A classic workplace enemies to lovers rom com that had me laughing and swooning as I was reading. Years ago Rylee broke Eva's heart and now she is out to smear his name in the mud. When Rylee responds to Eva's public message by asking her out on a series of dates I was intrigued. I found the dialogue to be a little choppy at times but overall I found that the characters had good chemistry and witty banter.

This novel definitely read more immature to be and I'm a mid-30s woman 👵 So this might just be a me problem but I did find myself rolling my eyes often as Eva and Rylee. Overall this is a light and easy enemies to lovers rom com if you are looking for a quick read

***My review has spoiler!!

First, many thanks to the author, Mazey Eddings, St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the ARC!

I just finished Well, Actually by Mazey Eddings, and overall, I really enjoyed it. It’s a second-chance romance between Ava and Riley. Ava is a journalist with big ambitions, but she’s stuck doing a talk show with C-list celebrities called Sausage Talk. Riley, on the other hand, is a podcast personality who’s pretty well-known on social media.

One night, Ava, while drunk, stumbles upon Riley’s video online and decides to stitch it with her own, criticizing him for being bad during their brief hookup back in college six years ago. The next day, the video goes viral, catching the attention of Ava's bosses, who push her to invite Riley onto her show to talk about it — all in an effort to boost the show’s revenue. During the live show, Riley, in a bold move, asks Ava to date him again to make up for what happened six years ago. Despite her job pressures, Ava agrees to go on dates with Riley, and the book follows their blossoming relationship as they reconnect and open up about their pasts.

Ava comes from a complicated family with step-siblings and half-siblings, and as the middle child, she often felt lonely and struggled with low self-esteem. Riley’s family fell apart after a tragic accident, took the life of his younger sister, and he hit rock bottom in the aftermath. His family’s collapse led him to turn his life around, realizing he needed to be better for his remaining family, especially his depressed little sister.

As they reconnect, Ava and Riley start addressing the issues that led to their disastrous hookup. Their chemistry is fire, and the banter between them is fun, quirky, and very engaging. The spice in this book is definitely on point, and their feelings for each other grow genuinely as they start to fall in love.

However, as their relationship intensifies, Ava’s bosses intervene, as they can no longer profit off the "public" aspect of their romance. This tension is compounded by the book’s exploration of bullying and toxic workplace environments, especially the way women receive harsher comments/criticism than men both at work and on social media.

Although I really enjoyed the book overall, I wasn’t fully convinced by the twist at the end. I would have preferred if Ava had quit her job at the breaking point rather than being fired. It felt a bit forced, and I would’ve loved to see her take control of the situation. However, the ending still left me satisfied, as Ava finally breaks free from the toxic corporate environment and pursues something she’s passionate about. Her relationship with Riley is stronger than ever, and the book wraps up with a satisfied, happy ending. It’s a 4⭐️ read for me, I highly recommend it.

I am a huge romance reader and was drawn to this book on the great cover art and the enemies to lover's trope. The FMC, Eva I could not connect with, but I enjoyed her journey and storyline with Rylie. Their chemistry was palpable, and the romantic parts were a good amount of spice. The book was just okay for me. It is mildly a workplace romance, but the jobs and the pull of the plot to get the two characters together was a little silly. Both characters had a lot of old wounds that did get discussed and resolved but it felt saturated with unnecessary excuses and explanations. The book was also extremely progressive. This is a good thing to be inclusive in books (I actually look for this) but when adding in gender identify and sexuality--which doesn't affect plot or storyline seems inconclusive. The big reveal at the end made me cringe a little as well. There was a clear identified villain but everything was rushed with this part in the end. The book seemed to abandon its original premise of old lovers going on dates to an HR nightmare.

This book had a refreshing take on open communication between two people who couldn’t be more different. The entire storyline was unique and very engaging. I loved how the author depicted the female character as someone who desires a deep connection with someone but doesn’t quite know how to allow herself to trust. The emotional journey she goes on throughout the book felt very relatable. I also really enjoyed how the male character strived to have open communication and wasn’t scared or put off by the fmc’s hesitations. I do wish that we could have seen more of the development of healthy communication between them towards the end of the book, but overall their story felt very sweet and hopeful.

Okay so it took my a few chapters to get into this one, but once I did I absolutely ate it up!!
I’m a big fan of a black cat fmc x golden retriever mmc and that’s exactly what this book gave me. I loved the dynamic between our two main characters (he is sooooo down bad for her) and the setting of the book is really fun and enjoyable.
I’m also just a sucker for a man with wavy tousled brown hair and glasses so that’s an automatic 5 stars for me!!

I think it’s safe to say this book was not for me. I’ve read a few other Mazey Eddings books and they’re always so hit or miss for me. This book pulls heavy inspiration from Chicken Shop Date, which I’ve never watched, but I wasn’t sure how it’d translate. I didn’t really like the whole hot dogs concept but to each their own. I will say I inhaled the first 20% of this book, the dynamic between Eva and Rylie was so good in the beginning. But my feelings for this book really took a downturn thanks to Eva. I love an angry female character but I got tired of it after a while. I didn’t like the way she talked to Rylie and she always seemed like she had to find something to be angry about. But when he’d confront her and want to discuss things, she always ran away - literally! So much could have been avoided if they’d just communicated with each other. Also, I cannot get over the fact that Eva has held this big grudge over Rylie for years!! She no longer knows the man but acts like she does. How she struggled to comprehend that he might’ve grown as a person after college is beyond me.

Big thank you to Netgalley and St Martins Press for the ARC!

Well, Actually by Mazey Eddings
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5

This book was such a happy surprise! If you’re a fan of enemies-to-lovers, wicked sharp banter and petty bickering (but in a hot way), you’ve absolutely hit the jackpot. It’s reminiscent of First Time Caller, but with some really hot animosity 😂 That’s the vibe we’re working with here.

Riley Cooper and Eva Kitt have electric chemistry that only gets sharper and funnier as the story unfolds. Riley was a character who won me over way faster than I want to admit— he is a perfect blend of charming and absolutely infuriating. And Eva? Her inner monologues were sharp, funny, and painfully relatable.

I did dock half a star for some oddly paced sex scenes near the end. It’s a glorious slow burn for a lot of the book and then sex scenes back to back to back. While the scenes themselves are delightfully spicy and well-written, the shift in pacing threw me off a tad. That said, y’all are going to LOVE the mouth on this man!!! 🫣

I do also want to mention that this book is a lot more heartfelt than I expected. I actually cried a few times on behalf of the characters, and it really shows how sympathetic and real they felt. Mazey Eddings really did an incredible job blending humor, heat, and tenderness.

I laughed, I cried, I had a damn fun time. Mazey Eddings completely delivered, and I’m really looking forward to reading more from her. Also—can we talk about that BOOK COVER? It’s absolutely perfect!!

Well, Actually hits shelves August 5th—don’t miss out!!

Well, Actually
By Mazey Eddings

Well, Actually is a laugh-out-loud, heart-healing gem of a book. Brimming with sharp banter, second chances, and just the right amount of chaos. At the center of it all is
Eva Kitt, the sarcastic and guarded host of Sausage Talk, a podcast where she interviews washed-up celebrities desperate for a comeback.
One drunken night, Eva stumbles upon a social media post from Rylie Cooper, the man who once wrecked her faith in relationships, spouting nonsense on his podcast about toxic masculinity. Fueled by prosecco and unresolved rage, she leaves a comment that goes viral. Her boss, seeing an opportunity, insists she bring Rylie on Sausage Talk, and things quickly spiral from awkward to unhinged. To make amends, Rylie proposes a challenge: six dates to prove he's changed.

Eva is every bit the sharp-edged black cat to Rylie’s sunshiney golden retriever. Their dynamic is pure opposites-attract magic, with Eva’s emotional walls clashing perfectly against Rylie’s earnest efforts to break them down. What follows is a slow, tender unraveling of old wounds, unexpected vulnerability, and real growth for both characters.

I thoroughly enjoyed Well, Actually. It’s witty, emotionally layered, and full of charm. I gave it 4 out of 5 stars.

Big thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the advanced copy!

I have loved every single book I have read by Mazey Eddings but this was next level. I love her writing here...she is funny, and irreverent while also tackling tough subjects like grief, internalized biphobia and workplace bullying.

I don't know if words can adequately express how much I loved this book. I loved absolutely everything about it...no notes.

Eva is an absolute menace and I love her for it. Her black cat energy is something I deeply aspire to. She is so funny and I love how "mean" she was to Riley the whole book.

Speaking of Riley...he has definitely made it on my list of top tier book boyfriends. The praise that man piles onto Eva is next level. I love how obsessed he was with her.

"Because now I'm so deep in this I would crawl through Hell on my hands and knees over a bed of broken glass before I let you go again."

Thank you to SMP Romance and NetGalley for the eARC!

thank you to NetGalley for an advanced copy of this novel that will be published in August of this year.

well, it pains me to say this is probably the worst book Mazey has written. And I feel very bad because "the plus one" was one of my favorite books I read of 2023. I honestly had to DNF this at 60% because I guess in a way I can understand why and slightly forgive the FMC for her sardonic borderline bitchy behavior.

However the weird "I'm a girl's girl, I'm not like other boys" way the MMC behaved was so weird. It was kind of like the anti-fuck boy but it made him worse? truly there's no reason somebody cannot be honest about the death of their sister in the year 2019. I can understand the hidden promo sex relationship between Riley and Afra guy. Especially given the extreme toxic culture happening with young men under 25 that has led to a second term for Donald Trump. but the way he still hijacked absolutely everything when it came to Eva and the way she felt which was valid, blew my mind. Like who takes a girl to "couples therapy" and then when she clearly has trauma to unpack (which was supposedly validated by the therapist), and turns it into a half hour trauma dump about himself. And also the way he would just constantly ambush her during the podcast?

and please do not get me started on the insanely bizarre cartoon villainy of the woman who owns her podcast network and her son. Like they are going out of their way to be misogynistic and give her no money and threatened her job, but to bend over backwards for the man. Who if he was really trying to change should have 100% questioned what Eva was getting out of it.

I don't know. The whole thing felt off and really weird for Mazey. it almost felt like her publisher or her editor insisted she aim for generation Z when the author herself is closer to 40. It's also the first time she's written anything completely from one point of view, and I think it did her a disservice.

All of that rant aside, I'm not gonna just give up on this author because I still recommend her A Brush With Love trilogy to absolutely everyone. Honestly you can't hit every one of them out of the ballpark. And if you enjoyed it I'm really glad, but this just was a big oof

4.5

This was SO good. It was laugh out loud hilarious and I loved the chemistry between the two mc’s. I also LOVE a mean FMC so much. Eva was SO MEAN and Rylie was so down bad for her. I LOVED Rylie Cooper. And their banter was a++++. I loved that she told him he had slutty little glasses, I was giggling the whole time. The conflict/ resolution was great too! Loved this

Cute novel and it has a sensual appeal. It was a fun read for me. I enjoyed reading it and it was an interesting story of second chances in love. I had a good time reading it and it was good for me.

Thank you to Netgalley for providing this read!

I’m gonna try and not spoil much, but this book is really bad so it may all come out. so spoiler warning.

i had highs hopes that got very let down. i liked the concept of the novel, but it felt like a rip off of the hot ones show. also Eva, the fmc, is very insufferable. i can’t stand that her entire personality is the fact she’s never had a good sex experience, but has an entire podcast to talk about sex.

and don’t even get me started with Rylie, the mmc. he hurt Eva way back in college and one of his excuses was because he was sorta gay. the other excuse is acceptable and understandable.

also Eva’s entire “trauma” of being ghosted by a guy she went on like two dates with then had a one night stand with is really dumb. like it was almost a decade ago when it happened. it wasn’t even like they were together or had a any sort of relationship either. there’s literally no substantial reason for her to act all sad and gloomy about love and be all reserved in relationships.

the reason i gave it 2 stars was due to the conflict of her job. i liked the resolution at the end and how everything worked out.

I noticed a few writing issues where sentences wouldn’t make sense or there was a missing comma. i’m a stickler on grammatical issues.

I also want to hate on the excessive sex scenes. it’s not necessary and i hated every second of it. one is okay, but for 3 chapters straight, no. and their sex scenes weren’t built up very well. they argued for a full chapter and Eva ran away. then decided “hey let’s show up to his apartment and screw him!”

the excessive use of lgbtq+ feels very forced. EVERY character was a part of this and made a big show of it. while i have no issues with it, it just felt like the author was forcing it down my throat.

i very much wished the whole childhood trauma would’ve been touched more for Eva. it seemed important at the beginning then it was like it never existed.

be forewarned before purchasing or reading this book. i have no prior experience with this author, although i’ve not heard the best reviews.

Eva is a sassy aspiring/floundering journalist who uses a cold exterior to hide her insecurities. Rylie is a past flame who treated her badly because of his own struggles.

I wanted to love this book, but unfortunately, I only just liked it. It was fine. The characters were fine, but I kept wanting there to be MORE. I wanted more about Sausage Talk, it felt like that was unexplored (and I love Chicken Shop Date, so I wanted that to feature more prominently). It kind of felt like the author was trying to do too much, and nothing was fully explored. I would recommend it as an easy read, but it's not particularly anything that would stick with me for the long term.

RYLIE COOPER <33333

That’s it, that’s the review.

No, but seriously, I loved Rylie. He is every person’s dream bf: kind, willing to admit fault and pursue growth, gentle, loving, encouraging, affectionate. I love him and his love for Eva.

This book may not have been my favorite of Eddings’ that I’ve read but Rylie is my top MMC of hers and I related a lot to Eva’s struggles of finding her place and believing herself worthy to exist in it.

This was not my cup of tea. I honestly didn’t finish it because I didn’t care for any of the characters. They weren’t relatable to me in any way and it was too hard for me to connect to the storyline. I heard a lot of good things, so I’m guessing it’s just my preference!

The banter between the two main characters, Cooper & Eva, was good - for the most part.
I had a hard time connecting with the FMC, in fact, I found the character to be a bit mean.
I do like a good enemies to lovers romance, but I really struggled with this one.
Plot is structured well and the pace is right.
Characters were developed.
SOOOOOO much pop culture.
Workplace drama.
I think it was that I couldn't connect with the book.
Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book for a review!

Wow okay I loved this book so much!! Eva and Rylie’s chemistry was so good. I loved that Rylie never tried to change Eva and always showed up for her. I loved that Eva pushed herself to become more emotionally healthy. Basically this book is a 10/10 & I have no notes!!!

This was a fun and quirky read with plenty of sharp banter and over-the-top moments. The writing is witty, the concept is unique, and the characters definitely have chemistry. At times it felt a little too chaotic or forced, but it still managed to be entertaining and surprisingly heartfelt in a few spots.

It’s not a new favorite, but it was an enjoyable ride—especially if you’re in the mood for something a bit offbeat with second-chance vibes and some light social commentary thrown in.

This was just and okay read for me, It was funny and the bamter was okay but something was just not clicking in the chemistry between the characters , it felt as though they were not even meant to be written together. Overall it was.a great honour to receive this arc from netgalley. The opinions are all mine .