I loved the characters in this story. Sereno does a great job of making the many wonderful characters in her book relatable and so likeable....except for the main characters. I found them to be two of the most pretentious characters I've ever come across in a romance. And by the end of the book I just couldn't take the Shakespeare and Bronte references anymore.

Cute and witty book, with a dash of creative imaginative detective work. I wish there was a LitWit series to go with it!... cause if so, take my money now
side note - I realize I'm not an english professor or writer, but there were a few words in this book I had to look up.... I learned some new words to say things, but was also like - what? It felt like the author was showing off or either I'm just too southern and say what I mean in plain words?

Athena “Thena” is a professor of literature who after an unfortunate event at work, is forced in the position of publishing a book or lose her career. When she learns that a mysterious erotic author, C.L. Garland, is from her hometown of Laurel, she goes back to her roots to uncover the identity of this mysterious author. When applying for a job, she runs in her ex, Thorn, who becomes her new boss. This story was beautiful and humorous to read. Sereno perfectly captures the awkwardness of an everyone-knows-everyone small town. Thena’s banter with her parents, customers, and most of all her ex Thorn is entertaining and hilarious to read. I loved how the story feed you bits and pieces about her past with Thorn and the drama of the hometown throughout the story. This novel was excellently paced and like the characters said about C.L. Garland’s books, makes me want to go back and read the original classics referenced throughout the story.

I love books about books and this one did not disappoint. The wit in Blame It on the Brontes was top notch also. I really enjoyed this book.

As someone who is so interested in the Brontë sisters' books, I was so excited to read this one! Blame It on the Brontës is fun and full of references so it'll cater to lovers of Charlotte, Emily, and Anne. Professor Murphy is so lovable and just reaffirmed my love for characters (women especially!) thriving in academia. Second chance romances invoke so much joy in my life and this book scratched that inch once more. Thorne and Athena are the perfect rom-com characters and you'll find yourself falling in love with the quirkiness as well as the slight mystery aspect at the end. Would recommend!

Summary: Brontë obsessed English professor Athena Murphy finds herself back in her hometown and is on the hunt to uncover the identity of an author who is writing spicy retellings of classic literature. While embarking on this career saving journey, she runs into her ex-boyfriend who broke her heart. Solution? Figure out who C.L Garland is quickly so she doesn’t have to face old heartache longer than necessary. But it’s not that simple or easy because life never is.

Rating: 3.5 ★

I was instantly drawn in by the title, cover, and summary! However, this book just wasn’t for me which is disappointing because I love the idea of two literature geeks getting a second shot at love. There’s a lot of things I liked about this story, the banter is really good when it flows and has its lit references. But there was some conversations that felt off. I really liked the Gilmore Girls feel of the small town made up of quirky characters! I even found myself liking the personalities of the side characters more than the main ones sometimes. I also found myself giggling at a couple parts in the story, especially when *SPOILER* Athena is spying on Geraldine. The pacing was way too slow for my taste and I’m not a fan of miscommunication which is what the book felt like it was riding off of for its suspense building. The identity of C.L. Garland was predictable for me but there were a lot of other curveballs I didn’t see coming. I liked that there was some representation, the biggest being in the LGBTQIA+ community. Another issue I had is the connection between Athena and Thorne, I’m not sure why it didn’t feel believable to me. Maybe there wasn’t enough backstory? Even when forced in proximity they felt distant again lacking a connection. Which considering how long the chapters are you’d think there’d be more information on the backstory or more connection building between the two lovers but what was given all just felt like unnecessary filler info. All around there was just something missing that I needed from this book for it to be a higher rating. I will say though if you’re a fan of classic literature, lovers to enemies to lovers, and second/third chance tropes then this is the book for you!

Blame it on the Bronte's is a interesting book for sure. It tells the story of Thena, who needs to write a book to get tenure, going back to her hometown and working for her first love Thorne in his fun coffee shop. Of course they have hilarious and witty banter with each other while also keeping the story going.

I enjoyed reading it and would suggest it to friends looking for this certain trope!

I chose this book because of my background in literature (I also love an academic setting, although technically this book isn't set there--the academic setting is tangential) and thought it would be fun to have those tie-ins with the romance.

That being said, the Brontes, especially Emily with Wuthering Heights aren't super high on my favorites list of classic literature (though I do like Jane Eyre quite a bit). I've never been a big fan of Heathcliff or thought that he was a romantic ideal. So to have the main character in this book feel more that way was a bit of a turnoff for that character for me. But I know there are those who do love the whole windswept moors and devotion even beyond death, so if that's you, you'll probably like Athena better than I did.

At first, I felt like the Thorne POV was intrusive and I just wanted to stay in Athena's POV. But after a while, Athena became a little annoying to me, so I appreciated getting a break with the Thorne chapters, and I liked Thorne a lot better.

This is a second chance romance (or really a third chance) trope, so it's interesting to see how Athena and Thorne deal with their past relationship in figuring out exactly what their current potential friendship might be.

The other big trope is miscommunication. Usually I like that trope, but I didn't feel like it worked as well in this book for me. I think that's because both Athena and Thorne were carrying such BIG secrets and keeping them from each other, letting the other person think almost the opposite of what was really going on. And it just felt like these things were too big and too series for miscommunication to be more of the fun trope I prefer.

All that being said, I do think this was overall a good book and I don't regret reading it. And I know that it's going to hit all the right spots for some readers, so if it sounds like a book you might enjoy from the description, don't hesitate to give it a try.

I thought this book was well written and cute for a romcom! The main character, Thena, is given an ultimatum at her university after some mishaps. She can either publish a book or look for another job. Thena loves her job and decides to temporarily move back to her hometown to work on her first book. She heard that a famous anonymous author who writes spicy takes on classical literature, lives in her hometown. Thena decides to work as a waitress to gain information about the anonymous author. Spoiler alert, her ex is the owner of cafe and sparks are going to fly.

The main characters were cute and I enjoyed all the literary references. To misquote one of the cafe customers, it made me want to reread those novels. I thought the cafe characters were great and I could picture them during their daily visits having conversations and eating the daily specials. I think they were better characters than Thena’s family. Thena’s family all had their own secrets that lead to miscommunications, but her father’s storyline fell flat for me.

I would recommend this book for people who enjoy rekindled love tropes with humorous situations.

Clearly, I’m in the minority with this book. I thought it started decently solid, but eventually I lost interest, despite the sweet chemistry between the two leads. Much of this book revolves around miscommunication, which gets old very fast. All in all, I just wasn't a fan.

I’m sure that there are many people who will enjoy this book, there’s definitely a charm in the writing style. It just wasn’t my cup of tea.

English professor Athena Murphy goes back to her hometown with her tail between her legs desperate to try to quickly write a book to save her career. She pitches the crazy idea of uncovering the identity of a popular author of a series of erotic versions of classics, as her ticket to keeping her job. While in her hometown trying to find the elusive author, all kinds of amusing issues and situations arise. The biggest road block to focusing on her book is that she needs to waitress to earn money to survive, and the cafe where she needs to work ends up being run by her ex Thorne who broke her heart twice. Sparks fly whenever they are together, but they have so many secrets, and so much history that a reunion seems impossible. There are so many interesting side characters in this book, that really add to the story, especially all the regulars at the cafe. This was a sweet romance, with an interesting mystery in there too. This was my first book by this author, but it won’t be my last. I received an ARC from netgalley, and this is my honest review.

I was really interested in reading this rom-com with a Brontë flare. But it fell a bit flat for me and a large part of that is due to the writing. Do you ever feel like an author is inserting themselves into a conversation between their characters? Athena and Thorn would be going along, either together or individually, and something—usually a wry aside—would get tacked onto the dialogue or thought. Example:

"It's noon. I thought you'd be gone by now."
*Wished* she'd be gone, in Thorn-speak.
"But I'm having so much gosh darn fun," she said. In Thena-speak.

I guess this is humor maybe? It just made for a tedious reading experience. On top of that, there's just so much detail about nothing at all. The momentum is really hard to find in this one.

First off, the cover looks like me on one of my fave days. Chilling in a comfy position and reading my book with a pile of books waiting for me to read them as well. You don't have to be a Bronte fan to enjoy this book but it will definitely make things more exciting for you. The book was an utter delight and refreshing. I loved this modern romance story so much.

Blame It On The Brontes
By Annie Sereno

A modern romance for lovers of Literary Classics.

Blame It On The Brontes is a quirky, witty, and atmospheric second chance romance with a touch of mystery. Professor Athena Murphy is on sabbatical (mandatory unpaid leave of absence) to write her debut book and save her career at a small San Francisco College.

Athena “Thena” is headed back to her childhood hometown to uncover the mysterious author of the new and best-selling Erotica LitWit Series by C.L. Garland - which is a spicy take on the Literary Classics of Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights. Athena takes a job at her ex-boyfriend's restaurant to spy on the locals to uncover who this enigmatic writer is and as quickly as possible head back to her California life as a tenured Professor. I don't like knowing too much going into a book so I will stop right here.

The quotes from Wuthering Heights and Jane Eyre are woven into this story beautifully and renewed my love of the classics. This book started out so good but then it got a little slow for me. I think it could have been shorter; however, I love how it focuses on tight knight family, friends, and community. If you don't like the miscommunication trope, this book is not for you. I recommend this to anyone that enjoys romantic comedies with a modern literary twist. The cover and title of this are, in my opinion, “chefs kiss,” perfect.

Thank You, Annie and Netgalley, for this arc.

I've never read the classics, including anything by the Bronte sisters, and I'm not ashamed to admit I have no desire to. I prefer contemporaries. That said, I REALLY enjoyed this book. The second-chance romance (third, actually) between Athena and Thorne was tension-filled, sexy, and based on believable stakes. I loved Athena's confidence and sass, Thorne's honesty (at least to himself) about his feelings, and all of the quirky townspeople of Laurel. Mixed in with the romance was a dash of mystery and I had fun trying to figure out C.L. Garland's identity. I look forward to reading the author's next book!

Athena and Thorne are thrust back into each other's lives after several years apart following their breakup. Family pressures and such certainly caused the two to have to go their separate ways but their hearts have never quite caught up to that sentiment. Thorne left his career as a lawyer to move to Athena's hometown (unbeknownst to her) to take over a cafe. Athena, a university professor, is working on acquiring tenure-status which requires her to provide a book manuscript for publication.. She has decided to pursue the identity of the reclusive author of the LitWit series - a sexy take on literary classics - in an attempt to save her job. We meet many of the colorful characters of the town and watch as Athena charms her way into their lives.

Possible spoiler ahead:

Though I enjoyed Thena and Thorne's rekindled romance, I felt that things moved a bit quick (and in a very strange way) from them seeming like they were interested in starting up again to a "friends with benefits" scenario that never quite gets off the ground. The second half of the narrative felt a bit disjointed and I could've used a little bit more clarity.

I liked the concept, being a Bronte fan, but the writing felt a bit immature, and I couldn't get invested in the plot because of that. I think that this book has an audience out there, those who would enjoy it more, but unfortunately I didn't.

the story follows Prof. Athena Murphy or Thena, who is on a temporary leave to write her first book after a troubling event at work. she then goes to her hometown, where she is on the lookout for the mysterious erotica author C.L Garland, who she plans to reveal in her debut novel. while doing her research, she runs across an old flame, Thorne who has broken her heart TWICE and is now her new employer at her part-time job. will she be able to find the mysterious author despite being in close proximity to her devastatingly hot ex?

tropes:
-second chance romance (or third?)
-classic lit reference
-slowburn
-jealousy, jealousy
-cute main characters names

all I can say is that this is a fantastic rom-com from an underrated author. what i like the most is how Thena developed a casual friendship with her cafe patrons. with all of the supporting characters, you will found yourself falling in love with them wholeheartedly[the foursome are iconic if u ask me]. i enjoy the humour, and Annie has a knack for writing humorous interaction. this book offers everything you've ever wanted, plus a nice mystery quest. the slow pacing, on the other hand, is a problem to me and a lot of miscommunication occurs, which is annoying. overall i unexpectedly really enjoy the book! thank you netgalley!

Thank you netgalley and forever grand central publishing for an ARC of this book!

This book had the potential to be pretty cute, but there were times when the miscommunication got to be way too much for me. The main characters' breakups completely revolved around miscommunication, and when they finally saw each other again, I didn't feel as much chemistry as I would've hoped for.

That said, the writing is great and I would definitely check out the author's other books- this was just a miss for me.

A fun, one sitting read. English Professor Athena Murphy, in her quest for tenure, decides to write a biography of C.L. Garland, an author taking up residence on the bestseller lists with spicy retellings of classic novels. In order to do so, however, she must return to her Midwest hometown where Garland--and her ex-boyfriend--live. Tack on the fact that she's now working as a waitress in the café said ex, Thorne Kent, has recently purchased, and the tension ensues.

This was a light second chance romance that, while it felt a little drawn out with miscommunication, also brought a sense of comfort that, yes, I'm not the only one who also doesn't have their life figured out. Miscommunication is rather hit or miss in the romance reading community, and while I may not be much of a fan, I can see the draw this book can have when introduced to the general community. Athena is smart, witty, and relatable as a character, but I think where the novel fell flat for me was the sheer number of side characters and subplots. The narrative seemed to lose focus as it balanced so many things happening at once, but overall it was a cute, quirky read I will be looking forward to seeing in my bookstore!