I had seen a couple friends mention how much they loved this book, and after reading the synopsis, knew I had to read it. I love the premise of an author and actor meeting in the most meet cute way. The one night stand and then meeting again is so fun, and created such great tension between the main characters. I also really enjoyed all the side characters we meet along the way. I didn’t necessarily relate to either of our main characters, but still was able to root for them and their happiness.

Now, while I had a good time reading this, I really struggled with the amount of times our FMC brings up her ex. I understand that relationship is what shaped how she is now, but I got so tired of seeing Sadie’s name. So much so that I searched the word in my Kindle, and it was mentioned 75 times. I don’t think there was a chapter she wasn’t specifically brought up. I don’t know if this is something that would bother anyone else, but I believe it affected my overall enjoyment of the book.

Cute Christmas time romance- one night stand to friends to lovers. Reminded me of a few other books I’ve read- Lovelight farms and beach read. Enjoyable but pretty average for its genre

Unromance by Erin Connor
Contemporary romantic comedy. HFN.
A meet-cute and they had the perfect one night fling. They know anything more will end with a breakup. She doesn’t believe in love. It’s all a scam. He’s a romantic and sees a future with every possible someone. A second accidental meeting and they agree to a series of non-dates to prove their belief is the correct. Their outings don’t have the intended results. First, they have fun and laughs together. Second, the outing have her feeling alive and able to write again, and he’s falling when he didn’t intend to.
Will their New Year’s Eve kiss be their end?

Sweet and steamy. Movie magic moments brought to life in unexpected ways.
Loved the continual movie quotes and excerpts and title headings with laughable percentages. Character descriptions are often incredibly pointed: the emerald, leaf-shaped pillows that were the closest Sawyer would ever get to keeping a plant alive.
Love books set in Chicago too as I try to figure out streets and locations. I have a restaurant I’ve never tried now on my list.
Family is poignant. I love the most they both had goals and didn’t change them because of their love. They figured out how to include the other.
Beautiful and bewitching and HFN.

I received a copy of this from NetGalley.

This was a cute rom-com for sure. You deal with most possible tropes found in rom-coms all in one book. From their initial meet-cute to the eventual grand gesture, this story both pokes fun at romance tropes AND shows us how they can reveal themselves in every day life. From meet-cute to one night stand and beyond, I found myself laughing out loud at so many parts of the story (the Christmas tree topper tops them all). Cinnamon roll swoony and banter that will have you sitting up and saying "why can't I be that witty?" Making a list and checking it twice, plenty of naughty and nice to feed your romance loving soul.

I never would have guessed that this was a debut novel if I hadn’t read that for myself. Long build up but worth it! Loved all the tropes and play on romance tropes throughout. Solid holiday read and wonderful story with some extra spice to sweeten the deal. Thank you to NetGalley for a chance to read and review this book.

All the romcom tropes you know and love in one spectacular book. Great characters with an ungodly amount of chemistry that they refuse to accept until the bitter end. I loved every single longing stare and tension filled dates.

Forever eARC
This book fits perfectly in the classic rom-com genre, and I mean that in the best way. I loved how they both used each other to not find love, and I'll bet you'll never guess what happened. I liked how this story highlighted writer's block and how hard it can be for an author. I also liked the insider look into books and movie rights and how little control an author has. I liked how Max had such good familial support for his acting career. There was a great examination of what family means in this story and how found family is so important. The Chicago setting was wonderful and the dual narration (finished on audio) was so good. It was steamy, sweet, and reflective.

This is truly my favorite romance I've read in a VERY long time. I love a friends to lovers but this encapsulated the build of a friendship turning into a relationship. The banter was top notch, the communication was fantastic, and I cannot wait to see what Erin Connor writes next. If it's anything like Unromance, it's going to be an instant hit for me!

Thank you to Forever Publishing and NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

UnRomance
By: @erinconnorbooks
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Out NOW!

My first 5 star read in 2025! I haven’t had this much fun in a LONG time with a debut romance! Talk about the perfect read from start to finish! It was funny, swoons, SPICY and I need everyone to go pick this one up ASAP so we can all talk about it!

Perfect if you love:
-Meet-Cutes
-Making fun of Rom-Coms ( in a fun way)
-Two idiots pretending their not falling in love
-Hilarious Banter
-Laughing your butt off
-Bisexual Representation
-A Hopeless Romantic MMC

Our FMC Sawyer is a romance author who has been in a little but of a writers block since her last book came out, her relationship ended, and one of her books was adapted into a movie that went so far off from her novel that she’s pissed. Our MMC Mason is a famous sitcom actor who is always in the tabloids for dating his costars and being over the top and quick to fall in love. After meeting Sawyer in the elevator on the way to finalize his latest break up, the two strike up a conversation and end up having what was suppose to be a one-night stand. After accidentally running into one another weeks later, the two decide to help one another out: Sawyer was finally inspired to work on her book after their hookup and Mason needs someone to ruin romance for him so he can stay out of the tabloids before making his next career move.

This read was so unique and as an avid romance reader I really loved how Erin took all our favorite hallmark movie romantic grand gestures and book tropes and ruined them for Mason! I also laughed out loud every chapter with Erins chapter headings that we’re so funny and creative relating to romance tropes. I loved the tension, the chemistry, the yearning!!!! Every bit was perfectly crafted, each piece of the puzzle was necessary, and each side character was a welcomed member of the book experience. This is definitely going to be on my top books of 2025 list at the end of the year!

Unromance by Erin Connor is about an author named Sawyer and an actor named Mason. Sawyer is looking for an idea for her next novel and Mason is looking to stay single after a breakup.
This book is so cute! I loved Sawyer and Mason and their chemistry just flies off the page. The characters are so relatable and realistic that it made the story even more enjoyable to read. A well written fun debut!!! from Erin Connor. I'm so happy I received an advanced copy of this.
Thank you to NetGalley, Forever and Erin Connor for the ARC in exchange for my honest review. Looking forward to more from the author.

To be honest it was ok not my fav. It felt too similar to other cotemp romance books I have read and it losely reminded me of beach read by emily henry.

Author Erin Connor has given us a delightful romance where life imitates art…or vice versa. Each chapter begins with the name and description of a romantic trope or element, such as “Meet-Cute,” “Just Once, To Get It Out of Our Systems,” “Miscommunication,” and “The Grand Gesture,” which then plays out on the page. Sawyer is a romance writer with a severe creative block and Mason is an actor who is also a hopeful romantic who falls in love too fast, only to see it fall apart after the wrap party. In a bit of serendipity (which is actually one movie that ISN'T mentioned in this story that borrows from several classic romances), they meet up and agree to help each other. He’ll provide inspiration to help her get over her writer’s block and she’ll “unromance” his notions about love by having a series of stereotypical dates gone wrong. However, in the best romantic traditions, those pesky feelings get in the way.

Although I’m not a fan of third person narration or third act break-ups, I still thoroughly enjoyed this debut novel. Mason is the perfect cinnamon roll boyfriend (in a gorgeous package), Sawyer writes my favorite genre, and there’s loads of laughter, friendship, and steamy scenes. The secondary characters aren’t very fleshed out, but there’s so much to enjoy in the central romance that there’s really no need for a supporting cast. I look forward to reading Connor’s future books. Recommended.

I received a complimentary ARC of this book from Forever Publishing through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed are completely my own.

An elevator meet cute sounds terrifying but Erin did it phenomenally in Unromance. Sawyer and Masons journey will make you giggle and kick your feet over their 'unromance' and it's everything. The 'I don't believe in romance' trope will always be one of my favorites because they end up falling hard every single time and it's just *chefs kiss*

This was a cute debut! I loved how it really dove into all of the romantic comedy tropes as Mason and Sawyer committed to ruining romance for each other. Their banter was spot on and I loved how they were clearly friends first (well…after the one night stand, that is.)

The grand gesture was so cute! Love Actually is my all time favorite holiday romance, and the scene in this totally does it justice. (And yes, the scene in the movie IS creepy. But we don’t judge.)

I love this opposite attracts story and a fake dating story is my favorite type of romance but some pieces of this didn't land for me. The story itself is well-written but the cynical romance author feels overdone at some point. I think this book being written in 3rd person, even though there are POVs for both characters, made everything feel more distant so it was hard to connect with how she was feeling.

Because the MMC is more on the generally kind side, it's easier to connect with him but in general I wanted a little more from this story.

I liked this book… but I wasn’t in love with it. I’m not if it just wasn’t the right time for me (after Christmas) since this book takes place during the holidays but I just couldn’t get into it. I loved the premise. Mason, an actor who is a hopeless romantic & Sawyer, the romance author who doesn’t believe in love, have a meet cute in an elevator that end with a hookup. They agree to help each other with their very specific problem and pretend date with an agreement to definitely NOT FALL IN LOVE.. I should have loved this!!! But at the end it just wasn’t for me. Maybe in another time… another place.. but this book was very well written and paced. I felt like it moved at a good speed and wasn’t tooo drawn out. If you are looking for cute palette cleanser that’s set in snowy Chicago, Unromance is for you!

༺𝙰𝚁𝙲 𝚁𝚎𝚟𝚒𝚎𝚠༻
ʀᴀᴛɪɴɢ: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
sᴘɪᴄᴇ: 🌶️🌶️🌶️
ʀᴇʟᴇᴀsᴇ ᴅᴀᴛᴇ: January 14
ᴀᴠᴀɪʟᴀʙʟᴇ ɪɴ KU: No
ᴘᴀɢᴇs: 345

Unromance by Erin Connor is a fun and charming read that mixes humor, tension, and romance perfectly. Sawyer Greene, a romance author who’s lost her spark for love, crosses paths with Mason, a hopeless romantic actor, during a one-night stand in a stuck elevator. They agree it’s just a fling—until they run into each other again at a Christmas market, and things get complicated.
I really enjoyed the dynamic between Sawyer and Mason. Sawyer is prickly and closed-off, but watching her slowly open up was so rewarding. Mason is the sweetest, and I couldn’t help but root for him as he tried to break through her walls. Their banter and chemistry were on point, and I loved how the romance built, even when they tried to avoid it.
The plot kept me hooked, with Sawyer trying to get over her writer's block and Mason showing her a different side of love. The chapter titles referencing romance tropes were a fun touch, and even though there’s a predictable third-act breakup, it didn’t take away from the satisfaction of the ending.
If you're in the mood for a light, funny, and heartwarming romance, Unromance is a great choice. It’s a perfect mix of classic romance tropes with a fresh spin. Highly recommend!

᪥ Actor x Writer
᪥ Opposites Attract
᪥ Reverse Grumpy x Sunshine
᪥ Banter
᪥ 3rd Person POV

There's no one I want ruining romance for me more than Erin Connor. This debut was absolutely delightful and I can't wait to see what else Connor has in store.

This book was really cute! I loved the romance author/actor storyline! I loved the sex positivity aspect and Saywer's humor was laugh out loud funny!!
I just have a hard time connecting to a book when it's in third person...which makes dual POV pointless.
I thought the ending was SO charming, though! :)

I adored Unromance by Erin Connor. I thought the taking and recreating popular romance tropes was so clever and I loved being in Sawyer’s head and slowly watching her thaw. Mason is such a sweet character, and I thought Mason and Sawyer were so well matched. My favorite scene was the night after New Years, I thought it was a perfectly vulnerable moment and Erin Connor was able to communicate so much emotion through the page. I can’t wait for more books by her!