Forgive me for I have a lot of confessions to make.

One: When I requested this book, it was based on the fact that I have seen RAVE reviews for Sarah Adams and I wanted in. I didn't know Ms. Adams was a closed door romance writer.
Two: I hadn't read When in Rome or Practice Makes Perfect, but I was using this as an excuse to finally read both.
Three: When I finished Practice Makes Perfect (Which was literally perfect, FYI. I could read about Will and Anna forever) I was SO EXCITED to read about Maddie and James. So when I opened this book to EMILY. Stick up her butt, Emily. UGH. This is where I ask for forgiveness.

5 Stars. This book was delicious. I did not want to read about Emily. In fact, I considered skipping Emily's book (after reading the first 2), because I wasn't ready to read about someone I do not strive to be. But Ms. Adams, oh how you have changed me. Emily and Jackson were so good together. I couldn't get enough of these rivals to friends to lovers. The tension, the STEAM, oh the steaminess of this book, that has no graphic on page sex. So, so good. I enjoyed the character growth of both MCs and loved the side additions and peeks we got into the former MCs and (hopefully) the future MCs.

I can't wait to read more of Sarah Adams. She writes exactly what romance should be and gets into the head of these characters SO WELL.

*Beg, Borrow, or Steal* took me on an emotional rollercoaster filled with humor, steam, and so much unexpected sweetness. If you're looking for a fun, charming read, this one is a must!

At the heart of the story are Emily Walker and Jack Bennett, two characters with sizzling chemistry and an unforgettable dynamic that dates back to their first day of college. Emily is delightfully uptight and somewhat prickly, especially when it comes to Jack. Jack, on the other hand, is charming, cheeky, and universally liked. When Jack calls off his wedding and ends up moving next door to Emily, their long time feud ramps up. Their enemies-to-lovers arc is perfection, filled with sharp banter, moments of vulnerability, and tension that will keep you hooked from the very first page.

I adored the development of their relationship. When Emily gets herself into a precarious situation, she’s forced to team up with Jack and their reluctant alliance blooms into something far more complicated. Sarah Adams masterfully navigates their slow-burn romance. The push and pull between them is so satisfying, and you’ll be rooting for them to finally give in to their undeniable connection.

The characters are flawed but relatable, and their growth throughout the book is touching. The pacing is spot-on and the small-town setting of Rome, Kentucky, adds a layer of warmth to the story. It feels like a place you’d want to visit—full of quirky characters and cozy charm. The secondary characters are a joy as well, adding depth to the community and giving the story a rich, well-rounded feel.

Overall, *Beg, Borrow, or Steal* is a fantastic read that combines all the elements of a great rom-com—great banter, emotional depth, and a romance that will make your heart race.

ARC provided by NetGalley

You know how a really great kiss can make you feel a little day-dreamy haze, and love drunk, while also giddy. That is what reading BBS feels like. Prepare to walk around love drunk from this book!

Sarah Adams giftedly absorbs you into Rome. You’ll be invested from go at the well-written character development, the humor, the attraction - in the BEST of ways. You can’t help but want the best for these characters. Their relationship is built beautifully! And it’s just such a fun read all around! Life is rough, go spend some time in Rome, KY and remember there’s good too.

Both Emily and Jack have personal accomplishments and goals. They are well-established, independent, and capable on their own. When they first met outside influences forced them into the role of competitive enemies. But years later, they are going through transitional seasons that cast a new light on each other. Watching them become one another’s safe space, biggest encourager, sidekick, and give-in to their attraction with a slow-burn that hurts sooo good was an ABSOLUTE DELIGHT. There’s a reason you see “Sarah-tonin” jokes! The impact is REAL.


“You think you’re unlovable, but I think I’ve never known how to love until knowing you.” *sobs into my Kindle*

“We stand here like this for a while — Jack holding me. His body like sheets fresh out of the dryer.” I could keep going, but I’ll not ruin any more first-read fun for you! Just know the metaphor in this book is delicious!!

***I kindly received an ARC. This is my (enthusiastically delighted) honest review. Thank you, thank you, thank you to the publisher for giving me the gift of BBS! I can’t wait to see you back in Rome soon!***

Omg Sarah Adams does it again!! I absolutely adore this little town she has created. It feels so warm and welcoming. I absolutely loved this book! There was an insane amount of chemistry between Emily and Jack and I loved the added angst of them both being writers and going through their own struggles. I can’t wait for the next book. I’m foaming at the mouth for it

Wow, what a great start to 2025! 🎆 This was such a cute, witty, heartwarming story. I found myself laughing and crying at different points. Jackson and Emily’s story felt so realistic, and their characters really grew as they aged throughout their relationship from enemies to lovers. Both characters went on a self growth journey that was uplifting and relatable, showing vulnerability as they learned to deal with their emotions, how to ask for help when struggling and accepting themselves as they are. The story arc was so beautiful. I have loved every Sarah Adam’s book I have read, but this one was something special 💙 5 ⭐️’s doesn’t feel like enough.

I am physically sick—<I>sick</i> with how much I love this book. I can’t even explain the intensity of it without feeling like my heart is going to explode. I want to scream from the rooftops, but also curl up into a ball because, oh my god, this book wrecked me in the best way possible. No one, and I mean <I>no one</i>, on this entire planet will ever understand how deeply I get to these two characters—Emily and Jack—like I do. I can’t even articulate the connection I felt with them without feeling like it’s deeply personal, something I don’t want to share. But trust me, when I say that they belong to me, I’m not exaggerating. I’ve never had a book affect me like this. I literally highlighted <b>every single page</b>. And if you’ve ever wondered what it feels like to fall in love with a book so hard that it feels like you’ve lived it? This is that book. I can’t wait to get my physical copy so I can move my annotations to it 😭 so I’m warning you bc this review is very long and very passionate.

This is a classic enemies to friends to lovers. This is a quick, fun, and relatively light hearted read. There are a few heavier topics, such as parental neglect, and the trauma of losing your parents at a young age. The author does a great job at tackling these, without making this romance too heavy.

Emily is the classic eldest daughter, always care taking and setting her own needs/desires aside. Jack has been a thorn in her side since college, and she could count on that until he moved away to marry Zoe. When he suddenly turns back up in ROME and in her favorite writing spot.

She is determined that he will want to leave town, Soon things take on a life of their own when she decides that maybe, just maybe, she might want to be friends with Jack after all. That maybe he's not such a bad guy after all.

Together they both work through their past traumas (her parents dying and his lack of caring) and find themselves and each other. I feel that some of the story felt a bit rushed, and that left me wanting to know more details than were provided. However, overall I really enjoyed the third book in the series.

Two things of note. The first is that there is a bit more spice, while I personally prefer more closed door romances. I appreciate that the author gives a heads up where to expect those scenes, so a reader is prepared. The other element was I loved the way that she set up the next Walker sibling for her time to find romance. Maddie is One of the most interesting plot points was that the author has set up the next novel in the Walker family, and she does is nicely. I can't wait to read the next installment of the walker siblings.

🤍Thank you Dell Romance and PRHA for the arc🤍

The Rome, Kentucky series has been such a delight, and my love for it only grew with this book!

Sure! Here’s the text transcribed:

Emily’s character resonated with me on so many levels. She embodies the struggle of bearing immense burdens while believing she must face them alone, convinced that her strength means she’s not “soft enough” to be worthy of love.

Then there’s Jack—his dynamic with Emily adds a delightful spark to the story. Their banter is perfection, and the chemistry between them is 🔥.

By far my favorite aspect is how well they understood each other. Rather than attempting to change or fix each other, they realize that sometimes all the other person needs is to not face all the things alone.

“Beg, Borrow, or Steal” is deceptive from the get go. The title is ill fitting and the cover is clearly made by someone who did not read the book. At best character descriptions were skimmed and are still wrong. This is a light enemies/rivals to lovers contemporary romance about two elementary school teachers during summer break. I read it in one day. The FMC is Emily and the MMC is Jack.



I’m not even going to talk about Emily. Someone else can.



The character development of Jack has a lot of issues that should’ve been noticed and changed entirely or tweeked. You can tell the author wanted Jack to be a certain kind of person and didn’t know where to put him in the story to make him fit and be in the FMC’s life.



Jack is a second grade teacher. In reality 11% of elementary school teachers are male. Male general classroom teachers are super rare compared to P.E., music, art/ specials teachers. Many kids have all female teachers until middle school. It is practically unheard of to have a male general classroom teacher before grade 3. I’m not saying I agree with this. I’m saying, does Sarah Adams know this and she’s making some kind of social commentary or did she not know where to put a character?



He has many tattoos that resemble children’s school stickers. Like the ones your teacher will put on your worksheet to show you’ve done a good job. We can unpack that as Jack telling himself he’s done a good job via tattoo choice over and over again, which is crushing and a bit pathetic. He wears necklaces that resemble candy necklaces the whole book (I see you editing that out cover artist and I’m intrigued). We find out it’s not a candy necklace, rather a few plastic beaded ones gifted to him by students- even though Emily refers to it as a candy necklace multiple times. 



So he is covered in sticker tattoos and wears a “candy” necklace and he’s a second grade teacher; and if you say this to any grandparents they will say this dude sounds like a pedophile. He sounds like red flags and schools would not hire that no matter how charismatic he is. He comes off like the author wanted to make “the perfect male elementary school teacher” that would “appeal to kids”. Danger, danger! But making a grown man seem like <i>he’s trying</i> to appeal to kids makes him veer too close to predatory. Is he trying? Is the author trying? Someone is trying too much. Sticker tattoos and a candy necklace, like, you are killing me Sarah Adams. The combo is an ick. What is this guy and how come the guy on the cover looks nothing like him? 



I love that someone wrote in a review that the author gave Jack tattoos and a motorcycle to distract the readers from how ”white bread” his character actually is. I think having tattoos is now more common than not. Almost everyone has at least one so it isn’t really the symbol of edgyness or rebellion it once was. So many “white bread” people have tattoos. This was actually something I liked about his character, the having of tattoos and it not fitting his personality, as is the case for many people. 



Imagine poor Jack over here wanting to be edgy and rebellious, sitting down at a tattoo parlor not really knowing what to get. He’s doing it to stick it to his garbage dad; and what is he never going to be? Good enough. So he’s going to give himself all the stickers and gold stars his dad never gave him. Over and over again. Make them permanent. He is like this successful confident man with a lonely broken boy living inside him; and it is like, done so sloppily.



Listen up, it’s a third book in a series and they can pretty much all be treated like standalones if you want so no hard feelings. I’m still going to read the fourth one if she writes it. Hopefully she won’t do the last book in the series thing where they waste so much time on the side characters to tie up their past stories at the expense of the current one. The best was “Practice Makes Perfect”, the second one, hands down. If you only read one, that’s the one.

<b>4 🌟</b>

<i>: ̗̀➛ started on 1/01/25
: ̗̀➛ finished on 1/02/25</i>

my first book of 2025!!

this book was heartbreakingly beautiful. i was crying, giggling, and smiling all at once. this is probably sarah's most emotional book yet and it really hit home. i related so much to emily, and it made my reading experience worse. (hear me out)

as someone who is/was a people pleaser and puts everyone before themselves, it was tough to read about emily's struggles and think about how hard i used to struggle just like her. i went into this expecting a cute little rom-com. and it was cute, but it was tough to read about and sympathize with emily through past experiences.

that being said, i still did enjoy this book A LOT! the banter, the teasing, the tension?? sarah adams knows how to write a book 🤭 i was sobbing because i wanted someone like jack, but i don't want jack because him and emily are absolutely perfect together 🥲

<i>thank you to netgalley and the publisher for this arc an exchange for an honest review! </i>

--

take #2 of my first read of 2025 😂 nothing better than to start with sarah adams!!

I always forget there is no real spice in Sarah Adams books, which with most authors I would find disappointing but here I somehow do not mind at all. Watching these two work out their complicated history and fall in love was SO perfect. More, please.

I mean rivals to lovers always brings out the best banter! I have read a couple others by Sarah Adam's and this one definitely lived up to my love for her writing. I was laughing and crying and just so hooked that I started and finished this one on the same day. It takes a special kind of writing to make me hooked from the very beginning and these twos story was it. Definitely fits so well in the series and I mean who doesn't love when the build up leads to that explosive revaluation between the two characters?

Thank you Net Galley for this e-arc!

I read and loved Practice Makes Perfect and thought, there is literally nothing else that Sarah Adam’s could write that will make me love anything more than this book… Well, I was terribly WRONG! I absolutely loved Beg, Borrow, or Steal so much more. Being in Rome, KY just makes me feel like life is fun and backroads and love and gossip in the best way and supportive and everything I would want my hometown to be.

I cried, laughed, swooned, and kicked my feet while reading this ARC. The banter was to die for, OMG! I highlighted like I’ve never highlighted before because this book had the best moments and lessons. I felt so connected to Emily and Jackson as I should, but how Mrs. Adam’s managed to make me feel connected to the side characters was like nothing I’ve experienced before! I mean there isn’t a comment or review that could do this book justice. What I love most about this book was its ability to transport me to the passenger seat of every truck, at the table of every kitchen, and on the streets of Rome in June. I loved the romance, but the deep emotional topics and lessons you leave with are unmatched. You see raw vulnerability and emotions from the characters and how they overcome a lot of the issues any real person would go through. I long to be supportive and able to communicate my feelings and thoughts the way Jackson can… “That’s a good man Savanah”!

5 million ✨♾️
Read it, Buy it, Love it! 🩷🩷🩷🩷

Sarah Adams does it again. I honestly didn’t know if she could top Annie and Will (who will always be my favorite Rome MMC), but she has outdone herself with Emily and Jack. I flew through this book so fast. Emily is officially my favorite Rome FMC. Her character has so much depth and is so well developed, I really related to her and felt for her throughout the book. The relationship between her and Jack was so fun, raw and real. Sarah does such a good job of immersing you into this world with her beautiful writing. I love this little cast of characters and can’t wait for the final book in this series.

4.25/5 ⭐️ This is my favorite book of the series so far, and probably my favorite by Sarah Adams so far! The character development in this book really set it apart. We got to know them well as individuals who fall in love as opposed to just getting to know them as a unit. The communication was great between Jack and Emily, and they were so supportive of one another and really listened to the needs of the other. I feel like the insights into their past and their constant competition showed us so much about their feelings. I know fans of this series will eat this book up!

Sarah Adams and Rome, KY are my literary happy place. Reading any of the When in Rome books feels like coming home or sitting down with those friends that no matter how much time passes just get you. I've been looking forward to Beg, Borrow, or Steal since she announced it's release... and fan girled HARD when I received an ARC copy from NetGally and Random House (THANK YOU!!)!

Let me tell you... this book was sooo good. I cannot wait to read it again - honestly going to re-read the whole series again! I was nervous I would have a hard time with Emily, the FMC, because in the other books in the series I struggled to relate to her character. Sarah did a wonderful job of pulling the reader into the story and showing another side to the characters, and I found myself so invested in their story.

Beg, Borrow, or Steal is a fantastic enemies to lovers book. So much chemistry between Jack and Emily! Their banter is incredible, the small town vibes are amazing....the whole book is just chefs kiss! 5 STARS!!!

I loved this book so much! The story was so cute! The main characters were so fun and had great character development throughout the book and the romance was so cute!

4.25 Stars Overall

Thank you so much to Sarah Adams and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an early copy of this book. This was one of my most anticipated books of 2025!

Third book in the When in Rome Series, follows the oldest sibling Emily and her long time rival Jack who moves into her town. The book had top tier banter between the two main characters that had me rolling. We get glimpses into Noah and Amelia's and Annie and Will's relationships. Also some insight, in the 4th sibling who I assume is going to be the main female character of book 4. Past the banter, and a short heist, we get to see Emily and Jack open up with each other revealing traumatic childhoods and wonderful moments of healing. I was rooting for Emily and Jack and loved their storylines. Easily the best book in the When in Rome series. I can't wait for the next one.

Are you kidding?! What a way to start my 2025 reading log.

⭐️: 4.5/5
🌶️: .5/5

“Good. Life can be a little sh*t sometimes. But sh*t also makes great fertilizer.”

It’s always such an honor to ARC read a Sarah Adams book. And as always going back to Rome, Kentucky felt like coming home.

So, I’m not gonna lie the first few chapters I wasn’t sure I was going to enjoy it. I am not a huge fan of the enemies to lovers trope where they remind us they’re enemies every 3 paragraphs but as the book progressed I found myself not really caring. I absolutely loved Emily and Jack!

The more we saw Emily and Jack interact, reveling their true feelings, the more I moved past the reminder that they hated each other at one point. I strangely related to both characters a lot so it was sort of an emotional read for me but that’s why I love Sarah Adams.

I really enjoyed getting to know them both little by little. Knowing what shaped them into the adults they became. And seeing how they could only really trust each other to be completely vulnerable and honest even though they claimed to be nemesis was exactly what I loved make about this read. It was heartbreaking and yet strangely comforting to feel so seen within the pages of a book.

I hated Jacks dad. UGH. I’ve never wanted to punch a guy more in my life. And as always I LOVED the side characters. I can’t wait for the next book because I have a feeling it’s gonna be my favorite!

Definitely give this one a read! Thank you so much to Sarah Adams, Netgalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for the eArc in exchange for my honest review!

Loved this book! I loved the banter between Emily and Jack in the beginning of the book.

I could relate to Emily, as far as putting others first. I think as moms we tend to do that too. Her relationships with her sisters is sweet. I’m also glad she didn’t give up on her dreams.

I absolutely loved Jack. His relationship with Dad broke my heart and made me mad at the end. I don’t wanna give away anything but I could have punched his dad 😂.

I was expecting there to be more spicy 🌶️ scenes throughout the book and was a little disappointed there wasn’t more but it wasn’t a deal breaker. I did like that we could see their email conversations throughout the book too.

Now to go back and read Sarah Adam’s other books.

Thank you NetGalley and Dell for allowing me to read this book as an ARC.