I love Chloe Liese. She writes such real and wonderful characters. I love how there are always neurodivergent reps as well as other reps in her books. Her writing is just so well rounded, and the characters are so lifelike and feel like you know them. I loved getting to know Juliet and Will over the course of this book. I think a few things could have been explored a little deeper, but it was still a wonderful story. Will is autistic, and Juliet has joint issues and is gluten free. Over the course of this book, I felt that I could relate to both of them in my own right. Will because he struggled with saying the right thing, and Juliet for her gluten free life. I love how together they just worked. Oh and the Highland fantasy was just fantastic. I loved that Will was such a cinnamon roll of a character. I also appreciated that there was no third-act breakup in this one. I really don’t like it when that happens, and this book still worked wonderfully without having it. Fake dating is also one of my favorite tropes and I really enjoyed how it all played out. I devoured this book over the course of an afternoon in one sitting, I just couldn’t put it down.

If you’re looking for a fun filled romance, then you need to check this one out.

Im going to be honest with you, I was a little apprehensive about this book as this author tends to be a little hit or miss for me. However, I'm happy to report this book was an absolute hit for me. I'm so glad I picked up Once Smitten Twice Shy and gave it a chance.

Once Smitten Twice Shy is a breath of fresh air. I love how this author isn't afraid to write Neurodivergent and vulnerable characters. She made Will and Juliet easy to connect with and relatable. I adored their meet-cute and got a kick out of how fate kept throwing them together.

Will and Juliet were adorable and awkward in the best possible way. Their story is oh, so sweet with the best slow burn. You can't help but root for Will and Juliet.

If you're looking for a refreshing friends to lovers romance with a delicious slow-burn that'll put a smile on your face and give you all the feels, you won't want to miss Once Smitten Twice Shy.

This book is the definition of cute & wholesome. The way the mcs communicate with each other was soo refreshing! They talked about their feelings regardless of the situation and they always tried to work it out. The friendship and family dynamics are amazing as well. Despite Will not being a big talker he had such a way with words, I adored their friendship and the development into a romantic relationship so much! Could’ve done without the singing bit towards the end but that might just be me.
Thanks to netgalley and the publisher that I got to read this one!

4.5 stars!

Neither Juliet, freshly extricated from an abusive relationship and still coming to terms with an auto-immune disease diagnosis, or Will, on the spectrum and not always able to decipher people, is ready to start dating. When they bump into one another multiple times, they decide this coincidence means they should be friends, and maybe even safe for the other to practice dating, to prepare to dive back into the dating pool. These characters are so lovable, and Liese gets their voices and internal monologues just right. It was a fast, satisfying, and cozy read, with excellent representation of chronic illness and neurodivergent.

This third and last book in the Wilmot Sisters series lacks some of the drama and the third act break-up of the other two, which are based on Much Ado About Nothing (fake dating) and The Taming of the Shrew (childhood enemies). Once Smitten, Twice Shy is based on Twelfth Night. I didn’t have the background on this lesser known play to fully appreciate all the allusions and alignment with this classic about mistaken identities, gender swapping, and cross-class relationships. I suppose one could argue the initial mistaken identity (Juliet’s first name is revealed to be Viola), the deception about pretend dating, and their not realizing how connected they are through friends and family is the tie to the plot of Twelfth Night, alongside themes of familial love and sibling bonds, and the requisite wedding.

I received a free advance reader’s review copy of #OnceSmittenTwiceShy via #NetGalley courtesy of #Berkley. This review will post on HLBB 1/15/2025.

Chloe Liese is among my favorite romance authors for her thoughtful and deeply poignant stories. A few of the books in the Bergman Brothers series (especially Ziggy's book) and the first book in the Wilmot Sisters series are among my all-time favorites in this genre. This final installment is strong and a good addition to Chloe Liese's overall canon, but I would have liked a deeper characterization of Juliet. While we did get some new insight into Juliet following her recent diagnosis and the turbulent end to her previous relationship, certain elements of her character/personality felt like they were missing. Her love of romance is clear but her intention to write her own romance novel was somewhat abandoned from their mentions in the previous books. I had imagined that as she healed and forged a relationship with Will that desire to complete that dream would come back.

Additionally, it seemed like the reasons keeping Juliet and Will apart were a bit contrived compared to the other books in the series. Jamie and Bea were initially fake dating as a ploy to enact revenge against meddling loved ones and Christopher and Kate had a childhood rivalry so the tension that finally broke when the characters began dating for real felt earned and satisfying. The mutual attraction and affection between Will and Juliet is established within the first few chapters, so the story loses a little bit of steam in the middle. Some additional conflict could add some tension as the story leans a bit saccharine toward the end (though I appreciate the choice to omit mentions of Juliet's past abusive relationship and am glad that wasn't an on-page source of conflict).

I received a free eARC from NetGalley.

I love Chloe Liese. Her characters are real people with real problems and it’s really nice to see how they reflect real life. I enjoyed reading this one and Juliet’s relationship with Will was so cute! My biggest pet peeve with this one, and why I knocked off a star, is that they basically get engaged at her sister’s wedding!! Big party foul. I really enjoyed how thoughtful Will was and how patient Juliet was with him when he needed time to get his thoughts in order. Plus, the steamy scenes were good too. I’ve read everything Chloe Liese has put out so far, so I came into this one with high expectations and she didn’t disappoint! A worthy and quick, fun read.

🌶️🌶️ Spice Rating.

This book was cute. I was struggling a bit with how much internal dialogue was happening in this book. I found myself putting this book down a lot. I did like Juliet, and liked getting a glimpse of Bea and Jamie again.

Thank you @berkleypub and @netgalley for the opportunity to ARC read this e-book! (My first Berkley ARC 🥹)

This book was so cute! I loved Juliet and Will's love story. Juliet is our extroverted heroine with celiac and joint issues, who has come from a toxic relationship, afraid to repeat past mistakes.

BUT WILL, Will stole the show. He is our awkward, autistic, sensory-sensitive CINNAMON ROLL of a hunky man! I think he has become my favorite cinnamon roll character I've read. I could relate to him so much. That highlander fantasy though, @chloe_liese ... thank you! I didn't realize I needed that mental image until then.

The banter was there, and the chemistry was wonderful. This slow burn, sweet romance, absolutely stole my heart. I was dying of laughter when Will and Juliet met each other for the second time, and Will was just snoozing in the most ridiculous spot.

Tropes:
✔️ Cinnamon Roll MMC
✔️ Disability Rep
✔️ No third-act breakup
✔️ Second chance romance
✔️ Fake dating

I first discovered Chloe Liese through her Bergman Brothers series. I loved the large family dynamic. I loved that each character set had a unique situation, not just personally but also physically. I enjoyed the way she drew together the characters and created a relatively realistic path to love. I decided to try out the Wilmot Sisters series after completely Bergman. But this one just fell flat. I read the first and the second and they just didn't quite have the same pizazz. The 2nd was the best one, in my opinion. It won't stop me from recommending Liese to readers, but I'll encourage my library to purchase the Bergman brothers series also.

Omg I ate this book up! I loved it so much! This author always does such an amazing job with her stories and her characters. Thank you for letting me read this book!!

I absolutely cannot be objective about this book because the female main character has the exact same (very rare) autoimmune disease that I do, and representation matters! So I was pretty much destined to at least like this one, and I definitely did. It's not the strongest Chloe Liese plot, in my opinion - the setup for the sort of secret fake dating ("dating practice") that main characters Juliet and Will decide to engage in is a bit shaky to me, and I wish that this had been a more straightforward friends to lovers romance. Will is also just maybe like, too perfect of a male main character? Like he's so thoughtful and generous and seems to have very few flaws, when I prefer all of my main characters in romance to be a bit more flawed so that they're more relatable. But again, I can't help but give this a high rating because I doubt I'll ever see my own autoimmune disease reflected in mainstream fiction - thanks Chloe Liese for the amazing chronic illness and neurodiversity rep in your books!

Having come off the high I felt reading Better Hate than Never, this newest Chloe Liese was softer and more precious. It didn't have that will they/won't they energy, it was just sweetness and falling in love. And that's totally cool with me. Where this book lost me a wee bit was claiming it's based off of Twelfth Night. It didn't have the bones of Twelfth Night and it didn't have the vibes, it was just a book that tied nicely in with two other titles that were more heavily inspired by William Shakespeare. Worth a read if you enjoy Chloe Liese books, soft romances, and the other two books in this series.

your typical chloe liese book sure to make you swoon and fall in love!!! I have to say though that I think this may have been my least favorite in the series but still very enjoyable.

Thank you Netgalley for the advanced reading copy! I think I have read everything Chloe Liese has written (all the Bergman’s and the first two books in this Wilmont Sisters series) and this book just didn’t do it for me like her books usually do. I think the fake dating set up didn’t really work well and the inner dialogue of the characters and the plot were pretty boring. Saying that, I think for fans of Liese will like it, this series and the last book in the series just were not really for me. I, as always with LIese, did think the chronic illness and neurodivergent representation were good - I just think her take on these things is getting kind of boring, it’s in all her books, and it’s starting to blend together. I do recommend this book though, it seems that Liese’s fans love her books no matter what, so I recommend this book for fans of Liese and chronic illness and neurodivergent representation in contemporary romance.

i love you so much chloe liese. the moment you stop writing books will be the saddest day of my life (well maybe not the saddest but it will be up there). it is really unfortunate that all of liese's sibling series have ended close together but that also means it is time for new chloe liese books!!! i don't really know what to say other than i loved this book. read it y'all

Chloe never fails to stun with her books. This one was such a pure and lovely story of affection and friendship and trust. I loved the inventive Shakespeare reimagining that made the story timely and original. I loved the queer representation, subtle yet clearly stated. My favourite thing is that Chloe had figured out the formula for skipping out on third act breakups that put into question the integrity of the relationship between the characters. It’s fabulous.

I'm a big Chloe Liese fan and was so excited to get the ARC of the final Wilmont Sisters book. I love and appreciate the varied representation of neurodivergent characters across Chloe's books. Will Osino and his "thinking thoughts" were delightful and so sweet. Juliet's story of overcoming a bad relationship and finding balance with her chronic health issues demonstrated strength without veering into inspiration porn.
The slow burn of secret dating practice hit a sweet spot of anticipation and I always appreciate the lack of a third-act breakup. Will's sweetness and loyalty to his family is demonstrated through his efforts to overcome his discomfort in social settings. Will and Juliet were great balances to each other while finding partners in each other to be their best selves.
Thank you NetGalley, Berkley Publishing Group, and Chloe Liese for the free ARC. I can't wait for the audiobook.

Thank you to Chloe Liese, Berkley Romance and NetGalley for sending me this ARC in exchange for an honest review. I have been a fan of Chloe since I picked up the first Bergman Brothers book and the Wilmot Sisters trilogy did not disappoint me! The Wilmots might be a smaller bunch but the sisterhood and display of friendship and found family was heartwarming as ever. Like with Viggo Bergman, Chloe decided to put the hopeless romantic of the Wilmot family last, and sprinkled her story full of invisible strings, themes of fate, destiny and true love! I know this one was marketed as a Twelfth Night retelling but trust me, it has our favourite star-crossed lovers Romeo and Juliet written all over it!! As a Shakespeare lover myself I appreciated the references and parallels to both of these plays and found them soooo hilarious and fun. Juliet was the sweetest most endearing main character and the way her struggles with celiac and mixed connective tissue disease felt authentic and honest. The same can be said for our cutie pie love interest William!! HE WAS ADORABLE and his autism was represented in such a beautiful way because I love how whilst he was insecure about his ability to connect romantically there was a surety and confidence in the way he dealt with his autism and communicated himself and his needs that I really enjoyed. Will and Juliet's chemistry was great. They had just the right amount of awkwardness and tension to make this book hilariously fun!

I do think this book was slightly more cliche and cheesy than Chloe's usual schtick but again, with these being Shakespeare retellings that was of little consequence seeing as the ridiculousness and fast burn of it all just added to the fun rollercoaster this book takes you on.

The bar was really high, set by Chloe in her previous books. I’d say this was a solid 3.75..? Will and Juliet are cute together and I like how they work together, communicate, and are there for each other. My only hang up, was how they meet and start this “dating practice”. I have no issues suspending disbelief in general but this one felt a little too far fetched? Either way, a classic Chloe Liese feel-good romance.

Thank you NetGalley and Berkley for the free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was a cute read, the romance did not hit like I thought it would but it was good. I liked the romance lessons aspects and the chronic pain representation. The beginning of the book is very intriguing, especially when the main characters keep meeting unexpectedly. The fmc loves romance and is very romantic but has sworn off love. The mmc isn't the best with social cues and doesn't know how to woo and be with women. Somewhere in the middle of the book the romance just seemed not to be going anywhere, both characters were okay and good on their own but nothing much happened and it was a little too sweet. They did have chemistry, though, so if you like cute romance books with little plot, you should try this. Thanks to Berkley Romance for the arc.