Tag: young adult contemporary romance

ALC Book Review: Falling Like Snow (Bramble Falls #2) by Misty Wilson

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Rating: ★★★★
Audience: YA Contemporary Romance
Length: 352 pages
Author: Misty Wilson
Publisher: Simon Teen
Release Date: October 6th, 2026
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

A girl juggles planning her town’s first-ever winter festival and untangling her complicated feelings for both her best friend and the star hockey player in this charming book in the swoony Bramble Falls series that started with the New York Times bestselling Falling Like Leaves.

After Bramble Falls’s wildly successful Falling Leaves Festival, Sloane Sullivan is looking forward to some downtime—especially kicking back and marathoning Nora Ephron movies with her best friend, Asher. But they barely make it through Sleepless in Seattle before Sloane’s mom calls an emergency tourism department meeting; it’s all hands on deck—Bramble Falls is having its first ever Falling Snow Festival!

Sloane may still be recovering from the last seasonal event, but she’s also excited. After all, Christmas is the best time of year! And she’ll have her whole crew by her side, including her cousin Ellis and, of course, Asher. But when irresistible, hockey-playing Micah catches Sloane’s attention, she finds herself a bit distracted. The emotions her unexpected flirtation brings up make Sloane feel confused about Micah…and Asher.

She’s never thought of Asher as more than her best friend, but even if Sloane is seeing Asher in a new light, what does that mean for her and Micah? Uncertain and more than a little overwhelmed, Sloane throws herself into festival preparations, hoping to get a little Christmas magic in return that will help her figure out where her heart lies.

Thank you Simon Teen for the eARC and Simon Audio for the ALC (gifted).

SWEET STORY.

This was much more holiday-esque than I was expecting and I think I would add it to your holiday romance TBR if you’re looking for something short and sweet. I liked being back in Bramble Falls and seeing what our next pair was up to.

I did not like being a part of this friends to lovers trope though. This had some of the hallmarks of things that make me cranky in regards to F2L. I didn’t love that they both tried to date other people and kept butting heads with each other. Granted, it felt genuine to the age bracket so take this opinion with a grain of salt. I do think it’s mostly young adult friendly. Probably older YA. There are some brief underage drinking scenes and language. There’s also a brief assault scene (unwanted touching) that occurs too.

Sloane and Asher were cute though. They had a very strong friendship I liked seeing and I liked all of the moments they had together. The winter activities were just right and had me begging for cooler weather and a cup of hot chocolate. Asher did some super kind things for Sloane and I loved all of those scenes too (because I was kind of bummed Sloane’s Mom guilted her into not going to NYC). I did appreciate the strong friendships woven in at least and seriously how magical the whole book felt for the season.

I think the audiobook was good too and the narrator did a wonderful job.

Overall audience notes:

  • YA Contemporary Holiday Romance
  • Language: mild – moderate
  • Romance: kisses
  • Violence: mild
  • Content warnings: assault (unwanted touching), loss of a parent (recounted)

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ARC/ALC Book Review: Falling Like Leaves (Bramble Falls #1) by Misty Wilson

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Rating: ★★★★
Audience: YA Contemporary Romance
Length: 352 pages
Author: Misty Wilson
Publisher: Simon Teen
Release Date: September 2nd, 2025
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Gilmore Girls meets Jenny Han in this autumnal teen rom-com about a city girl stuck in a quaint small town who must confront her future and her old flame while the town prepares for an annual fall festival.

Ellis has a lot of expectations for her senior year, but moving from Manhattan to Bramble Falls, Connecticut is not one of them. Yet in the wake of her parents’ separation, that’s exactly where she and her mother are headed.

Bramble Falls might be charming, but it’s also full of distractions. Like local barista Cooper Barnett, Ellis’s one-time best friend—and first kiss—who has not only majorly glowed up but wants nothing to do with Ellis.

Then there’s the Falling Leaves Festival, a month-long tourist attraction run by Ellis’s aunt—celebrating everything autumn. The festival seems nice and all, but Ellis doesn’t have time to be roped into her aunt’s enthusiastic planning. Dragged to each event, she can’t stop bumping into Cooper, the one person she’s hoping to avoid.

But the longer she stays in Bramble Falls, the harder it is to pretend she’s not falling for this town and the people in it. As her return to Manhattan gets pushed further and further out, Ellis is forced to confront exactly what she wants for her future—and what that means for her present.

Thank you to Simon Teen for the gifted eARC and Simon Audio for the audiobook.

JUST RIGHT.

I haven’t read a young adult contemporary romance in a hot minute because I often feel like I’ve just aged out of enjoying these stories but then I get sucked in by a super cute cover that screams FALL and I had to read it. And I genuinely enjoyed it!!

I liked that this was a true YA book. The language was low and it stayed at kisses only. And as I mentioned earlier, there were so many fall things and I loved them all. The small town atmosphere surrounded by apple picking, horse carriages, pumpkins and more, set such a beautiful scene. I could not get enough.

The romance was great. Relatable and full of growth and learning after mistakes. Ellis has been sitting in a blind spot for so long it took her a bit to come to terms about the box she’d been sitting in. I appreciated her willingness to apologize and try to do better next time attitude. It gave Ellis a sense of realism that I think is what’s needed for a younger audience too. Cooper was just super cute too which made their interactions very endearing.

I would absolutely read another book from Misty Wilson.

Overall audience notes:

  • Young adult contemporary romance
  • Language: mild
  • Romance: kisses
  • Violence: none
  • Content warnings: parents who are separating (with infidelity as part of the reason)

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Book Review: I’ll Pretend You’re Mine by Tashie Bhuiyan

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Rating: ★★★★
Audience: YA Contemporary Romance
Length: 352 pages
Author: Tashie Bhuiyan
Publisher: HarperCollins
Release Date: June 3rd, 2025
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Summer Ali has been making a name for herself in the music industry for years, slowly but surely climbing the charts—but the world doesn’t know her stage parents are the ones who molded her entire public persona. Finally eighteen, Summer breaks free of their control and focuses on creating her own path.

Upon running into writer’s block, Summer grows eager to take any opportunity to shake things up—even if it means agreeing to a PR stunt with child-actor-turned-playboy, Jules Moradi, famous for his tabloid escapades.

At first, Jules keeps his distance, maintaining professional boundaries. But as time passes, his walls come down, and Summer uncovers who he is beyond his reputation, and it’s someone more like her than she ever realized. As the lines blur between fake and real, Summer begins questioning who she is and what she wants—and if her dreams are worth sacrificing her heart.

CELEBRITY ROMANCE WIN.

Celebrity romances are hit or miss for me in the romance department and I am happy to report this one was a great read for me. I loved the audiobook, it really brought the book to life for me.

I loved the coming of age theme and the journey Summer went on to find herself and the strength it took to make some hard and big decisions. I loved the close relationships Summer had with her sisters and her friends. I love seeing the balance of positive relationships between the heaviness of Summer’s parents and other circumstances. And I found the anxiety rep to be very relatable.

Jules and Summer had the sweetest chemistry. From a fake dating vibe to the slow friendship build to lovers. I loved all of the tender moments they shared and how you could see them slowly opening up and pulling away from toxic situations.

Overall audience notes:

  • YA Contemporary Romance
  • Language: mild
  • Romance: kisses
  • Violence: low
  • Content warnings: racism, homophobia, anxiety, parental abuse/neglect

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Book Review: ASAP (XOXO #2) by Axie Oh

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Rating: ★★★
Audience: YA Contemporary Romance
Length: 352 pages
Author: Axie Oh
Publisher: HarperTeen
Release Date: February 6th, 2024
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

New York Times bestselling author Axie Oh’s ASAP is the much anticipated companion novel to beloved romance XOXO, following fan favorites Sori, the wealthy daughter of a K-pop company owner, and Nathaniel, her K-pop star ex-boyfriend, in a swoon-worthy second chance love story.

Sori has worked her whole life to become a K-pop idol, until she realizes she doesn’t want a life forever in the spotlight. But that’s not actually up to Sori—she’s caught between her exacting mother’s entertainment company and her father’s presidential aspirations. And as the pressure to keep her flawless public image grows, the last person she should be thinking about is her ex-boyfriend.

Nathaniel is off limits—she knows this. A member of one of the biggest K-pop bands in the world and forbidden from dating, he isn’t any more of an option now than he was two years ago. Still, she can’t forget that their whirlwind romance was the last time she remembers being really happy. Or that his family welcomed her into their home when she needed it most. . . .

So when Nathaniel finds himself rocked by scandal, Sori offers him a hideaway with her. And back in close quarters, it’s hard to deny their old feelings. But when Sori gets an opportunity to break free from her parent’s expectations, she will have to decide: Is her future worth sacrificing for a second chance at love?

VERY FRUSTRATING.

I adored XOXO and this was a big letdown. I felt like a lot of this book happened around the main character and she was on the sidelines. Sori was helping everyone else and doing things for other people while she was standing still. I would have loved to see her more involved in the plot.

And the second chance romance was on the eh side too. The third act conflict about had me throw my phone across the room. The level of unnecessary drama to drag out the story made much of it feel like filler plot lines rather than a cohesive novel.

The audio narrator was fantastic and that had me holding on. Otherwise this book left a lot to be desired for me.

Overall audience notes:

  • YA Contemporary Romance
  • Language: low
  • Romance: closed door

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