This was my least favourite of the Bright Falls series. The characters and plot just fell flat for me. The fake dating storyline didn't really make sense and it just seemed the author was trying to cram a lot of different plot points into the novel. Also, Stevie's friends were pretty awful and controlling but they kept just being forgiven.

First of all, I'm sorry I shouldn't have requested this book, I had a feeling I wouldn't really like it. Second of all, I did not finish it and I don't think I will finish it. Unless I feel like writing a full review later, in which case my opinion may change.

I enjoyed Delilah's book. It was entertaining enough that I could forgive the bet aspect.

I hated Astrid's book because it felt like she was infantalised and a variety of other issues such as the weird way the book attempted to diversify.

This one, from what I've seen, is just as stilted, although I do see some improvement.

IRIS KELLY DOESN’T DATE is the third installment the AMAZING Bright Falls series. In case there’s any confusion, this is one of my ALL TIME FAVORITE Sapphic romance series. In the first two books, Blake showed me everything I didn’t know I was looking for in the world of sapphic romance in a very big way. I’ve read each of these books multiple times so it could be an understatement to say I had high expectations for this book. Blake knocked it out of the park!! IKDD is another swoony worthy, sexy sapphic romance that etched its way into being another favorite reads of 2023. Iris, a newly published romance author, likes romance in her books. Not in real life. She’s been burned by her past two relationships and has a long history of being seen as just a “good time”. She’s completely sworn off dating.
Stevie, is newly out of a long-term relationship and learning how to find a new normal with her ex-girlfriend dating a mutual friend which is just another thing on her plate along with managing her severe anxiety. Seeing her ex making out with her new girlfriend at the coffee shop she works, her friend encourages her to get back into the dating scene.
When Iris and Stevie spot each other in a bar, they’re both immediately drawn to each other leading to a cringeworthy failed hookup that you will not soon forget.
The book takes off from there. There’s so much to love about this story from the queer theater production of Much Ado About Nothing, directed by Stevie’s ex which leads to a fake dating opportunity (naturally), with Iris to the community of queer characters that add so much color to this story. Of course, Iris agrees to fake dating Stevie to help Stevie get her friend group off her back on the whole dating thing AND so Iris can draw inspiration for her next romance novel. (Writer's block is the worst, am I right?!) This is the perfect recipe for this amazing love story!

I loved this book so much. I laughed, I cried, I cringed, I swooned. I felt all the things. From Iris and Stevies love story to seeing Delilah, Claire, Astrid, and Jordan exist in their relationships and love to the found family and friendships in the queer community, this book left me just sparkling with joy. I cannot wait to hold this book in my hands on release day.

I highly recommend this series to anyone who is new to sapphic romance, anyone who loves romance and complex love stories, and anyone who READS BOOKS. To say I’m obsessed with this series would be putting it mildly.

Thank you to Ashley Herring Blake, Berkley, and Netgalley for the in exchange for an honest review.

A lot of my specific feelings can be chalked up to the use of tropes that just simply don't work for me. I absolutely hate "we're just kissing for practice, teehee!" which is a huge dynamic here. I also really hate when the narration starts referring to people as partners or girlfriends/boyfriends when the characters themselves never had a conversation about it; it feels incredibly juvenile for two adults who have been hooking up for a few days to suddenly agree that they're ~together~ without ever even talking about it, and I think the dynamic of "are we together or not" is always worth exploring, and it's a shame when books just completely skip over it. I also didn't like the sort of vague gesture at fake dating; the book acknowledges that fake dating is stupid and overdone while also halfheartedly doing it, when it really is not needed whatsoever. The result is a story that feels like a jumble of random half-finished tropes without any real commitment to a specific premise.

So that's the stuff that just bothers me as a reader--your mileage might vary greatly from mine. But there's also a pervasive attitude throughout all three books in the series--especially this one and the one before it--of, like, faux-progressive, smugly performative queer politics that really get on my nerves. We see the term "female-identifying" a lot in this book, which is just a useless term no one actually likes. You know what term you could use instead that includes both cis and trans women?...yeah, it's "women." It just reads really clueless and cringy throughout, and I have a bigger problem with that than I do the structure of the plot.

Thank you to netgalley for allowing me to read an ARC in exchange of an honest review!

So, I really enjoyed this novel. Something that Bright Falls series has done for me is give queer relationships, in particular, WLW relationships a chance at mainstream romance and gives us the classic friend group with their own stories! I adore that so deeply and Ashley Herring Blake has already written some of my favourite YA stories as well so to say that I adore her adult novels is an understatement.

Okay, so seeing the tropes, I was nervous because I usually have a distaste of fake dating as I feel it is SO overdone. But this was wonderful! Something about the way Blake wrote this, and it feeling like a believable situation made it work so well! I really felt the tension and pinning through this and just... was really pleased overall with how it turned out.

To being with, I LOVED Stevie. I just... was not expecting her as the love interest and she was amazing. Her social anxiety, and the way she deals with her past relationships, her friends, and her love for theatre all really spoke to me. I think she was the perfect choice of love interest for Iris.

Then to Iris, who as always, I loved. I was really rooting for Iris, and loved the chance to see inside her head. I loved the way she was written and how we as readers get so much perspective on how she is really doing with things. I was a bit disappointed with how the ending act played out on her part, which brings me to my biggest frustration with the novel overall.

This is spoilers below, I guess.

This novel was really shaping up to be a five-star read for me but AGAIN with the way the third act played out. I had a similar issue with Astrid's novel (which again, I ADORED until the third act) and I felt the same here. I don't know if it's just my distaste for the romance cliche of the third act break-up but I feel it's always done so... I don't know, frustratingly. While this third act wasn't nearly has brutal as I felt Astrid was (I am still SO pissed at you Jordan) I was just... disappointed. I felt like we really saw Stevie put herself on the line there, and Iris really messed up and I wish she did some actual groveling. And MONTHS? Yeah... not cool Iris.

But, alas, I am still overall so happy with this novel. I can not wait for it to hit the shelves and also add it to my own collection. I loved seeing the girls again too, and yes, Jordan won me back a bit as a side character though they weren't heavily features. (I can still love you better Astrid, I promise)

4 very strong stars, and very well deserved! I am excited to see what Blake does next!

A fake relationship after a terrible one-night stand between a romance author and a theater actor... but what started off as being fake is beginning to feel like really falling in love. Iris Kelly doesn't date, Iris Kelly is just a good lay.... Iris Kelly is a romance author who has disastrous relationship after disastrous relationship, in fact her last ex turned out to be married and had kids and Iris only found out after picking up the phone to a crying wife.... Iris doesn't do relationships, in fact she makes it a rule to only stick to one night stands. Yet with her new book deadline coming up and not a single page written, she's in desperate need of inspiration. All her family wants is for her to settle down and they've made it clear that think she enjoys sex a little too much and they keep setting her up on blind dates, but Iris keeps trying to tell them she doesn't want a serious relationship... right? Stevie Scott is in a bit of a rut, she's an aspiring theater actor who's girlfriend (or rather ex) of six years is dating her other best friend and Stevie hasn't moved on. Stevie has an anxiety disorder and just is too nervous to try and have one night stands or hook ups but she knows she needs to find a way to get over her ex. When Stevie and Iris meet at a bar and have a very terrible one night stand (involving one of them throwing up on the other) the last thing they expect is to run into each other again as both being casts as the main actors in the local play, a queer retelling of Much Ado About Nothing, and neither of them expected to be pretending to be girlfriends. Stevie wanting to save face in front of her friends, asks Iris to be her fake girlfriend and in exchange Stevie will help Iris with romantic content in her book. Yet the more Iris teaches and helps Stevie with learning how to "hook up" the more they begin to fall for one another but the real issue is whether Iris will break her no dating rule and if she is truly ready to be in a relationship. This was such a cute read and I adored Stevie and Iris's healing journeys so much. Both of them had a lot of stuff to deal with and they both were so supportive and caring of each other's needs. I also loved that we got to see some of our other fav couples form the series!!

*Thanks Netgalley and Berkley Publishing Group, Berkley for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

The third and final chapter of the Bright Falls series does not disappoint! We finally get to know Iris Kelly's story and subsequent falling in love. The only criticism I have of the book is that this has the least scenes of the original friend group; one of my favorite parts of the previous novels. Can't wait to read whatever Ashley Herring Blake writes next!

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC!

Iris Kelly Doesn't Date has been my favourite read of this year so far! I love Delilah Green and Astrid Parker but this one is my favourite. It's got fake dating, Iris being a romance writer, Stevie with the theatre world, and yup, it is definitely spicy. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and I can't wait to read other books by Ashley Herring Blake. Definitely recommend!

My ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. I read this series completely out of order but I don’t really think it mattered. I really liked the main characters, Iris especially and thought her character really fleshed out nicely after just being a supportive and extroverted friend role in the other two stories.

I love everything about this series! Iris Kelly Doesn't Date is the last of the three part series, and each one has been a joy to read. Iris has a disastrous one night stand with Stevie, a woman with anxiety disorder, but they meet again and find that they need each other. I love the friendships between women in these books, and the fact that all the characters have flaws and yet are strong and grounded. These characters are people I would like to hang out with. There is a wonderful portrayal of queer community that is also grounded in reality. I would highly recommend this and all three of these books to anyone who loves romance and LGBTQIA+ fiction.

The Bright Falls series means so much to me. Featuring a friend group where. they are all unapologetically queer while living their best lives in a small town was monumental for me as a romance reader. I have been an Ashley Herring Blake/Bright Falls fan since before Delilah Green came out. I even tried to get the previous two books as ARCs to no avail. Turns out all I had to do was wait for Iris <3

Iris Kelly Doesn't Date is a wonderful romance book. I have had discussions with fellow romance readers lately where we discussed the fact that often times in romance, there is one character that is more fleshed out than the other. I think Ashley Herring Blake does a good job at breaking that stereotype. Both Iris and Stevie were such wonderful characters with real life problems that really hit home for me. Iris with her romantic woes, and Stevie with her anxiety create such relatable issues that most readers will be able to identify with.

The setting and plot are also much different than the previous two books. The majority of the book doesn't even take place in Bright Falls, but in Portland! I loved the fake dating. I loved the intimacy and romance lessons that Stevie and Iris were offering each other. I even loved the hatred I felt for Adri. She was a great antagonist. It was a wonderful way to end out this series.

Thank you to Netgalley and Berkley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review! Iris Kelly is out October 24, 2023!

“Yes, I chose me, but I choose you too. That’s what love is, right? I want both, and I know you do too.”

The third in Blake’s Bright Falls series, IRIS KELLY DOESN’T DATE is another swoony, sexy sapphic romance that ticked all the boxes for me. Iris, burned by her past two relationships and a lifetime of being seen as just a hookup, has sworn off dating. Stevie, fresh from a long-term relationship and learning how to manage her anxiety independently, is struggling to get back into the dating scene. From there the plot got honestly a little too complicated for my tastes, with a failed hookup and a queer community theater production of Much Ado About Nothing leading to a fake dating scheme, with romance lessons and practice sex mixed in, as well as this meta level of the romance novel Iris is writing mirroring her romance with Stevie. But somehow this all came together beautifully; I loved the tender vulnerability unfolding between Iris and Stevie, and I wept through the last chapter. It was such a delight to see Delilah, Claire, Astrid, and Jordan again; I adore the centrality of friendship and queer community in this series. This book is a new favorite, and I can see myself revisiting this series again and again. Thanks to Berkley for the eARC; this book is out 10/24.

Content warnings: anxiety, panic attacks, toxic relationships

I was so thrilled to get an e-ARC for Iris Kelly via NetGalley! I couldn't wait for Iris's story after reading Delilah Green Doesn't Care and Astrid Parker Doesn't Fail. Although I didn't identify with or understand Iris very much, I still really enjoyed this story and the return to Bright Falls. This romance kicks off with an awful, failed one-night stand between Iris and Stevie. When their paths cross again, fake dating ensues. Of course, the two connect and you get some spicy scenes. What I most enjoyed was the depth of Iris's and Stevie's connection and how neither of them gave up a part of who they were in order to be together, despite outside pressures.

I loved "Delilah Green" and enjoyed "Astrid Parker", but Iris let me down. The book is about a writer having trouble writing a sequel so that says a lot. I know it was supposed to be meta but I don't think that worked. There was so much crammed in-- anxiety disorder, slut-shaming, writing, drawing, acting, jealousy, tons of sex, overbearing family, etc. I got the impression that the author didn't have time (or a whole other book) to accomplish everything she wanted to address, which if true, is really too bad.
I would love to continue reading about the Bright Falls gang. Hopefully, in a less convoluted manner.
#NetGalley

Ashley Herring Blake has written another sapphic romance that I was barely able to out down until it was finished. Iris and Stevie are incredibly cute. The book is really successful take on fake dating that actually seems like a plausible reason two people could fake date!

I loved seeing Bright Falls one last time, although I do wish there was two epilogues one for the Iris/Stevie and one for the whole cast!

Based on this trilogy, any sapphic story Ashley Herring Blake writes will be an auto-buy for me.

Many thanks to Berkley Publishing Group for an eARC via Netgalley in exchange for my honest review.

5*

This was Ashley Herring Blake's best work yet. Already an autoread for me, I was on pins and needles waiting for Iris' story and it didn't disappoint.

The drama, the spice, the characters, the growth, the love... all of it was stellar. It's great to have such a well-rounded cast of queer characters, represented in the way that queer people are: just living our lives, doing our best, and trying to get by.

I can't wait to see what Ashley does next.

This is my first book from Ashley Herring Blake and before I finished, I put the rest of the series on hold at the library! The author manages to write a romance novel with depth and thorough character development that also has spice AND addresses mental health. It seems like too much to squeeze into one book, but she made it seem effortless and it was such an enjoyable read.

I am looking forward to seeing what comes next from this author and would recommend this to anyone that enjoys romance or books with female characters that experience personal growth and address their past trauma/issues.

This was the perfect conclusion to the Bright Falls trilogy. Iris was always the character I connected with the least in the other two books, and after reading her story I understand why that was. The Iris in the first books slowly found herself with Stevie. That journey of discovery was perfectly matched by Stevie becoming more confident in her own abilities is both love and career. I found myself able to connect with both of them for different reasons. Stevie for her struggles with and triumphs over anxiety, and Iris for her insecurities she learned to conquer. Both characters were written with so much empathy. Blake left the series feeling complete and at ease. I cannot wait to read what comes next!

Thank you to Netgalley and Berkley Publishing Group for the ARC.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4/5 stars

Iris Kelly Doesn’t Date is yet another adorable and perfect installment of the Bright Falls series. We finally get Iris’s story and it is worth the wait. Iris is a romance author who has given up on love. Stevie is a shy, anxious theater nerd recovering from a tough breakup. The two have the worst one night stand possible and end up having to fake date (for REASONS). However, those fake feelings are turning into very real feelings.

This one was a heart kicker at times. Iris and Stevie are two soft, lovable, flawed, and complicated characters and I loved them so. I just wanted them to figure out all their problems and live happy, worry-free lives forever. I always love catching up with past characters and meeting more hilarious sidekicks (except for one. You know who you are). Overall, this series has been amazing and I need Ashley Herring Blake to write all the small town romances.

ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This conclusion to the Bright Falls series is just perfect. Delilah Green didn’t do it for me, but I warmed to Astrid Parker, and this book came in hot! I’m a sucker for fake dating every single time, and this book was so self and genre aware in the funniest way that it only added to the plot. Plus, there were Shakespeare quotes! It definitely feels like Blake has gotten her bearings writing for an adult audience and I can’t wait to see what she does next.