Absolutely beautiful story that really grew on me as I went on this journey with Juliana. There was a lot I loved here. First off, the Central Florida Rep. (Hello, from Tampa, Fl!!!) I enjoyed how Ben and Juliana's relationship developed and then the twist with Paris's mom (which I'm not spoiling). The only reason why it's a four star and not five, is because I feel like Ben and Juliana's "hate" stage needs a little work. At times they both seem excessively hostile and it becomes off-putting and you don't sense the chemistry between the two. The chemistry did come later though, and I really enjoyed how Buchanan explored perfectly the dynamics of blended, chosen family, loving after losing the love of your life, and how kids fit in the mix. By the way, I enjoyed how the kids were portrayed here, because normally, kid characters in books are a bit annoying and take up more page time than necessary (for me anyway. I have no kids, can't you tell?). The kids here were written well and seamlessly included in the story.
The overall message of choosing love even in the face of fear and adversity was beautifully done (and the spice was well-written) so this makes a beautiful debut, and I look forward to see what Buchanan does next! Hopefully the setting will also be in Florida.

Let’s call a truce
By Amy Buchanan

Thanks to St. Martin’s publishing, Netgalley, & Amy Buchanan for providing me with an ARC

This debut contemporary workplace romance was so good.
Enemies to lovers, forced proximity, single mom romance with banter and some steam was exactly what I needed.
If you loved The Hating Game, Or Spanish Love deception, you will love this!

I loved that the characters showed so much growth through the entire novel, with out spoiling, I will say the way Juliana struggles with moving on after her husbands death, and trying to find her happy while being a mom, work and having a life was beautifully written.

There were parts of this story that had me screaming at the characters, crying, and kicking my feet giggling.
I can’t wait to see what comes next from Amy.
Highly recommend this book when it comes out in February 2025!

Juliana and Ben are adversaries at work. But their outside lives start to tangle, leading to a relationship.

I struggled at the start of the book. It hits grief hard and definitely is a lot to digest. However the book did hook me in. At a certain point, I couldn't stop any more. I just wanted the kids to be okay.

I think keeping the whole book being only in Juliana's POV and having her work through real situations was a brilliant call. It definitely left me a little bit emotionally raw.

Thank you to NetGalley for the arc!

I enjoyed the book overall, but have mixed feelings about it. Juliana is a single mom and widow to two girls, Clara and Sophie, going back into the workforce after her husband passed away. She meets Ben in the kitchen right as she is about to start her first day at work. She ends up having to leave work early on her first day because her daughter has an issue at school. Ben makes some snarky comments about it, which she overhears. Fast forward 2 years and they have been in a battle with each other. The premise is a little silly about their long feud, but it works for the story. There's obviously some attraction there.

What worked for me:
- Juliana's depiction of a mom. It felt true to me, having two kids myself. The struggle to make things work with work and children.
- Ben is an interest male lead, charming overall, and other than having to grow a backbone at the end, I really liked him as a lead.
- The banter and slooooow burn were great.

What didn't work for me:
- Juliana came off as a bit petty before she gave in to the attraction. It felt that the feud was a bit one-sided. Juliana really didn't like him, and he seemed to be more playful about it.
- The fact that he had a kid, and it wasn't known. After 2 years plus of knowing him, it was odd that it hadn't come up before. It also made it weird that he would make such snarky comments about the female lead if he also had to juggle a family/work.
- The third act break up was messy. It felt unrealistic in my opinion, that [ he will get back with his ex-wife. It just didn't make sense to me, because his kid didn't even have a great relationship with his ex-wife.

I loved this book! This was an office based romance. The authors brings humor and fun that helps offset the feud. I would highly recommend this book!

Mein Leseerlebnis

Die office romance, in der sich die beiden Hauptcharaktere zunächst nicht besonders gut leiden können, enthält einige frische Elemente und auch spannende Entwicklungen. Begeistern konnte mich die Liebesgeschichte aber trotzdem nicht.

Ich konnte zu keinem der beiden Hautpcharaktere eine gute Beziehung aufbauen. Das lag primär daran, dass ich ihr Verhalten bei der Arbeit etwas übertrieben und nicht gerade professionell fand. Sie wirkten in ihren Interaktionen gerade im ersten Drittel des Buches auf mich teils etwas unreif und jünger, als sie es waren.

Ihre Animositäten zogen sich über einen längeren Zeitraum, das hätte ich als Kollegin als sehr anstrengend und unangenehm empfunden.

Darauf aufbauend hielt sich mein Interesse an der Beziehung zwischen ihnen in Grenzen und nach der Hälfte der Liebesgeschichte bin ich zum Ende gesprungen, um noch zu erfahren, wie sich alles so entwickelt.

Auch wenn das Buch nicht mein Fall war, kann ich mir aufgrund des lockeren, angenehmen Schreibstils und der Energie in den Dialogen gut vorstellen, dass “Let’s call a truce” für andere Leser:innen eine schöne Sache sein könnte.

Keine Bewertung, da abgebrochen.

Für wen?

Wer Liebesromane mag, in denen es zwischen den beiden Hauptcharakteren zunächst etwas kracht und die teils in einem Büro spielen, für den könnte das romance Buch einen Versuch wert sein.

Thank you so much to St Martin's Press for an advance copy of this!

"I want you to pick me because you feel the same way I do every time I look at you."

Holy moly! This book left me with such a book hangover. I have not felt this way about a romance book in quite a bit. So I apologize if this review is all over the place or perhaps doesn't give you the kind of review you need.

To me what makes a great contemporary romance is you have to have great banter, great tension, just the right amount of spice and great side characters. And I felt this book had all this and more! I am such a fan of enemies to lovers in a workplace and this book gave me exactly that.

If I hadn't slowed myself down in reading this, I would've had it done rather quickly because I just could not stop myself from reading it. The pacing was great and the chapters were not overly long that felt like you were moving through the book. I could not believe that this was Amy's first book because it was so well done. We got the full scope of the main characters and the inclusion of the secondary characters were great.

Juliana is trying to restart her life after the sudden loss of her husband and having two young girls to care after forces her to go back into the work field. On her first day she meets handsome Ben and after hearing him talk negative about her (which we learn more about later in the book) she decided to make him her enemy. And for the next couple of years, they have these little battles back and forth but now an opportunity came for Juliana to work directly with Ben on a project.

There is a moment semi early on when the flirtatious tension begin that had me silently screaming as I was reading. "Dance with me?" "I don't think that's a good idea." "I think it's a great fucking idea." What is it about dancing intimately in a club that just gets all the feelings going?! I immediately ran to the author's IG DMs and told her how this scene was so incredibly SWOONY! And moments like this continue throughout the book. Juliana tried so hard to resist Ben and his charm. Ben is such the ultimate book boyfriend. He is smart, beautiful and really listens to Juliana and wants to be apart of her world. Juliana was scared to move forward with Ben because she still felt so connected with her husband and didn't want to lose that or have her children to think their dad would be replaced. There was the 3rd act situation that Ben could have been handled WAY differently to decrease the hurt and heartbreak but as any romance it all worked out in the end.

I love Ben and Juliana together. Their lives seem to blend so well together and we see that even before they are publicly a couple. And Juliana just seems so happy when she did finally let her guard down and let Ben in their lives. When you sneak in a man into your house while your children (and his child) are sleeping in their rooms, you know you are down bad! Ben never faltered in his feelings for Juliana. He made it very clear over and over and was confident that she would eventually fall for him. "But the next time I'm inside of you - and we both know there will be a next time - I won't be playing a character. You'll have come to terms with the fact that you want me, the real me, as badly as I want you." WHEWWWW

This book just really made me happy and I am sad that the world cannot read it until January. I am looking forward to rereading this in the future and being brought back to all the feels.

ALL THE STARS!

Please put this on your radar!!

This book was a look into grief and rebuilding your life.

Juliana lost her husband in a tragic accident and now to support her 2 girls, she heads back to the work force after several years as a stay-at-home-mom. The first day she literally runs into Ben, and something stirs within her, however when she overhears him voicing his concern about her commitment to the job after canceling a meeting last minute due an issue at the school with her youngest daughter she immediately hates him.

Over the next couple years they have many more disagreements and issues with each other, until a new project at work forces them to start to work together and they’re drawn to each outside of the office when more of Ben’s personal life comes out.

They have to form a truce to get through it all…and determine if their war was just their own version of foreplay.

I didn’t like Juliana at the beginning of the story. I felt for her and the situation, but her grudge against Ben felt drawn out. It’s a classic case of “communication could have fixed this ages ago”. But she evolved through the story and I really came out of it thinking highly of her and her growth.

This is a great workplace, “enemies”-to-lovers story!

I didn't expect to be crying while reading, but Amy Buchanan’s debut novel, Let’s Call a Truce, is a captivating and heartwarming tale of second chances. The witty banter between Juliana and Ben is a delight, and their evolving relationship is both relatable and inspiring. Buchanan skillfully explores themes of grief, resilience, and the complexities of modern love. Thank you to NetGalley & St. Martin's Griffin for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

My emotions were all over the place! The banter between these two is top tier. Ok, so, Julianna is a widow who recently lost her amazing husband in a tragedy that left her a single mother of two kids. Her husband was pure perfection from the glimpses we get of him. Which leaves Julianna devastated but having to push herself forward for her two kids. At work she meets Ben who is a bit flirtatious but gets on Julianna's bad side from a conversation she overhears. Which in turns starts a 2 year work battle.

The only reason I didn't give this book 5 stars was because it was very predictable. Not long into the book I knew what the conflict was going to be. I also could tell how it was going to end. Despite that, I LOVED just about everyone in this book. The truce the two called on their feud lead to some steamy scenes and I could feel their passion for each other as I was reading. When you really get to know Ben, I think I fell in love with that man. Not just him, those 3 kids. Paris was the light of my life in this book. I just wanted to pick her up and squeeze all my love into her. Sophie and Clara are the cutest too. Julianna's parents are so supportive and caring its no wonder everyone in that family is so sweet.

The friends had I believe like one conflict but was quickly resolved. One can only wish for friends like the one's Ben and Julianna have.

My heart was racing ahead in the pages before my eyes could read it because I was in love with the blended family dynamic. But I hurt with them when the issues arised.

I actually wasn't going to read this book because it didn't catch my interest right away but I am SO glad I did. Worth it.

Let’s Call a Truce is an excellent read that had me hooked and unable to put down. This book had me laughing out loud, crying both happy tears and sad tears, and fanning myself from the spice. The emotions, heart, and love written into this book had me feeling all the feels. The progression of the story was perfect and I absolutely love all the characters. Amy Buchanan’s writing is phenomenal and had me picturing everything so clearly in my head. Those spicy scenes were exceptionally fun to read (and imagine). This book had me wishing I was one of the friends, joining in on wine nights, Saturday morning soccer games, and Saturday BBQs. I did not want this book to end and cannot wait to read more from Amy Buchanan.

Firstly I want to Thank NetGalley and the authors team for this opportunity!
I really enjoyed reading this book. I was hooked onto Julianna's perspective of the unfolding of events since the beginning. It was also very refreshing to not only see two single parents, but seeing their children actually voices in the story. I loved every side character as well!! Selfishly i do wish we would have seen more of Asia and Dani.
I do think the ending was a little rushed from the new job offer, to ben breaking up what he had with Stephanie to apologizing and reconciliating, and finally getting the position she fought for. I think for a moment that specific plot was dropped, but ultimately I can see why. Still I thoroughly enjoyed this read!

It starts out as an enemies-to-lovers story but grows in complexity in such rewarding ways. I really enjoyed this one!

It would be unfair to say that for Juliana and Ben, it was hate at first sight. They did, after all, have a cute run-in at break room on her first day of work. But when she hears him badmouthing her for having to reschedule a meeting to take care of her daughters, she decides he's a pompous ass and her work enemy. Cut to two years later: she's been widowed three years now and is finally managing her life well, but the thorn in her side is still Ben, who seems to go out of his way at work to irritate her. And yes, he's sexy as hell. Yes, there's clearly an attraction between them, which grows as they start to call a truce on their battles. But Juliana is not ready to open herself up to being hurt again, not by someone with whom it could really be forever--if they let it.

There's a lot here about constructing families, particularly in the face of tragedy and loss. Both characters have to make hard choices because children are involved. What I really like about this is that there's not a lot of dithering about their attraction, once they admit it, but more about how or if they can be brave, take risks, and build a life together. There's a predictable conflict, but it is heartbreaking nonetheless.

Juliana and Ben are h-o-t together, and he becomes a real support and partner for her in a way no one else is. Even when he's been an ass, or when they are in a fight, he shows up for her. Basically, the perfect book boyfriend.

I can see how some readers would find Juliana a bit harsh and unforgiving at times. She definitely can hold a grudge. It's the side effect of a first person narrative--knowing too much, perhaps, about one character and only impressions of the other. Still, she's likeable even when making her mistakes.

Great debut and I look forward to reading more from this author! 4.25 stars

Generally a good read. I found myself impatient with the two main characters and their constant bickering and this story literally happened over years. There is much “ado about nothing” for the first half of the book, I admit I literally considered skipping forward just to get past the angst. I did enjoy the last half, again, the female MC was a bit of a bummer, but all worked into a lovely HEA.

This story of Ben and Juliana is a lot deeper than it appears, in a good way! Juliana is a widowed mother getting back in the workforce and has an immediate brush with Ben, who she overhears talking crap about her to a colleague when she has to cancel a meeting with him due to an emergency with her daughter. This kicks off 2 years of a back-and-forth rivalry, with chemistry of course.

When they do start talking and Juliana starts to see their rivalry may have been more one-sided (hers) and that there may be something there, the real-world issues creep in. Blending of families, job offers, an ex-wife back in the picture...I felt it was a pretty realistic love story as the two worked through it to figure where their boundaries were, how to be both a parent and a potential partner, and how to communicate.

There is a 3rd act breakup, but as I read it, I was thinking that I could absolutely see a man making the choices that Ben did: a single Dad trying to figure out what's best for his daughter while screwing things up with the woman he loves and not handling it well.

Juliana's friend group also needs recognized here because Asia (friend and co-worker to both of them) was on point by calling out Juliana's issues and sometimes crappy behavior. It got to a point where it was very clear Ben was really a good guy and Juliana was refusing to see it, so she deserved it. I would have been ok if the "enemies" part wrapped up a little sooner than it did, Juliana can hold a grudge.

Spice was just right for the story...not overdone and not cringe.

This is single POV, told through Juliana's eyes. I usually prefer a dual POV, but I think it made the connection better because we get to know Ben like Juliana got to know him.

Definitely an above-average romance with a unique story, definitely going in the "recommend" column!

This book was amazing. I was captivated by every character of the book. Their love is realistic, the struggles of the work life, ex partner, job offers, it was easy to connect with the lifes of the characters. I would've love to see the pov of Ben.


Ben is so charming, caring, flirty and such a good father. He did everything for his kid.
Julianna is so brave, strong, boss lady and caring for her girls. Both characters are so full of love for each other, even though they started on the wrong foot.

Oh, this was so much better than I anticipated! While I did get SUPER frustrated with the FMC for her inconsistent behaviors and responses, I loved every second of it. The banter was top notch, the angst was phenomenal, and the intimate scenes were well executed. I will forever remember and refer back to Ben as a book boyfriend that can't be beat. He was so endearing and despite the 3rd act break up, I still love him. This was my first book from Amy, but it has certainly set the tone for me to continue reading.

So, big shout out to NetGalley for this ARC :)

this was a sweet, emotional, spicy enemies to lovers, workplace romance story! Ben & Juliana have a tumultuous start to their working relationship that builds into a years long prickliness towards each other. it was so special, heartbreaking, and joyful seeing Juliana work through the grief and trauma of losing her husband to accept that she can have love and trust in her life again. I totally understand the thick protective shell she holds around herself and her daughters, and seeing her trust Ben enough to let him in was so lovely. Ben was a little hard for me to warm up to… I don’t love an MMC who irritates the FMC just for kicks and giggles… but without his perspective, it really let me as the reader warm up to him from Juliana’s perspective, letting me see there is so much more to him than surface level thoughts and first impressions. so once I did warm up to Ben, I really loved the two of them together, working through old hurts to be the best partners to each other and parents to their kids.

overall, a completely lovely, emotional, spicy story! thank you for the arc :)

𝙇𝙀𝙏’𝙎 𝘾𝘼𝙇𝙇 𝘼 𝙏𝙍𝙐𝘾𝙀 is a sexy contemporary romance about a widowed mother navigating a tumultuous feud with her attractive colleague. Juliana and Ben were great fun to read! I love an office romance, add in a dash of enemies-to-lovers and it's my catnip. I loved Ben pretty much from the jump. He's a man who knows what he wants. Ofc, I loathe a third act break up so I won't talk about that, but overall it was a fantastic read! Can't wait to read more from Buchanan.

A funny, sharp, and smart debut! I appreciated the plus-size representation, single-mom story, and widower storline as well. I look forward to reading more from Amy Buchanan!