I wanted to love this one because of the tag line for fans of Gilmore Girls, but the other part of the tagline was for fans of Hallmark Channel and I'm not a fan of Hallmark movies they tend to be hit or miss for me, and more on the miss side. But the aspects of the book that reminded me of Gilmore girls I loved. Just not enough for me to love the whole book.

What happens when your dreams of having a Hallmark romance in a small town, are dashed suddenly by the cold reality that not all small towns are charming? Jaded Adina escapes New York with the hopes of finding a story, and fairy tale ending in the town of Pleasant Hollow. The misadventures that commence were entertaining and very realistic. I loved the introduction of Finn as the antithesis of what she had been hoping to find, but no matter what they were drawn together. Finn and Adina’s journey was so fun and emotional to follow. The ending was the perfect wrap up to their experiences. This book was such a fun mix of real relationship struggles with the cheesiness of a Hallmark movie!

I love Hallmark/Lifetime movies and, having never lived in a small town, have been known to romanticize the idea of leaving city living for a simpler life, so I was sure this book would be a hit for me. Alas, it wasn't really.

Adina, the NYC based journalist attempting to land a full time job by writing an article about a nearby small town, seemed much younger than her stated age. To fully believe that going to a small town a short distance from Manhattan was literally full of characters from a Hallmark movie seems unbelievably naive to say the least. The townspeople were basically written like mean and unintelligent humans who were living their lives wrong, Adina's love interest, Finn, was an interesting character and I would have liked a little less time spent on trying to mold the town into what she needed for her article and more spent on diving into Finn, all of his inner workings, and fleshing out their connection to each other. Their happy ending wasn't super believable to me and I glazed over a bit in the end.

Overall, it's cute enough and a quick read. I'm sure plenty of people will enjoy cozying up with it on a cold winter day while their neighborhood hosts a snowman contest (in their minds).

Thanks Netgalley for providing this arc!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

As Seen on TV by Meredith Schorr is the best romance I've read being published in 2022! It reminded me of the viral TikTok where a woman says that she moved to Vermont and no one has approached her to ask about her dating life yet. The story revolves around Adi, a wannabe journalist who moves to the small town of Pleasant Hollows in order to write an expose on how an unscrupulous businessman is out to develop the land. And if she can find love along the way, why not? Except... nothing is as she expects. Is Adi's assignment over before it even began?

Here is a humorous excerpt from Chapter 1:

"Two hours later, after unearthing everything I could about Pleasant Hollow without enlisting the help of a shady character with access to the dark web, I veered my attention to Andrew Hanes. I tracked his professional history, saving articles about his previous ventures—Pleasant Hollow being his first in a small town—into the newly created file.
Finally, I aimed my research at Hallmark movies featuring quaint towns under attack by a big city developer. In the last few years, movies like Love Struck Café, Under the Autumn Moon, Christmas in Love, and The Story of Us had premiered with viewership numbers between two and four million each.
My intense concentration drowned out the clunky sound Mom’s boots made as she walked through the living room from her bedroom to the kitchen and back again while she got ready for work. I shooed away her attempts at conversation with apologetic gestures toward my laptop. By the time she bent down to kiss me goodbye on her way out, I had to pee so bad it hurt. But I had an idea for my next story—my big, career-making breakout story."

Overall, As Seen on TV is an absolutely adorable rom-com perfect for fans of Hallmark movies and Gilmore Girls. One highlight of this book is the romance. I felt the romance between Adi and Finn was realistic and great. There were a lot more obstacles than in a typical rom-com, but that made the ending all the better. Another highlight was the author's sense of humor. I found myself chuckling and even laughing out loud multiple times. If you're intrigued by the excerpt above, or if you're a fan of rom-coms in general, I highly recommend that you check out this book when it comes out in June!

As Seen on TV is a lighthearted rom-com about a city girl who dreams of a small town happily-ever-after only to learn that life - and love - are nothing like the TV movies. - M. Schorr

this was just an okay read to me. i personally only really liked the last 15% of the book because i found it to have the most "action". the small town back and forth just didn't connect with me, and i understand that the town was exactly the opposite of picture perfect and that energy from the sourpuss townspeople bored me to death...

i also found her comparing EVERYTHING to Hallmark a bit too much...and then getting heavily frustrated seemed just a little naive to me.
it was also advertised as a swoony simultaneous grand gesture, and i only found like two scenes with this, as well as adding a "one bed only" situation, yet they already did the dirty ...

but apart from the majority of those things, i really appreciated the mother/best friend relationship. and i still enjoyed the story enough to care how it ended which yet again that last 15% was probably the best regarding the romantic relationship

it's definitely a lighthearted read, quick and easy to get through as well

*𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘶𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘳, 𝘕𝘦𝘵𝘨𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘍𝘰𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 (𝘎𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘊𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘭 𝘗𝘶𝘣𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨) 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘷𝘪𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘮𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘳𝘤 𝘪𝘯 𝘦𝘹𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘢𝘯 𝘩𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘦𝘸*

This one started off a little slow to me, but picked up pace towards the middle. I initially thought it would be a DNF, but for some reason I decided that I needed to see what happened so I kept reading and then I was hooked.

Adina Gella goes to a small town to write the perfect hallmark story - only she finds out the town is anything but pleasant. There are no festivals, local gatherings, bonfires, or town parades. Her small town dreams are crushed and so is her bank account. She meets Finn, the supposed villain in her made up story, only to find out that he's actually a really nice guy with good intentions. Can she get rid of her preconceived notions long enough to get to the true heart of the story?

Thank you to NetGalley and Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Hallmark movie lovers should rush to grab this hot new book from Meredith Schorr. As Seen On Tv tells the story of Adina, who admittedly has watched one too many Hallmark romances. Her view of the perfect small town and everything inside comes crashing in when the town of Pleasant Hollow doesn't quite fit the mold. The journalist is intent on writing a piece on the town that could land her dream job. Enter Finn, mistaken for a small town guy, shaking up the story.

Adina is a fierce character who tends to say everything we wish we did. Her courage is empowering and makes this story an easy read. Even stepping outside New York City, anything can happen.

This review was also posted on goodreads at the following link: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4406464049

Thank you to NetGalley & the publisher for the advanced copy of this book.

Originally hearing that this book took inspiration from Gilmore girls and Hallmark movies i was hooked although I was not expecting it to take a twist into showing that not all small towns are like the movies and for the Gilmore girls comparison to have the mom and Adina be close for about 3 chapters and did not have that Lorelai and Rory relationship because it wasn't consistently shown but implied.

The romance in this book was cute but it just felt like it was a slow burn of interest to each other then instant love at the end to close up the story. The fight that always splits them up before they come back together was kind of awkward as it had shown Finns father would be an issue than saying she can handle it and the second he shows up, she's backed out.

Though I personally didn't like some parts of the plot and the pace, this book was well written and I believe most romance and Hallmark enjoyers will love it. Im so glad I got to read it.

Things are not going Adina Gellar's way. She's trying to make her way as a journalism while working two side jobs. And she's not found much success while dating. Adina often wishes her life was more like a Hallmark movie -- where she goes to a cute small town and quickly finds love with one of the eligible single men. So when she discovers that a New York developer is planning a project in a small town a few hours away, Pleasant Hollow, Adina decides to do a story on the real-life Hallmark movie come to life -- hoping to use the story as a launching pad to a full-time job at an online magazine and, maybe, her own love connection. The only problem is Pleasant Hollow is nothing like she expected -- it is not at all charming, the residents are not welcoming, and the person she has a spark with, Finn, is working for the developer.

This is a fun and creative twist on the Hallmark movie. The main character is a delight, and the supporting cast, including Adina's mother and best friends and the residents of Pleasant Town, make for a sweet and often funny story. Highly recommended!

It’s always Hallmark movie season (Winterfest, Countdown to Valentine’s Day, Spring Fling, June Weddings, Christmas in July, Summer Nights, Fall Harvest, and finally Countdown to Christmas) and therefore always a perfect time to read Meredith Schorr’s first trade paperback which is about…making Hallmark movie plots come true!

Adina Gellar is a big city girl with fantasies about life in small towns — retro diners with homemade pies, innkeepers offering hot cocoa by the fireplace, hunky men in flannel shirts strolling the town square, and a craft brewery with adorable characters behind the bar like Luke from the Gilmore Girls. She’s an aspiring journalist who’s seen a tad too many Lifetime Channel films about big developers destroying quaint villages, and she’s on a real assignment in Pleasant Hollow where that particular scenario appears to actually be happening, so she hopes to get writing her big break and dream job from the article she’s here to research. Except….nope. The townsfolk are happy (or blasé) about impending change, and there’s not much quaint or cute or folksy around town. A new affordable condo complex (but with luxurious amenities and new shops) might benefit everyone. The only person who’s engaging enough the spend any time with Adina is the corporate developer’s on-site henchman, Finn. And Adi knows from her Hallmark plot experience that she’s supposed to dislike him and lead some kind of town revolt against the gentrification occurring. Of course, Finn is the only other guest at the B&B that she’s staying at, which complicates things. She sees a frenemy; he sees a sweet girl. How will this end satisfactorily for both of them?

The writing was charming and delightful and I found myself rooting for both Adi and Finn, even though they had competing interests. I couldn’t put the book down once I started it! Five stars! Hallmark movies are over in a couple of hours, but this story delightfully lasted much longer. Bonus points for the couple watching Frances Ha, a B&W edgy indie movie I saw at the Toronto Film festival and assumed no one else ever would.

Thanks to NetGalley and Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for the advanced reader copy! Looking forward to Meredith Schorr’s next books with delightful characters.

Literary Pet Peeve Checklist:
Green Eyes (only 2% of the real world, yet it seems like 90% of all fictional females): YES Our lead character’s eyes are brown and green with flecks of gold.
Horticultural Faux Pas (plants out of season or growing zones, like daffodils in autumn or bougainvillea in Alaska): NO I had expected description of romantic wisteria arches, streets lined with hanging flower baskets, and fields of random wildflowers, but since this was the anti-quaint town, they were absent.

This was a fairly interesting story that kept my attention grasped till the very end. The characters and their story was quite entertaining. Also, I really like the pace with which events unfold. I really like the writing style, although, I felt the beginning a bit slow. Nevertheless, it was a very fun read for me!!

If any book deserved an all night we read, it was definitely this one!! Gosh, I just devoured it. I was so invested in it that I didn’t even realise that I have reached the end. The story was so entertaining and engaging. I quite liked the characters too, they were relatable and adorable. Along with that, I really like the pace and the word building. All in all, it’s a 4 star read for me.

This ARC was provided to me via Kindle by Forever (Grand Central Publishing) and #NetGalley for my honest opinion. Opinions expressed are completely my own.

Delightful, charming and adorable read.

3.5⭐️ I didn’t LOVE this book but it was definitely entertaining and enjoyable!!

Adina Geller is an aspiring journalist who has hopes of finding love in a small suburban town just as she’s seen on TV. When she gets the opportunity to chase down what she thinks is a career changing story- a big developer’s new project disrupting a small town’s community- her perception of what she thought this town would be like is quite different than the reality. Along with that, Adina quickly develops feelings for the project manager, Finn, who’s view of dating is not what Adina is looking for.

Read if you like:
-Hallmark movies
-Tons of TV show references (Hart of Dixie, Sex in the City, Gillmore Girls )
-Honesty and being upfront in relationships
-Modern dating references
-NYC suburbs
-Low steam and low angst

A light, fluffy read that definitely feels like a Hallmark movie in book form, just a lot spicier.

New Yorker Adina is an aspiring lifestyle journalist who believes she's found the story that will be her big break: a small town that's getting a huge new condo building thanks to a big city developer, just like in the movies. But when she gets there the town of Pleasant Hollow is not at all like the settings of the films she so dearly loves, and the guy who catches her attention isn't a local hottie but the big city developer's project manager, who also lives in the city.

I struggled at times to sympathize with Adina, but found Finn to be an interesting and complicated character. The intimacy they share is excellent, and the grand gestures--particularly Finn's--were very cute. Ultimately, this is a nice story about the importance of not making assumptions or prejudging places or people for better or worse.

As Seen On TV was a quick, fun, and lighthearted read. I love the premise of a big city girl going to a small town to look for a Hallmark movie experience, only to find the exact opposite. This was a very clever twist on a well-loved and classic trope. As a twenty-something I found Adina's love life and career struggles to be incredibly relatable. However, I also found myself questioning her actions in pursuing her story. It felt like she was trying a little too hard to craft the town into the Hallmark movie small town she was expecting, instead of writing the story the town was giving her. It's possible this was a commentary on bad journalism, but it also made it seem like Adina wasn't as good of a writer as she wanted to be seen as.

I was initially drawn to this book for its comparison to several small town TV shows including Gilmore Girls, Virgin River, and Hart of Dixie. I loved all the pop culture references and they felt very modern and fresh. However, part of the reason why I love those shows are because they paint a picture of a lively small town with quirky residents. Even though this is meant to be a small-town without the eccentricities, I was disappointed to find that this book didn't dive deeper into some of the backstories of some of the residents. Even the interviews that Adina did conduct with residents felt too rushed and I wanted a little more depth to them, even if the interviews would prove to be unhelpful to her story. I would have liked to at least see some subtle nods to the small towns this book references, even if it isn't outwardly meant to be like those small towns.

While the idea of twisting the small town trope was a unique take, I think that the heart of small town storytelling was lost in the re-imagining and I found myself wishing there was some tiny spark of it left because as a rom-com, the lack of that heart, made it harder to fall in love with Adina and Finn as individual characters and a couple. While I loved that Adina and Finn felt like a real-life couple instead of a Hallmark type couple, I felt like the pacing of the entire book was a little too slow in contrast to the progression of their relationship, which moved a little too quickly. The third act conflict and subsequent breakup also felt a little forced and unrealistic. It felt like an issue that could have been easily resolved in the same scene with some better communication between Adina and Finn.

Overall, I loved the story and I think it's a unique and very well-written debut, which made me laugh more than a handful of times. I would still recommend it to anyone who loves rom-coms for its fresh twist on the small town genre because it defies expectations of the classic rom-com lover in a good way.

Thank you to Netgalley and Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for providing me with an ARC of As Seen On TV in exchange for an honest review.

This book is so well written and such a great twist on the big-city small-town romance. I look forward to reading more from Meredith Schorr.

This is a 3.5 star read for me. It’s really hard to reflect my feelings on this one. I didn’t love it or didn’t hate it. Overall I just think I didn’t connect with the characters or writing. Maybe the book felt too long during times and carried out? I’m not sure. I just know it wasn’t for me. I can see people totally loving this one though!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC.

This was a cute romance with lots of feel good moments but ultimately brought nothing new to the table.

AS SEEN ON TV follows Adina Gellar, a twenty-something millennial living in New York City with her mother. She works two part-time jobs to make do but she’s an aspiring journalist – who’s been pitching to online magazine publications with little success.

In this, Adi was utterly relatable. As a twenty-something year old in a city working a job I like (but not love), I’m still a bit too close to my years of working multiple part time jobs to get through grad school and those uncertain months thereafter. The author did a great job in writing Adi’s stress of trying to land a job, especially in a field as densely populated as journalism.

However, Adi (and by extension, her best friend Kate) is obsessed with Hallmark movies and small towns. Upon hearing the news that a big-shot community developer bought up land in some small town a couple hours away from NYC, Adi has a breakthrough moment where she pitches a Hallmark movie trope of the big bad developer ruining the town and it gets accepted. There’s even promises of a full time job should the piece do well. She packs up her bags and dips into her life savings to live out her big city girl – small town Hallmark dreams in Pleasant Hollow…only to find that Pleasant Hollow is not quite like the movies.

Things I liked:

- Adi’s Jewishness. I loved reading about the Rosh Hashanah dinner that Adi’s mum hosted for her friends and neighbors. That dinner scene as well was slightly chaotic but in the way that left you with the impression that Adi is well loved and supported by the people in her life.

- Adi’s friendship with Kate. It’s very obvious that Adi and Kate have a very supportive friendship. Ditto on the relationship between Adi and her mother.

Thing I didn’t like:

- Finn. I’m sorry! Even despite his backstory, he felt very two dimensional and not well fleshed out to me. Their relationship as well was not quite insta-love but they’d only known each other for a couple weeks before flat out committing to each other – so it may as well have been.

- The main conflict and third act breakup felt flimsy and unbelievable to me and emotions felt too deep to be believable after only two weeks

If you’re looking for a quick read with a teeny smattering of spice, do consider picking this one up! It was charming in a small town kind of way – even if it wasn’t quite my cup of tea.

Special thanks to NetGalley and Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for sharing this digital reviewer copy with me in exchange for my honest opinions.

The premise of this book is very cute - a woman obsessed with Hallmark movies, Gilmore Girls, and the quaintness of small towns tries to write a profile about one, only to find it falls short of her fantasies. The writing was not for me. The humor felt forced and the romance conflict didn't land for me, especially given how short the timeline was. Something I did love was that the heroine and her mother were Jewish and celebrated Rosh Hashanah in the book. I am always happy to see more Jewish characters in mainstream romance and for it to be casually Jewish. I did wish she'd explored the idea of being Jewish in a small town and how that felt, as I'd definitely have my guard up about it.