Night Shift

Daydreamers #1

by Annie Crown

The bookworm and the basketball player are about to meet their match.

Kendall Holiday spends her Friday nights exactly where she wants to be: with her head buried in a spicy romance novel while she works the graveyard shift at her university's library. She knows she could join her friends for a weekend of drunken debauchery and college parties, but she likes her alone time, so she tells herself she isn't hiding when she gets lost in the pages of fictional love stories.

But that all changes when Vincent Knight, captain of the basketball team, turns up with an injured wrist, a sour mood, and a pressing need for poetry recommendations for a class he hates. Vincent is tall, smart-mouthed, and challenges Kendall like no one has before. Suddenly, she's falling headfirst into her very own romance novel—but it takes a lot more truth than tropes to get to a happy ever after in real life.

NIGHT SHIFT is a 75k-word sweet and spicy single-POV college romance perfect for fans of Emily Henry, Hannah Grace, and Elena Armas.

Genres: Romance, Sports Romance, Sports, Contemporary, College, Contemporary Romance, New Adult

1 pages, Audio CD

First published September 19, 2023

About the author

Annie Crown is an author of new adult and contemporary romance full of humor, heart, and plenty of spice. A born-and-raised California girl, she holds a bachelor’s in English from USC and enjoys iced coffee in the morning and frozen margaritas in the afternoon. When she isn’t writing, she’s probably rewatching her comfort shows, adding more romance novels to her ever-growing TBR, or daydreaming about fictional men who say things that make you melt.

Reviews

[Larissa Cambusano · Rating 2 out of 5]

this was cute and fluffy but i just felt like i knew nothing about the characters (specially the mmc)!! and so much back & forth and miscommunication for such a short book. but overall, very fun!

[ellen · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.75🌟 why did i love this so much???😭

[Codie Wallace · Rating 5 out of 5]

The BEST smut on wattpad I’ve ever read and one of the BEST stories!!!!! That’s all I have to say folks

[liz ౨ৎ · Rating 1 out of 5]

should’ve stayed on wattpad. it was so bad it’s actually funny

[megs · Rating 1 out of 5]

my favorite quote was “the end”

[Rose :) ♡⋆ (semi-hiatus) · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars ✨⭐️ Soo to sum up the entire review, this is a Wattpad book. No, it actually was a Wattpad story I believe and I’m happy for the author for getting it published! But... I’m going to be rating this fairly as I would with any other book (w/ pros and cons).

cons:
So…. they full-on makeout within 15 mins of knowing each other and yeah… fall in love🥴🥴🥴. I’m sorry but someone in the reviews said it was a slowburn/medium burn when this is the EPITOME of insta love with an emphasis on insta. At one point, I was laughing at how stupid these characters were for talking about forever cause they had ONE makeout session(like sit down, please). There's no development in the relationship and what’s worse is the MISCOMMUNICATION TROPE. They have a misunderstanding every 10 pages for no reason, quite literally?! (even the female mc acknowledges it: we love a self aware queen ✨!). Also, I didn’t even feel like reading the epilogue because the last fifty or so pages are just..... smut😭(if that’s your thing, go for it). Also, I wished that there was at least SOME depth to the characters, instead of making them completely cardboard-like.

pros:
Okay, I know I ranted a lot but there were some good stuff in this book! The female mc was so relatable as a fellow romance reader. She was very real for the whole high standards because of fictional men thing and the entire reading poetry portion was chefs kiss😩. I need a man like Vince who only has a soft spot for me and reads romance books to understand me better 🫶🏼🫶🏼. He’s the cutest person ever and a green flag (I love how he was understanding the whole time🙂). The author’s writing is also fast-paced, making the novel super easy to follow along. I will mention that I finished the whole thing in one setting!

In conclusion: It just wasn’t my thing as a novel personally but if you just want a quick WattPad stress buster pick it up! =)

☆☆Lastly, thank you so much to Wattpad WEBTOON Book Group and Netgalley for a free arc in exchange of an honest review☆☆

[Nani ཻུ۪۪♡ · Rating 1 out of 5]

It’s a great book if you listen to it on 3.5x speed 🤩

[Cristine (aaron warner’s version) ♡ · Rating 1 out of 5]

I hope this doesn’t find you

[Jenna · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Reading is so much fun, but I’m tired of feeling like all the best parts of my life have been lived inside my own head.”

I love this book because it says the quiet part out loud. The awkward, insecure and unsure movements of your first time—and first love.

It’s a journey from page one to the last about sex, girlhood and finding yourself while also discovering new parts of yourself that you’re unsure of how to exactly master.

As someone who’s felt a lot of these thing, I felt seen.

The insecurity of a first time, the asking questions and not wanting to “fuck it up.” It’s all there on the page, every single awkward conversation and encounter.

Loved this on Wattpad and love it now.

And Vincent if I ever catch you on the streets I’m kidnapping you and duplicating you in a lab because you’re unreal.

Ok bye.

[adeline]

DNF at 54%

watching paint dry would be better than reading from this girl’s perspective.

[Anita · Rating 1 out of 5]

I should’ve gotten myself a burger instead of wasting the money on this book.

[Mikayla Noel · Rating 1 out of 5]

You know sometimes spice just ruins the book…..i feel like this book could have been so much better

[rayhanah · Rating 2 out of 5]

cute, fast-paced, and TONS of cringe. Books centered on books are a major miss for me. They are self insertive and just icky. The fmc characterized *everything* by trope. She raves about how she hates miscommunication trope but goes on to do the same thing, not even giving the guy a chance to explain?? There was also mentions of her using goodreads and her TBR, and of course she was your 'typical' nerd who doesn't go out on a Friday night cause she's "not like other girls" which she denied btw, saying she IS like other girls. Kendall honey, that's exactly what someone who isn't like other girls would say.
And let's not forget the book store scene; not only was there a spicy booktok aisle, but it was also described as "aggressively dark academia." Kill me now.
Their romance was sweet and cliché; nerdy girl tutoring star sports player, but unfortunately, everything else couldn't compensate. It wasn't til I reached the end where I saw it's a wattpad book, did I think, "Ah, makes sense." Tbh, this is the kinda thing that gives wattpad a bad rep. Please can we stop putting contemporary references in books and stop books centered on books. I want to escape, not read about what i'm doing. Save yourself the second-hand embarrassment cause it isn't worth it.

[kendall ♡ ⋆｡˚ · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Story Itself: 3.75 out of 5 🌟

The Writing: 4 out of 5 🌟

   read this if you like

    ☆ library meet cutes
    ☆ book girl x sports boy
    ☆ HE READS ROMANCE BOOKS FOR HER
    ☆ college romance
    ☆ single povs
    ☆ BEAUTIFUL COMMUNICATION
  
    ~three songs that vibe with this book~

     ☆ Midnight Rain by Taylor Swift
     ☆ Because Of You by Stephen Sanchez
     ☆ Out of My League by Fitz and The Tantrums

    I have never read a book where the main character has the same name as me. There was that one time in The Deal where there was a girl named Kendall, but she was kind of snobby, and Garrett shot her down, so that ruined any chance of me ever finding happiness. But Kendall Holiday REDEEMED ME. This was kind of like reading my own personally handcrafted y/n fanfiction. But if any of you try to quote me on that, I'm deleting this review.

“Reading is so much fun, but I’m tired of feeling like all the best parts of my life have been lived inside my own head.”

♡ Plot ♡

Kendall Holiday is what one could call a romance fanatic. She's been a romance reader for as long as she can remember; she even works in a library. So obviously, she's a lit whiz. Her job working the night shift can be pretty boring sometimes, but she's content with it. Even better, boring shifts leave more time for reading. But when star basketball player Vincent Knight shows up at her desk needing poetry recommendations, Kendall doesn't initially think much of it.

But when her and Vincent's interaction fades into something more, she starts to realize that having a real, passionate love story might be worth the risk of something real.

Did this book have a plot? No, no it did not. Did I love it anyways? Yes, yes I did. If you are falling into a reading slump or, worse, are already in one, this is the book for you. It's an easy, quick read that's paced well and really funny. I don't laugh at books that much; I'm more of a smile and kick my feet kinda girl, but this book had me in shambles. I was CACKLING.

    Introducing The Love Interests 📖🏀

    '*•.¸♡ Kendall Holiday ♡¸.•*'

╰┈➤My roommates call me a hopeless romantic. I let them. It’s nicer than being called a lonely hermit.

It's so weird to type 'kendall' this and 'kendall' that, like, what am I doing, writing an autobiography? But that aside, I resonate on a personal level with this girl. She was such a sweet character and a huge overthinker. Kendall was the kind of character that rarely jumps right into things, and when she does, there is going to be some SERIOUS spiraling after. Overall, she was just a fun character that I enjoyed reading about.

    ≪•◦ ❈ ◦•≫ Vincent Knight ≪•◦ ❈ ◦•≫

╰┈➤“I kissed you because I wanted to kiss you," he says. "I memorized poems for you because I wanted to be able to talk to you about the shit you like."

If a man memorized poetry for me, I would actually propose right then and there. No argument or further conversations are necessary. AND ALSO, VINCENT WAS SUCH A SUNSHINEY GOLDEN RETRIVER BOY? The fact that his friends had to hype him up just to meet Kendall at Starbucks had me SWOONING 😭😭 I love shy book men. . Vincent was also great at communication, like my man was willing to do anything for this girl including putting up with her occasional panicky behavior. Live laugh love him 💝💝💝

୭ The Romance ୭

And then he takes my hands in his and brings them up to his lips, one at a time, to press two soft kisses to my knuckles. It feels so utterly Jane Austen that I think I might cry.

"Well, that's a travesty. You're a work of art."
I roll my eyes.
"Holiday," Vincent says, voice low, "I mean what I say to you."

“Then for the sake of being direct,” he says, “I can’t stop thinking about you, Kendall. And I’ve read every goddamned poem Elizabeth Barrett Browning ever wrote. In three weeks. For fun.”

I'm not a big fan of the insta-love trope, but once again, may I reiterate that this book brought me out of my slump, so I cannot complain. While their romance felt a little rushed, it was also really sweet and adorable. These two were such dorks for each other, and I loved watching them pine. 🩷🩷🩷

    ୨୧ Side Characters I Want to Talk About ୨୧

୨୧ Harper
She was such a sweetie pie, and I loved her little thing with Jabari. I know that they aren't getting their own book, but if Miss Annie ever changes her mind, she should know I'll be her #1 advertiser 🙇‍♀️🙇‍♀️

୨୧ Nina
I LOVE NINA. Nina is the best friend that everyone needs. She's funny and supportive and so incredibly loyal to Kendall and Harper that it made my heart ache. I also loved how she humbled Kendall like that had me giggling 🤧🤧 I desperately hope that she too gets her happy little romance story. 💝💝

୨୧ Jabari
He is the wingman the world needs.

        ༉‧₊˚. Things I Liked ༉‧₊˚.

- The Pacing
This book was WRITTEN for people who need a short, easy, and fun romance. If you're just looking for some cutesy characters and beautiful chemistry, congratulations, you found your book.

- The Characters
The book felt very real and well-written. The characters felt very real, and I had a lot of fun with their personalities.

- THE COMMUNICATION
THIS WAS AMAZING AND GORGEOUS AND I LOVED IT 👩‍🍳💋

    ༉‧₊˚. Things I Didn't Liked ༉‧₊˚.

- How Fast It Happened
They just like . . . liked each other so fast 😭😭 I didn't necessarily want a slow-burn but I wish there had been a teensy bit more buildup or something leading to their eventual love story, you know?

    ✧ The Writing ✧

Other than the fact that it felt a *little* bit rushed, I really enjoyed the writing and will definitely be buying more of this authors books if she continues publishing them.

    ✧ Summary ✧

This book was a perfect 4 out of 5 for me. While I can see myself rereading it, it def won't be for a pretty long time. Maybe I'll pick it up again if I ever—dare I jinx it—fall into another reading slump 🤧🤧

Official Age Rating: 17+

Spice Level: 4 out of 5 🌶️

TRIGGER WARNINGS
(mild violence mentioned off-screen)

[Hannah · Rating 2 out of 5]

She did what... WHERE??

[Megan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was such a great story.
Don’t let the cover fool you. It is book full of spice.

The banter between the characters was very well written and had me laughing. I read the book in three hours because I didn’t want to not know what was happening next. Will definitely read more books by the author!!

[bae 🧸ྀི ❀ · Rating 2 out of 5]

2 ⭐️
THIS BOOK IS THE DEFINITION OF MISCOMMUNICATION TROPE (🫶🏻🙂). You know the flow that romance books has, you actually feel like you are in the book with them. THIS BOOK LACKED THAT. But, the writing was pretty well structured knowing it was a WATTPAD book (iykyk). Overall, an ok read.

[⊹‧₊˚౨ৎ abbie · Rating 1 out of 5]

one word. dogshite.

[Maya · Rating 1 out of 5]

Boriiingggg

DNF 50% tried to be a meta self-aware romance book but it was just unrealistic and cringe

so she’s all like “I hate the miscommunication trope” and tells the H “let’s be direct with each other” and then immediately after she makes an assumption from i'd say little evidence that he fucked her as a bet or whatever and instead of directly asking him she sulks and pushes him away girl bye 💀 direct my fucking ass hole

EDIT: this book is extremely forgettable I don't even remember ^ that part I thought I DNF'd one chapter in lol yikes

[Bryce Rocks My Socks · Rating 4 out of 5]

im sacrificing what would (obviously) be a fantabulous review bc u all need to read this.

"The thing is, I don't read romance novels for the realism. I read them because they make me feel seen and heard as a woman. They let me explore my desires- both the ones I'm proud of and the ones I clear from my search history- and they've taught me who I am and what I want.
I'm always going to be a reader. And I'm always going to be a romantic."

[Hannah Lehnert · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF at 20%. This book Reads like a 15 year old daydreaming about going to college and getting the hotshot athlete but she’s a nerd hermit. Like picture perfect, no flaws, he’s so attracted to her based off literally nothing, etc etc etc.
and I WAS this girl but like. Cringey.
Also I think it leaned too hard into the meta “omg as a romance reader it’s like I’m in one of my novels” thing. Maybe if it were less hard on that it would be a little better? Or just not make the comparison?

[Christy · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

Okay, this was super cute. The bookworm and the athlete. Some of the miscommunication in the middle was annoying, but aside from that I really enjoyed it!

Audio book source: Hoopla
Story Rating: 3.5 stars
Narrators: Victoria Connolly
Narration Rating: 4 stars
Genre: Romance
Length: 8h 12m

[Steph ✨ · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was so unbelievably good. On page 16 I literally wrote in the book "it was in this moment, she predicted 5 stars" and boy was I right.
Everything about this was incredible, the characters, the setting and atmosphere, the communication, the friendships and relationships. I loved it all. The spice was incredible. Even the first time they slept together. I'm always going on about how there aren't enough awkward first time sex scenes (like how it actually is in real life), and this one did it perfectly. Fumbling, awkwardness, making each other chuckle. Done so well. This whole book had me kicking my feet and chuckling whilst equally saying "SIR?!" and "yes queen" repeatedly out loud.
I had a freaking blast, I bloody loved this. Give us more from these characters please Annie.

[Lydia · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.75
Es un libro de lo más entretenido, pero han habido cosas que no esperaba y que me han encantado.

La primera es que (por advertencia general) pensaba que el libro iba a estar cargado de escenas spicy sin sentido o contexto, pero la trama las lleva a momentos claves para la protagonista llenos de romance. No he sentido que estuvieran metidas ahí porque sí.
La segunda es que aunque es un libro cuyo objetivo es entretenerte y pasar el rato (apenas llega a las 300 páginas) el toque de que la protagonista sea una lectora actual, con sus bromas sobre clichés, escenas míticas, referencias a Goodreads o a comentarios y problemas que todas decimos y hacemos, lo hace algo más divertido y real. Esto se aplica tanto a ella como a su entorno, sus dos mejores amigas que están al tanto de la pasión de Kendall, por lo que lo hace incluso más cercano.

El punto flojo es que es bastante instalove. Tiene sentido porque la trama es corta pero intensa, especialmente por la personalidad “hopeless romantic” de la protagonista y el crush masivo del interés amoroso (con sus vibes de golden retriever), pero si lees el libro esperando algo que no sea eso, puede llegar a chocar o decepcionar.
En mi caso ha sido justo lo que estaba buscando e incluso mejor, así que lo recomiendo sin dudar.

[Jade Ratley · Rating 4 out of 5]

7.47 on CAWPILE

This book thoroughly surprised me with how much I loved it. As someone who is usually not a romance reader, I absolutely ate this up in one sitting.

[Meags · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 Stars

I was vibing this book so hard, I read it in less than 24 hours—which is why I’m unapologetically dishing out full stars for absolutely entertaining me and making me feel happier than I’ve felt in ages reading a romance story.

[j o h a n n a ౨ৎ · Rating 5 out of 5]

the communication 😍😍

[Kat🌟 · Rating 1 out of 5]

Well! This really shows the negative impact of main character syndrome

[Jena · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars
Night Shift is a silly, lighthearted romance perfect for when you're looking for an easy fluff read. The main character lives out a quaint little wattpad-esque romance. Except actually, the main character is a reader who is aware of the fact that her romantic experience feels like it's out of a book. She is trying not to over romanticize her life or criticize her reading habits all at the same time. So it's actually all very meta and self aware, allowing the novel to discuss the judgements often placed on women and their hobbies, so actually this isn't a fluff read, surprise! I really enjoyed all these discussions regarding women's fiction and relationship standards. I found the main character to be perfectly relatable, and the dialogue realistically funny, without being too quirky. There was one fight the main character had with her roommates that felt like it was trying too hard to be meta, but other than that I really loved the grounded aspects of this novel. The only thing I didn't like was the pacing. The only way that this book really felt like it was originally fanfic was in regards to the pacing. There would be a chapter of romance, then everyday life, then sex, then a fight and so forth. It felt like reading weekly addictions to a fanfic. Additionally, this isn't the type of romance novel where the main characters get into a relationship 30% in and get married by the end of the novel. It's the type where they slowly meet and get together. By the end of the book, they aren't in love, they simply have started dating. I have read books like this before. They aren't inherently bad, I just think along with the other issues with pacing, this made the romance feel a little disappointing. I was so in love with this couple like 20 pages in, but by the time I got half way through the book I realized I was never going to actually see them dating, except for maybe in the epilogue. So while I did really enjoy most aspects of this book and think the author has potential, I do think there needs to be a stricter plot structure with her books going forward.

[abi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Easily one of my fave wattpad books of all time. Case closed