By god, this book was frustrating 🤦🏻‍♀️ I loved In the Event of Love so this was one of my most anticipated releases of the year and it just was not my favorite… tbh, I would’ve dnf’d if I didn’t love Ben & Adam so much. Adam specifically was the highlight for me with they way he had a Kristoff type of love for Ben; “my love for you is not fragile” and that made me so happy! Ben was also just really easy to root for! But the issues were just so repetitive and got tedious by the halfway point and I just wanted it to be over 😅 also there were a lot of moments where the timeline just felt off and it confused me 🤷🏻‍♀️so overall, this was a very meh read for me but I do think a lot of people will love it so I’d say give it a try if it sounds interesting to you!

The MCs, Ben & Adam were 2 of my favorites ever 🫶🏼 plus Ben's family, especially his mom & G-ma were so stinkin adorable!

I loved how much this book focused on growth, finding yourself, learning to deal with things how you need to and had positive therapy rep.

Fern Falls & Maywell Bay were fabulous settings and both sound so cozy

The ending was perfect😍

Thanks to NetGalley & Kensington Books for an advance copy;

I adored Ben in In The Event Of Love, so I couldn't wait for his love story with Adam. I've been eagerly awaiting this book from the second I finished the first one.

I loved the second book in the Fern Falls series just as much as the first. Much of the book took place outside of Fern Falls in Ben's grandmother's seaside mansion, but we still got a nice dose of the Fern Falls residents from In The Event of Love. Ben's grandmother was such an amazing addition to the cast! We love a raunchy grandma, but she also had some incredible life advice for Ben.

You're going to love this fun, steamy forced proximity. There are some heavier parts, but they're well-balanced by lighthearted scenes. I definitely recommend it.

TW/CW: Childhood parental neglect, parental abandonment, emotional abuse by a parent in childhood, depression/depressive episode, anxiety, alcoholic parent of the love interest, blackmail. Overall, Ben has just a completely awful dad so be prepared for that.
Rep: I'm gonna be honest - I didn't keep track of many characters. There are multiple side characters that use they/them pronouns, including a person of color. All the rep from In the Event of Love still applies. I believe learn of an additional bi side character in Fern Falls. Our main character is bi, his love interest is pan.

I wish I had more thoughts on this book. For me, it didn’t live up to In the Event of Love, which disappoints me because I loved Ben so much in that one! I was so looking forward to seeing him and Adam have their own beautiful romance.

And it is romantic! Truly, Adam is so tooth-achingly romantic it pained me. Honestly, all of the legal trouble parts bothered me, but that may just be personal and something I’ll have to look out for. It stressed me out so bad. And it felt like it held so much control over the plot, while also not doing much of anything. Also – is the “star” of a baking show (that’s only been in part of an episode) really going to have paparazzi going after them???

Overall, Ben deserves better – on so many levels. I want to give him a big hug.

Huge thank you to Netgalley and Kensington Books for an ARC of this!

I could not put this book down. Courtney Kae’s writing is magical, making me want to just keep reading, and her references were like little gems making my way into my heart to make it full. The universe she’s created with Fern Falls with all the lovable characters is a world I’d love to be in. She flawlessly intermingled reality with a dream place of a small town. There were so many moments I was internally screaming from the dialogue between the characters. This story made me smile, cringe, cry, laugh, cuss and cheer. Is it too much to hope she comes out with Fern Falls #3 soon? A lot of the characters need their moments, too!

A sweet, albeit trope-y, romance! Ben has quietly loved Adam for years but the baker and the rocker have been in different places, both physically and mentally, Now, though, they're together and small sparks fly. Fans of the genre know what's going to happen but Kae has added some nice touches and a nod to mental health issues that make this ring true. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. A good read.

Thank you Netgalley and Kensington Books for allowing me to read a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Maybe I had too-high hopes for this one given how much I loved In the Event of Love and how much I especially adored these two in it, but I found this to be a bit of a letdown?

It wasn’t bad! It was a sweet, easy read. I just didn’t feel fully engaged or invested like I’d been hoping for. I found a lot of the events to be over the top and Ben’s reaction to things somewhat frustrating. I get that he has pretty severe anxiety but something about it felt off to me.

Nonetheless, I enjoyed these sweet boys being sweet and I’m happy to see them get their HEA.

A very cute summery read that sadly was a bit too over the top for me in some places. I loved that Ben and Adam weren't afraid to communicate with each other, however, their conversations often didn't feel real to me and sounded more like weird internet speak. I also had trouble with the recipe conflict – it just didn't make any sense to me and the dad seemed like some kind of cartoon villain. I did love the queer rep in the book and Ben and Adam had loads of cute scenes together.

This is such a cute laugh-out-loud beach red with such great lgbtq+ representation. Almost not a single person in this book is straight and I love it - and if you love baking, cinnamons and small town mlm romance, you’ll love it as well.

It does have quite some long inner monologue passages from Ben’s POV that could be a little long to get through desite Ben being an absolute delight and Impossible not to love.

Bare in mind that the book does deal with subjects like childhood trauma and mental illnesses, so good idea to check trigger warnings beforehand.

Overall, a perfect book for fans of Casey McQuiston and Alexis Hall!

The book started out great, but the more I read the more cheesy and over the top it got (even for me) and I didn't really like that.
It is funny and romantic, but the love between Ben and Adam is something I did enjoy because they obviously care for one another, but the rest just kind of falls flat.

Thank you to Courtney Kae, Kensington Books and NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for my honest opinion. In Case of Heartbreak comes out July 25, 2023.

In the Case of Heartbreak is a MM romantic comedy, featuring a sweet baker and an edgy indie rocker. Ben and Adam have known each other for years, and Ben has been in love with Adam for basically the same amount of time. I think that there were good parts of this book, Adam and Ben are both sweet characters who do go through emotional growth. I loved the side characters specifically Ben's grandma who was spunky. I also think that Courtney had good mental health representation and diverse queer representation. There were lot of different points of conflict in the book, to the point where it seemed like too much was going on. These were also resolved quickly and easily but maybe two easily. I think that there were things too recommend this book, and honestly if you are looking for a quick and easy read In the Case of Heartbreak is a good recommendation.

A very sweet, swoony summer romcom!

I loved Courtney Kae's previous book in this world, "In The Event of Love", so I had high expectations for this. The love interest, Adam, is actually Rachel's older brother, which means we not only got new characters but also got to see what Morgan and Rachel had been up to since the end of their book! I love a good callback.

But this stood on its own, and certainly didn't need any help from characters from past books. Ben and Adam had an amazing "friends to lovers"/"I've always loved you" arc that made my heart happy. While this book does have a third act breakup, it actually feels very logical in the context of the story by the time it happens. And of course, the reconciliation after the third act breakup also felt very organic.

Overall, Courtney Kae has done an amazing job yet again and I would highly recommend this book!

*I received a free ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*

𝙄𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝘾𝙖𝙨𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙃𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙩𝙗𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙠 by Cortney Kae (2023) has been a book I’ve been looking forward to since I saw the beautiful cover. However, this was a miss for me. ★★★☆☆

There isn’t anything technically bad with the book. There were cute moments, but I think plot conflict was too much and not enough on the MCs and their relationship arc. Reality TV show wanting to sue for breach of contract unless they somehow get social media attention, Asshole Dad drama, G-Ma’s 80th two-week birthday, and somehow g-ma’s stinking rich and having money problems? Way too much IMO, and really quickly resolved.

Props for the mental health rep and creating an inclusive world with diverse characters.

Full disclosure: I haven’t read the first in this series and my booksta bestie loved both the these, so that might have made a difference.

I still recommend reading if you loved the first one. This just wasn’t for me. Sorry!

Thanks to Kensington Books and NetGalley for a chance to early review this story in exchange for an honest review.

This was such a heartwarming romance! I did feel like it was a bit cheesy and predictable most of the time, so that kept me from loving it as much as I wanted to. But I loved the relationship between the two main characters

Another excellent book in the Fern Falls series! If you haven’t read the first book, you certainly will not be lost but you will miss insights as to what characters from the first are up to now. Also, you would have a better idea of what the Fern Falls community is like, although most of the action doesn’t take place there in this installment.

Ben has harbored a crush on Adam for years, and when Adam is asked who he is to Ben on a television program, he says a friend and Ben is humiliated. This causes all sorts of problems for the baking competition that’s the premise for the program. Things get even more dicey when Ben’s estranged father threatens legal action claiming he made the recipe for the cinnamon buns Ben plans to make for the program.

Excellent writing- the settings, characters, situations they are all amazing! There are many real zany characters and situations but not enough to make it seem completely impossible. As soon as I started reading I did not want to put it down, and when I did have to I was quite annoyed I couldn’t keep reading! I hope there will be more in the series, I also appreciated that until a person makes clear what their pronouns are, they are referred to as “they”

The way to my heart is certainly through the stomach.

At least my stomach and my heart were fully involved when I decided on requesting and reading this book. I suddenly felt a strong compassion for the protagonist baker overwhelmed by not only an upcoming TV show but his unrequited love for a want-to-be rockstar. Nena Tramoutani recently evoked my love for protagonists employed in any kind of kitchen, while S.C. Stephens made me grave a rockstar romance years ago. This combination (plus a pinch of queerness) was a sure catch for me. Delving into the first chapters, I was immediately involved with Ben’s emotional, chaotic encounters with the cameras and his love interest. Courtney Kae playfully and humorously got us engaged with his friends, his business, and his fears.


This romcom is fun but seems forced from time to time.

Which is not ultimately a bad thing. Romcoms live from these moments in which you think: Of course, that was about to happen. For example, two weeks are set not only as the time Ben will spend at his grandmother’s place but also for him to create some positive PR to stay in the baking contest. I enjoyed things coming together as Ben is unable to escape his embarrassing moment with Adam.

Nonetheless, the romcom was too much for my taste when it heavily drew on miscommunication. Ben is that afraid of being rejected and not good enough that he simply cuts Adam off before he even has the chance to speak the truth. Thus, they get into this web of misunderstandings for the first part of the book. I totally understand when people are thrown off by that as I was inclined to be as well. Nevertheless, I was certain there was more to come and was proven right.


Finding another and oneself.

No one is surprised by the developments between Ben and Adam. Nonetheless, the book does not resolve their eventually revealed feelings to an immediate happy ending. Looking at the number of pages left afterwards, I was sure to be confronted with another drama. And I was certainly glad that this one wasn’t one of miscommunication but rather an inner struggle to be fought. Of course, there were external problems as well. But Ben foremostly needed to find his way out of his self-destructive/-dismissing, persistent thoughts shaped by his childhood experiences of neglect.

I loved this dive into his past, as much as the moving (and hilarious) moments with his family in the present. Adam and Ben’s open and gentle communication (after the difficult start) was heartwarming and joyful to read. Ben’s found friends offered little but truthful support when needed and excited me enough to look into the first Fern Falls installment.

In Conclusion
A (supposedly unrequited) friends to lovers story about a baker, a rockstar, a TV show, a hip grandma and a lot of family complexes. This mixture worked out pretty well for Courtney Kae’s next publication. I hope you give this cheerful (but emotional as well) read a chance. If you’re really allergique to miscommunication, then simply be careful in the first half of the book.

Excellent read--angsty but with alot of cinnamon roll sweetness. and fun mixed in! The author creates two too good to be true locations--Fern Falls and Maywell Bay--where things like homophobia and racism don't exist. I am fine with this concept--kind of like Daryl Banner's Spruce, Texas. I want to move there!

Our hero is Ben, a 26-year-old baker in Fern Falls, who, as a child, suffered abuse at the hands of his narcissistic father. The story is told from Ben's viewpoint. His love interest is the hunky guitarist/auto mechanic, Adam, on whom Ben has had a crush since childhood. In the course of the novel, we see Ben realistically work toward overcoming his childhood trauma. His Grandma, or G-ma, provides much comic relief as do many of his relatives who gather to celebrate G-ma's 80th birthday in Maywell Bay.

We are engaged in the story throughout--there are several major challenges for poor Ben and his HEA is well-deserved. It took a while for the story to settle down--is it about a baking contest? about an over the top birthday party and G-ma's finances?, is it about the challenges of a relationship with someone who tours? how about defeating the nasty father? The author settles in though on the effects of childhood trauma on the main character. And these are the best parts of the book. One particularly memorable scene is Ben's first meeting with Adam when Ben is only 8 or 9, his father is recently gone and he comes to Adam's tree lot and cuts down and carries his own tree. Loved it!

Are the seemingly overwhelming odds against Ben resolved too neatly and quickly? Yes. Is the device of interrupting a crucial conversation at coincidentally the worst possible moment overdone? Yes. Does it seem odd that it has taken Ben and Adam this long to get to this point despite living in the same small town? Yes. Is Adam's return from the tour after only month too quick? Yes. BUT the heart in this book is what carries it past all of these plot quibbles. Enjoy this one and get the feels!

Had a lot of miscommunication getting started, but once they finally communicate, it gets very swoon-worthy.

I have been waiting for Adam and Ben’s story and was so happy to be able to return to hte people of Fern Falls. “In the Case of Heartbreak” is an incredibly romantic, sweet and relatable MM romance story.

Ben is the local baker for Fern Falls and when he gets an opportunity to expand his business by being on a competition TV show, he takes the chance. But when his Dad makes a false claim, Ben is temporarily off the show. Needing some time to collect himself, he goes down the coast to celebrate his grandma’s 80th birthday. Also there is the man he’s been crushing on for the longest time, the mechanic and musician of Fern Falls, Adam.

Ben and Adam are so incredibly sweet and so genuine. I loved both of them from the start and how they were just so connected. They both had crushes on each other from afar and I loved that it was Grandma’s party that helped bring them together. Ben’s family is so supportive of him, when it comes to his bakery and to being happy and true to himself. Adam has his sister in his corner and the support of Fern Falls too. The spicy scenes are romantic as they start but are fade to black scenes. I don’t need a bunch of raunchy scenes but it would be nice to show more of the intimacy between them. Overall, this is a romantic MM story that is enjoyable and I hope we get more from Fern Falls soon.

In the Case of Heartbreak is a new queer romance novel set in the same universe as In the Event of Love. Heartbreak follows Ben and Adam, childhood best friends who have never found the right time to admit their feelings for one another. Until they do, and are immediately caught in a whirlwind of love, family, and healing, among other things.

While this did not affect my opinion of the book itself, the summary provided on Goodreads and Netgalley was redundant and long-winded, making the book seem overly complicated. It provided many unnecessary details and somewhat spoiled the book for me.

Onto the book itself, I adored the portrayal of best friends to lovers, although I wish there was at least one scene of Ben and Adam interacting before the Bake-Off to add a contrast between what their relationship is typically like, versus them as a pseudo-couple. I don't think I would have enjoyed the book, or at least the beginning of it, if not for the context from the previous book. I believe that this book was lacking the small-town seasonal romance troupe the first book nailed as well. Since this book took place in the same town with the same characters, I was disappointed when it didn't achieve the small-town dream quite like its predecessor.

One thing that this book did very well was its discussions of childhood trauma and emotional abuse. Ben's reactions were realistic and it was very satisfying to watch him take control over his choices and actions throughout the course of the book.

I was also pleasantly surprised by the ending. It was just the right amount of cliche, with its own distinct twist. In lieu of spoilers, I'll just say that it was very well done.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book. It was a fun summertime read, and although I did have a couple of issues with it, the exceptional characters and romance by far made up for it. Thank you to Netgalley and to the publishers for providing me with this ARC.