Thank you to Atria Books for this ARC! Only in your dreams was such a good book, I truly devoured it. Watching Melody find herself again after a break up with her abusive ex boyfriend, while also rediscovering her chemistry with Zac kept me wanting more. I loved so many of the characters in this book, especially Melody’s friend group standing by her at every turn. And the chemistry with Zac was full of so many perfect squeal worthy moments. I’m highly recommend this book and am excited to see more from this world!

I honestly requested an ARC because of the cover for this book. I actually didn’t know it was a republish, but thank you to NetGalley for the ARC of Only in Your Dreams.
This book dealt with more substance than I thought it would. An emotionally abusive/manipulative ex.
Melody, the girl still heartbroken over her first high school love—brothers best friend.

Zac pines for her and is such a simp for her. He’s 10/10. But also dumb for letting her brother have such a chokehold.

Clovers? Shoelace? Loved.

Will be reading the next one!

I'm here for all of the brothers best friend books…If you know of others…Please share your recs in the comments!

The story follows Melody Woods, who returns to her small hometown after her life in the city falls apart. Dumped by her long-term super douche boyfriend, she’s heartbroken and broke. Her twin brother crafts a plan to get her out of her post break-up funk: a trip with the one guy who broke her heart a decade ago—Zac Porter. Zac, now a football coach, is determined to win back the one who got away and win back Melody’s trust...and hopefully his team to finally win a game, too.

The chemistry between Zac and Melody is obvious! Their banter is witty and endearing, and it was so fun watching their second chance unfold. Melody’s journey of healing from her past heartbreak, and learning to trust Zac again, was so inspiring. She was able to rediscover her self-worth and trust in others through the love and support provided by Zac. It was a great reminder that the right person can help you find the strength to move forward.

The secondary characters were a fun addition to the main storyline and we hope that we get Parker's story soon!

This was light-hearted, and super sweet. If you love the small town or second chance romance genre this a cute pick up!

A lovely second chance romance! This book had me hooked from the beginning! Melody Woods reunites with her childhood crush, Zac Porter after 10 years a tough goodbye between the two, but little does Melody realize that Zac has never been able to forget her.

This story brought the tension, ache, laughter, and a delicious medium slow burn. Zac Porter was a swoony pining fool for Melody & all the little things that he did to win her over had me kicking my feet!

This is a true “the one that got away” & the sweetest second chance! I cannot wait to continue this series!

Thank you NetGalley & Atria Books for the free copy!

This was sooo freaking cute!!! I loved this story so much, Zac and Mel are seriously the best characters!!!! This was one of my favorite second chance romance reads so far. The banter in this book is also 10/10. Side characters are so well written! I would definitely recommend this book.

Thank you NetGalley Ellie K. Wilde and Atria Books for the eARC!

Realistic Rating: 2 ⭐️

”I’ve loved you since we were kids. I’ve wanted you since I figured out what it meant to want someone.” - Zac

I kind of had high hopes for this book as a sports romance book lover, but was left disappointed. I just found that the book was boring after like 40% being done and the book in general was way too long. This book is very fast paced which can be good, but I wish that Melody stayed mad at Zac for a little longer rather than completely falling for him again. There was no tension between them and they hook up in MUD on the campsite which is disgusting. Also the second half had so much going on like; football games, trainings, family stuff, idk it was hard to keep up and I was losing interest.

Tropes:
🏕️ Brother’s best friend
🏕️ Sports romance
🏕️ Second chance
🏕️ He falls first
🏕️ Childhood friends to lovers
🏕️ Forced proximity (one tent)
🏕️ Small town romance
🏕️ Secret romance

Characters:

Melody Woods gets dumped and moves back to her hometown Oakwood Bay after 10 years. She reunites with her childhood crush Zac Porter aka her twin brother Parker’s best friend. She has a lot of anxiety going on and a lack of self-confidence due to her past relationship, but I found her to be a bit boring. Parker and Summer had more interesting characteristics that I wanted to know about.

Zac Porter is a Football coach and has been in love with Melody for fourteen years. He is the reason they stopped talking, but he never fell out of love with her. He is such a sweet character, but like Melody he was just not interesting to me.

Pros:
- No third act breakup
- Zac is such a sweet character
- THE SIDE CHARACTERS: Parker, Summer and Brookes—I love them.

Cons:
- The pacing was too fast. I wish Melody stayed mad/angry at Zac longer instead of just immediately falling for him again after 10 years.
- Clover tattoos—so cringe
- How did nobody notice that Zac and Melody were left behind at the campsite…
- Chapters and the book in general was way too long
- The reasoning behind his 10 years of silence…so dumb, like he could have texted her.

Overall, it was not a book for me. However, I see that book 2 is about Brooks and I am seated for that and cannot wait to read his story.

Thank you NetGalley and Atria Books for this copy in exchange for an honest review!

・₊✧ Quotes ・₊✧

"I am in love with you, Melody. I have been in love with you. And frankly, given the way the past fourteen years of my life have gone, I don’t see a way out of it. This is it for me. You, with all your—your inability to start a conversation with a simple hello. Te way you don’t give me an inch make me work my ass off for the ghost of a smile. I will never stop working for it, working to earn you, because that’s what you deserve. And I’m so utterly and completely gone for you, anyway, that I wouldn’t know what to do with myself if I weren’t.” - Zac

TRULY A SLOW BURN.

For me personally, while I wanted to know how everything unfolded in the book, it was a really slow read for me.
And I am not generally a slow reader.

This doesn’t take away from the book itself or the rating I am giving it, at least not for me.

I know, I sound contradictory.


But hear me out!

Yes, it was slow-er, than I am used to. That is a slow burn, sloow.

I NEEDED to know how this all unfolded.
I needed to know how they got together, if the ex ever tried to win her back.
Third act break up?
Any surprises?
What couple will the next book in the series be about?

I needed to know all the things.

Slow Burn, Brother's Best Friend, Small Town Romance, One Bed, Football Coach, He Falls First

All of my fave tropes, so needless to say, while it was slow, I needed to know how all the things happened and unfolded. I enjoyed this read and I can't wait to read the next book in the series!

Thank you to Ellie and NetGalley for the chance to ARC this!

With my first book from this author, I was so excited to dive into more sports romance! I have never really read a true football romance, and what really interested me was the second chance romance that was incorporated. Within the beginning, it was interesting to hear Clover and Zac, and what their story was.

It was a cute sports romance with the best aspect of childhood friends, with the perfect mix of the challenges of major league sports!

Overall, a cute, second-chance sports romance - fairly trope-reliant but are we mad about it? Melody returns home to her small town after a tough break up, only to be reunited with an old crush, Zac, who also happens to be her brother’s best friend. At first, I found the plot to be a bit lackluster and was not engaged with the characters at all. Somewhere at the 50% mark, it picked up for me and I was entertained through to the end! 3.75 ⭐️

Thank you Atria Books for the #gifted copy and thank you Simon Audio for my #gifted listening copy of Only In Your Dreams! #atriabooks #atria #AtriaPartner #simonaudio #OnlyInYourDreams #EllieKWilde

𝐓𝐢𝐭𝐥𝐞: 𝐎𝐧𝐥𝐲 𝐈𝐧 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐃𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐦𝐬
𝐀𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫: 𝐄𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐞 𝐊. 𝐖𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐞
𝐍𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐬: 𝐓𝐞𝐝𝐝𝐲 𝐇𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐭𝐨𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐂𝐚𝐫𝐥𝐲 𝐑𝐨𝐛𝐢𝐧𝐬
𝐏𝐮𝐛 𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐞: 𝐉𝐚𝐧𝐮𝐚𝐫𝐲 𝟐𝟏, 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟓

𝟰.𝟱★

With Melody back home after a breakup, she plans to only stay in town long enough to get back on her feet. Ten years ago, Zac Porter lost his change with Melody, the twin sister of his best friend. Now, Melody has randomly shown up at a campsite instead of his best friend Parker. Zac is convinced it’s his chance to prove that he and Melody are meant to be together.

Talk about a fun brother’s best friend romance! The banter was off the charts! I thought the pacing was perfect and it was so well done. I also like how light was placed on the mental and emotional abuse Melody faced in her past relationship.

🏈Brother’s Best Friend
🏈Sports Romance
🏈Open Door
🏈Second Chance
🏈Forced Proximity
🏈Dual POV

🎧The dual narration between Teddy Hamilton and Carly Robins was perfect. I could not ask for a better duo to narrate this book. Whether you read this one with your eyes or your ears, you can’t go wrong! Hamilton and Robins brought this story to life, and were so dynamic!

Posted on Goodreads on January 20, 2025: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/144922955?ref=nav_profile_l
**Posted on Instagram - Full Review- on or around January 21, 2025: http://www.instagram.com/nobookmark_noproblem
**Posted on Amazon on January 21, 2025
**-will post on designated date

Melody and Zac meet when they’re teenagers and become great friends, but they have a falling out right before Melody leaves for college. Fast forward ten years, Melody is now back in her hometown after a long term relationship comes to an end. Her situation only becomes worse when she is forced to go on a camping trip in place of her twin brother, and who else would she be in close quarters with other than Zac Porter. From there the story takes off as these two navigate through unresolved feelings, finding themselves, and sorting through some miscommunications.

This was a cute read and the beginning hooked me immediately. As soon as the camping trip takes a 180, I was invested. However, I feel like it did drag a bit in the middle and kind of lost the plot. The amount of times they go back and forth without resolving their past issues started to get to me. I’m also just not a fan of second chance romances, so it could just be me. This one does end with a happily ever after though, so that’s always a plus. Also, I’m hoping to get Brooks’ story next because that man also deserves a HEA.

Thank you NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

How can some people be so wonderful and others so not? How does love grow without someone and alongside them? How do you move forward when the past is still unresolved? Read "Only in Your Dreams" to try and find those answers.

Thank you to Ellie K Wilde, Atria Book, and Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!!!

I have an obsession with sports romances, I fear.

You guys this book was so cute!!!

Only In Your Dreams follows Melody and Zac, two people still reeling from the heartbreaking events of a night 10 years ago.

Tropes:

Small Town
Second Chances
Brother’s Best Friend
Forced Proximity
Secret Relationship
It’s Always Been You

This book was somewhat of a slowburn, but at the same time a bit fast-paced. Zac and Melody were so cute, but honestly, it took me a bit to get over the fact that this man's feelings have not died down at all, despite fumbling 10 years ago.

Zac and Melody had SO much chemistry and honestly I’ll probably be rereading this one soon!!!

This lovely book hits shelves on January 21, 2025!!! If you love Love, you’ll love Only In Your Dreams!!!

I made it to 17% of the book before I had to DNF.

Only in Your Dreams by Ellie K. Wilde is about two characters who had the chance to get together at the end of high school, but for some reason, don't, and have to deal with the aftermath 10 years later when they meet up again in their hometown.

When I accepted the auto-approval of this ARC on NetGalley, I did not pay close enough attention to its spice rating. However, not long after starting it, I could tell that the spice would only intensify as the book goes on, so I figured I'd quite while I'm ahead.

Even though I am not a fan of the spice, that isn't the only issue I have with this book. Unfortunately, the plot feels disjointed from the prologue on. I don't think we get enough background information to understand why the two main characters are drawn to each other. It just feels like we keep getting hints about different aspects of their lives, but never the full picture. I get that there might be more details about these things later on in the book, but I would've appreciated some more scenes earlier on in the book of the two MCs from the past so that we could see how the chemistry formed between them. But instead, we start with the "conflict" in the very beginning, mixed with scenes of high tension that feel inorganic. I don't understand why the FMC hates the MMC so vehemently, and how the two characters have changed "so much" since they last saw each other, even though we barely know the characters enough to know what they had been like in the past.

I think this book would be just fine for readers who are aware of the spice rating from the get-go, and just want a quick small town sports romance.

Thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Only in Your Dreams is available starting 1/21/25.

I enjoyed this one much more than I thought I would! It was funny, and very, very steamy. I like a sports romance, and this one had just the right balance of sports and storyline. I also really loved how our heroine was involved in the sports world, instead of just being a spectator.

Overall, this was a really fun romance and I look forward to the second book in the series!

Ellie K. Wilde delivers yet another dreamy romance in Only in Your Dreams! This book had me hooked from the start with its charming characters, swoon-worthy moments, and witty banter. The chemistry practically leaps off the page, and the mix of humor and heart had me laughing one minute and tearing up the next. It's the perfect escape into a story that feels like a warm hug. If you’re craving a romance that’ll make you smile, this one’s a must-read!"

Only in Your Dreams is a super swoony, brother's best friend, second chance romance that I loved from the first page.

I have such a soft spot for second chance romances, and this one was so perfect. I love it when the guy makes the effort to wait for the girl, and let me just say that Zac is everything. I'm also a lover of sports romances, and I liked that in this book, there was a perfect balance between the sports content and everyday content.

Mel and Zac were excellent leads, but I really loved the supporting cast! The addition of Noah as a primary character added a great dimension to their relationship, but also some refreshing, fun moments. Summer, Brooks, and Parker are friendship goals!

The one drawback I found was that the summary discusses the camping trip, which was a super fun part of the book, but I did not expect it to be so early in the book. Because of this, I almost forgot about it as I continued on in the story. Though not a bad thing (I loved everything that came after!), I just felt that the summary felt almost a bit misleading.

Thank you to NetGalley, Atria Books, and Ellie K. Wilde for this ARC. All opinions are my own.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. I thank NetGalley for offering me the e-ARC of this title.

This was goooooooooooood!!!! I love the yearning. I love how he was always in love with her. I loved how they were together. Arguably it was a bit flat, but I did not care it was so good. Open door (it was good). A couple of parts were cringe but overwhelmingly this was cute. He loved her the whole time!!!! Gnarly. 4 stars.

As my first Ellie K. Wilde novel, I can tell you it definitely won’t be my last! The story of Melody and Zac had me absolutely hooked from start to finish. The characters are so well-developed.

Melody’s character really resonated with me. Watching her grow, heal, and move on from the pain of her previous relationship was such a beautiful thing to witness. With a determination to rediscover herself, it was impossible not to root for this relatable character.

Zac is book boyfriend goals. PERIOD. He’s so kind-hearted, thoughtful and sweet. This man is loyal to the end. His career struggles added to the depth of his character.

It was a rewarding experience to watch both of these flawed yet deserving people overcome the past to build a future together. And that chemistry?! The heat literally radiated off the page! Their sneaking around was so fun to experience and added an extra layer to the dynamic of the story.

“I’ve never been single. I’ve been yours.”

You’ll love this book if you enjoy:
✧ Second chance
✧ Brother’s best friend
✧ Forced proximity
✧ Small-town romance
✧ It’s always been you
✧ Reverse grumpy x sunshine
✧ Sneaking around
✧ Healing from heartbreak

Thank you to NetGalley & Atria Books for the opportunity to read this digital ARC. All opinions expressed are my own.

Thank you to NetGalley, Ellie K. Wilde, and Atria Books for the eARC. This charming romance follows the classic 'brother's best friend turned lover' trope. A heartwarming read that will leave you swooning!