A great read, the story of Autumn and Elijah. They don't get off to the best of starts, but will this change as they start to get to know each other? Looking forward to more books from this author.

Thank you to NetGalley and the author for this ARC!

I want to start by saying I think this story had a lot of potential--the bones were good. I like contemporary romances with deeper topics and themes. However, this one missed the mark for me. I think the writing threw me off; I couldn't get behind it or the dialogue. It made everything feel more corny than it actually is.

I wouldn't tell others not to read this--I may just be picky!

This book had a lot going on, which made it hard to keep up with at times. I felt like the plot was too mismatched and needed to stick to one area, it was interesting but just too much going on and it took away from the story.
I loved Elijah, he has typical golden retriever energy. I loved that he was the sunshine in this GrumpyxSunshine trope. I also loved the fact that he fell first, it was refreshing to read. The banter between the 2 main characters was great and I liked the forced proximity side of the romance.

All up, the book was enjoyable and easy to read. Was it amazing, no. Did I enjoy it, yes.

Many thanks to NetGalley ARC.

Ms. Perfectly Fine is about pianist Autumn who is making her professional comeback after a tragic accident a decade earlier. Her rigid routine is thrown for a loop when her landlord does some secret meddling and rents out the bottom of the house Autumn lives in to Elijah. Autumn must re-evaluate her relationships and outlook on life as she navigates her upcoming showcase and a potential stalker.

Overall I enjoyed the story as a whole and the concept was definitely intriguing and engaging.

Ms. Perfectly Fine is my first Kate Callaghan read that combines the grumpy/sunshine romance with the forced proximity scenario. The story follows a concert pianist named Autumn Adler who is working hard for her comeback after an accident ten years earlier. Suddenly, she seems to have a roommate in game designer Elijah Wells after her landlord rents out another part of her home. Neither wants to live with the other, which means there is a lot of back and forth as they try to figure out ways to get rid of the other. In this scenario, the two begin to have feelings towards each other with Elijah falling first. Depending on the type of romance reader you are, this will most likely affect your enjoyment of the speed of their romance developing. For me, it was a little too fast and I would have preferred more build-up. Other readers may feel differently and that it was good pacing.

This story did test my preference for realism mixed into fictional story. Autumn has been living alone for years and to have a stranger show up one day is jarring and I can fully stand by her. Elijah shows up and treats the house as his, even eating Autumn’s food and interrupting her space. There is a lot that Elijah does that made him seem like a nightmare roommate, so to even try to enjoy this story and root for them as a couple, I had to remove all these realisms where I could not see someone accepting him. Even for Autumn, there are moments where realism takes a backseat as things happen to her, such as mysterious gifts yet no mentions of taking realistic steps to find answers. Hers are more difficult to discuss due to spoilers, but all of these did add up where I wanted more exploration into why all these elements for both Autumn and Elijah were written this way instead of just having it so they could go from point A to point B in the story because it was needed for the ending.

The story is an interesting take as I enjoy the forced proximity trope. As Elijah is an unwelcome addition to Autumn’s home, I wish there was more exploration into why he was set on staying. Since they fall quickly, expansion was something that I wanted in this story. I loved the representation of Autumn and everything she was going through internally and externally, so I wish that same care went into developing the relationship and other details in the story. There are mentions of the characters following vegan diets, yet honey and eggs are included, which aren’t vegan. Additionally, Autumn wants to talk about her relationship with her friend Nina, but never asks about Nina’s relationship, so some expansion into this dynamic would help me like Autumn. As-is, she came across selfish in this scenario. The story itself has many moments of telling without showing, so it was difficult to connect with the emotions of the story. Overall, this was a fun concept that may have some flaws, but it did make me curious to try more Callaghan reads in the future.

**I give a special thank you to Netgalley and the publisher, Callaghanwriter, for the opportunity to read this entertaining novel. The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.**

I had a good time reading this book and thought the story was interesting. Autumn and Elijah were well-written characters and were super cute together. They supported each other and communicated well - after the initial house sharing drama! The sharing of their deeper emotions and life aspirations helped bond them early on in their relationship.

Although it was a big part of the plot (especially towards the end), I could have done without the stalker drama and "suspense" aspects. It was pretty boring and easy to guess what was going on. The focus could have been solely on Autumn's music, Elijah's business, and their growing relationship & the story would have flourished even more with being able to expand more on those topics.

First off this cover is absolutely gorgeous and I wanted to read this because of the book cover alone!

I rated this book a 3.5 because it is between a 3 and a 4-star rating. I liked almost every aspect of the story, but the romance was quick, especially with all the aggression. It felt like it was more of a hook-up than a relationship and I would have liked more of a build-up for the relationship to develop and feel romantic. And I cannot get over the fact he ate her food without permission and did not even warn her after the fact, what if she was poor and had to portion her food, or what if she had medication in her food? The what-ifs with the food stealing kept replaying in my head.

Start with some romance, add a dash of thriller, a generous sprinkle of chronic pain rep, and stir together with two main characters who are equally grumpy and sunshine-y.

The angst and tension in this was a perfect balance for a sweet palette cleanser read. Autumn and Elijah have some internal struggles and with some teasing, they come together to support one another in this cute romance. With quite a few twists to wrap up the mystery, there’s something for everyone in this book.

Ms Perfectly Fine by Kate Callaghan:
⭐️⭐️⭐️.5 / 5

At first it took a bit for me to get into it as I found it a bit boring and didn’t really know where the story was headed but in the end I enjoyed it.

The relationship between Autumn and Elijah was so cute and sweet but I feel like there was a massive shift to them not liking each other to then being friends/ liking each other…idk maybe it’s just me?

I would say this book was a light fluffy ish read and the mystery side of it made it better in my opinion however I wouldn’t say that there was a plot twist as I was suspicious of her about halfway through so it wasn’t a surprise it wasn’t Heather.

I gave this 3 1/2 stars as I did enjoy it and would recommend others to read but it wasn’t something plot twist worthy of 5 stars and as I mentioned before the relationship seemed to have shifted too fast for me.

By all means read the book for yourself to make up your own opinion you might give it more stars than me!🥰

I really enjoyed this read! It was the perfect length and pretty fast paced. I will definitely be recommending it! I really enjoyed the characters chemistry and I loved the thrill of action woven in.

This book was not what I was expecting - and not in a good way. The writing and storyline felt super choppy; and it felt like a lot happened all at once. I was not a fan of Autumn at all - and I was only slightly okay with Elijah. The way that Elijah spoke, especially during "spicy" scenes was super awkward and felt out of place. Autumn, on the other hand, had absolutely zero problem spending large quantities of money on Elijah's card - all in the name of a joke. Sorry, but I do not think that is cute, nor is it okay. Additionally, I thought Autumn's parents were ridiculous - they were not the ones injured and/or who live with chronic pain. So if your daughter can move on and go back to doing what she loves, you can put on your big grown-up panties and support her when she asks you. Additionally, it felt like we were left hanging in terms of her relationship with them and if it ever improved.

The twist I didn't see coming at first, but I had a feeling it wasn't the person the author so clearly wanted us to think it was, so that helped divert my attention. Also, not sure what Autumn's problem with Garrett was, especially when he wanted to go to dinner and talk to Elijah about investments - why is that a bad thing?

I wanted more for this book - and I just didn't get it.

Thank you to NetGalley and the Publisher for giving me the opportunity to read this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This was a really cute read. The characters are so easy to love and the chemistry is great. I love a good enemies to lovers book. Also the suspense/thriller side to it was completely different from anything I’ve read before. It did take me a little bit to get into the story but once I did, it was well worth it.

Overall I would say I enjoyed this book. I love a cute grumpy sunshine, enemies to lovers book, so it was enjoyable to read.
Sometimes, however, the dialogue felt a bit forced and parts of the plot felt a bit unbelievable.

Without her permission, Elijah moves into Autumn's rental house. She is set in her ways and needs her space and Elijah invading it goes against her plans. Elijah didn't want to move in but was forced to as part of a business deal. When ominous roses start showing up at the house, Elijah tries to help Autumn get to the bottom of it.
Opinion
This book is a fast favorite. The enemies to lovers genre takes on a new swing with Autumn in danger. The levels of complication made this book so much fun to read. I did pin the culprit about halfway through but thoroughly enjoyed the book from beginning to end.
Many thanks to Net Galley and Kate Callaghan for providing me with an ARC of this book.

I enjoyed this book, but it isn’t a favorite. I felt like they went from enemies to lustful a bit quick to believe and both changed their minds at the same time pretty much. I enjoyed the tension from the unknown rose sender, but I did predict that fairly quickly as well. A good read, but not a favorite.

Okay, this book was really good! I loved all of the tropes that were in here! Grumpy (her) x sunshine (him), forced proximity, he falls first, enemies to lovers - I am obsessed! Elijah and Autumn are adorable cinnamon rolls who deserve to be protected at all costs.

I really enjoyed that we got a bit of an inside scoop on Autumn’s chronic pain, due to her accident. I liked watching that play out through the story and how people would respond/react to her due to this part of her life. Watching Elijah learn more about her and begin to care about her more had me getting all misty eyed!

The suspense aspect of this book surprised me. While I didn’t dislike it, I just found there wasn’t a ton of it in the first half of the book and then in the second half it just kind of launched into more mystery-esque themes which felt a little weird. However, I did really like the suspense and the twist at the end!!! I had my suspicions but man oh man!

Overall, this is a cute romance with a suspense element tied in. This one was definitely more on the romance side than the suspense side though! Maybe add this to your list. Also THE COVER!? Say no more - I was hooked from the minute I saw it.

🤍 Thank you so much to the publisher @callaghanwriter & @netgalley for this advanced reader copy!

⚠️TW: stalking, death, chronic illness, ableism, injury/injury detail, violence

I love a contemporary romance with "flawed" characters. In Ms Perfectly Fine, Autumn, our MFC, suffers from chronic pain after a terrible accident. For those of us who battle chronic pain and illness, this kind of representation is so very important. It made me feel SEEN.

A delightful romance, you won't be sorry you gave it a chance.

Thank you for the ARC

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

This book seemed like it had too much going on. It had a good idea in there, but it just seemed overwhelmed by everything. The writing wasn't bad but the back and forth between 1st and 3rd POV was a little overwhelming.
The banter between Eli and Autumn was cute, but it felt like they fell in love too soon. Like, it went from strangers to roommates to lovers so fast that it felt forced.
Overall, it was easy and quick to read and the characters backstories were interesting. The story was... okay.

Did I request this book because I assumed the title was a Taylor swift reference? Absolutely, and there were several more in the book. I didn’t know it was romantic suspense, that was an interesting twist. My main critique is early-book Elijah isn’t sunshine, he’s actually a jerk. Doesn’t think that moving into a place someone has lived in for years wouldn’t upend their world and cause extreme anxiety? Needs his mother to explain that to him? Then brings his dog over, again without asking or checking if things were okay with her. Steals her food when it’s clear she has dietary concerns. Glad he assumed not to snoop through her medicine but that’s the only area where he led with grace and empathy. I think he’s been entirely unreasonable with his expectations and him saying “are you going to thank me?” SEVERAL times makes me want to punch him. He comes around once he starts falling for her, but until then I was screaming into the void. Loved the chronic illness rep. Overall, a cute book.

I had a difficult time relating to the characters and following along with the story. It must be me but I just could not really get into what the author was trying to get the characters to do.