I loved this book! From start to finish I had no idea what to expect and the storyline wasn’t predictable. It kept me on my toes! It was the perfect beach read!

I was really drawn in by the title and cover of this one. It brought Emily Henry’s Book a lovers to mind, and I love when the author and writing process is a part of a story.

However, I just could not find “the thing” about this book to keep me interested. The MMC is horrible when we first meet him- incredibly unlikeable and almost distracting from the plot because his bad attitude sticks out. By the end of the book, Brick was the only character I cared about. I found the FMC Aspen to be selfish and conceited. She was willing to pay someone to “love her” and break her heart so she could write a book. But she wasn’t willing to take feedback from her editor or publisher to make it happen. Just kinda seemed like a flawed plot.

This book could have done with some additional editing, especially in the second half of the novel. The secondary characters were enjoyable, although they spent a little too much time setting up the story of the next book in the series. The main characters of this book had enjoyable banter with each other, but their inner dialogues were repetitive and melodramatic. I also cringed at the use of words like swollen and impaled during romantic scenes. It's not horrible, but I don't think I would seek out the next in the series.

Really enjoyed this cute story I haven't read many fake dating books and eat them up every time I will admit I don't like when she does what she does and I don't like bricks ex but I do feel for the fact that she's having such a hard time connecting with her story.. this was such a short fun read and I can't wait to read the next one

Book of the Month
Jennifer Probst
Pub: 10/22/24
3.5-4☆

Blurb:
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.

Brick Babel is a romance novelist’s dream: a local heartthrob with a reputation as wild as the horses running free in the town. He’s everything Aspen needs for a muse kickstart—gorgeous, moody, and notoriously unattainable. His affairs are legendary in the small town, and every woman warns her off, including her sister.

Too bad a good heartbreak is exactly what she needs to meet her deadline.

But Brick refuses to play the game, rejecting all of her advances. When Aspen hears his tour company is on the verge of bankruptcy, she offers him a deal: fake a whirlwind summer romance, then ditch her, drama guaranteed.

Desperate to save his grandfather’s business, Brick agrees to the ridiculous deal. What starts as a contractual fling spirals out of control as lines blur and real feelings emerge. Brick’s falling hard, and Aspen’s rethinking her plot twist. The novel might be her ticket back to the top, but at what cost?

Because Aspen’s finally found her muse, but some stories may be too true to share.

My Thoughts:
If you’re in the mood for a funny summer romance about finding love and finding yourself, this will hit the spot. Overall it was an enjoyable read with a unique premise, a fantastic setting, and fun side characters.

What I enjoyed;
✨ Beach Town Setting
✨ Grumpy X Sunshine
✨ Baby Sea Turtles
✨ Dual POV
✨ Book Publishing Talk

Thank you NetGalley, Blue Box Press, and Get Red PR Books for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review. .

This book was a very cute Summer beach read! I know exactly who I would recommend it to. I thought the story, while still using popular tropes, felt really fresh. I personally didn't love the 3rd act breakup and had a difficult time wrapping my head around WHY exactly the conflict was such a big deal. Overall though, it was a cute and fun romcom.

"She’s desperate for another bestseller… and she’ll go to any length to get it. Even if it means sacrificing her pride to chase the hottest bachelor in town and get him to break her heart…" In this book, we follow Aspen - a writer - as she gathers inspiration for her next book, which she wants to be a bestseller like her first book.

I really felt like I would be able to enjoy this book a lot more. The first chapters, where we read about Aspen's struggle are very good, and it does resonate deeply, the feelings of wanting to succeed in your work, but not being able to. But as the book progresses, Aspen's character takes a turn, and she starts to get very selfish and irritating. The insta-love romance was also something that I didn't enjoy.

Over all, I felt like the idea was very good but the execution, not so good.

p.s. I cringed a bit every time I heard the MMC name...

Thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for providing me with this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Aspen is an author struggling to write another best seller after a smash hit success. Desperate for inspiration, she heads to her sister’s house in the outer banks and decides she’s going to win over the local heart throb for emotional inspo.

Grumpy/sunshine + how to lose a guy in 10 days ish vibes and strong sister relationship

I enjoyed reading about Aspen’s struggle with the publishing industry and disconnection from her craft after pouring herself(and her breakup) into her first book, but unfortunately that was about it that worked for me in this book. This is probably more of a “me”thing than necessarily being the book’s fault- as I found a lot of the descriptions kind of cringey. A lot of her curls refusing to be tamed in the wind kind of stuff.

Thank you to Blue Box press and Netgalley for the early release copy in exchange for my honest review

This was such a sweet romance! The main characters had chemistry that was to die for! The “third act breakup” had me wanting to tear my hair out in frustration (in kind of a good and bad way.) An overall great read! And I’m very excited for the next one!

Oh how I loved this book.

An author who is struggling to write her next best seller (following a couple duds), Aspen heads down to the OBX to get away from the city and get some new perspective. Staying with her sister, Aspen meets a local hottie (Brick) who runs a beach tour company he inherited from his late grandfather. With a scandalous past, Aspen is made aware that Brick is bad news bears. Exactly who she needs to help write her new best seller.

With sexcapades galore (this book was spicier than I expected it to be - that is, not spicy at all 😂), and great banter - this book left me wanting more.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC!

There is no question that the genre of steamy fiction is not for me. I need to week these types of books out of my suggested reading list. This book has an acceptably romantic story for light women's' fiction. The characters are not very well developed, but the protagonist is likable. The names given to the primary characters are silly and should be changed prior to publication. If you are looking for a steamy, sexy book, I guess this is the book for you? Like men and Playboy - I read it for the story.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC! The topic of the book and cover caught my eye. However, this book was a bit of a slow burn. I didn't find either main character very likable until I was more than a quarter of the way through. The supporting characters brought good energy to the storyline and I would definitely be interested in future books following them. Aspen as a main character felt really closed off and dialogue around her writing became really repetitive. Brick really grew on me as a reader and his character development was appreciated. All in all, a quick cute read and loved the setting. I don't think it will be super memorable in the long run but overall was likeable.

The plot for this one sounded really interesting, but it unfortunately did not deliver for me. I found the MMC, Brick (which all I could picture the whole time even with the description of the character was Brick from the show The Middle), to be unlikable. Same for the FMC, Aspen, as well. I could not connect with either of them and found them to both be quite irritating and immature.

I also felt like the book was dragging a lot with quite a bit of unnecessary description. I do enjoy context, but there was too much about stuff that really didn't add to the story. Nothing the characters did together really excited me or made me swoon even the slightest.

This must be someone's cup of tea based on other reviews, but it just wasn't for me.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

As other reviewers have mentioned, this book is about an author who is trying to jump start her creative muses so she can write another best seller. Her first best seller was written after her heart was broken, so she enters into a deal with a local man who has a reputation for breaking hearts. She hopes that once her heart is broken again, she’ll be able to write another hit book. As you can imagine, they both get more than they bargained for.

I always enjoy Jennifer Probst’s books. They tug at my heartstrings and pull me into the story. This one is no different. While there are frustrations with the main female character, that’s to be expected, as she had a lot of growing to do. The beach community and the conservation projects described in the book were so well written and contributed a lot towards understanding the main male character. This story had good pacing and there weren't any surprise crazy twists thrown at the characters in the last few chapters of the book.

I really liked the supporting characters as well. So much fun dialogue! They all contributed to the story perfectly. (As a side note, I can’t wait for Sierra’s book!)

I’d recommend picking this book up!

Author Aspen Lourde is in a panic. Her book FIFTY WAYS TO LEAVE YOUR LOVER was a bestseller. But what if she’s a ‘one book wonder?’ Desperate to write another big hit, Aspen needs inspiration, a relationship to make her feel true emotions again. Another heartbreak—that would cause the muse to return and her words to flow again. So she concocts a plan to use the town playboy as the fast train to her faltering writing career.

BOOK OF THE MONTH, Jennifer Probst’s romantic comedy, has something for everyone. It’s a contemporary love story with the perfect number of twists and turns to keep the reader engaged. Then, the writer adds in humor and spice, and the result is downright intoxicating.

I loved the fact that this story is appealing and still realistic, with every scene believable. Jennifer’s descriptions of both setting and character are clear and beautifully written without wasted words. It’s an ideal weekend read.

Brick and Aspen story is just so cute!

I loved the idea of a FMC beign a romance author that struggles to write her next beststeller and looks for some deep emotions in a fake relationship so that she can put them in her next book. I actually loved the fact that she pays him to make her fall for him and break her heart so she can rewrite a bestselling novel based on her heartbreak.

I found the characters original and fresh, it was a great summer read!

I also really liked how the gossip spreads in a small town and how it affects people living there, I think it was well described and spot on.
I overall really enjoyed this book so much and I can´t wait to read the next one (bonus chapter of the second book can be found at the end)

Thank you to the author, Netgalley and Blu Box Press for this amazing arc!

Book of the Month is a rom com about Aspen, a writer suffering from writer’s block. To shake things up and try to recapture the success of her first book, she moves to a NC beach town and lives with her sister for a summer. After hearing countless rumors about local heartbreaker Brick, she hatches a plan with him to have a summer romance that’ll inspire her novel, in exchange for footing the bill for his business renovations.

All in all, I liked this story. Readers of this genre will see the writing on the wall for how the bulk of the plot will go, but that never bothers me. I like a fake dating trope. For some reason, I really didn’t like the name Brick. Couldn’t figure out why, but I liked his character, and I liked the two main characters together. If you are a rom com reader for escape and enjoyment, you will likely enjoy this book. Thank you NetGalley for the chance to read in advance.

Book of the Month by Jennifer Probst was super cute. Aspen had huge success as an author, but she can't seem to follow it up. The problem was, her first book was based very closely on her life and her failed relationship. She'll do pretty much anything to get herself back on top, including entering into a relationship deal with Brick. Brick is known as a wild man around town in the Outer Banks and everyone warns Aspen off. Now, if they can have a good time, then he will just break her heart at the end, she will have great fodder for her new book!

Of course, Brick is so much more than he seems... Very sweet with a few spicy scenes, and enjoyable despite a third-act breakup, which I tend to dislike.

I would absolutely listen to an audio version of this!

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC of this book.

I was immediately drawn to this story because of the Outer Banks setting, particularly the Corolla Wild Horse area. Having visited and taken one of the local tours myself, I was curious to see how the author would capture the essence of the area. While the backdrop was beautifully depicted, it took me a little longer than I expected to get fully invested in the story. I found myself putting it down and coming back to it a few times.

At the start, the dynamic between Aspen and Brick was a bit off-putting. Aspen’s relentless pursuit of Brick—despite his repeated rejections—initially felt more like harassment than flirtation. If the roles were reversed, I imagine this behavior would have raised some serious red flags, and it made it difficult for me to root for their relationship early on.

That said, I absolutely loved the premise of an author trying to reignite her career by finding new inspiration. As a fan of books about writing, I was excited by Aspen’s journey to rediscover her creative spark. Both Aspen and Brick had compelling individual stories that could have easily stood on their own as great general fiction. But as a romance, their chemistry felt inconsistent. For much of the book, I struggled to believe that Brick was genuinely attracted to Aspen, especially with the repeated emphasis on her "not being his type." It made their connection feel forced at times, and I found the overuse of “masculinity” to describe Brick a bit cliché.

However, once I got past the initial awkwardness, the middle of the book picked up nicely. I enjoyed the way their relationship evolved and how they began to support each other in meaningful ways. It was heartwarming to see their walls start to come down.

Then came the third-act breakup. While the reasons behind it were believable and well-developed, the resolution felt rushed. One of the characters did an unexpected 180, resolving everything a little too perfectly without any real sense of forgiveness or reconciliation. It felt like we missed a crucial emotional step in their journey.

Overall, this was a light, enjoyable read with a fantastic setting and a unique premise. I just wish the romantic connection between Aspen and Brick had been as captivating as their individual stories.

After a string of heavier reads, I was excited to dive into this ARC, courtesy of NetGalley. This contemporary romance by Jennifer Probst, my first from her, was a fun change of pace. The story follows Aspen Lourde, a bestselling author struggling to replicate her past success. In need of inspiration, she leaves NYC for the Outer Banks to visit her sister, hoping a change of scenery will spark her creativity. Aspen believes another heartbreak might just be the key to writing her next bestseller, and that’s where Brick comes in—a fellow New Yorker, now working to revive his grandfather’s tour company.

What starts as a simple summer fling, cemented with a cheeky verbal contract, becomes something more. The plot may not be groundbreaking, but the chemistry between Aspen and Brick is undeniable, which isn’t always the case in quick contemporary romances. Was it a masterpiece? Not really. But it was a light, enjoyable escape, and I think fans of the genre will find a lot to love.