How does Tessa Bailey keep doing it?! I loved this book! So cute and hot as usual. I’ll read anything she writes.

I honestly don’t think tessa Bailey will let me down..ever. I loved this. I love sweet heroines, their love for flowers and grumpy heroes that don’t realise what they’re missing until they’ve met that special someone. I was over joyed reading this - as I expected nothing less. 5/5 stars!

This was an amazing grumpy-sunshine romance! I think fans of "The Love Hypothesis" would really enjoy this book, it reminded me a lot of those same dynamics between the characters, and I think that the academic setting is perfect to read in autumn, too!

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyager for allowing me to read an ARC copy of Secretly Yours by Tessa Bailey.

Hallie is the color yellow. She is sunshine, happiness, a combination of a few good things in one. She is go with the flow, figure it out as she goes, and is unbothered with things like rules and regulations. Julian is the color grey. He is structure, black and white thinking, and rigid with a purpose. On paper, they don't work, but it's a little piece of paper with strong thoughts that make them realize they may not be content with who they have become.

Tessa Bailey always makes me fall in love with her characters. I identified with Julian and the walls he builds to keep him safe and secure. I will always reach for a grumpy sunshine trope and this one did not disappoint!

I’m generally a huge fan of this author’s work, but this book was a bit tough for me to get through. I knew going in that was supposed to be an opposites-attract, grump/sunshine book (which are some of my favorite tropes)…and while this was a well-written book that contained solid story, I did struggle with the pacing a lot and I didn’t find either of the main characters to be terribly compelling or engaging.

Thank you Netgalley, Avon and Harper Voyager for allowing me to read and review this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This is my first Tessa Bailey book. I have a couple of her newest ones on my TBR, so when I saw this one on Netgalley, I couldn't resist... I kind of wish I did.

From what I have read, from other readers, is a lot of her characters fall in love instantly. I don't mind instant attraction, depending on the reactions the characters have and how the trope is handled. Reading from Julian's POV, when he first sees Hallie, is like reading from the mind of a teenage boy. And it never stopped feeling that way. I had to keep reminding myself that Julian and Hallie are in their thirties and not teenagers. Hallie had a huge crush on Julian when they were in high school but when she is hired as a gardener at the Vos estate years later, she sees a different side of Julian as an adult. The grumpy (Julian) x sunshine (Hallie) trope is used and I thought it was written okay.

The pacing of the story is very slow. I had a hard time staying focused and, because I couldn't feel a connection with either point of view, it was difficult to want to continue. The chemistry wasn't there as much as I wished it was and I think Secretly Yours is just a bit of a miss for me.

I am still interested in reading Tessa Bailey's other popular works like It Happened One Summer and My Killer Vacation but I might be taking a more hesitant approach when picking up her future works, depending on how those two go.

2 stars

Bailey never fails to give a good romance with some steamy plot lines to it. This book was delightful and the premise was new and interesting.

As long as I can remember Tessa Bailey has been my one click author. Because not only I love her stories but I also love how she manages to write stories with a perfect balance of amazing plot and spice. And this book was no different. I can’t wait enough for it to be it and about in world so I can start recommending it to everyone

Like to read romance?! Check out Tessa Bailey! this book is such a good read! Definitely recommend! 10/10

Tess Bailey books are very hit or miss with me and unfortunately this one was more of a miss. I didn't really love Julian and I know it's supposed to be an opposites attract but I didn't particularly like their characters together. Also, sometimes I feel like the sex scenes happen very early in the characters relationship, when they've only known each other for a very short time, and they feel a little ridiculous. Overall, not my favorite Tess Bailey.

Tessa Bailey is one of my go-to authors and this book proved why. Her books always deliver the laughs and I always find the characters to be very interesting. Secretly Yours was one of my most anticipated reads for the New Year and I'm happy to see that we will be starting the year off right.

No one balances adorable and steamy like Tessa Bailey! In Secretly Yours, she once again creates a relatable, flawed-but-charming heroine in Hallie Welch (landscaper of choice in her small Napa Valley enclave), and an equally well drawn love interest in Julian Voss (black sheep ivy league professor on sabbatical). The opposites attract trope is deftly handled and the journey to their forgone love connection is enjoyably filled with wine country shenanigans and colorful, local, tertiary characters to drive the action.

This was such a fun, sweet read! The style was very much in keeping with Tessa Bailey’s sweet but spicy trademark.

I really enjoyed the professor angle and the secret admirer letters. She also had a lot more character development in this one and I appreciated the male love interest having panic attacks and struggle with anxiety. Not only is this subject not represented nearly enough but I think it was refreshing to see the male lead struggle with it rather than a female character. It made his character very vulnerable and even more realistic and likable.

I know a lot of Tessa Bailey fans like myself were really excited to see her write a plus size character, but I will say that was one of the only things lacking for me. I feel like this could’ve been touched on a little more and at times it felt like she was being fetishized rather than celebrated, which can be a fine line to walk w/ a spicy plus size rom com. However, it was great to see that the MC was still comfortable in her own skin and didn’t equate her beauty with her size or talk about diets or any of the other stereotypes authors get into when they decide to write a plus size MC.

Overall, a really fun cute read!

I love Tessa Bailey. She knows how to write intriguing characters and brings the spice. This book, however...Julian was not interesting at all to me, especially when compared to Hallie and all of her shine. I did not feel chemistry between them and I even did not love the spicy scenes in this one (all I'll say is...in a field.). I'm looking forward to Tessa's next novel and hoping it's more of a return to her previous, five-star ones!

Tessa Bailey can do no wrong in my eyes. This was, yet again, another perfect rom com read for me! I laughed, I cried, I snapped my e reader closed and tossed it across the room, then picked it back up as quickly as I could. Tessa’s writing speaks to me in a voice that resonate so loudly. She tackles anxiety, and self-doubt in a way that makes you hear it, absorb it, and feel capable of tackling your own issues head on, all while getting a swoony love story to go with it. I am a happily married woman, but I’d leave it all behind for Julian Vos 😅 (just kidding, kinda).

Thank you to HarperCollins and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and honestly review this book.

Tessa Bailey does grumpy-sunshine romances very well, and this is yet more proof of that. I loved that the book was dual POV because both had such distinct voices and I just loved hearing how they described each other. Because the book had dual POVs, the tone of the book felt balanced as you switched back and forth between them. As a reader, I enjoyed both the serious character of Julian and Hallie's free spirit. The chemistry between them was FIRE! Tessa Bailey knows how to write a sex scene! I always know going in that those scenes are going to be steamy! I especially like Julian's sister, who is one of the MC’s of the next book in the series. Hallie was fun but not over-the-top, and believably flawed. Julian's growing interest in her and the discussion of his hang-ups was well done too. I don't think this book needed the secret admirer letters that Hallie impulsively writes and leaves for Julian. The central conflict would be the same, and they aren't used enough to further the plot. I skipped over those parts of the book. I'm looking forward to reading the next book in this series, which was set up very nicely. Thank you to NetGalley, Avon and Tessa Bailey for this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I was very excited to get an ARC of this because Tessa Bailey is one of my favorites! However, I felt this one a little lacking. Maybe it’s because her past three that I’ve read had been too tier, this one felt just okay. The plot seemed lacking and repetitive, but it had nice characters to make it better. It’s worth a read, just not my favorite of hers.

Solid and cute romance.

A sunshine grump combo is always a favorite, and Bailey does it well. I appreciate the different aspects of realness sprinkled throughout the book. The grief and confusion caused by the loss of a loved one. The way that panic can steal everything from you.

I can't wait to read the next book in the series.

Another Tessa Bailey masterpiece. I loved these two main characters so much, it truly was the opposites attract romcom of my dreams. Tessa Bailey always manages to weave so much heart and humor into her stories that they are almost compulsively readable and this was no exception. I have nothing bad to say really except it didn't captivate me like some of her other books but it's well worth the read, especially for fans.

How do you handle a life-changing event? Do you increase the chaos in your life so you don't have to face the pain? That's how Hallie deals with the death of her grandmother Rebecca, who was the stabilizing force in her life. Or do you rigidly focus on control of every minute of the day to avoid losing control of yourself and how you handle what life throws at you? That's how Julian handles the devastating fire at his family's vineyard four years ago and his father's reaction to Julian's paralyzing anxiety that resulted from it. How do these two opposite personalities discover the common ground between them? Aside from the blazing chemistry (and secret crush that Hallie has on Julian from their high school years). It all starts with a drunken letter that Hallie sends to Julian, signing it Secretly Yours in which she tells him how much she adores his quiet goodness. But then things get complicated, and that is the joy of this story. While it certainly is a case of opposite personalities, as the story progresses, it becomes clear that there are many traits that both protagonists share and that discovery leads to a believable and satisfying ending. This is well worth the read.