This was my first ever Courtney Kae book and I'm pleased to say I think I'll be checking out more of her stuff in the future! This was fun, filled with romance and I love love love the characters!

A really fun and charming read with an enjoyable premise and gorgeous characters. I would highly recommend.

⭐️⭐️⭐️

Ahh, unfortunately this one wasn’t a favourite. I adored Courtney Kae’s first book, but this one just didn’t hit the mark for me because I had such high hopes.

It had funny moments and cute scenes though, i adored the seaside setting and the characters objectively had chemistry, i just didn’t connect to them myself 😩

Read if you love:
💙 Queer romcoms
💙 Summer reads
💙 Forced proximity
💙 Diverse characters
💙 Mental health rep

(Thank you Headline Eternal for the EARC in exchange for an honest review! 🫶🏻)

"In the Case of Heartbreak" by Courtney Kae is a steamy and sweet queer rom-com that explores the complexities of friendship and love. Kae's storytelling is both heartwarming and passionate, as it follows the journey of friends-to-lovers. The characters are relatable and endearing, and the story is filled with humor, sizzle, and heartfelt moments.

This novel delivers a delightful and entertaining take on the friends-to-lovers trope, and it provides representation and inclusivity in the romance genre. Kae's ability to infuse humor and sensuality into the narrative while portraying genuine emotions makes this book an engaging and enjoyable read for fans of contemporary romance. "In the Case of Heartbreak" is a charming and steamy addition to the world of queer romance, with a perfect blend of laughter and love.

A lovely little romance, a really feel good story! Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book.

My first book from Courtney and it will not be my last. The perfect summer read that has amazing vibes, a beach I need to visit asap and two main characters I just adored. It had the perfect mix of angst, romance and overall just lovely moments.

Even though I had high hopes for this one and I think it was just okay in the end. IMO it suffered from trying to be too many things at once- is it childhood friends to lovers? A quirky rom-com? A story about the meddling mom & Gmaw? Or a story about dealing with his terrible father? I think slimming down the external plot devices outside of the romance would’ve helped immensely.

This story was sold to me as childhood friends to lovers, but really I found it read more as a “best friends brother” romance for the first 75%, until we are told about times as kids/teens when they actually spoke together. When friends to lovers works for me it is because we see the pining from both sides and the desire to take their friendship into a romantic zone, but in this book in the first two chapters we are just told that Ben has had a lifelong crush on Adam, and out of nowhere Adam is put on the spot on LIVE TV to define their relationship. And even though Ben acknowledges that he has never told Adam how he feels, he still catasrophizes the whole thing and won’t even let Adam get a word in when they are speaking privately.

Somehow there was so much going on and yet nothing going on.

I did really enjoy Adam’s regency era-esque flirting and declarations of romantic interest though!

I received an ARC from NetGalley, this is my honest opinion.

This was a sweet, cozy book that felt like a Hallmark movie. I enjoyed the settings, the inclusivity, and the way mental health was described. However the plot felt unrealistic and complicated at times, the characters were a bit annoying, and the ending was too wrapped up with a pretty bow for my liking.

A queer romance at its best… the angst, the initial heartbreak, the family issues, the getting it on, the parties, the undoing of it all and thankfully putting back together! Lots of swoony cute moments but also hot hot hot scenes. I hadn’t read the first one from this author but will be interested in and reading anything else they write!

The premise of this really appealed. I love comforting romances with baking and food! Plus, friends to lovers is one of my favourite rom-com tropes.

The story was pretty good and I liked the characters. There were some really sweet moments, I enjoyed Adam’s morning coffee fantasies, the roses and their open conversations about their past traumas. Unfortunately the writing style just didn’t work for me, which stopped me connecting fully. Some of the dialogue was a little too over the cheese line for me.

I’m sure lots of people will enjoy this easy read romance with lots of likeable characters. Just didn’t quite work for me.

This was such a cute book, I adored the characters and storyline. It was fun and fast paces, such an easy read.

A cute meet cute book that's set out a little like a hallmark movie. Full of heart, love and romance. Good character development and a good storyline too.