Title: Not in My Book by Katie Holt

Release Date: December, 10th, 2024

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️Stars


Rosie, a Peruvian-American aspiring writer, heads to New York to pursue her dreams. However, her plans take an unexpected turn when she finds herself in a writing class with her former crush and nemesis, Aiden.

Despite their differences, their professor challenges them to co-write a novel blending their genres. As they work on their steamy manuscript, they begin to understand each other better and confront their feelings. Yet, when they face a career-changing opportunity, old rivalries resurface, putting their budding romance in jeopardy unless they can write their own ending.

This book is my absolute jam! The storyline is just perfection.

Rosie and Aiden, academic rivals who can't stand each other, are forced to co-write a romance novel for their class. But get this—their characters start falling in love in the story, mirroring their own real-life journey. I was totally hooked from start to finish by the clever plot and structure.


Thank you to The Publisher Alcove Press, The Author Katie Holt & NetGalley for an advanced reader copy (ARC) in exchange for my honest review.

Great romance book. I love the characters and their chemistry. I enjoyed it very much and will buy it once it's published!

I received this book from the publisher and from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The opinions included here are my own.

Overall, the plot and story was really cute and I enjoyed it. However, the writing was just very messy. It was definitely in need of some editing and the pages bleed into each other . POV changed with no warnings . No spaces when needed. I was very disappointed as I have dyslexia and it make the book very hard to follow .

This story is a cute rival to lovers story about a girl who inspires to be a romance writer and Lit Writer who doesn’t seem like her biggest fan. Although, Rocky both find a connection in one another .
I liked this book a lot and with a little love and exiting it could be an easy 5 stars.
Hope to read more form this author in the future
Thank you NetGalley , Alcove Press and Katie Holt for the opportunity to read an ARC of this book ❤️

Oh my LORDY!!! I am obsessed with this book and everything about it! The characters are so hard not to fall in love with… I mean their tension is crazy and the fact that they are literally falling in love with each other through the characters they are writting!! The writing was amazing, this is definitely worth the read.

I LOVED this book! I downloaded it for the NYC rom-com, stayed for the banter and complex relationship between Aiden and Rosie. I loved the "unsaid" tension between the two when writing the book vs interacting with each other in real life.

This book does everything to the best degree. Romance was romancing, spice was spicing, and NYC was NYCing!! It's my dream to move to New York, and this book has inspired me so much! I feel like I saw myself in Rosie. I also loved the Peruvian representation, as it's a culture I don't know much about.

I loved this book so much, I plan on buying a copy once it's published!

Not in My Book is every romance reader’s DREAMMMMM! This book is actually everything to me!! A book within a book???? I’m THERE.

The plot is perfection….. academic/writing rivals Rosie & Aiden (who literally can’t stand each other) have to cowrite a romance book for their class. The duo basically writes messages (love letters) to each other throughout their book. As the novel progresses, Rosie & Aiden’s characters begin to slowly get to know each other on a deeper level & fall in love……… and the same begins to happen in real life.

“I'd lived in this city for my whole life. Every milestone and moment of my history was written into the streets here. But all of them had been easily replaced with memories of her…Even if it surmounted to nothing, and she left me only with memories, I'd take them all.”

Rosie made me feel so SEEN as a lover of the romance genre and a girly from Tennessee. Her passion for her art is so fun to read about. Aiden (or should I say Clark Kent) is one of my new favorite MMCs!!! He is so obsessed with his girl!!! The tension, bickering, and banter is so top-tier, especially for a debut?? I am in awe of Katie’s writing. All of the scenes were SO GOOD (I was dyingggg at the Christmas scenes). AND AIDEN BUYING HER BOOKS??? I also thought the setting is so well written it made me want to fly to New York immediately.

“I had the time of my life making you mad but loving you has been so much better."

By the time I got to the end, I had tears welling in my eyes. So so so so good.

Thank you Alcove Press & Katie Holt for the advanced copy. Not in My Book releases December 10.

The book centers around Rosie, an MFA student who loves romance novels, and her fellow student Aiden, as they collaborate on a novel reflecting their own relationship dynamics. It incorporates popular tropes like enemies-to-lovers, set against the backdrop of New York City and academia, with a Hispanic main character. While the story was engaging and I enjoyed it overall, there were some issues that detracted from my experience. The dialogue at times felt repetitive, with characters frequently using the same phrases, and the portrayal of 26-year-olds felt more like teenagers with “Shut up”s and group chat titles. Inconsistencies in character backgrounds and behaviors raised questions, such as Rosie's financial struggles juxtaposed with her parents' spontaneous generosity. Other inconsistencies that made me raise an eyebrow were - Rosie is said to be single for a year after a failed long distance with an ex, but it’s stated she hasn’t visited home for two years. One time she is said to be a good dater but the guys are not good enough, a few pages down the line she says no one wants to date her because she is so anxious already at the asking out part. She is scraping for a few hundred bucks to visit home, but her parents buy 3 last minute christmas tickets on a whim? They should probably just help her out. The book-in-the-book storyline follows two coworkers preparing a presentation, but sometimes they start talking about writing together, visiting bookstores and so on.
The depiction of the enemies-to-lovers dynamic occasionally crossed into uncomfortable territory with excessive insults that seemed out of place in an academic setting. The professor should have reported a sexual harassment at least. Like the criticism of a work relented to “you can’t satisfy your girlfriend” remarks from Rosie.
Additionally, the pacing towards the end of the book felt drawn out. Despite these flaws, I found the book enjoyable, though it could benefit from further editing to address its juvenile aspects.

I loved this book a lot... the banter, the academic rivalry, the spice and especially the romance. All of it was exceptional and the writing was really smooth. The ending felt a tad bit dragged to me, other than that everything was great.