A very cute, homey feel book. The story of a tragic loss of love at a young age only to find that love again and allow yourself to accept it back into your life. The little things Beckett did to show her he cared was top notch and he is the sweetest man on earth. I just loved Everly’s sass! Fritz was a fav as well. Not spicy (one sence at like 85%) but it was just a feel good vibe of loss and love!

4 star plot
1 star spice

I had so much fun with this book. I loved how when Ev came back to town Beckette was accepting of it but we learn he has ulterior motives! Ev and her friends had me cracking up at their antics and situations they got in. I was smitten with this small town. Beckette got himself together and finally told his side to Everly and why he treated her the way he did all those years ago. I was glad that she realized that she was apart of the town and everyone welcomed her back. Beckette and Everly got their closure and their long overdue HEA!

The Kiss Lottery by Ilsa Madden-Mills was a quick, easy and enjoyable read.

Everly Davis is a podcaster who left her hometown of Rose many years ago. She didn't leave under the best circumstances, so coming back to town is a big deal. She received an invitation to the annual Kiss Lottery, so she is intrigued by that and decides to cover it for her podcast.

Beckett Whitfield is a best-selling author who never left Rose. He's also never forgotten Everly, who he was pretty close with in high school, and named the villain in his latest novel after her.

As Everly and Beckett spend time together it's clear that the feelings of the past are not in the past. Will they be able to connect where they are now or will past issues continue to creep back in?

The secondary characters in this story was really entertaining and their relationships with Everly and Beckett were great. While this was stated to be a novella, I felt like it was longer than a typical novella, which allowed the story to be developed and it didn't feel like the story was shorted at all. I enjoyed this second-chance romance!

**I voluntarily read an early copy of this title courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review**

Fun and cute novella! Loved it! Liked the chemistry and dialog between characters. Satisfying ending. Will keep am eye out for this author in the future.

4 stars.

This was a sweet second chance story. Easy and quick to read, a great palate cleanser!

WHAT I LIKED: the main characters, the setting.
WHAT I DIDN'T LIKE: I'm not sure the courthouse B&E (and the subplot of why they did it) was very necessary, it felt a bit unconnected somehow. The miscommunication in the past.

WHAT TO EXPECT:

Pov: dual, 1st person
Heat: open doors
Pacing: slowburn
Communication: miscommunication, especially in the past
Third act: hiccups
Ending: HEA

Main characters:
* Childhood friends to enemies to lovers

What?
* Forced proximity
* Second chance

Where?
* Return to hometown
* Small town

Drama?
* Dark secret
* Difficult past
* Family drama
* Love triangle (in the past mostly)
* Secret identity (who send the invitation?)

Other vibes:
* The one that got away

Thank you to Montlake and NetGalley for providing me with an egalley of this book to read and give my honest review. The opinions expressed here are my own.
I loved a short and sweet novella and this one filled that void. Was it the best love story I've ever read? No. But was it fun? Sure!
Evelyn Davis has been away from her hometown for 10 years, running away from her mistakes. When she's called back for their annual Kiss Lottery, she answers that call figuring the content will be good for her social media platform. But she secretly hopes to reconnect with her BFF, Beckett Whitfield who made her the villain in his most recent book, and find out just why he did it. Despite the time and distance, neither has forgotten the other, and their connection brings them closer the more time they spend together in their home town. Will the connection lead to a second chance for their love?
Evelyn was a likeable enough character. I could see where people would connect with her. She was a bit whiny for my taste. I did feel badly she really didn't have any family to speak of and how hard that would be to come back home and not have anyone on her side. There was a lot of her telling us about her past, though we did get a few flashbacks, as well. But I needed more showing of her story. Beckett was not as developed, in my opinion. I needed a bit more from his character. It's been 10 years and he's still pining? and she never knew? I just don't feel that being a real thing. I needed more about him and who he is. Plus their age didn't really vibe with their persona on the page. They felt much younger than almost 30 year olds. Overall, the character development was lacking for me. As was the chemistry. They kind of fall back into each other but I never really felt the build I needed to have it happen. And the sex scene was just not my cup of tea.
This story was great for a quick, romantic Valentine's day read. Very predictable and just a bit cheesey. The author did a nice enough job building the world and wrapping up the story in the short span of the story. It could have used a bit more character development as I didn't feel much connection or empathy for either main character. I could definitely see this as a full length novel and think the development would have been better had it been such. If you're a lover of Hallmark stories, this one will definitely fill that slot. This is my first time reading this author and I can see she has great bones for romance books. I would definitely pick up her other books and give them a try.

The kiss lottery is about Everly who is returning to her hometown after leaving town years ago. Everly gets anonymous invite to come back to town to film her podcast. In town, everly runs into her ex-best friend Beckett. Everly and Beckett were very close when they were younger and had a bad falling out. Everly and Beckett are both entered in the town's Kissing lottery. Everly and Beckett start to reconnect and finally sort out their past issues. The ending seemed a little rushed. I did enjoy Everly and beckett.

Unfortunately this book wasn’t for me, I felt the relationships between characters too unrealistic and I was not able to engage with the setting or the premise of a lottery. It was easy to follow though.

This book was addictive— the way the plot unravelled made me want to keep reading. The characters were well-structured, had dimension, and shared amazing chemistry.
The book presents us with a small mystery that we feel compelled to solve, though deep in our hearts we already knew the answer. Everly portrays herself as tough but turns out to be a softie, which made me relate to her. Beckett is a softie through and through— he can't fool me. Their long-lasting romance perfectly complements the plot, and their sweet history melts my heart. The spicy scenes were well-written and made me swoon.
I'm giving this 4.5 stars because something felt missing, though I can't quite put my finger on what. The fact that the plot wasn't solely focused on their love story helped push this rating above 3 stars.

This story is funny and lovely. I read it in two days and, at the end, I feel like I'll miss Rose people.
Beckett is such a cinnamon roll...

This is a quick read but it is a feel good story. It is dual POV between Everly and Beckett which I felt tells the story nicely. I feel like there could have been more detail with Everly and her family back story but all in all it was a cute story with a second chance that turned out well.

I enjoyed immensely this 5 star story so much that I pretty much binged read it.

Everly returns to her home after being away for years. She gets a mysterious invite to the Kiss Lottery. Beckett and her were secretly in love with each other but neither had acknowledged it. Is Cupid playing match making?

It was a funny, lighthearted and heartfelt story. One I devoured. I loved all the amazing characters that played a role in making this story entertaining. There was some unresolved issues for both of them that needed to be worked out. Beautifully written with a seamless plot. Bottomline this is a must read.

Standalone told in a dual POV with an HEA. I strongly recommended this story.

Sweet second chance romance . Relationship between the H and h was beautiful. The side characters were interesting too . Quick and easy read. Kept me captivated. Love this author. And this book did not disappoint. Recommend reading it. Hopefully it is book 1 of many. Would Iove to read about the other characters and their

I really enjoyed this one! I believe it's a total stand alone, and not terribly long. It took some turns that I did not expect, which were different and I liked, even if it took me a minute to see the reasoning. Honestly, I'm hoping there are other books to follow, because it wasnt enough. These seem like a fun group of friends, and I'd love to see more.

Thank you so much to Montlake, Isla Madden-Mills and NetGalley for the ARC.

This novella is the perfect Valentine's read.

It gave me full nostalgia vibes with a few mysteries thrown in for good measure.
As an avid fan of Isla's, I knew I would enjoy this story going in, and she didn't disappoint.
Everly fled the small town of Rose, Tennessee after graduating high school and hasn't returned. Now pulled back by The Kiss Lottery, a tradition in Rose where single people put their names in the hat to be randomly drawn and paired up with another for Valentine's Day. She receives a mysterious invitation to this event and has no idea who it could be from.
Upon her arrival back in Rose feathers begin to ruffle as old high school dramas reemerge. And past crushes reignite.
Add in a ghost who is haunting the local Tarot card reader wanting assurance that her love led a happy life after she died in the 1918 Flu Pandemic and you have a deliciously cozy small-town read.

Note there is 'light' spice, only a couple of scenes, no third-act break up and a HEA.

A cute valentines novella

It wasn’t my favorite by this author. I do wish it was longer and a little more in depth. It was still a cute fast read and perfect for an afternoon read.

I love the way everly & Beckett got the chance to clear the air after many years of hurt. The activities surrounding the Kiss Lottery were fun & added fun chances for everly & Beckett to “run into each other” I liked that they weren’t all up in arms for a majority of the story, they had the “confrontation” and then things were awkward until they talked things out.

Overall this is a cute vday read. I kinda wished it was more focused on the Kiss Lottery OR them working through their feelings in a different way. It felt like a lot was going on. And I don’t really understand why she went back after leaving the way she did, I don’t think having her podcast cover the event & getting an invite was enough for her to return. She should’ve just owned that she wanted to see Beckett, imo.

What a fun and just downright lovely Valentine’s Day novella.

The small town, Tennessee vibes are spot on and the friends/ side characters are fun and quirky. Beckett and Everly are perfect together and their road back to one another is fun, sentimental, funny and boy can Beckett grovel. Their road back to each other is perfect.

It’s a quick read but well worth the time. And let me reiterate it is spot on for how small Tennessee towns, and the people who live there, operate. I loved every second!

3 ⭐

Thank you so much to NetGalley, Montlake and Ilsa Madden-Mills for providing me with an arc copy in exchange for an honest review!

This was a short and sweet Valentine's day novella, about two childhood best friends that reconnect after 10 years without seeing or talking to each other. Since it's quite short this felt very surface level, and I think the multiple storylines didn't help and maybe having less would've helped exploring them better. It's still enjoyable, but not too memorable in my opinion.

THIS WAS SO CUTEEE!!

Despite it being a novella, I felt the love between the two MCs. It was short but still filled with yerning, suspense and humour. Their little group was so wholesome. I would have loved a full-length novel that switched between the past and present but for a novella, it gave me everything I needed to still fall for their love story, Beckett was to sweet.

If you want a short, sweet and a little spicy novella for valentine's day, you'll love this!!