The Roommate Experiment was an absolute delight—sweet, slow-burning, and filled with all the tropes I adore! Friends-to-lovers? Check. Best friend’s brother? Check. One bed, slow burn, cute banter? Triple check.

Hunter and Dylan’s story is rooted in over a decade of history, and that made their dynamic feel layered and genuine. I especially loved the way their living situation thanks to a roommate shuffle brought them closer together, even if it meant dealing with the frustrating obstacle of Dylan’s girlfriend. I do wish Dylan had been a little quicker to realize what he wanted, but their chemistry made up for it in the end.

What really stood out to me was the BookTok-style humour and relatable comments- the FMC loving books with sprayed edges (same, girl, same!). It gave the story a cozy, modern feel. I also appreciated seeing a 29-year-old heroine who’s confident in her career and self.

It’s definitely a slow burn, so if you’re looking for fast-paced romance, be prepared. But if you’re in the mood for something comforting with strong vibes and some swoon-worthy tension, this one’s for you.

Thank you for the e-ARC in exchange for an honest review

A charming friends-to-lovers romance packed with humour and fun!

The characters, particularly Hunter, were likeable, though I did occasionally wish Dylan would be more decisive in his actions. However, he was on the whole, a sweetie. There were some genuinely funny situations in the book, which kept things lighthearted and easy to read.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publishers and the author for the e-ARC in exchange for honest review.

This book was SO CUTE! So many of my favorite tropes- a slow burn, one bed, friends to lovers, best friend's brother, cute banter. Phew!

Hunter has known Dylan for 11 years. Hunter is best friends with Dylan's younger sister, Nina. She's been holding a torch for him since the first time she saw him. Their timing never quite worked out until through a roommate swap- Nina moves in with her boyfriend/Dylan's best friend and former roommate and Dylan moves in with Hunter. Hunter hopes this is finally the time he'll see her as something other than his little sister's best friend. But he drops the news that he has a new girlfriend and Hunter is crushed. His girlfriend turns out to be slightly unhinged and it was almost comical how long it took for them to break up.

When Dylan and Hunter finally get together, they have swoon worthy chemistry that gave me butterflies. I do wish we had more time with them together and that Dylan would have ended it with Olivia as soon as he realized he had feelings for Hunter.

I adored all the references to BookTok and specifically the comment about how the FMC loves a book with sprayed edges. (Same, girl, same!) Loved that the FMC is 29 and secure in herself and her job. I also loved the other couples and will definitely be going back to read their stories! Will definitely recommend this sweet little romance to all my friends!

Overall rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice rating: 0.5 🌶

Thank you so much to the publisher and NetGalley for this arc! One thing about me is that, I'll always enjoy anything written by Camilla Isley! This did not disappoint. However, this was really a slow burn and boy did it burn.. Also, I have to say that Dylan annoyed me most of the time especially when he was with his girlfriend but thinking about Hunter like brother please just break up with your girlfriend cause I'm bored.. But eventually he did finally do it and I really liked the epilogue because it was so nice to see how the other characters from the previous books were also doing since it is many many years later.

thank you netgalley and boldwood books for the arc of this in exchange for an honest review!

the roommate experiment follows hunter and dylan in the classic best friend’s brother trope, which i personally don’t usually enjoy! hunter is head over heels in love with her best friend and ex roommate nina’s brother dylan, and as fate has it, he moved in upon hunter’s roommates moving out.

as i was unfamiliar with the other books in this series, i had to piece together things, but nothing too overcomplicated. being honest, dylan thinking about the way he was about hunter while he was with his (ex) girlfriend gave me a major ick! and nothing happened until the last 20% or so of the book.

really a 3.5 read, leaning towards a 3 for the sake of this review.

This book is competing with Mariana Zapata when it comes to SLOW BURN.

This is the 3rd book in the Funny Feelings series; however, it can be read as a standalone. The book follows Hunter who has been harbouring a crush on her best friend's brother (Dylan) for ELEVEN years. ELEVEN!! 🫠 Okay moving on... Hunter and Dylan become roommates and Hunter is hoping he will finally notice her only until he reveals he currently has a girlfriend. And this is where my issue with the book lies. The whole plot with the girlfriend was just way too long. Dylan clearly didn't like her but every time he tried to break up with her, something came up and by the hundredth time he tried to break it off, it was getting too repetitive.

When Dylan and Hunter finally get together, the book was basically over. It felt rushed and I wish we got to see more of them together. His love confession also didn't feel very genuine. It came out of nowhere, especially since he only recently discovered he had feelings for Hunter at all.

The book had some sweet moments and I did love the whole scheme they had going on in the end!

Wow the story of the third friend Hunter didn’t disappoint. I couldn’t put the book down, the return of the familiar tight group of friends, together with the will they won’t they between Hunter and Dylan was heartwarming. A great balance as always of feeling, funny and hotness, exactly what you want in a great romance book.

You could read this book as a stand alone but I love the way the author runs the same story in each of her books at the same time, but shows it from the point of view of the different characters depending on which book it is. You remember exactly what the other characters were feeling at each point and it just adds some extra sparkle. I’d highly recommend reading all of the books in sequence.

This was a great slow burn, friends to lovers romance! The story was well written and easy to read and super funny. Highly recommend!

I am a huge fan of traditional romance, but I have to admit that there are certain “tropes” that I enjoy more than others. “Roommates to Lovers” is really growing on me. Because of this, and because I really liked the book description, I was excited to read this. I couldn’t wait to see what this version looked like.

I was a bit nervous about reading the final book in an established series with several titles. The good news is I was still able to read it as a “standalone.” I am thinking about going back and reading “If the Ring Fits” as it looks like the events occur at the same time as this book.

All in all, I did enjoy the book. Mild spoiler, but this book is an EXTREME slow burn. I wish I would have been a bit more prepared for that.

**I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.**

This was an ok-ok read for me.The MMC dating another woman while he had feelings for FMC ruined it for me.

I enjoyed the previous installments of this series and I was curious about this one. The ending was very satisfying, so I closed the book with a big smile on my face - but…

Dylan tested my patience for the first 75% of the book. The fun part didn’t start until that point, when he and his unhinged girlfriend FINALLY broke up. Unfortunately she was the one to break up with him, but by then I didn’t care, I was just glad it was over.

It hadn’t been a serious relationship, and, to his defense, he did try to break up with her a few times. But still, he was seeing someone else while lusting after Hunter. Kinda looks like cheating 😬

I enjoyed the last part of the book. The romance finally picked up, the tension was finally there, and even though there was some second hand embarrassment, it was fun to read. I loved that they were finally able to be honest with each other and that there was no third-act-breakup.

I adored the epilogue and the message it sent - hence the aforementioned big smile that clouded my judgement.

Overall, after sleeping on it, I’m lowering my rating to three stars.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

This was a fun one to finish out the friend group (The Funny Feelings series). I love how they take place on the same timeline as the other storylines from the series (but you could definitely read any of these as a stand alone, but all the cameos are fun, and hearing about events from different perspectives is fun too!). Anytime I need a feel-good, quick rom-com, I know Camilla Isley's got my back!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 stars

This was a quick, fun read—exactly what I needed at the moment!

Hunter has been in love with her best friend’s brother, Dylan, for years. When unexpected circumstances lead to them becoming roommates, she starts to hope that maybe something more could finally happen between them. The only problem? Dylan has a girlfriend.

As I mentioned, this was such a fun and engaging story. I had a great time reading it, and the fast pace definitely helped pull me in—especially since it took me a little while to warm up to the characters.

I usually prefer single POV stories because I enjoy the added mystery, so the dual POV here didn’t fully work for me. Some parts felt a bit repetitive, and I didn’t connect with Dylan’s perspective as much—it just didn’t feel quite as authentic.

That said, the slow burn romance was done really well, and I enjoyed it immensely. I have to admit, I couldn’t stand Olivia—but at the same time, I totally get her grief. Losing a pet, especially one you've grown up with, can feel like losing a best friend. So even though the situation between her and Dylan was a misunderstanding, I understood where her emotions were coming from.

All in all, I had a good time with this book!
Thank you to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for the ARC!

Slow burn, friends to lovers, forced proximity, rom com read was amazing! It has closed door spice for those who love romance without the smut and plenty of laughs!
Read this one in a day! It had me grinning and cringing (with smiles!) at some of the more awkward and funny situations they got themselves into!

Okay, so I didn’t hate this book… but I also can’t say I loved it.

After reading the first book in the series (and not loving the years of low-key bullying between Tristan and Nina), I skipped the second and jumped into this one because I’m a sucker for a good roommate trope. Unfortunately, it just didn’t hit the way I hoped it would. The pacing felt slow, and the story dragged in places where I was expecting more spark or movement.

One of the biggest issues for me was the whole Olivia situation—it seriously overstayed its welcome. It felt like it took up way too much of the plot, and I didn’t love how she was painted as this over-the-top, borderline villain when, in reality, she just wasn’t the right match for Dylan. No need to go full "crazy ex" trope.

The romance itself? Meh. The ending was super rushed, and Dylan’s sudden “I’m in love with you” moment felt a little unearned, especially since the connection between him and the main character didn’t feel all that deep throughout the book.

That said, I do still like Camilla Isley’s writing overall. This one just didn’t land for me, but I’ve really enjoyed many of her other books, so I’m definitely not giving up on her. Hoping the next one brings back that spark!

Tropes:

Roommates

Forced proximity

Only one bed (…kind of, if you squint)

Best friend's brother

Found family

Final thoughts: Some sweet moments, but overall a miss for me in terms of pacing and emotional payoff.

3/5 ⭐️book three in Camilla Isley’s Funny Feelings series. After finishing and loving Adrian & Rowena’s book I was very excited to get this arc to review.

This cute romance is a very slow burn and I did at points find myself drifting and wishing it would speed up. I loved Hunters character and was so glad she got her happy ending.

Love the epilogue, really tied the series up.
Love Camilla’s books always a winner!

“The Roommate Experiment” is a rom-com by Camilla Isley. This book is the third in a series, but can be read as a stand-alone. This book has two POVs - Hunter (FMC) and Dylan (brother of Hunter’s former roommate). The two characters have known each other for over a decade before the start of the book. I’m glad that the two POVs were included. I’m not sure why Hunter’s work situation (with the project possibly being sabotaged) was included as I don’t think it added much, other than Hunter can (and should) stand up for herself. I found myself doing a bit more eyerolling in the last 10% of the book than I expected due to some of the lines (and it could be due to me having read a similar conversation in another rom-com a few weeks ago). I liked the inclusion of dyslexia and how Dylan deals with it. This was a cute fast read.

I wish I could say I liked this book. I did not the story has been told before and there really wasn’t anything new that made me want to read on- although I did. The characters were flat and not interesting. It just felt forced.

After reading the other two books in this series, I was very happy to read and review this latest one! It can be read as a standalone, but it was nice to have the backstory for some of the other characters. The story is about Hunter who has been crushing on Dylan, her best friend's brother over a span of 11 years. It had some funny moments and was a cute, easy read.

Sensitive topics included were fertility issues and dyslexia. I did enjoy this slow burn, closed door romance. The epilogue was great and combined all three books/stories into one.

Thank you NetGalley and Boldwood Books!

I devoured this book. I loved the close proximity aspect of this book, and how this was an actual slowburn. Their chemistry was actually there in my opinion, and there was a good amount of character progression.
Now what I didn't enjoy as much, is once the romance picked up, it felt rushed and kinda unrealistic. Maybe if the author would have started the romance aspect like 10% earlier and given them a better build up, I would have enjoyed it more. And as someone who usually doesn't read closed door romance, I think the lack of intimacy really hindered the portrayal of their emotional connection. The author still talked about it, but showing it would have done so much more for the story.
All in all I enjoyed it, I think there were some pacing issues, but if you are looking for a closed door slow burn romance, this is for you.