Juniper definitely didn’t expect to cross paths with Aiden again — and certainly not in a university ceramics class in London. She’s less than thrilled, especially given their history. But when they’re paired up for a project, avoiding him isn't an option. As they’re forced to work side by side, old tensions resurface... and so do some unexpected feelings. I really liked how the story shifts between both of their perspectives — it gives such a clear sense of where each of them is coming from.

What really stood out to me was how real and flawed the characters felt. The story doesn’t shy away from messy emotions or complicated dynamics. Instead, it leans into them, showing that love often takes root in imperfect moments. The way mental health and neurodiversity are explored is done with real care — nothing feels token or overly simplified.

There’s a great mix of sharp dialogue, emotional depth, and just the right amount of heat. It hits familiar romance beats like enemies-to-lovers and forced proximity, but with a depth that makes it feel fresh and genuinely heartfelt. I was fully invested in Juniper and Aiden’s journey — by the time the ending rolled around, it felt like they truly earned it.

This was a really sweet and fun read with enemies to lovers. It includes mental health representation and a great chemistry/tension.

I really enjoyed Kiln Me Softly—it’s a spicy, heartfelt enemies-to-lovers romance with a creative twist that totally worked for me. Juniper and Aiden’s chemistry was undeniable, and their forced proximity at the Royal Academy of Ceramics made for some sizzling moments (yes, the pottery wheel scene lives up to the hype!). I loved the art school setting—it added texture and charm, and the pottery details were surprisingly fascinating.
What stood out most was the emotional depth. Both characters grapple with mental health and family issues, and their growth felt genuine. The representation of neurodivergence and LGBTQ+ characters was handled with care, which I really appreciated!

Thank you so much for allowing me the opportunity to read!

Kiln Me Softly by B. B. Woods is a charming and heartfelt enemies-to-lovers campus romance that centres on Juniper and Aiden, two former high school rivals now thrown together at the Royal Academy of Ceramics. Their tension is immediate and sizzling, but beneath the surface, the story reveals much more than just a fiery romance.

I loved how this book brings relatable, human characters to life, showing that love often grows through flaws and misunderstandings rather than despite them. The portrayal of mental health and neurodiversity is especially impressive — handled with care and respect — which makes the story stand out from typical romance fare.

The balance of humour, emotion, and steamy moments creates a very satisfying read. It hits all the expected tropes of enemies-to-lovers and forced proximity but delivers something deeper and more meaningful. I found myself rooting for Juniper and Aiden all the way, and the happy ending felt well earned.

Read more at The Secret Book Review.

Juniper meets Aiden again when they are both in the same ceramics course at university in London. She is really not pleased to see him, but as they are made to work together on a project, will the forced proximity change everything for them. I liked how it was told from both points of view.

We meet Juniper and Aiden. They have known each other since school but don't get on. They are both on the same course at the Royal Academy of Ceramics. Juniper remembers Aiden differently to the kind of person he is now and as she begins to realise this they begin to forge a friendship of sorts.

The title of the book gives a clue as to what the theme of the book is. With both Juniper and Aiden on a Ceramics course, there is pottery, glazing and other types of ceramic techniques to be found. I found this quite interesting to be honest, and probably liked this part of the storyline more than the relationship between the two main characters! From the picture on the cover, I also expected it to be hot and steamy, a little like a certain pottery wheel scene from a certain film. Whilst there were some sex scenes, they weren't as spicy as I though they would be (or perhaps wanted them to be!).

The two main characters were okay. I liked Aiden, although he was a little bit annoying initially, and I liked Juniper but felt she bore too much of a grudge with him throughout the book. The storyline was cute, and I liked how the characters grew throughout their own personal stories. It was an okay read and I did enjoy parts of it.

Pre thoughts
- ceramics

Overall
- A great enemies lo lovers read, included mental health representation and a good amount of tension for the fmc and mmc. I loved the enemmies to lovers aspect.

Stars 3.75 rounded to 4

tropes
- Found family
- Enemies to lovers
- Forced proximity
- Academia

Thank you to netgally and Harper north for the opportunity to review this eARC xx

I was hooked on this romance from the start. With an enemies-to-lovers storyline, forced proximity, and an academic setting, it had all the elements I enjoy. The tension between the main characters came through in their arguments and witty back-and-forth, which made their connection feel strong and real.

I really appreciated how the author included mental health, neurodivergence, and LGBTQ+ representation in a thoughtful and respectful way. Both main characters had their own struggles, but the way they supported each other made their relationship even more meaningful. Juniper is a curvy gal, and as a plus size girly myself, it was nice to see her represent!

The setting was also a nice change it focused on two art students taking a break from school, which gave the story a fresh and creative vibe. I especially enjoyed the pottery talks, little art details, and the museum visit.

The side characters were great too, and the found family element added warmth and comfort to the story.

Overall, it’s a sweet and thoughtful romance with great representation, emotional depth, and a unique setting. I’d definitely recommend it!

I loved this enemy to lovers book, it had great chemistry that had me invested and rooting for their relationship throughout.

I really really wanted to love this one - it had a norther FMC which really appealed to me - as a northerner you don’t see many! But I just couldn’t get on board with Junie. She hated Aiden but also got with him near the start of the book? Her hatred of him was frustrating and I do feel it’s because I dislike miscommunication in books and just wanted her to tell him why she was so angry.

I did enjoy the found family aspects and all the intricacies of the ceramics class, the representation was good as well.

2.25⭐️

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperNorth for providing me with this E-Arc in return for providing an honest review.

Unfortunately, this was a miss for me. The author did a good job of representing LGBTQ+, neurodivergence and mental health but the actual story fell flat for me.

After reading, I'm not sure what point I'm supposed to like the FMC because it just never happened. The romance was not believable and seemed forced, they also ended up getting together 20% into the book even though she despises him. Also, i never want to read a book where her 🐱 is described as FOLDS.

Halfway into the book I did get into it, I enjoyed the side characters and the found family. The premise was good, I really enjoyed the pottery talks, little art details and the museum trip.

I just think the FMC wasn't written well as someone to like. She was hung up on hating someone over his class for no reason (because the reason just wasn't good enough to be honest) and blamed him for essentially everything wrong in her life but didn't accept any responsibility for the fact she's late to every single thing?

I very much enjoyed this. As a fan of The Great Pottery Throw Down, I had a feeling that this would be a hit! Steamy scenes interspersed throughout - no waiting til 75% of the way through for the main event here folks! The chemistry between our protagonists felt believable. Serious topics touched upon, including strained family relationships, mental health, and neurodivergence. Nonbinary side character didn't feel shoehorned in and different sexualities were touched upon without it being a "thing", which I thought was fab. I'll definitely be reading more from this author in the future!

I am slightly conflicted here, as I loved some aspects of this book, whilst others really didn't work for me.

Essentially, I enjoyed everything but the romance.

I liked the dual POV, having both perspectives really enhanced the story.

There was funny banter, and I loved the dry humour. But I feel like the banter went too far into nastiness on Juniper's side too many times.

The first sexual encounter was very early, too early to be honest. The tention had barely built by this point, and I personally didn't think it worked very well.

The reason behind Juniper's reluctance to open up to Aiden was revealed quite late, AFTER they had sex multiple times. This made little sense to me, and the dynamic simply didn't work. Juniper being rude to guard her feelings towards someone who did something unknown in the past, that he isn't even aware of. She was so full of resentment, ultimately for a very weak reason.

I did absolutely love the art aspects here, and the struggles both characters experienced, along with how they overcame them eventually - through personal growth, as well as support from each other and their other friends.

Kiln Me Softly by B.B. Woods is a spicy enemies to lovers romance that just made me smile so much while reading that I cannot wait to recommend it to readers who enjoy a romance where the characters have depth but also enough chemistry to start a fire.
Juniper arrives at the Royal Academy of Ceramics already feeling intimidated and out of place so the last thing she needs is to see a familiar and very unwelcome face from the past, Aiden, her high school nemesis who is now not only the most talented potter in the class, but also hotter than ever. When they are forced to work together on a project, of course sparks fly and before long they are hot and heavy ,engaged in a no strings, casual affair. Before long it becomes clear that both are feeling more, but neither wants to be the first to admit it, can they get out of their own way and find happiness?
I love it when I find a story with such human, relatable characters and I love it even more when they find each other and find a way to make it work despite, or perhaps because of their flaws and foibles. This is a book that absolutely hits the tropes it sets out to, like the enemies to lovers and campus romance but it does so much more than that. The exploration of mental health and neurodiversity is sensitively handled and very well done, and I always appreciate seeing good representation like this in any genre. I will say that if miscommunication tropes bother you, there is quite a bit of that in this book, so just be warned, personally it did not bother me enough to impinge on my enjoyment of the characters or the book as a whole. I also have to highlight the wonderful friend group that surrounds the central characters, again they feel very believable and added a lot of fun to the story and I loved the Non Binary and LGBTQ+ representation. I also loved that this book feels like a love letter to artists, to those who create the beauty for the rest of us to enjoy, something that this little passage really highlighted for me: ' I like to be lost in stories, especially ones that were created by people who came from a completely different society. They're a reminder that all the loneliness and pain and everything that makes us human has always existed , and that it can be turned into something magical, something that has a purpose.'
As for the sizzle, well if the banter was good the sizzle was even better, this author knows how to write a steamy scene, and readers will definitely not feel short changed in that department.
To put it simply, this was an absolute delight and I loved every word.
I read and reviewed an ARC courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher, all opinions are my own.

Everything Woods took on in this book was done to perfection. Nothing overtook the other be it issues or romance or tropes. They all worked alongside each other perfectly. It just felt so normal,so human and so needed in this genre because people aren't perfect neither is love. But boy it can be when people take time,support and love those they hold dear.
This book gave us that is buckets. The friendships were such a golden addition to this book. I also love how Aiden and Juniper were there own person and had stuff to work through. But they were their own hero and eachothers. They both new they had their own stuff going on. So it didn't just become a "saviour" thing.
But of course the best bit. The bit we are here for is that romance. The banter,witty,gorgeous connection between the two had me falling for them both from the off.
This books is such a fab read.
Love it. Loved the character so much and was rooting for them all.

3.75🌟 - Thank you to NetGalley and B.B Woods for this ARC. I will be giving my honest review. Firstly, after reading and enjoying Kindling, I was very intrigued and interested in reading this new release. The author did a really good job at exploring themes of mental health and neurodiversity and both were portrayed very well within the book. I often felt really sorry for both Aiden and Juniper especially with their parental issues. I do think that Juniper's hatred (enemies to lovers) towards Aiden was a bit unwarranted, like I know she was mad he had money and stuff, but he wasn't the one throwing money about, if they had a conversation about it then the miscommunication wouldn't have happened.

That being said, Aiden and Juniper's relationship was really sweet throughout and that pottery wheel scene, swoon (the scene in Ghost is so romantic and it is a cute nod to that film). I loved the friendships between Aiden and Luc and Juniper and Tilly and I'm really glad that they had the support from each other. l LOVED the representation within this book, it's nice to see non binary and LGBTQ+ characters (this was one part of Kindling that I loved). Overall, I was thoroughly entertained and will be continuing to read more books from this author.

I love a good rivals to lovers trope and honestly this book executed that trope wonderfully. also the forced proximity was chefs kiss.....

This book hooked me from the first chapter and I couldn't put it down after that, the tension was so good and the banter was even better.
I liked the mental health representation and how it added to our characters' personalities and struggles. I also really liked that our main characters supported each other with their mental health issues while also working through their own struggles. The writing was good and easily understood while also being just enough to keep the reader wanting more.
I will say one thing I found pretty cringe was the use of the word zoomers..... just wasn't expecting it if I'm honest.

As much as I love my tropes, I'm thankful this story wasn't chock full of them, and instead worked hard to make the Rivals to lovers and found family tropes feel natural and deserved.
There was also good mental health and neurodiversity representation, though I would've liked Aiden to use more explcit terms, and to have descriptions of how Juniper's neurodivergence made her feel, instead of just how she acted.
The characters are young, understandably emotional, and slightly dramatic, which can be fun but to me it could also be quite annoying at times. But that's usually why I tend to avoid brand new adult romances.

My next few gripes are more about the marketing, than the book itself. I personally do not like reading about barely legal adults, more do when it is open door,  and did not realise they were 19. The cover and blurb had led me to believe they were mature students, they look older than what I picture teens to look like, and and I clearly made poor assumptions thinking they were in their mid 20s since Juniper was getting a late start at uni, and that it had been years since she'd seen Aiden in HS.

However, the characters were written well. Aiden has great character development, and gains a better understanding of just how privileged he is, how that encompasses all aspects of his life, and learns to stand up for himself more.
I enjoyed having Juniper explore the different paths to her future, instead of focusing on higher education as the only way forward for her chosen path.

Both of them bonded over having unsupported parents, and finding support in each other. Aiden also was able to have a confrontation that helped him move on. Unfortunately, to me, it felt like Juniper had no resolution to her family problems, and it left me feeling unsatisfied.

The writing was enjoyable and painted a clear picture. Though it did feel stilted at the start, and I thought the descriptions of Juniper's ADHD was slightly heavy handed, oversimplified, and cliched at times, especially around her clumsiness.

The word Zoomers was used and I cringed every time. I saw no benefit in using the term. The story would have been a lot more timeless without it.

Ok, sorry I got carried away. This was a cute first love romance, and I loved the found family they made at uni. If you want to spend a short time enjoying a story about young love, in a place that reminds you of of The Great Pottery Throwdown. This will hit the spot!

Thank-you NetGalley and HarperNorth, for allowing me to read this ARC. All opinions are my own.

4.5. 🌟
Enemies to lovers, forced proximity and academia setting, this romance had me hooked from the beginning. The tension manifesting as hate and the bickering between them showed the connection that they had.

I really enjoyed the approach taken to include mental health issues for both genders plus the support they gave to each other to help them overcome their own issues.

I’ve never read a book quite like it with the academia being centred around two art students that have taken a sabbatical from learning. Over all would totally recommend this sweet romance!