I received this book from NetGalley.

I'm only a few pages into this book and I'm already annoyed with Grace. The obsession with a guy having to be 6 foot, and her instant annoyance at her sister because this guy is the same height as her - it's so ridiculous. There is a huge shortage of good guys out there, at least give the guy a chance to say a few words.

With the Ivy and Dave scenario, she's upset with Dave because he went home to visit his parents after Ivy is the one that kissed him?! Again, annoying. I understand taking your friend's side but come on. Grace gets better throughout the book but this is still annoying.

28% of the way into the book I feel like a lot has already happened. It's making me wonder how much more can actually happen, although talking about her brothers is making me think.

I do actually feel a bit bad for Grace when she finds out about Noah. He really did lie to her for 3 months, but also, the fact that she didn't recognise him shows how little attention she paid to him in the first place.

And now we're on Part Two from Noah's point of view - I love these. But after a while... I regret saying I love this. I'm not even halfway through the book. This book is now taking forever. I feel like the concept is good but it could definitely have been cut down a bit.

This book had a nice concept but it was far too long. Too much happened. Maybe it should have been two separate books.

This was such a cute and adorable romancebook! I loved the storyline between the two main characters along with how there romance started of being a slow burn. One hundred percent liked this book and would recommend it!

A cute, clean romance with two young characters that, despite the odds, grow close and fall in love. I appreciated that there was a call to safety in this novel. I think it's often a trope that people have a traumatic event and then just *poof* they're magically a-okay and ready to go on a new date. I liked that the MC took her time to be ready to handle life/dating/etc.

This was an overlong journey to get where we got, it’s also a quasi-Christian novel, which I didn’t realize when I requested it: perhaps I’m not the right person to review it for that reason alone..
Claire and Noah don’t have an instalove connection nor do they have a moderately paced connection. Rather, the discovery of feelings between them arrives quite late in the book.
A lot of time is spent in therapy and self-improvement in the middle and latter parts of the book, which I applaud, however some sitting would make for a more concise depiction of the maturation and changes both MCs experience.
There is an HEA but I am loath to confess I was bored and skimming quite a bit by that point.
Thank you NetGalkey for the advance reader copy. I’m happy to leave this honest review in turn.

Tutored in Love by Barbara J. Adamson, 328 pages. Covenant Communications, 2023. $17.
Language: G (0 swears, 0 “f”); Mature Content: PG; Violence: G
BUYING ADVISORY: ADULT - ADVISABLE
AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE
Three years ago, Grace went on a blind date she dubbed “The Great Shame” due to her thoughtlessness. She’s been working on being kinder, and Grace likes to think she’s come a long way. Now in her last semester of college, Grace absolutely must pass her dreaded math class in order to graduate, but that means surviving her tutor, Noah, who obviously despises her.
One of the best parts of this love story is that it takes place over a long period of time, setting it apart from the fast-paced rom-coms that we’ve gotten used to. Adamson highlights the importance of becoming our best selves and how that often leads us to where our best life is lived. Love is about more than a wish list of attributes and having a perfect first date. When we have mercy on ourselves and reserve judgment on those around us, we are happier and uplift those around us, encouraging love in all its forms.
Grace and Noah are described as having “olive” skin. The mature content rating is for mentions of alcohol abuse and drug use.
Reviewer: Carolina Herdegen

This was such a cute book! I loved the storyline and the characters. Highly recommend!

I just reviewed Tutored in Love by Barbara J. Adamson. #TutoredinLove #NetGalley

I am having a hard time knowing what to rate this one! The writing itself was solid, especially for a debut, but it is marketed as a romance and felt more like a women's fiction (plus men's fiction - is that a thing?) with one of the slowest of slow burn romances I have ever read. And that is not a bad thing but my expectation was for something completely different.

Because the writing was good and because I was invested enough in the characters to make it to the end (I just had to know how it ended!), I am going with 4 stars. I would pick up another book by this author but accurate marketing may help to guide reader's expectations and find the right audience for the book.

A very sweet story featuring two young people, a guarded, socially awkward hero and an extrovert heroine“, Tutored by Love”, by Barbara J. Adamson, is about loneliness and grief, but also joy, change and hope.
It’s a very enjoyable read featuring two young leads that were already dealt a bad hand by life and are now caught in a game of perceptions, miscommunication and a sweet attraction.
I loved that their relationship and romance wasn’t an easy path since the beginning, was peppered with ups and downs, and took its sweet time to grow.
I was intrigued with Noah’s issues in the beginning of the story and I have to admit I thought they were of a different nature from the one revealed later.
I loved his grumpy, silent persona initially and how he seldom showed any reaction to the heroine’s teasing. Some scenes were really fun to watch, and we, readers, could see through Grace’s frustration and blindness that Noah’s antipathy might be deep-rooted insecurities.
His transformation through therapy seemed a bit drastic, but I appreciated it wasn’t an easy process. It required work, dedication, time, and it was handled in a serious manner.
The sense of inadequacy and the lack of self-esteem are poignant, but realistic.
I liked Grace, too, even if in the beginning I found her a bit annoying and self-centered. She’s a good person, and I think her youth justifies a lot.
Perhaps I would have liked Grace to break with Alex earlier on the story.

A charming second chance for love book
When you meet the right person but neither one is ready for a relationship and both are offended. What next? Grace has recently lost her brother in an accident and is far from healed. Her sister seems to be moving and healing better so in an effort, to help Grace heal, she lines up a blind date for her. To say the date was a failure is an extreme understatement. In fact, Grace now refers to it as the Great Shame. Now three years later Grace needs a math tutor and her tutor is Noah, the man from the blind date. She doesn’t recognize him and she doesn’t understand his on and off animosity but he is a great math tutor. As they interact during tutoring and keep running into each other in other situations, could they begin to see that their own problems are handicapping them? An interesting, engaging book. Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the copy. This is my review and all thoughts are my own.

The pacing and the gradual development and easiness in their relationship followed by the cute moments was just chefs kiss good. Plus, the enemies to lovers trope was done so well, it was immaculate.

This book started out slower but once it got going it was much better. The book was overall a very sweet but also serious romance, which I think will appeal to people who are looking for a romance that doesn't have rom com vibes and can still be serious at times and deal with the many facets of a relationship. I thought it had great mental health representation, which can be hard for authors to do, so that was a very pleasant surprise. It really made me feel more of a connection to Noah, and I found myself rooting for him throughout the book despite his flaws. This was a really great new adult book for people who are just looking to transition out of young adult books and are looking for a book about surviving relationships in your early 20's.

The very first good thing I have to say about this book is that the official summary doesn't reveal too much, and that's great! It provides just enough information to give the reader an idea of what to expect, but there's a lot more than that in that book. That's also the reason why I don't want to talk about the plot too much, as I don't want to reveal too much.
Instead, I'll make a list of what I liked the most and the least.

What I liked:
- the characters: I liked Grace and Noah, especially as I got to know them and see them grow.
- the amazing but believable evolution of the characters. The books takes place over more than a few months, which gives time to Grace and Noah to gain maturity, grow through therapy, realise their mistakes, etc. which is nice
- the rather realistic relationship Grace and Noah have: no insta love here, theirs is a complicated and raw relationship, with its ups and downs and its doubts...
- the mostly positive, realistic portrayal of family and friends relationships
- the unexpected turnaround between the two protagonists
- the focus on a time of life that is rarely talked about in books: the transition between university to adult/working life (I am right in there, so I appreciated it!)

What I disliked:
- the super slow beginning (I especially didn't enjoy the first chapter, and didn't see its interest until later in the book)
- the pace: at the end of Part One, I thought the book was nearly over. Thankfully, Part Two was much better and much stronger emotionally (although not necessarily romantically), but the book is tooooo long (328 pages) and gets lost in small details
- the love triangles: they're not strong (as in, it's clear they aren't real love interest), but they're there, and it's a bit annoying
- not as "universal" a book as I would have liked, notably a very Christian-American view on volunteering abroad (which is nowadays more frowned upon internationally) + a tiny bit too much of a Church element in there, but thankfully zero preaching about faith etc. :)

What I have mixed feelings about:
- the romance: there's a lot of unresolved issues between the both of them for most of the book which prevents the protagonists to love each other, so while the book focuses on their (ultimately romantic) relationship, the actual romance doesn't take much place at all
- the alternating POVs: the choice makes sense, but it wasn't always masterfully done (something I wasn't sure who was talking) and sometimes put too much focus on one side of the story

Overall, the book was well written, and despite some problems with the pace, plot, etc. it was a very enjoyable read and I had a hard time putting it down at times.
I'd give it 3.75 stars to be precise, a tiny bit under 4 ;)

*I received an eARC in exchange for my honest opinion*

It was set in a very religious setting, which I wasn’t expecting. However I really enjoy such characters and setting so it became a really pleasant surprise.

The characters first meeting was quite remarkable and the insecurities displayed be the MMC were so honest. It was nice seeing a guy who struggles with his past in a honest way, he was bitter but he still made a better place for himself. He was hardworking and while private, devoted when he found his person.

The MMC was definitely more likeable to me than the FMC!

Thank you to NetGalley, publishers and the author for this!