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.

I adored this book. My heart feels full.

This is the first I've read by this author and I am NOT disappointed in the slightest. It was wholesome, it was funny, it was sad - it had me all over the face and I'm here for it.

Did we know how it was going to end? Yes. Do I care? Absolutely not.

Give me more please. Asap.

If you haven’t read this book go do it now. It’s amazing, as is everything B. K. Borison writes. It’s simply (hehe) magic.

Lovely, cozy, funny and hot -- everything I ask in a romance.

Also, if Jackson doesn’t get his own book I will revolt. I need to see inside this beautiful man’s head.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶️🌶️🌶️
❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

As a teenager, I loved listening to soothing sounds and romantic music in the quiet of the night, when the whole world is sleeping and we are alone with our worries put to a rest and out minds are fairly calm. This book brought back all those nostalgic memories when I sort the comfort of FM radio channels and the serenity of ASMR like voices.
To say I loved it will be putting it mildly, it felt like a warm blanket on the balcony in the night with the view of a thousand city lights and twinkling stars above and romantic music in the background.
I am obsessed with the side characters as much as I love Aiden and Lucie.
I was sceptical about the whole radio dating program, but it was much more than that. It didn't feel awkward at all as I thought
I couldn't stop smiling most of the time. I love that Lucie's world is full of love and she seemed to emanate the same love to others too. I loved the chemistry between Lucie and Aiden from the very first "encounter" - the one who is seeking magic in relationships and the one who is sure there is no such magic left in the world.
Aiden, with the grumpy disposition outside of the radio program was so caring and loving towards Lucie, and I felt she needed it as she felt like the one who is constantly alert of the needs of people surrounding her.
The flirting and tension from the beginning was so fun and made me smile everytime they are together. I love their small quirks and flaws that made them Them.

Strangers to friends/ colleagues to lovers
Opposites attract
Flirty banter
Amazing funny and adorable side characters
Slow burn
Spice: 🌶️🌶️

This was just like 'Sleepless in Seattle' and I freaking loved it!

The characters were perfect, the romance itself was told beautifully and the story overall was just incredible! B.K Borison is such an amazing writer and I look forward to future books she will write!

Thank you Pan Macmillan and NetGalley for the e-arc in exchange for a free review.

The idea of this book to me was much more appealing than the execution of it. Don't get me wrong I still enjoyed this, but I've found myself skipping over a lot because it felt waaaay too long and had many unnecessary scenes. The parts where they're on air and the little quotes from the show after every chapter was my absolute favourite part! Overall I would give this a 3.5 stars I still recommend if you're looking for a cute, fluffy, slow burn romance!

I didn’t expect to fall this hard, but wow, this book had me smiling, blushing, and a little emotional in the best way. It’s cozy, swoony, and full of heart with that signature small-town charm that Borison does so well.

The banter? Impeccable. The chemistry? Off the charts. And the late-night radio show setup? Adorable. It added such a fun twist and made their connection feel really intimate and slow-burny in the best way. I loved how the story explored vulnerability, emotional intimacy, and what it means to really be seen by someone.

Both leads felt real and layered, and the way their relationship unfolded just made my heart so happy. Also—can we talk about how good Borison is at writing supportive, lovable side characters? The whole Lovelight world continues to be a warm hug.

This is the kind of romance that makes you want to curl up with a blanket, a snack, and zero interruptions. If you’ve loved any of the previous books, you’ll absolutely adore this one.

Oh my god this book is everything. The perfect summer rom com! And my favourite book of hers! Love love love x

A sweet story that makes you smile

"First-Time Caller" is the latest romance novel by B.K. Borison and tells a sweet story of a young mother and a radio host.

With "First-Time Caller" B.K. Borison has almost knocked "Lovelight Farms" off its throne and is now one of my favorite books by her.

Maya, Lucie’s daughter, made me smile all the time and I really loved the relationship between her and her mother Lucie. In general, I think the whole patchwork family is great because they are so warm and funny and you can see how much they love each other in every interaction.

The banter between Aiden and Lucie is top-tier! And that was definitely my favorite part of the whole book. That was definitely my favorite part of the whole book, along with the nostalgic feelings it brought up while reading.

Lucie is a pretty cool mom who is raising their daughter together with her best friend. But what I probably liked the most is that Lucie is a mechanic and you don’t see that very often in books!

Aiden is the host of Baltimore's romance hotline and isn't exactly known for his cuddly nature. He doesn't believe in love, which is pretty ironic considering he works on a radio show that’s all about romance. But hand on heart. I think Aiden is great! He can be protective, funny and thoughtful. He and Lucie are made for each other.

I give "First-Time Caller" 4 out of 5 stars.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC.

From the very first chapter, I knew this one was going to be something special. The banter? Perfection. The chemistry? Off the charts. The whole late-night radio call-in concept? Absolutely adorable and so well done.

I loved the way the romance unfolded, it felt so natural, so effortlessly charming, and I couldn’t get enough of these characters. The emotional depth was beautifully balanced with humour, making this a book I just didn’t want to put down.

Would I recommend it? A thousand times yes. If you love heartfelt, swoon-worthy romance with characters you actually root for, then add this to your TBR immediately.

Calling all romantics, even the reluctant ones…

B.K. Borison is a first time hit! This book gave me the giddy, kicking your feet, swooning goodness and wrapped it up like a 90’s romcom. I adored the characters, the premise, the setting and the execution was perfect. Think Sleepless in Seattle meets Stars Hollow, yet entirely authentic.

Aiden x Lucie. He’s grumpy, she’s sunshine. He’s a demoralised radio host and she’s a hopeless romantic. They’re perfect for each other and I’d marry him in a heartbeat. I loved that their romance bloomed slowly and organically behind the scenes of the radio station as they tentatively navigated their mission to find Lucie her one true love.

This romance felt fresh and nostalgic all at once. It’s new yet familiar, sweet but with a gorgeously portioned dollop of spice, I honestly cannot fault it. The story is sweet, tender, electric, exciting, raw and oh so fun, everything a great romance should be. It felt like slipping on an old, favourite sweater, worn but comforting.

First Time Caller was perfect and I truly cannot recommend it highly enough.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an e-arc of this book.

*3.5 stars*

I did enjoy this book, and I enjoyed the exploration of love (in all its forms) throughout the book. I really connected with Lucie and her desires from her life, and this is one of the first times in a book where I was literally highlighting so much of the text because I felt so seen in a character.

I feel like if I’d read this whilst I wasn’t travelling I could have connected a lot more to the story, cause I was reading it so disjointedly.

Lucie's unique little family was so adorable, and I love that it just made sense about her platonic love with Grayson, it never had to be explained in massive detail about how they were exes but also best friends.

I really enjoyed seeing Aiden's character development throughout the book. From the first phone call with Lucie, you could see him lighten up so much, but it was really clear even when they were interacting how much he was holding himself back, due to things that had happened in his past. I really loved how much he showed up for Lucie, even despite believing differently about love to her, and how he supported everything she wanted for herself.

This book had B. K. Borison's typical magic sprinkled all over it, and I'm really excited to read Jackson's book when that comes out.

This was ADORABLE. The characters, from Lucie and Aiden, to the side characters, all felt so genuinely real. The co-parenting dynamics between Lucie, Grayson and Grayson's husband Mateo, were so healthy and lovely and refreshing. The romance between Lucie and Aiden was slow burn and felt so natural, I felt so giggly watching them fall for each other! The only thing I struggled with was the third-act breakup - it felt so unnecessary for them, they didn't need to break up at all. Other than that, I absolutely loved this and I'm really excited to see which character will be the focus of the next book!

I just love this 🩷

Think sleepless in Seattle! Our FMC daughter calls into a radio station to find love for her mum , she eventually ends up there to seek love and go through people who’ve reached out whilst the radio host, our grumpy guy realises he’s head over heels with our main character.

Such a lovely , heartwarming romance and such a fun premise to have met via the radio.

A quick and easy book to fly through and enjoyable from start to end 🩷

My first B.K. Borison and certainly not my last!
I loved the premise - Lucie and Aiden meeting through a radio show and subsequently starting a segment on the show to find Lucie a date. What could possibly go wrong?!
I adored the healthy family dynamic between Lucie, her daughter and her ex-partner and his new partner, it was so refreshing. Mainly, though, I loved the connection between Lucie and Aiden. It felt so natural and real. The flirting and the genuine laugh out loud moments, the raw and emotional side to the story- I just adored it.

I knew this was going to be five stars about a quarter of the way into the book. This author crafts sentences so beautifully and had me smiling so much. I loved the whole nostalgic storyline that was inspired by “Sleepless in Seattle” which is a perfect movie. I loved Lucie so much. She is a single mom and auto mechanic doing her best when her daughter calls into a radio station to find love for her mom. The romance hotline host, Aiden, is a grump who no longer believes in love. The story progresses to Lucie ending up on the show on a quest to find love and Aiden figuring out he’s obsessed with her. I love found family as a trope and there was a huge amount of it. It was glorious. Jackson needs his own story as well as Patty and Aiden’s terrifying boss Maggie. I enjoyed every second of this lovely and healing story. I finished it very quickly and loved the dual POV chapters. I was so engrossed and had a lovely time. Read this if you want to feel hope about love again.

B.K. Borison made it hereby officially into my auto-buy always a good time favorite author list 🥂

"First-Time Caller" was so cute and adorable, yet emotional and heartwarming, but also entertaining, funny and steamy, all while being relatable, honest, and full of little things I want to remember about self-worth, love, and loss. I loved it.

"And a part of me, a teeny-tiny sliver of myself, is still waiting. To bump into someone on the street or pick up the wrong coffee order. For the right person at the right time in exactly the right place. To not have to try so damn hard at any of it. It's the romantic in me [...]. And maybe it's childish or naive or whatever, but it's me. I'm allowed to want soft, special things."

I fell in love with Lucie and her adorable family. I fell in love with Aiden and his loss for the right words. I fell in love with all the supportive friends and family, the feminism through and through, the jokes, the bantering, and most importantly - the growth.

"I told Aiden that I'm tired of wasting time on things that don't feel like everything I've ever wanted for myself, but I'm not sure that's true. I don't know what I want for myself. It's all twisted up in the things I think I deserve, then squashed under the things I'm brave enough to reach for. I don't think I've ever thought about any of it long enough to know what I want."

Also, as always, B.K. Borison delivered an amazing new book boyfriend, just saying... might be my favorite so far of hers. A few examples to support this thesis:

"'Who the fuck made you cry?' I snap."

"'You're bossy.'
'I certainly can be.'"

"'You have a pineapple pizza?'
'I do.'
'You said pineapple on pizza is disgusting.'
'It is.'
'Then why do you have it?'
'Because you said it was your favorite. And I want your favorite to be my favorite.'"

A call into the radio station by adorable daughter Maya to help get her mother Lucie back out there and date, results in a radio show by Aiden and Lucie to push this along.

"You tell me all the time you have all the love you need. That you're fit to burst with our family and all the people in it. But I thought, maybe just this once, you could have the love you deserve too."

And them sitting in the tiny booth together resulted in so many funny, cute, heartwarming, and toe-curling moments - I loved it so much. I don't even want to take anything away. But when you love romances with cute, movie-worthy scenes and adorable family and friends while helping overcome relatable insecurities and struggles to help them grow - this is the book.

"When the whole world tells you you're silly for wanting the things you want, you start to believe them. You start to think you're not worth it. That if the things you're waiting for do exist, they're not for someone like you."

I am in love with this book (also, the cover is to die for 😍) and will eat up everything B.K. Borison serves and leave no crumbs.

"'What do you need to fix?'
'Me. I need to fix me.'"

Thank you, Netgalley, Pan Macmillan and B.K. Borison for the arc in exchange for an honest review. This is my second arc and fourth book after Business Casual (Lovelight Farms #4) by B.K. Borison (which I loved as well), and I am so so grateful and happy - thank you!

"I want goose bumps. I want to be wanted."

"Yeah, I guess sometimes I do get lonely."

This is the first B. K. Borison book I have read and it won't be the last.

First Time Caller is a charming contemporary romance full of heartfelt moments and personal growth. We are introduced to Aiden who has given up on the concept of love and Lucie who wants nothing more than to experience the magic that love brings. Their chemistry is undeniable and the time they spend together throughout the book is very sweet and I was constantly cheering them on.

This book is perfect for those who enjoy:

- Forced Proximity
- Grumpy ✘ Sunshine
- Slow Burn
- Dual POV

Thank you Pan Macmillan and Netgalley for the e-arc to review.

First-Time Caller was one of my most highly anticipated reads for 2025, with Business Casual, B. K. Borison's last book, being in my all time favourites list at 7th place. So needless to say I have been putting this off a little despite being lucky enough to receive an arc.
The disappointment for not enjoying my time with this book is so real. It started off well, setting up a slow-burn romance but I was ready for some good tension between our main characters, Aiden and Lucie. Unfortunately, the main let down for this book was our MMC. What a red flag of a man. The jealousy and possessiveness? Stomach-churning. His attitude towards Lucie was nothing I could root for and this particularly manifested during the spicy scenes which were not enjoyable whatsoever.
I'm so confused as to why this romantic pairing makes sense, what do they have in common?
Lucie also has a 12-year-old, whose character I felt to be odd in terms of behaviours for that age.
There was a lot of conflict, but at the 90% mark another came up and I was genuinely fed up of reading this book, obviously this was then resolved unrealistically fast.
I've never rooted for a completely different man, but really Lucie should've picked Colin. Or even the other guy she went out on a date with, who I can't remember his name but know he was much more likeable than Aiden.
B.K. Borison, I love your writing style, but these two didn't work for me unfortunately. I guess I somewhat enjoyed the mixed media aspect with the radio show but I don't have many positives to say otherwise. I am so gutted I don't love this as much as I hoped. I'm probably not going to continue with this series, as the next book's set-up doesn't sound particularly promising.
1.5 stars (rounded up to 2 on NetGalley)

Thank you to NetGalley, Pan Macmillan and B.K. Borison for the opportunity to read this advanced reader copy.

Review posted to Goodreads, StoryGraph, Amazon and Waterstones.

I knew I had to read First Time Caller after reading and loving other novels by B.K. Borison. First Time Caller is not exception, and in fact may be my favourite book by Borison I have read so far!

Inspired by the infamous romance movie, Sleepless In Seattle, this story has all the warm, nostalgic feelings of a heart warming rom-com. On every page I could picture exactly how this would look on screen, and as someone that is a sucker for a 90's rom-com movie, I lapped it up. This book had be giggling and kicking my legs like a teenage girl. I mean HE LITERALLY KEEPS A LIST OF HER FAVOURITE THINGS IN HIS GLOVEBOX.

I think this book is filled with an amazing, fully fleshed out ensemble of characters that add so much to this story and give the reader the loveliest example of found family ever. What do you mean she lives next door to her daughter's dad and his husband and they all co-parent their kid as the best of friends?? Yes yes and yes I love it. And the three guys that she works alongside at the garage that look after her like interfering dads or uncles? I love them all!

I cannot wait for more Nora Ephron inspired stories from B.K Borison to read alongside the "it's the 90's and you're the leading lady in a nora ephron rom-com" playlist I found on spotify (highly recommend for the full fantasy of First Time Caller).

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for allowing me to read an advanced copy of this book in exchange of a review.