I really really wanted to love this, but unfortunately, i found that this book had my one romance ick, which is feet in a sexual way. I will not be posting any thoughts until after the book release as I do not want to harm any possible views of this book, but I loved the characters and the chemistry!

“Blame It On The Bronte’s” by Annie Serrano is a story about second chances, mending old scars and discovering that perhaps what we always wanted isn’t what makes us happy. The two leads are old flames who have a very complicated history and reunite through our female lead’s search for the identity of an author in an effort to save her career.

This was an enjoyable book, but it also had moments where I felt that it could have been done a bit better. Namely, the male lead was a character I didn’t like much and felt he was quite unfair to the female lead, with his secrecy and lack of communication, and seemingly just putting the blame of their break up on her. The female lead was better, but I found her a bit frustrating as well. I wish they would have talked things more, and that she shouldn’t have forgiven him as easily as she did at the end; what he kept from her and what he said really stayed with me, and I felt it was resolved too quickly.

In the end, I found the book charming and the references to the Bronte sisters had me smiling and nostalgic for my own experience reading their books. It is perfect for lovers of classics and second chances!

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

Thank you, NetGalley and Annie Sereno, for allowing me to read this book before its publication date in exchange for an honest review.

Now I have never been a romance reader, but I love a good book about books. This novel was able to combine the two in a wonderful way. Intrigue, mystery, lost loves, family drama, and of course, love all lie at the center of Blame It on the Brontes. Sometimes you read a book and just wonder why it isn't a TV show or movie, and I have to say that Hallmark should grab this one up.

I didn’t enjoy the pacing of the book from the start. I caught myself having to go back reread sections to catch what I missed.

Also, couldn’t sympathize with Athena.

Thank you @netgalley, Forever Pub (Grand Central Publishing), and @anniesereno9 for providing me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book was a nice, quirky surprise, and I say this as someone who went in thinking I may have a hard time getting into it (or would become too bogged down by the literary references). It’s my first novel in awhile that utilizes the Second Chance trope (it’s not that I don’t like the trope, I’m just really picky about it haha…. also, it’s more like third chance 🥴), as well as one that heavily utilizes or calls back to classic literature/academia… and I enjoyed every part of it. I think the author did a great job of creating characters that were well-rounded & flawed; I mostly mean this when I talk about Athena (or Thena for short, which is super cute to me), because while I did love her as a character…. I also wanted to shake her tirelessly when it came to some of her decisions (I had similar feelings toward Naomi in “You Deserve Each Other” lol like girllll, what are you doing). Even so, I do feel like that my genuine annoyance at times only added to Athena’s overall charm as a character, and I appreciated how Sereno had Thena and Thorne work on themselves and their own individual trials first before really coming back together. Finally, as someone who is not from a small town, this novel succeeded in creating a great visual image for me— I loved how you really got that vibe that everyone knows everyone, and how the side characters we meet (there’s a lot!) aren’t completely flat, the latter fact of which allowed me to become actually invested in their little subplots without feeling distracted from the main story.

Definitely suggest adding this to your TBR & picking it up once it is released on May 3, 2022, especially if you’re a fan of slow burning Second Chance romances, plus a helpful dash of Lovers-to-Enemies-back to-Lovers, and lots of literary fun!

This ARC was a cute, light read. If you love any or all of the Brontës sisters I think you’ll enjoy this book! I was excited to read this book one of my favorite tropes is second chance romance which Athena & Thorne definitely deserved! Athena coming back to her hometown in search of C.L Garland the pen-named author of romance novels she planned to discover who was behind the novels. Only to discover she still had feelings for Thorne Kent her ex-boyfriend. One think I didn’t care for was the miscommunication I feel as if Thorne & Athena cared for one another for all those years yet they hadn’t really spoken about the breakups why just walk away? I understand his family, their careers & Thorne secret but it wasn’t enough for me to agree with the lost they both held over the breakup in Seattle. One thing I wish had be longer (more details) in the book was how & why Thorne was C.L Garland, again the communication between Athena & Thorne. Had he just said the true when asked & Athena mention what writing the book would do for her job back in S.F I think it would’ve been smoother for them. I would have enjoyed to read how Thorne really wrote the novels. Also how he had the time to write lol no wonder the man was always tired lol with the cafe & robin? Overall, I enjoyed the book and it’s references to the Brontës sisters! Thank You NetGallery for the opportunity to read this book. Also loved Finn & Athena’s relationship as well as branwell could never go wrong with a pug!

My favorite part of this book was the characters. Athena and Thorne are realistic and imperfect and clearly written by a woman. Athena is dynamic and lovable and hateable BECAUSE of how relatable she is. Her desperate secrecy around her career struggles will ring true for most people at some point or another. I loved Thorne and his quiet skills. He might have been a little too perfect, but I really don't mind a man who can cook and pay the bills.

My biggest gripe is that this book centered on an erotic classics series and features absolutely no spice, smut, erotica, etc! It seems like a huge missed opportunity and honestly, some of the sexual euphemisms were a little bit of a miss for me. I wish Serano had embraced the premise of her heroine's plight and given us more of that sexual tension all the way through.

Blame It on the Brontes reads in a way that you'd expect- with a little more flowery language and classic-isms throughout than a normal contemporary romance. It's fun and adds some variety to the Midwestern setting. As someone who loved and defended Jane Eyre all through her high school lit class, I loved the allusions to the Bronte sisters and their most beloved characters. It might have inspired me to go back to some of the classics, too!

I'll be posting this review on Amazon when it becomes possible.

Thank you NetGalley and Gorever Grand Central Publishing for an ARC of this book. I found this book to be witty and adorable. The characters were extremely likeable. This was a light read that I would highly recommend.

It was very fast paced and an absolute lovely read for me. I really loved the WMC and I very well quite relate to her and her problems. The plot was interesting enough to never let me be bored and has kept me hooked and super excited throughout my entire read.

Blame It on the Brontes is a great riff on the wonderful novels by the Bronte sisters. I personally love this genre and this one is spot on. A great casual read.

Blame it on the Brontes is the story about second chances. Athena returns home to write a book about the mysterious author C.L. Garland to get tenure and keep her job. She had made arrangements to work at the local Cafe not knowing that it is now owned by her ex-boyfriend.
I really enjoyed this book. I loved all the characters especially all those who were regulars at the Cafe.
This was my first book to read by the author Annie Sereno and I really enjoyed it.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC.

Blame it on the Brontes was a cute story about second, third, fourth, and even fifth chances. Thena, Thorne, and the whole town of Laurel are wonderful characters. The book was witty and fun.

The fight that Thena and Thorne have any the end of the book doesn't sit right with me. Thorne is cruel in the fight and he says that Thena makes him so mad, but I couldn't remember a time in the book where Thena angered Thorne. And his character did not show any cruelty in the book before that fight. I had a hard time with this departure from his character.

I received an advance review copy for free from NetGalley, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

This book was definitely not for me. At all. I'm somehow surprised I managed to read it to the end, but I just kept expecting it to get better and it never did.

The story revolves around Athena and Thorne, exes who meet after years apart and are now working together at Thorne's cafe while Athena writes a book to make tenure as a professor. It had such a great premise and the start was pretty great, so I had high hopes but I guess I should've stopped when I read that Athena dreamt of being the one person who could save her hero from his "dark self" but I didn't, so that's on me.

But yes, even after that, we see the leads sparring back and forth, always talking about something that happened Seattle that isn't elaborated on till much later and the payoff for which is definitely not worth the build up. They somehow even enter into an FWB arrangement in this time though they generally can't to stay in each other's presence without exchanging harsh barbs and had the miscommunication trope down like it was their job.

And then, in the climax, we find out that Thorne has been lying to Athena about stuff even though she point blank asked him about it. He didn't just lie to her face when asked, he also put together a vivd scheme to make sure this truth never came to life. And while yes, Athena was understandably upset when she found out, and they fought, with both of them berating each other harshly, they got back together in the next conversation itself and it was just so annoying. Like, there were no proper apologies or anything.

Athena laid her heart out to this man, called him her family, gave up her career for him, yet he still lied to her and then didn't even properly apologize. And she still forgave him and fell into his arms at the first word he said. Yes, Thorne did try to make amends but it still didn't seem enough to me.

Anyway, yes, this was definitely not for me.

Hmm this was just ok. No idea why I thought it's a rom-com (is it the dog on the cover? lol) because it definitely isn't! The banter is non-existent and there's nothing funny about this book. Unless you count me laughing with a friend over how awkward the writing is.

The writing felt really unnatural with lots of peculiar phrases, especially those describing outfits and sexual appendage (e.g. "triumphant penis" and "a blouse hat draped her breasts like melting ice cream").

It did get slightly better and better as I progressed but overall, I wasn't feeling this much. The story is quite predictable, the characters aren't outstanding and I was mostly bored. I did like the cafe setting and food descriptions though!

Bronte fans might enjoy this one more as there are plenty of literary references.

Thank you to Netgalley and Publisher for this ARC!

Athena is a literary professor trying to get her tenure by publishing a book. Following a forced leave of absence, she returns to her hometown to discover the identity of a major author that live right there in her town. Certain that this will get her published, Athena seeks a job at a local cafe because where else can you meet local writers! Athena unfortunately has a run in with her ex who now owns the cafe she is waitressing at.

I really had to push through this book unfortunately. I found Athena less than charming and the plot point with Sergei just felt problematic at the best of times.

I was ready to love this book, but ultimately found our main character and some foundational parts of the plot too irritating to do so.

I think you'll like this book if you're someone who enjoys romanticizing gothic literature (aka Wuthering Heights) and obnoxiously independent women.

I wasn't a fan of how the author made it a distinct point of objectifying her own protagonist, but maybe that might not be something that will bother you. It bothered me to no end.

The writing itself wasn't too bad and that's probably the only reason I didn't give it one star.

Overall, not for me and didn't align with my view of the Bronte's to the point of irritation.

This book was lovely! I didn’t know what to expect going in, but I found myself really enjoying it! The banter was witty, the hunt to find the smutty writer was intriguing, and the way we get to see the small town grow both Thena and Thorne was really fun! The secondary characters were wonderful additions to the story and I loved seeing the grouchy older people fall in love with Thena as she was waitressing. We get to see what happened in Seattle and the WHY it happened as well. You can’t help but feel for Thorne as you see his side of the story come into the light a little more. While it took me a bit to get through, it was a quick read! I just read it only at night before bed, thus taking a little more time. The tie-in to the Bronte sister books was ever so charming! This book is going to be well loved by many!


Thank you Net Galley // Forever (Grand Central Publishing) // Annie Sereno for this advanced reader copy in exchange for my honest review! All of the thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.

There were parts and pieces of this book that I just adored: literary-centered main characters, a right person wrong time/second chance romance, a cozy, small-town atmosphere.

But unfortunately, something was lacking for me. I can't seem to put my finger on it, but perhaps the fade-to-black nature of the writing didn't help. Romantic, yes. Steamy, no. I would recommend this to my grandmother and not blink an eye, which is great in one respect, but also leaves something to be desired. I just wanted more from Thena and Thorne, and didn't love that so much of story was spent focused on the secondary characters.

This would be a fun + quick beach read if you're looking for something that won't rock the boat around family ;)

This book ticked all of the boxes for me.
✨ second chance romance
✨ lovers ~ enemies ~ lovers trope
✨ classic literature references
✨ hometown Hallmark vibes
✨ quality banter
✨ exciting title and cover

Synopsis: (please just read this on the goodreads profile)


As a literature nerd of all kinds, I obviously jumped at the chance to read this book. It was overall cute. Who doesn’t want to see 2 literature nerds find happiness? Sometimes I felt like it could have been slightly faster paced and I unfortunately figured out the elusive author immediately. I found myself sometimes needing Athena to just get to the point and figure it out already. However, the writing is superb, the romance alluring, the classic literature references used correctly and interesting. I think this nerdy rom-com should definitely go on any romance loving bibliophile’s TBR. I will definitely be on the lookout for more books by this author. 💖

Thank you so so much to NetGalley the opportunity to read this wonderful ARC!

Blame it on the Brontes by Annie Serena makes for a fun weekend read. If you are in the market for a second chance romance with a mix of a little mystery, flirty banter, and lots of Brontë references, this is the book for you. Just be prepared it will leave you wanting to reread the Brontë sister’s works while sipping coffee at a small cafe.

*The element of making Athena into a part time sleuth hunting for C. L. Garland made this book so much more interesting. I thought it combined two of my favorite genres, romance and mystery, together beautifully. Every time I thought I knew who C.L. Garland was I was pleasantly surprised to discover I was wrong.

Special thanks to NetGalley.com and Forever(Grand Central Publishing) for allowing me to read this book in exchange for my honest feedback.