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With Love, From Philly #2
Bitter Love
One dodgeball was all it took.
Violet Rhodes has always felt strongly, and when she accidentally hits a boy with a ball in gym class, it’s enough to form a lifelong friendship. After fourteen years, he’s still by her side as her best friend. And when she tells him she’s dropping out of nursing school to become a paramedic, she realizes there’s nothing left in Philadelphia for her. Until a tragedy years later sends her back home. Now the boy who was her best friend is a stranger…and working in the same firehouse. The closer they work together, the quicker those feelings come rushing back.
Malcolm Hayes wears his heart on his sleeve. It’s a hazard of being born on Valentine’s Day. How he managed to hide his crush from his best friend is as good a guess as anyone. But when he brushes the loss of his brother under the mat and his best friend leaves without a trace, he’s lost. Then, after five years of no contact, she’s back…and working as the new paramedic at the firehouse where he’s been for the last three years. As a firefighter, he’s quick on his feet at assessing every situation, but Violet Rhodes isn’t a fire he can easily contain. The more time they spend together, the easier it is for him to fall back into her world.
Can these two heal the broken pieces of their friendship? Or will the fire catch them and leave nothing but ash and smoke in their wake?
This is book 2 in the With Love, From Philly series and CAN be read as a standalone.
Violet Rhodes has always felt strongly, and when she accidentally hits a boy with a ball in gym class, it’s enough to form a lifelong friendship. After fourteen years, he’s still by her side as her best friend. And when she tells him she’s dropping out of nursing school to become a paramedic, she realizes there’s nothing left in Philadelphia for her. Until a tragedy years later sends her back home. Now the boy who was her best friend is a stranger…and working in the same firehouse. The closer they work together, the quicker those feelings come rushing back.
Malcolm Hayes wears his heart on his sleeve. It’s a hazard of being born on Valentine’s Day. How he managed to hide his crush from his best friend is as good a guess as anyone. But when he brushes the loss of his brother under the mat and his best friend leaves without a trace, he’s lost. Then, after five years of no contact, she’s back…and working as the new paramedic at the firehouse where he’s been for the last three years. As a firefighter, he’s quick on his feet at assessing every situation, but Violet Rhodes isn’t a fire he can easily contain. The more time they spend together, the easier it is for him to fall back into her world.
Can these two heal the broken pieces of their friendship? Or will the fire catch them and leave nothing but ash and smoke in their wake?
This is book 2 in the With Love, From Philly series and CAN be read as a standalone.
320 pages, Kindle Edition
Published October 9, 2026
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
Review of advance copy received from Author
3 stars.
"Bitter Love" by Elleese Black is an ok book, but it's not the best romance that I have read. I struggled with this one and found a lot lacking in its writing style. It's a childhood-friends-to-strangers-to-lovers workplace romance, but I barely even felt any friendship between the main characters, let alone a romance. Violet (FMC) recently returned home to Philadelphia from Columbus, OH, where she worked as an EMT and left after a few traumatic incidents happened to her. Malcolm (MMC), her best friend, was left "on read" for years without a reason why, leaving him to wonder what he did, what happened, that dissolved their friendship. When she gets back to her hometown, she gets a job working in the same firehouse as Malcolm, throwing them into close proximity once again. Everything that takes place in this book seems to happen at warp speed. So much is said, but not a lot actually happens. I feel like Violet and Malcolm start hooking up way too early in the story, so there's not much time for readers to feel the pining and the yearning that has, supposedly, existed between them ever since they were friends (and even through the five years they have been apart). We barely even get a sense of their friendship, let alone any romantic feelings between them, and then a time jump happens, and they don't speak to each other for years. So, when they start a physical relationship, I was left feeling like, "already?!?!? They barely just reconnected!" When they begin their friends-with-benefits situation, only about 30% or so of the book has elapsed! It begins too abruptly and also without much fanfare; it's all very "wham-bam-thank-you-ma'am." Malcolm even tells Violet he loves her when half of the book is left, and he just blurts it out after calling her a wh0re for wanting to keep things casual like they agreed?!?! Gah, it was so frustrating!!!!! Because of this quickness and Malcolm's gross behavior about halfway into the book, I really didn't feel a whole lot for them as a couple. In fact, I wanted Violet to find better after that moment, but she just forgave him and moved on. The longer the book went on, the more ambivalent I felt about them. The vibes felt off to me. And don't even get me started on how abruptly it ends. I did like certain parts of this book, though. Violet's trauma/her trying to overcome it was an interesting plot point, as was Malcolm's secret passion for pottery. Apart from that, I found this to be lacking in the romance department. There is a decent amount of spice, but without that passion, that yearning behind it, I, sadly, felt blah about it.
Thank you to Elleese Black and Luna Literary for the complimentary ARC of this book. All opinions are my own. I was not compensated for this review.
"Bitter Love" by Elleese Black is an ok book, but it's not the best romance that I have read. I struggled with this one and found a lot lacking in its writing style. It's a childhood-friends-to-strangers-to-lovers workplace romance, but I barely even felt any friendship between the main characters, let alone a romance. Violet (FMC) recently returned home to Philadelphia from Columbus, OH, where she worked as an EMT and left after a few traumatic incidents happened to her. Malcolm (MMC), her best friend, was left "on read" for years without a reason why, leaving him to wonder what he did, what happened, that dissolved their friendship. When she gets back to her hometown, she gets a job working in the same firehouse as Malcolm, throwing them into close proximity once again. Everything that takes place in this book seems to happen at warp speed. So much is said, but not a lot actually happens. I feel like Violet and Malcolm start hooking up way too early in the story, so there's not much time for readers to feel the pining and the yearning that has, supposedly, existed between them ever since they were friends (and even through the five years they have been apart). We barely even get a sense of their friendship, let alone any romantic feelings between them, and then a time jump happens, and they don't speak to each other for years. So, when they start a physical relationship, I was left feeling like, "already?!?!? They barely just reconnected!" When they begin their friends-with-benefits situation, only about 30% or so of the book has elapsed! It begins too abruptly and also without much fanfare; it's all very "wham-bam-thank-you-ma'am." Malcolm even tells Violet he loves her when half of the book is left, and he just blurts it out after calling her a wh0re for wanting to keep things casual like they agreed?!?! Gah, it was so frustrating!!!!! Because of this quickness and Malcolm's gross behavior about halfway into the book, I really didn't feel a whole lot for them as a couple. In fact, I wanted Violet to find better after that moment, but she just forgave him and moved on. The longer the book went on, the more ambivalent I felt about them. The vibes felt off to me. And don't even get me started on how abruptly it ends. I did like certain parts of this book, though. Violet's trauma/her trying to overcome it was an interesting plot point, as was Malcolm's secret passion for pottery. Apart from that, I found this to be lacking in the romance department. There is a decent amount of spice, but without that passion, that yearning behind it, I, sadly, felt blah about it.
Thank you to Elleese Black and Luna Literary for the complimentary ARC of this book. All opinions are my own. I was not compensated for this review.
Review of advance copy received from Author
I liked the premise of a firefighter and paramedic that were childhood friends to lovers. One thing I appreciated was that Violet’s trauma that heavily impacts who she is and the actions she takes is shared pretty early in the book. It helps you understand Violet pretty early on as she goes through her love story with Malcom. However I think it was hard for me to understand how she could be so closed off to Malcolm when they had such a deep friendship before everything happened. And Malcolm wasn’t without his own familial trauma! It felt very fast paced but in a way that felt a little rushed at times and a few of the characters did things that seemed “out of character”. Like Malcolm saying he’s cool with her dating, but don’t sleep with someone else while they’re doing their friends with benefits. Which can go either way on “is that right?” Depends if they’d decided to be exclusive but then Violet responds that he’s basically calling her a whore. That felt a little extreme. And then later in the book, Violet has been working at the new firehouse for months but hasn’t told anyone about her trauma from her previous station and she basically just blurts it out to two of her coworkers back to back. I thought she’d be more hesitant about sharing or intuitional but all of sudden she seemed okay with sharing. I think overall it wasn’t the book for me.
Thanks to Luna Literary and the author for an eARC. All views are my honest opinion.
Thanks to Luna Literary and the author for an eARC. All views are my honest opinion.
Review of advance copy
Childhood friends to strangers to lovers!
I enjoyed this read. Violet and Malcolm were super close as kids. They eventually went on their separate ways and when an unexpected tragedy happens Violet cuts him off.
Fast forward 5 years later Violet finds herself working at the same firehouse as a paramedic -Malcolm a firefighter.
Histories and memories begin to emerge and the story takes off. This was really fast paced and honestly I didn’t mind it. Sometimes I do like more of a background, but I think everything was flushed out fine.
Thank you Luna Literary for the ARC
I enjoyed this read. Violet and Malcolm were super close as kids. They eventually went on their separate ways and when an unexpected tragedy happens Violet cuts him off.
Fast forward 5 years later Violet finds herself working at the same firehouse as a paramedic -Malcolm a firefighter.
Histories and memories begin to emerge and the story takes off. This was really fast paced and honestly I didn’t mind it. Sometimes I do like more of a background, but I think everything was flushed out fine.
Thank you Luna Literary for the ARC
Review of advance copy received from Author
It’s definitely a personal issue because I really struggled with Elleese’s writing. I picked up book 1 in this series first but ultimately DNF’d it at 59%. The pacing is too fast and the story felt more told than shown. It almost read like third person POV, even though it’s written in first person.
I struggled to connect with the characters in Bitter Love, and something Malcom (MMC) does completely threw me off. As a lover of childhood friends to lovers trope, Malcom and Violet definitely deserved the yearning but I found their back and forth to be a little immature. I might give her other books a try, but unfortunately, this was a miss for me — 2 stars!
Thank you to Elleese Black, Luna Literary and team for the ARC, all thoughts are my own.
I struggled to connect with the characters in Bitter Love, and something Malcom (MMC) does completely threw me off. As a lover of childhood friends to lovers trope, Malcom and Violet definitely deserved the yearning but I found their back and forth to be a little immature. I might give her other books a try, but unfortunately, this was a miss for me — 2 stars!
Thank you to Elleese Black, Luna Literary and team for the ARC, all thoughts are my own.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Review of advance copy received from Author
Okay, I REALLY enjoyed Bitter Love. 🥹❤️🔥
I’m already a sucker for childhood best friends-to-lovers, but give me years of unresolved feelings, hurt, longing, and a man who has basically been in love with the same woman forever?! Yeah… you got me. 😂
Malcolm was easily one of my favorite parts of this book. This man wears his heart on his sleeve and is SO gone for Violet. The way he loved her felt genuine, and even through all the hurt between them, you could still feel how deeply these two knew each other. And him calling her Lettie?! STOP. 😭
I also really appreciated Violet as a character. She's complicated, guarded, and sometimes frustrating but in a way that made sense. She's carrying a lot, and I liked that reconnecting with Malcolm didn't magically make all of that disappear. Their relationship had history and baggage, and they actually had to work through it.
And can we talk about them trying to convince themselves anything between them could be casual?! 😂 BABE. Please. The feelings have been marinating for YEARS. Nobody believed that nonsense.
There were definitely heavier moments than I expected, but I think that's what made the sweeter moments hit harder. I loved the firehouse setting, the friendships, the banter, the spice, and especially watching Malcolm and Violet slowly find their way back to each other.
I only wanted a little more from certain parts, which is why I'm sitting at 4.5 stars instead of 5, but overall? I ate this up.
Give me a firefighter who's been secretly in love with his best friend for years and apparently I'll fold every damn time. 😂🚒❤️🔥
I’m already a sucker for childhood best friends-to-lovers, but give me years of unresolved feelings, hurt, longing, and a man who has basically been in love with the same woman forever?! Yeah… you got me. 😂
Malcolm was easily one of my favorite parts of this book. This man wears his heart on his sleeve and is SO gone for Violet. The way he loved her felt genuine, and even through all the hurt between them, you could still feel how deeply these two knew each other. And him calling her Lettie?! STOP. 😭
I also really appreciated Violet as a character. She's complicated, guarded, and sometimes frustrating but in a way that made sense. She's carrying a lot, and I liked that reconnecting with Malcolm didn't magically make all of that disappear. Their relationship had history and baggage, and they actually had to work through it.
And can we talk about them trying to convince themselves anything between them could be casual?! 😂 BABE. Please. The feelings have been marinating for YEARS. Nobody believed that nonsense.
There were definitely heavier moments than I expected, but I think that's what made the sweeter moments hit harder. I loved the firehouse setting, the friendships, the banter, the spice, and especially watching Malcolm and Violet slowly find their way back to each other.
I only wanted a little more from certain parts, which is why I'm sitting at 4.5 stars instead of 5, but overall? I ate this up.
Give me a firefighter who's been secretly in love with his best friend for years and apparently I'll fold every damn time. 😂🚒❤️🔥
October 6, 2026
INFINITY STAR READ ♾️
I absolutely loved every single thing about this! I’ll take no criticism on this piece of ART. IT WAS OUTSTANDING.
As a person who isn’t a book/reading crier, please understand I sobbed during this. Sobbed. I finished this and had to take 2 entire days to just think about it and go back to certain parts and just appreciate it before I could even consider writing my review.
ELLEESE. The writing in this is impeccable. I couldn’t put it down. I was so wrapped up in this story, their love, their trauma with each other and without each other and their romance. AND THE SPICE. 🥵 I truly wouldn’t change absolutely anything.
Elleese always finds a way to take heavy, hard, uncomfortable topics and she lays them out. She doens erase that discomfort, because it’s real and raw, but she finds a way to handle them with so much care without loosing the plot of the romance and the MCs stories finding each other again.
You’re getting everything you want - it’s always been you, he falls first (but like forever ago, and so hard), he takes care of her, friends to strangers to lovers, friends with bennies to lovers, and healing after trauma.
Immediately go read this. Actually go read her entire backlog, you won’t regret it. GO NOW. 🏃♀️
PS. i love that we got to see some peekaboos from the other friends from philly!
I absolutely loved every single thing about this! I’ll take no criticism on this piece of ART. IT WAS OUTSTANDING.
As a person who isn’t a book/reading crier, please understand I sobbed during this. Sobbed. I finished this and had to take 2 entire days to just think about it and go back to certain parts and just appreciate it before I could even consider writing my review.
ELLEESE. The writing in this is impeccable. I couldn’t put it down. I was so wrapped up in this story, their love, their trauma with each other and without each other and their romance. AND THE SPICE. 🥵 I truly wouldn’t change absolutely anything.
Elleese always finds a way to take heavy, hard, uncomfortable topics and she lays them out. She doens erase that discomfort, because it’s real and raw, but she finds a way to handle them with so much care without loosing the plot of the romance and the MCs stories finding each other again.
You’re getting everything you want - it’s always been you, he falls first (but like forever ago, and so hard), he takes care of her, friends to strangers to lovers, friends with bennies to lovers, and healing after trauma.
Immediately go read this. Actually go read her entire backlog, you won’t regret it. GO NOW. 🏃♀️
PS. i love that we got to see some peekaboos from the other friends from philly!
October 8, 2026
Bitter Love ARC Review 🚒🔥♥️
Rate: ⭐️⭐️⭐️/ 5
Pub date: 10/9
Bitter Love follows Violet and Malcom, childhood best friends until one day she went MIA. Five years later, tragedy brings Violet home and her former best friend, Malcolm, is now a stranger and her new coworker at the fire station. Now that Violet is back, old feelings come rushing in for Malcom and working sideby side makes it harder to keep them hidden.. This the second book to the With Love, From Philly series 💜
This is a childhood best friend’s to strangers to lovers and I usually always love these kinds of books but I felt like this book was good but was missing a lot of the connection that I wish they had. It didn’t feel like they really had that much of a connection from the beginning. We didn’t get a deep dive into their friendship and when she came back, it felt like they never had a chance to talk about their feelings. Besides that, I thought their own stories with their trauma, family struggles were really well written. I love reading Elleese Blacks work! I know there will be times I won’t connect to one book more than the other so that’s okay!
Thank you author Elleese Black for this ARC ♥️🔥
Rate: ⭐️⭐️⭐️/ 5
Pub date: 10/9
Bitter Love follows Violet and Malcom, childhood best friends until one day she went MIA. Five years later, tragedy brings Violet home and her former best friend, Malcolm, is now a stranger and her new coworker at the fire station. Now that Violet is back, old feelings come rushing in for Malcom and working sideby side makes it harder to keep them hidden.. This the second book to the With Love, From Philly series 💜
This is a childhood best friend’s to strangers to lovers and I usually always love these kinds of books but I felt like this book was good but was missing a lot of the connection that I wish they had. It didn’t feel like they really had that much of a connection from the beginning. We didn’t get a deep dive into their friendship and when she came back, it felt like they never had a chance to talk about their feelings. Besides that, I thought their own stories with their trauma, family struggles were really well written. I love reading Elleese Blacks work! I know there will be times I won’t connect to one book more than the other so that’s okay!
Thank you author Elleese Black for this ARC ♥️🔥
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
Bitter Love by Elleese Black is an emotional journey that reminds us just how complicated love can be. This story follows the FMC Violet Rhodes and MMC Malcolm, two childhood best friends whose relationship changed after years of friendship, silence, and unresolved feelings. What made this story so appealing is the idea of two people who have known each other for so long but still have so much to learn about one another. Violet’s grumpy, guarded personality paired well with Malcolm’s sunshine energy to create a dynamic that was hard not to love. Their history added another layer to their connection, making their relationship feel deeper than a simple romance. Overall, Bitter Love was a story that will appeal to readers who enjoy emotional contemporary romance and characters with history.
I received an ARC copy from Luna Literacy. Thank you for giving me the chance to read this novel and share my honest review of the novel
I received an ARC copy from Luna Literacy. Thank you for giving me the chance to read this novel and share my honest review of the novel
October 1, 2026
Arc Review✨
This follows Violet and Malcolm who are best friends. Violet is studying for nursing but takes an interest in being a paramedic. She ends up loosing touch with Malcolm over the years. She ends up back home and stationed at the same house as Malcolm. Old feelings resurface between them.
Malcolm was sweet and had Violets interests at heart. He would have helped her through anything and Violet learning to open her heart after what she had to endure at her other job placement was hard for her but was able to trust Malcolm through it all.
Malcom's family, well some of them weren't the greatest so I'm glad there was someone who stood up to them for him.
Overall it was a sweet, love story with some tragedy but story flowed well.
It is the second book in a series, with Brandon (Malcolm's brother) being the MMC in the first.
This follows Violet and Malcolm who are best friends. Violet is studying for nursing but takes an interest in being a paramedic. She ends up loosing touch with Malcolm over the years. She ends up back home and stationed at the same house as Malcolm. Old feelings resurface between them.
Malcolm was sweet and had Violets interests at heart. He would have helped her through anything and Violet learning to open her heart after what she had to endure at her other job placement was hard for her but was able to trust Malcolm through it all.
Malcom's family, well some of them weren't the greatest so I'm glad there was someone who stood up to them for him.
Overall it was a sweet, love story with some tragedy but story flowed well.
It is the second book in a series, with Brandon (Malcolm's brother) being the MMC in the first.
October 4, 2026
Arc Review🩷
I really liked his book but he was kinda fast paced and I felt like it ended abruptly. I needed just a little bit more from the characters.
I really enjoyed Violet and Malcom’s love story, you could feel how much they loved each other. Even though Violet went through something very traumatic, Malcom was there with her healing along side her.
Thank you Luna Literacy for the opportunity to receive this ARC!
I really liked his book but he was kinda fast paced and I felt like it ended abruptly. I needed just a little bit more from the characters.
I really enjoyed Violet and Malcom’s love story, you could feel how much they loved each other. Even though Violet went through something very traumatic, Malcom was there with her healing along side her.
Thank you Luna Literacy for the opportunity to receive this ARC!
October 9, 2026
4⭐️ Violet and Malcolm were childhood friends who went their separate ways after a tragedy. Now they are back together working at the same firehouse. Being in close proximity has resurfaced their feelings for each other. Malcolm is all in with his feelings for her but she keeps up her walls and a bit of distance before giving in. They have to work through their baggage to get to have their romance.
October 10, 2026
Bitter Love brings Malcolm and Violet’s childhood best friends to strangers to lovers journey. When Violet left town, there were some unresolved feelings between these two and now that she is back and a paramedic in the same firehouse where Malcolm is, it has them learning so many things about each other.
The history between them added a layer to their budding relationship. Malcolm’s sunny personality was paired perfectly with Violet’s grumpiness.
The history between them added a layer to their budding relationship. Malcolm’s sunny personality was paired perfectly with Violet’s grumpiness.
Review of advance copy received from Author
Loved this one. Elleese Black gifted me this as one of the ARC readers and I fell in love. I’m a 911 dispatcher, married to a retired fire fighter now EMT so this one hit close to home. The story was amazing and I loved being in Violet and Malcolm’s world. I’ll definitely be looking for the first book that I somehow missed and any future in the series.
October 9, 2026
If there is one thing I know, it’s that Elleese Black is going to write a book that is going to make me cry! And guess what I’m gonna love every second of it!
Bitter Love had me feeling every emotion! I just loved Violet and Malcom’s story!
Thank you to Elleese Black for this ARC! All opinions are my own!
Bitter Love had me feeling every emotion! I just loved Violet and Malcom’s story!
Thank you to Elleese Black for this ARC! All opinions are my own!
October 9, 2026
It was a good read but really fast paced I felt it needed more tension and yearning. I love a good spicy book when there is spice early but considering everything that happened to them maybe they needed to get to know each other again. It was enjoy able to read.
Want to Read
October 6, 2026𝗪𝗛𝗔𝗧 𝗧𝗢 𝗘𝗫𝗣𝗘𝗖𝗧:
Childhood Friends to Strangers to Lovers
Workplace
Friends with Benefits
Grumpy Girl x Sunshine Boy
"Always been you"
He Falls First
Boy Obsessed
Firefighter MMC
Childhood Friends to Strangers to Lovers
Workplace
Friends with Benefits
Grumpy Girl x Sunshine Boy
"Always been you"
He Falls First
Boy Obsessed
Firefighter MMC
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews