this was a short and sweet valentine’s day novella. it’s set in a small-town with a pretty fun holiday tradition - the kiss lottery - and after receiving an anonymous invite, everly decides to return to her hometown to cover the event for her podcast. it’s been over a decade since she left and some things never changed, especially her first love/childhood best friend. they have a bit of a rocky reunion - especially since she’s upset that he named her as the villain in his latest book release - but things get even more complicated when they are paired up for the kiss lottery. they’re forced to confront their feelings and past mistakes, and maybe realise that second time’s the charm. i would recommend this if you’re looking for a cute, light-hearted romance with low stakes/angst and a bit of banter.

- small-town romance
- second chance
- forced proximity
- childhood friends

3.7/
tropes; small-town setting, the one who got away comes back, second chances, novella

It's a cute and fun read, a second-chance romance set around a Valentine's Day event in town. I loved that he is the one who falls first and never stops, and Everely is a great character. Finding your true love may be as easy as looking at the one you left behind. It has a fun small-town setting, with a fun group of friends, and it is low-spice but swoony.

💋 When your past heartbreak turns into your second chance... will you take the risk?

Read if you like:
💌 Second chance romance
🏡 Small-town charm
📖 Bookish heroes
💋 Forced proximity
🎤 Podcasts & small-town gossip

📚 Everly Davis never planned to return to Rose, Tennessee, but a mysterious invite to the town’s annual Kiss Lottery pulls her back—along with all the heartbreak she left behind. Beckett Whitfield, her first love and now a bestselling author, never moved on. When fate (and a rigged lottery?) forces them together, old wounds resurface, secrets unravel, and sparks fly.

👨‍👧 Beckett is the definition of down bad. He’s been in love with Everly for years, even naming a villain in his book after her. He’s broody, devoted, and absolutely wrecked over how things ended between them. Everly, on the other hand, has every reason to hold back—her past in Rose isn’t all sunshine and second chances.

💞 The romance had the perfect slow-burn pace for a novella—there was tension, history, and years of yearning packed into a short read. The push and pull made sense, though I wish we got a bit more depth into their reconnection beyond the small-town setup, but this is understandable in a novella.

👧 I loved the town’s quirky traditions, but some moments (ghost-hunting antics and smoking pot) pulled me out of the story.

✍️ Madden-Mills’ writing is engaging and easy to fly through, but I struggled with some of the casual choices made by the characters kept me from fully loving the otherwise cozy, heartwarming second-chance romance.

🌟 A fun Valentine's novella with a charming premise, solid tension, and just the right amount of spice. It had its sweet moments and sexy moments.

Ilsa Madden-Mills typically gives me a good read with good laughs and while The Kiss Lottery definitely has its moments, I think it wasn't a higher rated read for me because the novella length made it feel a little underdeveloped. Even with the slightly rushed feel of it all, I still enjoyed the story of how Everly and Beckett find love, all these years later. Cute, short, sweet read.

This was the first book I've read by this author. The Kiss Lottery is a sweet second chance small town romance. I thought the premise of the kiss lottery was cute and fun. Great, quick read!

This was the first book I've read by this author. The Kiss Lottery is a sweet second chance small town romance. I thought the premise of the kiss lottery was cute and fun. Great, quick read!

This was the first book I've read by this author. The Kiss Lottery is a sweet second chance small town romance. I thought the premise of the kiss lottery was cute and fun. Great, quick read!

A well-developed story, despite being the size of a novella. It was sweet and swoony and entertaining.

Sweet small town second chance Valentine’s Day romance. I usually can’t put down a book by Ilsa Madden Mills and absolutely adore everything she writes but this one I couldn’t really get in to and I struggled to finish it. The characters chemistry from the start felt off to me and overall just didn’t hit right. There were quirky side characters that I loved and the small town Valentine’s Day events were colorful but overall it wasn’t my favorite.

This was a quick but great read. The plot was engaging, the romance was swoony, and the characters were extremely lovable. I really enjoyed that even with the shorter length, it didn't skimp on bringing together the problems & resolutions. I've read some previous works from this author and will happily continue.

Thank you, NetGalley, for the ARC!

3.5 ⭐️’s! Super quick and cute read!! The author did a great job at showing the chemistry between the two characters in such a short book. I recommend if you are looking for a short and sweet romcom. I really enjoyed it!

Highly recommend! I loved this book. A sweet second chance romance with just a hint of mystery. Everly has been looking to find where she belongs her whole life; due to a wrong twist of fates back in high school she left behind the only person she had left to count on. Ten years later an anonymous invitation to the towns annual Kiss Lottery brings her back to her home town to see if maybe she can find what she’s been missing.
Definitely a book I would reread. Thank you to Ilsa Madden-Mills and NetGalley for the opportunity to enjoy this story.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This was my first book from the author, and I have enjoyed it!

Everly returned back to her hometown since she received an anonymous invitation to join the town's Kiss Lottery. She wanted to see who it was from. She didn't expect to be paired with Beckett, her old flame.
This was a cute second chance romance. I loved the dual POVs, and the touch of spice was perfect!

Thank you to NG and Montlake for an e-arc!

Everly was an immense character to follow, her emotional journey was such a roller coaster. Going back to a town where everyone knows your business, especially when it did not end well, no thank you. She showed more grace than i would have. This one gave me enemies to lovers vibes. I cannot wait to read more from Ilsa.

This novella was a fun read but it felt rushed, like it should have been a full length novel. At the length it is now the plot developed so quickly from hate to love that the abrupt transition didn't feel believable. This made that characters feel one dimensional, especially the female antagonist who was the stereotypical mean girl villain. The initial intrigue, where the main character leaves her diary behind to be discovered rather than confronting her boyfriend and friend with the same facts that came out in the diary, was a a hard motive to understand. There's a few plot twists, but we're just told about them through memories and conversation. I would definitely read a full length version of this story, where the characters and plot unfold at a less frenetic pace.

A decade after leaving her hometown of Rose, Tennessee, Everly is lured back by an anonymous invitation to attend the town's Kiss Lottery. This sounds like an intriguing premise for her podcast, but she didn’t expect to be paired up with her old flame, Beckett. Sparks fly in this Valentine's novella, which offers a sweet second chance romance, dual POVs, quirky smalltown characters, and a touch of spice – all adding up to a fun and engaging short read.

Thank you to NetGalley and Montlake for the opportunity to read this digital ARC.

It was a cute concept and an easy read! I enjoyed the premise of the book and really related to trying to go back to a small town who remembers everything.

This author is new to me, but I will be keeping an eye out for anything else they publish. I loved the story and the characters. The pacing of the story was great and the characters were relatable.

So much emotion in a small-ish package…

Everly and Beckett’s story could hardly be contained in this sweet second chance romance. They had been friends forever when they were kids, tackling all the good and the bad, together. When a falling out happened, Ever didn’t look back and swore she never would return to her hometown…

Well, here she was and all the secrets were going to be revealed as the Valentine’s Kiss Lottery played out for another year. I really enjoyed these characters as they gravitated back to each other, one revelation and feelings-baring conversation at a time…

There was a lot packed into this novella making it one to enjoy quickly before the satisfying HEA…

I liked this story! When I realized this was about reuniting old high school romance, not gonna lie, I groaned. That high school is stuff is one of my least enjoyable tropes. However, it worked here. Color me surprised.

I think that having that link to the past made the novella richer and the romance more understandable. I’ve never read this author before, but I’m going to search up something else from her catalog and try it. I’m impressed by what she put together in this story.