I have really tried to like and finish this book, I wanted to love it, but I felt no connection to the story or the characters. I stopped and picked it up a few times to give it a fair chance, but I was not interested - even 50% into the book.

The daughter of an actress heading to a small town to escape a recent scandal and a cute mechanic hit it off and have a fling in this fun, spicy romance. Jessica has sworn off flings for the duration of her stay in Peach Blossom, Georgia. But she throws out that plan pretty much instantaneously after meeting the town's cute mechanic when her rental car breaks down. Vinnie's instant attraction to Jessica makes falling in bed with her easy, but when she starts to feel more the easy fun they've been having becomes a lot more complicated. Jessica still isn't sure what to do with the feelings she has for Vinnie. With an end date fast approaching on her time in Peach Blossom, will they be able to figure out what they want--and what they're willing to sacrifice--for the chance at something more?

Sweet, spicy, and sapphic--just the way I like it!

This was a cute read! I loved the instant chemistry between Vini and Jessica & they wasted no time setting up a casual fling agreement for the month that Jessica was in town. I was here for the hot and passionate moments that they shared! 🤌🏼 I enjoyed Vini’s family (sometimes Ava, she was annoying until she wasn’t lol). I feel like we got to know Vini & I just needed more of Jessica. I loved the women in automotive services representation and Vini doing the damn thing as a shop owner. The pining and physical chemistry was SPOT ON and I was eating it up!

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC!

This had all the right ingredients; a sweet small-town romance, black lesbian leads, and some fun moments, but it just didn’t go deep enough. The relationships felt underdeveloped, the characters lacked real dimension, and too much was glossed over. There’s a lot of telling instead of showing, and some key moments that could’ve added depth just… didn’t happen. The romance also leaned hard into insta-lust, with multiple repetitive scenes but not much emotional buildup.

That said, the interconnectedness of the series has potential, and I’m hoping the third book delivers more. I’m not writing off Karmen Lee yet, but I’ll need more than surface-level charm next time.

Karmen Lee is autobuy author for me. I love the way you can see how much she cares about her characters. I know this is a weird thing to say in a review but somehow it matters and I felt it in this story. I want more of these two and I hope there is another book in this series.

I see the potential in this book, but I did not finish it. Something about it didn’t grab me and I really wanted to love it because I love representation and being Black & Queer, I don’t see romances as much. I think this book is just not for me or I wasn’t in the right headspace to read it.

3.5/5 Stars

Note: this is a sequel to "The 7-10 Split", but there are no major plot spoilers below. However, if you want the full effect of this book, I would recommend reading the in publication order.

The good:
- I loved the growth both Vini and Jessica have. They did have clear expectations at the beginning of the book, but the growth of expectations felt natural.
- Aiden was a great side character and I'd love to see his own book at some point!
- You see Ava and Dani and Grace again from the first book, and it was nice to see how their stories intertwined with Vini's and Jessica's. I am excited for Dani's book later this year!

The loss of 1.5 stars:
- There are just some glaring typos in this book (Vini is once spelled at Vino) and usually I don't take off for that, but it was so distracting, I couldn't bring myself to give it a 4 stars.
- Because it was so spice heavy, it slowed down the pace for me personally, the spicy scenes were not bad, but it just slowed the reading experience and i felt myself getting distracted easily.

Overall, if you liked "The 7-10 Split", I'd say keep going with the series!

Jessica’s car breaks down on the way to Peach Blossom to hide from the press and what she gets is a panty dropping mechanic who she hopes can give her more than just one ride.

I just love this cover and I knew I wanted to read it before I registered who wrote it and that it’s the second book of a series I like. The chemistry between Jessica and Vini just leaps off the cover. You immediately think, “I need to be a part of that (wink)” (chuckle).

I am so glad to be back in Peach Blossom. I really loved Vini in the first book, so I’m ecstatic to read their story in The Relationship Mechanic.

Once again, Karmen Lee gives us a sweet and low-stress romance. This is not to say that there isn’t drama, with family always comes drama, but from the Williams family it’s all good. I think the core of family love is what makes the series. This is a family that loves hard and it shows. These are women you want in your corner and getting your back because they have you. I just love reading stories with this basis (probably because I didn’t have it).

Steam. Oh yes, Lee gives us steam between Jessica and Vini. I am all there for it. I like when you go in hoping for no strings and a safe heart and then the person surprises you. This is Vini. Vini quietly goes about her business creating something wonderful in her life. She’s strong and smart. Then hello, I want to see her in her overalls (chuckle). I really connected with Vini. Then again, I had the basis of her in the first book and started crushing then when she was a secondary character.

Friendship is explored in this story. What do we tell? What is our’s to tell? What happens when lines start to blur and why, oh why, do we need to pick a side. Can we change our viewpoint of someone that we have known our whole lives because we only see the past and not the now. The author does a fabulous job of taking us on this change of circumstance.

I just adore The Relationship Mechanic. If you are looking for a small-town, meet cute, friends-with-benefits romance or even if you’re not looking for these tropes, this romance will give you a great ride.

We are back and Peach Blossom but this time for the focus on baby sis Vini ! I quickly learned that I love a small town romance so I knew I’d enjoy this!

Vini is really my fave. She is sassy but underneath it all just so sweet.
Jessica is miss hot mess express that literally came crashing in Vini’s life. Individually they were so interesting but their romance was surface level. I didn’t get much besides some steamy spice (which I did love) and a few little cutesy moments. I think their admiration for each other shined when their friends/family spoke up about their connection.

I liked this story much more than the 7-10 split but I hate to say Ava was insufferable here. I wanted to jump in the family arguments myself because Ava girl get a life lol

Thank you NetGalley and Harlequin for this ARC! Excited to see who else falls in love in down in Peach Blossom

I must say that from the beginning when Jessica and Vini meets I became a fan because of the sparks these two had whenever they were around each other was electric. Then we get more in depth with each other’s family. Definitely my favorite book of the series so far and I can’t wait for Dani story 🤗.

A very steamy read, but wasn't a huge fan of the friends with benefits angle of a story. I love a small town romance though.

This was my first novel by Karmen Lee, and I look forward to seeing what else she has coming in the future. This story was short and very sweet. I loved the easy chemistry of the main characters that is evident from the beginning of the novel. The characters are well-defined and distinct in their personalities, and that is consistent throughout the story. The perception conveyed about sex and communication was refreshing to read. Rather than having misconceptions about the nature of their relationship, the characters expressed the fact that they developed feelings despite their agreed upon arrangement. One thing that can quickly turn me off and cause me to put down a book permanently is how the conversation around consent is handled. I am okay with implied consent, but if a verbal consent conversation is being represented on-page, it should go exactly how Lee wrote the conversations on consent in The Relationship Mechanic. More, more, more of that please! I think it is so sexy to see a character show restraint despite their desire to move things forward physically. Lastly, I appreciated the compromise in the resolution of the relationship challenges between the main characters. Neither has to completely give up their lives, values, or passions to resolve their barriers to being together. My area for improvement in this story laid in the resolution of the main characters' resolution of their conflicts with the side characters. If one hard conversation can resolve everything completely, it's frustrating to have read through all of the tension and conflict preceding it. My issue is not with the difficulty surrounding those conversations because that all felt very real, but rather the underlying beliefs the character's hold that lead to the conflict is likely not easily resolved with one conversation. I understand there is not room at the end of a story for long, drawn out conflict resolution, but if it was addressed a little earlier on it may have been more satisfying in the lead up to the climax and resolution of the main characters' relationship.
Thank you to Netgalley and Harlequin - Romance for the opportunity to receive and review this e-ARC.

The insta-lust in this was absolutely ridiculous. both characters were just fine but I was becoming bored out of my mind.

The “plot” was so boring and I pushed myself through this for nothing. Also the amount of sex scenes was ridiculous LMAOO.

I do not recommend.

Karmen Lee masterfully crafts a warm, inviting world that feels both familiar and refreshing with each story. This second installment further cements Peach Blossom as a beloved centerpiece of her series, offering readers a deeper glimpse into the town’s charm and its residents. With The Relationship Mechanic, Lee expands on the foundation of her first book while introducing new characters and conflicts that stand strong on their own, making it a compelling and enjoyable addition to the series.

Cute story that dives into fear of commitment and what can happened when you allow yourself to give into love. The spicyness was spicing in this one. Lol. I loved the flirting between Vini and Jess and was rooting for them throughout the entire book. Some parts did drag for me and I think some of the spicy scenes could've been skipped over. Overall I enjoyed it!

Loved Vini and Jessica in this sweet small town romance! I'd read this book again for the cover alone!

Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with an ARC of this story.
SPOILERS TO FOLLOW

Wow!!! This story GETS RIGHT INTO IT. I feel like most of the FF stories I read aren't very spicy but I would rate this one 5/5 and I APPRECIATE IT. It wasn't spicy right away either just for the sake of it. Vini and Jessica built up a relationship of friendship and love first which I really loved. They were really good together and I loved their chemistry. What I hated, which is the part I normally hate, was the third act breakup. It made me REALLY MAD that Ava and Grace kept trying to get between them and Jess and Vini's arguments that they were grown women and didn't need anyone to baby them were so valid and it was annoying that neither of these either women could see that their relationship was none of their business. I did appreciate that the air was cleared up and Ava apologized for her behavior because she was totally in the wrong. That all being said, I wonder what happened with Jessica's brother, Jason, and his fiancee. Their sudden relationship split seemed to come out of nowhere so I was wondering how that happened and why it was added at the end. It makes me think he'll be in another story in this series but I'm not sure.

Cute, but ultimately pretty shallow. Neither character felt well rounded. If I can't buy them individually, I certainly can't buy them as a couple. I would be interested in longer books from Karmen Lee. Thank you for the arc!

Overall 3.5
Spice: 3

Book 2 of the Peach Blossom series we meet Vini and Jessica. Jessica is trying to lay low after causing shame to her family's name. Vini the sister that doesn't rock the boat and afraid to love again. Sparks fly form the first meeting. What was suppose to be a summer fling turns into the true love. This was a cute and quick read.

I’m not going to lie to y’all…… This is going to be a really short review. Why? Because there’s not much to say. For the most part they were just doing it every 10 minutes. Now before you get all up in arms about this, I didn’t say it was a bad thing. It just wasn’t what I was expecting. But I know one thing. I will never sleep on another Afterglow book again lol

Ok so the main characters were just ok to me. They were so secretive, but were getting it in every chance they got. A friend of mine messaged me and said. “they can’t stay off each other.” And yeah, that’s accurate. And this was all before they even wanted to admit they liked each other lol This is a certified hook up book that turns into more. And I was here for it. I was also glad that they both stood up for themselves, but also each other. They might have let themselves down, but they didn’t let anyone else come for them. I think it was then that they realized that there were real feelings.

I was ok with it because the characters didn’t try to make it seem like they were more. Until they were. Does that make sense? The way this is written, this is a hook up book. And they were fooling around in places like the garage and the truck in some instances. But when things started to get real, the author did a really good job of showing that progression between them. Usually I would say this was like instalovey, but this was a very clear depiction of one of the characters coming to town for a while and then finding someone to hook up with. As someone who was expecting an actual romance book I was a little shocked, but it worked. Lee did a great job depicting this type of relationship.

I do wish we got more of the Mechanic part. LOL I think I was thinking she was going to be fixing some relationships for people, but she was an actual mechanic. And that was all there was to it. I guess i wanted some more creativity in the title or something. It just seemed really easy to throw in something there, but it was all left on the table. And I know this has nothing to do with anything, but I still wanted ot. I just think with a title like this, there should have been something more creative to do with it? Does that make sense?

This was a fun little romp. I laughed and swooned and clutched my pearls the whole time. But what I liked most of all was the fact that it gave me a whole new way to look at ways to see romance. There was no build up and no angst, but this worked because of the type of book it seemed to be. And that’s something I’ve never even thought about before. I hope y’all come to this conclusion too and don’t knock this because of it.