This book was such a pleasant surprise for me! I haven't read the others in this series (though I will be doing now!) and when I saw that it was called the 'infleuncer' series I did a little eye roll and wondered if I was about to regret my decision to request this book... but I was so wrong!

Mel is a lovely, relatable character who spends too much of her life relying on the validation and acceptance of her social media followers. Evan on the other hand, is a gruff, no nonsense fisherman who doesn't even have an Instagram account. Intro the most wonderfully mismatched couple! The chemistry between the two is off the charts, and their early banter makes them all the more endearing. My first impressions of Evan weren't great, but that soon changed as we grow to love him as we learn more about his life and his wonderful family, who this book would not be the same without. The Whaler family are just brilliant.

The setting of a small town in Canada was beautiful, and I loved the little adventures Mel and Evan went on, especially the hiking scene... love love love.

There is a good level of spice in this book (three or four open door scenes I think) which I thought were written really well and really helped to deepen that connection between the characters.

Think 'It Happend One Summer' by Tessa Bailey... but better! (in my opinion). I'd give this book a solid 4.5 stars.

With this book comes the end of The Influencer Series and let me tell you, it ends on a high! This is my favourite of the three books and I had lots of fun reading it!

I had completely forgotten what this book was about when I started it, after having it on my kindle for months so I had no idea what to expect but the book just kept getting better and better. I loved Evan and Mel’s banter and their chemistry! Even when they were bickering all the time, it was clear they cared about each other and the more I got to know them, the more I loved them and the more their actions made sense.

Whereas Mel had a really difficult childhood which resulted in some serious abandonment issues, Evan’s trauma was more recent (though no less valid). It was really nice to see them heal slowly and start believing in love and happiness again.

I also loved the found family trope! Even with all the arguments and tension, Evan’s family welcomed Mel with open arms and loved her as if she was part of the family from the start and it was heartwarming to see her finally get the big family she’s been wanting for so long.

This book also gave very strong The Proposal vibes, which was perfect for me because that’s one of my all-time favourite romcoms😍

If you’re looking for a great fake engagement romance with a hot fisherman and a strong found family trope set in a small town, make sure to check this one out!

A big thank you to Penguin General UK and Netgalley for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review💙

Found a new favorite rom-com author!

Thanks NetGalley and Penguin General UK - Fig Tree, Hamish Hamilton, Viking, Penguin Life, Penguin Business, Penguin for ARC!

Synopsis –

Lifestyle influencer Melanie has one last chance at saving her social media relevance and she decides to take up the offer of a sea side resort in Nova Scotia, Canada. But her perception of Canada and spending time amidst nature goes for a toss when she has no choice but to stay at an Airbnb inn and meets the grumpy fisherman Evan. Will Melanie end up rescuing her brand or end up changing her whole life?

Review -

Ok, firstly I read this as a stand-alone and now I’m eager to get to the first two books in this Influencer series.

Oh this one was such a fun book – so enjoyable and entertaining! It had every single element I love in rom-com –

💓In-depth characterization – ‘substance’
💓multi trope combo executed brilliantly
💓gorgeous setting
💓humor
💓the right amount of 🌶️
💓 endearing cast of supporting characters

I loved how it blended several romance tropes - grumpy sunshine, fake dating, opposites attract, forced proximity, found family, small town vibes and holiday romance, so smoothly, that they worked wonders in making this a joyous swoon-worthy read.

I quickly warmed to Melanie – having been through a lot in her childhood, I admired her selflessness, warm, kind and caring persona and the lengths she would go to, to help strangers. Although I was irritated with the prickly Evan initially, I ended up falling for his good-natured sweetness, patience and of course his handsomeness.

The romance build up is slow burn, starting with a mix of awkward yet hilarious situations that Melanie gets into and sarcastic yet witty bickering - bringing in some great light-heartedness and laugh out loud humor.

Melanie’s journey of life/self-transformation begins when she agrees for an inevitable fake dating arrangement with Evan, to save his family’s inn and that’s when the fun begins.

Although I felt that by mid-way things could’ve moved faster and the chemistry between them could’ve sparked sooner (🔥🌶️) , I appreciated how the story was built up considering each of their pasts, future and the true love they discover for each other.

The ending made me go ‘aww’ for these two hopelessly in love beings and I enjoyed how it all culminated for Melanie and Evan – as they learnt to compromise, found in their togetherness, what they crave in the depths of their hearts – a family, a home, a rock to lean on and most importantly true love.

Definitely a must read for romance lovers!

3/3.5 stars.

Mel is a lifestyle influencer, and is offered a brand deal to go to a spa in rural Canada. They mess up the booking and she needs to find somewhere else to stay, so she ends up at a local Airbnb run by Lucy and the grumpiest person she’s ever met, Evan. The inn has been in the family for generations but is really run down, so Lucy’s mum is hoping to sell. For reasons she can’t understand, Mel agrees to be fake engaged to Evan to give the family something to focus on other than their fighting in the hopes of saving the inn.

I love the first two books in this series, and am sad this one didn’t hit the same for me. By nature Mel is not as likeable as Crystal or Tara as she protects herself from other people. Evan is very grumpy and we start with him and Mel as enemies (which never really works for me), but with constant references to how attractive Evan is. The reasons for agreeing to be fake engaged are a bit lose, but it is a lot more fun once this part picks up.

I found the sex scenes a bit average / repetitive - in fact I think this book in general needed a closer like edit to avoid repeating words (in one section we had the same word three times in two sentences).

I liked Mel’s back story and her relationship with Julian, it helped to give more context as to why Mel would agree to fake date a man she hates.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an arc of this book in exchange for my honest opinions.

The Catch is Amy Lea’s latest release and the third title in the Influencer series. Set on You and Exes and O’s were especially popular so anticipation was high for this book.
Melanie is the female main character here. As an influencer, she’s always seeking impressive content. After being invited to a new, fancy luxury resort to cover and post about the facilities, Melanie travels to Canada desperate for a break away and a chance to have a refresh. After arriving early and the resort not able to offer her somewhere to stay she goes looking a place to sleep. After finding an AirBnb she arrives but is definitely not welcomed by the grumpy manager Evan. The hotel is supposed to be shut for renovations, but Evan’s cousin insists that Melanie can stay.
Evan and Melanie don’t get along. They butt heads more often than not and things are just awkward. After Evan is injured when the pair go fishing, Melanie pretends to be his fiancée as a way of supporting him while she waits for his family to arrive. After the misunderstanding, the pair don’t want to upset his already tense family situation and the debate of selling the hotel, so they agree to continue the fake finance situation until things settle.
This was a really fun frenemies to lovers with fake dating. It was definitely a grumpy/sunshine situation as well which I loved. It was really fun seeing Evan misjudge Melanie and then slowly learn that she wasn’t some airhead influencer. I think seeing Melanie discover a new side of herself was really great as well. Overall, it was a really enjoyable read with fun characters. It was slightly predictable at times but it’s pretty much impossible to write an entirely unpredictable romance book.

I am obsessed with Amy Lea writing. As the third book in the influencers series it’s definitely well known. I loved the relationship between Evan and Melanie. I think its the definition of a grumpy sunshine romance. Medium paced romance read and really easy to get through. Would definitely recommend.

This was a lot of fun, it definitely gave me It Happened One Summer and Second Chance Impressions vibes!

I absolutely loved the setting, the way the author described the scenery made me so desperate to visit Nova Scotia.

I found it a very strange mix of slow burn, enemies to lovers and also insta-love… it kind of gave me whiplash! I wasn’t a huge fan of the romance, it just wasn’t convincing enough for me? I also tend to go into books with influencer MC’s with trepidation (always hoping to love but never certain I will) and this one just didn’t quite hit the spot.

I loved Evan’s family and the moments where he was soft and showing that he’s not all that bad but on the whole it was just not quite the book for me!

3.5 stars

Thank you so much to Berkley and NetGalley for my e-ARC of this book xx

Despite this being the third book in a series, I think it works really well as a standalone. I will definitely be picking up the previous books in the series as I very much enjoyed this one!

I’m not usually a big fake-dating fan but honestly the last few books with this trope are making me wonder if I’m converting 😄 this book had fake-dating, forced proximity and grumpy x sunshine. I had such a fun time reading it, and found the plot very enjoyable. It was predictable as most romances are, but there were lots of smaller points of tension and intrigue throughout that kept me on my toes!

I really liked the two main characters, Mel and Evan, which helped a lot with my enjoyment of the book. Both had very well fleshed out back stories and personal issues, and whilst these issues were looked at, I did find myself wanting a bit of a deeper connection with these secondary characters’ stories such as Julian and Jack.

The book was incredibly easy to read and I flew through it. It’s a perfect palate cleansing romance with some steamy scenes thrown in. Although the spice wasn’t too intense, it is definitely open-door and there were a few sex scenes dotted throughout the book.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and can’t wait to go back and read Amy Lea’s previous works!

I read the first two books in this series over the last few weeks in preparation for this third one. I have to say, The Catch was by far my favourite out of the three. I really enjoyed the first two, but everything in this book felt more intense, the stakes felt higher and I fell in love with the characters that little bit deeper.

Mel wasn't the first time we meet Mel, so it was nice to see her have the focus of the story and to learn more about her life. Out of the three main female characters across the series, she's definitely the one I have the most in common with. She was a strong and sassy woman but she was masking a lot of deep rooted emotions. It took her meeting her equal and someone who saw her true self to recognise her own wants, needs and fears. Which brings me to my new fictional boyfriend; Evan. I have never thought that a guy like him would be my type, but give me the plaid wearing, bearded fisherman every day of the week. Absolute cinnamon roll.

I loved this book so much. I read it front to back in under 24 hours and that was only because I had to work in between. All of the angst, all of the feels, some top notch smut and the happiest of happy endings.

The 3rd in the influencers series, this book follows the adventures of Mel (a fashion and lifestyle influencer) and Evan (a small town fisherman who runs an old B&B).

Read if you like:
Grumpy sunshine
Small town fun
Opposites attract
Fake Dating
Enemies(ish) to lovers
It Happened One Summer

Rating 15, open door.

This is a fun, fast paced read.

This book was like a hug or a warm blanket on a rainy day. Amy Lea has a talent for that kind of amazing light-hearted romance stories. It was light and nice, fun and charming. I had a really great time with both Mel and Even and his very sweet family. I liked the way the tropes played out in this one, especially the grumpy/sunshine one.

Overall, I enjoyed a couple of very relaxed afternoons alongside this story and characters.

Small town romance - Canada
Grumpy / sunshine
Fake dating
City girl / small town boy
Found family

I will always lap up these above tropes and this one was super cute read to see Mel find her way in this small town and with some 'found family’ vibes

Mel is a popular travel blogger who goes to a small fishing town in Canada to review a hotel but due to mix up ends up staying at Evans air bnb which is in total disrepair. It’s fair to say these two did not have a great meet cute with Mel completely offending Evan at the start but the chemistry starts to build and I really enjoyed seeing it play out.

I thought this one was okay
I really liked Amy Lea’s writing style and find it easy to read and enjoyable, I just didn’t enjoy this one as much as her others!
The romance was cute tho

The Catch is a fun, feel-good romantic comedy that will have you chuckling out loud at the grumpy fisherman who threatens to upend the perfect life of a fashion influencer.

Melanie Karlsen heads to a rural fishing village in Canada, she’s on the hunt for new material for her online brand but instead finds herself staying at a quaint hotel with burly Evan Whaler. After an unfortunate boating incident that lands Evan in the hospital Mel is mistaken for his fiancée and inadvertently happens to mend some broken fences within his family.

Mel agrees to continue the fake engagement in the hopes of bringing some long overdue peace to the family in exchange for some help from Evan creating social media content. But as the two continue to pretend to be engaged some very real feelings develop, leaving Mel to question whether she wants to remain a city girl after all.

Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Random House for the advance reader copy in exchange for my honest opinions.

💭 ᴍʏ ᴛʜᴏᴜɢʜᴛꜱ:
I have to start by saying I am a fan of this series, where female leads and women supporting women are the main elements. I instantly connected with Mel and it's really hard not to love the grumpy outdoorsy fisherman with a lot of baggage and his family. Two complete opposites and yet it was a delight to see them connect while fake dating (definitely my favorite trope). Add in the small town romance element and I am sold. Such a fun, quick and light read.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

🤓 ʀᴇᴀᴅ ɪꜰ ʏᴏᴜ ʟɪᴋᴇ:
Strong Female Lead
Small Town Romance
"The Simple Wild" by K.A. Tucker
Women Support Women
Fake Dating

ꜱʏɴᴏᴘꜱɪꜱ:
𝘐𝘯 𝘢 𝘭𝘢𝘴𝘵-𝘥𝘪𝘵𝘤𝘩 𝘦𝘧𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘤𝘶𝘦 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘬 𝘰𝘧 𝘪𝘳𝘳𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘷𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦, 𝘉𝘰𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘯 𝘧𝘢𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘪𝘯𝘧𝘭𝘶𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘳 𝘔𝘦𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘪𝘦 𝘒𝘢𝘳𝘭𝘴𝘦𝘯 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘴 𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘧 𝘪𝘯 𝘢 𝘳𝘶𝘳𝘢𝘭 𝘧𝘪𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘷𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘢𝘨𝘦 𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘵 𝘤𝘰𝘢𝘴𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘊𝘢𝘯𝘢𝘥𝘢. 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘰𝘯𝘭𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘴𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘵𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘧? 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘶𝘳𝘭𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘣𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘥𝘦𝘥 𝘣𝘦𝘥-𝘢𝘯𝘥-𝘣𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘬𝘧𝘢𝘴𝘵 𝘰𝘸𝘯𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘧𝘪𝘴𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘮𝘢𝘯, 𝘌𝘷𝘢𝘯 𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘭𝘦𝘳—𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘭𝘦-𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘥𝘭𝘺 𝘥𝘪𝘴𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘰𝘳𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘊𝘢𝘯𝘢𝘥𝘪𝘢𝘯𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘦 “𝘯𝘪𝘤𝘦.”

𝘈𝘧𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘢 𝘣𝘰𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘤𝘤𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘴 𝘌𝘷𝘢𝘯 𝘶𝘯𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘤𝘪𝘰𝘶𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘰𝘴𝘱𝘪𝘵𝘢𝘭, 𝘔𝘦𝘭 𝘪𝘴 𝘮𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘯 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘧𝘪𝘢𝘯𝘤é𝘦 𝘣𝘺 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘸𝘦𝘭𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘺𝘦𝘵 𝘲𝘶𝘪𝘳𝘬𝘺 𝘧𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘺, 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘦𝘮𝘣𝘳𝘰𝘪𝘭𝘦𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘢 𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘨-𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘧𝘦𝘶𝘥 𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘉&𝘉. 𝘐𝘯 𝘢 𝘣𝘰𝘭𝘥 𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘮𝘱𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘥 𝘧𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘺 𝘧𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘴, 𝘔𝘦𝘭 𝘢𝘨𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘧𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘦𝘯𝘨𝘢𝘨𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘸𝘦𝘦𝘬 𝘪𝘯 𝘦𝘹𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘌𝘷𝘢𝘯’𝘴 𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘱 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘴𝘰𝘤𝘪𝘢𝘭 𝘮𝘦𝘥𝘪𝘢 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘵.

Oh my days, how enjoyable it was to read this rom-com! Amy Lea has done it again!

I love how she writes books on The Influencer Series - they remind us how influencers are still people like us, having their own fears, worries and mishaps (that we don't see on social media!). That's life, isn't it? It is never perfect and what we see online is only the tip of the iceberg of people's lives. Our girl Melanie here is another proof.

This book brings us to Canada - on a fishing village, which is such a charming setting. I could imagine friendly and good-looking fishermen proudly cradling their biggest catches and the lovely townsfolk who are all closely tied to each other. Also, LOTS of nature. It has been known that all Canadians are nice - except our guy Evan, who runs a B&B. I love how some "mishaps" lead to people's first meetings.

If you adore the Grumpy x Sunshine, Small Town, Forced Proximity and Fake-dating (or engagement?!) tropes, this read is perfect for you! I enjoyed the interaction between the two MC's. And it's such a treat to read how the grumpy one slowly but eventually becomes softer after conversations & moments shared with the sunshine character.

It might be too early to say this, but I would love to see this book become a movie one day!

Lots of thanks to Netgalley and Penguin UK for the e-ARC!

MY HEART ISN'T COLD AND DEAD AFTER ALL!!!

It's been a while since I've loved a traditional, straight rom-com, so I was INCREDIBLY happy that The Catch was the one for me!!

We follow Mel, who arrives in Canada and finds that there was a mix up with her accommodation and she has a week before she can check in, so she finds the only airbnb available, out it a rural fishing town with a big, burly (and grumpy) host.

When he has a boating accident, she goes with him to hospital, and when the staff tell her only immediate family are allowed in, she tells them she's his fiancé. The harmless little lie soon snowballs into a big one, when his family arrives and now thinks the two are engaged.

I cannot believe how much this book was making me giggle and swoon and blush!! The banter between the two characters was *chefs kiss*

There was also a scene where the characters were very competitively brushing their teeth, and as someone who watched the movie Bring it On countless times growing up, I couldn't NOT picture a particular scene from that movie.

I also liked that the conflict felt very realistic and something that completely made sense for the couple and their situation, and not something silly that felt thrown in in order to create a third act breakup.

The only thing that would've made this an all time favourite is more of a conversation about the main character having been adopted from China. This is something very specific to me, being mixed-race and growing up disconnected from my Asian culture...so it's not something that would bother anyone else, but when we found out the main character was Chinese I was waiting for it to come up again and it didn't. Not a critique, just something I enjoy relating to in books that this almost had.

Thank you Netgally and the publisher for providing me with an arc for a new favourite romance!!

Small town
He’s grumpy
He falls hard and first

IM SOLDDDD SAYING NO MOREEE

The perfect small town romance

Melanie finds herself stranded in Canada after a mix up with a reservation so ends up in a small fishing village. The owner of the inn is instantly hostile but after an accident at sea, Melanie finds herself with a fiance. Its all a lie but will it stay that way.

This was such a fun read. Its humorous, sweet, emotional and fun all in one book. This does touch quite a bit of grief but I think its very honest. The plot is a faster pace than most but it flows seamlessly without seeming too rushed. Yes the ending is fairly obvious from the start but I truly enjoyed the journey to it. The ending was well done and I liked how it played out. Melanie is fun and i instantly warmed to her. Evan is likeable too but his grandmother is by far my favourite character. A fun read.

As usual, Amy Lea makes me squeal, laugh, cry, and just generally happy all in one book. Mel is not always the easiest FMC to follow, but I am glad I did. Not my first or last read of Lea's - bring on the next one please and now.