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4.01 AVERAGE
4.01 AVERAGE
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Listen - I am not a cozy Hallmark romance type of reader, except when I am. Sat down and read the whole thing in one sitting. Will as the POV character is maybe too relatable for any anxious gay with a complicated relationship with their parents, and Casey is charming and likable, so much so that I wanted to keep digging into what was so clearly wrong with him. I’ll keep picking up Dylan Morrison’s books, because I’ve never been let down by his writing in all the years I’ve been reading it.
emotional
funny
hopeful
medium-paced
Very enjoyable warm cozy story with some fun return-to-your-roots shenanigans, excellent cast of background characters, and more than one satisfying conversation (although it did take a while to get there in some cases!)
emotional
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Thanks to the publisher for the opportunity to read this through Netgalley. It’s the first of this authors works for me.
Will returns to his hometown after the death of his father, having left years ago, and never having returned. Upon doing so he’s planning to sign his fathers house and orchards over to a developer. During some stilted negotiations Will meets Casey, his father’s orchard-hand and is promptly smitten, though this feeling is briefly disguised as outrage. Casey in truth is similarly outraged after having only Will’s deceased fathers version of events for the past 6 years.
What follows is a particularly slow-burn, closed door romance set against the backdrop of Will’s former home. There’s a lot of introspection from Will, with most of the story from his perspective, so much so that Casey sometimes feels like a side character instead of the love interest. Will is quite immature, for having made it in the big city in his own, as a scientist.
I’m not sure whether it was the closed door aspect or not but these two didn’t seem to have chemistry. Sure there was understanding and empathy but it seemed like there was insta-love without the ardour, and as the relationship progressed, there was no proximity or intimacy, which didn’t make the pining during a period of separation very realistic.
What worked for me was the small town setting and feel which was translated well, as were some of the side characters.
An interesting read, importantly during Pride month (read queer all year). Definitely sweet but not effortless by any means.
Will returns to his hometown after the death of his father, having left years ago, and never having returned. Upon doing so he’s planning to sign his fathers house and orchards over to a developer. During some stilted negotiations Will meets Casey, his father’s orchard-hand and is promptly smitten, though this feeling is briefly disguised as outrage. Casey in truth is similarly outraged after having only Will’s deceased fathers version of events for the past 6 years.
What follows is a particularly slow-burn, closed door romance set against the backdrop of Will’s former home. There’s a lot of introspection from Will, with most of the story from his perspective, so much so that Casey sometimes feels like a side character instead of the love interest. Will is quite immature, for having made it in the big city in his own, as a scientist.
I’m not sure whether it was the closed door aspect or not but these two didn’t seem to have chemistry. Sure there was understanding and empathy but it seemed like there was insta-love without the ardour, and as the relationship progressed, there was no proximity or intimacy, which didn’t make the pining during a period of separation very realistic.
What worked for me was the small town setting and feel which was translated well, as were some of the side characters.
An interesting read, importantly during Pride month (read queer all year). Definitely sweet but not effortless by any means.
emotional
funny
hopeful
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Interesting little story about returning to the place you ran away from and being forced to face things you thought you could avoid forever.
A unique and unusual story that still captures all the things we love to read about: enemies to lovers, romance, fear, secrets and all the people we have to deal with. Told entirely from Will’s POV which is a treat in itself: he is not boring!
I received an advance copy of Fall Into You from Storm Publishing. I enjoyed it and you will, too. I voluntarily leave this review; all opinions are my own.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC.
This was a cute little romantic book. It was easy to read and filled with emotion. Will and Casey have a very cute relationship and their build-up was really well-written and explored. I love the enemies to lovers trope, and this story did not miss. I will say, some of the way the characters speak in this book was not too realistic and could be modified. There were a lot of question marks in the dialogue and reading most things as a question got a little distracting. I love the queernormative world and the found family aspect, as well. I did enjoy how this book explored the complexities of parent-child relationships and did not just make everything an easy and nice. It is always good to explore how difficult it could be to be a queer person while also highlighting the queer joy, which I found this book does well. Overall, a nice book!
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book very much “does what it says on the tin,“ which if that’s what you’re looking for, you’ve absolutely come to the right place. It’s fun, it’s charming, the two main characters have chemistry, and the formulaic rom-com elements are made all the more dynamic by the author’s truly lovely prose.
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
ARC Review
This is a soft, MM small-town romance about identity and difficult family relationships.
The premise is a son, Will, returns to sell the family apple farm after years of estrangement, only to find himself tangled up in both old memories and a new connection with Casey, the man now managing the farm.
Will was funny and adorably awkward. His journey — from anger and avoidance to healing and reconnection — was compelling and felt grounded. There are lovely moments of introspection, especially when Will and Casey allow themselves to be vulnerable with each other. I also liked that it takes time for the romance to develop — it’s quieter and character-driven, which I appreciated. All spice is closed door, just to note.
That said, there were some drawbacks for me. The pacing was uneven in spots, and I had a harder time connecting to the central romance than I wanted to. I found myself more emotionally invested in the themes of family and personal growth than in the relationship itself. Perhaps having more insight from Casey’s POV would have helped. Still, this debut was a sweet read and I’d definitely pick up another book by this author.
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Returning home with a twist and spontaneous laughs. Some of the times when a character is musing to himself, the content is designed for humor and absolutely succeeds! It's a tale of academia (Will) vs agribusiness (Casey) with the agony of returning to a place of humiliation by his own family. Well done!
#FallIntoYou by Dylan Morrison @stormbooks_co #netgalley @bookbub #goodreads #bromance #romcom #farmlife #estrangement #HEA #beachread #humor #storygraph #librarything
#FallIntoYou by Dylan Morrison @stormbooks_co #netgalley @bookbub #goodreads #bromance #romcom #farmlife #estrangement #HEA #beachread #humor #storygraph #librarything
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I haven't read a characters as relatable as Will Robertson in a bit.
When Will was 18yrs old he left his family's apple farm with plans to never return. Now in his thirties he's forced back to the small town and the farm he grew up on due to being left the farm by his now dead father. Here is where he first meets Casey, the handsome manager of the farm who is also living in his family home. The two do not get off on the right foot, Casey loves the farm and Will wants to sell and never think about the place again.
Will's train of thought and process of trying to make decisions felt very real to me as a person with a lot of anxiety.
This story is a lovely enemies to lovers. The whole story burns incredibly slowly, not just the romance, but the peek into Will's past. When the bridge out of town collapses and I knew those two are going to have to spend time together I was wringing my hands gleefully. Will and Casey slowly being to realize they have a lot more in common than they thought and may just be perfect for each other. When the slow burn finally burns it feels earned.
The town is full of interesting characters, it was nice to see Will has more friends then he thought. His lawyer best friend is also a hoot. The evil corporation looming over the town felt a bit like a tacked on side plot to move some of the action along. Yes this was a cute romcom but it also had some good character, laugh out loud moments, growth and emotional moments. Really sweet summer read that will leave your heart feeling warm.
Thank you NegGalley and Storm Publishing for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
When Will was 18yrs old he left his family's apple farm with plans to never return. Now in his thirties he's forced back to the small town and the farm he grew up on due to being left the farm by his now dead father. Here is where he first meets Casey, the handsome manager of the farm who is also living in his family home. The two do not get off on the right foot, Casey loves the farm and Will wants to sell and never think about the place again.
Will's train of thought and process of trying to make decisions felt very real to me as a person with a lot of anxiety.
This story is a lovely enemies to lovers. The whole story burns incredibly slowly, not just the romance, but the peek into Will's past. When the bridge out of town collapses and I knew those two are going to have to spend time together I was wringing my hands gleefully. Will and Casey slowly being to realize they have a lot more in common than they thought and may just be perfect for each other. When the slow burn finally burns it feels earned.
The town is full of interesting characters, it was nice to see Will has more friends then he thought. His lawyer best friend is also a hoot. The evil corporation looming over the town felt a bit like a tacked on side plot to move some of the action along. Yes this was a cute romcom but it also had some good character, laugh out loud moments, growth and emotional moments. Really sweet summer read that will leave your heart feeling warm.
Thank you NegGalley and Storm Publishing for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.