Monday, May 4, 2020

Review - Well Met

Title:   Well Met
Author:  Jen DeLuca
Series:  Well Met #1
Publisher:  Berkley
Genre:   Romance
Format:  Kindle ARC
No. of Pages:   336
Date of Publication:   September 3, 2019
My Rating:   4 Stars

DESCRIPTION:

All's faire in love and war for two sworn enemies who indulge in a harmless flirtation in a laugh-out-loud rom-com from debut author, Jen DeLuca.

Emily knew there would be strings attached when she relocated to the small town of Willow Creek, Maryland, for the summer to help her sister recover from an accident, but who could anticipate getting roped into volunteering for the local Renaissance Faire alongside her teenaged niece? Or that the irritating and inscrutable schoolteacher in charge of the volunteers would be so annoying that she finds it impossible to stop thinking about him?


The faire is Simon's family legacy and from the start he makes clear he doesn't have time for Emily's lighthearted approach to life, her oddball Shakespeare conspiracy theories, or her endless suggestions for new acts to shake things up. Yet on the faire grounds he becomes a different person, flirting freely with Emily when she's in her revealing wench's costume. But is this attraction real, or just part of the characters they're portraying?


This summer was only ever supposed to be a pit stop on the way to somewhere else for Emily, but soon she can't seem to shake the fantasy of establishing something more with Simon, or a permanent home of her own in Willow Creek.


MY THOUGHTS:

The small town of Willow Creek, Maryland, hosts an annual summer faire. Before I go on with my review, I will just say that this seems like it would be so much fun to witness. Now, on to my review...

When her sister is injured, Emily agrees to stand in by volunteering at the local Renaissance Faire. This gives Emily time to spend with her niece as she is part of the faire as well. Emily's summer gets off to a rocky start when the person in charge of the volunteers, a local schoolteacher, is simply no fun and more than annoying. What could be more annoying than that? The fact that Emily is attracted to him.

Simon is proud of his family's legacy when it comes to the faire and he is more than aggravated by the fact that Emily doesn't take it seriously. If not more frustrating, is that Emily likes to share her Shakespeare conspiracy theories, or wanting to change things. All Simon wants is for things to go on as they have done year after year. Meanwhile, the pair are coupled in the faire and they must make their attraction seem real so that the audience gets a genuine experience. The problem in that is that they actually are attracted to one another despite their shared annoyances.

I loved this book! It was a lot of fun. I don't read a lot of romantic comedy, and to read a book like this when it comes to something that I know I would enjoy, it just made the book that much better. Jen DeLuca is a new author to me, and based on the fine job she did with this book, I do look forward to reading more of her work. I just may get my chance to have more fun at the faire, albeit through the pages of a book, as Well Played is due out in September.

Many thanks to Berkley and to Edelweiss for this ARC for review. This is my honest opinion.


ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Jen DeLuca was born and raised in Virginia, but there weren’t enough alligators and hurricanes so she relocated to Florida as soon as she could.

Her first career was in theatre, where she served as a wardrobe master and also worked backstage as an ice-show dresser. (She can strip down an ice skater and shove him into a Klingon costume in less than a minute. Where’s THAT Skill & Endorsement category, LinkedIn?)  


Jen lives with her husband and a house full of rescued pets. She spends her days picking cat hair off her clothes and fighting with at least one of them over the office chair.  She likes latte-flavored lattes, Hokies football, and the Oxford comma.


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