A very big thank you to NetGalley for providing an arc of this lovely little romance.

A cute romance between two super lovely and respectful people. Vanessa and Khalil both fall for each other really fast and quickly find themselves head over heels for each other. This not one of those books with lots of tension between lovers. They really love each other and respect each other, and that was a bit refreshing to read about truthfully.

The timing overall felt very strange at times. Sometimes it jumps all over the place, it did lull a bit in the middle, and because the relationship sparks so fast and so kindly and respectfully, there’s little conflict until the end.

That being said, the topics of mental health, interracial relationships, toxic relationships, depression, and race were all really well done. It was especially notable that the author focused the topic of mental health as it relates to MEN.

couldn't get into it from the beginning. I felt like I was forcing myself to try and read it because I was excited about the black mc but i physically couldnt do it. might give it another try but as of right now i can't do it.

Full Disclosure: I received an advanced copy of Getting His Game Back by Gia de Cadenet from Random House via NetGalley.

I'm not a big romance person. I also might be slightly older than the audience for this book because I didn't get many of the references. Not a criticism of the book. I'm just not very hip. I do like that this was somewhat unconventional in its approach to romance. Someone struggles with mental health issues. Overcoming racial and gender stereotypes. I'm a big fan of women in STEM. If you like romance and are looking for something that addresses modern romance, give this one a try.

Being a very white Caucasian, I couldn’t really identify with the racial aspects of the book (for obvious reasons), but the depression aspect was something I had first hand knowledge with. I thought it was handled very respectfully. Naturally, the highlight for me was the romance. I mean, yowza! Can Khalil possibly be real? Please? Because I’ll take one. I love the world the author has created, and I look forward to reading her next book.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

This is a great romance, but definitely not a light-hearted rom-com that the cover would lead you to believe it was. It deals with real problems and discussions on race and mental health that are so underrepresented in books.

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

Vanessa Noble is a thriving black entrepreneur in a male dominated profession, tired of being looked down on for her race and gender. She's been burned so many times in interracial relationships that she's determined to find a decent black man that checks all the boxes in her "list". But after a chance meeting with a new barber, Khalil, who despite the name, isn't black, she feels an instant connection, which only gets stronger with each haircut.
Khalil has been struggling emotionally and finally feels he's gotten his depression under control. But it's he really ready for a new relationship? He used to be more of a player, but everything's changed and Vanessa has him acting like a bumbling teenager all over again. Can he keep his problems out of the game?
I really loved how Khalil's depression is handled in this book. It's hard to read but written so realistically. And Vanessa's response in caring for him was just beautiful and right. I struggled at the beginning of the book with how hard the race issue was being hammered in and almost gave up on it. I'm glad that Vanessa lightened up on that with Khalil. Overall just an OK read for me.

I was unable to finish this book and thus will not be posting a full review to my blog. I found the story difficult to follow and the dialog completey unrealistic. Thank you for the opportunity and consideration.

I’m so glad we are getting more books that are spotlighting mental health and Getting His Game Back did a great job in spotlighting it. Aside from that, this wasn’t a favorite of mine unfortunately. The book at times felt choppy to me and I found the story to be slow.

Getting His Game Back gets all the stars from me because it tackles mental health. Yes, it is a bit steamier than I typically read but I will excuse that just for the fact that the author had the guts to honestly and brutally tackle this subject.

As someone who struggles with anxiety, depression, and social anxiety, I felt the author did an amazing job depicting mental health struggles. Yes, everyone struggles differently but this was a great example.

The author didn't stop there with tackling big topics. Interracial dating is also addressed in the story. I have no experience so will not weigh in on the job that the author did tackling this issue. I did find it very enlightening.

I will definitely watch for future releases from this author. If she is willing to tackle these subjects in one book, I am interested to see what else she may do.

5 stars for me for the topics tackled and tackled so well.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts & my opinions are my own.

I enjoyed this read! I appreciated that both of the main characters in the story faced challenges throughout the novel that they were forced to lean on their support networks, and each other, to overcome. Having a support network and being part of a support network for others is crucial to dealing with mental health and mental illness. The way that mental health was generally discussed in this book was really positive. The connection between the two main characters was not as convincing for me as I would have liked for it to have been and there were times where the story did not grab me. This was overall a good debut by Cadenet and I am looking forward to seeing what is next.

I enjoyed this cute love story of Khalil and Vanessa. In my mind, this was going to be a predictable story of an interracial couple that faces a Romeo and Juliet storyline. However, this book surprised me in the best way. Not only was Vanessa a strong, confident sista, but Khalil is a biracial man that is aware of what it means to be an "other" and experiment for relationships. The two find themselves on the quick path to love; of course, it does not come without its challenges. I did NOT see some of these challenges coming. Overall, this is a cute, quick read. I enjoyed it.

Ok. So I will start with the good.

This story had great potential. It was written well and the characters were easy to follow and connect with. The relationship between Vanessa and Khalil was very funny and cute to see unfold and come full circle.

But....Now for the bad.

I'm not sure what was the goal here but I felt very uncomfortable with a white man using AAVE (African American Vernacular English). I understand that he went to an HBCU and played professional basketball. I was ok with the fact that he owned a barbershop and his business partner/ bestfriend was a black man named Darius. I couldn't understand the purpose of giving Khalil all these predominantly black characteristics but making him a white man. It didn't seem realistic and come off forced. In the current day and age with everyone airing on the side of being politically correct and respecting everyone's cultural boundaries, it didn't seem realistic that Khalil would have taken tone with anyone given the fact of his educational background and the history of the the college he attended.

Other that that, I think the book had great protentional but had major character development issues.

I’d give this book 3.5 stars. I definitely think others will enjoy it a lot. This book tackles tough topics that I haven’t seen often in romance novels such as the struggles of interracial dating, and mens mental health.

Getting His Game Back; Gia De Cadenet
3/5 stars

This book was just like any other romance novel. A boy meets a girl. They fall madly in love. To be honest, I don't have much to say about it. There was a little I loved, but there's also a huge amount I didn't like.

Let's start with what I enjoyed; I thought their romance was adorable and I liked how they were both independent individuals, but that was about it.

For starters, I didn't enjoy how the dual POV was written. There was no order, and I found myself wondering, "Who is speaking right now?" Furthermore, I believed there was a lot going on. It felt as if the romance was priority for the first 60% of the novel, but once they got together, the drama took over and became the main focus, putting the romance to the periphery. As someone who reads romance novels just for the romance, I was disappointed. Finally, the epilogue was the proverbial straw for me; I love epilogues, but this one was just TWO PAGES LONG! It also occurred only a year after the events of the book and provided little fresh information.

Overall, I would recommend this book, but only lightly.

P.S. I'm not great at grading spice, but this book included one "open door" scene and a couple other "closed door" scenes, so take what you will from that.

Getting His Game Back is a romance with a lot of heart. It has themes of dating outside your race and challenges in mental health, so there is a lot of depth to the storyline. I struggled a bit with the pacing and feel like it could have been edited down a bit, but overall it is a nice book.

Advanced copy provided courtesy of the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Content warning: suicidal ideation, depression, racism

3 Stars
This book had a lot on its plate. I admire how the subjects were addressed. It is not easy to approach mental challenges with depression, the cultural aspects of accepting the need for help, and how that can impact everyday life. I also was taken by the other experiences everyone can experience, such as past romantic relationships and how they can make the person see the next relationship with concern that may not be needed...afraid to see things are actually good.

Full disclosure. I interviewed Gia about a year ago about this book and to be honest, she truly downplayed how good it was.she was able to tackle some heavy topics like interracial dating and mental health with Vanessa and Khalil relationship. A non black man owning an urban barber ship? Seems i probably but Gia makes it work. I know folks were a bit thrown off by the illustrated cover but it’s not a soft fluffy rom com.it was grit and substance

Pub date: 1/25/22
In one sentence: Khalil's just getting back on his feet when the beautiful Vanessa comes into his salon - will a great haircut lead to true love?

I'm really enjoying how romance novels are tackling real relationship and life issues. Here, we have Khalil's struggles with depression and anxiety and Vanessa's fight against sexism and racism in the workplace and relationships. When they get together, they have to tackle the difficulties associated with interracial relationships. Author Gia De Cadenet did a great job developing both of their characters independently as well as their relationship. Both Khalil and Vanessa have wonderful friends to lean on, and I was glad to meet them as part of their story. I also loved the setting here - Khalil is part owner of a chain of barbershops in predominantly Black neighborhoods, and he's committed to giving back to the community.

If you like romances with mental health coverage and social commentary like The Heart Principle and The Right Swipe, you'll probably enjoy this one!

Thank you to Dell for providing an ARC on NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Review posted to Goodreads 12/15/21, to be posted to Instagram closer to pub date.

The cute cover is eye catching but doesn't do justice to the more serious aspects of this book. The story begins with Vanessa, a successful business-woman who is black. She is lamenting interracial dating and gives examples of really cringe worthy come ons that were just icky. She's determined to date only black until she walks into the barber shop of Khalil. He is an Algerian & French American and very handsome. The first half of this book is a little slow as they meet and get to know each other. The story picks up speed as their romance blooms but there is ongoing family and work drama that impacts their lives.

Honestly, this was going to be three stars for the romance, but then the book takes on depression and the effects of a mental health issue on Khalil and those around him. The author takes Khalil from a caveman who wants to take care of everyone to someone who can't take care of himself. And in a switch Vanessa gets to be strong and be the nurturer. It was realistic and done with feeling. My biggest negative is please retire the phrase "babygirl" as an endearment. I throw up a little in my mouth every time I read it. I will look forward to the author's next book which will feature Kahlil's brother Karium. Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantiine for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for an ARC of this book. All opinions in this review are my own.

This book was a very interesting read, for lack of a better word. It handles a lot of really deep issues with care and the things that bothered me about this book are probably just my weird quirks with books. This book follows Vanessa and Khalil as they go through their lives, watching their relationship grow & develop, and how they interact with the rest of the world both together and apart. This book touches on things like being in interracial relationships, being a black woman in a STEM field (multiple interlocking issues of oppression with that one), and being male with mental health issues. I think all of these topics were handled extremely well, but also I know that these are all each very individual experiences and so what Vanessa & Khalil went through is not going to be the same for every person in this type of situation. The thing that bothered me the most about this book was the constant use of pet names/how quickly the two of them fell over each other. This is 100% a personal thing and based on my own real world experiences, so this is not a negative reflection on the book, it just made it a bit harder for me to read.

I think if there is anything in the description of this book that sounds interesting you should check it out. It is a very good contemporary romance that touches on a lot of real issues and they are all handled well. 4/5