Love their chemistry in this book. I like the little touches when she first starts work at the radio station.
The build up was written brilliantly.
I felt both characters were likeable and I wanted them both to get their happy ever after.
This reminded me of used to listening to late night love. Brought back good memories.
The perfect romance to read this summer.

Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this book early, this is one of my favourite authors and I love her writing.
Unfortunately, this book has not been for me, I have started it 5 times and I didn't connect with this book neither with its characters nor its story, it is true that the last one I read, but I feel it is quite slow, I can't connect with Lucien or Aiden, neither with their story.
The truth is that as always, the vibes that the author creates in her books are incredible, and make you feel at home, but this time the love couple was not for me.
I can't say much more, the truth is that I didn't enjoy this book that much, but I liked some moments between them, the looks they give each other, how Aiden changes his thoughts about love just for Lucien and his little daughter, the beautiful relationship between Lucien and his best friend, in short, there are very nice things.
I'm looking forward to continue reading the author in the future, even if this one wasn't my favourite.

AAAAAAAAAWWWWW.
This book just had something so cinematographic to it? I've never even seen pictures of Baltimore and yet, I was there, I could picture the settings, the people, the hand MOVEMENTS (if BK Borison isn't a 2005 Pride and Prejudice fan, well, she should be). It truly just felt like a good old fall/winter rom-com that makes you slightly tear up at the end because the love confession was just THAT cute. I did think it was missing that little something, that little spark to make it a 5 stars for me, but it was really damn close and a very good romance book overall.
I keep seeing people recommending books as having 'Gilmore Girls vibes', but honestly, none of them got the Gilmore Girls as right as this one did, and I think the found family is largely to thank for that (as well as the single mom trope, that too), but MOSTLY the found family. 4.5 stars

Destroyed. Torn apart. Gagged. Fixed. Assembled. Represented. Anyway, let me gather my thoughts and finalise my review, and I shall get back on this. For now, I shall retreat to my nest and self-reflect.

Massive thank you to PRH International & Berkley for the e-arc opportunity. I am absolutely grateful 💖.


—------------ FULL REVIEW (JUNE 8, 2025) ---------------–

This novel is one of my most anticipated releases of this year, and obviously I al grateful for the review copy given to me.

This romance novel is full of angst, self questioning/ reflection, and just ALL EMOTIONS. So full of deep conversations and internal conversations/ monologues that I can't help but feel attacked in every direction. I had to pause and switch to tiktok just to breathe 😆.

The characters are just so CHEF KISS 💋 🤌🏽 I love them so much, especially my gay parents 💗 and ofcoirse the cute daughter, she's so everything 🤧 my precious princess.

Anyway, I really liked how slow burn it was, SO PAINFULLY SLOW BURN, I'M TELLING YOU.

Overall, this one was one of beloved romance read 💗

Thank you, Prh International, for the free book 💗

»Welcome to Heartstrings, Baltimore's Romance Hotline«

To say I am obsessed would be quite an understatement. This book is cozy and deeply romantic, I couldn't get enough of Lucie and Aiden. These two will always have a special place in my heart.

This is my first B.K. Borison read, and I was instantly hooked by the cover (so cute! I do not like many covers with people on them, but this artstyle is a welcomed change in theme!) and description. And I was in no way disappointed.

This is definitely a romance book I did and will always recommend to a lot of people.
The characters, the story and the overall vibe are 100/10 in my opinion.
"First Time Caller" is now one of those books I wish I could read for the first time again.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC, I am excited about what's next in the Heartstrings series!

this was fine. I found the lack of maturity on the mmcs part to be super annoying. For me, the reason he didn't want to be in love just kinda felt like a cop-out. I felt like Lucie deserved so much better. I also would have loved to have had more scenes with Aiden and the child and watched them bond.

There were also some cute scenes, the drunken piggyback, the ending and the way he talked about her were all super cute but overall I just didn't feel super connected to the couple

First-Time Caller by B.K. Borison

When a young girl calls Heartstring radio show to get dating advice for her mom, romantic Lucie and cynical Aiden meet. Now that their short radio conversation has gone viral they are have to work together for Lucie to get her happily ever after sponsored by the radio station working with Aiden while helping him fall back into the concept of love.

Fun, flirty entertainment!

There were really good moments with well developed supporting characters and also not overloaded with steamy segments. This was my plus. My issue with the book was Aiden being too emotionally unavailable but that’s okay. Most books with grumpy sunshine trope are similar and even with predictability this was a good read.

first of all, thank you to NetGalley & the publisher for granting me an eARC in exchange for a honest review.

unfortunately, however... perhaps this just wasn’t for me. :')

the book started out with an interesting premise: a little girl called in to a radio romance program named Heartstrings to seek advice on her mom's lovelife. Lucie, the little girl’s mother, agreed to talk to Aiden Valentine, the host of Heartstrings, and shared on live radio that the reason why she hasn’t been dating is because she secretly still wishes for the magical kind of love to find her.

long story short, snippets of the conversation later went viral, and that led the radio management to invite her as a special guest on their new segment — in which Aiden will help her find love.

although the book was mostly comprised of dialogues (since it is centered around the radio show), i actually enjoyed reading the exchanges between Aiden & Lucie. i also loved the dual POV concept, since it gives readers a deeper insight to Aiden & Lucie’s lives & what made them the person they are. Lucie’s POV is especially endearing to me, because despite her unlikely situation, all the people in her life are just super lovely, you can’t not love them.

i pretty much enjoyed it until the part where Aiden rushes to the restaurant to accompany Lucie who just got stood up by a date — then the book gets frustrating for me. i understand that Aiden has a past, which causes him to have issues with attachment... but the moment he gets possessive of Lucie even when he knows he's not ready for a relationship, i think it just somehow stopped being romantic for me. she does like him & consents to everything they do, but i feel like he's kinda taking advantage of her while leaving her hanging — waiting for Aiden to make up his mind truly felt like an eternity.

thankfully, he redeemed himself (not sure he would if lucie didn't snap at him tho 🙂) by the end of this book, which led to a satisfactory ending.

those aside, i do think the platonic & familial relationships in this book are worth staying for <3

thank you so much for giving me this arc!

this book is so much more than a rom com that made me laugh out loud, it was about love and how people sometimes are afraid of being in love and what they expect from it!
there were some quotes that hit a little too hard and the way they were both wanting love but manifesting it in different ways
the characters were all so lovable and the platonic love relationship between lucie and grayson warmed my heart
i think this is one of the best books ever and i was not expecting to like it so much tbh i went in thinking it was a just a fun rom com and then bam, emotions
go read it!

This book was everything I needed, I adored the characters, and the story was just perfectly written.

This book is really sweet. Lucie and Aiden are both great characters and they learn something from each other throughout the course of the story.

Lucie is a single mum to Maya, who phones into a late night romantic advice radio show to try and get some advice for her mum. She wants her mum to find love but she doesn't know how to go about it. Lucie catches her on the phone to the host, Aiden, and after confirming he's not some sort of child predator, she opens up to him about her love life and her feelings around that. It proves popular and the radio station invites her on the air with Aiden to help her find love.

Lucie and Aiden click from the beginning and it's clear there is something more between them. They have great banter and Aiden is in awe of Lucie's ability to try - she's stepping out of her comfort zone and putting herself out there just to try and find something. It's a wonder to him because he's completely shut himself off from having any kind of emotions at all, just to protect himself from ever getting hurt. He's notoriously grumpy but once Lucie comes into his life, he starts to realise he may be missing out on something.

I like that they're both adults and rather than trying to guess what the other person is thinking, they're open with each other about the fact they're each crushing on the other. Because Aiden is so cautious, he's not willing to let himself fall in love with Lucie so he tries to keep her at arms length while getting to spend as much time with her as possible.

I loved all the side characters as well, especially Maya and Grayson (Maya's father). They're so protective of Lucie and they want the absolute best for her.

I'm looking forward to reading the next book in the series.

Thanks to NetGalley and Pan Macmillan for the opportunity to read and review this ARC.

I love the Lovelight Farms series and was very excited for the author‘s next book, but it didn’t quite live up to the charms of Lovelight. Maybe the setting and premise just weren‘t quite for me (which of course isn’t the author‘s fault), but I just didn’t get the same tingly feelings I got from all Lovelight books.

Of course, it was still charming and I did enjoy it overall, but it just didn’t quite hit as much. I also felt like it was a bit too long, some parts felt a bit dragged out.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC.

One of my favourite BK Borison’s!!!! It was so fun, flirty, entertaining and all round perfect for the hopeless romantics! I loved how it dealt with real world aspects that may affect someone’s life and relationships and not just only remaining on the protagonist’s growing relationship. I will forever think about this book and it’s definitely one to love and remember!

BK Borison, thank you so much for the butterflies this gave me, I really feel like I needed them!

While I will admit that Aiden's whole reason for not wanting to get something started with Lucie didn't really feel... realistic? Enough? Fitting?
The REST OF IT THO, I'm in love. It was all a wonderful mix of yearning, silliness, tension, close proximity issues, "we shouldn't do this", "I've been flirting with you", magic, etc. etc.

Super excited to be reading about Jackson (if I'm not mistaken) in the sequel as well, when it's out at some point. I'll be preparing for the nervous rants in that one 😌

4.5⭐

Thank you to NetGalley and Pan Macmillan for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Borison’s newest novel promises all the feel-good charm fans have come to expect. Set in a cozy small-town backdrop, it features heartwarming characters, witty banter, and a romance that builds with delightful tension. With a gentle exploration of vulnerability and second chances, First Time Caller is a breezy, comforting read that feels like a hug in book form.

BK Borison has always given the romcoms which I treasure for a long time and again she did the same❤️ this one was emotional yet very fascinating in terms of how fast and quickly I ate it up!! Yes, I literally gobbled it up as it bring back that old good 1900s romcom vibe with amazing characters who simply loots away your heart and an amazing plotline which melts your heart into a giant puddle ❤️
I enjoyed reading this one and each chapter was getting better and better for me.

This book is the first book in a new series by BK Borison. Aiden Valentine is dreamy as a radio host who doesn’t quite believe in love anymore. I loved the banter, wit and feels of this book. It’s also very cozy and hopeful. I can’t wait for book 2!

I was so incredibly excited to read this as Lovelight Farms is one of my favourite book series of all time. This is so adorable and quirky, with the characters falling in love through a radio show. They were both incredibly well written, and whilst there were aspects I wasn't too keen on, overall it was so enjoyable, romantic and a fantastic read!

I loved the storyline of this book, the idea of using a radio show to find romance seems outdated but it almost made me feel a little bit nostalgic.

Lucie is a single mum living with her daughter and desperate to find love, so much so her daughter takes it in to her hands to find the one. Aiden is a radio show host who helps people find love, while being single himself.

I enjoyed the progression of Lucie and Aiden’s relationship, I wasn’t keen on some of the things Aiden was doing and the way he was acting but all in all I enjoyed this book.

3.5 stars ⭑.ᐟ

the premise of this book was super interesting to me and it started out really strong. but a few things didn’t really sit well with me.

aiden was just not it for me for many reasons.

he had absolutely no problem leading on, flirting, & sleeping with lucie but couldn’t commit to actually being with her 🤢

say what you will “he was going through some things!” okay that still doesn’t make it okay. he knew what she wanted in a relationship.

it also took lucie standing up for herself & leaving the show to make him realise he wanted her? and starts reaching out to his friend jackson and family (in what is supposed to be a sweet way but the conversations with both ended with him trying to get their advice about lucie, like aiden give it a break)

don’t even get me started on the colin call-in situation, aiden when i catch you.

i loved all the characters so much and i love when characters are so realistic while also having their one quirky trait that sets them aside from everyone else and this book definitely has that, but aiden was just not for me.