Member Reviews
Well, hello, hot tv star who drops everything whenever Shelby needs him. Cameron Riggs is such a sweetheart, I would be shocked if a reader *doesn't* fall in love with him. He's loyal, caring, and determined to do his best, even when faced with something completely new.
Lyle sucks. Period. He doesn't deserve to be in this review, but I want to bash him. How could he try to mess up Shelby and Cameron??? (This is a no spoiler review, but let's just say that if the line is the new house Shelby and Cameron are building, Lyle is all the way in Alaska.)
Shelby and Cameron's relationship grew so nicely. I especially loved all the scenes where they were away from the cameras, and how they were there for each other as Lyle tried to mess them up. It really showed how they grew up from teenagers, and matured into the adults that they are in the book.
Took me a bit to get into this one, but once it picked up, I read through it quickly and ended up really liking it. Cute story and fun characters.
This is one of my favorite stand-alone romances of the year (although based on the ending, I'm wondering if we will get a Lorelai - bestfriend - based sequel). This book was a dual-POV romance that focused on two lovers - to strangers - to lovers again. I really enjoyed reading this couple fall back together again. Definitely a slow-burn that was worth the wait! I recommend. I really loved the values of the characters. I could just picture them loving each other, and it warmed my heart!
Home reno show? Say no more! I. Am. In. This book is flippin' adorable.
Here we follow Shelby and Cameron, former child actors, co-stars, friends, and each others first loves. Unfortunate life circumstances and decisions pulled these two apart from each other and from Hollywood. Cameron takes off for college, and ends up working for NatGeo and travelling the world. Shelby finds herself going back to her small-town home, where she finds her new beginning in restoring old furniture, and flipping houses alongside her father. After years apart, Shelby is approached to star in a home renovation show with her co-star being none other than Cameron.
Built to Last is a heartwarming second-chance romance that left a huge smile on my face. I enjoyed the story line, and thought that the character arcs of both MCs were great, especially Shelby's! The dual POV was also a plus for me. I love being able to get inside both MCs heads.
I adored this book. It was my first one by Hahn but it definitely will not be the last!
BTL comes out on October 18. Be sure to add it to your TBR! 🏡
Thank you NetGally and St. Martin's Press for this ARC.
Thank you to St. Martin’s Press for the arc of this book!
Built to Last follows two young sitcom stars that fall in love in their teens but part ways, both leaving the spotlight soon after. They find their way back to each other 10 years later, ending up in another TV show together.
I could not put this book down, I loved the characters! Shelby was strong and completely self-sufficient. It was so refreshing how open and honest she was with her boundaries, especially with what she was willing to put at risk after coming so far in rebuilding herself. Cameron is the book boyfriend who has it all. he was all in from the very beginning and honestly, I loved their story. They were solid to me all throughout, especially with their communication. Second chance romance and friends to lovers have never been my favorite tropes, but I still thoroughly enjoyed this. All of the supporting characters were great as well, can’t wait for this to be a series.The writing was funny and didn’t lose steam at any point in the book. One of my favorite rom-coms this year, absolutely.
A cute rom-com read. A beach read with a bit of Hollywood drama thrown in. It is a feel good book but I felt it dragged out a lot in places. It could have been 100 pages less and more impactful. The characters at times felt stereotypical and fell flat for me. But then it could be because I couldn't connect with them. I also wish the author had given the secondary characters stories a little bit more time.. It would have helped the protagonists story move faster and tie in loose ends. It starts with Daniel's need for money but then there is no mention of it anywhere else. It just felt disjointed.
First lovers reunite to produce a pilot show and realize they have always been love with each other.
I loved the premise of this book…a fiction version of Chip & Joanna Gaines with the added layer of a second-chance love story. This book has the bones and makings of a great story you can get lost in.
I loved that each chapter started with a song title. If you chose to listen (or sing it in your head, ha!) at the beginning of each chapter, it can really set the tone. I loved this little touch & how each song went with each chapter.
The dual POVs is another thing to love in this story. You get the perspective of both Cameron and Shelby, which *can* make a story more complete.
While the bones of this book are original, creative, and solid, some of the details needed some “accordion work.” I don’t know how else to describe it. Some scenes were too drawn out and needed to be condensed, while other scenes needed more detail and needed expansion. I found it hard to connect with Shelby & Cameron at times because I wanted more writing to show their connection and how they got to where they were.
All in all, great potential, but I wanted a little more fine-tuning.
Cameron and Shelby were both childhood stars on a TV show. Shelby left that world behind, but they eventually reconnect for a new home makeover reality show ten years later.
This was absolutely delightful! The plot was well-paced and captivating from start to finish. The characters were charming and witty. I love watching home renovations shows which really made me love the plot even more.
I highly recommend this book if you love HGTV, heart warming second chance romance or first person POV.
I can't wait for more in this series of books and from Erin.
Many thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the advanced copy of the book.
How cute was this book! For anyone on an HGTV binge like me, this hit the spot. The writing was easy and fun, and the conflicts were resolved without all the usual miscommunication tropes of many popular contemporary romances. Entertaining and I look forward to more from this author!
"I used to think I was making the calls when we were kids. But I'm starting to see that it's been her all along. She's always been the brave one."
I will almost always to a childhood bestfriends/sweethearts to lovers type book and this one is everything you could want in the trope. This is my first Erin Hahn book, and definitely not my last! This book had me all warm and fuzzy inside.
Shelby Springfield, childhood star and now DIY/ home flipper, is living a quite life after experiencing a very public and embarassing breakup with her long time boyfriend/costar a decade ago. Ready to dip her toes back in the water, Shelby is offered the chance to do a home reno show, but her ex Lyle, and her childhood sweetheart Cameron are a package deal for this opportunity.
This book is the sweetest, low angst, second chance romance. Even with Lyle there making life less than pleasant once again, Cameron and Shelby are still drawn to each other after being worlds away. Watching these two find their way back to each other and fall in love out in the open will leave you with the biggest smile on your face. Cameron is one of my favorite soft, cinnamon roll type character's I've ever read.
I loved this book to bits and I'm so excited for Lorelai's story, I loved this kick ass music star/ bestie in this book.
Thank you so much Netgalley, Erin Hahn ,and St. Martin's Griffin for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
↠ 5 stars
Thank you to the publisher and author for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own! This book is just a feel good pick up book. I absolutely think the chemistry between the main characters is something we all dream of and they are humanized in the story. It’s nice to have a main character not be perfect and definitely learn and grow over the course of the books. With witty side characters a jerk of an ex this book has a lot of growth. I even liked the comments sections on the articles!
*Happy sigh* This was such a cute story and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I am such a sucker for home renovation shows and cheesy romance. And Cameron Riggs? Talk about a new book boyfriend, y'all! This story follows Shelby Springfield and Cameron Riggs, child TV stars and first loves who never found the right timing, until now! They find their way back to each other in their hometown in Michigan filming a pilot for a new home renovation show. Sounds perfect, except their other ex-costar, Lyle, and Shelby's ex is the producer. He has made it his life's goal to make Shelby and Cameron look bad so of course, he is only going to throw wrenches in at each turn. Overall, this story was adorable and I loved the characters! Such a nice read!
Love love loved it!!
Shelby and Cameron are former childhood tv costars and current home improvement costars. These two have so much history! I absolutely loved them! Shelby and Cameron fought to stay together and are meant for each other!
This book also included many amazing and some not so amazing side characters. I loved seeing how both Shelby and Cameron support systems who were always there for them. Lorelei and Maren are the best friends a girl could ask for! Kevin and Beth are the goofiest and loving couple who love and support Cameron.
Overall I loved this book!!
This was a perfect second chance romance. You can feeeeeeel the chemistry between our two many characters, Cameron and Shelby. They’re respectful to each other, they’re comfortable with each other, and they love each other.
I loved these two because they’re weren’t any miscommunications like I thought there would be. They had genuine respect for one another and I loved reading them.
Also it was set in Michigan!! And they mention Grand Rapids a lot and that’s near where I grew up! It was so fun seeing the little Michigan-isms in the book. ❤️ (Yoopers, Mackinaw, Euchre, iykyk!)
This book gave me all the reels and I really really loved it. Strong and fierce friendships, troubled family past, exes, romance, tv shows, and #couplenames. Definitely give this one a shot.
What is better than a rom/com? a rom/com with just the right amount of banter and a bad guy who makes you want to go to Stab town on him that's what! I enjoyed the kinda friends too lovers trope this had going on as well as the character development, that was phenomenal. 4⭐️
Built to Last was such a cute story of second chance love, I loved Cameron’s character and the silly moments they allowed him to share with Shelby. I was a little confused by the relationship with his dad but felt the author cleared up the fuzziness there toward the end. Lyle was an excellent villain, hating him gave the whole story even more satisfaction. I’m looking forward to reading another by this author!
This was a sweet second chance and friends to lovers romance. I enjoyed these characters and their chemistry. This was such a well written book with a fun romance in the center.
I definitely think many romance readers will enjoy this.
Thank you NetGalley and St Martins press for this ARC. I absolutely loved the house renovation concept in the storyline. The cuteness and banter in this book is adorable. I loved Shelby and Cameron relationship!
I look forward to more adult books from this author.
4.5/5
Romance, 336 pages
No Spoilers Review
This book caught my attention for a couple of reasons. The first reason is the home renovation aspect. I've always been curious/interested in home renovations, and to find a book that touches on this piqued my curiosity. The second reason being that I'm a big believer in second chances at love. Mixing those two themes sounded like the makings of a good book to me.
The story was very real/believable to me and I thoroughly enjoyed every second of it!
This was an easy read. It was entertaining, and I just loved the way it made me feel as I was reading it. The characters were well developed, and I especially liked Shelby and Cameron, two of the main characters, and how they grew as people.
Things I liked:
The drama - let's be honest, who doesn't like a little bit of drama, especially when they aren't a part of it?
Hating Lyle! The character was well written, and I just hated him, which I am sure was the reaction the author was going for.
How Shelby and Cameron grew as individuals during the time they were apart, which is a major reason why this story worked so well.
Things I didn’t like:
There were a couple of times where I felt things were moving along a bit too slowly for my tastes, but every such occurrence was pretty short lived.
I would recommend this book to just about anyone who doesn't mind a little romance in their reads. It's just a wonderful feel-good book!
This was a sweet little surprise!
This book offered all the things I love in a contemporary romance, with some added extras I didn’t know I needed. Built to Last is a great example of a romcom showing love conquers all. I found the two main characters extremely likable, as well as the supportive friends.. Great relationships and character growth. And let’s not forget some spice sprinkled in.
My only complaint is the ending. I found it to be a little abrupt. I’m not mad at the way it ended I just wanted more. The epilogue certainly helped but I felt a little…let down?
Overall a solid 4 star read for me. Would LOVE to see a sequel with one of the other characters. IYKYK