Get Over It, April Evans

Clover Lake #2

by Ashley Herring Blake, Gail Shalan (Narrator)

A summer job at a lake-town resort brings together two women with an unlikely connection in this new contemporary romance by USA Today bestselling author Ashley Herring Blake - perfect for fans of Alexandria Bellefleur, Meryl Wilsner and Rosie Danan ❤️‍🔥🌞💋

She stole her ex. This summer, she just might steal her heart.

April Evans' life is in shambles. Her tattoo shop has just closed, she has no money and her love life? Non-existent - ever since her ex-fiancée left her for a younger woman three years ago. When she's asked to teach a summer art class at the town's new resort, April jumps at the opportunity. She's sure that this is the silver lining she needs . . . until she meets her Daphne Love, the woman who stole her ex. And even worse, it's clear Daphne has no idea who April is.

Daphne Love is cursed in, well, love. She thought she'd found the unconditional love she craved in her ex-girlfriend, but now she's single again and utterly broken-hearted. When her friend hooks her up with a summer gig as an art instructor at a swanky resort, Daphne feels optimistic for once. If only she had a roommate who didn't seem to hate her on sight.

But slowly, barriers begin to fall, and an inexplicable allure keeps drawing April and Daphne closer, leaving them to wonder if the perfect picture they're looking for can only be painted with each other.

Tropes
❤️‍🔥 enemies to lovers
🫂 forced proximity
🐈‍⬛🐕 black cat/golden retriever
🔥slow burn
💋 sapphic romance

Why readers love Ashley Herring Blake . . .

'A hot, frothy romcom with a relatable heart beating at its centre' Talia Hibbert

'A truly exquisite romance . . . I'm wildly in love with this book' Rachel Lynn Solomon

'A swoon-worthy, laugh-out-loud romp of a romance' Kosoko Jackson

'Snappy banter and seriously scorching chemistry' Lana Harper

'Charming and entertaining . . . will have readers swooning' Karelia Stetz-Waters

'Snarky, steamy, and swoony in equal measure, I never wanted this book to end' Meryl Wilsner

Genres: Romance, Lesbian, LGBT, Contemporary, Queer, Adult, Fiction

Audible Audio

First published February 3, 2026

About the author

Ashley Herring Blake is a reader, writer, and mom to two boisterous boys. She holds a Master’s degree in teaching and loves coffee, arranging her books by color, and cold weather. She is the author of the young adult novels Suffer Love, How to Make a Wish, and Girl Made of Stars (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt), the middle grade novels Ivy Aberdeen’s Letter to the World, The Mighty Heart of Sunny St. James, and Hazel Bly and the Deep Blue Sea (Little, Brown), and the adult romance novels Delilah Green Doesn't Care and Astrid Parker Doesn't Fail (Berkley). Ivy Aberdeen’s Letter to the World was a Stonewall Honor Book, as well as a Kirkus, School Library Journal, NYPL, and NPR Best Book of 2018. Her YA novel Girl Made of Stars was a Lambda Literary Award finalist. You can find her on Twitter and Instagram at @ashleyhblake and on the web at www.ashleyherringblake.com. She lives in Georgia.

Reviews

[Mai H. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Valentine's Day 2026 #1

I've been in such a media slump that I was terrified to pick this up. Have no fear. I could not put this down. Hands down, my favorite AHB book to date. Like ASTRID, I will be reading these out of order. I hope I like RAMONA more than DELILAH.

I could've binged this in a day, but work, class, and life unfort got in the way. I loved this from page one. April is such a tattooed goth grump. I loved her. And while I could've hated Daphne's wide-eyed naïvety, I actually loved her, too.

Anyway, the premise of this is April was dumped three years ago, when her long term partner Elena leaves her for Daphne. In the present day, Daphne has just been left.

April's life is not going well. She has to rent out her house and close her tattoo shop. She ends up teaching art for rich people. It comes with room and board. Who else is her roommate and fellow teacher but Daphne?

I won't lie. I love when shit hits the fan. And it does. A lot. And I know this is April's book and all that, but I'm dying to read about SASHA. What a messy butch. Give me more.

rep: F/F, lesbian, pan

tw: family estrangement, gaslighting, homophobia, parental death, parental neglect, religious trauma

DELILAH | ASTRID | IRIS | SEASON

📱 Thank you to Goodreads and Berkley

[Robin · Rating 4 out of 5]

falling for your exes ex while rooming & teaching together on a summer art course?? sign me up

thank you to netgalley and the publisher for providing the advance review copy. full review to come

Bookstagram | Blog

[BJ Lillis · Rating 5 out of 5]

I may be one of the few people on earth who hate astrology and love tarot. When April Evans predicted Daphne's birth month working backwards from her personality, I rolled my eyes so hard they almost got stuck that way. But every time April pulled a tarot card and wove its arcane symbolism into the meaning-making of her and Daphne's lives, I smiled.

Whether fated in the stars or no, April and Daphne's is my personal favorite Ashley Herring Blake romance (and I've read all six, I'm happy to confess). This is certainly her best novel since Iris Kelly Doesn't Date, probably her best since Delilah Green Doesn't Care. And if it's probably not better than Delilah Green, exactly, it also feels somehow more her—more Ashley Herring Blake.

Blake really had to wrestle with this one. She admits as much in the acknowledgments. But also, I read the old first chapter of this novel included with the ARC of Dream On, Ramona Riley, the first book in the Bright Falls series. And so I can tell you—that was the first chapter of a completely different novel. I just reread it, and it was a surreal experience: an alternate-reality April, totally different set up, the same quips in the mouths of completely different characters.

Well, all the re-writing paid off.

Blake's great strength is emotionally difficult conversations. My favorite of her novels is not a romance at all, it's Girl Made of Stars, her devastating 2018 YA novel about rape—among the best of the golden age of millennial YA-sort-of-actually-for-people-in-their-20s. (Now that we're in our 30s and 40s, I think my thrice-lost generation is finally growing into New Adult...).

So many things make April Evans successful, though, above and beyond the emotionally grounded moments Blake is so good at. She nails the side characters, giving toxic-ex Elena surprising depth for how few scenes she has, and fuckboi-sidekick Sasha a hard-to-pull-off blend of devil-may-care comic relief and real feeling. Blake also brings back Ramona and Dylan from the first novel in the Bright Falls series more effectively than maybe any romance sequel I've read. Ramona truly belongs in this story, and the arc of her friendship with April takes some of the emotional weight of the novel off of the main romance in a way that helps the entire story breath.

And Blake comes back to one of her favorite themes, the painful intertwining of creative expression, personal feeling, and professional networking demanded of people—like, you know, professional romance writers—who have to balance the intimacy and vulnerability art depends on with the self-discipline of a creative practice, and then throw into that already volatile mix the whims of agents and curators and buyers and publicists and the public and then somehow find a way to make it all pay the rent. Honestly, Blake gets the fine art world about right, to my surprise. Luck, talent, vision, networking, happenstance, physical beauty, charisma, and a work ethic fueled, on a fundamental level, by desperation—by feeling never-enough—come together and put Daphne into the perfect position to be plucked up into the upper echelons of the art world. No, it won't happen to you, but when it does happen, I'm fairly certain this is exactly what it looks like.

As for that intimacy—Blake's sex scenes have always made me ever so slightly uncomfortable, and setting a crucial intimate moment at a play party in a suburban dungeon definitely didn't cut against that tendency here. But this isn't necessarily a bad thing. The truth is, the sex scenes feel like honest-to-God fantasies, like Blake wrote them first and foremost to turn herself on. Which is honestly kind of rare.

The cherry on the lovely Sunday that is Get Over It, April Evans? Well, there are three! Two adorable cats. (I am so sick of all the fawning over dogs in romance. Dogs smell. They can't so much as poop without you taking time out of your day for it. They literally knock people over and bite them to death. You can hear them six houses over. Did I mention they smell? True, cats walk among us with the self-involved arrogance of the goddesses they are, but who can blame them for that? Anyway, I loved the cat representation.) The third cherry on the April Sunday, after Bob the Drag Cat and Bianca del Kitty, is that gorgeous cover. It's not just Blake's best, it might be cover artist Leni Kauffman's best, too. Who doesn't want this on their night stand!?

I've also posted this review on my blog, along with some reflections on the appeal of lesbian romance more generally, for the less-discerning substack audience: https://scorpionreview.substack.com/p...

[vivi ʚɞ · Rating 4 out of 5]

⋆˙✮ 4

After feeling indifferent about AHB’s latest titles, I’m happy to say I really enjoyed this one. The writing still feels like it’s missing some of the charm the Bright Falls series had, but this is the closest she’s come to recapturing it in her recent work.

Where do I start? I know the book is literally named after April, but Daphne was the character who really shone for me here. She is such a cinnamon roll who deserves everything good in the world, especially after learning about her backstory. Her journey of self-discovery was so fun and healing, but also messy in a way that felt real— the perfect reminder that healing is not linear.

As for April, give my girl a break ‘cause she was going THROUGH it. She’s better than me because if I was experiencing all the things she was, and then I come to find out I’m spending the entire summer with the girl my fiancée left me for— well, let’s just say I would’ve been a lot meaner than April was. She was just as funny, charming, and astrology-obsessed as she was in the first installment of the series, and I’m glad we got to see her story (even if it 𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘧 felt more like Daphne’s).

Elena is literally so slimy and I hate her. That’s it. That’s the paragraph. In all seriousness though, AHB did a great job at depicting the toxic ex. I didn’t enjoy her presence at all, but it showed how it can be so easy to fall back into old patterns with people like that, which I feel is not shown or talked about enough. And also brings me to my next point: the third act conflict. If you know me, you know I do not particularly enjoy them, but this one was necessary. I just wish we got a little bit 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 after the resolution.

Also, Ramona kinda sucked here. April deserved better from her supposed best friend.

Overall, this was a pretty fun read, and I’m eagerly waiting for the next installment of the series, which is made very obvious throughout this book!

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

Quick, fun read!

This is my first book by the author but it won’t be my last!

The two FMCs give off opposites attract vibes but aren’t actually that different. They complement each other so well and the on-page chemistry was fantastic.

This book also had a fantastic 3rd act conflict that felt so real!

And the spice was hot.

Whats to love…
- age-gap sapphic romance
- two artist FMCs (tattoo + painter)
- Age-gap
- Ex’s ex
- forced proximity (same cabin)
- small-town setting
- bucket list

🌶️- open door and sprinkled throughout. 😏they go to a play party.

| IG | TikTok |

Thank you Berkley for the gifted book. All opinions are my own.

[Melany · Rating 5 out of 5]

I will forever be in love with Ashley Herring Blake's writing style. This book was just as amazing as others from her that I've read. It was truly magical and beautiful seeing the character development for April and Daphne. I loved that I felt so many emotions while reading this... I laughed so much, I said "aww" a lot and I even got teary-eyed during some deeper moments. Such a wonderful read, I felt so connected to the characters and rooted for them throughout the book.

I received this book from NetGalley and Berkley to read/review. All of the statements above are my true opinions after fully reading this book.

[Teddy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book sucked me right in. I liked the astrology angle and all the art and I especially liked Daphne’s journey. It was fun seeing Ramona and Dylan again, and Sasha seems like an interesting character I’m guessing we’ll see more of. Where I struggled was the ending and ultimately wanting a little more from both characters. On April’s side, I wanted more from her family story and her evolution- it seemed like her journey was to “get over it” like the title suggests instead of processing through it fully like Daphne seems to. That said, I definitely felt the chemistry and romance between them and enjoyed how their story unfolded as well as the author’s writing style.

Short summary: April has basically lost everything and to add insult to injury her new cabinmate is the woman her ex left her for. Worse, she’s undeniably hot. And nice. And talented. And now April has more to lose.

Thanks to Netgalley and Berkley. ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.

[Justine]

THIS COVER IS STUNNING!!!

Feb 3rd feels so far away 😭😭

Edit: Got the ARC!!! 😆😆

[megan ◡̈ · Rating 2 out of 5]

i really wanted to love this book especially after adoring april in romanas book, i thought she was fun, quirky and a lovely person and friend so when i saw she was getting her own story i was STOKED. unfortunately this book read for me like AHB couldnt stand april evans and didnt want to be writing her book or give her any measure of happiness. the only reason i didnt dnf this tbh was because i really hoped that tune would change at some point, it didnt obviously…

i just think april and daphne deserved better than this, they deserved emotional depth (any kind of depth really but specifically this) and queer joy… not whatever this was with their ex looming over them and the unnecessary need to make april a villainous character toward her best friend and romona and dylan’s happiness and successes.

[Sapphic Bookshelf]

Thank you to PRH Audio for the audiobook.

If you’re a fan of Ashley Herring Blake’s earlier books, you definitely should check this one out! It has her signature storytelling (it really reminded me of Iris Kelly) and there’s even some light exploration of BDSM when the characters go to a play party.

I enjoyed the narration. There’s a distinct voice for each main character that I think really fits them.

[Clara Addicted to sapphic books · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like Blake’s writing, I find it very colorful and alive. The cabin, the paintings, the stars, the moonlight trail, I could definitely picture the romantic setting. The ex’s ex trope is not something I read often and I was looking forward to it. I really liked Daphne, she felt so innocent and had a difficult upbringing, she has this underlying strenght that she needed to find. I liked April less because deflecting is her go to and it can be frustrating for me, but she felt so fresh and full of life. They both have a lot of growing to do, especially Daphne that just got out of a break up, with an ex that’s is definitely still looming. It made me mad, a bit jealous and frustrated for both of them. I don’t really like it when characters aren’t 100% available. (Helena, if I could slap you it would be so liberating !). On the paper, an ex’s ex should be a last choice, but they were perfect for each other and so sweet. The third act break up is not something I particularly liked, but It was necessary and felt real in this case. The forced proximity was way more richer than I thought. I expected some secluded intimate thing in the cabin, but Sasha brought them in unexpected (hot) adventures. Dirty dancing ?Play party ? I did not expected that. Characters are a messed in a messy situation and definitely devour the audiobook. The narrator did a really good job!
I really look forward to read Sasha’s story’s next !
Ps: I didn't read book 1 but Ramona wasn't really likeable here so I won't

[Sam’s Sapphic Reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars rounded up

“I don’t know how to love you without losing myself. I don’t know how to find myself and love you at the same time. I’ve never experienced that balance. I’ve spent my entire life loving other people and ignoring myself. And that’s not real love, is it?”

There were a lot of pros and cons to this story. It was super easy to fall in love with these characters, they were well written and had their own cute personalities. Opposite from one another yet eerily similar that fit the book perfectly.

Some of the storyline didn’t sit well with me. It’s obvious that they share an ex, and my heart hurt heavily for April. It felt as though April didn’t have a lot of love for herself, and that was clear with her interactions with Daphne even after Elena’s surprise visits. She really threw herself at Daphne and I didn’t love how easily she gave herself up.

The timeline itself was hard, with Daphne JUST getting out of a long term relationship she wasn’t over. It felt like she led April on just to leave her.

Sex scenes were a bit weird with the overly talking and the nickname April gave Daphne, “Ms. Love”, but that’s more a personal preference.

What I did enjoy was the growth both MCs had, this was probably my favorite part. But again, the timeline and set up of the storyline lowered the stars for me a bit. Some of it seemed not genuine because of this.

Overall it was another solid story by Ashley Herring Blake and I’m looking forward to the next one!

Thank you NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for the ARC!

[Star · Rating 4 out of 5]

Content warnings: alcohol, references to cheating ex, references to christian/religious trauma, absentee parents, sexual content (including light BDSM).

Rep: April (MC) is cis, white, and pansexual. Daphne (MC) is cis, white, and lesbian. Cis white lesbian semi-prominent side character. Various other queer people. Some POC.

Note: If you are the author of this work, or any journal/reviewing site, you do not have permission to use any part of my review, including screenshots, to share with your followers, post on a blog, or substack, or anything or anywhere else.


Spoilers ahead:


After the absolute fucking shit house book that was Dream On, Ramona Riley, this one was so much better. It still had something missing in it for me, but that is a personal reasoning.

Throughout the first few chapters, there was nothing about April Evans that made me want to like her.
Now, I read an advanced reader copy of Dream On, Ramona Riley, and imagine my shock when it turns out that the author had tossed April's whole storyline and reworked it. And honestly, this works so much better. I couldn't see how an entire novel could be build on a one night stand with Sasha.

Speaking of Sasha — I am curious to see what her book will be like. I thoroughly enjoyed her character in this one, but with Ramona and (vomits) Dylan being all married and living elsewhere, and the ending of this book having April and Daphne in England, that leaves no found family for Sasha to have around her.
She was easily the most interesting character in this entire novel.

Daphne came to be a close second. I thoroughly enjoyed her chapters. I loved how she grew into herself in this book, and as an artist, too. It was great to see.

April grew as well — thank fuck. She needed to. She has issues, yes, but she is 33, and hadn't worked on anything. But by the end of the book, she had. Which was a relief.

At least with this ending, I could actually see April and Daphne making it as a couple.

Unfortunately, this is also AHB's whitest novel to date, it feels like. Usually there are prominent BIPOC supporting characters but not this time, sadly.

Yeah, that's all I have to say lol.

[Stephieloohoo · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was just okay, which is disappointing because I had high hopes for it. I don’t think I like this series at all from Blake.

I loved Daphne, sweet summer child, Daphne. I also liked April. I think both of them experienced a lot of growth and they were very cute together and as individuals.

I just feel like it was meh. I absolutely couldn’t stand Ramona or Dylan’s cameo. Dylan felt so outside if the story, like she couldn’t be bothered with anything and Ramona was a bit selfish.

Blake built up a lot of internal angst and frustration with their friendship so when they finally talked to hash it out and it was just “well okay let’s move on” I was disappointed. Nothing was even said outright that April was feeling so it felt like something that was just there to get previous characters into the book.

It ended as expected and was just a book I read, in the end.

I feel like certain “popular” or “mainstream” authors are falling victim to the pressure of releasing new titles, and Ashley is one of them, unfortunately.

[Jasmine · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love Ashley Herring Blake's writing so this one was no different. I was in a bit of a romance slump so when I finally picked this one up I absolutely devoured it! I love that we get to see characters from book one in the Clover Lake series as well as nods to her Bright Falls series. It's not necessary to read any of the previous books before this one, but it add character depth to the characters and fun little nods to the previous books. 4.5/5 rounded up, my only problem was that I wish I had seen a little more character growth from both love interests. Can't wait for book three starring Sasha!

[Leanna Streeter · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love a good sapphic romance, and this one didn’t let me down.

This story completely pulled me in with its emotional depth and character driven focus. Both April and Daphne are at really low points in their lives when they meet, and I genuinely felt for each of them from the start. April is dealing with the fallout of losing almost everything she built, and Daphne is reeling from a breakup she thought was going to be forever. Watching two women who are hurting collide in such a complicated, unexpected way made their connection feel layered, tender, and real.

What stood out most to me was the heart in this book. The chemistry is there, but even more than that, I loved the emotional intimacy, the quiet moments, and the way art, grief, and healing are woven into the story. Their relationship unfolds in a way that felt natural and meaningful, and I found myself fully invested in both of their journeys.

Overall, this was a heartfelt, emotional sapphic romance with beautifully flawed characters, strong emotional beats, and a very satisfying love story. If you enjoy sapphic romances that focus on healing, self-discovery, and unexpected connection, I definitely recommend this one. Thanks to Berkley for the gifted ARC.

[Lucy Harrison-Green · Rating 3 out of 5]

Better than book one but not as good as bright falls

[Anne Hartley Pfohl · Rating 2 out of 5]

I think the title might have doomed this one. I just got the impression AHB didn't like April very much. She even calls April's story her "recalcitrant child" in the Afterword. Then bring that struggle to the story, don't back away and apologize for it! Don't blame April! You can't simply add astrology and tarot and make a personality. The cover art for this book promised magic and discovery. It did not deliver for me.

SPOILERS follow:

It turns out Daphne was all the magic April was allowed. That was her win. Not her art, not her sense of self or accomplishment, not healing, not her dreams. Where was April's victory? When Daphne finally said yes? No plan, no future, just walk away from life as you knew it, teach art for a summer, go on a road trip and hope some day Daphne is ready for her. This was Daphne's story, not April's.
The formula isn't working anymore. I haven't really enjoyed any of AHB's work since Iris Kelly. Step back, blow it up, and return to telling stories about multidimensional characters YOU believe in. Leave Clover Lake and Bright Falls behind (no, "Suck It Up, Sasha..." and what was she doing there, anyway?). Don't just keep churning out crowd pleasers because your publisher wants to sell them. What's the love story you're dying to tell? What's the story that's going to keep you up writing, not the one that makes you angsty and frustrated? The one you wake up in the middle of the night to get back to. The one that helps you find your joy again. That's the one I want to read.
AHB seemed much more interested in helping Daphne get over her stuff than In writing April's story. April actually got over Daphne and Elena's relationship pretty darn quickly! She seemed to get over everything she faced without much work or reflection at all. Including losing her big shot to Daphne! Wow! Maybe the author was simply avoiding her main character. It was Daphne that really struggled with her relationship with Elena, not April. And so much about the rift in Ramona and April's friendship was just glossed over. Planning her whole wedding without April? Then they finally talk and it's, "Oh, yeah, you ghosted me but it's okay. Let me go put on my pink dress that you knew I'd hate." No exploration of or growth in April's relationship with her parents. Why bring it up, then? Why have them show up, add nothing to the story except more parents for us to hate, and go nowhere with it? So many threads simply dangled out there adding little or nothing to April's life changes or choices (what were those, anyway?). What about the road trip? We learned more about Daphne's journey than April's, which really led...nowhere.
Everything was surface in this book. And I felt the introduction of some light BDSM was simply gratuitous to amp up the spice because there was no real investment here on the author's part.

[alex · Rating 4 out of 5]

cue wi$h li$t by taylor swift in the most sapphic way possible

[Erin · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars. There’s a recent nonfiction book called The Ex-Girlfriend of My Ex-Girlfriend is My Girlfriend, and that pretty much sums up the basic plot here. April got dumped three years ago by her fiancée, Elena. Since then her life has fallen apart. She’s taken a job as art instructor at a new lake resort, which comes with room and board. And a roommate. Who is the worst possible stranger to be stuck with—Daphne Love, the talented artist and younger woman her fiancée left her for. Who seems to have no idea who April is. Now they’ve got a whole summer of living in the same room and working together.

Ashley Herring Blake excels at pining, and this latest book is no exception. April and Daphne both have a lot to work through, and the two of them getting together would be a terrible idea. But that doesn’t stop either of them from being obsessed with the other.

Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher, and the author for the ARC to review. All opinions are my own.

[Nev · Rating 4 out of 5]

I just love Ashley Herring Blake's sapphic romances. They're always full of complex characters, great chemistry, and compelling plots. April and Daphne both have interesting personal journeys that they have to go on throughout the course of the book. Of course their romance together is steamy and fun. But it was equally as interesting to see how they are picking up the pieces of their lives, and working towards healing from past events, and creating a new fulfilling life together.

Definitely check this book out if you're in the market for a swoony sapphic romance!

Thank you to the publisher for providing an advance copy via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

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

This was so complex and interesting of a premise, I really enjoyed this one and seeing the growth of both of these characters throughout. They definitely had A LOT to work through!

April was left by her fiancée three years ago for another woman, only for said other woman (aka Daphne) to now be dumped as well and in need of a place to stay. In present day, April is now renting out a room to Daphne and she finds herself falling for her ex’s ex! This was equal parts so messy and so tender. I liked that they’re both artists. I know April is the titular character and all, but Daphne absolutely stole the show for me. I adored her as a character. I honestly went into this book a bit wary after sadly not loving the first book in the series where we even meet some of these characters, but this book worked so much better for me! Now I’m also so curious about book 3 coming later this year.

I received an ARC, all thoughts in this review are my own.

[Michelle’s Library · Rating 4 out of 5]

The trope was my exes ex and I really liked it! I just felt like the relationship went so fast like April went from loathing Daphne to having sex with her in a couple of chapters.

[amarachireads · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a cute addition to the series, if you like steamy sapphic romance with age gap romance you should check this one out. We have the fmcs April who is a tattoo artist in financial trouble. The other fmc Daphne is a painter who stole Aprils ex fiancée. Art first both main characters relationship is not good and very tense as it should be, add in an art competition which makes the relationship even more strained. I loved how they both got closer to each other’s reservations and the heartbreak between them. I liked how both mcs at first seemed so different but as they got to know each other realized that they had more in common. There was so much tension and chemistry between the mcs especially as their relationship grew, those steamy scenes were 🔥 especially with all the forced proximity and the cabin life. I think the personal development between both characters was also great and liked how they grew which made the third act breakup more real and understandable. Overall a fun romance, thanks to Berkley for this arc for an honest review.

[Hannah Showalter · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm such a sucker for the AHB cinematic universe. I don't love the Clover Lake series as much as the Bright Falls one, but I liked this book more than Ramona's book. The plot and tropes were more up my alley, and I loved the introduction of Sasha's character. As always, AHB is a masterclass in creating a world with such fun side characters and dynamics. I also loved that so much of this was focused on April and Ramona and the changes in their friendship dynamic; not something I've seen many books touch upon and it felt really realistic. The pacing of April and Daphne's romance felt a bit off to me, but I can't put my finger on why.

After hearing AHB talk in person about the next book in this trilogy, I am soooo stoked for that one especially.

[Kelsey Loves Books · Rating 4 out of 5]

My ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. I’m a sucker for a story where there’s a change of heart and someone heals from old hurts. Art as therapy at a bougie summer camp can only help. Can’t wait for Sasha’s story. She’s so mysterious!

[Julia · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked Daphne more than April and I wish we’d gotten more from her pov. All in all a good time and I’m looking forward to the next one!

[Izza · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 stars | 👀 AHB does it again! So glad this came out during the Olympics, I got to enjoy it a little longer.

[Kristen]

Omg could not stop reading 🤐🫣🥰🙊

[Viv (vivianneslibrary) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ashley Herring Blake is back for me because this was such a fun time! I loved the dynamic between our two love interests and exploring their struggles that they were going through. I knew they would find love together and I was so happy when they did. There were certain things that felt unrealistic, however, it didn’t fully bother me here. Also, this book solidified why I didn’t love Ramona and Dylan in her last book lmao.
4.25⭐️