I do not usually read romances but I clearly need to do it more often because this was thoroughly enjoyed! The characters were compelling and their dynamic had me not wanting to put the book down

This book was sweet, steamy, and so cozy! It felt like I jumped into a Hallmark movie; it really made me wish for Christmas time. I loved the fun cast of side characters too! If you’re looking for a cozy, queer, second chance, small town romance, give this a try.

omg omg omg. this was such a good time, i feel very grateful to have received this arc! in the event of love follows morgan and rachel, our sapphic leads who have a rich history but most recently have spent some time apart. after not having seen eachother for seven years, morgan returns home, and runs into rachel -- her best friend, crush, and someone she is not done with quite yet. through the events of the story, they rediscover and reignite what was once there, as they are caught up in both new and old feelings. second chance romances, i LOVE you!

as i said above, i was thrilled to have received this arc. it had all of my favorite tropes, and i found the characters to be relatable and endearing. as a queer woman, we need more books just like this one! reading this was truly like watching a hallmark movie, with moments that had me smiling from cuteness and blushing from that extra hint of steam. on top of this, there were moments of profound deepness, which balanced well with the light-hearted nature of the other parts of this book. i am really looking forward to reading other books by courtney kae!

thank you to so much to both netgalley and kensington books for an e-arc in exchange for an honest review. all thoughts and opinions are my own.

In the Event of Love had things I liked and things I didn't. The representation in this book was great. Lots of LGBT+ and POC characters. I'm a Jewish reader who usually hates holiday romances but this mentioned Chanukah, even a menorah(with the shamsash!) and a dreidel. However the writing felt a little flat and boring. It was also hard to tell when we were switching to the past or to text messages. I did like the characters and the overall plot.

Morgan is headed back home for the holidays, the one place that broke her heart.

When Morgan discovers that the Reeds’ struggling tree farm is the only thing standing between Fern Falls and corporate greed destroying the whole town’s livelihood, she decides she can put heartbreak aside to save the farm by planning her best fundraiser yet.

Love is in the air!

Listen. I am not particularly in tune with Hallmark’s Christmas catalog, but I’m fairly sure that “In the Event of Love” would fit right in with them.

Courtney Kae’s debut tells the story of event planner Morgan Ross, who goes back to the small mountain town where she grew up to take a break from work after a tabloid disaster. And who else does she run into but her high school crush, Rachel? And when Morgan discovers that Rachel’s family tree farm is about to be bought up by a big corporation, she makes it her mission to save the farm.

So, you know, a pretty standard tropey Christmas romcom, but make it sapphic. Morgan and Rachel are both openly bi, and their town is wholly accepting of the LGBTQ+ community. Which I absolutely loved. Sometimes, you just really need to escape into a world where homophobia doesn’t exist.

Kae is a fantastic writer, perfectly capturing the voice of a high-strung woman in her mid-twenties who occasionally makes terrible decisions. I love Morgan and Rachel so much. Their banter is fantastic, their love for each other permeates the pages and their chemistry is just … *chef’s kiss.*

Also, this book was surprisingly steamy, but after the MILF book, I can honestly read anything.

“In the Event of Love” comes out on Aug. 30, 2022. I received an early copy from the publisher, Kensington, in exchange for an honest review.

This was such a heart-warming, sexy, big-hearted romance. The big-city-girl returns to her small-town home trope works so well here, and I can see this turned into a queer Hallmark movie! I am eager for more installments in this world, too.... 👀

A cute cheesy Rom-com. I liked the characters and the setting. I could have done with a little less cheese, but its a romance novel. Overall, a nice queer holiday read.

Thank you to Netgalley for giving me an ARC in return for an honest review.

In the Event of Love is an LQBTQ+ Hallmark-style small town second chance romance. Morgan left Fern Falls 7 years ago to escape and start fresh in LA. She’s become a very successful event and wedding planner but she accidentally got herself in trouble and is basically blacklisted all over LA. She retreats back to Fern Falls for a few weeks and is forced to reconnect with her former best friend and crush, Rachel.

They end up having to team up to plan an event to save Rachel’s family’s Christmas tree farm and consequentially the entire town from the evil corporation that wants to buy everything in Fern Falls.

I have to be honest and say that I think my review is a bit skewed by the fact that I just read an eARC of Chloe Liese’s newest Bergman Brothers book, and it was one of her classic slow burn stories, so when the heroines in this book got together about 50% through the story with comparatively very little angst and tension, I was a teeny bit disappointed. 🤪 A lot of things seemed to resolve very quickly for the heroine, including her strained relationships with friends and her dad. I did find things to be a bit predictable as well. But when I re-read the synopsis to see it described as a Hallmark-style story, I realized it delivered exactly what it promised! The ending was very sweet and I even teared up a bit at one point during some emotional moments involving Morgan’s mom who passed away when she was little. So if you love Hallmark movies and wish there was one that was a little more steamy with a sexy lumberjane and her high school crush who left for the big city and is home again, I think you’ll enjoy this book!

The perfect book to read as Arizona is heating up-- made me feel like I was back in Winter! This is a fun, sweet and sexy tale that delivers on it's promise as a sapphic hallmark story with a sexy lumberjane. I mean, what else could you ask for but christmas trees? Excited to see where Courtney Kae goes from here.

This is a fun queer love story a-la-Hallmark style. It’s Christmas time, so that means it’s time to finally return to your small town hometown and also time to run into a blast from the past. Morgan has been living in LA and working as a successful event planner for years, but it only takes seconds into running into Rachel to have her past come flooding back. They were once best friends and also Rachel was her crush, but they only had one doomed kiss.

Rachel runs her family’s tree business, because of course she does, but it means that she has distracting muscles. Is home really where the heart is? Cute queer rom com for fans of Hallmark movies and Christmas movies in general.

In the event of love is a queer take on a hallmark Christmas movie. I had a fun experience reading, all the characters were enjoyable and it had a really sweet ending. Definitely good for a “fun read” but other than that there’s not much to say; really enjoyed it tho.

Morgan and Rachel were the best part of this story - and by that I mean their relationship. It was definitely full of cute moments and they truly were perfect for one another.

Mostly everything else though just didn’t mesh with my tastes. The second chance romance of it all didn’t add much in my opinion, some plot threads that were opened up just didn’t seem to get tied up or they had a quick out of the blue resolution, and at times, the style of writing reminded me more of a YA book instead of an adult romance. I also couldn’t imagine a lot of the scenes described - none of the writing sparked much visualization for me.

Overall, I thought this book was okay - but just had too many things that didn’t work for me to truly let the romance shine.

If you made me pick two words to describe In the Event of Love by Courtney Kae, those two words would be: abundantly sexual.

So much sex. So. Much. Sex. I prefer closed bedroom doors so I’m not the best person to report on the very detailed, multi-page sex scenes. And I won’t. I have to say, though, that in all my professional meetings throughout a career longer than I’d like to say right now, I never lost track of a conversation because I was fantasizing about having sex with my client, even when they were really hot. But maybe that’s just me.

The story concept is familiar: prodigal daughter returns home to recover from a public embarrassment and meets up with a high school love interest. They’ve managed to be mean to each other and/or ignore each other since their confusing high school breakup. And I think that’s the crux of the problem with this book – the two love interests begin lusting after each other almost as soon as they meet up again but they never seem to know/get to know each other at all.

I completely believe that they want to have copious amounts of sex. The author describes this in detail. In fact, protagonist Morgan fantasizes very frequently about things she’d like to do with her client, Rachel. And then they work really hard at fulfilling all of those fantasies.

Maybe the sex is supposed to be fantastical, like unicorns and tinkerbell? The scene for their first sexual encounter makes more sense if it’s supposed to be titilating without being realistic. I wish I could say more but NO SPOILERS. Personally, I also can’t imagine a first encounter as such a public experience but what do I know?!

Other than sex, though, they don’t seem to have much in common and their communication skills are terrible. More importantly, they never improve. We never get to know Rachel. Morgan isn’t particularly likable. She sure is horny though and I’m glad that she’s been able to relieve that itch multiple times by the end of the story.

What does she offer? How does she grow? She’s immature. She’s presumptuous (most of the book’s conflicts occur because she assumes that she knows the answer to every problem without ever talking to anyone else). She’s a terrible friend, a terrible daughter (a great event planner), and a coward who runs away from everything.

The author relies on speeches to move people unrealistically. The ending? Oh lordy. It’s Hallmark-movie-cringe but if you like that stuff, you will probably be okay with it here too. In addition, there are several beneficial coincidences (involving money and relationships) that aren’t believable. They too are cringy but no spoilers, even though I’d love to talk about why they don’t work. I’ll have to wait until a few more of you finish the book.

One comment though: the alcoholic parent and (past) parent death feel tacked on, as though someone said "Add some trauma so the reader identifies with the protagonists." It would have been better to leave off trauma that serves almost no purpose in the story. It certainly doesn't move the story forward.

The writing itself would benefit from a thoughtful re-write – there are a lot of clunky mistakes that aren’t grammatical errors. I can’t reference any here, of course, because I reviewed an ARC. Trust me, though, that hearts can’t do what Morgan’s heart does in this book. Want to know more? Sorry. You’ll have to read the book.

In the Event of Love is scheduled for release on August 30, 2022.

I received a digital ARC in exchange for my honest review.

4 stars

morgan is a super successful event planner in the midst of an accidental scandal that’s thrown her back into her hometown of fern falls, the very last place she wants to be, and among the very last people she wants to see.

rachel, morgan’s childhood best friend and crush, is struggling with money and may have to sell her tree farm. she’s not the only one struggling, either. morgan makes it her job - well, literally - to save these struggling businesses, and the more time she spends in fern falls, the more she wants to save her current relationships, especially with rachel, from crumbling just like they did when she first left.

this book is so charming and is truly the hallmark story we deserve! soft bisexuals, pretty low angst, adorable side characters, wholesome story telling. like, what else do we need? seriously, i’m asking, what else do you even want????? cuz i’m all set, right here!!!!

i actually really loved the holiday atmosphere, something i’m usually just not a fan of in any books (i’ve tried so many times!!!). i even wished i was there in fern falls, among the snow! i hate snow, but i loved fern falls and how tight-knit the community was. everything inside that town was done truly as an act of love.

that’s my favorite type of small town romance. i don’t need the rude gossipers and people trying to sabotage relationships. i love love and kind people! everyone in this story was sweet as pie and their determination for each other’s success, and their own of course, was so lovely to read about and watch unfold. i will definitely be watching out for more from this author!

thank you to netgalley for the ARC!

*Spoiler free*

This book was absolutely everything that I wanted out of the sapphic Hallmark movie in book form that I have been yearning for. I leans into the tropes that makes those movies as endearing as they do, and adds a layer of emotional depth that only seeks to make this book even better.

It is the most amazing combination of sweet, sexy, and angsty. It takes place in a small town where I basically want to hug everyone who lives there. And that's how strong the characters are. They are so endearing, that I just want the best for every single one of them. There's such a variety of them, and how I adore them all.

Everything about this book is heartfelt. I felt the love from the dedication (which made me so sappy oh my gosh), and it only grew throughout the book. Gosh, it was just so, so great to see a queer romance, a sapphic romance, with characters coming into themselves and trying to find the love they are yearning for. It's just, such an amazing book.

Morgan Ross dreams of being promoted to director of the NYC branch of her event company. A scandal with a slimy celebrity threatens Morgan’s dreams and Morgan finds herself taking a break from work during the month of December. In an effort for her to stay busy while following her boss’s wishes to relax during the break, Morgan decides to return to her home town for a fundraiser. After making a “stunning” entrance into her quaint hometown, Morgan soon realizes that this fundraiser she thought would be quick and easy is so much more complicated than she thought. On top of that, the fundraiser is to save her ex-girlfriend’s tree farm. Setting their old feeling aside, will Morgan and Rachel be able to rekindle their love and save their quaint town of Fern Falls?

In the Event of Love was such an adorable, angst-less read. It did start of kinda slow and took about 100 pages for me to get into it. I started reading this book when I was in the mood for romance but I did not end the book in that mood (I’m trying to stick to a TBR instead of being a mood reader to avoid having multiple books open at the same time) so I will take that into consideration for this review. This book features a group of diverse side characters that basically run a small town, most of them seeming to be in their twenties so kudos for them having their life together.

As will be mentioned multiple times, this book does give Hallmark movie vibes and, as such, does not have a lot of angst. That’s not necessarily a bad thing because there’s times you just want a happy rom-com to read without having your heart ripped out and stitched back together. I quite like angst in a book because it makes the character seem more realistic since not everyone’s is going to readily accept and forgive others. The lack of angst was one of the main issues for me when reading this book. Although Morgan didn’t really do anything bad, everyone forgave too easily for her essentially ghosting them. Even Morgan’s dad forgave and accepts her back into his life when it was made to seem like the dad’s ex-girlfriend took priority over Morgan in the dad’s life. Morgan and her dad do have a heart-to-heart which was very cute and kinda makes the negligible but it was set after everything. The love interest also readily forgave Morgan and although it was cute that they both never got over the other, I expected a little more pining or something. I’m not sure if this was the intention with the book and I was expecting something else, but it was just a little too happy for me. Like I want their happiness but I also want to see them fight for forgiveness and their love.

The love interest, Rachel, is such a complex character and I was bummed that we didn’t get any povs from her. We don’t know what’s happening in her head. What she thinks of Morgan’s ghosting. How she has handled the town and tree farm prior to the book. How she has internalized her feelings for keeping her family together. Her thoughts on her dad’s alcoholism and him not showing up for her. There’s just so much to her that I wish we got since it would’ve provided another layer of depth to the story. The entire book being from Morgan’s perspective honestly made the story kind of bland, still very good, but just not exceptional.

I did heavily struggle with whether to give this book 3 or 4 stars but have eventually decided on 3 for the reasons listed above. The book is by no means bad but it has its flaws. Maybe I’m just not a Hallmark movie, and this book, kinda gal or maybe I enjoy books that play with my emotions. Either way, this was not the book for me but it might be for you. If you are looking for a cute, sapphic romance to help get you into the holiday season, this might just be the book for you. Filled with an abundance of heartwarming moments of second chances, this book will leave you toothache from how sweet it is. Truly a Hallmark holiday movie in book form, with the added bonus of spice.

Oh. My. Gosh. This book was magical to read. Never left me behind, always kept me interested. This book is perfection without having a perfect story. There are issues that the characters have to deal with. Sometimes they succeeded but not always. The book is pretty real in that regard. Lovely plot, crafted with care. Included bisexuals in the book in a terrific way. The erotic tidbits were definitely the right choice to enhance the plot, and not overdone.
The tension between the characters was off the chart The whole book was sewn together by the magic of fairies, true love, and just being finally sure that you're enough for yourself and others. Such a thoughtful writing. Very touching, and yes I cried with happiness. The cherry on top was the afterward letter from the author being so greatful to bring this piece of art into the light, and so greatful for her readers. I would read anything this author writes.

This was a feel good holiday type romance but believability was low for me. The opening scene felt far-fetched and from there it was all a bit too insta for me. It’s told 1st person only from Morgan’s POV. She seemed too young to be so successful but also so immature. I had a hard time connecting with her character. Part of it was the language the author chose, which at times felt gratuitous and gave it more of a YA vibe. Rachel seemed more interesting and well rounded even though we don’t get her POV. I liked the side characters, and the event Morgan creates is whimsical and creative. The romance happened too quickly and the tension wasn’t compelling enough. It’s a cute winter romance that I wanted to like more than I did. I will say what happened in the epilogue was novel and creative!

Short Summary: When her career nearly implodes, Morgan is sent home for a month of R&R where she runs back into her old flame Rachel. As Morgan plans an event to save Rachel’s business, the two grow closer and Morgan’s eyes are opened to the charms of her hometown that she’d buried when she fled 7 years prior.

Thanks to Netgalley and Kensington Books. ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.

Christmas In March is exactly what I asked for and this was absolutely adorable. Warm and sweet and just what the doctor ordered.