I read the physical copy of this book and absolutely loved it! Danielle Allen has such a way of writing- the woman is gifted! And so is Wesleigh Siobhan! When I saw MacMillan Audio had Wesleigh narrating I just knew I needed to give it a listen. Both women know how to deliver- Danielle with the pen and Wesleigh with the audio! The narration was perfect and the narrator really knew how to get into character. I enjoyed listening to the audio just as much as I enjoyed reading the book!


I absolutely loved this book, especially Aaliyah and Ahmed's relationship! They made me laugh, they made me angry, they frustrated me, they made me laugh again, made me sad, and made me so darn happy! This book pulled many emotions from me and I appreciate Danielle for that. She is a phenomenal writer!
Aaliyah is a plus size, beautiful WOC on a mission to find a boyfriend before her 30th birthday. She wants to prove her family wrong (that she can and does have a man), and inherit her uncle's yacht. She decides it's time to finally step back into the dating scene, with the support of her two best friends, Jazz and Nina, and the protection of her newest bartender friend who has volunteered to watch her back as long as she brings her dates to his bar.
That is how Ahmed's and Aaliyah's relationship began, and boy, was it entertaining! They had the greatest, most comfortable relationship, where one could cut up without the other taking offense, and they genuinely cared for each other enough to be honest with each other (well, honest enough.. lol). However, they both have past trauma that makes it difficult to be transparent and completely trusting of one another.
This book was wonderful! I love how Danielle cut straight to the chase with this one. The opening sentence had me wowed and invested lol, and the book itself just kept getting better and better. I appreciate how she made this read feel so realistic and modern-day. She included colloquialisms and slang that we use in our everyday lives, which was very relatable. I love how she shined light on "fat-shaming"/"fatphobia", and the ignorance surrounding it, body positivity, and the importance of standing one's ground. This was such a great read and I will be buying the physical copy once it is released!


Thank you NetGalley, MacMillan Audio, Danielle Allen, and Wesleigh Siobhan for this outstanding book!

Vibes: body positivity, slow burn, friends to lovers, modern romance

Approaching thirty, Aaliyah is facing pressure from all sides--pressure to get married from her family, pressure in particular to lose weight (in order to get married) from some, and pressure to live up to her departed sister... which may be, in many ways, internal. Setting out to find a serious boyfriend, she embarks on a journey of online dating at the prompting of hot and helpful bartender Ahmad. Though the apps are a haphazard, she's thinking of Ahmad more and more. Could her determined dating be taking her further away from her actual soulmate?
Mixed feelings on this one. The writing is good, the voice is great (and I listened to this in audio--loved the narrator, she imbued everyone with so much personality and individuality), and the story is in many ways relatable and authentic. Maybe, when it came to the apps, a little too authentic. Aaliyah and Ahmad have a great chemistry, and there's a lot of heart.

So... why am I not in love with it? Some of it is probably me--I'm not exactly a lover of the slow burn. However, I think that the lack of solid obstacles in Aaliyah and Ahmad's way, especially when she is SO motivated to get off the apps, doesn't really track to me, and comes off as a bit contrived. I kept on thinking... Why aren't they just... together? It's the kind of story that would play better onscreen, I think, where we can take note more of the microexpressions and little moments that suggest the struggle.

That being said, it is, again, a solid book. The pressures surrounding Aaliyah's weight feel really authentic, and I liked how the book dealt with fatphobia without making it the center of the story (something I find a lot of stories fall into, unfortunately). I also really loved how sex positive the narrative was throughout, and the way Aaliyah's conflicted feelings about her sister's death were handled.

I mean, I'm 29 and feeling the heat from turning 30. A lot of what Aaliyah goes through feels painfully real--right down to the perils of the apps. And who knows? Maybe it hit a little too close to home for me, and maybe that affected my perception of the pacing. But, while I'd recommend this to many readers seeking out a summery, hot (in many ways) contemporary romance, it didn't QUITE hit the mark for me.

The Sex:

Super hot--Danielle Allen knows how to write a sex scene, and despite the slow burn, you get a good bit of it in this one. In fact, the novel opens with a sex scene that is NOT with the hero. I found this pretty bold for the romance genre (which, as we all know, often rejects on-the-page sex with anyone who isn't the main love interest, especially for women), and it made Aaliyah feel way more like a real person who lives in our real world.

If you're looking for a beach read with a good bit of heat and heart--I'd recommend checking this out. The back copy compares it to Bridget Jones; and I'd say that's accurate. Which, hey, is a pretty great compliment in my book.

Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for providing me with a copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Thanks to NetGalley for the advanced audiobook.

Wow, this was a full five peppers on the spicy romance scale. I enjoyed getting to see a fat woman at the center of a love story and that while her size/weight was part of the story it wasn't the center of the story.

Danielle Allen brought so much spice in this dating story! Aaliyah James is determined to find a steady boyfriend by her thirtieth birthday. Her family has been on her for a long time to find a guy and imply that she won't because of her weight. When she leads them astray that she already has a new man who loves her for all of her, that mission to find a man becomes even more serious. She befriends a bartender, Ahmad, who works at the restaurant across form her apartment where she also plans to have all of her dates meet her and she finds him attractive, nice, and easygoing, but he has a wedding ring. Will he be able to play her wing man and help find her a guy?

This story had me cracking up 24/7 and really had the perfect romcom blend. The friendship between Ahmad and Aaliyah was perfect. They had the best banter, they truly cared about each other, and they respected each others boundaries. The book did start off super spicy with the hookup scene with Aaliah's ex's and then the rest of the book was pretty tame till the end.

This was a really good book 🤗! Aaliyah was just living her best single life and here come family getting all up in her business! In all honesty they was just saying something she was scared to admit out loud. But it wasn’t their place . Anyway something so lovely came out of out of it , she actually found something real and he was right up under her nose the whole time. I call it from the beginning but got side tracked by all the situations lol 😂! I laughed so much listening to the audiobook ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

If you're looking for a sizzling, laugh-out-loud read that will have you nodding in agreement and cheering on its heroine, look no further than Danielle Allen's "Curvy Girl Summer"! This book is like a breath of fresh air in romantic comedies, blending the best elements of Bridget Jones's mishaps with the empowering journey of self-love and finding one's path from Survival of the Thickest.

When I opened the pages, I was hooked on Aaliyah James's quest for love and acceptance. Allen weaves a story that's not just about romance but about embracing your curves, owning your desires, and shutting down anyone who dares to question your worth. Aaliyah is a heroine for the ages—smart, sassy, and unapologetically herself. And can we talk about that birthday celebration plot twist? Talk about a mic-drop moment!

But let's not forget the icing on the cake—Wesleigh Siobhan's narration. She brings Aaliyah's world to life with such vibrancy and charm that I found myself eagerly listening to every word. Siobhan has a knack for capturing the essence of each character and infusing the dialogue with just the right amount of wit and humour. It's like being wrapped in a warm hug of storytelling goodness when she narrates.

And oh, the love interest! Ahmad Williamson is the perfect blend of swoon-worthy and down-to-earth. His chemistry with Aaliyah is electric, and their banter had me grinning from ear to ear. But what sets this romance apart is its authenticity. Allen doesn't shy away from the messy, imperfect dating moments—she embraces them, turning them into opportunities for growth and connection.

So if you're in the mood for a feel-good romance with a side of sass, do yourself a favour and dive into "Curvy Girl Summer." It's a story that will make you laugh and swoon and inspire you to swipe right on your journey to love. And with Wesleigh Siobhan at the mic, you know you're in for a treat. Happy reading!

4.5 stars rounded up

Damn! I was not expecting this as a release from Bramble! Curvy Girl Summer is a very sexy contemporary romance with a plus size heroine that does an incredible job of tackling supposedly well-intentioned fatphobic comments from family members. And it is very clear Aaliyah is not hurting for interested men, just trying to find the right one. (also, this literally opens with an explicit sex scene, so you know what you're in for right away) I loved the slow-burn relationship in this book, and how well it balances humor with more serious themes.

Aaliyah is about to turn 30 and all she wants for her birthday is a serious boyfriend. When a blind date stands her up, she strikes up a conversation with the bartender Ahmad and he convinces her to try dating apps, with him keeping an eye out to make sure she's okay. So begins a string of dates that range from mediocre to terrible, all the while their friendship blossoms into something more. Here's the thing I'll say, and this is kind of a spoiler but I would have wanted to know going in. Ahmad wears a ring and tells customers he's happily married. Late in the book it comes out that he isn't, but Aaliyah thinks he is. Which makes for a couple of deeply uncomfortable scenes that feel like the start of cheating. I don't love how that was kept for so long, and that's the only thing that makes this less than a 5 star read. Because otherwise, I really loved their relationship, and the depth of the rest of the plot. I definitely recommend it, but you should go in knowing this is a plot device that is used. I need to read more from Danielle Allen! And the audio narration is excellent. The two voice actors are perfect for these characters.

I received an audio review copy of this book for review via Netgalley, all opinions are my own.

"...𝐈 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐦𝐲 𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐢𝐬𝐧'𝐭 𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐚 𝐦𝐚𝐧 𝐨𝐫 𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐚𝐫 𝐨𝐫 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐧. 𝐌𝐲 𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐢𝐬 𝐭𝐢𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐦𝐲 𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚 𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐈 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐚𝐦 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐝 𝐨𝐟. 𝐌𝐲 𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐢𝐬 𝐜𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐚𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝 𝐦𝐲 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐈 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭."

I received an audio ALC for this book from Netgalley as well as a physical ARC of this book at apollycon from Bramble so thank you to both in exchange for this review.

I absolutely loved the narration by Wesleigh Siobhan. She has an incredible voice and is such a talented narrator. She played so many parts in this story and her "man voice" is soooo good. I'll definitely be looking for more books narrated by her!

The story was really fun, though I NEVER want to date ever again and this book reminded me how painful it can sometimes be.

Aaliyah is turning 30 and trying to meet someone to bring to her party. She gets stood up at a bar and the bar tender Ahmad tries to help her with her dates.

Their banter was SO good. Their relentless teasing and jabs back and forth really showed their incredible chemistry, even if they couldn't see it at first.

This book starts with a spicy bang, and then we're in for a slow burn the rest of the book as Aaliyah goes on bad date after bad date. Until she realizes that maybe the "friend" that's been helping her is more than just a friend.

CW for fat phobia as Aaliyah's uncle is very critical of her weight, as are some of the other people in her orbit. I loved how she stood up to them in the end.

Sweet and spicy and full of heart, I really enjoyed it.

(also, if I ever need to be apologized to, I will recommend the method Ahmad used, TYSM)

#netgalley #bramble #brambleromance #audiobook

First off, I am OBSESSED with this cover!! It's just so damn good and the story itself definitely matches in this super sexy friends to lovers romance that sees almost 30 year old Aaliyah online dating in order to find a guy before her birthday. While she goes on a series of disastrous dates at her favorite bar, she becomes friends with the hot bartender, Ahmad. The banter and chemistry between the two was sizzling and I was rooting for them to get together right from the start. Great on audio and highly recommended for fans of authors like Talia Hibbert and Taj McCoy! Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital and audio copy in exchange for my honest review!

Spice level: VERY steamy

♡𝐀𝐮𝐝𝐢𝐨𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐤 & 𝐞𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐑𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰♡
5 🌟
-
This cover is gorgeous. 𝑰𝒇 𝒋𝒖𝒅𝒈𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒂 𝒃𝒐𝒐𝒌 𝒃𝒚 𝒊𝒕𝒔 𝒄𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒐𝒏. 𝑰𝒕 𝒘𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅 𝒃𝒆 𝑴𝑬! First, this story is extremely relatable! Uncle Al had me ready to square up with him because we all have that nosey ass uncle who thinks he knows what's best for everyone.
The banter between Aaliyah and Ahmad had me on the floor because it was just so heartwarming, home feeling, and just overall GREAT. They gave me homegirl | homeboy vibes turn lover. this is my first book by this author, Danielle Allen, and now I want the entire catalog. This book was purely amazing! Highly, highly recommend this book.
𝐓𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐬 :
•black romance
•curvy female lead
•hilarious banter
•strong female lead
𝐓𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐠𝐞𝐫 𝐖𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 :
•fat-shaming (fatphobia)
-
♡𝐑𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞 June.11♡
-
Thank you, Netgalley, MacmillanAudio (ALC), -Audiobook, and Tor Publishing Group (eArc) for my honest review.

Ok , I definitely enjoyed the shit out of this book.
This was fun, heartwarming and definitely cute.
The two characters chef kiss , and the chemistry omg off the roof. Definitely worth it. Now the office scene omg please i need a cold shower. Good so good.

Thank you netgalley and Bramble pub for the alc. My opinions are being left voluntarily. This was my first Danielle Allen and winter be my last. I found UT to be a tad too slow burn and too much let's try no let's try no but it was a great romance with folks in 30s great steam will check out her backlist and future book.

4.5/5☆

Curvy Girl Summer
by Danielle Allen
Narrated by Wesleigh Siobhan

Content warning: themes of grief, fatphobia, body shaming, and mentions of a tragic car accident are present.

A big thank you to NetGalley for providing the audio ARC!

The narrator's ability to embody various voices and accents added a whole new dimension to the characters, making the audiobook an immersive experience. I highly recommend it to anyone who appreciates well-narrated audiobooks with top-notch production quality. Wes Leigh Siobhan’s performance, complete with distinct voices, laughter, and nuances, truly breathed life into the story. And for that reason alone I gave it 4 stars.
Overall, while the audiobook was okay for me, I'm grateful I listened to it instead of reading it, as I might have abandoned it midway through if I had to read it in print.

First & foremost I LOVED how Aaliyah stood on her boundaries & business!! This book was amazing, I enjoyed it from the beginning to the end!! From body confidence & high self esteem to being able to give & take, I loved how it all played out. I found myself really laughing out loud, & gasping. From the beginning it started off real spicy & straight into the storyline, which was right in my lane & my type of party. Uncle Albert really has some damn nerve, he needed to find him some business to tend to bc he clearly had too much time on his hand to always give his unwanted opinion. Nina & Jaz two wonderful girl friends that everyone should be able to experience that type of friendship. Ahmad, Ahmad, Ahmad, heyyyy boo!

3 stars

Aaliyah and Ahmad had good chemistry, love how they started off as friends cuz i feel like friendships' kinda the basis for a good relationship so i really loved seeing that and they had great banter too!

I was certain this would be at least a 4 star read when i started it cuz it was so promising and related to Aliyah a lot! The things that bothered me is that there were SO many guys it was honestly kinda hard to keep up with all their names and it was always the same scenario: she goes on date with a guy, something goes wrong and calls it off and then goes chit chat to Ahmad it was getting a bit tiring at some point tbh. Also thought her friend nina was kinda weird. Some advice she was giving her i was like "huh 🥴..?" And Ahmad did piss me off by kinda stopping her from getting with guys for no reason but he redeemed himself so i guess it's okay. I love how she clocked her family and had a talk with them, i think it was necessary for her character development and for her family to realize that what they were doing to her was wrong.

i LOVED the narrotor. she ate with the voices, laughs and everything and really brought the book to life. Her male voice was funny too loool

So yeah overall it was just okay. I'm glad i listened to it rather than reading it cuz tbh i think i would've dnfed it if i had to sit down and read it all

tw: tw: grief, fatphobia and body shaming, mention of tragic car accident

thank you NetGalley for the audio ARC!

This was such a good romance, I had such a good time reading it. It had the perfect amount of romance, plot, steam, and fun moments in it. I read both the physical book and the audio and I enjoyed listening to the audiobook so so much. The audiobook narrator did an amazing job, this is my favorite audiobook from this year, it was just that good. I loved the different voices the narrator had it was perfect for the characters and the accents were so well done. If you like well narrated audiobooks with great production please check this one out. I will not stop recommending this one.

This book is in pov of the fmc Aaliyah whose 30th birthday is approaching and is trying to find a date after promising her nagging uncle that she would have one in time for her 30th birthday party. She meets Ahmad a bartender after her blind date doesn't show up and he suggests a dating app for her to use. She goes through so many dates with the men on the app and Ahmad who had quickly become her friend is the protective bartender ready to intervene when a date goes bad. This leads to the fun and crazy world of online dating weird men and attraction to Ahmad who has become a constant for her in all this craziness.

I loved Ahmad and Aaliyah so much, they had great banter and it was great to see their friendship build throughout the book. I really appreciate the plus-size rep and seeing what the fmc went through in society because of her body size. There was also the exploration of grief that both main characters went through that was touching and heartwarming. The romance was done really well and they have really steamy scenes as well. This is a perfect romance that was super cute and fun. Thank you Macmillian Audio for this arc for an honest review.

Read For:
- Black romance
- Plus size rep
- Online dating shenanigans
- Steamy scenes
- Good banter