If you enjoyed Set On You (I did) and you're a fan of light and fluffy romance (I am), then Exes's and O's will be right up your alley

It's one of those rom coms that gives 00's rom com movie vibes - you'll swoon, you'll laugh, you'll feel secondhand embarrassment... but when you sweep those things to the side, it doesn't tick all the boxes.

It’s cute but forgettable, I much preferred book 1 in the series

This was a fully enjoyable romantic read, I loved the second chance romance vibe. A fun, comedic, easy read. Perfect for any romance fans.

I struggle with writing interesting reviews about contemporary romance books more than any other type of book because they're the most subjective, at least for me. I'm sure other people adore this book, and them enjoying it wouldn't make me bat an eyelid because I know I'm picky about romance. Because of that, I want to start by saying that my favourite thing about the book was how it attempts to deconstruct the "crazy ex-girlfriend" stereotype. I also enjoyed the epilogue, as well as Trevor's relationship with his family! I hadn't realised this was the second book in a series until I was about halfway through; if I'd known, I'm sure I would've liked Tara's relationship with her family more as well.

Those were my main positives. The rest of the book felt like a collection of tropes. The love interest, Trevor, fits the overdone archetype of a grumpy man who sleeps around and is emotionally detached, until he miraculously meets the love of his life. This can occasionally work well when done with nuance or when it offers something new, but it felt much like other romances I've read before. Tara is also much like other romance protagonists in that she appears to be the first person who tries to push Trevor to be more open about his feelings. It made me squirm every time she pushed against his boundaries, even if it was for the best in the long run, because she had no way of knowing that it would be good for him.

Tara was actually one of my main issues with the book. Again, I'm sure plenty of people love her, and I don't think she was written badly (necessarily), but she wasn't for me. She is a romance book influencer who decides to reach out to each of her ten exes in the hopes of achieving a second chance romance. Now, I love a second chance romance, it's one of my favourite tropes, but the way it was handled made me uncomfortable. She publicly talks about her exes on Instagram and receives opinions from her followers in her comments, another thing that made me squirm a lot. I hated everything about that particular aspect.

Certain non-influencer qualities of hers also made me uncomfortable, including how "clingy" and "obsessive" she could be, such as keeping memorabilia from her exes from as long as almost twenty years before. I put those adjectives in quotes because I'm having a mini crisis in which I can't tell whether I harbour internalised misogyny or not. The book tries to get away from the narrative of the "crazy ex-girlfriend", which I think is great, but am I contributing to that narrative by not liking how sentimental and nostalgic Tara is about important aspects of her life? I don't know! This is another reason why I struggle to write reviews for romance books, because there are so many social norms and dating conventions and whatever else that just don't make sense to my avoidant attachment style.

To conclude, the book is certainly well-written. It has no issues with structure or pacing. There was a wide but not overwhelming cast of characters, and each had their own distinct personality. Despite it being the second book in a series, it felt perfectly fine as a standalone, which is something I like about romance series. However, my feelings about contemporary romance books ultimately come down to how much I like the particular tropes and characters, and in this case they didn't work for me. That definitely won't be the case for everyone!

A mixed review for exes and ohs. I loved the first installment of this series and was excited to read the second installment. Unfortunately the chemistry betweent the leads wasn't quite there for me. I enjoyed the slow burn and the tension created by the 'and they were roomates" premise. Trevor, who starts the book as emotionally unavaliable and unable to communicate, really annoyed me unfortunately and though he grew on me throughout the book, it took a little bit too long for me to ever properly forgive him.

That being said, the writing was engaging and for the most part the book well paced. Not one I would re-read, but would reccomend to the right friend.

I struggled with this book. For me, it felt like the characters fell flat and it was quite slow. However, it was a solid book.

This book was so fun and so sweet it had me laughing so much, crying a bit, and obsessed with these characters. Amy’s writing is addictive and fun and I love the way she writes her characters. They are always so loveable and relatable and you can’t help but rooting for them. Her books give you the same feelings as watching romantic comedies.

Exes and O's is my first time reading something from Amy Lea and have to say it won’t be the last, I enjoyed this book and will definitely be getting the rest of the books in the series.

Brilliant romance booktok book by amy lea, the protaganist revisits her previous ex's on the hunt for love.

thank you to netgally for sending this to me, as i love Amy Lea! As usual, her writing of romance is so lovely to read and i cant wait to see more!

An absolutely delightful romcom that had me grinning from ear to ear! Tara is such a relatable and charming protagonist, and her quest to revisit her exes in search of ‘the one’ is equal parts hilarious and heartwarming. The chemistry between Tara and Trevor was spot on – a perfect mix of slow burn and undeniable spark. Amy Lea’s writing is witty and engaging, making this such a fun and easy read.

While some moments were a touch predictable, it didn’t take away from the joy of the story. If you’re a fan of a lighthearted romance with plenty of laughs and a dash of second chances, Exes and O’s is definitely worth picking up!

Exes and O's by Amy Lea is the second book in a trilogy, this time following Crystal's sister Tara- who is big in bookstagram circles. I don't think that you need to have read Set On You to enjoy this, but I liked seeing characters again!

I loved the call to different romance tropes and at times it felt like a love letter to romance novels, which makes sense as I know Amy Lea is a romance reader. We had a slow burn and forced proximity in the guise of roommates to lovers!

I thought Trevor was great, and a good partner for Tara and I felt that he balanced her out well. Tara was fun and I appreciated that she was slightly older too.

Overall I had a great time reading this, and probably enjoyed it more than Set On You. I will definitely read more of Lea's books in the future!

Thank you Penguin and Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this book.

I really enjoyed this book , it was my first time reading from this author and have to say it won’t be the last time , I really enjoyed the authors writing style.

This was a really sweet, light-hearted read with charming characters. I enjoyed the premise and the romance.

Ex’s and O’s:

A cute and easy read, the main character was very sweet and likeable. A definite page turner and I liked the premise of thinking one of your exes could now be a potential life partner. I also liked the references to current culture and romantic comedy tropes.

A little predictable and I don’t think the epilogue was needed; it was a little cheesy!

First of all, thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I loved Tara and Trevor. Tara with the fact she pours her all into love no matter the heartbreak. Trevor was a perfect grump (I love a grump) but who supported her at every turning.

This book was the slowest of slow burns, I was just eagerly awaiting them getting together. It was worth it, but geez.

I admired Tara's pursuit of a second chance romance, though not one of my favourite tropes. I'm in that group that believes exes are exes for a reason. This book was just quite cute.

Not this books fault, but I have fallen out of love with instagram and it's algorithm, so a lot of the bookstagram things made me feel a little sad. This book was released prior to the decline of the instagram algorithm, so Tara probably would have hated it too.

Looking forward to actually reading Set On You, which has been on my TBR for awhile. Would recommend this book.

I didn’t particularly enjoy this book. I didn’t like the main characters and the concept of the story wasn’t anything ground breaking.

Exes and O’s
Amy Lea

A romance novel obsessed social media influencer revisits her exes on her hunt for true love.

This romantic comedy was a sweet and fun read. You have the main character who’s an absolute hopeless romantic, obsessed with romance novels in particular and you watch her finally get her own love story.

The tropes are here people. Because she’s such a fan of second chance romances, she goes along this list of her exes to find ‘the One’. But ultimately it was a friends to lovers. I enjoyed Trevor as a love interest and I felt the chemistry but it was a slow burn to get going.

There are elements In here that felt like they were included for BookTok or because they are current and trendy; example
“I’ve been attempting to learn a TikTok dance for her, a painful endeavour I do not recommend to anyone over twenty years old.” Or the Taylor Swift mentions.

Overall fun and sweet read.

🎧Audiobook Review🎧

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I want to thank NetGalley for approving me for an ARC of this book.

🏠🏠Roommates to Lovers
🔥Slow burn
💞Opposites Attract
🥰Forced Proximity

This was so much fun to listen to and before I knew it, I'd binged the entire book. The slow burn was executed brilliantly and the MMC was swoonworthy! I shall be checking out the others in the series.

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Bookfluencing life- come to life? SO COOL !
If you are a bookstagrammer I think you’ll absolutely love this.

Tropes you’ll also enjoy:
Second chance romance
Books, lots of books
Spicy!

Overall, super fun.

Amy Lea!

I love a writer who can create such relatable lead characters. I love having things in common with smart, funny FMCs and Tara is just that. I feel like its such a shared experience to fall too hard for someone only to drive them off by being yourself. Then to have Tara stuff her face with Cheetos and have a bit of a rot to get over it! Gah; We’ve all been there!

Forced proximity- Now that’s my jam! And having it be with Trevor a topless delicious firefighter! STOP RIGHT NOW.

No Amy don’t stop. And you shouldn’t ether. Highly recommend.