Valentine's Slay

The Improbable Meet-Cute: Second Chances

by Navessa Allen

Roses are red, violets are blue, Emma’s not dead, and her gravedigger’s hot too. This Valentine’s Day, love claws its way out of the grave in #1 New York Times bestselling author Navessa Allen’s steamy and hilariously dark rom-com.

Louisiana gravedigger Noah Evans’s Valentine’s night shift takes an unexpected turn when his high school crush starts screaming from her freshly dug grave. Whoever tried to bury Emma six feet under is in for a nasty surprise—they should have checked for a pulse because she’s got unfinished business, starting with the hot gravedigger who just saved her life. As they unearth a deadly family conspiracy, Noah and Emma discover that old flames burn even hotter the second time around—especially when someone’s trying to kill them.

Navessa Allen’s Valentine’s Slay is part of The Improbable Meet-Cute: Second Chances, stories for star-crossed lovers and hopeless romantics. They can be read or listened to in one sitting. Let’s do it again.

Genres: Romance, Novella, Dark Romance, Short Stories, Audiobook, Holiday, Contemporary

95 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 20, 2026

About the author

Navessa Allen lives on a 200-year-old farm in rural New England with her husband, their cats, and an assorted collection of farm animals.

To keep up with her latest projects, check out her Patreon Page or subscribe to her website.

Reviews

[Ana · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had so much fun reading this, it was dark and entertaining and with such a great premise.
A murder conspiracy, an immediate connection, spicy time and some action, all mixed in with an emotional undertone, what more can you ask for!! 

Gravedigger Noah's nightshift takes a turn when he hears the voice of his high school crush screaming from six feet under.. Brought together by non-ideal circumstances, they're determined to get justice.. Their connection is one that's hard to ignore and after everything that happened why would they?

Noah was an amazing character, I loved his dark humour and how he made sure Emma knew just how wonderful she really is, especially after everything that she went through.
Emma was trapped in a toxic marriage that made her struggle with her self-image, so seeing her gain some of her confidence back was so special.
I really liked them together and how he helped her find justice for what's happened to her. That last chapter was so cute, I loved it so much!!

This was my favourite from the collection!! I love Navessa and the way she writes, so of course I enjoyed this. It was very well done for a novella, I would always want more, but we did get everything we needed.

*Thank you to Netgalley and to Amazon Original Stories for providing me with an ARC.*

[SJARR ✨ · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have been so excited for this collection to release, and it's finally here!
Naturally, I had to go for the creepy one first.

4.5 stars. Honestly? I thought this was great.
This is one of those rare times where I don't feel that something is missing from a short story.
It wasn't overly rushed or shallow, and I was genuinely interested it in.

The plot of this? I love.
Grave digger saves his buried-alive childhood crush. Yes.
It is giving halloween romance over Valentines day romance, which I am obsessed with.
(Petition for this same story, but I want Emma to be a zombie next time.) (please?)

I do think it was a bit too steamy for a book of it's length. (Some people will love this! It just isn't ever what I'm really focused on).
Not a big deal, I am taking .5 off for it, but still rounding up to 5 for how much I enjoyed the story as a whole.

[Casey Reads 🌸 · Rating 4 out of 5]

This one was way better than the first one I read of this little series. I decided to read this one 2nd even though it’s book 6 of the Amazon series.

The main plot point that occurs in the beginning is very unrealistic, but idc I loved it. Very unique short story.

Also, be aware this short story is spicy. If you don’t enjoy spice, this might not be for you. It’s only really one scene, but since this is a short story it takes up a big part. I enjoyed it though.

Also enjoyed the ending. I think this would have been better as a full length book with everything going on or about 100 more pages as I felt I wanted more detail and more of this story!

[Christi (christireadsalot) · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars! Valentine’s Slay is part of the Amazon Originals Improbable Meet Cutes collection, so it is on Prime and KU read and listen. This one had such a wild premise that made me excited to dive in and it was a pretty fun ride!

Noah is a Louisiana gravedigger, his family has worked the graveyard for generations. Earlier in the day he lowered a coffin in the ground for the woman who was his high school crush. Now he’s working the night shift on Valentine’s Day and hears her voice coming from her grave asking for help and he’s pretty sure Emma has been buried alive! 👀

Wild, unhinged, dark humor, he helps her get revenge on her toxic husband, spicy, definitely a plot that grabs your attention immediately! The spice felt a little unbalanced in the story in regard to what just happened to her, but it’s an unhinged novella so I just accepted it as a fun ride.

[Larareads · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to Amazon Original Stories and NetGalley for giving me this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The more Navessa Allen books I read, the more I absolutely love them. This was just the perfect novella and the only thing it was missing is that it was so short. Funny, sexy, heartfelt and a little dark!

What to expect:
▪︎ Gravedigger MMC
▪︎ FMC buried alive
▪︎ Dark humor
▪︎ Spice
▪︎ Very cute kittens
▪︎ HEA

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

I love that all of these are second chance romances!!

[Elisabete · Rating 3 out of 5]

A smutty novella straight from the grave. Emma isn't dead and Noah is the hot gravedigger that gets the surprise of his life. There's want, there's lust, there's a previously known as dead horny woman in a one-bed cabin. LOL The villain gets his due and the comet-crossed lovers live to tell. It was hot and cute.

[fromthestudyof · Rating 5 out of 5]

a hot grave digger that rescued her from being buried alive?!

[The Bern Book · Rating 4 out of 5]

RTC

[Fahmida · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was surprisingly very fun! I hated Lights Out so the bar was really low for me but I ended up having a fun time!

[James McRay · Rating 4 out of 5]

My compliments, I guess, to Amazon/Audible for throwing this four-chili peppers dark romance into a collection of mostly half or single pepper Valentine’s Day short stories. Valentine’s Slay was quite the gearshift after reading a couple of the others in the collection. Not that I’m complaining. I enjoy a good hi-spice romance as much as the next (bisexual) guy. But it is definitely a “one is not like the others.”

[Maaike · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was more enjoyable than I had imagined! The premise of it is definitely crazy but shouldn’t have expected anything less from this author lol. I just think they moved on a bit quickly from her being buried alive.

[Amelia Blackmon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Title: Valentine’s Slay
Author: Navessa Allen
Series: The Improbable Meet-Cute

What to expect:
*FMC buried alive
*Gravedigger MMC
*Valentine’s novella

No one does dark romantic comedy like Navessa Allen!! The final book in this series was delightful in all ways!

Safety:
No OW/OM drama, some on page violence. No third act breakup.

Format: NetGalley ebook
Genre: Contemporary, Romance
Overall score:⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice level:🌶️🌶️🌶️
POV’s: Emma (FMC) & Noah (MMC)

[Luce · Rating 3 out of 5]

My least favourite of the six unfortunately. The romance was a little rushed considering the poor girl had just climbed out of her own coffin after her husband attempted to murder her.

Novella Ranking:
1. Accidentally Yours by Christina Lauren - 4.5 stars
2. Time Will Tell by Hannah Bonam-Young - 4.5 stars
3. Second Act Romance by Julie Soto - 4.25 stars
4. Death to Valentine Days by Catherine Cowles - 3.75 stars
5. A Play for Love by Trilina Pucci -3.25 stars
6. Valentine's Slay by Navessa Allen - 3 stars

I received an advanced copy for free through NetGalley, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Christa Anne · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 rounded up. This was fine. The story was cute, but the spice was so fucking cringey.

[Sara Sofia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ela foi morta pelo ex…. Aparentemente
O Noah trabalha num cemitério, e após ouvir gemidos.. percebeu que era ELA. VIVA. DENTRO DO CAIXÃO.

Toda uma experiência incrível né 😂

E a vingança ? Óbvio. Foram à casa dele e mataram-no.
E passado 1 ano…
Noivos, a morar juntos, com 4 gatinhos

The end. 🩷

[Lilly Brook ✨ · Rating 3 out of 5]

This little love story was very cute, and the concept was super unique! Unfortunately, the smut kinda gave me the ick, which never happens with Navessa’s books, so I’m not sure why??? Anyway, the narrators were fantastic, and overall, I’d say give it a shot!

[Melissa (honeybee.reads) · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5⭐

This was dark and fun! I really enjoyed the story and the romance in this one. I wasn't sure about the beginning but then it got better and I was invested.

[Jasmine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quick and easy read, liked it. But since it’s a short story it’s not something I will remember, hence the 3 star review

[Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5⭐️

[Darth C · Rating 4 out of 5]

I just want even MORE of these two… but it was a killer good time 😉

[Kristine · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was my second favorite novella out of "The Improbable Meet-Cute: Second Chances" set. It is the crazy story of MMC Noah Evans who happens to be a grave digger in Louisianna. We start this story on the day that he literally buries his high school crush - FMC Emma - in his graveyard after she is killed in an accident.

Things go even crazier when Noah hears a noise coming from the graveyard and realizes that the noise is coming from Emma's casket....which is buried and underground. Imagine his surprise when he discovers that she is still alive. Crazy, right?

He rescues her and the two of them begin to try to uncover what exactly happened to her and just exactly how her husband, who happens to be a doctor, controlled the situation. Top that off with some unexpected attraction between the two and things take off from there.

I didn't think that there was going to be enough time in this short novella to wrap everything up, but somehow it did.

I listened to this on audio and the narration by Allie Piper and Alastair Haynesbridge helped to make this a fun and easy listen.

[casey ⋆˚౨ৎ ⋆.˚ · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐️ (rounded up)

this synopsis immediately had me drawn in with what was going to happen (because it indeed was a wild ride)!!! this one definitely had its spicy moments. i listened to the audio version and i enjoyed it a lot!!! honestly, i would have liked it to be longer because i liked emma and noah.

this is a darker romance following a gravedigger, noah, on shift when it took an unexpected turn. he heard his high school crush screaming from her freshly dug grave. someone tried to bury emma so now she and noah discover someone is trying to kill them after discovering a deadly family conspiracy.

tropes: dark romcom, gravedigger mmc, second chance, high school crush, fmc buried alive, short story

🪦🪏🖤🩺🌶️

[Faye Anne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Valentine's Slay is Navessa Allen's novella for Amazon's Improbable Meet Cute: Second Chances series for 2026's Valentines Day. It has Navessa's trademark dark humour in spades, and this 95 page novella manages to tell a crazy tale in this short page count! This one and Death to Valentine's Day have been my favourites of the 4 that I've listened to so far in the last 24 hours! 

As with the other novellas in this series, both the audiobook and e-books are included on KU, so if you fancy the audiobooks, get them through KU if you have it rather than using an Audible credit! The duet narration was fantastic and I definitely recommend that format!

[KaylaLaz · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this.

Noah is a gravedigger, and one night he hears screaming coming from one of the graves. It turns out to be Emma, his high school crush. Emma was buried two days prior after being in a coma and being taken off life support. Noah and Emma work to find out who wanted her dead, and why. This had some good banter, and I liked the overall story. I was expected a little more from it, but it was still enjoyable.

[Mariana · Rating 5 out of 5]

Esta história não tem um único defeito para mim!!!
É diferente, é estranha...mas de um modo marado vejo isto a acontecer e isso até é bem interessante.

Adorei a premissa, adorei o Noah e a Emma, adorei a personalidade e força de ambos...adorei mesmo tudo - eu só queria mais e mais destes dois juntos.

É a história perfeita de dia dos namorados pois demonstra que o amor verdadeiro sabe esperar pelo momento certo para nos encontrar, e de que é capaz (literalmente) de nos salvar.

[Bailey · Rating 2 out of 5]

Loved the idea of this, but wow the execution lost me. I feel like if I was just buried alive I wouldn’t be down to clown an hour later but I’m not trying to test that theory out in a coffin.

If throbbing member at her entrance after 30 pages of light character development is what you’re into, then wow you’re going to flip for this novella

[Sarah]

This was my first Navessa Allen book, and it definitely grabbed my attention from the first page! My jaw was on the floor! For a short story, this has lots of spice and plenty of suspense!

Another great narration!

[Ally Bateman · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m usually not a huge fan of novellas because they just don’t have enough time to make me invested in the characters. However, in this short story, there was time for everything. Backstory, thriller/suspense, romance, action, and a happy ending.

[er · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 ⭐️

Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher and the author for giving me the opportunity to read this as an arc!

First time reading Navessa Allen! This had some fun moments, but honestly I don’t think it was for me. The premise was a little too crazy for my liking.