A beautifully written book. Really enjoyed reading this. Thanks to publishers and NetGalley for the opportunity to read

This book was an enjoyable and cute read which also managed to include several real life issues which gave the story more depth. I enjoyed the characters and their relationship and would recommend to anyone looking for a quick, enjoyable and easy to read book.

I tried. I tried so hard.. but my heart was not able to handle this book. I am going to be honest, I reached up to 71% only then decided to stop my suffering. The title, the cover and the way this book was marketed was far from its content and I hate when they do that. I went with this one with an expectation of a romcom but I what I got was tragedy-ish instead. I have such high expectations from the author but sadly, it wasn't met.

For a book with the words Meet Cute as the title and a romantically cute cover, it has a lot of dark themes (grief, death of parents, custody battle) in it. I did enjoy reading it for the most part but I wished I knew what I was going into. It is also not romance-centred as I hope it would be but feels like a fiction book with romance in it.

Unfortunately, I have not been able to read and review this book.

After losing and replacing my broken Kindle and getting a new phone I was unable to download the title again for review as it was no longer available on Netgalley.

I’m really sorry about this and hope that it won’t affect you allowing me to read and review your titles in the future.

Thank you so much for giving me this opportunity.
Natalie.

So this book is not entirely what I expected. There's not necessarily any surprises that aren't in the synopsis but this book definitely focuses more the family drama side than the romance although both are still prevalent story lines.
I really enjoyed the three main characters. They felt well developed and realistic and reacted in believable ways to their situation.
One element that honestly filled me with joy during this was the amount of discussed consent between characters, it in no way took away from the moment and if anything added to the sexual tension. Some parts of the dialogue for me personally was too cheesy and made me laugh and not feel as in the moment at times.

The ending of this and the 'twist' to me were really poor. I felt like it was so predictable and revealed in such a short space of time that it kind of made it hard to care.

Overall would read a Helena Hunting story again.
3/5 Stars

This is a cute, little book that you can enjoy on a lazy afternoon at home. It's got the perfect vibes for it. A lot of it reads like fanfiction, which I simultaneously love and hate because I happen to be one of those people who obsess over fanfics. But yes, overall, this is definitely worth a read! I enjoyed myself reading this!

Meh. This was an okay read, but nothing to write home about.
I didn't feel anything for the main characters, the tropes used in the book have been done so many times I could predict the outcome right from the very start.
The writing was okay, so was the story, very heartwarming. But overall, pretty average.

It’s unfortunate that I have to say I’m finally DNF’ing this book at this time. The main character really bothered me, and I just couldn’t find a connection for her and enough for the plot to care or continue reading. I do, however, love this authors writing style, so I will be reading more of her work in the future.

I really enjoyed this! It was very cute and definitely a nice quick romantic read! I enjoyed getting to see the law part of the book in action and really enjoyed the side story also, but I didn't feel like it overpowered the main storyline.

I didn’t think this book was going to grab me when I first started it, but in fact I enjoyed it. The only thing I found was that at times, considering the characters were adults and professionals, some of their behaviour/language was somewhat immature.

I would like to thank Netgalley and the publisher for Little Brown Books for providing me with a digital ARC of “Meet Cute” in exchange for an honest review.

I am actually familiar with Helena Hunting’s old Twilight fan fiction pieces- I remember being quite the fan of Clipped Wings and Inked Armour so when she started publishing her novels of course I was happy, even more so when I saw “Meet cute” up on Netgalley.

It was definitely one of those moments where I didn’t actually read the synopsis before I requested it.

I can definitely say that in some ways Helena’s writing still has a similar style to her old work on FF.net but it has also definitely improved over time.

I found myself really enjoying the relationship progress between Daxton and Kailyn- it was nice to have the backstory to how they initially met at the beginning of the story rather than a random flashback part way through, and ultimately I feel like their relationship was a natural progression given their history and chemistry.

While this was definitely a romance, this novel also heavily focuses on loss, grieving, betrayal and trying to repair your family.
I was definitely invested in the non-romantic relationships as well, such as Kailyin bonding with Emme, Dax trying to be both a father figure and still remain Emme’s brother.

I wish I could say I was surprised to hear about Linda, but as the reader I kind of saw that coming as soon as she was introduced, her conniving personality was written very well, and I could imagine that had I been in Dax’s shoes I wouldn’t have thought her capable of something like that.

There was definitely a lot of drama throughout this, novel so it was nice for our characters to get their happy endings and help they were needing.

I will definitely be checking out more of Helena’s published work.



Now… what does a girl have to do to have her own meet cute?

I really enjoyed this book. The characters were appealing and well written and I felt immersed in the story throughout the book.

The book is just as the title describes - cute - although the meet-cute, whilst definitely fun, felt like it didn't really impact the story in the end. The premise was really promising and when Hunting focused on the 'childhood crush-turned-real-life-flirtation' element of the story, I really enjoyed it. But... the story could almost have started when Dax walked into her office five years later and had the same impact. In parts, you could almost forget that she was his biggest fangirl from way back when. The relationship between Kailyn and Dax was sweet, and I was rooting for them - although not as much as I was rooting for poor Emme, who was straight up adorable and definitely the cutest, and best, part of the book.

I often felt like the book was reaching a bit to create conflict that wouldn't have been there in real life; maybe I'm naive, but I don't think that there would be an issue with an adult man looking after his teenage sister just because he's been single and played the field a bit? He's rich and a lawyer - he'd be fine. So the storyline with the aunt, which drove the plot along, felt a bit forced and the ending was maybe a little too neat and predictable for me. There was a lot of potential in the storyline - the custody issue, the rebuilding-after-tragedy and the complexity of the lawyer-client relationship - but it didn't get fully realised for me, and the big emotions were brushed over in favour of a rom-com feel that just didn't quite work for me.

I didn’t manage to get to Meet Cute before it was published and therefore bought it when it came out. Yes, I’m still in a minor mood with my Kindle! But just look at that cover, why wouldn’t I buy it?!
In all honesty, I’d forgotten what this book was about by the time I got to it, so I was going in blind. However, I was hooked from the first chapter. I loved the meet cute between Kailyn and her teenage crush, a former actor, Daxton Hughes. It sounds like a total train wreck and exactly like the kind of thing that would happen to me (minus the celeb).
Although not necessarily an original storyline, I love Helena’s spin on this. Her writing style is everything I love about contemporary romances and I couldn’t put the book down because of this.
I especially loved that there were two POV, both from Kaylin and Daxton. I think it really brought the story to life and it wouldn’t have been nearly as good without this. I also enjoyed the not-so PG13 scenes as well. They’re something that, on occasion, can make me feel a bit uncomfortable, but these were well written and really added to the story.
I adored Meet Cute so much more than I thought I would. I highly recommend to fans of Lindsey Kelk, Mhairi McFarlane, and Lucy Vine. I rated this 5/5 stars.

As I, myself, am the queen of embarrassing introduction, I choked laughing of Kailyn’s one. There is no better way to introduce yourself to your childhood crush (who, by chance, is an actor), and you can be sure – it is far more memorable than expected!
The first time Kailyn run over Daxton looks like a fangirl hovering over him. But it is nothing like that. Even though Dax is Kailyn teenage crush, her ‘introduction’ is a pure coincidence. Daxton Hughes is a successful teen-drama actor, who decided to broke up with the film industry and become a lawyer. From all people in the university, he is not just anybody but Kailyn’s classmate. For 5 years in law school they are opponents but friends at the same time. Until the day Daxton betrays her. And she will hate him for this till the day she dies.

Eight years later, Kailyn is a successful family lawyer. When Hughes family step into her office to open a trust fund for their 13-years old daughter Emme, she is doing her job. When half a year later Daxton enters her office, heartbroken after the loss of his parents and with new responsibility – a sole guardian of his little sister, Kailyn can help herself but feel for him and make his case a priority, a work of heart. Although she realized that she is still attracted to him, she can’t forget what he did back in college. Her only motive is his little sister.I

“As soon as I wrap my arms around her tiny frame, she tightens her hold on me. I want to protect her from this pain, even though I know it’s impossible…”

If you think that this sounds like a hate-to-love relationship, you are quite in point. For me, this was the thread that makes me keep reading. Because their love blooms so beautifully. From the obligations to real concern and care. This was a real meet cute book. Sweet, character-driven book. I loved Kailyn’s smart mouth. Also her determination to solve the case, her love of the work she is doing and how smart and love-driven she is. The villain is much of predictable. I even guessed right why they need the money for. But still, we have a smart badass in the face of Kailyn, a lovable little kiddo Emme, and charming, handsome Dax. What should we want more?

To be honest, this is my first book from the author. I mention this couple of times – I was abandoned romance for a long time, and this year I decided to go back to it. I’m more than happy with this decision. Although this book is categorized as rom-com, it is far more. It was a pleasant surprise for me. I expected a light read, but it ends up to be a complicated kind of drama, but not exactly. Well developed characters, who fight with life-changing events that make them grow up in a matter of hours. If you are into this genre, I strongly recommend this heartfelt not-exactly-love-story.

P.S. Chapter 10 “Tamponology 101” is probably going under #1 in my list of best chapters’ titles.

I loved this, it’s cute, quirky, a great quick read with loveable and more importantly relatable characters, A wonderful pick me up kinda read, still full of emotion as well. A lovely read after heavier and darker books. Highly recommended

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a free copy for an honest opinion

The cute cover and the name Helena Hunting made me want to read. I was slightly disappointed before I even picked this up to see a couple of bloggers I follow rating it lower than I hoped so brought my expectations down accordingly. And still, I was a little disappointed by what I read.

The book opened when Kailyn and Dax are at law school and her first meeting with him, and their second. And then there’s a quick rush job of them being friendly rivals and the statement that he screwed her over and then we flash-forward to present day and their meeting whilst she’s holding a grudge. Right of the bat that annoyed me because it was like getting given a quick summary rather than actually putting the work in for the setup. It felt lazy. Either put the work in and have a few chapters dedicated to their time at law school or don’t talk about it at all and have their first meeting be in the present and have it explained why Kailyn is shocked to see him. Don’t infodump their history on me!

I brushed that annoyance off, though, because I did like the voice of Kailyn. She seemed funny and a bit weird and fine sometimes her quirks and humour felt a little forced, but as a whole I liked her. She had the kind of inner voice that instantly makes me interested, the slightly awkward but hardworking woman and I liked her she and her BFF joked about date night because that’s the kind of thing I do with my friend. But then the book continued to bother me with telling me stuff. Like Dax finding out about the death of his parents. It felt like we just get to meet him and it’s dumped right on us his parents have died. I felt no connection or emotional impact from it. Same as when he had to tell his sister. That should be such an emotional moment and nothing. And then we hop right over the funeral. The timeline of events just felt rushed and all over the place. And our ‘villain’ of the book didn’t feel genuine. Either make me hate her or make me sympathise with her, but because we were told too much I think I felt distance from all of the characters.

I will say the tone of the book is spot on. I liked the light humour and I did like Dax’s sister, Emme. She was at that brilliantly awkward teenage age where everything is drama but also where she starts to show a good level of maturity. I liked the moments where she was involved but even when she was there I still didn’t find myself emotionally invested in her struggles.

Meet Cute was a nice read, I enjoyed myself most of the time I was reading it… but I can’t claim it will be memorable. It’s been a few days already since I finished it when I’m writing this review and already I have to glance at small notes I made and look back at the book to refresh myself and that’s not something you want to be doing for a fun romance. It’s not bad and I know this book will hit the spot for a lot of readers, but I had issues, I think.

Kailyn grew up watching It’s My Life starring Daxton Hughes. Imagine her embarrassment when, on her first day at university, she runs into her teenage crush knocking him flat. Embarrassment soon turns into a friendly rivalry that lasts throughout Law School until an unexpected betrayal leaves her devastated. Roll on ten years and their paths cross once more when Dax’s parents are killed in a road accident leaving him guardian to his younger sister. When circumstances mean Kailyn has to act as conservator to the teenage Emme will she learn to forgive Dax for his supposed sins of the past.

This might sound totally bizarre but this book reminded me of a fifties film in the style of Doris Day/Rock Hudson. In a way this is a “second chance” love story even though technically there wasn’t really a first chance. I loved Helena Hunting’s Pucked series but although the humour is still there, this book is a lot more heartfelt and emotional. The heat and chemistry between Kailyn and Dax is palpable but they don’t jump straight into bed. Things develop slowly between them so nothing felt rushed about the story. Definitely a five star read for me.

I read this book at the right moment and I found it amusing and moving at the same time, the perfect read for a lazy afternoon.
It's the first book I read by this author and I'm very happy I requested it.
It's full of moments that will makes laugh and other that will move you to tears but both are perfectly equilibrated.
I liked how the author developed the characters, not always likable but interesting and fleshed out.
The plot was engaging and it never bores you.
I look forward to reading other books by this author.
Highly recommended!
Many thanks to Little, Brown Book Group UK and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.