I thought this was very good and I will have to add this to the shop shelves. Thank you for the chance for us to review.

DNF @ 36% - There were things about this one I did dig, but ultimately, I also recognized it wasn't for me. I appreciated the focus on a main character who has OCD - It was written in a way where it was explained the impact this has, and also she was given depth beyond this. I appreciated that there was a unique connection between Rose and her brother's best friend. Admittedly, I don't love the thought of someone spoiling literally all the movies, but I can appreciate this as a plot point. Ultimately, the burn was too slow for me, but know others will dig it. I also wasn't feeling the sabotage that seemed was about to be unleased. This is all more about me as a reader versus the book, and I have no doubt there's an audience out there that will dig this one. Thanks to NetGalley for letting me check out this June 2024 release.

This was a sharp, fast-paced thriller that delivers tension and unexpected twists from start to finish. The novel is centered around the manipulation of secrets and information, where characters are pitted against one another in a web of deception. What makes this story compelling is how it plays with the theme of control—who holds it, who loses it, and how dangerous the consequences are when the truth is blurred.

Todd’s writing is crisp and economical, keeping the pace tight without sacrificing depth. The protagonist is resourceful but flawed, navigating a high-stakes game where trust is a rare commodity and every choice seems to lead deeper into the unknown. The plot is clever, with layers that slowly unravel, leaving readers constantly second-guessing the motives of key players.

While the thriller genre often relies on action, “The Spoiler” also shines in its psychological tension, with moments of introspection that add emotional weight to the intrigue. It’s a novel that not only surprises but makes you reconsider how information can be weaponized in our modern age.

For fans of suspenseful thrillers with intricate plots and morally complex characters, “The Spoiler” is a gripping read that keeps you on edge until the very last page.

Many thanks to Netgalley, the publisher, and the author for providing me with an ARC and allowing me to provide my honest review

**Thank you to NetGalley and Publisher for the ARC in exchange for a review; all opinions are my own.**

This was a DNF at 20% and not because it was terrible, it just was a book not for me. I thought the initial idea was cute! But I apparently am just not a plain romance girlie.

Tropes:
👥brothers best friend
❤️‍🔥hate to love
Thank you to NetGalley for giving this ARC, and this doesn’t influence my review. This book was phenomenal. I loved how unique the synopsis was! The writing style was amazing, I loved how the FMC eagerly avoided MMC, and the chemistry????? Amazing. I don’t even want to say anything else, just read the book.

I enjoyed this book a lot, it was very fast phased, which is a big plus, as well as not too long chapters.

Heartfelt and entertaining, 'The Spoiler' delivers a fresh and compelling take on the friends-to-lovers trope, capturing the complexities of slow burn romance with authenticity and grace.

The writing is contemporary, gripping, and satisfyingly paced, ensuring a seamless transition from one chapter to the next. The first-person perspective provides an intimate glimpse into the protagonist’s inner world, adding depth to the emotional landscape.

Character development in 'The Spoiler' stands out, featuring leads who are complex, imperfect, and highly relatable. The novel’s commitment to diversity is commendable, with a male lead of Native American descent and a female lead who battles OCD, adding significant richness to the narrative. The sexual tension between the protagonists is expertly crafted, unfolding gradually and keeping readers engaged. Even the secondary characters are well-rounded and nuanced, contributing meaningfully to the story.

The novel’s exploration of the protagonists’ journeys toward better mental health and self-image is both poignant and relevant. The realistic portrayal of these challenges delivers a powerful message about the difficulties and rewards of personal growth. Driven by misunderstandings, the emotional distance between the lovers, creates moments of heartache but ultimately fosters empathy for their struggles. By the conclusion, readers are deeply invested in the outcome and can readily connect with the protagonists’ experiences.

In summary, 'The Spoiler' is a captivating and addictive read that I’d gladly revisit. Fans of new adult romance, particularly those who appreciate a nuanced exploration of love and personal growth, are likely to find this novel especially enjoyable.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This read was a cute and intriguing read. I very much love the trope of brother’s best friend so this was right up my alley. I also enjoyed the dynamic between the MFC and her brother, the many movies that are mentioned in it and the emotional/social awkwardness story line (I felt very seen in this part of the story).

I loved this book! It had great mental health rep, specific to anxiety, panic, and OCD mostly, but in general mental health as well.

The main female character, Rose, has OCD and is currently attending UVA. She lives with her brother, Rob, who also attends UVA. His best friend, Tristan attends there as well, and may as well live with them since he spends nearly all his time there. And therein lies one of the main issues for our main character, Rose - Tristan is literally always around and has been for many years. He's always around and seems to take great pleasure in spoiling every single movie she tries to watch. Movies are the one "healthy-ish" compulsion she allows herself without too much guilt, more specifically historical dramas.

There were a few places in this book that made me actually laugh out loud, one joke in particular. It also had me tearing up at times, because LE Todd makes you really, truly care for the characters. Her prose is beautiful, it flows well and smoothly. Her dialogue is especially good, feels completely natural.

The plot felt really well paced and was interesting. At no point did it fell rushed or bogged down.

I feel like LE Todd handled all aspects of mental health really well. It felt nuanced and natural, it felt dimensional. Her main characters were well developed and dimensional. They felt like real people.

As a period movie enthusiast, I was enthralled from start to finish! The tension, the buildup, the banter between the two main characters—everything keeps you on the edge of your seat, eager to see how it all unfolds. The emotions of the characters are palpable, and the book ties everything together in a way that leaves the reader feeling completely satisfied.

If you're wondering about the spice, there is some, but it's milder compared to other books I've read. The buildup is exhilarating and definitely worth the wait!

I also appreciate how Todd explores real mental struggles and their impact on individuals and their interactions with others. We all deserve to be loved for who we are, just as we are!

I'm usually not a fan of the "brother's best friend" trope but this book was so interesting to read and I was invested from beginning to end. It was a refreshing way of reading it, and the characters were very relatable. also, I usually don't like sex scenes unless intentional and these were so fitting and well written.
My only issue was just the "forced break up act" and sometimes I didn't understand 100% why the MMC was spoiling the movies for the FMC.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC!

I'll start by saying I was super excited about this book - the book was giving cozy fantasy, and after the reading the description and realizing there would be no fantasy involved, I still thought the blurb sounded so adorable. Our FMC has OCD, which I felt was so fairly and well portrayed - I liked in particular, that it wasn't about cleanliness. My major qualms with this book were just with the flow and editing - it felt like a draft, and I don't know how much of that was potentially poor formatting of the e-book, but it felt like I was constantly skipping between different times in our characters' life with no warning, and just feeling left on my own to puzzle that out. As part of this, I kept getting confused as to how old they were - is this a college age or high school age? And do the mean girls make sense for this age group, or are they just existing to exist as mean girls?

This book did do a great job of the pining - we really got to see the slow buildup from our FMC's point of view, even as she remained blissfully obvious of Tristan's intentions. This was probably the primary reason I kept reading the book - I just love a good yearn and buildup. But the jumps in time and confusing structure was severely impacting the story, and I'm hoping the final published version gets rid of that issue and is a bit clearer - so I'll give this a 3.5 though I really wanted to give it the 4.

Really well done contemporary romance, that hit all the nostalgia feels honestly, also helps that I love period dramas just like our main girl Rose! The book handles a lot of tough mental health rep like OCD and anxiety, and handles it very well, it felt very realistic and natural. I think that's what sticks out the most from this book, every facet of the story feels very grounded and flowed beautifully! The romance was good, very slow burn but there was sooo much tension and some spice that was A+!

The Spoiler
By: L.E.Todd

I really liked this book, a lot !

Rose has struggled with OCD all her life, to the point of near isolation after being teased, scoffed at and bullied for her “weird” tendencies. Her only true relationship is with her brother and his annoying best friend Tristan, who has always been around. Tristan for some reason likes to spoil all the movies that Rose watches by telling her how they end. So the back and forth begins but his tenderness towards her makes her feel something. He doesn’t treat her like everyone else does. What’s does he really want from her ?

This is a sweet slow burner that grabs at your heart. I didn’t want to put the book down.

This is the first published novel by L.E.Todd and if her first novel is this good I cannot wait to see what she has up her sleeve for future novels.

4.5⭐️ rounded up to 5⭐️

Rose Maraczek who is a 21-year-old that finds comfort in period dramas which allow her to escape from her reality.
Her passion for these films sparks during high school when an mysterious box of movies appeared on her doorstep. These movies became a lifeline, helping her cope with the burden of OCD….. But, there's one thing that irks her:
SPOILERS.
They shatter the immersive experience she craves.

Roses brother's best friend Tristan Moore, and her former crush, is a perpetual thorn in her side.
He relentlessly reveals movie plot twists. Fed up with his antics, Rose decides it's time to move out. But just as she's about to pack her bags, Tristan drops a bombshell - he was the one who left those movies for her years ago. Now, fueled by determination, Rose plots to spoil every movie he watches.

Beyond the drama and intrigue, what truly shines in this story is L.E. Todd's sensitive portrayal of mental health.

Rose, the central character, grapples with nearly crippling OCD, facing both ridicule and self-sabotage. Todd's first-person narrative beautifully captures the internal struggles that many of us, especially those dealing with anxiety, experience.

A heartfelt Thanks to NetGalley and Sword and Silk Books for bringing this captivating tale to readers.

I literally could not put this book down ! I would get so bummed when I had to do anything other than reading this book. It does feel a little predictable at first but I didn’t mind because I’ve been overdue for a good romance. I would like to start off with Rose’s prideful moment near the end. I feel like it was very realistic and I actually enjoyed that it was written that way. I feel like I could see myself as Rose in that aspect,even though I know that is not a good quality to have. The way that things happened in this book is like the author took everything I wanted to happen in a Romance and wrote it here.

Tristan’s explanation for why he was spoiling this for Rose did make me a bit angry because it didn’t make sense but I understand it’s just a plot point and convenience of the story. I don’t know if many people will like this but I certainly did, which is why it has a 4.5 stars ⭐️ from me. I recommend for everyone to at least try it and have an open mind.

Thank you to the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for this e-ARC.

I enjoyed this debut novel! Loved seeing OCD/neurodivergence representation as well as an exploration of the toll that high school and other bullying can take on a person and affect so many aspects of life for so long. I was rooting for Rose and Tristan throughout the story. Although I did want to yell at both of them many times, especially during the miscommunciations. I loved Rose's close relationship with Rob, who was probably my favorite character. I wish that Rose and Rob's parents would've played more of a role throughout the story. Also, I got a little confused sometimes during the flashback chapters. It felt like we would be in the past for the chapters but sometimes the narration would switch back to the present at the end of some of them. It could've just been something I missed, but I'm not sure that I knew what year the present was in so it took me a while to figure out what time in the past the flashback chapters started. I also wish we would've gotten more development of Tristan and Rose's relationship before the spoilers started. As a reader, I think it would've made the hatred feel more earned. I'm not a huge movie person, but even I could understand and appreciate the references chosen for the book. Can't wait to read what L.E. Todd does next!

This book had me feeling so many emotions; I found myself laughing out loud a few times, in tears with some of Rose’s struggles and the emotions present in some scenes, but I mostly found myself smiling while reading it. Rose’s struggle with OCD was one I don’t think I’ve seen often in romance, or the way in which her family and friends try to help her; this book was full of a lot of love, but also some pain. I found myself relating to Rose in ways that were entirely unexpected, which I think made me appreciate this book so much more than I would have otherwise. Rose lives with her brother Rob, they’ve been best friends their entire lives, halfway through high school Tristan entered their lives and became best friends with Rob (moments of which we get through flashback chapters), cementing himself as another member of the family. Tristan is clearly in love with Rose from the beginning of the book, Rose is entirely oblivious to his feelings and is incredibly (& understandably) annoyed with Tristan’s constant need to spoil the ending of every movie she watches, which are a coping-mechanism and escape for her OCD (I admit I would also be beyond mad if someone kept ruining the end of movies for me!). Rose decides she wants to get Tristan back for all the movies he’s ruined for her over the years, creating a plan on how she’s going to ruin him, creating a complicated relationship full of tension and chemistry. This book had more spice than I had expected, but it was very well written and I found myself feeling the tension Rose was feeling right along with her. I fell in love with Tristan, as frustrating as he was with the spoilers it was clear how much he truly cared about Rose and how much he was struggling with other things in his life. The pacing of the book was well done and I didn’t feel like it was rushed, there was definitely a bit of a slow-burn aspect to it, but not painfully so. If you don’t like miscommunication you may want to skip this one because there’s definitely a communication problem, one that Rose & Tristan need to overcome, but also just within Rose herself. Thank you @netgalley for my copy of this!! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
#romance #mentalhealth #netgalley

DNF'ed this book about 25% in because I couldn't handle how "not like other girls" the FMC was, I was looking forward to the nuanced OCD representation, but found that I couldn't care about either character of the primary love story and felt nothing drawing me in to finish it.

A well developed story with fun characters and a plot that kept me hooked from the first page! Add this one to your to be read list ASAP!