I wasn’t sure what to think with this book originally, and was worried it would be too much like Groundhog’s Day, which is one of my least favorite movies. Yes, I know unpopular opinion.

It starts out really well. Instantly was transported back to my teen years and Dawson’s Creek! I was always #teamPacey back then, so for obvious reasons I was #teamJosh from the get-go. The book also gave me Pleasantville vibes and was happy to see I was spot on as that being part of the inspiration.

I love the interactions between Josh and Brynn. They seemed real and fresh, but I loved the juxtaposition with the fake world and the perceived happiness even more. I love that Brynn and Josh create havoc in Carson’s Cove by the smallest of things. Even more I love that it throws open the door on the illusion we create for ourselves of what happiness should be based on fiction and how if what we see in fiction was reality, we probably wouldn’t like how we feel being a part of it.

Without spoiling ending, I do appreciate what Sloan deserves isn’t stereotypical.

Downsides- I feel like the end especially rushes after the climax. Instead of strengthening the yearning and concern, it just sort of jumped to “happily ever after.” Other parts also felt rushed, and would have preferred a slightly longer book for more time on building the tension for the main characters as well as just adding some complexity and depth to many of the characters.

Overall, not a bad read and really enjoyed the nostalgia it brought. 3.5-4 stars.

(Whoops accidentally posted a different review! Here is the correct one!)
This story was very reminiscent of Isn’t it Romantic and also gave Gilmore Girls/Dawson’s Creek! I felt so bad for Brynn on her bday eve, and hated that she was continuously taken advantage of by everyone around her, including the extra extra! I have definitely found myself wishing that I could step into the screen during one of my favorite shows so the idea behind everything was really fun to read. It was a bit predictable at times, but I guess that goes along with being stuck in a predictable world! I loved Josh and their parts together were adorableeee.

I wanted to love this book based on concept but the characters feel short for me and left me a little underwhelmed. This story follows Brynn recently divorced makes a wish for happily ever after only to be swept away to her favorite ya soap opera ( heavily inspired by Dawson creek) only to find she’s not alone but her roommates there with her. Trying to find a way home they realize things may not be as they seem. I loved the concept on this book I was hooked on early 2000 teen soap operas and I was so ready to fall down a hole of nostalgia. While this book had a lot of fun references to the shows I really did not like the characters they felt flat and I kept losing interest in them. There were a few spicy scenes in this book but overall was pretty tame. I would like to thank NetGalley and the publishers for a chance to read this book for an honest review.

Thanks for NetGalley and Random House | Dial Press Trade Paperback for this ARC. From the moment this book started and the references to Carson's Cove, it had all the Dawson's Creek vibes. I loved that part but I did not feel the chemistry between the two main characters, Brynn and Josh. They were suddenly in love but there was absolutely nothing more than a few interactions. The story lacked any connection between them. Was it an enjoyable book - sure! But minimal spice and vibes made it a bit dull.

this book fell short for me. I love teen shows and the premise but their relationship wasnt fully flushed out enough for me

This is a cute romantic comedy. Brynn is down on her luck wishing she was anywhere but in her current life. It takes being wished into an alternative universe with her roommate in order for her to realize what she needs is right in front of her.

This cute love rom com is an enjoyable read. It reminded me of someone wanting to be a part of your favorite teenage show.

Thank you to NetGalley, Random House Publishing, and Kate Robb for the e-arc of Prime Time Romance! I loved reading her debut novel, This Spells Love, so I was really excited when I got the arc for Prime Time Romance.

Brynn, who is recently divorced, is resigned to the fact that her life will never be perfect and that she will most likely never find love again. To fill her days, she binges her favorite comfort show, Carson’s Cove — which is perfect except for the fact that the show was left on a huge cliff hanger and town sweetheart and golden boy were never able to profess their love for one another.

Josh, Brynn’s roommate, ran his late-dad’s bar, until financial troubles caused him to sell it. So now instead of risking it all and owning a bar, he just works as a bartender at a local club — where he ends up rescuing Brynn after a terrible night out with “friends.” When they get home, Brynn puts on her comfort show and binge watches with Josh, until they get interrupted by a DoorDasher with a surprise birthday cake for Brynn.

After a birthday wish gone wrong, Josh and Brynn wake up in Carson’s cove. When they realize that there’s no way to leave, they run into the mysterious DoorDasher, who informs Josh and Brynn that they must make the finale that Carson’s Cove deserved, happen and then they can go home. With them playing the sweet girl next door and the bad boy, they have to stick to the script, or be stuck in Carson’s Cove forever.

I love that Kate’s books include a little bit of a magical/fantasy element (if that’s the right word for it?) — like an alternate timeline in This Spells Love or being shifted into an alternate reality like Primetime Romance.
In this book specifically I like that Josh gets slated as the bad boy bartender and not the boy next door, whereas Brynn is now the star. I loved all the banter that they had throughout the story, but also how their relationship grew to barely see each other roommates to try to survive in a crazy person’s made up world to falling in love.

Overall this was just such a fun read and made me laugh and smile and made me want to watch Carson’s Cove.

4/5 stars
2.5/5 spice 🌶️

- Magical
- Alt Reality
- Tv Show

This book had an interesting plot.
It was slow moving at times. I didn’t love it but I didn’t hate it. It was an okay read.

Main characters were very wishy washy with their decision.

I rate on vibes and it was a fun read but I don’t know if I’d pick it up again.

Imagine you wake up one day and you’ve somehow been transported to your favorite comfort TV show. That happens to Brynn, and somehow her bartender friend Josh ends up there too. In the grand scheme of things, both Brynn and Josh assume the characters of the show and have to act out their parts according to the puppet master who is essentially holding them hostage. But what happens when they both start to fall for each other for real? And that’s against the shows storyline?

I loved this book. I did not know I needed this book when I started it. It gives off Archie comics vibes and it’s so cute.

This was a super cute premise, but I struggled to keep up with all the jumping around and couldn't tell you for certain what happened in each chapter. I feel like the more I understood the less I understood? It's still cute, the characters click well, and the little spice is good.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC!

thank you netgalley for the e-arc. these two main characters/people should not be romantically involved and would be better off as friends. i didn't find there to be any chemistry between them, romantic or platonic. i thought the spicy scenes were unneeded and just thrown in to be there.

I want to thank NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy of Prime Time Romance. I was excited to dive into this book because the concept seemed unique and intriguing. While I did enjoy the storyline, I found it ultimately fell a bit flat.

The romance felt forced, and I didn’t feel/see much chemistry between our main characters. I was also disappointed with the ending, as I would have liked to know more about what happened to Carson’s Cove.

Overall, the book had an interesting plot but lacked a strong romantic connection I was hoping for.

This book was very cute and enjoyable. Something about me personally as a reader is I struggle with magical realism in books. I either want full on fantasy magic, or just realistic fiction and nothing really in between so this might be more of a reflection on me than on the book itself. I do think the magical realism moments in this book were done well, though. Overall, it was a very quick and lighthearted read but I did find myself somewhat bored at times.

This was such a cute little story. I loved the idea of this unique plot. The romance was alright but I didn’t feel a ton of tension in it. Definitely an adorable and lighthearted read though!

*Prime Time Romance* is an absolute blast from start to finish! Brynn and Josh, roommates with a shared love for TV drama, suddenly find themselves cast as regulars on a revival of Brynn’s favorite show, set 15 years after it originally ended. With all the old characters returning to town, Brynn and Josh are caught up in a whirlwind of drama, with an extra pushing for a very specific ending to the show. The twist? Once it wraps up, they’ll return to their real lives, but with so much personal growth along the way, things might not turn out as expected.

The dynamic between Brynn and Josh is fantastic—watching their relationship evolve alongside their individual journeys was so rewarding. The supporting characters also bring a lot to the table, adding depth and fun to the overall story.

The idea of being thrown into your favorite TV show, interacting with characters you’ve loved for years, is such a clever and entertaining concept. *Prime Time Romance* is a feel-good, heartwarming ride that’ll keep you hooked from beginning to end!

I thought this was a cute magical realism story! Carson’s Cove fave me major Dawson’s Creek vibes. I love stories with a little magic- wouldn’t the world be such a cool place with some magic?! I thought Brynn and Josh were both well written and enjoyable characters. I spent most of the book waiting for them to get a clue that they were the endgame, not Sloan and Spenser.

First person, dual pov
Main characters: Brynn and Josh

I loved This Spells Love so I was very excited to see another Kate Robb book coming out! Like her earlier book, this was well written, sweet, and madly hilarious. Reading this is exactly like watching a sitcom, which is a pretty unique thing that Kate can do with books.

Brynn has been down on her luck, crushed after a recent and unexpected divorce. Now she lives in her home she purchased with her ex and her new roommate Josh. When a night out with the girls takes them to the bar that Josh bartends at, Brynn is able to make an escape with his help. The pair weren’t necessarily friends at this point, but Josh could see Brynn’s despair, and so he takes her home and watches her favorite show with her: Carson’s Cove. The next morning, both of them wake up IN Carson Cove. For real.

This show is like a Gilmore Girls, One Tree Hill classic early 2000s teen drama. It is made up but the author explains it so well it feels like I’ve watched it. The pair are stuck in this weird dimension of Carson’s Cove but 10+ years later after the shows finale. They have to navigate this world as if they are characters in the show, and they can’t return until they perform the finale that Carson’s Cove deserved: Brynn’s character Sloan ending up with boy next door Spencer. But with Josh also in the mix, Brynn begins to see the flaws in her beloved nostalgic tv show.

On paper, this was perfect for me. However I did for some reason have a hard time finishing this. I would be enjoying the story, but every time I put it down I would forget about it for long periods of time. So maybe while I loved the stories and the characters and the humor, it wasn’t quite exciting enough to keep my attention. I blame the internet for my short attention span.

The concept of this was so good and the reading experience was amazing. I can’t really think of anything I DIDN’T like about this book, just that it maybe didn’t keep me completely engrossed the whole time. That is probably a me thing though. I highly recommend this!! 4.5 stars

The ratings for this book haven't been great, so I kept putting off reading it, but I was surprised at how much I enjoyed it! The one thing that was really off for me was the pacing of the romance between Brynn and Josh. It was so sudden and didn't quite make sense, even though they seemed like they had the potential to be adorably sweet together. I think that as a Millennial, I was the prime audience for this book. It reminded me of several teenage dramas that I watched in high school. I thought it was actually quite fun and I found myself needing to read to the end.

Thank you to Netgalley, Kate Robb and Random House Publishing Group for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Definitely gives off vibes of a 2000s teen soap version of Pleasantville. On the eve of her 30th birthday, newly-divorced Brynn wants a love and life like those on her favorite show Carson’s Cove as she binges it once again, reliving the cliffhanger ending after it was canceled too soon. After a surprise birthday cake shows up at her door, a magical midnight wish transports Brynn and her roommate Josh to Carson’s Cove. They find that she’s now town sweetheart Sloan & Josh is bad boy Fletcher & together, they must give the characters the ending they deserve…or risk not making it back home at all. And the longer they spend in this fictional town, the more they realize it’s not as perfect as it seems…especially when it comes to romance.
I loved the first half of this book and imagined if the same happened to me and I was transported into Gilmore Girls or the OC. But much of the rest of the book lagged on and it also left me with questions I never got answered (ie cake/Sheldon?). Overall, a cute magical realism romance though.
Thank you to Random House for the advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

This book is so cute!! I was a huge CW girlie back in the day, so I was the exact right audience for this romance. I also appreciated how Robb infused modern day sensibilities into that world and made me think about my old comfort shows in a new light. I wanted a little more from the romance aspect between the two main characters, but I did like their chemistry. I just wish they had more of a reason to like each other, besides the sexual attraction. All in all, though, I devoured this in a single day and couldn't put it down, so I was a satisfied customer!