Title: Just Some Stupid Love Story
Author: Katelyn Doyle
Genre: Romance
Media: Audiobook
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

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Favorite quote: N/A
Sum of this book in 5 words or less:

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Themes: soulmates, high school relationship, 15th class reunion, divorce attorney

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Thoughts:

Short summary - Molly & Seth were in a high school relationship. At their 15th class reunion, they see each other again. They predict the fate of five couples - including themselves. He predicts that she will be in love with him by the time they go to their 20th class reunion.

I think this book was realistic. These two didn’t immediately jump right back into a relationship with each other, Seth even proposed to someone else. Even when he proposed to his girlfriend he was still thinking of Molly - once again, realistic.

These two were super adorable and I absolutely loved their banter back and forth. Definitely read it if you have the chance!

Thank you to Katelyn Doyle, Netgalley, Macmillan Audio and Flatiron Book for the opportunity to listen to and review this audio ARC.
I’m a sucker for a good romcom, and this one was so entertaining. It did the whole second chance romance in a really enjoyable way. It was nice to see some realism in the couples around the MCs in that some worked, some didn’t, there were nods to real life struggles and traumas but still moments of levity. I do get a little irked that it seems so many of the stories in the romcom genre are around affluence, because that’s just not always relatable, but I don’t feel like it sabotaged the story. The narration was also consistent and entertaining.

The title though 👀😆 I love it!

I flew through this audio! I think Christine Lakin and Tim Paige did a phenomenal job with the narration and keeping me hooked on the story.

💜 Second Chance
☀️ Reverse Grumpy/Sunshine
💜 Cinnamon Roll Hero
☀️ Banter
💜 A Bet
☀️ Soulmates?

Being forced to share a table with your ex at your high school reunion is bad enough. But when he is kind and sweet and funny and still looks at you the way he always did? A woman can only resist so much.

Lots of time, distance and multiple chances. Hilarious banter and emails. Plenty of steam. Wonderful friendships. This book has it all.

I will admit that I find any references to the pandemic difficult to read. I like to pretend that that horrible time in our history didn’t exist (at least in the books I’m reading to escape reality) but I think for it being a topic I despise, it was pretty well handled and I was able to finish the book without wanting to chuck it into the ocean.

Overall, I loved the story and the writing. There was a lot of healing and growth… soulmates. Period. I smiled endlessly

Thank you Macmillian Audio for the gifted ALC

This was a solidly cute romance! My only real complaint is that I felt like there was a lot of unnecessary filler. This book felt very long for what it was and sometimes I struggled to stay focused. Beyond that though it was an enjoyable listen. I liked the characters and had no problem rooting for them to get their happy ending. This is definitely a book I would recommend if asked!

THIS BOOK 🥰 I loved and appreciated the timelines and how it really brought this book together and tied it in a bow at the end. WAS SCREAMING when inevitably there was a 3rd act breakup with only 90% left like how on earth will they get back together !? The two different POV’s accompanied by two different narrators really helped the strength of this audio book take off for me and love when authors have this done, it gives more depth.
Overall this book will have you laughing til the end and would highly recommend.

Molly and Seth dated in high school. Then, Molly leaves town, breaking Seth's heart in the process. Now, at their high school reunion, they begin a five year journey of seeing what they really are to each other.

I liked this one! This was a sweet romcom that had all of the moments that really tugged on my heartstrings. Here's what I loved:

Molly and Seth: These two are the ultimate black cat/golden retriever. Molly is pessimistic and guarded while Seth is optimistic and so open. But together they really worked.

The humor: I loved all of the one-liners. I found myself laughing out loud a few times!

The format: The novel is told in parts, each when Seth and Molly meet back up again one the course of five years. This really set the stage well for their romance.

The narration: I loved the duel narration of this. Both really captured the essence of Molly and Seth. Honestly, to me, these two will always be these characters now!

This book does deal a little with Covid so if that is a trigger, be warned.

All in al, this was a good second chance romcom!

Thank you to the author and publisher for the gifted copy!

3 ⭐️. Feeling a little torn on this book, on one hand I thought it was decent second chance love story about Molly and Seth, high school sweethearts who broke up when Molly ripped Seth’s heart out as they graduated high school, only to meet back up at their 15 year reunion and make a silly bet about 5 couples they think will end up together by their 20 year reunion, them being one of the couples. It was a cute premise but it was a very slow burn and the fmc and mmc made it incredibly hard to root for them as they both had some serious issues. She was very emotionally unavailable and he was cringy in his quest for love and his own HEA. This was also the THIRD book I’ve read in the past 30 days about a screen writer, isn’t that funny how some years many of the books we read end up being thematically very similar? In this case, it grew tiresome for me, which is not the fault of the author. I’d say this was a good debut romance and will certainly read more from Katelyn Doyle in the future.

I did listen to the audio of this book which is narrated by Christine Lakin and Tim Paige. Christine did a phenomenal job and I adored her chapters and it made me like Molly just a little more. I did not love Tim’s narration of Seth so that did put a damper on things for me. In this case I probably would have preferred to read this book instead of listen.

Overall, I’d say give this a try if you like:
* Second chance love
* High school sweethearts
* Grumpy x Sunshine reversed
* Slow Burn
* Open door romance, some spicy moments but not too many.
* Cinnamon roll mmc

Thank you to MacMillan Audio for this advanced listeners copy in exchange for my honest review.
Book publish date is June 4, 2024.

This rom-com has a cute premise that initially had me wondering how it would play out. I'm glad to say very well, with some depth and twists I wasn't expecting. Molly and Seth are the best kind of "opposites attract" couple with some pretty tough mountains to climb, in order to find their way to each other.

Molly is a daughter emotionally injured by her absent and thoughtless dad. It's a wonder that she writes rom-com scripts as well as she does, but that's how she rolls. Seth, meanwhile, is something of a saint who just wants to find true love--with the pain of knowing he found and lost it years ago. He's such a sweet soul, almost too good to be true, but there's real magic in seeing a man, a lawyer, portrayed that way. Evidently, his years as a lawyer only made him observant and more in love with Molly, rather than less (and somehow not cynical and burned out like most--all?--lawyers I know).

So this was a slow build for me, but build it, did, and I was happily routing on the couple in the end. The narrators added to the story, too. Thank you NetGalley and MacMillan Audio for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

DNF @ 52%/chapter 21


This has an extremely rough beginning where I was debating quitting at 5%. The FMC is intolerable. Its meant to be a reverse grumpyxsunshine but honestly she's just cruel and not grumpy. She's a screenwriter that doesn't believe in love. (At a glance it's a reverse of The Rom-Commers, but this one goes downhill imo.)

The story spans multiple years across text/email messages/calls of highschool ex's but i dont feel the chemistry. I loved the MMC being a golden retriever, but that's it. PASS.

I really wanted to love this one, I tried. It felt dragged on, the miscommunication was way too much for me. I was not able to finish it as I was too annoyed by it.

I LOVED this book. It was so not your typical rom-con and I loved every second of it. First, I loved that the characters were a bit older (mid-late 30s) so they had a lot of life experience that contributed to their “flawed” selves. I think the issues that both Molly and Mark had to navigate were so real and their journey felt 100% authentic to me. This was a real tear-jerker for me also, lots of moments where I was crying.

I was reading other reviews and there were complaints about the length of the book (spanning 5 years) and the sex scenes 😂 I personally loved the length of the book. I really think that amount of time is what it would have taken for the characters to grow and end up where they did. As far as the sex goes, it didn’t bother me one bit. There were two, maybe three scenes total. Yes, one was particularly smutty, but it’s fine it’s fine!! It didn’t detract from the story at all.

The narration really enhanced this overall reading experience, I’m so glad I listened to the audio version.

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan audio for the advanced copy. I can’t wait to see what Katelyn Doyle puts out next!

I went into the book knowing absolutely nothing about it. Romcoms are usually a safe bet and this one was no exception!

I love a second chance romance - honestly an elite trope for me. So when two high school sweethearts are meeting at a reunion and discovering their feelings again? I love that premise. It started off really strong and I was listening to it really quickly.

Where it lost me a bit was that it felt like a lot of back and forth - bad timing over and over. I think it took 60% for them to both be single at the same time. I wanted a bit more relationship building because their relationship felt rushed because of how long it took them to get together. In their breaks, they weren’t always in communication so it made it hard to grow the relationship.

Overall, this was a nice, easy book to listen to. I loved how it ended at their 20 year reunion and how it touched on real life events like quarantine during COVID and how it put a strain on relationships. It was really well done in that aspect! It didn’t feel like it spanned almost 15 years, which is probably a good thing.

Audiobook narrators were awesome! I don’t think I had ever heard Paige or Tim before but they did such a good job bringing the characters to life! They sounded good together and dual POV books can be hard to find the right combo of narrators. I don’t think I would have enjoyed this as much if I hadn’t listened to it. They did a great job with their character voices, keeping them consistent throughout which I loved. Highly recommend audio for a quick, easy listen!

🌟🌟🌟💫

Pub date: June 04, 2024

I really liked this book! I thought it was modern, refreshing, hilarious, and I liked the diversity with the characters.

It somehow blends really serious situations with humor, showing yes this is hard right now, but we’re one smile away from things being a bit better. I loved Seth. I thought he was so fun and I loved the way he thought and just how chaotic his brain seemed to be, but also how soft he was with the ones he loved, and how well he treated them both emotionally and with his actions!

I also loved Molly, a healthy amount of cynicism is welcome any day in my household. But Molly, she had an unhealthy amount of cynicism, her out look is bleak, her tone is dry, and she’s pretty hilarious. I vibe with her.

The side characters and the voices of the characters were amazing, I haven’t listen to a ton of duel pov/voice audiobooks so this was a cool experience, I think the voices fit how I imagined the characters would talk and overall just enjoyed listening to them!

4/5⭐️

Huge thank you to the author Katelyn Doyle, the voice actors, Christine Lakin, and Tim Paige for their incredible work. Also big thank you to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for my free copy of “Just Some Stupid Love Story”

I received this advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

If you are a fan of You, Again then this is the perfect book for you. It spans over multiple years and has a MC who has some issues with love, and is told from dual POV. It is steamy, and often funny.

I really wanted more character growth earlier in the book, even more so with how many years it traverses. I was frequently frustrated with Seth and Molly. It also felt repetitive at times.

Initially I really liked this one, but as the story went on it fell flat for me.

Loved this cute debut novel about second chances. Definitely a black cat, golden retriever combo which always speaks to me. I will definitely pick up any future books from this author.

This adorable and delightful debut gave me all the feels. Molly is a romcom writer who is a cynic about anything and everything that has to do with love. Seth is a divorce attorney who is a hopeless romantic and cannot wait to meet his "soulmate." They have a past, but the question is, will they have a future? I loved that the story is told from alternating POVs and Molly and Seth's written correspondence. The audiobook narration was phenomenal! Both narrators did an outstanding job bringing these characters to life, making this novel even more enjoyable. Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for this ALC in exchange for my honest review.

Molly, romantic comedy screenwriter living in LA, begrudgingly attends her 15 year high school reunion with her best friends. To her demise she isn't seated with them and is instead placed next to her ex, Seth, whom she dumped at their graduation and hasn't spoken to in 15 years. Seth is now a successful divorce attorney and even though he says he is over Molly, it's quite clear within minutes that he wishes things had gone differently that night. Well much to his surprise after way too many drinks, they spend a steamy night together back at the hotel. Molly doesn't want it to extend any longer than breakfast, Seth however has an idea in the works. They make a bet on the other couples at the parties about who will get married or divorced and to revisit this in 5 years. Now in theory this book sounded great and I should have loved it but I didn't vibe with the characters. Molly was not very like-able and Seth I just wanted to shake and tell him to move on with his life already. Thank you Macmillian Audio and NetGalley for the gifted copy in exchange for an honest review.

I really liked the premise of this book! I liked the idea of them seeing each other at their reunion and then making a bet as to who would still be together at the next reunion in five years, including themselves. I also enjoyed the banter between our two main characters and had high hopes for some really funny "rom-com" moments between them. That fell a little flat for me. As the story went on I didn't really find much humor in it. I also felt the book went on a little too long and a little too repetitive. Of course the ending was good and what I was hoping for. They definitely did have great chemistry with each other. Nothing too over the top spicy but a couple of good encounters with each other!
I would still totally recommend this book for any romance lovers! And it will definitely give book clubs things to discuss. A great debut novel for sure!

3.5 stars for me. I'll start with the fact that I absolutely loved the narration. I'm so glad that I got a chance to listen to the audio version of this book! The dual narrators were amazing and really brought the characters to live. I loved how they embodied the characters and the narration was excellent. Definitely narrators that I enjoy listening to!

The premise of this book was also interesting to me - it felt very classic rom com - second chance romance, Hollywood rom com writer + midwest divorce attorney, grumpy x sunshine. And there were elements of the story that I found interesting - the side bets on the relationships, the friend group that each of them had, and the fact that their high school reunions were the anchor points of the story. So much nostalgia - with lots of throwback references to when I was in high school as well - so that was definitely a lot of fun.

I think I struggled a little bit with the connection between the two MCs themselves. On their own, they're two fully developed characters with their own friends, baggage, and lives - living in separate parts of the country and doing their own thing. The ways for them to interact after the initial reconnection at the HS reunion felt almost forced at times. Random emails/phone calls, one super hot text/video exchange (whoo), and a few "happen to be in the same city" type meetings. It felt almost like the foundation for their relationship was based more on what they had in high school the first time than what they were building as adults. And the MMC's golden retriever, all in personality was a little too much for me at times.

Overall, this is an enjoyable read with lots of really fun parts to the story. Thank you to Macmillan Audio for the ALC!

This was… toxic. These characters are toxic, their relationship is toxic. I enjoyed the writing style and pace, but the plot and characters were just not good. The idea was there, high school sweethearts reuniting at their 15 year reunion and having a tiny, then longing for one another for years. But the execution was lacking. I kept hoping there would be character growth, but there was toxicity right up until the last 15 minutes.

I listened to the audiobook. It was okay. The female was good. The male sounded like a robot.

Thank you to Flatiron Books and Macmillan Audio for an advanced copy for my honest review.