Thank you to Netgalley and the Publishing company for this Advanced Readers Copy of Not In My Book by Katie Holt!

Ok this was fun!!!! And hot 🥵!!!!!
Enemies to lovers.
Rivalries!!!!
This was so good, the build up amazingly done.
Enjoyed the whole dynamic of these two main characters.
I like how they have to work together towards a goal, even that they really don't want to. I love how the animosity change to friendship to lovers. I would said the third act break up I seriously wanted to strangle the FMC but well.
If you like rom-coms this is definitely for you.

I started this book and got around half way through this but I stopped because I was kind of bored. It felt super cringy and i did not enjoy the spice.

I am a new romance girly. I was against them for SO long, SO long. But I needed something light and fun, and thus begun my world into romance. Why am I loving romance? It's fun, it's lighthearted, it's not too serious. I think so many people are trying to find the next literary masterpiece and judge books so harshly.
Is this book going to go down in history as one of the greats? No. Is it fun as heck to read? Absolutely. The characters were likable. The trope(s) weren't annoying. It was a fun and easy read.. I'm excited to see what is in store for Katie Holt!

I'm so torn about writing this review because Katie is such a sweet and kind person, and her writing is SO strong with such a clear voice. But I strongly disliked this book on so many levels, I would have DNF'd if it were any other author.

So first, let me say that I am so excited to see what she writes in the future, and I will absolutely be reading anything she writes still!

I think the number one problem was that it was too meta. Having followed Katie on Instagram for years and talked to her about her grad school experience, it felt so self-insert on her part. I get that a big part of storytelling is writing what you know, but it felt too close to what she had shared about her actual experiences. I'm also realizing (and this is a very me thing), I don't like books about writing, and specifically writing romance. It's starting to show up more and more in contemporary romances, and it almost always feels contrived and forced. It has so many wink-wink moments to romance readers, and it just takes me right out when it's such an obvious commentary that we, romance readers, are not the ones who need to be hearing it? Like we KNOW romance isn't taken seriously, we know we always have to fight to take up space, so to read nearly an entire book based on that premise was a bit much. The book in a book is a great device to use if the book isn't just repeating what just happened in the actual story. If there's more nuance and an actual difference between what's happening, it's great! But when you're just reading the same thing happen to a set of identical characters, it's boring and repetitive and takes you out of the book.

And please don't even get me started on the conflict at the end. Throughout the entire book, the characters read so much younger than they were, and any hint of character development for them was thrown out the window for the final conflict. So much so that they read like completely different characters.

Again, her writing is strong and I think she'll write incredible books as soon as she gets out of her comfort zone, and I really hope she does that one day!

They hate each other. All they do is argue in class, picking apart each other’s works. Then, when they’re forced to work together, they start wondering have they both actually always liked each other?

“Then I guess I’ll see you in the next chapter” haha I loved this line! I also loved almost every excerpt of their book from his perspective 🫠

There’s so much more I loved about this book. Her idealization of romance novels because humans are unpredictable and they can hurt you. The way he wrote his feelings, fears and hopes for her in his pages. I laughed, I swooned, I cried. The story was such a beautiful package all wrapped up 💝
However, Rosie… I hated her for part of the book. She seemed like she was just mean, while Aiden’s comments to her seemed to be helpful criticism of her work, she seemed vindictive and just out to get him. And somehow, she flipped the switch from hating him to wanting him to kiss her really fast, it just didn’t feel like it was time for that yet. She hadn’t really seen his longing for her yet, she still just hated him.

Thank you NetGalley for an ARC of this book. I wish I didn’t take so long to get it off my TBR and I’m over here waiting on the edge of my seat for Katie’s next book!!

3.75 stars!!

honestly it was a really cozy, cute rom-com. kind of exactly what I needed at the moment. It was refreshing to read a not-badly written romance after such a long time. I loved the chemistry between the characters, the tension, the angst which is rarely seen in romance book nowadays(sadly). I loved the characters, except few times-I admit-they were a little immature and pissed me off. But I think I finished this book in a few days and it was bingeable. What I did NOT like was the third act breakup because it was SO UNECESSARY (this happens in almost every romance normal nd it pisses me off) and this book could've been easily 4 or 4.5 stars idk maybe if it were'nt for the dumb ahh third act breakup.

I love loved this one! I love the different take on the writers falling in love with each other. I love the scenes where they are writing in tandem and I can't say I've read anything like that in romance!

Rosie and Aiden's critical friend (definitely enemies) vibe at the start of this was an instant hook and ultimately, I really enjoyed this story.

But- I forgot about it twice. There are points in their story where it felt repetitive or a bit too... forced? I guess? and I'd close the book to do something else and then just forget... for weeks. I LOVED the way things came together and was so delighted to have had the chance in the end, though.

Fast, light and easy read! Enemies to lovers trope and I enjoyed the witty banter between Rose and Aiden. A little predictable but has enough depth for a good story flow.

The book has been compared to The Hating Game and Beach Read, and I can see why. It's got that enemies-to-lovers vibe with plenty of witty banter. Rosie's passion for romance and Aiden's skepticism create an interesting dynamic, especially as they pour bits of themselves into their joint project.

Overall, it's a fun read that explores the clash between different literary worlds and the unexpected connections that can form when opposites attract. If you're into contemporary romances with a meta twist, you might want to check it out.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Alcove Press through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. Thank you so much!

There are lots of romance books about writers, but this one provides a fresh outlook with lots of banter. The banter fits into the quick pace as the characters move from hating to dating.
I appreciated the layout of the novel featuring snippets from Rosie and Aiden's novel in between chapters. I enjoyed going back and forth between the two as their lives and their characters' lives bled together.

I devoured this book so fast! Katie Holt does an amazing job writing a book within a book. I really wanted to read Rosie and Aiden’s book in real life!
This book was fun and flirty yet really tender at the same time. You couldn’t help but root for the two of them!
A very quick and easy read when you need a laugh and some swoony moments to sigh over!

This is my first read by Katie Holt so I was not sure what to expect going into this story, but I was pleasantly surprised! She does a great job with the witty banter and just the overall back and forth between our two characters. The writing style is easy to read and the story is fast paced which makes it a breeze to get through without realizing it.

I suppose when the tagline is "X book" meets "X book," I should know I'm not in for a lot of originality. But one of those books was "Beach Read," which is one of my favorite romances, largely because of the exquisite banter. The banter in "Not in My Book" felt way overdone for no apparent reason, and I honestly lost respect for the characters right away and never really got it back. The spicy scenes were also really cringey to me. I was entertained because I like books about books and I did like a few of the "cowriting" elements, but overall this didn't work for me.

I read and reviewed this book as a Netgalley ARC.

Cute Rom-Com für alle, die sich mit Tee und Kuscheldecke einkuscheln wollen. Die Story an sich war echt süß, und auch der Schreibstil und die Entwicklung der Charaktere waren gut und flüssig. Mich hat es nur leider gestört, dass ich die Geschichte nicht wirklich authentisch fand. Kann aber auch daran liegen, dass ich nicht so gerne Rom-Coms lese...

Beach Read is one of my favorite books, and The Hating Game is one of my least favorites. When I saw that this book was compared to both of them, I was intrigued and worried at the same time. I loved the tension in this book, I loved the interactions between the FMC and the MMC, I loved the NYC setting, and I loved the academic element. This definitely leaned more towards Beach Read for me than The Hating Game, and I’m glad for that!

thank you to netgalley and the publisher for the arc! this book was so cute 🫶🏼 i love love love books about writers and i thought this one was well done. will be recommending!

Not in My Book was such a good read!! I’m sometimes a little hesitant with rivals/dislike to lovers because I’ve read a lot of books with this trope that didn’t really expand on WHY the characters didn’t get along or the development of their relationship falls flat. Rosie and Aiden were a delight to watch move from enemies, to friends, to secret pining, to lovers. I truly enjoyed their character development and witnessing Aiden open up over time was my favorite part. My only complaint was that Rosie felt a bit immature or annoying at some points, but I still really loved this! This is a great debut and I can’t wait to see more from Katie.

Thank you to Alcove Press, NetGalley, and the author for sending me an early copy!

I really enjoyed this cute romance book. I didn’t think o would, but I feel there was good character growth. The banter could have been a little better, but over all nice quick read.