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Sour Notes: If You Dare Series, Book 2
Note to Don’t fake date your ridiculously hot best-friend-slash-roommate if you’re not prepared to accidentally ride him like a pony in paradise. Which is why telling our families that Swayze Wolff and I are dating is easily my dumbest idea yet.
But with a toxic ex waiting at my twin brother’s destination wedding, and months of online dating resulting in nothing but unsolicited d*ck pics with a side of shriveled nut sacks…what choice do I have?
FML.
We’re forced to go from estranged BFFs who only communicate via snarky post-it notes to hopelessly devoted in a matter of minutes.
Not that it matters. He’s a commitment-phobic police lieutenant and I’m a hot mess who doesn’t do boyfriends, unless they have batteries. It’s foolproof, right? Totally the safest option. Except my “fake boyfriend” is way too real. My family adores him. My ex loathes him. And when my boss hands me a buzz-worthy assignment, guess who volunteers to take notes?
Two weeks in paradise. One bed. Zero boundaries. And suddenly I’m ready to rewrite all the rules.
But last time I believed in a fairytale, I got trapped in a nightmare, and that’s one chapter I don’t plan on rereading.
But with a toxic ex waiting at my twin brother’s destination wedding, and months of online dating resulting in nothing but unsolicited d*ck pics with a side of shriveled nut sacks…what choice do I have?
FML.
We’re forced to go from estranged BFFs who only communicate via snarky post-it notes to hopelessly devoted in a matter of minutes.
Not that it matters. He’s a commitment-phobic police lieutenant and I’m a hot mess who doesn’t do boyfriends, unless they have batteries. It’s foolproof, right? Totally the safest option. Except my “fake boyfriend” is way too real. My family adores him. My ex loathes him. And when my boss hands me a buzz-worthy assignment, guess who volunteers to take notes?
Two weeks in paradise. One bed. Zero boundaries. And suddenly I’m ready to rewrite all the rules.
But last time I believed in a fairytale, I got trapped in a nightmare, and that’s one chapter I don’t plan on rereading.
Audible Audio
Published September 17, 2026
About the author
Canea Cox
6 books79 followersOh hai!
Welcome to my GR Profile.
I’m a UK based author / illustrator, living in London with my IRL book hubby.
If I’m not dreaming up or drawing my latest book boyfriend, I can be found looking at our predominantly grey skies and manifesting sunset views over the ocean.
Fun fact: my book characters reeeally start talking to me once I’ve drawn them. Sweet Hate all started with their cover, and Haven just couldn’t stop chatting away in my mind at 3am until I listened and spilled out her story.
Between my sheets you can expect to find the inner ramblings of the heroes who love hard, and the sassy, spirited heroines who love to bring them to their knees. You’ll also find, not limited to, crass humour (because yes, I do have the same sense of humour as a teenage boy occasionally 🤷♀️), swearing, spice, and the odd Britishism that will very likely sneak into all my characters because I write how I talk…
If you loved my books, feel free to inbox me on
Insta @caneacoxauthor, because I love to hear about what you enjoyed!
If you hated it, that’s cool, but respectfully, I don’t need those inbox DM’s.
This author shit is a wild ride, and I’m thrilled you hopped on it with me!
Welcome to my GR Profile.
I’m a UK based author / illustrator, living in London with my IRL book hubby.
If I’m not dreaming up or drawing my latest book boyfriend, I can be found looking at our predominantly grey skies and manifesting sunset views over the ocean.
Fun fact: my book characters reeeally start talking to me once I’ve drawn them. Sweet Hate all started with their cover, and Haven just couldn’t stop chatting away in my mind at 3am until I listened and spilled out her story.
Between my sheets you can expect to find the inner ramblings of the heroes who love hard, and the sassy, spirited heroines who love to bring them to their knees. You’ll also find, not limited to, crass humour (because yes, I do have the same sense of humour as a teenage boy occasionally 🤷♀️), swearing, spice, and the odd Britishism that will very likely sneak into all my characters because I write how I talk…
If you loved my books, feel free to inbox me on
Insta @caneacoxauthor, because I love to hear about what you enjoyed!
If you hated it, that’s cool, but respectfully, I don’t need those inbox DM’s.
This author shit is a wild ride, and I’m thrilled you hopped on it with me!
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
October 11, 2026
What. A. Fucking. Book. 😂 I genuinely don't know how Canea managed to make me laugh this much while also giving me a genuinely emotional storyline, because this book had me going from “What do you expect her to think, you're fucking her in a restroom?” to actually sitting there thinking about emotional abuse and trauma. The tonal balance in this book is honestly so good.
First of all,
Swayze! Canes, you absolutely fucking nailed this man. His inner monologue compared to what actually comes out of his mouth had me crying. The amount of times he's internally spiralling while externally managing some pathetic little response is hilarious. This man has absolutely no game when it comes to Mia, and the fact that he knows it makes it even better. “I'm sacrificing brain cells to my dick” genuinely sent me because he realises in real time that he's talking absolute nonsense to himself. I could listen to this man spiral all fucking day.
And the fourth wall breaking with Swayze made him even better. It felt like he was actually sitting there talking directly to me, and I fucking loved it. I can't stress enough how much His monologues were one of my favourite parts of the whole book because you could see exactly what he wanted to say versus what actually came out of his mouth. The man could be thinking about writing her a fucking love poem and then say “Fine, you look fine” out loud. 😂 Fucking idiot.
The friendship group was another massive win for me. Those of you that read my last review already know how much I adore left on read, the chat had me in stitches, and the addition of Dr Foxy obviously made everything even better. Not to mention my new vocal stim of "middle finger middle finger middle fingerrrrrrr".
I absolutely loved the passive aggressive sticky notes, the Ghostface mask, Dickanomics, the Clone a willy and Mario! My second favourite character called Mario!
There were so many ridiculous moments throughout this book that just worked. It genuinely felt like these people were having fun together, and I think you can actually hear that in the audiobook (we'll be back to talk about this).
And then we have Goat yoga, which might be one of my favourite scenes in the entire book. Hercules beefing with Wolff, Phillip deciding Wolff was apparently his new bed, Wolff losing his fucking mind over another male getting supposed attention from his woman and then “I didn't hear what she was saying through my meltdown.”
That line genuinely epitomises him. The whole scene was pure gold, and if this was a TV show I would have been crying laughing.
Remember I said we'd talk about it. James Cassidy, you sir are a master of your craft. The way you slipped between characters so smoothly, built the rapport between multiple different characters at the same time and carried the weight of Swayze's crazy spirals and internal monologue was incredible. You did an absolute standup job and I will absolutely be looking for more of your stuff.
Savannah Thomas, I think this is the first book of hers that I've done, and she was phenomenal. She really brought all of Mia to life, strong, warm, kind and vulnerable, my lord you really did so well bringing her vulnerabilities to life you really did an amazing job carrying the weight of her struggles and conveying them so beautifully.
Underneath all of the comedy, what really got me was Mia's story. As the book progressed, it became increasingly obvious just how much damage Pete had done to her the fucking cunt. The verbal abuse, the manipulation and emotional dependency he'd created didn't just disappear because she was away from him and now surrounded by people who loved her. She could be in a safe and loving situation and still find herself mentally reverting back to the place she'd been in before. The deep dark corner where she put herself to survive
I thought Canea handled that really well, particularly when Mia finally opens up about what she's been feeling. That chapter hit differently because there was no comedy to hide behind. It was just Mia being vulnerable and trying to make sense of what had happened to her. I think it's really important for books to show that emotional abuse can have a lasting impact and that getting out of the situation doesn't automatically mean you're immediately okay. You can have people around you who love you and still feel incredibly alone. Again shout out to Savannah for doing such an amazing job at bringing this to life.
Swayze, Wolff, my man, this man for anyone who's listened to training season, that song was written about this man, I fucking love him, what a yearner. Yes, this man has been yearning for Mia for years, but what I really appreciated was how much he cared about making her feel safe and comfortable. He didn't just want her physically he wanted all of her.
He wanted her to trust him, to feel protected and to know that he was there when things got difficult. That's what I want from a romance. It's not always about sex. It's intimacy. Being seen, touched, admired, understood and safe enough to actually let someone in.
Their chemistry was fucking fantastic as well. The desire between these two was ridiculous, and I loved how effortlessly the book could go from something genuinely sexy to something that had me laughing five seconds later. The fake relationship was obviously never going to remain fake, especially when they were finding literally any excuse to kiss each other. They set rules that they both knew they weren't going to follow, and watching those rules slowly disintegrate was brilliant.
The truth or dare scene was fantastic, the tension was ridiculous and the payoff was absolutely worth it. Then we got the one bed situation, because obviously we did, and somehow they still tried to convince themselves this was all completely normal. 😂 And don't even get me started on Swayze getting jealous over her cousin. That man was fighting for his fucking life. I related to that jealousy more than I probably should have, because you can be secure in your relationship and still be aware that other men are dogs. 😂
I also really loved the quieter moments between the characters. The conversation between Wolff and Nick was particularly good because it reminded us that underneath all the chaos, these guys genuinely care about each other. Sometimes you can go years without seeing someone regularly and still know that person is one of your best friends, and I thought that came across really naturally. Shout out my boy!
The wedding was giving me massive My Big Fat Greek Wedding vibes and I was all for it. The family chaos, the food, the ridiculousness, all of it. And then, because apparently Mia and Swayze weren't allowed to have one peaceful fucking day, Pete had to turn up and ruin everything. I genuinely wanted to launch that man into the sun at several points throughout this book. It even that would be too merciful.
What I appreciated, though, was that Mia's journey didn't magically end because she found Swayze. She still had to deal with her own trauma and learn to trust herself again. Watching her finally have people around her who could support her without controlling her was really satisfying, especially after everything Pete had taken from her. It was amazing to find out that everything she feared was irrelevant and that her family had always supported her! Shout out big momma for always having her Mia's back!
And then we get the epilogue. Three years later, they've got kids and then suddenly twins. 😭🥰 Honestly, I loved that for them. Seeing Swayze as a dad was ridiculously sweet, and being a dad really is one of the best jobs in the world despite the exhaustion, tantrums and general chaos. I wouldn't swap it either.
Also, baby Mia not sharing her croissant with Swayze when big Mia wouldn't absolutely fucking finished me. Kids really do become copies of their mothers 🤣🤣😂 And Canes, I am formally requesting a Mario novella because that man deserves his own story.
Overall Sour Notes is fucking brilliant. It was sexy, hilarious, emotional and chaotic, but it also had some genuinely important things to say about emotional abuse, trauma, friendship and what it means to feel safe with another person. I laughed an embarrassing amount, I got way too invested in these characters, I developed beef with a snivelling piece of shit, I wanted to personally fight him and I am now apparently going to have to investigate that hotel because it sounded fucking incredible. It b er you er be r al
Wow. What a book.
First of all,
Swayze! Canes, you absolutely fucking nailed this man. His inner monologue compared to what actually comes out of his mouth had me crying. The amount of times he's internally spiralling while externally managing some pathetic little response is hilarious. This man has absolutely no game when it comes to Mia, and the fact that he knows it makes it even better. “I'm sacrificing brain cells to my dick” genuinely sent me because he realises in real time that he's talking absolute nonsense to himself. I could listen to this man spiral all fucking day.
And the fourth wall breaking with Swayze made him even better. It felt like he was actually sitting there talking directly to me, and I fucking loved it. I can't stress enough how much His monologues were one of my favourite parts of the whole book because you could see exactly what he wanted to say versus what actually came out of his mouth. The man could be thinking about writing her a fucking love poem and then say “Fine, you look fine” out loud. 😂 Fucking idiot.
The friendship group was another massive win for me. Those of you that read my last review already know how much I adore left on read, the chat had me in stitches, and the addition of Dr Foxy obviously made everything even better. Not to mention my new vocal stim of "middle finger middle finger middle fingerrrrrrr".
I absolutely loved the passive aggressive sticky notes, the Ghostface mask, Dickanomics, the Clone a willy and Mario! My second favourite character called Mario!
There were so many ridiculous moments throughout this book that just worked. It genuinely felt like these people were having fun together, and I think you can actually hear that in the audiobook (we'll be back to talk about this).
And then we have Goat yoga, which might be one of my favourite scenes in the entire book. Hercules beefing with Wolff, Phillip deciding Wolff was apparently his new bed, Wolff losing his fucking mind over another male getting supposed attention from his woman and then “I didn't hear what she was saying through my meltdown.”
That line genuinely epitomises him. The whole scene was pure gold, and if this was a TV show I would have been crying laughing.
Remember I said we'd talk about it. James Cassidy, you sir are a master of your craft. The way you slipped between characters so smoothly, built the rapport between multiple different characters at the same time and carried the weight of Swayze's crazy spirals and internal monologue was incredible. You did an absolute standup job and I will absolutely be looking for more of your stuff.
Savannah Thomas, I think this is the first book of hers that I've done, and she was phenomenal. She really brought all of Mia to life, strong, warm, kind and vulnerable, my lord you really did so well bringing her vulnerabilities to life you really did an amazing job carrying the weight of her struggles and conveying them so beautifully.
Underneath all of the comedy, what really got me was Mia's story. As the book progressed, it became increasingly obvious just how much damage Pete had done to her the fucking cunt. The verbal abuse, the manipulation and emotional dependency he'd created didn't just disappear because she was away from him and now surrounded by people who loved her. She could be in a safe and loving situation and still find herself mentally reverting back to the place she'd been in before. The deep dark corner where she put herself to survive
I thought Canea handled that really well, particularly when Mia finally opens up about what she's been feeling. That chapter hit differently because there was no comedy to hide behind. It was just Mia being vulnerable and trying to make sense of what had happened to her. I think it's really important for books to show that emotional abuse can have a lasting impact and that getting out of the situation doesn't automatically mean you're immediately okay. You can have people around you who love you and still feel incredibly alone. Again shout out to Savannah for doing such an amazing job at bringing this to life.
Swayze, Wolff, my man, this man for anyone who's listened to training season, that song was written about this man, I fucking love him, what a yearner. Yes, this man has been yearning for Mia for years, but what I really appreciated was how much he cared about making her feel safe and comfortable. He didn't just want her physically he wanted all of her.
He wanted her to trust him, to feel protected and to know that he was there when things got difficult. That's what I want from a romance. It's not always about sex. It's intimacy. Being seen, touched, admired, understood and safe enough to actually let someone in.
Their chemistry was fucking fantastic as well. The desire between these two was ridiculous, and I loved how effortlessly the book could go from something genuinely sexy to something that had me laughing five seconds later. The fake relationship was obviously never going to remain fake, especially when they were finding literally any excuse to kiss each other. They set rules that they both knew they weren't going to follow, and watching those rules slowly disintegrate was brilliant.
The truth or dare scene was fantastic, the tension was ridiculous and the payoff was absolutely worth it. Then we got the one bed situation, because obviously we did, and somehow they still tried to convince themselves this was all completely normal. 😂 And don't even get me started on Swayze getting jealous over her cousin. That man was fighting for his fucking life. I related to that jealousy more than I probably should have, because you can be secure in your relationship and still be aware that other men are dogs. 😂
I also really loved the quieter moments between the characters. The conversation between Wolff and Nick was particularly good because it reminded us that underneath all the chaos, these guys genuinely care about each other. Sometimes you can go years without seeing someone regularly and still know that person is one of your best friends, and I thought that came across really naturally. Shout out my boy!
The wedding was giving me massive My Big Fat Greek Wedding vibes and I was all for it. The family chaos, the food, the ridiculousness, all of it. And then, because apparently Mia and Swayze weren't allowed to have one peaceful fucking day, Pete had to turn up and ruin everything. I genuinely wanted to launch that man into the sun at several points throughout this book. It even that would be too merciful.
What I appreciated, though, was that Mia's journey didn't magically end because she found Swayze. She still had to deal with her own trauma and learn to trust herself again. Watching her finally have people around her who could support her without controlling her was really satisfying, especially after everything Pete had taken from her. It was amazing to find out that everything she feared was irrelevant and that her family had always supported her! Shout out big momma for always having her Mia's back!
And then we get the epilogue. Three years later, they've got kids and then suddenly twins. 😭🥰 Honestly, I loved that for them. Seeing Swayze as a dad was ridiculously sweet, and being a dad really is one of the best jobs in the world despite the exhaustion, tantrums and general chaos. I wouldn't swap it either.
Also, baby Mia not sharing her croissant with Swayze when big Mia wouldn't absolutely fucking finished me. Kids really do become copies of their mothers 🤣🤣😂 And Canes, I am formally requesting a Mario novella because that man deserves his own story.
Overall Sour Notes is fucking brilliant. It was sexy, hilarious, emotional and chaotic, but it also had some genuinely important things to say about emotional abuse, trauma, friendship and what it means to feel safe with another person. I laughed an embarrassing amount, I got way too invested in these characters, I developed beef with a snivelling piece of shit, I wanted to personally fight him and I am now apparently going to have to investigate that hotel because it sounded fucking incredible. It b er you er be r al
Wow. What a book.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 11, 2026
Thanks to Canea and LoveNotes PR for the ARC/ALC.
The way I’ve been WAITING for this book!!! It was damn worth the wait!!!
Swayze and Mia🥹 I frigging love everything about them.
Swayze the wee golden retriever is so far gone for his woman, he’s a YEARNER!! One of my favourite things is his inner monologue, the way he argues with himself is absolutely hilarious and then he opens his mouth and just agrees to everything Mia asks 🤣
Mia is a total brat🤣 if there’s one thing Canea’s gonna do, it’s write a sassy FMC!! Blissfully unaware of how badly her roommate is in love with her. Then suddenly springs on him that they’re going to be fake dating… and of course the lovesick puppy is going to do anything she says!!
The spicy scenes were 🥵🥵 and of course there’s so much frigging banter!! I laughed so much throughout this book!!
If you’ve read/listened to Sweet Hate (and if you haven’t you should) you know about the group chat… it’s always on fire🔥 I so desperately want to be apart of their friend group!! I loved everything about this book!!
✨Audiobook✨
Savannah frickin’ Thomas, she did such a beautiful job bringing Mia to life. She brings all the sass to her character, she has such an amazing talent portraying all of the emotion Mia was feeling as she was opening up about her past relationship. She had me in tears at one point. Like Sweet Hate, Savannah live recorded this on ⏰, watching her lives is always such fun but this book in particular was just the best. I LIVE for Savannahs crash outs when the words aren’t wording 🤣 I could listen to her for hours. Absolutely amazing!!
James Cassidy this dude is so good!! The way he narrated some of the lines had me dying!! Firstly the Friends theme tune?? IYKYK. This guy was the best patrol puppy, his range is amszing, the way he switches it up for various side characters😮💨
A phenomenal performance from them both!!
The way I’ve been WAITING for this book!!! It was damn worth the wait!!!
Swayze and Mia🥹 I frigging love everything about them.
Swayze the wee golden retriever is so far gone for his woman, he’s a YEARNER!! One of my favourite things is his inner monologue, the way he argues with himself is absolutely hilarious and then he opens his mouth and just agrees to everything Mia asks 🤣
Mia is a total brat🤣 if there’s one thing Canea’s gonna do, it’s write a sassy FMC!! Blissfully unaware of how badly her roommate is in love with her. Then suddenly springs on him that they’re going to be fake dating… and of course the lovesick puppy is going to do anything she says!!
The spicy scenes were 🥵🥵 and of course there’s so much frigging banter!! I laughed so much throughout this book!!
If you’ve read/listened to Sweet Hate (and if you haven’t you should) you know about the group chat… it’s always on fire🔥 I so desperately want to be apart of their friend group!! I loved everything about this book!!
✨Audiobook✨
Savannah frickin’ Thomas, she did such a beautiful job bringing Mia to life. She brings all the sass to her character, she has such an amazing talent portraying all of the emotion Mia was feeling as she was opening up about her past relationship. She had me in tears at one point. Like Sweet Hate, Savannah live recorded this on ⏰, watching her lives is always such fun but this book in particular was just the best. I LIVE for Savannahs crash outs when the words aren’t wording 🤣 I could listen to her for hours. Absolutely amazing!!
James Cassidy this dude is so good!! The way he narrated some of the lines had me dying!! Firstly the Friends theme tune?? IYKYK. This guy was the best patrol puppy, his range is amszing, the way he switches it up for various side characters😮💨
A phenomenal performance from them both!!
October 11, 2026
This book was EVERYTHING I could ask for and more in a romcom! I laughed until my belly hurt multiple times.
Friends to lovers is such a fun trope already but throw in fake dating, and it’s perfection. Watching these two fall in love and overcome all their obstacles made my heart so happy.
Also I’d like my own Swayze. I’d even settle for a clone. 👀😜
Narration was top tier!
Savannah Thomas and James Cassidy killed it. They brought Mia and Swayze to life beautifully.
The story telling and narration was perfection.
I can’t wait to see what Canea’s got up her sleeve next!
Friends to lovers is such a fun trope already but throw in fake dating, and it’s perfection. Watching these two fall in love and overcome all their obstacles made my heart so happy.
Also I’d like my own Swayze. I’d even settle for a clone. 👀😜
Narration was top tier!
Savannah Thomas and James Cassidy killed it. They brought Mia and Swayze to life beautifully.
The story telling and narration was perfection.
I can’t wait to see what Canea’s got up her sleeve next!
October 8, 2026
Audiobook - enjoyed book 1 more mainly because I was tired of hearing how Mia couldn’t get past her cheating ex-boyfriend when Swayze was always there for her.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews