Member Reviews

Oh my goodness DnD, forbidden love, nerdy references, strong friendships what more could you ask for in a rom com!!! I absolutely adored this book and characters I felt like I was part of the group oh heck I wanted to be part of the group! I loved how each character was developed and world building was fantastic I will definitely be reading more by this author!

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Thank you NetGalley and Random House Children’s for giving me early access to this book! All opinions are my own.

This was exactly what I needed to read. It is a cute, cozy, nerdy YA book that had me giggling and rooting for Logan and Quinn the whole time. While I was disappointed that Riley and Nathan weren’t in the story, it was nice that this was just a standalone story where the only commonality with Dungeons and Drama is the Dungeons and Dragons part. 4.5⭐️

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4.5/5 stars

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this early.

General description: Quinn moves to be closer to her grandmother, but thankfully she left a toxic ex-friend group behind. however, starting at a new school in the middle of winter is never easy. Luckily, Quinn falls in with a livestream D&D crew, with one member specifically catching her eye: Logan. But when Quinn learns of the no dating rule, Logan quickly turns against her. Quinn really wants some new friends, including Logan, but maybe she was wrong to join this group. Can Quinn manage getting into another friend group, or will she be burned like she was before?

The goods:
- I ADORED the action brought forth by the D&D campaign. It was so fun to see more of D&D in the traditional sense vs in Dungeons and Drama.
- The side plots in this book only added to the depth of the story.
- Everything wrapped up very nicely which I appreciated.
- I loved Quinn's personality and I feel like Logan matched her very well in this book, along with all the side characters. Everyone (except a select few) were fantastic.

The half-star off:
- There is one point that in my opinion makes this a very YA book but I didn't feel it was necessary. It took me out of the book for a few minutes.

Overall, I'd highly recommend if you love D&D or if you're looking for a cute YA romance to read next!

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This was a cute YA romance with two characters who love D&D. I myself have never played D&D or know much about it but it was still fun to learn about it through the characters' love for the game. Quinn is a junior entering a new high school in the middle of the year. When her grandma drops her off on the first day, she flags down Logan and his friends to help her take their picture. They end up asking her to join their D&D group. She is excited but also hesitant because of drama from her last D&D group. This group livestreams their games and also has a strict no dating rule. This becomes difficult as Quinn finds herself drawn to Logan the more they play.

Quinn came from a toxic D&D group and I'm glad she was able to find a new group that was more genuine, supportive, and kind. It made sense how hesitant she was to trust these new friends but I'm glad she had them to show her that not all people are toxic and terrible. I think I would've enjoyed this a lot more if I was into D&D, so if you do this book would be perfect for you.

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I fell hard for Dungeons and Drama. Head over heels. So when I got news of Kristy writing another DnD romance, I was beyond excited. Like, really, we get more? Her latest book Dating and Dragons is not a sequel or companion novel — it’s a totally new story with a fresh set of characters. And as sad as I was that we wouldn’t see Riley and Nathan, I was plenty happy to meet the new players Quinn and Logan. In fact, I was full-on shipping them, like, six pages in.

Quinn is the new girl at school, mourning the loss of her former friend/DnD group and hoping to find another. Like fate, her grandma drops her off in front of a couple of kids who turn out to be fellow DnD folk. She’s eager to join their party, especially if it means more time with the cute and flirty Logan, but she has no idea what she’s in for… These guys take things Very Seriously. They don’t want anything messing with their campaign or their friendship — meaning, no dating among party members. Quinn knows all too well what romance can do to friends, but the spark between her and Logan has already been lit, and it’s only getting stronger.

Having been the new kid multiple times in my life, I related to Quinn on a spiritual level. I felt her pain and betrayal over the friend breakup, her fear and anxiety of it happening again. She needs this opportunity to go well, but it’s incredibly hard when Logan is… being Logan. Like, what is it with these DnD boys? Why are they so swoony? I had to shut off my Kindle and walk away at times because the swoon was just too much. It’s almost too dramatic, the way he and Quinn yearn for each other, but because I could see through Quinn and her past trauma, I understood her inner conflict. It made it feel like legit forbidden love rather than dumb teenage bullshit.

I honestly didn’t think I would love this as much as Dungeons and Drama (the bar with that book was way too high), but lo and behold. I LOVE THIS. I love Quinn and Logan, I love the pushy matchmaking grandma, I love the devoted party members. And I absolutely love the chaos that unfolds in the climax. I was gasping, awww-ing, and cackling all at once. If you need a good pick-me-up, these books are it. I can’t recommend them enough.

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Dating and Dragons follows Quinn a girl starting a new school during her junior year of high school. In hope sof making friends, she decides to join a D&D group who takes this game very, very seriously. They have rules if she wants to join. There can be no distractions, no conversastions, no texting, calls and lastly no dating in the group.

And of course what happens when you tell someone not to do something? Especially a teenager? Quinn falls for Logan, another member of the group.

In my opinon, Quinn and Logan share the perfect mix of banter, pining, and friendship that makes for such a cute love story. Adored the crap out of Grandma Barbara.

Sometimes you just need a good YA romance and this book delivers.

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Thank you to Netgalley and Random House Children’s for the early access to Dating and Dragons in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

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DND romance novels may be my new catnip genre because I am LIVING for these books by Kristy Boyce. While I didn't love this one as much as Dungeons and Drama, there were things I did like better and it was still a solid four-star read. So lets get into it:

What I loved:
- so much more DND in this one
- the banter... we LOVE banter
- the grandmother. she was such a force and I just adored every scene with her in it
- the found family friend group was so perfect; I really got to love each and every one of them which is hard to do
- Quinn in general was a great character, and Logan was definitely swoony (for the younger me, not the current me lol)

What I struggled with:
- some of the interactions between Quinn and Logan seemed a little beyond two 16 year-olds. Lifting her onto the counter? idk I get that teenagers are horny but some of these parts read more like adults than two literal nerdy, somewhat shy kids that are just figuring it out.
- after a while Quinn's inner monologue about what happened with her previous group got a bit too repetitive. Could've used to ease up on that a bit

Boyce has definitely secured herself as a go-to author for me with two exceptional books back-to-back; and YA is not usually my jam so for my to love both this much is a high bar to meet! I hope she keeps writing these stories, and if she wanted to write an adult DND romance, I would not be upset by that!

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Dating & Dragons by Kristy Boyce was such an enjoyable read! I loved it even more than Dungeons & Drama! I felt more connected and engrossed in the D&D action. The romance was very well developed and reasonable (which I always look for in a romance 😅).

Quinn and Logan were so cute! I also loved their D&D friends. It was such a great group of teens that I could totally see playing together. There was awkwardness and fun and high school troubles that were very relatable. If you like D&D and YA, give this one a go! You do not have to read Dungeons & Drama to enjoy this story. They are not connected but both lots of fun!

5/5 Stars hand down! Did you see the B&N Exclusive Edition? You know I'll be snagging one of those!

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When starting this book, I worried that I wouldn’t like it as much as Dungeons and Drama. I really felt a connection to Riley with her being into musicals AND Dungeons and Dragons. However, I LOVED this book.
Apparently anything Kristy Boyce writes, I’m just going to eat it up. For starters, I adored the main character, Quinn. She was relatable, especially for me at her age as I had dealt with friend group issues in the past. All of her feelings were real and raw. Her anxiety was feelings I have felt before.
As for Logan, I may have even liked him better than Nathan… which is saying something because I really liked Nathan. He’s charming, polite, handsome, and… is apparently making me sound like Quinn’s grandmother.
The chemistry between the two characters was wonderfully written AND as a middle school teacher, I would feel comfortable putting this in my YA section of my classroom library- which is hard to do sometimes!
Overall, if you liked Dungeons and Drama, you MUST read Dating and Dragons!

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➡️ Did I read this book in under 24 hours?
Yes. Yes I did.
➡️ Is it possible that I love it even more than I did Dungeons & Drama?
Yes. Yes it is.


How on earth does Kristy Boyce takes me right back to all of those first love, awkward, adorable, nerdy, swoon-worthy feels of high school????

Summary:
We have yet another D&D group and this time they live stream their sessions w/ the hope of building a following. When new girl Quinn moves into town looking for friends after losing all of hers in a horrible D&D and dating catastrophe, she finds her way into a very tight knit group of D&Ders. They have rules to make sure everyone is on time, everyone is consistent and most of all, no one dates each other. Period.

That proves to be really difficult with Logan, Quinn’s fellow D&D teammate who has ALL the green flags including hanging out with her elderly grandmother.

Review:

I’ve always enjoyed YA romances, but the nerdy ones especially have my whole heart. I love this author’s writing style and I love the way it transports me back in time to my teenage years. That coupled with the joy of playing D&D (which the author captures to a T), these have quickly become two of my go-to books for YA contemporary romance recs.

Even though there are so many characters, the author makes you feel like you get to know each one’s quirks and personality, and the found family vibes of Dungeons and Drama are all in here as well.

Kristy Boyce is officially an auto buy author for me.

Thank you SO much to NetGalley & the publisher for a copy of this ARC. 💜🩵

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Dating An Dragons
By Kristy Boyce

Thank you Netgalley for giving me this arc in exchange for an honest review.

Okay, so I am 100% a sucker for anything that combines a cute romance & Dungeons And Dragons. This book was coded for me 🤣
Like with her other book Dungeons And Drama, I fell head over heels for this book pretty quickly.

Quinn Norton is starting over at a new high school and hopes that joining a D&D game will be the trick to making friends. She gets invited into a group that includes Logan Weber, the cute and charming guy she met on her first day of class. But this isn’t your average D&D campaign, this group live streams their games and enforces a strict rule: no dating other group members. Quinn is willing to accept the rules, even if it makes Logan off-limits. The more Quinn and Logan spend time together, the harder it becomes to hide their growing feelings for one another.

I didn’t know I needed another Dungeons and Dragon romance story until I started this book and couldn't put it down.

If you’re familiar with Dungeons and Drama, this follows a very similar format except instead of Fake Dating, this is more friends to lovers and forced proximity.

The chemistry between Quinn and her D&D group is so fantastic. They’re all such fun characters. The chemistry between Quinn and Logan is absolutely spectacular. Their scenes together are just adorable.

The main conflict of the story is the No Dating rule, and trying to uphold that rule around her feelings getting stronger. I thought it was handled so well in the story. NO THIRD ACT BREAKUP!

I think if you’re a fan of Dungeons and Drama you will like this. But also, if you’re looking for a cute an fluffy read you can devour in a few days then I highly recommend.

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Thank you to Netgally for an ARC of this book to read and review.

HOW did I never know books about people who play D&D existed?! As both a reader and D&D lover this is information I need!!!!!

I freaking loved this book and was sucked in on every page. I loved that the teenagers in this book acted like teenagers: they were awkward and cringy and obsessed over their favorite fandoms. They felt like real people and I fell in love with every one of them! (Except a few - they know who they are and they don't deserve our love!)

Here are just a few stand alone (spoiler free) pieces of this book that might pique your interest: a meddling grandma, a super protective younger brother, an intense pickleball match, a geeky and adorable MMC, pancakes(!!), adorable best friends, comic con (kinda), baby cows, live streamed D&D. Are you sold yet?! How could you not be?!

Read it and then geek out about it with me???

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Another cute YA book by Kristy Boyce centered around a group of teenagers and their love for D&D (Dungeons & Dragons). While I have never played D&D myself, I still found this story enjoyable. Quinn is relatable with the friend issues she is dealing with as well as being the new kid at school. The friend group is super cute and I love their interactions while they are gaming. The mutual pining between Quinn and Logan is enjoyable, but it definitely feels anticlimatic at times as well. I was waiting the whole time for the group to go into Riley and Nathan’s game shop for a cameo that never happened (The characters from Dungeons and Drama). Overall solid follow up YA book.

Thank you NetGally, Kristy Boyce, Random House Children’s | Delacorte Romance for and advanced digital copy of this book.

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I want to thank the publisher for the ARC! I thoroughly enjoyed it. Now- here’s my honest vibe check:

I was initially going to give it 4 stars because the ending felt somewhat rushed and it did feel too juvenile at times. However.. I had to remind myself this IS a young adult novel. After seeing some other reviews I thought that was worth pointing out for anyone considering this book!

I think that if you go into it wanting to feel giddy and just feel and remember the awkwardness, that came along with dating when younger.. this is the perfect pick! Lol

The book itself is cute af! I mean.. D&D and dating?! Plus don’t even get me started on the cover! This would’ve been a book I would’ve gone crazy in high school for. Tbf- I still went crazy at my ripe 27 years haha when I saw it announced and after reading the first book, it was a no brainer I was going to enjoy the book.

But in all honesty, I’m reading it for the vibe, as the story itself def is aimed towards younger readers imo.

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I already had high standards going into this book since I enjoyed Kristy Boyce's first book so much, and I am so happy to say that all my expectations were met! Dating and Dungeons was the sweetest, most fun YA romance! It had everything I was looking for. From the witty banter to the cozy plot and the adorable romance. I will be suggesting this book to so many people!

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Very cute and nerdy! I would’ve loved to see more nerdy characters in YA while I was growing up. This was so fun and the side characters were diverse.

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This was such a cute read! What’s not to love?

D&D? ✅
Pickleball? ✅
Awkward teenage love? ✅
Funny old grandma? ✅

What a fun time! Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for my honest review!!

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Very cute book with loveable characters though it kind of felt super rushed especially the end :( but it is a cozy read so I recommend!

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This was so cute. Quinn and Logan are part of the same D&D group from school, Quinn being new to the school is nervous to start with a new group and new group of friends after a *terrible* experience with her last one, and it morphs into something more serious with Logan, and a lifelong friends with Kashvi (who may or may not have a crush on Logan or Quinn’s brother) Quinn is trying to navigate the complexity that is being a teenager, while also trying to find her way around a new life, aging grandma, and new friend group she doesn’t want to mess up and it’s just a fine line to walk. This ends with her and Logan in a STEAMY FOR YA slow burn whirlwind romance that was so fun to read take shape and see Logan and how he went about his little “mine to protect” thing teen boys love to do. For a young adult teen book this was such a cute fun good story with lots of great characters and better storylines.

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I honestly loved this!! I was a little skeptical at the start, I didn’t really understand all the DnD terms. Not sure why though, I’ve read and loved all of Kristy Boyce’s other books. Overall, this was such a fun and cute read. The romance between Logan and Quinn was so sweet and felt really well developed. I also loved how her new friends were such a big part of the book. I think it’s really important for the reader to be shown that there’s more than just romantic relationships to life. Her family and grandmother’s role in the story was also really cool, I loved all their interactions and felt like each character had a distinct voice. Dating and Dragons was such a good read, and was really well written. Definitely worth checking out!

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