I received an ARC of this book and couldn’t have been more excited. The first book in this series “When in Rome” was going to be hard to beat, but this met that challenge! Annie was one of my favorite sisters from the first book so I was excited she got her own story. Will was the last person people expected her to be with, but clearly opposites attract here! Another great book by Sarah Adams!

If you are looking for a sweet small town romance look no further!

I loved this new romance by Sarah Adams! I liked it even more than When in Rome. I was looking for comfort read when I picked it up and that’s exactly what I got. I would have finished it in one sitting if life hadn’t gotten in the way. I’m giving it 4.75/5 stars because I’m difficult and don’t give out five stars very often. A great spring/summer read

Thank you @netgalley for letting me read Practice Makes
Perfect!
I loved this trip back to Rome, Kentucky to visit all my favorite
characters and get to know two new ones! Annie is Noah's
younger sister and Rome's very own flower shop owner who
feels it's time to settle down. The only problem is, she is so
awkward on dates, her most recent one ended abruptly.
Amelia and Noah's upcoming wedding have been publicist
anxious about crazy fans, so they send in her bodyguard Will
to make sure everything goes smoothly and safety. Annie has
always thought Will was gorgeous, but she seems to be able
to really talk and feel comfortable with him. They strike up a
deal for him to be her practice dating partner so she can
become more comfortable and snag the perfect husband.
The problem is, the lines between practice and real attraction
become hazy the more they are around each other.
Rome, Kentucky might be my new favorite fictional town!
Between Noah and Amelia's sweeping love affair, Annie's kind
heart, Emily's protector mode and Maddie's fun loving spirit,
they are all characters I've fallen in love with. Mabel's
grandmotherly advice and spunky personality along with her
arguments with Harriet make me want to meet her maybe the
most. I love the character development in this book, it makes
me want to hang out with all of this community in Rome.
Peeling back the layers of Annie in this book as she and Will
became closer, revealed a more complex character than what
we first saw. I loved how comfortable she felt with Will and
how she was able to broaden her horizons and figure out
who she really was and wanted to be. This was such a
heartwarming story of community, growing into yourself, and
realizing life goals change, and love can conquer all.

I absolutely adored this book! I read When In Rome before this and I thought there is no way the second book could top this but was I wrong… yes absolutely! The characters were all just so enjoyable and fun to read about! The banter between Will and Annie. Even being closed door you could just feel angst between the characters! This was just an all around sweet and fun read! I definitely recommend 5/5 ⭐️’s.

Thank you NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Grumpy/Sunshine is my all-time favorite pairing. Our leading guy Will doesn’t necessarily qualify as grumpy as he is a perfect teddy bear boyfriend. But I got all the joy of a grumpy/sunshine pairing with this story. Our leading lady Annie is the perfect sunshine character. Annie challenging her good girl persona to discover her true self was skillfully done by this author for great character depth.

I love Annie as an awkward introvert who loves flowers and smutty romances. She is such a fun character as she gets nervous and doesn’t know how to function in the dating world. Which leads to spilling drinks, ten-minute rants on the reproduction cycle for plants, and confessing her need to start a family. Also, the fact that she is a virgin makes her the butt of her sister’s jokes.

The story had a set up for being super spicy but did not give the juicy details. So, I would say it is a classy tasteful smut by skipping over the details in the scenes.

So much trauma in our leading characters’ past and the author addressing mental health and validating therapy made this reader happy.

LOVED LOVED!! Sarah Adams knows how to write cute romance books and this is no exception!!

Thank you so much for the ARC!!

Like all her books, this was very cute. Nothing super memorable but I still enjoyed it.

Thanks to the publisher for the advanced copy

The first thing I have to say is that although I liked the story, this was not what I expected. I have had a hard time knowing how to rate this and review it with such mixed feelings.

1: Not a closed door romance. It is more fade to black than anything and for me, that almost made me DNF. I wasn't comfortable, personally, with the level of intimacy described here. Movies and books feel different in this position, which is unfair, yes, but I didn't like this. It is a big thing for me, which is why I gave this a three.

2: Overall, the story was great. I loved the character development. Both Will and Annie have such great character arcs through the book that make you root for them individually and as a couple.

3: I fell a little more in love with little southern towns, but I'm glad I don't live in one that small.

It had some great things to recommend it, to be honest. But unfortunately the intimacy level kind of ruined it for me. I'm hoping the coming works by Sarah Adams are more like the Cheat Sheet when it comes to steam. That was more my style.

Okay so I loved When in Rome and didn’t realize that this was going to follow one of the sisters. When I finally connected the dots and that it was sweet Annie with her flower shop, I was sold. Similar to When in Rome, this was such a sweet and fun romcom.

The laughter and friendship that forms between Annie and Will is just… perfection. Even down to her trying to guess what “Will” is short for - and her guesses are fucking epic. Annie is a virgin and hasn’t really dated much, she’s quiet and kinda stays to herself. Amelia, who we met in When in Rome, urges Will to be Annie’s practice boyfriend after a disastrous date. So we kinda get those fake dating vibes, but they become such great friends, it kinda turns into friends to lovers. AND, it’s still within that small ass town, so small town romance vibezzzz.

This book even had me crying at 9 AM. AND, I love that they have honest and hard conversations with one another, don’t string each other along, even while working through their own stuff. Just… Sarah Adams truly blew me away with this one and it instantly became my favorite of hers!

Read if you like:
💐Small town vibes
💐Friends to lovers
💐Fake dating
💐Opposites attract

I loved this sweet, lighthearted story! The small town southern setting, witty characters and laugh out loud moments made this really enjoyable. The honesty and open communication between Annie and Will is so refreshing. Their chemistry is magnetic and Will is so damn perfect. 🔥
Along with their love story, Sarah Adams incorporates tough topics like grief, complex family relationships and healing from trauma in a meaningful way. Definitely recommend this!

4/5⭐️
After adoring “When in Rome” I was ecstatic to be approved for “Practice Makes Perfect.”
Sarah has a wonderful knack for tastefully making you swoon and blush with her romances! Will and Annie are OTP. Sarah’s character backgrounds are so rich and immersive, you really feel like you intimately know these people. I really love the dual pov and getting both sides of the love story. In this one, sweet virginal Annie doesn’t know how to date or flirt… or put herself out there… herself being this portrayal of innocence everyone seems to assume on to her. But one man wants to take the time to find the Annie that no one appreciates. Too bad Will is not marriage material… or even relationship material. But when an idea forms that smooth operator ladies man Will, be Annie’s practice date until she can get the confidence to go on her own. But as they practice, they realize that maybe they are perfect together! Can this tatted, sexy swaggering scoundrel keep the heart of the fair lovely maiden without hurting her? Is this actually one of the pirate romances Annie adores? I rooted for them all the way to HEA!

Sarah, I adore your books and you’ll now be an auto buy for me. Please tell me Madison and a certain Farmer are next?!?! Or maybe Brandon and Emily? Hahaha I ship them!

“It’s the kind of love that just works and makes everyone around them envious. It’s what I want. The super-glue-sticky, not-going-anywhere, till-death-do-us-part relationship. Someone to step up beside me and lend me his hand where we’ll walk happily together through life.”

This second installment the When In Rome series brings us back to Rome, KY with Annie the florist and Will the bodyguard. Annie is on a mission to not be the “boring date” and ends up with Will’s help as her “dating coach”.

“It seems to me, Annie, that you are just waiting for someone to give you permission to be yourself out loud.”

Practice Makes Perfect is the PERFECT mix of laughter and heart warming swoon wrapped up in a pretty little bow. Annie is so relatable! She is cute, shy, quirky, hilarious and loves her pirate romance books! And can we PLEASE take a moment to discuss how perfectly swoon-worthy Will is? He is tatted, broody, but deep down he is a warm, gooey cinnamon roll who is head over heels for Annie. Plus his grand gesture at the end?!? That is some serious dedication! It’s no secret I enjoy steam in my books, but I never felt like anything was lacking in this, even though it’s closed door. The angst and the raw feelings and the connection are conveyed so perfectly, as they typically are in Sarah’s books. Dare I say this is my all time favorite book of hers so far?

What’s On The Pages:
-tattooed bodyguard
-“dating coach”
-fake dating
-guy falls first (at least I felt like he did)
-a love for pirate romance novels (I think I literally tabbed all of Chapter 20 🤭)
-cinnamon roll MMC
-sneaking in candid photos
-“Anna-Banana”

✨Rating✨
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
Steam: 🔥/5

A special thank you to NetGalley and Dell Books for this eARC! Practice Makes Perfect out now!

Very sweet love story! I liked the main characters and the town dynamic. Small town romances are one of my favorite tropes! I'll need to read the first book in the series now..

Another super cute small town romance from Sarah Adams. This book was exactly what I was expecting after reading “When in Rome”. I absolutely loved Will, probably the healthiest and most mature book boyfriend we will ever meet. This is an extremely easy and light hearted read and a perfect palette cleanser. This would’ve been a higher rating for me, if it weren’t for the FMC, Annie. I felt like she was way too juvenile and some of her vocabulary bordered on cringy.

My fans of sweet, quick, romance reads, this one’s for you!

I don't know how Sarah Adams does it each time. I did not want to put this book down. I loved the whole idea of Annie and Will. An introvert to her finest, and an outgoing persona play boy. The world collides and they cannot get enough of each other. What started off as friendship to something more than that. I love that Annie was her true self when she was with Will. And that Will loved her for that and respected her and didn't want her to shy away from her real self. The perfect introvert love tropes.

This is my second Sarah Adams book and I will definitely be reading more of her work in the future. She writes the perfect mix of humor and touching story line that keeps the reader interested and invested in the characters. Sweet innocent Annie slowly comes into her own with the help of tattooed security darling Will. Small town romance and opposites attract are two of my favorite tropes. I can't wait for James and Maddie's story in the next book in the Rome series.

This was my first Sarah Adams book and it did not disappoint! I will be checking out her backlog after enjoying this one. Both Will and Anna were quirky and had chemistry. I loved that this book tackled two people working through their own trauma and baggage before coming together.

The fictitious town of Rome, Kentucky reminds me a lot of Stars Hollow with all the town meetings and hot gossip. I can definitely see Will and Anna as Luke & Lorelei. This book was a quick read that kept you smiling. Highly recommend as an upcoming beach or pool read!

Also, are bodyguards becoming the new romance trope!?

In the most complimentary way possible, this was tooth-achingly SWEET. Will, the hot bodyguard for a popstar, agrees to being his client's sister-in-law's dating coach. The reformed bad-boy vibes in this are immaculate, Will does not hide away from his banter and teasing and I was in love. Annie wants to figure out who she is outside of her family and town's perception of her being the golden girl. Watching her grow over time because of Will and herself, amazing.

There were times where I was tired of Annie's childish outlooks - the swear notebook, the self-cringing moments, the self-infantilizing. But she grew so much throughout the story and but didn't change who she is at the core. And Will accepting her from the first second was so wholesome.

This was a predictable, low-stakes romance done right.

This book, with its dating lessons, and the guy falling first and HARD, initially reminded me of Hallmark's 2012 rom com, How to Fall in Love, and I was easily hooked.

But then this bodyguard and florist romance got deeper. It became "I want marriage" vs "I'll never get married," and the refreshing thing is that this isn't a secret; Will and Annie are honest about their life plans....so the only miscommunication is because of failed tech. While I won't spoil what these two need to learn about themselves and each other, I will say their growth arcs are similarly heartbreaking, when you get to the root of their wounds.

It's a closed door romance, but these kisses are steamy and there's more on page than I'm accustomed to reading in Sarah's books (and I only have her historicals to catch up on). Not a complaint; I read across heat levels. It's just something for other readers to be aware of. Their chemistry is 🔥

There's a cast of hilarious meddlers, as you'd expect in a small town, and breadcrumbs as to the couple (possibly) featured in When In Rome #3. And I can't wait to read it!

I LOVED this book!! This was my first book of Sarah Adams that I’ve read and it definitely made me want to pick up another one. The relationship between Annie and Will was everything and I was so happy there was no third act breakup that so many books have nowadays. I really liked seeing Will finally open himself up to love after his past trauma and how he helped Annie bloom (no pun intended) into the most authentic version of herself. If you’re a fan of the bad boy/good girl trope - read this!