I really struggled with this one. It definitely could be a case of it's me, not the book. I just could not connect to these characters and become invested in this story.

This was my first book by Probst and I didn’t know what to expect going in. At first, I was not enjoying the FMC but I came around after a while. The MMC was great and I feel like he made the whole book worth reading.

I want to start by saying I overall enjoyed the premise of this book. However the writing was just not for me . The paragraphs got a clunky at time leading to big blocks of text that didn’t end up adding much to the overall storyline.

I get that the Zanny Zoo comes full circle at eh VERY end. However, I am unsure why we needed so much information about her doodles throughout the story without getting any true examples of the humor. I kept waiting for this to be significant, and it took to the last few pages.

I find it hard to like Aspen in the beginning because I don’t agree with her motivations for getting with Brick. She almost doesn’t even think of him as a person, just a way to get what she is wanting. This is an overall theme and her personality is rough for me.

I feel like her sister makes such valid points and Aspen just completely ignored them. Sisters can absolutely be overprotective but Sierra is a character that doesn’t get nearly enough love.

Also: Aspen cried during sex and then we don’t even address it?? Really!?

The resolution felt rushed even though the pacing of the whole book was slow which is just really disappointing.

This was a DNF for me, unfortunately. I couldn't connect with the characters, both Aspen and Brick was very unlikeable. I found myself very bored and not interested in the story at all. There was some mentioning of pretty weird stuff in the book, ie. completely irrelevant descriptions in the book, dog humping his legs...

Thank you to Blue Box Press and NetGalley for the advanced reading copy.

I absolutely adore this author and this book did not disappoint. The plot was smooth and the character development was fantastic. I was immersed in a story that took over my reality for a short period of time and what else can you ask for? I definitely recommend!!

light, enjoyable read, but it didn’t fully live up to its potential. The premise, revolving around a book club that turns into a catalyst for self-discovery and romance, is charming. The characters are likable enough, though a bit predictable at times. Probst does a good job of weaving themes about love, second chances, and finding your true self, but I found some of the plot twists to be a bit contrived. The pacing also felt uneven, especially toward the middle. There were moments of real emotional depth, but they didn’t always feel earned.

While the book is easy to get through and does have some heartwarming moments, I expected a little more depth and complexity. It’s perfect for fans of lighthearted romance, but if you’re looking for something more profound, it might not hit the mark. Overall, it’s a solid, enjoyable read, but not one I’ll likely remember long-term. A solid 3 stars.

My favourite part of this book was the setting. I’ve heard of the Outer Banks, obviously, but this book TOOK ME THERE.

I also love a Grumpy-Sunshine trope, and a Fake Dating trope.

The rest of it was Just Okay for me. I had a hard time liking the MFC, or connecting with her planned comeback.

Thanks so much to the publisher for the e copy of this book. THis wasnt my favorite read, but i did get through it. I think i just had it at a time that i had so many others that i wanted to get to that i couldnt give this its true atteniton

Book of the Month by Jennifer Probst had an interesting concept for me, as I love a book about a book and any rom-com. The character development was a bit uneven between Brick and Aspen, however, which made the book overall fall a bit flat for me. Still, I have enjoyed other books by this author and will enjoy others in the future I'm sure.

Many thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for sharing this book with me.

Thank you for the ARC. This was a solid summer read. Light hearted and quick. I enjoyed it but it did not blow me out of the water.

This book had a very fun premise, and the author delivered! This book was a lot of fun! This book was funny with good spice and lots of good emotion. Both the hero and heroine had good character growth. Aspen is looking for another bestseller. The problem is that when she wrote her first book, it was based on personal experience. Aspen finds Brick Babel. She offers him a fake date situation.

I adored this one. This is my first book by this author and definitely won't be my last. Huge thanks to Blue Box Press and Netgalley for allowing me to read and review this book.

it was a struggle to get through the first 25% of ‘book of the month’ but i definitely think that it improved after a while. my biggest issue was with the set up of the plot- aspen stalking brick and mentioning so many times that she has to try harder to ‘seduce’ him just made me want to put the book down. however, i do think that once their relationship started developing i was able to enjoy the story more, i just don’t think that it was anything special.

This was a very cute rom-com! I loved that it was a fresh take on fake dating with the intent being complete and utter heartbreak (and as a writer, I can't say I've never thought of it a time or two...)! I always love a good book-within-a-book, and this was such a fun example of that. The town had so much character which was just lovely, and it utilized the dual POV structure so well!

Thank you to Blue Box Press and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Book of the Month is a solid romance full of fast paced banter and lots of secondary characters to love. After Aspen’s blockbuster debut novel was such a success, her two follow ups have been real duds. If she doesn’t get this next one exactly right, she’s a one hit wonder. Enter a summer vacation at her sisters house and Brick, the local tour guide with a questionable reputation. Surely she can find her way back to a best seller!?

Totally kinda gave me 10 Things I Hate About You ala Kate Hudson vibes. Date me, make me fall for you, then break up with me.. so kinda like a reverse 10 Things?? Whatever, in general - I did like this one and loved that we saw the storyline from both Aspen's POV and Brick's POV as we see both have to face REAL things in their fake relationship of sorts. I also liked that Jennifer Probst made our FMC face real problems and then have a timeline that followed that was REAL, meaning that we don't just solve our problems in a snap, it takes time! This one was pretty good and I'd recommend it! Thanks for the opportunity to read.

I will forever love books written about people that love books and authors, and this book falls into that category. We are following an author that needs to write a best seller but decides that she needs inspiration in order to write and who better to inspire her than a hot guy that she’ll never have to see again once the book is published?

I love a good fake dating and deal turned to real romance trope. This was everything I was looking for in a fun romance as a palette cleanser to some heavier fantasy and so if that’s what your expectations are as well I think you’ll enjoy this!

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for this arc!

Doesn’t get much better than a book about an author. Aspen’s first book was a best seller but the next two didn’t capture her readers like the first. Aspen decided to visit her sister in the OBX and get a change of scenery. Still having some writers block she decided that heartbreak is where her best seller came from and heartbreak is what she needed to do it again. Along comes Brick. After some negotiations they come up with a proposal for the summer. Falling in love and getting heartbroken was always the plan but the in depth reality set them both back. A refreshing read full on romance, intimacy, heartbreak but eventually finding their way back to each other.

Aspen is a writer struggling with a career crisis. Once a million-dollar bestselling author, she has lost her muse and is stressed out from the pressure of living up to her name with another great book. In a desperate attempt to stir up her emotions and inspire her creativity, she takes a break from her hermit life in a solitary bubble and hires a guy to date her -- then break her heart.

The plot may not sound terribly original, with the familiar fake dating trope and writers writing about writers fad. But I can't even begin to say how much I relate to Aspen's character. Her struggles with career passion, creativity block, self doubt, stress, and much more are so impossibly familiar to me that sometimes I feel like the author was right inside my head. Many things that she says about being a writer --- about living their fictional lives from book to book, about their biggest dream for their words to be heard and shared --- just feel so true and resonate with me so deeply. Either the author is including a lot of herself in this story, or she's a true master at creating realistic characters with depth, because I can't shake the feeling that Aspen is me in too many ways, and her journey constantly makes me think about my own life. For that alone, this book will always mean something special to me.

The love interest Brick is a refreshing character as well. The twist on the usual badboy archetype and women's gossip is interesting, and I really appreciate how this didn't go into the "female empowerment" territory where men are always toxic and women can do no wrong. God I hate those farstreched "feminist" preaches. Trying not to spoil the plot here, but my only complaint is that Brick never got an apology for what he had to go through, and those women never got any backlash coming for them either. Oh well, I suppose the main audience of this book would still prefer to have their feminist egos unharmed, so maybe that's a bit too much to ask.

In addition to the main characters themselves, the relationship between them is also such a breath of fresh air. Despite the typical grumpy meets sunshine and experienced man vs. (mostly) innocent woman pairing, the dynamics between them are simply the healthiest I've ever read. No lies, no lack of communication, no getting melodramatic over unrealistic expectations. Even the third act breakup did NOT happen because of a misunderstanding, which I find so rare these days. It's like I'm finally reading a story about adults instead of teens dressed up as adults! At the same time though, unfortunately, I can definitely see how the maturity of this story might come off as "boring" to some readers... which might sadly hurt its reviews.

I can keep gushing about how I love the side characters (Aspen's relationship with her sister was amazing!), the setting (it makes me want to sign up for a sea turtle watch next year, seriously), and how I admire the author's Aspen's humble honesty when she said luck played a large role in her success (too few successful people would ever admit that they got there because of anything other than hard work). It's been too long since I last read a book that felt so "real". Bottom line is -- although my personal connection to the characters made a big difference, I think there's a lot more to this story that added to the overall enjoyment.

That is not to say that the book is perfectly written though, My main issue here is that the writing is a bit underwhelming. Quite a noticeable amount of repeated and cliche expressions, incorrect usage of participial phrases, dangling modifiers, etc. (Yes, I know I was reading an ARC, but I doubt all of these were fixed in the final round of proofreading given how frequently they occurred.) The insta chemistry at the beginning also feels a bit jarringly unrealistic, and the ending seems slightly rushed. BUT, despite all its imperfections, this book easily won me over with its characters and setting, and it might just be the first book with a "women's fiction" label that I truly connected with.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. My bad for reading an ARC two months after publication date, and I'll try my best not to do it again!

Though I thought it was a sweet tale, Book of the Month by Jennifer Probst ended up falling a bit flat for me. I think the era of book girl-fueled romances might be coming to an end...

I have to say I had a bit of love-hate going on with this one. I have never had that with a Probst book before this one. I started thinking that the author was writing her own story in a manner of speaking.

Desperation reeked out of the pages and that caused the female lead to her panicky situation and actions. I felt the beginning was really rocky for me. I was not sure about the FMC at first with her scattered idea but she warmed up to me quite a bit.

The male lead was a gruff hottie who was hiding a lot of anger but underneath was a sweetheart. He made this story believable and enjoyable.

The author brought us amazing descriptions and details of the Carolina shore which had the ocean calling my name. I loved the community engagement which brought excitement and fun into what could have been a heavy story. The secondary characters were fun and also brought levity.

The ending made this book along with the MMC, Brick. He was such an awesome character in comparison to Aspen. Towards the end, she became a jerk – selfish and self-serving. Brick made it all worth it.

Overall, I enjoyed Book of the Month! Probst takes a tough dive into desperation and brings us an emotional, steamy story that gives us the happily ever after they deserve!