If your are mood/seasonal reader like me add this one to your February TBR and plan on reading it before Valentine’s Day. Otherwise cue this one up right now and get ready because Trevor is about to be your next book boyfriend.

This was such a great read. I loved both Trevor and Tara. And their easy bantered with each other from the start. Their first meeting is nothing short of laugh out loud. And some situations Tara gets herself into will have you face palming. The ending of this is so swoony I still have heart in my eyes over it.

Melli’s Book Breakdown
🤍Roommates
🤍Bookstagramer Heroine
🤍Firefighter Hero
🤍Steamy

UMMM THIS BOOK. I’m really picky about contemporary romances, especially single-POV, but this absolutely knocked it out of the park. I adored Tara and Trevor and the entire concept of her trying to reconnect with her exes. It does swing towards the contemporary-fiction-y side of romance (like Emily Henry and other single POV contemporaries), but I thought the romance was present enough and really well developed.

AGH. TREVOR. That is all I have to say. He’s not my type but OOH would I risk at all just for him.

Also how are there not more romances about romance bookstagrammers?? I worried it might give me a bit of the ick since it seems easy to get too on the nose with it, but it was somehow perfect.

The ending was perfect and I just need to say for the record that I was listening to the audiobook and when it got to the epilogue I realized what was happening and quite literally shrieked and fell sideways into the nearest wall. I lost my mind for a second. I needed life alert because I truly had fallen for Trevor and could not get up.

CW: sexual content, toxic relationships, stigmatized use of “crazy”, misogyny, medical content, abandonment

It seems to be that I never know where to start. Let’s just dive in with the pop culture references. I have a love-hate relationship with them. I see how it can build relatability and foster a relationship between character and reader, but long term, it isn’t sustainable. I will say though, Taylor Swift references are always welcome. She’s a timeless icon. Somehow we switched gears to Olivia Wilde. Now there’s a lot of history there. Good or bad? Only time will tell. As for the mentions of booktok, bookstagram, and booktube…it’s becoming more normalized, so it was less startling, I’ll give it that. There will never be a “good time” to introduce what are now our societal norms, so we’ll just have to adapt eventually. I’m just choosing sooner rather than later.

As for the caliber of writing, it was questionable. However, the character dynamics made it 100% bearable. The banter between Trevor and Tara was nothing short of incredible. That being said, there was absolutely no chemistry between the two. Not a single spark. There was barely any lead-up to their relationship. No stolen moments of knowing glances. No constantly brushing up against one another. No conversational slip-ups. I mean it when I say we got absolutely nothing. All of a sudden it was like a switch flipped and we discover he’s been secretly pining for her this entire time *fake gasp*. It just wasn’t believable. I wanted to love them, I truly did. But there was so much lost potential in their dynamic that being a character-driven story, it just fell flat for me.

Speaking of characters, God do I love Tara. She’s just like us - a book obsessed, hopeless romantic. She’s so relentless, it truly is admirable. I very much appreciate her character arc and the portrayal of double standards between men and women in relationships. Giving very much The Man by Taylor Swift.

Trevor, unfortunately, just didn’t do it for me. There was nothing about his character that stood out to me. He seemed like most of the men I’m very unfortunately acquainted with. I just don’t believe he truly loved Tara as long as he said he did. He slept with how many women in the months since he met her? It’s giving I was with her, but thought of you the whole time…not a good look. He also made so many suggestive comments about other women TO Tara. It doesn’t take a woman in STEM to see that the math just isn’t adding up.

I may be playing devil’s advocate here, but I think Tara and Daniel would’ve made a better couple than Tara and Trevor…

I do commend the author though because this was one of the very few interconnected standalones that’ve actually read as one. Not having read Set On You, the book's predecessor, wasn’t a setback in the slightest. Sure, the sudden name drops weren’t very smooth, but they never are. There isn’t a clear-cut way to introduce a new character with an entire book's worth of backstory. That’s why I almost always recommend reading a series in its entirety rather than as sporadic standalones.

The pacing was perfect at the beginning of the novel but started going downhill once we got to the 65% mark. It was a slow burn up until it became a raging inferno. It was moving so fast that I started to get whiplash.

I will say, adding a dual POV, even toward the last couple of chapters, could’ve added a lot more perspective to the story. It may’ve made Trevor a more believable and likable character.

As for our conclusion, it served. It was everything I’ve ever wanted in an epilogue. Though, I would’ve appreciated it more if it wasn’t so out of place. We went from witnessing the beginning of a very unstable and unclear relationship to an out-of-the-blue engagement.

Overall, it wasn’t a very memorable read to me, earning it only 3 stars, but it was an excellent palette cleanser! A nice change of pace, if you will.

Thank you to Berkley Romance and Amy Lea for providing me with this ARC. As always, all opinions are my own and are not influenced by early access to this title.

If you’re looking for a heart-eye emoji inducing book, this is it. It’s a love letter not only to people who just love love, but also to bookstagrammers.

Tara Chen is a romance novel obsessed nurse. Over and over again she’s failed to find true love, and she’s convinced the modern meet-cute is dead. A year after being dumped by her fiance for her so-called stage-five clinger tendencies, she’s finally starting a new chapter in her life. She’s swapping apartments with her sister’s man. Things should have been super awkward between Tara and her new roommate after she walked in on him mid-kitchen hookup. Instead, she and Trevor hit it off and become fast friends. Trevor agrees to help Tara find “The One”... and she’s turning to a tried and true trope–second chance romance. She’ll test the waters again with ten exes, trying to find out where things went wrong.

Firefighter Trevor is used to putting out fires all over town, but what happens when sparks ignite in his own heart and he can’t seem to douse them? Trevor is by far one of the sexiest, softest, sweetest male MCs I’ve read in a romance.

Get ready for a slow burn, but worth it! Tara and Trevor’s relationship seemed fully fleshed out by the time we reached our guaranteed HEA, and seeing them really get to know each other as friends first was such a sweet treat.

The side characters were a nice balance to the story. It was delightful to catch up with Tara’s sister Crystal and Scott from Set on You. The exes were a great mix of silly, sweet, and salty. Tara’s side gig as a bookstagrammer/vlogger felt so validating. (I also do a bookstack fundraiser for a heart cause near and dear to me!)

Finally, THE EPILOGUE!!!!!!!!! Omg. My heart felt like it was going to flutter right out of my chest. A-freaking-dorable. Thanks to Berkley for the invite to be on the blog tour for Exes and O’s and NetGalley for the digital copy.

I don’t usually have a lot of luck with rom coms because I’m convinced I’m dead inside. This book, however, is a rom com that I absolutely adored. A firefighter and a book influencer? Stop it right now! These characters were a delight individually and even better together. There was great banter, just enough steam, and (important to me:) a great storyline.

I didn’t realize this was a sequel until I had already started it but I don’t feel like I missed anything crucial to the story. I enjoyed this one so much, though, that I will go back and read the first in the series.

4 ⭐️ Adorable and so relatable


"He's not just the hero of my dreams. He's the hero beyond my wildest imagination. The best part? He's nonfiction."


WHAT TO EXPECT:
✨ roommates to friends to lovers
✨ forced proximity
✨ slow burn romance
✨ miscommunication (but resolved quickly!)
✨ amazing sexual tension
✨ 🌶️🌶️.5/5 spice


Yeah, I’m pretty sure if I hadn’t met my husband at 19, this would 100% be my story. Lol I saw so much of myself in Tara it felt like this book was some multiverse shit of my own life.

What I loved:

The entire premise of the story was ridiculously fun Seeing Trevor and Tara team up to help her rekindle a relationship with an ex only for it to backfire and for them to fall in love was everything I didn't know I needed! I loved watching them go from roommates to friends to lovers. Their relationship developed so naturally, and the romance progressed in a very realistic way.

Tara is incredibly relatable (to me at least). From the gossip girl and bachelor references to Tara being active on Booktok and Bookstagram to her being willing just to be herself and risk rejection (even if it’s because she loves hard), I never related more to a character. I feel like the author wrote a different version of myself as the lead and that was surreal reading because sometimes I wanted to throttle Tara, but other times I wanted to high-five her and comfort her. 🙈

Trevor was a hard nut to crack, but once Tara does, there’s so much to explore. I actually didn't really like Trevor in the beginning. He just seemed like a huge, detached player with little personality. But as Tara (and the reader) get to know him, you realize quickly there's so much to him. He’s one of the good ones.

The sexual tension and spice were perfectly balanced. Because they started off as friends, there was a lot of time to build the tension, so when they finally get together it's so rewarding and explosive!

Trevor’s declarations of love (both times) are swoon-worthy! There's nothing more satisfying than when the closed-off, no-relationship guy becomes an absolute simp and makes a speech. But in this book, we are blessed with TWO very touching declarations of love. 💕


I actually haven’t read the first book in this series, and I still loved it so just know that you can 100% enjoy it as a stand-alone. UPDATE: I have read Set On You (book 1). You can check out my review here: Set On You Review.

My only complaint is that the beginning is a bit slow and things don’t really pick up till about 50% however this pace does give this story a more realistic feel since Tara and Trevor needed to grow a solid friendship first, so in the end, it all made sense.

I absolutely loved Set on You! I love how this series is following influencers and Tara who has a bookstagram but she’s also a nurse. This part of IG isn’t really lucrative unless you have any tips I don’t know about.
I’m halfway through this book and love Tara she reminds me of how hard dating was. I feel like I went through all the gaslighting douchey bros with double standards too.
Totally love Travis the firefighter who happens to be her new roommate. He’s helping her stay on the non crazy train. Ugh I hate when guys call girls crazy cause they start to like them. Like what did you think would happen.
I don’t think I could ask my prior relationships why we didn’t work lol. But I admire her for attempting that second chance romance.
This was a light-hearted sweet romance but you had to get past her toxic prior relationships. Tara had to grow and work on herself a bit to get past the fear of rejection (we all have it). Once she put herself out there it got 🔥. 😊
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐✨

Thank you berkleyromance and netgalley for the e-ARC for my honest and voluntary review.

ALL THE STARS. THIS ONE GETS ALL THE STARS.

When this book was announced, I knew I would enjoy it, but I didn’t not anticipate finding one of my new ALL TIME FAVORITE romances! With a deliciously slow burn roommates turned friends turned lovers, this book captures all the vibes of our favorite classic romantic comedies.

I knew from Tara’s first conversation with Trevor that I was going to be obsessed with their relationship. The dynamic between the two characters was perfect, from their banter to the growing tension between them as the story progresses.

Tara is a heroine for the romance girlies. As a romance book-obsessed Bookstagrammer, she was SO relatable to me, and it was so fun to follow her on her often disastrous and chaotic quest to create a second chance romance between her and one of her exes.

Overall this book was utterly captivating. It made me laugh out loud and it made me swoon, and I enjoyed every single moment of it. If you are looking for an adorable love story between a hopeless romantic sunshine heroine and a grumpy tattooed firefighter, then I highly, highly recommend this book, which is available now!

This is addictive, extremely hot and humorous forced proximity room-ance! This book was so much fun! Exes and O’s is Amy Lea’s second book and I loved it even more than the first!!
Here are the tropes and what to expect!!
- roommates to friends to lovers
- forced proximity
- slow burn romance
- miscommunication (but resolved quickly!)
- amazing sexual tension
Thank you so much to NetGalley and Berkley for the e-Arc in exchange for an honest review!! I loved it!!
Amy Lea! You have made a forever fan of me!!

This was so freaking cute and exactly what I needed!!

Tara is determined to find her second chance romance (her favorite trope), and her extremely handsome but broody roommate, Trevor, begrudgingly agrees to help.

I loved everything about this book! (the bookish bookstagrammer?? Hi, it’s me) was so relatable and added some great numerous moments to the story.

I loved how the friendship between Trevor and Tara blossomed and made way for their budding relationship. Their growth as individuals as they come to terms with their feelings was really nice to see.

Well written, humorous, and heartfelt.

Thank you for the eARC!

Tara is a NICU nurse and bookstagrammer. When she reflects back on her many failed relationships, she decides to find “the one” by revisiting her ex-boyfriends to see if any of them are the one that got away. Her firefighter roommate Trevor joins her as her wing man of sorts through this hilarious string of escapades that are all too relatable. But as Tara looks for her happily ever after, she starts to think that maybe what she is looking for is right in front of her.

💖This book is fantastic!! I loved the hilarious and cringeworthy way Tara and Trevor meet for the first time, the rooftop hot tub, and the banter and relationship between Tara and Trevor is everything! Plus the epilogue might be the most incredible rom com ending I have ever read! Perfection! Now I just wish that Tara and Trevor were real so we could be friends. But since they’re not, I will instead read any of Amy Lea’s books- now and always. Definitely an auto-buy author for me now!

I really enjoyed Exes and O"s! The story centers around Tara who is desperately attempting to manufacture her own second chance romance one year after her fiancé dumped her. Simultaneously, she moves in to her soon-to-be brother-in-law's old apartment, and gets a roommate that she hadn't really bargained for, Trevor, who happens to be a hot firefighter. This book made consistently made me laugh out loud! There were so many funny and cringy moments, and the funniest character was definitely Grandma Flo!

This book was also very self- aware which is refreshing in the romance genre, and I liked how Amy Lea worked within the confines of existing tropes while also putting an additional spin (i.e. Tara trying to manifest her own second chance trope). There were parts throughout that reminded me a lot of Jess and Nick from New Girl, especially the restaurant scene.

"Expecting to be the exception to the rule is like eating Taco Bell and being shocked when you get mad diarrhea."

From its epic first line all the way to the epilogue, I was completely smitten with Amy Lea's sophomore novel, Exes and O's. Nurse and bookstagrammer Tara has been striking out in love, so she decides to track down all her exes for a second chance at romance fit for an epic romance novel, with the help of her commitment-phobic roommate, Trevor. But as the list dwindles, Tara and Trevor have a hard time denying what might be right in front of them.

Exes and O's is the perfect slow burn, complete with ample sexual tension. Nothing about this story is predictable...I had no clue where it would go next! The forced proximity was done so well and I loved how the pair built trust and intimacy through friendship. The progression of their relationship was believable and I found myself rooting for them the entire time.

Tara's character was so relatable. I loved how she lives life to the fullest and goes balls to the wall in just about everything. Her quest for love, despite everything she's been through, was endearing and sweet. Her plight to never have casual sex (must know partner's middle name) was in perfect opposition to Trevor's hit it and quit it attitude.

Trevor was such a compliment to Tara's personality. They just worked! I loved having a single POV, because it kept Trevor a mystery throughout the book, slowly putting together pieces of what he's hiding underneath his quiet and gruff exterior. Plus, who doesn't love a tattooed firefighter?!?! The way Trevor teaches Tara to go slow and all his acts of love for her, sometimes without knowing he was doing it, melted my heart. He truly was a softy.

The secondary characters totally added to the charm of this book. Grandma Flo is an absolute hoot and I adored Trevor's niece Angie. While this is the sequel to Set On You, Exes and O's can be read as a standalone as well. Thanks to Berkley Romance for the gifted eARC!

Thank you Netgalley and Berkley Publishing for my ARC in exchange for an honest review! I have only good news because I LOVED THIS BOOK!

This book was absolutely wonderful! I read Set on You right before I read this just in case I needed to. This book certainly can be read as a stand alone. I loved everything about it. The slow burn, how hilarious Tara the main character is, the forced proximity trope, and how Amy Lea Masterfully poked fun at "the crazy girl" and then made them the hero. Then we have Trevor. *swoon.* I have never fallen in love with a fictional man until today. I loved him to PIECES. They had wonderful chemistry, and it was the slowest and most satisfying burn. When they finally went for it, I was not disappointed.

This became one of my top 10 favorite romances ever. I am running out to buy it right now!

So much fun!! Devoured this roommates-to-friends-to-lovers in 2 days & am excited to read more by Amy Lea 😊

Happy pub week to @amyleabooks and her heartwarming gem of a romcom, EXES AND O'S! Thank you so much to Amy Lea, @berkleyromance and @netgalley for my gifted e-copy and the chance to read and review this wonderful book, and to @berittalksbooks and @dg_reads for allowing me to participate in the buddy read with so many amazing Bookstagrammers.

And to Gina @readinggirlreviews for being such an incredible friend, both on Instagram and in real life. Your help, kindness, and guidance over the last nearly 4 years (I celebrate my 4-year bookstaversary in three days!) has been incredible, and I can't thank you enough for helping me with this post today! You are the best!

Could anything be better than a romcom that features a Bookstagramming nurse and a charming, sweet, devastatingly handsome firefighter who loves to read and is her roommate? How about if that amazing book is also written by a Bookstagrammer?!?

Well, that is exactly what @amyleabooks ' Exes and O's is, and I am here to shout from the rooftops that you MUST. READ. THIS. BOOK.

Looking for great banter and some truly laugh-out-loud moments? This one's got it.

In need of some forced proximity and roomance? Check.

Craving some late 90s/early 2000s references? Bingo.

Seeking a story that has you thinking back to all of your exes and wondering what they're up to now? Look no further.

Seriously, this book delivers some of the best aspects of romance tropes while also discussing some deeper issues, including gaslighting, the problematic and deliberate use of the word "crazy," an emotionally abusive ex, and portrayal of child illness. I appreciated how Lea approached these topics with sensitivity and grace, and I loved how these topics helped readers understand both Tara and Trevor on a deeper level.

Mostly, I just adored the friendship and chemistry between Tara and Trevor. They both accepted each other, flaws and all, and truly just wanted the other to be happy. As a fellow Bookstagrammer, I loved the little Bookstagram touches Lea included in this book, and I also appreciated aspects of Tara (hopeless romantic, wears her heart on her sleeve, loves her friends and family and would do anything for them) that reminded me of myself. I loved that, while Trevor initially appeared to be a playboy, we learned why he closes himself off and keeps things surface level.

And oh my, once that undeniable chemistry hit and both of them started feeling ALL THE FEELS, I loved the spicy scenes!

The only thing I'd tweak? I wish we'd had alternating POV chapters from both Tara and Trevor. But regardless, I ADORED this book and cannot wait to read Mel's story! EXES and O'S is a follow-up book to Lea's SET ON YOU, but I was easily able to read Exes and O's as a standalone (you can bet I'll be reading that one next, though!)

This one hit shelves yesterday, so grab it ASAP!

#exesandos #amylea #berkleyromance #berkleybuddyreads #berkleywritesstrongwomen #bookstagram #bookstagrammer #bookreviewer #bookreview #bookreviewsneedlovetoo #readers #readersofinstagram #januaryreads #romcom #romancereaders #romancereadersofinstagram #romancelover #bookstabuddies

If you are a fan of romcoms, I have a must read for you! The follow up to Set on You by @amyleabooks, Exes and O’s, comes out on Tuesday and I LOVED IT! Thank you @berkleyromance and @berkleypub for the free e-copy and for including me on the book tour.

Exes and O’s follows Crystal’s sister, Tara. Tara is a nurse, a romcom fan, and a BOOKSTAGRAMMER!! When Crystal and her boyfriend decide to move in together, Tara takes over his room in the old apartment.

Enter Trevor. Trevor is a firefighter and quite anti-relationship, but I adored him! Sigh 😍. Anyway, Tara decided to find her ex boyfriends and try to live out her own second chance romance trope, and convinces Trevor to help her. As she finds each guy, she realizes that maybe she should be looking a bit closer to home instead of in her past.

The chemistry was 🔥, the steam was 🔥🔥🔥 (holy hot tub shenanigans), and Trevor is my new book boyfriend. This book made me laugh, gave me feels, and the ending is just perfection. I will definitely be purchasing a physical copy of this one for my shelves! I can’t wait for Mel’s book.

I'd actually give this 3.5 stars.

Tara reads a ton of romances and really wants her own Happy Ever After ending. But her exes just weren't ready for her level of commitment, calling her a "stage 5 clinger" who becomes the "crazy ex girlfriend" after they break up. She decides to revisit her exes for a second-chance romance trope and keep her bookstagram followers involved along the way. After her fiance dumps her, Tara needs a place to live fast, and moves in with firefighter, Trevor Metcalfe.

If ever a book needed the male's character POV, it's this one. While not every rom-com needs a guy's perspective, this one doesn't deliver the chemistry necessary to make Trevor, the master of the one night stand, fall so hard for Tara and give up his womanizing ways. While he opens up to Tara over time, the why he feels safe doing so is locked in his head.

This book is cute, and fluffy, and a feel-good read. I just wish Trevor's character was a bit more fleshed out.

Exes and O's was such a fun book to kick off 2023! Tara is a nurse and book lover/influencer. She becomes roommates with Trevor and their first introduction is definitely not a meet cute. Tara is obsessed with romance tropes and gets it in her head that she needs to revisit her exes to try to make a second-chance romance happen. As Tara and Trevor become friends, she starts to develop feelings and you can guess where this heads. Amy Lea writes in a way that keeps the story moving along with humor, emotion, and Flynn Rider references. Tara is a like-able heroine and I could understand how she related various situations to romance books. Trevor is a tattooed playboy firefighter who is a sweetheart and loyal friend. I loved this book and it's a great read leading up to Valentine's Day or really any time for romance lovers.

Thank you @PRHAudio for the free audiobook.

I cannot believe I am saying this but I loved this book more than Amy’s debut! What more can you ask for when a fellow bookstagrammer meets her new sex on a stick roommate? I loved everything about the writing, the unique plot, and the lovable characters! This book had all the swoon worthy moments between the two MC’s. I couldn’t get enough of their romance; everything was soooo swoon worthy. Hands down my favorite romance of 2023 so far!

Read if you enjoy:
-close proximity (room-ance)
-slow burn
-friends to lovers
-grumpy vs sunshine
-an ex-list

Officially out today! Highly encourage you to pick this up and 𝗦𝗘𝗧 𝗢𝗡 𝗬𝗢𝗨 if you haven’t already read it. Can’t wait for the third installment