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The Ivy Years #5.5

Studly Period

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A serialized story from Sarina Bowen.

There are 1016 people in the freshman class at Harkness College. I can’t be the only socially awkward nerd girl virgin among them. Right?
It’s time I learn to talk to guys without blushing and stammering. So I take a confidence-building job at the student tutoring center. Twelve bucks an hour, plus human interaction. What could go wrong?
A fun-loving French Canadian hockey hunk, that’s what.
When Pepe Gerault sits down at my tutoring table, my brain shuts off and my mouth goes right into hyperdrive. Even the sound of my name on his lips—Josephine—gives me a mini orgasm.
I want to hand him my V-card. But all I manage to hand him is…my thesaurus. And my dignity. All seems lost, until I hatch a plan to get him alone…
Get it only in Sarina's newsletter!
NOTE: If you sign up after the serialization has already begun, your first email will contain links to all the existing chapters. You won't miss a thing!

50 pages, ebook

First published March 20, 2018

19 people are currently reading
2251 people want to read

About the author

Sarina Bowen

105 books18.8k followers
sarina bowen

Sarina Bowen is the 24-time USA Today bestselling and Wall Street Journal bestselling author of contemporary fiction, including: The Five Year Lie, the True North series, and the Brooklyn Hockey series. She's the co-author of Him/Us and the WAGs series with Elle Kennedy. And more!


You can find a complete reading order list of Sarina's books on her website. Or see what's coming next from Sarina, and sign up for her newsletter so you don't miss a new book or a deal.

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5 stars
593 (32%)
4 stars
733 (40%)
3 stars
415 (22%)
2 stars
71 (3%)
1 star
15 (<1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 242 reviews
Profile Image for Meags.
2,476 reviews696 followers
May 8, 2018
4 Stars

Studly Period was an absolute delight to read. Released as a weekly serial exclusively through Bowen's newsletter, this 8 chapter story was a special treat for all fans of the New Adult series, The Ivy Years.

This is the story of how Harkness's French-Canadian hockey player Pepe - one of my favourite secondary characters from across the series - meets and falls for his new, nerdy freshman tutor, Josephine.

Their romance was short and sweet, and I adored every second of it. Waiting each week for a new chapter to be released was a test on my patience, but that just goes to show how much I was enjoying Pepe and Josephine's story.

As a bit of a word-nerd myself, I enjoyed all the language talk and I loved all the literary references made throughout.

Pepe was an absolute dream of a romantic lead and I may have swooned a time or two, especially when he used sweet and sexy French endearments on poor unsuspecting, and definitely unprepared, Josephine. She never stood a chance. Lucky girl.

Needless to say, I loved this one.
Profile Image for Syndi.
3,710 reviews1,038 followers
March 10, 2021
Studly Period is a short short novella. NA romance. In Miss Bowen hand, it has her signature humor. I have to say the plot is non existence. But I enjoy Pepe. His french is so.... yummy.

Again, short story so nothing much to expect here. Before I even can blink, the story ends.

Overall I enjoy it OK.

3 stars
Profile Image for Optimist ♰King's Wench♰.
1,819 reviews3,973 followers
May 9, 2018
3.5 I wish there were more Stars

So cute!

If ever I need an infusion of fluff I can usually count on my Fluff Kween and she delivered again.

I'm partial to the Frenchies anyway so Pepe would have to be, like, an ax murderer to put me off. Truth be told, maybe not even then. Because Dexter was a serial killer that I would still do. The dude had a purpose and that purpose was did society a favor. Repeatedly. He should be rewarded for that.

I digress.

Pepe's a hockey player, because this is SB after all and no one, and I do mean no one, does hockey romance better than her. He's popped up here and there throughout the series and honestly, I kind of wish this was a full length novel, because I am kinda crushin' on him.

His unfamiliarity with English as a language lands him in the tutoring lab at Harkness and under the tutelage of Josie. Josie's a virgin and a lil bit nerdy. She has that nervous babbling thing that I find amusing. She tells the story and it is a fairly low angst one with one little conflict that was resolved easily.

Their relationship comes together quickly and I would've liked more time with them but for a free story I was pretty invested in them. I looked forward to Tuesdays because of this serial and will be purchasing it when it comes out.

I would call the ending a strong HFN and the whole epilogue was cute af. Pepe's a romantic at heart and I would be ecstatic were there to be a follow up with them at some point.

If you're a fan of the jock/geek trope you'll probably enjoy this cute little niblet as well.
Profile Image for Wendy'sThoughts.
2,670 reviews3,284 followers
May 9, 2018
4 An Amuse-Bouche of Bowen Stars
* * * * Spoiler Free -Limited Time Free
As a devoted fan from the very beginning of Bravo's Top Chef, I learned a few things... and one of them was this thing called Amuse -Bouche:

Aamuse-Bouche or Amuse-Gueule is a single, bite-sized hors d'œuvre.:


But that isn't exactly how it was on the show... little plate after little plate would be presented and each new delight caused the food critics to rave about the perfect mouthful of whatever they just tasted. Each taste was put together to be eaten in one bite and then remembered.

I bring this up because Sarina Bowen did a lovely Aamuse-Bouche of a serial story for her fans. She gave us over the past books glimpses and a taste of Pepe, a French Canadian Hockey player who went to Harkness College. Everytime he made an appearance he stood out and made the readers want more.

In Studly Period, Bowen took Pepe and gave us Josephine, a freshman with a love for all things English grammar, literature and the ability to tutor those who need it. It is how Pepe and Josephine meet... She is a tutor and he needs her help.


Now there is much more to it than that and Bowen gave each month a chapter for us to see where it all was going. Knowing I would not be happy waiting and wondering, I forced myself to hold off until all of the serial was finished.

Glory be, it is and now if you wish for a limited time, you can read all 8 installments in one sitting.
It is a quick read with a taste of the skill Bowen is known for... giving us people who are real, who have insecurities and also the strength to overcome whatever obstacle... big or small.

This is a light tale and reflects the feel of her Harkness College books. You do not have to have read the past books in the series to enjoy Studly Period...But as a Huge Fan of The Ivy Years...after you have your Aamuse-Bouche of this series ... then indulge yourself and make the time to experience all of the series.

Here is the link to the First Chapter and The Year We Fell Down is still free so take advantage while you can.
Studly Period (The Ivy Years, #3.5) by Sarina Bowen Studly Period (The Ivy Years #3.5)
https://www.sarinabowen.com/studly-pe...

The Year We Fell Down (The Ivy Years, #1) by Sarina Bowen The Year We Fell Down
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Falling from the Sky (Gravity, #2) by Sarina BowenFalling from the Sky (Gravity, #2)
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Blonde Date (The Ivy Years, #2.5) by Sarina Bowen Blonde Date (The Ivy Years, #2.5)
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
The Understatement of the Year (The Ivy Years, #3) by Sarina BowenThe Understatement of the Year (The Ivy Years #3)
The Shameless Hour (The Ivy Years, #4) by Sarina Bowen The Shameless Hour (The Ivy Years, #4)
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
The Fifteenth Minute (The Ivy Years, #5) by Sarina Bowen The Fifteenth Minute (The Ivy Years, #5)
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...


~~~~~ Before Reading ~~~~~
Oh, Sarina...
How I love you, ❤️❤️❤️

You gave us just a taste of Pepe St. George in past books,
Understatement of the Year, The Shameless Hour, and The Fifteenth Minute...

Now we get Pepe, front and center...
With a lovely Josephine to sweeten the deal...

And the best...
It arrives Every Week for the Next Two Months in your Mailbox!
Yup, Delivered straight to you...
Yum, Yum.

Sign up to Sarina's Newsletter and you will have Pepe every week starting March 20th!
https://www.subscribepage.com/studlyp...
I loved the the Ivy Years Series and to get another bite of that apple...
Ooh, La La...❤️❤️❤️


The Year We Fell Down (The Ivy Years, #1) by Sarina Bowen The Year We Fell Down
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Falling from the Sky (Gravity, #2) by Sarina BowenFalling from the Sky (Gravity, #2)
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Blonde Date (The Ivy Years, #2.5) by Sarina Bowen Blonde Date (The Ivy Years, #2.5)
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
The Understatement of the Year (The Ivy Years, #3) by Sarina BowenThe Understatement of the Year (The Ivy Years #3)
The Shameless Hour (The Ivy Years, #4) by Sarina Bowen The Shameless Hour (The Ivy Years, #4)
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
The Fifteenth Minute (The Ivy Years, #5) by Sarina Bowen The Fifteenth Minute (The Ivy Years, #5)
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

For more Reviews, Free E-books and Giveaways

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Profile Image for Bev .
2,223 reviews481 followers
May 9, 2018
For a shortish read this packed a lot of punch because ... Pepe ♥

Really liked this cute, sweet story. Thanks for the freebie Sarina
Profile Image for h o l l i s .
2,723 reviews2,306 followers
May 9, 2018
I think I'll end up loving this more if it's ever expanded as there's really only so much character growth/depth you can offer in a serial and I didn't ever really get to the point where I loved the heroine (and it was her POV!!). But. But. It was so so sweet in regards to offering us more Pepe than we've ever had before. Suffering from a serious case of French-Canadianism, the hockey stud still manages to be perfectly eloquent and adorable despite his struggles with the English language and grammar.

This little gem made me want to reread this series not just to hunt around for all the little Pepe easter eggs in the background. But also because I just want to relive the Ivy Years stories, too. Sigh.

I'm so hoping for more delightful additions to this world!

3.5 "post-it" stars
Profile Image for Irene.
1,048 reviews123 followers
July 31, 2018
4 combustible stars!

I loved this serialized story from Sarina Bowen.
It's the story of Josephine and Pepe(a Canadian hockey player) who meet as Pepe seeks out a tutor for his English classes. They have great chemistry together but Josephine is really shy so they keep it friendly at the beginning and even though it's such a short story I felt the slow burning of their emotions and it was great. I'm also a nerd and I loved how they used written words to communicate and their relationship advanced over a paper.

If you read "The Ivy Years" series and want to get in touch with their world, or even if you didn't but you like short NA Romances, there is still time to catch up if you sign-up for Sarina's Newsletter here. You'll get a chapter per day on your e-mail.
Profile Image for Bookphenomena (Micky) .
2,923 reviews545 followers
May 8, 2018
This was simply delightful. The Ivy Years series is a stand out favourite sports romance and this little novella was a fab addition. Pepe won my heart quickly and he was just a lovely human being. It was light on the steam but fuller on chemistry. Sarina Bowen can produce a full story in 50 pages with ease. That’s some talent.
Profile Image for Rejane.
1,366 reviews62 followers
not-interested
May 1, 2018
This was made for @Kiki @Alex @Leonor @Dilek @Book-Bosomed @Lu and I am sure other GR friends who like this trope. Not me, though.
Good reads Ladies. 😘😘😘😘
Profile Image for Nancy The book junkie.
3,030 reviews8 followers
April 23, 2021
That was so cute!! <3 It was even better than the first draft i had the chance to read a couple of years ago, definitely worth the wait and a must read for any fan of the series!
Profile Image for Heather❀Kiss The Pages❀.
755 reviews298 followers
May 10, 2018
It was so much fun to go back to Harkness College and read Pepe and Jhosephine's story. I love nerdy heroines like Josie. She ends up tutoring english to French Quebec hockey player Pepe. While she is seriously attracted to Pepe, she would never believe that the star hockey player would be interested in her. Pepe is also a bit insecure because he doesn't speak or write English well. We go through all the adorable, awkward moments of this couple coming to the realization that they both like each other. While I highly recommend this series, this book can be read as a standalone. The time to read this is almost over though. You need to sign up for Sarina's newsletter to read it before it disappears and I'm not sure if it's going to be published. Link to the newsletter in the Blurb.

4 Stars
Contemporary Romance
Heat Level: Mild
POV: Heroine
HEA
Profile Image for Annery.
517 reviews156 followers
May 10, 2018
What a sweet, adorable, and utterly satisfying surprise. Sarina Bowen released this in a serialized form, via weekly installments on her news letter. The length is really that of a short story but surprisingly it packs a punch.
Josephine is your everyday, nerdy, non-glam heroine, shy but assertive about what she wants, even when nerves threaten to get the better of her. Pepe is an adorable mix of "man-puppy", gentleman, and hockey player. Those who've read the rest of The Ivy Years will have come across him, though reading the series is not necessary to enjoy this blossoming story of young love.

I loved it and hope SB releases it (maybe expanded?) at some point and in some form.
Profile Image for Livia.
1,027 reviews41 followers
May 11, 2018
I’m so glad I saved the newsletters with the serial chapters intro and links until all 8 were written. Binge reading this one was a lot of fun and provided much needed stress relief. Thank you, Sarina Bowen!

Minor Spoilers Alert!!!

My tags for this new adult serial are…

Hockey romance / Charming / Easy-to-read / Entertaining Wonderful characters / Witty / Original / Page-turner / Romantic Realistic / HEA

Writing Style: 1st person POV (Josephine’s)

Cover gush: I crazy love it! This cover image is so freaking sexy and visually pleasing to my eyes. I just want to reach out and touch Pepe. 😉😊

Story gush:
I normally don’t care for serials, but this bonus Ivy Years short love story was such a charming one! I shared most of my favorite moments on my GoodReads status updates, but there were plenty more of them like their first mutual English Lit class together and their text message conversation about the Hockey romance novel Pepe was reading for the class, ha! Honestly, I loved everything about their semi-gradual transition from tutor and student to friends then lovers. No complaints here at all.

I had nothing but interruptions the day I started reading, but each time I got to dive back in I fell a little bit more in love with Josephine and Pepe.
Profile Image for Quinn's Quippy Quotes.
1,440 reviews142 followers
May 10, 2018
Dang, that was sweet!

Short, sweet and SUPER adorable! How can Sarina deliver all the feels in a few short pages?!? It's magic. She never disappoints! I wish that this series could go on forever, but super happy that she gave us this cute little snippet.
Profile Image for ItaPixie.
1,273 reviews148 followers
May 2, 2018
This was a great experience...I fell in love with a beautiful Canadian chapter after chapter.
I'd like to read more about these characters they took a special place in my heart.
Profile Image for Cisz Geverink - Strasters.
938 reviews37 followers
November 30, 2022
Studiepunt Hunk ~ Sarina Bowen
SVM Publishing, ⭐️⭐️⭐️☆☆

Een leuke, kleine novelle, die je absoluut wilt lezen als je de rest van de serie ook al hebt verslonden. Om nou te zeggen dat hij er enorm uitspringt, nee niet echt. Maar soms hoeft dat ook niet om toch van een boek te kunnen genieten. En genoten heb ik zeker!

www.facebook.com/thebookbabecisz
Profile Image for Jess.
3,590 reviews5 followers
May 12, 2018
This was cute! It suffered a little from novella syndrome in that it's all foreplay and no real resolution, but I liked Pepe and Josephine and would happily read more about them. Kind of fun to go back to Harkness, too.
Profile Image for Alexandra.
1,895 reviews10 followers
March 21, 2018
Serialized on the author's newsletter! It's very funny!
Profile Image for Sarah.
206 reviews23 followers
May 9, 2018
An adorable weekly serial by the incredible Sarina Bowen.

What happens when a shy, awkward virgin becomes the new English tutor to a drool worthy French Canadian hockey player?

All. The. Darn. Feels!

It's really hard to believe this serial was only a handful of chapters, because Josephine and Pepe's story feels so complete. It's awkward, romantic, sexy and funny. I will miss the chapters popping up in my inbox!
Profile Image for Preet.
3,381 reviews233 followers
September 3, 2021
I waited to read this serial until it was all available and it was really, really hard to do so. I am a huge fan of Sarina's writing and denying myself the pleasure of reading her words was not fun or easy. However, it was strangely gratifying because I was able to read everything in one shot.

Pepe is totally a stud and I loved seeing how he and Josephine interacted. I loved how the story was basically told from Josephine's point of view. She may think she's awkward and lacking grace, but she was adorable and so easy to relate to. I loved how quickly she realized any generalization about Pepe she might have made was wrong.

While this story read really fast, it was still complete and I love that it made me laugh and made my heart drop too. There were also plenty moments of passion that I wouldn't have minded if they were longer. I'm also not a French speaker so I had to stop reading to look up the meanings of some of the words Pepe used just to make sure I wasn't missing a nuance or something important to the story. I wouldn't have minded a glossary of French terms at the beginning so I could've read it straight through.

It was great to see characters I've met in previous Ivy Year books and I sincerely hope there are some more Ivy Years books somewhere down the line just because I love them so much. If not, I'll just have to re-read them from the beginning to get my fix.
Profile Image for Melissa.
109 reviews1 follower
January 16, 2023
Een leuk kortverhaal.

Pepe was best wel héél erg cute + de franse touche was wel fijn erbij.
Profile Image for herdys.
636 reviews35 followers
May 11, 2018
Loved this serial we got as gift in Sarina's newsletter. Pepe was great in the books and I'm so happy he got his HEA with his chaton! I wish the story hadnt been so short. I loved reading about them together and revisiting the ivy years series!
Profile Image for Andrea Fleury.
1,014 reviews79 followers
May 17, 2018
That was very sweet and too short. I loved it. Hey maybe Sarina will continue with more about these two. Hum. Great read and fun to get a snippet of this each day.
Profile Image for Pamela.
229 reviews17 followers
May 21, 2018
When finishing this yesterday night, I only gave three stars, which is my go-to rating if it was nice, but nothing special. I decided for 4 stars now, simply because I took into consideration that this was a novella, a really short one. It is not easy to form a connection between two characters und ultimately with the reader in just 50 pages, but Sarina Bowen did it somehow. I would have loved a few more pages giving a brief glimpse into their future, but I hope for book 6 in the series and a reappearance of Pepe and Josephine.
Profile Image for Lenore Kosinski.
2,389 reviews64 followers
May 10, 2018
http://celebrityreaders.com/2018/05/0...

5 stars — OMGOMGOMGOMG!!!! I’m not good at doing the serial thing (I have ZERO patience), so I waited until this one was complete to dive in, and then I gobbled it up in an evening. IT WAS BOTH TOO SHORT AND PERFECT!!!

I LOVED Pepe and Josephine!!! But especially Pepe!! What a sweet, romantic soul!! He really was like a man-puppy, just happiness and sunshine. And Josephine was exactly like the heroine’s I fall in love with — insecure, shy, introverted, but sassy and smart and sweet too! Watching them develop a relationship was just pure pleasure. I giggled and smiled so hard my cheeks hurt. It wasn’t without conflict, of course, but I just loved the way their whole romance played out, I was ridiculously satisfied.

Honestly, I don’t know what else to say, except it was everything I was hoping it was going to be and more. Go quick and see if you can’t get a hold of the chapters before they disappear! You won’t be disappointed! I know I’ll be waiting impatiently for it to come in some format that I can buy and save to my Kindle.
Profile Image for ⚜️XAR the Bookwyrm.
2,341 reviews17 followers
January 26, 2019
I was so excited when I learned that this was an Ivy Years novella, but I absolutely loathed the serialization of this story! I would have also liked it to be a bit longer, but my biggest complaint, the one I detracted a star for, was the fact that it was a serialization!

Looking beyond that, the story was actually a rather sweet one. I loved Pepé and Josephine together! I could really identify with Josephine, and was heartbroken for her at one point in the story. I have to say, though, that I loved what Pepé did to her thesaurus! My husband just did something similar to a dictionary for me, and I thought it was the sweetest thing ever! I do hope we get more in this universe!
Profile Image for Pamela Lilley.
2,198 reviews39 followers
June 7, 2018
I love how authors have started writing books specifically for their email subscribers, sending them a chapter a week, or a month. This is one of those books. A short story in the Ivy Years series, a series that I love, even though I’ve only read some, not all of the books. Josephine is a new addition to the series, a shy, nerdy English major, who starts tutoring sexy French-Canadian hockey hunk Pepe. A lovely story told completely from Josephine’s POV, sweet and romantic, I loved it.

Profile Image for Manon the Malicious.
1,283 reviews67 followers
May 8, 2018
I wanted to love this but sadly I didn’t.
I do love the serial format from time to time but I felt like in this, the story was too short and the characters lacked depth. Sarina’s characters and their depth is what I usually loved most about her stories.
Also, I wasn’t a big fan of Pepe because French is a huge turn-off for me...
Still, I can’t wait for more Sarina as I usually adore her books.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 242 reviews

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