This book was really good. It exceeded my expectations. I loved the character development we saw and definitely think it deserves more hype

I enjoyed this book, it was everything that I was expecting it to be. It was an easy to read, quick novel that I enjoyed.

this just felt like fan fic writing to me. I had no real connection to it. The revenge wasn't even a big part at the end.

Overall a very enjoyable read. There were a few points that were glossed over fairly quickly that I thought deserved a bit more communication but all-in-all I enjoyed the characters and their interactions.

I volunteered to read this book, through netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This book is well written and the characters are described well.  The pace of the romance is good and not slow. I really enjoyed Riley and Zac's characters.  This is a enjoyable book.  This ebook is in bookstores now for $3.99, I highly recommend this book to anyone and everyone slight trigger warning for bullying.

This story was adorable and Riley and Zac's relationship joy was infectious! The characters were all really well done, expressive and defined. Usually romance novels are a bit flippant with density, but Keyes established rich foundations for her characters, leading to a really satisfying read.

This was lovely and, dare I say, a real treat!

Thank you to NineStar Press and Netgalley for providing me with this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

It's a light reading, fast and very beautiful. The characters are charismatic and cute, and while the pace of the book is fast and doesn't leave much room for detail ... it's still an enjoyable book. I read it with a smile on my face.

I would have loved that this story had 200 more pages, it was a pity that it lasted so little. I really liked the author's narration and I will surely read some other book that the author publishes.

This was a sweet romantic story with an interesting plot. Riley and Zac have such a good relationship and it was nice to see their friendship develop over time. 
It was also interesting to see the flashes into Riley’s past and how the incident with Aaron played out. He got his revenge by being the better man and giving up his quest of getting even. 
There were a few errors in the narrative, misplaced words and grammar which tripped me a couple of times but the book itself was an easy and enjoyable read.

Sweet Revenge was a fun, quick read. 

Riley moves back to town to be with his sister and niece after time apart. I was immediately drawn in to the quaint town and connected quickly with all the characters. I couldn't wait to see the romance unfold between Riley and Zac. 

The complaints I had were few; we didn't get a lot of background on Riley and little to none on Zac. Zac was such a delight and I definitely would have loved to hear more about him. The romance between the 2 men started off pretty slow, but once it happened it was almost too quick. I didn't really like the way Riley still seemed unable to face Aaron either. 

All in all I enjoyed this book and would definitely check out the author's other works.

When workaholic Riley quit his fancy big-city job where he felt isolated with no real friends or relationships, to return to his hometown to reconnect with his sister and niece he was not expecting to find more than one delectable treat in the towns newest bakery. 

When an unexpected blast from the past saunters back into Riley’s life, he soon realizes no matter how physically strong he becomes, his emotional and psychological trauma from childhood still plagues him! When he comes face to face with his childhood bully, Riley decides he is tired of running from his past and must make peace with his arch-nemesis to make those he loves and ultimately himself happy. 

With the help of a wise old woman, an adolescent kid and a meddling sister, Riley realizes the sweetest revenge may just be the truth.

Thank you to NineStar Press and NetGalley for providing me with an arc!

The review will be on my blog from 23rd Jul 2020 here: https://jessicareadsit.wordpress.com/2020/07/23/sweet-revenge-by-tilly-keyes/

There aren't too many books that make my heart flutter like this one. From beginning to end  Sweet Revenge had me hooked and swooning like a fool.

The characters, main and side alike, were colorful and full of life, sometimes Romances have lively main characters and stale side characters that are just there to push two lovers together. 

The overarching theme of Sweet Revenge, is, revenge, for the main character, Riley. Bullied throughout his primary school days, Riley is besought with panic attacks, and is trying to turn a new page by moving to the village where his sister and niece live.

On his first day back Riley meets Zac, the handsome baker of the village and falls in love with him. There's only one problem, Zac is dating Riley's former bully, Aaron.

I am impressed with how well Miss Keyes tackled the subject of bullying and explored how traumatic it is and how life scarring it can be. That really added substance to the story and I can see how someone who is a victim of bullying could connect to that.

Kinda hoping there will be a sequel. =)

Riley and Zac were well-written characters, engaging and fun to follow. Riley was hiding so much pain from his years of being bullied and the grip it had on him was keeping him from building something with Zac, I enjoyed seeing them interact and grow closer as the story progressed. All in all and enjoyable read even with some of the cheating overtones.

*I voluntarily reviewed a copy of this book provided by NetGalley*

This was definitely a wonderful concept. I just wish I could've related to Riley more. His love story was adorable and I loved that Zac was a baker. It was very sweet (pun intended). I was not expecting the plot twist either.

Riley is a strong, handsome and successful man on the outside but he is still emotionally scared and insecure on the inside from being subjected to years of torment at the hands of his former bullies.
He desperately needs to put that past behind him but he can only let go and suppress those memories once he has gotten his revenge.
Zac is a cute, boyish pastry chef. He is funny and sweet and is a light that Riley can't help but cling onto as the darkness of his past still lurks closeby.
Will Zac be the light Riley needs to make peace with his past and find a way back home?

I really adored this book. It was utterly sweet and the chemistry between Riley and Zac is off the charts. 
If you like a cute friends to lovers romance set in a small town with strong and compassionate characters this is the book for you!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this eARC 
Returning to stay in a small town to be close to his sister and niece Riley falls hard for local baker Zac. The only problem is, Zac is dating the guy that bullied Riley as a kid and it was so bad that Riley has a panic attack when he sees him again for the first time. 
Overall I did really enjoy this book. The relationship between Riley and his niece was beautiful as was the one he had with his sister and Scarlett. And although I thought the romance between Riley and Zac was great I am not a fan of cheating of any sort and so that reduced my enjoyment.

Thanks to Netgalley for providing a copy of this book for an honest, unbiased review.

I can absolutely see why some people would enjoy this book, but a great deal of it wasn't my cup of tea. I loved the premise and it had so much potential to me, a man who had been bullied as a child comes back to his hometown and falls for the local baker. The beginning was cute and sweet and the dialogue was downright delightful, then there were some moments in the middle where the dialogue was stilted and uncomfortable, then at the end it went back to being much better. I personally am not big on abuse and abusive relationships, especially when they aren't treated with an explicit acknowledgement on how harmful they are. That coupled with Riley's PTSD and anxiety being treated as a convenient plot point that can easily be overcome was frustrating as someone who suffers from both of those conditions. The interactions between Riley and Zac were sweet, but there were some moments that had me questioning why they were acting the way they were. I wish their wish for friendship even while Zac was seeing someone else seemed genuine, because I love good relationships built on that trust and friendship, but all of their interactions and conversations seemed based on flirting and very nearly cheating and then blaming the other one for it, or slut-shaming the one woman Riley sleeps with during the course of the novel. I did, however, thoroughly enjoy that there is a m/m romance book where one of the characters is a bisexual man. I very rarely see that and I did enjoy that bisexual representation. The writing was nice and easy to follow, the steamy scenes were good, and if you are okay with (near) infidelity and bullies with a character leaving an abusive relationship, I can see how this story would appeal.

Also, Scarlett, the sweet, funny old woman? An absolute delight. I would 10/10 read a story with her as the central character.

This was a cute read! It was so quick that I read it in just a couple of hours. The characters were fun and lovable (except that one character) and I accidentally stayed up a little later than I meant to just to finish it.

Sweet Revenge is a cute and really easy to read romance. The main protagonist Zac is really easy to connect with, and love interest Riley seems like a lovely guy. It's a really nice story. The only slight negative is there isn't much of a revenge plot like is stated in the description but the lack of it doesn't harm the story at all.

I absolutely loved this LGBT+ story featuring Riley and Zach. The book was 324 pages of pure enjoyment. It took me a couple of sittings to finish it, but that's okay. I savored every moment. The characters and the plot kept my interest and I wanted to see how the drama unfolded. I couldn't put this book down. Plus, the bakery scenes made me hungry--not sure if that's a good thing or not.  I will be on the lookout for more from this author!

•ENGLISH/ESPAÑOL•

~ENGLISH~

The ARC for this novel was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you very much!

You don't know how much I needed a story like this. I've had a few literary disappointments lately but this book came to save me from reader block, it came just in time!
You don't know how happy I am, I feel very satisfied and full of many feelings because I loved the story~. Riley and Zac are adorable, their story is full of tenderness and you will not want to miss it.

In this book we meet the perspective of Riley, a strong and successful boy who has decided to sell his business and return to his small town to be with his sister and niece. Riley has been able to overcome many things, when he returns he is not the same shy and small boy who was bullied at school, he has changed and he thinks he's ready to settle (perhaps permanently) in the city. To do this, he rents an apartment located above a cake shop and meets Zac, the cake maker. Zac is cute, funny, joker and very talented, they both do not take long to connect but there is a problem, and that is that the person who used to torment Riley as a teenager is in the city, closer than he thinks, and he doesn't know if he will be able to face him.

Personally I think that the synopsis that they present us has a small flaw (and that it can play for better or for worse when reading the book) and that is that in the synopsis they present you with a Riley ready to take revenge on his bully, but in the book the only thing I saw was a beautiful, kind-hearted Riley trying to cope with his stalker's presence and what it does to him.

That said, I must say that I LOVE Riley.
He's one of the sweetest characters I've ever read~. He's tender, funny, flirtatious, successful, and still humble and kind-hearted. He is not perfect, he has very strong insecurities and he is traumatized by the number of times he was attacked and ridiculed at school, but he's still a strong person who has known how to fight for himself.
I really adored Riley and I really liked him. He seems to me to be a very inspiring and real character, and I applaud the author for representing the consequences of a person who has been the victim of bullying so well. Every time they mentioned the harassment that Riley suffered or that described what caused him to think about it, my heart ached for my little baby, I adored him too much, he is a fighter!

On the other hand we have Zac, who is an adorable character but with whom I did not connect too much. My new literary crush is Riley (10/10 with Riley baby~) but Zac seemed like a very talented and funny character, the chemistry between him and Riley really showed, and although I'm not entirely sure if he deserves my beautiful baby, the truth is that I was very satisfied with the character~.

Both complement each other very well, they have very good chemistry! I think it would have been twice as adorable if we had gotten to know both characters more thoroughly.
On the one hand we have Riley, who tells us about the bullying he suffered at school, about his insecurities and trauma, but we don't know things like what was his job, why he sold his business, what happened after he left school, whether he sought professional help or why they mention that he "disappeared" from the life of his sister and niece. I have tons of questions for Riley's past and I think if the author had taken advantage of the topic of bullying, panic attacks and bullying trauma and had delved into each of the topics, this story would be 5/5. It would not be just a romance story, but also an educational story, because while I really loved the way Riley solved/coped with his problems, I would also have liked to see a deeper side of his past and his growth.

As for Zac, I would have liked (as with Riley) to explain a little more about his past so that I could get to know him better. I think the reason I didn't connect with Zac (like i did with Riley) was because I didn't know too much about Zac, I didn't even know enough to ask me any questions about him. Still, I really liked the character, I found him funny and very adorable~.

This novel has short chapters and is itself a light novel, one of those that you can finish reading in one sitting. It's fun, light, adorable, I highly recommend it for when you want an adorable romance, a quick book to read, or for reader locks.
I really liked the story a lot~. As I said before, if they had delved into some topics, and if things had not happened so fast, this novel would have been 5/5 but since I liked it too much and it was very fast, light and very adorable, I decided to put it 4/5.
I am very happy to have read the ARC, thanks to that I already have a new literary crush~. In my heart we stan Riley ❤️.

~ESPAÑOL~

El ARC de esta novela fue proporcionado por la editorial a través de NetGalley a cambio de una reseña honesta. ¡Muchas gracias!

No saben cuánto necesitaba una historia como esta. He tenido algunas decepciones literarias últimamente pero este libro vino a salvarme de un bloqueo lector, ¡llegó justo a tiempo! 
No saben lo feliz que estoy, me siento muy satisfecha y llena de muchos sentimientos porque amé la historia~. Riley y Zac son adorables, su historia está llena de ternura y no van a querer perdérsela.

En este libro nos encontramos con la perspectiva de Riley, un chico fuerte y exitoso que ha decidido vender su negocio y volver a su pequeña ciudad para estar con su hermana y su sobrina. Riley ha podido superar muchas cosas, cuando vuelve no es el mismo chico tímido y pequeño al que solían acosar, ha cambiado y cree estar listo para establecerse (quizá permanentemente) en la ciudad. Para ello renta un apartamento ubicado sobre una pastelería y conoce a Zac, el pastelero. Zac es tierno, divertido, bromista y muy talentoso, ambos no tardan en conectar pero hay un problema, y es que la persona que solía atormentar a Riley cuando adolescente está en la ciudad, más cerca de lo que piensa, y no sabe si podrá enfrentarlo. 

Personalmente creo que la sinopsis que nos presentan tiene una pequeña falla (y que puede jugar para bien o para mal al momento de leer el libro) y es que en la sinopsis te presentan a un Riley listo para vengarse de su bully, pero en todo el libro lo único que vi fue a un Riley hermoso, de buen corazón, intentando sobrellevar la presencia de su acosador y lo que esto provoca en él. 

Dicho eso, debo decir que AMO a Riley. 
Es uno de los personajes más dulces que he leído~. Es tierno, divertido, coqueto, es exitoso y aún así es humilde y de buen corazón. No es perfecto, tiene inseguridades muy fuertes y tiene traumas por la cantidad de veces que fue atacado y ridiculizado en la escuela, pero aún así es una persona fuerte que ha sabido luchar por sí mismo.
En verdad adoré a Riley y empaticé muchísimo con él. Me parece un personaje sumamente inspirador y real, y le aplaudo al autor que haya representado tan bien las secuelas que puede tener una persona que ha sido víctima de bullying. Cada que mencionaban el acoso que sufrió Riley o que describían lo que le causaba pensar en ello, mi corazón dolía por mi pequeño bebé, lo adoré demasiado, es todo un luchador!

Por otra parte tenemos a Zac, que es un personaje adorable pero con el que no conecté demasiado. Mi nuevo crush literario es Riley (10/10 con Riley bebé~) pero Zac me pareció un personaje muy talentoso y divertido, en serio se notaba la química entre él y Riley, y aunque no estoy del todo segura de si se merece a mi bebé hermoso, la verdad es que quedé muy satisfecha con el personaje~.

Ambos se complementan muy bien, tienen muy buena química! Creo que hubiera sido el doble de adorable si hubieramos conocido más a fondo a ambos personajes.
Por un lado tenemos a Riley, que nos cuenta sobre el acoso que sufrió en la escuela, sobre sus inseguridades y traumas, pero no sabemos cosas como en qué trabajaba, por qué vendió su empresa, qué pasó después de que saliera de la escuela, si buscó ayuda profesional o por qué mencionan que “desapareció” de la vida de su hermana y su sobrina. Tengo muchísimas preguntas para el pasado de Riley y creo que si el autor hubiera aprovechado el tema del bullying, los ataques de pánico y los traumas por el acoso y hubiera profundizado en cada uno de los temas, esta historia sería 5/5. No sería sólo una historia de romance, sino también una historia educativa, porque aunque realmente amé la forma en que Riley resolvió/enfrentó sus problemas, también me hubiera gustado ver un lado más profundo de su pasado y su crecimiento.

En cuanto a Zac, me hubiera gustado que (igual que con Riley) explicaran un poco más sobre su pasado para poder conocerlo mejor. Creo que la razón por la que no conecté tanto con Zac como con Riley fue porque no sabía demasiado de Zac, ni siquiera sé lo suficiente para hacerme preguntas que pudiera plantearme. Aún así, me gustó muchísimo el personaje, me pareció divertido y muy adorable~.

Esta novela tiene capítulos cortos y en sí es una novela ligera, de esas que te puedes terminar de leer en una sentada. Es divertida, ligera, adorable, la recomiendo mucho para cuando quieran un romance adorable, un libro rápido de leer o para bloqueos lectores. 
En serio me gustó muchísimo la historia~. Como dije antes, si hubieran profundizado en algunos temas, y si las cosas no hubieran pasado tan rápido, esta novela habría sido 5/5 pero como me gustó demasiado y fue muy rápida, ligera y muy adorable he decidido ponerle 4/5.
Estoy muy feliz por haber leído el ARC, gracias a eso ya tengo nuevo crush literario~.