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.
Release Date: September 3, 2019
Contemporary Romance
Well Met #1
Berkley Penguin Group
Review copy provided by publisher
Liza's Review:
So I stood in line at RWA in New York to try and get a print copy of Well Met and they ran out right before I got to the table. I knew then I needed to read this book, as many of the people in front of me were romance authors.
I really enjoyed Well Met. I am not a big Renaissance Faire person, so I loved how much of it was explained along the way. I loved Emily from the moment she appeared on the page and have to say her inner dialogue had me laughing out loud on more than once occasion. I loved her relationship with her niece, and seeing Emily and her sister become real friends along the way. Emily is such a strong and fun character, I just loved her from the very beginning. She seemed to make friends very easily and really fit into her new adopted hometown quickly.
Emily and Simon didn't have a great beginning when they first met. I have to be honest; I initially thought Simon was a bit of an ass. Again I learned about Renaissance Faire as I read this book, but I still felt like Simon was a little over the top about everything when the book started. However, I did start to see not only how important the Faire was to Simon but why it was so important, and then I just wanted to hug him. It took a bit for me to understand Simon, as he wasn't as open about thoughts and feelings as other characters in this book. Once I started to see what I'd describe as the real Simon, I fell for him just as much as Emily did.
Well Met was such a fun book to read. I loved how much both Emily and Simon grew and changed over the course of this story. It was like they each needed the other to start to figure out what path they really needed to follow. Their chemistry was evident from the beginning, yet they had a slow build to a relationship, and it worked for me. Honestly their banter and conversations pulled me in every bit as much as their chemistry. I honestly can't wait to revisit with these characters in future books in the series.
Rating: 4 Stars (B+)
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