📚 Pub Day Review 📚

Wow! I didn’t know what to expect going into this one, but what a phenomenal debut by @mazeyeddings

(thank you @smpromance and @netgalley for the eARC!)

I was immediately drawn into this story by the hilarious and easy banter between Dan and Harper. Their chemistry jumped off the page, and I loved how organic and authentic their relationship felt. It never felt forced.

Harper herself is a force to be reckoned with when it comes to dealing with misogyny and sexism in the workplace. I wish I was more like her in that regard. Her friends are also squad goals. I can’t wait to get to read their stories next.

Lastly, and most importantly, was how well done the neurodiversity and mental health representation was. It showed the complexity of dealing with an anxiety disorder both the feelings of loved ones witnessing it and the person going through it. There was one scene in particular that brought me to tears with how it was portrayed.

All the stars for this one, and I can’t wait to read Lizzie’s story next. This beautiful story is out today!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

TW: General anxiety disorder, sexism, ableist language, death of a parent

This story—about a fourth year high-achieving dental student named Harper and a reluctant first year dental student named Dan—was everything I love in a contemporary romance. Great voice, wonderful side characters, sizzling romance, emotional depth, and a beautiful ending. Author @mazeyeddings perfectly captures the intense pressure of dental school (so much of it rang true for me and my experience in med school!), as well as family expectations, the complexity of grief, and living with anxiety. This hit me in the feels and I rooted so hard for Harper and Dan! Harper’s friends are the cutest, quirkiest, most supportive group of people and I adored them. Also- yay for mental illness being portrayed realistically and compassionately. As someone who has dealt with similar issues, it’s validating and helpful to see that reflected in fiction. Mazey Eddings is an author to watch and you don’t want to miss this one! It’s out today and you should absolutely pick it up.

Big thanks to @netgalley and @stmartinspress for my digital copy in exchange for an honest review.

This is a Young Adult/Adult Romance. The characters in this book is older then young adult, but they act younger and in college. I got young adult feelings from this book. This book was really hard for me to get through it because I really hated the romance in this book. I did love how the anxiety and grief parts was written and handle. There was parts I loved so much, but there was parts I hated so much. I also did not love the characters in this book. I was kindly provided an e-copy of this book by the publisher (St. Martin's Griffin) or author (Mazey Eddings) via NetGalley, so I can give an honest review about how I feel about this book. I want to send a big Thank you to them for that.

Okay, this book gave me all the feels! It's so sweet, charming and just gives you a lot of hope. I never knew I needed a dentist romance story until this book - and now I want more! Lol.

Harper is anxiously waiting to find out about her residency placement. But when she literally crashes into Dan, her perfect plans go out the window. Dan, a first year dental student, is struggling with his family's expectations and the reality of dental school. But when he meets Harper, he realizes there's more to life than living for his family's expectations. And even though Harper tries to push Dan away to protect her studies and her heart, the reality of their feelings can't be denied.

Full disclosure the book deals with some pretty heavy topics such as anxiety and grief. I really appreciated the great care Mazey took in wiring these characters. Both of their issues and struggles felt natural and it's obvious how much care Mazey took writing these characters.

As someone who deals with anxiety the rep in this book was spot on and seeing that representation made me feel less alone. Mazey found ways to talk about the big topics in a way that didn't alienate the reader.

This is a truly fantastic debut with characters you can't help but love. I also want to point out that Mazey took a romance conventions for a typical HEA and turned it on it's hand a bit, which I loved. You'll smile, laugh and then cry as you read this book. I can't wait to read the next book in this series.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press/ St. Martin’s Griffin for the digital arc of this book in exchange for my honest review.

A tantalizing slow burn. Friends to Lovers. School Romance. With the adorable messy meet-cute, funny banter, swoony whispers, and close proximity moments, Mazey Eddings’ debut novel is a sweet treat and this is why:

1) The issue of mental illness: Harper’s anxiety plays an integral role in the story. Since she was young, Harper has built walls to keep her safe and protected; without it, she’s directionless. She doesn’t know who she is without it. “Anxiety was Harper’s guide, her constant companion. If she wasn’t anxious, there was no way she could still be on course.”

Dan has lived and continues to live a life of being stifled, silenced, and stepped on no thanks to his now-deceased verbally abusive father and while being pressured by his mother, Dan’s pain eventually comes to surface.

What is noteworthy is Harper and Dan’s lessons in self-care, therapy, and a damn good support system. While they invest in each other, their investment in good friends, too, reward themselves with a solid foundation of unconditional love.

2) The intimacy: Whether it’s their banter, foodie dates, or study sessions, Harper and Dan truly connect. Their role as “friends only” serve as a good purpose in that they take their time (albeit a tad slow for some readers *hee hee*). I resonate with their “slowness” probably because that’s how I’d do it. I live for the angst and pining and achy chest feels and “let me touch you now” moments.

3) Mazey’s writing: There are very few books where I’d purposely read slowly but there are moments here I just had to pause, highlight, or reread. I appreciate the funny metaphors and the silly banter. I love the way a man like Dan is portrayed; so few men are shown all at once as sexy, emotional, and so consumed by love.

If you have a sweet tooth and can also take some spice, I highly recommend this.

Thanks to Netgalley and St. Martins Griffin for the e-arc; my honest review could’ve been much longer.

Unfortunately I couldn't connect to the voice of this one. The premise was cute but it failed to grab me.

The meet cute for this book was so adorable and began an instant attraction between Harper and Dan. Harper is a Type A person who experiences a lot of anxiety about being the best. She is so close to graduating and will then figure out when she will do her residency so she has no time for a relationship. She isn't even sure where she will end up living.

Dan is a first year student, and is struggling to pass his classes. He is really only doing it out of family duty. After his father passed his mother tells him she is struggling to hold onto the family dental practice and he needs to step up and help save the business. He doesn't have the passion for it that he sees in Harper causing him a lot of stress. His attraction to Harper is so sweet and he is so patient with her attempts to push him away, and is just so steady in his conviction that they are supposed to be together.

While I loved the beginning part of the book, the middle is where it started to lose me. It had a lot of back and forth of will they won't they that I started to get bored by it. The ending did end up picking up and it really made me start to tear up. If you are a lover of slow burn, will they won't they stories this is the book for you.

Unfortunately, I had to DNF at 40% - the plot sounded promising and had a very unique setting (dentistry school) with a focus on mental health. However, the execution I found to be painfully boring and unbelievable insta-love chemistry between the main characters.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

I have very mixed feelings about this book. I really enjoyed most parts and even the parts I didn't enjoy were well done. There were just some pieces that made it hard for me to fully love this book how I wanted to.

First the good stuff:
I loved Dan's character. As a numbers person, I identified with his love of patterns and problem solving and I really enjoyed how he talked about his passion. His troubled family dynamic felt real to me, not at all forced, and his reactions to his family felt honest.

I loved Harper's friends. They were such a lovely and supportive group of women. I loved how unapologetically true to themselves they all were.

I liked how honest Harper's struggle with her mental health was. It is not often I read a book that shows the struggle of denying a mental illness and trying to force oneself to appear "normal". It was not always easy to read, not by a long shot. But getting to go along with Harper on the journey from denial and self-sabotage to seeking the help she needs for herself was very important.

I appreciated that both Dan and Harper ended up getting therapy for themselves. Not for a relationship or for another person, but to deal with their own shit for their own quality of life.

Where I struggled:
While I think Harper's journey was super important, it was hard to watch her be so toxic to Dan through their relationship. Multiple times I wanted him to stop being so nice to her and stand up for himself. He did not deserve to be treated as badly as she treated him while she was self-sabotaging. She was constantly hot and cold with him and took no accountability for her actions. I felt like he deserved a lot better.

It also bothered me that she hadn't told her three supposed best friends of multiple years about her anxiety/claustrophobia. All three of her friends never seemed afraid to be honest with her, but she refused to do the same, instead lashing out at them when she felt overwhelmed by a completely avoidable trigger.

Overall, the good outweighed the bad, but I feel like I would have enjoyed this book more if the focus had been on her journey instead of the romance between her and Dan.

Thank you to Netgalley and St Martins Press for the ARC!

This book was seriously adorable! Not only was it adorable I was all in on the humor and the relationships with their friends! I read this book in one sitting and could not put it down!
Harper is type A and focused on dental school until she meets Dental Dan. She never thought anything would make her lose her focus then there he is. I adore Dental Dan! At times I wasn’t the biggest Harper fan Dan won me over and I rooted for him and Harper.
.
I hope there is another book to follow this group of friends!
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Thank you @StMartinsPress for an arc in exchange for an honest review

This RomCom just worked- representation, open discussion about mental health, so much witty banter, and intense chemistry! Harper is the smart heroine we deserve. Her struggles with anxiety felt authentic but was also handled with care. And Dan? So adorable. Adding him to my list of forever book boyfriends. Like most RomComs, it was the cast of friends that had me laughing from start to finish! I definitely recommend A Brush With Love!

First, a warning: I’m not a big fan of romance novels. The description of this one sounded like it could be modern and amusing, though.

Parts of it were witty and entertaining. Most of it, though, for me, just went on and on and I found myself skimming…a lot. It was sooo slow. I really wanted to DNF, but I stuck with it….sometimes I have done that and it turned out I really liked the book….in this case, no. I thought the characters were very immature for 26….more like 16. I realize mental distress played a role here, but, really, all of them were so immature.

I know some people really liked this book, but it just wasn’t for me.

‘ They sank to the floor, gripping onto each other like life rafts in a storm. They held and squeezed and cried together, months and years of pain released to the world with each tear that fell. The pain couldn’t be held by the other, the suffering wasn’t the opposite’s to endure, but they could hold each other through it, root the other to a safe spot. Be the other’s home’

Thanks to NetGalley for providing this ebook to me in exchange for an honest review ・❥・

This was such a good book! It is a contemporary romance type that is dual POV, lemme repeat DUAL POV
I’ve read some really good romances but they are usually only one pov and that makes me a little sad because I know I would love it even more if I got to see both sides, if your on the same thought boat about that as me then you’ll love this book!

I really liked the emotion and rawness of this book in the way that neither characters where no where near perfect. They both had things to overcome and it really resonated with me and made it so real feeling. Like a messy fairy tale lol because no fairy tales are perfect.
I love the representation of Harpers anxiety. This was such a sweet, easy read while at the same time being really deep & emotional and I love that.

Dan is the love interest in the book and right away him and Harper had a connection to each other that made me root for them the whole time! Dan is one of the cutest, sweetest and silliest characters and I love him for it! Overall such a great read. I would recommend this if you like books such as Ali Hazelwoods ‘the love Hypothesis’ !

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*

There was so much I loved in this book, like Harper and Dan's banter, Dan's backstory development, their friendships, and the dental puns (so good!!), but what I want to talk about most is the anxiety representation.

It's rare I find a portrayal of anxiety as honest and raw as A Brush With Love. I found myself highlighting paragraphs endlessly because I've never read anything that is as close to my experience as Harper's, words that feel like they actually could explain to someone on the outside how this anxiety feels.

There were tons of quotes I related to, but there is one quote that I read to my partner that resulted in us both crying and hugging, my partner filled with emotions at being able to understand me a little better.

“…One living thing, every cell genetically identical, spreading below the surface to take up this enormous amount of space…that's what my anxiety feels like--a honey mushroom…A lot of times, someone on the outside, like you, maybe, sees these clues to it--my fidgeting, my mind seeming a million miles away, panic attacks--but inside it's this intricate network of sharp pain and fear that's constantly growing and pulsing through me. It's always there, right beneath my skin, huge and controlling, but no one can see it. I just feel it. And it hurts. So badly. It makes me want to curl up into a ball or sprint out of my skeleton. This huge, inescapable thing inside me that controls me…It feels cruel to have your own body do that to you."

I highly recommend this adorable and fun rom com. Mazey, thank you for sharing your vulnerability with us in these pages. I feel more understood because of you.

Thank you to St. Martin's Griffin and Netgalley for the ARC!

5 STARS! When I say I loved this book!!! I laughed! I cried! Harper is a driven, smart oral surgery residency student who finds herself quickly crashing into love with Dan, a first year student. As much as she wants to keep her focus on school and her future, love doesn't always align our timing. Mazey Eddings so perfectly describes the feelings of anxiety and panic and how those feelings can cause us to act out against our best interests in the false belief that we are protecting ourselves. Dan is the perfect book boyfriend - kind, funny, empathetic and genuine. Also love that therapy is key piece for both our love interests. Definitely recommend!

I love that in romance we are seeing more and more books featuring characters dealing with mental illness. These authors are showing that everyone deserves to be loved and I think Mazey Eddings may be the best of read for a character dealing with anxiety. Harper is nearing the end of dental school. Her life is books, class and studying with a dash of time with friends. She aims to be top graduate and achieve a residency in surgery and wants nothing to get in her way. That is, until Dan gets in her way...quite literally.

Dan is in dental school and just not loving it. The material doesn't come easy to him and the passion just isn't there but he has a legacy to uphold. He doesn't have much to look forward to until Harper turns everything around. I adored the way that Dan adored Hannah. He treats her with so much respect but you can also feel the absolute joy he feels just being in her presence. She quickly becomes his best friend and the highlight of his week despite Hannah being resistant to a romantic relationship as she's worried it will detract from her school work.

These two had so much chemistry. I laughed so many times throughout the book and really felt the dilemma that Hannah had regarding her relationship with Dan. Her anxiety is portrayed with such realism and care and I thoroughly loved the way in which Dan approached this. I also appreciated that he had his own things he was dealing with and the way in which each slowly opened up to the other and became one another's strongest supporter. Their friends were great and make me excited for more to come from this debut author. I would recommend this to anyone looking for a true rom-com book. A solid 5 stars!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an advance copy of this book.

I am so very sad. I was very excited to read this book. It sounded like it would be such a fun and adorable romance. However, I seem to be in the minority on this one. From the start it did not go well for me.
Harper is a very driven student who "falls" for Dan. Literally, scene one she is falling down the stairs into him. They are both in dental school, she breaks a mold he was working on and the way to make it up to him is by helping him fix it or make another one. From there it seems to be instant attraction. I am okay with that at times, but it isn't my favorite kind of trope in romance and in this case, it was literally just an attraction. I didn't feel there was any depth to either of the characters. I wanted to be excited about this relationship but it was like watching a train wreck. It just didn't work for me.
Harper deals with anxiety and while I also have anxiety, I don't feel like I can say if it is a good representation or not. So I will just say, she has anxiety and we see how it effects all aspects of her life. This at least seemed realistic, not so much the romance.
I did not actually like Harper or Dan and I really did not like the friends. The language in this book felt rude, and vulgar and not needed. That was a big turn off for me. I don't like the way anyone treated other people in general and I especially didn't like how they interacted and treated each other. I felt they were all very immature.
Safe to say, this book was just not for me. I am so happy it is liked so well by others because I wanted to like it too.

A Brush with Love was such a wonderful story. I’m not a fan of insta-love and that isn’t what you get here. It’s more of a ZING to some part of your body you can’t identify because you have never felt it before. Harper goes on a wild emotional ride to not only pinpoint what she’s feeling and what she’s ultimately going to do about it.

Dan is, or at least would be, the perfect boyfriend, except that Harper has her sights only on becoming an oral surgeon. Nothing can stand in her way. If you aren’t a textbook or library study room, you are a distraction or obstacle she must avoid. That is until her anxiety overtakes her. Dan is there, not to be a hero, just simply to ensure she has everything she needs.

Through the story, the author speaks about not being alone in your mental illness and that it doesn’t define you. I really like the message shown by Harper’s friends and Dan truly being there and not walking away when things got tough for Harper.

5 stars

I am thankful to have both the ebook and audio versions to switch between so I didn’t have to stop listening as I went about my day. The narrators provided excellent character voices and were a pleasure to hear.

Thank you to @netgalley @mazyeddings @macmillanaudio and @stmartinspress for a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

What a unique heart warming story! Dan and Harper both have insecurities and internal struggles they both have to overcome. Harper is trying to be the best she can be and puts the pressure on her self along with coping with anxiety while Dan is trying to live up to his father's legacy. She puts up a wall of relationships and wants to keep it friends only, but the lines will blur and they have to figure out how to move forward with her leaving. It's a romantic comedy that pulls out all the stops and hits on hard topics in a poetic way.

Where to even start....A Brush with Love is a book we all need to read - it's quick, fun, but also deals with serious topics such a mental health, death and relationships! But if you are a dentist, dental student or in the dental field - you will LOVE this book! It flooded me with so many memories of dental school - the good, the bad and ugly - mix that with a love story....a stressed out student who gunning to be a resident....I literally felt that I was reading my whole dental experience! Mazey Eddings I will absolutely be reading everything you write - I love that you're a dentist and a writer!