Hello book lovers! It’s a new year. I can’t believe is 2025!! When did that happen? But here we are, and what better way to start the way with a new review of the upcoming book by Chloe Liese
✔️star-crossed lovers
✔️instant attraction
✔️dating practice
✔️dual pov
✔️neurodiversity/anxiety/chronic illness rep
Once Smitten, Twice Shy by Chloe Liese
What is about?
Since heartbreak entered the scene, Juliet Wilmot, once a hopeless romantic, has sworn off love. But when she’s presented with the chance to revisit romance-purely for practice-with the gorgeous, off-limits guy she keeps serendipitously running into, it feels like a sign from the universe.
Quiet, shy Will Orsino knows happily-ever-after isn’t on his horizon. Problem is, for the sake of the family business, marriage is. Resigned to the inevitable, but with no confidence he can woo a wife, he can hardly say no when fate hands him the alluring, unattainable woman he keeps crossing paths with, offering to help him learn the ropes of romance.
Neither of them looking for love, Jules and Will agree they’re the perfect pair to practice romance. Except that practicing to perfection leads to an irresistible attraction. Their once smitten hearts, though still twice shy, might have happily-ever-after written in the stars for them, after all. (Goodreads)
This was definitely a cute story. Juliet and Will are both super cute so their story was super sweet. Although both had their reasons not to be together, they were open to having a beautiful friendship. So it was lovely to read how they started as friends and slowly accepted their love for each other.
Chloe Liese has such a signature writing style that it was nice to come back to her world. The families and friendship groups are always so fun, supportive and loving.
However, this was pretty much instalove and it felt like the author had to come up with some reasons for them not to be together but the biggest reasons not to be with each other were not strong enough for me. And how they constantly repeated that the other was off-limits when in reality it made no sense to me. I understand they both had their reasons to be apprehensive about love, and that reason was good. But the others were not. Also, it became a bit tiring to read pretty much every chapter that it was impossible to be together when it was clear to everyone they were head over heels for the other.
Also, this is the 3rd book in the The Wilmot Sisters series. And although you can read it as a stand-alone I do not recommend it as you’d be entirely lost about the friendships. I read the arc of the 1st book but not the 2nd and there wasn’t much context about who all these people that came up were, so I was lost on who was who. Of course, we know they’re friends but there’s no intro like we’re supposed to know who they are already.
Despite these couple of things, I did enjoy the book and it was fun to read this story. If you’ve read other books by Chloe, I’m sure you’ll enjoy this one.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
Would you read this book?
love, Lin
