Here's the thing: Cute story and all but the main character makes no sense whatsoever. Like, she's this obsessive neurotic planner most of the time, but is somehow able to ignore the utterly infeasible nature of her romantic endeavors. Oh, well, except when the plot needed to move along, then she would have a great big crisis about how she couldn't believe she didn't figure it out sooner...also the ancillary characters were mostly insipid.

While I’m not a really big fan of the insta love trope, I really enjoyed this story. Lexi and Jake are both chasing big dreams when they meet and fall apart after one weekend together.

When life gives them a second chance at being together, their experience feels real and genuine. Both Lexi and Jake show so much growth individually and as a couple. I was rooting for them with my whole heart. Till There Was You is beautifully written, paced out to perfection, and an ending that is superb and fulfilled everything I wanted from the story and more!

This was a mix between a comforting contemporary romance and glamorous celebrity drama. I will definitely be reading more from this author in the future! Thank you so much to NetGalley, St. Martins Press and the author for this E-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Such a fun read! I really loved the trajectory of the relationship. Lexi and Jake were multilayered and really seemed like actual people. I give so much credit to the author on drafting a believable good guy rockstar. Usually those parts fall so flat, or seem over the top corny. I fell for Jake, as much as Lexi did!

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for providing a DRC of this title.

Till There Was You follows chef Lexi and musician Jake as they reunite a year after Jake writes a star-making song about their whirlwind weekend romance. I think this worked better for me as a women's fiction piece, in which Lexi finds herself and examines what she really wants after losing her mother. For my personal taste, the romance was a bit let down by the insta-love, some immature behavior, and repetitive conflicts over how their professions (chef/rockstar) make it difficult to sustain relationships. Would still recommend if someone is looking for a fade-to-black, romantic-light story about healing from grief, finding yourself, and finding a new relationship. 3/5 stars.

Thank you NetGalley for providing me with the ARC!

4 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
1.5 🌶️🔥

Perfect if you like:
🫐Strangers to Lovers
🫐Opposites Attract
🫐Insta-Love
🫐Second Chance
🫐Celebrity X Normal

Lexi is an aspiring chef, fresh out of culinary school. Jake’s a musician that likes to perform at dive bars. The two have a meet cute at a local bar then spend an unforgettable weekend together. Jake takes a trip to LA and becomes an overnight sensation. Suddenly he’s everywhere: on the radio, TV and billboards. The only problem…Lexi is left in the dust. After being apart for over a year Jake shows up on Lexi’s doorstep hoping to rekindle what he left behind.

Is Lexi just Jake’s muse? Or do they have a real connection? Will their relationship survive all the obstacles that come with fame?

This book was so sweet! It definitely reminds me of a hallmark or 2000s rom-com but I am here for it! The author does a good job of making Lexi’s personal struggles real and relatable. I envy her friendship with Chloe and Ali! The ending, while slightly unrealistic, was still super cute! Who doesn’t enjoy a HEA?!

Also, I absolutely loved Lexi’s best friend Ali! I would love if she got her own book!

This was such a cute debut novel and can we talk about this cover? It’s so cute and really what made me request this one on #netgalley

Read if you like:
🫐celebrity x chef
🎤second chance
🫐lots of talk about food
🎤NYC setting with talk about broadway

I couldn’t put this book down! I really wanted to know what was going to happen between Lexi and Jake! They had this immediate chemistry that had you rooting for them! I did want a little more of an explanation of why Jake disappeared and I wanted an epilogue, but I really enjoyed this story.

I would definitely read another book by Lindsay Hameroff! This one is out February 20, 2024 so be on the lookout for it and pick this one up! I did receive an advanced copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

So sweet and fun! A charming debut from Lindsay Hameroff, I adored this. Somehow the author manages to make celebrity x "normal person" believable and Lexi was such a fun character to root for!

Lindsay Hameroff delivers a sweet and charming romance in her debut novel. Lexi and Jake are adorable together, and the food descriptions will have you scouring food network for recipes. An absolutely enjoyable read from start to finish!

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Griffin for a chance to read and review an advanced copy of this book!

Till There Was You strikes a believable balance of two people chasing big and opposing dreams in the real world. On the one hand you have Lexi who wants to be a chef at a Michelin-star restaurant and Jake who wants to be a (famous) musician. I feel like the story line was more atypical, in that the two characters meet and then have to reconnect, and because of that some beats felt off.

It is insta-connection/love, but I think Hameroff can get away with it because she addresses it through Lexi. I was hoping there'd be a little more story with Lexi's coworker, Ethan to give her a good sense of the two worlds she could be a part of, instead the Ethan thing fell a little flat and unnecessary.

I enjoyed the writing and humor. It was just hard to believe the two characters should be together because their lives are so different and I wasn't sure how they could make it work. I enjoyed the story and the ending worked out.

What happens when two creatives meet and have amazing chemistry? An aspiring chef and an aspiring musician have an incredible weekend before the musician embarks on a life-changing trip to Los Angeles. Falling in love, navigating creativity, fame, and figuring out what you want to do with your life is what Till There Was You explores. It's fantastic, and I couldn't put it down. It's one of those books that I'm still thinking about a week after I finished it. I also loved the exploration of the creative process throughout the book. It's a great story!

Pub date: 2/20/24
Genre: romcom (insta-love, second chance romance, chef, celebrity x normal person)
Quick summary: Lexi and Jake have a one-night stand and that's it - until he shows up on her doorstep as a musician struggling for normalcy...with a hit song that's all about her.

I love stories about food - a way to a person's heart is through their stomach, right? Lexi and Jake had the perfect meet cute, and I loved how she supported him when he walked back into her life. Of course their relationship was not without obstacles, with both of them adjusting to the spotlight and Lexi working hard in the kitchen. I appreciated that "real life" grounding in the narrative.

If you're looking for a sweet romance that will make you crave blueberry pancakes, give this one a try!

Thank you to St. Martin's Griffin for providing an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

¡enjoyed this book a lot!! celebrity × "normal" person is such an underrated trope and also one of mv favorites!!
¡ loved watching lexi's growth as well as jake's and seeing their relationship develop as well. i liked how this book touched on difficult relationships with parents, sexism in the workplace and how fame can affect relationships.
thank you to netgalley and st. martin's griffin for this arc in exchange for an honest review <3

While I enjoyed this book, I think a lot of its flaws make it difficult for me to give it a higher rating.

My biggest problem with the book was with the pacing of the romance between Lexi and Jake. It felt very insta-lovey. They have an instant connection the moment they meet. They proceed to spend a weekend together before slowly losing touch due to their careers. They don’t reconnect until about a year later. And so, as a second chance romance, I think it would have been more impactful and better if these moments were told in flashbacks. By following the story in chronological order, it made the beginning of their romance feel super rushed. We only spend 4 chapters on how they ended up falling for each other. It wasn’t enough for me to be invested in them as a couple. The amount of age breaks in a single chapter didn’t help with the pacing. It just made the story feel even more rushed.

There is also a lot of conflict in this book and I hate how it was resolved every time. Lexi and Jake would have a half-hearted conversation and then just proceed to have make-up sex. It made both characters feel super flat because they never have an in-depth conversation about anything meaningful. The lack of epilogue kind of sucked also🫠

Despite my complaints, I was still entertained while reading this book. Was it perfect? No, but it was a quick and easy read. It’s only the author’s debut novel and I think she has the potential to improve and put out an even better novel in the future.

Thank you to NetGalley for sending me an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

The writing in this book was fine, but I just found the main conflict to be too repetitive. I understand that they are going to struggle having a relationship when one character is famous, but it just felt like they came back to this problem an excessive amount. The other issue I had was that the romance was insta-love.

i loved this book!!! honestly, i knew i was going to love it just from the title. lexi and jake were so cute. i loved their shared love of broadway, the blueberry pancakes and the nyc moments. it was such a fun easy read and i already want to read it again!

This book is mixing up all the right ingredients just like main character and chef Lexi. I am dying to try the blueberry pancakes that theme through the book and I just wanted them to work it out in the end, which [spoiler alert] of course they did. Although a little cheesy and predictable at times, this book mostly hit the right notes. Thanks #netgalley for the ARC copy of this book.

This was such a charming novel. I really love foodie characters so this had a lot of fun. Lexi was adorable and Jake was very swoony. I loved the modern celebrity dating trope and the semi secret relationship. A fun and charming novel. I look forward to reading more from this author.

Wow for a first novel, this is a real winner! I would give this a much higher rating if I could!

Lexi is in culinary school and made a promise to herself that won’t get involved with any guy while she’s finishing her degree. Her besties have invited to go to a bar to blow off some steam, after a difficult assignment in class. Both Ali and Chloe bow out early, so Lexi decides to have one more drink before going home. A good looking guy starts talking to her at the bar and asks her what type of music she likes to hear. Lexi is sure she’s going to scare him off when she tells him, that she likes show tunes. As they introduce the musical act playing, she is very surprised that it’s the guy she’s been talking to Jake Taylor. He surprises her by singing Till There was You, from the Music Man. Once Jake finishes his set, he joins her and they talk like they’ve known each other for a while. Walking her home, Lexi felt sparks and wished she could ask him to stay the night, as he walks her to the elevator. She’s really disappointed when she reaches the sixth floor, to be shocked when he emerges from the stairwell out of breath and kisses her like she’s never been kissed. One night turned into two and only because he was catching an afternoon flight to LAX to cut a demo. A few nights later, Lexi gets a phone call at one am from Jake, with exciting news that a talent agent is offering him a chance to cut a record deal. That was the last she heard from Jake till a year and a half later when he shows up at her door.

The ups and downs she goes thru with Jake puts a strain on her job and she’s not sure she can handle more pain.
I loved, loved this book. It was spicy, sweet, heartbreaking, but most of all, I couldn’t put it down.

The love story between Lexi and Jake is believable and incredibly sweet. "Till There Was You" is a swoon-worthy romance featuring a rising pop star and an up-and-coming chef.

Lexi is a delightfully relatable heroine, a young chef searching for authenticity in Manhattan . . . while accidentally falling for an overnight sensation, musician Jake Taylor. I was rooting so hard for these characters and so invested in them that I just couldn't bring myself to stop reading the ENITRE time. It's a really well-written book, the pacing is structured beautifully, and the pay-off at the end is perfection.

I totally recommend this to my other contemporary romance readers out there. This one is an absolute gem and I guarantee you won't be able to set it down once you start.

I loved everything about this book. Hameroff is hilarious and her comedic timing is on point. The love story between Lexi and Jake is believable and incredibly sweet.
This is a hugely enjoyable romcom from a talented debut!