Not That Kind of Ever After is fun and sweet, and even made me laugh out loud a few moments. I could relate to Bella as an aspiring writer in my late twenties who is looking for love but beyond that things felt a bit slow with this one. I had fun and would recommend but at times Bella's story was a bit cliche and repetitive. Most of her issues were challenges she caused for herself instead of outside battles that she was taking head on, making it hard for me to cheer for her as I would like to.

Thank you to Luci Adams, St. Martin's Griffin, and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of NOT THAT KIND OF EVER AFTER!

Okay this book was adorable. I loved the spin-off way that Luci Adams brought real life fairy tales into this book. There were so many moments where I was laughing out loud, and even more moments where I wanted to slap Bella because she was being stupid.
HOW did she not see what was right in front of her? Her very own Prince Charming, just waiting for her self, self-centered self to catch up.
I loved that the FMC wasn't very likeable, at least not to me. She was whiny, annoying, and the whole hating her best friends boyfriend drove me nuts. But we get to see her grow throughout this whole book, and that character growth alone made the book worth some of the more eye-rolling moments.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Not That Kind of Ever After is set to release on March 14, 2023!

Thank you so much for this ARC!

I really got into this book and fell in love with Bella as the flawed heroine writing her own fairytale.

She was funny and quirky and I loved the fairytale tie-ins and side characters throughout her journey.

It was refreshing to read a romcom where the protagonist finding a man isn’t the grand finale. Instead, it’s seeing her journey in finding herself and rediscovering friendships.

Bella has been searching for her Prince Charming her whole life. Her parents have a wonderful, fairytale-worthy relationship that she’s always dreamed of having herself. Now, her absolute best friend in the whole world is moving out of their flat and into one with her boyfriend, her writing is at a standstill, and there still are no Prince Charmings on the horizon. With the inspiration from her best friend’s brother and also a website where writers publish stories one chapter at a time, Bella lives out some real-life fairytales in order to kickstart her writing journey. The only problem? It’s not that kind of ever after she’s looking for.

Wow! What a unique (to me) storyline. When Bella and her friends come up with the “living out fairytales” idea, I’m all for this little adventure for her. At first, I’m on Bella’s side with being angry and upset with everything that’s happening in her life (trying to not give spoilers haha). But then I start to realize this self-destructive path she is on, and I have to buckle up. There’s definitely some predictability to the story, but that’s what you get with romcoms. I very much appreciate the mild “third-act breakup” because my heart couldn’t handle even more turmoil in this tale. I will say, the beginning was a little jarring for me, and I almost put the book right back down because it opens with a sex scene (mild spice) which will usually, immediately turn me off. I’m glad I kept at it though because it turned out to be a very enjoyable read!

I couldn’t connect with Bella’s character. She was really selfish and I just couldn’t finish it.

I received this ARC from NetGalley and the publisher for an honest review*

I have very mixed feelings about this book. The beginning was rough. I wanted to DNF at 12% of the way through and was actually going to. I decided to try to speed read to 50% and hope it got better. It did once I finally understood the theme the author was trying to portray. Even after the book ended, I wasn’t a fan of the FMC or most of the characters, but it at least had a decent story arc. The FMC seemed way too whiny and self-centered, and the last part of the book couldn’t even change that. I don’t understand the organization of the book and why it was split into seven parts. I think this will cut off the potential, but the beginning, especially needed a lot of refinement to make the rest of the book worth reading. 2.5⭐️, 3🌶

Not that kind of ever after

This book of fairy tails isn’t what your mom read to you as a young child. A girl determined to find the one ends up creating a whole new genre of fairy tails in what turns out to be a mission of self discovery. This book is a long one filled with a main character that is very hard to read at times but if you push through you find this truly is a path of discovery as she reinvents herself and grows into a better version of herself. This book is not what I was expecting in the best kind of way with laughs and plenty of cringing along the way. A unique read.

I really wanted to love this book. The description and cover of the book sounded like something I will enjoy, but it unfortunately did not execute. It was cute and lighthearted, but it had no depth. I can see how the author tried to make the female mc "whiny and immature", in order to have character growth, but it was a little hard to read and get past. It just wasn't for me.

Thank you St, Martin's Griffin and Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This seemed like a cute rom-com story about Bella Michaels envisioning her future perfect happily ever after that mimics the epic level of a fairy tale story, complete with a prince sweeping her off of her feet. In the meantime, she keeps finding frogs and looking at them like they might turn into a prince if she kisses them. While I could understand where she was coming from, Bella does come off a bit self-centered and spoiled, especially when witnessing her best friend Ellie with her boyfriend Mark.

After a fallout with Ellie and Mark, Bella has to find her way on her own and because she's trying to navigate through finding her own happiness, or at least fun right now, she goes on a series of dates. They become inspiration for stories that she can write and it gives her the much needed confidence to continue and to put herself out there.

Although I saw the romance coming, I was rather underwhelmed by it because there was no hint of chemistry between them prior except that they had known each other for a long time, but he certainly wasn't sitting around pining for her and vice versa. When it finally happens, as though it had been meant to be all along, I was a bit disappointed about what a non-event it was and the aftermath. I realize the point of the story is that Bella grows out of her egocentrism and becomes more self-aware of others and their feelings and vulnerabilities as she, too, comes out of her shell in order to appreciate both human flaws and strengths.

I received this book from NetGalley and the publishers to read and review. All statements above are my true
opinions after fully reading this book.
I loved the cover and title of this book but unfortunately I did not enjoy the authors writing style. I had a hard time staying interested in the book.

This was a cute book. It was a little slow for me and took me longer then usual to read. There were laugh out loud moments but the characters were a little blah. I won't tell anyone not to read it but it wouldn't be my first recommendation. I will still be checking out other books by this author.

Thanks NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for allowing me to read this ARC in advanced.

I really wanted to love this book. The description sounded very interesting, but the description was the whole plot of the book.

I found Bella to be a very annoying MC. She was definitely relatable at times but she was mainly annoying and selfish. Besides, every other character had no depth and didn’t make a difference to me.

Her relationship with Marty was just so out of the blue to me. If I hadn’t read the description I would have been very confused. I feel they should have hinted at something earlier because when he picked her up and let her sleep on his couch was not a hint. When they finally get together, she says he’s just Ellie’s brother, we never read that she finds interesting in any way, shape, or form.

Also, there was too much sexual talk for me.

It wasn’t a book I personally enjoyed reading but I am sure there is an audience that will enjoy the story.

PS.: I will write a spoiler-free review on my page.

I’d like to say this was a cute rom-com. There were some funny parts when Bella began writing about her dates. Bella came across as emotionally immature and so, so whiny. I think she became more unlikeable as the story progressed. The peripheral characters were extremely likeable, though, and that’s what kept me reading.

The texts between her and Marty were sweet, and I would’ve loved to see more between them. It all came together in the end, though. I actually teared up as she finally woke to how selfish she’d been and made amends to those who cared for her. 2.5/5 Stars

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press, St. Martin's Griffin for this ARC.

This was cute, frothy as described, and exactly what you expect when looking at the cover!

Sweet, light hearted, not something you’re going to get a ton of depth from, but sweet nonetheless!

Interesting spin on this story. In the beginning the main character Bella was whiny, selfish, immature and down right annoying. I felt the character came across weak and insecure and maybe that was what the author was wanting when they wrote it so the character could grow. I liked the relationship she had with her best friends brother, the no bs banter and truth. It was an interesting read.

While the story was at times entertaining, it just didn’t grab me as much as I would have liked. I wanted more depth and more feeling. Given the length of the book, I was hoping to feel more attached to the characters.

The ending was cute and tied up all the loose ends nicely.

I’m so tired of chick lit being packaged as romance, and this whole book was just so cringe for me. I kept wanting to get into it but something about me and the main character wasn’t connecting and the pacing was… off… safe to say this wasn’t the book for me.

This was just ... no bueno. Not the kind of book for me. It all felt messy and rushed, and I couldn't handle all the sarcasm. Unfortunately, I didn't make it past the first chapter because I was cringing too hard at just all of it. I'm sorry, but I have nothing to actually review:(

This was definitely different than I expected. I wasn't expecting it to make me look into my own relationships. The main character goes through so much emotionally that you start to feel for her. I think it was more unbelievable before it was believable. I truly wanted to see her have a fairytale ending, but then realized she did. She had the ending she should have, and she truly came into her own life. Took a few chapters to get into it, but I liked it.

2.5 Stars.
This was a trudge through the trenches.
What do I mean by that?
I felt like I was stuck on one of those playground merry going rounds that just keeps spinning. You’re holding on for dear life hoping you’ll see new scenery. But you pass the same swing set and the same slide and the same seesaw with every revolution.
And then you realize the scenery never changes.
The heroine is almost just as inane and clueless and irritating in the last chapter as she was in the first one. The marginal character growth she has happens in the last 15% of the book.