At this point in my life, I've read all of Tessa Bailey; you cannot go wrong with any of her books. They're light, put together with characters that make sense and act like real people.
Secretly Yours was a delightfully quick read. It didn't stand up to some of Bailey's other books, but it was still quite enjoyable. Hallie and Julian are quite compatible in the way that opposites are. They're written to be like real people. I also thoroughly appreciated that Bailey created Julian Vos, high and mighty family in the Valley, to have a pretty severe panic disorder. I think in fiction, the women are most often given that ailment when in real life more men suffer with it than is realized.
In the end, as I said before, you quite literally cannot go wrong with any of Tessa Bailey's books. This one was different and unique and I would highly recommend.

Not that I expected anything less of Bailey, but this one is SO GOOD. Loved the relationship between Hallie & Julian, the tension is *chefs kiss*. This should be at the top of your February must reads, it’s perfect for a Valentine’s Day reading challenge.

I don't like to give grumpy reviews unless a book is truly, offensively horrible and "Secretly Yours" is neither of things. It's also not particularly entertaining.

The plot is flimsy, characters stale, and the story is kind of all over the place and if there's one romance trope there are at least a half dozen. Mommy issues? Yup. Daddy issues? Yup. Small town business triumphing over an out of town interloper? Yes. Sunshine vs. curmudgeon? Yup. Elder virgin? Yup. Smart ass sister? Yes. Rich guy swooping in to make the woman he "loves" happy? Yes, yes, yes. It's all there, erratically on the page, but nothing is fleshed out completely.

I found stodgy, uptight, in control Julian to be just shy of disturbingly controlling and domineering. Hallie is likeable enough but it seems like Bailey is trying to embrace body positivity where the protagonist is concerned and it just doesn't work. Mid-seduction Julian actually uses the word "jiggly" and it feels demeaning. In fact most of the words Julian offers by way of wooing Hallie are less than sexy.

Some people may enjoy this, unfortunately I was not one of them.

Thanks to NetGalley for the review copy.

Tessa Bailey has done it again with this opposites attract rom-com.

Hallie has been harboring a crush on Julian Vos since she was a teenager so when he returns to their hometown to work on his novel she gets herself a job redoing the gardens on his family’s estate. After a girls’ night out, Hallie writes a secret admirer letter to Julian - professing how she feels about him. As the two grow closer it becomes more and more difficult to tell Julian that she has been writing to him. Will the truth ruin their budding relationship or bring them closer together?

I am particularly impressed with the anxiety representation in this book. The way that Julian grapples with his anxiety feels genuine and made me love him even more. He is so protective of Hallie and only wants to see her happy.

Thank you NetGalley and Avon for the arc!

Thank you Avon and Harper Voyager and NetGalley for providing an arc.

I really liked this book. Hallie and Julian are my new favorite couple. I feel like it was a bit of a slow start but once kept reading it got better.

Secretly Yours by Tessa Bailey Review!⁠
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Star rating: 5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⁠
Spice level: 4 ❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥⁠
Tropes: opposites attract, possessive/jealous mmc, anxiety rep, 15-year crush/missed connection, virgin fmc⁠
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Tessa Bailey is the queen of dirty talk y'all. Her books are always fun and exciting but they are also full of the best sexy scenes out there. I would literally die to have a man like Julian be protective over me the way he is over Hallie. ⁠
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Julian's family owns a winery, Hallie is a gardener who is trying to save her Grandmother's favorite wine shop from going bankrupt. There are also some secret love letters going on, this book really has it all! I also thought it was hilarious that the fmc's last name is Welch which reminded me of Welch's grape juice and wine is a huge part of the story. ⁠
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This is also the first book in a new series/duology called A Vine Mess! The next story features Julian's sister and I honestly can't wait to read it too! The plot is a marriage of convenience and that plotline is my literal favorite!!

A great read for all grumpy/sunshine trope lovers. The book had great spice and good character development. I do feel as though the book was slow paced and left a lot of things up in the air. I can't wait to read the next book in the duology in hopes that it answers a lot of the loose ends.
Thank you Netgalley and Avon and Harper Voyager for the ARC!

Secretly Yours is a contemporary romance book about a chaotic gardener and an ordered professor. Hallie, a gardener who never plans anything, is constantly late and never thinks before acting, finally has a chance to see again her crush of fifteen years, Julian. Julian is a history professor, who schedules every moment of every day and is committed to the routine. Basically, Hallie and Julian are total opposites and there is no way a relationship between them would work. However, when they meet, the pull between them is undeniable.

Hallie and Julian are both great characters, both are very complex and have their own issues. I loved how they both accept each other, but also they are both changing under the influence of one other. The tensions and desire between them was obvious from their first meeting and, as always, Tessa Bailey did not despite in terms of spice. Hallie could be frustrating at times, as she is constantly making the worst decision possible, but overall I really enjoyed her character. I loved her dedication to her grandmother, and her three dogs were such a cute detail. Julian was a bit annoying at the beginning with his obsession with order and routine, but he grew on me (and his arms might have convinced me).

The story was well-paced, and I loved the building tension between Hallie and Julian! Mostly, however, I loved reading how Julian did everything he could to make Hallie smile – those scenes had me grinning at my book! I loved the sneak peek we got of Natalie and August’s story! I cannot wait for their book next year!

3.5/5 ⭐️‘s

This wasn’t my favorite Tessa book, but it was still a v cute read with relatable characters! Hallie is a bright and chaotic ray of sunshine, while Julian is a starchy/grumpy professor who likes routines and organization. Hallie’s harbored this secret crush on Julian since high school (which is a trope I will eat up every!! single!! time!! 😛) and I really loved the way this played into the story with the secret admirer letters.

Secretly Yours is sweet and funny and endearingly vulnerable, and I think my favorite part was how neither Hallie nor Julian ever tried to change one another. They’re both kind of tough nuts to crack in terms of opening themselves up to love, but they’re also well worth the work!

All that being said, I did have a hard time with the pacing. I felt like from the 50-75ish% mark of the book things were kind of slow and then suddenly at the end everything felt very rushed. I also didn’t love the way that the anxiety rep played out, especially towards the end.

All in all, the characters are lovable and I would honestly still read this one again if only for natalie’s wine-drunk antics (v excited for her book!!) & the spice (bc Julian’s dirty talk is 😮‍💨🥵)

Thank you sm to Avon & Netgalley for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review!

tessa bailey never misses. i am so thankful that i finally listened to the never ending lost of people telling me to read her books because i have loved every single one and this is no exception!

Hello. What is happening in romance books at the moment? This is the third book I have read where the male character has anxiety. I am here for it. Tessa Bailey’s characters are flawed but not emotionally constipated. And the sexy time is hot hot hot! It is also the second book that featured letter writing. It is so intimate and romantic. Read if you still have a thing for your high school crush or if you like wine and are slightly adhd. Your chaos is beautiful. I was given an advanced reader's copy via NetGalley, thank you to them. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

If you’re a rom com fan who enjoys the grumpy/sunshine trope, flowers, wine, small towns, I’m-trying-to-write-but-am-being-distracted-by-the-beautiful-woman-outside, READ THIS BOOK.

I loved the banter in this book between Hallie & Julian, and how their relationship developed. The secret admirer part was also very cute. The characters are great and I loved how Julian’s family worked everything out and other things I can’t say because *spoilers*.

Hallie Welch had a huge crush on Julian Vos her freshman year of high school. He was a senior and someone many crushed on as well. She attended a party at his family's vineyard and was almost kissed by him. She never got over her feelings for him and had since measured all men by her memories of Julian. Julian decided to take the summer off from teaching history at Stanford to write a historical novel. He had not taken a sabbatical from teaching in years and planned to write at his childhood home. Hallie was contracted by Julian's mother to spruce up the plantings surrounding the guesthouse where Julian was staying. Hallie was free spirited, spontaneous, and marched to the beat of her own drum. Julian was regimented, scheduled, and over thought everything he did. Being around each other while Hallie updated the outside of the guesthouse, intensified Hallie's feelings and gave Julian a potential new way of thinking about life.

I loved Hallie and Julian. The gumpy/sunshine opposites were adorable together. They made each other reflect on how they approached life and opened up new pathways of being. The book was very spicy and had plenty of amusing banter. The side characters were fantastic. Who wouldn't want to go to a bakery named, Fudge Judy? Tessa Bailey has written another great book. I will definitely read the next in the duology.

I received an e-ARC for Secretly Yours and want to thank Tessa Bailey, Avon and Harper Voyager, and NetGalley for the opportunity to voluntarily read and give an honest review of this book.

Secretly Yours takes place in my backyard, so I was ready nd willing to live this book. But even with a delightful setting, there was too much strange wish fulfilment going on for me to really lose myself in the book.

Sweet and spicy, but I wanted more from Hallie. She felt like a caricature of the sunshine girl without enough to make her feel like an actual person. The pacing was off and the "anonymous" love letters frankly felt unnecessary.

So cute and so sweet I absolutely loved this. It’s no doubt that tessa Bailey is one of my go to authors. Her characters and romances make me unbelievably happy! I cannot wait for the second book in the duet. I devoured this!

Maybe it's because I love Tessa Bailey and was expecting this to be a 5-star book, which was why this fell a little flat for me, I don't know. I felt like something was off a little with this one, and I can't place it, and it's bothering me.

I do like how both MCs were opposites and balanced each other out, and I liked how they needed to realize their strengths and weaknesses together.

I liked it, but I just felt like the pacing was off or something, and I was getting impatient as well. Also, I felt like it just ended and I wanted more, but I am excited for book #2 and hopefully I'll see Hallie and Julian again.

I don't know this was a little messy, but it's also part of the Vine Mess series so maybe that was the point.

*I was given a eARC from NetGalley and the publishers for an honest review, thank you!

This was fine; entertaining but not my favorite. I didn't like the characters and wanted more from the setting and circumstances. Could have used more development of the characters and the setting. Didn't feel like much actually happened. A quick, predictable read.

I didn't realize Napa was the new Big City for romances. I appreciated the change from Bailey's most recent works, but it was very apparent that this was setup for other books. Very pleasant read, probably not a high demand title.

Thank you Avon and Harper Voyager and NetGalley for providing an arc for an honest review.

I adore this book! Hallie is such a whirlwind of a person and crashes into Julian’s life throwing off his schedules and perfectly laid out plans. Of course what he doesn’t know is that she has had a serious crush on him since high school and in a drunken moment Hallie decides to confess these feelings in a secret admirer letter. Like clockwork Julian finds the letter and thus begins his journey to letting go. Through her letters and her presence Hallie challenges Julian to break free of the constraints of his schedules and learn to live life again.

There was wonderful dialogue around anxiety and grief and how both can affect an individual in a myriad of ways. As usual the spice was amazing and I was happy that it was later in the book when they both have a better understanding of each other outside of high school crushes and first impressions. Also the side characters are amazing and I absolutely cannot wait for Natalie and August’s book!