I’m not normally one for second chance romances but I adored this one.

Eliza and Graham are celebrating their 5 year anniversary at a resort, provided to them as a gift from Graham’s mom. They’ve been going through a rough patch in their marriage and are both worried that it is slipping away from them. When they get mistaken for strangers early on in their trip, they decide to continue with the charade for the week to try to bring back the spark of dating into their relationship.

I loved the message of never stop dating that this book brought. What drove me nuts were the problems Graham and Eliza were actually having. I also felt like Eliza ended up getting a lot of the blame for their issues, while it felt to me Graham’s issues were the bigger problem. Eliza, basically, shuts down and hasn’t been sharing some of the emotionally difficult pieces with Graham. However, Graham at his core believes that he is not good enough for Eliza and constantly worries he will never live up to being the person that she needs him to be. Basically, if they had gone to therapy and talked just once, then their problems would’ve been solved.

I enjoyed the shenanigans and seeing how Graham and Eliza would play off of each other. They had great banter and it was cute to see their connection and it easily explained how they fell in love in the first place.

One annoyance I had was Graham constantly thinking that Eliza didn’t like him and only wanted the fake version of himself. It felt a little repetitive and annoyed me that even though she and his new friend were pointing out the obvious, he still didn’t believe it. I didn’t understand his self-confidence issues and it just drained on me after a while.

I very much appreciated how the story ended. I think my biggest issue with second chance romances is when they don’t address the issues they had the first time around, and I do think Eliza and Graham did this. I loved seeing their growth and I thought the entire concept of this book was fun.

A few of Wilbberly/Siegmund-Broka’s books have been a miss for me lately which has made me sad because I loved their earlier novels. This one hit just the right way and I was so excited about it. I think the chemistry of the main couple is much stronger than The Roughest Draft. What held me back from 5 stars was the repetitive nature of their issues. I wanted to hit them both over the head. But, I still highly recommend checking this out. It’s fun and sweet and I think it’ll be a good mid-winter pick me up.

One of my favorite books from last year, The Roughest Draft, came from the writing duo (and real life couple) @wibbs_ink and @austins_b. So when I found out about their latest release, I jumped at the chance to read it.

Do I Know You? tells the story of Eliza and Graham, a couple about to celebrate their fifth wedding anniversary with a romantic getaway. The location is perfect, but the conditions are not. See, the couple has hit a bit of a rut lately. Both secretly hope this vacation will turn things around, although neither have any inkling on how to do so.

So when the resort mistakingly books separate rooms for the couple, Eliza comes up up with an idea. What if they keep both rooms in an attempt to make the mundane a mystery? At first Graham is appalled, but as Eliza and Graham’s plan grows more elaborate, they both realize acting as if they are strangers really isn’t so strange after all.

Told in alternating viewpoints, Do I Know You? is a practical love story with surprising passion. Those in an established relationship will relate to the tendency to get so lost in the day to day, that you can lose your connection with your partner along the way. But this story isn’t only about romantic renewals. There’s also exploration of complicated relationships with family, as well as some mature male bonding. In a world of romance novels with the focus being on female friendships, this swap was refreshing.

With both a male and female author at the helm, the mixed perspective adds relatable layers and nuance to this romance. The fact that the writers are a real life couple shines through as their experience can make established romance feel brand new. An underrated gem, Do I Know You? reminds the reader it’s never to late to meet someone again for the first time.

When Graham and Eliza receive a week stay at a gorgeous resort for their fifth wedding anniversary, they are worried how they will connect and spend their week. Their marriage has hit a five year rut and while there is attraction, they feel like strangers. On the first night, a guest introduces them to one another, thinking they are there for the singles convention. They decide to play along and pretend they don’t know one another and a flirtatious vibe ensues. This game of role play may be just what they need to reignite the flame in their marriage, but what happens when the week is over?

Thank you so much to Berkley for this ARC! Romantic comedies are not something I read a lot of, but the premise of this one intrigued me. It started off pretty strong! I read the first 50% in one sitting and was fully invested, but I felt like the second half definitely slowed down for me. Maybe it’s just my thriller-loving side coming out! It is a cute, easy read that will probably be relatable for some and not your typical trope for this genre. Overall I liked it and would recommend it for fans of rom-coms!

In other writers' hands, this story could have felt a little silly, but it leans more into the introspective than the romantic comedy, and it's really well done. Married romance is always really interesting, and these characters, who married relatively young, are navigating how to grow and change together, and their bit of roleplaying by pretending they've just met on their anniversary vacation opens it up to really get to know each other again. Well done!

I received this wonderful copy from the publisher VIA NetGalley ARC. I really loved The Roughest Draft and it was one of my favorite of 2022. I am even more in love with this book!

There is a lot of forced proximity, strangers to lovers, and marriage in trouble which isn't my favorite. I often find they include a lot of fighting (I didn't mind it but some people might) and rely too much on the character's history than showing the relationship develop on page. However, this book made me want to read more. The angst was next level, but in a pining frustrated way rather than a lot of fighting, which I appreciated. I really liked both Eliza and Graham, and found it really interesting watching them solve how their marriage fell apart, and figuring out how to put it back together. The role play element of this worked really nicely as well, allowing the reader to fall for their love story while the characters fall back together. It also just felt really authentic - this could be about real people in a real marriage, rather than a sitcom marriage. That was my favorite part was this is so realistic!

The side characters are always a huge factor for me and this did not dissappiont! The writing so beautifully crafted and it feels unique coming from different two different authors.

|| 𝐁𝐎𝐎𝐊 𝐑𝐄𝐕𝐈𝐄𝐖

𝗗𝗢 𝗜 𝗞𝗡𝗢𝗪 𝗬𝗢𝗨?
𝗘𝗺𝗶𝗹𝘆 𝗪𝗶𝗯𝗯𝗲𝗿𝗹𝘆 & 𝗔𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗻 𝗦𝗶𝗲𝗴𝗲𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗱-𝗕𝗿𝗼𝗸𝗮
★ ★ ★ ★ ★ (4.5)

|| 𝐒𝐘𝐍𝐎𝐏𝐒𝐈𝐒
Eliza and Graham are celebrating their 5 year anniversary. Except they’ve been in the car for 7.5 hour and have barely said a word. It’s awkward, it’s been hard for a while. Do they even know each other anymore?

|| 𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐃 𝐈𝐅 𝐘𝐎𝐔 𝐋𝐈𝐊𝐄
💍 Marriage In Crisis trope
👫 Second chances
💗 Fake Dating (your spouse and not so fake)
💍 Learning who you are again

|| 𝐓𝐇𝐎𝐔𝐆𝐇𝐓𝐒
Wow. I loved this book. Like cannot wait to buy my own copy. I recently celebrated my 10th wedding anniversary on January 12 (which this date is mentioned in the book and I found it funny). I related so much to both Eliza and Graham. They are realizing that they aren’t the same people they were 5 years ago, and that you can change and so can your spouse. It doesn’t have to be a bad thing though. I loved their banter, their flirting, pretending to be new people while really still being themselves. All their inner dialogue and self doubts about marriage, love, and acceptance really hit home. While my marriage isn’t in crisis, I related to their feelings. It’s so easy to have doubts as you get older and change and it’s important to keep your loved ones close and relationships are always meant to be worked on. Just because you get married (or commit in anyway) doesn’t mean it stops there. It’s a relationship you choose and you have to choose it every day.

I think we can all learn something from them. Keep things honest, open, and don’t forget to find the fun and joy along the way. And always keep dating and asking the easy and hard questions 🧡

PS. I need to know if David found the one or not eventually 😂

Thank you to @berkleyromance for an E-ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I really enjoyed the roughest draft so I was very excited to pick up their second book. I love how they capture their characters and make you fall in love with them. David needs his own book.

I loved the premise of this novel but I’m not sure I am the right audience for it. 5 years into your marriage and you are bored? What’s going to happen in 25 years? I get adding some spice to your lives and I’m all for it (as long as it’s legal lol) but this didn’t resonate with me.

I actually think this would have been better pulled off as a novella.

Told in dual perspective, Do I Know You? is a story about romance. About the fact that just being a relationship doesn't end the wooing, the swooning, the flirting. We can sink into a mode of complacency. Of thinking "I'm done now right?" But that isn't right. As humans, we are always changing, our wants, desires, and dreams. And part of being in a long term relationship with anyone, involves evolving with someone. Consistently getting to know this new person.

LOVED Do I Know You! As much as it is a fictional tale, it really gave me some things to think about in my own marriage - a couple celebrating five years of marriage is stuck in a rut. Nothing insurmountable, but recognizable for sure. Their vacation turns into an adventure in finding each other. A really unique and beautiful story.

OH MY GOSH. Emily and Austin's books get better and better every year.

I have been a fan of Emily & Austin since their very first book, and yet, each year they never fail to impress me with their new book releases.

Do I Know You? It a beautiful, fast paced, second chance romance that I devoured in a day. This book was addicting and is the perfect example of how to masterfully create a second chance romance that will have readers rooting for the main characters.

I adored this book in everyway, and it will be ending up on my "favorite books of 2023" list, without a doubt.

What an amazing book.

Eliza and Graham are not a perfect couple, but they are one of the most realistic ones I feel like I've ever read. Now, maybe it's not the most realistic to pretend to meet again on your five year wedding anniversary to reignite the spark that's slowly been fading, whose to say; but their struggles, fears, and hopes are universal. Eliza and Graham both feel like they were meant to be, despite their struggles to connect and communicate lately, and they actively choose each other again and again, and that might just be the most romantic thing in the world.

I received a copy of the book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

While I'm a big fan of Emily and Austin's other books, this one was a little bit of a disappointment.

There are things I enjoyed like the focus on a married couple, the book taking place over a week long trip, and the desire to rekindle their relationship. But there are a few things that I didn't love like the chemistry, the lack of answers as to how Graham and Eliza got to the place they were at and the fact that the overall plot seemed to be dragged out.

Overall, it's an okay read but I would recommend other books of theirs before recommending this one. I love Austin and Emily so I will definitely be picking up their books in the future, but this was a bit of a flop for me.

Do I Know You? By Emily Wibberley and Austin Siegemund-Broka is a title, let alone a book, with a few layers worthy of consideration. I found the book bravely authentic. The story recognizes what I suspect may be increasingly common worries in GenZ couples about authenticity and knowing the self and the other in a relationship and also common perhaps for couples navigating various transitions to parenthood, empty nest times, and reconnecting during retirement phases (sorry, developmental psych lecturer here!). Can you overcome worries about a stagnating marriage, not being good enough, not really knowing someone if you pretend to be meeting for the first time?

Yes, there are some pacing issues in places with a story like this but honestly I felt that this captured the honesty of an unplanned decision to play this game, the little kinks that had to be worked out, and the understandable uncertainty and excitement that emerges with a decision to ask what it means to know a partner.

Overall, the story covers a marriage five years in and the self conscious feelings of self doubt that creep into a marriage. In a way it is a bit O Henry Gift of the Magi, the desire to give more to the partner but with a little heartache and growing pains as perhaps the couple moves into deeper communication in the future. The psychologist in me says a little individual counseling might help each person understand their worries or some couples therapy could help with connecting to each other. That's not the goal of the story though and the story worked in terms of being a different kind of romance, one about marriage not always being the smooth sailing end of a romance story goal.

This was the first romance novel of its kind that I’ve read. It was honest, eye-opening, refreshing, infuriating, frustrating, and delicate. At times, I found myself getting annoyed with Eliza because she was refusing to open herself up, but then I realized that maybe I’m Eliza and maybe my boyfriend is Eliza too. Sometimes opening up is hard, and it takes a while to get everything together. I had a great time with this book. I can’t wait to read what they write next!

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Oof, this was a disappointing read considering I am a big fan of all the other authors' works. I found this couple to have serious problems and no amount of role play is going to fix this. The vibes were off with this one.

Dual POV? Check. Rediscovered Love? Check. Rediscovered Self? Check.

This was such a refreshing romance! I loved that the book alternated chapters between Eliza and Graham. This is my first read where the couple are married, realistically having marital issues and their solution is to pretend they do not know each other haha! As a married woman, it was nice to read a book where the couple as already together. There wasn’t all of this fluff and meet cute lead up.

“Do I Know You?” made me laugh, cry, smile, and ache for the main characters relationship. After reading this book, the first thing I said to my husband was: “I promise to never stop dating you” as we are also coming up on our five year anniversary.

After five years of marriage, a young couple needs an escape to reignite their dwindling romance. I enjoyed this stories take of a marriage crisis, and how each partner commits to a role play at the resort. It was fun to witness their unique play spark their sexual desire for each other.

Do I Know You alternates between the POV's of the husband and wife as they reflect on the past few years, and the mistake they've made in their love story. The authors authentic depiction of working couples and marriage was spot on..

GREAT follow-up to their debut, The Roughest Draft.

Thank you Berkley Publishing for the complimentary copy.

Took me way too long to get through. Decent read, but not very memorable.

Eliza and Graham are heading to a resort to celebrate their five-year wedding anniversary. They have been "off" as of late, disconnected from each other and their relationship. They love each other, but can't seem to take their relationship to the next level, it remains on the surface. When the arrive, there is a bit of a mix up and they have two rooms. Eliza proposes that she stays in one, Graham stays in the other, and they take some time to figure out what they want in their relationship. When they meet up at bar, an acquaintance is mistaken and introduces the two of them as if they are strangers. They decide to go with the role play, and then decide to follow through for the rest of the trip--can these two reignite the spark they once shared?

What I liked about this book:

I love that this is a story about a married couple. There's no cheating, no hints of either of them wanting to throw in the towel on their relationship even when they don't know how to fix it. It was refreshing to see them try to find their way back to each other.

I also really liked the supporting characters and how they added to the humor and lightened up some of the heavier moments.

The ultimate resolution at the end was touching and endearing. It was very realistic throughout, and that made the book authentic and believable. Alternating chapters between Eliza's and Graham's points of view gave a clearer picture of what was going on.

What I didn't really like:

I felt like the entire thing just really dragged. It took a long time for everything to be laid out, and once it was I thought it took too long to get to each point of moving a step forward. The dual points of view worked well for some of the book, but when it came to examining what was wrong, that's where it seemed to drag because it was the same thing twice many times.

I didn't really care for Eliza throughout most of the book. I felt like Graham was being vulnerable and Eliza would shut him down. That's not to say he was perfect, but I got exasperated with her much more often than I did with him. I thought that maybe they needed some counseling to teach them how to communicate better rather than play role playing games.

This is definitely a book worth reading if you like stories about married couples that refreshingly aren't about infidelity. I'm here for that even if it drags at times.

I do quite enjoy a second chance romance, and I especially love the concept of role playing in order to spice things up and come back together! This was my first book by this author duo, which I found quite fun especially with the dual POVs. I think miscommunication arcs are fundamentally frustrating and drive me a little crazy, but I would argue that just means its working! Miscommunication always seems clear in hindsight but maybe not so much when you're experiencing it yourself.
It was definitely a fun read!