I read a snippet of this book in "Buzz Books 2024: Romance" and immediately requested the ARC on NetGalley. After reading the full thing, I was a little disappointed. I loved the concept and how the whole town seemingly comes together to put on this performance for Noah, but I really questioned why they felt like they owed him this - because being proud he made it to broadway just didn't cut it for me. There was no buildup to Noah and Luke. They went from 0 to 100 in like 12 pages; not even knowing Luke's middle name to moving in with him happens in one chapter. I also understand there needed a way for Noah to work from Illinois while still in the broadway/musical space, but a personal phone call from Elton John felt like a little much. I think a few less story lines would have brought more depth to the remaining ones. And I think Noah could use a little humbling. Luke tried a bit when asking about him going to college, etc. but I don't feel like Noah learned from this. He was very self-centered, not noticing other people, like his dad and how he showed his love, or how the high school bullying just magically stopped.

I did enjoy the witty one-liners, I loved Noah's mom, and Melissa and Kiara were wonderful and supportive friends even when Noah self-admittedly wasn't the best to them. Overall it was okay, and I am sure some people will really love it. But for me, I needed more character development and less story lines / characters to keep track of.

Such a cute Rom-com with depth and exploration of finding yourself and second chance romance! Funny, adorable and everything I look for in a romantic comedy!

Thank you to Viking Penguin for the advance reader copy. These opinions are my own.

After Noah's Broadway musical is horribly panned, he races home to Illinois to be there for his ill father. And his family and agent sign him up to put on the musical with the community theater in his small town.

There was so much about this book I appreciated, most notably the small town community and how they came to support Noah and his family. And I absolutely adored their festival celebrating hot air balloons. The top of my bucket list is to experience something like The Glow, in which everyone got to see the lit up balloons at night. Most of all, I am such a lover of all things musical theater and enjoyed every reference.

However, I wish the synopsis made it clear this was a love triangle, as I would have been less likely to pick the book up. The agent referenced is Noah's boyfriend, so I held my breath wondering if Noah would cheat.

As a result, I never fully felt the romance or rooted for it. Instead, I was most invested in the family and parental relationships. And I wanted to see Noah's character grow and learn more from his mistakes.

For all that, I still really enjoyed both the musical Noah wrote in the book and the ending of this novel. It had me in tears. So I come away with mixed feelings but ultimately grateful to have experienced it.

CW: previous homophobia, hospitalization

This book was good, but it wasn’t for me. I found Noah to be overly mean at times. Cheating is also a major plot point, and I prefer books without cheating.

At the same time, it was a sweet story with lots of heart. The way the town comes around
Noah is inspiring and also a good reminder that we can grow.

I recommend it if you are a fan of musical theatre, enemies to lovers, and small town romance!

What do you do when your first major Broadway musical is a flop and closes on opening night? This is the question Noah Adams is faced with after his musical adaptation of King Lear (Stage of Fools) flops on Broadway. Unfortunately, the universe conspires against him even more when he receives a phone call from his mother after just receiving the reviews that his father has had a heart attack and Noah needs to come home. Noah and his boyfriend/agent, Chase, fly to Plainview, IL. Unbeknownst to Noah, everyone in his old community theater and his family have been conspiring behind the scenes to get Noah to direct the first non-professional version of his Broadway flop, Stage of Fools.

When Chase has to go back to NYC for work and Noah dives headfirst into directing a cast of non-professional actors, Noah depends more and more on Luke, the man who works around his father's farm. Oh, and Luke was one of Noah's tormentors in high school, so Noah absolutely despises the man.

In this enemies to lovers romantic comedy, the cast is quirky and the characters are just not perfect enough to make them believable. Admittedly, some readers may find Noah a bit whiny, but I've known guys like him, so I found the portrayal realistic.

AS a whole, I really enjoyed this book. As a whole, I think Chad Beguelin's <i>Shomance</i> is a fun romp through the joys of putting on a show, and realizing that the man you may hate is just the man you've been looking for.

I want to thank the author/publisher for the opportunity to review Showmance before publication. While I am thankful for the opportunity, this review does not reflect their generosity.

This is a fun rom-com. Perfect for fan of Steven Rowley and fans of Broadway. Noah is a character that moves from unlikeable to sympathetic and the reader is really rooting for him by the end.

I am not sure I liked the main character at all. This was like Gilmore Girls except Rory thinks she’s very much above the whole small town thing. The entire town worships her no matter what but she thinks she’s better and smarter than all of them and she HATES the festivals. And after being continually proven wrong, she still can’t admit her shit stinks just like everyone else. That’s the main character in a nutshell. He’s like every musical theater gay guy trope you can think of for wayyyyyyy to long. The rest of the characters were so lovely and likable and maybe that made him feel even worse but you would think that after multiple humbling events and conversations he would chill tf out with his elitism but he makes a joke about not wanting to visit a trailer park like 65% of the way through the book. That’s wild.

I really like the premise of the story and you can tell the author knows his stuff. He went to Tisch and he’s been nominated for SIX Tonys for playwriting and lyrics. I just wish he wrote a more likable main character 😅. I would absolutely be interested in reading his future books.

A clever return-to-the-hometown second chance gay romance for the ages. It's got a lot of camp and I'll take it.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an advanced copy. This book had everything you could want when dealing with the theater: one-liners, set changes, song riffs. I felt the passion Noah was pouring into his musical and loved his determination.

Totally fine and forgettable romance, I enjoyed the LGBtQ aspect of this one but I thought it was totally just kind of fine

I will normally devour a book like this, but I had to force myself to finish. It's less romance and more of an observation of dysfunctionality.

When I pick up a romance, whether it be single title or category, I expect sex scenes. This book was so bland it could have been middle grade. It's almost as if the author and publisher forgot this is an ADULT title, an LGBTQIA+ story to boot. There's no heat, passion, or anything else that makes this romance other than some kissing and a few trite words tossed around like a baseball during ball practice. Publishers lean into heterosexual romances, but give short shrift to same-sex ones almost as if they're listening to the far-right evangelicals instead of readers.

In any romance, I also expect to have two main characters I actually like. Noah is unlikable throughout the book, although the author tries to have him do a 180 in a matter of weeks, something I found unbelievable and forced. It's not that he's unredeemable; he's detestable. Why would poor Luke latch onto this guy based on some puppy crush from high school? Luke's obsession for this man makes no sense.

The time in which all this happened played like a stereotypical gay man hopping from one relationship to another. One minute Noah is deeply committed to Chase, and the next minute he's deeply committed to Luke. That's less of a romance than bar hopping by a single gay man looking for sex (which I did plenty of in my youth). Even worse is that the second deeply committed feelings are with someone whom Noah remembers as being mean to him for years in high school. That would take more than a few weeks to overcome. This premise would have worked much better without Chase in the picture. If lovelorn, single Noah had returned to his hometown after a failed Broadway musical, then it would have been more believable that he fell for someone who carried a torch for him all these years.

To top it off, the author decides the answer to having a long-distance relationship is to have Elton John hire Noah out of the blue to be a lyricist after hearing just one song that Noah wrote in a single night. Right, because we gays stick together like that. That's the moment I wanted to throw the book across the room, but doing so would have broken my tablet.

If someone is looking for an LGBQIA+ romance, this isn't it.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC of this book. This was a cute and quick Achillean read. 3.5 overall.

At first Noah annoyed me because he was so naive and bratty. But as the book went on I could identify with him way more than many other characters. He had faced a lot in his life, and as the saying goes “hurt people, hurt people.” I can identify with the feelings he had about not being enough, but also being too much. It can do a number on your life. Equally relatable was the need to control when everything is going wrong, which can lead to people seeing you as a horrible person.

Luke’s character was less exciting for me. He gets portrayed as this amazing can do anything type of guy, but it felt like he lacked depth overall. He had quite the back story, but there wasn’t much there other than some minor freak outs around losing people (which again makes sense given his background). It sort of felt like the very rose colored glasses view of him.

Least favorite character was Chase. Other than creating to push for Luke and Noah, he was just shallow. And I could spot what he was going to do from the first few chapters. I think while this could be a negative, it shows a well-written character because you could just tell he was the type of person who is selfish.

I feel like the real stars of this novel were the women in Noah’s life. Quick witted for being a small town. His mom seems truly wonderful. Love that he can go to her with his problems. His two female friends are just so lovely too. I 100% relate to the use of sarcasm as a love language!

Other love- broadway and musicals! This is the main reason I wanted to read this book, and even though fiction you could feel some of the real experiences of the author.

Overall, a good first novel and enjoyable read.

Thank you so much to Penguin Group for the ARC of Showmance in exchange for an honest review!

Fresh off a Broadway catastrophe (sing a few bars of “Changing Lives” from the Prom, why don’t you?), Noah Adams returns to his hometown in the middle of nowhere, Illinois, to lick his wounds and try to put himself back together. His career as a playwright in peril, he ponders his next move only to discover that his agent has arranged for him to put on a local version of the very musical that sank him. His failure on display is one thing, but to make matters worse, he keeps running into the town’s good ole boy and Noah’s former bully, Luke. Luke is handsome and opinionated and Noah finds himself not only re-thinking Plainview, and his oldschool projections of Luke, but possibly himself as well.

Funny and undeniably charming, Showmance is a sweet, easy read primed for a Hallmark adaptation. I personally am a softie for a small town of quirky characters so this was really perfect for me. Noah’s character was at times frustrating, and some of the storylines felt like they could have been developed deeper, but it’s always nice to read something feel-good. Like going to the theater, it’s a slice of escapism and really all about belonging. They say that life is a stage, and sometimes the best moments happen unexpectedly… So take a deep breath, and get out there.

It’s been a long time since I’ve read a book in a day, but I did it with Showmance! This was a fast-paced, funny, and undeniably adorable book. We have Noah, an out gay man from a small Illinois town who is going through some career struggles as his musicals flop time and time again. He returns home when his father has a medical crisis, and finds that his family’s farm has hired one of his high school bullies to work there. Miscommunication occurs (but it gets better). Cute shit happens (I won’t spoil it). All this happens while he puts on a local version of his most recent musical in his hometown.

I wasn’t a theater kid growing up, but by god this book made me want to be one. It had me giggling, swooning, and just the right amount of cheese.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the copy of my arc :)

Very Hallmark movie and super fun!
I am excited to hear the author speak at my local library next week.
What a fun story featuring theater.
I have so many friends I am going to recommend this to.

This is quite a nutty story. I was going to give it 3 stars until I read the author's note which explained how many of these characters are based on real people, especially his mother.
Noah Adams is a small town Illinois boy who grew up enamored of theatre. His memories of high school are filled with being bullied as the gay kid, and community theatre saved his life. He went off to New York, became a playwright with a cool agent who also became his boyfriend. However, his big Broadway show, a musical based on King Lear in a spaceship was a flop.
He goes home when his father has a heart attack and is convinced to put on his show at the community theatre.
This is really a valentine to small town theatres, lovingly portrayed by the author.
The dialogue is sometimes over the top, but how the theatre company helps Noah put some heart into his play, and the ramifications of that change Noah's life.
A fun gay Rom Com with a lot of love.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the EARC. This is my honest opinion.

Let me tell you, I went into Showmance without knowing anything about it and I left laughing, crying and smiling like a dork. What a gem of a book. It is a queer romcom about Noah, a playwright whose musical on Broadway opened and closed in one day and after that flop, he returned home to his small town to take care of his dad and reprises the failed show in the local theater. This book had so much heart. So many biting one liners. So much snark. So many laugh out moments. I loved the adorable romance. I loved the dynamics of the cast mates. I loved the small town vibes. I loved all of the characters. I loved the openness and inclusivity. I loved seeing Noah come into his own.

Ah I love a good theater story!

Showmance follows Noah Adams, a playwright whose first Broadway musical just opened and closed in the same month. Down on his luck, he visits his small home town in Illinois. There the local community theater has decided to put up his show, and wants him to stay and direct. Stepping away from the big time in NYC might be exactly what he needs.

I had a great time reading this story. Warmed my theater loving heart. Noah is a complex character that was easy to identify with, and I enjoyed following his journey back home. All the characters from his home town were cute and quirky and fun.

4.5 stars

3.5 - super cute rom-com with snark and a musical! My kid and I both love musicals, so I knew I just had to read this and I liked it a lot.

Noah, a playwright who has been struggling, returns to his small hometown in Illinois to put on a version of his failed musical. He is filled with snark and I love it - though sometimes he does hurt others, but he tries to make amends for that, so at least he is self-aware. Sorry - but I just found him hilarious and wish we could go have brunch together - I would just die laughing around him, I know.

Luke, Noah's high school era enemy, was a sweetheart 7 I'm glad they got their HEA. All in all, if you love musicals, small towns, low spice, fun side characters, and snark, this book is for you! It was for me ;)

Many thanks to Netgalley for this ARC- I really enjoyed it and this is my honest review.

A fun debut!! Noah is funny and dramatic and is overall a just a good MC. I am a sucker for a book set in a small town. Love a close-knit community. Sometimes the dialogue choices are interesting, but by the end it is just a feel-good read.


Thank you to Viking/Penguin & Netgalley for sending me this eARC in exchange for an honest review!