From #1 New York Times bestselling author and TikTok favorite Tessa Bailey comes a steamy new rom-com about a starchy professor and the bubbly neighbor he clashes with at every turn…
Hallie Welch fell hard for Julian Vos at fourteen, after they almost kissed in the dark vineyards of his family’s winery. Now the prodigal hottie has returned to their small town. When Hallie is hired to revamp the gardens on the Vos estate, she wonders if she’ll finally get that smooch. But the grumpy professor isn’t the teenager she remembers and their polar opposite personalities clash spectacularly. One wine-fueled girls’ night later, Hallie can’t shake the sense that she did something reckless–and then she remembers the drunken secret admirer letter she left for Julian. Oh shit.
On sabbatical from his ivy league job, Julian plans write a novel. But having Hallie gardening right outside his window is the ultimate distraction. She’s eccentric, chronically late, often literally covered in dirt–and so unbelievably beautiful, he can’t focus on anything else. Until he finds an anonymous letter sent by a woman from his past. Even as Julian wonders about this admirer, he’s sucked further into Hallie’s orbit. Like the flowers she plants all over town, Hallie is a burst of color in Julian’s gray-scale life. For a man who irons his socks and runs on tight schedules, her sunny chaotic energy makes zero sense. But there’s something so familiar about her… and her very presence is turning his world upside down.
MY REVIEW
Secretly Yours is the exciting new slow-burning romance from author Tessa Bailey.
Secretly Yours follows the story of Hallie and Julian. Hallie is a bit of a hot mess, trying to find her place in the world, now that her grandma has passed. She gets into a lot of shenanigans, but her heart is in the right place. When the object of her affection, Julian returns to town, he turns her world upside down in more ways than one…
Overall, I thought this book was a really cute read. I loved the premise of it. I loved how over-the-top and messy Hallie was. She has a heart of gold and isn’t afraid to stand up for the things that are most important to her. She is the complete opposite of Julian in every way, but you know what they say, opposites attract 🙂 Julian is a reserved and grumpy professor. He likes to have everything in order and isn’t sure what to make of Hallie. Everything about her should make him want to run in the other direction, but somehow, Hallie pulls him out of his shell and he can’t fight the pull he feels toward her. I adored the slow burn between Julian and Hallie and loved watching the two of them try to figure things out.
As much as I adored this story, I did have a few issues with it. The first one being a personal issue, I still very much struggle with the third-person point of view. It’s not my favorite and is always something that takes me a while to adjust to. My other issue with the story was the pacing. It started off a bit slow in the beginning and the slower pace made it feel like forever before anything happened.
Even though I had a few issues with this story, I still found it to be a delightful read. The characters are full of life and you can’t help but want to get to know them more. This story has entertaining shenanigans and light drama for the most part. But, don’t be fooled, this book has all the spice one would expect from this author. I think this series is off to a great start and I can’t wait for the next book in this series!
*I was provided an ARC copy of this book via the publisher & NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review*
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