This book was amazing! I loved the characters and the plot was very well written. The writer is very talented and the story was very interesting.

I was a little hesitant going in to reading this that it would be super cheesy in a bad way but I genuinely loved it. It was a super quick and easy read that I finished in one sitting. It was just the right about of cheesy and nostalgia and I really loved both of the characters. It was such a fun take on a Pleasantville type story. Brynn and Josh were both great, I really liked them together and that they both experienced growth throughout the story. I would definitely recommend if you’re in the mood for a fun, light read.

Oh the nostalgia of this book! All the Easter eggs and callbacks to Dawson’s Creek, 90210 and more - chef’s kiss. Is it a little cheesy, sure but in the best way. Like This Spells Love, there’s definitely some magical realism here but while there’s no quirky aunt, there are adults that actually….communicate! Whenever there was a chance that Brynn and Josh might not understand one another, they keep talking and clear up any miscommunication.

I was drawn to this title and cover. And this 90s kid appreciated the nod to Dawsons Creek. However, in practice I really struggled to fully believe or connect with the storyline, and ended up not finishing the story. Thank you for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I was skeptical about the premise, but I received an ARC for Robb’s last book as well. This turned out better than I thought! It’s not without its flaws, but it’s a cute story all the same.

Brynn is turning 30 and still heartbroken from her divorce. Her roomie, Josh, works as a bartender, but really longs to repurchase his father’s old bar again. Josh encourages Brynn to make a wish on her bday over a piece of enchanted cake, and they are both sucked into her favorite teen drama series, which is part Dawson’s Creek, part One Tree Hill. There’s a lot of nostalgia to the idea of getting transported into one’s favorite teen drama. But I’d be so upset if Dillon, TX from Friday Night Lights was anything like Carson’s Cove. Brynn and Josh both have roles to play, but things don’t go according to plan, and while Brynn is meant to fall for the boy next door, she ends up falling for Josh.

The growing relationship between the two leads is really sweet, and you root for them so hard. Especially since the boy next door is anything but the dreamboat teenage Brynn expected. The tv show best friend is also a snake and the consummate mean girl. The only issue is the magic behind what gets them there and back. There’s not a clear explanation for how it all works. But it’s all good fun otherwise. With a little steam to go along with it.

Thanks for NetGalley for the ARC!

What a strange ride to be on... and I really enjoyed every second of it! I was expecting a typical roommate love story where the chemistry is undeniable and the proximity makes things steamy for the majority of the plot... but boy was I wrong! This was a fever dream of grand proportions and if you just buckle up and go for the ride, you'll come out smiling, I promise!

*Thanks to NetGalley for providing this ARC!*

I really wanted to like this book, but I unfortunately have to DNF 30% in.

It just didn’t captivate me and I don’t love the “stuck in a sitcom” trope.

Thank you for the chance to read, I’m sure there will be LOTS of people who love this book!

This was a cute story that gave me Gilmore girl vibes. Thank you for allowing me to review this book.

First I want to start off by saying I love the dedication (& Dawson’s creek reference). Going into this book I didn’t know what to expect but was pleasantly surprised! This is the first book by this author that I have read, and I can confirm that after reading Prime Time Romance I would read another! This book hit all the teen feels that you get from a 2000s romcom but had a more adult plot and I really appreciated that. Having a 30 year old FMC was refreshing, especially a woman who has been through a divorce and come out the other side. I would 100% recommend this book for anyone who watched Dawson’s Creek, One Tree Hill, or other early 2000s teen dramas and liked those. This book was unique and different from anything else I’ve read! A solid 4 stars for me!

Rating: ★★★☆☆ (3.5 stars)

Katie Robb's sophomore novel, "Prime Time Romance," delivers a unique and engaging story filled with magical realism that will captivate readers. Set in the fictional town of Carson's Cove, home to Brynn's favorite 00's teen drama, this novel blends fantasy with reality in a unique and engaging way.

Brynn, a woman on the cusp of her 30th birthday, finds herself at a crossroads after an unexpected divorce and a forgotten birthday by her friends. Wishing to be part of the idealized world of her beloved teen TV show, Carson's Cove, Brynn's life takes an unexpected turn when she and her bartender roommate, Josh, wake up in the fictional town itself.

Tasked with giving the show's main character, Sloan, the happy ending she never received, Brynn soon realizes that the idyllic world of Carson's Cove isn't as perfect as she imagined. As she deals with the realization that the happy ending she seeks may not look like her idea of a happy ending, Brynn embarks on a journey of self-discovery, unexpected friendships, and unplanned love story.

"Prime Time Romance" offers a refreshing perspective on the notion that the grass isn't always greener on the other side. Through Brynn's experiences, we are reminded to appreciate the complexities of real life, even when it comes with its challenges.

As a fan of 00's TV dramas, I appreciated the nostalgia and the themes of self-discovery throughout the story. I loved the exploration of the contrast between fantasy and reality, and the realization that happily ever after can start with happy for now, and grow every day.

Recommended for fans of forced proximity, roommates-to-lovers tropes, 00's TV dramas, and magical realism.

Young divorcée Brynn Smothers is struggling. Since her ex-husband unexpectedly dumped her, she’s having trouble believing in love and Happily Ever After. After a disastrous dinner date and a night spent dancing in too small shoes, Brynn just wants to spend the rest of the night before her 30th birthday curled up on the couch watching her favorite tv show, Carson’s Cove. But her purse has been stolen and the only way to get home is to ask for help from her new roommate, hot bartender Josh Bishop. Josh is also struggling. When his father died, Josh took over running the family bar, which he was forced to sell after the Covid-19 Pandemic. Both Brynn and Josh have lost confidence in themselves and can’t find ways to move forward. When a mysterious Uber Eats driver arrives on their doorstep with a birthday cake for Brynn, Josh insists she make a wish. Brynn wishes for a predictable, peaceful life where everything always turns out ok just like in her beloved Carson’s Cove. Upon waking up the next day, Brynn and Josh find themselves inside Carson’s Cove with Brynn playing the town good girl Sloan and Josh in the role of bad boy Fletch. There they are instructed by the Uber Eats driver to give Carson’s Cove the perfect ending it deserved before it was unceremoniously canceled…or else! Now Josh and Brynn must find a way to get Sloan and the town’s golden boy together so they can get home. But what happens when Brynn starts to fall for the bad boy instead?

Kate Robb’s Prime Time Romance is the perfect Dawson’s Creek and Pleasantville mashup! A fantastic send up to all the amazing teen dramedies of my younger years. TV shows where the town was perfect, the people were beautiful, the drama was high, the romance was epic, and everything was tied up in a neat little bow at the end of the episode. Robb gives us a neat little peek behind the curtain and what happens when you dig beneath the shiny exterior and find the cracks underneath. It’s so much fun! Brynn and Josh are two characters beaten down by life, given an opportunity to live glossy TV character lives. Brynn is ecstatic, Josh a bit skeptical, but they both dig in to their new surroundings . It was great to actually see how their perspectives on the their lives, themselves, and their circumstances changed. Sometimes what you think you want turns out to be the worst thing for you. Josh and Brynn had excellent chemistry. They just couldn’t stay away from each other even when their ability to get home hung in the balance. A hilarious look at what it would look like to be a character in your favorite TV show. Loved it!

Prime Time Romance is a charming very unserious book and I mean that in a good way. The story is very silly but fun to read. This is not a serious romance and I loved it. Brynn is having a rough time after her divorce and she takes solitude in her favorite show Carter's Cove. (Think Dawson's creek) One morning her and her cute roommate Josh find themselves in the Carter's Cove show and they are supposed to finish their character's story lines. This whacky story takes Brynn and Josh on a funny, dramatic, and romantic ride. Okay, now I'm off to re-watch Dawson's Creek.(Team Pacey for life)

I loved this book and really enjoyed getting to know the characters! This book made me want to go and find every single thing the author has wrote and read that too!

This is a cute, fast read! Loved the story line of the book. But of course I'm a gal who loved Dawson's Creek so it definitely had that feel to it. I'm also a sucker for a happy ending and this one was so good!

Prime Time Romance is a cute, nostalgic, fast read that doesn’t take itself too seriously (in a good way). The premise is quite out there — our leads Brynn and Josh wake up as the stars of her favorite teen-soap. As a diehard fan of the OC and Gilmore Girls as a teenager, the story grew on me and I found it fun and unique. This was my first book by Kate Robb, and I really enjoyed her writing, the characters were relatable, the banter was witty, and the chemistry was believable. I think this is a great palette cleanser if you’re looking for a light, fluffy romance.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This book felt like Schmigadoon meets Dawson’s Creek meets The Good Place meets a cheesy made-for-Netflix movie. The pop culture inspirations held lots of promise, and although they fell short for me, I can see how this book would really resonate with other readers!

Vibes: Dawson's Creek meets Pleasantville, plot > romance, "and they were roommates", arrested development

Heat Index: 5/10

Turning thirty and newly divorced, Brynn is stuck in a rough patch. Forced to take on a roommate, Josh, to keep up with her mortgage, she's most happy watching Carson's Cove, her favorite teen soap, over and over. Until a random Uber driver shows up with a birthday cake; and both Brynn and Josh wake up in the show. Brynn is now Sloan, the female lead, and she's meant to tie up loose ends the cancel series never could--including making sure that Sloan ends up with her childhood friend, Spencer. Josh is in the role of the town bad boy, Fletcher... and for some reason, even as she lives out the fantasy of falling for Spencer, Brynn finds herself a lot more drawn to her real life roommate than her dream boy...

Okay so. I will admit! This was an outlier for me. Although I respect the premise, I wouldn't say it's something that I immediately thought I would like. The roommates angle isn't always friends to lovers, but this sounded like it could be... And though I've seen a decent amount of Dawson's Creek episodes, it's really not my kind of show. Nonetheless, I appreciate a big swing of a premise, and so I tried it out.

The big swing really isn't the problem with this book. Or--it isn't the main one. Exactly. The issue is that it feels as if the author was so enamored with the fake TV show that it kind of took over the romance. About halfway through the novel, I realized--practically nothing has happened between Brynn and Josh. They've barely spent any time together! And the "why" really bugged me.

Quick Takes:

--So, the thing about this is that I kind of do like the premise of a heroine who is truly in her pathetic era. I mean, I'm Brynn's age, I was in my pathetic era last year, I get it. Her watching the same show twice in a row (six times total)? Not a problem for me in terms of relatability.

And obviously, there was a goal here of having Brynn realize that she needs to prioritize real life and leave this fantasy world, with Josh representing real life.

The issue is that so much of this book, especially in the first half, is Bryn summarizing shit that happened on this fake show. A lot of which, based on what I've seen and heard of Dawson's Creek, is very much like Dawson's Creek. And like? I don't know that you could entirely avoid catching readers up on the show's storylines with a plot like this, but surely, surely some editing would have trimmed it down a bit. I felt like I was getting to know these TV characters, who ultimately wouldn't matter, more than I was getting to know Brynn and Josh.

Certainly more than I got to know Brynn and Josh's love story. We get a hint that she finds him hot before the TV stuff begins, but other than that their relationship is fairly shallow at the beginning of the book. Which is fine! A romance novel is about developing the romance. But because you spend so much time building this TV-verse, there is really no time for Brynn and Josh to truly sell this love story. It's like--suddenly, they're in love. Suddenly, moral of the story.

--That said, I did kind of like the somewhat sinister Uber driver. The parts of this book that were really very much in the Pleasantville lane actually were interesting, to a point. But like. This is supposed to be a romance. Where is my romance?

I can see the appeal, and the way this will cash in a good bit of late 90s/early 2000s nostalgia. As someone who watched a lot of teen soaps in my day... I get it. In some ways, I felt like those aspects were the strongest parts of the book. It just doesn't feel right to call this a romance, and to put romance in the title, when it's really just shoehorned in there. Like, it honestly felt as if it should've been a smaller subplot, with the title changed and the marketing shifted to women's fiction. I see a "woman realizing that she needs to get her life in order" book here. Not a "woman realizing that she needs to get her life in order, triggered by this budding romance with her roommate" book.

The Sex:

There is some. You know where everything is going. It's not super explicit. I think I would've found it hotter if Brynn and Josh had been built with chemistry in mind. But they weren't. So...

The thing is that I don't think this is a bad book, but I do think it falls short as a romance. I liked Kate Robb's writing style. I was hooked in the beginning--it drew me in. But if this is a romance, as the title promises... it misses the mark there.

Thanks to NetGalley and Dial Press for providing me with a copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

A fun, quick read! This book was a little corny and cheesy, but overall enjoyed the story. Thank you to netgalley for the ARC!

I was beyond excited to receive this book as an ARC! This is my first Kate Robb book and I loved her writing + the overall concept for this book.

Both of the main characters were surprisingly really likable and I had the best time giggling and kicking my feet while reading this book!

Brynn and her roommate Josh wake up inside Brynn's favorite 2000's drama show and have to give their characters the ending they deserve before the show ends!

I devoured this book from start to finish!

If you’re looking for a great pallet cleanser after a heavier book this one is a great choice!! It was fluffy and hilarious and super light! It’s just a feel-good story! I’ve never read a book with this concept before but it was done so well and the ending was perfect!

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for the privilege of reading this as a the ARC! ❤️

Kate Robb does it again with another fun romance with incredibly unique twists! I was so excited to be sent this ARC because I loved This Spells Love, and Prime Time Romance made me feel all the same feelings!

Brynn is just a girl trying to figure things out after her unexpected divorce rocks her world. She loves to escape into the fictional Carson's Cove in the form of bingeing her comfort show that ended abruptly on a cliffhanger. On the night of her birthday, her and her roommate Josh are enjoying some episodes when a mysterious stranger delivers a cake to her house. It's her birthday so she obviously makes a wish! What she doesn't know is the next day, she and Josh will wake up in THE Carson's Cove and must take on the roles of two of the characters in the show. Brynn and Josh's only way out of this fictional town is to give the characters the ending they deserve but never got,

This was such a cute, fun, and easy read. The only thing I didn't love was the insta-love between Brynn and Josh. I feel that their relationship could have had a lot more depth but it was lacking here. They didn't really have much of a relationship prior to landing in Carson's Cove, and I feel that could have given their relationship what it was missing. However, I feel Josh was the perfect person to help bring Brynn back down to earth while they navigated their lives in Carson's Cove and I loved the connection they built with each other throughout the story. It was also great to see their individual growth during their time in Carson's Cove! I love when characters can overcome their internal battles while building strong relationships with each other! Definitely will be recommending this one to everyone!

If you love magical realism, alternate reality, roommates to lovers tropes, you'll definitely want to add this to your TBR for late summer/early fall!