A wonderful book about escaping from reality for a famous pop star who’s burnt out.  Wanting to go to Rome she settled for the next best thing, Rome, Kentucky. 

When the car burns out in Noah’s yard begins a fiery slow ish burn love story.  

Both riddled with trust issues and having lived very different lives this story sees them work through and overcome that.  Bond with family and battle their issues with each others support. 

Admittedly, a familiar plot, but likeable characters, humor, and an overall sweetness make this a fun read. World-famous singer, Amelia, (Rae Rose to her fans), has had enough of the demanding career and being told what to do by her manager, and just wants a break before her next world tour. As is her norm, she finds solace in Audrey Hepburn movies and takes it as a sign from Roman Holiday that she should go to Rome. Since driving to Italy is not possible, the map shows her Rome, KY is the most feasible, so she escapes into the night, telling none of her entourage. Her car then breaks down off the highway in the front yard of Noah, just outside of Rome, coincidentally. Good guy that he is, he offers to help, and when it ends up taking 2 weeks for her car to be repaired, they get to know each other, she meets the townspeople and his family, they fall for each other, etc. It seems like impossible obstacles stand in the way of them having any kind of future, plus they both have things to overcome from their pasts. Somewhat predictable but sweet characters and still a fun story. 

I received an eARC from the publisher via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Rae Rose is a pop sensation, but she starts to realize she feels numb. A few weeks before her upcoming tour, Rae Rose (Amelia) takes inspiration from Audrey Hepburn and flees to Rome in the middle of the night. That is— Rome, Kentucky. It starts to feel like a bad idea though when her car breaks down in the middle of nowhere. As luck would have it— she’s actually in Noah Walker’s front yard. After confirming he’s not an axe murderer, Amelia spends the night in his guest room. When Amelia finds out her car is going to take two weeks to fix, and that her reservation is mysteriously gone, Noah offers up his spare room.

Noah is grumpy and standoffish at first. He has had his heart stomped on in the past by an out of towner and is not about to let it happen again. He’s perfectly content watching over his grandma’s pie shop and keeping all women at arm’s length. Unfortunately (or fortunately) life has other plans for him.

The two quickly learn the deeper aspects of the other.  Noah learns Amelia is more than her pop-star persona and Amelia learns there’s more to Noah under his grumpy demeanor. When Amelia learns someone she trusted has broke her trust, she wants nothing more than to have Noah by her side. But with Noah’s life in Rome, and Amelia’s on the road, can the two make it work?

I loved reading Sarah Adams Cheat Sheet, so when I saw this one I just HAD to read it. Amelia and Noah’s tension was immaculate!!! They both tried so hard not to fall in love because they knew Amelia was leaving and it would never work out. Noah spent all his time trying to keep her away so he wouldn’t end up hurt again, while Amelia tried to not show her hurt from his rejection.

Semi-Spoiler??

I wish there would have been a scene where they fought with flour or something. I know that’s incredibly cliche but come on it was right there!



Read if you like:
• grumpy/sunshine
• celebrity & “normal person” romance
• baker men
• small towns
• Audrey Hepburn / Roman Holiday
• slow burn romance 
• closed door romance
• dual pov romance

🌶 (closed door)

Gah, this was so freakin' cute.

I love the movie Roman Holiday. It's perhaps my favorite classic film. So when I saw a novel was coming out pitched as taking a new spin on such a beloved classic, you know I had to get my paws on it.

In short: this book tweaked the only thing I disliked about the 50's gem, and I adored it.

This book follows Amelia, otherwise known as international pop star phenom Rae Rose, as she escapes her hectic pre-tour schedule. An Audrey Hepburn lover, she decides to follow in Hepburn's Roman Holiday footsteps and heads to the nearest Rome... which happens to be a small town in the middle of nowhere Kentucky. What ensues is a deliciously sweet romance between her and the surly owner of a pie shop.

We've got it all, folks: forced proximity, grumpy/sunshine, small-town, chemistry/tension... I flew through this, and I was certainly thinking about the characters when I wasn't reading. It was sweet, sweet, sweet.

The characters are really what made this stand out to me. First of all, I absolutely loved Amelia. She was so down to earth, funny, and just everything I want in an FMC when I pick up a romcom. Noah was also a total charmer, even though he had a bit of a grumpy/surly attitude. Certainly not your traditional highly-suave charmer, but absolutely adorable nonetheless. Watching him slowly open up to Amelia and learn to trust her was a highlight for sure, not to mention how kindhearted he was, how aware of Amelia's needs and safety he was. Additionally, as with most good small-town romances, the cast of side characters was on point. I'm particularly partial to Mabel… If I'm not like that when I'm a senior citizen, I've done something wrong.

This is an excellent pick for those who don't want to see smut in their romance novels – it was a closed-door romance that at the same time didn't feel prudish. While it's no secret I certainly don't mind spice, it's great to see super solid options available for people who'd prefer not to read about the nitty gritty but still want adult romance vs. YA. I respect it.

Another point in its favor:

no third-act breakup!

Wish this was more common. I'm gonna start tracking when books don't have it so I can lavish fine jewels on them.

Plus, the epilogue in the form of an online blog post made so much sense. It was the perfect little bow to tie on a wholeheartedly sweet story.

Apparently I was in the mood to ramble today. Oh well. TL;DR: this Roman Holiday inspired romcom was a delight from cover to cover and is most certainly worth the read.

Thank you to NetGalley and Dell for the opportunity to read this ARC.

Sarah Adams is one of my favorite authors, so I had high expectations for this book. I am happy to say that it did not disappoint!

I read this book in one day because I just couldn’t put it down.

Amelia & Noah were so cute! They had great banter, and I loved the tension between them as roommates. 

I loved the small town of Rome, Kentucky and how quickly Amelia felt at home.

Noah’s sisters were a lot of fun, and I hope that book 2 is about one of them.

You’ll enjoy this book if you like:

- grumpy + sunshine 
- Forced proximity 
- Audrey Hepburn
- Witty banter