This was a quick, easy and quirky read. I loved the characters, and the premise was fun. However, I felt the writing was a little, juvenile. And there were a lot of cringey moments, where I almost put the book down completely. But I pushed through. I am a bit disappointed that I did not like this one more.

Sophie, a romance write, just spilled a big secret in a very public way; she's never been in love. She decides to meet with her past exes to see what went wrong in their relationships and she'll make the entire journey public over social media. Her neighbor and landlord, Dash, is a social media guru, decides to help her with this project. But he has his own secrets to keep and the closer he gets the harder it is to keep his demons in the closet. At it's core this is a story trust, honesty, and self discovery.

Unfortunately, I had to DNF this book and not give a full review.

A few points that pushed me towards a DNF.
- 3rd POV. I can't ever get into a book with 3rd POV. It's very hard to connect with the character this way. The only time I was able to tolerate 3rd POV is through an audiobook. Otherwise it's excruciating.
- The sapphic aspect. It's not really a trope I'm into reading, and would never voluntarily pick it up.
- The final straw was when we were introduced to one of her exes and the person goes by "they/them". While I don't mind inclusivity, it isn't my cup of tea.

By this point, there were too many things that I didn't like and I was forcing myself to read this book. I knew even if I finished the book it would have gotten a bad review anyways because I was already getting bored. I got about 16% in and nothing about the plot so far pulled me in. It wasn't intriguing in any way, and the 3 points above just made it an exhausting experience.

Thanks for the opportunity for the arc, I wish I could have enjoyed it.

DNF at 22%

Thanks to Netgalley for the arc but unfortunately this one wasn’t for me.

This book is so modernized that it feels like it’s going to be outgrown in a few years. It has very little lasting value either way the way it focuses so heavily on TikTok. I don’t have a TikTok so I am not super interested in that part of it.

Besides that, most of the characters are rich and powerful - even the friend characters are rich and powerful and the families are rich and powerful. And the MMC doesn’t even work but he’s fine because he did a few indie movies as a teenager? It is all very hard to relate to - these rich and famous people who have problems that don’t really correlate to the problems I have.

Then there’s the romance plot which honestly doesn’t feel unique at all? I don’t see much unique from this book in general. It feels like this would probably be around a 2.5/3 at the end of the day and I don’t feel like I need to read more to know that. If it’s going to be a fine book? I’d rather focus my time on a book that will be outstanding and this book just falls flat.

Also I am not a fan of alcohol being a huge part of the plot - both with the FMC being drunk on page one and the MMC being in AA. I bet his plot will be nice later but right now, I’m just sad he thinks he can’t have a family because he had an addiction to alcohol - like he has no faith in himself to even try. It’s just disappointing.

So I think I’m done with this one. I hope that for others, it gives them joy but I was mainly just bored.

This was super cute! Loved the whole friends to lovers trope and he’s the best friends brother… even better. Dash and Sophie were both complex characters who complemented each other well. The way they worked through their insecurities together was beautiful. Their banter was perfect and it was just spicy enough to really complement their characters. I actually thought the relapse was handled well. My favorite moment between Sophie and Dash had to be when they were making pottery together. Super intimate and hot.

I really liked Poppy and Chris’ characters but the same can’t be said for Nina… not her biggest fan. And obviously don’t like any one else in Dash’s family, but that’s how it’s supposed to be.

I love that this is a dual pov! And the inclusion of social media posts and texts is even better. I kind of wish it was a little longer to be honest. I will definitely be recommending this!

Thank you, @netgalley, for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

**TW at the end**

This is the first book by this author I have read, and now I fully intend on backtracking to read her previous novel. This was a great read!

The MMC was more sensitive than I have seen with other main male characters, and I loved him. Dash was not a traditional lead, but I think that was one reason I enjoyed the story so much. The communication was chef's kiss. There were so many opportunities for miscommunication or to not talk and communicate with one another, and the author said F--- that, we are talking this out!

I.AM.HERE.FOR.IT.

If there is something I dislike more than a third act breakup, it's unnecessary miscommunication. I am so glad this author has the characters speak their mind, blurt out their thoughts, and confront and communicate instead of jumping to conclusions and overreacting.

The spice you ask? Top notch! I lovvvvved the spice scenes. So much so that I was sending my best friend screenshots and telling her, "Look at this scene!!!"

Tropes:

🐿 Best Friends Brother
🐿 Romance writer & actor
🐿 He's my landlord
🐿 Opposites Attract
🐿 One Bed
🐿 Found Family
🐿 LQBTQ+

I LOVED this book! At times, it was lighthearted. Other times, it was a little heavy or serious, and other times, hilarious and spicy.

TRIGGER WARNING
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Substance abuse (recovery and relapse)
Toxic family
Death of parent

Sophie had never been in love?

Writer Sophie Lyon is behind on her next book with a serious case of writers block when she drunkenly announced to the world that she had never been in love in a video that went viral. Sophie plans to solve her writer’s block by figuring out the problems with all of her long term exes and document it to her social media with the help of her best friend’s brother and landlord Dash Montrose.

Plot Twist flips the story with Sophie having writer’s block and Dash working on his sobriety and being a potter and keeping everything a secret from his family while Sophie wants to see what happens with being more than just friends without telling anybody.

You don’t need to read For Butter or Worse (The Hollywood Series Book 1) first because Plot Twist is a stand-alone book.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This was a really lovely romance with a sweet happily ever after. I really enjoyed how the characters and relationships developed throughout this story. The tiktok references were fun but I did feel like they were a bit much at some times. Sophie and Dash had amazing chemistry and their banter was so good. I really enjoyed this story!
Thank you to NetGalley, the author and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

Teetering between 3.5 & 4. Well written and fully thought out but I didn’t feel the spark between myself and the characters. Sophie and Dash were cute but I didn’t find myself fawning over them, but I’m sure others will! Definitely give a read if you’re looking for a sweet cozy romance with some good spice!!

A cutesy romance that will leave you cheering for a happily ever after!

Plot Twist by Erin La Rosa delivers the necessary amount of sweet, drama, comedy, angst, family issues, and naughty love scenes to make this book have it all! Sophie is a romance novelist with writer’s block – mainly because she is having a hard time writing a happy ending when she has never been in love herself. Dash, her live-on-property landlord, who also is her best friend’s brother and former teen-movie heartthrob, has his own dilemmas fitting into his famous family, and alcoholism. Through crafts, writing, social media, and spa dates, these two think that they can help each other while only being friends with benefits. However, once they get through their own personal issues, maybe they will realize that what they have been missing is each other.

I loved the plot, premise, characters, and scenery! Having a Hollywood set is always fun and lets readers delve into a world usually not accessible. Sophie is extremely relatable: a people pleaser that finds it easier to escape when things get hard. Dash is also relatable, dealing with family drama and addiction.

La Rosa weaves in hard, real-life issues with ease, while also not taking the subject matter lightly.

However, I did feel like something was missing – a string connecting everything together with some plot lines needing to be fully flushed through. Too many tropes were used, I didn’t really like the TikTok tie-ins, and I felt like too much was going on (a couple storylines could be removed to streamline this novel and make me more succinct and enjoyable).

I honestly didn’t know that this book was the second in a series, but this can be read as a standalone novel easily. Overall, I am not upset I read this novel – but I started to lose interest and it took me way too long to read. Not a page turner for me, sadly, even though it is an easy read. While I won’t be jumping from the rooftop to recommend this book, I think a lot of people will enjoy it and the ending was worth the read. 3.5 stars rounded down.

Thank you to NetGalley for this charming read! All opinions are my own.

“God blessed the broken road that led me straight to you” – Rascal Flatts

After Sophie goes viral on TikTok for crying drunkenly at a karaoke bar about never being in love, even though she’s a romance author, she starts seeking out her exes to find out where things went wrong. Dash, her teenage crush and current landlord, struggles with his toxic family while hiding the fact he’s been sober for over a year. When Dash is forced into giving a speech for his father’s receiving a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, Sophie offers to write it in the hopes it’ll help end her writer’s block. Dash and Sophie end up spending much more time with each other than usual and begin to feel sparks that can’t be ignored. Will Sophie finish her book before the deadline and will Dash be able to forgive himself for his past drunken mistakes and feel worthy of love?

This was honestly such a cute, fun read that gave me so many warm, fuzzy feelings! I really enjoyed the sobriety rep, as I haven’t seen that in a book yet, especially a rom com. I genuinely did laugh at loud several times while reading and loved seeing the character growth. I wanted a bit more of Sophie and Dash being a couple, unfortunately we don’t really get to see that much in Plot Twist and I think it would’ve brought the book to the next level for me. Overall, I had a great time and think almost anyone would enjoy this!

Thank you to NetGalley, Canary Street Press, and Erin La Rose for proving an ARC, I’m leaving this review voluntarily.

I had no clue that this was the second in a series and it can definitely be read as a stand alone. After reading this one though, I am for sure going to read For Butter or Worse. This was a fun and spicy romance but it also dealt with some deep topics. Most importantly, alcoholism and trying to stay sober. This isn't a story about 2 perfect people or even one, both characters are deeply flawed but they both want to be better for each other. It was cute and fast paced, no doubt a bingeable read. I wish we could've had more towards the end, it seemed they professed their love to each other...the end. The epilogue just wasn't enough closure for me. Otherwise, I really liked this one!

Thank you to NetGalley and Canary Street Press for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

No sophomore slump for Erin as she bangs it out of the park with this latest in her Hollywood series that features Sophie, a struggling romance writer who's never been in love herself and Dash, Sophie's best friend's brother who also happens to be her neighbor and a recovering alcoholic former childhood star with a secret IG account.

While Dash isn't looking for a serious relationship he can't resist helping Sophie try to discover what it is about her past relationships that's prevented her from being able to say 'I love you.' Eventually they can't resist the undeniable chemistry and try to be friends with benefits with mixed results.

I loved how messy, flawed and relatable both the MCs were! They each had personal stuff to deal with before they were ready to be in a relationship and the book had such emotional depth along with the sizzling sexual connection.

Added to this there was great found family, a cameo from Nina (Sophie's sister), only one bed action, great pan rep and disability rep and relatable mental health rep related to toxic family relationships. Great on audio read by Mela Lee (the author's cousin) who is a talented narrator in her own right and a fav I didn't even realize I'd listened to a lot before.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy and Librofm for a complimentary ALC in exchange for my honest review! I enjoyed this one so much and highly recommend for fans of authors like Sarah Smith and Elissa Sussman.

Plot Twist introduces us to Sophie-a romance author who's struggling with writing her next book. She asks her best friend's brother, Dash, (who's also her landlord) to help her with her social media presence while she works on an experiment on TikTok to see if she can find the answer to her issue with writing.

Little does she expect things to brew between her and Dash.

I loved the concept of this story. Loved that social media was a part of it since we live in a society that is all about social media right now. I felt that Erin wrote the story in a way that handled the tough topics beautifully and in a respectable manner. I also love that Erin wrote a main character with a pacemaker.

The chemistry between Sophie and Dash is evident from the beginning even with their first encounter (in the book anyways).

The cover is 100% what drew me to the book, though. I know you're not supposed to judge a book by its cover but I am guilty of doing just that.

Not to mention the name of the book, Plot Twist, was super fitting to the story.

If you love best friend's brother, close proximity, friends with benefits, grumpy/sunshine.. check out Plot Twist!

It starts with writer's block and a massive hangover... Sophie is a romance author who has one book under her belt, and another in the works, but she's struggling to write the sparks because she's never been in love. She lives in the guest cottage on her friend's brother's property - Dash is a former actor who keeps to himself unless his sister sends him over to check on her friend.

So paths cross, plans are hatched, Dash and Sophie start hanging out while they help each other solve some problems. Sophie writes a speech for Dash. Sohie goes back to each ex-lover to find out why she's never been in love. Dash ends up with a stalker. Dash's mom does terrible things. A lot is going on, a twisty plot for sure. But, a happy ending is in the works - for some of the twistiness (if that is a word). Twistiness.

I am obsessed with Erin's writing and Plot Twist definitely lived up to the hype I'd built up in my head! It's so steamy and full of spice, but at the same time, there is so much heart and so much emotion. There are some tough issues dealt with in this book and Erin manages it so brilliantly. Overall, this was a basically perfect book!

Plot Twist was an adorable, heartfelt read!

I really enjoyed reading about the growing feelings between the two characters. They both were dealing with their own personnal issues, but it felt really good when they reached out to the other for help or took care of each other.

This book felt very modern and inclusive, with Sophie (the FMC) being pansexual. It also included a lot of pop-culture references (especially TikTok).

The plotline about Sophie revisiting her exes to try and figure out what went wrong made me cringe a bit, though I came to enjoy it.

(SPOILERS) I didn't really enjoy the plotline with starting again with her ex, while she had feelings for Dash (the MMC). It felt a bit too love-triangle to me.

This book also deals with serious topics, such as dysfunctional families and alcoholism.

All in all, I enjoyed Plot Twist and I definitely recommend this book!

Oh I loved this book. I’ve read a lot of romance books and some of them are pretty similar, which I don’t mind, but this one, this one was unique and different. I love when books have twists, I don’t want to give too much away, that I can’t see coming. It truly takes an amazing writer to pull them off. Hats off to you Erin.

Pick this one up and you won’t want to put it down

DNF 1 chapter in. The writing really didn't work for me plus the fact the love interest is her landlord and she got sick on him at the end of chapter 1. I couldn't keep going.

DNF at 15% the characters were just not interesting to me. And the Tiktok references were just too overbearing.