Will They or Won't They: A Novel Paperback – June 27, 2023

How toxic is too toxic? Everyone has their own level, and this book had me questioning mine.📕 𝗕𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗜𝗻𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: Will They or Won’t They by Ava Wilder📙 𝗦𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀: Standalone📗 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗗𝗲𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗹𝘀: E-book on Kindle, loaned from Libby📘 𝗚𝗲𝗻𝗿𝗲: Contemporary romance📔 𝗧𝗿𝗼𝗽𝗲𝘀: Hollywood, second chance, toxic af, opposites attract.📖 𝗦𝘆𝗻𝗼𝗽𝘀𝗶𝘀: Lilah and Shane are costars on the hottest show in television - until Lilah leaves the show to stretch her wings, and get away from Shane after a failed attempt at something more than friends. Years later, she returns for one final season, and the pair has to put the past aside to finish the show.🌟 𝗥𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄: This is one of those reviews I kind of feel like I might change my rating on the more I think about it. We will see in the coming weeks…But my initial reaction was complicated. I liked the book - it was well written, and the happily ever after was absolute perfection. At the same time, though, the things these two did to each other, both in the past during and after their breakup, and in present day, were hard to forgive and forget as a reader.The beginning of this book was sometimes hard to read. I got that feeling in my chest when I’m uncomfortable and sad. But the last 25% made it worth it. If I change my rating, it’d only go up from here.𝗥𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴: 4/5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐𝗦𝗽𝗶𝗰𝗲 𝗟𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹: 3/5 🌶🌶🌶

Listen. I knew I was going to love this book. Ava Wilder is so good! Her books feels so special. And this did not disappoint!I have a feeling people are NOT going to like Lilah - I definitely didn’t. But I also had a feeling that whatever they go through is going to pay off so well. AND IT DID. It was such a slow burn but had such high intensity?? They had a lot of unresolved issues between them, but they seemingly didn’t want to move on? They also hated each other?? But they clearly cared for each other SO MUCH? They just didn’t know what to do with the mixture of emotions. And that combination made it so good!The second Lilah starts getting openly vulnerable everything changed for me. She was so scared, not just of Shane, past and present, of SO MANY things. She never felt like she was enough, never thought Shane’s feelings could be genuine. And it’s painful to watch her working so hard to prove him wrong and fight him and be so mean. But she didn’t know how to act otherwise?? She didn’t know how to process her feelings?And the way Shane cared SO MUCH. He was also scared don’t get me wrong, he couldn’t figure Lilah out, and he had such big feelings. He was SO SWEET. He acted just like Lilah did because why wouldn’t he? He did in fact hate her as much as she hated him? Right??But like Lilah and Shane said, it was worth the wait. It was SO GOOD. It’s hard to put into words really? I just absolutely loved this book. They just actually loved each other so much??Also the ending was absolutely PERFECT.

I absolutely loved this concept but the story was dragging at times and I feel as though it was mainly because the author had so many things she wanted to cover and wasn’t really letting the characters cover it themselves. There was so much more commentary than dialogue and it felt more like reading someone’s diary than visualizing it happening.

"...maybe I wanted to be with someone that I could actually build a life with, together, rather than someone who already had their life all figured out before I even got there, and I just got slotted into it."Ava Wilder has done it again!! She knows how to tell a damn love story. The sexual tension! I never thought I was a celebrity romance girl, but she knows how to reel you in! So I am! I am a celeb romance girl!I was so invested in Lilah and Shane. I loved their love story. A trueeeeee lovers to enemies to lovers that just felt so real. The research and knowledge on Hollywood and fame! Yet the characters felt so genuine to me. Lilah’s anxiety 🫶🏾 Shane’s self-doubt through his confidence 🫶🏾 the angst in this was also addicting.Basically, I’ll read whatever Ava writes because she also knows how to write steam. It’s good GOOD. Thank you for your time.

4.5 starsHaving not read this authors’a previous book, I didn’t know what to expect. All I can say is WOW. I am floored by the emotions in this book. The angst. The drama. The pining. I LOVED this story.Lilah Hunter and Shane McCarthy met at the auditions for the paranormal television show “Intangible.” They both felt the chemistry and attraction and soon became a couple, but broke up after the first season. They spent the next four seasons of the show hating each other-until Lilah left the show.Now, she is back for the ninth and final season of the show. Will they be able to work together and not bring the drama to the set? They have so much history together and we get to see the BEFORE chapters that led to the “hate” between them.The author wrote both Lilah and Shane so wonderfully detailed. I felt like I knew both of them very well—thanks to dual POV. The characters felt very real to me. The emotions in their first onscreen kiss (since her return to the show) was a definite re-read for me. So intense.Read this if you like:Dual POVEnemies to loversHollywood romanceSecond chance romanceSlow burnMental health representationSpiceThank you to Random House/Dell and NetGalley for the advanced readers copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This was such a pleasant surprise. When you choose a book online by an author you don't know and don't have the opportunity to browse it first it's always a pleasant surprise when the book is really good. I will definitely be looking for other books from this author. A great story, with good characters and well written.