Sarah Adams never fails to put her charming characters in laugh-out-loud situations and moments that warm your heart. Amelia and Noah bounce off of each other in their dialogue and emotional connection, and having both of their perspectives enhances the connection the reader feels to the characters. I am a big fan of Sarah Adams and found this book to be a delightful read!

When in Rome was incredible, funny, and way too cute. Amelia (Rae) and international pop star ends up stranded in a small town in Kentucky and on Noah’s front yard. Getting to read their struggles and dynamic was a pleasure and a page Turner. Definitely recommend

If you've been reading Sarah Adams from the beginning of her career you'll be happy to know that this book is full of the same humor, chemistry, and smile inducing romance that is somehow uniquely her.

I got major Notting Hill vibes from this book (one of my absolute favorite romantic comedy movies ever!) so it's no surprise that I thoroughly enjoyed the story.

Amelia AKA famous pop star Rae Rose needs a break from her life sucking job (my words not hers) so she runs away to Rome, Kentucky where she meets surly (her words not mine) pie shop owner Noah and a town full of quirky but loveable people.

Noah is still jaded from a previous broken relationship and Amelia is only looking for a place to catch her breath and take a break from the spotlight. Grumpy meets sunshine = my new favorite genre.

If this book had been written circa The Match it would have gotten 5 stars because it would have been just as good (actually better in my opinion) without all the swearing and without the door cracked open. Each book seems to have more swearing than the last and just a little more detail in the bedroom.

Things to know about content: more than twenty swear words but no *f* words. No violence. Some passionate kissing, innuendo, some talk about sex, fade to black but with no graphic details or explanations.

Rae Rose is a successful, burned-out singer who flees her life one night to a small town in Tennessee; her car dies in front of Noah's house. She ends up spending two weeks in his guest room while her car is fixed. During that time, she falls in love with Noah and the town folk, and vice versa. Noah, still traumatized by an unfaithful fiancée, must wall himself off from Rae (whose actual name is Amelia) to protect his heart. So they dance around each other for a long, long time. Meanwhile, Rae finds evidence her manager is manipulating her and causing trouble for her own financial benefit. Will Rae return to her career or give it up for the handsome man who runs his grandmother's pie shop?

When I started this novel, I felt happy to have discovered a new writer. But then it bogged down. The two mains dither for too long. However, the chemistry is well-written and the snark is funny.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶

✅ Grumpy/Sunshine
✅ Forced Proximity
✅ Found Family

I haven’t fell this in love with a book since I read How to Fake It In Hollywood… I absolutely loved everything. single. thing about this book. Amelia may be a pop star but acts nothing like one. She is caring, thoughtful, strategic and is looking for her place in the world.

Noah… oh, Noah. I just wanted to hug him the entire book and we him know that he can open himself back up to love. He is protective of Amelia and will do anything to keep her safe.(🥵)

What really makes this book a well rounded story are the towns people of Rome. They each have their own personalities and nuances that give you that ‘warm hug’ small town feeling. And then on top of all that, the banter between Amelia and Noah is absolutely perfect…

I want to read through my TBR but I’m feeling that I’ll be re-reading When In Rome ASAP.

Sweet and smart. My first by this author that I picked up solely based on the cover alone. I think it looks adorable, highly recommend if you are looking for a quick , sweet and small town romance.

3.75 STARS

When In Rome hooked me and kept my attention for about 3/4 the book. I really had a good time. At about the 70%, I just kind of hit a wall. Nothing bad happened. I don’t know it if was just pacing or I got a little bored. I felt myself not being as invested. I push through and finished it. It wasn’t a bad story. I don’t know why I got stuck. I am interested in reading more from this author.


I voluntarily read an early copy.

Sarah Adam’s books never fail to put a smile on my face. She is the queen of writing couples with incredible chemistry.
Burned out star meets small town baker.
He’s a grump, she’s all sunshine and I’ve always loved a “grumpy” male lead since first reading Pride and Prejudice as a young girl and Sarah delivered this with Noah.
I loved watching Ameila break through Noah’s surliness.
It was charming, heartwarming, and I sped through it because I didn’t want to put it down. There is so much to love about this book and just you wait for those kissing scene friend 😍🔥. Sarah just keeps getting better and better.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for sending me a copy. All opinions expressed are my own.

THIS WAS SO CUTE. That’s it. That’s the review. Go read.

Thank you NetGalley for my eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Sarah Adams has written another winner! She is definitely an auto buy author. Amelia Rae Rose a pop star that is worn out and has lost herself decides to escape from her life. She goes to Rome, KY where her car breaks down in front of Noah’s house. Noah has become somewhat of a recluse and a grump. They get off on the wrong foot but are soon living in the same house and getting to know one another. They have great chemistry but try to fight it. As her time in Rome continues Amelia begins to find her true self again. This is an amazing story between these two.

Sarah Adams does not miss when it comes to rom-coms! Forced proximity and the sunshine/grumpy tropes are so well done and planned out in this book. The witty banter and chemistry had me grinning, blushing, and swooning all at the same time. Both characters were able to be so intimate with each other without pushing any boundaries. The secondary characters were so lovable that I am truly hoping they each get their own book! Sarah Adams has quickly become one of my favorite authors!

Thank you Netgalley and Random House for the ARC!

3.5 rounded up.

This was actually pretty darn adorable and sweet. Also, I totally relate to Amelia's love of Audrey Hepburn, so the author gets extra points for that and all the references to Roman Holiday - the best Audrey film and one of the greatest films of all time.

This book is everything I expect from Sarah Adams and more! The banter - top notch, humor - witty and laugh out loudable, and the characters- relatable, swoony, and “sweet as powdered sugar.”

I very much enjoyed my time in Rome…Kentucky. When burned out pop star, Rae Rose/Amelia, takes off unannounced to the nearest Rome, she lands in the front yard of the stoic Pie Shop owner, Noah. He wants nothing to do with her or relationships, but when he’s reminded of how his grandmother would want him to treat this beautiful stranger he begrudgingly takes her in. And thus, honest, protective and real feelings ensue for two unlikely friends.

🥞Forced proximity
🥞Charming/nosy small town antics
🥞Grumpy/Sunshine
🥞Finding oneself/Family
🥞Dual POV
🥞 Pancakes over pie - I stand by this!

I’ve been a Sarah Adams fan from the beginning and seeing the growth in her writing makes me so proud…even though I have literally nothing to do with it! This book was gave me the sweetest escape making me laugh and smile my way through it!

Thank you NetGalley and Random House for this Arc!

Adorable! The characters were compelling and the story was endearing. A little spicier than the other books by this author, but not overly descriptive. I would really love to read a sequel with the focus being one of Noah's sisters or his friend James. Thank you netgalley for the ARC!

Gill: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
Plot: 🥧🥧🥧🥧.5
MC: 🧔🏼‍♂️👩🏻🧔🏼‍♂️👩🏻
Spice: 🌶
Romance: ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

This book is so cute, Sarah Adam’s is the queen of Rom Coms, her attention to detail & description make you feel like you are a fly on the wall. This book has so many laugh out loud scenes, mixed with a just the right amount of scenes that tug on your heart strings. The tension in this book is so good & I love that the book isn’t overly spicy.

Ugh, Sarah has done it again. This book is flawless. It is all the best things—quirky small town, sexy Luke Danes, pie, fun side characters, sexy Luke Danes, matching pjs, cute nicknames. Did I mention the sexy Luke Danes? You’ll want to google maps how far Rome, Kentucky is from your house and also buy pop tarts and pretty flowers and pie and button up pjs with a missing button.

THIS BOOK WAS SO CUTE! I never knew how badly I needed to read a romance book about a pop star and small town baker until now! I definitely want to read more from Sarah Adams, her books are addicting. This book has everything, I especially loved the dual pov between Amelia and Noah. Amelia’s entire inner monologue was hilarious! The only weird thing to me was Noah’s descriptions of Amelia in the beginning, it just seemed a little creepy but after the beginning of the book the writing style was a lot more comfortable! All of the side characters were wonderful, they had developed personalities without being the main characters and I loved it! Review posted on Goodreads

This book was so good! I loved Amelia's personality, and her obsession with Aubrey Hepburn. I also adored Noah's sisters and thought when the town tried to meddle was so funny!

Small town Pie Shop owner Noah Walker- the grumpy to Amelia “Rae” Rose’s sunshine pop star in this romcom.

I loved Noah : heartbroken from a failed engagement to a big city girl. Caretaker to his grandmama and sisters. And a freaking Saint for tolerating the meddling townsfolk of Rome, KY.

Amelia- bless her heart. For 28, she seemed more emotionally to be an 18 year old, and it annoyed me to no end. Maybe I thought too deeply about the plot?🤷🏻‍♀️ But I have so many notes on my Kindle and the recurring theme is essentially “HOW IS SHE THIS CLUELESS? MAKE IT STOP”.

Her absolute passivity about her entire life and having Susan her manager (assistant ?) make all decisions about all things made zero sense to me. The way that whole messy business just neatly wraps up in the end seemed rushed to me. Also, it felt like Amelia didn’t actually get there on her own. She needed a lot of pushes from
Noah along the way in the whole book to choose things for herself- it felt like she went from asking Susan permission (again- wtf with THAT) to asking for Noah to give her permission (in a way) to do something. Then suddenly, at the end, I am supposed to believe this child who made one bad decision after another figured out all the ways Susan has manipulated her? I don’t buy it.

I did not feel the connection between the two characters, and was really surprised their first kiss came at 25% in to the book- it didn’t make sense after Noah literally says he doesn’t do casual flings because “I like to have an emotional connection with a woman before I sleep with her and it’s damn inconvenient” and there he is just kissing a stranger. Make it make sense.

While they did have conversations about their pasts, I felt like her main interest in him was his looks. Drinking game- every time he thinks/ says she’s pretty + every time she says how hot he is and has implied sexual fantasies about him= I am drunk.

Again, this may be a case of it’s not the book, it’s me in this moment of time reading it, but I just wasn’t connecting with the MCs as a couple.

The side characters are delightful, I can see a series being written with stories for all the sisters and James the bff.

3⭐️

What a story! The characterization was quite good and her characters were endearing. In my opinion, this is SA’s best book to date.

I was a little put off by the cover - orange isn’t my thing, and the plot - it seemed like it’d already been done. However, I was hooked after the first two pages. The orange grew on me as I got further along in the story and the plot was more cohesive than others with a similar trope.

I will readily admit that I’m a sucker for forced proximity. It’s here in spades. And Noah is by far my favorite leading man in SA’s books. TCS has nothing on WIR.

Thank you, Sarah, for sharing your gift of writing with the world