4.5 stars! This was the perfect mix of laughs and romance with tender moments too. I can’t believe the series is over, and I’m saying goodbye for now to the small town of Bright Falls. I’ve enjoyed this sweet series so much, and it was so good to be reunited with some of the characters again.

Iris is such a relatable character, and Ashley Herring Blake has once again created such complex characters you can’t help but root for. I can’t recommend this series enough!

🎧I loved reading and listening to the audiobook format, narrated by Kristen DiMercurio, who makes each story come to life.

WHAT TO EXPECT
-fake dating
-sapphic romance/bisexual rep
-dual POV
-anxiety rep

*many thanks to Berkley Romance, PRH Audio and Netgalley for the gifted copy for review

Ashley Herring Blake can do no wrong in my eyes. I swear every book in this series just gets better as they go.

The friendships, the love, the queer representation and all the cheesy goodness. I adore it all. These books always bring me such joy. Even when they make me cry. Which this one did. I cried a lot.

I loved seeing the anxiety representation. As someone who lives with anxiety I can say that it is very realistic.

I’m so sad that this series is over. But I am looking forward to seeing what’s next from Ms. Blake!

Another great Ashley Herring Blake romance. I love the characters of Bright Falls and I think this was a fantastic ending to the group story. I think both Stevie and Iris were beautifully crafted and were so dynamic. I wanted so badly to see more of them in New York.

This was so cute! I’m sad Bright Falls is over but I enjoyed Iris and Stevie’s story.

There was a lot of healing a growth while still having the same fun interactions of all the characters I have come to love.

I love a good fake dating story! And this one didn’t disappoint! It also explored sexuality a little and I loved that aspect.

Compared to the other two in the series, there were side characters I didn’t like, particularly Stevie’s friends (excluding the sweetie Vanessa). Adri and Ren pissed me off so much.

I have really enjoyed the Bright Falls series but this might be the weakest of the three.

I did not like Iris in the first two books. But I did grow to appreciate her in this story. I really appreciate having child-free by choice representation with her. So many of the romance books I've read imagine one type of happily ever after and epilogues or sequel books have our romance leads as pregnant or with children in the epilogue or next book in the series. Also she's a great bisexual character, which we love!

Stevie felt a little one note to me. She was so hung up on her terrible ex-girlfriend Adri. I feel like she was very much not ready to date and it made her really hard to root for as the romantic partner for Iris. Would Stevie and Iris have a spicy fling? 100%. Do I believe they will stay together until they are old and grey....??? The narrative didn't convince me they are forever.

Also Stevie's "friends" are trash. The ex-girlfriend Adri wants to have her cake and eat it too. After dumping Stevie to date Vanessa (another woman in the friend group), she gets weird and jealous of Stevie dating Iris. Ren is apparently Stevie's closest friend, but we don't actually see much to indicate that. And also-in-the-friend group, Vanessa, is just kinda there? Any time spent with these friends made me so angry for Stevie.

I'm not mad I read this. I feel it was time well spent. It was cozy and spicy and fun. Not my favourite of the series, but by no means the worst series conclusion I've ever read.

Ashley Herring Blake never fails to write 5-star books. Iris Kelly Doesn't Date might be my favorite book yet - I absolutely loved Iris and Stevie's story. It was fun and sweet and a bit chaotic at times, but the character development was unmatched.

Thank you to NetGalley for the eARC in Exchange for my honest review!

This was not my favorite book out of the Bright Falls books (Delilah will always have my heart), however, it was still a really heartfelt and good story. I’m always a sucker for a F/F romance because I think they’re so soft and kind and usually it doesn’t have a bunch of toxicity in the same way that other romance do. Iris was a great protagonist and I like that we got more about her!

this wasn't a perfect book, but what it was was cute and frustrating and angsty and OHMYGODTHESECHARACTERSARESOSTUPIDPLEASEJUSTTALKTOEACHOTHER.

which is what i look for in a romance.

both of the prior installments of this series missed the mark for me but i knew there was potential. there is so much i love in this! small towns, friendships, banter. and though there were things i didn't like about this (theater kids) there was much more i did.

I had previously read and loved Ashley Herring Blake's first novel, but her latest two haven't worked for me at all.

A wonderful third instalment, though not as strong as the previous two. All the trappings of a cute queer romcom.

I love Iris Kelly so much!! I’ve loved this series so much! I’m sad to say goodbye to this cast of characters.

If I thought Delilah was my new crush, it’s because I hadn’t read Iris Kelly! This had everything I could have asked for! Spicy scenes, pining, hilarious banter, and adults trying to figure their life out. The one trend I’m loving in romance these days is messy adults trying to navigate a messy life and that romance is not their savior but something that makes their life just a little sweeter and helps them see what hasn’t been working out until now.

This will be a series I revisit time and time again!

Absolutely loved this adorable fake-dating journey. The more I read from Ashley Herring Blake the more I appreciate these stories being out in the world. I've been along for the whole journey of this group of friends so it was really nice to see Iris meet her perfect match! I absolutely fell in love with Stevie. I now have a huge crush on this completely adorable fictional person. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoyed the other two romances in this universe and for anyone searching for a gay romance that features characters who are not teenagers (something that is sadly in short supply). Thank you Ashley Herring Blake! I look forward to reading much more from you!

I hate that I'm in the minority on this one and honestly this whole series. I just didn't love them. I think that my expectations were through the absolute roof because Ashley Herring Blake's middle grade and young adult books are truly exceptional but the same level of vulnerability and emotions doesn't translate as well for me to her adult books.

If I had to list this series in order that I enjoyed them, Delilah Green would be first, and then Iris Kelly, and then Astrid Parker which is so interesting to me because I really thought that Astrid Parker was going to be my favorite. It's not even that I didn't enjoy this one I just didn't feel it as much. I'm going to struggle to give details because it has been a few weeks since I finished this but I think what a lot of it comes down to is that Ashley Herring Blake relies on a lot of sexual tension and the explicit scenes to give her adult books the same level of vulnerability and emotions as the middle grade and young adult and it just didn't work for me. I would have loved to see more conversations and more emotional connection versus physical connection. Some of this might be the ace in me but that's just what it is. It's not a bad book and if you look at other reviews, this book is exceptional and that people loved it I unfortunately was not one of them.

This was an amazing end to the series and I loved every second of reading it. I have a personal grudge against HGTV and HGTV-type shows that slowed the second book down for me and made me not enjoy it as much as the first, but I think this book absolutely hits the mark again. The romance is fantastically written and who doesn't love a fake-dating trope?

I loved this book: the third in the Bright Falls universe. The F/F character work is excellent, it builds out a world we've known and keeps them close while welcoming in a younger group, and centers the narrative in an empowering love on their own timeline.

There's also a lovely chastising of the meddlers, which in my opinion the romance genre often leaves unchecked to its detriment, that shows one of the main characters maturation and self-respect. I love when a book demonstrates the nuance to elevate relationships - and their necessary growth - beyond the primarily romance plot. Sometimes to grow we have to move on, but we always have to move forward.

Iris and Stevie find their power within themselves and the other helps to honor and nurture it. Iris and Stevie's love story feels like mine, for which I can only be grateful.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

I loved this on its own and as a conclusion to the trilogy! I thought the meta elements were charming and found that even the "loose ends" kind of worked.

Perfection 😍 I love Iris so damn much. She's my favourite character in this series and I couldn't wait to get to her book. She's bi, she has rainbow bookshelves, she has ginger hair, she's curvy! She's perfect. Her story was so beautiful and I couldn't be happier with the ending of this trilogy.

While you could technically read Iris Kelly as a standalone, I highly recommend the whole trilogy as Iris is present throughout, but now she’s finally our main lady.

I absolutely loved Iris and Stevie right off the bat. Their meet cute was both adorable and hilarious, and I’m not spoiling that for y’all.

I’m always a sucker for fake dating, so I loved that aspect of this story. Iris teaches Stevie how to relax and let herself enjoy some incredible sexy scenes while Stevie teaches Iris about romance and emotional intimacy.

There’s so many great conversations about anxiety, past trauma, and queer identity that I relished in. I felt so seen in so much of this book especially when it comes to queer found family.

I’m going to miss Bright Falls, but I can’t wait to see what Ashley Herring Blake creates next!

I adored this fake dating sapphic romance.
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Stevie is looking for love and romance. Iris doesn’t believe in love. They decide to fake date to help each other. What happens when things get real?
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I loved their story! Stevie’s anxiety was so realistic and I loved watching her come into her own. And watching Iris realize she had room in her heart for love.
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Thanks to Netgalley and Berkley Publishing for allowing me to be a part of this blog tour and for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

The irony in this is Iris is a romance writer but there is no romance in her life. Everyone in her life is in love, except her and she needs some material for her next novel. She sets off to find some inspiration and had the worst one night stand of her life.
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Stevie is so embarrassed by the terrible one night stand and she needs to find a solution to overcome her extreme anxiety. There’s fake dating, personal growth and diverse characters. This was such a fun series!
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Huge thank you to @berkleypub @berittalksbooks @thephdivabooks @dg_reads @prhaudio and @netgalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.