Well Met Review

Title: Well Met
Author: Jen DeLuca
Genre: Romance
Edition/Pages: Hardcover (BOTM), 319 pages
Goodreads page

I received an arc copy of this from Berkley Publishing via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review

Summary

After a painful breakup, Emily receives a call that her sister and niece were in a terrible car accident. She immediately leaves NYC and moves to the small town of Willow Creek to help take care of her sister, April, and cart around her teenage niece, Caitlin.

To help her niece, Emily is roped into volunteering for the yearly Renaissance Faire. Which means she has to spend her entire summer with stuffy, rude Simon. But once they are on the Faire grounds, Simon transforms into a flirtatious pirate. Making Emily question everything – which version of Simon is real?

Overview

This is a low drama, rom-com with plenty of witty banter and a unique, fun setting.

➸ POV – This is told in 1st person from Emily’s POV.

➸ Simon – 27. Willow Creek High School English teacher. Ian Blackthorn, Pirate. Runs, organizes, and protects the town’s yearly Renaissance Faire.

➸ Emily – 24. Unemployed. Emma, Tavern Wench. Recently lost her apartment and long term boyfriend when she got the call about her sister’s car accident. Now she’s living in Willow Creek to take care of her older sister, April, and niece, Caitlin.

➸ Content Warnings: Death of a family member

What I Liked

➸ I loved the family dynamic in this story. Emily and her sister April did not grow up together because they are so far apart in age. So they never really got to experience life with a sister. It was so heartwarming seeing them learn to trust and rely on each other.

➸ This had such healthy, wonderful depictions of friendship!! There was no back-stabbing or jealously to be seen. Everyone was welcoming and supportive, even when Emily was the newcomer. It was so refreshing to read not only about strong female friendships but also platonic M-F friendships. What a concept!

➸ I was SWOONING for this relationship by the end. This was definitely a lot lighter on the steamy scenes than I normally read, but the chemistry was palpable I didn’t even mind. There were just so many cute moments. That first kiss scene.. I mean. Damn.

➸ The setting in this was so unique and so much fun. I was completely swept away by the Faire and immediately had the urge to go to one of my own. This is the perfect summer romance!

What I Didn’t Like

➸ This did have a pretty slow start in my opinion. I wasn’t pulled into this story or attached to the characters until about 100 pages in – and this book is only 300ish pages long. Once we got to the Faire is was SOLD. I just wish we had gotten there a little quicker.

➸ I also felt like I want to see more of Emily and Simon’s relationship. I loved their banter and chemistry on page, I just wish we had more time with them. I felt like the “lovers” portion of the enemies-to-lovers romance didn’t get as much attention as the enemy portion.

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Overall this is one of my favorite romances of the summer! I absolutely plan to read everything that Jen Deluca writes in the future! If you’re looking for one final, swoon-worthy romance before the cool weather hits, definitely pick this one up!