Thank You For Sharing
⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
Author: Rachel Runya Katz

I requested a digital advanced readers copy from NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press and providing my opinion voluntarily and unbiased.

Synopsis: A chemistry-filled childhood friends to enemies to lovers debut romance about two people forced to confront their pasts to save both their relationship and careers.

Daniel Rosenberg and Liyah Cohen-Jackson’s last conversation—fourteen years ago at summer camp—ended their friendship. Until they find themselves seated next to each other on a plane, and bitterly pick up right where they left off. At least they can go their separate ways again after landing...

That is, until Daniel's marketing firm gets hired by the Chicago museum where Liyah works as a junior curator, and they’re forced to collaborate with potential career changing promotions on the line.

With every meeting and post-work social gathering with colleagues, the tension (and chemistry) between Daniel and Liyah builds until they’re forced to confront why they broke apart years ago at camp. But as they find comfort in their shared experiences as Jews of color and fumble towards friendship, can they ignore their growing feelings for each other?

My Thoughts: For a debut novel, this was stellar. Liyah and Daniel were friends 14 years ago until a fight ended their relationship. As fate would have it, they end on a plane together and pick up fighting where they left off, each thinking this is the last they will see of each other. When Daniel’s marketing firm gets hired for a project at the museum where Liyah works, fate crosses them again when they must work closely together for the project. They are forced to face feelings buried years ago. Can they manage to be friendly during this project and can that spin into more? This follows the tropes of enemies to lovers, forced proximity, one bed, family by choice, and second chance romance. Trigger warnings of grief and sexual assault.

The author really embraces both the POC Jew representation and queer representation with grace, tactfulness, and rawness. The storyline covers sensitive topics such as grief, trauma, and sexual assault, and does it so that it impacts the storyline but carries authenticity. The story is narrated in a dual narration by Liyah and Daniel, in a third person POV. While I don’t care for the third-act breakup, sometimes it is necessary to bring the characters back together closer. The rawness and tenderness between the two characters is authentic, raw, and just beautiful. The baggage they work through with on-the-page therapy is brilliant and it sheds light on a topic that is usually swept under the rug. Therapy should be freely sought out if needed and we need to remove the stigma it carries. Liyah experienced some difficult trauma and as a result, she keeps her heart locked away and has the appearance of unapologetic. Daniel, on the other hand, is thoughtful, patient, and compassionate. The characters were well developed, had tremendous growth, sassy witty banter, amazing chemistry, and were creatively spun. The author’s writing style was complex, layered, contemporary, humorous, raw, poignant, and heartwarming.

Thank You For Sharing was endearing, heartwarming, a bit poignant, while beautifully written story between two people who have to lean on each other when it matters the most, while growing in the process. It will take you on a rollercoaster of emotions with a HEA that will warm your heart. Katz has created a modern love story between two memorable characters, with humor, and the most tender love that I have read recently. I recommend picking up.

I really, really enjoyed this book! It is absolutely steeped in Jewish culture and customs and there are incredible conversations about being biracial, about misogyny, about sexual assault and grief and falling in love.

I absolutely loved the give and take between Liyah and Daniel, though I would have loved a little more chemistry between them. The banter was there, it just didn’t send me the way I would have liked!

Highly, highly recommend!

Enemies to lovers is one of my favorite tropes but the writing style didn't work for me. Third person perspective with relatively flat and somewhat unlikeable FMC. The pacing was off and it didn't quite hold my interest 2.5 rounded up to 3

Sometimes I struggle with third person present tense and I think that was the case here, because while I was interested in the characters and the storyline, something stopped me from emotionally connecting. It felt like going through the motions.

Gorgeous debut, deep emotions, and lovely characters I fell for from the first page. And really appreciated the representation in this book! Looking forward to more books from Rachel Runya Katz! Thank you to Netgalley and SMP for this ARC in exchange for a honest review.

Wonderful story to read - I recommend that you add to your list. Happy reading!

I received an ARC of this book courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher. All opinions expressed in this review are my own and given freely

Daniel and Liyah were childhood friends until an argument at summer camp drove them apart. Fourteen years later, they are accidentally seated next to each other on a plane and continue bickering. They think they are (thankfully) rid of each other again, but then Daniel is hired as a consultant on a career-making project for Liya and the two are forced to work together... and alllll of the sparks fly!

I LOVED THIS BOOK. Daniel and Liyah had some epic banter - nothing like a frenemy from childhood to hit you with the low blows - but there was real depth here as well. I loved watching them rediscover their shared connection and think Katz did an amazing job balancing the emotional highs and lows for both characters. I also loved the supporting characters and thought the meeting notes were hilarious. And A++ on the steamy scenes - hello!!! This was one of my favorite books of the year, and I cannot wait to read future books by Katz!

While slow to start, Thank You for Sharing sucked me in with heartfelt and relatable characters.

Liyah was difficult for me to like at first, and I kind of wish the author had given me her backstory earlier. On the other hand, the revelation of her backstory was genius because her annoyance with Daniel endeared him to me immediately and then I wanted him to win her over and was sympathetic towards her. So while the later revelation kept me from being super into the story initially, it completely had my attention after page 100.

This book isn't just a romance. It's a story about how hard it can be to have a community outside of family as an adult--and how important that is. It's a story about how work can become more goal-oriented than dream-oriented. It's a story about forgiveness. It's a story about background bringing people together. It's just... beautiful and lovely and heartwarming. I felt so many of the things the characters were going through and it made me feel understood.

Give it a read, my friends.

Thank you to Netgalley for the e-arc and the publisher for the physical finished copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

When Liyah and Daniel ran into each other on a plane, they had not seen each other since summer camp as teenagers. Neither of them acknowledged their past connection and left with acrimonious feelings. As fate would have it, they were forced together through work and ended up becoming friends again. However, a growing attraction put their friendship in peril and they had to make decisions about their futures. Rachel Runya Katz utilizes many of the common romantic tropes in such a way that the reader is fully in for the ride. This debut novel is a fun romance with a little bit of spice.

I struggled with this book as I did not connect with it. It just felt ‘off’ with me but it is me not the book.

The angst was ok at first but the lingering feeling became ‘irritating’, especially after several apologies had been offered.

The FMC, in my opinion, acted childish and immature most of the time and was too opinionated.

However, there were some redeeming qualities to highlight. This has so much multicultural and own voices swirling through it which I totally enjoyed. The author also touched on heavier issues like grief, assault and trauma.

I enjoyed the ‘history’ between Daniel and Liyah and how the resentment was carried over into adulthood. I love their respective relationships with their families.

I loved how the Jewish culture was highlighted and how the various ceremonies were detailed.

I also enjoyed SSC which I feel every adult should belong to- a small group which will have your back and listen to your rants.

All the supporting characters were great. I particularly liked Neen (they have a good head on their shoulders) and Siobhan.

There was a mention of something that had happened to Kayla but we were never told about it besides the mention.

If you are a lover of queer, biracial romance then you will enjoy this.

I received a copy of this book and the review is entirely mine and voluntary.

"Thank You for Sharing" was an absolute delight to read. Rachel Runya Katz graced us all with a romance so sweet and so tender and so realistic that I honestly cannot believe it's a debut novel. Katz is a superbly talented author and has catapulted to the top of the list of my "must buy" authors for romance. I love the representation she gives not only to Jews of color but also to Jews who identify as part of the LGBTQ Community. She has found a really underrepresented niche and writes their stories incredibly well.

In "Thank You for Sharing" Liyah Cohen-Jackson and Daniel Rosenberg have potentially the most awkward plane ride of all time after realizing they were friends as teenagers who ended things on a horribly bitter note, one that still grates at Liyah almost a decade and a half later.

Liyah hopes she can move past the encounter and let Daniel slip back into the compartments of her mind that she very much does NOT revisit until she learns that she's been assigned to partner with him on a months-long process that leaves a much-desired promotion to curator hanging in the balance. Liyah finds herself determined to make it through their work relationship but is equally determined to hold Daniel at arm's length. A plan that goes off without a hitch until she begins to notice with each new work meeting and social outing what a thoughtful, caring man her teenage arch-nemesis has grown to be. As their chemistry builds Liyah finds herself forced to face not only what happened between them all those years ago at summer camp, but also the emotional limits she's put on herself to keep out of emotional entanglements.

I loved that Katz didn't shy away from all of the baggage that can come with developing feelings for someone you feel has betrayed you before, and I loved that she didn't sugarcoat the realities that come with being a Jewish person-of-color. Katz gave real depth to the Jewish experience of both characters, while also turning out a heartwarming and funny story about what it's really like to try and date in your late twenties. "Thank You for Sharing" is the perfect pick for book clubs who are looking for romance that comes with an emotional and touching backstory, and for those who are looking to see their lived experience in Jews in a modern setting. A very sincere thank you to NetGalley and to St. Martin's Press for providing an Advanced Reader's Copy of "Thank You for Sharing" in exchange for an unbiased review. This is a story that I will recommend again and again to our patrons.

3.5/5 - A second chance romance between Liyah Cohen-Jackson and Daniel Rosenberg, who had a falling out of sorts at summer camp and years later end up seated next to each other on a flight. Because, of course!

There were a lot of things I loved about this book - the characters were dimensional, interesting, witty and diverse. Both Liyah and Daniel are POC and Jewish, Liyah and her best friend are Queer. I loved the insight into Jewish culture and customs, and getting a deep sense for how Liyah and Daniel both felt connected to yet alienated from their faith community.

Everyone in this book has baggage and they are all willing to talk about it. There’s a focus on mental health, grief, trauma and loss. A huge part of the story centers around Liyah and Daniel’s post-work support group for their friend group, with the main and side characters venting, listening and helping one another navigate the ups and downs of adulthood. Relatable! The characters were fun, flawed and thoughtfully written. I also haven’t read a novel set in Chicago in ages and, being from the area, it quite literally hit home.

The pacing was off for me, though, and at times I struggled to stay engaged in the storyline. This book is written in third person present tense - I’ve said this a lot recently but I prefer first person romance especially when it’s Dual POV. And I kind of wish this one was dual timeline to give more impact and meaning to the camp storyline. It was clearly a huge part of Liyah and Daniel’s story but their falling out didn’t feel as big to me as it was to them. I feel like if I experienced it real time it would have hit harder!

Overall I enjoyed this and hope to read more from Rachel Runya Katz! Thank you to @netgalley, Griffin and Rachel for an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review!

Daniel and Liyah went to summer camp together as kids. A misunderstanding and heartbreak inevitably put a pause on their friendship. So when they coincidentally end up on the same flight and on the same work project(!), they don't know how to act.

I really liked that Liyah was a complex queer character and that Daniel was so open and accepting of Liyah. I got annoyed at them and their conflicts because they seemed so grounded in who they were as humans, but that also made them more realistic characters.

Overall, this was a wholesome friends to enemies to lovers story and I def recommend!

This story really hit all the right notes for me! Thank You for Sharing by Rachel Runya Katz is a warm hug for its readers and is full of amazing representation. It has Korean and black Jewish representation, Yiddish phrases and Jewish traditions and rituals, and I just adored it. Now, let me tell you more about this comforting read.

Meet Liyah and Daniel. They were friends in childhood, but this friendship turned sour after an incident at summer camp. Meeting again many years later, resentments are still abound. The two slowly begin to bond over their common BIPOC Jewish heritage and the struggles that come with it, like not fitting into certain cultural boxes and feeling left out. Can bonding over commonalities create the foundation these two need to repair their friendship, and perhaps become something more?

Three cheers for Sweet Potato! To get what I mean, you have to read the book. Go do it. Now. I applaud Katz, again, for all of the representation in this story. While I’m not Jewish, I really did relate to some of the feelings the main characters were experiencing. There are some trigger warnings that happen off-page, like a past death and sexual assault. But if you are able, this read is totally worth it and highly recommended.

Enemies to lovers is my favorite romance trope and Thank You For Sharing knocks it out of the park!

Liyah and Daniel met as teens at a summer camp but their young romance doesn’t survive after Daniel does a boneheaded thing. Fast forward to the future and they’re now stuck working together.

I loved the push and pull of Liyah and Daniel’s relationship along with learning some of the custom Jewish traditions.

There were a few times where I felt the dialogue didn’t quite match the characters but it was easy to overlook. Definitely worth the read, especially if you love enemies to lovers romance.

Thank you SMP for gifting me this ARC!

› There is a note at the front of the book that says: "Some of the thematic content in Thank You for Sharing contains discussions of sexual assault and the death of a parent; neither event occurs on the page. For more information, please visit the author's website." I love it when a book includes content warnings like this.

› Lucky for Liyah she managed to make her flight on time so she could find herself sitting next to Daniel.

› Daniel's love life has been nonexistent for a while, and it might be time to "get back on the horse". As he's checking out the woman next to him he realizes he recognizes her face - this is the same "Leah" from summer camp when he was thirteen years old. They had a huge argument and every summer he planned his apology, but she never returned to camp.

› After an incredibly awkward flight, they both move on with their lives thinking they'll never see each other again.

› Daniel made the mistake of telling his best friend Jordan, "a true romantic", all about Liyah - aka the woman from the airplane. It's been a month since Daniel and Liyah's flight and Jordan hasn't stopped asking if Daniel plans on trying to contact her. Liyah's best friend, Neen, is also encouraging her to start dating again.

› Liyah studied biological anthropology at Northwestern and now works at the Burke Museum with plans to become head curator by 30. Siobhan is one of the museum's graphic designers. They've been putting in many hours together creating a presentation for the exhibit Liyah would like to create at the museum. She wants to "tell a broader story of human evolution...not just the nuts and bolts of natural selection, but the greater intricacies of the development of traits that we view as especially key to our humanity."

› Her boss, Jeff, loves the idea but needs a more thorough plan to take to the board because they'll need extra funds to pull this off. The museum needs to attract more young adults. He makes a plan for Liyah to work with the marketing guy that the board hired to create a promotion package.

Guess who the marketing guy is....yup...Daniel.

"Why are you even here?" she asks

"I'm meeting someone for work," he says

"I'm meeting someone for work," she says

HAHAHA. Ya...each other!

Daniel doesn't want to walk away from the project because he really wants to impress his bosses. Liyah is in the same boat. So, they have to figure out a way to put the past behind them and create an epic promo package for the museum board.

Aliyah and Daniel invite Jordan and Siobhan to a speakeasy called "The Prohibition" and the four of them create the Speakeasy Survival Club support group. As a joke, they keep meeting minutes and have some rules:
1. Meet: Friday nights at Prohibition
2. Anything said here stays here
3. No toxic masculinity
4. Liyah and Daniel will explain Hebrew and Yiddish phrases to the uninitiated
5. Siobhan must explain Gaelic words and Irish slang
6. Jordan may reference his charm no more than once per meeting
7. No more than one round of tequila shots
8. Daniel and Jordan may not talk about any sports team's chances prior to the start of the season
9. A Friend of a club member is a friend of the club
10. Liyah must explain anthropological terms so that the rest of us can follow along with her work updates

› Liyah and Daniel get to know each other again as they work together on the promotion package and we get to learn about what happened at summer camp, and what happened to Liyah that makes her determined to not have a serious relationship.

› Characters: 9
I found Liyah to be unlikeable and I don't think she's meant to be...I didn't see her character growth. Some of Daniel's behaviour gives me the ick. Honestly, most of the characters are immature and selfish. Neen is my favourite character. I love that Liyah has come to love her curvy body after struggling as a teenager. As a curvy woman myself, I can relate. My little Anthropology-Degree-Heart loved every time Liyah talked about her work. The Speakeasy Survival Club support group is my favourite aspect of the story.

› Atmosphere: 6
I wanted more description of the setting and world-building.

› Writing Style: 6
I like the writing style, readability, dialogue and point of view, but I wanted more "showing" instead of "telling". I also didn't like strange wording like "colonialism mumbo jumbo" and whimpering while kissing (so corny). I found it odd to list holidays, but not in order and I didn't like the use of etc. (so weird to see this in a work of fiction).

› Plot: 8
Good beginning and middle. Definitely a page-turner. However, for me it was anticlimactic.

› Intrigue: 6
I wanted to keep reading but didn't really care about the characters.

› Logic: 6
There were quite a few times when I felt myself pulled out of the story due to things like every single character being described as beautiful or hot and sexy. It's strange that Liyah didn't know her roommate's name. There were times when characters laughed and I didn't think it was funny at all. I don't know if it's just me, but the underground water exhibit in particular caused many eye rolls for me.
"Dee-Dubs, your beer is getting warm!" Then keeps it in the fridge until he's ready!

› Enjoyment: 6
This was just okay for me. It made me smile a few times, but I didn't feel much of anything. The best part for me was all of the anthropology aspects and learning many Jewish words and traditions.

Average 6.7

My Rating ★★★

Average Story Graph Rating 4.05

Average Goodreads Rating 3.92

71% of Goodreads reviewers gave Thank You For Sharing 4 or 5 stars, so I am in the minority giving it three stars.

› Final Thoughts
• Thank You For Sharing is a sexy and entertaining enemies-to-lovers story about friends, fate, and love. I recommend this book to romance readers.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

What a delightful friends to enemies to friends to lovers story! One of my favorite tropes, Katz gives us a delicious grumpy/sunshine romance with a whole lot of heart. With a diverse cast of side characters, this is the kind of romance we need more of.

I got to 27% of this book and decided to go ahead and DNF it. I don't have as much reading time as I used to so I am being picker about what I read and if it doesn't grab me then it's over. I just struggled with a lot in this book, the fact that these adults made a club about their jobs and getting together to drink just felt really fake to me. It might be that I am just not a young professional and don't know that this is really a thing, I also struggled with the enemies to lovers and childhood sweethearts bit. It just felt really immature as adults to fixate on this. But again it is not something I experienced. I think this is still a book many people will appreciate as it follows Jews of color and shares their experiences. Thank you St. Martin's Press for my gifted copy.

This was a very sweet second-chance romance where the characters had originally met at a Jewish summer camp. I loved the Jewish representation, particularly that both main characters, Liyah and Daniel, were Jews of color. I did get a bit tired of all the misunderstandings between Liyah and Daniel, both when they were young and in the present-day, but ultimately, I really enjoyed their journey and I think others will too. 3.5 stars.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I really wanted to love this one. The representation it offers is cool. But the writing style just didn’t vibe for me and I had a hard time getting into it. DNF for me.

Thank you netgalley and the publisher for the ARC!