Thank you @prhaudio @netgalley for a copy of the book. This story focuses on Astrid who in the last story almost married a man that wasn't so perfect for her. Astrid's life in limbo and she uses the opportunity of renovating a local BnB to do that.

There she meets Jordan and there's tension between the two with different ideas on the renovation. I wanted more banter between the two but enjoyed their story. Overall a good story about self discovery and standing up to family for Astrid.

Astrid Parker Doesn’t Fail was a solid 3.5 stars.

After already having read Delilah Green Doesn’t Care I was excited to read this next installment that followed the love story of a character that had already gone through a lot in the previous book. The small town this series takes place in is charming, and I love a good home reno to lovers story so on the surface this book seemed set up to succeed for me. In the end this ended up being a fun little romance.

I still think the town this takes place in is charming and something that helps this series is how characters for following books are introduced early on. One thing Herring Blake does well is give characters realistic reactions and developments. No matter what a character has done in the past, how Herring Blake writes interactions and self reflection reminds us that no one is truly “evil”. I thought the developments between Astrid and her mom made sense for them as characters and was highly reflective of how that kind of scenario may unfold in real life.

There were some parts of this book that I didn’t like as much, which happens with any book. Mainly I found myself frustrated with the exposition and backstory for the two main characters. With a lot of their backstories being provided in the beginning, it became hard to initially get into the book as the main two only had one major interaction during the first 30% of the book. This heavy focus in the beginning on giving backstory and recapping the first book made me a little confused and unenthused when the two characters initially got together as I felt like I hadn’t seen enough of them together to understand how the attraction developed. After that though, I did really enjoy the dynamic between the two as a couple and wished I could have seen more of that throughout.

Being queer myself, I was so happy to read a sapphic love story. I will say that at times the terminology that was being used felt a little forced and awkwardly placed, but it wasn’t bad enough to derail my overall enjoyment of the story.

Like I said earlier, this was a fun little romance that I’d probably recommend to others and was good enough that I plan to read the next book in the series as well.

Did not finish.
The description of this novel checks lots of boxes for me but the execution was boring. I couldn't care enough about any of the characters to continue slogging.
I found out after the fact that this is a sequel; I wonder if I would appreciate the novel more if I'd read #1.

This is the companion to Delilah Green Doesn’t Care and unfortunately this one didn’t compare to the first for me. While this is a good romance book it did lack in some major areas for me. I love the Ice Queen trope and I can see that they were trying to execute that in this book but it just fell flat. Beyond that my biggest issue with the book was the romance. It did not feel genuine and the whole time I could not see how these two blended/meshed together. I really wanted to love this book but unfortunately this one wasn’t for me.

Astrid is one of those people has been groomed to be overachieving and nearly if not completely perfect. She lives under her mother’s shadow but is beginning to slowly get in touch with what she actually wants. When she literally runs into a cute carpenter whose life was recently turned upside down, Astrid starts to see a different way of being. I really enjoyed this sweet and emotional book, there are moments of true friendship as well as romance and, after several trials and challenges, a lovely happy ending for the heroines.

I absolutely loved this! I was such a fan of Delilah Green Doesn't Care when I read it, and anticipated Astrid's book ever since she was first introduced. Astrid is such an interestingly complex character, and watching her stumble into love in this book was such a delight to read! I'll always admire and look for grown characters coming out in adulthood, I think because there are always hidden facets of ourselves that we haven't figured out yet, even when we're "supposed" to have already done so. I really loved how Astrid's coming out was handled, and how her relationship with Jordan grew.

Also, I'm such a fan of the friend group in these books. They all have such a hilarious dynamic with each other, but are also so caring and loving with each other when a member of their little coven falls into crisis.

I'm officially dying for Iris's book now, I can't wait to see her love story unfold next!

What I Liked: When I heard that the next book in this series was going to feature Astid, I will admit that I wasn’t thrilled. Not that I didn’t like Astrid but Delilah had other characters in it who I would have preferred to read about. So I went into this book with some trepidation. Luckily Herring Blake managed to convert me to an Astrid fan by making her likable in ways I didn’t think was possible. We had already met her mother in the first book so we as readers knew the family stuff she was dealing with, but this book does a deep dive into all the ways Astrid has been molded into the person she is and how difficult it is for her to break free from the expectations that have been thrust upon her. Jordan is a great foil to Astrid, playing the grumpy but lovable role perfectly. Her patience with Astrid as she learns how to basically have sex with a woman was surprisingly endearing and I loved that made sure Astrid wanted to be with HER and not just a random woman. Very rarely to do we get to read about someone discovering their bisexuality later in life, and as someone who has experienced this, I loved how realistic Astrid’s feelings were in regard to her attraction to Jordan, as well as her fear about it. One of the strengths of the first book in this series, Delilah Green Doesn’t Care, was the wonderful group of friends that was at the center of the story and how they support each other no matter what. Herring Blake does a great job of writing characters you want to be friends with for real. This book is no exception and I found myself immersed in the world of Bright Falls, wanting to be part of this community.

What I Didn’t Like: Aside from the bits and pieces we got about her failed relationship, we don’t learn much about Jordan and her motivations and I was desperate for more. She was introduced as such an interesting character and I would have loved to see what made her tick, so to speak. I also felt like the ending was rushed, which was double disappointing as I felt the third half of the book dragged a bit with its repetition. Also, the whole Meredith thing didn’t work for me, and I needed more of an explanation and follow up to that situation.

Who Should Read It: I have seen some fans of the first book express disappointment in this one, but I think if you liked Delilah Green Doesn’t Care you will enjoy Astrid’s story. Delilah, Claire, and the whole gang frequently make an appearance and it was great to “see” them again.

Review Wrap Up: It felt great returning to Bright Falls and Herring Black has quicky become a must read author for me. There was a lot to love about this book, with some very minor but impactful issues, particularly with the character development and the pacing of the story. However, I fell in love with Astrid and Jordan and think you will too. Bring on Iris’s book!

Favorite Quote: “Astrid Parker was loved, no matter what her mother thought of her. No matter what choices she made. And that love gave her the courage to choose herself.”

“She left you like you didn’t mean anything. And you do. You mean something.”

For interior designer and impeccably put-together Astrid Parker, failure is out of the question.

With her failed engagement looming over her head still, something her mother will never let her forget Astrid has become overly regimented in her life. So when she gets the opportunity to renovate the historic Bright Falls Everwood Inn she knows this is a sign from the universe that things are looking up. With the renovation being televised, it may just be what she needs to put herself back on the map.

Jordan Everwood, not only despises the plans that Astrid has for renovating her family home but after their tension-filled first encounter Jordan has already written Astrid off as the self-center, entitled brat that will never be able to bring the Inn Jordan had grown up at into the modern day. Tension sells, and when the producers of Innside America noticed their antics they ask them to up the ante, Jordan and Astrid clash until their deep dislike for one another is threatened. All Astrid has ever done is what is expected of her, yet there is a chance for her to live the life she truly desires if only she can reach out and take it.

I loved Delilah Green Doesn't Care, so I was really hyped for Astrid's book, but it ended up turning into kind of a slog. Astrid and Jordan are just really mean to each other for the first third of the book, for reasons that don't feel... equally justified, for lack of a better term. Jordan is mad that Astrid yelled at her for spilling coffee all over her expensive (!) white (!!) dry-clean only (!!!) dress (I WOULD YELL TOO) and thinks her interior designs are boring, and consequently decides to make life difficult for her at work. They do eventually get over it, but apparently professional sabotage is something that bothers me a lot more than I thought! It's a bummer, because "getting over self-directed homophobia and finally realizing you're queer in your late twenties even though you've been surrounded by queer people all your life" is a character arc I do enjoy, when it's done well. Delilah and Claire make several delightful reappearances, and the friend group from the first book is as charming as ever. The book just has a central premise that doesn't quite work for me.

I really enjoy the world the author has created and the friendships among her characters. This was a fun, romantic read. Will definitely read another installment.

Yes, yes, 1000 times yes. I'm officially an Ashley Herring Blake stan. I cannot wait to read every adult novel she publishes. This was just so much fun, so emotional, so steamy, so....everything I wanted and more. I still think Delilah Green is my favorite but this one is a close second for my top romances of the year.

Astrid Parker Doesn't Fail by Ashley Herring Blake- 3

Content Warnings: mention of cancer, death of a parent, toxic child/parent relationship

Astrid's character development was something that I really adored. Her initial confusion, her coming out as a bisexual and the tension between Jordie and Astrid was so good. Also, like the first book, the cover of this book was partly the reason why I wanted to read it because it was so pretty.
Astrid has chosen to work on herself and failing is not acceptable, but Jordie, who is the lead carpenter where she works, makes her question everything she does but she slowly finds herself gravitating to Jordie.

Unlike the first book, Jordie’s and Astrid’s meeting was rather a meet ugly and I really liked the way this began. As mentioned above, I really like Astrid’s character arc, she discovers her sexuality and also, my favourite has to be her standing up to her mother, that really won me over. While I hated Astrid’s mom, her little positive ending which showed hinted for a change was also heart-warming.
As always, I love the side characters in this so much and the moments that Delilah and Astrid share are so beautiful and fun!

However, I really didn’t like the way this story got in the middle, it got a little boring and often I wanted to drop this book. The structure, to me, felt odd because there was proper tension building and the first kiss was all cute but then its all SEX?! And it while there was a lot of potential for the exploration of the chemistry between Astrid and Jordie, it wasn’t explored well according to me.
While the romantic scenes were cute, I honestly wanted a little more than the base level… I also wanted Ashley to make Jordie more than her past, I wanted hr character to have a little more depth than was originally provided.

And the T.V. really didn’t make any sense and it felt like the only purpose of it was for the conflict, that’s it.

Overall, this book is enjoyable but somewhere along the lines, I felt it was a little underwhelming for me, Ashley could have elaborated on many more things but her choosing to not do so only made it more underwhelming. I just feel like it didn’t match the level of Delilah Green Doesn't Care because trust me, that book was really good and I still love it!

I do know that I want to read Iris’ story because her character has always been so intriguing to me.

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review!

Thank you to NetGalley, Berkley Publishing Group, and author Ashley Herring Blake for providing me with a free ARC in exchange for my honest review!

THIS WAS EVERYTHING I WANTED AND MORE!!!! As a children's librarian who is queer, Ashley Herring Blake is my favorite author to recommend her middle grade books to patrons that come in. I was thrilled last year when Delilah Green Doesn't Care was released as her adult debut, and I devoured it in one setting. I didn't think it could get any more perfect-- until Astrid Parker Doesn't Fail came along. I adore that Blake is doing a series set in Bright Falls that features a different queer woman as the protagonist because it was SO much fun to revisit this charming town and my favorite friend group again. With Astrid only being explored through Delilah last book, I appreciated her character more getting to see her individual story. I could relate to her feelings and anxiety related to perfectionism so much, and I can't wait to see her more throughout the next book (which by the preview at the end, I might like even more than the first two). The cast of new characters that were introduced to Astrid's story were great additions who were genuinely likeable, and I fell in love with Jordan!! The chemistry between her and Astrid was tense, and I adored the enemies to lover plot mixed with a house renovation setting. The spice level is RAMPED UP in this book, and it is definitely hot, sexy, and NSFW-- in the best way possible. Literally my only complaint is that it's a bit unbelievable that there'd be so many queer people in such a small town (this is coming from someone who grew up in a small town, but maybe it's different in Oregon than Texas lol) and that it is a bit cheesy at times, but I don't even care because it is such a fun read and the perfect WLW romance novel!! Now just to wait very impatiently until Iris Kelly Doesn't Date is released next year...

I really really enjoyed this one.

I liked the progression of Astrid and Jordan’s relationship. And I especially enjoyed Astrid’s progression as a person. Her discovery of herself and what she wants with her life.

Both Astrid and Jordan has things to come to terms with in their lives and I enjoyed seeing them work through everything.

Of course I enjoyed the scenes with Astrid and her friends.

Overall a really enjoyable book.

In her second adult romance, Astrid Parker Doesn't Fail, Ashley Herring Blake expertly employs humor and angst to set two lost women on a rocky path to happily ever after. After a devastating divorce and a memorable incident in which she might have set fire to one of her custom-made cabinets while on a job, Jordan returns home at the request of her twin brother to be lead carpenter on the renovation of their family's ancestral home--The Everwood Inn. To boost her similarly floundering interior design business, Astrid signs on as lead designer for an episode of Innside America.
Astrid Parker Doesn't Fail opens the morning of the first day of the filming with a meet-disaster. Jordan accidentally spills coffee all over Astrid's immaculate ivory dress at a coffee shop, an omen of things to come. The author quickly turns Astrid's overreaction into a horribly awkward moment when they see each other on set and realize they'll have to work together on a project with high stakes for both of them. Astrid has a modern design planned for the inn--luxe but lacking personality--while Jordan has decades of memories of the historic building and soon makes her own plans more suited to the inn's character.
If love and hate are opposite sides of the same coin, the two women soon flip it, even though neither of them is sure if Astrid is queer.
"What the hell was she thinking? She wasn't going there even if Astrid ended up as queer as a glitter-covered unicorn."
This book is funny, with lots of situational humor and wisecracking friends, but it's Blake's insightful depiction of Astrid's self-discovery that will make this book resonate with queer readers. Stifled by her overbearing mother's heteronormative expectations, Astrid has dated--and just broken an engagement with--only the most boring of men. She isn't ready to give herself a label, but the moment when Astrid declares her feelings to Jordan is a revelation in more ways than one.
Both women are at inflection points personally and professionally and the author adeptly balances their individual and romantic arcs. It's not all about Astrid--Jordan heals emotionally and both of them step into their own dazzling professional futures. For fans of renovation shows, found family, stolen kisses and the occasional crude joke, Astrid Parker Doesn't Fail is a literary success.

I think I actually preferred this one over Delilah Green doesn’t care. I did feel that sometimes the MCs personalities weren’t as fleshed out as they could have been, but overall enjoyed the story and the love at the middle of it.

✨You are my density ❤️✨

Ahhhh SO GOOD. I had high hopes and release that breath you didn’t know you were holding becauseeee I had heart eyes for days and a lot of laughs. Personally, I found this to be funnier than Delilah Green Doesn’t Care and more of a vivid story in my mind. I could totally see this as a movie and I would watch the hell out of it.

Astrid and Jordan each spoke to my soul after their respective intro chapters. Astrid starts the book off with the veneer of having her shit together, while Jordan is the hot mess tornado. Throughout the book, and as you’ve probably guessed because you’re probably very hot because you’ve probably read many a romance, they pretty much swap places by the end of the book. Sometimes you gotta throw yourself on your bed and cry it out and sometimes you gotta respond to emails and answer phone calls.

I really appreciated how both characters showed so much depth even in just those beginning chapters! Astrid was understandably angry and showed off her temper a bit, but she also felt so dejected and embarrassed over her actions. Jordan responded in a stoic yet perfectly petty fashion and then immediately broke down in tears. Coming from someone who’s yelled at someone (mayhap at a toxic workplace? where I dramatically quit?) and sobbed all the way home about it? Yeah I relate.

I also really loved how Astrid was honestly only starting to understand her sexuality and queerness by the end of the book. I found it to be a so lovely how we got to discover herself along with her, in small increments. Pretty much all of the supporting characters were also fleshed out with individual identities, representation, and clear physical descriptors.

✨

I loved the supporting characters in this book so much too!! A lot are recurring from book one, but Simon (!), the show crew, and even Isabel (she had her moments) were wonderful additions to the cast. Sometimes friend groups can get annoying or trite (I have some specific examples in mind but I shan’t spill the tea)… So many times these friends never actually feel like people nor do they speak like humans at ALL. Most of the time, I never want to be friends with them.

Delilah, Iris, Claire (Astrid & Jordan as well)? Oh you best believe they would midnight margarita the SHIT out of a Practical Magic viewing. There was a very lovely Kodak moment where Astrid spent a night in with Delilah, Iris, and Claire that made me go awwwwwww. I got emotional seeing such loving and supportive friendships!! I definitely heard the song These Are Days by 10000 Maniacs (yes, this is another shameless plug of the movie, Revenge of the Bridesmaids, featured in my Delilah Green Doesn’t Care review, so?) playing over the montage I was imagining.

*Side note: go watch the music video…it’s *inspired.* Honestly, I wish Astrid danced like the lead singer.

✨

While I loved the characters, I do think the plot lacked just a little bit of surprise factor for me. I almost kinda wish this happened simultaneously with Delilah Green Doesn’t Care. By that I mean wishing Astrid’s gooey insides were revealed to the reader at the same moment in both books. I get it can’t really work (truly how would one even begin to accomplish this?) because she needed to go through things with Spencer and I did NOT need some messed up love triangle, but I’d have loved to not have seen how soft Astrid could be prior to this book. I need Astrid and Delilah bonding in book one and definitely looked forward to it specifically in that book, so again I’ve got no solution only feelings.

When we have an ice queen main character, I do like to be fooled for a proper chunk of the book, ya know? From the get, Astrid feels remorse and embarrassment, but obviously still has defenses in place. So since I liked both characters and liked them together, I wanted a little bit more !suspense! than just them lying to the show crew, which is never fun.

The moment the lie unraveled though was well done though, and I actually liked the third act break-up. It was reasonable and helped the characters grow. I was a little bored during the middle—they got interrupted almost kissing a few times and the slow burn nearly took me out—but the beginning and end really won me.

✨

Overall, I’m so happy with this book. I liked Delilah but I really loved Astrid. The Everwood Inn that they were renovating was also a little bit spooky? Dare I say haunted?? I can’t remember if a season is mentioned in the book, but it felt like a perfect read for the ~3 weeks we get of autumn before winter bitch slaps our comfortably-cozy-but-not-too-cold happiness into next May. Hot beverage ✔️ rosy cheeks ✔️ face sitting ✔️.

I think I have a clue about book three because…yeah? I think I’m picking up what Ashley Herring Blake is putting down but I’ve also been known to be very dense so we shall see. I’ll definitely snatch it up when it’s available.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.25/5 🌶🌶🌶*/5

*The language was a bit more explicit than Delilah and the book itself was a bit hotter, though way more slow burn. We got three-ish scenes and many fade to black moments. I had fun during the scenes but wanted a bit more depth from the last one. Props to a sex toy actually being used (!) *but* it was used off page *but but* it was used in a hilarious way so I’ll let it slide.

P.S. Would I love the physical copy or pre-order incentive to include a floor plan plus design concept for the Everwood? Abso-fucking-lutely! I have a hard time visualizing ANYTHING let alone how sage green cabinets actually work and look good, so please I beg. (I quite literally don’t see things when I shut my eyes so I’m working with nothing here. This is also why intense clothing description in fantasy novels doesn’t work for me lol.)

The second book in the Bright Falls series, gives us Astrid Parker's story. For anyone who hasn't read Delilah Green Doesn't Care, you may want to read that one first, so you have a more vivid picture into who Astrid is and how she gets to the place we find her in as this one starts.

Renovating the Everwood Inn for the tv show, Innside America, is exactly what Astrid needs to get her business back on track. The rest of her life may be a mess, but she can at least save her business. What she doesn't plan on is Jordan Everwood, the granddaughter of the owner of the Inn and the carpenter for the renovation. Jordan hates the idea of the only place that's ever felt like home being modernized by the designer with the stick constantly up her ass. It doesn't take long feelings of animosity to change into something much less combative.

I loved Delilah Green Doesn't Care and was thrilled to read Astrid's story. She is fascinating and it took a character like Jordan to break down those walls she has spent years building. Both Jordan and Astrid aren't really living, they are simply existing until they come into each other's lives. Ashley Herring Blake writes their despair so well along with Astrid's confusion over her feelings for Jordan. And I love getting to spend more time with Delilah, Claire, Iris and Ruby. This book made me laugh but like Delilah Green, it also brought out so many deeper emotions. I can't wait for the next book in the series in which Iris has the spotlight on her.

An ARC was received from the publisher via NetGalley for an honest review.

This was a good follow-up to Delilah Green, but still finds itself suffering from second-book syndrome, where things just feel less polished. Here's some word-vomit thoughts:

Things that bugged me include:
- The pacing of this one was a bit off, especially since, for me, Delilah Green felt perfectly paced
- Jordan's conflict with her ex-wife having such an unsatisfying resolution when Astrid was given so much space in this book to deal with her baggage
- the reality tv show aspect, especially the way it affected Astrid and Jordan's development, felt a bit ridiculous
- the side characters having so much less time on the page than in Delilah Green, especially since we are inevitably building toward Iris' book
- how much the clit necklace was brought up, like, we got it

Things that I loved:
- Astrid. I just loved Astrid and how authentically she was written and her journey, which as a natural control freak anxiety attack waiting to happen, felt very personal to me
- the chemistry between Astrid and Jordan, which a lot of other reviewers seem to think is lacking, felt very sweet to me and I love that kind of tender start to a relationship instead of just passion
- Claire and Delilah <3
- let's be honest, the sex scenes were *chef's kiss*, ABH really knows what she's doing in that department

Overall, I really enjoyed reading this, will recommend it widely, and am very excited for Iris' book!

Ashley Herring Blake has easily become one of my favorite romance authors! I absolutely loved this! I couldn't put it down and I was so sad to see it end! I loved “Delilah Green Doesn't Care” so I was very excited for this book and it definitely lived up to my expectations. I was a little worried going in, as I wasn't a huge fan of Astrid in "Delilah Green Doesn't Care", so I was pleasantly surprised when I realized a few chapters in that I was excited to see Astrid grow in this story. Blake's characters are so wonderful and unique and real and the journeys both Jordan and Astrid take in this book were just written so beautifully. I loved them together, I loved them separately, of course the side characters are fantastic. She is the absolute best at side plots and secondary characters. There is not a single character she writes that I don't want their own book for. I would read every single one of them. These characters have deep emotions and insecurities. On top of the pressure of the job Astrid is drawn to Jordan. Even with her queer best friends and half-sister, she has never considered herself anything but straight, until now. Everything is written beautifully and with feeling. I love these two women and being back in Bright Falls. I was so happy to be with this supportive friend group too. The romantic tension between Astrid and Jordan is exquisite. Astrid begins to develop an attraction to Jordan and starts to question her own sexuality. Luckily all of Astrid's friends are queer so she has people to confide in and support her. Jordan and Astrid are constantly thrown together and I enjoyed all of their scenes together as they begin to discover their mutual attraction and develop romantic feelings. And the sexy times are very very spicy. I love the development of Delilah and Claire's relationship during this book. I loved that the book was a dual POV. I think that dual POV is excellent in rom-coms as it allows the reader to see interactions from both MC’s. I highly recommend it for fans of “Maggie Moves On” or “Written in the Stars” (which Astrid reads in this book!) . This can stand on its own but I would suggest reading Delilah’s story because these are characters you are going to fall in love with. Thank you to Ashley Herring Blake, NetGalley and Penguin Random House for providing me with this ARC. I can’t wait for Iris’s story in 2023!