Summer in the City: Ein Deal, keine Gefühle

by Alex Aster, Tanja Hamer (translator)

Das Drehbuch für einen großen Film zu schreiben, ist für Elle die Chance ihres Lebens. Das einzige Problem? Sie leidet seit Monaten an einer Schreibblockade, und die Deadline am Ende des Sommers rückt unaufhaltsam näher.

Auf der Suche nach Inspiration zieht Elle für den Sommer zurück nach New York, wo der Film spielen wird. Dass ihr Nachbar ausgerechnet Parker Warren, der Tech-Milliardär ist, hat Elle nicht erwartet – und noch viel weniger, dass Parker sie bittet, über den Sommer sein Fake-Date zu spielen. Er braucht ihre Hilfe, um sein Image vor dem Verkauf seines Unternehmens zu verbessern und bietet Elle im Gegenzug an, sie für das Drehbuch der RomCom zu inspirieren.

Ein Sommer. Eine Fake-Beziehung, von der sie beide profitieren, und keine Gefühle. Was kann da schon schiefgehen?

Genres: Romance, Summer, Audiobook, Contemporary, Summer Reads, Contemporary Romance, Fiction

400 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 25, 2025

Reviews

[Sara Carrolli · Rating 4 out of 5]

A NYC rom com? Sign me up!!!!

I think surface level, this was an enjoyable book - fast paced, good banter, great setting, + a bunch of good tropes! Following these two characters around NYC was so fun & I could picture it as a movie 🎥

I think on a deeper level, it’s not as emotional as I personally love in a romance. I think our MMC lacked a little depth that could’ve helped make his actions a bit more understandable!

[Yana · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐️ UGH I’m actually so maaad. Like… it started off so so cute, I was obsessed with it but the whole ending?!? Like no. Just no. I ended up hating the fmc, she did not deserve Parker, idc what anyone says. Parker was a 10/10 man, she on the other hand… a completely different story, she literally put him through hell tbh

[Ayman · Rating 4 out of 5]

he bought not just her favorite coffee shop but the entire chain just so she’s guaranteed her favorite pastry and latte every time she comes in… this isn’t a hear me out, it’s a HOLD ME TF BACK! i would birth an entire football field for this man if i had the platform 💕🩷🎀⭐️

[mackenzie (hiatus) · Rating 1 out of 5]

i'm sorry (no i'm not) but this was just so bad. like, i literally have not a single good thing to say about it. the only decent thing was the mmc but he bored me so is that even positive?

first of all the whole "enemies to lovers" thing? it's not that at all. they have one (1) exchange and suddenly hate each other over it for years even though they don't even see each other? i mean what? the tension, the angst, the yearning - nowhere to be found. contemporary romances need to stop saying they're enemies to lovers. because genuinely, if we're not in a fantasy or a dark romance, what could possibly happen to make the two characters real enemies?

the fmc is positively insufferable. she has this "not like other girls" vibe for the entire book. the entire book. there was no character growth whatsoever. and can we talk about how hypocritical she was? idk i felt like she was constantly contradicting herself and going against her "beliefs" and "opinions." i nearly dnf'ed just to shut this girl up.

didn't loveeee the writing style. i can't pinpoint exactly what it was, but i didn't like it. and idk if it's the writing style that made the book bad, or if it's the book that made the writing style seem bad. either way, i didn't like it.

clearly this was a letdown. the potential is RIGHT THERE but the bar was missed by 100 feet. cute cover at least, i guess.

thank you to william morrow & netgalley for the arc! all opinions are my own <3

pre-read:
never read an alex aster before but the cover of this just really scratched the itch in my brain that belongs to ten year old me that loved pink and disney channel romcoms

[Emmy Rosam · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a fun summer rom com. I love when books set in NYC make the city feel like its own character - and that’s exactly what this one did!

If a billionaire romance is not a little bit ridiculous then I don’t want it!! This had me giggling, blushing and sometimes even shouting at the characters. This book gave me all the same feelings as my favourite early NYC 2000s romcoms. I want to bottle this feeling and relive it everyday.

Thank you Alex & team for sending me an ARC copy to read early! This is definitely going to be a new comfort read for me.

[naz · Rating 5 out of 5]

“𝑰 𝒋𝒖𝒔𝒕 𝒘𝒂𝒏𝒕,” 𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒂𝒚𝒔, 𝒔𝒍𝒐𝒘𝒍𝒚, 𝒕𝒂𝒌𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒂 𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒑 𝒕𝒐𝒘𝒂𝒓𝒅 𝒎𝒆. 𝑯𝒊𝒔 𝒆𝒚𝒆𝒔 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒃𝒖𝒓𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈, 𝒂 𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒕 𝒐𝒏 𝒇𝒊𝒓𝒆. “𝑨 𝒄𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒃𝒆𝒚𝒐𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒔𝒖𝒎𝒎𝒆𝒓.”

Alex Aster sooo hiii just passing by to say to please keep writing contemporary romance because you killed it with this book!!! 😭❤️ I not only fell in love with your characters, but also fell HARD in love with New York City all over again. 🏙️✨ The entire time I was reading this, I was laughing, kicking my feet, and basically screaming at the pages with everything that was happening. 😂💖 I enjoyed it so freaking much!!

This story is about Parker, a billionaire who doesn’t have a care in the world 💸 and Elle, a successful screenwriter who has writer's block 😅 and is shipped off to the city she escaped from, a city that also contains the person she loathes the most... Parker 😭 HAHAHA and life being the funny thing that it is, her new place just so happens to have him as a neighbor. AAAAAAH 😆 The worst part of it all? He doesn’t even remember her!!! 😭🤣 Gotta love those rom-com vibes.

The emotional turmoil that the author created for the reader throughout this relationship was honestly delicious 👏🥲 The slow burn, the whole "I hate you but you're helping me so I guess i'll help you too" to turning into something more had me kicking my feet SO MANY TIMES 💕 The little gestures (and the big ones too 😭) had me melting and swooning. This was a billionaire romance and boy did it deliver. 🥵

“𝙄 𝙙𝙤𝙣’𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙠 𝙄’𝙫𝙚 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧 𝙨𝙚𝙚𝙣 𝙖𝙣𝙮𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙨𝙤 𝙗𝙚𝙖𝙪𝙩𝙞𝙛𝙪𝙡,” 𝙄 𝙨𝙖𝙮. 𝙋𝙖𝙧𝙠𝙚𝙧 𝙨𝙖𝙮𝙨, “𝙄 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚,” 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙄 𝙜𝙚𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙙𝙞𝙨𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙘𝙩 𝙛𝙚𝙚𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙝𝙚’𝙨 𝙡𝙤𝙤𝙠𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙖𝙩 𝙢𝙚. 𝙄 𝙙𝙤𝙣’𝙩 𝙘𝙝𝙚𝙘𝙠. 𝙄 𝙙𝙤𝙣’𝙩 𝙬𝙖𝙣𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙠𝙣𝙤𝙬.

𝙄 𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙣 𝙩𝙤 𝙋𝙖𝙧𝙠𝙚𝙧. “𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙙𝙞𝙙 𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙧𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙀𝙞𝙛𝙛𝙚𝙡 𝙏𝙤𝙬𝙚𝙧.” 𝙃𝙚 𝙨𝙖𝙮𝙨 𝙣𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜. “𝙎𝙖𝙮 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙙𝙞𝙙𝙣’𝙩 𝙧𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙀𝙞𝙛𝙛𝙚𝙡 𝙏𝙤𝙬𝙚𝙧.” “𝙄 𝙘𝙖𝙣’𝙩.”

Elle ➸
She was so freaking relatable. There were so many times I was like "yup... been there, done that" 😅 and it made me connect with her instantly. She had her flaws, sure, but honestly, it was those flaws that made the book feel so raw and real. I love when romance books aren't just falalala happily ever after, but actually show the struggles and emotions that come with love. 💔❤️‍🔥

𝙄𝙩 𝙬𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙 𝙗𝙚 𝙨𝙤 𝙚𝙖𝙨𝙮, 𝙄 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙠, 𝙩𝙤 𝙛𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙞𝙣 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙝𝙞𝙢. 𝙏𝙤 𝙥𝙧𝙚𝙩𝙚𝙣𝙙 𝙡𝙞𝙛𝙚 𝙞𝙨 𝙖𝙨 𝙨𝙞𝙢𝙥𝙡𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙨𝙩𝙧𝙖𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙬𝙖𝙧𝙙 𝙖𝙨 𝙖 𝙗𝙖𝙨𝙚𝙗𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙜𝙖𝙢𝙚 𝙞𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙢𝙞𝙙𝙙𝙡𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙪𝙢𝙢𝙚𝙧.

Parker ➸
Now PARKER??? OMG. This man was like an onion.. he had layers upon layers. He was charming, loving, and honestly hilarious, but you could tell he was also carrying a lot 😭 He knows he has money and isn't afraid to spend it 💸, but the way he slowly learns that money can't fix everything was so beautiful to read. Seeing his growth and his heart throughout the story made me fall for him so hard 🥹❤️

“𝙄 𝙙𝙞𝙙𝙣’𝙩 𝙛𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙞𝙣 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙖 𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙨𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙤𝙛 𝙮𝙤𝙪, 𝙀𝙡𝙡𝙚,” 𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙖𝙮𝙨. “𝙄 𝙛𝙚𝙡𝙡 𝙞𝙣 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮 𝙮𝙤𝙪.”

If you love a happily ever after but with bumps along the way, where those bumps are HUGE miscommunication moments 🙃 and you also love falling in love not only with the characters but the setting, THIS BOOK IS FOR YOU 🥰📖 I’m seriously obsessed and will be thinking about it for a long time. 🥹✨

tropes
💖 billionaire romance
💖 fake dating
💖 miscommunication
💖 single POV
💖 hate to love
💖 neighbors for the summer

⋆. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁⋆.⋆. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁⋆.
➳ 𝗽𝗿𝗲-𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱｡ꪆৎ ˚⋅ let the start of mARCh commences with this lovely book as Alex Aster with her contemporary romance debut 💞

𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘕𝘦𝘵𝘨𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘺 & 𝘞𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘢𝘮 𝘔𝘰𝘳𝘳𝘰𝘸 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘦𝘈𝘙𝘊 𝘪𝘯 𝘦𝘹𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘮𝘺 𝘩𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘦𝘸

[⋆˚୨ৎ˚⋆ Kim ⋆˚୨ৎ˚⋆ · Rating 2 out of 5]

જ⁀➴ 2.5 stars (rounded down to 2)

"I didn’t fall in love with a version of you, Elle,” he says. “I fell in love with every you."

⋅˚₊‧ ୨୧ ‧₊˚ ⋅ ୨୧ ‧₊˚ ⋅ ୨୧ ‧₊˚ ⋅ ୨୧ ‧₊˚ ⋅ ୨୧ ‧₊˚ ⋅ ୨୧ ‧₊˚ ⋅ ୨୧ ‧₊˚ ⋅ ୨୧ ‧₊˚ ⋅ ୨୧ ‧₊˚ ⋅ ୨୧ ‧₊˚ ⋅ ୨୧ ‧₊˚ ⋅ ୨୧ ‧₊˚ ⋅
Well, I thought today was going to be the day that I finally liked an Alex Aster book and rated one of her books higher than 2 stars. I guess I'm going to have to keep trying because today is STILL not that day. Prepare for a rant review ahead, because hooh boy, I have thoughts about this.

Elle Leon is a 27-year-old screenwriter who writes scripts for movies that turn into major movies on the big screen. She's content with working anonymously, flying under the radar, and cozying up in her room in her apartment to work from home, save for the cafe trips to get a latte or some delicious baked goods. Two years ago, her best friend Penelope dragged her out to a bar in NYC for a business event of hers, and Elle runs into no one other than Parker Warren, the young, hotshot "Billionaire Bachelor" who is in the process of selling his company over for billions of dollars, although she doesn't know it at the time. After a brief 5-minute interaction goes horribly wrong between the two, Elle ultimately hates him, but can't get him out of her head. Two years later, Elle gets writer's block and her company lets her relocate to NYC for inspiration--the place she's come to hate--only to find out her next-door neighbor is Parker himself. They strike up a reluctant deal: Elle fake dates Parker for the summer for PR, and Parker helps Elle travel and explore the city to come up with ideas for her newest screenplay.

There's a lot to unpack with this review, so let's start with the scenery, which was probably one of the only redeeming qualities about the entire book for me. I can see how people were making comparisons between Summer and the City and Passion Project by London Sperry. They both take place in NYC in the summertime, the goals are almost the same, and the characters are in the Gen Z generation. The only difference here is that I enjoyed Passion Project. I LOVED the setting of NYC in the summer, and I thought the endpapers in the Barnes & Noble exclusive edition of the book were super cute. In case you haven't seen it, the endpapers are a map of NYC and all the places that Elle and Parker hit in the story. There's also a bunch of other Easter eggs in the map that you'd only understand if you read the book, but I think including a map for people who haven't been to NYC was a nice touch, so you can see where everything is. It felt like I was in NYC myself! I would recognize names of different places they went to and I would be like, "Yes! I know where this is!

(The bonus points go to Elle's friends: Penelope, Taryn, Emma, and Gwen. They're all girl's girls for real, and I love their friend group dynamic and how they would help Elle get out of her shell and explore the city more.)

I would talk about the plot, but I think it ties in too deeply/too well with the characters, and I feel like the characters are what made this story so unenjoyable for me. Let's unpack each of the characters:

⋆˙⟡♡ Elle: My biggest issues with the story ARE with Elle. For starters, she's very antisocial, introverted, and cynical. I thought that I would be able to relate to her character a bit since I tend to be introverted and very cynical in real life, but Elle took this to a whole new level that made her so unlikeable. In retrospect, I can see why she is the way she is, but I don't think it's an excuse for her behavior and her feelings towards Parker.

With that being said, the very opening scene of the book, where Parker and Elle first meet and have their "stairwell hookup" (according to the official synopsis of the book, so this isn't a spoiler for anything major) was...honestly pretty ridiculous. I would HARDLY call it a "stairwell hookup" if it was them interacting for no more than 5-7 minutes with a brief makeout session, and Elle and Parker both received the wrong impression of each other. I'm glad both of them were able to acknowledge that they were both in the wrong later down the line, and I will agree that Elle's first impression of Parker was MUCH less severe and horrible compared to Parker's, but to hold onto a poor, but barely-there FIVE-MINUTE INTERACTION like a grudge for TWO YEARS?!

I want to emphasize this. She hates him because of a five-minute interaction in the stairwell of a bar. She googled him every day and let him live rent-free in her head for TWO. YEARS. Like, that is some crazy level of pettiness that I could never achieve. Realistically speaking, most five-minute interactions you have with strangers never even amount to anything because the odds of you seeing them again anywhere are slim to none, and she just let that take over her entire life for TWO YEARS?! I understand where her hurt is coming from because Parker did say some unsavory things and made some pretty poor assumptions about her and her character, but to let that stick with her for two years when she didn't even know who he was is kind of insane. That said, the whole "lovers to enemies to lovers" aspect of the synopsis is not doing anyone any favors, considering the "enemies" aspect of the story was ENTIRELY on Elle.

I also wish we got to learn more about Elle and her sister, Cali's, relationship and dynamic growing up. They're polar opposites and I wish Cali had a larger role in the story. The little bit that we get to see about Cali and her life doesn't give me a great first impression of her; she sort of gave off major airhead vibes and didn't seem to take a whole ton of things seriously. (I swear, if I have to hear "it's bad for the baby" ONE MORE TIME...)

⋆˙⟡♡ Parker: I have mixed feelings about him. On one hand, I can see how much he cares for Elle and how much he loves her. That's something that's not up for debate because he did A LOT for Elle throughout the story. However, I do believe that was also his biggest fault. I did NOT vibe with the fact that every time a problem came up, he would just throw money at it to make it go away. It came off at times like he was trying to buy Elle's love and affection, and that didn't sit right with me. I’m not sure if I would go as far as to call it 100% love bombing because he bought certain things for her for specific, justifiable reasons, but there were moments where he would drop thousands upon thousands of dollars on her and that just made me uncomfortable. I get that one of his love languages is gift giving but this took it to a whole other level. I get that some people would LOVE the idea of being showered with expensive gifts so I know this is a personal gripe I have with the book, but I feel like if I was in Elle’s position, I would also feel uncomfortable.

As much as I don't like Elle, I do think this is a scenario of "a broken clock is still right twice in one day,” and I was on Elle's side when she told Parker that she wants to earn what she gets in life because it's more meaningful to her that she worked hard to get the things she has. She doesn't want to feel like her love can be bought with a dress and heels and expensive jewelry all the time. I also thought he was super tone deaf and out of touch with reality at times because he IS a billionaire and he couldn't always relate to the things that Elle was bringing up to him.

Oh, and chapter 30? Yeah, that ruined it for me entirely. The plot was already going downhill, but this was the final nail in the coffin. I see why everyone was freaking out over it (in a bad way) now. It was like a combination of the worst aspects of Elle and Parker's personalities and characters combined in one, awkward, horrible dumpster fire of a chapter. I wish I could go more into this without spoiling it, but you're going to have to read it to find out.

Also, I don't know if it's just me, but I felt like certain parts of the story and Elle's character were loosely based on Alex Aster's real, personal life. I'm not talking about the fact that she lives in NYC in real life, just like Elle does. I think I noticed this more in particular since I've read the Lightlark trilogy and knew about the controversy surrounding Alex Aster and Lightlark when the first book came out back in 2022, so I think most people wouldn't have been able to catch this unless you were around on BookTok/bookish social media in general around August 2022. I'm sure there's still posts and stuff about it floating around the internet if you Google it, but it almost felt like Alex Aster was trying to give her commentary about the entire controversy through this book and Elle's character as a whole. Sort of like fanfiction about herself and to defend and clear her name, if that makes any sense? I don't know how else to better describe it, but I definitely got those vibes from the story overall.

Overall, what I thought was supposed to be a cute, fun, quick summer romance read was a major disaster and I was so disappointed on what this could've been. I can see how Alex Aster fans would eat this up, and it's sad I didn't like it because the premise sounded so much fun. I know this is her adult debut so I might give her another chance if she comes out with another rom-com, but this just fell extremely flat.
⋅˚₊‧ ୨୧ ‧₊˚ ⋅ ୨୧ ‧₊˚ ⋅ ୨୧ ‧₊˚ ⋅ ୨୧ ‧₊˚ ⋅ ୨୧ ‧₊˚ ⋅ ୨୧ ‧₊˚ ⋅ ୨୧ ‧₊˚ ⋅ ୨୧ ‧₊˚ ⋅ ୨୧ ‧₊˚ ⋅ ୨୧ ‧₊˚ ⋅ ୨୧ ‧₊˚ ⋅ ୨୧ ‧₊˚ ⋅
Content/trigger warnings: off-page death of a loved one, estrangement from a family member, blackmail, alcohol consumption, emesis/vomiting, sexual content (probably a 2/5 on the spice scale, but obviously this will be subjective from person to person based on personal preference and experiences readng other books with sexual content)

⋆˙⟡ 𝒫𝓇𝑒-𝓇𝑒𝒶𝒹: Happy June, everyone!💕☀️What better way to kick off summer than a summery, fun book in New York City?! I'm super nervous to start this because I wasn't the biggest fan of the Lightlark trilogy, but maybe things will change since this is Alex Aster's adult romance debut. (Also, why is everyone freaking out over Chapter 30?! I'm scared lol)

I'll be buddy reading this with some of my lovely friends from the Bookish Babes book club!💐💞✨ I'll be buddy reading this with Mencía, Paula, Charisse, and Nikki! 🌸🤍

[megan ◡̈ · Rating 2 out of 5]

so unfortunately im going to start this review by saying that chapter 30 completely ruined this book for me… i would have DNFd if i hadn’t noticed that there was only two more chapters left thats how bad of a final straw it was for me. elle’s attitude toward parker’s money and how flashy he cold get with it was understandable at first even though i hadn’t seen it as anything but him trying to do something to make her happy, i could understand where she was coming from. he is an out of touch with real life billionaire who thinks that people will only like him for his money after all.

i was immediately hooked on this book. i started it around 11 pm on friday night and was up till like 2 am before i finally passed out reading it. this book had me in a chokehold until about half way, like i just mentioned i got really sick and tired of hearing parker go out of his way to do something sweet to try and make elle smile and like him the way he liked her and her ruining it after .2 seconds of appreciating it. so this was 4-4.5 stars until the downfall of it all.

after their first meeting i didnt wanna like parker however it was inevitable, he was insanely adorable the entire time and i really loved him… i personally think he deserved way better than settling for elle but what do i know 🤷🏼‍♀️

im going to just cut myself off here because i for the most part really enjoyed this read and hate that it was totally ruined for me at the end. i wish this was a nicer review and that i could rant on and on about what i loved but my heart just isnt in it and invested in them after chapter 30. personally i do hope its looked at and reviewed before this releases next spring, i think adding that 3rd act break up (especially the way it happened) after already having one in the second did this book a major disservice.

[Nithya · Rating 1 out of 5]

dnf. guys….she isn't like other girls. She hates exercise, vegetables, and has never had beer before, and is actually the most boring person alive, but that makes her more mysterious and awesome. this book is like if two pieces of wonder bread fake dated and fell in love.

also never. and i mean NEVER. put the phrase ‘pilates body’ in a book. i mean that with my whole chest.

[Ana · Rating 2 out of 5]

No one is more disappointed than me at this rating. This book had so much potential to be a five star read, but then it all started to fall apart half-way through the book. And it didn't get better. It was so frustrating to read.
I can understand why Elle was the way she was, but there is a point where it just becomes too much, and I'm sorry, but she flew through it. Honestly, Parker deserved more, even with his equally questionable decisions.

The third act breakup was so unnecessary, what was the point of that. I don't think I was ever this mad about a book as I am right now. I literally had to make myself finish it, and only did it because there were two chapters left. And the first sentence of that last chapter really was the final nail in the coffin. I AM SO MAD AND DISAPPOINTED!!!

To get from such a promising beginning to this. How did we even get here??
I just can't.

[Sophie Jayne Miller · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5*!

[✨Julie✨ · Rating 2 out of 5]

✩ 2 stars ✩

What to Expect:
➼ Billionaire Romance
➼ He Falls First
➼ Forced Proximity
➼ Fake Dating Agreement
➼ Slow Burn
➼ Hate-to-Love
➼ Reverse Grumpy x Sunshine
➼ 3rd Act Breakup
➼ NYC Summer Romance
➼ First Person POV

This started out decent, but I liked it less and less as the story progressed. I definitely think it was a big mistake to read this directly after Promise Me Sunshine because they’re both set in NYC and have similar themes of forced proximity, slow burn, initial dislike, etc. To be blunt, there was pretty much no way this was going to compare to Promise Me Sunshine, but I thought I might at least like the characters, but sadly, no such luck.

I was kind of neutral about Parker for most of the book, but he started out pretty firmly in the negative column after their initial interaction and from there I really struggled to understand his interest in her after she was continually cold and rude and then eventually instigated the dreaded third act break up for one of the dumbest reasons I’ve yet to encounter. Them breaking up made no sense but I was even more annoyed when they got back together. This is not a couple that will make it in the long run.

Clearly I wasn’t a big fan of Elle’s character either. She was adamant that he couldn’t buy her love and then he continued to shell out outrageous amounts of money left and right. Sure, the tone was more that he didn’t care about the money, but it was still a mixed message. She didn’t seem to have many qualms about spending it on the things she cared about. Why does she get to be the one to decide who can responsibly and conscientiously handle wealth? Her character just felt very judgy and stiff to me. Not my ideal FMC.

I listened to the audio and the narrator also really didn’t work for me. Her delivery lacked the proper emotion which made it even more difficult for me to connect with the characters (Elle’s character in particular). I was bummed I didn’t like this more, but it was a bust for me.

✼　 ҉ 　✼　 ҉ 　✼　 ҉ 　✼　 ҉ 　✼　 ҉ 　✼　 ҉ 　✼

Pre-read: The taxi cab edges got me! 🚕 As a former New Yorker, I couldn’t resist!

I sincerely hope this is better than Lightlark. 🫣🥴

≪ ◦ ❖ ◦ ≫

Connect with me on Instagram

[Sandra Rosas · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received an early copy of this book and all I have to say is WOW. I am a fan of the author’s fantasy series, and did not know what to expect with her first contemporary, in first person. I might have to say I like this genre for her even more (I know). The writing was beyond what I expected. It was heartbreaking at times. Very real. I found some lines extremely relatable. I’m going to be rereading and annotating, I did not think I would enjoy it so much on a sentence level. To me it is Emily Henry meets a fancy billionaire romance.

I ate up every word.

[Nilufer Ozmekik · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hmm… I don’t usually like to focus on the negatives. I’m the kind of reader who sees the bright side—rose-tinted glasses on, full-on Pollyanna mode! Especially when it comes to books. Enemies-to-lovers and forced proximity are my all-time favorite tropes, and even though I live in the overly polished, fake-smiled world of La La Land, as a born-and-bred New Yorker, the Big Apple will always have my heart. I’ll read anything set in NYC—it’s like I soak in the city’s vibrant, chaotic, magnetic energy through the pages.

Let’s start with the good stuff, shall we? The setting absolutely delivered. The city came alive in the story, buzzing with that familiar cultural and emotional complexity I adore. But then… we get to the characters.

Oh boy. I wanted to scream from the rooftops—Elle drove me absolutely crazy! I seriously dreamed of tossing her off a skyscraper (okay, not literally—but you get the point). She was so frustrating. I thought Shauna from Yellowjackets was the most annoying fictional character I’d ever encountered, but Elle’s over-the-top hatred for money? It just made my blood boil.

Now Parker, on the other hand, was more solid. I liked him… for the most part. But sometimes he felt a bit extreme too—like throwing money around as if he were Richie Rich in the middle of a midlife crisis. His gestures were grand, sometimes eye-roll-worthy (especially one in the last quarter—no spoilers, but come on, man!). It was frustrating because he knew how Elle would react, and yet, there we were again… diving into more drama.

Honestly, Elle came across as too prideful and grumpy, and Parker started to feel a little one-dimensional beside her.

That said, if you can look past the characters, the plot itself is still enjoyable. Elle is a screenwriter with serious writer’s block, forced to write a romance film while wrestling with unresolved trauma from her past. She returns to New York to housesit her sister’s luxurious apartment—her sister who’s off traveling the world and pregnant. Their father is out of the picture, and their mother’s memory still looms large, shaping Elle’s (not-so-healthy) worldview.

Enter Parker Warren: tech billionaire, and surprise!—Elle’s neighbor. He also just so happens to be her disastrous stairwell hookup from two years ago, which she assumed was a one-night stand with a bodyguard. Turns out, not so much. Now he wants her to be his fake girlfriend over the summer. Why? Because Elle’s one of the only people who doesn't care about his wealth or power—and she could use the access to locations for her screenplay.

Did I mention she wrote her most successful script after their infamous hookup? He’s basically her secret muse, and around him, she starts to come alive—running at dawn, making new friends, hitting karaoke bars. But being with him would mean going against everything her late mother believed in. Can she allow herself a shot at real happiness… not just for a summer, but beyond?

Overall, despite my strong dislike for Elle, I was ready to give this four stars for the love letter it writes to New York alone. The chapters capturing the city’s magic were brilliant. But the last quarter lost me—some of the character choices felt forced, like a third-act twist that didn’t quite land. Still, I appreciated the character’s personal journeys, especially Elle’s self-discovery and the slow unraveling of her secret identity.

In the end, it's a solid three stars from me—and I’m definitely still interested in reading more from this author in the future.

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[Madison Kait · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5!!!

[chan ☆]

truly a herculean effort here, but even i couldn't persist in finishing this one. more thoughts to come in a video on my channel later this month.

[manju ♡]

goal is to finish this tonight so i can start a better book… 😞

[Kristen Christen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rated 3.5 stars rounded up for Goodreads!

I feel lied to. This book is labeled as a contemporary romance, but it's fantasy. MY FANTASY 😉

I LOVED that New York City was where most of this romance took place! Sprinkle in some Paris, LA, and Italy and I am a happy reader. The premise was such a cute and fun idea. It was giving 90's romcom which is a cozy happy place for me! Parker our bachelor billionaire needs a fake girlfriend, Elle needs to write a screenplay for work, they are spontaneously neighbors, and they have a history. Elle's writing requires her to visit iconic places in the city and our billionaire bachelor for whatever reason really likes her, so they get to have cute moments in all the iconic places. Have I mentioned I am obsessed with him?

My personal enjoyment of the book was really high 70% of the time! This is almost summer reading perfection, but to be honest I did not like Elle at all and was confused why Parker liked her. She had a few moments where she was fine, but a lot of the time she gave me the ick real bad! Parker was literally being so thoughtful and kind and she would somehow twist his gestures into something bad. What a party pooper with daddy issues.

Also, the amount of money spent in this book is CRAZY! Like so unrealistic and over the top, but I had fun seeing our author Alex expand my imagination about what money can actually buy. I just cannot fathom why he put up with Elle's bullsh*t!

Parker please give me a call next time Elle decides to have a breakdown, because I have no issues with having a successful, confident, romantic, thoughtful, wealthy, and let's be honest UNICORN of a man!

[Brooke &#x1d717;&#x1d71a; · Rating 5 out of 5]

—— 𝟓 ✰ stars. 🗽🍎

❝𝐼𝓃 𝒩𝑒𝓌 𝒴𝑜𝓇𝓀 𝒞𝒾𝓉𝓎, 𝑒𝓋𝑒𝓇𝓎 𝓌𝑒𝑒𝓀𝑒𝓃𝒹 𝒾𝓈 𝒶 𝒸𝒽𝒶𝓃𝒸𝑒 𝓉𝑜 𝓁𝒾𝓋𝑒 𝒾𝓃 𝒶 𝓂𝑜𝓋𝒾𝑒.❞

🎧┆𝐒𝐮𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐫 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐂𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐛𝐲 𝐀𝐥𝐞𝐱 𝐀𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫
🏷️┆𝐆𝐞𝐧𝐫𝐞: ℂ𝕠𝕟𝕥𝕖𝕞𝕡𝕠𝕣𝕒𝕣𝕪 ℝ𝕠𝕞𝕒𝕟𝕔𝕖
📆┆𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐬 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝: 𝟠/𝟙𝟡/𝟚𝟝 - 𝟠/𝟚𝟘/𝟚𝟝
📃┆𝐒𝐲𝐧𝐨𝐩𝐬𝐢𝐬
「 “Parker needs to fake a buzzy relationship during his company's precarious acquisition. Elle needs to write a movie around a list of NYC locations. Both need a break from their unrelenting schedules, and a chance to rediscover the skyscraper glimmering, pizza crusted, sunlit charms of the city. Summers always end, and so will this agreement. It's all pretend. Promise. Until it isn't.”」

❝𝐿𝒾𝒻𝑒 𝓂𝒾𝑔𝒽𝓉 𝒷𝑒 𝒸𝑜𝓂𝓅𝓁𝒾𝒸𝒶𝓉𝑒𝒹, 𝒷𝓊𝓉 𝓁𝑜𝓋𝑒 𝒾𝓈𝓃’𝓉. 𝐼𝓉’𝓈 𝓅𝓇𝑒𝓉𝓉𝓎 𝓈𝓉𝓇𝒶𝒾𝑔𝒽𝓉𝒻𝑜𝓇𝓌𝒶𝓇𝒹. 𝐼𝓉’𝓈 𝒶 𝓁𝒶𝓃𝒸𝑒 𝓉𝒽𝓇𝑜𝓊𝑔𝒽 𝓅𝓁𝒶𝓃𝓈, 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝓂𝑜𝓇𝒶𝓁𝓈, 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝓅𝓇𝒾𝒹𝑒. 𝐼𝓉 𝒸𝓊𝓉𝓈 𝓇𝒾𝑔𝒽𝓉 𝓉𝒽𝓇𝑜𝓊𝑔𝒽 𝑒𝓋𝑒𝓇𝓎𝓉𝒽𝒾𝓃𝑔. 𝐼𝓉 𝒹𝑜𝑒𝓈𝓃’𝓉 𝒸𝒶𝓇𝑒 𝒶𝒷𝑜𝓊𝓉 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝓂𝑒𝓈𝓈 𝒾𝓉 𝓂𝒶𝓀𝑒𝓈. 𝐼𝓉 𝒽𝓊𝓇𝓉𝓈, 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝓌𝑒 𝓁𝑒𝓉 𝒾𝓉.❞

─── ⋆⋅ ❤︎ ⋅⋆ ───

ᴍʏ ʀᴀᴛɪɴɢ: ★★★★★
ɢᴏᴏᴅʀᴇᴀᴅꜱ ʀᴀᴛɪɴɢ: 𝟹.𝟽𝟹 ☆ ꜱᴛᴀʀꜱ
ꜱᴘɪᴄᴇ: 🌶️🌶️
ꜱᴇᴀꜱᴏɴ: ☀️
ᴘᴀɪʀ ᴡɪᴛʜ: ɴᴇᴡ ʏᴏʀᴋ ᴘɪᴢᴢᴀ 🍕
ᴡᴏᴜʟᴅ ʏᴏᴜ ʀᴇᴄᴏᴍᴍᴇɴᴅ?: ✅


⊱ ────── {⋆ ‧₊˚♪𝄞 ⋆} ────── ⊰

lıllılı.ıllı.ılılıılıı.lllııılı.

ɴᴏᴡ ᴘʟᴀʏɪɴɢ: ᴡᴇʟᴄᴏᴍᴇ ᴛᴏ ɴᴇᴡ ʏᴏʀᴋ — ᴛᴀʏʟᴏʀ ꜱᴡɪꜰᴛ
2:25 ———♡——— 3:33

⇄ ◃◃ ⅠⅠ ▹▹ ↻

╭───
┆
╰⪼ ❛ like any great love, it keeps you guessing. like any real love, it's ever-changing. like any true love, it drives you crazy, but you know you wouldn't change anything, anything, anything.
welcome to new york, it's been waitin' for you.❜

⊱ ────── {⋆ ‧₊˚♪𝄞 ⋆} ────── ⊰

ʀᴇᴀᴅ ɪꜰ ʏᴏᴜ ʟɪᴋᴇ:
🚖 ꜰᴀᴋᴇ ᴅᴀᴛɪɴɢ
🗽 ʜᴀᴛᴇ ᴛᴏ ʟᴏᴠᴇ
🍎 ʜᴇ ꜰᴀʟʟꜱ ꜰɪʀꜱᴛ
🚖 ɴᴇᴡ ʏᴏʀᴋ ᴄɪᴛʏ
🗽 ꜰᴏʀᴄᴇᴅ ᴘʀᴏxɪᴍɪᴛʏ
🍎 ʙɪʟʟɪᴏɴᴀɪʀᴇ ʙᴏʏꜰʀɪᴇɴᴅꜱ
🚖 “ɢᴇᴛ ʏᴏᴜʀ ꜰᴜᴄᴋɪɴɢ ʜᴀɴᴅꜱ ᴏꜰꜰ ʜᴇʀ”

❝ “𝒲𝒽𝒶𝓉 𝒹𝑜 𝓎𝑜𝓊 𝓌𝒶𝓃𝓉?” 𝐼 𝓈𝒶𝓎, 𝒸𝒽𝑒𝓈𝓉 𝓂𝑜𝓋𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝒶 𝓁𝒾𝓉𝓉𝓁𝑒 𝓉𝑜𝑜 𝓆𝓊𝒾𝒸𝓀𝓁𝓎, 𝓇𝑒𝓅𝑒𝒶𝓉𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝒽𝒾𝓈 𝓌𝑜𝓇𝒹𝓈 𝒻𝓇𝑜𝓂 𝓉𝒽𝒶𝓉 𝓃𝒾𝑔𝒽𝓉.
“𝒴𝑜𝓊,” 𝒽𝑒 𝓈𝒶𝓎𝓈 𝒾𝓂𝓂𝑒𝒹𝒾𝒶𝓉𝑒𝓁𝓎. “𝐼 𝓌𝒶𝓃𝓉 𝓎𝑜𝓊.” ❞

─── ⋆⋅ ❤︎ ⋅⋆ ───

💬┆𝐓𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬
• Does anyone else immediately think of Hamilton when they read this title or is my theatre kid side showing?

• I thought Till Summer Do Us Part was going to be my favorite book of the summer until Alex Aster came along and said, ”hold my beer.” The vibes. The feelings. The laughter. The love. Summer in the City had it all + more. I could perfectly visualize every quest in the city that Elle & Parker went on. The whole time while listening to this at work, I was smiling like an idiot. I would love to see this book be made into a movie, with Adam Driver as Parker, of course. I mean, who else?

• New book boyfriend unlocked. 🔓 Parker Warren. The guy bought a whole ass coffee chain just to keep his girl’s favorite blueberry scones. THIS MAN. 🤌🏼

❝ “𝐼 𝒷𝑜𝓊𝑔𝒽𝓉 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝒸𝑜𝒻𝒻𝑒𝑒 𝓈𝒽𝑜𝓅 𝒷𝑒𝒸𝒶𝓊𝓈𝑒 𝓎𝑜𝓊 𝓁𝑜𝓋𝑒 𝒾𝓉. 𝐼 𝒷𝑜𝓊𝑔𝒽𝓉 𝒾𝓉 𝓈𝑜 𝓉𝒽𝒶𝓉 𝓎𝑜𝓊 𝒸𝒶𝓃 𝒽𝒶𝓋𝑒 𝓎𝑜𝓊𝓇 𝒻𝒶𝓋𝑜𝓇𝒾𝓉𝑒 𝓈𝒸𝑜𝓃𝑒, 𝓌𝒾𝓉𝒽 𝓎𝑜𝓊𝓇 𝒻𝒶𝓋𝑜𝓇𝒾𝓉𝑒 𝓁𝒶𝓉𝓉𝑒, 𝒶𝓉 𝓎𝑜𝓊𝓇 𝒻𝒶𝓋𝑜𝓇𝒾𝓉𝑒 𝓉𝒶𝒷𝓁𝑒, 𝑒𝓋𝑒𝓇𝓎 𝓂𝑜𝓇𝓃𝒾𝓃𝑔.” 𝐻𝑒 𝓁𝑒𝒶𝓃𝓈 𝒻𝑜𝓇𝓌𝒶𝓇𝒹. “𝐼 𝒷𝑜𝓊𝑔𝒽𝓉 𝒾𝓉 𝒷𝑒𝒸𝒶𝓊𝓈𝑒 𝒾𝓉 𝓂𝒶𝓀𝑒𝓈 𝓎𝑜𝓊 𝒽𝒶𝓅𝓅𝓎, 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝓉𝒽𝒶𝓉, 𝓉𝑜 𝓂𝑒, 𝐸𝓁𝓁𝑒, 𝒾𝓈 𝓅𝓇𝒾𝒸𝑒𝓁𝑒𝓈𝓈.” ❞

• Elle. My Shayla. I related to her so much in the sense that sometimes I keep myself secluded to avoid getting hurt emotionally & we both can’t handle change well.

• As someone who is originally from New York & loves NYC with my entire soul, I was THE perfect demographic for this book. It’s almost like it was written for me. It made me want to book a trip to NYC STAT. What I typically look for in a summer read is a beach setting; never a city. But Alex Aster made this work so well by making the summer in NYC even more magical than usual. I’m definitely going to bump the Lightlark series up on my TBR because I really enjoyed her writing.

• I need to get my hands on some pizza now after this.

─── ⋆⋅ ❤︎ ⋅⋆ ─── ─── ⋆⋅ ❤︎ ⋅⋆ ─── ─── ⋆⋅ ❤︎ ⋅⋆ ───

❝ “𝐼𝓉’𝓈 𝒶 𝓈𝒽𝒶𝓂𝑒, 𝓉𝒽𝒶𝓉 𝓈𝓊𝓂𝓂𝑒𝓇𝓈 𝒶𝓁𝓌𝒶𝓎𝓈 𝑒𝓃𝒹.”
“𝑀𝒶𝓎𝒷𝑒 𝓉𝒽𝒾𝓈 𝑜𝓃𝑒 𝒸𝒶𝓃 𝒷𝑒 𝑒𝓃𝒹𝓁𝑒𝓈𝓈,” 𝒫𝒶𝓇𝓀𝑒𝓇 𝓈𝒶𝓎𝓈.
“𝒩𝑜𝓉𝒽𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝒾𝓃 𝓁𝒾𝒻𝑒 𝒾𝓈 𝑒𝓃𝒹𝓁𝑒𝓈𝓈.”
“𝐿𝑜𝓋𝑒 𝒾𝓈, 𝐸𝓁𝓁𝑒,” 𝒽𝑒 𝓈𝒶𝓎𝓈.
𝐼 𝓁𝒶𝓊𝑔𝒽. “𝒜𝓃𝒹 𝓌𝒽𝒶𝓉 𝒹𝑜 𝓎𝑜𝓊 𝓀𝓃𝑜𝓌 𝒶𝒷𝑜𝓊𝓉 𝓁𝑜𝓋𝑒?”
“𝒩𝑜𝓌?” 𝒽𝑒 𝓈𝒶𝓎𝓈.
“𝓔𝓿𝓮𝓻𝔂𝓽𝓱𝓲𝓷𝓰.” ❞

[Ericka · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was cute! A super predictable rom-com but I was totally here for it. A couple reasons it didn’t get a 5 star from me: 1. Predictable. Nothing notable happened. 2. What I thought she might do to the ending she totally did and I didn’t like it. 3. The FMC made me want to punch a wall.

Other than that though, this is my first Alex aster book and should she come out with more that are unrelated to the lightlark series, I would DEFINITELY read them! Loved her writing style and humor.

[manas (suffering) · Rating 3 out of 5]

*thank you netgalley for this arc—all thoughts are my own.*

this book follows our two main characters : elle, a screen writer and parker, a billionaire. this book starts off with a mini make out scene and immediately following this they both end up “hating each other”. there is a time jump of two years before they meet again and are still holding a grudge against each other. the story ultimately continues from here where they are forced to be around each other with the fake dating trope.

this book was very fast and easy to read. there was digestible content and fun back and forth banter. however, my only gripe with this is how everything was happening, yet nothing was REALLY happening. i am unsure if that makes sense, but it felt like the story was happening to the main characters because aster wanted it to, rather than it being a natural progression of the plot. this does have a stereotypical plotline of the FMC—elle hating the MMC—parker because he is rich and aloof. i feel like aster tried too hard to make elle this independent woman and she started to lose me with that. other than that, parker is a fun and likeable MMC who just wanted to spoil her rotten. like sorry but you would never catch me trying to be a girlboss. i would use his card until it maxed.

overall, this is a really vibey book. the vibrant cover is what attracted me to this in the first place. i would recommend this since it's very easy to read and has such an entertaining cast of characters.

✄┈┈┈┈┈┈

ꕤ pre-read ꕤ

this is such a cute cover. i can't wait for a fun summer rom-com! 🍎🌸💗

[lyn · Rating 1 out of 5]

ㅤㅤ── ★.5 .ᐟ


 ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ❛ something in my chest tightens. he remembers everything. like every word that comes out of my mouth is a script to be pored over and annotated ❜


‎ ‎ ‎ ⌗⠀، started: dec 13
 ‎ ‎ ‎ ⌗⠀، finished: dec 17


‎ ‎ ‎ 📖┆ tropes:

 ⟶ billionaire 
 ⟶ hate to love
 ⟶ fake dating


────୨ৎ────


☀️┆ review:


what in the insta fucking love. this book just moved so fast that i was so confused half of the time.

the thing that pisses me off the most is the fact that i spent $30 on a special edition copy for a book to just turn out like this. one of my mutuals said “this book is the most obvious self insert I’ve ever seen.” and i couldn’t agree more.

i had more thoughts written down but my notes app didn’t save it so i’m just going based off of my memory.

taking into account that i did in fact soft dnf this when it first came out i should’ve known and i should’ve just left it alone.


🌃┆ characters:


 ﹒ ୨  elle — this entire character is always talking about money. money this, money that, you can’t buy me with money (which is absolutely understandable) but it gets to a point when you talk about how much you hate people obsessed with money when you’re so clearly obsessed with money as well. so insufferable to the point where i just wanted to shut my book and never pick this book up again. truly just not a well written character.

﹒ ୨ parker warren — first impression was him thinking that fmc was a gold digger.

“would you like me to take you to dinner? or a helicopter ride over the city? that’s what you want, right? why you’re here?” THIS ASSHOLE??

now going on from this you’d expect me to hate him more than the fmc, right? WRONG i actually hate them both equally.

﹒ ୨ penelope — jeez. i’d much rather have an entire book just about the fmc’s bestfriend because she’s way more likeable than the two of these main characters.


📄┆ extras

 ⸝⸝ he bought the entire chain of this coffee shop just bc it was her favorite shop and because they discontinued her favorite scones and now they serve it everyday. i will admit i was a little 🤭 here


📌┆ final thoughts

 ‎ ‎ the only reason im giving this two stars and not one is solely because i did find myself giggling and smiling in some parts. also, the quotes in here were memorable.

and finally… IM FREE!!!!!!!!!



────୨ৎ────




୨୧ ﹒ ﹒ pre-read . ౿
— prediction ⋮ 3 ★

⌗⠀، i did soft dnf this the first time i read it but i have hope now for this




⊹₊ ˚‧︵‿₊୨୧₊‿︵‧ ˚ ₊⊹

[vanessa ⋆.☕︎]

Rating: Dnf 60%
I genuinely didn’t think it was possible for me to hate a romance book this much, and that’s saying something, because I’ve had plenty of one-star reads and DNFs this year. But the frustration I felt with this one? It hit differently. Like, the potential was right there! I could see what it could’ve been. And yet… it completely missed the mark.

Now listen, I’m already not a fan of insta-love. It’s one of my biggest icks. But this book? Oh, it said “let’s take insta-love and crank it up another level.” Not only do we get the most rushed, shallow connection right at the opening of the book, but it’s somehow enemies to lovers from just one side too 😭. Like… what?! How am I supposed to care about or connect with these characters when I’m immediately thrown into forced tension and unbelievable chemistry that came out of thin air?

It felt like the story wanted me to buy into this deep emotional connection without ever earning it. And by the time things were supposed to feel romantic, I was already too annoyed and disconnected to even try. It’s honestly exhausting when a book has all the right ingredients but chooses chaos instead of build-up 😩.

Elle: Like girl, be serious, five minutes in a stairwell and suddenly he’s your mortal enemy?? The hatred came out of nowhere and felt so forced. It’s hard to root for the romance when the reason for all that tension is literally paper-thin.
Realistically, most five-minute encounters with random strangers barely register in your brain, let alone spark a full-blown grudge. What makes it even more ridiculous is how seriously the story treats it, like we’re supposed to believe this tiny, forgettable interaction somehow justifies all her bitterness. It’s such a stretch that it pulled me completely out of the story. I wanted a deeper reason for the tension, something that actually made me feel her anger, but instead, it just came off as immature and exaggerated. It’s hard to root for a romance when the foundation of their “hate” feels more like high school drama than genuine conflict 😩.


Parker:
I couldn’t fully get behind him. There’s something about his behavior that just didn’t sit right with me. Like, yes, he’s caring, but also so overwhelming. Every time a problem came up, his first reaction was to just throw money at it as if that would magically fix everything. Sir, not every issue in life can be solved with your wallet 😭. It made things feel forced and even a bit awkward at times. Instead of resolving tension, it just added this weird vibe, like he was trying to buy comfort instead of actually facing what was wrong.


And then I tried to be fair, I really did 😭. I told myself, “Okay, maybe I was too harsh. Give it a second chance, maybe it gets better.” But guess what? You were absolutely right. It didn’t. Not even a little.
The more I read, the worse it got, every scene just made me roll my eyes harder. The characters didn’t grow, the romance stayed shallow, and the writing somehow managed to make me care even less. I kept waiting for that magical turning point where everything clicks… but it never came. By the end (or rather, when I finally gave up), I was just sitting there like, why did I put myself through this again?! 😩 It’s one of those books that drains every ounce of your patience and still has the audacity to disappoint you anyway.

── .✦

ִֶָ𓂃 ࣪ ִֶָ🦢་༘࿐ I honestly never thought this author would write a romance, but here we are, I’m mostly checking it out because the vibes intrigued me after seeing everyone’s feedback, though, not gonna lie, most of it hasn’t been great. So I’m just hoping I’ll end up enjoying it at least a little! <𝟑 .ᐟ

[Susan Carolynn · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars! If we're just rating based on NYC + summer vibes...this book gets a 10/10. The NYC aesthetic was magical, and the plot points perfectly encapsulated a summer romance in the city (been there lol). Kind of want to move back to New York now.

However, and that's a big "however," the FMC...I had such a visceral reaction towards the FMC's actions. She didn't at all show any character development throughout the book. And I love a grumpy FMC, but Elle was so rude and had ZERO communication skills. Like girl you can't just ghost someone and run away every time they do something you slightly dislike. I understand her trauma makes it harder to trust people, but barely anything happened in the book where she actively made an effort to work on herself.

Also the pacing was extremely fast (which normally I like), but because of that, there wasn't much depth to Parker and Elle's relationship. Though I feel like this wold be such a good movie, and I can definitely see why so many like this!

[Amber Dowty · Rating 5 out of 5]

The PERFECT summer romance

[Dayra · Rating 1 out of 5]

I can’t tell whether Elle is insufferable or if it’s just the authors writing style

[Grace Quan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Did Alex Aster copy and paste a random billionaire romance off of Ao3? Never mind of course she didn't, Ao3 fics have more flavor 🤌🏼 than this.

When I read a billionaire romance, I'm looking for a certain level of glitz and glamor and maybe some ridiculous spending. But the writing just didn’t have that spark that makes billionaire romances feel indulgent and addictive.
It wasn't unreadable, just forgettable. If you want an easy, surface-level escape, it might work for you — but if you’re looking for chemistry and tension, this one might leave you cold.

I also did not like the fmc Elle AT ALL. I sort of, abstractly understood her why she was the way that she was, but it didn't make it any easier to like her. She was a hermit crab who never stepped foot outside her door and it was not cute or quirky, it was problematic.

Also the fake dating scheme was very unnecessary and I felt like it added nothing to the plot. I felt like this book was a trope salad with every overused and unoriginal plot line ever invented.

Anyway, this was just not my jam, it was pretty unoriginal and uninspired in my opinion.

────୨ৎ────
ᴘʀᴇ-ʀᴇᴀᴅ: 🍎🌃🩷

First Alex Aster book! A NYC romcom is just what the doctor ordered.

[aeryn rose · Rating 2 out of 5]

2⭐️

I feel kind of upset that I wasted so much time reading this dumpster fire when I could have been doing literally anything else. Way too many hours gone that I can never get back. Sad. 😭

THE AWARD FOR THE WORST FMC IN A ROMANCE BOOK GOES TO:
Elle.

I have genuinely never hated an FMC more than I have Elle in this book. She had to have been the bitchiest, most infuriating and ungrateful character I have EVER come across. She does not deserve any of the good things that Parker did for her or gave to her. After just finishing this? I still cannot recall one nice and genuine thing this girl ever did for him. He bent over backwards to simply make her smile and she just what? Threw it all back in his face for absolutely reason? Please.

Parker was the only light and saving grace of this book. He was amazing and had a heart of pure gold. All Elle ever did for him was judge him based off her own insecurities and put him down every chance she got. It wasn't even the money issue that she claimed to be soooo frigid about. Her personality just SUCKED. This book only got an extra star because I was feeling generous since I loved Parker so much.

Not only did the Elle suck, but the book itself just left so much to be desired. I don't think this was a good book written period. There was nothing special that made this stand out from any other romance (unless were talking about the shitty character personality). The best way I could describe this would be that it had such good potential, but I CANNOT STRESS ENOUGH that Elle literally killed all the magic this book could have had.

I was looking for something light and fluffy and funny and just a sweet romance. The only things that this book had going for it was the fact that it was only 293 pages, Parker being the sweetest man ever, and it read fast. If I had to suffer any longer reading this, I think I would have ripped my hair out and just threw my book across the room.

This book lacked the essence of what a cute romance should be. Elle did not deserve Parker or any of his love and generosity. It had it's cute moments but those were very few and far between. This is my first Alex Aster book and honestly? I don't know if I'll ever pick up another one of her romances again. I have Lightlark on my TBR so that's the one extra chance I'm giving her. I am so angry and disappointed with this book, truly. I don't recommend this for a nice summer read; I'll take one for the team so you don't have to. NEXT. 😭

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

𝓟𝓻𝓮-𝓡𝓮𝓪𝓭:

After finishing The Nightingale, I need something that brings the summer vibes and is just for fun 🙂‍↕️
Also my best friend is reading this rn and is absolutely loving it so why not check it out myself? 🤭

[ellie jayne · Rating 1 out of 5]

I would’ve rather watched childbirth than have read this.

[Nessie · Rating 1 out of 5]

Elle is an unappreciative asshole. Done. End of story. Honestly this book was going great until Elle ruined every nice thing Parker did for her by putting him down and complaining the entire time. I am done with this author. Returning the book.