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A Series of Unfortunate Meet Cutes
Right person, wrong time!
This romance anthology is full of your favorite romance subgenres: contemporary, paranormal, and fantasy! Each novella in this timeless romance anthology features a not so meet cute.
These nine authors have come together to tell stories of forbidden love, enemies to lovers, second chance romance, forced proximity, mistaken identity, office romance, and rockstar romance.
These characters may never enter the meet cute club, but there are definitely some happily ever afters!
This romance anthology is full of your favorite romance subgenres: contemporary, paranormal, and fantasy! Each novella in this timeless romance anthology features a not so meet cute.
These nine authors have come together to tell stories of forbidden love, enemies to lovers, second chance romance, forced proximity, mistaken identity, office romance, and rockstar romance.
These characters may never enter the meet cute club, but there are definitely some happily ever afters!
- GenresRomanceAnthologies
1110 pages, Kindle Edition
Published June 20, 2022
9 people are currently reading
116 people want to read
About the author
Tori Alvarez
11 books176 followersWriting sassy, angsty love stories you can fall into.
Lover of coffee, wine & travel.
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https://linktr.ee/mstorialvarez
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Lover of coffee, wine & travel.
Click below for all the latest!
https://linktr.ee/mstorialvarez
https://www.facebook.com/AuthorToriAl...
https://www.instagram.com/mstorialvarez/
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 37 reviews
May 9, 2022
Thank you to BookSirens and the publisher for providing an ARC for A Series of Unfortunate Meet Cutes . Review and opinions are honest and my own.
3.5 ⭐️
Where do I begin? I love anthologies but when I came across an anthology romance book about Meet Cutes I thought I had found my new favorite book.
I had a hard time getting through this book since its essentially different tropes in one. I did like that each author had a blurb and trigger warnings as well as a sub-genre and trope before each chapter.
I did however have two stand book stories the first was “Once Upon That Time I Started A Major Sh*t Show” by Maria Ann Germain an enemies to lovers that follows the MC as she attends a friends wedding ( MOH). I loved the writing, story, and banter. It is also one of the longer stories so it felt complete.
The second one is “On the Rocks” by G.G. Gleason an enemies to lovers, forced proximity trope (one of my favorite tropes), essentially, MC gets dumbs meet a grumpy passenger on a flight and the story goes from there…. This story had a lot of steamy scenes and romance. It is also a dual POV .
Overall this is a good book if you like short stories and are a fan of different tropes and subgenre in romance.
3.5 ⭐️
Where do I begin? I love anthologies but when I came across an anthology romance book about Meet Cutes I thought I had found my new favorite book.
I had a hard time getting through this book since its essentially different tropes in one. I did like that each author had a blurb and trigger warnings as well as a sub-genre and trope before each chapter.
I did however have two stand book stories the first was “Once Upon That Time I Started A Major Sh*t Show” by Maria Ann Germain an enemies to lovers that follows the MC as she attends a friends wedding ( MOH). I loved the writing, story, and banter. It is also one of the longer stories so it felt complete.
The second one is “On the Rocks” by G.G. Gleason an enemies to lovers, forced proximity trope (one of my favorite tropes), essentially, MC gets dumbs meet a grumpy passenger on a flight and the story goes from there…. This story had a lot of steamy scenes and romance. It is also a dual POV .
Overall this is a good book if you like short stories and are a fan of different tropes and subgenre in romance.
June 18, 2022
So I signed up for this anthology because I’ve loved the two stories I’ve read by Kelly Kay before. And that meant that I skipped ahead and first read her story, Follow Me, instead of reading straight in order. It was a bit of a rock-star romance, except the heroine was kind of a social media influencer/star in her own right. I’ve only read this author in some really hilarious rom-com stories so far, and I think that carries over into this one, although there was one part that was a little awkward for me, when during a bedroom scene he called her a funny nickname, “fairy pancake princess”. That kind of took me out of that moment. I’d have loved if he called her that at a different moment though.
After I read that, I went back and started from the beginning. First was Mi Sol, My Sun by Tori Alvarez. It wasn’t bad. Kind of predictable and seemed to drag a little for me towards the end that I kind of skimmed a bit. I did love the theme of it though, her coffee/wine bar she was opening, that was fun!
The next story was Pirate Booty by Rina Dayne. I had a few issues with some of the things in it, based on my own experiences as someone who has taught in a tiny town, to a little bit bigger town, to a suburban district, and finally to an inner city district, with the way some things happened, or were overlooked. Like the party at the beginning. Yeah, maybe no one knew names and it was a normal thing for the town, but for teachers or a school principal to take part it in and then not have it found out and they lose their job? That was a little bit hard to just gloss over. However there were other parts I liked, the characters for sure. And I loved how they rewatched season 1 of Bridgerton, because I will rewatch it, but probably never season 2 again, it was okay, just not the same.
Now, the third story was one of my favorites, Once Upon That Time I Started a Major Sh*t Show by Maria Ann Germain. Oh my gosh I was laughing so much as I read this one! I love stories that take place through diary entries or text messages, etc. Charli and Quinn had the best meet-cute for all the stories. The back and forth between those two was hilarious! I loved Charli’s snarkiness and I loved how Quinn dealt with her. I loved the friends in their group chats, they were totally the type of people I’d love to hang out with! I loved this one so much, I am now going to make sure I read more by this author!
The fourth story I also really liked. On the Rocks by G.G. Gleason had some great almost insta-love, but definitely insta-lust. It had a really unique storyline with the heroine, Skye, not liking sex. Because she’d never had a guy make it good for her. Yeah, that’s not that different from other stories you might think, but it was, you’d just have to read it yourself to see what I mean! Although I have to disagree with one thing the character thought, about a guy going down for himself meaning it wasn’t good. I disagree. In my experience it was when the guy was doing it because the woman asked him, he didn’t really like it, and then it wasn’t good.
Fifth was the Kelly Kay story that I read first. I skipped the 6th story because it was fantasy I think, and not my type, but then the 7th was one that I ended up really, really liking as well! It was called Caution in Love by K. Rodriguez. Izzy and Chase’s story was so good. It had real depth even with the bit of insta-love, and I loved the family moments and all the fun the story included even with the sad things that they had to deal with.
I skipped the 8th one, again, I think it was fantasy or paranormal, a genre I don’t read a ton of with adult romance. But the final story was really good, and the author said it will be leading to a series this summer, and I’ll be excited to check those out! It was called Throne For It by Melissa Williams. It again had a bit of insta-love to it, but hey, when you’re dealing with royalty, even just an earl, that can be forgiven in my opinion. It had funny bits as well as steamy parts, and a great storyline and meeting characters that I’ll be eager to read more in the future books.
Overall I highly recommend this little anthology and will be looking to read more by these authors myself!
Review first published on Lisa Loves Literature.
After I read that, I went back and started from the beginning. First was Mi Sol, My Sun by Tori Alvarez. It wasn’t bad. Kind of predictable and seemed to drag a little for me towards the end that I kind of skimmed a bit. I did love the theme of it though, her coffee/wine bar she was opening, that was fun!
The next story was Pirate Booty by Rina Dayne. I had a few issues with some of the things in it, based on my own experiences as someone who has taught in a tiny town, to a little bit bigger town, to a suburban district, and finally to an inner city district, with the way some things happened, or were overlooked. Like the party at the beginning. Yeah, maybe no one knew names and it was a normal thing for the town, but for teachers or a school principal to take part it in and then not have it found out and they lose their job? That was a little bit hard to just gloss over. However there were other parts I liked, the characters for sure. And I loved how they rewatched season 1 of Bridgerton, because I will rewatch it, but probably never season 2 again, it was okay, just not the same.
Now, the third story was one of my favorites, Once Upon That Time I Started a Major Sh*t Show by Maria Ann Germain. Oh my gosh I was laughing so much as I read this one! I love stories that take place through diary entries or text messages, etc. Charli and Quinn had the best meet-cute for all the stories. The back and forth between those two was hilarious! I loved Charli’s snarkiness and I loved how Quinn dealt with her. I loved the friends in their group chats, they were totally the type of people I’d love to hang out with! I loved this one so much, I am now going to make sure I read more by this author!
The fourth story I also really liked. On the Rocks by G.G. Gleason had some great almost insta-love, but definitely insta-lust. It had a really unique storyline with the heroine, Skye, not liking sex. Because she’d never had a guy make it good for her. Yeah, that’s not that different from other stories you might think, but it was, you’d just have to read it yourself to see what I mean! Although I have to disagree with one thing the character thought, about a guy going down for himself meaning it wasn’t good. I disagree. In my experience it was when the guy was doing it because the woman asked him, he didn’t really like it, and then it wasn’t good.
Fifth was the Kelly Kay story that I read first. I skipped the 6th story because it was fantasy I think, and not my type, but then the 7th was one that I ended up really, really liking as well! It was called Caution in Love by K. Rodriguez. Izzy and Chase’s story was so good. It had real depth even with the bit of insta-love, and I loved the family moments and all the fun the story included even with the sad things that they had to deal with.
I skipped the 8th one, again, I think it was fantasy or paranormal, a genre I don’t read a ton of with adult romance. But the final story was really good, and the author said it will be leading to a series this summer, and I’ll be excited to check those out! It was called Throne For It by Melissa Williams. It again had a bit of insta-love to it, but hey, when you’re dealing with royalty, even just an earl, that can be forgiven in my opinion. It had funny bits as well as steamy parts, and a great storyline and meeting characters that I’ll be eager to read more in the future books.
Overall I highly recommend this little anthology and will be looking to read more by these authors myself!
Review first published on Lisa Loves Literature.
June 19, 2022
The meet-cute is one of my favorite parts of reading a Romance, so how could I pass up this opportunity to read a collection of them, all in one place? And what a collection of not-so-meet-cutes these authors have put together!
This anthology certainly delivered on the promise set by its title, and these meet-cutes had it all. Rude comments made towards an exhibit, or a scandalous and exciting Halloween party, where costumes become optional and the only treat worth seeking is that fine pirate booty. Careless insults, Ferris wheels, cheating exes, grumpy seatmates, closets, treadmills, and mistaken identities all come together to promise good times and love in the most unexpected scenarios.
Like many, I had my favorites and my not-so favorites, but overall the collection proved an entertaining read and a great taste tester for what these authors could do (and I definitely have my eye on a couple for future reads!) Of all the meet-cutes shared, however, one of my favorites was that of Izzy and her faux-trainer Chase in ‘Caution in Love’ by K. Rodriguez. Izzy was so relatable and the gym scenes were great, and I really appreciated the time Chase took to help Izzy see her worth, just as she was. Not to mention I’m pretty uncoordinated myself, so it got me thinking of the possibility of my own meet-cute, lol.
'Throne For It' by Melissa Williams was another favorite. Dwayne Johnson’s ‘You’re Welcome’, Princess dress up, and a surprise hotel room audience thrown in with a case of mistaken identity gone wild and one bed? What’s not to love! While the ending may have felt a little rushed with that insta-love spark, the wild feelings that reigned between Henry and Ellie were fun and it was a great teaser prequel for Williams' new series.
As a whole, the meet-cutes contained were fun, fresh, and all manner of unfortunate. Featuring an array of different tropes, genres, writing styles, and varying steam levels, this book has a little something for every Romance fan.
Thank you to BookSirens for the advanced copy of this anthology. This is my honest review.
This anthology certainly delivered on the promise set by its title, and these meet-cutes had it all. Rude comments made towards an exhibit, or a scandalous and exciting Halloween party, where costumes become optional and the only treat worth seeking is that fine pirate booty. Careless insults, Ferris wheels, cheating exes, grumpy seatmates, closets, treadmills, and mistaken identities all come together to promise good times and love in the most unexpected scenarios.
Like many, I had my favorites and my not-so favorites, but overall the collection proved an entertaining read and a great taste tester for what these authors could do (and I definitely have my eye on a couple for future reads!) Of all the meet-cutes shared, however, one of my favorites was that of Izzy and her faux-trainer Chase in ‘Caution in Love’ by K. Rodriguez. Izzy was so relatable and the gym scenes were great, and I really appreciated the time Chase took to help Izzy see her worth, just as she was. Not to mention I’m pretty uncoordinated myself, so it got me thinking of the possibility of my own meet-cute, lol.
'Throne For It' by Melissa Williams was another favorite. Dwayne Johnson’s ‘You’re Welcome’, Princess dress up, and a surprise hotel room audience thrown in with a case of mistaken identity gone wild and one bed? What’s not to love! While the ending may have felt a little rushed with that insta-love spark, the wild feelings that reigned between Henry and Ellie were fun and it was a great teaser prequel for Williams' new series.
As a whole, the meet-cutes contained were fun, fresh, and all manner of unfortunate. Featuring an array of different tropes, genres, writing styles, and varying steam levels, this book has a little something for every Romance fan.
Thank you to BookSirens for the advanced copy of this anthology. This is my honest review.
June 14, 2022
Thank you to Book Sirens and the publisher for giving me a copy of this book!
Since this is an anthology, I will give a brief review of each of the stories that are in the book.
Mi Sol, My Sun: I thought that this was a cute story about a woman falling in love with the guy she hires to help with her business. I liked the little bit of depth we got with Elizar being a painter and his ex-girlfriend. It was fine. 3.5/5 stars.
Pirate Booty: Since this was a small town romance, I completely understood the feeling of being in a small town. This was cute. 3/5 stars.
Once Upon That Time I Started A Major Sh*t Show: I couldn't get past the part where the guy forced himself to be in the same ride vehicle as the main girl. THEN he got angry that she basically tried to ignore him because he forced himself like that. Major red flag there. He never apologized for that, and I just couldn't get over that. 2/5 stars for the mixed media aspect.
On the Rocks: I actually really really liked this one. The setup was weird, but the smut scenes were FANTASTIC. This was probably the spiciest of all of the stories. I kinda wish this was longer so we could be with Skylar and Seth for longer. 4/5 stars.
Follow Me: Honestly I love a good rockstar romance. This one was also really good. The setup was funny, and I enjoyed the depth given to the characters. 4/5 stars.
Daylight: A Wich of Kitchen Lake Novella: This was not my thing. I'm not into paranormal romances all that much, and this one just didn't do anything for me. It's okay just not my thing. 3/5 stars
Caution in Love: I loved this one too! I'm also a sucker for girl or guy getting over a break up and falling in love. With Izzy being described as curvy, I felt represented in that fact. Loved that she called him Thor as well. 5/5 stars.
Steel and Starlight: This was my biggest surprise! Since this was a historical fiction short story, I didn't think that I would like it. Here's my other biggest weakness though: kidnapping stories. Although the kidnapping ended up being better than what she was headed to, I still loved it. I honestly kind of want this stretched to a full-length novel. I want more about Finian and the Wolf! I want to explore this world more! I want Daphne, Finian, and their rag tag group of guys to defeat the Wolf! 5/5 stars.
About Throne For It: This was another one that I wish was a little bit longer. It just felt too short. The ending felt rushed because it's a short story. 4/5 stars
Since this is an anthology, I will give a brief review of each of the stories that are in the book.
Mi Sol, My Sun: I thought that this was a cute story about a woman falling in love with the guy she hires to help with her business. I liked the little bit of depth we got with Elizar being a painter and his ex-girlfriend. It was fine. 3.5/5 stars.
Pirate Booty: Since this was a small town romance, I completely understood the feeling of being in a small town. This was cute. 3/5 stars.
Once Upon That Time I Started A Major Sh*t Show: I couldn't get past the part where the guy forced himself to be in the same ride vehicle as the main girl. THEN he got angry that she basically tried to ignore him because he forced himself like that. Major red flag there. He never apologized for that, and I just couldn't get over that. 2/5 stars for the mixed media aspect.
On the Rocks: I actually really really liked this one. The setup was weird, but the smut scenes were FANTASTIC. This was probably the spiciest of all of the stories. I kinda wish this was longer so we could be with Skylar and Seth for longer. 4/5 stars.
Follow Me: Honestly I love a good rockstar romance. This one was also really good. The setup was funny, and I enjoyed the depth given to the characters. 4/5 stars.
Daylight: A Wich of Kitchen Lake Novella: This was not my thing. I'm not into paranormal romances all that much, and this one just didn't do anything for me. It's okay just not my thing. 3/5 stars
Caution in Love: I loved this one too! I'm also a sucker for girl or guy getting over a break up and falling in love. With Izzy being described as curvy, I felt represented in that fact. Loved that she called him Thor as well. 5/5 stars.
Steel and Starlight: This was my biggest surprise! Since this was a historical fiction short story, I didn't think that I would like it. Here's my other biggest weakness though: kidnapping stories. Although the kidnapping ended up being better than what she was headed to, I still loved it. I honestly kind of want this stretched to a full-length novel. I want more about Finian and the Wolf! I want to explore this world more! I want Daphne, Finian, and their rag tag group of guys to defeat the Wolf! 5/5 stars.
About Throne For It: This was another one that I wish was a little bit longer. It just felt too short. The ending felt rushed because it's a short story. 4/5 stars
July 2, 2022
I would just like to say a big thank you to Tori Alvarez who very kindly forwarded me an arc copy of this book, for my Kindle, in return for my honest review.
This book is made up of lots of romance sub genres - contemporary, paranormal and fantasy and they are written by a selection of nine authors. All the stories are built around the ‘right person, wrong time’.
I also loved how we were given the blurb and trigger warnings before each separate novella.
I found that this book gave me a little taste of what each authors style of writing was like and I now want to try out more of their books, now that I know what they are like!
This was a wonderful anthology of ‘meet cutes’ that were all very quick and easy to read and I loved them…
This book is made up of lots of romance sub genres - contemporary, paranormal and fantasy and they are written by a selection of nine authors. All the stories are built around the ‘right person, wrong time’.
I also loved how we were given the blurb and trigger warnings before each separate novella.
I found that this book gave me a little taste of what each authors style of writing was like and I now want to try out more of their books, now that I know what they are like!
This was a wonderful anthology of ‘meet cutes’ that were all very quick and easy to read and I loved them…
May 18, 2022
I thought this was a wonderful set of novellas covering a whole variety of genres all falling within the scope of the meet-cute trope. I enjoyed the various styles of the authors and discovered a number of them that I will be keeping an eye out for their work in the future. Overall, this was a good, well-rounded anthology that was very enjoyable.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
June 20, 2022
This anthology brings you so many unexpected, hilarious, romantic and diverse meet cutes and characters! Every story is so unique.
All the novella’s range from different tropes, steam rating and different POV’s. I really liked how before each one you were given the blurb along with any trigger warnings.
Now for some ratings ——————
*I did not read all the novellas, but because I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review here are 4 reviews of some of the stories.
𝐌𝐢 𝐒𝐨𝐥, 𝐌𝐲 𝐒𝐮𝐧
⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
🌶🌶🌶🌶
- Dual POV
- childhood enemies
- second chance
- slow burn
This was super cute! I loved the childhood “enemies” to lovers. It was such an cute and unexpected (from their perspective) reunion.
I really enjoyed Marisol and Eliazar getting to unveil the past and their feelings to each other. That good luck fuck, was soo steamy!!
𝐏𝐢𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐭𝐲
⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
🌶🌶🌶🌶
- Dual POV
- one night stand
- Workplace romance
- Small town romance
First off, the title really caught my eye and I really enjoyed this meet-cute! I’m already sold on basically anything small town romance. Loved the Halloween Party and him recognizing her later on.
This was a fast pace novella and I really enjoyed up until they had communication problems. I’m just not a fan of those moments where they don’t give each other the time to talk and listen to each other and they don’t communicate what the problem is.
𝐅𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐰 𝐌𝐞
⭐️⭐️
🌶🌶🌶🌶
- Dual POV
- Rock Star Romance
- Forced Proximity
This one was just not for me. I try really hard to like the rock star trope, but I just can’t get into it.
𝐒𝐭𝐞𝐞𝐥 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶🌶
- 3rd POV
- Historical Romance
- Fantasy Romance
- Kidnapping
- Enemies to Lovers
- Slow Burn
For someone, like myself, who doesn’t enjoy 3rd POV or has never read a historical romance I throughly enjoyed this!
It was such an adventure and it does end in a cliffhanger, which makes me wonder if Kathryn Trattner is going to continue on with Daphne and Fijian’s story.
I do think this novella has sparked an interest in historical/fantasy romance.
All the novella’s range from different tropes, steam rating and different POV’s. I really liked how before each one you were given the blurb along with any trigger warnings.
Now for some ratings ——————
*I did not read all the novellas, but because I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review here are 4 reviews of some of the stories.
𝐌𝐢 𝐒𝐨𝐥, 𝐌𝐲 𝐒𝐮𝐧
⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
🌶🌶🌶🌶
- Dual POV
- childhood enemies
- second chance
- slow burn
This was super cute! I loved the childhood “enemies” to lovers. It was such an cute and unexpected (from their perspective) reunion.
I really enjoyed Marisol and Eliazar getting to unveil the past and their feelings to each other. That good luck fuck, was soo steamy!!
𝐏𝐢𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐭𝐲
⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
🌶🌶🌶🌶
- Dual POV
- one night stand
- Workplace romance
- Small town romance
First off, the title really caught my eye and I really enjoyed this meet-cute! I’m already sold on basically anything small town romance. Loved the Halloween Party and him recognizing her later on.
This was a fast pace novella and I really enjoyed up until they had communication problems. I’m just not a fan of those moments where they don’t give each other the time to talk and listen to each other and they don’t communicate what the problem is.
𝐅𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐰 𝐌𝐞
⭐️⭐️
🌶🌶🌶🌶
- Dual POV
- Rock Star Romance
- Forced Proximity
This one was just not for me. I try really hard to like the rock star trope, but I just can’t get into it.
𝐒𝐭𝐞𝐞𝐥 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶🌶
- 3rd POV
- Historical Romance
- Fantasy Romance
- Kidnapping
- Enemies to Lovers
- Slow Burn
For someone, like myself, who doesn’t enjoy 3rd POV or has never read a historical romance I throughly enjoyed this!
It was such an adventure and it does end in a cliffhanger, which makes me wonder if Kathryn Trattner is going to continue on with Daphne and Fijian’s story.
I do think this novella has sparked an interest in historical/fantasy romance.
June 20, 2022
My thoughts
This anthology contains 9 novella length stories. None are too short reads, and I have spent several days reading this (long for me!). All of the stories share the “meet cute” meeting of the characters and then diversify with different genres. I skipped the fantasy, paranormal and royal themed genre stories. My favourite of all the stories was Kelly Kay’s Follow Me, the story of a rockstar singer who is locked a Paris supply closet for 12 hours with a former influencer. The story links to other books she has written and I look forward to reading these! Other favourite was On the Rocks by GG Gleason where a recent dumpee meets a grumpy guy on a flight and ends up taking him home with her. Lots of steamy scenes between the various stories!
I read an eARC copy courtesy of the authors.
This anthology contains 9 novella length stories. None are too short reads, and I have spent several days reading this (long for me!). All of the stories share the “meet cute” meeting of the characters and then diversify with different genres. I skipped the fantasy, paranormal and royal themed genre stories. My favourite of all the stories was Kelly Kay’s Follow Me, the story of a rockstar singer who is locked a Paris supply closet for 12 hours with a former influencer. The story links to other books she has written and I look forward to reading these! Other favourite was On the Rocks by GG Gleason where a recent dumpee meets a grumpy guy on a flight and ends up taking him home with her. Lots of steamy scenes between the various stories!
I read an eARC copy courtesy of the authors.
July 5, 2022
I picked up "A Series of Unfortunate Meet Cutes" mainly because of Kelly Kay's contribution, "Follow Me," which I very much enjoyed. Based on that story and a handful of other standouts, I'd recommend this collection for all contemporary romance fans.
Individual reviews for several of the stories are included below. As a general note, it's worth mentioning how much I appreciated that the authors included a summary of tropes and heat ratings at the beginning of each story. I'd love to see other anthology organizers include something similar in future collections!
"Once Upon That Time I Started a Major Sh*t Show" by Maria Ann Germain: I really liked the unique story structure of this novella, which was narrated through a series of journal entries, text messages, receipts, boarding passes, and even party invitations. The story itself was cute and funny, and it definitely made me want to check out more of the author's work in the future. 4 stars.
"On the Rocks" by G.G. Gleason: I really enjoyed this story! The steamy scenes in this novella were my favorite ones of the entire book because of the way main characters Skylar and Seth communicated with each other. She hadn't had great experiences in the past, but instead of immediately assuming that his magical p33n would fix everything, he actually took the time to listen to her and what she enjoyed. I wish there were more men like that in the world! 4 stars.
"Follow Me" by Kelly Kay: While the story was a bit slow-paced for me at times, I enjoyed the instant connection between main characters Ingrid and Ian and empathized with Ingrid's desire to establish herself outside of her extended family's shadow and her own reputation as a former fashion influencer. Fans of rock star romance will definitely appreciate this one. 4 stars.
"Caution in Love" by K. Rodriguez: I would never have guessed that this is the author's first published work, but I will definitely be watching to see what she writes in the future! I loved the Latinx representation, and all of the food references (mmm, empanadas) made me hungry. Izzy and Chase had a bit of a rocky path to love, but they made a great couple, and I was rooting for them the whole way. 4 stars.
"Throne for It" by Melissa Williams: Insta-love isn't my favorite trope, but even I have to admit that this was a cute story. It's the prequel to a series launching later this summer, and I plan to pick up the first book when it releases. One thing I didn't quite understand about this story and hope the series will explain is why so many members of a random country's royal family were in Canada. Why couldn't Henry's niece's birthday party have been held in Cragnoor? 4 stars.
*Review copy provided by the authors. All opinions expressed are my own.
Individual reviews for several of the stories are included below. As a general note, it's worth mentioning how much I appreciated that the authors included a summary of tropes and heat ratings at the beginning of each story. I'd love to see other anthology organizers include something similar in future collections!
"Once Upon That Time I Started a Major Sh*t Show" by Maria Ann Germain: I really liked the unique story structure of this novella, which was narrated through a series of journal entries, text messages, receipts, boarding passes, and even party invitations. The story itself was cute and funny, and it definitely made me want to check out more of the author's work in the future. 4 stars.
"On the Rocks" by G.G. Gleason: I really enjoyed this story! The steamy scenes in this novella were my favorite ones of the entire book because of the way main characters Skylar and Seth communicated with each other. She hadn't had great experiences in the past, but instead of immediately assuming that his magical p33n would fix everything, he actually took the time to listen to her and what she enjoyed. I wish there were more men like that in the world! 4 stars.
"Follow Me" by Kelly Kay: While the story was a bit slow-paced for me at times, I enjoyed the instant connection between main characters Ingrid and Ian and empathized with Ingrid's desire to establish herself outside of her extended family's shadow and her own reputation as a former fashion influencer. Fans of rock star romance will definitely appreciate this one. 4 stars.
"Caution in Love" by K. Rodriguez: I would never have guessed that this is the author's first published work, but I will definitely be watching to see what she writes in the future! I loved the Latinx representation, and all of the food references (mmm, empanadas) made me hungry. Izzy and Chase had a bit of a rocky path to love, but they made a great couple, and I was rooting for them the whole way. 4 stars.
"Throne for It" by Melissa Williams: Insta-love isn't my favorite trope, but even I have to admit that this was a cute story. It's the prequel to a series launching later this summer, and I plan to pick up the first book when it releases. One thing I didn't quite understand about this story and hope the series will explain is why so many members of a random country's royal family were in Canada. Why couldn't Henry's niece's birthday party have been held in Cragnoor? 4 stars.
*Review copy provided by the authors. All opinions expressed are my own.
June 19, 2022
A Series of Unfortunate Meet Cutes will be out tomorrow and I couldn't be more excited to be part of the virtual release celebrations! Thank you so much Tori Alvarez and others for giving me the chance to read this anthology in advance!
I'm not gonna lie, there was one reason and one reason only why I got interested in this anthology in the first place and that is Follow Me by Kelly Kay - I love Kelly's Lyrical Romance books Shock Mount and Crossfade and when I heard that Follow Me continues the story I knew I needed to have it as soon as possible. And it did not disappoint!!
But in addition to Kelly Kay's latest I got to read some amazing novellas by many new-to-me authors who made me laugh, and cringe, and get all swoony and emotional, as well as visit new places like Sedona, Arizona...❤
I'm not gonna lie, there was one reason and one reason only why I got interested in this anthology in the first place and that is Follow Me by Kelly Kay - I love Kelly's Lyrical Romance books Shock Mount and Crossfade and when I heard that Follow Me continues the story I knew I needed to have it as soon as possible. And it did not disappoint!!
But in addition to Kelly Kay's latest I got to read some amazing novellas by many new-to-me authors who made me laugh, and cringe, and get all swoony and emotional, as well as visit new places like Sedona, Arizona...❤
May 30, 2022
This was a fun and entertaining set of short novellas that all featured a unique meet-cute. There were a variety of different genres represented in this set from paranormal to contemporary, and also many different tropes such as enemies to lovers, forbidden romance, and second chance romance. There's pretty much something for every romance fan. Written by nine different authors, I got a taste of each author's style. Some I already knew and some new-to-me. I enjoyed reading all the different styles of writing. Overall, an entertaining and enjoyable anthology that. I am happy to have had the opportunity to read.
I received a complimentary copy from the authors and BookSirens and am voluntarily leaving my review.
I received a complimentary copy from the authors and BookSirens and am voluntarily leaving my review.
June 4, 2022
All of the authors in the anthology were new to me and I can definitely say I would read more by most of these authors! Some very cute stories, some I even probably wouldn’t have normally read but am happy I did. This was a very long book so be prepared to enjoy. A few of them were more like full books rather than just novellas. A huge mixture of types of stories too. There was second chance, boss, best man(which I love how this one was written) rockstar, paranormal, miscommunication , enemies to lovers, and mistaken identity. With so many tropes it’s hard not to fall in love with at least a few of these stories! I did have a few I felt were dragged out in parts and then suddenly cut short but I did enjoy every story.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
June 6, 2022
Fun and humorous and steamy reads! This collection of #meetnotsocute novellas has something for everyone whether you like contemporary, fantasy or paranormal romance.
These are good sized stories and not disappointingly over-to-quickly short stories, and almost all of them are complete standalones. One features side-characters from the authors other works (that I haven't read yet) but it wasn't difficult to follow; one felt like it could be a teaser for a series, but there wasn't any indication that it was; and another was a prequel for an upcoming series, but featured a couple whose story was completed in this novella (they'll just appear again in the series as side-characters).
Now I have a bunch of new authors to add to my TBR list!
These are good sized stories and not disappointingly over-to-quickly short stories, and almost all of them are complete standalones. One features side-characters from the authors other works (that I haven't read yet) but it wasn't difficult to follow; one felt like it could be a teaser for a series, but there wasn't any indication that it was; and another was a prequel for an upcoming series, but featured a couple whose story was completed in this novella (they'll just appear again in the series as side-characters).
Now I have a bunch of new authors to add to my TBR list!
June 20, 2022
Thank you so much to the authors for proving me with this book arc in exchange for an honest review.
This was such a fun, cute read. It starts of on a strong note with a good enemies to lovers, miscommunication short story and continues strong throughout. I love anthology pieces because you get to know a bunch of new authors’ styles and this was no different. Each story was so easy to follow and had me swooning.
I love romance books and it was so great to be able to read different versions of romance stories based purely on a prompt.
If you want a light, swoony read then I highly recommend this!
This was such a fun, cute read. It starts of on a strong note with a good enemies to lovers, miscommunication short story and continues strong throughout. I love anthology pieces because you get to know a bunch of new authors’ styles and this was no different. Each story was so easy to follow and had me swooning.
I love romance books and it was so great to be able to read different versions of romance stories based purely on a prompt.
If you want a light, swoony read then I highly recommend this!
June 20, 2022
I loved this book!! It's hard to choose one favorite out of the 9 stories inside, they are all wonderfully written in their own rites!! Each story has its own unique love story with plenty of steam and HEA for everyone's kinks!! I would definitely recommend this book, you won't regret the purchase!!
I received a copy of this book via BookFunnel and am voluntarily leaving an honest review.
I received a copy of this book via BookFunnel and am voluntarily leaving an honest review.
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May 27, 2022Right couples, anything but cute meet cutes ❤️ I’m insanely proud to be a part of this anthology. For my story, Once Upon That Time I Started A Major Sh*t Show, you’ll love it if you’re a fan of enemies to lovers, sass and banter, and all the romantic embarrassing moments! P.S. it’s up for preorder and only ¢99 till release day!!!
June 5, 2022
Well developed characters and relationships among them plus lots of emotions flying around. Good realities and backgrounds. Enjoyable set of shorts. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
June 21, 2022
The meet cute stories were very interesting reads , with elements of fun ,romance, banters, drama etc. The authors have done a really good job in writing the plot and making the stories refreshing reads.I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
June 22, 2022
loved it!
The stories in here were sweet some quirky and funny. The steamy scenes were not bad at all. This little book here is quite charming and totally worth the read .
The stories in here were sweet some quirky and funny. The steamy scenes were not bad at all. This little book here is quite charming and totally worth the read .
August 29, 2022
A wonderful collection of stories. Not all are romantic comedies, but the variety makes it even more appealing, and introduced me to authors I'll look forward to reading more of.
June 20, 2022
This is the perfect summer read! It’s filled with a bunch of fun novellas that are great when you have a busy life and not a ton of time. There were a bunch of new to me authors that I thoroughly enjoyed.
My favorite in the anthology was by my favorite Kelly Kay. Her novella “Follow Me” is so good, I wish it was a full length story, I wasn’t done with spending time with these characters. But to be honest I never want Kelly’s stories to end. If you have never read her books this is the perfect place to get a taste that you will crave until you read them all.
Go grab this Anthology, it’s so much fun and the Authors are off the charts!
My favorite in the anthology was by my favorite Kelly Kay. Her novella “Follow Me” is so good, I wish it was a full length story, I wasn’t done with spending time with these characters. But to be honest I never want Kelly’s stories to end. If you have never read her books this is the perfect place to get a taste that you will crave until you read them all.
Go grab this Anthology, it’s so much fun and the Authors are off the charts!
June 28, 2022
I’ve enjoyed reading each of these stories and getting to know some new authors.
Each story detailed it’s tropes and steam and any TW. I enjoyed each meet cute and the story of each couples romance.
A great collection to get a bit hot under the collar.
Each story detailed it’s tropes and steam and any TW. I enjoyed each meet cute and the story of each couples romance.
A great collection to get a bit hot under the collar.
June 2, 2022
Love this grouping! Great read with the stories not being too short or too long. Great concept with so many genres represented. My favorite one was by Kelly Kay- Follow me. It involved one of my favorite characters from her Lyrical Duet Series.
June 20, 2022
This book is a great summer read and the authors in the anthology stories is a good read with a HEA . This book have a good page turner with loveable characters .
July 10, 2022
A great collection of funny, awkward, and entertaining meet cutes! I loved that there was a bit of steam in each (and steam ratings included) and that I could read through each novella in a short amount of time.
Each novella was between 3.5 and 4 stars for me, so rounded up to 4 for an overall rating.
Each novella was between 3.5 and 4 stars for me, so rounded up to 4 for an overall rating.
June 24, 2022
A Series of Unfortunate Meet Cutes, was a lot of fun to read. I am a sucker for a happy ending and I loved the endings. I laughed quite a bit and was consistently drawn into the stories and the characters. There were some similarities in the stories, but each had its own personality. It was not be like reading the same story continuously, and each story made it easy to fall in love with the characters. I would recommend this book if you are looking for some fun short romances and to fall in love over and over again. I rated 4 out of 5 because although the stories are short, some had a bit of a slow start.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
June 15, 2022
Overall ⭐⭐⭐.5/5
This book is an anthology of 9 meet cutes of various genres. I truly think it's got something for everyone. Enemies to lovers, fake dating, forced proximity, paranormal, second chance romance, so on and so forth.
This anthology was great to pickup and read a short story in between reading other full length novels. I really enjoyed most of them, but some were not my cup of tea and that is ok. I'm not going to post an individual review of each story because this review would turn into its own novella. So,
Let's talk about my favorite and my least favorite.
My least favorite:
Once Upon That Time I Started A Major Sh*t Show
Maria Ann Germain
⭐.5/5
🌶️🌶️/5
Charli is newly single and emotionally damaged. Quinn is a supposed player who's emotionally unavailable. She's the maid of honor and he's the best man in their friends wedding. After an unfortunate first meeting, will bring forced to work together help kindle the relationship or will their differences tear them apart?
This is labeled as enemies to lovers. I could not disagree more. At best, this is awkward acquaintances to lovers with a heaping dose of instalove. I did not care for the writing style and the insane amount of errors in the writing (which will hopefully be fixed prior to publication) made this very difficult to get through.
My favorite:
On the Rocks
G.G. Gleason
⭐⭐⭐⭐/5
🌶️🌶️🌶️/5
Skyler is flying to Sedona to get away after she was dumped by her boyfriend. She's stuck next to a grumpy drunk the whole way. After getting off the plane at the airport, of course she runs into her ex and his new girlfriend. Cue, Mr Grumpy, who is actually quite a hottie, coming in to save the day.
This is also labeled as "enemies to lovers" and I just think they are using the label wayyy too loosely. I would call this more fake dating/forced proximity.
Really cute story overall. LOVED that there was no second act breakup. Perfect wrap up for a short story. Excellent spice. 👌🏻
Thank you to BookSirens and the publisher for the ARC of this book.
This book is an anthology of 9 meet cutes of various genres. I truly think it's got something for everyone. Enemies to lovers, fake dating, forced proximity, paranormal, second chance romance, so on and so forth.
This anthology was great to pickup and read a short story in between reading other full length novels. I really enjoyed most of them, but some were not my cup of tea and that is ok. I'm not going to post an individual review of each story because this review would turn into its own novella. So,
Let's talk about my favorite and my least favorite.
My least favorite:
Once Upon That Time I Started A Major Sh*t Show
Maria Ann Germain
⭐.5/5
🌶️🌶️/5
Charli is newly single and emotionally damaged. Quinn is a supposed player who's emotionally unavailable. She's the maid of honor and he's the best man in their friends wedding. After an unfortunate first meeting, will bring forced to work together help kindle the relationship or will their differences tear them apart?
This is labeled as enemies to lovers. I could not disagree more. At best, this is awkward acquaintances to lovers with a heaping dose of instalove. I did not care for the writing style and the insane amount of errors in the writing (which will hopefully be fixed prior to publication) made this very difficult to get through.
My favorite:
On the Rocks
G.G. Gleason
⭐⭐⭐⭐/5
🌶️🌶️🌶️/5
Skyler is flying to Sedona to get away after she was dumped by her boyfriend. She's stuck next to a grumpy drunk the whole way. After getting off the plane at the airport, of course she runs into her ex and his new girlfriend. Cue, Mr Grumpy, who is actually quite a hottie, coming in to save the day.
This is also labeled as "enemies to lovers" and I just think they are using the label wayyy too loosely. I would call this more fake dating/forced proximity.
Really cute story overall. LOVED that there was no second act breakup. Perfect wrap up for a short story. Excellent spice. 👌🏻
Thank you to BookSirens and the publisher for the ARC of this book.
June 20, 2022
I enjoyed this anthology. Each short story was different in the best ways, and I laughed out more often than not. The anthology as a whole offers and incites many emotions. There were various romance subgenres and tropes present, guaranteeing something for just about everyone. Before each story, there is a short synopsis and an intimacy rating.
As the title and blurb(s) suggest, the way some of these characters meet is entertaining not only for the reader but, at times, for the other characters. If you’re looking for something that is not incredibly heavy with laugh-out-loud funny scenes, lines, and stories, this book may be what you need.
I was unfamiliar with many of the included authors’ work but would love to read more.
Voluntarily reviewed after receiving a free copy courtesy of the authors, Tori Alvarez, Rina Dayne, G.G. Gleason, Maria Ann Germain, Kelly Kay, Marisa Mohi,
K. Rodriguez, Kathryn Trattner, & Melissa Williams.
#meetnotsocute
As the title and blurb(s) suggest, the way some of these characters meet is entertaining not only for the reader but, at times, for the other characters. If you’re looking for something that is not incredibly heavy with laugh-out-loud funny scenes, lines, and stories, this book may be what you need.
I was unfamiliar with many of the included authors’ work but would love to read more.
Voluntarily reviewed after receiving a free copy courtesy of the authors, Tori Alvarez, Rina Dayne, G.G. Gleason, Maria Ann Germain, Kelly Kay, Marisa Mohi,
K. Rodriguez, Kathryn Trattner, & Melissa Williams.
#meetnotsocute
August 30, 2022
I absolutely adored this anthology from this set of authors. I started it at the beginning of summer, and it has joyfully carried me all the way through.
These shorts stories are filled with everything you could possibly want from romance: vampires, princesses, rockstars, weddings, workplaces, and simple commonfolk. There is certainly something for everyone.
Something I really appreciated about the writing is that I was completely lost in every story. Every time the book changed to the next author, I was just as enchanted with the new characters and new settings.
Thank you so much to Tori Alvarez for reaching out to me to offer an advanced copy and a huge thanks to all the authors for creating a marvellous compilation of the human need for passion.
These shorts stories are filled with everything you could possibly want from romance: vampires, princesses, rockstars, weddings, workplaces, and simple commonfolk. There is certainly something for everyone.
Something I really appreciated about the writing is that I was completely lost in every story. Every time the book changed to the next author, I was just as enchanted with the new characters and new settings.
Thank you so much to Tori Alvarez for reaching out to me to offer an advanced copy and a huge thanks to all the authors for creating a marvellous compilation of the human need for passion.
June 20, 2022
I loved how so many different stories are gathered in one book over a 1000 pages in total.
I love all sort of romance novels but till now never really read the meet cute genre. I love it.
To be honest I didn't read any books of the authors before so stepped in completely blank.
Not every story was my cup of tea, but overal liked most of them so for me it's a well deserved 5 stars.
The trouble with an anthology is reviewing without spoiling the stories. So all I can say is if you love small town, workplace, enemies to lovers, humor, second chances, etc. Just go and buy it you won't be disappointed
I love all sort of romance novels but till now never really read the meet cute genre. I love it.
To be honest I didn't read any books of the authors before so stepped in completely blank.
Not every story was my cup of tea, but overal liked most of them so for me it's a well deserved 5 stars.
The trouble with an anthology is reviewing without spoiling the stories. So all I can say is if you love small town, workplace, enemies to lovers, humor, second chances, etc. Just go and buy it you won't be disappointed
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