This book was so cute! I’m a sucker for a Tessa Bailey romcom any day of the week and this one did it’s job. I loved Hallie, with all of her chaotic energy and sunshine. I also loved Julian, and I adored getting to get more of his point of view throughout the book. Overall, it was a very cute, relatively lighthearted romance and I would recommend it for romance lovers!

I was so excited to get this arc! It was a really fun read with one of those really kind of nerdy, quirky heroes that isn't always on tap socially, but who's heart jumps all in. I love those guys! Julian has a history of panic attacks (really only one up to the point that the book starts) and has put himself on a ridiculously strict time line for every aspect of his life. Along comes Hallie. She owns a landscaping business and doesn't really put any forethought into anything she does. She shows up to a job when she shows up and plants things where her mood tells her to put them.

Hallie drives Julian absolutely crazy...in more ways than one. There's plenty of unexpected heat from Julian. When he goes crazy, he really goes crazy! He is also one of those guys that is all in once his heart gets involved. He will do absolutely anything for this woman.

There's a part of the book involving secret letter writing between the two (Julian doesn't know that she is his secret admirer). I guess it helps them get to know each other a little better, but it definitely wasn't the highlight of the book for me.

Thanks to Avon Books, Harper Voyager US and NetGalley for the gifted copy.

Tessa Bailey has quickly become one of my favorite authors, and Secretly Yours is one of her best. I love Hallie and Julian SO MUCH. This book is the epitome of grumpy/sunshine in the best way. The number of times Julian gets angry or aggravated on her behalf because “she should always be smiling”….SWOON! And of course the steam is on point 🌶️🌶️🌶️

Seriously, go read it. I’m about to go preorder my copy because once won’t be enough.

I love Tessa Bailey books and she hit it out of the park with another sexy, fun romance, Secretly Yours. I loved how Hallie and Julian were so different and tried throughout the story to overcome those differences to be together. I also enjoyed that each character was flawed and how those flaws affected each of their personalities and outlook on life. Of course, I'm a sucker for a HEA, which of course this story has a great one. I can't wait to read the next one in this series!

Meet a type-A professor, Julian and a bubbly gardener, Hallie, in this opposites attract, small town romance.

Read if you love:
⁃ Small town
⁃ Opposites attract
⁃ Grumpy sunshine
⁃ Vineyard setting
⁃ Body positivity
⁃ Mental health awareness
⁃ Family baggage

This one did start off a little slow for me but I enjoyed it at the end. I am not really a wino/vineyard person but I imagine some will really love the setting!

As always, Tessa Bailey, queen of romcom spice, delivers! My favorite aspect was the mental health/anxiety in the male MC. It’s not often anxiety is brought up in the male MC and I appreciated the vulnerability and rawness it brought to the story.

I cannot wait for Unfortunately Yours, out in June! This book will star Natalie, Julian’s younger sister! Natalie was one of my favorite characters in this one, with her dry humor and sarcasm! I can’t to read more about her!

For me, this is an author that either works or doesn’t, and unfortunately for this book, I felt underwhelmed. The writing overall was good and the story flowed nice, but I couldn't get behind the characters themselves. This author is amazing at writing a love story, especially a steamy one. There’s an undeniable chemistry between her characters, but with the book, there were a lot of outside storylines that took away from the love story.

I think for those who loved the grump and sunshine trope with It Happened One Summer, will be sadly disappointed with this. There’s a bit of magic that is missing with this book and Julian and Hallie are not as strong as a couple like other couples in other books from this author. I think if the author focused on Julian and Hallies romance rather than outside factors, I think this would have been a huge hit with me. The moments we got with both of them and the steamy scenes were what kept me I treated in this book. Though I wasn’t a huge fan of this one, I am excited to read more from this series. Thank you to NetGalley and Avon for this ARC

I’ll be honest – I’m really struggling to write this review. Something about this book just didn’t work for me, and pinpointing what that is has been really difficult. As I was reading, I messaged a friend to joke that “the whole plot of this book is just that everyone is really horny,” which isn’t a problem in and of itself. But I think the emotion that usually captures me in a Tessa Bailey book just didn’t hit me like it usually does to balance things out.

The premise is really fun. Hallie and Julian barely knew each other in high school, but she never quite shook the crush she had on him back then. When they run into each other fourteen years later, their chemistry is off the charts. But Hallie also writes him secret admirer letters, admitting to her past feelings in a way she’s never able to face-to-face. It’s fun to see it play out as he realizes he’s falling for IRL Hallie and his mystery letter writer.

I really liked Hallie (and I truly loved that it wasn’t treated as a big deal that she was a virgin – she’s just picky and that’s perfectly fine!), but the supporting characters felt too stereotypical and I couldn’t connect with Julian. And it’s his big emotional arc keeping them apart, so if I’m struggling with that arc, then I’m just struggling with the main plot of the romance. There were too many moments when I thought Hallie just deserved better. We get there in the end, but a romance novel is about enjoying the journey of getting there as well.

All that said, I actually think most people will like this book more than I did. I think I just should have temped my expectations, which were built up too high after how much I loved Fox and Hannah’s love story – and how hard Fox’s emotional arc punched me in the gut.

TB never disappoints with the spicy stories with unique twists. The way Julian was drawn to Hallie was so intense and sexy. I was less excited by the letter storyline but that was overshadowed by a very sweet story. Thank you for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. This book is out this week!

Let me start by saying that I liked the vibes of both Hallie and Julian, apart and together, because I love a good romance where grump-meets-sunshine or straightlaced-meets-chaos agent. This is worth the read for the inexorable build toward the moment when he can't resist her chaotic charms--a great trope. Plus, there are some sexy moments in and around vineyards (perfect for those of us still mooning over Keanu Reeves in A Walk in the Clouds) and tons of unexpected dirty talk from the professorial Julian. And by the end, I think even I was in love with Hallie's wild, curly hair and cheese-stealing ways, so Tessa Bailey was doing something right in her depiction of Hallie.

However, be prepared for an overly full plot. There's the version of this book where Hallie's this sunshine-y whirlwind tipping his life on its side, with all the resulting effects that would play out from there. There's another version of this book where Hallie writes her long-time crush a series of anonymous love letters and they inevitably connect from there. But smooshing the two plots together made the whole story feel a bit nonsensical at times--nevermind that there wasn't any room left to examine questions like "why does a 29-year-old woman still hold a torch for a boy she almost kissed 15 years ago and hasn't seen since?" I also found myself Googling certain mental health issues to assess the likelihood of specific plot points, which is not exactly how I want to be spending my romance novel time.

Anyway, this book can be fun if you skate along on its surface and don't question the plot too much. And Natalie, Julian's sister, seems like she'll be a good heroine, so I'll be picking up her book next to see how she and the hot Navy SEAL settle their differences.

Secretly Yours was classic Tessa Bailey; sort of insta-love, a standoffish hero who turns into a crude yet sweet hero, and a sunshine heroine who was kind of a mess.

I enjoyed Julian and Hallie's story, but I did not care for the miscommunication trope in the form of secret admirer letters. I also felt like their romance went from 0 to 100 too quickly.

Overall, Secretly Yours was an enjoyable read, but I am much more excited to read Natalie's story because enemies to lovers/marriage of convenience is much more my cup of tea.

Tessa Bailey reigns supreme when it comes to bedroom talk that isn’t squeaky clean. If you know what I mean. Secretly Yours was utterly wonderful from start to finish. I love the curvy girl pride. I love the anxious, starchy professor. I loved their second chance romance in a small town setting. And I loved the secret admirer/pen pal situation, even though it eventually leads to some major conflict. I can’t wait to have this one on my shelf with the rest of my Tessa Bailey books!

Secretly Yours will have you drunk on romance in this Napa Valley based story. I loved the grumpy/sunshine tale, with both characters finding their place in life and working through issues that seem to be holding themselves back while also finding rekindling a relationship years after a missed opportunity kiss in high school. This was a fun and flirty read that is the perfect mix of sweet and spicy!

It’s funny, this is my second Tessa Bailey book and the second time that the first couple chapters had me thinking it might not be for me, and then the rest of the book convincing me I was wrong.

Hallie and Julien, they aren’t the couple I was expecting, especially Julien but in the end I loved the way they weaved their way into each other’s lives. I loved the anxiety representation in this book, it’s becoming more common but every time I see it in a book it makes me happy that it’s not being swept under the rug.

As I came to find with my first Tessa novel, the spice is definitely very descriptive. This is a very very open door romance but I also loved it. Julien as a lover with Hallie was not what I expected at all but dang! The mouth on that man, whew!

I will say I wanted more from the ending, an epilogue, one more scene to take things a little further, just something. I know another book is forthcoming for another character from this story but I just wanted more. It felt rushed at the end for me.

It’s still a really solid book with fun characters, a different setting than I’ve seen for a lot of books, and great periphery characters… and I love a second chance (sort of) romance!

Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC copy of the book.

This is my third Tessa Bailey read, and while I haven’t been wild about any of them, I’ve got to say this one is my favorite so far! I thought the setting was fun, and I loved the nerdy guy. I’m glad I got an eARC of this one before it is released next week!

Secretly Yours is the first book in a new series by Tessa Bailey. Recently this author has been very hit and miss for me, so I was a little apprehensive going into this read. I requested the arc months ago, then totally forgot about it, went on to read other TB reads and thought maybe she wasn’t for me anymore, and then got this arc approval a week before it’s release date 😅. So I definitely went in with lowered expectations, but it kind of worked because I kind of liked this? I didn’t love it, but I didn’t mind it either lol So just wanted to share that so you can take my review with a grain of salt so-to-speak.

Basically in this we follow Hallie, as a teen she was raised by her grandmother and recently took over her grandmother’s garden/landscaping business after she passed away. Hallie finds out her crush from 15 years ago has moved back home and immediately jumps at the chance to be around him. Julian is a history professor who recently moved back to his family’s winery to focus on writing his first novel, a historical fiction. Julian and Hallie had an almost-kiss 15 years ago and she has held a torch for him ever since, but never in her wildest dreams did she imagine him showing back up in her life. When she realizes he’s back, she immediately calls up his mom (who is already one of her landscaping clients) and insists she come plant some new flowers on the property.

Julian is pretty smitten from the start, I think Tessa Bailey’s recent reads all kind of have this insta-lust vibe to them (which sometimes works for me). This is definitely an opposite’s attract romance: Julian has anxiety and he very much handles life better being organized and sticking to a schedule and structure, while Hallie is chaos and doesn’t have a schedule for anything. This did have a lot of fun elements: set in Napa Valley, lots of wine-talk, I liked seeing them help out a local wine shop owner who was being out-sold by a new and flashy competitor. It does have that classic TB dirty talk, the steamy scenes didn’t really do it for me though and I never really got behind their romance. At one point the heroine gets drunk and does write secret admirer/anonymous pen pal type letters to the hero (I guess where the title name comes in). Honestly could have done without that storyline, it didn’t add much besides a third act conflict that didn’t work for me.

I actually did like the setting and them helping the wine shop owner, I did like his sister as well who apparently gets the next book and has a fun setup with tropes that might work better for me.

Thank you to the publisher (Avon Books) for an e-ARC via NetGalley. All thoughts in this review are my own. Secretly Yours is out February 7, 2023!

Another great Tessa Bailey novel. I really liked the grumpy/sunshine throughout the book although it was a bit overwhelming a couple times. I love the setting and i’m so glad this isn’t the only novel we will get in St. Helena. The spice in this book was great and i always love a dual-perspective.

If you’ve been following me for awhile you know i am a @tessabaileyisanauthor STAN i would read this woman’s grocery list and say it’s a five star read. I was given an ARC shoutout to @netgalley & @avonbooks 🫶🏽

This is a perfect book in time for the season of love! Hallie is your sunshine the person everyone loves and enjoys being around and Julian is working through some trauma that lead him to become obsessive with managing his time and doesn’t like to go off scheduled that is until he meets Hallie for a second time. This book was a fast read and i didn’t want to put it down & of course this is a Tessa Bailey book so you know its spicy and the writing is *chef’s kiss* 👌🏽

Loved this opposites attract rom-com! The characters were perfectly flawed and their relationship was frustrating, adorable, and HOT. I found myself so disappointed when this book ended as I got lost in their story and did not want it to end. The descriptions were perfect. making it easy to imagine yourself watching this love story unfold in person. 
Hallie fell for Julilan Vos in highschool. When he returns home after many years and she finds herself revamping the gardens on the Vos estate, she wonders if her crush was real. He is grumpy and uptight, she is eccentric and laid back. They are complete opposites, yet the attraction is real. Can they grow and meld to fit the others needs - or are they too different for things to work? 
Thank you Netgalley for my advanced reader copy!

I've read one other Tessa Bailey book, and I thought it was good! I was excited to read more of hers because of the hype. I'm not sure, after this one, if I'm a Tessa Bailey girlie.
The book starts out fairly boring, and it only really goes down hill from there. I don't really find any of the characters believable or three-dimensional, if I'm honest.
I know from the previous book I read that Tessa doesn't really do build-up. And that's okay! Totally fine. Sometimes I like that! Unfortunately... not this time. The characters are instantly attracted to one another, wanting to rip each other's clothes off, and it just didn't do it for me. I need the build up. I need the tension!
The MMC was... wild. I felt like whenever he did anything with the FMC it was like he was being forced to by his brain, and he didn't really care about her pleasure even if he said he did. He was doing it because he HAD to and he had no impulse control, rather than him actually feeling anything with her, which left me feeling weird about their relationship or lack thereof.
The story lacked chemistry and it lacked depth, and I'm really sad about it. I'll give another book or so a chance but she may just not be for me! And that's okay.

I like Tessa Bailey and I will keep reading books by her. But this was by far her worst book. I didn't enjoy this one at all. It really makes me wonder if this book was written by Tessa Bailey because it did not seem like her normal writing. The main characters seemed super immature. This read more like a YA book than an adult romance book. I wish this book was more like her other books. I hate to say it but I think this is one that you should pass on reading.