*3.5

I liked this but I wanted more from it. There were random time jumps that I don't feel were necessary. Mara and Ford are really cute and I loved that there was no third act break up. It's just that after their first few dates it felt like everything flew by and we were being told about their realtionship more than we were being shown.

I received an arc through netgalley.

Thank you, Flowers and Fullerton and NetGalley, for the advanced copy.

This was an adorable meet cute. I really enjoyed the alternating POV chapters. There was never any retelling of the story when the points of view changed. Thank goodness! I can't stand when authors do that. It's like just write a novella and move on, man. Slow Simmer was just the opposite of a slow simmer! It had me hooked from the beginning! Probably could have had a little bit more character development, but not bad for a fun beach read. I enjoyed it. I will definitely be looking at the other books in this series!

Mara Stellar will do everything she can to make sure her and her twin brother's dreams come true even after he dies tragically. They dreamed of owning a comic book shop, and Chance also had written a comic book series. When a big-time movie director finds himself taking shelter in Ghost of a Chance, the comic store, he finds himself in a convo with store owner, Mara. She loads him down with a few comic books to study, but one in particular catches his eye. He wants to turn her brother's comic, Ghost, into a movie. Slow Simmer follows Mara and Chance as their relationship blossoms, and they both find what they want and need with each other.

I really enjoyed this story! It was a sweet, quick read and had very likable characters. They had so many bumps in their romance but it was great to read how they overcame the obstacles.

Review: ⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 Stars.
Spice: 🌶️🌶️

The story starts off with a Hollywood Director, Ford Ross crashing into Mara Stellar's comic book store to aid himself in the rain, where he immediately gets captivated by her beauty and lively personality.

When I picked this book, I thought it was named after the slowly brewing up chemistry between the two characters, and damn was I right about that when the title made sense to me!!!

I didn't give 5 stars because I wanted to see more of Mara and Ford's Relationship after they have moved past their initial phase of dating; Mara and Don's bonding. I feel like they would have made a fun duo, giving hard time to Ford. Nevertheless, the story was great. It's easy to read and had me hooked till the end. Not even once I felt like skipping through any paragraph (or chapter).
What felt like the perfect cherry on top was how the story kept mentioning movies and superheroes' comic books. It was my favorite element of the book.

Mara Stellar is a hardworking woman who does everything in her power to keep her Twin's dream alive. She went through a lot of pain but came out stronger. In the end, she really was a superhero of her own life.

Ford Ross, god that man can have my heart & I won't ask for it back. He's amazing, loves Mara with everything, always so attentive and keen on communication. Just when I thought that man couldn't be any more perfect, he did things, sweet things for Mara's Dog, Zephyr. Always getting him treats, and taking him on walks. God that man!!!

There wasn't any character I didn't like, well except for a *cough* Douche *cough* Doug and Dr. Stellar until the end where his character improves.

The author did an amazing job of showing the temptation and tension between the two. How it simmers with time until it boils and both of them explode. The spice was mild, and not too graphic so easily an ideal book for those who don't prefer to read smut.

This book isn't about two different people from two different worlds falling in love. This amazing book is about two different people from different worlds falling in love and creating a life together, facing struggles, and fixing things together.

This beautiful story explores:
– Small Town Romance,
– Celebrity Romance,
– Slow Burn,
– Contemporary Romance,
– Strangers to Lovers,
– He falls first.

If you love a book with these elements then, I'd say you gotta get this book!!!

Lastly, big thanks to #netgalley for this amazing book!

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

Slow Simmer" by Sheridan Jeane is an okay read with some enjoyable moments. The story follows the romance between Mara, a comic book shop owner, and Ford, an award-winning movie director, who both have their own personal struggles to overcome. The plot is predictable, but the characters are likable, and the chemistry between Mara and Ford is palpable.

However, the story feels rushed in some places, and the conflicts are resolved too conveniently. The dialogue can be cheesy at times, and some of the characters lack depth."Slow Simmer" is a decent romantic read, but it doesn't quite reach the level of a satisfying page-turner.

It was cute, a little repetitive, but I really enjoyed the characters, their back stories, and the main plot. It was a good change of pace from my normal chaotic reads.

Something that stuck with me was the use of “bipolar” and I think maybe that description should be re-thought as it doesn’t seem appropriate towards people who are bipolar.

3.5 ⭐️

This book is called Slow Simmer and for the first half that’s exactly what it is - slow. I’m not going to lie, at about 40% I considered giving up. And then somewhere around the halfway mark, I started really enjoying myself to the point where 50% progress suddenly became 90% and I wasn’t ready for it to end.

Mara is a comic book store owner in a small town, just doing her best to honour her brother, when in walks Ford, movie director extraordinaire who just returned to his home town to reconnect with family. Sparks fly and romance ensues.

It wasn’t the best book I’ve ever read. Parts were definitely too slow and something about it just didn’t always meet the expectations of what I was looking for. It wasn’t the characters (Mara and Ford are both adorable and I love them so), it wasn’t the overall concept (small town book store owner is a specific niche I love), and it wasn’t the plot (I actually liked the storylines overall). I can’t put my finger on what I didn’t love but it just feels like a book I won’t think about for years to come. Does that mean it shouldn’t be read? Absolutely not.

Slow Simmer is a great rom-com read for anyone looking for a small town nerdy vibe. I’d definitely recommend it if that’s what you’re after. It just won’t be at the top of my all-time faves. And that’s okay. I’ll also definitely pick up the sequels when they come out (it’s going to be a series!)

Thank you to Flowers and Fullerton and Netgalley for the advanced copy.

Mara has spent the last year building her comic book store from the ground up, after the unexpected loss of her twin brother Chance. This was their dream, and no matter how much she may miss her old career in video game creation, she won't let Chance or 'Ghost', the comic series he created, be forgotten.

Ford has spent the last decade focused on building his career whilst following in his father's footsteps. Having just won an award at the Sundance Film Festival, he's at the top of his game, and is on the look out for the next big script. This all changes when a family emergency brings him back to his home town and he's forced to reconnect with his roots.

When a sudden rain storm sees Ford taking shelter within Mara's store, they don't part on the best of terms. Will their shared love of storytelling and current family obligations bring them closer? Or will one break free and return to their old life?

I really enjoyed this book and felt like the tension between Mara and Ford grew at a delicious pace! It made every aspect of the book even better, as you never knew if this scene or chapter would lead to a turning point in their relationship. I enjoyed the 🔥 within the book and the way that this was spread out within the story rather than an immediate occurance.

The sub plots surrounding Chance, his comic series, the store and his death were deep and revealed a lot about Mara's motivations. It made her a far more lovable character than she may have been otherwise and I was really rooting for her to make the best decisions for her future, no matter how difficult.

Thank you to the Author SheridanJeane, Netgalley and Victory Editing NGC for providing this free ARC. I have provided this view voluntarily and all opinions are my own. Keep an eye out for this book from the 10th of April 2023!

Reserve grumpyxsunshine was something else. Ford successful director and the golden retriever kind man try to win Mara grumpy pricky the owner of comic book store. There is drama around them too family and friend, i really enjoy the storyline, i can feel many emotion in this book especially Mara anxious and fear. i curious about their friend Connor,Dante,  Kincaid, Lianna. It fun to read about how book turn into a movie.

Thank you to NetGalley for provide this book, it is pleasure to review this book.

#SlowSimmer #ComingHome #SheridanJeane #FlowersandFullerton #ARCProvidedbyVictoryEditing #VictoryEditing #NetGalley #NetGalleyCoop #ARC

First of all, these kinds of book covers just draw my attention and I know I'm in for a treat. Secondly, the cute book cover did lead me to a very cute book! Would definitely recommend.

The banter in this book was really good and the representation of an adult child still fighting with their parents and not being able to get out from under their thumb was really important to me and was done really well. There were some scenes that were really boring to me namely because they talked in intense detail about comics and movies but maybe that’s just a personal preference. There was also a particular spicy scene which almost turned me off from reading the book altogether. I do think that it ended really well though.

Thank you NetGalley and the publishers for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I liked Mara and Ross, but let me tell you one thing that annoyed me a little about these two - they had no tension. No miscommunication, no worries, no drama.

They just got one another, and perfectly understood one another and were fine.

So sue me, sometimes i like a lil bit of drama and then a lil bit of steam. You just know these two are out there living a perfectly boring life.

100 stars for her dog though - he was my favourite character.

Ford Ross, a hotshot movie director fresh off an award winning film, is struggling to choose his next film project. When he returns to his hometown to reconnect with his family, he meets Mara Stellar, owner of a struggling comic book shop. Though a bad breakup has left Mara reluctant to pursue a new relationship, she takes a chance on Ford. From two different worlds, they initially get off to a rocky start but things slowly begin to heat up as they find common ground and discover that they may be able to help each.

This is an easy read and the first person narration alternates between Ford and Mara's perspective. Mara is awesome; she's intelligent and nerdy, and I love her book club friends! I especially love all the geeky references in her narrative. Unfortunately, I was not a big fan of Ford and his initial chapters did not have me rooting for this couple at all. He came off as infuriatingly self absorbed and I couldn't understand what Mara saw in him aside from his good looks. The insta love didn't make sense to me. He has a good character arc and he eventually grew on me, but I think I could have appreciated him more if the book had been entirely from Mara's perspective.

Thank you NetGalley and the publishers for the digital galley in exchange for an honest review.

This was so good. I loved every moment of it. I couldn't stop thinking about Mara and Ford. This was amazing!!
I just reviewed Slow Simmer by Sheridan Jeane. #SlowSimmer #NetGalley
[NetGalley URL]

Very good read, well written and the characters are funny with banter and some spice, I really enjoyed reading this

Thank you to the publisher and net galley for the opportunity to read this arc.

Nora is a comic book store owner who meets Hollywood director Ford. As the title goes, their Romance is a slow burn. It has a lot of underlying issues discussed throughout the novel. It was cute, I just struggled to find interest in the main characters.

Thank you netgalley and the publishers for for a copy of this e arc in exchange for an honest review

3.5 stars
Slow Simmer by Sheridan Jeane follows the two main characters Ford and Mara.

Ford is a movie director who comes back home to come figure out what is going on with Dad and to to figure out what project he wants to take on next. Mara is a comic book store owner that she opened to keep her brother dreams alive after he passes, and leaving her dream job as a coder.

I really loved the connection between the two characters and the story was well written. However, the spicy scenes just weren't it for me and it almost turned me off from finishing a few times. Luckily that wasn't the main focus of the books. While I didn't love this book, I will most likely still read the next book in the series. Also I like the recipes included at the end of the book.

Thanks to NetGalley and Victory Editing for an arc of this book. Below is my honest review.

Ford Ross, an award winning director, is home for the first time in a while. Something’s up with his father and his siblings asked him to figure it out as the favorite child. And … his father is avoiding him.

Ford goes to a comic book store to escape a storm and accidentally chases off customers by bashing Superman adaptations. He is in talks to direct one, but he doesn’t have much interest. Ford and the owner argue about old rehashed movies vs fresh plots. Mara, the owner, gives him comics to read. A little later they run into each other and bond over common interests.

Ford flirts, Mara resists after years of being gaslit and undermined. Their friends and family poke their noses into their budding relationship. You know how it is.

Will he direct the Superman movie? Will Mara help him? What’s up with dad? Will anyone fall for each other?

I really enjoyed this book and was THRILLED to see there will be at least two more. Ford’s movie your date was adorable, all of the characters were likable (unless they weren’t supposed to be), Chris Pitt had the best name ever. Except, no, the comic shop definitely did. If you are in the mood for a romcom that is somehow both lighthearted and deals with some deeper themes, give this one a chance!



TW-death of family members (off page), verbally abusive ex, cheating ex (secondary character), condescending/undermining parent, fertility struggles (secondary character).

Mara is a comic book shop owner who had to give up her dreams for her family. Ford is a movie director who had to give up his family for his dreams. Both has a lot to learn from each other....

Love how their relationship helps each other. Both characters are extremely likable and easy for the readers to care about them. Love their banter too. Really enjoy this fun book.

Thanks to the publisher for the arc.

really enjoyed this book and found me a new author to read more of her books. This was a win win for me and will read more.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.