This was a just a great read. I was just all in the story.
Loved the MCs. Lovely written book. i enjoyed more than I expected I would

Thomas personifies her characters with such great details you’ll find yourself rooting, wincing and laughing right along with the characters!

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed this book so much that I bought my own copy so I could read it again!

I really struggled to read this book. The FMC I felt was well written but our MMC felt incredibly one sided and I have never been a fan of the love at first sight trope. He wants to love and protect this woman after he sees her on the train once? She scratches his shoe with her TOENAIL?!

It just felt like this not very real or genuine, and I struggled to believe any character would think in the way these two were written. The plotline was farcical and I just was not invested at all.

I liked this opposites attract romance. Piper and James are drawn to each other in large part because they remind each other of their past. She reminds him of his mother and he reminds her of a previous relationship. Both add conflict to their reaching their happily ever after and make for some interesting story arc’s that held my interest and kept me reading. Were there problematic moments? Yes, but the positive outweighed the negative and these problems didn’t slow the story down or take me out of the story so I was able to stay “in the moment” and move past those brief moments.

I looked up the author and didn’t see any other books in her bio so I believe this is her debut novel. In this reviewers humble opinion I think she did a solid job, gave us interesting characters to read about, and created a plot that was simple but had some dynamics that were unexpected and gave the reader that element of surprise that keeps us reading. Nice job!

5/5 ⭐️
what an incredible debut! i decided to give this book a go because the cover was pretty and the blurb seemed interesting, but this was probably one of my favorite romances of this year.

Piper and James are me. combine these two and you have me, which is probably why i understood everything that was happening in their heads, why all their actions made sense, and why the third-act breakup didn’t give me an ick. if you are or know people who deal with anxiety or are socially stunted then give this book a go – you won’t regret it :)

i loved how this author introduced the side characters and how they just all made sense. the plot of this book was entertaining, and every scene just happened there for a reason (which is not always the case in romance books). loved loved loved this one!

thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for sending me an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I enjoyed this- spicy in places, made me cry in places, made me laugh in others. You can’t really ask for more! I enjoyed the chapters being from different perspectives of the main characters and the train commute being at the heart of the story worked really well.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

I need to get a few things off of my chest. HOW is this Mallory’s debut book?! This book reads like a well seasoned author. ALSO, can we talk about this cover? It might be my favorite book cover of the year. It’s beautiful ✨

Ok onto Piper + James. I just adore them. Two strangers turned to lovers after meeting on a commuter train. I’m not usually one for “marriage of convenience” tropes but this was so enjoyable. Their interactions felt so authentic and sweet. I related with Piper a lot, knowing I’d be just as awkward and quirky in my interactions. I absolutely ate this up and am so excited for Mallory’s next book!

Expect:
-strangers to lovers
-dual POV
-marriage of convenience
-loss of a parent (removed)
-opposites attract

Thank you NetGalley, the author and Thomas publishing for the e-arc and early gifted physical copy!

A fun, fantastic debut book!

The characters are awesome - so fleshed out and relatable. The storyline is fun and serious. It's an entertaining sweet romance. Piper and James are wonderful MCs - I love their meet cute on the train and how their story develops. Both characters have a lot going on - Piper is out of an abusive relationship, starting a new job she loves and living with her BFF roommate. James has just lost his mother, is struggling to adjust to his new way of life and helping his father clean out their family home. Their dialogue is fun and had me smiling while reading. There are super serious threads in their story, too. I just really enjoyed reading this book!

Thank you to NetGalley, the author and publisher for a temporary, digital ARC in return for my review.

I LOVED this book and will be posting about it shortly via instagram to tell literally everyone I know to go and read it! I love marriage of convenience and the banter was incredible and the chemistry... I will be talking about this book forever. One of my new go-to recs!!

What a fun book! Piper and James meet on the train during their morning commute, and romance follows. Presented as total opposites, the two main characters had some similarities, and both experienced growth throughout the novel.
The dialogue was well written, and the story moved at a good pace- I didn’t want to put it down!
I appreciated the author’s note at the beginning, functioning as a trigger warning.
I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a great romance.

What an amazing debut romance! I love a fake marriage and James and Piper were so cute together!! The plot was so fun and easy to read, I cant recommend this book enough!

Thank you NetGalley, Victory Editing Co-op and Mallory Thomas for my advanced copy, these are my thoughts:

This was an interesting take on fake dating/marriage of convenience. As the characters put it “fake-marriage-for-benefits-thing”.

James and Piper meet on the train on their daily commute to work. On a day they start a conversation, James suggests he make them a family travel card and offers to put Piper down as his wife - for the sake of collecting the benefits. What was supposed to be a fun ruse, quickly becomes a problem, after they are witnesses to an incident on the train.
Piper is very nervous she won’t be able to keep up the ruse and will end up getting them caught for committing fraud. So what starts off as a few meetings to work through Piper’s anxiety, quickly becomes a fake dating game, where someone is bound to end up getting hurt.

I love a train/public transport meet-cute! I quite enjoyed this book. It was fun and sweet and even emotional at times. I enjoyed the easy banter between the main characters and their chemistry was sizzling.

It was interesting to see an emotionally vulnerable main male character and how he learnt from his mistakes and took responsibility for his actions - by being honest and open with Piper about his feelings for her. But I did, however want to shake some sense into James on more than one occasion - I know he was grieving but he sure took his time coming to terms with his feelings.

Piper starts off all over the place - why was she missing a shoe while on the train?! But her character grows (they both do) and she shows her professional side, as well as emotional growth.

This was quite slow burn, but the HEA was very satisfying, after everything Piper and James went through.

[2-2.5/5🌶️]

This book is a very sweet and unique take on the whole fake relationship trope.

For the most part, this story felt fairly grounded, which made the two or three more farcical moments stick out like sore thumbs. However, they didn't detract from my overall enjoyment of the book.

Thanks to NetGalley and the author for the advanced reader copy of this book, provided in exchange for my unbiased opinion.

This book is an absolute gem! It’s a delightful mix of humor, sweetness, emotion, and romance. You can't help but relate to Piper and James, making it easy to cheer them on throughout their journey. I am eager to read more from this author.

Somewhere Along The Line by Mallory Thomas is a sweet debut romance
This strangers to lovers/fake dating story was written so dang well.
This feel-good romance was like a ray of sunshine, making me smile throughout the whole read.

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

This story centers on Piper, a free-spirited woman who, after nearly two years of healing from a bad breakup with a banker, now works at a not-for-profit. She crosses paths with James, the very type of person she’s trying to avoid, and after a dramatic event, they enter into a “marriage” of convenience. As they navigate the line between their fake relationship and a real one, they also confront their personal fears, grief, and emotional baggage.

What sets this book apart from other marriage-of-convenience stories is the grounded and relatable reason for their arrangement, especially given the context of a cost-of-living crisis. The author’s strength lies in crafting flawed, authentic characters who feel like real people, complete with their own misconceptions about love and relationships. The story includes some intimate moments, but they serve to deepen the connection between the characters rather than feeling forced.

4.5/5

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC! This is a wonderful debut novel by Mallory Thomas. I quickly got into the story and it was a struggle to put the book down. The emotional depth of both of the main characters was well written (including a very accurate portrayal of anxiety). I really enjoyed and look forward to what Mallory Thomas writes next!

I devoured this book. Piper and Hames had the best chemistry and love show they were able to work through their issues and the character development. Also, Sami is truly the best friend and would love to see a sequel about her and Kyle.

A fun fake dating romance for Piper and James who meet on the train to work. I liked how it was told from both points of view.