When I saw the cover, I knew I had to read this one! Not only is the cover perfection but the actual plot is even better!

What I loved:
- Dear Adam is packed with some of my favorite tropes: brother's best friend, childhood crush, friends to lovers, feel good romance
- Aly and Levi. I LOVED them and thought they were literal perfection together.
- This book was a fast read for me and I wish I had savored it more. It's a total feel-good romance and I loved every single second!
- If you're a dog lover like me, you're going to love Pretzel and her shenanigans!

If you're looking for a feel-good closed door romance, please please give this one a try! I know you'll love it!

A massive THANK YOU to NetGalley and Kelsey Whitney for the opportunity to read this ARC!

*review will be posted on May 20th on Instagram and Amazon!

Dear Kelsey,

I devoured this book! Dear Adam was so much fun - like snorting aloud while reading on the porch and spooking the neighbours kind of fun - but it also tucked at all of my heartstrings. Every. Single. One.

What a sweet, fun and adorable summer read. ❤

With love,
Sara

This book was heartwarming! I loved the second chance romance in it. I also am a big fan of the brtohers best friend trope. The characters had you rooting for them from the very beginning! 100% will recommend.

🐾Brother’s Best Friend
🐾Childhood Crush
🐾RomCom
🐾Doggy Shenanigans

This was such a cute and sweet RomCom. It was a quick read that I was able to read in one sitting. I loved everything about it from Ali’s relationship with her twin brother, to the doggy shenanigans, to the connection between Ali and Levi. I found myself laughing all throughout this book and a few times feeling emotional. This is one of those books that will leave your heart happy and I’m looking forward to more from this author…I really hope Adam gets his own story!

Totally loved everything that this one stood for. There was so much going on. Essentially it's a romcom but there are multiple other things that play a role in the storyline. Really enjoyed it.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This is a cute, very easy and quick read that is less than 300 pages! I loved the idea of this book and was super intrigued by its synopsis. For me, I just feel like there were so many holes that weren't closed up which left me with sooo many questions.

This review contains spoilers!

1) This was a rom-com, but the main premise of the book is that Aly's twin brother is in a coma after an accident. I was expecting it to be a more angsty and serious read- this was probably the fluffiest book I've read in a long time.
2) Levi disappears to California for 10 years, wanting to completely abandon his old life behind (including his best friend) but WHY? He has a loving home life, was popular, there wasn't really a good explanation for him dipping out and leaving his whole life behind...
3) Aly and Adam's parents were awful and besides seeing the mom in the hospital, nothing else happens with them... and nothing came from Hudson practically announcing him and Ally were dating to a room full of people?
4) Are Emma and Adam together?? There were some hints that they might be, but then never touched on it again.

Again, I think this was cute (and at times pretty outrageous), but I was going in with much different expectations.

Thank you NetGalley and Kelsey Whitney for the ARC, here I leave my honest review.

You can choose this book if you want to read something light and quick. Less than 300 pages, I could finish this so fast and I enjoy my reading. This book have two POVs from Aly and Levi. Adam is Aly's twin brother and also Levi's best friend. So Adam connect both our main character.

After what happen to Adam, Levi come back to their old town after move out 10 years ago. Levi try to be with Aly as much as he can before going back to his job. But, old flame never die. Both of them, once again find how attractive they are. Trying to make it work while waiting Adam to wake up.

The conflict is actually lies in Adam phone. The missing phone that Aly constantly texting. I thought the conflict will be lies with Levi that live far away but it's not. I love what Aly and Levi have. Their relationship is cute and great. Because we have 2 POV from both of them, we know exactly what are they thinking. And I love how the author solve their conflict.

But I hate that the conflict with Aly and Adam's parent never revealed at the end. Their parents treat them unfairly, we only see a glimpse of their mother told Aly that she love both of them. But their action told otherwise. The way they treat Adam like nothing and make Aly go on a date with Hudson, their staff who they love. We never see how their parent regret their action at their Gala to Aly and Adam. I wish to see something from it but we got nothing.

Actual rating 3.5 ⭐

I was really excited to read this book. Not only is the cover gorgeous, but it also sounded amazing and had some tropes that I usually really love. Unfortunately, it was a bit of a let down, and while it was still a quick, enjoyable read, I didn’t like it as much as I thought I would.

I liked Aly and Levi but I wish I’d got to know them a bit better. I feel like they were a bit underdeveloped, which was a shame because there was so much potential. Perhaps because of that, I couldn’t really connect with them and found that they also lacked chemistry.

It looked like a second book about Adam and/or Emma was nicely set up and if that’s the case, I will definitely check it out. There was something happening between them and I’m excited to find out more.

Overall, even though it didn’t live up to its potential, DEAR ADAM was a cute, funny read with two adorable dogs. I’ll definitely keep an eye out for the author’s next release.

This book 🥺 I loved the characters so much, other than Aly & Adam's parents and Hudson 😒

Aly & Adam's closeness as twins was fabulous. I love a brother's best friend story and everything that happened in this made it so sad but so good.

Aly's best friend Emma was a great and funny side character and I want a story about her!!

The dogs definitely added to the story too. Will definitely be reading more of Whitney's books!

Thanks to NetGalley & the author for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

Absolute perfection. A brothers best friend romance filled with adorable puppies and childhood friends to lovers.., sign me up 10x over. I adored so much about this book. Hank and Pretzel, the most perfect…. Oh wait, right, I mean Aly and Levi.

Aly and Levi are the type of people you can’t help but root for. Sweet, kind, good hearted characters with an abundance of southern charm. I loved watching their story unfold. Two kids who have loved each other for more than a decade finally getting their shot at love.

This book made me feel so many things. I cried during at every scene in the hospital. I smiled as Levi and Aly fell in love. My heart grew 20x the size with every mention of my favorite little pretzel and her bestie Hank.

I really hope that Kelsey is teasing another book for Emma and Adam cause..: that’s a thing..: right?! I don’t know, if not, it should be…. It has to be, right?

I am immediately pre-ordering this one.

Please read if you like;
-brothers best friend romance
-friends to lovers/childhood friends to lovers
-Weiner dogs
-German shepherds
-pup parents
-gleenies weinies… AKA THE BEST HOT DOGS
-flower shop owners
-feel good romance
-healthy friendships
-mini coopers with eyelashes
-hot contractors in unicorn underwear
-going incognito and smuggling puppies into non pet friendly locations

Thank you so much to NetGalley, the amazing Kelsey Whitney and the publishers at Victory Editing for the ARC of Dear Adam.

Swipe for a blurb! A ca
Rating- 4.75 * I'm still trying to decide on the rating!!
But I'm sure it'll bump up to 5 stars!!
This book was perfection!! I absolutely flew through it which I loved but don't want it to be over l've been dying to read this book since the announcement and I was finally able to get my hands on it and it was everything I wanted and more!
This book follows Aly and Levi! I absolutely loved both of these characters! | loved how sweet Levi was!! And of course Pretzel and Hank! This was such a cute little romance book! I loved it so much! Levi is for sure one of my new favorite book boyfriends! * I'm a sucker for a childhood friends to strangers to lovers so I loved the way she wrote this trope!
Read if you like
brothers best friend closed door romances mini coopers friends to lovers sweet little romances the best pet side characters! fast paced fresh reads
Thank you so much Kelsey for the arc of this book!! I absolutely loved it!! 62 this beautiful book will be released may 20th!! Be sure to follow @authorkelseywhitney for more info!!
(Pssstt, do yourself a favor and preorder this book immediately & you'll be sure to love it! 62)

I loved this beautiful book! I loved the writing the brother sister dynamic was spot on and I could t wait to see how the story unfolded or what became of Adam. I also loved how they worked in Levi’s character and I was so curious to see where Adams phone landed and when/if he would wake up. The book was definitely perfect to keep me company while Ivebeen dealing with some health issues as well as get me out of a reading slump with its intriguing storyline. I would highly recommend this book and I hope many of our readers will pick it up and enjoy it as much as I did!

Such a cute, heartwarming read.
Aly and Adam seemed like the perfect twin duo, two best friends against the world and their cold, heartless parents until Adam gets in an accident and ends up in a coma. I loved that Aly sent him text updates of her life while he was in the coma, still needing to talk to her other half even if he couldn't respond.
The fact that her and Levi had had a crush on each other back in high school, but neither acted on it made me so sad for them. They spent 10 years apart when they could've been together the whole time. Watching them fall in love now and actually admit it to each other was so sweet.
The puppy shenanigans of Pretzel and Hank made the story even sweeter and more entertaining. I loved thr way Whitney made Aly and Emma's characters have such unique styles and made Glenda and Teenie have such quirky personalities. I hated Hudson and how cringe he was. I really wish we could've found out how everything ended with the business and Aly's father retiring after Adam woke up. Oh and Adam and Emma?! I need to know more about them too! Hopefully a sequel is in the works about their potential love story!

This was the best rom-com that I have read in a while. It sucked me in, kept me laughing almost the entire time, and felt very relatable.

I loved the two main characters, Aly and Levi. I was rooting for them the whole time. However, I did not care for Aly’s parents whatsoever. I could not have put up with what she went through. But, I felt like I was in this friend group of Aly, Adam, Levi, and Emma and it was the absolute best. If you want a sweet romance that you will fly through and make you feel all the feels, pick up this one!

Read if you like:

Brother’s Best Friend

Childhood Crush

Dogs

Amazing Side Characters

Closed-Door Romances

Flower Shops

Charleston, SC Setting

Dear Adam is a cute story about Aly who's twin brother Adam who goes to California on a work trip and reunited with their childhood friend Levi. On facetime with Adam, Levi is in the background and all the romantic feelings Aly had for Levi in high school comes back. But after Adam gets in a car wreck, causing him to go into a coma, Aly starts sending "dear adam" texts to her twin brother for when he wakes up. What Aly doesn't know is that the person who has Adam's phone is Levi.

This was a super cute story, although a bit cheesy and silly at times, it is a nice, fluffy read if you are looking for a good palate cleanser. It is 100% clean if you are looking for that which i know many people will appreciate!

Also the book is taken place is Charleston and includes a small business flower shop, lots of dogs, and cute contractors.

This book is released May 20th, 2023!

Thank you to Kelsey Whitney for the arc!!

Thank you Netgalley and Kelsey Whitney for the ARC!

This sweet, southern romance was really cute! I’m a total sucker for the brothers best friend trope so that was immediate brownie points for me! This book had some extreme side characters so if you don’t mind a little over-the-top family drama then this would be a fun one for you!

For many reasons, Dear Adam by Kelsey Whitney is the weirdest book I've ever read by far. Don't let the beautiful book cover fool you. It's not as good as it looks. I rarely give such full-on negative reviews and always try to put forth the good parts as well. But this? No.

Summary: Aly and Adam Bloomington are twins. When Adam gets into an accident and falls into a coma, Aly sends text messages to her twin to keep him up to date on everything that happened while he was out. Except Levi Middleton is reading all those messages. He visits Charleston, and they start bonding.

Tropes/Genres:
• high school friends to lovers
• brother's best friend/best friend's sister
• contemporary rom-com
• dogs (weird dog drama)
• uncomfortable privacy-invading characters
• a load of illegal stuff

Review: As I said, it's a very weird book. The author must've dedicated this book to all the laws she wished she could break but couldn't. Or maybe she already did break them. I don't care if fictional characters bend the law a little. I mean, the law isn't always right. But the moment they start putting others at risk or affecting other people, that's where I draw the line. If they get punished for their actions and feel remotely remorseful, I'm perfectly fine. But Aly and Levi get away with EVERYTHING. Not only that, those illegal actions get condoned, GLORIFIED and ROMANTICISED. It's so annoying.

First of all, it's illegal to access someone else's private communications (this story is set in the United States, and yes, it's against Federal Law). Even if Levi got exposed in the end (it's hardly a spoiler when we all know it's going to happen because that's how stories work), she just got mad, and the two got their hApPy EnDiNg anyway. Reading Aly's text messages for Adam without either party's consent is ILLEGAL and MESSED UP. I can totally understand why Aly reacted the way she did, but the way she forgave him??? I don't like HOW she forgave him. I don't like the reason she forgave him. The whole thing also felt like there was some form of power imbalance, though, with Levi being able to freely see Aly's thoughts and Aly not being able to do the same. Levi has an advantage in the relationship. I know Levi didn't really mean it – he just wanted to be connected to Aly. So whatever. Either way, this pales in comparison to the other questionable things they did.

Second, places such as hospitals don't allow pets for a reason. This book romanticised sneaking a dog into a hospital. Hospitals ban pets for a reason, okay? Pet allergy exists. I have a dog at home. I'm allergic to pet dander. I'm young and healthy, but once in a while, I'll get an allergy attack and need my 10 mg of cetirizine dihydrochloride. Now, what's a hospital filled with? People who aren't feeling well. Their immune systems may be compromised, and the last thing they need is a f*ing pet allergy attack in a place where they didn't expect there to be such an allergen. Allergies better be taken seriously because they can take lives. Don't f* with people's health like that.

Third, BRIBERY IS NOT OKAY. The book bloody condoned bribery, okay? And once again, it's to allow pets where pets are not allowed. PLEASE. And true enough, they did get into trouble because of their pets and got BANNED. But what? It's okay because their pets were happy? Even though they ruined the boat ride for everyone else? SHUT UP. Stop being selfish and stop doing what YOU want. You live in a society. It won't kill you NOT to bring dogs to places where they're not allowed. The only thing that's worse than that is trying to pass your dog as a service dog and lying your way through.

Those aside, I didn't feel any chemistry between Aly and Levi. I also couldn't feel much of Aly's sadness regarding Adam's coma. It wasn't really talked about, so it kind of felt like Adam's coma was an unnecessary plot line just to set up the conflict of Levi having Adam's phone and looking at Aly's text messages. Look, the start of the book was okay, but the story basically went downhill from Chapter 9 onwards. This book is just out to test my patience! I couldn't connect with the characters. The book also had a bunch of UNCOMFORTABLE characters, some of which get portrayed as being okay— IT'S NOT OKAY. INVADING PEOPLE'S PRIVACY IS NOT OKAY. This book seems to love portraying characters who invade others' privacy. And there were even some side stories or traits of characters that felt completely irrelevant to the main story and were just out to make readers uncomfortable. It's okay having unlikeable characters, the jnd that make you uncomfortable, but for something that claims to be a rom-com, it's WEAK. The comedy is WEAK af. WEAK. I felt more uncomfortable in this book than I ever felt like laughing (because it's supposedly a rom-com, you know?). There's not enough "rom-com" to balance it out. There are just too many disturbing characters everywhere in the book. I'm looking at you: Glenda, Hudson and Aly's parents. They're all so creepy.

The one star in this book is basically given for Aly's struggle with Adam's coma and the way her parents reacted to it. I understood her anger towards her parents, who are awful, by the way. And I also HATED Hudson. I can't believe I thought he might be a nice guy because he offered Aly lactose-free ice cream, which was something Aly COMPLAINED ABOUT, by the way. I think that's the one thing Hudson did good in the story – he took lactose intolerance seriously, something our dEaReSt main character DID NOT. Those are literally the only good parts of the story. I don't understand how the average rating is so high at the time of writing (4.25), but sure. But I felt so betrayed because I thought this book would've been so good. Aly and Levi are 27, but they feel like they're 17-year-old high-school students. Maybe even younger. They have zero sense of social responsibility and completely lack awareness of their actions I'm not one to nitpick about characters not acting like their age, but even 17-year-olds know what social responsibility is. Aly and Levi don't act like civilised human beings. They sound like the kind of people who would do stupid things for TikTok viral. Oh wait, they already did something similar.

Can you believe Aly and Levi are already two of the better characters in the book? There are characters that are worse than them. The only character I liked was Emma, Aly's best friend. She's the only sane person in the story. If you can't even make your characters likeable, it's hard for readers to enjoy the story. It feels like the author is relying on even more unlikeable side characters to make the unlikeable main characters more likeable.

Let's not even talk about the dog drama. It was one of the weirdest parts of the book, and it felt completely irrelevant to the story. Pretzel, Adam's Dachshund, just felt like a tool, an object, to appeal to dog lovers. I don't like that.

I don't recommend this book to people who care about being responsible members of society. This book feels Wattpad-esque. If you know, you know. Heck, even plenty of Wattpad authors write better than this. The writing and content are so not it for me. The characters are also way too unlikeable. Maybe you'll like this book. Maybe. But not me. I know the author worked hard on this story, and I'm sorry for not enjoying it, but there were too many problems in this book.

The premise of Dear Adam is a really cute combination of a lot of my favorite rom com movies. Levi is the sweetest cinnamon roll hero who just adores Aly even if she's never truly realized it. I can totally imagine Aly with her own flower shop and an" I can do " anything attitude. Find you a man that will fly across the country because he saw a picture of you with your dog... Now THAT was "heart-eyes". They are just the perfect match for each other since they both value hard work. 100% I could imagine the scene when she photographed him standing on a ladder for his instagram LOL. After posting a thirst trap like that, it's no wonder she had to delete so many of the dms!

Last but not least.... THE DOGGOS!!!! I kid you not, I spent a solid 30 minutes after reading this book looking at pictures and videos of GermanShepard/Dachshund mixes and OMG they are so. freaking. cute. I want to hold one!!!

I thought this book was very cute! The premise was emotional and interesting - Aly's twin brother Adam, gets in a car crash and is hospitalized, and Aly sends him text messages for him to read when he wakes up. Except, Adam's phone isn't where it she thinks it is - it's in the hands of Levi, Adam's best friend and the object of childhood Aly's desires.
I definitely felt all the emotions reading this book - the frustrations, the angst, the swoons, and I enjoyed it! I just wanted it to be longer because I could not get enough of Aly and Levi.

𝐑𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️; 𝐒𝐩𝐢𝐜𝐞: 🌶️

💜 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐢𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐞𝐧𝐣𝐨𝐲:
🔨 Childhood crushes
🌸 Closed door spice
🔨 Brother’s best friend trope
🌸 Supporting Indie authors!

💭 𝐌𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬: This was a delightfully sweet and heartfelt romance. Very light on the spice, but I absolutely loved how relatable the characters were and the funny moments helped to balance some of the more sad tones of the book (brother in a coma and minimally involved/unsupportive parents). The dog antics were hilarious and I especially enjoyed reading how Aly and Levi’s romance finally got to develop. This one is coming out May 20th so make sure you check it out!

Thank you so much for early access to a copy of this book!