If you love the TV show married at first sight or any other dating show you're going to love this book. The main characters enter in a reality TV show where they get married when they meet for the first time but accidentally with this couple they are exes. It's funny, sweet, a little spicy 🔥 and gives you a behind the scenes view of this couple.

Thank you to NetGallery and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A mixture of the writing style and the narrator made me feel like I was watching a reality tv show more than listening to a book. Well done and an immersive experience. I will look for more by this author.

Not You Again
Ingrid Pierce
Andie Dresser designs one-of-a-kind wedding dresses. She has quite a following and yet financially she is hurting. Atlanta’s Fashion Weed has chosen to spotlight her gowns. But designing a full line of gowns has her in a financial mess. There is a reality show with a large prize, $100,000 dollars. She needs the money. It should be easy as long as she keeps her eye on the prize. She has to marry a stranger and divorce him at the end of filming. Piece of cake.
Kit Watson, an architect, has returned to Atlanta. His mother is ill and needs his help, but she won’t allow him to help her unless he settles down. She wants him to marry; she insists he sign up for the reality show. He will do anything for his mother, even get married. He stands at the altar waiting to marry someone he has never met. But when he looked up he saw Andie, the woman he loved and left seven years ago. He loved her then and he still loves her.
Before the tv cameras and however many viewers are watching they say their I dos. They must stay married and live together for 8 weeks. The cameras are watching them, filming them. Andie and Ki begin to discuss their past, and the old feelings are starting to return but so do the hurt and pain Andie felt when Kit left her with no explanation. Kit loves her and wants to make a life with her but Andie must be willing to forgive him and give up the $100,000. Can she give up success for Kit.
I love this tale. This is second chance romance at its best. Kit and Andie are not perfect; they are flawed which makes them work so well together. Bace in college, Andie told Kit she loved him but he never reciprocated. Andie was hurt, Kit is sorry he hurt her and now he wants a life with her. They must digest their past and their present situation. You can feel the sparks between Kit and Andie. I found myself rooting for their relationship. This is a beautifully written love story. Kudos to author Ingrid Pierce.

Thank you NetGalley for providing a copy for review.

Thank you NetGalley for the audio ARC in exchange for an honest review

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶️
4⭐️ Narrators

I’m not putting any real spoilers in this review, but I do mention that there’s a 3rd act breakup so I turned on the spoiler warnings for GoodReads

This book was so sweet and fun and I’m really happy I read it. I’ve been reading a lot of fantasy lately, so a straightforward rom com was just what I needed.

Both of the narrators did a really good job. The sound was clear and the character voices were distinct.

Both the FMC and the MMC are believably flawed (The MMC is so frustrating sometimes!!) and the side characters are all really fun

The reality show element was a really good way to add some conflict without overuse of the miscommunication trope (though there definitely is some miscommunication going on as well) being on camera 90% of the time definitely makes hard conversations more difficult to have and amps up the drama a bit

All of the other contestants and the producers are all great side characters, but Kitty and Andie’s mothers are the standouts of side characters. Andie’s mom was obviously the source of a lot of Andie’s emotional issues, but she showed so much growth which I really loved. Kit’s mom was so sweet, strong, and smart. I adore that woman.

There was a 3rd act breakup, which I normally hate, but I actually cried when they got back together (a little awkward since I was at work at the time, but worth it)

Overall, I loved the book and would read more from the author in the future.

Thank You NetGalley for an advanced e-copy of Not You Again, in exchange for an honest review.

Andrea 'Andie' Dresser, a budding wedding dress designer, finds herself in a desperate situation when she lacks the funds to showcase her dream line at Atlanta Fashion Week. In a moment of desperation, she signs up for a reality show that offers a $100,000 prize—only to discover that her new husband is none other than Kit Watson, her ex-boyfriend who broke her heart and ghosted her years ago.

As Andie and Kit embark on their eight-week 'marriage' for the cameras, they are forced to confront their past and re-evaluate their feelings. Through flashbacks, readers are privy to the tumultuous history between these two characters, which is marked by misunderstandings and tragedy. However, as they spend more time together, old wounds begin to heal and new feelings emerge.

The romance between Andie and Kit is both heartwarming and frustrating. They have undeniable chemistry, but their past and the pressure of the reality show create obstacles that they must overcome. Readers will find themselves rooting for them while simultaneously wanting to shake them for their occasional lapses in judgment.

Pierce's writing is engaging and relatable. She deftly explores themes of love, forgiveness, and the complexities of human relationships. The characters of Andie and Kit are well-developed and multidimensional, and their growth throughout the story feels authentic and believable.

While the premise of 'Not You Again' may sound like a typical reality TV plot, Pierce elevates the story with her thoughtful exploration of the characters' emotions and motivations. The reality show setting provides a unique backdrop for the couple's journey, but it never overshadows the core themes of the novel.

Overall, 'Not You Again' is an engaging read. It is a story that will resonate with readers who enjoy romantic comedies with a touch of drama and introspection. Ingrid Pierce has crafted a tale that will leave you rooting for the characters, questioning your own relationships, and ultimately believing in the power of love's second chances.

Audio note: The audio was pretty good. I enjoyed Kelsey Navarro-Foster's performance, and her voice is always easy to listen to. She does a great job here. John William Maddux is a new-to-me narrator, and it seems like he's newish to narration in general. His soft, understated voice worked for Kit's character, though I did not like his voice for Andie AT ALL. He's got potential as a narrator though, so I wouldn't rule out listening to him in the future if he works on his "girl voice." The book isn't super spicy or anything, but there is a bit of heat. At 10-11 hours, the runtime is short enough to get through in a single day if you want. I found it easy enough to binge. Not a standout on audio, but certainly not bad in the format either.

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I was leaning towards rating this as 4 stars until I actually sat down to write my review, and then I realized that - though I enjoyed much of the story - I had quite a few pretty big issues with the relationship at the heart of it. Let's talk about the good for a minute, because there's a solid amount of it. I liked the premise of two people getting matched on a Married at First Sight-style dating show, only to discover that their supposed "ideal" partner is the person who broke their heart years ago. They had a messy breakup back in college and left things very unresolved between them, so they have different levels of enthusiasm about their present day match. I always love "he falls first" vibes and a man who knows he needs to win over his girl, so that part worked for me. I also thought the reality show aspect added a fresh, unique feel to the typical second chance romance setup, and it was easy to feel the connection that still sparked between our couple. I'll get into the things that didn't work for me in a minute, but this was the kind of debut that makes me excited to check out more from the author in the future, as her writing continues to grow.

The story follows Andie, a wedding dress designer who is resistant to letting love into her life. After having her heart broken in college and after spending years watching her mom drift from one man to another, the last thing Andie is looking for is a relationship. But she does need money to grow her business, so when a friend tells Andie about a loophole in a reality show's contract, it sparks an idea. Andie will get married to a stranger, and when they part ways she'll receive a check large enough to grow her business. Unfortunately, that plan goes awry as soon as Andie meets her groom - Kit, her college sweetheart. They only dated for a few months, but Andie let herself fall for him... only to be shattered to pieces when he unexpectedly disappeared from her life. Ten years later, Kit is ecstatic to discover that his new bride is Andie. He sees it as a second chance to get things right, even if she wants nothing to do with him.

I'm not the biggest fan of second chance romances, but I love a reality TV romance book, so I was excited to see how this one played out. The writing was pretty good, not amazing but certainly enough to pull me in. Where this one stumbled is with the endless, exhausting miscommunication. The reason for their breakup kinda drove me crazy, but even worse was that they continued to struggle with communication in the present day. Though Kit is excited for another chance to get things right with Andie, their relationship felt lust-focused to me. In the past AND the present. They both refuse to open up and repair old wounds, even though Kit says he's willing to. There were SO MANY missed opportunities for them to work on the emotional side of their relationship, but things still felt unresolved by the time we got the HEA. I think I probably could've bumped this up to a 4-star rating had the third act not been quite so messy, but it just made me feel even less confident that these two could make it in the long run. Ultimately, there's a ton of potential here, and I think a few tweaks could've really done wonders for the story.

Thank you Dreamscape Media and NetGalley for this advance readers audiobook copy in exchange for an honest review.

Andie signs up for a reality show to obtain cash for her wedding dress business. Kit signs up to appease his ill mother. They meet at the alter on their wedding day and discover they already know each other, having dated 10 years ago. As they navigate their new marriage they also explore what went wrong 10 years ago, eventually rekindling their relationship. Not You Again is a cute light hearted second chance rom com.

I am a huge fan of the show 'Married at First Sight', so when I read the blurb for this book I knew I wanted to read it!

The premise is pretty similar to MAFS, with the added twist that Andie and Kit already knew each other! They dated in college and had a messy breakup, leaving both of them pretty heartbroken. Now they're married, but both have admitted they had ulterior motives for saying yes to the show, and to each other. But their forced proximity has them remembering why they fell in love the first time, and it gets harder and harder for them to say everything they are doing is for the show.

Kit is DOWN BAD for Andie, and always has been. But the man is a bad communicator, and some childhood trauma really has him believing that real love means brutal sacrifice. He wants to be there for Andie, but he's convinced he won't ever be "the man she needs him to be" (what does that even mean..). Andie has some issues with love as well, but it felt like she grew more throughout the book, being willing to put her self out there for Kit, to be really honest about how she felt and risk him breaking her heart again. I wish we had a little more of that type of growth from Kit, and not just in the last two chapters. I did really like seeing their relationship grow, but I often found myself frustrated because Kit's internal monologue about how much he loved Andie always turned into his list of reasons why he could't stay with her, and he never talked to her about those things.

In the end though, I still really enjoyed this book and would read more from Ingrid. If you like second chance romance, marriage of convenience, and MAFS/reality shows, then I would recommend! Also the narrators were fabulous!

Thank you so much for this wonderful ARC!

I adored this book! I love the relationship between Andie and Kit and I think both voice actors did an excellent job at bringing them to life in their reading of the audiobook!
Beautifully paced, humorous and sexy; this second chance RomCom had everything you could want from a great girlie read. It reminded me of all the early 2000s chick flicks, I miss those films but this book helped to fill that void.

I will be telling all my girlfriends about this book!

3.5 stars

After applying to be on a 'Married and First Sight'-style reality TV show for the divorce money to kickstart her wedding dress business, Andie Dresser is shocked to discover her groom is her ex Kit Watson. Ten years ago Andie told Kit she loved him, only for him to disappear for a few days leading her to cut him off completely.

This book was a cute second chance that started strong, but it started to become a bit of a tiresome loop with Andie refusing to communicate with Kit about their past and Kit being upset Andie's plan to divorce him for the compensation. Then Andie started flip flopping and had the temerity to get angry when, to protect himself, he started withdrawing from Andie. I actually felt Kit's decision at the end of the show was the correct one, and to be honest I wish this neccessitated a much longer break as Andie and Kit still had a lot of growing up to do and I would've loved to see them take the money and work on their relationship away from the TV show. I also felt Kit's mother pressuring him to go on a reality TV show to find love a huge stretch. I can't think of any parent thinking a reality show was a safe way to find a partner.

Kelsey Navarro Foster and John William Darrow give spirited performances to bring this book to life. Both were perfectly cast - Kelsey has a bright but matter-of-fact style of speaking that suited Andie, while Darrow had a calm and softly spoken voice that I think matched Kit well.

Thanks to Dreamscape Media and NetGalley for the ARC.

This is a cute second-chance rom com where the couple broke up over a misunderstanding ten years earlier. The humor comes not so much from wit as from shenanigans. I enjoyed the narration.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC.

I loved the setup for this (college flames get paired unknowingly on “married at first sight”) but couldn’t get into it. I’m not sure if the story was too slow or the characters were too boring… I tried several times and am finally calling it quits.

Thank you so very much to alcove press and Netgalley for this audio copy! I have some mixed feelings about this one.

This is immediately set up for an incredibly fun ride: a reality show arranged marriage, but the catch is that THIS couple has dated before. I really enjoyed the writing itself, I thought it was eloquent and thoughtful, and handles some of the more heavy topics quite well.

I think my biggest problem is that I just couldn’t get past the miscommunication between our main couple. Both of them behave really immaturely, not only in their past relationship but in the present iteration of it as well. They make a lot of decisions that don’t seem very clearly explored to the reader until well after the fact, and while that may be a personal preference, it really just made me so frustrated that I felt pulled out of the story more often than not.

I should also mention that while I enjoyed the female narrator and have listened to other books by her in the past, I really could not stand the male narrator. His I election felt very whiny, and it only exacerbated the problems I had with the poor communication bits.

I do think this author has some serious potential, so I will consider coming back to her. It is a very heartfelt story, and I could see myself enjoying something of its like if only the miscommunication wasn’t the main feature. I think this could be a standout romance for some, but it didn’t work terribly well for me.

I received this for free as an advanced reader copy audiobook. This is dual POV with two narrators. As an audiobook, it was pretty good. But, the story wasn’t my favorite.
I loved the premise. Two people who dated in college but broke up get matched in a “Married at First Sight” type of reality show. With a lot of forced proximity, they fall in love again. And get to know why they broke up in the first place.
However… it went bad.

There are three things I need to make a second chance romance work really well:
1. A real reason the two people broke up, that isn’t due to them being crap people.
2. Real growth leading them back to each other.
3. An abiding love and faithfulness, meaning there were no other folks they pursued while they were broken up.

This didn’t do a good job with any of the three. Didn’t like the reason they broke up, didn’t feel like they grew, and they both slept with others during their separation (especially him).

I wouldn’t read another book by this author. There were multiple things that drove me crazy. For instance, the heroine asks the hero to cut her out of her dress. There’s no reason for this other than an elaborate metaphor that the characters think about the whole time of “removing each other’s armor”. It was bizarre that she would have him ruin a fancy dress she made.

I couldn’t STAND how the hero acts. He’s very self-righteous that he’s all in and she’s not but when push comes to shove, he runs away. Super frustrating. I’m never a fan when the heroine has to chase the hero. She seems to grow in this book and be open to trying again. And he’s not. It takes a LOOOOOONG talk with his mom for him to be open to having a relationship.

Safety deets
- No other people during the book, but they definitely slept with others during their 10-year separation.
- SO MUCH NEGATIVE MOTIVATION. The heroine pushes back SO MUCH. And then, when she finally gives in, the hero pushes away.
- Brutal 3rd act separation.
- Birth control and diseases discussed but condoms not used.

Synopsis: Andie and Kit met and dated briefly in college. They both were hurt when things fell apart, but each moved on with their lives and tried to forget the other.

Ten years later, both Kit and Andie find themselves at the end of an altar on a reality show. Newly married and with cameras filming their every move, can they navigate work, family, and personal conflicts and make their relationship work this time?

Overall, this was a fun and enjoyable read! I loved the reality show premise and thought the second chance romance was done well. The surrounding cast of characters were great and well developed, which I always appreciate.

If you like second chance romances, this one is worth a read. Looking forward to seeing what Ingrid Pierce writes next.

Thank you to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for an advanced copy of this audiobook.

Thank you Netgalley and dreamscape media for the free ALC. My opinions are being left voluntarily. I absolutely love this book and hope to see more folks hyping it up. I haven't seen it anywhere and at first thought it was a backlist I die getting an audiobook. I loved everything about this book cover to cover. No notes.

The reviews on this one are stellar, but, unfortunately, I found myself not enjoying this novel as much as others.

Andie is an up and coming wedding dress designer. She needs an infusion of cash to scale her fledgling business. Her best friend convinces her to enter a reality show where Andie will marry a stranger and she will get $100,000 if she divorces after eight weeks. She figures this is better than a business loan.

But, when she shows up to her on stage wedding, the groom is college love, Kit. Their fiery romance was fast and intense. After breaking up, they have had no contact for the past ten years.

Admittedly, the miscommunication trope is my least favorite and these two are thick with it. Also, the spice was too much for this reader--which another reader would enjoy.

The dual POV narration was fantastic. This was an easy book to follow and review on audio.

📚 BOOK REVIEW 📚

✨️ Not You Again, Ingrid Pierce✨️ - 💜💜💜💜

Thank you to Netgalley for the ALC, all views are my own!

This was such a great listen, and I mean great. The charm in the writing of this is stellar, and I found myself loving our two main characters Andie and Kit for how human they were.

I also loved the plot of going on a reality tv show to find 'love'. I personally watch those type of programmes so it was super interesting to read about and found myself having a good giggle over. There were so many moments I was laughing, cringing, angry, and then back round again.

I also try to imagine what I'd do if the guy that broke my heart ended up being the guy I was 'marrying' on national television and our relationship be documented by an army of cameras ha! I really resonated with Andie's drive for her career, and particularly loved to see her growth throughout the book. Obviously Kit is great too, but Andie really shone for me in this.

It was really lovely to read a novel where the characters have real flaws and struggles that you sort of work through with them as the novel progresses. The narrator does a fantastic job of bringing the characters to life!

“Kit’s thighs really are a work of f****** art” 🤭

Andie Dresser is a wedding dress designer who is truly just doing her best. When her best isn’t quite cutting it, she signs up for a reality television show that offers a chunk of cash in the fine print if the marriage doesn’t work out after 8 weeks. She had no desire to get married and the money could do amazing things for her. What’s the harm? I mean it is reality tv.

Kit Watson is an architect who has 99 problems and a wife ain’t one 🤣 He’s been traveling for work since his father passed away but is now “settling” into Atlanta with his mother as she works through her diagnosis and treatment. Kit still has to work and wants to hire some help for his mom while he’s away. The only way that his beautiful, stubborn mom would agree to hiring a home nurse is if he would go on a reality dating show so that she could see him happy and settled down before she dies.

Here’s the thing though. The show? It’s giving very much (it literally is) Married at First Sight. Which wouldn’t be weird, it’s actually rather common in this funny silly goofy era we are living in right now. So what’s the twist? Andie and Kit are NOT strangers. In fact, they had a romantic relationship several years prior until Kit left and Andie hadn’t seen him since.

UNTIL she’s walking down the aisle. Instead of pretending to be strangers, Andie is forced to explore the relationship and do her best not to fall in love all over again with the man who tore her heart to pieces 7 years ago.

Because no matter what, Andie NEEDS that prize money.

This was so cute! It was fun to hear the little interviews after the scenes and the setup of the book was SO interesting! It was such a refreshing and easy read. It had great banter and while Andie drove me a little bit coocoo bonkers bananas, I was fighting for her the whole entire time.
Picture that gif.. the one that says “NOWWWWW KISS” and that was me. I love Andie and Kit. For LIFEEEE 🫶

Thank you Ingrid Pierce, Dreamscape Media, and NetGalley for the ALC!

Andie and Kit dated back in college, but they haven't seen each other since their break up. Now, 10 years later and for very different reasons, they unknowingly take part in the same reality show, and get paired up to get married on camera, and stay together for the following 8 weeks.

The premise for this was very fun, and the second chance aspect added something really interesting to an already difficult dynamic. Watching both characters deal with the situation they were in while trying to walk through their past history was no easy task, and I think it was executed very well. The pacing was great, and the story always kept you interested.

I really liked Andie and Kit, both separately and as a couple. Their backstories were very interesting, and the way they were similar, yet so different was something I really appreciated. Watching their relationship grow was so entertaining. Their chemistry was clear from the very first moment, and it made it very easy to root for them, especially once you get the full picture of what had gone on between them in the past.

While I overall had a great time with the book, the miscommunication did get on my nerves at times, but it wasn't too bad to deal with, especially because it makes sense, at least to a certain point.

I listened to the audiobook for this, and the narration was great! It truly made it all more fun, and there was just the right amount of emotion at the perfect moment. The dual narration was definitely the best choice, and both did incredible.

Many thanks to Dreamscape Media & NetGalley for providing me with the ALC. All opinions are my own!