THIS IS HOW YOU WRITE A ROMANCE!!!! THIS THIS THIS!!!

Thank you so much to NetGalley & the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review. ♥️

This was actually a delicious read…like, I literally savored every single page. Rosie has such a sweet, intelligent, and cheery voice…I want to be BFFs with her. And Aiden is majorly hot to the point where it’s almost offensive. Their rivalry and overall dynamic? Heavenly. The enemies to lovers trope is that girl and will forever be that girl…(& so is friends to lovers🥹).

The writer’s aspect of this story was so fun, plus, we got treated to 2 parallel enemies to lovers stories. Aiden & Rosie’s real story accompanied by excerpts of the fiction they’re forced to write together is a brilliant fusion. The way that they flirt and fight through their characters is delectable. I’ll never be over them pouring their feelings out to each other and disguising it as fiction. AGHHHHH!!!! Compliments to the chef!! Also, I just love the writerly banter and seeing how a master’s in writing (I’m considering pursuing it more now after reading this because what if there’s an Aiden clone in my class? I want to stare at him) works and to explore the very real genre discourse in the world of literature. It’s so true that romance or more “optimistic” world of literature are devalued, especially when they are written by women. This novel did a good job of opening that conversation about how important all works of literature are and showing that genres like romance can hold a multitude of truths & have philosophical depth.

I can’t possibly put all of my thoughts and feelings about this novel into words…so I’ll just say:
This novel is everything. I actually can’t believe it’s a debut because it just checks allll of the boxes. It offers gorgeous dialogue, crackling humor, earth shattering passion, pointed angst, HOT NERDS, adorable supporting characters, strong women, stunning city imagery, Taylor Swift references (don’t worry if that’s not you’re thing, there aren’t too many! I felt so seen tho), and an intimate look at what it means to write, and in turn, what it means to feel.

If it came down to it, I think I would die for this novel😇

Ohhhhh, man. The slow burn is STRONG with this book, and a touch of enemies to lovers trope? Man, this book has it all. Little bit of spice, some really great friends, and some comedy all rolled into one!

I enjoyed the plot of the book too. It was actually so cool how you could see our guys POV from the book they wrote, but the storyline itself was from our girls POV. Confusing, but you'll see once you read it.

It would be a five star if it wasn't heavy on the miscommunication trope sometimes and having a third act breakup. Man, (slight spoilers) I really wish Rosie didn't act like such a 3rd grader at that point.

All in all, it was a adorable book and I'm so thriller I got to read it.

From the beginning of Rosie and Aiden's story, I was sucked in. Katie Holt had a way of making her characters feel like real people, and I honestly felt like I was a bystander in New York watching Rosie and Aiden fall in love through the pages of their manuscript for their class. When they bicker too hard during class one day, their professor forces them to work together on their manuscript project or drop the class. During the course of the semester, Aiden and Rosie grow closer as the characters in their manuscript slowly fall in love. There was something so refreshing about this take on an enemies to lovers romance that I just loved deeply. And the sex scene they cowrote while on the phone with each other?? HOT STUFF!!!

I would like to start by thanking the Author and Netgalley for letting me read this ARC in advance🙂

This book is absolutely one of my favorite reads of this year! I love this book so much and I am so happy that I got the chance to read it because it just really became that one book that I will obsess over lol. It is a rivals to lovers trope , forced proximity . The banter ? I love!! This book had me laughing, tearing up , getting frustrated and all the emotions,
It had me giggling and rubbing my feet together lol. I enjoyed that our main characters had to write a story together . I enjoy when books have characters who are doing book related stuff together. The Author did a wonderful job on the writing , it is absolutely going to be a comfort read and I already want to read this book again even though I just finished it!

I have some favorite quotes from this book that may convince you to give it a read !!

“I know romance novels can be unrealistic, but there are Happy Ever Afters. And, I don’t know … sure, love can be messy, and it can hurt, but I think it’s supposed to heal, too.”

“Love is always worth fighting for. I mean, that’s why there’s all the songs and poems and movies about it. It has to be something spectacular if everyone’s chasing it.”

Fabulous debut novel!

What would you do if your teacher issues an ultimatum: write your final project with your sworn enemy or wave the opportunity of a lifetime goodbye? Rosie, a Peruvian-American aspiring writer moves from Tennessee to New York in hopes of becoming a writer, she works day in and day out to make ends meet and study under her idol's eye and craft her debut novel...she's living her Big City dreams with one exception...Aiden Huntington and his annoying commentary on every single piece she turns in. He writes literary fiction, she writes romance, they can see eye to eye on anything so, of course, the solution is to work together...keep your friends close and your enemies closer, right? Wrong. Will Rosie and Aiden finally make a truce or will they end up losing their chance in the publishing industry because of their discrepancies? Read and find out!

I adored this debut. The first half of the book was the best romance and passion build up/foreplay I've read in a while. Who knew co-writing a novel could build intimacy so well? When you can't say it, write it. The characters felt real, therefore flawed, they were passionate with always a hint of hidden emotions shining through. I loved reading between the lines of their interactions and deeply appreciated the author's creative way to give us some of the main male character's headspace. Even though this book was single pov, I felt I got to know Aiden through his character's eyes and thoughts. I found this resource unique and interesting.

That being said, the second part of the book felt rushed, I would have preferred the book was longer just so we get more emotional development from both characters. I lost a bit of interest in the Male Main Character after some dialogue he has and could not empathize with the Female Main Character after some actions she takes, considering these characters are meant to be over 25 years old, some behaviors felt childish and immature. I understand not everyone has the same emotional intelligence and I always adore flawed characters who need help to grow and develo. In fact, I sometimes prefer to get to know an immature character if, in the end, we get to see them come into their own, this was not the case for me in this book. I would have appreciated more insight into their motivations and psyche.

However, this did not take away from my overall enjoyment from the book as a whole. I consider the character's family dynamics and history to be reason enough to explain certain behaviors and understand where they are coming from. I would've just liked to see it more on page, not making it up intuitively.

I'm looking forward to read more from this author in the future. I loved the Peruvian-American representation. This was Own-Voices and I enjoyed getting to know their traditions and culture through the author's eyes. I believe the author has much in store for us and would definitely recommend you give this one a try!

If you are a fan of Emily Henry’s “book lovers” or a fan of Ali Hazelwood you’ll really enjoy this novel!

I loved the enemies to lovers trope and the chemistry between the two was great. A little stiff at times but overall really good banter.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance copy in exchange of an honest review.

Me gustó leer esta historia, es un cliché romántico, pero de esos que igual da gusto leer, aunque a penas lo comienzas sabes cómo va a terminar.

Lo especial de este libro, es el ambiente en que se desenvuelven los protagonistas. Ambos son estudiantes de un curso de escritura en la NYU, y ambos aman escribir, aunque en géneros literarios y con estilos muy distintos.

Aiden detesta el romance, en libros, películas e incluso no cree que exista en la vida real; mientras que Rosie lo ve en todos lados, en la relación de sus padres, en cómo se miran los vendedores de comida en su parque favorito y en las miles de romcoms que le gusta ver y leer.

La historia de ambos comienza cuando coinciden en el mismo workshop de escritura creativa un año completo en NYU, pero no es hasta que su profesora guía los obliga a escribir un libro juntos, que su historia REALMENTE comienza.

Esta suerte de rivals to lovers (aunque ellos creen que se odian, no es cierto), avanza poco a poco, en forma armónica y orgánica hasta que se dan cuenta de lo que para el lector es obvio desde un inicio: sus sentimientos el uno por el otro son inevitables.

En fin, esta lectura es bastante ligera y entretenida, a ratos hasta me sacó un par de sonrisas. En algún punto igual me identifiqué con Rosie y sus momentos de ansiedad pensando en la familia, los estudios, el trabajo y el amor.

Recomiendo esta historia, especialmente a aquellos amantes del romance y de los libros.

This was a fun concept and I loved the idea of a cowritten book and weaving the plots together. However I didn't feel much chemistry between Rosie and Aiden and I found it a bit repetitive when th3 book and cowritten book scenes overlapped

3.50 ✧˖°. 💗


<blockquote><i>"I know you prefer what's in your books, and I pretend I don't want to be like them, but I do. I want to be the person you picture when you're reading and dreaming because you're who I picture every single time. I love you. In light and dark, in romance and litfic. In this lifetime and the next."</blockquote></i>


𓍢ִ໋🌷֒✧ ༘ ⋆｡♡


<b>MAIN REVIEW:</b>


♡︎ such a cute, fluffy romance! I almost loved the banter and the concept of this book. We all love a well written rivals to lovers 🤭


♡︎ the book was very easy to get into and the writing is straight to the point. It was fast paced, felt a little middle paced at the middle but overall fast paced and really enjoyable for a fun romance read


♡︎ I resonated with Rosie ( the main female chase ) the most and dont even get me started on the quotes in this book! and I also appreciate the fact that none of the side characters felt flat like they had their own personalities.


♡︎ really enjoyed it, the start rating was only reduced because firstly there were some spelling mistakes and the writing wasn’t exactly perfect but my friend mentioned that this book is a debut novel so overall still very impressive!


♡︎ i know this is kinda irrelevant but the cover is so cute i keep staring at it 😭


‧₊˚ ☁️⋅♡𓂃 ࣪ ִֶָ☾.


<i>Thank you to Netgalley, Alcove Press and the author for an ARC in exchange for an honest review</i>


⋅˚₊‧ 𐙚 ‧₊˚ ⋅

I immensely enjoyed this book. I've always been a huge fan of enemies to lovers and this book does it right. Rosie and Aiden hate each other so much that it nearly gets them kicked out of a grad school class and forced to work together. Aiden absolutely has the vibes of the douchebag in college you hated but would probably hate bang if you got the chance. But then we get to see a different side of him and I found myself actually liking Aiden. Both of them have been hurt by love before and they eventually bring out the best in each other. I will say, the third act breakup is insanely predictable but I still enjoyed the grand gesture Aiden makes in the end.

The sex is definitely hot and just this side of kinky. The chemistry between these two characters is off the charts and it does not disappoint.

My only issue with the book is that Rosie, being a romance writer, complains about how nobody takes romance books seriously and Aiden at one point calls it a genre for lonely women and their 9 cats. And, yes, that has been a stereotype for a long time but especially in this day and age romance is one of the best selling genres. Just look at booktok. Nearly everything on there is romance and smut. All the most recommended books in bookstores are romances. So to have that be a plot point in a book that is publishing this year just feels really weird.

This might be the cutest, best-crafted romance I’ve read all year.

If you know me, you know romance isn’t my most-read genre (even though I love it!). I need to be in the right ✨mood✨ and find the right book. And this one, dear reader, was the right one. Perfect one, even.

The main character, Rosie, is my soulmate. We are basically the same person (replace her Peruvian roots with my Mexican ones, that is). She is fun, ambitious, love to defend what she loves and thrives on writing, quiet evenings reading her books, and her friends. I think having a romance-lover as the main character of such a down to earth romance book is a fantastic idea. It proves that romance always wins.

We discover the POV of Rosie’s love interest - Aiden - through the book they are writing together and this is EVERYTHING. I couldn’t get enough. The author uses this concept with genius, creating a layered story full of tension, anticipation and discoveries. This one is person for the people who love to discover the POV of the love interest and realise he fell first. Multiple times I found myself giggling in bed, and I NEVER giggle.

I also loved how realistic this book felt. It’s a romance for romance lovers who think they’ll never find a love as perfect as the book they read about. Because maybe that’s not the point. Aiden is imperfect, but he is trying, he sticks and learns and even if he makes mistakes, it makes him real and tangible. Rosie is the same. Two imperfectly perfect characters who would have never thought they’d end up together, but who did.

The blurb, a romance writer forced to write one with a man who hates them, is genius. And it’s perfectly executed. I loved it with all my heart and I cannot wait to read more by this author.

I loved this book! I read the entire book in less than a day because I couldn’t put it down. I thought it was clever for the main characters writing a romance novel in a romance novel. This was the perfect enemies to lovers book. I rarely give five stars, but this book deserves it. I’m looking forward to reading more books by Katie Holt.

Two rival aspiring writers at NYU in a creative writing workshop. Rosie, a hopeless romantic who lives for Happily Ever after's and Aiden, who writes literary fiction where any story can have tragedy. When they cannot seem to get along, their mentor assigns them with a co-writing project to make them learn to respect each others genres.

I loved the concept of writing a book within a book, I loved their dynamic and banter.
This was a slow burn enemies to lovers.

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for this arc copy.

Thank you NetGalley for getting me this eARC!

I'm a big fan of books about books and this sounded perfect to me! And I did really like it! The tension between the characters was well written and the rivals to lovers felt very convincing. It was definitely a good romance.
The one thing I'm not as fond of is third act breakups, but I understand the need to create some conflict. However, I did not like the conflict here and the miscommunication about it. To me, it didn't fit in with the characters personalities either. I just could not see them reacting like that.

I'm still rating this book 4 stars, because I loved the romance and the way they made up and I would absolutely recommend this book to romance fans!!

Not In My Book was ultimately a very sweet and sexy romance and I would have really given it 3.5 ⭐ It's a book that I think many will enjoy but it fell a little flat for me. There were lots a things I really loved about the story. The mouth on Aiden didn't hurt one bit....spicy scenes were spicin' especially from this quiet, broody guy but I was missing the swooniess I have enjoyed with other books. I'm wondering if that would translate better when in audio form with a top tier narrator and that possibly would have elevated the story for me but I didn't connect with the characters or just fall completely in love with them like I have with other MC's in books. I always love a great enemies to lovers romance but this one just didn't hit like others I've read or listened to.

I did really like the relationship Rosie had with her family and friends. Very close and tight knit relationships that seemed genuine and good.

Rival graduate students, Aiden and Rosie are forced to write a love story together in a creative writing class. I'm always one for good banter in an enemies to lovers but this bickering seemed a little juvenile and forced. During the course of the book, their own love story gets written. I actually think this is a very cute concept. I felt like I was reading a book within a book with the included passages that were added at the end of chapters plus we get Aiden's thoughts as well. I was excited when I read the blurb about the story but it just wasn't executed as well as I had hoped for. The scenes with them writing together were actually cute and fun but there were parts of the story that the pacing was off and some abrupt scene changes

Again, I do think it would be great to try in audio form with excellent narrators and would probably be enjoyable to me. It's definitely true to it's word when saying this book is The Hating Game meets Beach Read. Those two books far exceed this story in comparison unfortunately.

PUB DATE December 10th 2025

Thank you NetGalley, Alcove Press and Katie Holt for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review. Overall, this was a cute, easy read and I'll be very interested to see what Katie Holt writes next.

Lots of tropes, but the self-awareness made it way better. Love books about people writing books. Strong showing in the romance category but a little too cheesy for a higher rating.

In the future, I think the author could do with one less sex scene, but overall they didn’t bother me since one was fictional. I was a fan of the Spanish and Peruvian culture references throughout the book as well that seemed to be familiar to the authors own life. Would read more from her in the future.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC of this book!

Fantastic author! Great pacing and great development for the characters. I was heavily invested in the plot and descriptive settings.

This book was so stinking cute. Some parts of it felt unrealistic, but I think that’s what the author was going for with the plot anyways. I’ve been wanting a cheesy, cutesy, romance books to get me out of my rut and this was it!! The writing was impeccable and I can’t believe this is Holt’s first book. I will definitely be keeping an eye out for her future books! Thank you to NetGalley and the author/publisher for allowing me to read the ARC before release!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
The things I would do to be able to read this story again for the first time. I have a bad habit of staying up late to finish a book and that’s exactly what happened with Not in my Book. The way the story is told through the POV of Rosie and then we get glimpses of both of of their perspectives and feelings through the characters in the book they’re writing is something I’ve never seen before that I loved (also the open door scene they write together for the book… holy ). As a romance novel obsessed person having the reason why they are so addictive put in towards through Rosie was amazing. The way she described love and wanting to be magical but wanting it to also be real was something I could connect with easily. Anyone who loved Book Lovers by Emily Henry will love this book. I can’t believe this is her debut novel but I can’t wait to read more from Katie Holy!

I went into this book expecting something predictable and thankfully that wasn’t the case.

I personally enjoyed the book but did find myself frustrated with these characters! This felt like a true enemies to lovers but the wait was worth it.

I loved that this felt a little like a book within a book and the premise/execution was unique and not like a lot of books I’ve read lately.

I was not a fan of the confrontational piece at the end but I would never read books that even hinted at third act breakups if that didn’t limit like 90% of all romance reads. But that said it did just feel off and I would have personally preferred something a bit different.

In general this book exceeded my expectations and was a fun read!

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC!