I ADORED THIS! 831 Stories has quickly cemented themselves as the best publishers of romance on the market: novellas that manage to be sharp yet sweetly romantic; such joyous fun but capable of serious reflection too. The situations are sized up, (going 3 for 4 with the normal person/celebrity trope, my all-time fave!) yet filled with real, flawed, deeply relatable people. Every single one of their novellas perfectly depicts what I love about romance (romance as a concept; romance as a genre of fiction): that it is both dizzily illuminating and deeply ordinary. The most magical thing that can happen to you, yet something that happens to everybody. Ugh. I LOVE 831 STORIES!

And Set Piece miiiiight be my favourite one yet!

Second chance romance is a hard trope to execute. When Jack and CJ met initially, I had really high hopes. They seemed to have chemistry and the banter was sweet. 
 
After the two parted ways, it felt almost unbelievable that they would still have such deep feelings when they reconnected. I can empathize with thinking about how people from your past are doing , but the level depicted seemed excessive. We are not shown much of them falling in love (more them immediately being infatuated) and their eventual superficial connection. It began to read more like two film bros having a conversation than a romance novel. 
 
Of course a novella physically contain the same amount of character development, but, it just seemed everything keeping them apart (if they even really wanted to be together) could have been avoided by CJ actually communicating the fears that were holding her back from their relationship or Jack telling her the depth of his feelings. 
 
Both main characters did not really seem to grow, together or separately.  Additionally, CJ being a mom did not really seem to factor into anything more than her having a more rigid set of expectations for herself. More conversations about the "family" dynamic rather than classic movies definitely could have helped the pace of the story.
 
Thank you NetGalley for the arc!

This was one of my favorite 831 Stories! The author managed to make some memorable characters with very few pages. Jack was so sweet and definitely my favorite leading man thus far. Stuart was also such a fun addition to the plot. I usually don’t like when kids are involved in romance stories but I loved this love story so much that I could get past it.

4.5 stars

This was a very fun and cute romance and I liked that the main characters were both genuine and kind and just trying to figure things out. I enjoyed the backdrop of Hollywood and how film was incorporated into the story without it overwhelming the whole plot.

Cute heartfelt story between a celebrity and a normal person! I love this trope, and this story did not disappoint. It took this trope without putting it to the extreme. I would recommend reading this book without reading the synopsis!

I am obsessed with these short but powerful romance novels from 831Stories. Give me a fully fleshed out and sell written love story in under 200 pages. This is a famous person and staff person (set designer) story and I ate it up.

3.5 stars --

• after meeting in a bar leads to a one-night-stand, cj & jack haven’t been able to stop thinking about each other in the five years that have passed. it’s definitely a shock to them both to find out that cj is the production designer of jack’s new movie. but as the two get to know each other (& learn a lot has happened in five years), they realize the spark from the bar is still there. maybe they each have room in their lives for something beyond the one night.

• cj & jack were very cute, and i was able to put aside the fact that this did veer a bit into insta-love. this was a fun story, but the film production talk got a bit too granular for how short this novella is.

• compared to other 831 stories, i liked this more than ‘comedic timing’ but not as much as ‘big fan’!

Thank you to NetGalley and 831 Stories for this ARC, love reading these quick novellas and look forward to more!
3.75 stars. The story centers around Jack, a famous British actor, and CJ, a set designer from LA, who have a one night stand and then connect again five years later when they end up working on the same film. Very cute novella, and the plot was good, but it was lacking in emotion. Yes, Jack & CJ had great chemistry, and I found them both to be extremely likeable. But I didn't really get attached to their characters. There was more back story about Jack, but I found CJ's very lacking. Would have like to see their characters developed more, and maybe less talk about the workings of film industry. There were some humorous moments sprinkled in there that made me laugh, and I like the supporting characters in the book. I would love to see Jack & CJ's journey continue if the book were longer.

I really enjoyed this story. The characters were mature and had interesting careers. We actually got to see the characters date and see how they behave when they are in a relationship, leading me to root for the couple. I believe this book is slightly longer than the other novellas from the publisher, and this was necessary as the characters had enough time to develop.

Set Piece is a fun little romance story involving famous Hollywood actor Jack and production designer CJ and a one night stand. And honestly I think that’s all the synopsis you need. Set Piece is a quick and fast paced novella.

There are a lot of famous x normal people romance stories but what I liked about this one in particular and what made it standout was the fact that CJ is involved in Hollywood as a production designer. So this was how I learned what production design is! I also fell in love with CJ’s family and in my opinion that was one of the best parts of the book and I almost wish we got to see more. I know this is a novella but it could have definitely benefited from another 100 pages to fully flush out the characters and the plot including the steamy scenes which I felt were a bit rushed. Wasn’t a fan of the writing style but really solid for a debut!

Thank you to 831 stories and Netgalley for this e-arc!

Set Piece was a fun read. This novella follows a relationship between production designer and an up-and-coming British actor. Tropes: normal person/celeb & second-chance romance.

The dual POV was well-done, CJ and Jack each had distinct voices and inner lives that made them feel like real people, not just vessels for romantic tension. I also appreciated all the little cinematic references sprinkled throughout, though I imagine a true cinephile would have caught more of them.

Thank you to NetGalley and 831 Stories for the ARC!

Loved this book! Quick and fun read. Love a celeb romance!

Thank you NetGalley and Lana Schwartz!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing this ARC. This was my first read from 831 Stories, and I’ve heard so many great things about them, so I was thrilled to have the chance to read this before its official release. Second-chance romance is one of my favorite tropes, and I really enjoyed the storyline. I especially appreciated how mature the characters were as they navigated their reconnection.

However, the one aspect I didn’t quite enjoy was the frequent pop culture references. While I understand it’s a Hollywood romance, it did feel a bit overdone at times. That said, this is still a charming, quick read that any romance lover will likely enjoy.

Another great novella from 831! I’ve immensely enjoyed the first three books from 831 and was not disappointed by this very satisfying, heartfelt story. Cara/CJ and Jake have a one night stand 5 years ago. Then, their lives converge once more. They’re still attracted to each other but they're in very different places in life: he’s a famous actor, she’s an accomplished set designer with a five-year-old daughter. Can it work beyond a one-night stand?? I loved the honestly of balancing responsibility with romance. The writing is smart, concise (in the best way!) and light when it needs to be. I also appreciated that both main characters were older and in a different stage of life—they have baggage and responsibilities beyond themselves. I read it all in one day and find myself anxiously awaiting its pub date so others can enjoy “Set Piece” as much as I did!!

Thank you to 831 Stories and Lana Schwartz for the early release copy of this book. I thoroughly enjoyed it. It changed my mind on novellas, which before I had thought would be too quick for me to get invested (spoiler alert: I could not have been more wrong). The story contains a celebrity/non-celebrity romance but twists it so that the fmc also works in show biz (which I thought was a nice change from others I have read). Jack falls hard and fast, but I liked that CJ didn’t give in automatically. I liked CJ’s determination to do things the right way and related to her stubbornness and trying to protect herself. Their banter was cute, with lots of cinematic references (many of which I did not know but look forwarding to investigating). Overall, this was 3.75 🌟 book. I’d definitely recommend it for a quick, engaging romance read!

Jack and CJ meet on a movie set five years after their first encounter, and they have the space and time to explore their attraction. A fun novella that I devoured in one sitting, and really enjoyed all the details about the movie-making industry and the LA-ness of it all.

CJ is so confident in her professional life but kinda prickly when it comes to her personal life and with Jack, but I think for completely understandable reasons, she has to worry about how she’s viewed in her career and she’s already seen first hand how much of a celebrity Jack is. As the book hurtled toward the third-act breakup I was cringing at exactly how high-handed Jack was acting, but I think the book smartly gives enough space for both CJ and Jack to realize what their part in the breakup was.

The book also felt very classic rom-com movie to me, and maybe that came to mind because of where it’s set, but would be amazing to watch a screen adaption of this because it really came to life in my head!

This is a close second favorite 831 story behind Big Fan. It has the celebrity/normal-ish person trope. They have a one night stand then by chance meet five years later, but a lot has changed for both of them. The pacing was excellent, and for a novella— I still had the time to care deeply for these characters and the excellent side characters. The pacing was excellent, the ending was satisfying, the spice was great, and the character development was there! Highly recommend.

4.5⭐
R🌶️

I will eat up any famous person not-fampus person romance and second chance meet cute and this book has both of those tropes?! The perfect slice of happiness I need among the chaos right now.

This short book packs a punch. Great character development. Like all books from this imprint, it's great to pick up for a flight or an evening of reading.

Man, I loved this. It gave me all of the feelings of a Sally Rooney-esque character-driven story that I crave. CJ and Jack were deeply likable and relatable characters - both in their motivations and responses to the story around them. Jack is used to going with the motions, regardless of his feelings, and CJ is used to depending on herself for everything, so they match each others flaws beautifully. Their meeting and ultimate reunion is electric and energized; and the problems they face are inherently human and easily translatable to everyday life. I loved the Hollywood setting, especially in their mutual love of Old Hollywood, and found the behind-the-scenes look at the industry really interesting. .

I’m typically critical of novellas because I often feel they have pacing issues, but I didn’t sense that at all in Set Piece. The story flows naturally and it feels like a complete story without anything missing. Would I have liked more time with these characters? Absolutely, but am I upset with what we got? Not at all. This story is a delight and I’m excited to read what else Schwartz comes out with!

This is the first thing I’ve read from 831 Stories, but if this is the quality of story that we can expect, I’m a fan! Thank you SO much for the advanced copy!