Thank you Netgalley and dial / prh for the e-Arc. I fell I love with Kate Robb writing and her 2nd book didn't disappoint. I love the way she writes time travel and romance it fully immerses you in it and can easily see it adapted.

Suggest giving it a try

4.5/5☆

This was a fast easy read that I enjoyed. I didn't love it, but I liked the concept and I like magical romance like this. I think the idea of thinking that a fictional world is perfect is something we all fall prey to, so I like that this book took that idea and turned it on its head and really got the main characters thinking about what would really make them happy in their real lives.

This book was just ok for me. I don't feel like the characters were fully developed, and the relationship between them felt forced. The book had a cute premise, and I loved several of the early aughts Easter Eggs, but the way the story played out in the Carson's Cove universe felt outdated and past it's prime.

Overall I liked this one! I do think This Spells Love sucked me into the story more and kept me wanting more, but I did still really enjoy it!

This one had an intriguing premise, but unfortunately it just fell flat to me. I wanted to be invested in Brynn and Josh's relationship, but I just wasn't able to buy into it. It felt very insta-love-y to me, which was a problem since it was being presented as the more "real" alternative to the fictional romance between Sloan and Spencer. Honestly I think a love story between the real Sloan and Fletch would've been more interesting and believable.

This is my 2nd Kate Robb book and I love her alternative reality romances. They are so unique and fun and this one was perfection. I am a total closet Dawson Creek fan and when the characters wake up in perfect Carson Cove it was like living out a Dawson Creek episode. It gave me so many giggles because it was so spot on with the "blond boy next door", the best friend ( that may not always be so nice), the pigeon holes that characters get stuck in like Fletch and Luce. My favorite was the no swearing. It reminded me of the show The Good Place where they couldn't' swear. Cracked me up.
I really like Josh as a character although he was a little one dimensional but over all I think he had a cool back story with the lose of his family bar and him getting transported back into the bad boy that runs a bar. I love how hard he works, and how he was so good at it. I think the real world element of no matter how good you are the pandemic kinda messed with us all. I think his transformation gave him the kick he needed to go after his dream again.
I loved Brynn. She was a little clueless and a little blind when she first gets transported to Carson Cove, kind of how she is a little lost and little scared of her life after her divorce. As she works through the idea that she needs to grow up and so does the character of Sloan - maybe the boy net door isn't perfect for her, maybe friends come in different places and bring Strawberry wine, Maybe you don't' need to go home to win the town beauty pageant to be fulfilled. Maybe you need to be realistic and see what is right in from you.
Very Cute, good writing, quick fast paced and kind of adorable and a little bit spicy. Not always predictable but you know you are going to get your HEA.

This was a cute book! Definitely not what I expected but it was unique and fun and I LOVED the character development.

The concept behind this book was so fun - I always do enjoy magical realism and this was no exception...it is always kind of fun to ponder a situation that feels a bit attainable but wouldn't actually happen in real life. I loved how much this story reminded me of Dawson's Creek (intentionally - the author says so in her note at the end) and I enjoyed the characters, but it's always a bit hard to root for one male lead character while the female character is blind to what's in front of her and that was the case a bit here.

I'll still be checking out all future books from this Canadian romance author though as I enjoy her plotlines a lot!

I loved This Spells Love, so I was really excited to read this book! It definitely set my expectations a bit high.

I will say that this would be a great read if you love/loved teen dramas set in small beach towns. I think I would have liked it more if I grew up watching them and had a better understanding of them.

The magic in this book left me with so many questions. I love fantasy books, especially ones with romance, but there has to be a certain amount of logic behind the magic and how it works, and this book did not have that.

It was an entertaining read, with flawed characters and protective love interests, so I would still recomend it to anyone looking for a book with a HEA.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!

This book was an absolute delight!! Magical realism story of roommates who get sucked into a fictional small town teen soap after a birthday wish is granted. Carson's Cove is all the Dawson's Creek vibes, with some Buffy, One Tree Hill, Saved by the Bell, and 90210 sprinkled in. I was kicking my feet at all the references and then you add Brynn and Josh's love story throughout and I just had a goofy grin the whole time. I inhaled this story, it was such an easy read!

Aside from the fun 90s/00s TV Easter eggs, it also had great character development! Watching Brynn and Josh learn they are enough and deserve happy endings was beautiful. We all know when we watch TV, or movies, or read books, we wonder what the characters are doing after we leave them behind. This was such an interesting way of seeing that the happily ever after doesn't always mean it's perfect, or the grass is always greener.

I loved Kate Robb’s first book, This Spells Love, so I had very high hopes for this, especially with the Pleasantville-esque premise!

The magic element in this definitely left me with more questions than answers… but I could get over that! I do feel like I wanted a slower build-up (and therefore ultimately more satisfying) romantic connection between our two leads, though, and that was a much larger hurdle for me.

There were a few other inconsistencies with the concept, but they are nit-picky and not worth mentioning here.

Overall, I had fun! I can’t say I enjoyed this one as much as her first book, but I will most definitely be reading her next.

Thanks to NetGalley and Dial Press for the ARC!

Newly divorced and about to celebrate her thirtieth birthday, Brynn finds herself sick of heartbreak and living with a roommate - Josh. She plans to ring in her birthday curled up on the couch, bingeing her favorite 2000s teenage drama Carson’s Cove. The show ended on an unexpected cliffhanger and the two main characters never declared their love for each other, but to Brynn, the show is comforting and perfect.

When a birthday cake unexpectedly shows up at the door to their apartment, Brynn blows out the candle and makes a birthday wish. Her wish: happily ever after.

The next morning, Brynn wakes up in Carson’s Cove. Josh is there, too. In order to go home they must finish Sloan and Spencer’s story. Brynn will be Sloan and Josh will be Fletcher Scott aka the town’s bad-boy. Sparks fly, but between the seemingly wrong pair. Brynn starts to fall for Josh. Do the two have what it takes to flip the script and make it home?

Read if you like:
- 90s/00s vibes
- roommates
- small town

This was super cute. As a millennial, I loved the inspiration behind Carson’s Cove. The nostalgia. The comfort. The magic. Definitely recommend if you’re in the market for a fun, whimsical, rom-com - don’t hesitate to pick this up!

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing - Random House for a free digital copy of this book. This is my honest review. Publication date: September 3, 2024.

Brynn's life is not going according to plan. She is divorced, and she is living with a roommate named Josh. Brynn and Josh work opposite shifts so they rarely interact.

On the night of Brynn's 30th birthday, a man drops off a cake for her, and she makes a wish. The next day, she wakes up in the fictional town from her favorite TV show, Carson's Cove. The show is very similar to Dawson's Creek or any teen show from the lates '90s and early '00s. It was so nostalgic and lots of fun to see all of the familiar tropes of these type of shows.

Brynn is shocked to find that her roommate, Josh, is there too, but they aren't themselves. They are now characters on the TV show. The magical realism element of the story added so much to small town vibes and forced proximity too.

I loved the dual POV in this book, and the slow burn made me feel so much for Josh and Brynn. The story had some unexpected twists and turns, and it made me cry too.

I had so much fun reading this book, and I definitely recommend it.

Thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing for an ARC.

I loved This Spells Love, and this one had such a great premise that I was excited to read it. Unfortunately, this one just fell flat for me. I didn't connect with the story and characters, and the romance between Brynn and Josh just wasn't enough for me.

The best way I can explain this book is that it's a mixture of Laguna Beach x Pleasantville. I love Kate's humor so I had a blast reading/listening to this! If you love romance, you'll definitely like this.

Brynn is sucked into her favorite tv show alongside her hot bartender roommate Josh. She has to take on the identity of Sloane, one of the main characters of Carson's Cove, to give Sloane the happy ending she deserves.

Thank you @thedialpress for the ARC!

Okay, well this was a cute and creative story! As a big fan of 2000s teen shows, I knew I had to read this one. Brynn and Josh were great MCs - they didn’t do too much which is perfect for a light read. The dual POV worked well as you were able to get each of their perspectives as they navigated the Carson’s Cove world. Make sure you stick around and check out all the Easter Eggs Robb leaves throughout - I am proud to say I caught a lot of them!

I fell in love with Kate Robb's writing when I read her first book, This Spells Love. Robb is really good at setting up some pretty bonkers plots, and then somehow making it work. I loved this book's grounding in the world of Carson's Cove, which is the book's equivalent of Dawson's Creek. If you loved watching teen soaps when you were growing up, or still watch them, this book is a real joy. After having a horrible night with friends who aren't even real friends, Brynn makes a 30th birthday wish about happily ever after, and then wakes up in the world of her favorite teen series. Not only does she have to figure out how to leave, but she accidentally brought her roommate Josh with her. I found Brynn and Josh to be pretty cute together, and the nods to shows like Dawson's Creek fun and very satisfying. I wasn't really the hugest fan of the "bad guy" character of Sheldon. Just seemed unnecessary, and I could have spent more time with Josh and Brynn's growing romance.

This was an easy read, and very enjoyable.

Thank you NetGalley for the free digital ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I really liked the concept of this and all the hijinks, easter eggs to teen shows, and drama. I think this was a fun, quick read that stayed light throughout. I think that there was some suspending of disbelief happening for me and if I did not ask myself too many questions or think on it too hard, I think that the magical realism in this book worked very well. I liked Josh and Brynn but I felt like we needed more time with them. T
Overall, I think the concept of this story was really cool and there were some funny parts that I chuckled at. It was a nice, light read that would be perfect for a nice pick me up.

Prime Time Romance by Kate Robb was a highly anticipated read for me, and the unique concept didn’t disappoint. Who wouldn’t want to escape into the fictional world of their favorite TV show? I loved watching the main character, Sloan/Brynn, navigate her struggles both in the real world and in the charming town of Carson's Cove. It gave me serious Pleasantville vibes, where the story unfolding may not be exactly what the characters truly need, but it's perfect for their journey.

I couldn't really get into this book. The concept is interesting and different but for me I just couldn't connect to it.