Thank you so much to the author for the advance copy of this book!

I became an instant fan of Janovsky's work after first reading Never Been Kissed and I swear he is just getting better and better with each book. I thought New Adult was my favorite but this is now my favorite book of his.

"Holden James, you haven't experienced unraveled until you've had me inside you."

Holden & Leo. My boys.
I love them both so much! I love their banter and then when its flirtatious even better!!  They just brought the best out of one another and they crossed paths at the most important time in their life.  They both just had so many layers and though they were not together very long they were able to peel back those layers.  They were just so attracted to one another and love when authors have their characters partake in casual/no strings attached sex because it feels realistic. Holden and Leo started their relationship as just a potential hook up but as romance readers know what always happens.

If you have read Janovsky's prior work, you know that his books are primarily closed door or slightly open in the term of romance. In this way, the door was pretty much ripped off its hinges. I love seeing this side of his writing. There were three moments that I can think of where my jaw was on the floor and also cheering in my head as it was happening (iykyk).

One of my favorite things to have in a romance book is a karaoke scene. No matter the book the karaoke part always ends up being my favorite part of the book & more times than not become an important part of the book. This book was no exception. And we are lucky enough to not only have 1 karaoke moment but 2!!!! This made me so incredibly happy!

"It's horrible when someone is both everywhere and nowhere all at once, and there's nothing you can do about it."

Despite this gorgeous colorful cover, this book does tackle grief head on. Holden lost his mother years prior but he never dealt with the grief of losing her. He held on so much and let the grief consume his whole being which cost him his relationship with his now ex. Holden had some meaningful conversations not only with Leo, his ex Buckley and most importantly his father.  I have not lost a parent but I have had lost in my life and the quote above just hit me in my feels. There is no right or wrong way to grieve and you could feel that things were brewing as the book went on until it just came to a head. My heart just broke for him. But I am glad he was able to take time towards the end to work on himself & make strides to talk about his grief.

I do not have memory of ever watching Supermarket Sweep so I didn't have a connection to the game but that didn't take away from understanding Madcap Market. I thought that was such a fun element to the romance and made it unique compared to other romances I have read.

I know Timothy has a book coming out later in 2024 and I'm even more excited after reading this!

If you are. a fan of fake dating, food competition games, steamy romance with lots of heart - check this out!

Swoon Meter: 7/10
Karaoke: YES