The Crafting Con

by E.P. Stavs

Ex-childhood friends Ava and Declan are thrown together for a last minute, prop-making
emergency that will totally not end with either one of them falling in love.

Ready for your next 5-star contemporary romance read!?

--
Ava Aimes idolizes her nerdtastic father, but when he ditches her mom for his soulmate—a move that turns her mother into the walking dead—she vows to give up the geek life forever.

She won’t let anything remind them of what they’ve lost, even if it means saying goodbye to her best friend, Declan. Their memories are tied too closely to her traitor dad.

Five years later, that vow begins to chafe as Ava moves toward the end of junior year. Pep club? Check. Potential Greek god prom date? Reluctant check. Gaze fixed firmly away from where her ex-bestie sits on the other side of the room? Not-so-check. The urge to be at his side is strong, but is it worth risking her mom’s newfound happiness for a chance at her own?

Declan Greene is so over his childhood crush. He barely even registers Ava’s existence tucked in the center of the popular crowd. His sole focus is on the workshop he’s running at the upcoming anime convention. If all goes well, it could lead to a high-profile collab with the area’s leading prop-maker, an opportunity he’ll do anything to secure.

But when his crafting partner backs out three weeks before the con, and Ava shows up as his replacement, Declan will either have to accept her help or chance losing the workshop altogether. He needs it to succeed, but will spending time together rekindle the feelings he’s spent years putting to rest?

Genres: Romance

Kindle Edition

Expected publication September 22, 2026

About the author

Author of romance and magic.

Reviews

[E.P. Stavs]

Don’t forget to add this to your TBR! And look for ARCs coming to Netgalley this June. ❤️

[Naomi · Rating 5 out of 5]

A dream story for every geeky booklover! The Crafting Con shows the struggles between navigating your love for fan culture and high school drama, added with an emotional layer of family relationships.

Shifting from Ava's pov and Declan's pov, the story hooked me from the very first chapter, wherein we're introduced to Ava's rage for her father's betrayal. It felt genuine and raw, even for those who haven't experienced such a parental divorce. It is still unimaginable how your idol of a father can just fall out of love. While the story doesn't go into that much detail, it thoroughly explores its effects on others. Stavs perfectly balances between a comic con-focused trope and a coming-of-age. On the one hand, she presents the hard work and effort that goes into comic con preparations, and on the other hand, she moves the reader by writing such strong relationships and characters.

The book was hard to put down, with Ava struggling to find her own identity, sharing them with others, and facing her hurtful past. Sure, she makes some mistakes, but she shows that you're allowed to do that and be both 'popular' and geeky.
Declan was just the epitome of a yearner! Boy, that guy, he was doomed from the start. His love for comic con props is admirable and insightful for those who think that cosplaying is just about dressing up. NO WRONG, it's hard work to create a costume + props😭.

I also loved Declan's and Ava's friends (Stasia, Hiro, Tyler)! They're the best supporters and schemers, who deserve at least a trophy for that. 🙌 I loved their silly jokes and awkward miscommunications. They also really interact with each other instead of being some loose side characters who only support specific characters.

While the story is set in a high school area, with proms, parties, and a sports field, giving it a light-hearted touch, Stavs also manages to go deeper by touching upon alcoholism, a form of depression, parental abandonment, and a consequent serious anxiety of desertion. This mix creates an emotional read that truly pulls on your heartstrings.

Finally, it's evident that the author knows what she's writing about. Her love and passion produced a wonderful, affectionate story that deserves all the stars!

[Erica Victoria Espejo · Rating 5 out of 5]

For full disclosure, I've been attending anime conventions for the past 20+ years who's a fan of geeky romance along the lines of the manga Drama Con.

A childhood friends to enemies to a second chance. Our two main characters started their cosplay and convention lives as the cute kids in costume being paraded around by their parents. When our FMC's voice actor father leaves her mother for a cosplayer, the friendship between her and her childhood friend is fractured. And now, in present day and present time, they are destined to work together for a local convention's programming by running a workshop.

I love how the author really had these characters grow apart from childhood to being a part of their own world in their high school days. Our FMC is doing her own thing and has abandoned the anime and cosplay hobby whereas our MMC, has continued his love of the craft. The side characters are fun too - Hiro is one of my fav's.

But with prom around the corner and the convention on the same weekend, which will our FMC choose? Also, do our MMC and FMC have a second shot at friendship? I love the lead into these two becoming friends again. I love how the author also captures high school expectations and milestones and geek life.

As a cosplayer and longtime convention goer, this was a cute love story. While my critiques are minor in portraying con culture, they didn't take away from my enjoyment of the story. I hope we do see more geeky romance from the author. She is definitely part of this world and portrays it so much better and realistic than its anime contemporaries (ie: My Dress Up Darling).

Highly recommend if you're within any proximity to cosplay and convention culture. This is a story that will make you go Awwww.

Note: I am part of the ARC team.

[Essentially Bookish Cat · Rating 5 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Crafting Con completely won me over! It was the perfect blend of geeky joy, heartfelt emotion, and adorable romance. As someone who loves fandom culture, I had so much fun with all the references sprinkled throughout the story. The nods to The Lord of the Rings, The Princess Bride, and even KPOP Demon Hunters (especially the Golden reference!) made me smile every time—they felt like little gifts for fellow fans rather than forced pop culture mentions.

Ava and Declan were such lovable, authentic characters. Their shared history, insecurities, and slow journey back to each other made me root for them from the very beginning. I especially appreciated that they were allowed to be messy, make mistakes, and grow. Their love of crafting and cosplay wasn’t just a fun backdrop—it was such an important part of who they were, and it was clear the author truly understands and celebrates fandom communities.

The friendships were another highlight. Stasia, Hiro, and Tyler brought so much warmth, humor, and heart to the story. Their banter felt natural, and they genuinely cared about one another, making the whole friend group feel like people I’d happily hang out with at a convention.

While the book is full of fun convention prep and fandom excitement, it also explores heavier topics like family changes, abandonment, and finding your identity with a lot of compassion. It never lost its hopeful heart, and I found myself laughing one chapter and getting emotional the next.

If you’ve ever found your people through fandom, spent hours making something you’re passionate about, or simply love a sweet friends-to-lovers romance with plenty of heart, this book is for you. I finished it with a huge smile and already wish I could read it again.

[TheRedBookBox · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Crafting Con by E.P. Stavs - A heartfelt book about taking care of people around you while being true to yourself. Ava, our high school protagonist, shares a lot of geeky interests with her father, but he turns out to be a rotten human being who blew off his family five years ago. In order to keep her mother from self-destructing, Ava gave up everything geek related and even cut off all contact with her geeky best friend Declan. As the stress slowly tears Ava apart, her friends help her gain insight into what she needs to do to take care of herself.

This story is told against a backdrop of anime conventions and general geekdom, with a fabulous array of movie quotes, dad jokes, video games, and board games, among other things. The romance was sweet and kinda falls under the “second chance” trope, as well as “he fell first” (his inner monologue was so swoony!) The side characters were great, and I loved how everyone was supportive of everyone else. I especially liked how the boy in the other half of the love triangle was such a class act and helped Ava so much. (How were there no Lizzie McGuire references? This was totally high school Lizzie, Ethan, and Gordo!)

This is the first book in a new series called The Geek Life and I’m really excited to see where else the series goes!

Thank you to E.P. Stavs for the Advanced Reader’s Copy!

Notes:
-FM couple
-Low spice
-Alcoholism

[Shelby Elizabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Where do I even begin? The way I love this book . . . love isn't even the right word. The characters grabbed me, heart and soul, from the start. From the first page I was utterly invested, staying up late to finish--and I could already read it again! I absolutely need this book on my shelf (and the publisher has a sweeeeet special edition that will look gorgeous on it, which I've already pre-ordered)!

E. P. Stavs has a natural talent when it comes to writing. Her voice, and that of her characters, soars. Ava and Declan are the geeky MCs teenage me would have been best friends with--they felt so real, their struggles and insecurities handled beautifully, their love of all things fandom delightful and refreshing, their romance . . . the SWOON!!! My heart was so happy reading about these childhood friends finding their way back to each other.

I can't forget the other characters in this incredible book, though! Stasia, Hiro, Tyler . . . I love them too. Like, I would devour any more content with any of these characters, and hope we get more someday! More Ava and Declan romance, more side quests with the friend group--all of it!

The Crafting Con is a geeky gem, and I can't wait for people to fall for Ava and Dec the way I have!

[Kat · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Crafting-Con was a delightfully swoony second chance YA romance and love letter to all things fandom and cosplay. I adored this book from the very first chapter, and found myself connecting with Ava and her stubborn determination to fight for the people in her life that mattered to her and were still there. The writing is lighthearted at times, and poignant at others, as Ava deals with a father who chose to walk out on his marriage and move across the country, and decides she will burn all her memories of him, even if that means giving up cosplay and the cons she loved so much—and her friend Declan.

I loved the intense first crush chemistry between Declan and Ava. It was so intense on both sides. They team up after five years apart to work on a last minute project that could help Declan get a summer opportunity with a local prop-maker, and this comes just as Ava’s friend group is trying to nudge her towards a potential romance, prom is coming, parties are in the air, along with all the usual high school adventures. And how will she get through her first con in years while avoiding her famous dad? I loved this! 5/5 stars.

I received a complimentary ARC copy of this book from the author for review purposes.

[Cassie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Adorkable. There is no other word, this book is totally Adorkable. It has all the elements I love - besties to idiots ✅
geeky interests ✅
family drama ✅
someone finally looking out for the FMC who looks out for everyone else ✅
adorably awkward geeky MCs ✅

This was a fast read for me because I could not put it down once I got started. Declan and Ava are characters already dear to me because they reminded me so much of my own social group in high school. I remember our first anime convention when at 19 a group of us drove five hours away to attend the only “local” con and several costumes were still being hand sewn in the car!

As a geeky person and parent my heart went out to Ava and I felt so much empathy for her feeling like she needed to hide her true self to be able to support her mother. I’m really glad quite a few other characters pointed out to Ava that her mother is an adult and needs to take care of her own feelings. It's always hard to see FMCs that have ended up taking on the burdens of others, but its also satisfying when someone else finally puts them first.


Thanks Netgalley and Whimsical Publishing for the ARC.

[Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is the absolute cutest! I adored the characters - every single one of them. I laughed a lot. Like a lot a lot. And then I completely bawled my eyes out. I sat down and read this in one shot because I was so engrossed in the story. And even though it's the sweetest, it also deals with some pretty challenging themes. And watching, especially Ava, work through things was so great and felt realistic and I just really appreciated the strong friend support group she had. Also, I am 100% here for a friends to lovers, they are reuniting after years apart, one of them is trying to deflect and says something bad about the other and then slo-mo turns and the other is there tropes but also *chef's kiss* for not having a real miscommunication trope. All the nerdy references and ah! I just really loved this book. So go pre-order it. And the Whimsical special edition with sprayed edges looks gorgeous.

I received an advance copy through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review - thanks so much!

[Vicky · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think anyone who's into anime, or cosplaying making would like this book. We start with Ava and Declan years after their friendship ended, and Ava's father left her and her mom for another woman the story goes from there, and then the two of them end up working on a project together. The mention of anime and cosplaying really kept me reading and going along with the story the writing was a little off, stilted, at the beginning, but it got better. Ava and Declan were strong characters they were rightfully flawed and you identified with them. It had enough conflict that kept you reading, the side characters were well developed too they added so much to Ava's and Declan's character, and they felt realistic too I really liked reading this and I had a good time reading it.

Thanks Netgalley and the Publisher for the arc.

[Courtney · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed the pace of this, it was the perfect length and didn't have much of any unnecessary filler. In typical YA fashion (and very much Sarah Dessen coded) I always laugh when the teens drink coffee and espresso. I loved the activities they did though and all the movie and game references.

I got a bit frustrated with the relationship with mom, I was hoping for a bit more than a "I'll try harder, honey" especially with how serious the situation was for mom and Ava. I think Mom should have taken more responsibility and we should have seen her take those steps instead of just talking about it. I would want that for a younger reader, truthfully. Instead of just accepting a situation like this as a norm.

Overall though, such a cute read. I would absolutely pick up more from E.P.! Thanks for the opportunity to read this one, NetGalley!

[Sage · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was cute. It explores friendship, love and second chances. At it's core, it's about find your people and learning how to move forward from the past. Be it mistakes, missed chances or heartbreaks.

As a fellow geek and someone who has 300+ steam games, I was extremely excited for a gaming/geek Y/A. Although it was cute, it was also where I struggled the most. While I appreciate seeing the representation of the gaming/anime community, references sometimes felt forced and occasionally broke the world that was being built.

That being said, it's all about personal preference. Fandom culture and character driven romance readers will definitely enjoy this book.

Although it didn't completely work for me, I still found myself smiling as I read.

[Micheline Ryckman · Rating 5 out of 5]

“If you ever need to keep yourself up all night, I highly recommend inviting your ex-best friend slash first crush, whom you haven’t spoken to in years, to hang out.”

I feel like this quote sums up this entire tale! 🤣 Well, not entirely, but these kinds of vibes are throughout, and this tale will make you smile, giggle, and cheer on Declan and Ava as they navigate being conned into reuniting by their best friends.

This romance is based around all things nerdy; crafting (obviously), games, cons, anime, and more! A book written by a nerd, about nerds, for nerds!!!

You’ll love it, I promise!!!

[DC · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review of advance reader copy received from NetGalley

This book was literally a roller coaster of emotions. I loved Ava and Declan together. Declan’s yearning was top-notch. I loved the way how Ava rediscovers herself and overcomes the betrayal of her father. The way she cared for others especially her mother was so endearing. She was not perfect. She made mistakes but still at the end was able to resolve them. The friend group was also really supportive and encouraging. And the way Declan stood up for Ava against her Dad even though he might lose an opportunity of a lifetime…..swoon. The ending was so satisfactory.

I give my thanks to the author and to NetGalley for giving this ARC

[Hayley Chow · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was such a cute YA contemporary romcom with so much heart! Declan, Ava, and their friends are adorably nerdy with bantery dialogue and a voice that pops with YA authenticity. The romance is a super sweet friends-to-lovers peppered with lots of con-loving pop culture references and underscored by big themes of accepting who you are and growing up. Highly recommend for anyone looking for a adorably geeky YA romcom to have fun with.

[Caroline · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my absolute favorite reads this year! The crafting con is perfect in every way: great characters with complex emotions, a fun and interesting story, and a friends to lovers slow burn as the cherry on top. This isn’t your typical romance, there’s depth, struggle, but it’s balanced so well. I loved these characters so much, and as someone who grew up going to cons, it was an absolute treat to read.

Thank you to NetGalley for the arc