I received an advanced copy of this book for review.

This is my second Janovsky book, the first being New Adult, which I really enjoyed. I think this is the first book I've read about a sommelier, but I've been on a bartender kick this summer. <i> You Had Me at Happy Hour </i> really nails why I enjoy dual POV romance so much; we get one scene in which Julien judges Greg for wearing an expensive, brand name belt in a place like Pennsylvania, but when we get Greg's POV, he thinks about how douchey the Gucci belt will make him seem to his coworkers but it's the only one he packed in his recent move, and his pants are too loose. Throughout, we get this sort of back and forth between Greg and Julien, seeing them go from reluctant coworkers to something like friends to FWB to more. The pacing of this one is pretty chill, but not in a way that detracts from the story. Given our characters' neurodivergence, I think it's very intentional and I appreciate that choice. I also really appreciate the portrayal of a) neurodivergence (Greg's anxiety and Julien's OCD) and b) the effects it can have on relationships (ie side effects of medication). It's also pretty spicy, giving our readers an interesting, informative take on what sex can look like aside from just penetration.

I enjoyed this one! I'd recommend for fans of Alexis Hall and Casey McQuiston.

Thanks to Netgalley, Harlequin, and Timothy Janovsky for the ARC!

An aspiring sommelier working at his aunt and uncle’s restaurant bumps heads with the new hire mixologist/bartender. In dual POV, this was a very cute, sex positive, grumpy sunshine love story that also tackled heavier topics like alcoholism and mental health. I loved how mature both of these main characters were and how heavier topics on both sides were handled with respect and care. This was such healthy relationship goals! 4.25

This was an enjoyable, likable read. Both characters are quirky (especially Julien) and, while different from each other, quite well suited. Both have their individual hang-ups, including with sex, and both of them are complex characters. Neither is neuro-typical, and their individual struggles felt realistic.

I liked how the author approached their specific issues, and I liked that this book addressed mental health issues, without delivering a simple, easy fix for either Julien or Greg. Julien's OCD affects his ability to fully enjoy sex, but Greg makes specific accommodations for him to soothe the anxiety, and Greg's ED due to meds is also believably addressed during their bedroom adventures. Love happens unexpectedly, and neither seemed quite prepared when they realize their feelings.

And then I got to about 80%. I absolutely hated Greg hooking up with an ex during their short-lived break-up. I almost DNF'd the book when he ran off and then made some incredibly dumb choices. Thankfully, he comes to his senses quickly enough, and their happy ending was worth waiting for.

The author showcased excellent use of the enemies/rivals-to-lovers trope, with an engaging and thoughtful writing style.

This was my first book by this author, for which I received a free copy via Netgalley. A positive review was not promised in return.

🍹📚🍹BOOK REVIEW - YOU HAD ME AT HAPPY HOUR by Timothy Janovsky🍹📚🍹

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Since 'You're A Mean One, Matthew Prince', Timothy Janovsky has become one of my go-to authors. I had a pretty high standard for this book - that probably wasn't entirely met, but 'You Had Me at Happy Hour' serves up a delicious cocktail of romance, humour, and heart.

Meet Greg, the internet-famous mixologist burnt by that fancy Manhattan lifestyle. Then there's Julian, the neurospicy sommelier with a complicated past. When forced to work together to save Julian's aunt and uncle's restaurant, then stuff happens? Sex happens, but the romance part is a real slow burn.

It is a short, feel-good romance with light-hearted fun and meaningful themes. Appropriate for fans of slow-burn romances with a touch of humour and spicy moments. It isn't meant to be a masterpiece of literature, but this book will leave you content.

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Julien has been waiting to cash in his one-way ticket out of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania for a long time. Becoming a master sommelier is his main priority, knowing that it will be his way to live somewhere different, and work somewhere other than his uncle’s restaurant. What he doesn’t have time for are a gorgeous, charismatic, TikTok mixologist/influencer crowding his space, and stealing his sommelier spotlight at Martin’s place.

Greg is running from fake friends, fake fame, and fake wealth. Moving in with his cousin, in middle of nowhere Bethlehem definitely wasn’t what he saw on his bingo card, but it’s something that has to happen due to creditors biting at the ankles.

Timothy Janvsky wove different aspects of the real world, with inclusive topics into this grumpy/sunshine romantic comedy.

Thank you Harlequin Romance, Netgalley, and Timothy Janvsky for this advanced reader copy.

Timothy Janovsky’s books are already very hit-or-miss, but this one was just…cringe. I’m not a fan of how he incorporates steam in this book, and the characters didn’t have a ton of chemistry to begin with.

I always love a good Timothy Janovsky novel. He is one of my comfort authors, I always enjoy reading his books. This one is not exception and I think Janovsky is getting better every book he wrote. Can’t wait to see what else he can do!
This novel is cute and funny, but also has important theme. It was really a good reading, I was laughing and smiling all along.

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for the arc.

A neurospicy teetotaller wine snob meets a tik tok cocktail content creator down on his luck and sparks don’t quite fly, but there are subtle notes of attraction and a hint of forced proximity. Thank you to @netgalley and @harlequinpublicityteam for this eARC copy. This is a slow burn romance story about second chances and learning that just because you’ve got emotional baggage doesn’t mean it can’t turn out to be a matched set with someone else’s.
Greg is down on his lucky after a too pricey Manhattan lifestyle burned out on him and Julian is the child of alcoholic parents struggling to manage his neurospicy brain while working to earn a master sommelier’s certification so he can escape the ruins of his past. When they’re forced to work together to save Julian’s aunt and uncle’s restaurant they initially can’t stand each other, but as time passes they find themselves being drawn together.

Favorite Parts - I love how Greg responds to Julian’s neurodiversity, he takes a beat, and then generally responds with compassion and it feels real to me. It’s not immediately perfect because he’s human, but it’s patient and reasonable. I also liked them slowly getting to know each other and learning to trust.

Read This If You - like a slow burn, opposites attract vibe, like a neurospicy MC, enjoy an adult beverage (or don’t because Julian doesn’t drink),

A sweet, low-stakes romance about two people finding their place and what they want out of life and a relationship. I really enjoyed the representation of both of their neurodivergencies and navigating them as it relates to communication in both a sexual and romantic relationship, like all the different ways that something that a former partner disparaged can be turned into something sexy and new with someone who is willing to hear them out and work with it instead of against it. Greg's ED and lowered arousal (different from wanting to have sex and being physical with Julian) due to his medication balanced with Julian's routines and boundaries around certain acts for his OCD were handled with love and care and it showed in the way each of the characters fell for each other.

This is much more a book about the two leads opening up and going for what they want, which I liked, but did make the third-act conflict really tedious. After so much focus on them opening up and falling in love, to fall back on such a minor miscommunication felt really hollow. It also struck something home for me, the focus on relying on labels to clear up expectations versus just talking through the expectations without the need for a label.

In the end though, it was sweet enough, though I do wish there was less of a focus in general in wine-based fiction around characters becoming master sommeliers when story-wise what they really want and are doing is advanced sommelier.

Thanks so much to the publisher and Netgalley for an e-arc of this book.

I really enjoyed this super fast-paced romance! While there is a non-romance subplot, it's fairly low stakes, and the story is much more focused on the new neurodivergent MCs finding love and what they want out of life. OCD and Anxiety can be tricky things to write, and as someone who has both, I think Janovsky nailed both. Rather than making these things the characters' main struggle, both are medicated and instead, their respective divergencies are part of their whole character and are respected by their partner.

The romance was very fluffy and nailed many fun tropes, such as grumpy sunshine, friends with benefits, and miscommunication, which is an especially hard trope to write. The characters have a lot of scenes, so we see them fall for each other, even with the bit of instant attraction they both have. The sex in this book was well-written, taking into account both their OCD and anxiety, particularly with Greg's medication causing erectile dysfunction, how Julian accepted and worked with it, and how Greg understood Julian's OCD and general need for certain things before sex.

My major criticism of this book was how time passed; I didn't realize six months had passed until they told me, and I was shocked because it felt more like weeks. It could have been a little longer to flesh out the romance, but I understand it's a harlequin book, so this is its desired length.

Janovsky is one of my must-read romance authors, and so this was another great one from him!

This was definitely a spicier book for Timothy and I really enjoyed it. Who’s to say I might have learned a thing or two from it as well.

I’m a sucker for enemies to lovers and this was know different. I enjoyed all the different forms of representation in this book even if it mainly came from the two main characters. Watching them slowly open up and overcome their trust and insecurities was sweet to see. Definitely one of my favorites from Timothy Janovsky.

More of 4.5 stars for me.

please note that the trigger warnings and topes/themes may contain spoilers
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
HEA: HFN
POV: dual 3rd person POV
spice: a few open-door spicy scenes
TWs: addiction, anxiety, car accident (non fatal), erectile dysfunction, infertility, OCD, parental neglect
Kinky Content: dual penetration, fingering, masturbation, oral, pegging, rimming, sex toys, sexual massage
standalone: yes
final thoughts: overall I really liked almost everything about this story!
The pining, the forced proximity, the opposites attract, and the mental illness representation all made for an engaging story I couldn’t put down.
I love that the MCs were so patient with each other and willing to learn about each other’s quirks to move forward in a relationship.
I didn’t love the very out of character open-door scene with not the MC though…. That seemed so unnecessary especially when it was NEVER brought up between the couple and then the book basically just ended. It was very ick and took me out of their relationship. I felt like the story wrapped up too quickly from there and didn’t give the MCs the HEA they deserved or left me as a reader thinking they would be able to last long-term since they seemed to not be able to be fully honest and it unfortunately lost a whole star for me because of it (sorry I’m picky in my romances..)

read this book if you love

😬 angst
🍿 (internet) celebrity
🍪cinnamon roll MMC
🏝️ forced proximity
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 found family
🧑‍🤝‍🧑 great side characters
🤫 hidden secrets
🎄 holiday themes
🛏️ “it’s just a fling”
😏 kinky
🌈 LGBT+ representation
🤐 miscommunication
💞 mutual pining
🔀 opposites attract
🤐 secret relationship
💓 slowburn
🏡 small town
💔 third act breakup
💼 workplace romance

This was really sweet!

I appreciated that this had such solid mental health rep, and also some of the side effects in taking medication presents in relationships. The overall blanket of acceptance for people are so thirsty for it was a warm lovely hug.
There was a decent amount of miscommunication, and you did want to lovingly bonk both characters on the head, but all of it comes from a very authentic place.

I highly recommend for a lovely warm, cocktail themed read.

Thank you to Afterglow/ Harlequin and Netgalley for an early copy.

This was a very sweet romance with two great characters with believable issues! I loved them together and I liked the plot. I found the third act conflict to be very childish, but the banter and the bedroom scenes were excellent.

This book had me blushing for the vast majority of it!

FWB’s-to-Lovers may just be my new favorite trope.

This was the perfect queer romcom with well-executed anxiety and OCD representation. I felt properly seen in so many ways throughout.

The Epilogue? Explosive. 🙊

(BookTok review coming very shortly)

Greg, an internet famous mixologist, is in debt, down on his luck and just broken up with his boyfriend. No long able to afford NY he gets a job at a small Pennsylvania town to help rejuvenate a failing restaurant. This is where he meets Julien, nephew brought up by the owners and sommelier who can't wait to get out of town. Greg just wants to be liked and Julien just wants to be left alone.

The two meet to an instant attraction but neither is looking for a relationship as they both have aspirations bigger than the small town they're working in.

I really enjoyed that this story delve into mental illness, anxiety and who doesn't love an enemies, to pining, to lovers?! The drinks and happy hours the boys came up with sounded so fun and wish I could try them. And the sex was *chefs kiss*

This is a sweet, fun contemporary romance. I enjoyed that the stakes weren't too high and we got to see these two characters grow and help change each other.

Thank you NetGalley and Harlequin for ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was a great, easy, feel-good read. Just the right amount of spice and darkness that didn't make the sombre subject matter seem token in nature. The characters were relatable and the pace was good throughout. Would definitely recommend to a beginner reader of MM romances.

Julian is training and on track to be an up and coming sommelier while working at his family’s restaurant.
Unfortunately that restaurant has been recently struggling, but his aunt and uncle believe bringing in TikTok famous bartender/mixologist Greg is just the ticket to drum up interest and new business.
Greg jumps on the opportunity as he can see his 15 minutes coming to a close and bills are piling up.

The two have a meet disaster over a tray of spilled drink samples, and before things between them can get better, they get worse. Customers notice the awkwardness that leads to their jobs not being done well, and when it affects the reviews the the owners step in. Make nice, work together to create special mixers to bring new people in twice a week. Or else.
(I remain unconvinced they’d *actually* fire a relative for anything short of the business closing - maybe the new hire - but they *did* seem serious sooo idk?)

Their whole ‘work nemesis’ situation is a hundred percent because they won’t talk to each other. Not exactly miscommunication, more a lack of it entirely. We, from the outside, can see clear as day that they’re meant to be friends or more, and the picking at each other is frustrating!

In spite of themselves, they do end up friendly - and then with a fwb adjacent ‘sex pact’ - but as new opportunities pop up for both of them the lack of communication rears its head and, let me say, that third act breakup is harsh.

In spite of the series topics of alcoholism, ED, OCD, and anxiety I still would have labeled this as a quick light read, and if things hadn’t gone so far during that ‘breakup’ I would have liked it more.

Thanks to NetGalley and harlequin for the arc

I picked this up because it was short and I wanted to try to fit in one more queer read in June (read queer all year, folks!). I lived in the Philly area for 10 years so was excited to read something that took place in Bethlehem and had a lot of PA references.

And I was trucking along with this and thought it would be about a 4 star read - I really liked the start to Julien and Greg's relationship and how understanding they both were of each other's needs. I think the OCD rep was pretty good and you don't see much erectile disfunction rep either and the care and understanding with how Julien reacted to that was wonderful.

It initially wasn't a 5 star read for me because SO much happened off page. Like really a lot of their relationship development happened off page so we heard about it rather than saw it. Tell versus show never really works out well for me as a reader. This book is short enough that it definitely had the space to have at least a little more on page.

However....then we get to the end of the book. Greg goes back to NYC to apartment hunt and stays with his ex. He and Julien are...I guess sort of broken up at this point? They didn't really have an explicit conversation about it. And while Greg is staying with his ex, they make out and start fooling around. Depending on your definition, it maybe doesn't evolve into full blown sex because of Greg's ED. And you know, this maybe wouldn't have bothered me this much. EXCEPT - when Greg goes back to Bethlehem and Julien is honest about his feelings for him...GREG DOESN'T TELL HIM WHAT HAPPENED. This pissed me off so much that I knocked an entire star off of the book.

Julien Boire and Greg Harlow might just be my favourite fictional gay couple of all time. A sommelier and a mixologist? That's a match made in heaven!

Told in alternating dual third-person POV, this story follows Julien Boire, a sommelier who dreams of leaving his small town and family-owned restaurant to become a master sommelier in a bigger city. Meanwhile, Greg Harlow is a TikTok influencer from New York City famous for his rizz and interesting cocktails. After a devastating breakup and mounting debt, he decides to move a small town to start over and get back on his feet. When Julien and Greg meet, they get off to a rocky start but their chemistry is undeniable.

Julien's social awkwardness was so endearing and relatable and Greg is quite possibly the sweetest and most understanding person ever. 13% into the book and I was already making several notes in my ebook about how much I love these two characters and how adorable they are together.

I love books with neurodivergent characters or who are 'flawed' in some way and this one featured a character with OCD and another with anxiety and erectile dysfunction. This book navigated those areas brilliantly and made the characters feel real and well developed.

Unfortunately, I did not really enjoy the minor conflict near the end (spoiler: it's reminiscent of Ross and Rachel being on a 'break', which was a conflict that I did not love).