Thank you to NetGalley, Boldwood Books, and Victoria Walters for providing this ARC!

Long Story Short follows Freya, an assistant with dreams of becoming a literary agent, and Jake, a brooding romance author whose offhand critique of the genre puts gets him in trouble with fans and the industry. Freya is tasked with helping rehabilitate Jake’s image during a literary conference, seizing the opportunity to prove her worth to her demanding boss.

I was intrigued by the literary conference setting, which felt fresh and fun and the ideal stage for forced proximity and allowing the characters to development. The setting had real potential to allow the characters to connect meaningfully and explore deeper emotional ground. There were some sweet and entertaining moments, and overall the writing made for a quick and light read.

However, I found myself struggling with the characterization—particularly of Freya. While she’s meant to be quirky and endearing, her constant clumsiness, inability to speak around Jake because of his good looks, and frequent accidental sexual innuendos made her come off as immature rather than relatable. It undercut her professional ambitions and made it hard to believe in her as someone who could realistically be nominated for this important task. Jake, despite being positioned as the older, more experienced counterpart, also felt emotionally immature at times. Their dynamic lacked the depth I hoped for, and their development felt surface-level, which affected the dialogue and the story conflicts.

Freya didn’t seem adequately prepared, and her internal monologue—often centered on Jake’s past comments about romance and love—felt repetitive and overly reactive. I wanted more growth, more nuance, and a stronger emotional arc for both characters.

That said, this is a cute story with an easy to read writing style and fun premise. I would recommend it to anyone looking for a light-hearted rom-com book.

Just finished Long Story Short! Quick read, light romance vibes. Loved the publishing world setting, especially when the story was in NYC. Personally, the romance between Freya and Jake felt a little rushed for me, didn't quite feel the build-up. Found it hard to fully connect with either character, so the relationship didn't totally grab me

2.5 stars that I’m rounding up to a 3

This book was not for me. It started out really sweet and the plot description was interesting (I love when the main characters of romance novels are actually romance authors themselves), but it didn’t live up to it. I enjoy an age gap romance, but I don’t like when it has to be told to me over and over and over again. They’re both incredibly immature, Freya reads more like she’s 19 than 25 years old, and Jake comes off less grumpy and more rude and someone I didn’t really care for at all.

I also thought the spicy scenes read like they were meant to be in a completely different book, they didn’t fit the tone of the rest of the book at all so it felt really disjointed.

🗽❤️✍️ Long Story Short by Victoria Walters ✍️❤️🗽
Genre: Romance
Length: 322 pages
Spice Level: 🌶🌶
Pub Date: May 19, 2025
My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 (rounded up)

Thank you to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for the e-ARC of this novel. The opinions stated here are solely my own.

Summary (copied from NetGalley):
Can Freya fix Jake’s reputation without losing her heart? Assistant literary agent Freya Harrison never thought her chance at a big break would look like this: at a swanky romance conference in New York, managing the agency’s most insufferable client.

Sure, Jake Richards is a global best-selling author, adored by all his fans. But on meeting him, Freya finds him arrogant, condescending, and, worst of all, a complete phony.

After being overheard calling romance ‘easy money’ and his readers ‘fools’, Jake’s reputation is tanking. And it’s Freya’s job to clean up the mess – and maybe, finally prove her worth to her boss. But with Jake one slip away from another PR disaster, doubts are starting to set in. Can she survive this week without losing her mind – or her heart?

Opinion:
I enjoyed the grumpy/sunshine, age gap, and workplace romance tropes in this story. It was a very quick read and I always enjoy a plot that includes writers vs. publishers. I liked that at first, Freya was kind of lacking in self-confidence about her abilities in the publishing business, but Jake was able to help her see how talented she was. This story also builds firmly on the opposites attract trope. The NYC setting was also very enjoyable as Jake and Freya built their relationship through exploring the city. All in all an enjoyable romance and it held my attention. My only real critique was that sometimes the conversations between the two MCs felt a little repetitive. Would recommend for a light, fun read!

Thanks to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for the advanced reader copy.

When Assistant Literary Agent, Freya, is given the chance to audition for the role of fulltime literary agent, she's thrilled...until she hears what she has to do. She needs to travel with disgraced romance novelist Jake Richards, who was overheard saying terrible things about romance books and romance readers, to one of the big conferences and help him win his readers back (and get another book contract). But Freya doesn't believe the apology Jake gave and they've already had a few negative run-ins. But helping Jake means she'll get her dream job and maybe he won't turn out to be so terrible.

LONG STORY SHORT was a solid romance novel, though there wasn't anything that really pulled me in. I probably would've DNF'd if I didn't need to review. Both Freya and Jake are perfectly fine characters and the set up of the story was cleanly executed, but there just wasn't anything that sparkled here, for me.

Long Story Short is the story of a romance author who has reached a point in his career where he's feeling particularly skeptical and a little cynical about love, and a girl who works in publishing who loves his novels and is a romantic at heart. These are are brought together on a mission to clean up the author's image after some damaging remarks, and they travel on a publicity campaign.

In reality, this book is a nice and easy break. It's a nice palate cleanser for when you're looking for a quick and easy romance.

The writing style wasn't necessarily for me, it lacked really any visualization or true storytelling, so it felt a little flat.
I would have loved it a little more if the author was able to show us what was happening and what was being felt, instead of just downright telling us. I wasn't really able to connect much, so ultimately it felt a little bit forgettable.

This book I did enjoy, it was definitely lacking a few things for me. I think definitely a longer timeline to really build the characters and the relationship more time to just really develop and see that on the pages, maybe 6-8 weeks. It definitely reminded me of similar books I enjoyed reading so I requested this book. I definitely felt it was lacking but it was not the worst.

When famous author, Jake Richards, becomes scandalized in the romance book community, assistant agent, Freya Harrison, has a chance to not only boost Jake's poor reputation but gain a real shot at solidifying her career in the literary world. With the world's top tier book conference around the corner and her job on the line, they both have goals for this trip to New York City - falling in love just wasn't one of them.

On paper, all the pieces were there for me to give this one an easy five stars. Unfortunately, the one-dimensional storyline and frustrating main character personalities left me with more to be desired. As Jake states in the book "writing romance is hard," so I empathize with the idea that not every romcom is going to be my cup of tea. What I wish to have read was a more nuanced representation of the age-ole trope of "young, clumsy, cute girl who wears quirky clothes meets older, more mature dude." I'm not against it, but her barrage of quirky outfits, the pencil that falls out of her backpack (IYKYK), getting caught loudly oversharing her conversations, letting people in a professional setting get under her skin, and (most notably) trying to "solve" Jake as though she knew him as a person (and not just a fan of his books) was all too much for me. I know she was likely written to "not be like the other girls," but I expected a bit more maturity given how much she wanted to grow her career (at least knowing how to play the game while in professional settings).

Many thanks to Boldwood Books, NetGalley, and Victoria Walters for providing me with a digital review copy in exchange for my honest thoughts.

I was incredibly excited about the premise of Long Story Short but unfortunately it fell flat for me.

I didn’t particularly like Freya or Jake. The romance con seemed pretty lacklustre and a bit of a snoozefest (nobody seemed to be that engaged at what is usually a fun time!). And the story was… lukewarm.

It was a very easy read but sadly not my cup of tea!

Thank you for the opportunity to review.

Please note this review reflects only on my personal experience of the story/characters and is not a review of the quality of writing of the author

Set against the glittering backdrop of a New York romance conference, this sizzling slow burn is packed with snark, sexual tension, and serious heart. When literary assistant Freya is forced to manage bad boy author Jake Richards after a career-threatening scandal, it’s hate at first sight. But behind his cocky charm and infuriating smirk, Jake reveals something unexpected—and soon Freya’s no longer sure where the act ends and the real man begins. Perfect for lovers of sharp banter, forced proximity, and a hero who falls hard.

This was a sweet, easy-to-read romantic story that touches on personal struggles and how our abrupt decisions can shape public perception.
The story follows Jake Richards, a successful male romance author—a rare unicorn in the genre—who damages his reputation after publicly admitting he writes for the money and doesn’t believe in happily-ever-afters. Naturally, this doesn’t sit well with his fanbase. Enter Freya, the assistant to Jake’s top literary agent, who is assigned to help Jake navigate his PR crisis. Though her ideas often contradict her boss’s, Freya, a romance fan herself, understands exactly what readers expect—and need—from Jake.
The close proximity between the two leads and the growing attraction between them adds a layer of warmth and charm to the story. It's romantic, engaging, and a perfect choice when you're in the mood for something light and cute.

Loved it. The book is well written and the banter and narrative made me smile at times. It is lighthearted and a cozy read. The characters are well written and the male lead is quite swoon worthy. Their meet cutest are sweet and made me laugh. Especially the awkwardness which is absolutely endearing.

I loved the concept of an author trying to fix a PR disaster and an agent trying to make it. The feeling of everything can go wrong and partnering to make it work to save a PR disaster is brilliant. Especially loved the romance genre of writing being brought in along with others. And the themes of writers supporting each other. The rivalry is well written too. Love it!

Thank you Boldwood Books and NetGalley for this e-arc in exchange of my unbiased review.

This book presents an intriguing premise—a disgraced romance author forced to face the very genre he disparaged, alongside a romance-loving assistant with publishing ambitions. Jake Richards, a bestselling author, finds his career in jeopardy after a careless comment goes public, and Freya, his agent’s assistant, is thrust into the awkward role of escorting him to a romance conference. Sparks and friction naturally follow as opposites are thrown together in a setting designed for love.

There’s an appealing enemies-to-lovers thread, a behind-the-scenes glimpse into the publishing world, and a heroine who believes in love but hasn’t quite found her own yet. However, the execution doesn’t quite live up to the potential. The age difference between Jake and Freya is repeatedly mentioned, but it’s not explored in any meaningful way, and other character contrasts also feel surface-level.

While the plot has charm, the writing often feels basic, with some key elements—like character development—underdeveloped. Surprisingly, a secondary character, Davis, ends up more dimensional and engaging than the leads. It’s a story that has heart and promise, but it could have used a bit more polish to truly shine.

It was good ! It took me a while to get through . Would recommend though .it was about jake who made a mistake and said he hated romance and freya who is tasked with the job of getting his readers to turn around and think he’s a good guy

‘long story short’ is a relatively quick and lighthearted read that i think will appeal to many romance readers. i did like how the story was set within the publishing industry and thought it moved at it’s best pace when in new york. personally i found the dynamic between the main characters, freya and jake, to move very fast with very little build-up, which made their relationship feel flat. i didn’t love either character either, so my investment level in their relationship was low.

This was a cute rom com, set in New York. Freya wants to be an agent for authors, but she’s only working as an assistant. She has the job to get Jake (author) to repair his mess after saying he hated romance books, that’s what he writes. It’s an easy read with lots of steamy sessions, very descriptive and fun. An overall quick read, 4 stars. Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for a copy.

I did not love this one.

The premise was fun and I really enjoyed the setting (London publishing world and New York). However, the writing felt really clunky in parts and I was bored for the majority of the story - it just felt so bland and the characters were so one dimensional. The conflict annoyed me and the ending felt unrealistic.

Thank you to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for the advanced reader copy in exchange for my honest review.

Thanks to NetGalley for the eARC of this book!

Sadly I did not enjoy this spicy romance. It had all the things that I thought I would love: a New York setting, enemies to loves, grumpy x sunshine, and he falls first, but it was not for me.

Long Story Short is my first book by Victoria Walters and after starting to read it, I was instantly hooked and couldn't put down the story of Freya and Jake. Freya, well she's a straight talking girl who has big dreams of being a agent one day. It's impossible not to like her, not want her to get her happy ever after as her story unfolds in this page turning, unputdownable book. The chapters are really short and I loved how they flowed from one into the next, always keeping the story going and not stopping.

Jake, well, he's this swoon worthy author with a massive problem on his hand. What caused his scandal and can a man who he been broken be able to see that love and romance does exsist. I wanted him to succeed in the challenges he faces. Does that happen? Well you need to pick up the latest book by Victoria.

Although this book is worthy of the 5 stars I'm giving it, and is a standalone novel, I feel that you should read Freya's cousin Liv and Tessa's stories first as the books all flow into each other. I'll be going back and reading their books for sure, but this is one you don't want to miss. It's perfect to read next to the pool, on a long plane journey or down next to the beach. Romance with a right amount of spice makes this one of my must reads of 2025.

I’ll be honest – I wasn’t sure if Long Story Short would be my kind of thing, but it ended up giving me all the feels. It felt fresh, and I found myself getting completely swept up in it.

The characters are likeable and relatable. Freya, especially, was a highlight for me – quirky, brutally honest, and just very real. I loved that the story wasn’t just a straightforward romance but also a bit of a journey of self-discovery for her and Jake. There’s loads of character growth throughout, which I always appreciate.

The book made me laugh more than once, and even though it’s marketed a bit like an enemies-to-lovers story, I wouldn’t say that’s totally accurate – it didn’t have the proper ‘enemies’ vibe you sometimes expect from that trope. Still, the chemistry between Freya and Jake worked really well.

One thing I found especially interesting was the little insights into the world of romance writing – like the idea that even though readers know a romance will end happily, it’s the journey that keeps them hooked. Those little moments made the story feel a bit more layered and thoughtful.

Overall, it’s a quick, easy, and really fun read. I had a good time with it. I’d give it 3.5 stars.