e-Audio, 07:59:01
Narrated by: Eva Kaminsky
Release Date: January 9, 2024
Published by: Books on Tape
Read from: January 1-2, 2024
Stand-alone
Source: PRH Audio App (I received a copy of this audiobook from the publisher in exchange for a just and honest review. This did nothing to influence my review.)
TW: Toxic Relationship, Emotional Abuse
For Readers Interested In: Realistic Fiction, Romance, Dungeons and Dragons, Gaming, YAWhen it comes to romance, sometimes it doesn’t hurt to play games. A fun YA romcom full of fake dating hijinks!
Musical lover Riley has big aspirations to become a director on Broadway. Crucial to this plan is to bring back her high school’s spring musical, but when Riley takes her mom’s car without permission, she’s grounded and stuck with the worst punishment: spending her after-school hours working at her dad’s game shop.
Riley can’t waste her time working when she has a musical to save, so she convinces Nathan—a nerdy teen employee—to cover her shifts and, in exchange, she’ll flirt with him to make his gamer-girl crush jealous.
But Riley didn’t realize that meant joining Nathan’s Dungeons & Dragons game…or that role playing would be so fun. Soon, Riley starts to think that flirting with Nathan doesn’t require as much acting as she would’ve thought…
*MY THOUGHTS*
I can admit I added this to my TBR solely because of the cover lol I loved all the little details and I don’t even play (or know anyone who plays) IRL. The dice? Her colorful clothes? The games? His ears? I loved it. But by that time I was already sold.
This book was so cute! I think my favorite part of this was the gaming. I was a little worried about it because like I said I don’t actually play so I was worried, thinking it was going to be heavy on the gaming aspect of it. But it wasn’t at all. It gives an overview of how the game is and what they have to do when playing. And it’s not info dumpy at all. The author makes it as an explanation to Riley since she’s learning how to play. And I loved that.
This entire book was so fun! I was not expecting to laugh as hard as I did in so many places. I have to say after reading her debut and not rating it super high, I’m super glad that I didn’t realize that this was by the same person. Because I don’t think I would have been so keen on reading this. But now that I have, I’m so happy I was able to read an early copy of this! It was so much fun! Riley is a theater kid, so she’s already artsy and let me tell you she is hilarious. And the way Nathan couldn’t stop her charm was also hilarious too.
The romance was hella cute too. As a self proclaimed hater of enemies to lovers books, I was not super set on this part of the book. But as it turns out, it wasn’t that bad. Riley is way too fluffy of a person to be actually mad. And Nathan was too much of a nerd to be mean. The two of them were nice nasty to each other and I loved it lol Like when she accused him of stealing those cards lol She was trippin. And the fake dating? Yes there was something in it for both of them, but I think her reasoning was actually funny. Because all she really had to do was tell that idiot to mind his own damn business lol But watching the romance turn real was cute.
The plot of this was also super cute. Although I couldn’t imagine getting in so much trouble to go watch a musical! But she gets sentenced to work in her dad’s store and is expecting to hate it. But she meets a terrible person who she can’t stand. And then then suddenly they’re fake dating. And I was not expecting to cry. Yes, I cried at the end. There was a lot that had to be done, and seeing that they did all that, and in that short amount of time, AND things that they didn’t even think of? It was so cute.
The only thing about this book I didn’t like was the way it seemed like none of the serious stuff that came up during the story got wrapped up. Like even the thing between her and the adult seemed like it was only talked about it again because of what happened. It was like 2 sentences and that was it. Idk maybe it was written that way because it was a rom com and the author didn’t want to get too heavy, but I think if you’re going to do it, then you should DO IT.
Idk what I was expecting when I read this, but whatever it was, it blew my expectations out of the water. I WISH I could go to this store. It really seems like it would be so much fun. And to hear Riley belting out her songs from the back of the store! I hope y’all pick this up and fall for this nerdy rom com like I did!
Overall, I give this
