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.

What a wonderful book filled with witty dialogue and colorful characters! The story takes place in a small town, and being from one myself, it was easy to relate to. The characters and interactions with each other are all very genuine and I found, very entertaining.

One of the main plots, was trying to figure out who a mystery author was which made it more interesting. It was fun trying to guess along with the main character who it was! I also appreciate the other sub plots and side stories that went on with the other characters. Everyone seemed to have their own little love stories and you were rooting for all these lovable characters to find their happy endings! Be sure to check out this fantastic book when it’s released May 3rd!

Thank you Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for letting me read this book! It truly was enjoyable!

BLAME IT ON THE BRONTES is a contemporary romcom. Athena’s on sabbatical as a last-ditch effort to save her teaching job at a California university. She’s determined to write a book that unmasks the bestselling author of a series of erotic novellas based on classic literature. Who just happens to live in Athena’s hometown.

A great plan until she discovers that the cafe she’s planned on working in to help her investigation has changed hands. It’s now owned by her former boyfriend, the super-hunky Thorne.

If you love Shakespeare, the Bronte sisters, academia, or crazy family shenanigans, this is for you.

You get:
A look at publish or perish in academia
Smalltown life
The perils of moving home with a high maintenance family including divorced parents
Second chance romance
Opposites attract/sunshine and grump
Close proximity
Some delicious food descriptions
Even more delicious descriptions of attractive men
Swoony romance
Laugh out loud moments
LGBTQIA+ rep
Pug mug!
Family, bio and found

This is a fast-moving and fun novel with a lot of humor and heart with swoony romance. Athena is curvy and sarcastic while Thorne is quiet and reserved. They have serious chemistry. And some serious secrets they’re keeping from each other. Enjoy the ride!

This one didn’t really work for me and that both surprised and disappointed me. It’s got so much of what I love - literary references, classic books, second chance romance, the hint of a new beginning, career-wise, but I felt an odd disconnect from the story and the characters. There was a lot, a whole lot of miscommunication between the main characters and I’m not a fan of that trope.

I wasn’t the right reader for this.

"All's well that ends well," - Shakespeare.

Synopsis: English professor Athena Murphy is an authority on the novels of the Brontë sisters. But as they say in academia, publish or perish. To save her job, Athena decides to write a biography of C.L. Garland, the author heating up bestseller lists with spicy retellings of classic literature. Tracking down the reclusive writer and uncovering her secret identity, though, means Athena must return to her small midwestern hometown where Garland—and her ex-boyfriend, Thorne Kent—live.

Personal Review: 4 Stars

If you are a fan of the second chance romance trope, greek mythology, and classic literature - with a twist - Annie Sereno's Novel "Blame it on the Brontes" is your next go to read! I loved how Sereno incorporated the Bronte sisters quotes at the beginning of each chapter, and created a character that was so likable, it hurt! Athena "Thena" lusts after her ex Thorne, pretty much the entire novel, yet there is a bit of mystery as to why their romance fizzled out in the first place. In her search to uncover C.L. Garland and his spicy LitWit collection of saucy retellings of classic literature such as "The Lust of the Mohicans", "David Copafeel", "Prude and Pruience" and "Scarlet Fetters" Athena finds herself going crazy to discover who this author is, write her book "Hidden in Plain Sight" and save her job as a professor. Although this novel was quite predictable, I adored it. It was laced with comedy, Athena's bad luck, Finn and Mario's relationship, and Sergei's entire character! I was laughing along and adoring the plot the entire time!

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Grand Central Publishing opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

This is a second chance romance. I loved the literary references in the book - and the quotes from the Bronte novels at the beginning of each chapter. Not only is the book a second chance romance, but it is also suggestive of a second chance career. An enjoyable read that is perfect to pick up over a weekend.

I would rank this as a 2.5.
This story was interesting. Not my favorite, but I didn’t hate it. It was a nice touch to have the classics referenced a bit. Overall, there was just a disconnect in the story line with the way it was written and there was a lot of unnecessary back and forth.

Some parts of the story felt thrown in and then never really talked about -like her mom cheating- and thoughts and actions for characters in general. These characters are making quick changes in their lives that don’t line up with what they’ve been doing for years or their previous actions. One of my main issues with the story is that the main characters behave as if in their early 20s instead of 30s.
I don’t understand why Thorne was in Laurel at all. Out of all the places he could have gone, why there? If he was so insistent on them not getting back together based on his father, then why? Also the FWB arrangement made zero sense and wasn’t an actual thing in the story. They could barely stand to look at each other in the beginning and constantly made jabs about Seattle and yet this develops.

Blame It on the Brontes
by Annie Sereno
Pub Date: 03 May 2022
3/5 Stars

If you enjoy Classic Romance this book is for you. Athena is an English Professor who needs to publish. Thorne is the love of her life, the one she’ll never get over. They both end up in their hometown chasing their dreams and reigniting their love. There is much witty banter and lack of honesty between the two. Many quirky characters filled out the story. I enjoyed this book.I know many will enjoy this witty, at times over-the-top tribute to the Bronte’s.

I received an ARC from Netgalley and Forever (Grand Central Publishing) in exchange for an honest review.

I found the novel to be predictable, yet enjoyable to read. The story gives you a little balm on the heart. There were certain passages that I immediately guessed what was going to happen, but the book made me smile at several times. I really appreciate how the author writes the story.

English professor Dr. Athena Murphy is up for tenure at a small college in San Francisco. Since she hasn’t published anything since her dissertation, she is in danger of perishing in the academic setting. She takes a 6-month unpaid leave to return to her Illinois hometown to research an anonymous author who is said to also be a native of the same town. This author, CL Garland, writes the bestselling LitWit novellas, which describe the imagined sex lives of literary couples.

When Athena tries to find her promised part-time waitressing job, she discovers that the café has been sold to her ex-boyfriend, Hawthorne Kent. Thorne has relocated the café and renamed it The As You Like It Café. However he does offer “Thena” 3 4-hour shifts per week so that she can conduct her research and write her article.

Thena and Thorne met in freshman Literature class and began their romance. They planned to go to Harvard to earn their PhD’s in Literature. However when it came time to enroll, Thorne decided to follow family tradition and attend law school in Seattle. That was 12 years ago and Thena is still upset with him and suffers from a broken heart. 3 years ago Thorne moved to Chicago to start baking part-time, which he augments with his intellectual property law career. Then a few months ago, he purchased the bakery business in Laurel, Illinois, Thena’s hometown.

Then and Thorne have to settle their past and decide if they want to re-establish their romance. At the same time, Thena is busy trying to discover the identity of the anonymous author and deciding if she wants to continue her academic career in California.

This story is a fun read, especially for literature lovers and English majors. The small-town drama and university politics add to the romantic elements. I appreciate the opportunity to read the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Will it be a second or third chance romance for Thorne and Thena? They both have secrets but some will hurt more than others.
I liked both characters, but would have liked more of an epilogue.

While I found the characters annoying I did think this book was cute and fun. I felt it embodies the Brontë sisters quite well. Not a usual read for me but I’m glad I picked it up and gave it a try.

I enjoyed the saga of Thorne and Athena alot. Athena was great as a protagonist and I found myself rooting for her. That being said, I must say that its the romance aspect of the book that kept me reading, I was on pins and needles as I was reading to see if Athena and Thorne ended up back in each other's arms. Accordingly, the search for who "Garland" was fell a little flat for me. It felt like it took tome away from Athena and Thorne and by the end of the book, I wanted more.

You don't need to have read Wuthering Heights, or any of the Bronte sister's books, to enjoy this one, but it does add a little extra enjoyment if you are at least a little bit familiar! Athena and Thorne were college sweethearts, very much in love, but things just didn't work out for them -- a fact neither of them has gotten over. Athena is a college English professor in San Francisco. She is on the verge of losing her job and comes home on an unpaid sabbatical. To save her job, she has just a few months to write a book. She decides that the perfect subject is C.L. Garland, a wildly successful, bestselling, but anonymous author who writes very sexy versions of classic novels. Turns out that C.L. Garland is from Athena's home town of Laurel, IL. She makes it her mission to discover Garland's true identity and write a book about it. Thorne, meanwhile, has returned to Laurel as well, opening a cafe. When Athena applies to be a waitress there, she is very surprised to see him. Lots of secrets, lots of longing unrequited love here, but ultimately things turn out exactly the way a reader would want them to! I loved this title and look forward to recommending it to romance readers who enjoy a contemporary story with sophisticated, witty humor without an overload of sex scenes. Emily Henry fans will particularly like this.

This book is so adorable. I love the references to the classics! I love the characters. This is a great HEA where EVERYONE gets a second chance at romance.

A few gripes: the fashion and pop culture references are all over the place. Athena isn’t believable as a young 30 something. The fashion feels dated while the tech feels early 2000s.

It could definitely have been a little steamier 😉

Thank you so much @netgalley for this advanced copy in exchange for my honest review. Unfortunately after the first few chapters, my enthusiasm waned. The book felt overly long, the miscommunications became frustrating, and the story seemed to get bogged down in the many side characters, family members and too many plot points. The ending felt oddly rushed with a lot of loose ends and unanswered questions. The romance felt secondary a lot of the time with the MCs careers, family and town drama, and mystery aspect feeling more front and center. #readersofinstagram #bookclubvip #netgalleyreads

I probably won't post about this title. I think it was me, rather than the actual book.
I knew right away who the mystery author was; as will most people, and while it didn't make me like it less, a few other things were predictable too, like Athena's mother.
The writing was punchy, but I also felt there were a few too many characters to keep track of at times. Like I said, it was probably just me and bad timing.

I wanted to like this one but it fell flat. I wanted more chemistry between our characters.
I liked the bookish setting, I just wanted more from the characters.

Thanks NetGalley for this ARC!

I have mixed feelings about this book. Athena could be very annoying at times, but charming at others. I loved her relationships with the regulars at the cafe. All of her family drama could have been avoided if folks just talked it out. That got really old really quick. Thorne wasn't anything for me to write home about. I wound up skimming the last 10% of the book. I just had high hopes for this book and it didn't pan out for me.

Athena must publish or perish if she wants to be tenured as an English professor. To save her job she needs to write an expose about an erotic literature author, who is rumored to live in her hometown. Athena takes a position as a server in the local cafe. It will be the perfect way to snoop & find the author. Only downside is that she in forced proximity with her ex, Thorne, the love of her life. With many twists and turns this book made my head spin. The main character was overly dramatic to a fault, which made it hard to root for her. This book had a crazy cast of characters & would be enjoyed by those who are sonnet and Jane Eyre obsessed.