This will be someone's favorite book, but it fell flat for me with the writing and was difficult to get through. Pretty enjoyable characters but ultimately underwhelming because of the prose.

The story opens with newly widowed Juliana Ryan returning to work after several years as a stay-at-home mom to her two daughters. She's nervous about being back in the office while juggling her new responsibilities as a single mom. When she has to leave the office early for an issue at her kid's school, she overhears Ben badmouthing her to a colleague and decides he is the absolute worst. Thus their office rivalry is born. After two years of sarcastic banter, Ben and Juliana are put together to work on a new project. The more Juliana learns about Ben, she realizes that there is more to her feelings than what she thought.

I really enjoyed the story and the dynamics between Juliana and Ben. I love when the hero is totally gone for the heroine early and then he totally just screws up - just epically makes the worst decision ever. But it makes the resolution that much more satisfying.

If you're looking for a book with an enemies-to-lovers storyline, witty banter, and lots of chemistry -- this is the book for you! "Let's Call a Truce" is the first book written by Amy Buchanan, but it won't be the last! It centers around Juliana, a single mom who is struggling just to survive after the sudden passing of her husband. After some time has passed, she's determined to provide for her kids and re-enter the workforce. On her first day at her new job, she runs into (literally!) the man who will become her archenemy: Ben. Over the years, Ben and Juliana argue, bicker, and fight while trying to ignore their growing feelings for each other. And once Juliana realizes there's so much more to Ben than she originally realized, she doesn't have any reasons to fight her feelings anymore.

I appreciated that Buchanan covered some difficult topics, such as grief, loss, and divorce. I thought the two characters had great chemistry and I appreciate that they took things slowly and recognized the consequences of their actions. However, I didn't like the choices Ben made towards the end and was glad he quickly rectified them. I can't wait to read more books by Buchanan! Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

I liked this one and thought that the love story was well-done. I just felt that the relationship between the characters was better written before they actually got together. It lost some of the anticipation and longing that they had before.

This was a very engaging read with a lot of different emotional elements that kept me reading. Julianna and Ben start off as enemies and he definitely falls first. A few of my favorite tropes! I have read a lot of single parent romances and the MMC is usually the single parent. It was nice to see that the FMC had kids and the MMC liked that about her. I would recommend this book for sure.

This book is for you if you love Enemy to Lovers where he's actually secretly simp-ing the whole time! Ben Thomas's obsession is adorable. It wasn't for me however, due to the extreme miscommunication issues this couple has to overcome. Juliana Ryan had blinders on for the whole book and I just kept wanting to scream at her to open her eyes and see the perfect specimen right in front of her.

As a parent going back to work for the first time in a really long time, I can relate to Juliana so much. The struggles she faces and tries to learn how to be a single parent and give her girls every part of her. My girls are the same age as Juliana’s girls and seeing them process grief was so hard but eye opening. The story between Juliana and Ben was so touching as they both worked to be the best parents they could, learn how to date again, and see the fine line of hate and love.

I absolutely did not expect this to be so emotional! It was an amazing representation of grief and the main characters were so sweet to each other.

This was adorable and such a great representation of grief and the complications that come with it. Highly recommended. Plus, the male main character? Loved.

Wow…. This book is one I never knew I needed. Between some of my favourite tropes combining (enemies to lovers, workplace romance, second chance) and the raw emotion that is laced through this book, I want to read it again immediately. The complexity of love and loss with new love is something that many can relate to and the back and forth you go through with reading about the characters Amy has written is absolutely astonishing. I was immediately transported into the world she so magnificently created and didn’t leave from start to finish. Simply incredible.

this book was a rollercoaster of emotions that i didn’t want to get off! i could not have pictured how ben and juliana’s story was going to unfold but it was so beautiful. they chemistry these two had was off the charts and i love it when he falls first and harder! ben was 10x hotter because he was such a good dad… there were a few bumps in the road but in the end i couldn’t be happier!

“But he was right there, beautiful and breathing, and he loved me. The earnest look in his eyes, the desperation and impatience he was trying—and failing—to hide, filled my heart so fully that the idea of not choosing it seemed impossible.”

“He didn’t let me shrink and fade into nothing. He took those broken pieces and pushed me until I put them back together.”

Let's call a truce follows widowed single mom Juliana and her workplace rival Ben, it is clear from the beginning that despite their mutual disdain for each other, they also are both clearly attracted to one another. When they call a truce to work on a joint project between their two departments, they begin to learn more about each other and aren't able to fight off their chemistry any longer. This book did a good job of showing the internal challenges one may face when beginning to move on after losing the person they thought they would spend the rest of their life with. Perhaps his most redeeming quality was Ben's understanding and support of Juliana in her grief journey and his openness to hearing about Juliana's husband. The relationship they both had with the children involved was beautiful, it was clear that they both cared so deeply for the safety and wellbeing (physical and mental) of all of the children involved. The big conflict of this story was EXTREMELY frustrating. Ben himself explained this frustration I felt best when he told Juliana that he had been begging her to "be scared" with him when she began to worry about their relationship, but at the first sign of fear on his end, he didn't choose her. Despite being able to tell what he was intending to accomplish with this decision, it still drove me insane (good plot driver though I suppose!). Perhaps the most frustrating element of this book for me was the initial comment made by Ben which Juliana overhears on her first week with the company. Although this moment is discussed further on in the story, it never felt as though it was settled in a way that included Ben taking accountability for the full extent and damage his comment had. I can maybe understand the point of him being upset at situations outside of work in the moment, and taking that anger out on her. However, the comments made felt extremely sexist to me, and entirely insensitive when he had the knowledge that her husband had recently passed. And it takes WAY too long for him to ever apologize for this moment. Overall, I did enjoy the book, and I thought Ben and Juliana and the little family they created together was adorable.

Thank you to NetGalley for the chance to read the advanced copy of this wonderful book! It was romantic, funny, heartwarming, and had nice depth.
The book is a enemies to lovers trope. It also deals with loss and starting over.
The characters were both loveable but also flawed. There were lots of firey scenes but also frustrating parts that made the drama more intense. I really enjoyed this fast read and would highly recommend it!

Let's Call a Truce wasn't my favorite enemies to lover's book. The biggest problem I had with this book was the MFC, Juliana. I found her behavior frustrating. I didn't like how long she held a grudge towards Ben. I understand that Ben's comment towards her was unnecessary; however, to hold a grudge like that for two years is crazy. Juliana's behavior towards Ben was mean and I didn't get good "enemies to lovers" vibes from them. I felt like the feud between Juliana and Ben was really dragged out. I thought there could have been fewer fighting scenes between Juliana and Ben. When they did finally get together, I thought their sexual chemistry was well written. I did find the whole Stephanie plot line silly. Although the author makes a case for Ben's decision, I found it unbelievable and foolish. Besides the whole Stephanie bit, Ben wasn't too bad. I thought he handled Juliana's hot and coldness well. I liked that Ben and Juliana were able to rely on each other for family support. I thought the author did a great job addressing Juliana's anxiety and struggles as a widow. All of the kids were cute characters...they may have been my favorite characters in the book😂 Although the main characters annoyed me, I think Buchanan shows promise. Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Griffin for the ARC.

Oh my GOSH. I DEVOURED this book!

The banter, the drama, the STORY. I love this book so much that I ignored life responsibilities for hours to get this one finished.

Juliana and Ben are a wonderful couple. I love how the enemies to lovers vibe was treated with this story and the twist in the middle was SO good and wonderful. Both of these characters were so relatable and nothing in this story felt far-fetched or unbelievable, which I think added to how easy it is to get invested in their story. I plan on reading literally anything Amy Buchanan writes from now on, this story was so perfect and hit the spot so well!

Juliana and Ben have a rocky start but find happiness together. The sadness and angst are tough but relatable, but an HEA is guaranteed!

Thank you to NetGalley, publisher, and author. All comments are my own.

Let’s Call a Truce is a lovely romance between two feuding coworkers, with an emphasis on finding love again after loss. When the story starts, Juliana is a single mom to two daughters whose husband unexpectedly died several months before. She is reentering the workforce after being a stay at home mom for several years and over hears her coworker Ben say a nasty comment about her having to cancel meetings due to an emergency with her kids. The book fast forwards two years and the two are constantly at each other’s throats. Then Juliana and Ben are tasked on working on a big project together that could change both of their careers and they are forced to play nice.

I loved this one. It was angsty and beautiful. I was really moved by Juliana doing so much for her girls after suddenly losing the love of her life. I don’t want to say too much about Ben and risk spoiling things but I loved how committed he was both to pursuing Juliana and in another aspect of his life that I won’t spoil. The tension and banter between the two was really well done. The chemistry was off the charts. This was so heartfelt and tender. I adored the found family surrounding the MCs. Also, the epilogue was incredibly satisfying.

Thank you to SMP and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Amazing debut! Couldn’t put this book down! I laughed, cried, and had all the feels. Great read if you love: Enemies-to-lovers, Forced proximity, Workplace romance, Happily ever after, and Some spice (2.5 peppers).

A new take on the classic “enemies-to-lovers” trope, Buchanan was able to tell a unique story that I have not read before.

Juliana is a newly single mother, trying to put her life back together after the loss of her husband. Ben is her coworker and supposed “arch-nemesis”. Their story is one of misunderstanding, grief, found joy, and found family. It’s a culmination of both humor and deep, soul moments; tugging at your heart while also making you laugh.

Buchanan did a wonderful job of making you fall in love with the characters while also feeling the depth of Juliana’s grief without feeling too heavy. Though there are moments of frustration with both Juliana and Ben, it comes from a place of understanding what they’re going through.

There were some minor spelling and grammatical errors, but none that took me out of the moment. They were easy to ignore and skip over.

Overall, this is a wonderful, unique read that I enjoyed. It was a breath of fresh air when I was stuck in a book rut, feeling like I was reading the same story from different authors.

3.5⭐

For starters, each person grieves - and moves on - differently. I've never been married and can't imagine the pain of losing a partner like Juliana did in this story, suddenly being thrown into single motherhood and having to work again.
 
I reckon I, too, would be scared to open myself up to pain again, so I can understand Juliana's apprehension to being emotionally involved with someone new. That said, she was a tad selfish with her uncertainty, pulling him then pushing him back. 

I think this quote from the book best describes it: "There had been a war, but it was against myself. Against my heartbreak and fear, my determination to keep myself separate from love in a desperate attempt to stay safe." 

She was also a bit childish in the beginning, though  I wouldn't be ecstatic to forgive him after overhearing what he said either.
 
As for Ben, I could tell he liked her from the get-go and thoroughly regretted his asshole remark, though he was too stubborn to just apologize for it. Throughout the book, he pushed her when needed, but also respected when she set boundaries - with remarkable patience, to be quite honest. 

[paragraph omitted due to spoiler, included in goodreads review]

That said, I'm not a parent. I understand he was doing what he believed was best for his daughter, and though his request to Juliana was selfish, the reason behind his shit decision was wholeheartedly with Paris' best interest in mind. 

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I gave it 3.5 stars, round down to 3 because of the push and pull in the beginning and then, when they were finally going to tell the children, [omitted due to spoiler, included in goodreads review], but that's simply my personal dislike of this plot point. 

The writing style was great, the secondary characters were awesome, the plot in itself was really fun, I'd definitely recommend this book and will keep an eye on future books by Amy Buchanan.