★ ★ ★ ★ //5

Till There Was You
by: Lindsay Hameroff

THOUGHTS:

I want to thank NetGalley, the publisher and the author for giving me the opportunity to read this e-arc in exchange for my honest review.

Do you love a book that is:

-Opposites Attract
-Insta-Love
-Second Chance
-Strangers to Lovers Romance
-HEA

This will be for you and it has even more within!


Yes Yes Yes! I adored this book. Everything about this book! I’m always a sucker for a good romcom and this was it for me. This book is perfect for someone just dipping their toes into the romance/romcom scene & there is just that perfect little sprinkle of spice to just liven up the mood. Team Lexi x Jake here and I was here for their budding romance and relationship that developed. This book had that permagrin on my face the entire time and if you don’t already have a love for pancakes…this book will give you a craving for those pancakes by the end of the book *insert giggle*.Oh this book is easily my top 10 of the year. I will be watching for more and more from the author to come out—her writing just gets me!

This book is seriously sexy, sweet and SCRUMPTIOUS. I adored Lexi and Jake. I literally gobbled this book up.

Thank you for giving me an opportunity to read this NetGalley and St. Martins Press.

It was such a cute pallet cleanser read for me. It did drag a bit towards the end but was still cute. Definitely worth picking up for a light cute romance read.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for letting me read this.

It was a cute read, but not for me.

This was good! Definitely an enjoyable read. I really enjoyed the beginning third but it dragged on a bit for me at the end. I'd definitely recommend it for a light read for a romance reader, though! Minimal steam, but a sweet story!

Thank you to St, Martin’s Press for the eARC of Till There Was You by Lindsay Hameroff!

This was a very cute rom com romance with lots of good tropes; second chance romance, rockstar romance, foodie romance, one night stand, he fell first and harder, and a down to earth cinnamon roll MMC. Overall, I am giving this book a three out of five star rating. It was a very cute read, but I did feel like it missed the mark a little bit in writing style somehow I can’t quite put my finger on; not to say that it was poor writing, but it was doing a lot of showing, and I wasn’t pulled into it like I can be with other books. The ending was very romantic and I will say that I feared up a bit! I am not one to cry over my books, but I finally got the emotional connection I was wanting towards the end of the book. I do love a good foodie/chef romance, so I was super excited to read this. It is very detailed and descriptive of Lexi’s role in the kitchen (perhaps to the detriment of the advancement of the plot in a few spots), but I love this trope in books!!!

Interesting premise and the character development was well done. The writing wasn’t quite my style but I know many will love it!

This book really took me by surprise! I was not expecting to enjoy this book as much as I did. The story moves at a good pace and the character development was strong. Some of the side characters were just ok, and some of the relationships weren't my favorite, but overall it was a heartfelt book. There was something so heartfelt with the characters that made you connect with them. It was a very strong debut novel and look forward to more from this author. Very easy read and difficult to put down! Would highly recommend!

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC!

DNF at 10% — I don’t like to do this, but this book’s writing and main character were just not enjoyable for me at all. I wasn’t very far in and was already dreading the idea of having to pick it back up, and I don’t think it’s helpful for me to finish a book I know I won’t enjoy only to bring down its rating when there are other people who may love it. This had an interesting premise and I would be interested in reading books from the author further into her career!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Till There Was You, by Lindsay Hamerff, is a well-written, hard-to-put-down, contemporary romance made up of loveable characters written into a very believable plot. You'll find yourself pulling for them right up until the end. If you enjoy a good romance, this is one. Sweet and sometimes laughable moments make this one even more endearing. Thanks, NetGalley and the publisher, for providing me with an ARC ebook to read for this review. My opinions are all my own.

2.5 stars
Till There Was You has a lovely premise, a few of my favourite tropes, and some genuinely hilarious moments, but at the end of the day it read like a debut novel. Again, I loved the premise of this story, but there were quite a few moments where I stepped back and questioned the writing. For one, I found the pacing to be very uneven. This severely affected the character and plot development, which led to some even bigger issues. For those of you who haven't read this novel yet, it follows Lexi, a chef, who meets Jake, a singer, and they spend a weekend together. He then ghosts her, becoming a famous musician. The rest of the novel follows them as they reconnect. I love second chance romances, but because the weekend Lexi and Jake initially spent together was rushed through, when they reunited and claimed to still have feelings for each other, it felt very forced, as we, the audience, hadn't actually seen them spend that much time together. Additionally, some of the conflicts in this story felt awkwardly written, particularly towards the end. Jake and Lexi clearly love each other, yet the second a side character made a snide comment, they gave up on the relationship entirely. It felt like the author knew there needed to be a third act conflict, and forced one in. Lastly, this book heavily discusses the themes of balancing work and time with the ones you love. I can tell that the message was supposed to be along the lines of "if you are doing the right job, balance can be found" and that "sometimes your dreams aren't what you think they are," but these themes weren't approached in the best way. To keep things simple and spoiler free, I'll just say that there were times when Lexi seemed like a downright bad employee, as well as times when it seemed like the book was implying you can either have a home life or a career, not both. Overall, I found that there was much to be refined in this book, but despite all that, I still had an earnestly good time with it. There is a ton of potential in Lindsay Hameroff's writing and ideas, and I'm excited to see what she writes next.
Thank you to St. Martin's Press for the eARC in exchange for an honest review!

Perfect for fans of second chance romance and one night stand to lovers.

Jake and Lexi had a weekend of fun together before he got famous. Now, two years later Lexi has been waiting for Jake to reply to her message when she accidentally likes one of his Instagram posts. Jake then shows up and they give it another chance.

I gave this book 3 out of 5 stars. There was no waiting for them to like each other, which I don’t like. I need a slow burn or an enemies to lovers. For that, I took away a star. I did like the plot though. It just felt too quick and I didn’t really like that. The characters were okay and the dialogue was too, but it wasn’t overly good. I wouldn’t recommend this book to other people, but it wasn’t bad.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

Coming from a restaurant background, I really enjoyed the portrayal of Lexi's cooking experiences. That stations, prep, push/pull, etc all rung true to the elements of a solid working staff that has to ebb and flow with various personalities.

Jake shooting to stardom was a bit different, but I enjoyed seeing his even keel, grounded personality continually win out in a variety of situations. There's talent on every corner, but clearly his drive + kindness made him more of a commodity than most.

The story itself works. The up and down of the relationship was far more believable than many rom coms, and the believable premises for two mid-20 people also added likeability to the story--inherit room for growing pains without being too obnoxious or too depressingly sad.

Pacing was solid. Writing style (especially dialogue) worked. Cast of characters was well-rounded and also showed the support the two MCs had.

In general, just a solid, enjoyable read. even with some heavier topics mixed in.

Overall: 4.5 stars
I'll tell my students about: mental health/trauma, parental death, sex, alcohol, language

**Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the free ARC. All opinions expressed are my own.**

comedy, romance, what more could one really ask for in a book?! i was kicking my feet & giggling throughout and just overall enjoyed it tons!

Lexi and Jake have such a sweet relationship and watching it flourish was an amazing experience. It was a wonderful debut!!

I finished this book in 24hrs. I was a little nervous at the beginning since it has to do with cooking and cooking lingo and I, myself, am more of a hamburger helper girl, but it was fun and easy to follow.

Jake and Lexi are so freaking cute together! Jake is a “good time” guy that you can’t help but fall in love with and Lexi felt very real to me. This book reminded me a lot of Happily Ever After Playlist by Abby Jimenez in the best way. I found myself laughing and my heart breaking all within these pages. It was so easy and fun to read 🤩

I’m really hoping there are other books about Ali and Chlo because they were some of the best side characters.

I feel incredibly lucky that I got to read "Till There Was You". The instant chemistry and connection between Lexi and Jake jumped off the pages and I loved getting to experience the way they had to navigate through life in the spot light.

This was such a cute book! I really enjoyed reading it! I would definitely recommend this book! I read it in one sitting! Will be looking for more by this author!

This story was full of second chances and a sweet celebrity romance. With a beautiful cover and delightful musical theater references, I thought I would be all about this chef and musician romance. The insta love in the beginning had me feeling like I didn’t have enough time to get to know them as individuals before bam they were a couple. Then I figured we’d get to see a more gradual progression in their relationship after the reunite, but that also felt a little rushed with the progression of their relationship and cohabitation.

Overall I enjoyed the foodie elements of this story, the supportive female friendships and the romantic partner who supports our leading lady and holds her accountable for her actions, calling her out on her BS when she tries to hide behind her fears and insecurities. This story also touches briefly on themes of grief (loss of a parent before the story takes place), abandonment (by remaining parent), ghosting and sexual harassment in the workplace (off page).

While I didn’t get as invested in the decisions of the main characters and their relationship as I would’ve liked, this was still an entertaining and enjoyable light hearted romance debut. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy. All opinions are my own.

I have to admit celebrity dating is not my favorite trope. I liked that MC is Jewish, and I enjoyed cooking ( I love cooking myself). I wish there were more spice in it, but even then, I still liked it. A friend recommended it, and she was correct to say I will enjoy this cute romance because I did. I liked all the secondary characters and wouldn't mind being friends with Lexi herself. :)

Thank you, NetGalley and St Martin's Griffin for this ARC.

Thank you to Lindsay Hameroff, St Martin's Griffin and Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Generally, I'm not a huge fan of single POV or rockstar/famous romances. I think I was drawn to this book mostly because of the cover image. But, thank goodness for that; I loved this book. I think I read it in under 24hrs and just couldn't put it down - kept swiping to "one more page". This instant romance is a beautiful reminder of how we don't just stop thinking about someone because we want to. Sometimes we hurt those we love and don't always know how to apologize or get out of our own way and sometimes a leap of faith is the most important thing.
4/5 Stars, 3/5 Steam (with 4/5 gut clenching feels!)

Bonus: lots of yummy food references and a fairly good portrayal of what a busy restaurant kitchen looks and feels like. (I worked in the industry for a decade).