I LOVED THIS!!!

Evan and Mel are so cute together. I loved their banter and how they didn't see eye to eye when they first met. They are the perfect mix of grumpy and sunshine plus there's fake dating!!! I am a sucker for these tropes and this book incorporated them so well.
Despite Evans grouchy exterior, he was so sweet to Mel in little ways that made my heart ache. They have such a warm relationship that I will think about probably a little too often...

4.5/4

More like 3.5 stars!

I will say I enjoyed this book. It was a very easy read, and was quite sweet/fun at times. I'm a sucker for small town romances and for grumpy x sunshine characters and this book delivered just that. Melanie was a lovable FMC. I personally loved that she was an influencer and I really enjoyed her backstory. And Evan? The perfect swoonworthy MMC. The quiet confidence of this man was electric. This book, for me, was what It Happened One Summer by Tessa Bailey was for others.

Which is both a good and a not-so-good thing. I wasn't a fan of IHOS so to find a book wiht a similar premise that I enjoyed was great. But there's also the issue of the premises being... very similar. A glam girl goes to a small seaside town, where she's a total fish out of water, meets a grumpy fisherman who develops a soft spot just for her and falls in love and decides she's ok with a small town life. Oh, and in the process helps to renovate a building. Like, the similarities are a bit eerie, no? Execution is very different, but still. This book also reminded me a bit of Yours Truly by Abby Jimenez as well (with the fake dating and one of the mothers being a sex therapist).

With the similarities to other books and the fact that this type of story has been done several times (and The Catch didn't do anything different), I was left a little disappointed and worn down by the end. The book takes place over the span of 2 weeks and the way things moved towards the end was just way too fast.

However, there's still a lot to love about this book and if any of the tropes in it are up your alley, you probably will enjoy it!

Thank you Netgalley and Berkley from providing me an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

If you loved Tessa Bailey's 'It Happened One Summer', you will eat this up.

The Catch is the third in an interconnected standalone series. I thought this book was adorable, a little spicy and genuine. I'm a sucker for small town romances so I was excited that this was taking place in one. Mel is a really likable FMC and I appreciated that she had such a strong backbone with Evan. They reminded me a little of Jonah and Calla from the simple wild, but Evan is much sweeter!

- grumpy / sunshine
- city girl / small town guy
- small town
- forced proximity

3.75 stars!

This was an adorable read! I live for the grumpy sunshine! I was just expecting a little bit more to the plot. It seemed to stretch on a bit for the ending to be the way it was. Although still an enjoyable read! I enjoyed the characters so much and the charm of the family!

Thank you NetGalley for approving this ARC!

This is the first book I read by Amy Lea and it will definitely not be the last. I thought it was so cute & fun!

It was such an easy read and it had me giggling the whole time! Definitely a book you want to pick up when you need something light and uplifting. I really liked the characters and thought the pace of the book was enjoyable.

Thanks Berkley Romance & Netgalley for the gifted copy!

Amy Lea's The Catch is the third book in the The Influencer series. I have loved the last two book and was excited to read Mel's story.

What you can expect:
- fake dating
- grumpy x sunshine
- small town romance
- single POV

Mel and Evan's relationship happened within 2 weeks and it was kind of hard to believe. I wasn't able to connect or invest in their story as much as I have the other books in this series! I did love the cameos from the previous couple ngl!!

Thanks Berkley for the ARC!

This book is so cute! Sweet and spicy, funny, and hints of two of my fave rom com movies- While You Were Sleeping and The Proposal (can’t go wrong with Sandra Bullock movies!).

🦞 Melanie is an influencer. When there is an issue with her reservation at the resort she is supposed to review, she ends up at a small run down inn. In an attempt to help the owners, grumpy lobsterman Evan and his cousin Lucy, resolve some family disputes about keeping the inn, Melanie agrees to pretend to be Evan’s fiancée in hopes it will make the family members get along again.

I’m sure you can all guess what happens next 😂 😀 🥵 💖

🦞 This is the third book in Amy’s Influencer series. I loved book two Exes & Os last year, but still haven’t read book one. So I promise you can read them as standalone books.

The Catch includes these well-loved tropes:
• Vacation romance (in Nova Scotia)
• Forced proximity
• Opposites attract (spoiled influencer & grumpy fisherman)
• Fake engagement

Book 3 follows Boston fashion influencer Melanie Karlsen, Crystal, and Tara’s best friend, as she travels to Nova Scotia for a sponsored getaway. But when there is a mix up at the hotel, Melanie finds herself stuck staying at a rural rundown bed and breakfast with grumpy innkeeper and fisherman, Evan Whaler.

Evan is not impressed by Melanie’s fancy clothes and snobby attitude; he doesn’t want her staying at the inn. However, when he gets in an unexpected boating accident and his family mistakes Melanie for his fiancé, they get wrapped up in a fake engagement in hopes of bringing his contentious family back together over the joy of their news.

This book was a combination of the beloved, It Happened One Summer by Tessa Bailey and a hallmark movie. I liked this book, but I didn’t love it; I ended up rating it 3 stars. Melanie and Evan both felt a bit one dimensional and I didn’t feel connected to either of their characters. Melanie read very stereotypical influencer and there was something about her I didn’t fully click with. I think the grief storyline was supposed to add more substance to her and the way she guards her heart, but it didn’t fully work for me. It also gave me insta-love vibes due to the very quick evolution of their relationship, from enemies to in love.

Things I enjoyed:
• The setting- a cozy, idyllic yet quirky coastal town \
• The Whaler family- endearing, welcoming and humorous
• The fake dating- give me all the jealous Mc’s even though it’s “fake”
• The Author’s note, specifically what Amy learned from each of her characters

Favorite quotes:
“I don’t know about you, but my relationship, fake or not, isn’t gonna be a barter system. I like to think I’d be more than happy giving my wife what she wants and needs without expecting shit in return.”
“You’re never alone in this world while I’m in it, Mel.”

TL;DR- Hallmark movie meets It Happened One Summer, a cute vacation rom-com.

Thank you to Berkley Romance for the free e-book; all thoughts are my own.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the e-ARC of this book.

I loved this conclusion to the Influencer series. It dealt with some heavier topics, but was still mostly a fun sweet romance, with lots of great banter.

While the chemistry between the main characters is palpable and the storyline is engaging, the plot may feel somewhat predictable as it’s another rendition of “The Proposal”. However, the author's writing style is engaging, and it has some seriously hilarious moments.

“There is a special place in hell for those who casually take upward-angled shots of others.”
Amy Lea has given us another peek behind the computer screen in the final installment of her “Influencer” series. In “The Catch” we are given a Rom-Com about a grumpy fisherman who is taken on a unexpected ride by the ultra-girly social media star who crash lands at his family’s crumbling bed and breakfast.

Melanie Karlsen is a lifestyle influencer who has been on the scene for a few years and is seeing her followers and collaboration deals moving on to younger pastures. When a brand deal offers her an all expense paid trip to a resort on the Coast of Nova Scotia she is excited for the opportunity to revive her brand. Once she arrives, a scheduling error, and a lobster festival leaves her desperate to find a place to stay, but with luck she finds a listing for a Bed & Breakfast an hour and a half away. The run-down accommodations and are less than photo worthy and the broody (but handsome) owner seems less than ecstatic to have her there.

“Sir, I’m going to need you to have your mantrum elsewhere”
Melanie works to make the best of her stay and create content that would appeal to her waning follower count, Her reluctant host agrees to take her on a boating excursion that leads to an unfortunate accident as her photo-op takes priority over safety and he falls into rough waters to keep her from going overboard.

“Wouldn’t be so rough if you’d worn a warm jacket and proper footwear,” he calls over the roar of the engine. I stick out my wedges, admiring them from all angles.” It’s a wide heel. It’s basically a running shoe”
In a desperate attempt to stay by his side after his rescue, she takes a move from “While You Were Sleeping” and claims to be his fiancé and in his unconscious state Evan cannot argue. The discovery of a secret “Fiancé” was apparently the glue that Evan’s family needed to reunite after years of contention over what to do with the struggling bed & breakfast. As much as Evan wants to resist participating in any of Melanie’s social media photo ops, he cannot give up the opportunity to see his family come together for a common purpose, even if it is for a fake engagement. They agree to play loving couple in hopes of healing his family and saving his business.

“Fake dating always leads to true love. Fact. I don’t make the rules.”
I know I am not alone in loving the grumpy/sunshine trope and where I think “The Catch” gets it right is that as Melanie and our resident grump Evan get closer it is through being unapologetically themselves, they don’t have to compromise for each other because their connection is formed for an appreciation of someone who has different struggles, but the same core values of love and respect.

As we have seen in the previous books in Amy Lea’s Influencer series, there is a stark difference between what influencers post on social media vs. the details of their actual life. They work to create a brand that people want to consume and interact with, and when the brand differs so greatly from their real life they can create an unattainable standard for themselves. As readers we get to see the juxtaposition between Melanie, the adoptee who just lost her father and is struggling to take care of her younger brother in the midst of their tragic loss, and Melanie the influencer who is living in luxury and jet setting to beautiful locations.

I have a deep appreciation for Amy Lea’s ability to touch on deep and emotional topics while staying true to her comedic brand. She creates characters that feel real, with the emotional baggage and sarcasm to match. She creates slapstick comedy scenes that are reminiscent of a classic Sandra Bullock movie and you can’t help but laugh when her characters get into sticky situations.

This may be the end of the series, but I know this is just the beginning of a long and successful career for Amy Lea. I know we will all be impatiently waiting for her next release!

I want to re-title this book Flannel and Fury... it was an adorable small town, enemies to lovers. I liked Melanie and Evan. And I love fake dating tropes...

This was okay. I don't know if it was just my mood while reading this but it took me so long to finish. I have to admit that I liked it so much better than Exes and OH's. But the first book in the series will always be my favourite. I loved how it was set in Canada but the romance just felt flat. I didn't really connect to either character.

3/5 stars

I love this series! You can easily read them out of order, and you don’t have to reread the previous books when a new one comes out. I think this is my favorite one so far!!

Take note because this will 💯 be a Top read of 2024 for me. I L O V E D this book so much!

This is the third book in Amy’s “The Influencers” series and it is currently sitting as my favorite!

It follows, Mel, who is an influencer, and after a snafu, shows up unexpectedly at Evan’s Inn. Their first encounter has them off to a rough start, which was kinda of hilarious and gave them that perfect bit of enemies to lovers tension. 😍

This was a fun read that I could not put down, and when the steam gets steaming it’s 🔥🔥🔥.

For me this was like a mash up between The Proposal, While You Were Sleeping with a sprinkle of The Perfect Storm (idk this is the first fisherman movie that came to my mind so just stick with me 🤣).

I highly recommend this one, you cannot go wrong with any format, the narrators did a perfect job and made my ears so happy. 😘

I enjoyed each of the The Influencer series books (who knew so much went into being an influencer?!), but this was my favorite. Mel won me over from the start, with her love of friends and family and great style. It was great fun to see Mel get outside of her comfort zone, leading her fall in love with Evan and his whole family!

I enjoyed this one, but it was too instalove for me. I get that Lea was trying to make it work in a pretty short time frame, but it just wasn't enough time to feel authentic. That being said I liked Melanie as a character and her growth was apparent throughout the book. I like the feel of the small town and the quirky characters that lived there.

Thank you to Berkley and NetGalley for the eARC! The Catch is the first book I’ve read by Amy Lea and it won’t be the last. This book is like watching a romcom in the best way possible - so much fun! The emotional growth in the story was excellent, I loved the Nova Scotia small-town setting. The cast of extended characters was fun and the chemistry between the two leads was great. There’s fake dating, a small town, grumpy sunshine & opposites attract vibes - I loved it! Although this is the conclusion to the Influencer series by Amy Lea, it’s the first one I’ve read and I’m so excited to read the first two! Don’t miss this if you love romcoms!

This is book 3 of The Influencer series by Amy Lea. I didn’t love or hate the book, but I def enjoyed the 1st two more. This was a cute romcom though, and I loved the setting of the town that it took place in. It makes you want to explore and go hiking!

Evan’s grumpiness balanced out Mels sunshine attitude, and I liked how she was able to get him to loosen up throughout the book. Also who doesn’t want to read a boo with a hot fisherman?!

All three books in this series can be read as standalones, but I recommend reading in order as characters from book 1 and 2 are mentioned in this, and I just love books that do this/add in easter eggs!

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for providing the ARC.

I really enjoyed the first two books in this series, but this one fell a little flat for me.

I can't necessarily pin it on a specific thing - it might just be an amalgamation of a number of things, but overall, this book didn't really hit the same spot that Set on You and Exes and O's did. Melanie wasn't a fleshed out character, and honestly, the big girl in a small town hitting it off with the grumpy local is a story that I have read 1000 times. It needs to be done well to draw me in, and this book did not do that. Evan wasn't very fun to read about either. His personality was also very flat, and honestly, he felt a bit immature for someone who was supposed to be a fully formed adult.

I don't know. I really enjoyed the first two books in this series, and this just didn't do it for me.