This was a cute book - an author who is stuck after writing less-acclaimed books after her highly-rated debut is trying to recapture the essence of her first one. Only problem is, she was completely heartbroken so the first book was really just a catharsis after her split with her college boyfriend. She goes to the Outer Banks to try to relax while writing her next book so she doesn't lose her publishing deal where she meets the local grump who is stunning (because of course he is). She decides to let him break her heart so she can write the follow-up book to her debut. Overall, this was an enjoyable read. OBX is a good backdrop and there's some detail in there about the wild horses and hatching of turtles which I enjoyed. The character cast is funny as well. I would recommend if you're looking for a beach read vibe.

Thanks to NetGalley and Blue Box Press for the advanced reader copy!

Many thanks to NetGalley and the Publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Cute and unique premise that started at 4 ⭐️ then went down to a 2 and ended up at 3 ⭐️. It was fun and easy to get into, but then really dragged in the middle. I also found the way Brick talked to be really cringey. Side note: I can’t stand it with men call women “baby”. Ick. I also wasn’t a fan of all the random names. Aspen Lourde, Sierra, Brick, Kane, Anastasia, Maleficent (seriously?!). Oh and the last minute encounter of two characters that suggested a significant back story was too forced. It’s a set up for the next book, and seemed like a half baked cliff hanger. Regardless, it’s a fast and entertaining read. Great for a vacation.

This book felt fast and slow for me. It took forever for me to be fully invested in the main characters. The FMC was fine. It took her forever to grow but she did in the last two chapters. The MMC was fantastic. Very swoon worthy and loved his backstory. Side characters were a highlight in this book. Ending felt a bit rushed but it ended on a sweet note. Can’t wait to read about Sierra and Kane.

I received an arc from netgalley and the publisher.

Book of the Month was a very enjoyable romance featuring Aspen Lourde, a romance/women's fiction author struggling to write a sequel to her bestselling novel. Escaping to her sister's small town in North Carolina for the summer - she becomes adamant that in order to write another great love story full of emotion and heartbreak - she needs to have her heart broken again. Enter the town "heart-breaker" - Brick Babel has incorrectly developed a harsh reputation for romancing women into bed and then leaving them broken-hearted and joining the local support group of women still trying to recover. I had some trouble connecting with Aspen early on - her journey throughout the book was rough at times. Brick is perfectly grumpy on the outside but so damn kind and considerate that it would be easy for anyone to swoon. The small town quirky characters are always fun and entertaining - would definitely be interested in Sierra and Kane's story which is next, and any and all future moments with Marco which are bound to be hilarious. This was the first novel I've read by Jennifer Probst - but I would absolutely be interested in reading more from her. Thank you to Blue Box Press and NetGalley for the chance to read this novel.

I must admit that it took some time for me to get into this book. But I really enjoyed the premise and the story. Loved Brick so much! Anxious for Sierra and Kanye’s story.

The FMC in this one really had me struggling to connect with the book at first, and I almost put it down, but I’m thankful I didn’t. I ended up enjoying the story!

The male POV in this book can be summed up by one quote. She was completely average in every way. Am I too old for the bad boy? Brick gets better but only because the author pitted women against each other for his reputation to be saved. This book had funny parts and I liked the relationship with sister but hard pass on this romance. What the fuck? A club to bash him? Women in this town just throwing themselves at him? The author loves to defend a man and I guess in her world women in small towns get their feelings hurt and ruin one man’s life with all their power. It’s so cringe. Please do better. Thank you NetGalley fir this arc in exchange for my honest review 😬

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the digital review copy. I enjoyed Book of the Month. The premise was interesting and was delivered well.

This book was a mixed read for me. The first half went very slow for me and I struggled to get invested. The second half moved much faster and I enjoyed much more. I struggled with the characters feeling a bit late— of course, Aspen is able to instantly win everyone over and solve everyone’s business problems (despite her little business experience) and Brick leaned a bit too far into misunderstood male-written-by-a-woman. I also thought the world building left something to be desired. Overall, a fine beach read but not my favorite.

Book: Book of the Month
Author: Jennifer Probst
Rating: 3 Out of 5 Stars

I would like to thank the publisher, Blue Box Press, for sending me an ARC. I had not idea what to expect when I picked this one. It was a solid read.

In this one, we follow Aspen, who is an author and looking for her next big hit. She had one, but her other books have not done so well. Everyone wants her to bring back the magic of her first book. The problem is her first book was based on her own life. In order to bring back the magic, she decides to go to her sister’s place in the Outer Banks and hope that something good happens. It does. She finds Brick, who is the local bad boy. If she has a fling with him, then, maybe, she will end up finding the spark her writing has been missing. They decide to do it and it ends up being more than either of them bargained for.

This is another case of people coming into peoples’ lives at the right time. Both of these characters have hit rock bottom-even if they don’t think they have. Aspen is struggling with her writing, while Brick is struggling with his own business. This is supposed to be a relationship of convenience, but it ends up turning into something more. Both of them find that the other brings something more to their lives. They end up inspiring each other. However, Aspen is still struggling to write the story the world wants, no matter how hard she tries. It’s not all peaces and roses, which is something I really enjoyed with this book. We get to see both characters at the very bottom. It takes time and it is not easy for them to rebuild from hitting rock bottom.

I found the writing to be engaging. I thought it did what the story needed. I thought it was fun when it needed to be and serious when it needed to be. It did keep me reading. Now, there were parts that I was not the biggest fan of-hence the three star rating. I didn’t like that the author kept bringing certain things up time and time again. Most of the time it did not really add anything to the story. I also did not like how Aspen harassed Brick. It was supposed to come across as cute, but it didn’t. If the genders had been reversed, this book would have been labeled as problematic. Gender does not matter. If someone is harassing you, it is harassment.

Overall, I thought this was a decent book. It just was not quite a four star read for me. I still did enjoy it.

DNF at 20%

I loved the cover of this book, and I love a good romance which is why I chose to read this one. Unfortunately the things I disliked about this book outnumbered the things I did like, and that was very apparent from the start.

What I liked: the setting. I love a good beach setting, and this was perfect for that. A coastal town the main character travelled to escape the city? Sign me up!

What I didn’t like: the main character. It’s not often an unlikeable main character causes me to stop reading a book but this unfortunately happened with this book. The main character acted so predatory toward the love interest, repeatedly doing things to get his attention (specifically to get him to have a summer fling with her) even though he did not reciprocate her enthusiasm and turned her down more than once. And everything she did, she did for the reason of writing a novel and profiting off of that? No thank you.

Though I am usually a fan of a quick romance read, this one just wasn’t for me.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC!

*Book of the Month* by Jennifer Probst is an engaging, heartwarming story about Aspen Lourde, a struggling writer searching for inspiration and love. Probst masterfully combines romance, humor, and self-discovery, making it a joy to read. The characters are relatable and well-developed, especially Aspen's journey toward personal growth.

While the plot is charming and enjoyable, some moments felt a bit predictable. Nonetheless, the book is a delightful read for fans of romance and stories about second chances. A solid four-star read!

It's a good read. I wanted to see how their feelings would evolve. How easy or hard it would be for Brick due to his reputation. How open Aspen would be to their arrangement. I can't say i connected completely with the characters. At times I felt like I could be reading the actual book Aspen was struggling with. But, it wasn't an issue. I was always invested in their relationship.

I enjoyed this unlikely story of two people who agree to "date" so she can write a novel and he can revamp his inherited story. Only Sparks fly and romance blooms. I enjoyed these characters and the story. Some graphic sexy bits, in case that's not your thing.

Once the literary world’s golden girl, Aspen Lourde can’t seem to produce another successful book, and the pressure’s on to prove she’s not just a one-hit-wonder. But there’s a catch: her bestseller was a heartbreak hit, straight from her own love life disaster. Without any fresh romantic turmoil to fuel her pen, Aspen needs inspiration quick enough to create a book her agent can sell to her publisher. So she escapes for the summer to the Outer Banks with a plan to live a story worth writing.

First things first: Outer Banks setting... A+! While I didn't particularly connect with any of the characters, I loved Marco, and the author sets up for there to be a sequel about Aspen's sister, Sierra, which I would love to read. I did appreciate the way Aspen and Brick's romance unfolded, and it did feel genuine. The way Aspen handles Brick and her feelings and a breakup wasn't my favorite. I thought the premise of the book sounded really interesting and unique, and I really wanted to love this story, but it took me a while to get through it.

If you love the fake dating, misunderstood bad boy, summer fling tropes, you might enjoy this one.

Aspen had a best seller a few years ago, but her next two books didn't do nearly as well. Under pressure from her agent to write another blockbuster, Aspen goes to visit her sister in NC, and is intrigued by Brick, the local heartbreaker. She offers him money to make her fall in love with him then break her heart, as she thinks that will help her write another best seller. As you might guess, things don't go quite as planned...

This is a steamy and emotional romance with bits of humor (Dug the dog is quite a character) that despite its improbability, I found quite enjoyable.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read and review this novel.

To be totally honest I didn’t love this book. I found it way way too predictable and so wordy and hard to get through. For a romance, it was extremely silly and unbelievable. The ending was so ridiculous, and the character names (Ursula? maleficent?) were beyond silly. Maybe I wasn’t the target audience but it wasn’t for me.

3.5 stars for me. The premise seemed fun and reading Brick and Aspen’s relationship evolve was interesting. But Aspen seemed one foot out the door the whole time all because of her book, even though she found a happiness she never experienced before.

I found it implausible that a group of local women would create a club to bash Brick when the rumors about him weren’t true. Some elements of the story made it seem like the town had a population of 2000 but yet there was so much focus on the tourism the town attracts. It just didn’t fit in my mind.

That said, there is obviously a a good follow up in the making with Sierra and Kane’s story.

First of: I’ve read (and really enjoyed) over twenty books from Jennifer Probst. So, maybe my expectations were just a bit too high. But, although I liked the blurb and the whole concept of the story, Aspen and Brick just didn’t work for me. (Especially Aspen, she tended to get on my nerves). But secondly, the moment I start reading other books in between, then we really have a problem. And boy, did I have some problems with the whole book: a Brick ‘anti’ fan club of people who are actually meeting? Brick accepting Aspen’s proposal in the first place and becoming her boyfriend just like that? The whole build up was a bit too slow, so my mind wandered off and I ended up in another book. And another. Before I dragged my ass back to Book of the Month. Honestly, further down the road the pace picks up and I ended up enjoying the remainder of the book. But still, I’ve read better books from Jennifer. Will I pick up one of her next stories? Most definitely! And you should too! Three out of five stars and a special thank you to Netgalley for providing the arc.

Aspen is a writer living in NY that needs to write another best seller after her last two books flopped. She goes to the Outer Banks to stay with her sister for the summer and meets Brick. Brick has a reputation in town of being the jerk that destroys all the ladies’ hearts. They strike up a mutually beneficial deal to help her write her next best seller and help save his tour guide business. Things go as they planned but almost too well…

Aspen is a FC I can relate to. She talks about her looks and feels the way I do about myself. I don’t think I’m ugly but I definitely don’t look like the “typical pretty” girl. She focuses on a goal and blinders come up and she doesn’t take the time to see what really makes her happy.

Brick has me swooning. Grumpy facade, player reputation, but a genuine, caring heart under it all. He really played the part of doting boyfriend and then ended up falling for Aspen. I loved that he read her books and got to know her and then was the one to point out the truth about her writing.

I had a hard time putting this book down and wanted to get to the end to see how Aspen and Brick’s arrangement ended.

I liked the supporting characters Aspen’s sister, Sierra and Brick’s work neighbor/friend, Marco. It looks like Sierra will be getting her story told in the next book! Marco added a fun lighthearted sidekick vibe that I really liked.

I dropped my rating from 5 to 4 stars because of terminology that was used to describe Apen’s vagina. (“Mound”, “channel”, “swollen tissues” 🤨)

The total page count is wrong on Goodreads.