NetGalley Review: Roll for Romance by Lenora Woods
Hey all, Sam here.
Welcome back to another fiction focused Tabletop Tuesday, because yes, I have read yet another book where one of the main focuses of the story is all the characters playing TTRPGs together. I’m starting to see a whole bunch more of these types of books coming out, and honestly, I want to read every last one of them.
The first thing I’m going to say about today’s book review is not something I want to put in the review portion, but it is part of the reason why I absolutely had to pick up this book. So, you may or may not know that I’ve dabbled in writing books myself (I’ve been having some writing resistance issues for a handful of years now). Anyway, I’ve been writing a D&D romance story, inspired by mine and my husband’s relationship, and I had been using the title Roll for Romance for it (I had the idea for the story in 2017), and now I want to come up with a new title, because as much as I love the title, I don’t want to have the exact same title as another book and make things confusing for readers. Oh well, I’ll hopefully find another great title for my book. It’s still very much in the drafting stages (only like 30k written).
So yeah, basically I had seen a mention of this story on social media, was instantly intrigued because of the title, found it on NetGalley and read the synopsis, and naturally had to put a request in for it….and then I started reading it basically right after I got approved for it because I needed some more tabletop fun in my life.
All right, let’s go ahead and get into the review.
My Thoughts
Two fledgling tabletop gamers find themselves falling for each other—both in and out of their weekly D&D sessions—in this charming, fantasy-tinged romance.
For years, Sadie Brooks has declined her best friend’s standing invitation to join his Dungeons & Dragons campaign. But when she unexpectedly loses her marketing job and flees New York City to spend the summer with him in small-town Texas, she also runs out of excuses to say no.
In the game, she becomes Jaylie, a powerful and self-assured human cleric blessed by the Goddess of Luck with spells to heal her companions. But in real life, Sadie believes her luck has run out, and she hopes the distraction will give her time to clear her head and plan next steps.
She never expected Noah Walker—the handsome, outgoing bartender roped into joining them—to factor into that plan. Like Sadie, he’s new in town. But with a taste for adventure, Noah never stays in one place for long. He’s something of a traveling bard—just like his character Loren, the charismatic, lute-strumming elf. While Jaylie finds herself succumbing to the bard’s charms over the course of their party’s travels, Sadie also begins to fall under Noah’s spell.
As their relationship progresses in both worlds, Sadie can’t help but wonder if they might last beyond the game. But when a surprising new opportunity opens in New York, she must face the truth about why she lost her job in the first place—and whether she and Noah have found something in Texas worth staying for. Torn between her career dreams in the city and the exciting uncertainty of a new adventure, she will have no choice but to roll the dice.
Rating: 4.5 stars
First off, I’m just going to say that this cover is very cute and geeky and magical. Honestly, it definitely helps sell this as a D&D contemporary romance story. I look forward to having a copy of this on my shelf. This actually makes me think perhaps I should pull all of my D&D inspired fantasy or TTRPG romance books and give them their own special spot in my library, because I’m starting to get quite a collection here.
Also, I absolutely devoured this book back in JANUARY, but I wanted to wait until closer to release day to post my review. I started my year really wanted to read some more D&D inspired stories, and this one really hit the spot.
I really liked getting the glimpses into the in-game adventure, because the romance that develops between Sadie and Noah is hinted at and reflected by the development of Jaylie and Loren, which is a fun way to set up and build the relationship even more.
It was also nice to see how the game helped Sadie start to pursue her artistry and creativity as a more professional avenue, especially since she already had a number of skills and connections from her previous marketing job. I know personally how much more creative and capable of making art a person can feel after sitting at the table rolling dice and telling a story on a consistent schedule.
I’ll also say that I wanted to take my time reading this one, but even with needing to work, I finished this one in just a few short reading sessions over a four day stretch, so it is a nice fairly quick read. And it helped satisfy the urge (briefly) for stories with this sort of vibe.
I loved all of the characters, from Sadie and Noah, to the rest of the RPG group and the folks at the bar Noah works at. Honestly, I would definitely be interested if the author wished to write some interconnected standalones that follow some of the other characters a bit.
Basically, hey y’all, I want to read more books where the characters play TTRPGs or even in-fantasy-world stories that have D&D vibes to them. Give them all to me. I’m obsessed and will read them all (and all age groups qualify, because I’ve read Middle Grade, YA, and Adult).
Oh, and there’s not much longer to wait for this book. It comes out July 15th, so there’s still plenty of time to pre-order.
That is all from me for today, but if you know of any books with characters playing TTRPGs (or board games or video games), or fantasy stories with D&D vibes, please let me know in the comments. I’m always looking to add more to my library and my TBR pile. Thank you for stopping by and I’ll be back soon with more geeky content.
