3.5 rounded down. This book was kind of a rollercoaster for me. I went in afraid I wasn’t going to like it because rock star romances can be kind of one note. But the first half was so funny and charming and unexpectedly emotional. Unfortunately, the back half devolved into the exact series of rockstar romance cliches I was afraid of, and the whole thing just lost steam for me. A pleasant read for the most part, but I feel like the characters were a bit immature and the book’s potential was left a little unfulfilled.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for providing me with this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

In support of the SMP boycott, I will be withholding my review of this title until SMP speaks out. If the boycott is resolved, I will update with a full review.

I loved this book. It made me laugh for solid minutes straight. It made me cry. I was invested in Lexi and Jake from their instalove esque meet-cute and few days together, that brought to mind Lizzie and Rake from Mazey Eddings ' Lizzie Blake's Best Mistake (minus the accidental pregnancy).

What I loved most though was the characters' authenticity, and the relationships that develop because of that. For example, this is a second chance romance; lots of people would have considered Jake ghosting Lexi an unforgivable thing, and were Lexi someone else, the book would be over. But he apologized and makes changes. And makes other mistakes. He doesn't suddenly become the perfect man. And Lexi makes questionable decisions other than reuniting with the rock star.

These two are real. Add to that some scene stealing friends, co-workers, a villain that's a guarantee in the entertainment industry, and this mixture had me reading the book in one day.

I can forgive the Nicholas Sparks reference (he's NOT a romance author) because the 90s/00s references made me so happy. Movies, boy bands, fashion...its magical.

I loved this debut and I'll eagerly await the author's next book!

This is a good book. The two main characters are Lexi and Jake. Lexi is in culinary school. Jake is a singer at a bar wanting on his big break. They meet in a bar there is an instant attraction. They have a weekend stand. They don’t see each other for two years. They each have issues but together they work them out and fall in love.

I wanted to love this but this was not the book for me :(

The characters definitely had an insta-love that was incredibly lackluster in chemistry and depth. I love a good second chance romance but this was not it.

However, I love the premise of the up & coming chef falling in love with the upcoming rock star.

Thank you to St Martins Press & NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This book was a sweet romance based on comfort food and music. Two of my favorite things. I loved all of the characters, yes even Chad (IYKYK). This book was an easy read and perfect for winter time coziness.

There were parts that felt a little dragged out writing wise, but truly that was my only complaint with this one. Following Lexi and Jake on their journey to love was a sweet as blueberry pancakes.

Seriously though, this was a great pallet cleanser read between some heavier books for me. A very light and fluffy romance book with some spice mixed in!

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the ARC

Synopsis: A girl meets a struggling musician in a bar and they spend a whirlwind weekend together. He becomes an overnight sensation and she doesn’t hear from him again…until a year later when he shows up at her door.
Pros: I ate this story up with a spoon. It was quintessential chick-lit romance. I loved the celeb-normal person dynamic, and the leading male was pretty swoon worthy.
Cons: I enjoyed the first half of this book more than the second half. When drama hit the female lead was pretty immature and insecure, and the ending was very rushed. But overall I still really enjoyed reading this, and if you need a light romance, I think you would too!
Thank you Netgalley and St.Martin’s Press for the arc! It will be released next week!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This was a cute book. The storyline was sweet, albeit, a little lacklustre. I did enjoy the story and finished it to the end but was a little disappointed in it overall. I found the storyline to be a little boring, for lack of a better word. The beginning was great, Lexi and Jake hitting it off and then him disappearing and becoming famous and her finding out a few of his songs are about her. Then he shows back up into her life and I think after that is when my interest began to ween off a little bit.

The conflicts of him being famous and her being a normal person who is overwhelmed by this is a very overdone storyline and I was hoping there would be a little more to it. I also felt like I was reading a YA novel, except for the steamy scenes. The rest of the time, I felt like this could have been more of a young adult story. Remove the spice, make them teenagers and you’ve got a great YA book.

Anyways, the writing wad good, it was a cute story but I was a little disappointed overall. Was expecting a little more.

When Lexi Berman, a culinary student, has a weekend fling with the bar musician Jake Taylor, she falls for him hard. But then Jake disappears to build his career in California. Now as an up and coming star, Jake is back, but Lexi isn't sure if she can open her heart again. Till There Was You begins with a bit of instant love. I am not a particular fan of this trope and this part of the book felt rushed as the two immediately move into couple mode. I kept waiting for some character development or an explanation of why they were connecting so quickly. I did enjoy the story when Lexi and Jake reunite as the author gives it more time and depth. This is Lindsay Hameroff's debut novel and I can see a lot of potential in this story and her writing. I recommend Till There Was You to anyone who enjoys a light romance.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Griffin for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

This was a cute fast romance read esp. with being in a relationship with a famous musician. I do feel like the chemistry between our two main characters was a bit stale but it was still cute.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4/5 stars
🔥🔥 - 3 spicy scenes, mild details

[ thank you @netgalley for the eARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own! ]

THOUGHTS:

Read if you like:
•celebrity romance
•insta love
•second chance
•broadway musicals

“When I’m with you, I feel like who I am is enough.”

Looking for a cute romance, look no further!! This was super sweet (pun intended 😉).

Jake & Lexi were cute together. It was definitely insta love for them but it worked! I loved when they reconnected again so we could see them together for more than just a weekend. They were both navigating how to both follow their dreams — Lexi: to become an executive chef in a Michelin star restaurant & Jake: a famous musician.

They had ups and downs like every relationship trying to navigate Jake’s stardom and Lexi’s long hours at work. The third act breakup happened but the grand gesture was super sweet. I just wished there was an epilogue!! I wanted just a tiny bit more closure about them!

Overall, this had me craving blueberry pancakes (IYKYK) and I’ll be looking forward to reading more from this author! 🫐

“I like the way you feel like home.”

Thank you Netgalley, St-Matin’s Press and the author Lindsay Hameroff.
This was a totally enjoyable romance, I loved the characters Lexi and Jake.
I wished I had a Jake in my life while reading this wonderful book.
Fun romance that makes you smile, and ache for them to be together.
Quick read and I will surely look forward to read more from her.
Highly recommend
5 stars

This was an enjoyable story filled with sweet moments, relatable characters and lots of banter. I loved Lexi and Jake’s relationship and was rooting for them as they followed their dreams despite being young and naive. Im a sucker for a guy with a guitar and loved their early moments together. Throughout the story, I appreciated their growth as individuals and I also loved all the supporting characters! Ali and Chloe were sassy, fun best friends and I enjoyed reading the chapters when Lexi was working in the kitchen as a chef. The ending was a little unbelievable and far-fetched but I guess anything can happen as a celeb! 🤷🏼‍♀️

I really liked this book and it was going ti be 5 stars until about 70% in. That's when I realized that Lexi was in desperate need of a therapist and seemed incapable of having an honest conversation. She started to come off as incredibly selfish and j really felt for Jake. She redeemed herself a bit at the end and this wound up being a book I liked but didn't love.

Till There Was You had potential, but I didn’t really vibe with it.

Lexi and Jake meet one night at a dive bar where Jake is performing, and they spend one wonderful weekend together. Soon after Jake travels to LA where he is discovered and overnight, he’s a big star. And then he stops returning her calls and texts. Fast forward months later, and he’s back in NYC, trying to win her back.

I think what I’m struggling with the most is that both Lexi and Jake seemed immature and unlikable. Jake essentially expects Lexi to rearrange her life on his timeline to accommodate him, and Lexi does—calling out of work, coming in late, just being a terrible employee at her job as a new chef at an upscale restaurant.

There was a lot about work-life balance—which I am a firm believer of, but it felt like the narrative was forcing Lexi to choose either a career or a relationship and family. ¿Por qué no los dos? It’s definitively untrue that a woman (or anyone, really) in 2024 can’t have both.

At the end of the day, Till There Was You almost worked for me…but not quite there. Thank you to St. Martin’s Press for the review copy.

Lexi is in culinary school, determined to make it to a Michelin star restaurant one day. She has sworn off dating.

Lexi meets Jake Taylor at a bar and they strike up conversation. Some sparks fly. They end up spending one very memorable weekend together. She makes him her fabulous blueberry pancakes.

Jake is a musician, playing dive bars. After their weekend, he flies to LA to record a demo. In a whirlwind, he hits it big fast. And Lexi never hears from him again.

Until he turns up in the middle of the night a year later at her apartment door. They still have feelings and decide to give a relationship a try. Will they make it? Or are their worlds too different? You'll have to read it to find out!

Many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This was cute, but ultimately I was not invested in this relationship. There was too much indecision and contrived conflict for my liking.

I like the idea of the book, but the execution wasn’t there for me.

This was the perfect light romance read with the celebrity x normal person and second chance romance tropes. I was hooked into this one from the jump and felt like it was a very easy and quick read. There were moments when I felt like it wasn’t believable, especially the way that Lexi was able to leave work so much for Jake’s events after just starting the job, but that’s the fun part of books like these that let you escape reality. I could honestly see this book be turned into a Hallmark movie.

*I received this book for free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. Thank you so much to NetGalley and [publisher] for this ARC!*

This was such a sweet little romance, both literally and figuratively! I love books about music, and books about food, so this was a lovely little merging of the two. Second chance romance is not one of the tropes that I am generally drawn to, but this one was precious and I highly recommend it!

I loved the main character, Lexi. Her character growth throughout the novel was so much fun to see. She starts off incredibly closed off, highly meticulous and afraid of taking chances. Then, she meets Jake. Of course, what happens with Jake kind of closes her off again, but when he comes waltzing back into her life, she begins to unfurl like a flower. I loved getting to see her become more confident, both as a chef and as a person.

Speaking of her being a chef, this book made me so hungry. And it made me crave blueberry pancakes 😏 I also loved the fact that said blueberry pancakes helped Jake become famous. That was amazing and kind of hilarious. This book dove into the ill effects of fame, which was an unexpected turn that I really enjoyed. Jake was such a lovable love interest, and I enjoyed seeing him navigate this new and scary world of insta-fame.

The friend group in this book was fun, and I wish we could have seen more of them. I also wish that we had seen more with Lexi and her dad. The main romance was incredibly flushed out, but the supporting characters could have seen some more time on the page. Honestly, that is my main complaint.

This was a really sweet second chance romance. I loved the characters and their romantic journey. I loved getting to see the things that they love, music and food. If you are looking for a lovely, fairly fluffy romance this season, look no further!

My Rating:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I gave Till There Was You 4 Stars!

I simply love the cover of this one! Super-cute!

I also enjoyed the story. While I will admit that this is not the type of novel I typically read but I did enjoy the second change trope and the famous person with an "ordinary" person trope as well.

We've got a chef and an aspiring musician that meet by chance and spend a wonderful weekend together. He is off to LA and becomes an overnight sensation with a song he wrote about her. They don't talk or see each other for a while but then he shows up on her doorstep and the romance ensues.

if you like a good rom-com, this is for you!