Hook, Line, and Sinker was a fun read. I recommend reading it after you've read the first in the Bellinger Sisters series, It Happened One Summer. The couple's backstory starts there and it helps to explain where they are when this book starts. I would recommend this book to readers looking for a fun, contemporary romance with lots of music recommendations.

As always, I have an eye toward the character names. Some of the highlights from this book are:
Fox (the male main character), Hannah (the female main character), Brinley, Piper, Brendan, and Opal. Tessa Bailey does a good job choosing names that fit the characters.

Bonus Points: The title uses an Oxford comma.

An amazing friends to lovers, I adored the first book in this series and this one didn’t disappoint.

I love the writing style and the author really knows how to make you fall in love with her characters, it was great developed and I can’t wait to read more from her.

I totally recommend this duology, you will fall in love.

A solid sequel. My preference is still with the first in the series, but it was great to hear Hannah's story and particularly satisfying to get an epilogue to close out both stories.

I’ll read anything Tessa Bailey writes! I really enjoyed this one, just not quite as much as It Happened One Summer. While I did appreciate the theme and lessons in this one; the honest talk about therapy and taking responsibility for your life, it just seemed to lag a bit and I missed the heat and spice that is synonymous with Bailey’s writing. That being said, Fox and Hannah are a dream and I love them and would still definitely recommend this one!

I was incredibly sad when I finished It Happened One Summer and saw that Hook, Line, and Sinker would not be published until 2022. So getting to revisit Westport sooner than I expected has been incredible. From the beginning, I have loved the relationship between Hannah and Fox. The character development for both of them is well-done and felt believable. I am a sucker for the close proximity and friends to lovers tropes so the fact that this had both makes it a win for me.

I absolutely devoured this book and then put off reading the last few chapters because I didn't want the story to end. Tessa Bailey just continues to knock it out of the park.

Thank you to Avon, Tessa Bailey, and NetGalley for this ARC! I loved every minute of it. I can't wait to buy a copy of Hook, Line, and Sinker.

I've always liked Tessa Bailey's books, but I've been absolutely obsessed with this series. I love the depth of the characters in this novel in particular - especially if you're someone who feels like you need to step up to be the main character in your own life instead of just a supporting role (reminds me a bit of Kate Winslet in The Holiday on that front). I wish I could read this one and It Happened One Summer for the first time again!!

"Bailey tackles mental health and childhood trauma in a beautiful, loving way with a heroine who is absolutely leading lady material and a hero who makes your heart swell." - Sarah Robinson, bestselling author of RWA's 2021 Vivian Award Finalist Every Last Drop

I could not put this book down. I was in love from the opening of the first page. Tessa Bailey is a romantic genius and this book is a must read for romance lovers.

Hannah and Fox have been friends for seven months. They exchange daily text messages and their friendship grows.

Hannah is also a hardworking PA to a moody and powerful film director. She convinces him to move filming from LA to Westport, Washington, the town she lived in for the first two years of her life and where she spent the last summer bonding with her sister and locals.

She’s worked her way up from the bottom, but still sells herself short. She’s never seen herself as anything other than a supporting role. Fox encourages her to see herself as more, and to stand up for her dreams.

Fox has a reputation for being a womanizer and unable to commit. He’s used to being labeled as such, and doesn’t see himself as anything better. Hannah helps him to open up and see he isn’t defined by his past.

They are falling in love with one another. They want their relationship to work, but Fox has to see he’s worthy.

There are a lot of very spicy romantic parts! The heat is definitely on with this book. It’s the perfect read for someone who wants a good story, with lots of spice. It’s a cute story about friends to lovers. This is a fun and upbeat read. I highly recommend it!

I would like to thank Tessa Bailey, St. Martin’s Press, and Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review. This review will be published to Netgalley, Amazon, Barnes & Nobel, my Instagram, and Books-A-Million.

Publication date: 03/01/2022

Of Course now I have to go back and read the prequel, It Happened One Summer, to find out how Piper snaps sea captain Brendan because Hook, Line, and Sinker was so addicting! It is set up to follow LA’s party girl, Piper Bellinger’s younger sister, Hannah, and her return to Westport as she has recently convinced the director of a film that the sleepy fishing town will be the ideal location for their new direction. This leads her to taking up the guest bedroom of the sexy ladies’ man who works as a king crab fisherman alongside her sister’s fiancé. And man do sparks fly and there is so much tension between the lead characters. I was routing for them to succeed the entire time. This book has so many good messages about not sexualizing people when they are young and that although we as a society are aware of our sexualization of women, we tend to ignore that this is also done to males at a young age. I read the book in two days, it likely would have been less than 24 hours had I not started it late on a Sunday knowing I had a full clinic day ahead of me. If you love romances or are new to the genre this book is a must!

The first half of this book was beyond delightful. I love Fox and Hannah and loved watching their friendship develop as they also fought their feelings. But I did get a little bored with Fox’s woe is me attitude and the lack of communication.

i didn't expect to love this duology so much..... but the romance in this was so cute and i liked both the main characters. hannah was much more interesting than piper (in my opinion) to read about and i liked her personality much more.

thank you to netgalley for providing me with an arc

(Note: I was provided an advanced copy of Hook, Line, and Sinker by the publisher via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.)

Hook, Line, and Sinker is the second book in the Bellinger Sisters duology. This time the focus is on music-obsessed production assistant, Hannah Bellinger. Hannah is back in Westport for work, crashing with relief skipper and ladies' man, Fox Thornton. Hannah and Fox met on the Bellinger sisters' first visit to Westport and since then have established themselves as friends - JUST friends. Fox isn't the type to settle down and anyway, Hannah seems to be immune to his charms. But, as time passes, the two become closer: confiding about their insecurities and inspiring one another to take chances. Soon the lines between friends and lovers starts to blur, but is exploring those feelings with the risk?

Hook, Line, and Sinker had me grinning like an idiot on page two. I love the dynamic between Hannah and Fox. their personalities are perfectly complimentary. Their interactions are funny, heartfelt, and sincere. Fox, especially, has exceptional character growth in the story that makes it so easy for you to root for him. Friends-to-lovers is one of my favorite romance tropes and Fox's pining over Hannah is absolutely swoon-worthy. My only complaint is that occasionally the dialogue felt a little cringy.

Overall, this is another absolute knock-out of a book from Tessa Bailey. This book helped me escape the stresses of life and made me grin from ear-to-ear. If you love romance, you absolutely cannot pass up this read. 4.5/5 stars.

Content Warnings: slut shaming, death of a parent, sexual content

Started it at midnight. Finished a 6:30am. Worth my day of exhaustion. Couldn't put it down. Such a great book. Great characters! Great story! Beautifully told! I love Tessa Bailey's writing. There is such flow and ease in the way it reads and I get wrapped up in her clear world and characters and well developed relationships. Loved it! Laughed out loud a few times by moments that look me by surprise. Such a fun read.

I loved It Happened One Summer and this was a perfect follow-up to it. I was thrilled to go back to Westport to see Fox and Hannah's story. I loved how they started as friends and then slowly became lovers. The character development of Fox and Hannah was well done in that you were rooting for them to figure out their feelings for each other. I also loved how music had a big part in this story with how Fox and Hannah used it to share their feelings. A nice addition to this book was the appearance of Piper and Brendan from the last book. It was nice to see how they were settling into their relationship. Overall, this book was a great follow-up to the first book and I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys romance stories that involve the friends-to-lovers trope.

I think I've found my non Helen Hoang contemporary romance niche! I'm a sucker for reformed man whores and friends-to-lovers.

I liked the romance in this one even more than the first king crab fisherman book, though I continue to find Bailey's sex scenes totally over the top compared to HH's subdued Aspie turn-ons.

Love the ladies, tho. Seriously, I could read a whole book of the Bellinger sisters hanging out, talking about vaginas.

This was a super fun follow-up to the first Bellinger sister story, and the setting of Westport is almost its own character. I enjoyed how music was woven throughout the book, and watching how Fox and Hannah's relationship evolved over time. It feels rare to talk about the objectification of men and the impact it has, I really liked how Tessa Bailey addressed it here. A perfect read to curl up with, maybe during a rainstorm!

I really really really really liked this book.

It had all of the things I love in a romance read:
- an MC who wants to overcome her imposter syndrome
- A very very hot sexy sailor who struggles with how others see him
- We get snippets of Piper and Brendan
- Tessa Bailey had the most thoughtful and personal dedication and author’s note to thank healthcare providers
- Y’all the steam

This was the perfect mix of romance and seeing the individual character growth. Run don’t walk to preorder this one! I’m about to go pre-order like 5 copies so I can force my friends to read it too.

Hook, Line, and Sinker comes out on March 1, 2022 and I can’t wait for it!

Thank you @avonbooks and @netgalley for the free copy in exchange for an honest review.

Instagram review: https://www.instagram.com/p/CUDBGserle6/?utm_medium=copy_link
Goodreads review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4223169407

I really liked the first book in this series, It Happened One Summer, but I had a feeling I was going to love Hook, Line, and Sinker. Tessa Bailey did not disappoint! I absolutely devoured this book. This was such a sweet friends to lovers romance. It’s dual POV so you get both Fox and Hannah’s perspective. I’m a sucker for some good banter and Fox and Hannah have that in spades. They also just had really good communication with each other, which I loved. The pacing of their relationship felt so natural. They each had their own insecurities to work through. Hannah has to build her confidence to recognize that she is the leading lady in her life. Fox has to trust that he can be more than just a good time. I loved the way Tessa tackled the topic of toxic masculinity in this book. There is slightly less steam than there was IHOS, but it absolutely makes sense for this story. This book was the perfect combination of sweet, steamy, and emotional. I could not get enough!

Hook, line and sinker.... there goes heart! I LOVED this book so much, even more than the first book about Hannah's sister, Piper. This felt like it had so much emotion to it that had me feeling ALL the feels. I laughed, smiled, swooned and even teared up a couple times!

Friends to lovers/forced proximity is one of my favorites and this was SO good. The slowburn was so worth it because their relationship had so much to it. I loved their mutual love for music.

Hannah was just the sweetest and I found myself relating to her at times. It made me so happy getting to see her be the leading lady! Fox was major SWOONY (*wipes drool off face* from his hotness.) I absolutely LOVED him. I wanted to hold him tight and tell him he deserves all the love. Poor guy has always been treated like "the heartbreaker" all his life he doesn't feel worthy of love. Thank goodness he has Hannah as a friend who has a heart of gold and is persistent! I just couldn't get enough of these two!

This book may be my new favorite Tessa book! I just loved everything about it. It swept me away and made my heart so happy!!!! Plus it had some HOT moments! Absolutely amazing and HIGHLY recommend for romance fans!