Reviews

Will They or Won't They by Ava Wilder

falulatonks's review against another edition

4.0

4.5 stars - Uh, this was great, actually? Everything about this premise is a minefield for me – the Hollywood background, the RPF imprinting, the fact that nothing I've read with famous people has 100% worked for me. But this was everything I loved about fanfic when I was well-entrenched in fandom, it's everything I love about mature romances now. It's smart and pacey, and pretty intelligent at keeping intense and emotional messes from flying off the rails in a way that's irredeemable. Lilah's tight anxiety and Shane's muddled fears bounce off each other in a way that made every dramatic beat land, right!!! in my heart!!!! but there's always room to unravel their horrendous messes.

There was some stuff near the end that felt wildly bad, like the usual romance novel studio coming in with notes like "remember how we need a conflict when there's only 10% of the book left???", and I hate every book that ever does it.

But I genuinely did like so much of the stuff leading up to it! I think more than anything, so much of this, even the TV scenes we'd get glimpses of, made me think about the times I'd spent watching and loving weekly episodes of procedural TV, and how when a 'ship hit it just HIT. And I'm so giddy over that experience. Maybe it's that nostalgia fogging up my reading of this, idk. Sorry. I loved it.

babyfacedoldsoul's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content

Moderate: Mental illness

kelligrace's review against another edition

emotional lighthearted

4.0

alessiaciolini's review against another edition

fast-paced

5.0

homesweetread's review against another edition

5.0

J'avais des attentes très très hautes et l’histoire a répondu à chacune d'entre elles ! Les personnages sont vraiment attachants malgré qu'ils ne soient pas parfaits et font beaucoup d'erreurs. Il y a du drama qui est lié à un manque de communication mais, même si d’habitude je ne suis pas fan de ce trope, cela ne m’a pas dérangé ici. En réalité, le manque de communication ne concerne que leur passé et pas leur présent et il ne ralenti pas l’histoire.

La relation entre Shane et Lilah est incroyable même s'il y a un questionnement mental qui tourne en boucle. J'ai adoré le fait que les personnages soient des acteurs. Je rêvais depuis longtemps d'une histoire comme ça et j’ai été gâtée.

J'ai beaucoup aimé les flash backs. On ne reçoit pas toutes les informations d’un coup mais petit à petit au fil de l’histoire et c’est génial ! J'ai passé un excellent moment et j'aimerais beaucoup qu’un livre spin-off soit écrit sur Margaux et Brian, surtout si ça nous permet de revoir Shane et Lilah

jadyn827's review against another edition

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Loveable characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

m_lockreads's review against another edition

2.0

Thank you to NetGalley and Ballantine for the eARC! I love a will they or won’t they, and this one piques my interest as it’s about two love interests on reuniting for a new season of the TV show they played love interests on. Unfortunately, I found the novel to be very slow and very little happened until the last fifth of the book. The characters felt flat until this point and I wasn’t interested in their relationship nor did I feel much chemistry between them. If their previous relationship could have been showcased more I may have been more invested in them as a couple.

claudiavial's review against another edition

lighthearted slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.25

jsultz3's review against another edition

lighthearted medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75

marias_romcom's review against another edition

4.0

This book was the perfect steamy lovers turned enemies turned back to lovers! I really enjoyed all the banter and the amazing tension that was between the two main characters Shane and Lilah. I didn’t want to put this book down! This book follows the two main leads of a hit show, Shane and Lilah, as they are forced to play along side each other once again after years of ignoring each other. I loved that the author doesn’t immediately tell you the reason that they hate each other but that throughout the book you get to see their relationship development both in the past and present until you better understand their reasoning for their “hatred” towards each other. The female main character, Lilah, was so open about her anxiety and rather than being ashamed of it she was so open and unapologetic about it and for someone with GAD that was so refreshing to see. I also like that Shane doesn’t have it all figured out and that his uncertainty for the future isn’t something that’s looked down upon by those around him. All in all It was the perfect summer read and I really enjoyed this story!