Rating - 4/5
I rated this as a novella due to the length of the book

What a cute read! I loved the pacing and the plot was great. Both characters really learned about themselves and developed throughout the story and I can imagine this as such a fun film to watch! Great spice too.

I enjoyed this but it felt rushed?

It progressed very quickly, cute storyline but it wasn’t enough to really get to know the characters before it progressed. The chapters were very long, and I liked having insights into both but it felt like it should have been in perspectives!

Overall the storyline was sweet, it was nice to have some spicy scenes where the female wasn’t a professional as I feel like this doesn’t happen often and it makes it relatable!

Just wished it went deeper into certain aspects, who Jess is, who Xander is before they meet. A little bit more too and fro before they go on holiday together.

This was nice. I would say there’s nothing too stand-out about this book but if you’re looking for a short spicy read this is perfect for you. I was really surprised to see the discussion of deeper topics like EDs, parental trauma and body dysmorphia and they were handled well. Especially Xander’s understanding of the grace he had to give Jess. If this was a few more pages this would’ve been a 4 ⭐️ read for me honestly.

Loved this book in the end! Totally gave me a How to a lose a guy in 10 days meets 10 things I hate about you vibes! Seemed slow to start with Jess’s overly buttoned up personality but quickly became a continuous read when she started to let go more!

I love the cover and description. The concept is fun. I did find myself skimming a lot. I never felt interested in the characters and never felt the sexual tension.

A short, cute and spicy read that’s perfect as a palette refresher but unfortunately wasn’t entirely my cup of tea. There were some words that just kept putting me off reading it sadly.

This is a fun rom-com, perfect for a vacation read. It's opposites attract and the characters are both pretty fun to get to know. Nothing too deep, just a fun, quick read.

Starting with what I liked: The story is entertaining and the spice is good. It's easily digestible and even went over a few deeper themes than I originally thought it would.

Unfortunately, I feel like the book should've been longer and more fleshed out for it to have the opportunity to be even better and to give us more insight into the characters to make them feel more relatable.

Here comes trouble, and so did my mixed feelings!

This book is a super quick, fast-paced read and while that makes it easy to fly through, it also means things move "fast". Maybe a little too fast. Jess and Xander have that classic opposites-attract dynamic: she’s the guarded journalist, he’s the charming artist, and they’re forced into close proximity. The tension? So good. The spice? Even better. But the romance itself felt a bit rushed - like they went from “who are you?” to “I can’t live without you” in record time. I wanted more buildup, more depth, and maybe a few extra chapters to really feel their connection.

That said, there were some REALLY cute moments. The paint fight? Adorable. The setting? Loved it. But some of the writing pulled me out of the story (I’m still thinking about those ski slope muscles...), and I couldn’t fully connect with the characters. Jess’s growth was nice to see, but I wish we got more of her outside of the romance. And Xander? He had his moments, but some of his comments just made me go HMMMMM...... So, if you’re looking for deep character development, this might not quite hit the mark.

If you’re in the mood for a cheesy, fast-paced romance with plenty of tension and spice, this might be a fun one for you. Just don’t go in expecting a deep, slow-burn love story - this is more of a whirlwind fling.

Thank you to Netgalley and Boldwood Books for the digital copies

#HereComesTrouble #NetGalley

This was an Okay rom com - I enjoyed it, but it wont stay with me longterm. I just found it to be a bit repetitive.

A sweet story and one that I'm glad I read, but likely won't remember long term.

A young, naive journalist travels to Italy to interview a rebellious artist in attempts to save her job. Sparks fly while the two spend time together in a beautiful Italian villa.

This was a quick, sweet romance. At times it felt a little reductive, but at only 250 pages, a lot can be overlooked. It was just fine, but won’t stick in my mind as I move on to the next book.

3,5

I wouldn't say this is a forbidden relationship, the blurb gave me the wrong impression and the marketing should reflect what the book is really about because there are good ideas here. I liked how Xander took Jess out of her cage. She let failed relationships with men and her mother take control of her life, but by opening up to Xander, she ended up being used by him. This was clever because I was expecting the opposite. However, the plot moves very quickly, which hurts the characters's development a bit. I also would suggest that Jess's boss should have a bigger role, so the way she talked to Jess about relaxing more wouldn't seem invasive.

I wouldn't mind an epilogue, just to make sure the couple is still together and that they helped each other in the long run. The epilogue could be Jess interviewing Xander, and talking about his last exhibition and what he was planning to do next. This is my first book by the author, and she made me feel the angst, so I would still read other romances by her, and keep her novelas, like this one, for when I need a quick read to escape the real world.

Thanks to Netgalley and Boldwood Books for the eARC!

This was an okay romance - it got a bit repetitive in places, but the premise was good. I do think a trigger warning for previous eating disorders and current disordered eating would have been helpful. It's an integral part of the story because one of the character's mental health and insecurities (not to mention the third-act tension) are based around body dysmorphia. I'm not sure I would have picked this book up if I had known.

I thought both characters were interesting, but I do wish we had gotten to know them a bit more - the book could have benefited from being slightly longer. It currently is less than 200 pages, so there's definitely room for it to have been expanded.

With that being said, it's a mostly cute read, pretty quick, and spicy. So if disordered eating isn't a trigger for you, I'd say definitely give this story a chance!

Here Comes Trouble is a fun, flirty romance that brings together opposites in a classic bad-boy-meets-good-girl dynamic. Journalist Jess is determined to keep her life in order, but when she’s assigned to cover a scandal-prone troublemaker, sparks fly, and chaos ensues.

I really enjoyed the playful banter and humor woven throughout the story. The chemistry between the leads was engaging, and their push-and-pull dynamic kept things interesting. However, the plot felt predictable at times, following familiar romance beats without too many surprises. I also wished for a bit more depth in character development to make the emotional stakes hit harder.

Overall, this is an entertaining, lighthearted read perfect for fans of opposites-attract romances with plenty of charm.

⭐⭐⭐⭐️ | 💘 Opposites Attract | 😆 Witty Banter | 🔥 Fun & Flirty

A quick, emotional read with some heavy themes.
The romance moves fast, and while the chemistry is strong, the story could have used more depth and buildup. Some aspects felt underdeveloped, especially the characters' professions and conflicts. Xander's actions were frustrating at times, making it harder to root for him. Despite this, the writing was engaging, and Jess's journey was compelling. A good read that left me wanting more.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for an ARC in return for an honest review.
I REALLY wanted to love this book and the premise was good but it’s not long enough. The romance goes from 0 to 100 in what feels like the speed of light which meant I struggled to connect with the characters on any level. Although it’s a very easy quick read.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/7306269544

A quick read with some sensitive topics throughout. It’s not a lighthearted romance like I expected, there’s definitely a side of trigger warnings.

'Here Comes Trouble' reads more as a novella, with lots of spicy tension, as well as a focus on deeper themes and the characters' battles with their mental health. Our main characters are journalist Jess and her subject Xander. Instead of breaking the truth out of him for her own article, Jess finds herself stepping out of her comfort zone, with Xander determined to show her her worth. They each end up making the other feel alive and find the purpose they had been lacking in life.

For the shorter length of this novel, I found the pacing to be quite good. Although the plot advanced well, I do think the main part of the plot - besides the fact that this is a romance novel - was neglected. The whole reason Jess and Xander connected was due to her trying to save her job by writing an article about him. However, though they certainly had lots of meaningful and heartwarming conversations, Jess rarely spent any time taking notes while listening to him or drafting her piece. Additionally, it was quite a while into the novel before Xander began the portrait of her that they'd initially agreed he would do in exchange for her writing the article. I think there could have been more included of the journalism and artist aspect.

I also wondered about the repercussions of Jess sleeping with a client, but this didn't seem to be something she was anxious about. I personally feel that maybe their job roles could have been different than what they were, so the reader wouldn't need to question this.

Jess was a great character. I was rooting for her so much to find her confidence amidst all her anxiety and self-doubt. Jess considers herself to be unremarkable and is closed off even to herself, whereas Xander feels wild and invigorating to her.

Xander is the 'bad boy' love interest and a heartbreaker, unable to find a woman that captures his interest long enough not to cast them aside. With a myriad of past love affairs behind him, he despises commitment and loves his freedom. However, there is something intriguing about Jess to him, and he finds himself determined to break her out of her shell and discover the spirit locked up inside her.

I find the 'misunderstood bad boy' trope a tricky one to navigate, and I have difficulty falling for male love interests who have a history of treating women horribly. It's just not attractive to me. It was good to see Xander wanting to redeem himself with Jess. However, he continued to have some pretty bad behaviour throughout the book.

With Jess' eating disorder at the heart of her insecurities, I found it difficult to be on Xander's side during the 'conflict' of this novel; when Jess discovers he's been using her as a subject on a much more intimate level than she expected, especially knowing his intent to broadcast these pieces to the world. As an ED sufferer myself, I found it much too inconsiderate of Xander - although his intentions were good - to have not discussed it with Jess first. The toxicity of his characters' reaction to her pain made me dislike him, which doesn't bode well for a romance novel.

This negative aspect does outshine my initial praise for the chemistry and the really well written intimacy scenes they shared together. However, as it's my own personal experience that affected my enjoyment of the book, I chose not to knock a star off my rating of four stars, as I did like this novel overall, and enjoyed the authors writing style.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for giving me the chance to read and review this!

*I received this book as an Advanced Readers Copy (ARC) for free in exchange for an honest review*

This isn’t a bad story, but it definitely needs to be longer. The romance went from 0-60 with little to no buildup in between. There is a lot that gets shoved into very few pages, and the ending is rushed and inconclusive. It’s not bad for the quick read that it is, but I’ve also read better short stories than this. 2.5 stars, rounded down for dissatisfaction.

•𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘵𝘰 𝘕𝘦𝘵𝘎𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘉𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘸𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘉𝘰𝘰𝘬𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘭𝘦𝘨𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘰𝘸𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘮𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘈𝘙𝘊 𝘪𝘯 𝘦𝘹𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘮𝘺 𝘩𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘦𝘸.•

Overall this was a fun, lighthearted romance. Jess and Xander were both very likeable characters and had great chemistry. I also really enjoyed that Xander was an artist. It was a nice change as I feel like I haven’t read or heard of many romance books where the character is a visual artist as a profession.

I also loved that Jess wasn’t your typical sexually confident romance lead. She had lots of confident and body image issues to work through which Xander treated with care and helped her overcome. Though I will say it felt like she overcame them quite quickly and I would’ve loved to see more of those intimate moments briefly mentioned in passing after the first time they hooked up.

Which leads me to my main issue with this book. It was too short and it suffered because of that. The deep emotional moments we did get were really enjoyable. Plus the moments of growth for both Jess and Xander when present were great to read. I just felt like a lot of that growth on the page was missing and instead fell in a sort of “just trust me it’s happening” way and we’re supposed to just go along with the fact they both state they’ve grown. Rather than getting to see that growth. In that way too I really wish Jess’s inner dialogue showed more of that hesitation, shyness, unconfident, vulnerability more. She spends a lot of the beginning of the book saying she doesn’t really have an interest in romance or relationships and doesn’t see the appeal of sex. Yet, when she meets Xander for the first time she’s immediately attracted to him and every scene after can’t be in the same room as him without lusting after him. It just seemed to go against the way her character was initially introduced. However, when she became more confident their dynamic got a lot better and therefore her inner dialogue became better suited.

I honestly just think we needed more time to watch these characters grow and let their chemistry and love blossom fully. It just felt kind of rushed and often times caused a lot of telling instead of showing. The parts we were shown were fantastic (like the picnic scene) and I wish we would’ve got more of that.

Overall though, it was a fun quick read. So I’d definitely recommend it if you want something you can finish in one sitting.

3.5 Stars