Sig and Chlo! I want more of these couples! I mean it was a Taboo Beginning but can it be taboo when they are step-siblings who aren't blood-related!? I don't quite understand why people would be so critical of something like that, especially when they meet way before the parents let them know they are together. As long as there is no Blood relation I don't judge. I Loved this Book and How possessive Sig was, Chloe is His forever true Love since the very beginning and I was here for it!

Ughhhh I really hate to do this - especially for a book I was SO PUMPED for - forbidden romance, step siblings plus HOCKEY and it being a Tessa Bailey book…

⭐️⭐️⭐️ stars
🌶️🌶️/5 spice

I was SO excited I mean I was practically screaming at the end of The Au Pair Affair when I realized Sig and Chloe were next …

But in the end it was wayyyy too insta lovey for me to even root for this couple

I found myself screaming WHY ARE YOU SO STUPID?! multiple times at our MCs.

You’re telling me this hockey player just dumps EVERYTHING in merely a FEW HOURS after meeting this girl?! Then funds her ENTIRE life while she flaunts around making the stupidest decisions ever…

Like I get Chloe was spoiled and entitled but you mean to tell me she was just fine with this man who she met WHOS RUSTY ASS CAR JUST BROKE DOWN paying for everything in her life without a second thought? She thought he was gonna be able to afford that?!

🚨MINOR SPOILER NEXT PARAGRAPH ONLY🚨

Plus when she finds out he HAS BEEN STRUGGLING - she just KEEPS LETTING HIM?? I could never - and I say that as a spoiled only child myself.

🚨SPOILER TIME OVER🚨

The spice was decent I guess. I mean really at the end of it my only reason for continuing was for hopeful glimpse at our previous characters and to figure out how the hell they were gonna get out of that situation.

I wanted forbidden longing, secret moments and a gradual love that made that FUCK IT moment worth it. Instead I found myself rolling my eyes more often then not.

I say this all while still keeping that Tessa Bailey is STILL one of my favorite authors but this book was just a miss for me personally. I’m sure other people will absolutely go feral for this one but insta love is not my thing.

I will say I DO look forward to the next book and hopefully that one will continue her streak of these amazing rom coms that have me both cackling then sweating over the spicy moments.

Big thanks to Avon, Tessa Bailey and NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinions!

I knew Sig and Chloe’s story was going to be good when we met them in The Au Pair Affair and I was not disappointed!

My heart ached for them all the way through, someone described this as slow burn but make it lava and they’re not wrong. This may be my favourite in the series so far.

I want to preface by saying I am a fan of Tessa Bailey and was very excited to receive this ARC! Thank you to NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyager for this ARC!
I wanted to liked this more, I really did, but some things just didn’t appeal to me. I read Fan Girl Down and I didn’t enjoy it much but I liked the premise of a sports romance and I have loved other books from Tessa. But it’s fair to say I was excited to read this one, but a bit apprehensive, so maybe I had unfair expectations.

I’m not the biggest fan of insta love but I do appreciate the way it was expressed through their characters. In the beginning Chloe was definitely into Sig but a bit more reserved and more so intrigued by him rather than instantly in love. Sig’s character fit the instant obsession with his fiery personality and all in work ethic.

I was hooked into the book from the beginning chapters just like the characters.

At first I thought the large time just at the beginning was a positive to jump over filler time, but I found myself missing it. Was really hoping for more tension with flirting and banter and the build up of their friendship. I know the characters waited out a long time to be intimate but it barely felt that way with the insta love and skipping of time.

Having not read The Au Pair Affair yet I felt a bit like I may have been thrown in the middle of a story at times - like with her friendship with Tallulah.

The taboo nature of their relationship was all at once too much and not enough. It was an uncomfortable premise and a bit weird to imagine them together under the circumstances. But at the same time they met as adults and in most people’s eyes it wouldn’t be as big of a deal as made out to be. I can wrap my head around it knowing the scrutiny athletes and public figures get.

I still found Chloe to grow and become more real but I wish Sig would have given her a bit more space and babied her less. There was a lot of real world, street smarts for her to learn.
Sig being so impulsive and ignoring Chloe trying to stay away from him made me a bit mad at the end but fortunately it all worked out.

I loved that Rosie got her moment at the end where Harvey gave her praise for raising Sig on her own without taking money!

All in all, it wasn’t my favorite romance novel but it wasn’t a bad book. I might not feel compelled to reread it or recommend it but it had some really cute moments and some good steamy moments too.

“…because, honestly, she couldn’t remember a night where Sig didn’t star in her dreams, anymore…”

“Out of everything I’ve ever had, you are the nicest.”

“You love her?” “I exist for her.”

“Who knew what she’d throw at him next time? Sig didn’t know. He only knew he’d catch her curveballs as often as she wanted to throw them.”

“It reminds me of our story,” she’d said to him once. “It reminds me I was without you once. As I play the songs, you come back to me. Over and over. It’s like joy on repeat.”

When professional hockey player Sig Gauthier’s truck breaks down outside a fancy country club, Chloe Clifford comes to his rescue, pretending to know him so he can come inside and charge his cell phone. Sig is blown away by her beauty immediately, and her sense of adventure & mischief draws him in further. Yet, Sig can see that Chloe lives a very sheltered life as a rich Harp-playing prodigy. They hit it off spectacularly, with a hot yet rushed make out sesh on the greens, but it gets cut short when Chloe remembers she's meant to be home for an important dinner. Sig promises her a scorching reunion as soon as she can sneak away.

Things are looking promising, until Sig arrives his father's girlfriend's house for their introductory dinner. (He and his father have a strained and distant relationship, and he's meeting her for the first time.) Imagine his surprise when he sees Chloe there, playing the harp, and she's introduced as the girlfriend's daughter! Both of them are dumbfounded, but things only get worse when their parents announce their engagement in the next breath. It turns out that Sig's dream girl is his soon-to-be step-sister!

This instalust/instalove relationship is over before it starts, as they have only 8 months until they're officially family. But Sig still feels compelled to stick up for Chloe and help her break away from her mother and her sheltered, richy-rich life in Connecticut so she can study in Boston, where he lives. He makes it his mission to take care of her and help her learn the necessary life skills that she's desperately lacking.

Still, the bone-deep attraction that they both felt when they met is hard to ignore and they work very hard to keep it platonic. But... would it really be so bad if they wanted to be together??

Here's the thing. Everyone in their lives can see that they feel a lot more for each other than familial love! (Let's be real, they let their feelings/attraction slip a lot 😅.) And, maybe I've read too many books, but I honestly didn't feel like their relationship would be that shocking-- They didn't meet until they were fully grown adults, and it'd be a relation through marriage, not blood!

The other main conflict of the story is that Sig is so worried that Chloe will want to return to her old life if he can't keep her in her lavish lifestyle that he's bankrolling her. She's so irresponsible with money, and, unfortunately, he's not one of those millionaire Hockey players we all read about! And he just let's her spend all his money instead of teaching her how to budget (AKA not blow ALL her money at Sephora!)

All in all, I liked the story and the premise. Suffice it to say it's a slooow burn, but it has very hot moments. Sig is SO OBSESSED with Chloe. He's down SO bad, which I always love.

PS- this was written in third person POV!

4⭐ 2🌶️

I read an advanced copy of this book, and this is my honest review. Thank you to NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyager for the ARC!

Loved it! I feel like each book in this series is so different from each other (in a good way) and get better and better. I found it refreshing that at no point did the FMC and MMC have a fight with each other or have a falling out of some kind.

The first chapter of Dream Girl Drama IMMEDIATELY captivated me and I have to say that this meet cute ranks up there with my all time favorites. It was electric and Tessa Bailey wrote it in a way that felt so magnetic and real and raw. It was like I was there witnessing it happen. I don’t know what drug she put in this chapter (and the book as a whole), but it was addictive.

Please read this series in order, because doing so really allows for you to get curious about the backstory of these two characters. You get a good taste of what’s to come with these characters in The Au Pair Affair by Tessa Bailey (Big Shots #2), but then this finally satiates your curiosity.

Though it starts out quickly, it enters slow burn territory and boy is it a slow burn. Actually, it’s much more than that. It’s a slow raging inferno. I know that’s not a thing, but that’s how I am going to classify this subset of romance. There is SO MUCH LONGING and SO MUCH TENSION.

I absolutely adore and appreciate the setup in this book and how this characters find themselves in their predicament. It wasn’t what I was expecting in the best way. I think Tessa Bailey did a great job crafting their backstory and it was truly satisfying. I also appreciated how the story unfolded as time went on. I found myself not knowing what to expect, but just was constantly rooting for the couple.

Something else I loved in this was the appearance of previous characters and seeing the role they played in this story. Though the current couple was interwoven in the previous book The Au Pair Affair, I didn’t know exactly what would transpire in this book, but it was fun to see it all play out.

I REALLY hope this series continues, because I definitely can see what other characters can wind up together. I’d love to see their story unfold as well. I feel like Tessa Bailey could keep this going for as long as possible and I’d pick up every book in this series without fail. There’s still so much to read! Please, Tessa, write more in this series! I LOVE THESE CHARACTERS (and your writing obvi).

All in all, I loved this book and love this series!

Big thanks to Avon Harper Voyager and Netgalley for this eARC. As always, my review has been written honestly and all opinions are my own.

Overall, I enjoyed the plot of this book, and the way that Sig and Chloe figure out how to be together at the end.

But the angst of it all, the tug back and forth, was frustrating to read.

I really enjoyed Sig’s character, but didn’t love some of his choices. Chloe’s character was very hard to like. She had very little growth and this is definitely more about the type of FMC that I enjoy, I need them to be independent, and self sufficient. She was so clueless at times it was hard to believe.

Dream Girl Drama might be my favorite Tessa Bailey book yet!
Bailey never fails to deliver! Her characters are always relatable and the spice is top notch!
Tessa totally outdid herself with this book and I was literally sold after just one chapter. That’s how incredible it was!
A messy, cute, family drama story that was beyond captivating.
Sig and Chloe were just amazing!

Thank You NetGalley and Avon for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

After meeting Sig and Chloe in The Au Pair Affair, I have been chomping at the bit to learn more about their story. And my goodness, did Tessa deliver!

The story starts with some much wanted background on Sig and Chloe. We find out that Sig is on his way to meet his father’s new girlfriend when his car breaks down outside of a fancy country club in Connecticut. Desperate for a phone or a charger when he finds his phone dead, he tries to get into the country club only to be put through the wringer for not being a member. Enter Chloe - insisting this stranger is her guest, Chloe helps out Sig and immediately they have a connection stronger than anything either of them has felt. The only problem, later that evening they realize that they’re about to be step-siblings.

Oh man - I have never met a simp as down bad as Sig. Do I love the “insta-love” trope? No. Could I get enough of Sig and Chloe? Also no. I never wanted to put this down. The tension was so thick in this book, I completely ate it up. It’s like if Clueless didn’t bother with Cher liking anyone but Josh and you just had an hour and a half of their pining. I hated that society wanted them to be apart, but enjoyed seeing how they navigated their obstacles. Overall, I couldn’t get enough of Sig and Chloe and I can’t wait to read Tessa’s next book in her Big Shots series!

This book was adorable! I loved the dynamics of the two main characters, Sig and Chloe. This was my first Tessa Bailey book and I can't wait to read more by this author. From the first few chapters, I knew I was going to love this book and I enjoyed reading about Sig and Chloe's instant connection as well as how they complimented each other. They are so cute! Additionally, I enjoyed the authors writing style and thought the romance was well written.

Thank you to Avon and Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Sig is the type of MMC that makes you hate your man! He's protective and will do anything for Chloe. Their romance is full of tension! kind of a fast, slow burn. They fall in love instantly before things get... dramatic. Overall a super cute and spicy read!

TESSA BAILEY THE WOMAN THAT YOU ARE!! they are so hot. like leave it to tessa to make future step siblings so smutty and hot and forbidden!! i just love that i can always count on Tessa to give me a good smutty time.

Thank you to NetGalley, Avon/Harper Voyager, and Ms. Bailey for the opportunity to read an ARC of this title. An honest review was requested but not required.

In my opinion Tessa Bailey is an underrated romance author. The woman can write a STEAMY story with characters whose chemistry absolutely strikes sparks off the pages. That being said, this one was... not a favorite.

To start off, it had a tall hill to climb (more like a mountain) insofar as the Manic Pixie Dream Girl is one of my MOST unfavorite tropes. Like, ever. And if I recall correctly even the book blurb describes Chloe that way. Let me just say she is not just a MPDG, she is the queen, the Empress, the Overlord of all MPDGs ever born. Poor hapless Chloe is an ostrich, happily living her cocooned ultrarich life in Connecticut, until she decides to move to Boston and live a cocooned life funded by Sig. Chloe spends her rent money (provided by Sig) on *multiple* expensive eye creams and is late with the rent, four out of six months running. Chloe has no idea how to do laundry, or buy food (let alone prepare it). But! she's good at fashion! and the harp! and wearing sparkly pink jerseys to games! Sigh. Frankly she sounded exhausting. But the heart wants what the heart wants, and Sig's heart was hers from day one.

So Chloe and Sig meet in a country club; it's lust at first sight. An hour later they discover that their respective parents are engaged to marry. Frankly I'm really not sure why this was such a big deal. It's not like they grew up together or were raised together; surely a presser explaining they met an hour before they discovered their parents were engaged would solve that problem. However, for Chloe, Sig and their parents, it's absolutely inconceivable that Chloe and Sig should date. Thus begins the next year of angst and unrequited lusting.

I'll hand it to Ms. Bailey, she writes some really moving unrequited lusting. You can feel the palpable pull between Chloe and Sig, the yearning, the electric tension.

I'm not really sure I felt LOVE though. Maybe from Sig, although his overwhelming attachment to Chloe seemed very one-sided. I'm not sure what he got out of it, as taking care of Chloe seemed like a combination of a dad, big brother, boyfriend, and super all at the same time. That woman was EXHAUSTING. She had all the manic energy of Piper Bellinger but none of Piper's adaptability or gumption.

Meanwhile, I felt like Sig got shortchanged as a character due to constantly having to mother/father/brother/handyman Chloe. He had no real life outside of dropping everything to attend to Chloe's every need. He is a (really good) hockey player, supposedly, but he isn't shown at practice or at games often enough for me. The hockey schedule is a very demanding one, with practices and lifting most days per week and games every second or third day. Wells and Burgess (Big Shots #1 and 2) both got more sports time than Sig did.

I'll hand it to Tessa Bailey, despite my frustration with Sig's character and my general distaste for Chloe's, this book was still pretty enjoyable. I laughed, I read it eagerly, wondering how the step sibling crisis would be resolved, I was curious about the Orgasm Donors (aka., the rookies). While this wasn't my favorite of her books, I think a good portion of that has to do with the fact that MPDGs and I just will not, ever, get along. On a plus note, this book was a good lead-in to what I hope will be Big Shots #4 and 5 and, perhaps Ms. Bailey can do what no other has been able to do for me before, make baseball sexy. I mean: if she could succeed with GOLF... ;)

3.25⭐️ *sigh* im disappointed in this one.

this was my first tessa bailey (ik shocking) and i was let down. i went in to this arc thinking i would absolutely eat it up since she’s such a popular author and it’s a hockey romance but i just didn’t click with it.

the plot had so much potential. chance encounters turned step siblings and having to navigate those struggles? i was intrigued. alas unimpressed. this book was the DEFINITION of insta love. like kiss in the first three chapters and talk of marriage in the first half type insta love. and while i usually hate insta love, i can deal with insta attraction. but this was insta OBSESSION and it just wasnt for me. AND IT WAS THIRD PERSON🤢🤢 (this is my biggest personal issue with books i am the #1 third person hater)

i liked the characters at some points and i liked their chemistry but there were still some things that annoyed me. chloe was a fun and cute character but her naivety sometimes was just straight up annoying (see: didn’t know the difference between renting and buying; literally didn’t know what chicken and dumplings were; etc.) i didn’t dislike her but at some points it was just like cmon girl😭😭

sig (what?) he was a king in this book lowkey *except* for his shameless enabling of chloe. i get that he wanted to give her nice things cause he was fr obsessed infatuated and every adjective ever. but taking this girl to boston renting her apartment buying her groceries…ain’t that a little much?

i know i sound like a severe hater but i did sweep through this in like 3 days and it was a cute quick read so i will be trying tessa bailey again but this one didn’t click for me. thanks to netgalley for this arc💖

Incredible meet cute with an instant connection, only to find out they are going to be step brother and sister in that same night! At that moment, they decide they can only be friends.

Sig is a professional hockey player and Chloe is a child prodigy Harpist. Chloe moves to Boston and settles into the city life with help from Sig. They spend a lot of time together and he helps her get on her feet. He also gives her money when she is cut off financially from her mom. Sig would do anything for Chloe, who he calls his Dream Girl. They are addicted to each other but they can't be together. When bad press threatens to tear them a part for good, they have to make a big decision.

I loved how the author portrayed the complexities of navigating this forbidden relationship with so much tension and build up! Tessa is the queen of making the reader suffer through chapters and chapters of angst and then fill your pages with dirty talk. The twist was unexpected! I actually haven't read the other two books in this series and can't wait to dive in.

Thank you so much to NetGalley, Harper Collins, and the author for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

I’ll be honest out of the series this was my least favorite. I’m not sure if it’s the premise or what. The whole brother sister thing was weird but even weirder that it was made a big deal because they wouldn’t be blood just by marriage as grown adults. It would be weirder if they were teenagers but almost 30 when they met.
I like the characters themselves. Nothing better than a sexy hockey player and a talented musician.
I think the saving grace was the ending. It had a good one, two, punch.

Happy pub day to Dream Girl Drama!

Is this my favorite of the Big Shots series so far? Absolutely!I fell in love with Sig and Chloe almost as quickly as they fell for each other. I’m not usually one for instalove, but I just couldn’t help but be drawn into their romance. The passion was there from page one, but you could also feel just how much they complimented one annother and cared for eachother.

The third act break up/general reason Sig and Chloe couldn’t be together was rather silly, but I’ve come to expect general absurdity from Tessa’s romances. And I love that for us! We can feel just how down bad Sig was for Chloe. Between the pop tart hoard and secret memorabilia selling I truly believed he would do anything for her. Tessa’s MMCs are always a bit over the top in their possessiveness, and Sig was no different, but I loved how he still supported Chloe so fiercely as she navigated the real world for the first time. And in return Chloe was everything he ever needed.

Thank you to Avon and NetGalley for a review copy. I can’t wait for book 4!

I really really wanted to like this one… but I just couldn’t get past the 3rd person POV and believe that I tried.
I am giving it 3 starts because I believe if someone enjoys this narration style they would like this book.
I DNFed at 30% 🤦🏽‍♀️

arc review 🎀💄🏒
dream girl drama by @tessabaileyisanauthor (big shots, #3)
★★★★

happy pub day!! ✨

i couldn’t wait to get to sig and chloe’s story after reading about them in ‘the au pair affair’! i was super curious about how their story was going to unfold 👀

professional hockey player sig gauthier’s car breaks down on his way to dinner to meet his father’s new girlfriend. stuck at a posh country club, he meets his dream girl — chloe.

they hit it off instantly and sparks are flying between the two. they share a moonlight kiss and head their separate ways, excited about the next time they can see each other again. little did they know they would see each other at the same dinner…chloe’s mom is the girlfriend of sig’s father. not only that, they’re engaged. sig’s dream girl is his future stepsister.

when chloe moves to boston, they know they could never be anything more than friends. but keeping their relationship platonic grows harder as they spend more time together. especially after feeling the sparks fly after first meeting.

🎀 forbidden romance
🏒 forced proximity
🎀 protective hero
🏒 future step-siblings

i really enjoyed this one! before jumping into it i was worried it wouldn’t be something i could get into, but the story drew me in right away and slow burn was def simmering!! ❤️‍🔥

big thank you to tessa bailey, @avonbooks, @harpervoyagerus, and @netgalley for the arc. ❤️