Like in Love with You

by Emma R. Alban

Mean Girls meets Northanger Abbey in this sharp and sexy Regency Romance that begs the question: what if Cady and Regina just… kissed?

When Catherine Pine relocates to Bath in 1817, she comes face-to-face with her mother’s arch nemesis and her daughter—the wildly popular Lady Rosalie. Twenty-five years after a horrible betrayal, Catherine’s mother sees the perfect opportunity for revenge: Catherine must win the favor of Lady Rosalie’s suitor and unofficial betrothed, the most eligible Mr. Dean.

Only Catherine soon discovers that Lady Rosalie is by far the wittiest, cleverest, most intriguing young woman Catherine’s ever met, and she’s instantly smitten. Which is a problem.

Meanwhile, Lady Rosalie feels trapped in her relationship with Mr. Dean and in her role as Bath’s resident mean girl. But when she notices newcomer Catherine gunning for her spot as queen bee, Rosalie finally feels a spark again–something she absolutely doesn’t want to extinguish.

As Rosalie and Catherine circle Mr. Dean, and their mothers force them into increasingly absurd contests of wit and feminine charms, the two women somehow find themselves falling for each other, scheme, by barb, by catty jab…

Is it possible that their sizzling rivalry can become a match to last?

Genres: Romance, Lesbian, Historical Romance, Historical Fiction, Queer, Historical, LGBT

400 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 13, 2026

About the author

Raised in the Hudson Valley, Emma now lives in Los Angeles, enjoying the eternal sunshine, ocean, and mountains. When she isn't writing books or screenplays, she can usually be found stress baking with the AC on full blast, skiing late into the spring, singing showtunes at the top of her lungs on the freeway, and reading anywhere there’s somewhere to lean.

Reviews

[nikki | ཐི༏ཋྀ​​݁ ₊ ݁ . · Rating 3 out of 5]

unfortunately, this did fall a bit short of my expectations.

i started reading and was surprised to double check to find that it's not YA. the writing feels very YA level and i don't like saying that bc it's a complaint i often see and don't agree with. however, i feel it's applicable here.

we're sold on it as regency mean girls but that's hardly the dynamic. i feel like a lot of authors are trying too hard to make every character very morally sound but it ends up creating quasi mary sue's with no room for friction in relationships and conflict, nor complexity to characters.

if i hadn't just read nearly 100 hisrom books over the past year, i don't think i would have minded this. my standard has been set too high tho 😭 i felt like there was no attention to detail, and i got distracted by the occasional dialogue that felt too modern for the time.

this feels more like an almost YA introduction to hisrom for romance readers who haven't really gotten into it. honestly i'd take out the sex scenes and make it YA bc it might do better that way.

overall, i don't think this was for me, but i think there will still be readers who enjoy a fluffy, regencyish sapphic romance.

an honest arc review ♡

________________________

sapphic regency mean girls? i'm so in

[Luna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Masterpiece. Think of a sapphic rivals-to-lovers version of Regina George and Cady Heron in the regency era.  


Rosalie is an expert matchmaker for her friends and the gorgeous popular girl. Unfortunately, with all her looks and matchmaking skills, she has yet to find a love to call her own. Well, she has Mr. Dean, who has been courting her for a year or so, but she’s not all that interested in him. Or men.


Catherine Pine and her family have relocated from the countryside to Bath, where her parents are originally from. No time to rest though, because her mother is hell-bent on finding her a match. Catherine’s beauty and kindness have garnered quite the attention, like from Mr. Dean, for instance. Yes, the same man who’s already courting the gorgeous popular girl Rosalie. So the claws come out and some sabotaging happens before they realize that maybe they don’t want Mr. Dean after all. Maybe what they truly want is each other…


"Like In Love With You” is officially one of the best books I’ve read this year! This was my first time reading Alban’s work and I loved the writing style so much. Rosalie and Catherine’s chemistry was off the charts and I just adored them. It was a tad bit spicy but it was pearl clutching good! This one’s a must-read and I highly recommend it. I guess you could even say that it was…fetching. Oh, look. You can make fetch happen!


I’d like to thank NetGalley and the publisher for the arc. This is my voluntary review.

[BookishKB · Rating 5 out of 5]

🪞Bookish Thoughts
Mean Girls 🤝 Bridgerton? Yes please! This time Regina ends up with Cady 😏
The witty banter, the yearning, the forbidden love, the rivals to lovers tension, the gossip, the antics, the ballrooms… I loved all of it. Rosalie and Catherine foreverrrr.

I adored both families. Christopher gets best brother award, and I loved how they worked together to mend the rivalry between their mothers. The antics to chase off boring Mr. Dean had me cackling, especially the lake scene 🤣.

This book made me ugly cry, which only made me love it more. It left me grateful for how far we have come and a little sad for how far we still have to go. The writing was beautiful. And the audiobook was just as amazing!

Emma Alban is officially an autobuy author for me. I didn’t think I could love a sapphic historical romance as much as Don’t Want You Like a Best Friend, but Like in Love With You was just as good. Solid 5 stars!

💛 What to Expect
• Rivals to lovers
• Sapphic slow burn
• Regency setting
• Enemies’ daughters
• Family feud
______

📖 Final Score: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
🎧 Audio Score: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
🎙️ Narrators: Mary Jane Wells, Morag Sims
📅 Pub Date: January 13, 2026
Thank you to HarperAudio, St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the advanced copy. All thoughts are my own.

[Lance]

Mean Girls but make it regency? I’m so EXCITED!!

[Gabriella · Rating 5 out of 5]

IM SAD ITS OVER 🥰😭 (rtc)

[jenny reads a lot · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall a solid regency romance!

Lots of yearning and obsession with each other but I definitely wanted a bit more hi-jinx and banter.

I had a good time with this one. I read via audio and I will say that at times it was hard to follow along with all the character names and individuals. I think this might be one thats good to follow along in print as well!

Whats to love…
- sapphic
- yearning + pining
- They are both completely obsessed with each other
- regency romance
- feuding families
- steam + tension
- slow burn

Whats not to love…
- Mostly I just wanted a bit more actual rivalry

Audio Narration: 4/5 Good performance, pausing, inflection, pacing were all well done. voice variation was fine. Definitely recommend the audio but given the content of the book it might be difficult to follow along all the side characters in audio format.

3.75⭐️| IG | TikTok |

Thank you Avon & HarperAudio for the gifted book. All opinions are my own.

[Sylvie {Semi-Hiatus} · Rating 3 out of 5]

*Many thanks to NetGalley for providing me an arc in exchange for an honest review!*

3.75 stars!

Rtc…

Emma Alban’s books are so cute. I have no doubt this would be, too!!

[SJARR ✨ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another beautiful regency romance! I could never tire of reading something like this.

Perfect for lovers of:
- Regency romance
- Sapphic romance
- Enemies to lovers
- Jane Austen Retelling
- Mean girls

“Like in Love with You”, follows two women- Rosalie and Catherine.
Rosalie has been courted by Mr. Dean for quite some time and is expecting a proposal soon.
This is suddenly threatened by the arrival of a new, beautiful woman- Catherine.
Their mothers have a past rivalry, and now they begin to develop one of their own.
Each woman works with her mother to sabotage the other, in hopes of winning the affections of Mr. Dean.
Throughout their pranks and shenanigans, Rosalie and Catherine discover that neither of them really wishes to marry him. Instead, they have become quite fond of each other.

This is so good!
It took me a while to get into it, but once I did- I was invested!

I LOVE Rosalie and Catherine.
Each of their characters is written so well, and their romance is dreamy.
The rivalry? The forbidden love? The yearning? Perfect. I could die happy.
I adored their dedication to each other. Them publicly humiliating themselves to ward off their suitor, was quite adorable.

I like the writing style here. It is written in the third person, but still feels quite personal.
Each chapter alternates to discuss one of the women- so it kind of feels like dual point of view.

Lastly, I just want to say that I LOVE the cover of this! I think it is so pretty and so cute! It is such an eye-catcher.

Fantastic story overall! I really enjoyed this.

Thank you to Netgalley, Avon and Harper Voyager and author Emma R. Alban, for providing me with the eARC of “Like in Love with You”, in exchange for my honest review!
Publication date: January 13th, 2026

[Lina · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75 / 5 Stars
My quest to find a historical romance that I am obsessed with is heading in the right direction! This was fun though a tad slow in the middle. It is a spin on Mean Girls set in Regency England. Rosalie has been preparing to marry Mr. Dean for over a year. That is until Miss Catherine Pine arrives. Catherine is beautiful, smart, and witty, and Catherine’s mom is Rosalie’s mom’s archnemesis. As they fight over Mr. Dean, they realize that maybe he is not fetching and that they are attracted to each other.

You will probably like this book if you like:
💛 Sapphic historical romances set in the Regency Era
💛 Rivals to lovers
💛 Family feud
💛 Oops there’s only one bed
💛 Secret dalliances

While I hate the patriarchy (let’s make that very, very clear), I think the Regency era created interesting obstacles and added tension for a sapphic romance. It was much harder for Rosalie and Catherine to get alone time. It was harder for them not to be pitted against each other. It was harder for Rosalie and Catherine to figure out their future and what their happy ending might look like. Sometimes I feel like you can see exactly where a romance book is heading and how it will get the HEA but this was much less straightforward and I enjoyed that. Both Rosalie’s and Catherine’s coming out were really moving, emotional, and complicated.

I liked Catherine and Rosalie’s relationship. It was sweet and charming with a nice dash of spice. I did feel like they needed a little bit more to ground their connection other than they both liked to read, found each other funny, and found each other attractive. I get that the male choices were worse and even more bad but I wanted to feel something else making them feel inevitable.

I think if you hadn’t told me this was Mean Girls inspired, I probably wouldn’t have picked up on it. Regina and Cady were enemies and rivals for basically the whole movie – Rosalie and Catherine are not. Regina is cruel. Rosalie is not. There are two friends who are kind of like Gretchen and Karen but not really. They do say fetching. While I appreciate the reference, I think if you are expecting much more Mean Girls, you might be disappointed.

It was a tad slow in the middle but it picked up well at the end. Rosalie’s brother, Christopher, should get the Brother of the Era award. Amalie and Henrietta were great friends. Rosalie’s aunt was saucy and fun. If you’re intrigued by this sapphic historical romance, I recommend you try it.

Thank you Avon and Harper Voyager and NetGalley for providing this eARC! All opinions are my own.
Publication Date: January 13, 2026
___________
Pre-Read Thoughts: Means Girls but Cady and Regina kiss and set it in the Regency Era? Sign me UPPPPP.

[Heather K (dentist in my spare time) · Rating 3 out of 5]

*3.5 stars*

Like in Love with You is exactly how it sounds from the title. It's a very contemporary-feeling historical romance, with lots of "Mean Girls/Clueless" style antics and an enemies-to-lovers plotline. It's a fun romp, for sure, but I think I was in the mood for something a bit... deeper.

Lots of the book is centered around matchmaking and competing for attention, which was fine, but I think the chemistry felt like more of an afterthought. I don't feel like I got to know the girls on a deeper level, and I kept mixing up their families in my head. They just didn't feel unique enough for me.

I enjoyed that we got some steamy scenes, and how nicely the friendships were portrayed, but the plot was too draggy and the emotions didn't feel big enough for my tastes. It's historical sapphic fluffy romance, and there is nothing wrong with that.

*copy provided in exchange for an honest review*

goodreads|instagram

[alyssa✨ · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75*

such a cute heartwarming read! i wanted a little more rivals, i felt like that ended quickly, but i had a great time with this one

[Abbie Wells · Rating 4 out of 5]

Like In Love With You by Emma R. Alban
⭐⭐⭐⭐.25 / 🌶️🌶️

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the chance to read and review the ARC ebook.

Two regency women, forced into a rivalry by their mother's rivalry, forced to compete for the chance to marry the most dull man on the planet. What's not to love?

For all the regency romance books I've read, I'm still not sure how I feel about them. Nonetheless, I really liked Like In Love With You! The first half felt a bit slow for me, but by the time I hit the 60% mark, I didn't want to stop reading. I had to find out what Rosalie and Catherine to fix all the problems standing in their way. And it didn't disappoint.

Before I even realized that this story was supposed to be reminiscent of Mean Girls, I immediately noticed the similarities between Rosalie and Regina and Catherine and Cady. Mostly in the sense that Rosalie was pulling Catherine into their group to steer her in the right direction. That's where the similarities ended, however. Though they were rivals, I didn't get mean energy from either of the girls, which was good for me. I feel that I was able to feel the pull between them fairly quickly, which played well into their slow burn.

Though both girls were great, the secondary characters were really what made this story shine. I loved the mother's caddiness, the father's love, the friends' companionship, and dedication to each other. And don't get me started on Rosalie's brother Christopher. I would die for that man. And he's a man, so that's saying something.

There was more spice than I imagined there would be for a Regency romance, but I was not mad about it. The book felt a bit slow at times and like we were hearing the same thoughts repeatedly, but it didn't detract from my enjoyment.

If you like reading sapphic love stories and Bridgerton, this is the book for you.

🐝wods: Rivals to lovers, Regency, Sapphic

[Isabelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a delightful slow burn set in Regency Bath, featuring two rival debutantes who end up falling for one another instead. I was immediately drawn to the competitive aspect of the story, with both Catherine and Rosalie vying for the attention of the same man. My favorite part, though, was that the rivalry wasn’t truly rooted in the protagonists themselves but stemmed from a 25-year-long feud between their mothers, who were once best friends. The mystery of what actually happened all those years ago was intriguing and added a layer of tension that carried the story forward. I especially appreciated the ambiguity and that the truth behind the mothers’ falling out wasn’t revealed until closer to the end. It allowed the tension to unfold naturally, keeping the focus less on rivalry between the love interests and more on the development of their feelings for one another.

While I enjoyed the book overall, I did have a few qualms that made it feel slightly less authentic to the time period. Some of the language felt more modern than I expected. Additionally, when Catherine and Rosalie shared their relationship with their parents, the reactions felt almost flipped. Not only did both fathers seem unusually open to the idea of their daughters being together, which feels like a rarity for the time and especially unlikely for *both* fathers, but the mothers’ responses also seemed mismatched with their established personalities. It felt as though Lady Tisend’s reaction should have belonged to Mrs. Pine, and vice versa. While I appreciated the perspective of having largely supportive parents, it didn’t quite ring true after spending the entire book with parents who were so intensely focused on securing husbands for their daughters.

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

[Hannah]

new personality just dropped

[Angie Miale · Rating 4 out of 5]

A steamy historical sapphic romance - in Jane Austen’s Northern England, Bridgerton, except gay. Rosalie and Catherine meet, knowing this season they are both prospects for the same eligible bachelor, Mr Dean. Their mothers used to be best friends before a falling out in their own season. Early on in the narrative the girls find attraction for each other, and set up events that ruin the prospective courtships.

This is my third Emma Alban novel and I have really enjoyed them all. It is romance and a creative “what if” scenario so that we can thoroughly enjoy the nostalgia and romance of this time period in a way that allows for inclusion of everyone. This is an idealized 19th century England. So instead of queer people being closeted and mentally depressed their entire lives, there are pockets of people that do understand their queerness.

Although it is lighthearted and very romantic, I think this theme is also a patient warning for us as to how easy it is to build cultural values. Both Rosalie and Catherine are great characters in their own right, the minor characters are nuanced and their parents in strong relationships.

It’s a lovely universe to escape into!

Thanks to NetGalley and Avon for the ARC. Book to be published 1/14/26

[Montes · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ve been a Mean Girls fan forever and Regina George is absolutely sapphic. When I saw that this book was marketed as Mean Girls meets Northanger Abbey, I knew I just had to apply for an ARC.

I’m not the biggest historical romance reader but I adored this book. I can’t speak to its accuracy but I can speak to how entertaining it was for me. I love a rivals to lovers and Lady Rosalie and Ms. Pine gave it their all. As much a I love angst, and I really do, I also love when characters have an unconditional support group that doesn’t even need the main characters to tell them how they feel because they can just read it on their faces. I wish all characters had friends like the ones in this book.

I clocked Lady Tisend from the beginning, I could just feel it.

This is the first book I’ve read from this author, but I’m looking forward to reading Don’t Want You Like a Best Friend as it has been on my TBR for quite some time.

The narrators were so good. They had me engaged in the story from beginning to end, I never wanted to pause and when I had to, I couldn’t wait to get back to it.

Thank you to Emma R. Alban, Avon and Harper Voyager, HarperAudio Adult and NetGalley for providing me with an eARC and an ALC.

[Samantha · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rating: 3.75 stars

This book is full of sapphic yearning, heated glances, and great chemistry between Rosalie and Catherine. It’s also a beautiful depiction of what it’s like to have friends and family unashamedly in your corner.

I do think the last 2/3 of the book was a little slow and the ending slightly anticlimactic. I wish Rosalie and Catherine got to spend more time together one on one but part of that was the restraints of the time period. Also sometimes the characters would say something in their inner narrative like “Holy shit” which was a bit jarring to the historical context but overall this is a fun and sweet read.

Thanks Avon for the arc!

[Mikey ಠ◡ಠ · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 stars rounded up

Even though I don’t care much for romance I really thought I was going to enjoy this more than I did. On paper there’s nothing really wrong with this book, except perhaps that it’s wildly mismarketed. I’m here to tell you right here right now there is no Mean Girls influence over this book whatsoever. Catherine and Rosalie were never rivals in this story however their mothers very much are. And I won’t spoil it for you but the reason the moms were beefing was pretty dumb.

Even though this book was fairly cute and mildly amusing, it was also completely bland and the plot crawled by slower than a snail’s pace.

I don’t know, it’s not like I hate sapphic yearning or anything, usually it’s my favorite when it does come to romance but while reading this I somehow felt like I was trying to make my Barbies kiss and magnets were repelling their faces away from each other. I did give this a fair shot but I just don’t think romance is my thing, sapphic Regency romance aside.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Andrea (looseleftlesbian) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC! 3.5 ⭐️ it took me a while to get into the book. Honestly the biggest reason it’s a 3.5 and not a 3 is the chemistry between Catherine and Rosalie, as well as Rosalie’s relationship with her brother, Christopher and her friend Amalie. I loved how supportive they were.

I feel like the middle of the book was so good and it had potential to be even better and explore more of their relationship and life after. I feel like the ending was so abrupt and didn’t really tie up loose ends very well. I would’ve liked to see more of the after, like I said.

[Jane (whatjanereads) · Rating 5 out of 5]

They hate each other but then they make out…up…out.
This was absolutely perfect, no notes!!!

[megs]

Me thinks I shall be pre-ordering thank you very much.

[Mai H.]

Pride TBR

Valentine's Day TBR

📱 Thank you to NetGalley and Avon

[amarachireads · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was such a cute book, and I liked it more than the second book in the series. This is a sapphic rival historical romance with all the angst and chemistry. We have the main FMCs that start off as rivals trying to win over a man in the ton's attention. There was so much hijinks and mischief in it that was fun to read. The romance is a slow burn, but once it gets going, there are so many steamy make-out sessions and girls learning about each other and what they like. I enjoyed the family dynamics and the plot of both fmc working to get their moms to make up and become friends. Overall, it was a fun and forward-thinking romance with all the feels, especially when the fmc's came out and wanted to live a life with each other. Thanks to Avon for this arc for an honest review.

[Cam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to Avon for this ARC! This is a wonderful addition to this queer historical world. Catherine and Rosalie are so head over heels in love that they have to defy the laws of all social propriety to be together. Even if it hurts. A very solid very lovely story!

[Lychee · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved her Mischief & Matchmaking books! I am SO glad sapphic regency romances are a thing bc I am EATING THEM UP. This book had me giggling and kicking my feet, clutching my pearls, tearing up, imagining these ridiculous teenage dramatics.

Christopher and Rosalie’s relationship is unbelievably sweet, to the point where my heart is in my throat and I’m about to cry.

Idk I’m not really getting Mean Girls from this, am I missing something

Thank you to Avon and Harper Voyager and NetGalley for e-book ARC

[rose ✨]

DNF @ 21%

mean girls (2004) WHERE?

well, here’s the first DNF of 2026 🙃 can we please stop marketing YA level writing as adult? (i am, respectfully, bored)

[Kate Connell · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5

Finally, an 1800s lesbian romance that doesn't use the lavender marriage male savior trope! This was a cute and thoroughly enjoyable read that I recommend to readers of romance, Bridgerton, Jane Austen, sapphic stories, and enemies to lovers.

When Catherine Pine and her family relocate to Bath, she learns her mother has bad blood with another lady, who was once her best friend, whose daughter Rosalie is also out in society. So, when her mother suggests that Catherine gains the attention and affection of Rosalie's suitor, Mr. Dean, Catherine agrees to go along with it. But while Mr. Dean is more boring than watching paint dry, Rosalie is beautiful, witty, and Catherine cannot stop thinking about her. Told in dual POV from Catherine and Rosalie, you get answers to questions such as 'How can two women be together in the Regency Era?', 'What in the world is a painting competition?' and 'What to do when this boring man won't stop pursuing me?'

Thank you to NetGalley for an eARC of this novel.

[Tori · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was intrigued because of the “Mean Girls meets Northanger Abbey” pitch. Imo, their parents were the rivals whereas Rosalie and Catherine were kinda just along for the ride? Anything rival-y was very lighthearted between our girls. Their mom’s though??? They wanted to ruin each other.

I don't even know what to say about this book. It's anachronistic as hell. Usually that puts me off so much that it's hard to claw my way back into enjoying a book, but that wasn't the case, here. Emma is less concerned with being historically accurate and more interested in leaning into vibes. And, weirdly, for me it worked.

The pacing on this one is interesting. On one hand, our main characters meet each other right away, and I love that! But later on, once feelings are realized, we don't get much time to enjoy it. Which makes sense given the premise of the whole book and the period in which it was set! But I was definitely craving a bit more alone time with them and less fading to black. Not even to fuck, necessarily! It just felt like they didn't have much time to be THEM, alone, on-screen. Even when they definitely were alone, if that makes sense?

Christopher is best boy. Almost every man in this book is boring cardboard and I imagine that's by design, but Christopher?? He stole whatever scene he was in. Just so HIMSELF. Assertive, funny, and supportive.

Everyone else was pretty good??? Everyone who mattered had a personality, at least.

I'd recommend this to people who have liked Emma R. Alban's other works but also maybe even if you didn't? If your main criticism was that you didn't like the ending of Don't Want You Like a Best Friend, then I think Like in Love with You could be more your speed in terms of endings. Also recommending to people who like a focus on character interactions more than plot. This really is kind of just a book full of scheming and going to various places to chat and do shenanigans. Like maybe it's a little slow but I wouldn't say it's much slower than other queer historical romances that I've read or researched.

3.75 stars rounded up.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC!

[Zahra (Bookish_Platypus) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hooray for queer historical love!

Emma R. Alban has done it again! This book is just as sweet and enchanting as her first two books. I loved Rosaline and Catherine and the way they were so obsessed with each other.

There were so many fun tropes in this book but I'm forever a found family fan and the warm fuzzy feeling when everyone gets to be happy together is the most special thing. I loved Rosaline's brother Christopher he was so charming and funny and the best ally. He and his love interest are really cute together too!

Henrietta and Amalie were the best friends! Rosaline is such a powerhouse but her friendship with them was perfect. I loved how fully formed all of the different side characters in this book are. Even Mr. Rile and Mr. Dean and the adults have distinct personalities. Aunt Genevieve had to be my favorite character because she so crafty and seems to always be having fun and orchestrating things. I'd love to spend an afternoon in her garden.

There's a big conflict between the two mothers and I think it's the perfect layer of plot to the standard marriage market. I loved the evolution of the competition. This book was incredibly entertaining and I think I read it in just 3 sittings.

Of course Catherine and Rosaline steal the show in this story (as they should, it's really their story) because they were always a good time together. From rivals to friends to lovers, they were electric in every scene. I liked their spicy scenes too and how they yearned for each other. They were just so magical. Even their letters to one another were wonderfully romantic.

I adored this book and I hope Emma continues to write them!


Thank you to Avon for the advanced copy!

[k. · Rating 5 out of 5]

“𝘐𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘧𝘢𝘳 𝘭𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘭𝘺, 𝘪𝘴𝘯'𝘵 𝘪𝘵, 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘥 𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘸𝘦 𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘭𝘺 𝘢𝘳𝘦?”

Thank you to Edelweiss and the publisher for the eARC of Like in Love With You by Emma R. Alban!

Sometimes I forget how much I love reading regency era books until I read one and it sucks me back in—this was no exception! This book made me feel like I was walking the streets in Bridgerton to the point where I had to remind myself that no, I cannot in fact ever pull off a bonnet.

This was such a fun ride, hitting all sorts of mischievous and emotional notes, all while blending them perfectly. The book begins with all sorts of rivalry-fueled shenanigans between Rosalie and Catherine, all while the chemistry between them morphed from dislike forced upon them by their mothers to something else entirely.

One thing I love about queer stories is that they frequently show how much courage is involved in being yourself—the regency-era background in this book enhanced that aspect, putting very high stakes on the love developing between our two leads. But while the stakes were indeed higher, so were the emotional peaks that came along with watching both friends and family rally around Rosalie and Catherine as certain truths came to light.

At a time in society where being “other” or “different” is under attack, these stories are more important than ever. Especially since, under all the mischief and turmoil, there’s a burning, glowing thread of queer joy underlaying every single story beat in this book.

Also, shoutout to Christopher for being the best meddling brother.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶️🌶️