Elevator Pitch: A Neighbors-To-Lovers Romance

Hapless In Love #1

by Evelyn Leigh

Selah Bailey, an anxious homebody determined to become the main character in her own story, embarks on a fresh path. Creates a “F*ck It List” with goals to force her out of her comfort zone, introducing her to a life outside of her front door.

However, a partner is necessary to complete her more adventurous goals, so she joins a popular dating app. After what may be the worst date ever, she meets Greyson in the elevator of her building. 

The pressure to complete the list is on and she seeks an arrangement with anyone tolerable—though a certain neighbor comes to mind.

Greyson exceeds all her expectations and has the potential to be the perfect hero for her story. Except falling in love is against the rules and she should leave the house to find it. 


Greyson Park is a business-oriented divorcè, who prefers long walks with his dog and to keep things casual in his love life.

As the creator of a successful dating app, he’s become quite the modern-day matchmaker. Despite his appreciation for others’ love lives, he can’t forgive himself for the past and believes romance isn’t in the cards for a second time.

To silence the rumors about him not moving on, he agrees to an arrangement with his neighbor, finding himself a plus one for his ex's wedding.

Selah unknowingly challenges his views on casual dating and opens his eyes to a life beyond the office. Except falling in love is against the rules, and he should use his app to find it.

Genres: Romance, Contemporary Romance, Contemporary, Friends To Lovers, Found Family, He Falls First, Forced Proximity

438 pages, Paperback

First published September 27, 2024

About the author

(This is my OFFICIAL & ONLY Goodreads Profile)

Evelyn Leigh is an indie contemporary and dark romance author based in the Midwest. A multifaceted Gemini who’s lived a thousand lives both in and out of books. Writing worlds for you to escape to using the imagination she never quite outgrew.

Evelyn loves creating underrepresented characters that are relatable for you to live vicariously through. She likes sharing fast paced stories sure to make you laugh, cry, swoon and blush. After reading countless happily ever afters, she has decided to try her hand at writing her own. Here’s to her next chapter.

Follow her on IG/Threads/Tiktok @evelynleighauthor

Reviews

[tane'a]

dnf @34% when i tell you i was SOOOO excited for this book😩actually pains me to say i didn’t fully enjoy the portion that i read

the premise of this book was there, 10/10, but the execution just wasn’t hitting for me, i guess i just didn’t mesh with the writing style ?

between extensive-unnecessary information, cringey dialogue, and awkward pacing, this sadly just wasn’t the book for me

[myo ⋆｡˚ ❀ * · Rating 3 out of 5]

this book does a LOT of telling instead of showing and it feels a bit lazy tbh. either that or the author just isn’t that good. i feel like this book was just poorly written in general. it was really corny and there was some writing choices that had me rolling my eyes. outside of the writing i think this book has potential, it was interesting and i liked their romance dynamic

[Shawnaci Schroeder · Rating 4 out of 5]

4/5
- This book was spicy, but so so good!! If you’re an acts of service or words of affirmations girlie, you’ll love every second of this story. Greyson wasn’t shy showing his love to Selah!
- Was so surprised by how spicy this one was! If you love reading about someone calling the mmc Daddy and dark romance spice vibes, this one is for you!
- The found family in this story was everythingggg! I fell in love with every single character and I can’t wait to read more of the series!!

[Eleanor · Rating 4 out of 5]

Elevator Pitch is a neighbors to lovers romance full of communication, love, and so much charged chemistry. Following a meet cute, Selah and Grey instantly hit it off, however as Selah is still healing and growing from her last relationship; she's not quite ready for anything more than casual. As it turns out, Grey is feeling the same, and the two strike up a benefits only relationship. This was such a sweet and endearing romance, I loved how Selah and Grey were so good to each other. The two were so cute together, their communication and chemistry were off the charts. While I do think the first %30 or so is a little slow with the writing style, once you get into it, the romance and steam carry the book all the way through. I think Evelyn Leigh did a wonderful job with this debut, and I can't wait to see how she improves with each next release!

[Koryne · Rating 2 out of 5]

i just don’t think this was for me…. the premise sounded great (minus the daddy kink which isn’t my fave but i know what i’m getting into) but it missed the mark. i don’t want to just shit on it, because there were some things that i liked so i’ll start with those.

almost all the characters in this book are in therapy or started therapy and i think that’s so great! you never really read about male characters choosing to get therapy and it was nice to see.

the friend group was also very interesting. i liked their dynamic

unfortunately that’s where to ends.

i didn’t care for the writing style. it was like there were a lot of words for no reason. i could skip like three pages of inner monologue and not miss a thing.

there was SO MUCH telling. so many important scenes were reduced to just “i told her about the breaking the no sleepover rule and it went great” i would have like to actually SEE that.

greyson being married before was also not my jam. he really loved his ex wife and created a dating app to get over her HOWEVER he does say pretty early on that his feelings for Selah are greater than those of his ex wife’s but it was brought up so many times and was such a big plot point that it didn’t sound like he was over her.

he has had MANY casual flings but none that slept over (except for Selah) and another thing that was told and not shown was their safety talk. they used condoms and she has an iud but all that was told was that he was clean. no mention of his last time or anything. and selah has been celibate for like two years after her ex fiancé so i didn’t like that it seemed so uneven. he also mentioned that he only ever went bare when he was married WHICH ALSO ANNOYED ME.

also not to mention the one of the first things he ever said to Selah was “you can call me Grey if you’re nasty” and 🤢 that wasn’t sexy. that was cringe and creepy as FUCK.


i did receive this as an arc and i hate to give a low rating but this just didn’t work for me.

[kimberly ☆]

dnfed at 30%

might come back to it but i couldn’t really get into the this one, i’m kinda in a slump i will say and the writing isn’t bad so it’s probably me rn, but the pacing was a bit off for me and the fmc isn’t my favorite

[DeannaReadsandSleeps · Rating 3 out of 5]

this was very okay. selah and greyson were cute, i liked their friends, i enjoyed how much the author showed us the benefits of therapy, and it was nice seeing these characters so understood and loved by the people around them.

unfortunately…the dialogue was quite cringe at times, and the love scenes were not a fave of mine at all (the car scene kinda ate thooooo). some scenes in the book seemed longer than they needed to be, but then moments that i wanted explored simply weren’t. lots of conversations and plot that we should have directly witnessed were told in recaps (RECAPS!!!!!!????) including what should have been a major love scene that took place during a time they were desperately yearning for each other but were feeling hopeless about it.

why wouldn’t you flesh that out??????

because of this, the pacing took a hell of a hit, at least for me. it felt like i was playing catch up, like i missed an episode.

also, this book reminded me how much i dislike daddy kink and good girl, and it sucked that there was so much of it.

anyway, there were many cute moments as well, and audrey was a standout character for me.

i just wish the book had been structured differently, because when it was sweet, it was SWEET.

[Kristia Peschka · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved the premise of this book but it fell really flat for me. I think it was the writing style that got me. This was almost all tell and no show. There were a ton of conversations that instead of us reading the conversation we'd get a summarized version in the character's mind, and I think it would have been more powerful if we had read the conversations.

There was also way too much setting up for other books. We're given PAGES of an info dump on the friend group. We get their back story, their star sign (tho we're never told Selah's, yes I could look it up, but why tell me everyone else's and not her's?). We were given so much backstory on one couple I had to go and double check that this really was the first book in this series! It read 100% like this was book four and we should already know these people and were getting the reminder rundown.

There were also a lot of continuity issues throughout. At one point a neighbor comes over to Selah's with wine and burgers. Selah opens the wine and pours the glasses, the neighbor asks her to grab plates for the food and says she'll pour (even though Selah just did), then Selah says it's 10:00am and early for wine. But why wouldn't she say that before opening the wine.

A lot of the conversations that we did get to read were either:
1. Cringe. And not just between the MMC & FMC, the conversations they had with other people in their lives were cringy.
2. Have incorrect tenses. The responses that a character would give didn't use the correct phrasing and it threw me off a lot.

Spice:
I think the sex scenes we fine, some felt rushed and not fully thought out. At times I would wonder how we moved from one place to the next. There is a daddy kink here, which I didn't realize how much was gunna bother me. I've read others before and not had an issue. I'm not changing my rating on it due to that, since that's my own issue. And not trying to yuk anyone's yum, but the 2 year age difference with the daddy kink was harder to get on board with for me. I think that's my biggest struggle with it.
Selah also says she's been celibate for 2 years. Yet multiple items on her Fuck it List involve sexual acts. So is it that she has been celibate by choice, or has she just not had sex for 2 years. To me, those mean different things!

The Fuck It List - we never learn what's fully on the list. We get bits and pieces here. But I wish I knew what was all on the list. It would have painted a better picture of Selah in my mind.

Selah's past trauma was also handled kinda weird for me. Like a lot of it was just sorta brushed over, when it's such a HUGE part of her identity.

Greyson's past with his ex wife was also odd. I really didn't understand why he was still friends with her. Like their divorce definitely kinda f'd him up, and the fact that his parents, and his brother are all still close and friendly with her seemed inappropriate.

The third act breakup was so pointless. It really showed how immature Selah was. She was completely wishy-washy after. She never trust Grey or took him at his word, even though he'd only ever shown her he could be trusted. If he said something, he meant it and he never gave her reason to question that, so why was she all of a sudden questioning it.

Thanks to Good Girls PR for the arc!

[Tanisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

“For those who need a reminder that they are worthy of love.” - Evelyn Leigh.

What do you do after leaving an abusive relationship and deciding to choose yourself by moving to New York City? You create a “F*ck It List” of goals and experiences to get you out of your comfort zone since you're an anxious homebody that doesn’t take risks. Some of those experiences require a partner, and what better partner than your fine-ass neighbor, Greyson, who lives on the 12th floor? Sounds fun and exciting, right? Sike. What happens when feelings become involved and things move past the neighbors with benefits agreement you've both set in place?

Selah: She is me, and I am her. While reading I found myself relating to Selah in more ways than one so much that I had to stop a process a few times. Leaving an unfortunate relationship, jumping back into the dating pool that’s full of piss and horrible dates (that man dropped an egg on her feet), and wanting to be loved deeply and seen by someone while simultaneously being scared to give your heart to anyone that gets close to you are some of the things I've experienced. Yeah, girl, we see each other. 🥺

Greyson: What a man, what a man, what a mighty good man. I hate to say it, but Greyson is giving some of my book boyfriends a run for their money because he was like no other. Greyson was kind, attentive, and a PLEASURE DOM! Y'all have seen the quotes so do with that as you will. Anyway! Although Greyson was everything a book boyfriend could be, he had his issues just like Selah. I was glad to see him finally go to therapy to work through processing the emotions he felt after his divorce. 🩵

Selah and Greyson: Ugh! I loved these two together. The banter. The deep conversations. The love. The sadness. They were two souls who found themselves feeling unworthy of love due to past relationship trauma, but once they finally came together .. the love they both shared for each other could not be denied. Even with the "blow up" during chapters 63-72, I still believed these two were destined to be together. They both needed to figure out if their past relationship mistakes and neighbors-with-benefits agreement were going to keep them from receiving the love they both rightfully deserved. 🫂

My favorite highlights:

* Greyson's father finally comes around and has a heart-to-heart with him about why he wasn’t being the best father when he was married. WHEW! That conversation was a lot, but much needed.

* The friendships and family dynamics were SO good. Of the friends, Audrey and Eric stole the show. Why was he about to lose his mind over Doublestuf Oreos?

* Chapter 61: WFH - When Greyson said "Crawl to me," I almost got on the floor with Selah.

* The wisdom and advice that Estelle gave Selah. Whew!

* The "Body Language" playlist Greyson made for Selah. As a tatted girly, let a man create a playlist that's about my tattoos and watch me fold fast.

All in all, this was a cute read and I enjoyed reading about Selah and her journey of knocking things off of her "F*ck It List", becoming more strong her abilities, and extending grace to the girl she was before while finding the man of her dreams who happened to live in her apartment building. Maybe the love of my life lives on the 4th floor of my apartment building, too? 🤷🏽‍♀️

Sidenote: I will say that if you're not the type that likes to read books where the author describes what the character does, this may not be the book for you. I thoroughly enjoyed this book, but I did have to get used to this writing style. Check your trigger warnings as well!

Thank you so much to Evelyn, my Gemini twin, for personally sending me an ARC of Elevator Pitch. I am excited to see what's next in The Hapless in Love Series. 👀

[salamireads · Rating 3 out of 5]

3⭐️
“I need to give myself permission to let him love me while I’m still a work in progress. I may never be fully healed, but Greyson meets me where I am and gives me all he’s got. Imagine how much more he could do if I let him.”

Introduction
Elevator Pitch was a highly anticipated indie release since I first saw the promotion on Bookstagram. The marketing was really good, so I sprinted when the ARC sign ups went live. Big thanks to Good Girls PR and the author for the early digital copy.

With such promising promotion, I was eager to see how it would translate into the final product. Was the marketing accurate or misleading? . The answer: yes??? (it was accurate), I guess??? . It pretty much delivered on what was promised, but I had mixed feelings. I went in with no expectations, yet I was disappointed.

The God-awful First Interaction
Selah and Greyson’s first meeting nearly made me DNF the book and I was only three chapters in. My god, I hated it and (mostly) because of Greyson. He’s supposed to be this suave, flirty guy, but his character was anything but. Not only was the writing and dialogue stilted , Greyson talked like it was rehearsed.

I can best describe it as his lines feeling like they were soley written with the purpose of being used in those marketing Tiktoks/ reels with the thirst trap music, instead of actual dialogue between our leads .Frankly , at that point I didn’t understand why Selah was thirsting over him , I was creeped out. I personally would never speak to that man again .

Still, I held out hope and continued

My favourite part of the book was, without a doubt, Selah’s friends. Although their introductions were info-dumpy and hard to follow at first, Audrey, Eric, Rome, Chess, and Daya completely stole the show.

Death to the ‘Spicy Romance Reader’ Character

Incoming tangent

I am quickly getting tired of the avid "spicy romance reader" character in romance novels. There are exceptions, of course, and when done well, it can be fun, a clever fourth wall break that endears us to the protagonist (There are plenty of books I love which have bookish MCs!).

However , with this trend I’ve noticed that author’s have become overly reliant on this shared interest between the MC and reader . Instead of it being an aspect of the MC , they forgo character building and use that as a gimmick to maintain the audiences attention .

In Elevator Pitch, there were constant references to Greyson’s book boyfriend prowess and how he was so "man written by a woman coded" - It was excessive. From the premise, I knew that Selah was in a book club and loved reading. Instead of naturally highlighting Greyson’s qualities that would lead the reader think of him as a book boyfriend, Leigh had to beat us over the head with it . It was frustrating because there were genuinely sweet moments between them, but it felt like the author didn’t trust the reader to know that.

That’s not to say the bookish references were entirely out of place, they worked in some areas. I just wish they’d been used sparingly and for that page-time be used to develop other things. For example, I wanted more insight into Selah’s work life, it was unclear on what she does.

The Discussions Around Kink
I went into this knowing that there was a daddy kink (not my favourite but we move), and I was hoping there would be actual discussions around kink and boundaries. Selah, who was celibate at the time, hadn’t felt comfortable voicing her sexual needs in her previous relationship. It seemed like we were heading toward some meaningful exploration of that. But instead all we really got was that Greyson likes to be called "daddy" and Selah likes to be choked-the end. I’ll admit, this might be a bit nit-picky, but I was hoping for more. Which leads me to my next point

Other reviewers have pointed out Leigh’s tendency to summarise conversations and rely on telling rather than showing. I had a lovely conversation with another ARC reader who said it best: Elevator Pitch didn’t feel like a complete story. It came across as a collection of ideas rather than a cohesive narrative. Many scenes and character arcs felt too contained within certain sections of the book or were awkwardly crammed into the end, rather than having a natural buildup throughout. The writing was also inconsistent, with Leigh occasionally veering into a lyrical style which was jarring and ruined my reading flow .

Final Thoughts
In conclusion, Elevator Pitch had potential. Its messaging about reinvention, second chances, community, and therapy was strong. I really liked the side characters, and some scenes were solid. However, the themes didn’t have the foundation they needed to be adequately explored because of weak writing and character building.

This is a debut novel, and it’s clear that the author is still experimenting and finding her style. I’d be open to reading another one of her books (if I’m in the right mood) because this was easy to get through and at some parts were enjoyable.

[Disgusted Reader]

I have to add this to the DNF pile unfortunately. What I read so far was painfully cringy.

[Giovana · Rating 2 out of 5]

Saying "you can call me Grey, if you're nasty" the first time you meet someone is neither flirting nor cute.

[J Reads · Rating 5 out of 5]

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5
🌶️🌶️🌶️.5/5

I have had the immense pleasure of reading Elevator Pitch as an alpha reader for Evelyn Leigh. And let me just say, YOU ARE NOT READY!

This book is everything I could've ever hoped for and so much more. It's swoony and delightful with all the spice your heart could desire, and it's tied up in this gorgeous little package.

The characters are somehow both relatable and somehow so breathtakingly perfect. I truly have no words to describe each and every person in this book! They're just perfect 🥹

This book is for those who want a whirlwind romance with all the stops, while also getting those 'comfort read' vibes. Grey is the perfect gentleman when needed (I mean, COME ON! he takes his shoes off in the house 😭). And Selah is a total girl's girl, wearing her heart on her sleeve and mustering up the courage to show her vulnerability.

I just loved them both so freaking much, plus the side characters (who are practically main characters in their own right) are incredible too. I am obsessed with the BIPOC representation throughout the entire book, and the little details that add to each characters personality intertwine so much with their cultural backgrounds.

I can't wait for the future books in The Hapless in Love series and if you haven't already, you NEED to add it to your TBR!

[Cydney · Rating 5 out of 5]

After leaving a toxic, abusive relationship, Selah, a Black woman approaching 30, commits herself to a "F*ck-It List" she commits to pushing herself to exist outside of her comfort zone and dare to do things she typically wouldn't. This leads her to join a dating app where she is increasingly unlucky in love. After a particularly bad date, she runs into Greyson, a Korean American workaholic and love-evader in the elevator of their building, and they're both down bad from jump.

As they continue to hang out, Selah finds out Greyson is the owner and creator of the dating app. Greyson realizes he doesn't want Selah to seek other dates on the app, so he offers to help her with her list, asking her to be his plus one to his ex wife's wedding to a man she met on the app. Of course, angst, lust, trust, and eventually, love, find Greyson and Selah's, and I squealed and kicked my feet.

The side characters were fun and funny, supportive but not meddling, and kept Selah and Greyson balanced and accountable. Greyson was literally perfection—the epitome of a book boyfriend—and I have no notes. Selah was strong and dynamic, and as she learns to be led by her desires instead of her fears, she is unstoppable and unendingly lovable. The audiobook is spectacular! Aure Nash and Nick Martineau were perfect for Selah and Greyson, and captured their humor, cadence, and personalities wonderfully.

This was swoonworthy and cute and sweet and spicy and funny! I loved.

5 ⭐️s
3 🌶️

[suonnahbooks · Rating 4 out of 5]

Elevator pitch by Evelyn Leigh
-loveeee Selah’s bucket list I need to do a naughty one 👀
-she’s hilarious I feel like we’d be besties
-omg the dating in the book is so relatable I feeelll it
-omg the drama with Grayson’s ex and divorce yikes , love his self awareness and growth, him founding a dating app is so cool period lol
-he sounds so cute , his dog Clifford 🥹
-their meet cute has me giddy im delulu
-love the therapy and mental health rep especially for black women 🫶🏾
-Selah is so me black woman, home body , reader with a book club 👏🏾♥️
-I love them getting to know each other through little meet cute and hangouts
-him buying her a bunch of books I love Grayson 😩
-“when life gives you pot make brownies 😂”
-their connection Ouff the spice Ouff the BDE ouff 👀❤️‍🔥
-🌻
-her past relationship 💔
-so much healing I love it ❤️‍🩹
-meet cute neighbours, to friends, to friends with benefits, to fake dating gobble gobble
-the playlists 😭🫶🏾
-PRIVATE JET 🛩️🤯🤪
-this book was so good this romance was truly beautiful and healing 🥹❤️‍🔥
Rating:⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

[sahar (warner's version)]

"What are great Dog Daddy you are"

His POV

Is she flirting with me? God, i hope so.

[Mary Mimi Brown · Rating 3 out of 5]

4.5 I took my time reading this book. I really enjoyed this NTM author. I will be reading while she drops! Super cute and spicy!!

[SirLir · Rating 2 out of 5]

Too many names, no conflict, not funny ... nothing really happens. Dnf @ 50%.
And the elevator pitch is nothing like the summary said.

[Emily A.L. · Rating 2 out of 5]

Book Club Reads ♥️ While Elevator Pitch has its moments, organizationally and structurally it’s a total mess. There are arguably several plot crux’ that could be strong on their own but together only detract from one another. Frankly two separate <300 page stories following the presented themes would have made each stronger and more compelling.

Our main character motives felt inconsistent and unfocused and (I can't emphasize this enough) pacing is all over the place — we spend entire chapters on funny albeit pretty mundane conversations with friends while limiting what seem like really important conversations to short paragraphs of exposition. Like, those are the important parts to this romance! Give me more of that!

I do really commend Leigh for a story that feels super realistic but that hyper-realism comes at the risk of feeling scattered, meandering, and dull. I feel like Leigh tried to pack in every romance trope she could into this, at the detriment of a clear or compelling story.

For what it’s worth the sexy bits are still sexy, and I think with the help of a good editor to direct her vision further, her future books could be really great.

I’d still recommend this to those who enjoy contemporary romance, anxiety-ridden grumpy girls, sweet men with Daddy kinks, and lots of developed friendships ♥️

[BookmarkedByAlia · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.25⭐️

This was a cute and spicy read.
Greyson is the ultimate book boyfriend in every way possible. Love to see a MMC in a book loving on the FMC properly. However, I really wanted to like this one more than I did, but the flow of the story threw me off.
The inner monologue in both POVs was a lot and felt as if it was a long recap of what already happened with the characters as opposed to letting those scenes play out on page. It took me out of the story every time which made my time with this one less enjoyable as I would have liked.
I’d still recommend because my gripes might not be someone else’s. I still plan to continue with the series because I’m definitely invested in the friend group now🤗

[Shannai · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 ⭐️

It is not lost on me that this took me almost three weeks to finish— and I’m actually unsure on how to feel about the book and rate it. Please do not read this if you loved this book or if you're the author. While this review isn't intending to come from a place of malice and is no way attacking the author’s work, it is my honest thoughts on what I have read.

The premise of this sounded so good, I loved the blurb and how it focused on the “F*ck it List” and needing someone to help achieve them, to help Selah come out of her comfort zone. I also really liked the interracial relationship aspect and Korean representation, I can’t say that I’ve read much before, so I did enjoy the elements of that in the story.

I think very early on it became very apparent how hard it was to engage and connect with the story. There was a lot of info dumping, especially with Selah’s girl group of friends. It felt like it was setting them up for the potential series and future books to come but it was just a lot. To add the writing style was very off, and there was multiple times where I was wondering what was going on just because of how it was written. Forgoing dialogue and summarising a conversation that could’ve really added some depth and just flushed it out a bit could’ve really elevated part of the story and overall plot.

So let’s start with their meet cute, obviously it takes place in the elevator of the building that they live in. Greyson’s introduction, it threw me a little; he says to Selah, ‘she can call him Grey if she’s nasty’ — I don’t know for me for a first impression, just felt very forward (he’s basing this off the book she’s reading) and I cringed.

There were several things that really didn’t sit right with me personally. The daddy kink, felt like it was just dumped into the exploration of Selah and Greyson’s relationship; i’m not sure if that was like intended to be like an undiscovered kink, on Greyson’s part, because I think she called him daddy and he realised that he liked it, I found it in certain places that just felt a bit forced; like calling him daddy for the sake of it.

Selah’s friends were interesting, but again, I found the interactions quite overwhelming, which I think was how it was written and the forgo of dialogue. Audrey, one of Selah’s friends, her interaction with Grayson… first of all her nickname for him, threw me. I just find it a bit weird that your best friend is calling your man ‘big sexy’. (Don’t get me wrong, I totally get it, because who doesn’t have nicknames for the guy that your friend is potentially interested in) but ‘Big Sexy’ just felt weird, to me at least, and then which really cringed me out at this point, was when she kept calling him a good boy. and Greyson wasn’t sure how to feel about the praise which was coming from Selah’s friend?!

A lot of the plot tended to kind of focus on the past relationships, which I can kind of get with how they were both trying to heal and move on from it, Selah was in a toxic relationship and Greyson is divorced. Now, I know this is a modern setting love story, but from what I do know of Korean culture, divorce is heavily frowned upon, and I was quite surprised that that wasn’t touched upon.

There wasn’t necessarily any other woman drama, but with how much Grayson‘s ex-wife was still very much part of his life and mentioned; him even attending her wedding, it kind of felt like there was. I wasn’t sure if that was like supposed to come off as like she wanted to still be friends with him, or it was a case of wanting for him to see how she had moved on from him. I got the vibe from Grayson‘s point of view it was the latter, but then that she wanted to be friends? I don’t know. I really didn’t understand either on the day of the wedding, why she needed to speak to Greyson, literally before she walked down the aisle. And how that was them brushed under the carpet with Selah? Audrey was mentioned to be staring daggers, but it was just wholly unnecessary.

There was also a third break up when Grayson told Selah that he loved her and she literally ran away from him and her feelings, because she felt like she couldn’t be loved, which was based on her trauma and past relationship. I think it just really reflected the maturity of Selah’s character (she got high and pushed around in an IKEA trolley) instead of talking about her feelings. I get that she felt scared, but in her in a monologue, she knew that she loved him but it was like hearing it out loud for her was a different experience entirely.

Overall, I don’t think it’s a bad book, it just fell flat on what I had expected going into this, and could’ve been executed better in its delivery.

Thank you to Good Girls PR for the e-arc.

[takiyah · Rating 2 out of 5]

in THEORY, this book was great. like it actually should have been. but, it was not for me. bruhhhh i wanted to like this so bad; unfortunately, it made me want to fight whoever taught me how to read. also get me in a ring with every single character in this book and i’ll be the last one standing. don’t get me wrong, they were all lovely people but oh brotherrr was this book corny.

it was so freaky but not in a good way, her freaky ahh mum and elderly neighbour were freaks and everyone was excessively close. sometimes i genuinely wanted to make it stop and had to close my eyes. i winced throughout all of the smut. audrey was lowkey my favourite character until she called Grey ‘Big Sexy’. him INTRODUCING himself by saying “Greyson. You can call me Grey if you’re nasty.” oh naw i’m actually getting ptsd and flashbacks.

also every time she covered her face in embarrassment or giggled it chipped years off my lifespan. grown ass adults btw. 30 years old btw. i should’ve DNF’d at page one thirty like i intended.

regrettably 2.2 ⭐️

[Sammy &#x1f497; · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 ⭐️

This book was so good, I couldn’t put it down—it was such an enjoyable read. It gave off cozy vibes with a bit of spice on the side and some funny moments. I loved Greyson’s friend, Estelle; she had me laughing out loud a few times. Selah and Greyson together were perfection for me. The individual growth and their growth as a couple made me connect with the characters so much. Greyson is Selah’s book boyfriend in real life with everything he did throughout the story, and he knew exactly what he wanted when it came to her. I definitely devoured this book and can’t pick just one favorite moment since I loved it all. In the end, love definitely trumps all in this beautiful love story."

I am looking forward to reading the rest of this series.

[May · Rating 1 out of 5]

I DNF bc the third act break up was so stupid, I’m sorry.

They enter a neighbours with benefits agreement with the typical ground rules, which they both end up breaking one by one, until they break the big one: don’t fall in love. FMC runs off in tears and places the blame on the MMC for developing feelings, as if she stuck by every rule they set and did everything to avoid this. The (FMC) dialogue and inner monologue was so cringe during the break up, especially knowing they’re 30 year olds like please grow up.

[Gry ☾ · Rating 4 out of 5]

°. *࿐pre-read:

okay already the authors note got to me.
this has been severely neglected on my tbr for like a year, but i have a feeling it might become a new fave 🤭

[Kendra ♡ Shannon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beta read 🥹 I give this book ALL the stars.

Yall are going to seriously fall in love with Greyson and Selah. They’re the kind of couple that nestles into your heart. Greyson is truly everything you’d want in a man and there is a part of Selah in all of us 🥹.

This book follows Greyson who is a mid 30’s divorcee who helps people find love but struggles to accept love in his life. Meanwhile Selah is getting out of an abusive relationship and is finding it hard to trust anyone enough to fall in love. Together, they find not only love, but solace in each other. and it’s so beautiful and hilarious at times and spiccyyy and gives you all the feels!!

They will live in your mind rent free 🤭

[Em · Rating 2 out of 5]

The writing style made this book incredibly hard to fall into. Cringey lines aside, EVERYTHING is “telling” rather than “showing” every little thing is explained. Redundancy was also an issue. They would like reintroduce characters. Ex Rome being introduced as the hot book boyfriend lawyer twice in a few chapters…

I think the idea of the plot if good. The execution leaves much to be desired.

[Leelee · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF this book and the authors writing style was not for me. There is too much inner dialog, and I am not a fan of that. Also, the inclusion of the secondary characters seemed forced to me. Just didn't flow well.

[Stacie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sweet, funny, spicy, and heart healing. Very good.

[bluntreads · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5✨

For their first book not bad. I enjoyed it for the most part, BUT it definitely needed a little more editing. I’m also floundering between a 3.3 and 3.5 rating with this book, but I’ll stick with a 3.5 because I really liked the characters within the book.

My first and biggest issue with this book was sentence structures. Sometimes the sentences felt choppy, and it really messed with the flow of the story at times. It wasn’t apparent throughout the entire book, but you see it a lot in the beginning and various places within the book. Not to much for me to dnf since I caught it and read some sentences as one but something to take note of.

My next issue was that I wish the story didn’t cut to the next scene so much or mentioned things happening but not letting us in to see what happened. Like I wish we saw Greyson go to Chuseok so we could see his families’ dynamic before they kissed and make up. I wish we got a flashback of both of their relationships. I wish we had more book club meetings with Selah’s friends, or going to pole dance class and what that was like since she dealt with anxiety. We saw a glimpse of their inner circle and lives, but I felt like more could have been shared especially since the events in the book happens over the span of a year AND since this is going to be a series following the other friends I’m guessing. Let us really meet the hapless in love crew.

Lastly, the smut was very sexy at times BUT could get a little corny/cringy for me as well as a little over-exaggerated. I think it’s because I have read a couple serious BDSM eroticas before, and as much as this wasn’t bad Grey going from golden retriever to “call me daddy” had me choking. As for the over-exaggerated part, don’t say y’all going to be up all night then fuck once then go to sleep no round 2 lmfao??? Or cutting the chapters off when shit was really going off. I to would like to be present for the spankings! With that being said, this is a spicy romance but I wouldn’t say SMUTTT.

As for the things I loved, Greyson and Selah were in a sense perfectly cute. I really enjoyed their dynamic of him caring for her because he simply enjoyed it, and her creating a sense of home for him without even trying to. Selah represented me in many ways as a black cat myself, and I love how much she was cared for throughout this entire book by Grey and her friends and family. And as much she saw her self as unloveable everyone else saw her as the sweetest person in the room who just needs a little care for. The Hapless in Love book club sounded so fun, and I need to find my own romance book club just like it. Eric is a fucking trip. The author’s note was so thoughtful,sweet, and raw, and I’m happy they were able to create this cute romance based off of some of their life. I can’t wait to see what’s next with this series.