This is like if Dawson’s Creek was taken over by dark spirits and I am here for it.

We all know Pacey and Joey were meant to end up together. We knew it the whole time. The king of forehead kisses and shy smiles and open adoration could never be usurped by Dawson. And this was IT!!!

There was spooky magic. There was a tiny farm. There were pretty dresses. There was Joshua Jackson fanfiction.

I read the whole thing in one go and I’m delighted. An excellent palate cleanser of a book.

unfortunately, this was a miss for me. the premise seemed promising, but i couldn’t really connect with either character. i found myself skimming and parts that i did read ended up being a little too cheesy for me. the romance also just wasn’t believable that i had a hard time rooting for them.

thanks dial press for the e-arc in exchange for an honest review!

Reviewed for NetGalley:

Well, this book came at the perfect time: during a rewatch of Dawson’s Creek with my daughter. So much nostalgia, I loved this to pieces.

Brynn and her roommate, the morning of her birthday, are miraculously transplanted to Carson’s Cove. Except Carson Cove doesn’t exist, only on the TV screen.

In order to return home, Brynn and Josh must find the happy ending that the Carson’s Cove fans always wanted, but were cut short as the show was cancelled on a cliffhanger.

This was absolutely a love letter to Dawson Creek, and especially Pacey Witter, so I was 100% here for it.

Prime Time Romance tells the story of Brynne, a recent divorcee who just turned thirty and wants to enjoy the comfort of her favorite teen drama show. After a wish gone wrong she ends up in the world of the show with her roommate Josh, both being forced to play their assigned parts. Neither of them are fully prepared for all the rules that living in this fictional universe entails and that one person’s idea of a happy ending is not for everyone.

This was a quick read and pretty transparent. I was a bit confused at the idea at first of an adult wanting to be in a teen show but once they got there and were trying to find the ending as adults it got a little less weird. One thing I felt was a bit unfinished was Brynne’s relationships outside of Josh, she developed this lovely friendship in Carson’s Cove and we saw some kind of terrible friends at the beginning of the story that I hoped for more there. The romance felt a little instantaneous between Brynne and Josh.

What’s not to love about this book?
I love the nods to all the 2000s shows!

Great dual POV plot. I enjoyed seeing how Brynn and Josh’s stories played out! I’d love to go to Carson’s Cove!

Oh my goodness! Pleasantville was such an adorable movie in my opinion, and this book is such a parallel it absolutely does not disappoint! Recently divorced and afraid true love will never happen for her, Brynn makes a wish on a birthday cake delivered to her by a delivery driver. She just so happens to make the wish next to her roommate Josh.

Waking up, they've both been transported into Carson's Cove, Brynn's favorite sitcom. The delivery driver, Sheldon, has transported them into the show so Brynn's "character" Sloane can get her happily ever after. Yes, you have to suspend some belief here. But oh my is it worth it! The millennial references are endless. Carson's Cove is absolutely Dawson's Creek. The name of the bar is a nod to Buffy. The originality of this story is ridiculously good, and the writing is absolutely perfect! I fell in love with this story in the first chapter and it got better and better as it went on. Part love story, part a novel of finding your own happily ever after no matter what that means you! I fell in love with Kate's writing after reading her first novel, and this one is proof she's just getting better and better! Worth all five stars and then some!

🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟/5

I received an advanced copy for free and am leaving this review voluntarily. Thank you to NetGalley, Kate Robb, and Random House Dial Press. 💕

A young divorcee, Brynn (FMC), tries to navigate single life. She moves in with roommate, Josh (MMC), so that she can afford her mortgage. On her thirtieth birthday, she makes a wish for her own happily ever after. The next morning, she wakes up and finds herself in the ideal world of her favorite 2000s teen soap, Carson’s Cove, in this second-chance rom-com.

Read if you like:
-rom-coms
-small town romance
-second chance romance
-2000s nostalgia
-dual POVs
-Dawson’s Creek
-happily ever afters

This book was magical, emotional, adorable, and fun. The writing was perfect! Kate made me love every single one of her characters and feel like I was a part of the story. The chapters were short, so I flew through this. I absolutely loved the concept of this book and it was executed so well. I’m obsessed. I highly suggest adding this one to your TBR.

Thank you to Kate Robb, Random House, and NetGalley for this ARC!

It had potential for me to truly love however I found the main character Brynn to be somewhat annoying. The concept of her and Josh traveling into another world was interesting. The storyline I understood it was just the element of characters and how far things went didn’t work for me. It took a long time for Josh and Brynn in every way and sometimes other elements were rushed, just not a book I’d a keep forever in a library of my own.

thank you to Random House Publishing and NetGalley for a virtual ARC in exchange for an honest review. Brynn’s life is a mess and the only place she has been able to find solace is in the world of her favorite teen TV drama Carson’s Cove. The morning after her 30th birthday, she wakes up in Carson’s Cove with her roommate Josh. In order to return to the real world, they have to give the characters of Carson’s Cove the ending they deserve. I really enjoyed following Brynn and josh as they adapt to the world and navigate the complexities of acting as someone else while dealing with their own desires and needs. All in all, I really enjoyed this book and especially loved the ending! I did feel it dragged a bit for me in the middle which is why I gave it 3 stars

At 20% into the book, we just arrived to the island. The pacing of the book is incredibly slow, and I didn’t feel personally invested. I stopped reading. Solid 3-4 stars for the target audience though. It’s well written.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for the ARC.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶️

Thank you so much NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for the opportunity to review this ARC. 🫶🏼

This was my first Katie Robb book. I had no idea what to expect. Magical realism?! It was soo fun! Genuinely felt like I was pulled into a 90s/00s teen drama. I don’t know how to explain this, but I feel like this was a show/movie you would watch during summer vacation. If you’re someone who loves rewatching your comfort shows, take a pause from that and read this book. Immediately!

Imagine it’s the night of your birthday and some random Uber eats guy delivers a cake. Your roomie/crush insisted you have a slice before bed, you make a wish, blow out your candle, and wake up in your favorite comfort show with him. What a dream! Or maybe a slight nightmare?

This story was more than a romance, it’s about finding out what happily ever after means to you while finding your true self. 🥹

Be sure to add this to your tbr or pre-order today. Available September 3rd, 2024.

If you love 90s and 2000s teen TV dramas, are a teenager in your 20s, have angrily tweeted at Netflix about a show getting cancelled that ended on a cliffhanger, have ever had a poster of a teen heartthrob on your walls, have a TV ship that you love (or hate), or love any combination of cake, magic, and romance, then boy do I have a book for you. Prime Time Romance is about what happens when we wish our lives were better than they were, and the greatest inspiration we have is our comfort TV shows that we’ve seen a million times. Brynn is just a woman who thought she had it all, lost it, and is fighting between being herself and being who she thinks she wants. I loved watching Brynn discover what happily ever after truly means to her. Overall I can say that I really enjoyed this story!

ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review

It was the small town romance of my dreams!! I loved every second of this book!!! The story, growth and friendships (Luce deserves the world) made it the perfect romcom a girl could ever ask for. Josh (heart eyes) was amazing soul and made me fall in love!! And my girl Brynn is an icon to her amazing humor to knowing what she wants / deserves in this world!!

4.25 stars!! I loved this sweet little fantasy romance book. With Brynn and Josh getting sucked into the world of "Carson's Cove," I thought that it had all of the perfect nods to 2000s teen dramas. It was super nostalgic, and to read Robb's easter eggs list in the back of the book made it even better. I also found Josh and Brynn to be such lovable and relatable characters, although I do wish their own struggles (grief, divorce) had been explored a bit more. I think this would be perfect for fans of "The Seven Year Slip", with that magical realism fantasy vibe.

Thank you Penguin Random House for this e-ARC :)

Truly thought I was going to love it and I was eating it up until they went into the fake tv show under different names and then it lost me. I just couldn’t get back into it after that.

Who didn't wish they could live in their favorite teen drama growing up? What happened if that dream came true, but it wasn't everything you thought it would be? Kate Robb's Prime Time Romance new novel works to answer these questions with Brynn a recent divorcee struggling to find herself after a the end of her marriage. With a new roommate and a birthday wish that goes awry, Brynn and Josh (the roommate) find themselves in Carson's Cove, the fictional town from Brynn's favorite teen drama with the directive to give the main characters the happy ending the audience never received. Shenanigans ensue and Brynn is forced to reckon with returning to real life or living the life she thought she wanted.

This was a fun concept and I think Robb did a good job of finding a way to make the "magic" or "fantasy" aspects of this story not feel totally unrealistic. I liked the main characters and while Sheldon could have been more flushed out and present overall I enjoyed this story.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for this ARC. This will be a beach read for summer 2024 for sure.

This book gave me all the feels. This story follows Brynn who is lost in love and completely down on herself as her 30th birthday approaches. Newly divorced and quite unhappy with her fairy tale ending, She goes on a blind date with shoes that are one sized small and the whole thing is a bust. On her way home she gets an invitation to her friend’s house. Which turns out to be them just using her to get into a very exclusive club. A club that her roommate Josh works at. She decides she just wants to be home and take off her shoes. She wants to turn on the TV and watch her favorite show Carsons Cove because everything in Carsons Cove always works out and the most idyllic place. Josh ends up going home with her and they binge her favorite show. At midnight a bakery shows up with a cake. She makes a wish and is transported to Carson Cove. Where she is no longer Brynn but Sloane. Josh becomes the bad boy Fletch and what happens next is a whole bunch of craziness. As it turns out that perfection is not always the ideal and the grass is not always greener on the other side. As Brynn tries to navigate Carsons Cove and the darker side of this little mystical town she learns the true meaning of friendship and love. I enjoyed the characters and I thought the whole premise with references to other shows like Carsons Cove was just so much fun. It shows us that sometimes what we think we want when life gets messy is something totally different than what we anticipate. Life is never perfect and sometimes you need to hit rock bottom to fully see what’s right in front of you the whole time.

Thank you to Netgalley, Random House Publishing & Kate Robb for the ARC.

I adored this!
Newly divorceé, Brynn Smothers just turned 30 and her life isn’t going how she expected it to go. With a rough night at the club with her so-called friends, she finds salvation (with the help of her room) at home, watching her favourite comfort show.

This really connected with me and felt so relatable. I would love to just wake up one day and be in my favorite comfort show when life felt rough — I feel as if we’ve all been there.

The romance could have fleshed out better. I was definitely hooked on the beginning of the novel and found myself smiling at their build up, but it sort of felt like a flat season — there’s so much build up, only for it to drag on longer than it needed to be.

Definitely a cozy magical realism romance recommendation!

3.75 for me!

Yes, I can relate with the FMC who is obsessed with a TV show from her teen years that never got a proper ending. Am I a normal person who watched the quintessential 90's teen shows this book references? Of course not. From 1996-1997 I was really into this show on Nickelodeon called Space Cases about a crew of teens from different alien races who are trying to find their way home after hurling their ship through a warp hole. Naturally, it was canceled and I am convinced that I was just living a fever dream.

At this point in my adult life, I would be content with being transported to a quaint little oceanside town too if it meant I got to only read Kate Robb books. I really didn't think anything could top This Spells Love, but Prime Time Romance is THE BOOK and Brynn and Josh are ENDGAME.

There was the charm of magical realism mixed with likeable characters, humor, and spice that Robb executes so well. It checked off all the boxes in a cozy romance that I could ask for. It was a cute, quick read that I couldn't down and can't wait to read it again.

I also appreciated the list of things that the author referenced and was inspired by in writing the book and there was also another bonus at the very end, which I will not spoil, that was a cute touch.

Buying a physical copy as soon as it releases!

Thank you so much to Random House Publishing and NetGalley for the digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Loved this one. It was a cross between Dawsons Creek and the movie Click. ❤️
The recent divorcee main character who thinks her life is over- makes a wish on her birthday and she becomes the main character in her favorite TV show where she has “the perfect life”. (Think Joey on Dawson’s Creek)

The author shares a lot of fun details after the story ends that really took me back and even has the recipe for the infamous cake!

It was a light and enjoyable read that I will be recommending to friends!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️