If you are an Emily Henry, Beth O'Leary, Christina Lauren romance fan, you will love this book. Erin Hahn brings all the fun to this second chance romance. Shelby Springfield is a childhood star that lost herself and then found herself once again through the discovery of renovating priceless woodwork and renovation. Cameron Riggs was Shelby's co-star back when she as the LA it girl and he hasn't stopped thinking about her for years. He's always the one who comes whenever she needs him. With a new show concept on the line and the two former co-stars coming together to work on a show once again will the romance spark once again? Erin does an amazing job of developing characters and processing conflicts between them. If you love HGTV shows you will really enjoy this one. This is a must read for any rom com fan!

This wasn’t for me in particular. Some of the chapter titled felt silly and out of character for people who aren’t supposed to be teenagers. The spicy scenes almost came to early, which I never say. This has a LOT of potential but for characters who we’re supposed to like as the reader, they were unbearable. Also the last time… maybe cut the iffyness in the reply?

I read this book in one day, y’all. ONE. I love when I am so involved in a story that I can’t walk away and this book hooked me and wouldn’t let go. Do yourself a favor and read it. For me, it is a fresh storyline and I very much enjoyed that aspect. I was also very happy to read about a female in a typically male-dominated field. I can’t wait to read more by this author.

Thank you netgalley and the publishers for this e-arc in exchange for an honest review.
The characters were very likable, I loveddd the plot of the story, and there weren't any times when I was reading and was entertained.
5 stars

What really drew me into this book at first was the beautiful cover and fun description! I had never read the authors other works, but loved the premise of childhood sweethearts, home reno shows, and overall seemed like a good read - and it was!
Built to Last was a cute, fun book that I enjoyed. The characters were intriguing and I really loved to see the growth that happened. The plot was enough to keep me interested with fun dialogue and situations. I felt like this was a good rom-com premise and Erin Hahn did a good job delivering. It's perfect for readers who love a good long lost love type romance, slow burn, and fun premise.

There were a two small things I didn't like about this book. The pacing was a little off to me - I was sucked in quick and then the story drug on a little for me in the middle. It didn't stop me from reading, but I did skim a little. The other thing was the writing wasn't my usual preference for an adult romance, it seemed a little more YA style (not in topic!) just the style of writing. BUT with being an adult debut I would definitely read more of this authors adult novels!
ARC was provided to me by Netgalley & publisher.

Built to Last, by Erin Hahn
Release Date: October 18, 2022
🌟🌟🌟🌟/5

Former TV stars and childhood sweethearts Shelby and Cameron are reunited for a new project after leaving the LA spotlight years ago. But after everything they've been through together, and everything that's changed since they parted ways, will they be able to work together (and overcome setbacks planted by their scheming former co-star) to make this new project a success?

I really enjoyed Built to Last! The alternating POVs capture the will-they-won't-they storyline as both Shelby and Cameron come to terms with their complicated history and try to figure out how they fit in each other's lives moving forward. I loved all the pop culture references, and the behind the scenes details about their home renovation project were so interesting!

Read this if you love:
📖 HGTV and DIY projects
📖 Female friendships
📖 Second chance romances

Thank you Netgalley and St. Martins Press for the opportunity to read this advanced reader copy.

4.5 stars // I was beyond thrilled when I got an arc of Erin Hahn’s adult romance, Built to Last! She is one of my all time favorite YA authors & I could not wait to read this one! If you love all things Erin Hahn, you are going to love this one. Written in her charming & hilarious voice, we meet Shelby & Cam, child actors turned sweethearts. After Cam left without much of a word years ago, he’s back & surprise - they are doing a home renovation show together. Oh & their other co-star & Shelby’s ex is producing the show & bringing allllll the drama.

Read this one if you like:

-tree trunk thighs & all the flannel
-childhood stars & best friends turned lovers
-home renovation shows
-the sweetest father/daughter relationship
-the most fun trio of friends
-second chance romance
-midwesterners

Being a Midwestern myself it’s always fun to see that view point in books & I loved watching Shelby’s transformation back to her roots of a down to earth Midwestern girl. Cam is just the sweetest & while they both definitely have their relationship issues, it’s great to see them try to work them out. I really enjoyed this book & can not wait to read whatever Erin Hahn writes next (especially Lorelei & Maren’s books!!)

Huge thanks to NetGalley & St. Martins Press for the advance reader copy.

I loved the characters in this story! The friends added a great deal to the storyline. I enjoyed getting to read a glimpse of the Hollywood lifestyle but the Midwestern setting was perfect! I liked that even though you knew how it was going to end, there were plenty of twists along the way to keep you engaged.

This is a slow burn friends to lovers/ second chance romance story. I found both characters to be super likeable and somewhat entertaining. Unfortunately, this story wasn't my favourite. I found myself skimming some parts of the story as I waited and waited for them to just confess their love already. I did appreciate that there wasn't really a miscommunication trope where the lovers can easily fix their issues with open communication, so that was a plus. I just wasn't super invested in this story like I thought I would be, considering I love home renovation shows, but it just didn't work for me.

I loved this story of two former child stars who reunite to make a home renovation pilot. It was so refreshing to read a rom-com where the main characters don’t hate each other, play games or have all kinds of miscommunications. You root for them throughout the book! I have already requested other books from Erin Hahn from the library! She’s definitely an “author to read!”

This was cute and I enjoyed it, but I found the pacing to be really off!
It started off really strong and really good, I was hooked. Then it slowed down to a snail's pace and I was sludging along. Then it would pick up again. Etc. I just really struggled with staying engaged.

The story was CUTE! I just did not enjoy the pacing.

A fun romance, with two lead characters you can't help rooting for. Both have pasts as child stars, and yearn to show the public that their teen personas are not who they are as adults. Both have grown in unexpected ways, yet still have a strong bond from their teenage years. The supporting characters bring a surprising amount of depth to this book, making it such a stronger story. It was my first Erin Hahn read, but it definitely won't be my last.

This book fully has me singing: “buy dirt, find the one you can’t live without, get a ring, let your knee hit the ground, do what you love but call it work”.

Cameron + Shelby are childhood sweethearts turned strangers through MANY miscommunications and are reuniting to work on an HGTV-esque home reno reality show. I didn’t realize how much of this book would be miscommunication trope… which is one of my least favorites, particularly in relationships with grown adults. A good chunk of the beginning of the book is rife with poor communication + it lead to me not really connecting with the characters. I didn’t feel like we really got to explore Cam/Shelby’s relationship as kids, their passions as adults (I would’ve loved more about Cam’s documentary making + Shelby’s woodworking!), and it was very insta-love + a little cheesy in that regard.

That being said — it really was cute! Some good banter and the way they were with each other was VERY sweet once they got past all the misunderstanding. A little spicy at points too!! I’m not mad I read it at all.

I was between 2 and 3 stars but you can see my engagement with this book in my reading speed — time wise, it was a super quick & easy read, but it took me almost a week to get through because I just didn’t get invested in it.

I received this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion - thank you to Netgalley + St. Martin’s Press!

I don’t know what I was expecting but I was blown away!!

This story details the journey of former best friends, costars, and lovers, Cameron Riggs and Shelby Springfield. Having been apart for a decade, their love has never wavered. When thrown into a Home Renovation Reality Show, Shelby finds herself working with her horrible ex boyfriend Lyle and her first love Cameron. Finding their way back to each other while facing many challenges won’t be easy, but with hard work and determination, they can do it.

I LOVE the relationship between Cameron and Shelby. It’s so rare you meet your soulmate at 11 years old, but for them, it happened. Every stolen glance and simple moment just foreshadowed their love for each other. I have never smiled so much reading a novel… especially with how fast their connection seemed to respark.

The witty banter and comic relief throughout this story was to die for. The running joke about “tree-trunk thighs” had me laughing everytime. It was honestly relatable.

Erin Hahn did such a great job writing this book, and I will be sure to recommend it to everyone when it comes out!

I love watching home reno shows (hello, fixer upper and dream home makeover) so the plot of this book was appealing.

Characters: Shelby was just as charming and loveable on the page as she was on screen. I loved her redemption arc but wish she would've banned Ada Mae from her life. Cam was a dream and I loved that he wasn't wishy washy about his goals and choosing his future. Theres a special place in he'll for Lyle...

Setting: great descriptions of the the locations and especially all the thoughtful house details. I loved the different styles.

Plot: the plot was fast paced without any boring unnecessary scene. The characters guided the story and I appreciated how Cam and Shelby added together to finish the house and determine their futures, on and offscreen.

Final thoughts: a fun easy book that will be going back into my to-read pile that gave justice to the characters.

eARC was provided by Netgalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
5/5 stars
Very charming and entertaining. Friends to lovers, and a bit of second chance romance from their childhood. I liked the home renovation and show business aspects. Highly recommend this book!

I wanted to love this but I just can't.

Far warning for this review, I read 7 chapters of 25 total (about 30%) and that's when I decided to DNF because I'm not forcing myself to finish things I'm not enjoying this year. That being said:

It's not bad, it's just not for me. That is clear from the amount of 5 star reviews on the Netgalley site. The first three chapters (prologue included) moved at super sonic speed throwing backstory at me then the following chapters slowed down to a crawl of dialogue hinting and mentioning everything just previously told to us. Without the prologue and the events in it, I think I'd be able to enjoy this more but it threw me off. 10 years ago from present day, co stars on a teen show go their separate ways, with Shelby and Lyle in a relationship and Cameron on his own. 5 years ago from present (the events in the prologue) Lyle cheats and dumps Shelby, and Shelby who hasn't spoken to Cameron in 5 years drunk texts him where he drops everything to go to her only to realize she's drunk and walks out on her while she's sleeping (their whole in-person interaction was like 2 hours long if that.) Present day, MC's haven't spoke to each other again for 5 years and that 2 hour interaction is treated as life altering. By chapter 7 they're basically already a couple and have both admitted they're in love with each other.

As a self proclaimed childhood best friends to lovers to strangers/enemies to lovers trope's #1 fan, this disappointed.

!! 2 Star review will be given on NetGalley, Goodreads will have no star rating and will be on a DNF shelf with the review attached.

If you are looking for a super cute, heart-warming read, this one is for you.
This is a second-chance soulmate book, that weaves Cameron and Shelby’s present with their past as child stars.
It took me a little while to get into this book, because it was a bit frustrating to see how much they still loved and cared for each other (and how attracted they were to each other) but they continued to keep their distance.
And while they were slowly realizing their love was still there, they both start to work through the hard parts of their past, leaning on each other for support.
And the ending? Perfection.
Thank you to Net Galley and St. Martin’s Press for the eARC. All opinions and thoughts are my own.

This book was so cute!! I absolutely loved the house renovation concept and got to live out my Chip and Joanna Gaines fantasies through Shelby and Cam. I loved these two main characters and of course loved the dual POV throughout. Their complicated relationship history laid the groundwork for a fantastic rekindling of the love they had for each other as teens and rediscovering what that means for them now. Such a good read!

Built to Last is an adorable second chance romance about friends-to-lovers. This book has a great premise and the main characters are very likable. I was swept up in the author's writing style - I'm totally hooked on Erin Hahn!

Shelby is a "ruined" child pop star, while Cameron is a traveling photographer for National Geographic. They have a lot of history between them, but they end up working on a home reno show together with Shelby's ex (this dude adds a ton of drama). Not only do they rehash why Cameron left her twice but they also rekindle the spark they had in their teens.

There's a ton of pining and angst in this one which is totally my jam! While the characters struggled to communicate, they both loved each other (quite obviously) and neither ever did anything so heinous that I couldn't forgive them. I enjoyed seeing adult Shelby and Cameron come together in a more mature way, but I also loved the flashbacks of their teen years - they were just so darling and innocent.

The dialogue is sharp and snappy in this one. I felt like I was in a real place because Hahn is just such a wonderful storyteller. She shows the feelings and the plot rather than telling. I can't wait to read more of her future work!

Trope-wise, this one has:

Jealousy on both ends
Valid miscommunications
"Only one bed"
Sex dreams
Nicely descriptive sex scenes
Really awesome side characters who jump off the page

Literally my only criticism is that the characters confessed their love a bit too quickly. Suddenly, they were both all-in but we had more plot to go. I would have rathered them get together but not actually profess their love so that I could remain a bit more interested. However, this is just a super small thing and I TOTALLY recommend this book overall!

I received this as an ARC from NetGalley, but these opinions are all my own.
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https://fromthereadingroom.com/review-built-to-last-by-erin-hahn/