The title totally hooked me. I was expecting "Ten Things I Hate About You" vibes. And they DO hate each other.. for a long time. The shift to romance comes super late and feels a bit rushed and awkward. Brynn is complex, but hard to like until the very end. Overall, the pacing was off. Slow start, rushed finish. And there wasn’t enough romance to balance all the tension.
Not sure it's one I would recommend..

When you need a story that will make you laugh, smile and swoon, this is the story for you. I liked the banter between Sybastian and Brynn. It was fun to watch! I have to say that sometimes the side characters are the best. The variety of charaters and personalities throughout this story made me laugh and smile. Especially Orly. I could picture him well.
The chemistry throughout the story going back and forth between dislike and attraction made this a fun romantic comedy. I liked how they both had to face the past and learn from it. Although it was a lighthearted story, the lessons in the story bring a depth to the story. I think the reader take some valuable truths from this story as well.

Of the Adelaide Springs series, I think this one was my favorite. It was a cute and easy read. I thought some of the romantic moments that they got to know each other could have been longer though.

Brynn has retreated to her hometown to try and heal her reputation and earn forgiveness after an offhand comment on the air of her morning show reveals that she isn't as sweet as she makes herself out to be. One home, Brynn encounters the grumpy Sebastian who turns out to not be what he seems either. While the story is billed as enemies-to-lovers, the two don't really hate each other as much as the title implies.

I did not find Brynn's character likeable, and had a hard time getting into this story. There was so much build up to the two of them being enemies, but they weren't. There was none of the fun banter in a typical enemies-to-lovers story. I did enjoy the small town aspects of the story, and I eventually liked Sebastian's character. I think readers who enjoy a slow burn and a small town story will find something in this one, but I didn't connect with it as much as I had hoped to, and didn't find the humor I was expecting based on the title.

I listened to this story as an audiobook and I was hooked in the first chapter and blew through this story in just a few days. At first, both main characters seemed annoying: he was rude for no reason and she seemed fake and self-absorbed. But it was like a trainwreck I couldn’t stop watching and the drama between these two characters kept me coming back to find out what would happen next. By the end of this book, I was totally enamored with all the characters and this cute little town. I also enjoyed the narration and pacing of this book. I would definitely read more books by this author!

I loved Sebastian! It was great watching Brynn come off her horse and eat humble pie. It was humorous yet with a great message of treating others well, not forgetting those who have helped you, and forgiveness. I rate it a 4.5

3+⭐

Thoughts: It took me a while to get into the book, I'm not gonna lie.
The characters weren't very lovable at first. There was depth to them but I didn't connect on a personal and emotional level with them.
They fell fast and maybe too fast?
The moment they decided to be together lead to like a chapter and the epilogue. I was interested in how they would navigate things and build something together not just where they end up 3 years later.

Plot: Brynn is the co-host of a morning show and one morning she makes a mistakes. A big mistake. She doesn't know she's back on air and says a couple of mean things about her home town, cracking her carefully curated image.
The only solution she and her boss can think of is to either go to a fancy spa and call it rehab or... go back to said mountain hometown and film the reunion of her making good with the people there.
There, Sebastian the new town counselor is tasked with being Brynn's tour guide. But who is Seb? Why is he so grumpy? Why does the cameraman that came with Brynn know him?
Will Brynn make amends and heal part of her story?
How will they fall for each other?


Tropes: workplace, dislike to love, somewhat forced proximity, healing from trauma, small town, making amends
Spice: making out and closed door (if I remember correctly)
Audiobook: Great narrators. Nothing much to add then that 😂


I got provided an audiobook ARC by the publisher and NetGalley in exchange for honest review.

Thanks to NetGalley and Thomas Nelson and Zondervan Fiction Audio for a RC.

Overall cute and enjoyable. A bit of a slow start and build but the second half of the book was good! The main character became more likable. I wish it wasn’t written from two perspectives but the narrator did a good job of character voices.

You can always go home.

When Brynn came marching back into the town she blasted on national TV trying to mask her vulnerability and hurt it was inevitable that she’d clash with Sebastian who’d fallen in love with Adelaide Springs when he’d moved there after his own journalistic failure. But the other inevitable thing? That they’d be drawn together and fall head over heels.

I love a redemption arc and Brynn’s was very satisfying. It took a bit of convincing but the town that raised her came around. And with no small amount of help from Sebastian who saw in Brynn a kindred spirit.

Thoroughly enjoyed these characters and all of the hijinks they got up to. I think they rediscovered a lust for life and the youthfulness that can come with that. The town and its residents also represented a safe space for both of them to open up again and trust that people had their backs. Their connection was electric as well, they both tried to stay away for various reasons but alas fate had other plans.

So keen to read the next books in this standalone series!

Shoutout to Talon David, narration was top notch.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher & author for this ALC, I was thoroughly invested.

ARC Review:
📖 DNF

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

Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to connect with this book and decided to DNF. While the premise sounded promising, the story didn’t quite capture my interest, and I found myself not engaging with the characters or plot the way I’d hoped.

That said, I know this book may resonate with other readers who are more aligned with its style or simply in a different reading mood. Just because I didn’t finish it doesn’t mean it won’t be the perfect fit for someone else.

I absolutely adored this story, I didn’t want to stop listening to it, the audio book narrator was wonderful and brought the story to life. At first, I thought Brynn was so unlikeable but as I learned all she went through to become the successful morning show host who spoke badly of her small hometown on national TV, I began to admire her. She had to return to that town to make amends, and I loved how she grew and was able to accept love that she didn’t think she could have. Here she meets Sebastian, and it is instant hate! I love how their relationship developed. I loved all the side characters who added so much to the story. A fantastic story, I will highly recommend, well written and developed.
Thanks to the author, Thomas Nelson Fiction and NetGalley for this copy, this revies is my own opinion.

2.5 ⭐️ Thank you to NetGalley and the publish for a review copy. This book should be called Brynn and Kelly Hate Each Other. The main character Brynn pissed me off so badly, she swears she's not a mean girl but everything she does is the antithesis of being a nice person. And we are supposed to believe this is all because she had a terrible mom. Like girl grow up please. I liked Seb a lot, he was kind and down to earth and deserves better than her. Also there are a LOT of pop culture/ news references so if that's not your thing, you should skip this one.

I wanted to love this one more than I did! The premise had potential, but for most of the book—like 60%—Brynn and Sebastian genuinely do hate each other. Then suddenly they’re kissing with very little build-up or emotional shift? It just felt a little too fast and not quite earned.

I also found the whole "making amends with the town" arc a bit underwhelming. Brynn had this deep history with these people, but instead of really working through it, it was like—cue tears, a group hug, and everyone’s suddenly cool again. I wanted more depth and backstory there, especially since her past was such a big emotional driver.

As for the audiobook: the narration wasn’t bad, but I kept losing track of whose chapter I was in. If I missed the brief intro at the start of a new section, it wasn’t always clear if it was Brynn or Sebastian talking, which threw me off.

Not a bad read by any means, just one that felt a little surface-level when I was hoping for something deeper.

AHHHH! This story was so cute! This is my first book from this author (I have Cole & Layla on my shelf but have not had a chance to read it) and loved the overlap of the characters. I love stories that have the same universe.

I thought this story was sweet, lighthearted and refreshing.

I like the narrators, the voice tone and pace was good. I think they contributed well to the development of the story.

A city girl returning to her small town, she can’t stand it. A city councilor trying to preserve it. Sparks, snark, and second chances ensue.

📚 Plot Snapshot
Brynn returns to her hometown to salvage her broadcasting career after a public meltdown. But the town she despises—and the man determined to protect it—force her to face more than just professional failure.

🖋️ Writing Style Vibe
Modern, snappy, filled with pop culture references (hello, John Mayer!).

❤️ Highlights
* Brynn’s complicated relationship with her past and her hometown adds emotional depth.
* Loved Orly’s advice: “Maybe instead of trying to seem like a good person, you can just be one.”
* Seb is intentional, grounded, and the real heart of the story. His quiet depth is what kept me hooked.
* Laila was a surprisingly gracious and supportive friend.
* The ending had a touch of humor that wrapped things up well.
* The audiobook was engaging and well-narrated.

🤔 What Fell Flat
It took a while to connect with Brynn. Her fake-it-til-you-make-it attitude and bitterness toward her hometown made her harder to root for at first.

⭐ Final Rating + Shelf Status
 ★
3.8 stars – Keep. It’s not an all-time favorite, but fans of enemies-to-lovers and small-town drama will enjoy the ride.

This is a cute, light enemies-to-lovers rom-com that is easy to read and worth your time. I usually like a little spice in my rom-coms, but this had none, so just know that going in.

This got off to a slow start, as I didn't feel like Brynn was very likable in the beginning of the book. Brynn is a morning show on-air personality, whose whole "America's Ray of Sunshine" persona is based on her just reading whatever her studio puts on her cue cards. She ends up making an unfortunate comment about her small hometown on a hot mic, which sets up the whole reason for her needing to return to Adelaide Springs - to make amends. But, even when she got back to her there, where her entire goal was to make a good impression and make amends for her on-air comment, pretty much the first thing she did was be rude to her hometown ambassador.

After that, it got better once Brynn and Seb - her hometown ambassador - started spending time together and the town started warming up to her. Initially, Seb's goal was to give Brynn a hard time about everything, but the more he learned about her backstory and spent time with her, he started to really like her and see her for who she really was. This turned into a cute fun read for me. I always appreciate a HEA and love that there was no third act break-up.

Thanks to NetGalley for the audiobook version of this ARC.

I enjoyed this book more than I thought I would after the first few chapters. It was an excellent example of character growth. My feelings toward Brynn felt like they were swinging like a pendulum. At the very beginning she seemed relatable with the stress of a new job and very quickly she turned to into a mean, rude monster. Her arc back to a likable and relatable woman was good, and her background added a depth of character. Sebastian was intriguing and I was crushing on him. I’m a big fan of the slow burn so the longing could have been built up more but that’s just a preference. The narration was good and it was a fast and fun listen.

I am always ready for a cute romance read, and Brynn and Sebastian Hate Each Other fit the bill. I enjoyed the dual POV story, and the female lead (the aforementioned Brynn) returning to her hometown, which she had all but sworn she would never set foot in again. I am a big fan of the "enemies to lovers" trope, so that was enjoyed, although I have to admit that I found Brynn a bit TOO bristly and unapproachable for approximately the first 35-40% of the book, to the point that I was unsure how much I liked her throughout the rest of the book. She was clearly putting up walls and using defensive measures to try to protect herself against her past wounds, but when she started of her visit to her hometown by acting like a stereotypical "Karen"-type towards peo0ple in service positions whom she had never met, I was not a fan. I'm glad that she realized what she was doing and was able to separate the town and all the people there who loved her from the actual sources of her pain, but it was a tough comeback for me.

Overall, the story was well-written, well-paced, and enjoyable, and the audiobook reader was phenomenal.

3 stars for the narrator…Brynn is not a nice person and it shows from the very beginning. One would think that her reckless mouth would cause her to be more cautious but nope. Every she meets someone new she begins berating and demeaning them. If it wasn’t for the narrator, I’d have given this book 1 star.

This is marketed as enemies to lovers, and the concept is in the title: Brynn and Sebastian Hate Each Other, but it did not deliver on the tension and banter I've come to expect from this trope. I think reluctant forced proximity would be a better trope to describe this story, because Brynn and Sebastian dislike each other for all of what felt like 5 minutes until they were forced to be alone together for the first time and then it became very insta-love. In addition to that, Brynn and Sebastian were just not very likeable characters. It's usually not a good sign when I enjoy the side characters more than the main characters. I was hoping to see more character growth from Brynn and was left feeling disappointed by the end. There just wasn't as much depth to our main characters as I would've liked. The small town setting and atmosphere were written well and I liked the cozy feeling of it. The story had the potential to be really good, but unfortunately it fell flat for me. The writing didn't flow well as it was constantly switching from 1st person in Brynn's chapters to 3rd person in Sebastian's chapters. Since the book was told from dual-POV, I think it would've been easier to read and enjoy had it stuck with either 1st or 3rd person the entire way through. The narrator, Talon David, did a great job.