Shane and Lilah had a wil-they or won’t they relationship on their hit TV show, but hate each other in real life. Lilah left the show a few years ago but is back for the final season in an attempt to salvage her career. Can she and Shane get it together enough to make it through the season?

This is a sweet, sexy second chance romance - the chemistry jumps off the page. I found myself re-reading paragraphs just to slow it down
Read if you like The Reunion but want open door

3.5/5 stars. Fun but a little underwhelming. I was thrilled to get an ARC of this one after loving Ava Wilder's debut novel, and was excited to see her continuing with the theme of Hollywood romance. The concept was there for this one, but it didn't quite stick the landing. I think that she was going for a second-chance romance situation here, but given the fact that the two main characters barely admit to having a real first chance, it fell a bit flat. When done well, a romance that alternates between flashbacks and the present can build a delicious amount of tension, but by the time these two finally got together in the present, I wasn't that invested in it anymore. Then to have the final conflict still developing with barely 20 pages left in the book just left me, as a reader, exhausted, and almost not wanting to finish. While Lilah and Shane have great chemistry, I'm not convinced that they would have one therapy session and suddenly be able to get past 10 years of treating each other poorly. Still excited to see what she does next, but this didn't quite give me the emotional impact or the spice of How to Fake it in Hollywood.

After loving How to Fake it in Hollywood, I was thrilled to read Ava Wilder's next book and I love this one just as much. I was trying to pinpoint what I like so much about both novels. It's not the trope, or the celebrity world that she creates, although she does both very well, It's the excellent character development. Lilah and Shane are imperfect, very much so, but in a nuanced way, and they want to be better. Lilah could be downright cruel at times and Shane could be very immature, but they reasons behind who they are and what they do are conveyed in a way that showed their complexity and made me understand them when they hated each other and when they loved each other and when they hated and loved each other at the same time. Until the very end, I didn't know how they would find their way back to each other, I didn't even assume that they would, but I was hoping for them every step of the way because with all their growth and effort they deserved a happy ending of their choice.

BRILLIANT. I LOVED IT.

AVA WILDER KNOCKED IT OUT OF THE PARK WITH THIS ONE.

I felt like this read smoother and flowed better than How to Fake it in Hollywood. It was probably because slow-burn and second-chance romance are some of my favorite tropes - or just because Lilah and Shane felt really fleshed out. They were complex, flawed, yet lovable characters. They had to work on a lot of things here - both individually and together.

I loved their banter, though some of them came from a place of hurt and anger. The chemistry was palpable from the moment they met. There was a good balance of angsty and tender moments. I swear I was squealing most of the time - good thing I was working from home when I read this.

The journey from enemies to lovers, such as getting to know the good and the ugly, the shifting feelings, working to move on from the hurt in their past, and the fear of trying again after they failed the first time were perfectly captured here.

This also tackled a lot of deeper themes including generalized anxiety disorder, imposter syndrome, and the importance of trust and vulnerability in a relationship.

I like how Ava Wilder writes Hollywood - we still get to feel the glitz and glamor but it's balanced with the reality that these stars are also people like us who get nervous, get hurt and fall in love. The characters also felt so real that I can't believe I can't find them on Instagram!

The last few pages almost gave me a heart attack. Ahhh I'm so glad with how everything wrapped up though! Don't miss this!

Thank you to Netgalley Random House and the author for an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Other details: dual POV, open-door
CW: drug abuse, divorce (off page, not directly involving MCs)

I will be posting on Goodreads and Instagram closer to pub date (both @readsbynaia)

I absolutely loved How to Fake it in Hollywood and Will They or Won’t They was even better.

Ava Wilder sophomore novel is steamy, angsty, and full cathartic moments. This enemies to lovers will have you canceling your plans and I stay in and read.

Lilah’s and Shane’s story has the perfect amount of past chapters that contribute to understanding their relationship.

The ending had me shocked at first but the author did a beautiful job overall.

I love books about Hollywood celebrities, so I was so excited to pick up "Will They or Won't They" by Ava Wilder. This story follows Lilah and Shane, two costars on a hit television show. The book flashes back to their relationship throughout the years starting at their auditions and leading up to the final season of the show.
Often times when two characters are 'enemies' I find that their reasonings are a bit unrealistic. However, I thought that both of these characters had understandable reasons why they had trouble working together. I'm not usually a huge fan of the of-again/off-again trope, but I thought it was really well done in this book! Lilah and Shane felt like real people with real issues, which is often hard to come by in the romance genre.
I will definitely be reading more from Ava Wilder in the future!

This book was absolutely phenomenal and I don't say that lightly. It focuses on famous actors Shane & Lilah who experience a “relationship” during their first year of filming the hit show Intangible. Let’s just say, it doesn’t end up well for them at first. After almost nine years of hatred and a whole lot of growth later, the couple meets again during the last season of filming and is left to pick up all the messy pieces they left behind.

This book is written in a dual perspective POV, which makes it such a great read as you get to discover how each character feels about the other. Ava Wilder did such a wonderful job describing the deep-rooted hatred these characters had for each other, while slowly unfolding their true feelings. Not to mention the detail in this book is insane! I felt like I was right there with the characters during points of the book and was so invested in their relationship.

Will They Won’t They will be published on June 26, 2023, and I highly highly recommend picking up a copy!!

Absolutely loved and devoured this celebrity romance book! This story follows two main characters during their time as main characters in a hit tv show. It starts at the audition when they meet and the chemistry you can feel it through the pages. From the first look I think Shane was in love with Lilah. Lilah was in love with him to but had so many walls up she didn’t realize it. I loved how this story evolved and we learned more about each of their stories on the show and after the show. The counseling sessions were an even better way to get a better sense of how they were feeling towards one another. I felt we really got to see them. Ava Wilder really does a fantastic job of making the celebrity world seem real and authentic in her novels. This was a fantastic and fun romance read. Many thanks to Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine and NetGalley for the digital review copy of this novel. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Second chance romance is just so hard to get right and I found the way this pieced together their backstory really didn’t work for me. Their relationship is so frustrating and feels just so relentlessly back and forth. Their hatred just didn’t really make sense to me. I found Lilah to be a very frustrating, cold character and that this had too many long paragraphs describing actions. It’s a good premise that just didn’t really work for me.

Thank you to Netgalley and Random House for the ARC!

Ava Wilder’s How To Fake It in Hollywood was one of my favorite books of 2022. When I saw this ARC waiting for me, I actually gasped aloud in excitement. I am thrilled to share that Wilder’s second novel, Will They Or Won’t They, is another really, really good celebrity romance novel. I made a point to read it slowly so I could savor it. Wilder writes realistic, but flawed characters that also just happen to be famous. For those who read How To, there are several Easter eggs from it, so that was a fun surprise as a reader as well.

For five television seasons, Lilah Hunter and Shane McCarthy were the romantic leads on a popular, Emmy nominated science fiction television show, Intangible. Unfortunately, behind the scenes, Lilah and Shane could barely stand each other. Juilliard trained Lilah refused to renew her contract after the fifth season, so Shane, who had never considered an acting career before being discovered by Intangible’s casting director while waiting tables, carried the show for another three seasons. However, after her movie career flops, in an effort to reignite her career, Lilah returns to Intangible for the ninth and final season. Shane and Lilah’s continued disruptive antics force the showrunner to send them to an employer mandated counselor to resolve their issues. These counseling sessions force them to finally discuss their past and see if there is still anything between them to create a new future. This dual POV novel involves time jumps between their then, their first meeting at the show’s chemistry read to their now, their caustic behavior fueling rumors and endangering the reputation of the show.

This book was trope heavy and I was here for it! I am a huge fan of second chance romance and the lovers-to-enemies-to-lovers was really well done. In other works, sometimes the “hate” part is so superficial. In Will They, however, you could feel the antagonism between the characters. Their hatred, while based on misunderstandings, miscommunications, and immaturity, felt genuine and real.

I also enjoyed that in this novel Lilah was the “grumpy” and Shane the “sunshine.” I feel the female character is not often given the latitude to do something unlikeable or at least say imperfect things. Books usually leave that to the male character, so this was refreshing. While their different personalities initially led to their troubles, in the end, Shane’s incessant need to be a people pleaser meshed well with Lilah’s more guarded personality.

However, I am a little worried about the ending; I don’t see how this will be a long-term solution for them and I do wish Shane had a more fleshed out resolution. That being said, I am fully aware that this is an extremely nitpicky thing to say and it should not take away from the pleasure of reading this book.

A huge thanks to NetGalley and Random Housing Publishing Group-Ballantine for the complimentary ARC in exchange for my honest feedback. I plan on trying to snag myself a signed copy when Will They Or Won’t They is released on June 27, 2023 and I suggest you do the same!

Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟/5

Shane and Lilah both make their breakout acting debut on a TV show, starring opposite each other. They have a budding romance during their first season, but it doesn't last long. After a bad breakup, they still have to work together, causing a lot of resentment and anger toward one another. Lilah leaves the show and ends up returning after a few years for the final season. They have both matured a lot since the last time they worked together and still have a strong connection. Can they put their rocky past behind them and move forward or is history bound to repeat itself?

Ava Wilder can do no wrong! I LOVED How To Fake It In Hollywood, and this was just as good. Wilder is great at building up a slow burn romance and making you fall in love with the main characters, both individually and together.

Thank you to Ava Wilder, Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, and NetGalley for the advanced e-copy in exchange of my honest review.

From the 1st day they met at auditions for the upcoming TV show Intangible, Lilah and Shane felt sparks. As their characters tangled with confused emotions and sexual tension onscreen, the pair dealt with the repercussions of their failed love affair off screen--of which caused Lilah to leave the show all together. When Lilah is asked to return for the show's final season years later, the pair is forced to face not only each other, but the world's watchful eyes hoping for a happy ending...can they give it them--and themselves?

This book started as a slow crawl that quickly became irresistible. Shane and Lilah were both well developed and their "lovers-to-enemies-to-lovers-again" dynamic felt plausible and fleshed out. The build up to Shane and Lilah reconciling, although inevitable and expected, was fun -the ride to the finish line was steamy and kept me dying to see them finally collide. There were a few subplots I thought could have been eliminated to help move the storyline along (therapy sessions felt somewhat unnecessary, some of the flashbacks felt redundant, the "twist" ending didn't feel needed), but overall I really enjoyed this book. Steamy and sweet, real emotions mixed in, and subject matter that felt well researched, I will definitely be reading other books by this author.

Additionally--The side characters (best friend actress group from the TV show "H.A.G.S," including Lilah,) leaves room for a possible spin-off book with the protagonist being another one of the girls, which would be great.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House for this ARC! Will They or Won't They is set to be published June 27, 2023.

I just need to lead with—I really really loved this book! A romantic fiction novel, “Will They or Won’t They” is the kind of book that has a slow build that keeps you turning pages, keeps you entertained while you wait to see what happens, and does not leave the reader disappointed at the end.

Lilah Hunter and Shane McCarthy play characters Kate and Harrison, who characters who are madly in love, on their hit show “Intangible”. In real life though, Lilah and Shane haven’t been able to stand each other since the end of their ill-fated romance after season 1. After a hiatus to film a disastrous movie, Lilah is back for to film Intangible’s final season, where Kate and Harrison are supposed to get the happy ending their viewers have been waiting for. To get that, however, Lilah and Shane need to overcome some of their anger and learn to work together…and maybe even more.

Personally, I am always a fan of the enemies to more storylines, but I really enjoyed the way that this story was told. So many times, the characters act like they hate each other in the beginning but are immediately drawn to each other, and by the halfway point of the book, boom! they are a couple. The conflict between Lilah and Shane carries the whole book. Besides some physical attraction, it takes time and therapy for that anger to melt, that that was fun to follow as a reader. Their coming together took time as they built trust back, and for me, it made me their reunion all the more satisfying and believable.

Don’t get me wrong…even though the characters don’t get back together right away, this book is definitely steamy. We get snippets of their past relationship, where we see both their attraction to each other and their dysfunction. It’s these scenes, though, that also makes the ending all the better, because it’s less primal and more emotional.

I loved seeing Lilah and Shane find each other again, and not rush to get to the good parts. I enjoyed reading their story and seeing how they worked their way back to each other. I give this book 5/5 stars and will definitely be recommending everyone give it a try.

**A very big thank you to Random House Publishing and Net Galley for allowing me to read an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review! **

I loved this book! The simmering tension between Lilah and Shane was spectacular and kept me on my toes. I couldn’t stop reading because I had to know whether they would end up together. I also loved the dual timeline in this book. The writing was great! Will They or Won’t They was one of my most anticipated reads of the year and it did not disappoint.

I was so excited to read another book by Ava Wilder after How to Fake it in Hollywood was one of my favorite books of 2022. Will They or Won't They is another fun look into Hollywood and I loved the mentions of past characters and centering it in the same fictional world.

I absolutely adored this book! Everything from the banter to the romance, it was all very well done! The progression of Lilah and Shane's relationship was so natural. And the ending was just *chef's kiss*! It was the perfect representation of enemies to friends to lovers!

The "will they or won't they" trope is one of my favorites, so imagine my delight to find a book by Ava Wilder (the fantastic author of "How to Fake It in Hollywood") with the very same name! "Will They or Won't They" is centered around Lilah and Shane, the famous stars of a hit TV show. While they were hired because of their fantastic on-screen chemistry, the sparks are flying off the screen as well. What starts as a hot and heavy romance quickly turns sour when Lilah and Shane can't seem to be real with each other. This book details the chronicles of the years-long romance as they slowly make their way back to each other.

I thought the chemistry between the two was very explosive and enjoyable to read. However, the two of them definitely needed therapy before getting into a relationship with each other, and the back and forth got a little tiring after awhile. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

Former co-stars and bitter exes, teaming up once again for the final season of the show that gave them both their breakout roles. I love a good then/now timeline because of all the angst, fiery banter, and all the tension they usually include. And this book? It delivered all that in an "only one-take" kind of way. Loved the complexities of the story and the characters, their messy history, and how they got through all that, putting the work in—growing together, finally.

I enjoyed this a lot! I can't wait for whatever Wilder writes next, because I will definitely be reading it.

Thank you for the ARC!

LOVED the first book I read by Ava Wilder and this one was just as good! Perfect easy read - I flew through it in a day and couldn't stop smiling while reading it

"I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own." Thank you Netgalley.


What a fun roller coaster ride the chemistry between Lilah and Shane just WOW. So much happens I don't want to give anything away Will They or Won't They 5 star read.

Happy Reading

Lisa 📚