✔️small town
✔️influencer city girl
✔️grumpy fisherman
✔️heartwarming family
✔️fake dating
✔️opposites attract

Real rating 3.75

I've read the other two books in this series and loved both. So, naturally, I was quite eager to read Mel's story. I was not disappointed. Mel, our FMC, was true to her character, but here, we finally get to see deeper into her and learn more about her and her heart.

Evan, our MMC, is this grumpy fisherman who seems cranky over everything and everyone. I loved how we got to know him and how he loves Mel. And his family is a huge plus. They are so heartwarming, especially Nana and Lucy. I'd have loved to see more of them, but I loved the scenes we had.

Also, I loved the message that family and friends are so important. And to not judge people without knowing them.

Unfortunately, I didn't feel much chemistry between Mel and Evan. So, I was not so connected with them.

Nonetheless, I'm sure many people will love this lovely story, especially after reading the other two books.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review

— 3 stars
⭐️⭐️⭐️

"My entire life, I've been looking for a home. A refuge. A place to belong. Somewhere I can cultivate my hopes and dreams. A light when everything else feels dark."

📖 | 416 pages
👤 | author Amy Lea
🏢 | publisher Penguin Random House
📅 | release date 15 February 2024

What you can expect:
— Book three in a series
— Interconnected standalone
— First person POV
— Singular POV
— Insta-love
— Opposites attract
— Close proximity
— Fake dating/engagement
— Grumpy fisherman/City-girl-meets-small-town
— Meddling, overly involved family
— Spice

Trigger warnings include: sexually explicit content, referenced death of a family member (off-page), grief and depression, watercraft-related accident (on-page).

The Catch is the third and final instalment in The Influencer series by author Amy Lea. Boston fashion influencer Melanie Karlsen is on-path to lose everything she's worked hard to gain. In a last-ditch effort to save her social media brand from the brink of irrelevance, Melanie is offered a trip to a rural fishing village on the east coast of Canada in exchange for content and promotion on her social media. After a booking error leaves Melanie stranded in an unfamiliar place with nowhere to stay until she happens upon a rundown bed-and-breakfast located in in the small-town named Cora's Cove. Enter Evan Whaler, the burly and bearded owner of said bed-and-breakfast and also a local fisherman. Evan and Melanie instantly clash from the get-go and struggle to get along, however when a boating trip goes wrong leaving Evan hospitalised with his family assuming Melanie is his secret fiancé... she's faced with an important decision. In a bold attempt to mend family fences, Melanie agrees to fake an engagement with Evan for one week in exchange for Evan’s help with her social media content. Amid long hikes and campfire chats, Evan and Melanie are forced to address their growing feelings towards one another. Is Melanie willing to sacrifice her picture-perfect life in the city for a chance at a true, unfiltered love in the wild?

The Catch is a first read for me from author Amy Lea. I have this bad habit of not realising a book is further into a series when it can be read as a standalone which is exactly what happened when I picked up this book. However despite having not yet read the first two instalments in The Influencer series I had no trouble getting into this story and enjoying the snippets from the couples in previous books. The Catch was very easy to read in one sitting with an enjoyable storyline and tropes I know and love. There's nothing I love more than a grumpy/sunshine, opposite attract, small-town romance which is exactly what this book delivered. The setting was simple and easy to follow. The characters weren't complex and were enjoyable enough to follow. I particularly enjoyed how this story touched on the importance of real life and how ultimately the number of likes you receive on a post isn't everything. It's too easy to feel swept-up in your social-media presence, but ultimately how much value can that hold if you can't enjoy your life outside of it?

A grumpy male with a soft interior is my absolute favourite type of male main character. If a book has a big and burly man who is devoted to his partner, then I'm easily sold. Evan didn't disappoint and I really appreciated how his story was very much centred around grief and loss. We meet Evan as he's going through a very difficult time in his life, and it was rewarding to see as Melanie brought him back to life. Equally I loved that Evan acted as a centre for Mel and provided her with that place of belonging that she so desperately craved. Their banter and wit was funny to read, and as a couple I find they balanced and complimented one-another very well. Evan's well-intentioned and meddlesome family were sweet, albeit slightly annoying at times. My biggest complaint with this book is the insta-love aspect. Insta-love is easily one of my least favourite tropes within a Romance story as I personally find it less believable and authentic. I truly liked Evan and Melanie as a pair, but I would've appreciated a longer time-frame for their love-story to develop as they navigated the conflicts that got in their way.

Overall The Catch was super sweet and fun to read. As I haven't yet read the first two books in the series, which I intend to go back and do, I cannot comment on similarities is may share with its predecessors. However I can see from other early reviews that if you enjoyed Set on You and Exes and O's, you won't be left disappointed in The Catch.

Thank you to Penguin Random House and NetGalley for the DRC in exchange for an honest review.

Absolutely loved this grumpy x sunshine small town romance. Hilarious and witty. If you love growling sexy fishermen this book is definitely for you!!

I absolutely loved this book, as I love all of Amy's books! It was just what I needed to get into the autumnal mood, and I eagerly await her next offering!

Amy Lea has amazingly created a delightful package for romance readers with this book; enemies to lovers, grumpy meets sunshine, opposites attract, forced proximity as well as fake-dating.... You just know it's going to be good!
This heartwarming story details the power of family bonds as well as the transformative nature of love. as well as being able to provide pure entertainment.
Once again, Amy Lea has provided us with an amazingly enjoyable, heartwarming romance which you do not want to miss!!

Thank you NetGalley and Viking @ Penguin for this ARC!

This book series is honestly one of my top favourite of all time. I will always recommend these romance books!

This is the 3rd book in The Influencer series by Amy Lea and again I absolutely loved it just as much as the first 2 books💗
I particularly loved the setting of this book, I googled Nova Scotia and could then picture is so perfectly in my head while reading! I loved all the different relationships we get in this book too, not just romantic, but siblings and friendships and other family members that made it all so bittersweet 🥰

This one was really fun, I've enjoyed Lea's previous books and this one was a refreshing new addition. I loved the chemistry and the opposites attract nature and the slow burn and the eventual resolution. My only criticism was the timeline - I felt it was too rushed due to the convention of her having only a couple of weeks to stay there, and there hadn't been enough development of the romance to fully convince me by the time the third act breakup arrives. But, overall, it's a great read and I'd recommend it.

I really enjoyed this book! This book had some of my favourite tropes in it, including city girl meets rural fisherman and fake dating. The characters were very loveable and the plot was at a good pace, not too fast but not dead slow either.

4.5 🌟
Amy Lea has done it again! She truly is one of my favourite romance writers right now thanks to her ability to literally give me butterflies when I read her books.
This might be my favourite of the series so far because I am a simp for fake dating & grumpy/sunshine and Mel and Evan literally gave everything I wanted. I loved the romance and tension, devoured the hilarious family dynamics - I already want to read it again.
I mean... I read this in 6 hours so there is no higher compliment than that!

It is always a pleasure to go back into this world. It is another really sweet book with likeable characters. Mel is a beauty and fashion blogger and Evan is a Canadian fisherman they don't have much in common on the surface. But fate has other ideas to bring them together.

The fake dating always seems to lead to real dating.

I got to the end and I wanted more about their new life together rather than Mel having a freak out because she is scared.

I'm glad they ended up happy and together.

Thank you the publisher and netgalley for the opportunity to read this✨✨

This book gave me major "The Proposal" vibes, which I loved because that movie is a gem. It also reminded me of Tessa Bailey's "Bellinger sisters" series which are also really good.

The main character, Mel, is an influencer who is invited to stay at a resort but she accidentally turns up a week early so has to make other arrangements, which lead her to meeting the grumpy male love interest. The characters have developments within themselves and with each other. It's a nice, fun, easy read especially if you're into romances happening in a short space of time.

Thank you to NetGalley UK and the publisher for providing me with an e-ARC in exchange for a review.

3.5 ⭐️

I didn’t enjoy this one as much as AL’s other two books but nonetheless it was a cute little escape from reality. I love a small town romance with a sprinkling of grumpy x sunshine, topped off with some fake dating. Heaps of tropey goodness that kept me entertained of a saturday.

Fashion influence Mel, finds herself in a rural finish village, stumbles into fisherman Evan and accidentally ends up engaged. This is book is full of laughter and love. One of my favourite characters is Lucy, Amy is very clever in weaving Evans quirky family into this story. Thank you netgalley for letting me review this book!

I absolutely loved this book and couldn't put it down, it was so cute and heart warming. Following the enemies to lovers and fake dating troupe I just loved this. Melanie and Evan are such caring, loving characters. I absolutely loved Evans huge family, the fact that they were at every turn was brilliant. I found this book laugh out loud funny although sad at times especially when finding out more about Melanie's upbringing. I absolutely loved the style of writing in this book. This is my first time reading a book by Amy Lea but it will definitely not be my last.

*Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.*

This was my first Amy Lea book, and I didn't realise it was the third and final book in a series until about 90% of the way through (my bad!). This didn't impact my experience as far as I'm aware, and I really enjoyed myself! It was fun, there wasn't too much drama, and I can really relate to Melanie's spider phobia.
The writing and characterisation wasn't super deep, but it was good enough to make me I feel like I was in a small fishing village in Canada. I liked the members of Evan's family, though they sort of blurred into a group rather than standing out individually. And then who doesn't love a hot fisherman who can sing??
It's like a less intense version of "It Happened One Summer" by Tessa Bailey, and I mean that as a compliment.

Being an influencer is not as easy as it seems, staying relevant is everything if you want to pay the bills so in order to save her brand Melanie accepts a stay at a resort. When she arrives they discover an error, she’s a week early and that how she eventually finds herself in a small fishing village inn with the grumpiest owner ever. She stays the night and the next day they get in a boating accident and Evan ends up in the ICU. When his family arrives they assume she’s his fiancé, because that’s what she told the nurse to get in. They decide too keep the rouse up in order to save the inn, bring Evans family back together and save Mel’s career.

What’s not to love, a small town setting, fake dating and grumpy x sunshine trope throw in some forced proximity and you’re set. The characters are the real highlight, both Evan and Melanie have a complicated family life. Divorces, loss, arguments and disagreements all that is discussed through the book. I also love the conversations about mental health and how toxic social media can be.

I saw a lot of similarities between this one and IHOS by Tessa Bailey, personally I prefer The catch. The main difference too me is the spicy scenes, Lea does it right. The tension keeps building, the chemistry is there and when they eventually get together I literally screamed. It’s that good.

The ending is cheesy but in a good way, I loved it. If I could change something I’d like a dual pov because I bet Evan has a lot of interesting thoughts. To cap it off this book and series is just incredible. It’s bittersweet that’s it’s over but I look forward too reading more of Lea’s books in the future.

If you loved Exes and O's then definitely give this a read! I love these kind of romances and this one absolutely nailed it! The Catch was a fab story and i devoured this, 100% recommend

I would like to thank netgalley and the author for allowing me to read this book in exchange for an honest review. This book was amazing; I loved every aspect of it. I honestly could not put it down. I especially really loved the main characters, which are very rare. I especially loved how none of the characters were perfect, whether it be trust issues, family, or guilt, and they thought they didn't deserve to be happy, but in their eyes, they both saw each other as perfect. I will most definitely be buying the paperback of The Catch. The one thing I will say is that at the beginning of the book, there were a lot of grammar mistakes, mainly with spelling, and chapters opening with the first word, all separated with gaps in between them. Another glitch was the author's name, Amy Lea, randomly appearing in the gaps of paragraphs in every few chapters. That's why I rate this book 4.9.

Thanks so much to Viking Books, Amy Lea and NetGalley for the eARC. All opinions expressed are my own!

I absolutely adore Amy's writing, and have thoroughly enjoyed reading the first two series. Whilst the book was easy to follow, I found the story slightly boring. The transition in Mel's and Evan's relationship just didn't seem natural nor compatible and the underlying familial tension (whilst entertaining and interesting) was borderline confusing. This was one of my most anticipated reads, and unfortunately it slightly fell short.

Despite the plot not quite meeting expectation, I'm a huge fan of Amy's writing style, so well written and easy to follow and the dialogue is absolutely seamless. Whilst this book didn't quite hit the mark for me, I'll definitely be reading her future works!

The catch is the third and final book in the The Influencer series, following fashion influencer Melanie and small-town fisherman Evan. The two are complete opposites, constantly at each other’s throats, which turns into a real problem when they enter into a fake engagement to try and bring Evan’s family back together.

This was a really nice, cosy and easy read. I enjoyed the setting a lot - the outdoors, small town, tight-knit family - the characters were as classic- small town romance as they come. If you’re looking for that sort of tea in hand, rainy day read, then this book is great. If not, you may find it slightly cliche or flat (there isn't much character development apart from with Melanie and it is quite predictable), but I would advise you to lean into that!