Thanks, Flatiron Books, for the early review copy via NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the audiobook. #MacAudio24 (Available now)

Molly, a Rom-Com screenwriter, is a bitter cynic who doesn’t believe in lasting love. Her high school ex-boyfriend, Seth, is a successful divorce lawyer who all but sings about soulmates while twirling around in the Swiss Alps. They meet up (and hook up) at a high school reunion and bet on the 5-year success rate of five couples from their class, one of whom is Molly and Seth.

I thought to myself, “This book is five years long? I hope it doesn’t feel like it.” Actually, it felt longer. This was a rocky but promising premise for me, bogged down by uneven pacing and emotion after 30%. (Even the steamy scenes were uneven. Two were “fade to black,” and one included explicit details we didn’t need for the story.) Not only was I not invested in the characters, I didn’t think they were right for each other!

The audiobook narrators were excellent. I like having two narrators who each take a POV, and each delivers a masterful performance. The writing was okay, and as a debut, I’d be willing to pick up the author’s next book.

If you're a writer (or love reading about writers) this is definitely a book for you. Molly is so relatable - her trust issues are heartbreaking but you find yourself understanding why she's in the position she's in - even though you're screaming at her to stop self-sabotaging. And then there's Seth... your heart breaks OVER AND OVER AGAIN for this man. He is perfect. He is everything. All he wants is love and to be loved and even though you know it's desperation that drives in through most of the book with other women, you know that isn't the case with Molly. Everything about this book will have you reading, racing to get to the end and hoping they can both get over their shit enough to just love each other.

I adored this book! Just Some Stupid Love Story by Katelyn Doyle is a rom-com about ex-high school sweethearts who rekindle their relationship at their high school reunion. Molly Marks is a rom-com screenwriter who doesn’t believe in love. Seth Rubinstein is a divorce lawyer looking for his soul mate. The two couldn’t be more opposite if they tried. Still a little bitter over getting his heart broken by Molly fifteen years earlier, Seth makes a bet with her at their reunion about the fate of five couples and the winner will have to admit that soul mates exist, or don’t exist if Molly wins, at their 20th reunion. They each take turns picking couples, but the fifth couple Seth chooses is them.

Molly is not an easy character to like. If not for her point of view, I may have seen her as just an awful person who stomps on hearts and has no emotions. BUT her point of view adds SO much to her character. I identified with her in many ways. She’s introverted, parties make her both anxious but also give her the social stimuli she needs. She enjoys her secluded life and clings to the friends that she truly loves. Everyone else gets the surly Molly.

Seth is like an energetic puppy. He’s all sunshine and rainbows, not much throws off his optimism. The only person who seems to be able to get under his skin is Molly, and even with her he is the optimist. His choice to be a divorce lawyer was inspired by Molly and her mother and what her father put them through. Seth was there for the aftermath. He sees Molly and all her bravado for what it is: a shield to prevent getting hurt. But now it’s his turn to finally push Molly to see what they can have together if she’ll just open herself up.

Told in alternating points of view, the romance unfolds. I’m not sure I would personally classify this as a rom-com, though it definitely follows the tropes. Molly is the grumpy to Seth’s sunshine. They are exes who still have a thing for each other, neither quite ready to admit it. I loved how the story unfolds over the course of five years from their 15th high school reunion to the 20th. Each section is broken up into parts telling a mini story about their lives at that point in time and how they keep missing each other. It reminds me a lot of Beth O’Leary and Emily Henry’s books, a heartfelt story filled with all the feels.

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed Just Some Stupid Love Story. I was fully invested from the first words to the last. Molly and Seth’s story is beautiful and fun in its own way. I love all the little moments that add up over the course of the story, not to mention the character growth of both love interests. If you are looking for an addition to your summer reading, I highly recommend this one.

This is my favorite kind of romance, where we get to see the couple develop over time. Molly is incredibly frustrating and I’m not sure she deserves the cinnamon roll that is Seth, but it was a fun ride. The storytelling lacked a bit of propulsion for me, which makes it a four star read.

I love a good second chance romance, and this “right place, wrong time” love story had my heart in a vise!

Molly doesn’t believe in soulmates, but her entire romcom screenwriting career is based on the premise of a creating a story about finding your “one true love”. Molly is deeply jaded and emotionally stunted following her parents’ messy divorce, and dumps her high school boyfriend Seth after four years of dating without any explanation. Fifteen years later, Molly reunites with Seth at their high school reunion and sparks fly, resulting in a bet to see if they can predict whether other couples will stand the test of time, and confirm whether soulmates truly exist.

I loved the dual POV here, especially when it overlapped and we got both perspectives for the same scene. I thought Molly was hilarious, and loved her wit and one liners. My absolute favorite part of this book was Seth’s loyalty and unconditional devotion to Molly, even though it felt like he deserved better at a few points in the book.

The last 15% was a total rollercoaster, but in the way you want to simultaneously scream and barf. This was not necessarily my cup of tea, but there was a HEA, so I was sated at the end of the day.

Overall, an enjoyable romcom, a little heavy on the “will they, or won’t they” drama but a solid read!

Thank you to NetGalley and Flatiron Books for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Molly and Seth’s romance in Just Some Stupid Love Story by Katelyn Doyle is a total rollercoaster. Molly, this screenwriter who’s all jaded about love thanks to her dad’s bad example, and Seth, this guy who’s totally open about his feelings and just wants a solid, lasting relationship, bump into each other at their high school reunion after 15 years. Sparks fly, but getting back together isn’t exactly smooth sailing.

Seth comes off as genuine and emotionally open right from the start, which makes it easy to root for him even though he keeps getting his heart stomped on. He’s all about finding a real connection, which is pretty much the opposite of Molly. She’s guarded and struggles to open up romantically, despite being a great friend. But when it comes to committing or talking about her feelings, she’s frustratingly wishy-washy.

Let’s be real, Molly kinda sucks. She’s emotionally tough and closed-off, and she keeps hurting Seth without really growing herself. It’s ironic since she writes rom-coms for a living but doesn’t buy into love, which some folks find annoying. The book digs into messy relationships and characters who aren’t exactly role models, which sparks debate—some readers like the realness, while others struggle to root for characters who can be kinda manipulative or self-destructive. Despite all the drama, Doyle’s writing is witty and brings out laughs and deep feelings. Plus, the friendships in the story add warmth and camaraderie, which many readers appreciate.

In the end, Just Some Stupid Love Story shows us these flawed characters trying to figure out love and relationships. It might not click with everyone because of its slower pace and complicated main characters, but as Doyle’s debut, it shows promise in exploring the messy side of human connections.

Such a fun debut novel! I've actually read this before I've read any Emily Henry (I know, I'm in the minority), but I was glad to not have any kind of preconceived notions of what to expect style-wise. Can't wait to read more from Katelyn Doyle in the future!
Special thank you to Katelyn Doyle, Flatiron Books & NetGalley for the arc in exchange for my honest opinion.

Just Some Stupid Love Story grabbed my attention because of the words “for fans of Emily Henry”
My first thought was, wow I really hate the male main character. But I gave it a shot and ended up loving him. He comes off really annoying at the beginning, just give it time. This was my first book by Katelyn Doyle and I really enjoyed it, no scratch that, I loved it. I ended up loving both main characters and really all the side characters too. 100% recommend.

Thanks to NetGalley and Flatiron Books for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

This book was so great. I couldn’t believe it was a debut novel. This is perfect read for Abby Jimenez and Emily Henry fans.

There was a lot I liked about this book, and a few things I really didn’t.

I’ll start with the positives:
- I actually really liked the banter between Seth and Molly. I liked the little quips, the snark, the sarcasm.
- I liked the slow burn and build up, the missed connections throughout time.
- I liked Seth. He seemed like such a sweetheart and I wanted nothing but good things for him.

Now for the negatives…
- Molly. She was annoying as a character and somewhat unlikeable. I got more frustrated by her as the book went on.
- the lengthy timeline. I wish instead of it being over the course of 5 years, it was shortened. Or even if it wasn’t the 15th to the 20th reunion. The way these people act (…Molly…) seems a bit immature to be in your 30s.

There was a lot more that I liked in this book and I overall really enjoyed it. A great debut by Katelyn Doyle!

I’m not a fan of second chance romances (you broke up for a reason) and I thought they didn’t really work together. Their banter was cute but the overall book seemed poorly paced – they fall in love almost instantly and it then seems to drag and is predictable. Still, there’s a happy ending so it’s cute enough. This is just not my favorite trope so I always hope for something different; it was not to be.

I am a sucker for a great love story, so I was "all in" for wanting to love this one. The story, overall, was a little too cynical for my taste in romance, but it does have a HEA. The character build was really good but it wrapped up and issues were resolved too quickly for me. Gah, Seth Rubinstein is just the teddy bear I needed for this journey.

Thank you for the audio file, this is my honest opinion.

This is not just some stupid love story, it's a witty look at a friendship that wants to be so much more, but life keeps getting in the way. Molly is such a fun, unique, snarky character and the banter between her and Seth is some of the best I've read. You can feel the yearning to be together and the frustration of the timing being off. The chemistry explodes when it finally does head to the next level and I was so ready for it. The pacing in this book is on point and the audiobook narrators, Christine Lakin and Tim Paige, captured the tension and heat perfectly. A new favorite for my favorites shelf and it's so pretty!!

I have mixed feelings about this one. It's one where the first person present didn't work for me. I found moments to be very funny and then there were so many that were cringeworthy. I absolutely hated Seth calling Molly "Kid" it's just so condescending. I also found Molly to be rather Childish. I don't know, it just didn't fully work for me.

My experience reading this book was an unusual one — I started it one morning, read 20% in one sitting, didn’t pick it up again for two weeks (because of life craziness), and then flew through the rest in a day. Typically, for me, that long of a gap between starting and finishing a book would be a bad sign. In this case, it’s a testament to just how good this book is that my enjoyment wasn’t lessened one bit by reading it in such a disjointed fashion.

I’m not a big fan of second-chance romance, but it worked so well in this one. I loved that it inverted “typical” romance roles — the hero is the one obsessed with finding love and settling down and the heroine is the cynical, closed-off one who runs at the first sign of feelings. I ate it up! Both had their own baggage, and I loved seeing them work through it over the course of the book. It was sometimes frustrating, especially the on-off nature of their relationship, but it’s mostly because I was so deeply invested in them working it out.

The banter was fantastic, but there were some very moving moments in the writing, too. It wasn’t all laughs! I really enjoyed the friendships, the complicated family relationships, and the personal growth for both characters. I loved getting a dual POV, and I was rooting for these two to figure everything out. It was just such a delightful read, and I’m so glad I gave it a shot!

This was a decent debut novel. The story line was original and writing was done well with a dual POV. The story also progressed over several years…that’s not my favorite, but was still enjoyable.

Thank you to NetGalley and Flatiron Books . ~I was given this book and made no commitments to leave my opinions, favorable or otherwise~

So cute and fun! This was a nice quick rom-com read. Wish there weren't mentions of the pandemic, but I am aware that that's entirely a personal idiosyncracy of mine and doesn't at all reflect on the quality of the book 😂 I generally am partial to books about writers, and books that get a little meta, and books with good banter, so all of that balanced the COVID-ness out.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC!

I too am a "Class B*tch" but me and Molly are not the same.

I love second chance romances and had high hopes for this one, especially bc reverse grumpyxsunshine and I love when the FMC doesn't believe in love and then gets hit with it in the face, but it was hard to like when the FMC is idk... hard to like?

The writing itself was well done and easy to read, but the characters were just not it for me. There's headstrong and independent, and then there's Molly who is just mean. I get self-sabotaging sometimes, trust me, but enough is enoughhhhhhh. It was just too much and dragged on for so much of the plot that I was over her character like 50% in. Also, Molly is a grown woman and her entire personality gave immature pick me. Seth deserved better!! I loved him and he gave golden retriever vibes, but also too much doormat vibes.

The spice was good but the characters just made me want to bang my head against a wall.

Thank you Netgalley for this arc in exchange for an honest review.

✅ Molly, romance screenwriter & Seth, divorce lawyer: high school sweethearts who see each other again at the 15 year reunion
✅ dual POV
✅ one night stand turned second chance romance
🌶️: yes

Okay I did like this book but we have to talk about the ending because I'm confused why nobody acknowledges that it was batshit crazy of Seth to propose to his girlfriend after five months, which would be crazy regardless, but is only more confusing given the fact that his girlfriend has terrible commitment issues around the concept of marriage and quite literally never said in the book that she wanted to get married and was barely managing not to bolt from her relationship. Molly took a lot of accountability for her reaction, but why would Seth ask that soon??? Especially when he had a very well known habit of rushing into making relationships very serious and he proposed previously to somebody after only like six months of dating??? So Molly has to work on herself and Seth's flaws are chill??? I kept waiting for Seth to take accountability for him asking a question way too soon that he knew would freak Molly out and then the book ended.