Lovers of Gilmore Girls and Hallmark romance movies are going to LOVE this book! Freelance writer, Adina, lives in New York City, but has always dreamed about finding love in a small town like all the great romances she watches on the Hallmark channel. When she finds out about the plans to build luxury apartments in a small town a few hours away, she immediately knows that she has found a story that could rival any Hallmark movie. When she gets to the small town, it isn't at all like she's seen on television, except for the handsome young man she meets in the local Bed & Breakfast. Could this be her 'as seen on tv' romance that she's always waited for?

I loved all the references made about Stars Hollow, and the many small towns portrayed in tv romances. I especially enjoyed that Adina learns firsthand just how wrong those sterotypes of the idyllic small town can be. I feel like we've all been where Adina is at some point, wanting the beautiful town, and the perfect guy who is waiting there for us. Meredith Schorr does an amazing job of showing us the reality behind those perfect love stories, and that maybe there really is no place like home.

Thanks to Forever Publishing for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

New Yorker Adi jumps at the chance to write an article in Pleasant Hollow, a small town with a big construction project.m underway. Not only does it give her a chance to solidify her career as a journalist, but it will give her a break from the city. Secretly, she loves Hallmark movies set in small towns and romanticizes the town before she even gets there. What she finds is basically the anti-hallmark movie town, but she does meet a very cute guy.

I can relate to Adi’s love of what she sees in Hallmark movies and craving the small community she thinks she’ll find. What she actually finds is kind of adorable in its own right. I admired her determination on not giving up finishing her story, and not settling. This was a light, pleasant read. Thanks to Netgalley, Grand Central Publishing and Meredith Shorr for the ARC.

“As Seen on TV” releases June 7th! This review will be shared to my Instagram blog books_by_the_bottle shortly 🙂

Thank you NetGalley and Forever Publishing for providing me with this ARC!

As a huge Gilmore Girls fan and a semi fan of hallmark movies, I was pretty excited to dive into this book.

Unfortunately, it just didn’t work for me. With all the Gilmore Girls references, I just wanted to love it but it felt a little forced. I found myself annoyed with the main characters child-like view of idyllic small towns that tend to really just be on TV.

When she travels to a small town, “Pleasant Hollow,” she is frustrated because it’s not full of people dancing and singing around her, wanting her to join their little town. Instead, it’s filled with normal, everyday people.

As a journalist, she should be reporting the truth or find a different story when that one is not working out. Instead, she tries to force the town to change their ways so it’ll fit into her story narrative. Ugh.

I understand where it was trying to go, but it just fell flat for me. I wasn’t able to connect to the characters and I wasn’t a fan of the romantic interest. 🤷‍♀️ Maybe if the MC wasn’t so naive or the TV references weren’t so heavily forced, it would’ve been better.

This was a cute small-townesque story about Adi, trying to find a journalistic point of view in this small town when there wasn’t much to go on.

It’s a quiet romance between Adi and Finn but their dynamic worked. Cute quick read for the beach, a car ride or if you’re looking for a romance.

Things I liked:
- mom & daughter dynamic
- Kate, Adi’s best friend
- the Jewish rep of Adi and her mom

There were a few cute romance parts in this book but over all it just wasn't very good for me. The characters annoyed me & the plot in itself wasn't good for me. I am not a big Hallmark movie fan, so I found it cheesy and unbelievable.

This book had a lot of the expected elements of romance genre novel. I found Adina to be a compelling protagonist, though was frustrated frequently with her naive attitude and ignorance. The main romance was also compelling, but in general I felt dissatisfied by the quality of the novel and found it quite predictable.

In order to secure a full-time position at an online magazine and help her mom with finances, Adina pitched a story comparing Pleasant Hollow to a Hallmark small town. Unfortunately, Adina discovers that they are nothing alike. The townsfolk are all for gentrification. They have no carnivals, small town activities. The choices of bars and restaurants are lacking. And, the first hot guy she meets is not even a resident of Pleasant Hollow. How is she supposed to land this gig?

Comparing a small town to a fictional Hallmark movie town was cliche, BUT what made it brilliant was the fact that the small town was absolutely nothing like what small towns was thought out to be. The whole quirky festivals, etc did not exist, and the valiant efforts Adina made just to mold the town into a story she wanted to tell contributed to the brilliance. The romance was sweet, and I loved Finn’s lack of emotional availability. And, the grand gesture, too of course. So funny how the story gave me such NEVER BEEN KISSED vibes… and it could just be a wild coincidence but Drew Barrymore played Josie Geller and the main character in this book was Adina Gellar! Haha. Overall, I enjoyed it!

This was a fun book perfect for Hallmark fans. I love the aspect of the small town, the not so evil developer and the town that didn't comply to the main character's wishes.

Cute, feel good, contemporary romance. Adina Gellar is 25, working two part times and lives with her mom while still trying to land a full-time job using her journalism degree. She currently writes lists for an online magazine. She pitches an idea for an article to the editor and he tells her to write it on her dime and he will buy it. He also adds as an incentive she’ll get the new staff position opening in a few months if it is very good.

Adina is a NYC city girl but loves the small towns shown on Gilmore Girls and Hallmark Channel movies. Her story takes her to Pleasant Hollow a town roughly two hours from NYC. A wealthy real estate developer is building a large condo/apartment housing complex targeting NYC commuters that can’t afford to live in the city. But Pleasant Hollow isn’t the neighborly, village centered town she imagined. And the developer isn’t the rich villain she pitched in her story. The best part of the town is Finn Adams who is managing the building project and is staying in her B&B. They get to know each other while she is trying to figure out how to write her story.

Adina comes off a little immature in the beginning especially with al the Gilmore Girls and movie references. But my favorite thing with her and Finn is her honesty in communicating. She is upfront when they start as a fling and when she pulls back as she begins to want more. She is also direct in speaking about what upsets her when there is a conflict. It is very refreshing. Finn is real back. She is different than anyone he’s been with and he is trying his best even when he doesn’t see himself as boyfriend material. The grand gestures are sweet, realistic and not over the top. It makes for a nice cozy read that leaves you happy and satisfied. Thank you to NetGalley and Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

DNFed at around 15% - I'm not really sure what it was about the book, but I wasn't vibing with the narrator. I may revisit this book later, but I'm not in the right headspace for it now.

A huge thank you for Forever Publishing and NetGalley for the advanced copy of this book!
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The synopsis of this book opens with that it is for "fans of the Hallmark Channel and Gilmore Girls" and frankly, I didn't need to know anything else! I have seen every episode of Gilmore Girls multiple times and more Hallmark movies than I could even begin to count. Not to mention, that I also live in NYC like the main character, Adi. The idea of her going to a small town in order to catch a real life Hallmark-esq story in the making is something that I would absolutely love to do, and yet having grown up in a small town it made complete sense to me that it is a bit of letdown when the magic of TV isn't immediately present.
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I felt like the action stalled around the 30% mark and I was really concerned with where Schorr could even take the story that wasn't in a completely different direction. The pacing slowed down significantly, but I stayed the course and ultimately it paid off. The final 30% of the book moves quickly and Finn is an interesting foil to Adi. It felt like some things were tied up a little too perfectly for a novel about how happily ever after isn't as easy as it seems, but ultimately I finished it with a smile.

Unfortunately, this book just wasn't for me. I loved the Jewish representation and I adore small town romances. But this read a little too Hallmark-y for me. The chemistry between Adina and Finn didn't draw me in as I hoped so it made the rest of the read feel like it dragged.

The writing was good but when all was said and done, I just couldn't connect with the characters which made this not my cup of tea. I'm sure others will love and should definitely give this book a chance.

I'm sorry to say I DNF at 40%

I get that it was trying to be like a Hallmark movie and the premise had me interested in it, but it was just so silly at times. The writing was very immature. I also wasn't connecting with the FMC at all. The romance also felt forced.

There are a lot of references to Gilmore Girls as well as TV shows based in NYC and Hallmark movies and they're used in comparisons. If you haven't seen any of these TV shows or movies, you aren't going to understand the comparison. I get that the title is As Seen on TV, so there will be references, but with nothing to compare to, it gets confusing.

It just wasn't for me. I wasn't enjoying it.

I voluntarily reviewed an early copy of this book. Thank you to Forever and NetGalley for the ARC.

A love a good book that, as many have said, make you feel like you are watching a hallmark movie. This book is super cute and would be great for any rom-com lover! I loved the characters and the author's writing as well. Cannot wait to see what she writes next! Thanks for letting me read and review early!

What a delight! After a streak of bad reads, this was like a breath of fresh air. I enjoyed this book since the very first chaper. The “rom-com” term is totally fitting for this story. It was funny, romantic, and would make a perfect Hallmark movie, which is super important and you will understand if you read the book!

Adina is a city girl tired of dating and trying to get her dream job in Manhattan, so she decides to write a story for her journalism freelance job about a dreamy small town, hoping to find the love Hallmark movies and romance novels promise in said setting and a permanent job. However, Pleasant Hollow is anything but pleasant, and the people in it don’t welcome Adina with open arms and a freshly-baked pie. I loved this twist on small town romances, especially when she ends up falling for the only city boy living there with her. Finn was such a dreamy hero! And I loved Adina. She was super relatable for me, and maybe that’s why I enjoyed this book so much.

Another thing I loved deeply was Adina and her mom ‘s relationship. I need more positive mom-daughter relationships in romance, because it was so beautiful. The support and the unconditional love made me so emotional!

I think Finn’s dad plot could have been handled differently, but I could understand both Adina and Finn’s sides. Handling an alcoholic parent has to be extremely hard, and it takes a lot of understanding and empathy. I liked how everything turned out in the ending, and the grand gestures (yes, plural!) were the cutest.

TW: Death of a parent, alcoholism, homelessness

Rating: 4.5/5
Steam: 1/5

Thanks to Forever for my ARC!

DNF May 2022 at ~40% in. There's only so much I can take of a main character doing questionable things that will inevitably end badly. Having those impending outcomes hanging over my head doesn't make for a pleasant reading experience, and I also just don't care enough about what happens to keep going. On the more positive side, yay for more Jewish rep in romance, and the premise is interesting.

CW (from the portion that I read): past parental death

This book was really cute. II enjoyed reading it, and I thought the small town setting was done really well. I liked the Gilmore Girls vibes that the book gave me because that is one of my favorite shows. I think the romance was very light hearted, which I enjoyed. Overall, it was not extremely remarkable, but I would recommend this to a friend looking for a quick, light read.

While watching Hallmark's Countdown to Christmas, have you ever thought "Wow all that romantic build up for a single second front porch kiss" or "Damn I think the city guy is way hotter"? If yes, then this is the book for you.

With over the top Hallmark and Gilmore Girl references, this is a book that doesn't take itself too seriously and will have you smiling all the way through.

Thank you to Netgalley, the author, and Forever for the eARC in exchange for my review.

I really enjoyed the Gilmore Girls, and some of the Hallmark movies, so I was intrigued when I saw this book.
We are given a young woman who wants a juicy story to offer readers and get a better job. She heads out of NY City and goes north to the small berg of Pleasant Hollow. We are with her, and her limited budget, as she goes about trying to find her story. What she didn’t expect was to find a love interest, one she doesn’t want to let go of.
Will she find the corruption she is hoping to find, or will she find what is under her nose? Well, we are there as she goes about this small place, and meets some interesting characters!
Can she inspire some interest? Or will she go home and back to her life as a Spin Instructor? Keep reading!
I received this book through Net Galley and Forever [Grand Central Publishing], and was not required to give a positive review.

If you are a fan of Hallmark movies, this is the book for you! I loved all of the references to movies, the actors and actresses in them, and the plots of the movies. There was a good amount of steam in this book which you don't see in those movies, so it was kind of like Hallmark after dark.

I really enjoyed the concept of Adina, a journalist, moving to a small town in upstate New York to write a story on the big bad developer storming in to build his expensive apartment complex. But when Adina arrives in Pleasant Hollow, things are not how she envisioned they would be based on what the movies have shown her. Adi ends up befriending Finn, the project manager for the new apartment complex, and I liked the way their friendship and relationship came together. I loved Adi's relationship with her mom, it reminded me a lot of Lorelai and Rory Gilmore. Some parts of the book moved a little slower than others and I felt that the conflict between Adi and Finn could've been resolved in a more mature way if they communicated with each other a little bit better.

I loved the Jewish representation in this book. It was great to have it sprinkled throughout and to have a chapter that focused on Adi and her family and friends celebrating Rosh Hashanah.