This book is a smart, feel-good romance that blends ambition, rivalry, and resilience in the glamorous world of fashion. Daphne Owens is a rising designer whose career is derailed by a shocking betrayal. Determined to bounce back, she heads to New York City to rebuild her name—and ends up clashing with Brandon Wright, a gifted (and maddeningly smug) designer who seems to thrive on getting under her skin.

Daphne is the heart of this story. She’s sharp, passionate, and refuses to give up, no matter how many obstacles stand in her way. Her journey isn’t just about romance—it’s about proving herself, reclaiming her voice, and learning to trust again. The competitive dynamic between her and Brandon adds plenty of sparks, and their slow-burn chemistry builds at just the right pace.

Set against the fast-paced, high-pressure world of fashion, this story has real Devil Wears Prada and The Bold Type energy. The romance is satisfying, but it’s Daphne’s personal growth and determination that make this such a compelling read.

Designing Daphne by Mia Rosette is an empowering and engaging romance that had me hooked from the start. Daphne Owens, an up-and-coming fashion designer with dreams of making it big, is forced to rebuild her career and reputation after a betrayal leaves her with nothing. Moving to New York City, she faces a ruthless competition with the talented (and infuriating) Brandon Wright, who seems hellbent on sabotaging her at every turn.

What I loved about this book was Daphne’s resilience—she’s determined, smart, and doesn’t back down, even when it seems like the odds are stacked against her. The fashion world setting is vibrant, and the rivalry with Brandon adds the perfect amount of tension and drama. The romance is a slow-burn, but the focus on Daphne’s personal growth and her fight to prove herself makes the story even more satisfying.

The book is a great mix of career challenges, self-discovery, and a bit of romance, making it perfect for fans of The Devil Wears Prada and The Bold Type. I’m excited to see how the other girls' stories unfold in the series and how it all comes together in the end. Highly recommend for anyone who loves a story about starting over, resilience, and finding your way!

I loved this book! I live reading books that have to do with fashion and romance! This book was wonderfully written!

Quick, easy, got me out of my 24-hour reading slump. Even though it was lacking in a lot of areas and was really annoying. So a bit too fluffy, rom-commy, and just lacked a lot of sustenance.
2

Designing Daphne
I struggled to get into this book. At first I couldn’t even get past the first 5 pages but I finally pushed thru and found myself mildly enjoying Daphne and the antics in the book. I liked the roommates in the brownstone house, tho the way she found the space so perfectly in time was very far fetched. I also found it far fetched that the group of roommates are able to always drop things and travel- and that some guy was willing to cover airfare/use miles to Milan for so many girls. The ending seemed rushed and discovering who was destroying Daphnes work seemed a bit anticlimactic.
A small yet important thing to me was the inconsistency in formatting on the kindle. There were some chapters that were all italics and others where the type face is “normal”.
Overall, I’d recommend this. It was a cute quick read once I got into it. 3/5 stars

Thanks to NetGalley & Story Weave Press for this ARC. All opinions are my own

3.5/5 rounded up.

The premise sounded amazing, and as someone who faces resistance in her professional field, it was pretty easy to sympathize with the MFC. The overall tone of the story did not read too serious ( which, maybe it should have?) and the writing could have been more impactful.

In some areas, it was hard to relate to the MFC, but that's the beauty of fiction: people do stuff that you won't. Daphne is a designer, and her designs get stolen. I didn't understand why she had to start from the bottom because of it? I understand that she couldn't call out the thief, but I wouldn't have just let that go. I'd have at least reached out to Estee Laundry (or whatever that insta account is) to bitch
A quick read, overall.

Daphne is living in a world that doesn't seem like one we should want to be part of. funnily enough ive heard stories just like this from people in the same line of work. and im not sure even Daphne herself made me see things any differently.
the writing was good though and it was a good story. it did at some points make it feel a bit forces with the load of icky people and icky occurrences. but maybe this is just how things truly are. and if so run Daphne.
it did have some very quirky and fun moments too though. and the characters were complex and flawed but each had things i just wanted to learn more about the further i got into the book. and wanted to know just how much Daphne could take. and just how far she was willing to go either playing clean or dirty. and who should or would come out on top?
not my favourite contemporary romance but i cant even pin point why. so maybe it just one of those things. because i can also not pin point anything as to why i didn't like it so much as i wanted to going in.

I 100% requested the book for the name, but I couldn’t get into the book the main female character is just insufferable and kind of kill any urge to finish the book for me.

DNF. I won't be finishing this novel, sadly - I found it too far-fetched from the get-go to want to continue the story. I think having the intern quit after the first 2 pages without any proper development was not a great way to start it off. Also, wayyy too much happens in a short amount of chapters. It was just way too rushed, it made my head hurt!

This book was just okay. Daphne isn't the most likeable character in the world but the plot and the writing were good. The others in this series were better.

Unfortunately I couldn’t finish reading this book. I think the plot is a great idea and the set up was good, but the main character was just too unlikeable to me. She is fun and quirky, but also just seems rude and self-absorbed and I couldn’t find myself connecting to her or really rooting for her in order to finish the book. The writing seemed a bit immature (maybe it was just my dislike for the main character’s personality swaying me) and it seemed repetitive when it didn’t need to be. I’m sure this could and will be a fun, quick, and great read for somebody, it’s just not for me.