2.5/5

The story is about a popular morning-show host, Brynn Cornell, known for her positive and humble personality. However, during one on-air mistake, she insults her hometown and its people, and it's revealed that maybe her sunshiny personality isn't real. Now, Brynn has to return to Adelaide Springs (the insulted hometown) to apologize and capture some wholesome content for the viewers. There she meets Sebastian Sudworth, a super-known reporter, who's been living in Adelaide Springs for the last six years. He loves this little town and its habitants, and it makes sense that Brynn and Sebastian clash.
Let's start with the positive aspects. I enjoyed reading the last half of the book because it's where the meaningful interactions between Brynn and the people she used to know and love happened. These scenes were sweet, and some of them even moving. Also, the author did a good job of capturing the essence of the little town and making it very atmospheric.
Now, to the negatives. The first half of the book was a slog to read. I didn't care about Bryn's "cancellation" and the "hate" between Brynn and Sebastian felt forced and uninteresting. Besides that, I really disliked the mention of real people's names since, at least in one case, the text literally insults those people. How dare you call Julie Andrews self-righteous, rude, and insufferable???
All in all, I would recommend this book to people who enjoy Hallmark movies. It matches their energy perfectly.

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

I loved this story by Bethany Turner, such fun characters and witty banter.

I just reviewed Brynn and Sebastian Hate Each Other by Bethany Turner. #BrynnandSebastianHateEachOther #NetGalley
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Brynn and Sebastian Hate Each Other by Bethany Turner was a really captivating rom-com.

This story pulled me in from chapter one and completely hooked me until I finished.
A sweet, light-hearted romance. That I simply couldn’t get enough of.
The character development was extremely satisfying and the story so vivid, she truly does an incredible job at bringing her characters to life. They just jump off the pages.
They are truly memorable characters and unforgettable story.
The writing is witty and engaging. And I’d expect nothing less coming from Turner.
I just love her writing style. It’s engaging and welcoming.

Plot Twist and The Do-Over are also two amazing romance novels that are bound to be devoured when you pick them up.

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

Thank You NetGalley and Thomas Nelson for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

Thanks to Netgalley and Thomas Nelson Fiction for the complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Brynn is a morning news anchor on Sunup and has a ray of sunshine persona on air however off air the story is different. Unfortunately a conversation with her co-anchor about how much she hates her hometown goes out live and when America realises that their small town, ray of sunshine has a dark side, it threatens to ruin her career. She thinks that by returning to her hometown she can get the locals on side and repair her image.

Sebastian is a brooding ex-journalist who moved to the town to escape an old life that is shrouded in mystery. Working odd jobs around town means he scores the job of chauffeuring Brynn and her camera man Orly around... However, when they don't get off on the best foot, Brynn is going to have a tough time winning over both the town and Sebastian. Can she do it?

The second half of this book is great and I loved it so much that it saved the first half for me. These characters are flawed which I appreciate and respect. I loved Sebastian despite his flaws. As for Brynn, I definitely found it took me a lot longer to like her and she does have character growth that made me really like her in the end.

I struggled with the Dual POV in this book because Brynn's POV was written in first person however Sebastian's POV was written in third person but, I did get used to it the more I read. I would have loved the opportunity to dig further into her past with her mother as that was a big plot point and one of the reasons she left the town originally.

The beginning of this book almost made me DNF and I am so grateful I didn't and continued reading because I really loved the second half which makes it difficult to rate for me.

If you like flawed characters, slow burn, small town romance, sarcastic comments, grumpy MMC and pop culture references then this book is definitely for you.

Actual Rating: 3.5

This is tagged “clean romance” on Goodreads which is actually right up my alley. If you’re like me and like romance that’s more subtle and conversational as opposed to physical, I really think this one will be enjoyable!

Brynn and Sebastian Hate Each Other follows Brynn, a morning show host who is forced to return to her little middle-of-nowhere hometown after an embarrassing on-air mishap. There, she meets Sebastian who turns out to also be a famous journalist who had suddenly and mysteriously went off the grid. Now he’s a beloved member of Brynn’s old community — and they can’t stand each other.

I think the plot is actually really promising. It reads a lot like a classic rom-com where the big city girl goes to a small town and meets someone there. The way Brynn’s incident kicks off the story is embarrassing (in a fun way) and believable, and the ways in which she butts heads with Sebastian also makes perfect sense as we learn more about their backgrounds.

As much as I love a good slow burn and enjoyed the subtle romance, I do think it resulted in some pacing issues; specifically, 80% of the book are the main characters clashing (with a few warm moments in between) and the jump to the 20% of them feeling a little too sudden.

I also noticed that there were some plots I really liked, some I wanted to see more of, and some I just didn’t care that much about. I really liked Brynn’s initial plot but it started feeling less important. I didn’t care that much about the town’s argument over Township Days and felt like the end result was a little underwhelming. But I really wanted to know more about Brynn’s past with her mother, which would’ve really taken the depth of this book a step further.

The characters are just developed about 70% of the way, I think. As a rom-com it’s not necessary to make everything really emotionally harrowing, but I think it would’ve helped the connection between Brynn and Sebastian go deeper than realizing the other person “isn’t that bad” before they officially got together.

Overall, I do think this is a standard rom-com; it’s fun and cute and a pretty quick read. Once again, it is “clean” — so for those TikTok girlies who like smut in your contemporary romance it might be too subtle, but for me it was great.

I will start by saying this was a refreshingly clean romance, which I thoroughly enjoyed. The hate in this book is strong though and felt a bit over the top and lasted a good part of the book. However, I would recommend this for a fun light read. This would really be a great book for fans of Emily Henry style books.

I received an arc of Brynn and Sebastian Hate Each Other by Bethany Turner

This book was not bad, but it wasn't as good as I was expecting it to be. I think the enemies part took way more than it needed to. The cover is beautiful, the title is good to catch your eye, but overall the story was ok. I would recommend it to my friends but I wasn't the target audience for this.

Brynn and Sebastian Hate Each Other by Bethany Turner was a slower read for me and took a while to get through. The characters did not mesh well with me and they felt a bit flat. The book was okay!

Bethany Turner is the go to for romantic comedies with a twist. She not only has laugh out loud books, she adds real life to she novels. Real life that we all know and yet she gives us the courage to fight on.
Brynn and Sebastian really do hate each other from the moment they meet. They go on to annoy each other is so many many ways. That is until they start learning each others story. Then things begin to change as they understand the adage, don't judge a person until they walk in their shoes.
A wonderful read for the planned vacation, but also just a perfect read to get away from your own reality.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Brynn and Sebastian Hate Each Other by Bethany Turner, is one to read if you like enemies to lovers small town romances this is one for you! Paving was a little slow, it took a long time to get invested, but when it got going it was great.

I had high hopes for this book, but unfortunately, it didn't quite hit the mark for me. Despite that, I can still appreciate that it's a cute book that will likely appeal to many readers. The cover and title are absolutely adorable, and the story itself is charming. While it wasn't my cup of tea, I can't say anything bad about it. Overall, it just wasn't my thing. Nonetheless, I want to give a big thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of the book.

3 Stars ⭐️

This one was just ok for me. The premise seemed really cute and fun, the cover is gorgeous. Unfortunately the story for me fell a bit flat. It was slow moving and I found it really hard to like Brynn. I'd find myself skimming thru alot of it and having a hard time to get engaged.

Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas Nelson for this advanced reader copy, My review is voluntarily my own,

2.5! i want to love this, i really do. but apparently, it wasn’t the right fit for my taste. we have two primary characters, but only one of their narratives is conveyed from a first-person point of view. it kept pulling me away from the narrative. there was a lot of narrative, very little movement, and very little attention paid to the main relationship. overall, I believe that this book is a fantastic choice for those looking for a great small-town atmosphere, but regrettably not for me.

thank you to the author and netgalley for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

2.5! i want to love this, i really do. but apparently, it wasn’t the right fit for my taste. we have two primary characters, but only one of their narratives is conveyed from a first-person point of view. it kept pulling me away from the narrative. there was a lot of narrative, very little movement, and very little attention paid to the main relationship. overall, I believe that this book is a fantastic choice for those looking for a great small-town atmosphere, but regrettably not for me.

thank you to the author and netgalley for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Have you ever said something you'd like to take back? I'm sure Brynn would like to have those seconds back. She had no idea they were live but she lowered her guard and disparages her hometown. To keep her job she convinces her boss to let her go there to make amends.
Sebastian was integrated in the town having moved there a few years ago. He was not happy about the things Brynn said. He gets picked to watch over her while she's in town.
Their first few interactions were anything but bumpy. However, they begin to understand each other and see beneath each other's outer layers.
appreciate the author's emotional complexity of the characters.
Thank-you to Net Galley, the author, and Thomas Nelson for an ARC of this book. I highly recommend.

LOVE the cover. Love Turner's other books, I found this to be cute, quirky at times and overall enjoyable.

I loved this title and description, but found I had a hard time getting into the story. Brynn was hard to like and, while I understood her motives and behaviors, I understood them too late to fall for her. I wish that the adhesion of the characters came earlier and found the payoff not as fulfilling as I had hoped for.

3.5.

I’m really torn over this one. I love Bethany Turners wit and style. Even wrapped in how clever Bethany is, I just didn’t connect with the story. It started so slow, yet the first chapter captured what Brynn must have been feeling that day on the morning show.
Brynn was a bit sarcastic and hard to warm up to. Same with Sebastian.

The story didn’t pull me in, but I won’t hesitate to pick up another one of Bethany Turners books because she’s a rare talent.

unfortunately, i didn't find this book very compelling from the start, and getting through it was a bit of a drag. the character seemed to fall flat and lacked likability or relatability, which made me uninvested in their relationship, and the quick switch from love to hate seemed random and unbelievable. there are much better enemies-to-lovers AND small-town romances out there so off the top of my head i would not recommend this book to my friends if they were looking for either one of those tropes.

This book was just too slow for me, and I really did not find either MC to be particularly likable. While there is some growth on their parts, overall, it was hard for me to enjoy this book as I wasn't invested in the outcome or what lay in store for either of these two, but I did enjoy some of the side characters we got little glimpses of. I think if this book would have been shorter, and maybe a bit more fast-paced, I would have enjoyed it more.