And Then Came You

by M.L. Broome

M.L. Broome crafts an angsty and heartwarming tale about opposites who learn the power of true love through friendship. A slow burn, friends to lovers, celebrity romance, that’s all heart.

Lexi:

They say you should dress for the job you want.

Apparently, ripped jeans and a rock t-shirt are the outfit of choice to land the role of a supermodel’s best friend.

No joke. It’s what I was wearing when my world intersected with Samuel Bernard; right before he grabbed my phone and berated my most recent excuse for a boyfriend.

In Samuel’s defense, the guy had it coming.

Now, I have a new buddy who also happens to be the world’s most famous—and infamous—male model.

But we’re just friends.

I will not fall for Samuel Bernard is my new mantra.

It’s not working.

Samuel:

Lexi is the first woman who has ever truly understood me, although she’s seemingly immune to my outer appeal.

It’s a two-way street. Lexi is adorable and wicked smart, but she’s not my type, even though she’s the first person I call when I’m down and the only person I care to see when I’m in town.

Then, there was that night when she read her steaming hot sex scenes. Now, she’s got a recurring role in my dreams.

But I don’t need another lover. I’ve got plenty of those.

The friend zone is the safe zone for Lexi and me. And that’s where we’ll stay.

If you repeat something enough times, you’ll believe it, right?


Please note: This story contains explicit language and adult themes. It is intended for reader 18+.

Themes include: on page descriptive love scenes, explicit language, loss of family members and on page physical assault.

Genres: Romance, Friends To Lovers, Slow Burn, Contemporary, Contemporary Romance, Spicy, Abuse

364 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 1, 2021

About the author

M.L. Broome is a bohemian spirit with a New York edge. Her small-town contemporary romances feature smart and sexy heroines over the age of thirty-five, and sizzle with angsty, slow-burn goodness.

Raised on a steady diet of stories, she grew up believing all men should be like Mr. Rochester in Jane Eyre—enigmatic yet unflappable in their devotion. Hence, her own brand of book boyfriend was born.

When M.L. isn’t holding one-sided arguments with her characters (she likens it to herding cats), she loves losing herself to nature on her North Carolina farm, one her rescue fur babies by her side.

Her favorite things? Dressing up and kicking back with a glass of wine and a stunning view, soaking up all the experiences that make the soul and senses tingle.

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Reviews

[Becky · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not safe
Disgusting
Double standards

- Heroine: Celibate since she met him
- Hero dated two women and fucked tons of others
- After she kissed him for the first time he didn’t react and he fucked ow regularly after that (Almira) and many others
- After their first oficial kiss he left to be with Almira, she assumed they spent the night together but he told another person they were arguing the whole night. They never discussed it but it’s safe to assume he still fucked Almira because when though he said he was over with Almira when that happened that doesn’t mean he is not fucking her.
- After the kiss and the night with Almira, he later spends twenty one days organizing his life because he realizes he is in love with her and ended things with Almira (? He said they were already over but now he ended things again so I suppose he was still fucking her)
- They kiss for the second time when he goes after her but he fucking things up and instead of talking to her he flies home and fucked some other model and received tons of blow jobs while she had bad dates.
- sex scenes with other woman


He got jealous whenever she is close to another guy but he still fuck others. Double standards

She considers him to be god’s gift to women and can’t understand how he wants her? A 37 years old women being this pathetic is not for me. I had no problems with insecure women, but he added to her insecure for months and months fucking models and now claimed he wanted her all along and she accepts it? Move the fuck and find a real man for fucks sake.


He forgot her birthday, he told people she wasn’t his type, he was rude to her whenever he was jealous even though he was with others. I can’t fathom how she felt in love with him, i am ashamed of how stupid she is. I’m disgusted by him, I would never touch this man, I would not want his friendship much less anything more.


He is with beautiful women while the heroine is insecure with her body but relax ladies, they are not really his type. Yeah, he fucked them, of course he fucked them after kissing the heroine but NO! They are not his type

They are thirty something years old but he doesn’t kiss the women he fucked and she is special because he kiss her??? Author holy shit I’m embarrassed you wrote that shit, cmon, people don’t do that shit in real life.

This bullshit about kissing being too personal and a woman thinking she is special because the man kissed her but still tucked tons of woman and had his sock sucked but many others is disgusting and so fucking unrealistic is not even funny anymore.

She is pathetic, the fact she thinks he is a good guy? He is not, it’s not nice the fact he bad mouths the women he fucked, it’s disgusting. He is not better than the
other women he fucked. Authors you have do stop this shit when the men fucks around but the women he fucks are bad and still he if a good man. Stop this sexist crap.

She talks back sometimes but she still is pining and available for him without even trying to properly move on so honey you are full of shit with that fake sass.

She bickering with women who wants only to fuck him because they aren’t seeing beyond his looks is so ridiculous I’m amazed how the author believes this looks like a 37 woman. Really, she is defending the man who fucks women but doesn’t kiss them? Stop please you are making me gag.


Slut shame. Disgusting 🤢

The worst part is that they discuss his sexual activities but

STOP WITH THIS SHIT. WHEN THE HERO TREATED THE WOMEN HE IS INTIMATE BAD IS NOT FLATTERING WHEN HE TREATS THE HEROINE BETTER. ITS DISGUSTING. HE STILL DISREGARDED AND DISRESPECT WOMEN!!!!!

She can’t have a decent date since she met him, the om whom she goes to some dated and kissed a few times turned into an asshole.

He has been with tons of woman.

Not a romance, a tragic tale of a thirty seven years old being ridiculed.

Slut shaming:

“You’ve always been my number one. Every damn day. What do you do? You fly first class to Europe and blow your load into some bulimic runway whore. Were you even sober when you fucked her?”

“I slept with one chick. This model. She was terrible. Skin and bones, and her breath was awful. She smelled like vomit. I kicked her out immediately afterward.”

He being a chauvinist

“Just tell me, why would you give yourself away so easily? He doesn’t deserve you.”
This from the man who fucked tones of women

Him fucking ow and treating her like shit

I screw the woman senseless, her cries echoing through every inch of my Parisian suite. It means nothing. I feel nothing. Nothing except the anger raging through my body. All I can see as I’m balls deep in this coke whore of a model is Lexi. The look on her face in that instant before I kissed her, the light in her eyes I mistakenly believed to be love.
(...)
I pound into the nameless woman from behind, her screams rising with each thrust, but my mind remains on the one woman I’ll always want and never have. With a roar, I slam into her before pulling out and collapsing on the mattress. The lady of the hour—although the term lady is a stretch—drapes her leg over me, purring in my ear about how wild a ride I am. I just want her gone. Dragging myself to the bathroom, I pull off the condom, washing away any traces of my latest mistake. I glimpse myself in the mirror. Shit, I look haggard. “Ready for round two?” I jerk my thumb over my shoulder. “You know where the door is. Let yourself out.” “Are you serious?” “Yes.” When she doesn’t move, I grab out a fifty-pound note, tossing it at her. “Here. Money for a cab.” “Fuck you, Samuel Bernard.” “You just did. Now go.” She gathers up her things and storms out the door, cursing me the entire way. I suppose I should feel bad. I feel nothing. Lexi made sure of that fact.
🤢👏

I haven’t screwed anyone since that brunette I kicked out of my suite in Paris. These women want to suck my cock, and I let them. Sometimes, it’s good to be king.

Him about Almira:

I want to feel something for Almira. Something deep and profound. Hell, even when I was balls deep inside her, I couldn’t stay in the moment. My mind drifted, my thoughts carrying me away to another place.

It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to know what Almira is talking about, and the woman is no slouch at sucking cock—firm suction, all tongue, no teeth. So why couldn’t I get off? I had to toss Almira onto the bed and fuck her from behind, jack hammering into her until we both fell over from exhaustion.


Romance is not dead friends

“To know that numerous women have had him, while I’m across the ocean, barely able to kiss another man, makes me sick. I’m pathetic, and he’s just proven it.”
She is in fact pathetic I’m glad she knows it.

It’s impossible for me to be happy whenever a woman ends up with those slimy disgusting assholes, even if they are fictiona

[Dora Koutsoukou]

Plenty of insecurities, indecisiveness, immaturity, friends to lovers to friends to..., back and forth.
They loved each other but the heroine believed it would be best if they stayed friends, and to cut a long story short, the hero after couldn’t keep it in his pants and slept with other women. It started getting messy and I dnf @ 80%!
He was 33 y.o. and she was 37 y.o.
No, thank you!

[Sonia]

WHYYYYYY?!?!?

I just don’t get it 🤷‍♀️🤦‍♀️🙄🙄🙄🙄

DOUBLE STANDARDS GALORE 🤬🤬🤬

Incoming spoilers 🤬🤬🤬

The heroine remains celibate while the Zero f’s tons of ow, on and off page
Even after sharing intimacies with the “h”

Becky has all the spoilers needed

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Beeg Panda · Rating 1 out of 5]

Readers are gonna love this book.
It ticks all the boxes for tropes we either love or hate.
Every plot device I dislike here is loved by many other readers.
So while I can’t fathom why authors would put a heroine down in this way, she knows what’s she’s doing. She’s selling books. People are reading the 1 stars and are going to buy this book.

There’s a reason why authors pair their heroines with vile other men. I just haven’t found a convincing one for it. It’s distasteful for me to read and I wonder why authors want their heroines to be humiliated and disliked to this extent by their exes. I can absolutely understand and accept this concept in a “dark” book, but this one is light and flirty....?

The glamorisation of the promiscuous male and the degradation of the women they have sex with is what bothers me too.
I’ve loved player heroes before; some of my favorite book boyfriends were philandering sexual alphas and THEY didn’t shame their ex lovers, neither the one night stands nor their long time ones.

This is all so tiring...I wish every book I read is one I find worthy. My reading time is so precious

[Qwncy · Rating 1 out of 5]

I lost brain cells reading this.

- This was not friends to lovers, this was two strangers who had a sexual attraction to one another and decided to do shit about it.

- Who the fuck gives their home address to some guy you literally just met 30 minutes ago?? Because she does this 5% INTO THE BOOK!!!
In what perfect fucking world do you live in??

- They fight over the stupidest things then make up immediately pretending nothing happened, because they’re friends and “love each other too much”

- When they fought, they’d block each other, otherwise not speak to each other, leave things unanswered, then get revenge on each other by finding other people to purse or otherwise fuck.

- She is CONSTANTLY described as “not like other girls” because apparently she’s immune to him, and not her type.

- She claims to not stereotype him, but when he BREATHES towards the direction of another woman, she IMMEDIATELY ASSUMES THAT HES FUCKING HER.

- There is SO much fucking body shaming towards the models he slept with, claiming they’re like “banging a bag of bones”…WHAT THE FUCK??

- Throughout this entire book, all the author does is create this stigma about models, or just girls who are “prettier than her”, to be bitches and sluts.

- They claim to “take it slow” but HE ENDS UP PROPOSING, GETTING HER PREGNANT 6 MONTHS AFTER THEYVE MET.

- She gets into like 2 abusive relationships, and it isn’t until she gets properly beaten up that he realises he “truly loves her”.

- He cockblocks her CONSTANTLY, because he thinks he knows every single fucking guy, as apparently they’re all assholes and will also be abusive towards her, like it’s a fucking joke.

- He kept blaming HER for getting into relationships where she was mentally and physically abused.

- She kept on gaslighting herself not to “fall for him” because she knows that it’ll just end in heartbreak, but never fully acted on this, because, unlike how she was described, SHES NOT IMMUNE TO HIM.

- She gets naked for him for a photo shoot, even though they’ve only known each other for a collective 7 days.

- He claims not to be into her but when he was fucking other girls all he could imagine was her.

- They act like fucking children.

- Did I mention that they act like fucking children?

And last but not least…

- Their so called meet cute is during a phone call she has where her abusive ex boyfriend demands her for money, where if not done otherwise, he’d ruin all her belongings before driving to where she was and pulling her by the hair. So cute…

Anyways, I hope this was more than informational. Bye.

[Lo · Rating 1 out of 5]

Well… I skip a lot of pages.
This book is a condensed version of clichés.
He’s tattooed and pierced, sadly no one tried to look further into who he truly is. The man is a walking cliché.
He loves complex books, ideas, philosophy… Unfortunately women just wast his body. 🙄
Let’s not talk about her. Another cliché. Poor girl attracts sick assholes men.

For a man who reads philosophy, poetry… he’s dumb as hell.
The man tells the poor heroine, a real man doesn’t beat a woman. Sure.
However a real man doesn’t sleep around if he wants to be with the woman he loves.

The man is a huge walking hypocrite - double standards. But hey it might be sexy to have a man who needs you to be chaste when he was a whøre. But let’s not dwell on that. It’s in the past.

I love me a woman who is irked by the man’s promiscuity but she opens her legs like the flower in the morning dew.

Sad. It’s sad to let so many heroines be happy with a manwhøre. Sure they know how to treat women 😬🙄

Well.
I have to stop repeating myself… the man is a sad walking cliché. And women are bitches in heat.

[Chrissy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’m Not Quite Sure About This One

I’d probably give this book 3.5 ⭐️ if I could.

Lexi is a romance author, who is pretty successful. However, she’s not so great at romance in real life. She’s been on her own for years, after her parents died when she was in her 20s. Now in her mid-30s she’s had one disastrous relationship after another. When her latest mistake calls her at a book convention she mistakenly hits the loud speaker button instead of the disconnect during his tirade. Surprisingly the supermodel, Sam, she had just been bantering with snatched her phone and told him off and then proceeded to send his friend round to her apartment to evict the waste of space. Surprised would the least she could say about the entire encounter.

Sam is a model. An incredibly successful one. He has the tattooed bad boy look nailed and women fall at his feet everywhere that he goes. It’s a pretty shallow existence but if people are going to judge him for his looks then he’s going to profit from that judgement. When the tiny, pretty lady with the quick humour and surprising immunity to his charms is upset by her lowlife boyfriend he can’t help but leap to her rescue. When they meet later in a bookstore they find themselves bonding over philosophy and surprisingly find a new friend in each other.

I really am conflicted about this book because whilst I was reading it I enjoyed the experience but afterwards I felt a little flat. It’s filled with passion, misunderstandings and heartbreak, the perfect ingredients for a romance novel, but it also missed out some pretty key things for me too. Essentially both Sam and Lexi are pretty damaged people. Lexi is lonely and willing to tolerate emotional and physical abuse in order to feel less alone and Sam is so self-centred because everyone has always given him exactly what he wants because of the way he looks, rather than because of who he is. He seems to punish the world by being selfish because the world doesn’t see who he really is.

These two major flaws rub me up the wrong way because they mesh so horribly well with Lexi willing to tolerate Sam’s selfish behaviour because she wants to be loved and Sam gives her tastes of affection and tells her she should value herself. However, he then goes on to undervalue her worth and treat her like rubbish. Lexi gives Sam her attention and focus and sees beyond the surface to the intelligent and funny man that lies hidden and that keeps him focusing on her, but only because of how she makes him feel about himself. Basically it’s an unhealthy mess and it annoys me that neither one of them seeks to sort themselves out and focus on gaining self-worth. It’s the magic wand effect that someone loving you makes all your wounds and self-destructive behaviour disappear and really, it doesn’t.

So my opinion is this, if you can disconnect from the destructive behaviour and lack of mental health care going on between the two characters you can enjoy the well written and articulate narrative and revel in the idealism of having a handsome friend who suddenly finds you attractive and want to sweep you off your feet. It’s your choice.

[Patricia · Rating 2 out of 5]

why can't these thirty-year-old adults fucking talk to each other instead of misunderstanding every little thing?!

and of course, she wasn't 'immune' to him and falls in love in less than five chapters and then nurses her heartbreak over him by staying single while he gets to fuck anything that walks. a fucking cliché.

[Jessica · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn't think it was possible for me to dislike these characters anymore than I did at the beginning, but the author managed to keep proving me wrong

[DiDi · Rating 1 out of 5]

Wish I could get minus. This was REALLY bad. H and h meet have immediate chemistry/connection. There is back and forth she does not fuck anyone after meeting H but the h will let’s just say he gets around like a broken Ferris wheel that is stuck spinning.

Man whore is to tame of a word for this walking STD. Nothing says I want you, I have feelings for you like hooking yo with a bunch of other women.

The plot was laughable, they both have insecurities some push pull with him fucking everything and her no action because god forbid if the woman is getting some good dick. Is it 1930’s? It was really recycled plot of man whore but hyped up. Don’t believe he loves her or he won’t get into temptation and cheat.

[VoraciousReader · Rating 1 out of 5]

Throughout the book, Sam kept getting upset at Lexi for putting herself down and comparing herself unfavorably to the women that he slept with. He kept telling her that she had no reason to be insecure and that she was so much more attractive than them. Maybe, instead of lecturing her on her insecurity, he should have been looking at the way he treated her and how he made her feel.

In all the years they were friends, he slept only with gorgeous models and deliberately rubbed it in her face. At the same time, he “c0ck blocked” her with every decent guy that showed an interest in her. He constantly flirted with her and his conversations with her were filled with $exual innuendo.

After telling her that he wasn’t seeing his latest model anymore, he danced with Lexi in a nightclub, grinding against her and fingering her on the dance floor in public. Then, he dragged her outside and kissed her in the alley; she thought this meant something special because he had told her that he never kissed any of his women because it was too personal and intimate. At this point his ex called him and he deserted Lexi to go to her.

A few weeks later, when he finally decided that he wanted to be with Lexi, he surprised her by flying to one of her conventions and arranged for a romantic weekend so that he could tell Lexi that he was in love with her. On their last night, when things started to get hot and heavy between them, and they were on their way upstairs to finally make love, Sam was asked to take a few pictures for charity. He promised Lexi that it would only be a few minutes and told her to go upstairs and wait for him in a bubble bath. After a couple of hours, she came back downstairs looking for him only to find that the photo shoot had ended long ago and he was drinking at the bar with all the gorgeous models he’d been shooting with. To make matters worse, he was having a close and intimate conversation with the one model who had been openly rude and insulting to Lexi in front of Sam earlier in the day.

We found out later that nothing happened between them and that Sam hated this model but stayed to talk to her because she was upset. To me, that just made things worse. Knowing what an important evening this was, he still chose someone that he hated over Lexi, got drunk with a bunch of women pawing him and didn’t even bother to text Lexi to let her know he wasn’t coming up to her room.

Understandably, Lexi left and went no contact with him; he was “beyond pi$$ed” and responded by having a tantrum and f*cking every woman who crossed his path.

After that, I was out.

[Maria · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5/ 5 stars

Ok I love ❤️ a good friends to lovers book. Especially one where I get a larger bang for my buck of angst.

The fmc becomes friends with a male model ( ok think cover models for spicy romance, covered with tattoos and well muscled) , one that also does fashion shows. She's quirky and marches to the belated of her own drum. She insists they are only friends to everyone that will listen that he's not her type. She's a writer.

The mmc is happy to be her friend. He loves their connection and just holding her. He's not around much and has a ton of beautiful model groupies and bang friends ( maybe you can say casual girlsfriends) . The fmc knows she can't compete with these waiths, she's shorter and curvy. So she just accepts the friendship for what it is. There is some definite sparks of jealousy though from both sides.

Will the sparks between then rear into a full on fire? I would definitely recommend to read to find out. This is a slow burn romance so just be patient. I promise the payoff is worth it.

[María Fernanda · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5

[Cynthia · Rating 1 out of 5]

I didn’t finish it like others because I could not stand this man hyping himself up every page just to say ‘no one’s gets me’ BUT IMMEDIATELY CLOSES HIMSELF OFF TO EVERYONE.
Also if I have to read Lexi call women ‘babies’ one more times, I’m gonna lose it

[Astrid V.J. · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ve loved M.L. Broome’s book since I first came across A Series of Moments two years ago, and I’ve been waiting for this new release with bated breath. Broome never disappoints.

The characters, Lexi and Sam, leapt off the pages and completely consumed me. Their tale of friendship that grows into something more, replete with the terror of giving into those feelings and possibly ruining a brilliant friendship is exquisite and immensely fulfilling. Harry from When Harry Met Sally sure got it right: men and women can’t be friends without the sex part getting in the way, but Broome adds “who ever said it was in the way” sex is part of it and when it’s right, it’s beautiful. I love the emphasis on knowing the other person and loving them for who they are before the sexual aspect develops. Both are so incredibly important for a meaningful and stable and long lasting relationship.

Additionally, I admire Broome’s strength in honoring women who have suffered abuse. She does so with candor and overwhelming respect, and that moved me. Yes, this book made me cry. But in a good way. They were tears of relief and joy that Lexi could finally learn to love herself thanks to having Sam in her life.

If you want a roller-coaster ride with all the feels and honestly some of the best steamy scenes I’ve ever read, what are you waiting for? All Broome’s books are amazing.

[K.G. Fletcher · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love a good celebrity romance - and when I heard Ms. Broome released this gem, I had to have it!
Sam is a "bad-boy" super model with tattoos and piercings (not my typical hero in romance) but I fell in love with him right off the bat. His chivalry, protective nature, and genuine friendship with Lexi had me swooning! But he also had me screaming with some of his antics!
Lexi is a self-deprecating romance author who has great success with her book-boyfriends, not her real boyfriends. She broke my heart several times, and yes, there were tears! Her good friend Sam always seemed to come to her rescue and as a reader, I was on the edge of my seat waiting for these two to realize their feelings for each other. But it took a while, and kept me reading way past my bedtime!
The miscommunications, lost clues, distance, and heartbreaking moments were a roller-coaster ride of emotions for sure. But in the end, all of those things were worth it for the incredible happily-ever-after.
If you love a great friends-to-lovers romance, I HIGHLY recommend this book!

[Dan · Rating 1 out of 5]

Got half way through and couldn’t keep reading, ridiculous plot. The timeline is jumpy, the relationship (if you can even call it that) is barely built. Male character is a douche who keeps saying one thing and then doing the complete opposite and the female character is a push over that let’s him take advantage of her yet keeps running back to him the second he gives her attention. I mean come on!

[Arfeya Black · Rating 1 out of 5]

I tried to complete it but couldn't do it. The characters are so insecure about themselves. This book could have easily cut short into a 10-12 chapter. The author stretches its story and the patience of the reader.

[Sonia]

I don’t even know what to say
I mean really if you are in love why would you be going out and having sex with lots of other women or BJ I mean really
And as far as her why in the hell would you keep asking him about other women he slept with this is just so wrong all the way around

[Ivareads · Rating 2 out of 5]

90% of this book was based on miscommunication, and it was a big turn-off. It reminded me a bit of "One day". At one point I wanted to strangle Sam. I didn't get a memo that they were in their thirties till the end of a book, and their behaviour was even more irking with that knowledge

[Maja · Rating 5 out of 5]

“E.T.. Everything. My Everything."

Well, "E.T." is "E.T." 😊
It is a connection, a bond, a relationship and a friendship for ever and ever ❣️

[Marika · Rating 1 out of 5]

⛔️

[Jennifer DuPriest · Rating 1 out of 5]

If I could give it less then 1 star I would. He cheats on her so much it’s pathetic. Just a terrible MMC.

[Jami St-Hilaire · Rating 1 out of 5]

God what a waste of time lol

[Skye Yanovsky · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful & Slow Burn Romance. Absolute perfection!

I don’t know how to adequately express my feelings and love for And Then Came You. This is a beautiful and angsty SLOW BURN friends to lovers romance involving Samuel, the worlds most famous male model, and Lexi, a romance author. First off, let’s start right there because how perfect is that…a male cover model and a romance author? I was all over that storyline from the beginning. Samuel and Lexi meet at a book convention when Samuel steps in to help Lexi kick her deadbeat verbally abuse boyfriend out of her life. They go from strangers to acquaintances whose lives lead them back to each other as friends and then best friends. This story is a journey of their friendship and love.

I know I was going to beyond love this book and that it was going to become one of my favorite books ever by 20% in. I was just there and invested that early. I love stories where the characters make mistakes, learn from those mistakes and have a love that is beyond anything you could hope. This is one of those books. Samuel and Lexi weren’t perfect. Samuel had to realize that the life of a celebrity could be more than what he was living. Lexi had to realize what she was worth and deserved in life. They couldn’t be together in any last way until they both changed in different ways. This story is real….they become friends and confidants first. They screw up, laugh together, hurt each other, forgive each other and love each other. You will relate to so much of their journey because it’s how relationships are….never perfect but worth it.

ML is known for her angst and she definitely didn’t hold back here. Your emotions will be all over the place….I alternated between tearing up, yelling at them to get it together and swooning. It’s obvious that Samuel and Lexi have feelings for each other…you will see & feel it, the secondary characters know and they each know in the recesses of their minds….but getting them to really admit it to themselves and each other before they both mess everything up is a slow & difficult journey. They will hurt each other so much unintentionally before they finally are really honest with each other. They will be hurt by others (TW: domestic violence). But this friendship between Samuel and Lexi is so special that they will always turn to each other when they truly need someone.

Now this is slow burn but when the steam finally happens….OH MY GOD!!!!! It lived up to all me expectations and hopes. It’s passionate, flirty, fun & a little dirty. They are everything together. And when the grand declarations are finally made you will feel the “exquisite elation” that Lexi feels. And you will probably tear up too. I know I did.

This book is now one of my most favorite books ever. I will read it infinite times and I know it will affect me the same way every single time because it is that amazing of a book. I would 1000% urge you to go read it and then go check out more books from ML Broome.

[Michelle Brown · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was my first book by this author and I seriously loved it. I flicked to the first page and I was swept away on an enjoyable journey with no fuss at all. It was like sinking into a comfy chair.

Lexi I really enjoyed. She was a lovely lady but needed to feel more worth it and the guys she chose didn't help with this especially her latest jerk of a boyfriend. She had a good head on her shoulders and she knew what she was worth and I think her friendship with Sam did help her believe it.

I am glad during the book that she wouldn't put up with Sam's BS either and called him on it which I think he needed and I was here cheering Lexi on when she did those things! Go Lexi!! You tell him lol

Sam I did like but then sometimes didn't if I am honest. I guess someone who had women falling over themselves to be with him and him, majority of the time, taking them up on it, didn't really help his persona really and he wondered why no one got him. If you are putting it out there that way and behaving a certain why, then how can you be surprised or disappointed when and if people expect that from you..?

Until Lexi. Yay Lexi!! I am glad she was like that with him. I think there were times that he didn't treat the women he was with very nicely really and again when him and Lexi did move to more than friends. He was like a spoilt child when they had a falling out and he mucked around on her to the extreme.

Above all of that I did like how they came back together and how the story came into them finding their HEA. It was lovely and I did enjoy this story.

Overall, I did enjoy their journey and the author took me on a roller coaster ride with the emotions this story invoked from me. That in itself tells me the Author did her job and did it well.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[G · Rating 4 out of 5]

Friends to Lovers romances are difficult to write well. At times, the friendship between the two characters doesn't seem genuine, or the attraction doesn't build up--just seems to be an expectation that, like of course, this is a romance novel, the other person will always be attracted to the hero/heroine. This is not an easy sub-genre to write and I think that is why M.L. Broome's book, And Then Came You, is such a delightful read.

Broome accomplishes quite a bit in this novel. The friendship between Sam and Lexi starts on even ground. The two aren't overtly attracted to each other in a meaningful way until they actually talk to each other. But, the two aren't meant to be--Sam's life as a model keeps him entertained with gorgeous women around the world, and Lexi's track record with men is abysmal. While the two may be drawn to each other through friendship, both know that friendship is the most they will be good for.

As the two begin to count on each other, and fall in love, Broome creates some genuinely gut-wrenching screw-ups. While it would be easy to put all the blame on the male model--who sleeps around with all the models--Lexi's terrible with men and finds ways to date the worst guys possible. So many obstacles on their journey, (at times maybe too many) and it seems that Lexi and Sam will never get together. Luckily Broome has her reader's hearts in mind a delivers a believable, and endearing HEA.

I'll pick up Broome's books again. I love the character development from the female and male perspectives and the characters are realistic and relatable.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Dre · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was overly long. It took these two forever to figure out what the reader knew from the beginning. The whole book was about miscommunication. Lexi keeps telling Sam he's not her type and she's not his, then she's upset because he's always with other women, but she's in love with him. What did she think would happen? And no, he didn't talk about his true feelings to her either until that charity shoot weekend. And yes, he shouldn't have gotten drunk with the models who were a-holes to Lexi, and he shouldn't have been sitting at the bar with her, but Lexi never allowed him to explain anything. And I don't just mean this situation, I mean any situation in this freaking book. She would talk over him and insist on never talking about the issue. She didn't read his notes in one of her tantrums where she stormed out. It's like they kept talking around the issues and never addressed them, and she really just irritated the crap out of me. Moreso than Sam by the end. Like I get he's an idiot, and he was wrong for sitting with the model, but when we get his POV, and it was only cuz she was drunk and shouldn't have been left alone, so he was just waiting for her friend to get her, and he actually didn't do anything with her, like could you just let the man explain? Also, he should've texted to say what was going on instead of something came up. But she was 37, and constantly storming off and not listening to anything. Please act like an adult.

[Nikki Bogard · Rating 5 out of 5]

And Then Came You stole my heart and so many other things I cannot put into words. This is a slow burning romance novel that I could not put down. Friends to lovers is one of my favorite romance novels and this book did not disappoint. I was left swooning by the end, stories like this really make you believe in love.

Lexi and Sam are everything! This novel perfectly portrayed their tale of friendship and what happens when friends fall for one another but do not want to ruin a great friendship. Lexi is a push over when it comes to men in real life but can write a sexy romance novel and Sam who poses for romance covers looks to be the bad boy with his tattoos and piercings. Neither one could every image where their friendship would lead. This novel gave me all the vibes of When Harry Met Sally.
I absolutely love the way this story slowly pulled these two together. It was not a right off the bat kind of romance they gradually fell for one another. My emotions where all over the place especially knowing how they both felt about one another, and it seemed there was always some obstacle in the way. When they finally came together, I was cheering in my seat.

M. L. Broome wrote a beautiful friends to lovers romance. I highly recommend this book. Thank you to Book Siren for providing me with a digital copy in exchange for my honest review

[Kia B · Rating 5 out of 5]

OVERALL RATING –5 stars

RECOMMENDED FOR: those that like a true friends to lovers story

First my usual points:

- I do not do spoilers unless warned.

- Read the summary above; it will tell you what the book is about. I will not reiterate.

- This is a standalone (that I'm aware of).

- No errors that I caught as far as editing.

- The author was new to me (and I’m quickly the other books)

BOOK:

- Contemporary romance/friends to lovers/opposites attract

- 1st person with dual POV

Star Ratings - 1 (poor) - 5(READ THIS BOOK)

· Writing Quality: 5 stars with just enough detail

· Story ingredient: 5 stars with much emotion

· Ease of reading/Pace: 5 stars, hooked from page one

· Plot strength: 5 stars

· Steam Level: 3-4 stars; slow build romance but not explicit

· Uniqueness Factor: 5 stars

Notes/Opinion (personal):

The cover caught my eye. It was clearly unique. Then I read the summary and really had to read it. One reviewer put it best - a version of When Harry Met Sally. Only Harry is this really hot tattooed, pierced guy that found work as a cover model for romance novels - and massive fame followed...and women. Lexi found an inner strength when Sam defended her and proved he was more than just his physique. The story reflected a true romance that stems from not only attraction but friendship.