Alone during her college’s “family weekend,” senior Cassie Klein heads to the bar in search of a distraction. She finds it when she makes eye contact with a gorgeous woman across the room and follows her out to her car to hook up. Little did she know, Cassie’s simple one-night stand is about to become a lot more complicated. The following morning her best friend, Parker, forces Cassie to breakfast to meet Parker’s mom, Erin…. who just so happens to be the woman Cassie left the bar with the night before.

But it was just a simple one-night stand that they could put behind them, right? Not when Cassie can’t get Erin out of her head. So one night, turns into two… how long can they keep it up?

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This book wastes NO TIME getting into the plot. Seriously, it hooks you right on page one and doesn’t stop for the rest of the book! The chemistry between Cassie and Erin is undeniably strong and the forbidden romance aspect only adds to the steam.

Speaking of steam, the spice level is absolutely off the charts. This book might hold the record for most spicy scenes among the books I’ve read. And wow, they were incredibly well written!

Also, I’m a huge fan of split POV books and I think that style really worked well with this story. I loved getting to see things from both Cassie and Erin’s perspectives.

I have to address the elephant in the room, though—it’s really weird to sleep with your best friend’s mom who’s 18 years older than you. But if you’re reading this book, you know that’s what you’re getting yourself into. After all, this has been dubbed *The MILF Book.* Honestly, I think Meryl Wilsner did a great job writing the age gap and taboo relationship. Out of context, it can seem like some kind of conflict of interest, uneven power dynamic, boundary-crossing relationship—and while that does leave a bit of a bad taste in my mouth, with these specific characters it doesn’t feel too strange or problematic. At worst, they’re being careless toward Parker. Obviously, that isn’t great but because the motivations are so well fleshed out I think as a reader you can empathize.

If you love sapphic romances with loads of spice, I’d definitely recommend picking up this book when it comes out in October!

Special thanks to NetGalley and St. Martins Press for providing the eARC in exchange for my honest review.

This was a cute, quick read. There was more smut than I was necessarily prepared for, and I do have to admit that as interesting as the plot synopsis look when I read it, I hadn't thought about how complicated and messy of a situation it was.

Part of the reason why I wasn't huge on this just has to do with my dislike for age gap romance in general. Every so often, I give it another try to see if my feelings on it have improved, and they have not. These feelings of discomfort only grew with all of the sneaking around they did. I felt Parker was underutilized as a character as well, and though I liked that there were no main male characters, Erin was the only main character that I truly enjoyed.

Overall, though, this was an easy read, but I doubt I'd recommend it to people who didn't like age gap (as a large part of the plot centers on it).

Thank you St Martin Press and Netgalley for giving me access to such an amazing ARC!

Immediately after seeing the cover I requested the arc, and let me tell you I absolutely loved it. I enjoyed this read so much I plan on purchasing the physical copy when it releases October 11th. The spice is amazing🔥 The tropes are secret dating, age gap, and a happy ending. It's such a fun read and takes you through all the emotions. I really think if you enjoyed The Love Hypothesis you'll love this book.

Blurb:
Cassie goes to a bar across campus to get away and not run into anyone she knows. While at the bar Cassie runs into a hot older women who she hooks up with. Little does Cassie know this hot older woman is actually her friends mom.

4/5⭐️
3/5🌶

OMG, I love Something to Talk About so much, that I had really high expectations for Mistakes Were Made and Meryl Wilsner far exceeded them.

When Cassie Klein goes to a bar on the first night of Parents Weekend to avoid the happy families on campus the last thing she expects is to hook up with much older attractive women. The next day, when Cassie's best friend Parker drags her to breakfast to meet her mom, Erin whose in town she does not expect to come face to face with the women from the night before.

Erin came to Family Weekend to see her daughter, not have a one-night stand with a student. And her one night stand shows up at breakfast the next morning has her panicked.

The sparks between Erin and Cassie can't be denied and this one-night stand quickly becomes something more. LOVED, LOVED, LOVED this book. This book was steamy and full of so much passion and emotion. Can't wait for Wilsner's next book.

Another romance I enjoyed, but that I wanted a bit more from.

I liked Mistakes Were Made: the characters were distinct, the romance was developed, and there were some solid side characters. But as with so many of the 3-star romances that I've read, I wanted this book to go deeper than it did. The two main leads definitely got to know and grow closer to each other over the course of the story--it wasn't an insta love situation or anything--but I still felt like that emotional connection was not as developed as it could've been. There was more that the author could've explored, especially on Cassie's side, that could've made the relationship feel a bit more fleshed out and grounded. That being said, I feel like a lot of people will still really enjoy this one, and I'll definitely be looking forward to Meryl Wilsner's future books (I know they have a couple coming out in the next few years, which is very exciting).

Thank you St Martin's Press for providing me with an e-ARC of this via NetGalley!

Mistakes Were Made is a sweet age-gap romance with lots of angst.

I loved how we really got to know Cassie and Erin, their strengths and fears, and their relationship hang-ups. Both women have excellent friends and support systems they can go to with their issues, so I was surprised how insecure they were. The main conflict in this story is how neither woman wants anyone to know about this relationship because of the age difference. I hoped someone would be mature and at least attempt to be open and honest, but instead this is a sneaking around and lying about it story that doesn't show either of them in a good light. However, the two of them were so good together and brought out the best in each other that I could almost overlook the sneaking around.

Overall, a fun and well-written story even if it follows one of my least-favorite tropes.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Griffin for early review access to this book.

I’d like to thank NetGalley and St Martins Press for this eARC in exchange for my honest review.

I liked a lot about this book. I’ve always been one for the trope where it’s like oh no we are actually connected tangentially (through a job, best friend, sibling etc.) after a supposed one night stand (it’s ✨never✨ just a one night stand). And this best friend’s mom was definitely that! I like the way Cassie and Erin grow as people throughout the story, and the push and pull of their interaction really made their relationship a 5 star one for me.

Overall the story was excellent, dialogue funny and interesting, but I did find some parts at the beginning to be a bit forced and kind of hard to read smoothly. I picked it up and put it down a couple of times because of this, but as soon as I was past the first couple of chapters it was smooth sailing. Maybe the awkwardness is intentional and I missed it, but as I am reading this release in April and it’s out in October, I’m hoping there is time for it to be cleaned up just a bit still. I would absolutely change my rating to a 4.5/5 ⭐️ if the beginning was polished up.

“F*** Should”
On the surface, Mistakes Were Made tells the tale of a cringe hookup between a college senior (Cassie) and her best friend’s mom (Erin). However, once you read between the steamy scenes, you’re drawn into a story with complex characters dealing with their own trauma and reaction to society’s perceived rules and our place within them, as exemplified by the above quote. It’s a touching, steamy, romp of a fun easy-to-read book, definitely worth reading.

Mistakes were Made was just ok. I wasn’t overly impressed. The whole thing was very immature. I know most of the characters were college students, but Erin was supposed to be a middle-aged physician and she didn’t really make it feel any better. The book opens up with a one-night stand that wasn’t believable or sexy and the romance pretty much remains that way for the first half of the book. I do feel like it improved towards the end when they finally did more than have rushed sex scenes. I finished this in one day, so it kept me reading. Unfortunately, I just didn’t love it.

This was a really fun romance and I overall had a great time with it. I throughly enjoyed reading Cassie and Erin’s romance and I liked all the characters most of the time. My one critique was just that the big reveal was so underwhelming and I felt like a lot of the end of this book was just kinda dragging

My sapphic heart was not prepared for how much I would ADORE this book. I absolutely could not put it down and I can not wait for it to come out so I can buy a copy for every lesbian friend I have.

This book was so sexy and so horny so if you're not into books with a lot of intimate scenes this probably isn't for you but if you love a sexy and emotional read this is 100% for you,

I will say, I was iffy on the age gap but I think Wilsner did a very great job with character development not only for Erin and Cassie but also the side characters and the age gap didn't feel important to me as much as their connection to each other.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review, 5 stars.

This book was truly FUN. From start to finish I enjoyed myself, and I found each character to be richly written and engaging throughout the story. Cassie is a great character, dynamic and flawed and intriguing, and Erin is the perfect foil to balance her out. Everyone who called this the MILF book was not wrong (including the author themself) and wow the whole thing delivered. My only complaint is that the second half of the book seemed to drag a little, feeling repetitive, and made me lose a little momentum in reading. Overall I found Mistakes Were Made to be exciting and addictive, and I read the whole thing in a frantic marathon because I didn't want to put it down. Such a fantastic time!!

mommy? sorry. mommy? sorry. mommy? sorry

Parker invites her best friend Cassie to breakfast with her mom and, upon arriving, Cassie realizes that her bestie’s mom, Erin, is the same older woman Cassie hooked up with the previous night. Despite knowing this, it doesn’t stop Cassie or Erin from going after the other, as long as Parker doesn’t find out. While this may be a perfect solution in theory, it becomes a lot more difficult when Cassie stays with them for the holidays and when they start catching feelings for the other.

I’m not usually one that goes for a relationship involving two people that, age-wise, could be parent/child so I was a little hesitant when I began reading the book. Right off the bat, you can tell that the writing in this book is superb and that, despite my reservations, I might be able to get past the MILF concept. It being a sapphic book was the main reason I actually decided to give an attempt reading this book.

As of writing this, I’m only about 1/3 of the way through the book and I’m really considering DNF-ing it. Reason being that I don’t think this concept is for me. The writing is really beautiful, the spice is well-written, the characters are a little bland but overall fine. The big kicker is that I’m really hating how Cassie & Erin are going behind Parker’s back. In their defense, if I was Parker and found out my mom and best friend were having sex, there would not be enough therapists to help me work out what I was feeling. So in that sense, I get why they are hiding it from Parker but it’s also just a shitty thing to do. The further along their relationship gets, the worse it will be for Parker when she inevitably finds out. If Erin & Cassie do get together after Parker knows about their relationship, will their relationship be more of a sugar mommy and sugar baby? Would Parker call Cassie her bestie or her step-mom?

My curiosity for what was gonna happen was too strong to resist and I have to say, I’m glad I didn’t DNF it. With that said, I probably would not read this again as it is not my type of book. The ending felt a little anticlimactic as I expected to read a lot of tension between Cassie, Erin, and Parker once Parker found out. All throughout the book, it was mentioned that Parker and her mom are not on the best of terms so the ending being anticlimactic is not an understatement. I expected, based on their relationship, for there to be some big fight or blow out or something and there wasn’t. Maybe there would have been if we had Parker’s pov but Parker was almost a negligible character. I also did find myself skimming through a lot of this book which I’m going to attribute to forcing myself to continue reading it and for wanting to get to the spice. I just currently do not think this dating-my-best-friend’s-parent trope is for me.

Although I wasn’t a fan of the book, Mistakes Were Made was a really cute story and the spice was great. If you are into the best friend’s mom trope, then I highly recommend picking up this book. It is fairly fast paced, plus the tension and lust is super thick. The author did a great job in making Cassie still seem like a college student with her friends while also matching perfectly with Erin. The inclusion of Erin going to therapy was really cool to read as it didn’t overwhelm the plot but instead added a new element to it. The writing is beautiful and the author was able to sneak in a few fun things as well (like the classic “your mom” joke).

Having read Meryl WIlsner's debut last year and getting to hear some of the hype about this book over the last several months this was a very anticipated read for me. And I must start by saying it did not disappoint I Loved this book and read it in one day. There has been a lot of discussion with other ARC readers about a couple of lines of thoughtless and casual racism that did stick out to me as well. I hope these are corrected in the final version of this book.

Now on to my actual review. This book had me hooked immediately and starts off with a bang. Literally. It needs to be made clear that the sex is this book is very explicit and there is quite a lot of it which was a big change from the slow burn tone of Something to Talk About. While I definitely enjoyed this aspect of the book the thing that really kept me engaged the whole way through was the depth and reality of the characters. Both main and side characters felt like fully fleshed out people and grew and changed over the course of the book. There were moments in this book where Cassie's inner dialogue resonated so much with experiences and feelings I have had that I had to pause and reflect before I could keep reading. I especially loved that in a romance novel the third act conflict was resolved by people actually slowing down and speaking honestly to each other. What a refreshing change of pace!

Lastly I have publicly complained on my podcast about disliking romance novel epilogues that skip years in the future but I ended up giving this a pass because I love gay double proposals so much I didn't even care.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and Net Galley for an early e copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

From the moment Meryl started talking about her raunchy, messy, idiots-to-lovers romance, I was like YES, and this book was exactly what I expected. It’s spicy and fast-paced and fun, it has so many sex scenes I lost count, and it of course features a MILF I’d die for (which is the most important barometer for any book, queer or not, frankly). The more time I spent with Erin, the more I was ready to protect her and fight for her, and quite possibly kill her daughter for her. I wish there was a little more swoon, more deep conversations between the main characters or more romance in their dates, but I think that’s mainly due to personal preference—I do like my romance on the ‘this is gonna me weep’ side. If you like yours more on the comedic, beach read end of the spectrum, you’re gonna like this.

THIS BOOK. If I only had one word to describe it, that word would be HOT. Seriously, there were times where I strongly questioned my sanity reading it in public. While I feel like not every romance needs an epilogue, I loved the other 95% of this book so much that I am willing to overlook it. This book truly has it all and if you're look for a steamy read, this is IT.

Can't say that I've read a book like this before and so I didn't know what to expect while reading it. Honestly, I really enjoyed it. The premise is that Cassie is a senior in college (so not high school, finally) and goes to an off-campus bar. She ends up hooking up with someone in the bar (Erin) who she doesn't realize is older than her. The next day, she meets up with her best friend Parker (college freshman) and asks Cassie if she wants to have breakfast with her mom and her who is in town - well if it isn't Erin from the night before. So basically, it's a lot of sneaking around.

Meryl Wilsner delivers a quirky, laugh out loud, edge of your seat, sapphic romance. Tropes such as age gap (legal), secret dating, and dare I relate to the song “Stacy’s Mom”?

The characters are relatable in every aspect. How I was able to connect on a personal level to a divorced, middle-aged doctor AND college aged women who are just starting to navigate adult life is absolutely beyond me.

The entire story I was on the edge of my sweet waiting for a catastrophic blow-up. The story made me fall in love with the characters while being able to laugh at the teasing, sympathize with the troubled pasts, and get frustrated and the tension and holding back of emotions. This was a beautiful read that I loved reading. The spice levels were top-notch and the emotion written in was believable and heartfelt.

Quick Summary: While trying to hide from her University’s Family Weekend at a local bar, Cassie ends up hooking up with hot, older woman— Erin. They both expected to never see each other again after their one night, however, things change when Cassie tags along with her best friend Parker and Parker’s mom. It turns out that Erin is her best friend’s mom.
Review: I was so excited after I found out another sapphic rom-com/contemporary romance was being released. It definitely did not disappoint. This book contains popular tropes such as age-gap and forbidden romance. Let me just tell you that this book is SPICYYYYY! The chemistry and sexual tension between Cassie and Erin will leave you wanting more! The age-gap was very well-written and it didn’t make me feel uncomfortable at all. If you like a romance book that contains a lot of spice with hardly no conflict, then I definitely recommend this book!

The only critique I had was that the pacing was a little weird. It started out really fast and it didn’t really transition well. However, it was still a really good read and i definitely recommend!

Thank you NetGalley and St.Martins Press for this advanced copy!

I didn't realize how much I need an age-gap, MILF romance until I read this one! Cassie and Erin had so much chemistry between them, and I loved seeing their relationship bloom. I loved how clueless Cassie was when it came to her feelings for Erin. The only critic is Harper. She read more like a 15-year-old girl rather than a college student.

Other than that, this book is spicy and heartwarming!