I love a good second chance romance and Ex Appeal hit the mark. Vinh and Emily were high school sweethearts who still have great chemistry after 10 years. When Vinh needs a hacker he can trust to help get him out of a tight spot Emily is the first person he thinks of. Emily only takes the job because things have been tight since her father passed. Of course they discover that they still love each other after all that time. There's women in STEM and AAPI representation which makes my heart so happy. Authors like Cathy Yardley have almost ruined me for other books when they mention the MMC or the FMC are in something like cyber security, I want all the details, and she delivers. It's funny, charming, and full of all the feelings. I also listened to the audio, it was the first time I've heard both Jenapher Zheng and David Lee Huyhn and both were amazing. I'll definitely be on the look out for more narrated by them.

✿ಇ A SECOND-CHANCE ROMANCE BETWEEN EXES!!!!

when he said "i've loved you for 15 years and i never stopped" BUT THEN THIS BANGER "i knew you were it for me" stoppp vinh was really that man. i loved him so much and he loves emily so very much. they were high school sweethearts but broke up in college because of thiiiings. emily has hated vinh from that point and when she reunites with him, she can't really look at his face without arguing with him. but he needs her help, her hacker help!

he's a fixer who gets paid a stupid amount of money to fix stuff companies do. and emily is a hacker who loves figuring out how to hack computers and maybe even save the day. vinh just got 10 million dollars stolen from a client's account and he needs emily's help to figure out where it is. emily isn't that keen of helping him but she believes in him still and doesn't want to see him sad or worried. plus he's paying him LOTSSSSS for the job.

also for the ones who loves heroes who love to pamper and spoil their love interests, vinh is your guy. HE LOOOOVES BUYING STUFF FOR EMILY he wants to treat her like the queen she is and he's going to do it you bet!!!

im so sad to see this trilogy end. i think this is the last book? THIS WAS SUCH AN AMAZING, CUTE, FUNNY ROMCOM SERIES. you should all read the three books they all have to do something with social media, the internet, and influencers. if you love anything to do with that, you will adore cathy yardley's series.

Thank you NetGalley, Montlake, and Cathy Yardley for this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

It's a second chance romance between high school sweethearts who have been apart for 10 years and one party does not know why they even separated in the first place especially since it was during a crucial time for the break-up-ee then fast forward to 10 years after the break-up, the break-up-er requests the break-up-ee to do something for him (with something in exchange, of course). Need I say more?!

[P.S. break-up-ee is Emily and break-up-er is Vinh]

I love, love, love second chance romances! There's just something about it, you know? It's definitely the angst. Unfortunately, there wasn't that much angst in the book and it was more of a rom-com type.

There were so many LOL moments, like <spoiler>when Emily literally <i>dropped the pie and ran</i>when she saw Vinh</spoiler>. They all got their moments. The romance between Emily and Vinh is really cute.

Overall, 3.5 stars.

This was another good addition to the Ponto Beach series. An enemies-to-lovers, second-chance romance 10-years in the making - I enjoyed re-visiting this group of friends. The supporting, family dynamic amongst this core friend group is really heartwarming to read and see play out on the page. The relationship between the two MCs was developed pretty well - the back story and original break-up was a little messy and convoluted for me. I really appreciated the female MC getting the chance to come into her own a bit in this story. Definitely a series I'd continue to read more of!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read a copy of this book to review.

Again, this was such a cute story. A lot has happened and I really was curious to find out who did that to Vinh. I also liked the fact that the author also went into some more details regarding crypto and blockchain. The third-act conflict was also not as I expected it to be, which is definitely a good thing since I tend to loose interest around that point.

This was a really cute, adorable, fun and easy read and I really enjoyed it. Would definitely recommend.

Thank you, NetGalley for providing me an ARC.

Second-chance romance is my favorite trope in romance books.
This book was soft, sweet, and had the perfect amount of tension and pining. If you’re looking for a light read with tons of character growth and amazing side characters, this is the book for you!

Cathy Yardley’s Ex Appeal was a fun read that managed to hit a few unexpected sore spots while keeping me deeply invested in the characters and their growth throughout.

Vinh and Emily were high school sweethearts and part of a tight-knit friend group when someday, the pair split. The pair live just over a decade on opposite sides of the country until a fated Herdsgiving and a comedic bit involving pie and a sidewalk.

As the story continues, we get more context about the breakup involving Emily Emily’s dad’s passing and her having to move back home to help her mom and keep the family afloat by dropping out of NYU. Now Vinh is super successful, essentially working as a fixer for a large investment firm. But when $10 million goes missing from a client’s account that things had exclusive access to, he turns to the only person who can trust. Which also happens to be the girl whose heart he broke.

She agrees to help him but naturally, not without some pretty payback. What follows is a romance with some intrigue from Vinh and Emily’s mission to find who took the money. I really love that we get to see the central couple later in life, affected by the events and environments they’ve encountered since then. It adds depth to them, despite my not having read the prior books in the series.

Vinh’s perspective on how Emily’s changed is absolutely heartbreaking. The girl whose life didn’t turn out the way she imagined is now working in a field as close to her dream career as she can get.  I appreciate that the tension and chemistry were very much there when Emily dropped the pie in front of Tam and Josh’s home. Despite the immensely deep hurts from their past, it’s evident that they still very much care for each other.

Though it was a bit of a slog initially, I found myself deeply invested in all the characters involved throughout the story.

Vinh and Emily have their own baggage and their own fears of relationships, so to see them work through it and come to terms with the fact that they are essentially meant for each other and can make it work despite their histories is beautiful to see.

Ex Appeal is a sweet, steamy second-chance romance that allows both characters room for growth and reflection.

This was a new to me author and I was pleasantly surprised. I didn’t originally realize that this was the third in a series but can definitely be read and enjoyed as a standalone. This was a very fast paced enemies to lovers.

I made it a good quarter of the way through this book and still didn't feel any ounce of interest in the characters or what was happening to them. I didn't believe them, I didn't believe their story, and I just couldn't bring myself to root for them. All three fairly essential elements for enjoying a romance. This was quite simply just not the book for me, I think.

I absolutely loved this! It was clever, funny, easy to read and had a great original storyline. I found the whole book refreshing and finished it in a single day.

Cathy Yardley has written another story in the Ponto Beach Reunion series with likeable characters and a second chance romance. I adored the last book and was eager to see this one. Vinh and Emily become reacquainted when Vinh's professional career is placed on the line. I loved the Ponto Beach setting and the Nerd Heard cameos. I also enjoyed following along with the mystery and their friendship. Cathy Yardley does a great job of writing in which you feel like you are hanging with friends. Thank you to NetGalley and Montlake for a copy! All thoughts and opinions are my own!

Emily and Vinhs story was definitely a story worth telling. I enjoyed that Emily was the computer savvy/hacking girl and the Vinh needed her to fix his problem. I will admit Tam and Josh’s story is still my favorite but that is due fully to all the puns in it.

This story was amazing. You have two kids fall in love so young and they just couldn’t make it work during college. They go their separate ways and never see each other again until someone is determined to destroy one of their futures. The other being a hacker is able to help fix things and along the way they are able to see if they can pick up where they left off or not. I was given a copy through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Disclaimer: I received this book from Netgalley + in exchange for an honest opinion. Thank you Netgalley for the ARC.

Rating : 3.75 out of 5
Blurbs : A hacker and a fixer—who just happen to be high school exes—reunite to help each other out in this witty second-chance romance from the author of Love, Comment, Subscribe.

Vinh Doan has a problem. Ten million of them, in fact. He’s a high-level fixer for global conglomerates, which means big money…and big troubles. When ten million dollars go missing from one of his accounts, he needs a top-notch hacker to find it. His first thought? Emily MacDonald, his high school ex.

While Vinh has been taking the financial world by storm, Emily has been struggling. After her dad died, she dropped out of college and put her dreams aside. Her job in tech support has seriously tested her sunny disposition and her finances. Now, there’s an unexpected solution: Vinh, the guy who dumped her when she needed him most.

When Emily finally lets herself listen to Vinh’s request, she realizes that this is a desperately needed chance to get paid…and get payback. But the more time they spend together, the more they recognize that even though they’re not the same people they were a decade ago, their off the charts attraction is just as strong as ever. As they give in to their simmering chemistry, can Emily and Vinh let go of their past, figure out their futures—and hack a second chance at love?

Thoughts : It's pretty fast pace and I really like it. Fast paced books are better than slow paced books. Emily and Vinh fell in love pretty much faster than I thought. Still I need more begging on Vinh's side after what he'd done to Emily.

This was a great enemies to lovers novel. I read this about a month ago and really enjoyed the character arcs, as well as their uniqueness.

4/5 - Spice: 2/5 - Book #3 of Ponto Beach Reunion

Okay, so I think this is my favorite book of the series. While second chance romances aren't usually my favorite trope, I really enjoyed Vinh and Emily. The mystery of the cyber-hacking for Vinh's job was an added mystery component which kept me interested.

Brief Plot: Emily is in financial stress, and when her ex-boyfriend, Vinh, asks her to use her computer hacking skills for a professional problem, the two start working together. But as time goes by, the secret of their pasts are brought up on why they broke up in the first place, and they now need to decide if it was all repairable now?

Thank you NetGalley and Montlake Publishing for an eARC copy of the Ex Appeal, written by Cathy Yardley. This is my honest review!

(Book also available on Kindle Unlimited, with free Audiobook version available)

I really liked the sound of this but I was wary because of the tropes! But Cathy Yardley did a great job of developing the characters and relaitonship!

Thank you to netgalley and the publishers for providing me with an arc for an honest review!

Thanks to Montlake, Netgalley and the author for an ARC of this book - I am leaving this review voluntarily.

I read the first in this series, and I really enjoyed it, although I think I might have missed the second one, so I'll go back and read it. Not having read the series in order was no detriment to reading this book at all.

Emily and Vinh were a fantastic blend of passion, intelligence and devotion, even when they hated each other. I loved the way that their experiences shaped them and how the author helps the reader understand why they made the decisions they made.

I found it a little slow in the beginning but it picked up in the end. The dialogue is great and there were some very funny moments in there.

An enjoyable read and an author I would recommend.

Thank you Netgalley for this ARC for an exchange for an honest review.

What a great read. Loved it.