the Kevin Jonas of compliments.
• What Would A Mediocre White Man Do?

The Ex Talk was such a delightful read, I absolutely loved both Shay and Dominic. Plus they’re pretty fantastic as fake exes (which was a very unique take on the fake dating trope that I ended up loving). Also, this is one of the few rom coms that I’ve read where the female main character was older.

I really liked learning more about the world of public radio. Not only is it a fascinating industry, but it’s also the perfect rom-com setting. Overall, the dialogue was snappy, smart, and witty while the action kept me glued to the page (and occasionally laughing out loud). The ending felt a bit all over the place but, ultimately, I liked how everything played out and how the characters grew during the course of the story.

I would absolutely recommend this one if you’re looking for a fun read that will leave you smiling!

*Disclaimer: I received an advance digital copy of this book for free from the publisher. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Shay has been working at PPR for ten years and has finally made a name for herself there when Dominic shows up and immediately gets all the perks she worked so hard for. Needless to say, she hates him and his constant need to remind everyone he has a masters degree. When the station needs a new show idea, Shay throws out The Ex-Talk, ex’s that stayed friends and discuss relationships. Unfortunately, the station manager wants Shay and Dominic to be those ex’s, even though they never dated. This could be Shay’s chance to finally get past being a producer and be on air! When sparks start flying between the non ex ex’s, will everything fall apart?

This book was so damn cute. Dominic and Shay were obviously meant to be together from page one, even though they hated each other! Their banter was absolutely fantastic, and I loved how their relationship are throughout their show. I could totally see myself being sucked into a podcast like this! I definitely wanted to smack their boss across the face several times as he was a complete misogynistic asshat, but I adored how the book ended when it came to him. If this one isn’t on your radar, it should be! It is an adorable rom com that will have you up all night reading!