Member Reviews
Ballard's writing feels like a warm hug! I was so excited to have the opportunity to read this one early and same with her other books, she did not miss!
You'll love this one if you like:
✨️Enemies with benefits
✨️Forced proximity
✨️Celebrity romance
✨️Second chance
✨️Cozy characters and settings
This was so fun! Very meta, but not obnoxiously so, and it struck the perfect balance between cozy and sexy.
3.5 Stars. I have read both of the authors previous books and really enjoyed them. I enjoyed this one as well, but to a lesser extent. Primarily the miscommunication that leads to the break-up in the third act. Still an enjoyable rom-com, just frustrating at times.
I absolutely adored this book! A true enemies to lovers set in Hollywood with a bit of spice. I loved the dimension of the main characters and their history.
This is officially my favorite Falon Ballard book! I love a romance set against a Hollywood backdrop, and this one did not disappoint. It brought all the emotions AND the spice!
Second chance? Check
Enemies (with benefits)? Double check!
Forced proximity? Home run!
I loved the development between Emmy and Grayson. The way Grayson was eventually able to open himself up to Emmy had me sobbing and blushing and kicking my feet. I loved seeing Emmy really find herself and overcome her insecurities with herself and her acting abilities.
This book overall is such a fast and cute read. Can’t wait for it to officially release!
This is a Hollywood romance between two actors. I really liked the fact that these characters had history, because it makes this romance much more believable. When a romance takes place in a short period of time, it can sometimes feel like it all happened too fast. The characters were likable, and the story was quick and fun to read. I loved that they had some emotional conversations about their insecurities, because it made it feel like this wasn't a lust at first sight 3.5 stars
I've never met a Falon Ballard I didn't like.. and this holds true after Right On Cue. She is the perfect author for a quick, sweet read that is full of substantial characters. I also adore her book covers and just the overall happy vibe of her books. So cute!
Thank you to Penguin Group Putnam and Netgalley for gifiting me an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review!
In the dedication, Fallon writes that this book is for her, but oh boy, is it for us too! It has all of the best tropes: Enemies to lovers, forced proximity, etc. If you liked Fallon's other books, but wished they were spicier, don't worry this one is packing all of the heat. Could I have done without the miscommunication? Sure, but it lends itself to the incredible "will they or won't they?" element to the romance.
Overall, I really enjoyed it, so I rate Right on Cue 4 stars!
RIGHT ON CUE - if the cover doesn't entice you to pick this book up, then maybe some enemies to lovers (or enemies with benefits to lovers?) will!
The book follows Emmy Harper, a beloved romantic comedy writer who hasn't acted since her debut film was received poorly due to her lack of chemistry with her co-star, Grayson West. But when Emmy's newest project can't find their leading lady, it's clear that Emmy is the best person for the role. Emmy's job becomes even harder when her co-star is injured and replaced with Grayson West, and the pair have to work together to resolve their issues from when they were teenagers and discover there may be more complicated feelings involved.
I kinda had Christina Lauren vibes from this book. I don't love a miscommunication trope and I didn't quite buy into the reason they were enemies, but overall it was a quick read and had some decent romance/spice with a HEA.
Thank you Netgalley and Putnam for the ARC. Publish date is Feb 2024!
Enemies to lovers is the prevalent trope throughout this novel that is sure to leave a smile on your face. This is a short and sweet read that would be perfect for a weekend vacation read. The romance was not over done; the banter was light and witty. Even though it featured a celebrity romance, the characters felt very down to earth and relatable. The book felt more like coworkers-turned-lovers than movie stars in forced proximity. The build up to the spicy scenes was just enough, and I didn’t feel like the details were too much. I liked that the author set the scene and left room for my imagination to fill in some gaps. Overall, definitely a romance read I would recommend.
Entertaining and escapist. This is a recommended first purchase for collections where romance is popular.
I really enjoyed this book. It was steamy, fun, and everything I was looking for. It seemed like they maybe let their lack of onscreen chemistry go on to long, but a fabulous HEA. Emmy and Grayson had great chemistry.
This was a cute book, and a quick read! I loved Lease on Love and Just My Type by Falon Ballard, so I was super excited to get approved for this one on NetGalley.
The reason I gave it 3 stars is two fold — like others have said, I’m not a big fan of the miscommunication trope causing the 3rd act breakup. I also didn’t connect with Emmy and Grayson as much as I would’ve liked. Emmy seemed a little immature, and Grayson was just…okay as a MMC. I do love the enemies/rivals to lovers trope, and the author did that part well!
Overall a fun read and I will definitely continue to read this author’s books!
Thank you to the author, Penguin Group Putnam and NetGalley for an advanced copy of Right on Cue!
Not quite what I expected, but still a great read that I enjoyed. I've loved Just My Type by the same author, which was also enemies to lovers. This one's got something similar to second chance, workplace romance (yet not quite), and there's a lot of miscommunications- something which I love reading in books and the tension that comes with.
Being a rom-com lover, Emmy was an instantly likable character for me. I get that parts of her personality like her insecurity may be projected as immature, but I saw her as a that teenager, still hurt and confused by Grayson's actions in the past. Grayson wasn't a POV character, so I can't say much about him, though from what I see (up till the second act) he is a deeply caring and emotional person. (I have scenes coming to mind when I think of this)
The chemistry between both MCs is interesting from the beginning, with their relationship and bond evolving through the course of the story (and the filming of their movie) What I loved was how the focus wasn't solely on their platonic bond but also their backstories and banter. They were showed vulnerability and compassion, something which I find lacking in novels with spicy scenes.
About the side character. It's so cool how the director of the movie is actually Emmy's best friend! The whole dynamic with Emmy having her best friend and (later) boyfriend on set, navigating their personal and professional relationships was amazing! Emmy's mom was super chill and had a comfortable relationship with her daughter- which was refreshing after seeing so many strained parent-kid relationships. The make-up artist Sam stood out to me just in his little appearances. He just made me smile on the inside with his understanding of Emmy.
While there is a stigma around nepo kids, I love the positive rep in this book and how Emmy is clearly a brilliant, talented actress/screen writer. Her upbringing was part of her personality and kudos to the author for showing a humble, relatable character rather than a bratty FMC with no dimension.
I'm not a fan of how the story went down in the third act. Of course, I saw a downfall coming, but there were so many ways Ballard could have gone with the buildup, and I was left disappointed. I'm gonna have to pull down a star for that because I honestly think this could have been so much better.
Many thanks to NetGalley and G.P. Putnam's sons for the complimentary e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Let me first say that I want to rate this book higher so badly, both because I adore Falon Ballard and because I genuinely had fun reading this. Unfortunately I think this falls more into the “good time” category than actual “good book” - as much as it pains me to say it’s not both.
It’s very cute and I flew through it, but it was just missing something and not as well written as I found Ballard’s first two books. Emmy as a character was such a mystery to me; aside from her being a nepo baby and her past with Grayson, we never really get to know many other characteristics of hers. Not to mention there was so much talk about what an amazing writer she is (she’s an Oscar winner!), but every single thing described about the movie they were filming made it sound like a Hallmark movie.
But when it comes down to it, I think I could have let those things slide if it weren’t for the third act breakup. Granted, I’m no fan of a third act breakup in general, but this one jumped the shark for me a bit, made Emmy seem extremely unlikable, and marked TWO cases of massive miscommunication in the book.
At the end of the day, though, I’d still call this book good junk food. Not great overall, but I won’t pretend like I didn’t eat it up and fun doing so. I’ll still be first in line for Falon Ballard’s next book!
3.5/5
why do more people not write costar romances ????
awhile ago i picked up lease on love by this author and that was a pretty good book, the writing style was enjoyable, so when i read the synopsis for this book and saw the author i requested it. a costar romance between two people who "hate" each other and its set in a cute, small, wintery town!! sign me up! this book was really adorable. the setting was everything, the side characters were so entertaining, the only thing that really bothered me in this book was the main characters which sadly effected my overall enjoyment of the book.
grayson was fine, he was chill and simple and fine. i've read men like him before and i probably will again. now emmy was um... incredibly immature. this is shown time and time again throughout the book. the romance was so cute and going so well and when we got to the third act breakup i wanted to scream because it was so annoying. if i was grayson i don't know if i'd forgive her for being such an ass. oh you love me soooo much but you just stop talking to me for upwards of a month because you think you heard something???? yeah no.
so yes this was cute and a quick easy read, honestly if you can get past the dumb third act breakup plot line you should definitely pick this up when it's released in february. but if you know third act conflicts that have no point irritate you, this book might be a skip.
*Thank you NetGalley for the ARC*
Loved the romance in this one, but the 3rd act breakup because of miscommunication was not my favorite. If that had gone a little differently, this could have been 5/5.
ARC kindly provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Thank you to the author & publisher for the e-arc! This was a fun, delightful rom-com. I really enjoy celebrity romances and loved the whole “filming a movie together” plot. The one thing that really dampened the mood for this though, was the third act. The classic miscommunication trope, which is not one of my personal favorites, makes an appearance. Overall, I did enjoy the story, the characters, and the writing style.
You know that book that you can't wait to start but it sits on your TBR for AGES because you don't want it to be over? That was me with Right on Cue. I positively loved lease on love and adored just my type so *could not* wait to dive into Falon Ballard's latest but put it off for a rainy day to savor it just a bit more 🥰
This was such a sweet childhood friends/actors to estranged enemies to lovers work place romance. Emmy and Grayson clearly had some unresolved feelings to address after not seeing each other for 15ish years when they both show up on location for her new movie (she's a screenwriter, Nora Ephron esque) that surprise, they're both staring in. As the romantic leads. The first bit of filming is a train wreck of animosity, before the director tells them to get their ish together. When Emmy suggests they just get the tension out of their systems....things start to heat up 🌶🌶🌶 and we get to see the sweet and intentional side of their relationship. The miscommunication trope is a bit too strong and distracts from the plot a bit. I also would have loved to see some of the story from Grayson's POV. That aside I loved this book the epilogue was positively perfect and this one has definitely been pre-ordered 🥰
Thank you Netgalley and PENGUIN GROUP Putnam for the ARC in exchange for my review!