I thought this was an interesting debut novel. I enjoyed the atmosphere of the medieval literature graduate studies. It brought back a lot of memories of AP English memories and college memories too.  Although I enjoyed elements within the story and the writing, I had a hard time with the main characters in the novel.  I didn't find either Allison or Colin characters I wanted to root for as a couple.  Jenny Howe kept pointing out reasons they shouldn't be a couple throughout their writing.  Allison sounded like a much better character without Colin.  I couldn't wrap my head around why she would be with Colin. I did really enjoy that she was a plus-size woman, which is still rarer to see in romance novels.  As a plus-size woman myself I love seeing that representation.

I thought The Make-Up Test was a good debut, I would love to see what Jenny Howe writes in the future.  I love the secondary characters in her novel.  I think Jenny has a lot of potential as a writer.  My only real problem with this novel was with the characters of Allison and Colin and the situations she ended up putting them in, which is just my opinion as a reader.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and Netgalley for allowing me to read this book in exchange for my review.

A huge thank you to St. Martins Press and NetGalley for the advanced copy of this book!
.
I enjoyed Allison and her journey into graduate school, trying to land a coveted spot on a research trip with the professor she is assisting. If the book was just about her, then I would be in it to win it. But along with her on this journey is Colin Benjamin, who broke up with her during undergrad, and now is back at her same school, suddenly in the same program, and vying for the same research opportunity despite having never shown any interest in the topic before. I’ll be honest, I basically hated him through the book and he continued to be a jerk throughout.
.
For awhile, I thought Howe was going to redeem his character arc, but in the last twenty percent of the book he just nosedived completely and I couldn’t like any part of him. I wish we had gotten to know the rest of their grad school cohort and Allison’s best friend, as they had potential to brighten the storyline. The premise had promise, but it didn’t reach the goal for me.

The Make-Up Test is a second chance romance story between Allison and Colin. There are academia vibes, lots of bantering, some spice but I felt like the story had too much going on. I was being pulled in so many directions but wasn't sure where the story was headed. I did appreciate the growth in both Allison and Colin and their happy ending at the end!

This was a cute second chance romance. I loved the grad school/medieval literature aspect of this book and how it wove into the story. I always love and academic background to a romance story, it adds a swoony aspect to the story. Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC.

This book is so cute! I really can't get over it. I LOVE me some second chance romances. Even better when they are rivals! Enter an intelligent heroine who is determined to get what she wants and an ex who is MAYBE more determined than she is. But what do they win at the end? Could it be each others hearts? Win win, if you ask me!

I was excited to start this book as I loved the premise of the story when I read the blurb but it fell flat for me in many ways.

I like to read as an escape and after three years in a pandemic I'm not excited to read about a book that makes mention of it, especially when the book is about a post pandemic world we in the real world have not achieved. This added no value to the book and could have been left out.

The last bit of the book seemed rush and everything was conveniently wrapped up in a very odd setting which made it seem unrealistic.

One aspect I really loved was the way Colin groveled and tried to redeem himself. He wanted a second chance with Avery and he knew he made a mistake in the past so he was all in to prove to her that he could be better and would be if she just have him another chance. I love a second chance romance so this portion of the plot directly hit myy romance loving heart.

I tried really hard to get into this one, but just couldn’t. I even tried the audio and that didn’t work either. I didn’t like any of the characters and the plot wasn’t grabbing me.

DNF @ 30%

The Make-Up Test was a fun read for sure! I enjoyed the characters, and it was a nice break from the thrillers I usually read!

Unfortunately, this one wasn’t a favorite. I felt that the author tried to accomplish too much in the book - best friend issues, parent issues, her ex, grad school…it was a lot. It also didn’t seem that the romance was the key driver of the story, which, to me, is important when you are selling a book as a rom-com.

All in all, it was fine.

The Makeup Test was archived prior before being able to read and review. I wasn't able to download it to my laptop/ kobo device because of this. I will check it out from the library in the future.

Thank you Netgalley and publishers for allowing me the chance to read and review.

Allison is a PhD student in a very selective at Claymore University, hoping to work with her hero in the world of medieval literature. The trouble is that her ex, who stole a prestigious award from her in college and then broke up with her, is now in the same PhD program, and competing for the same mentorship, despite having no previous interest in medieval literature. Can Allison win the mentorship without letting her ex bring her down?

I was so hoping to like this. The main character is a plus size woman who takes no shit for daring to be heavier. It's a book about literature. It's a romance. It has all the things I like. But I really don't like the characters, like at all.

Allison is too stuck in her past, particularly with how she lets feelings for her ex creep in, even though he switched his focus and is once again fighting her. And she actively refuses to talk to the people around her to make her feelings known. The ex, Colin, is a jerk. He just is. His grand gesture at the end was predictable. Her dad is exactly as abusive and jerky as the book describes, but in a book full of jerks, that wasn't really surprising. Her mom is awful and refuses to listen to her when she says she doesn't want to hear about her father. Her roommate is less than supportive, and disappears for most of the book, and I'm sorry, but if I went out of my way to make something for a get-together, and my almost-invisible roommate and her uninvited pals consumed every bit of it BEFORE MY FRIENDS THAT I INVITED ARRIVED, I'd be really pissed off.

I found these characters really unlikable, and the story was frustrating. I pushed through for some reason, and I'm honestly not sure why. I have so many other books to read.

I received an Advanced Reader Copy via NetGalley in return for sharing my thoughts on this book. Thanks to the author and publisher for this opportunity!

I have been on a romcom run lately! This one was a quick read and I liked it although it wasn’t my favourite. I had a bit of a struggle connecting with Colin at times and I am not really sure why. If you’re a romcom lover check this one out.

I loved this book! Author Jenny Howe wrote a slow-burn second chance romance that focuses on academia, success, the pressures we put on ourselves to prove we are worthy of recognition and love, and family dynamics. This is masterfully crafted and an emotional journey from beginning to end. I was always rooting for Allison and Colin, but also glued to their struggles. It was so hard to put down, highly recommend!! Can't wait to read what the author writes next!

4.5 Strong Debut Stars
* * * * 1/2
This book took me on a journey that held my attention throughout. We have two people who are competitive, who have a history of a bad breakup, and the mutual goal of being part of a program with only one spot available.
What could possibly make them work together and have a HEA???

Could there be a possibility of people actually changing and growing? This was a very solid read.

Thank you NetGalley for the eARC. This book was so fun. I really enjoyed it. This book kept me interested and i enjoyed the book and this genre

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for my digital arc of THE MAKEUP TEST by Jenny L. Howe in exchange for an honest review. This book published September 13, so you can go grab a copy now!

I wasn’t too sure about this book when I first started it, but I turned out to enjoy it more by the end! I also felt at times, like this book was to smart for me 😆 - masters students seem to be above my level of knowledge 😆 I did learn a lot tho, which is always good!

This is a second chance romance between two exes that work out their differences/ try again with their relationship, all while competing for a spot in a prestigious phD program.

Allison is the FMC, and I loved her. She loves to win, but is also a bookworm, and an introvert, who is trying to be more social. She also has a difficult relationship with her father. When he becomes ill, and there’s a family emergency, it’s Colin (MMC and her ex boyfriend/competition) that drives her the 4 hours back home. A sexy game of Scrabble leads to them pursuing their relationship again. Colin was a good MMC, but what lead to their breakup years ago, has him now trying extra hard to win back Allison. Tho he had his own reasons, for breaking things off, he did not follow through with actually telling Allison these reasons. Colin also has his own struggles and pressures in his past, that he has to deal with too.

Allison and Colin work well together, as long as they learn to communicate with each other. That’s what broke them up the first time. I also loved the body positive aspect of this book, it was very refreshing to see!

2.5 Stars rounded down

Here's the thing. I love plus-size rep, and I love enemies-to-lovers, and I have a soft spot for academia as well. However, second chance romances are not my jam, and this book seemed to rely on the worst bits of that trope. If it is your jam, this would be a solid choice. I just wasn't won over by our 2.0 hero. I think if you have to add 2.0 to the end of whoever you're seeing again, you probably shouldn't be dating them. Second chances relies on the reader seeing the hero/heroine as redeemable, and I just... didn't. Also, the miscommunication there at the end-- it did not create any feelings in me that endeared me to either party. I would love to read another title by Jenny Howe, but this particular one wasn't for me.

What a refreshing and warm romance to fall into! I sped through it because I was very invested in their story and I wanted to make sure of the HEA (even though I knew it was coming lol).

sadly this was a DNF for me. I got about 36% in.

I found the two main characters so insufferable and annoying so I honestly didn’t care to read about their romance. The MMC was especially irksome and I could not for the life of me understand why Allison would want to get back with him. Honestly it was just so childish and I did not like the romance.

I’m sad this one didn’t work out for me but thank you to the publisher for the e-arc!

I need to quit reading “enemies-to-lovers.”

The Make-Up Test sounded great and I was really excited to read it, but I only got about 15% in before I called it quits. Why? Because I’ve found out I HATE enemies-to-lovers in a contemporary setting. The characters are so petty and ridiculous and basically want to kill somebody because he broke up with her or didn’t tell her she’s pretty, etc. And there’s always some stupid misunderstanding that we’ll find out about later and learn everything was fine this whole time, so they literally hated each other for nothing. And of course, he loved her the whole time. Which just makes it that much more petty and ridiculous that they fought the whole time.

Rants aside, I did Jenny L. Howe’s writing is wonderful and I really enjoyed what I read of her characters (not the pettiness—that wasn’t a good look, Allison), so I would definitely try reading more from her in the future. This just isn’t the trope for me.

Thanks Netgalley and St. Martins for the ARC! Sorry I didn’t like it. ☹