Though the overall story has cute, feel-good vibes, I also think the plot is a bit tricky as it felt like a horror story at times - being stuck in a situation you have no control over and cannot escape…that aside, this is a fun read, especially if you love creative storylines and magical realism.

I adored the first few chapters and learning about Brynn’s current struggle with being a young divorcee and feeling like she has no allies or real friends. Her chemistry with Josh was evident as was the potential for them to be a perfect match. 3.5 stars.

Thank you to Random House and NetGalley for the opportunity to read a copy.

It's Pleasantville meets Dawson's Creek with lots of lovely nods to classic 90s and 00s teen shows. A birthday wish leads Brynn into the world of Carson's Cove, her comfort watch teen show which ended with a cliffhanger. Brynn is now Sloan, the heroine of the show who never got her happy ending with Spencer. As Sloan, Brynn has to ensure wrongs are righted. Unfortunately her housemate Josh has also been pulled into Carson's Cove, where he's the bad boy . Will Brynn fulfil her mission, or will she discover that the happy endings we crave might come differently to how we thought?

Kate Robb crafts a compelling alternative universe with witty and funny banter, blistering chemistry and a heartwarming story about healing your heart after its broken. Brynn longs for the sort of happy endings in TV, but she's been broken since her husband divorced her and she lost all her friends. I adored Josh and his own issues, dealing with his grief that's compounded by having to sell his father's bar.

I breezed right through this book because it was just so enjoyable with lovely touches of whimsy and charm, and characters to root for. Every chapter had me turning the page to eagerly find what happens next. This is the perfect read if you've ever wanted to live in the world of a fictional universe, so much so I wish I could visit Buddy's and meet Brynn and Josh.

Thanks to Random House/Dial Press Trade Paperback and NetGalley for the ARC.

I was invited to read this book by the publisher. This book has a quirky storyline, wherein roommates Josh and Brynn wind up as characters in her favorite soap opera show after she makes a wish for a happily ever after. I had so much fun with this book and loved the unique storyline. I enjoyed reading along while the characters learned that even in a soap opera, perfection really isn't what we ultimately want or need.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group/Dial Press Trade Paperback for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Brynn, a recently divorced woman who is navigating the complexities of life alongside her roommate Josh. Despite her efforts, Brynn finds herself feeling out of place in her social circle and enduring a string of disappointing dates. As her 30th birthday approaches, Brynn's night takes a turn for the worse when she loses her phone and wallet, leaving her feeling stranded and disheartened.
Brynn and Josh make their way home until the arrival of a mysterious stranger bearing a birthday cake sets the stage for a magical journey of self-discovery and newfound hope. As Brynn makes a wish in a moment of uncertainty, we are thrown into a captivating story filled with twists and turns that keep them eagerly turning the pages.

Kate Robb wrote this book with her heart and soul. It felt like the start of a dreamy teen beach movie. And yes, Kate, I felt the vibes you were going for!!
I read this in one day, I absolutely loved it

Thank you to NetGalley and Dial Press Marketing for the opportunity to read this eARC in exchange for my honest opinion.


This book was adorable. If you've ever felt like you'd like to one day wake up and be living in your favorite television show as one of the main characters, then this should be a pickup for you.

Brynn was having a hard time after her divorce from Matt. She'd taken on a new roommate, Josh, in her husband's absence to help with the mortgage and other bills. On her 30th birthday, a stranger shows up to her door with a birthday cake for her, and Brynn and Josh just assume he's an Uber Eats driver. Brynn makes a wish as she blows out her candle, and the next morning, she and Josh wake up inside Brynn's favorite tv series, Carson's Cove. In order to return to their normal lives back in Toronto, Brynn has to be willing to give her character the ending that people thought she'd been denied years earlier when the show was abruptly cancelled. The real question for Brynn is, is she willing to give up everything she now actually wants in order for that to happen?

The writing is darling, the characters are likeable, and there are open door scenes throughout the second half. If you enjoyed Kate Robb's This Spells Love, you'll enjoy Prime Time Romance.

Kate Robb is so good at the buildup between two love interests, that period of tension and secret pining before they realize they've caught real feelings. I loved the interactions between Josh and Brynn and feel like they truly had great chemistry. At the very end (spoiler alert?) it felt like they announced that they were in love with each other super quickly after being romantically involved for only a couple days, but they also had a relationship as roommates before that, so I guess that makes it more understandable. I loved reading about the evolution and flip flop of Luce and Brynn's (Sloan's) relationship and Poppy and Brynn's (again, Sloan's) relationship. But I couldn't get on board with the idea of them magically ending up in this TV show land but set 15 years after the show ended. I think I needed more of an explanation as to how and why they ended up there. The explanation that was given felt kind of half-baked... Why did Sheldon show up to HER apartment specifically? How does he have so much sway/influence over how her birthday wish is fulfilled?? She could have gotten her perfect happily ever after a number of different ways that didn't involve getting whisked away and into the set of this TV show. I just needed more. Keeping that in mind, I still devoured this book in less than 24 hours. I still love Kate Robb's writing and her characters and will absolutely continue to read anything she writes. If you enjoyed Pleasantville or Teen Beach Movie you'd probably really enjoy this! Thank you to Netgalley for this e-arc!

ARC REVIEW (thanks NETGALLEY!)

This was cute for someone who was a fan of 90s teen dramas. The characters weren’t fleshed out enough for me; you didn’t really get to know Brynn because she was too busy playing Sloan. Brynn and Josh fall in love after only like 4 days. Maybe if they had more history living together prior it would’ve made more sense.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC!

This was SO DARN CUTE.
I really enjoy Kate Robb’s writing and now must pick up her other novel This Spells Love.
The characters jumped off the page and were so lovable. The touch of magic pulled me in. And even though I didn’t personally get all of the teen TV show Easter eggs having not watched some of them myself, it was still a fun setting that I enjoyed.

Kate Robb has done it again! An easy 5 star read. She has the most engaging writing style that immediately pulls you into the story. You feel like you really know and understand the characters.

I love how both of her novels include a little touch of magic and going to an alternate reality. It’s so unique and makes for a really fun storyline.

I was absolutely living for all the subtle pop culture references. So many of the shows that shaped me as a teenager were inspiration for the plot.

Brynn and Josh were everything. One book just wasn’t enough and wish we were getting a sequel.

If you loved her debut novel, This Spells Love, you will love this one!!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for sending me a copy to review!

This one felt fun! After reading Kate Robb's first book & mostly enjoying it, I was excited to check this one out. It is a nod to the teen shows of my youth & is so fun & nostalgic.

Read this one if you:

- love Dawson's Creek
- think Pacey may be the ultimate TV boyfriend ever
- want a bit of fun magical realism
- always fall for the "bad boy" (but like maybe he's also the reformed bad boy too?)
- love books where characters make choices to just be better people & treat people better too

If you liked her first book, pick this one up too because I enjoyed it even more!!

A solid 3.5 stars for me















tw/cw:
2 open door descriptive sex scenes (easily skippable), minor swearing, divorce of FMC mentioned, death of a loved one mentioned

Thank you NetGalley and the Publisher for an advance e-copy of Prime Time Romance by Kate Robb in exchange of an honest review.

I truly enjoyed reading this book. The story centers around Brynn, a relatable protagonist who yearns for the simplicity and drama of her favorite teen TV show. Through a stroke of magic on her birthday, Brynn's wish comes true and she finds herself living in a world reminiscent of the beloved show. Robb's writing effortlessly weaves together the everyday struggles of adolescence with the allure of an alternate dimension. The book is filled with delightful Easter eggs and nods to classic TV tropes, adding an extra layer of enjoyment for fans of the genre. The dual point of view allows readers to understand both Brynn's desires and the perspectives of other characters, particularly Josh, the MMC. Although the romance takes a backseat to the journey of self-discovery, it would have been rewarding to witness more moments shared between the main characters. Nevertheless, Prime Time Romance remains an engaging, quick and easy read, perfect for those longing for a touch of magic and nostalgia. Robb's whimsical storytelling and skillful world-building make for an enchanting experience that will leave readers craving more." This was 4.3 Stars read for me!

Brynn & Josh
Roommates to more
Magical realism
Make a wish
Small beach town
🌶️🌶️

I guess it’s more a genre than a trope…but I really enjoy reading magical realism in romances. (No one can convince me to read another witchy romance but that’s a gripe for another time).

I never really watched Dawson’s Creek or any of the teen drama back in the day so I’m sure I missed some funny Easter eggs. When things are so perfect and easily resolved there’s definitely a cosmic rebalancing that happens. This is where the story lifts the curtain and reveals the wizard.

Anyway the romance between Brynn and Josh felt so natural. The way she has butterflies with him but angry hornets with Spenser… It was funny to me when her and Spenser finally kiss that he thinks it’s the best kiss ever and she thought it was sloppy and kinda gross.

Brynn thinks she broken after her divorce and being in the world of Carson’s Cove is her comfy corner of the world. But be careful what you wish for…. Everything does work out in the end but it took a few wild turns to get there.

**received this ARC from the publisher for honest review. Book comes out later this year in September**

This is my second Kate Robb novel and it’s just as much fun as her first book! In Prime Time Romance, the main character, Brynn, wishes that her life could be as carefree and predictable as her favorite teen drama, and thanks to a magical birthday cake, gets a chance to experience that life for herself. I don’t typically seek out books involving any sort of magic or suspension of disbelief, but Kate Robb manages to draw me in every time with her whimsical alternate dimension stories.

Prime Time Romance really captured the essence of life in a teen drama, as intended, with lots of fun Easter eggs and references to classic TV tropes and characters thrown in. The story is told in dual POV, so while it feels like most of the storyline focuses on Brynn, we still get to see plenty of the MMC, Josh, as well. I only wish we’d gotten to see a little more of the two main characters together along the way. It felt a bit more like a journey about finding oneself than a romance at times. Nonetheless, it was still a quick, fun, easy read!

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for the ARC of this book!

I really enjoyed this! I loved the movie Pleasantville growing up, and this was a mix of that and Gilmore Girls. Kate Robb writes great alternate universe romances, and this is a good sophomore book. I do however wish it was slightly longer! I normally think books could do with maybe 30 fewer pages, but the alternative is true here. Having more on "Sloan's" relationship with Poppy would have been good, and maybe a few more scenes with Josh in the middle could have really pushed this over the edge towards a five for me. I still tore through it however, and can't believe I now have to wait maybe upwards of a year for her next book.

"I am okay to wake up every morning and know that there aren't guarantees in life, but that there is adventure. That there are new beginnings. That I need to love hard for whatever time I'm given because life can throw curveballs at any moment, and sometimes those curveballs are wild."

I am a huge fan of Kate Robb from her debut novel, This Spells Love. That was an easy 5 star read for me and this book was exactly the same! There is something about her writing that just grips me right from the start. I binged this book all in one day as it just pulled me right in and never let me go!!

Kate Robb delivers such clever, witty dialogue that was so incredibly enjoyable to read. As a fellow Canadian, and also fellow Ontarian, I continue to love her niche references, as I rarely get to spot these in books written by American authors!

Readers meet Brynn, newly divorced and newly 30, she is feeling very lost in her life. Her life was not at all where she thought it would be at this point in her life and as a hopeless romantic, she is struggling with her new-found reality that "true love" wasn't all it was cracked up to be. However, she can always rely on her all-time favourite show, Carson's Cove, to keep her company. I think almost everyone can relate to this, we all have that one show (or multiple) that we keep going back to time after time, it's our safe happy place, we know what will happen in the plot lines, the characters feel like personal friends at this point and there is something just so comforting and safe about that.

Brynn is currently living with her roommate Josh, a friend of her brother's who, at this point, she hasn't gotten to know so well. He works as a bartender and is going through a bit of a lost time himself. When his father passed away, Josh tried to save the family bar, however due to the pandemic, the business unfortunately had to be sold, but is recently back up for auction. Josh is trying to decide if he can work up the courage to try again, after he feels like he failed his late father the first time.

When on the eve of her 30th birthday, she makes a wish on a magical cake, her and her roommate Josh are transported the world of Carson's Cove, and given the task to "complete" the series with the perfect ending that Brynn had always believed it deserved. The show was unexpectedly cancelled before some main storylines were wrapped up, and now Brynn and Josh, playing characters within the show, have to finish the plot in order to get home. Brynn has always dreamed of living in a world like Carson's Cove, where everything magically works out, there are no "real world" stressors and it's seemingly perfect and care free.

Through Kate Robb's incredible writing, readers follow along as Brynn and Josh get to know each other on a deeper level, and discover that living the "perfect" reality is now all it's cracked up to me. Real life is messy and bumpy, there are mistakes and surprises along the way, but all the bad makes the good so much more worth it. I already know this book will forever live in my head and every reader is going to be able to find a way to relate to it! In an ironic twist, while Brynn get's to live within her comfort show that makes her feel so safe and cozy, this book gave me the exact same feeling!!

This book was SO fun! A beautiful tribute to the teen dramas that made up our youth.

I was approved for this today on NetGalley and I sat down and DEVOURED the entire thing. I also have a cold and was going to spend the day on the couch anyway but still!

Kate Robb has made her way to my automatic add to TBR list for all her future releases!