I really enjoyed this book. It hooked me from the beginning. The MC family was so fun and I loved the Hollywood behind the scenes setting. The kissing moments were written so well. A great rom com and one of my favorite summer books so far!

😍loved \\💋some steam
🤟Hollywood, second chance, kissing
📚Twice in a Blue Moon

This Hollywood enemies to lovers romance is packed full of slow-burn, a crazy blended family, behind-the-scenes Hollywood chaos, and an earnest hero working hard to make up for past mistakes. Through it all, we see Sloane working through a lot of her own issues (largely involving feelings about her own family, her mother, and the havoc Hollywood has wreaked on her own self esteem), while slowly and unexpectedly falling in love with the costar she once hated. Overall, it’s a fun, fast read layered with depth and heart.

Thank you to Berkley Pub for my arc of this title.

One sentence review:  This romance is perfect for those who love movies and want a look behind the scenes with a little bit of family drama thrown in for good measure.

Love Scenes by Bridget Morrissey tells the story of Sloane Ford. She's an out of work actress who agrees to work as a producer on a movie her family is putting together.  And this truly is a family affair with her mother, step father, ex step mother, sister and brother all working on the film.  What they forget to mention is that the star of the film is her nemesis from one of the first films she worked on.

My thoughts:
- I loved the behind the scenes look at making movies.  I have no idea how realistic everything was but it was fun nonetheless.  
- One of my favorite parts of the book is how Sloane interacts with her big, dysfunctional extended family.  The author does an excellent job of showing how love and discord can go hand in hand.
- The hero of the story, Joseph Donovan, is a lovable Irish rogue.  His arc in the story is all about redemption. 
- I really do think this book is almost more a coming of age novel than it is a romance. Don't get me wrong, the book is definitely a romance, but the strength of the storyline comes from Sloane coming into her own after recovering from some major setbacks.

I highly recommend this book to people who like books set in Hollywood.  It would also be a great one for people who enjoy books with quirky family members and weird family dynamics.

I don’t know what I expected based on the cover of this book but it’s definitely not what I actually got. There are a lot of serious themes within this book and the cutesy, illustrated cover definitely is a little misleading. (Perhaps, I need to just stop assuming that books with cutesy, illustrated covers will involve a plot that is also cutesy).

There are parts of this book that I enjoyed more than others and lets talk about that first. I really liked the behind the scenes look at a movie set. It felt authentic to me but then again, I have no real first hand knowledge of how a movie set operates. The author, in her Authors Note made mention of the fact that she had talked to actors for this book and so I have to assume that some of this is based on how an actual movie set might operate. It was fascinating and fun, getting a glimpse into a world that is largely unknown to me.

The romance, however, seemed a little bit light comparatively. And maybe that also has to do with the characters. First of all, the book starts off a little slow and doesn’t really pick up steam until well into the 40% mark, when Sloane is finally cast in the lead role. Her costar is Joseph, an actor she worked with years ago in an experience that was so brutal and difficult that it almost forced her to leave the profession entirely. So, you’d think it’s an enemies to lovers trope but not really, because the animosity is pretty well one-sided; Sloane harbors (justified) anger towards Joseph and he’s desperate to make amends and to his credit, does apologize repeatedly for the asshole behavior he exhibited in the past.

I think what really bothered me about that particular storyline is actually more to do with Sloane’s family and less about Joe and his behavior. Sloane comes from a powerful Hollywood family and they cast Joe in this movie and then offer Sloane a part, which she turns down because she refuses to work with Joe. The truly shocking thing is that NO ONE in Sloane’s family, not her parents or her siblings, even believe that she’s being truthful about Joe’s past behavior…until they see him on set, fumbling in his role and THAT is when they decide that maybe Sloane wasn’t lying after all. Like….what? And then the book does this flip flop to try and make Sloane’s family supportive and caring and make Sloane into this character who apparently never asks for help and it’s really bizarre, watching her entire family kind of gaslight her.

This is another one of those books I’ve read recently where I’m like, ok this book had a lot of potential but it really didn’t come through with the execution. I really disliked Sloane’s family - they had their moments, they showed up for her dad, I really liked the friendship between his two first ex-wives and the sibling stuff was good. But over all, I HATED that they never believed her when she told them about Joe’s behavior on the set of their first movie.

I do think there are things that the book did well - it didn’t shy away from the idea of Sloane getting to where she is because of nepotism, it addressed Joe’s grief and how badly he handled it in a pretty good way. And while I did think the romance as light, there is a revelation at the end with Joe and Sloane and the music he always listens to and how it relates to Sloane that was really sweet and touching.

CW: recovering alcoholic, toxic family relationships, toxic ex boyfriend, parental death (off page, in the past), parental illness

ARC received from publisher via Netgalley; review is all mine

Working with your family is never easy, much less a Hollywood family working on a movie. Sloane’s acting career was cut short and while her mother gave her a job on the movie the family is working on, she feels like it is a pity job. When things happen on set and she is suddenly given the lead role starring against the actor who made her life hell before we know that things will get interesting.

Love Scenes is a fun and easy book to read. The family dynamics are spot on with many tense moments along with a lot of laughs. I liked how there was ex’s, current spouses, girlfriends, sisters, mothers, and fathers all involved in the making of the film. It kept things interesting and fun to read letting me see the interactions of all the members of this Hollywood family. The fact that everyone, including the ex’s, seemed to get along for the most part was a relief. I liked that the family, for the most part, got along.

Joseph was a wild card for me. I could like him or I could hate him. He had to earn his keep with me. I liked that Sloane put her hurt aside and did what was best for the movie but she also did not quickly forgive him. He put in the work, did the job, and earned the trust back. I liked that it was a slow romance. The heat and attraction was there from the beginning but it took time for their relationship to develop and I enjoy seeing them get to know each other again.

This was a great light romance. I enjoyed the setting- on a Hollywood movie set. The character development was good and the main characters have an amazing spark!

rating: 3.5/5

I read this book over the weekend and it was a total delight. two co-stars secretly fall for each other on production of a WWII-era romance? sign me up! Sloane and Joseph have great chemistry both as friends and romantic partners.

This book is full of famous family drama, witty remarks, and heartfelt conversations.
the moment everything implodes had me screaming in my pillow (ask my husband - he witnessed it 😆).

I do feel like the ending was rushed a bit, and this time I actually wanted an epilogue just to have a bit more closure of our characters. Would recommend as a 2021 summer beach read! This book is out TODAY💜

AT A GLANCE…
steam:🔥🔥/5 (closed door)
genre: contemporary romance

reading vibes…
❤️secret romances, irish accents, being BTS on a film production and hollywood
📚the trouble with hating you, the enemy
📺Leap Year
🎧'I always knew' by the vaccines

Sloane Ford is in a slump. The actress, who has recently lost a job from a show, has been tapped by her family to help produce a World War II-era film. It’s not what she really wants to do, but it’s better than nothing.
Well, at least until she discovers that the leading man for the movie is Joseph Donovan. Sloane and Donovan once worked together on a movie, and she hated how unprofessional he seemed. Sloane figures that she shouldn’t have to deal with him too much anyway.
That theory is put to rest when Donovan’s costar is fired. The family insists that Sloane take over the role, and while she is looking forward to being on camera, she’s not too thrilled with having to pretend she is in love with Donovan’s character.
As happens in most romances, people change over the course of a few years, and these two are no exception. Can Donovan convince Sloane that he’s not the same person as he was on that first film? And can she allow herself to really fall in love?


I loved this book and I thought the characters were great I just wish it was steamier

Thank you so much to Berkeley and Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for honest review. I enjoyed this creative + fun second chance/enemies to lovers romance novel, especially the characters’ relationships with her family and the film industry aspects. I wish there had been more details about the movie itself and more intimacy/chemistry between the two love interests. Overall, a refreshing and worthwhile read.

Love Scenes follows out of work actress as her Hollywood famous family tries to help her out by getting her involved in her sister's latest cinematic masterpiece. She ends up getting a bit more than what she signed up for, having to not only step in as the main actress but work alongside her least favorite form co-star Joseph Donovan. However, throughout filming she learns a lot more about Joseph, her family and the business of showbusiness.

Hands down, the best part of this book was it's in depth look into Hollywood, how movies are made, etc. It was insanely interesting seeing every little piece of the production of a movie and how Sloan's family all fit into those roles. I loved her family and they reminded me a bit of mine: crazy, too much, big and involved in your business too much.

However, I think I would've really loved this book if I wasn't really expecting a romance. I knew it wasn't going to be steamy, which is fine, but I felt like the romance didn't really show up at all until much later on in the book and that bummed me out a bit. I didn't really feel the chemistry between Sloan and Joseph until really close to the end and I just wanted more, especially on set!

This was just the romance I needed to get out of my reading slump. Generally I'm not a big fan of books that feature Hollywood characters or those in the music/movie/tv business. Despite my hang ups, I absolutely adored this book. The characters are interesting. I loved the chemistry between Sloane and Joseph as much as I loved the interactions between Sloane and her family. One of my favorite parts of this book was seeing Sloane's growth. I won't lie, the story is predictable, but most romance books of this kind are. That didn't bother me one bit. I dove into the book and read it in one sitting. The story made me smile and gave me all the warm feels. I can't ask for much more than that. Loved it!

I was excited to read a book set in the film industry. Sloane's family - from her parents to their exes and beyond - are all involved in making a movie. Sloane is reluctant to get involved, but she loses her TV job and has little other choice. I was never really clear on why she lost her job, why she was resistant to doing period dramas, or why she had such an issue with Joseph in the past. It seems that he was difficult to work with on a past film because he is an alcoholic and was often drunk on set. However, he was just described as having been rude and hard to work with. I also never really bought into the eventual love story between Sloane and Joseph off camera. Either the writing or the story itself never really drew me in.

The best character was Sloane's 11 year old half sister, Sarai. She was funny and told it like she saw it. The other family members weren't fully drawn in a way that I couldn't tell if Sloane got along with them or not. So, as you can see I didn't love this book as much as I wanted to. If you are interested in a family drama taking place in Hollywood, you may like it more than I did!

I absolutely love the blurb for this book--two costars who hate each other forced to film a romance together? Sign me up! But this book ended up being so much more than that. It explored what it's like being a woman in film--and a woman portrayed in media, and for some characters, a queer woman portrayed in the media--struggling with and overcoming alcoholism, family dynamics and the modern family, and more.

At the start of the book, 30-year-old Sloane Ford is out-of-work and stepping into a "consulting producer" position her famous mother created for her on a new project by her family film dynasty. But the family neglected to mention that her former costar, Joseph Donovan (who made her last project miserable and almost made her quit acting), has taken on the male lead role. When the female lead is fired, Sloan steps in and must deal with her emotions surrounding Joseph and their past.

As a whole, I immensely enjoyed this book. It was the perfect mix of fluff and seriousness, and I loved getting a peak behind the curtain of the making of a movie. If I could change one thing, it would be the initial kiss between the two main characters. It comes completely out of left field. Sloane goes from hating Joseph to be friends with him to planting one on him. Before she kissed him, if it hadn't been a romance, I wouldn't have known she was romantically interested in him. We needed more self-reflection, lustful glances, and romantic touches. I would still recommend this book, I just wish this hadn't been the case.

Thanks to Berkley and NetGalley for my eARC! All thoughts and opinions are my own.

5 stars - 8/10

LOVE SCENES is a compelling page-turner. Wanting to know what happens next kept me turning the pages, and I couldn't believe when I reached the final page. This is a story that needs an epilogue! I wanted to know more about what happens to Sloane and Joe after!

I didn't like Sloane at first, but she grew on me over the course of the book, especially once I knew her story and what she suffered at Joe's hands. Her family dynamics is very complicated, but one thing said it all--when Sloane needed help, everyone pitched in. That said, I like her big, blended family--each person, down to Sarai, was unique and stood out with their own personalities.

I love the worldbuilding--the sets, the movie-making, etc. Not knowing anything about that, I lapped it all up.

Character motivations and behavior are believable, down to that final scene they shot for the movie. I enjoyed Sloane's enemies-to-lovers romance with Joe. I love their banter and evolving phases of their relationship. It's heartwarming that Joe believed in her from the start, i.e. in her acting abilities, more than she did. Joe is really a to-die-for hero, especially toward the end.

Overall, LOVE SCENES is a wonderful story you shouldn't miss.

I enjoyed this romance and the behind the scenes film set that served as setting. The main character, Sloane, has grown up in the film world with two actor parents, so while it's a setting most readers could romanticize, it's very much her day-to-day life, so it feels very comfortable. Her enemies-ish to friendship to more relationship with Joseph Donovan was sweet and they had good chemistry, and Sloane's discovery of who he is now after their disastrous first film experience together made for a good story.

This was my first read of a Bridget Morrissey book. The premise sounded so cute. I was so excited to get started. But I was immediately lost. It was so hard to follow along, which is so unusual for a rom com. The characters came off as very immature. And chemistry just wasn't there.

I found it to be a struggle to complete. Just not my cup of tea. Without having any positive thoughts to share, I won't be leaving a review on social media.

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing for the opportunity to read an advanced copy.

⭐️⭐️⭐️ “Acting like she's in love with her handsome nightmare of a co-star—in a movie directed and produced by her complicated Hollywood royalty family—is Sloane's job. But what happens when the lines between script and reality get blurred?”

In my opinion, this is definitely more contemporary fiction with a bit of romance sprinkled in than a typical al romcom (yes, there is a difference) but either way it was a fun break from reality and if we’re honest we could use that!

It reminded me a little bit of twice in a blue moon by CL. In both books we get a behind the scenes look at what shooting a movie would be like, and in both books the love interests already knew each other in the past and have animosity between them.

LOVE SCENES comes out 6/22 ✨

Sloane Ford is in a slump. The actress, who has recently lost a job from a show, has been tapped by her family to help produce a World War II-era film. It’s not what she really wants to do, but it’s better than nothing.
Well, at least until she discovers that the leading man for the movie is Joseph Donovan. Sloane and Donovan once worked together on a movie, and she hated how unprofessional he seemed. Sloane figures that she shouldn’t have to deal with him too much anyway.
That theory is put to rest when Donovan’s costar is fired. The family insists that Sloane take over the role, and while she is looking forward to being on camera, she’s not too thrilled with having to pretend she is in love with Donovan’s character.
As happens in most romances, people change over the course of a few years, and these two are no exception. Can Donovan convince Sloane that he’s not the same person as he was on that first film? And can she allow herself to really fall in love?
Nicely written, with several interesting characters.

Love Scenes by Bridget Morrissey follows Sloane Ford, a young actress who hails from Hollywood royalty. Everyone in her family works in film and they’ve decided to work on a project together, a WWII era romance, and although they wanted Sloane to play the lead, she declined because it conflicted with work she was doing on a TV series. When her character is abruptly killed off, Sloane’s mother offers her a job as a producer on their film, but doesn’t tell her they’ve cast Joseph Donovan, her arch nemesis and the man who almost derailed her acting career, to play the male lead. Oh boy, what has Sloane gotten herself into?

I really enjoyed the chemistry between Sloane and Joseph from the moment they come face to face on the movie set. It’s clear that there is some loaded history between them, and it’s also clear that they have feelings for one another, whether they want to admit it or not. Joseph knows how awful he was to Sloane the last time they worked together and he really wants to make amends. Sloane was recently dumped by her musician boyfriend and is completely off the whole idea of love. But when she steps on the movie set, and the female lead is abruptly fired and Sloane is asked to fill in, the more she works with Joseph, the more she realizes she doesn’t hate him as much as she thought she did. I really liked both Sloane and Joseph a lot and wanted her to give him a chance to prove he has changed.

As much as I enjoyed the evolving relationship between Sloane and Joseph, what I loved most about this book is Sloane’s family. They’re such a fun, tight-knit, and quirky group and I love watching them all interact as they worked together on the film. The egos, the personalities, the ex-husbands and ex-wives who are still very much part of the family, etc. were just so entertaining to watch and I loved how vividly and realistically the author brings this family to life. I especially loved the relationship between Sloan and her sister Tyler, who is also directing the film. The two of them are very close and actually used to make home movie versions of their favorite films for fun when they were kids. I love a good sibling relationship and watching these two sisters work and grow together just made for a lovely read.

Love Scenes is a fun read that is filled with romance, family, and all the drama you could ever expect to find on a movie set and then some! It’s also a wonderful story about second chances that will warm your heart.

For fans of the Lucy Parker’s delightful London Celebrities series, this enemies-to-lovers co-star romance is a fun read for the start of the summer season! When out-of-work actress Sloane Ford lands a part playing the love interest to her nightmare co-star Joseph Donovan, she has to contend with the chaos of a production put on by her Hollywood royalty family and the downward slope of her career, all while trying not to blur the lines between real life and acting as she realizes tries to fight her and Joseph’s electric chemistry on and off the screen.