Rating 4/5 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Spice levels - 3/5 🌶️

The Upper Crush by Evie Alexander is #3 in the Foxbrooke series but as someone who hasn’t read the first 2 books (yet) I can gladly say this can definitely be read as a stand-alone!

I slowly fell in love with Estelle and James and their distinct personalities really shine. Their chemistry had a nice build with an explosive ending! I also love the inclusion of an index with all the sexy scenes so you can reread or skip if you want!

There wasn’t as many “country girl x City Boy” dynamic as I expected but that didn’t take away from the experience.

The spice was excellent and the dual POV really adds to it! This book had me blushing all the way through!

If you enjoy workplace romance enemies to lovers rom-coms you will definitely enjoy this book!

I will definitely be going back and reading the first two books in this series and maybe rereading this again! Thanks so much to NetGalley for the ARC !

*4.5

The beginning was a little confusing but I ended up really liking this book. James didn't fully realize it but he was so in love with Estelle from the start. I understood her reasons for hating him and it was fun to watch her fall in love. I do think that the part where he goes to China was a little muddy and I wanted them to talk more but I still liked it.

I received an arc through netgalley.

This was more of a 2.5 star read but rounded up to 3 because there were some really good elements to the story.

The back bones were there for something fun but ultimately it got lost. This is an almost 600 page contemporary romance that really could have done with some good editing. The characters were fun but I don't feel as if they were totally flushed out and the way the author went about trying to flush them out with kind of cringey internal dialogue did not help. This was marketed as a potential stand alone novel and I don't really know if that is the case. I don't know if it was the fact I didn't read the first two books or the writing but it took a long time for this book to get going. In the first 20% of the book I was about to DNF cause it was just so odd. The characters were being weird, the set up was weird, it just didn't make a lot of sense. I do realize this could be an issue of not reading the other two books but when the book is marketed as potential standalone it should change how you start a novel.

The spice was good and having the index in the back was a good addition. The concept of a music festival gone wrong is a really fun idea that I haven't seen done yet.

Lady Estelle Foxbrooke has a plan to save her family’s estate, but it means working with her twin brother’s worst enemy, James Hunter-Savage. James had had to abandon his life in London and return to the Somerset countryside to live with his parents, whilst working with Estelle. As Estelle and James jockey for position to turn a business venture into a success, they begin a tumultuous relationship. With neither one committing to their true feelings, their future begins to look doubtful.
Whilst this book is part of a series, I did not feel that I couldn’t understand the connection between characters. This was a great enemy to lovers s tory, with plenty of passion to spice things up. I enjoyed learning about what made these two characters tick, as I believe they did, with the witty dialogue between them. An entertaining read.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

One of my favorite tropes is the enemies to lover, and the author did a fantastic job with it here. I loved seeing Estelle's hatred for James turn to love, as well as seeing another aspect of him and learning about his past.

Evie Alexander was a new author to me when I read The Upper Crush; I was drawn in by the lovely cover, but I remained for the amount of fun I had reading it. The words effortlessly flowed from Evie's writing, and I think it's safe to say that I've discovered a new romance writer to love.

Thank you NetGalley and Emlin Press the ARC.

I really enjoyed this book! It was funny and engaging, with the perfect amount of smut! The characters were very interesting as well. I am definitely going to read more from this author!

The book was hilarious. The banter was on point and the slow burn was excellent. It’s enemies to lovers but I use the enemy word lightly as they’re enemies because he is her brother's arch nemesis. Jake’s is cocky and deff gives off bde(lol). But deep down there’s more to James. Estelle is a badass. I just loved her.

Overall it was a solid fast fun read I recommend trying it even if you haven’t read the other books in the series.

dnf at 37%

i really, really wanted to love this book and while there was so much of it i liked (primarily the FMC) i just couldn't connect to anything else in the book, and it felt a little insta-love-y from the MMC. i hope to come back to this at another point and give it another chance, because i feel like i could really like it.

Love this one and all the fun banter! A great enemies-to-lovers romance and I love that its based in modern British society! There is chemistry between the two characters but it's a spicy slow burn. Both James and Estelle fight hard for what they want and it's a rollercoaster the entire way!
Thank you to the author and publisher for this arc.

This book is HILARIOUS - not only does it have the classic banter that you can expect from an enemies-to-lovers rom-com, but it also has plenty of humor throughout the descriptions and family dynamics!

Estelle Foxbrooke and James James Hunter-Savage - the archenemy of her brother - are forced to work together to save their family's economy. Estelle spends her days trying to annoy him, and he spends his days trying to impress her!

This book was everything I could expect from a rom-com with plenty of tension, forced proximity, great banter, and delightful characters that can’t wait to transition from enemies-to-lovers!

The family dynamics were everything in this book; the scenes where they are all together are extremely funny and made me laugh out loud a couple of times! It reminds me of a 90s sitcom.

I loved Evie Alexander's writing and her sense of humor.
Solid 4 stars for me!

Thank you Netgalley for the chance to read this book in exchange for an honest review!

The parents of both the MCs in this book are absolutely bonkers. This is the first book from this series of stand alone books, so if you’ve read the first two this probably won’t come as a surprise. But BOTH FAMILIES are living on another planet. Every time one of James parents called him (or anyone else for that matter) “babe” I cringed on the inside.

My favourite part of the story was the relationship between James and Estelle. I enjoyed their banter and fighting and how James only ever flirted while Estelle tried to fight. The unicorn slippers, the creative crafts and the friendship group.

I didn’t understand the whole Elyse subplot or the whole China thing…

Thanks to #NetGallery and publisher for a copy of this book.

CN for parents asking their children when they are going to be having babies. Like, all the time. Constantly. If you’re getting that in real life, you don’t wanna read it too.

Genre: Romance
Format: Digital
POV: Dual
Spice: 🌶️🌶️🌶️/5
Age suggestion: 18+

I received an Advance Reader Copy from the publisher. This in no way impacted on my view.

After the company she is working with is taken over by her brother's biggest rival, Lady Estelle Foxbrooke knows that it's going to take everything for the festival to succeed. Estelle has enough on her plate to contend with, especially with her parents wild messes, so getting feelings for the worst person imaginable is almost too much to bear. But James Hunter-Savage is used to getting his own way, and he will do whatever it takes to succeed, even if that means pretending to be in love.

When I saw the cover for this book on NetGalley, I was immediately drawn in. I didn't know it was a part of a larger series, but other than a few remarks to the side character's romances, it was definitely readable as a standalone book. Estelle and James' relationship was not easy by any means, but they had chemistry which needed to be let out. I loved how they were open with each other when alone, and spoke about their true feelings and past. I wish they had broken down their personas quicker, and not let small niggles turn into full blown problems. Even so, the way they came together in the end, and were ready to be all in, was great, and I hope that their love for each other always stays true.

This book was very cute and I ate it up! It had such a good combo of tropes and when I thought the story was finally settling down, another one would emerge from nowhere to spice it back up! I really enjoyed that Estelle had her life fairly together and was able to take the lead on a big project. It was just nice to see the FMC get to be a bit of a girlboss. James Hunter-Savage can get it. Good gracious he was fabulous and he just kept doing things to make me love him. This is book 3 in a character series but I had no problem picking it up and knowing what was happening. Very light, fun read that was a pleasant surprise.

Although this was marketed as being able to be read as a standalone, I don't think that really holds true. I felt like I was missing quite a lot about the buildup to Evie and James's story by not reading the rest of the series first. I also might not have picked this up if I realized it was almost 600 pages long - there is a lot of unessential fluff going on here.

This book was captivating and funny from the beginning! I loved the settimg of the English countryside and the quantity of british humor used by the Author! And can we talk about the characters? They were perfect! I’m totally in love with them ( and I’ve a big crush for James) also I loved the slow burn and the banter!

So I totally recommend this ! 4 stare!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this eARC of 'The Upper Crush' by Evie Alexander.

This book is the third book in the Foxbrooke series but as someone who has never read the first two, it is perfectly fine to just dive right in with this one. The way Evie Alexander wrote this story was so interesting to me. I loved the characters on their own and how they flowed and interacted with other characters. I also enjoyed the romance however I did not expect sex scenes in that capacity - but its okay, it was written well. I would definitely read the first two in this series in the future.

This was the first book I read by this author, and I enjoyed it very much!

I did initially find it a little difficult to get into, as although it's advertised as a standalone, I definitely felt like I was missing a lot of background information.

By about 20% in, I was invested in the characters so much that it didn't matter that I was coming into the series part way through.

I loved the banter between Estelle and James, and that it remained consistently witty and funny.

I wasn't the biggest fan of James constantly having to explain and defend himself, because of Estelle misunderstanding or assuming things about him. Then again, his actions were a little questionable at times, so it did all make sense.

Everything was just so delightfully British, I loved all the side characters and small town setting - perfection.

Overall, everything was well balanced and included the best parts of a romcom - an engaging plot, a little drama and tension, amazing spice, banter, and a satisfying epilogue.

I definitely need to read the rest of the series, and this author's other work in general, as I loved her writing style!

* I received a copy of this book via NetGalley *

The Upper Crush was a fun spicy romance with an enemies to lovers trope. While this is book three in the Foxbrooke series, I hadn't read any of the others and had no troubles. I really enjoyed Estelle's sparky character and James Hunter-Savage was the perfect love interest to get under her skin! I adored the setting and the concept of them planning and throwing a festival. It really added to the romance Arc and provided lots of entertainment along the way! This book was an easy read and one I hated having to put down. I've knocked off a star as I sometimes found the miscommunication between them to be a little too frustrating.

It's a really fun romance that I would recommend to anyone and I'm looking forward to exploring more of Evie Alexander's books in the future.


Thank you Netgalley for a free copy of The Upper Crush in exchange for my honest review.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4/5 🌶️ 1/5
Tropes:
💌Enemies to lovers
💌Slow burn
💌Forced Proximity

I really enjoyed Estelle and James’ dynamic and their battle of wits. Truly a slow burn but once it starts developing it is pure fire 🔥. Estelle is a strong and independent women who is used to putting everyone else’s needs before her own. James always puts himself first and is trying to prove himself after losing his big boy finance job.

I’m a big slow burn fan and the wait was worth it, Estelle and James may burn brighter than a star ( if you know you know).

The Upper Crush is the third book in the Foxbrooke series but was able to be read as a stand alone, I devoured this book and will be adding the next one in my tbr.

This enemies to lovers in the English countryside is the mix of a fun and hilarious dish, which leads to a forced closeness and a false relationship. This dynamic has been fun and has brought us a romance that is easy to read.

So here we have something that develops with every interaction that we are shown as this romance where they are looking for a common goal while having to surf through family problems and relationships that gives drama to the whole thing.

It's not really my style of romance, maybe I'm not completely in the mood for the genre yet, but I still enjoyed this story.

Do I recommend it? Yes, if you're a fan of romance and an English setting, give it a go without fear.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me access to this ARC, the opinions expressed here are entirely my own and can be found on Goodreads as of 03/07/2024.


#TheUpperCrush #NetGalley.