You Belong With Me

by Arianna Pryor

Discover the sizzlingly hot romantic suspense novel from debut author, Arianna Pryor.

Andreas and Alana were never supposed to meet.

Alana Meyer missed her career as a junior editor, but her life as a bartender allowed her to escape from her past. Her job watching the lives of others from behind the rail paid the bills, and she enjoyed it. Until she met her new boss, Andreas. He's rude, demanding, and devastatingly handsome.Her fate was decided the moment he saw her.Andreas Rivera was a talented artist with dreams of going to the Pratt Institute. Instead, he got a business degree at a state college. Now, he’s inherited his father’s sports bar franchise, and he’s reluctantly improving them one store at a time. He’s shocked when a purple-haired bartender doesn’t cower away from his standoffish attitude. Instead, she goes toe-to-toe with him and starts a lust-filled chain reaction.

And he'll do anything to keep them apart

I saw Alana and knew I had to have her. She was my soul mate. When Alana met Andreas, it forced my hand. Now, I’ll have to make sure to eliminate the threat and make Alana see, You Belong With Me.

Note from the This book contains frequent strong language, explicit sexual content, and violence. If any of that sounds offensive, you may want to skip this one.

Genres: Enemies To Lovers, Romance, Thriller, Workplace, Dark Romance

330 pages, Kindle Edition

Published January 1, 2024

About the author

Weirdo. Thirty. Midwest livin. Surviving on coffee and books.

Reviews

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just finished this book and wow! It was hard to put down! Only paused for another book i was reading and for sleep! I was NOT expecting THIS MUCH SUSPENSE in a romance novel! It was THRILLING! The author gave me an advanced readers copy, but my review is unbiased.

[Delana Wonsitler · Rating 5 out of 5]

I went into this book blind I knew it was a romance but oh boy! I sure didn’t expect it to be a thriller that had me on the edge of my pages eager to see what would happen next! Alana was such a wonderful first person character with sass and confidence and her duo of friends made her that much better! She is a little naive which aids in the protective nature of Andreas. Oh man is he spicy and a little intimidating but has such a wonderful heart! The spice in this book!!! 7/10 and references to other authors and books!!! And then there’s HIM, dark mysterious man who lurks in the shadows. This is a must read and will definitely keep you on the edge of your seat!

[Samantha Hall · Rating 4 out of 5]

Definitely one of the most fast paced romances I’ve read so far. Romance AND thriller in one book. Having the POV of HIM had me feeling like I was actually in an episode of criminal minds. I highly recommend this book for those who always enjoy criminal minds. For this being a debut novel I can say I’m very much excited to read the next book in the trilogy !!!

[Jordy · Rating 5 out of 5]

FAVORITE. READ. OF. THE. YEAR. I could not put it down until I was done. Alana is hilarious, relatable, and down to earth. Andreas is an ultra sexy Mr. Grump who has a protective side that is worth swooning over. The suspense with HIM had me on the edge of my seat and my heart pounding out of my chest. It was a wild ride from start to finish and left me with a serious book hangover for days.

[Esmee · Rating 2 out of 5]

Teleurstellend... Het is alleen lust tussen hen maar dat is het. Het einde is erg afgeraffeld . Het hele verhaal is half-assed lijkt het

[Kasia Garrard · Rating 5 out of 5]

I devoured this book! The authors voice was like talking to a best friend. There was a well built slow burn romance, peppered with hints of more suspenseful events to come. The spice in this book, oh my goodness; I was biting my knuckle through every scene. The drama and suspense, was so twisted and immaculately written that I could feel my heart pounding out of my chest. Run. Don’t walk. Run! And pick up a copy of this book.

[Kristens_korner · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was so good. I knew I was going to like it from the opening sentence and the mention of my favorite shows! For me, the perfect amount of pre-character building and chemistry. A nice amount of spice and longing. Once I hit the suspense, I couldn't put the book down until I knew what happened. So good!

[Amy M. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m not much of a romance thriller reader but I enjoyed this book! For a debut I thought it was well written. PLUS that spice was ((chef’s kiss))! Im excited to read more in this series!

[Tay (Read With Tay) · Rating 4 out of 5]

My first read of 2024 and it was a DOOZY! I love the boss/employee trope (don't look at me) and I thought the spiciness was peak hotness. And, then, came the twist that I didn't see coming. Like at all. I sat up in bed while reading and yelled WHAT?! which was kind of hilarious. I felt so emotionally connected to these characters and invested in what was going to happen to them, it's insane. I can't wait to read more by this author.

There are trigger warnings for sexual assault, violence and kidnapping here, so sorry for the spoiler.

[Kade · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 // Soft DNF at 88%
I did enjoy it for what it was! But I just got bored at this point in the book.

[Simply Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

I devoured this book! It had so many different aspects all rolled into one! Normally I am not a main female character lover but I really liked Alana. She was tough and scrappy and always thinking. Andreas was everything we want in a book boyfriend; dark, sexy, mysterious and a gentleman with a nasty mouth. What I really liked about Andreas the most was as they got to know each other he wasn’t all caveman. He respected Alana. It was refreshing! He also didn’t have a bunch of fucked up issues; I really appreciated that! Our mystery character was something else! What a great twist to this story! I loved that we had some serious demented things happening and I found myself flying through the pages to see how things played out. What an amazing story for author, Arianna Pryor’s, first book! I don’t usually read a book until the whole series comes out but I don’t think I will forget this book for some time! I am looking forward to reading the next book in this series!!!

[Katie Wigginton · Rating 5 out of 5]

I adored this book! I’m not great at leaving reviews so I’ll just go through my favorite things.
Enemies to lovers ✅
Yes sir type of spice ✅
Dramatic plot ✅
I could go on and on. Loved it!

[Catherine Chapman · Rating 5 out of 5]

ARC Reader Review-

I'm not quite sure where to start with this review so I'm going to start with what impressed me most. This book is written from 3 different POVs- Alana, Andreas, and just HIM. I absolutely loved the Dual POVs of the main couple and then chapter 14 came and a new POV was introduced. Arianna Pryor excellently added an edge to the story with the introduction of the antagonists POV. It's sickening, left me angry, and I just wanted to scream as I was left with a secret that only the reader knows regarding what the antagonist has been up to in his free time. The way he was written built so much suspense around the story and I loved/hated being in the head of a madman.

The romance plot was a boss/employee dynamic. In this book don't expect a quiet meek FMC who is going to wait to be saved. Even in her moment of need she never gave up. She fights and doesn't back down. She's a smart ass and says what we're all thinking while working in the food industry so her don't expect a love at first site when it comes to a bartender and the franchise's owner meeting. Her inner dialogue was my favorite to read because it was just so relatable while she was working.
Ex: "One regular has been shamelessly flirting with me despite the wedding ring adorning his life hand... I smile, but really, I want to flip his pervy ass off" It's ALWAYS the married men.

This read was a lot of fun and something I stayed up way too late reading. I thoroughly enjoyed not just the plot but the writing was done in a way that makes you feel the suspense build up but at the same time fall in love with the romance. I cannot wait to see what book 2 has in store for Ricole and Mr. Too Busy Kicking Ass. 5/5 stars.

[Sarah G · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ummmmm what did I just read? For lack of a better term this book was just awkward. The chemistry between the FMC and MMC was pretty hot but it wasn’t well developed, lots of narrative about their lives but it wasn’t really compelling, like nothing really connected it was a bunch of random background information that didn’t add much to the story. Additionally, the FMC and MMC had such a new relationship the feelings they had for each other were pretty shallow. Then to find out that the creepy stalker was just some rando bar customer? Huge letdown, it’s hard to get invested when the bad guy has no backstory to speak of until a few sentences at the end of the book. The ending was the biggest letdown of all, it just seems like they went back to their normal lives and became a couple. The end. The FMC was kind of shallow and her friends bordered on moronic. The MMC felt stiff and awkward with the exception of the few spicy scenes. The spice was 2/5 at best, few and far between. The rest of the book was meaningless narrative. This author will be a one and done.

[Carson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I requested an ARC of this on a whim. So when I started reading, I couldn’t remember why I was so excited when I requested. It started out as a typical romance. I’m not a romance hater, but it’s not my favorite genre so I was wondering why I had been so intrigued. As soon as the thriller part of it began, I remembered exactly why I wanted to read this so badly. It was amazing and I ended up reading the entire thing in just over 24 hours.

The romance and thriller aspects of this blended perfectly. It wasn’t so dark it was bleak, but it wasn’t super cheery the entire time. Was it a little too unrealistic? Yes. Did some of the things they said make me cringe? Yes. Am I now in a slump because I don’t know how to follow this amazing novel up? 100% yes. I’m excited for others to read this.

[Kenna Penn · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read a lot, A LOT, and I do not frivolously give 5⭐️, so please believe me when I say that You Belong With Me was the best thriller I read in 2023. HANDS DOWN. Arianna Pryor did a fantastic job of writing a subtly suspenseful and creepy romantic thriller, and wasn’t scared to turn up the horror when the time was right. This is the only thriller/mystery I’ve read this year where I wasn’t 100% sure how it was going to end, the the twists took me pleasantly by surprise. This will be a regular reread for me for sure.

I was given an advance digital copy of this book by the author, and I am so honored to have been one of its first readers. I can’t wait to see where she takes us next!!

[Gwen Leeneth Delas Llagas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Spice: 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️

Firstly, thanks for the ARC opportunity. Hands down gonna be one of the best ARC I’ll read!


The suspense, the build up, the scenes with HIM, the tension between the MCs ugh! So good! What a wild ride!

The writing style is good, I jived with it really well. I could compare this book with some books I’ve read from established authors.

Reading HIM’s POV gave me the jeepers creepers which is a good thing given that this is a suspense novel. He’s written like a perfect psycho. I called it tho! who is he in the end! It was the perfect amount of foreshadowing. There’s still guessing but clues are given specially closer to the end.

I would 💯 recommend this book!

[Hayley · Rating 5 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I received an early draft of you belong with me and I enjoyed every minute of it!

You belong with me is one of my favorite reads of 2023. Once I started I could not put the it down. You belong with me is a spicy enemies to lovers boss/employee romantic thriller with supsense. The plot and characters were well written. I loved how relatable the FMC Alana is and I love how the MMC Andreas the overprotective boss was over Alana. Alana's friends were some of my favorite characters. I wish I had friends like Alana. Please make sure to read the TW'S before reading!

[Ambur Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wowwww! This book is spicy, edgy and the suspense is incredible. The banter is the BEST. I couldn’t put it down, Alana is my absolute favorite. She’s spunky, sarcastic and takes no shit. She definitely meets her match with Andreas. I couldn’t figure out who HIM was the whole book! That makes it an amazing read in itself. This book def gave me (you) the movie series vibes and I enjoyed every single minute of it. Highly recommend!!

[Tabatha Slagle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Arianna really captured the meaning of romantic suspense. I am here for it. You get multiple povs, and it elevates the story. You get Alana, a strong-willed feisty bartender, and Andreas, a too serious man who took over the family business. They meet, and there is an instant attraction that is foiled by Andreas' garbage attitude. Eventually, things smooth over, and he realizes what a jerk he's been. That is where the suspense kicks up several notches. Definitely recommend grabbing this one!

[Janice · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received this ARC in exchange for an honest review. I started it thinking that it was a spicy romance then suddenly it turned in to a riveting thriller. I was totally not expecting that and I couldn’t put it down until I was finished. So good! I throughly enjoyed this book. I recommend this book.

[Mikaela Talley · Rating 5 out of 5]

ABSOLUTELY AMAZING!!!!! Love the entire premise of this book! I was lucky enough to be selected for this arc & I am just so honored that I got to experience this book! I loved the characters, I loved the side characters, the plot though, chefs kiss. My mind was constantly whirling with theories & thoughts! Such an exciting read! Arianna Pryor is a great author 5/5 I need another one asap

[Brindle Wynne · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is one of my favorite reads . It takes you on a wild ride you won’t expect. It’s enemies to lovers and then they try to save each other because a crazy stalker takes over . Don’t plan on putting this book down because you won’t be able to . Without giving anything away , just read it . Great story , i can’t wait for the next two books

[Noriboo · Rating 5 out of 5]

A strong debut novel!
It reminded me of Criminal Minds, but from the victims' pov.
The tension and suspense were so good.
I gasped out loud several times while reading this story. I enjoyed it and couldn't stop reading until I reached the end of the book.


•••

I received a free ARC from the author. My opinions are my own.

[Kaleigh · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was lucky enough to read an early draft of this book and loved every second of it. The spook, sex and sarcasm this book offers makes for a very enjoyable read. I can not wait for the final draft to come out in January.

[Amanda S. · Rating 5 out of 5]

This romantic suspense checked all the boxes for me. It was fast paced, spicy and the suspense hit the nail on the head.

I received an advanced copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review. All views are completely my own..

[Larrie Catt · Rating 5 out of 5]

I couldn’t stop reading!

This book is more than just your average romance novel! It has so many twists that you don’t expect and keeps you at the edge of your seat the whole time! HIGHLY recommend! Anxiously awaiting for the next book in the Trilogy!

[Courtney Vinson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved it! The story, the spice, the banter was all so good! And the twist and reveal were so good! Will definitely read the other books in the series as they come out!

[Alyvia Coffman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Would rate 4.5 stars if Goodreads would let me! This book was so fast paced and sooooo good!! I really took my time with this book so I could really focus on what I was reading! When I tell you I haven’t been this on edge from a book in a MINUTE! Both for the thriller aspect and romance! If you’re looking for a thriller/ romance to add to your summer reading do yourself a favor and pick up “you belong with me”! The ONLY reason I didn’t rate five stars is because I feel like I definitely could have used just a little more background story with “him” I would love to see a spin off book with how the obsession started or something along those lines! I can’t wait for book number two! 🥰🥰🥰

[Ashley Anne · Rating 5 out of 5]

I could not stop reading it