Built to Last is a sweet romantic comedy about two former child stars who reunite in their twenties and still have feelings for each other. Shelby was the troubled one, whose romantic troubles and substance abuse kept her in the tabloids. Cameron is the one who got out, went to college, and built a career outside of show business. But they never stopped having feelings for each other. I enjoyed this book, and liked some of the side characters as much as the leads. I hope the author will write her next book about Lorelai, I want to know more of her story.

“Built to Last” by Erin Hahn
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Release Date: 10/18
Genre: Romcom

This romcom was so enjoyable. Another fun celebrity trope. Shelby and Cameron were childhood stars. They had a short fling growing up, but always had a magnetic pull to each other.
Cameron left tv for a job working for National Geographic and after Shelby spent a few more years in the spotlight she decided to go home to Michigan and help her dad with his house flipping business. They get approached for a tv series to be celebrity house flippers, but they aren’t sure if they want that spotlight.
Once they commit they realize their chemistry is unmistakable. They not only are great together on camera, but also off. Can these two find happiness together or will other commitments get in the way?

No notes, this book is perfection. Wonderful chemistry, lovable main characters, amazing side characters, the whole deal. This is Emily Henry meets HGTV. I am hoping that Lorelei and Marin each get a book!


I received an advanced copy. All thoughts are my own.

Shelby Springfield has finally escaped the spotlight and drama of Hollywood after spending her childhood as a television star, singing and dancing on the hit show The World According to Jackson. Returning to Michigan five years ago and finding her passion for restoring old furniture, Shelby comes up with the idea of starting her own reality house flipping show - but with the meddling of her former co-star and ex-bf Lyle Jessup, she ends up filming the pilot with none other than Cameron Riggs, her other co-star and childhood sweetheart. As Shelby and Cam reconnect, sparks fly and the two must figure out what they want, all while dealing with the twists and turns their meddling producer Lyle sends their way.

This was such a fun, wholesome read and I loved the home renovation aspect tied into the book because if you know me, you know I am obsessed with a good HGTV, fixer-upper style show. Plus, this book offers a second-chance romance which is one of my fav tropes <3

Although it took me a while to finish this book, I did really enjoy the whole concept and seeing the connection between Shelby and Cameron because they truly were made for each other. I also really enjoyed that this book did not have your classic third-act breakup which was really refreshing. The side characters were also so fun - both Shelby and Cam's friends were so entertaining and I heard her best friends are getting their own books as well which is very exciting.

This was such a wonderful rom-com debut and I would recommend picking it up, especially if you love all things romance, reality television, and HGTV!

I have loved Erin Hahn's YA books. So my first thought reading the first scenes in this book was, "We're not in YA anymore." She has made the transition to adult romance seamlessly. Her prose is amazing, and I always fall in love with her characters. That was absolutely the case here.

Shelby and Cameron were co-stars on a TV show as children. But their timing has never worked out. It's been ten years since they acted together. Her life rather spectacularly and publicly fell apart, and she retreated to her home town. And he has switched to working behind the scenes, filming documentaries for National Geographic.

But now, they both agree to work together on a reality TV show fixing up houses. I loved their interactions and the depth of their relationship. I also appreciated that this second chance romance stayed largely focused on the present. And I loved so many of the characters. Her friends and father were especially fabulous. I can't wait to read books for her fabulous friend circle.

Thank you to SMP Romance and NetGalley for the advanced reader copy. These opinions are my own.

4.5 stars rounded up

This was a cute, fun second chance at love novel. Shelby and Cameron have known each other since childhood. when they co-starred on a show together as kids. Fast foward to the present and Shelby and Cameron are thrown together again by a meddling Lyle. The write up makes it sound like a love triangle, but its not (so don't worry for those who dislike that genre). Shelby and Cameron have great chemistry together. This was a quick easy contemporary romance to read. My first read by Erin Hahn and won't be the last! Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

Straight forward romance with no hidden agendas, bound to please readers with love for second chance romances. The added appeal in BUILT TO LAST involves reclaimed furniture as well as lives. I received my copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

Built to Last by Erin Hahn3 starsSecond chance romance, Shelby and Cameron were on a show called "The World According to Jackson". They went from being young in Hollywood and Shelby being stuck between two guys and every audience member having an opinion on who would work best together. These kids grew up in front of the cameras. Cameron was lucky and got out while he could, Shelby not so much. After her crash and burn in Hollywood, Shelby returns home to her town and starts sort of fresh, but there is one person she can't get out of her mind. Soon a network reaches out and wants to make a show called HomeMade where she renovates and flips houses. Hollywood doesn't care for the Daughter/Dad duo, so they devise a better solution. It took me way too long to get into, then it just felt like it kept going and felt like too much. The first half dragged too much for my likely and the little errors drove me a little kooky. The second half picked up and got better once they figured out their communication. They find what they need in each that's when it got better. Got HGTV vibes made me want to go watch all the flip shows on there. Thank you, Net Galley and St. Martin's Press for the eARC for an honest review.

Second chance romances are a favorite trope for me, but this one was just ok for some reason. We have two former child/teen TV stars (Shelby and Cameron) who needed to mature and are now thrown together again in their late 20s to do a pilot of a home renovation reality show. Add to this the third now-adult former child/teen TV star who is the showrunner for this reality show - and he’s about as annoying a character as you can imagine. Also obnoxious is Shelby’s mom, who pretty much personifies the self-centered stage mother. These two are just awful (and that’s how the author wants you to feel about them). The story is told in two POVs - some chapters are told from Shelby’s POV and some from Cameron’s. I just didn’t buy the angsty pining for each other the two have maintained over ten years. They’ve barely had any communication over those ten years and we’re supposed to buy that they are soulmates? I also wasn’t convinced of the reason Cameron kept “running” from things over those ten years (not just from Shelby).

CW: manipulative behavior by Lyle (Shelby’s ex and former co-star); toxic family relationships; some steamy open door scenes; casual frequent use of profanity

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Griffin for the opportunity to read an advance readers copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

So cute! I loved every aspect of this book! It has everything you could want, and more! Erin Hahn hit a homerun with this book. I love remodel books and I love romance. Boom and boom! You are welcome!

I received an advanced reader's copy of Built to Last by Erin Hahn,

I loved this second chance romance based around a home renovation show. The interactions between Shelby and Cameron are endearing and we' re shown throughout the story how much they care for each other. Through their relationship, they're able to start healing past wounds. They are better together than they were apart.

I really enjoyed this story and the exploration of friendships and how while we can't change the past, we can make changes, get on the path to healing and create a different future.

Shelby Springfield can be found sanding over rough spots on the vintage furniture finds she makes over in a small Michigan town as she's done for the past five years. But as a former child star, it's been difficult to overcome her past - filled with a mediocre pop career, a meltdown widely documented by the paparazzi, and a huge public break with her former co-star Lyle Jessup. It’s also hard to forget her other co-star and childhood sweetheart, Cameron Riggs -- the one who got away. Anytime Shelby has called, Cameron has come running… only to run right off again to chase stories around the world by making documentaries, too scared to admit what he really wants. But when Lyle stirs the pot, getting the two back in the spotlight with a home renovation show, there's something in the process that will benefit everyone - Shelby gets to prove she's not the messy girl she once was, Cameron gets to put down roots for the longest time since college to figure out what he really wants from life, and Lyle? Well, he gets to pull the strings and prove his point that there's always been chemistry between his two former co-stars. Will sparks be flying from more than just the renovation on set? You'll have to read to find out.

When it comes to second chance romance, the author has to really establish a prior connection between the two main characters, pinpoint a reason (or multiple) why they could not be together then, re-establish a connection in the present day and make it believable enough so that a romance can bloom. Through dual POV, Erin Hahn brings us into the minds of Shelby and Cameron, two former child stars who grew close working on a television show, shared an intimate connection at 18, could have shared another moment 5 years later when Cameron came to Shelby's side in a time of need, but come back together 5 years later (in the present) to create a home-improvement show pilot parroted by their former co-star. They both have something to prove to the world, or their family, but also acknowledge how much they haven't stopped thinking about the other, for all these years. When the story starts, Shelby is broken - just after a very public breakup, she drunk-calls Cameron, and while it hurts him he leaves her while she sleeps with nothing but a note telling her to get out of Hollywood before it breaks her. Well, present-day Shelby knows her worth - she doesn't let anyone, especially her ex Lyle, try to tell her what to do and who to be. She's good at what she does (restoration, with her dad) and lets her pieces and work speak for themselves. I loved how Cameron, upon seeing her for the first time in five years, acknowledges her growth and loves her more for it, because she's happy, healthy, and the best version of herself. All of the side characters were equally fleshed out - I loved the supportive best friends on either side (Lorelai for Shelby, Kevin for Cameron), and also appreciated Shelby's relationship with her dad, which highlighted the contrast of how her mother treated her as a child-star. It was also great to see him teach Cameron the ropes, and while he didn't want to be on camera himself, he never let the project falther (even filling Cameron in on some ways the producers wanted to stir up drama). The banter never felt forced - it truly was like old friends coming back into contact after a while apart and picking right back up where they left on. And as an adult romance (an open-door one at that), Hahn really does write sexual tension super well - as someone who tends to skip over more intimate scenes if they happen too often, they never took away from my enjoyment of the story.

While Erin Hahn's YA novels are definite hits for me, there is always a bittersweet undertone with every story. Annie and Clay find solice in each other in You'd Be Mine, but Annie has a difficult relationship with country music after her parents commit suicide and Clay battles an addiction to alcohol to deal with his loneliness over losing his brother in combat. Vada and Luke are the best music nerds who find love in More Than Maybe, but Vada's birth father refuses to acknowledge her existence unless intoxicated and belligerent, and Luke's brother majorly invades his privacy by releasing a piece of music played in private. And I absolutely adore Meg and Micah, the church kids in Never Saw You Coming, but wow does that book hit hard with the repercussions of purity culture, abuse in the church, and dealing with doubts about your faith. Built to Last does have its heavy moments - Shelby's mother took advantage of her and the money her child career brought in until she emancipated herself and cut ties, while Cameron feels like his relationship with his father was strained due to his career keeping him away from home, and both have to deal with their pasts and society's perception of who they used to be clouding judgement over just how much they've grown while being out of the spotlight. But Hahn herself said she'd written the book during a time of extreme loss and grief, when she needed something to bring her joy, and she hopes that it can bring readers joy and happiness upon its release as well.

In conclusion, Erin Hahn has truly pulled me in as a reader and given me everything I could've wanted in a romance. I loved these characters, and I can't wait to see two of Shelby's best friends find their happily ever afters in their own books coming in the next few years. If second-chance romance, home renovation, sassy banter, and tree-trunk thighs are some of your buzzwords, I highly recommend checking out Built to Last. *Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher, St. Martin's Press, for the e-copy, all thoughts and opinions are my own.*

This one took me a little while to connect with the story. I’m always a sucker for a second chance and this one has both a second chance in love and a second chance at a career. In addition to a second chance, you have friends to lovers, childhood sweethearts and forced proximity. I really liked Cameron from the start, but Shelby had to grow on me.

I flipped back and forth from the book to the audio and thought the narrators did a great job of bringing the story to life.

I loved the home flipping reality show aspect and the tender moments of the antiquing trip. I think romance lovers who like a little steam will love this one.

DNF at 25%

I've been forcing myself to keep reading this book when I just don't care about any of the characters or the plot. I hate to DNF an ARC, but I also hate wasting my time reading a book I'm not enjoying.

Perfect book to read if you are a fan of HGTV renovation shows
Child actors
Childhood friends
Second chances
Friends to lovers
Adult romance
Family relationships
House flipping
Reality TV show
If you are looking for a book that will give you all the above, Built to Last is the book you need to pick up.
Definitely a cute love story with lots of drama and likeable characters (well, except for one character).
Many thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and author for the opportunity to read this book for my honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

Looking for a sweet second chance rom-com? Then put down your tool belt and pick up a copy of Built to Last. This is the first book I’ve read by Erin Hahn but if she keeps writing rom-coms like this it won’t be the last. Years after their show ended, childhood stars/sweethearts are brought together again for a home makeover show where more than just the house is getting fixed up. This was a fun romance, with the chemistry between Shelby and Cameron really coming through. I’d like to thank St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review an eARC of Built to Last.

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I absolutely loved this book! I don't always enjoy second chance romance, but this one really tugged on all the heartstrings. I loved watching Shelby and Cam's relationship progress, and I thought it was so well done showing the growth they both experienced both individually and as a couple. The angst and the pining was top notch, and I really enjoyed the backdrop of the home renovation show. I only wish it were a real show because I would totally watch!

Built to Last is an adorably funny look at a group of former teen heartthrobs who grew up together on a television series, had crushes on each other (some first loves), made some mistakes then went their separate ways years ago. But they never stopped thinking about each other. Some were missed, others, not so much! Sometimes we must leave those we care about behind in order to grow and learn about ourselves before we can find a way back to what we had. This story is a wonderfully heartfelt example of how love can prevail, no matter what the circumstances.

Years ago, Shelby Springfield was a child actor/singer who had it all and then unfortunately had a horrible breakdown. Her mom, her manager, was absolutely no help and added to Shelby’s pressures. But what made her situation worse was when the love of her life, fellow actor Cameron Riggs left for college, Shelby decided to date another actor. Unfortunately, that turned into a nightmare as he broke up with her after cheating with her best friend and THEY wrote a song about Shelby’s break-up which became a hit.

Totally traumatized at the time, she reached out to the only person she knew would understand, Cameron. But even though he rushes to her side, what she really wants he can’t give her for fear they both will regret it. And that was the last time they saw each other.

Ten years later, Shelby has cleaned up her act, works with her father building and refinishing houses and furniture. She is sober and has left her previous life behind. Cameron works as a documentarist for a company called Nat Geo and travels around the world.

When they both get a call from the ex-boyfriend, Lyle that there is an offer for the trio to get back together with Shelby and Cameron working on a pilot for a reality DIY show where they find a house and redo it, with Lyle being the showrunner. Shelby is not interested but knows the money would certainly help her dad, so she hesitatingly decides to say yes. Cameron, who has never stopped caring about Shelby jumps at the chance to work with her although he knows nothing about building and refinishing in order to try and make up for what happened the last time they saw each other.

Of course, Shelby and Cameron must try and work together without bringing up the past, and Lyle seems to be a terrible instigator who wants to cause drama between them for the sake of the project. Is it possible for Shelby and Cameron to be able to try and get back what they had years ago, even though some would like nothing more than to cause them heartache and embarrassment.

Built to Last is a wonderful, romantic, witty and fun read! I look forward to a sequel!

Thank you #NetGalley #Griffin/St.Martin’sPress #OliverWehner #BuilttoLast #ErinHahn for the advanced copy.

The sweet home renovation love story of my dreams! This took me less than a day to get through and it was just cozy and sweet and just lovely!!

I’ve read a couple of Erin Hahn’s books and I think this brand contemporary romance with a touch of Hollywood is her sweet spot. Honestly the only thing that would have made this five stars for me would have been a bigger look at Cameron and Shelby’s teen years - I wanted to see them fall in love twice, tbh.

Cameron was the sweetest bearded cinnamon roll and as a reader it was obvious how much genuine love and care he and Shelby had for each other. It wasn’t just lust or crushes, they both clearly respected each other.

I’m aware of how many times I’ve used the word “sweet” here but really that just sums it up!! GAH so cute!!

Cameron Riggs and Shelby Springfield are former child stars who had a real-life romance. Lyle Jessup is the third of the triangle. After Cameron left to go to college, Shelby fell into the arms of Lyle, embracing a pop-star, party girl lifestyle. But when Lyle cheats on her with Marcella, Shelby first calls Cameron, then runs home to Michigan.

Ten years later, Shelby is working with her father renovating homes. Cam is a documentary filmmaker. And Lyle is looking for trouble. He convinces Shelby and Cameron to produce a home renovation pilot. What he doesn't expect is to watch Shelby and Cameron rekindle their relationship on film.

Shelby and Cameron, along with their Michigan friends and relatives, are so darned likable. Michigan is likable. Home renovation even seems likable. Lyle and Marcella, however, are pure evil.

This is a fun romance, more engaging than most I've read recently and I'm even over the whole HGTV spinoff thing, so I was a hard sell with this one. #BuilttoLast #NetGalley