It Started With a Book, by Camilla Isley, is a unique premise for a novel; though in real life we do write our own story. I enjoyed reading to find out if it was real and how Leighton's story ended, hoping all along that it wasn't just a dream. Camilla Isley is now an author on my radar.
Thanks, NetGalley and the publisher, for providing me with the ARC ebook I read and reviewed. All opinions are my own.

I was honored to have received an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review. That being said I really enjoyed this book. Although , it was alittle confusing at times with everything going on. I felt at moments the story got jumbled and didn’t make much sense. However, by the end it came together nice and I felt like it was a very cute beach read with a hint of cowboy😘. Which who can argue with that? Everyone loves a good cowboy romance .
This book is about a fellow book-girl Like us. Who stubbles upon a book one day that happens to be magical . While she sleeps her dream man from the book comes to life. With her help she shows him how to navigate the real world and her heart ❤️ very cute. I recommend this book for the fellow book lovers like me who always wish their book bf can come to life ❤️😘

It started with a book was a fun unique premise. I enjoyed reading how Killian dealt with being in the real world, and his attempts at diy were amusing.
I did find the nickname sugar spoon intensely annoying, but it was definitely worth a read.

3,5 stars rounded up to 4
Camilla Isley is one of my favorite authors and thus any new book of her is on my TBR. This book was no exception but while I liked it I had difficulties believing the plot. I know it's romance and things are often a bit over the top but reading a book character to life? That didn't sit well with me and up until the happy ending I kept waiting for some kind of explanation. Apart from that I liked the book, it was well written and the FMC was really witty.

It Started With a Book by Camilla Isley is a must read by any romance book lover. Camilla does a great job of incorporating multiple different romantic tropes within a story line of Killian & Leighton's relationship. The basis of their relationship is a bit far-fetched in the beginning, but as the main characters transition from fiction to the real world it becomes more emotional & true to how scary trusting someone with your heart can feel like as you fall in love.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an ARC of this book on #NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own, but Camilla Isley is an engineer turned Rom-Com writer & I for one enjoy seeing the smart science-brained female navigate into a relationship.

A fun sweet read! Highly recommend.

Many thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for my ARC.

I love Camilla Isley.

I pretty much start any review of her books off with that. Because I do. Sometimes I start the book and I think I'm not so sure but I trust the process and never regret it.

I enjoyed this book. But not as much as I normally enjoy a Camilla Isley book.

I've read quite a few reality mixed with favourite book/TV show etc. romances recently but this was the first where the fictional character was the love interest.

It bugged me that it was never really explained how Killian got there or where the book came from but as book boyfriends go he's a pretty damn good one!

I'm not sure why I didn't enjoy this as much as other books by the same author but that's not too say that I didn't enjoy it at all. I did enjoy the dream sequences and the relationship between Killian & Leigh - especially their banter!

Tropes:
• Actual book boyfriend
• Cowboy
• Enemies to lovers
• Dream relationship

Tropes:

Thank you to the author, publishers, and NetGalley for allowing me to read this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

The plot follows Leighton, a grad student who finds herself reaching for a romance novel after a dating app disappointment. She begins to read but finds that the book is largely blank. She falls asleep, only to dream the next chapters (and subsequently find them written the next day). After a few dream encounters with the book’s leading man, cowboy billionaire Killian, she accidentally pulls him from the book into her life. But can their romance survive the real world?

I was excited for this book, and I give the author tons of credit for the unique plot. However, I had a very difficult time connecting to the main character. She seemed very one-dimensional, defined completely by her love life (or lack thereof). The author gave her a really interesting research agenda in AI, but it never seems like a passion. Instead, it seems more like something that just takes her away from Killian and into the path of a discriminatory advisor. She also has friends, but they serve as a vehicle for talking about love, rather thinking about it. She doesn’t show much personal growth throughout the book, and where she does it seems fairly connected to having found love.

This book is very plot driven, and the idea of a book boyfriend coming to life is so enticing. I’m sure this will appeal to many readers, I just found that it wasn’t a great fit for me.

loved this romance where the hero comes to the real world. loved the romance. I enjoyed that she was able to read more about her relationship with cillian st. clair.

A super cute and entertaining romance about a book boyfriend that comes to life. It kind of reminds me of that movie from Disney Channel where the doll comes to life. But with a man who comes out of a book. The writing was good and the chemistry between the two main characters was also pretty good. It’s a nice beach read with low-stakes fun!

4⭐️

Ahhh, this book….
I always dreamed of taking my favorite character (all of them) out of the book to live my dreamed love story and have my happily ever after, so when I saw this was literally the main plot of the book, I was like: THIS IS MY MOMENT!!! And it certainly was 🥹❤️

I had an amazing time reading the story of Leigh and Killian, I enjoyed the jumps where she went inside the books but what captivated me the most, was the second part of the book where Killian is dragged to the real world and has to find his new self living in a world where everything is exactly the opposite of what he was lived before.

It was a very sweet, funny and relatable story, the fact that Leigh was fighting with same old patriarchy, all the book tropes!!! And that she was a completely bookworm who was so tired of wising about finding the Mr. Right and living the love story as she read in books was soooooo perfect ❤️ she even was a booktoker!

I just also want a magic book that brings me my perfect man please 🥹❤️

I was kindly provided with the ARC of this book by the editors and NetGalley in exchange of and honest review ✨

This book had such a fun and unique premise. I enjoy stories with a touch of magical realism, but I'm still puzzling over how this concept would function in the real world (it wouldn't). I've enjoyed all of Camillia Isley's books. Thank you to NetGalley and Boldwood books for an eARC! If you like rom-coms, I'd suggest you add this one to your list-- you haven't read one like it!

Leighton is studying for graduate school, and she doesn't have a love life. One day she finds a book that only has the beginning and the end written, that night she begins to have dreams about the protagonist of the book, Killian, and as she dreams about him she falls in love.

Killian is a character in a book who somehow manages to get out of it and into the real world. In the book he was a billionaire, but in the real world he has to start from scratch.

I'm not a fan big fan of this trope and so it was hard for me to really get into the book. I love Camila Isley and the writing style is really great, it just didn't really get me as excited as most of her books do.

This is a solid 4 star book. Thank you NetGalley and Camilla Isley for an advanced copy.

I really enjoyed this book. The story was very interesting and I could not put this book down. I would highly recommend this book!

I love all the bookish references and how the FMC's character as book nerd was manifested in her choices and thoughts. I thought it was a bit creepy in the middle and I constantly felt wary if Killian will disappear. The way they navigate their relationship from the fictional world to the real world is smooth.

However, I read this for a bit longer time because at some point the plot became a bit boring and super cheesy for me. But if you don't mind the cheesy-ness (to be fair, it's not that bad) and like a cozy romance, I think this is for you.

It Started With a Book is creative, funny, outlandish but in a good way and entertaining. This is definitely different than what I’ve previously read but it worked!

This books premise involves a character in a romance book coming to real life! It kind of reminded me of that Tyra Banks movie about a Barbie coming to real life lol but of course this book is way better than that movie since the MMC is swoon worthy & absolute perfection!

The FMC was a bit frustrating due to her history with dating. I did wish there was more depth to the characters but it was fine.

Overall, I didn’t love or hate the book, it was creative & entertaining.

✨Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher Boldwood Books & of course the author, Camilla Isley for the ARC! ✨

Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced e-copy of It Started with a Book, in exchange for an honest review.

'It Started with a Book' by Camilla Isley is an interesting and escapist novel that follows Leigh, a frustrated 24-year-old grad student, as she embarks on a literary adventure that blurs the lines between reality and fiction.

Fed up with unfulfilling dating experiences, Leigh seeks solace in a cowboy billionaire romance novel. As she delves into the pages one Friday night, she finds herself transported into the story as the protagonist, falling head over heels for the enigmatic Killian St. Clair.

As Leigh's dreams unfold, she becomes consumed by the allure of this handsome and dangerous bad boy. The vivid descriptions and intense chemistry between Leigh and Killian make for a captivating and immersive reading experience.

However, the story takes an unexpected turn when Leigh wakes up and discovers Killian lying beside her. This is where the novel truly excels. The transition from the dream world to reality is handled with skill and humor, as Killian navigates the modern world with his charming cowboy swagger and witty banter.

While the opening chapters may feel a bit slow for some readers, they lay the groundwork for the compelling and entertaining story that follows. The pacing becomes more dynamic once Killian enters the real world, and the interactions between him and Leigh are both heartwarming and hilarious.

Overall, 'It Started with a Book' is a truly different and escapist read that will appeal to fans of romantic comedies, paranormal fiction, and stories that explore the boundaries between dreams and reality. The well-developed characters, witty dialogue, and imaginative plot make this novel a worthwhile addition to any reader's bookshelf.
This was a 4.5 Star read for me!

Leighton esta estudiando un posgrado, su vida amorosa está muerta. Un dia se encuentra un libro que sólo está escrito el principio y el final, esa noche empieza a tener sueños con el protagonista del libro, Killian, y conforme sueña con él se va enamorando.

Killian es un personaje de un libro que de alguna manera logra salir de el y va al mundo real. En el libro era un multimillonario, pero en el mundo real tiene que empezar desde cero.
Ninguno de los dos sabe como es que fue posible salir del libro y en que momento tendrá que regresar.


Faltó que Killian tuviera povs para verlo como algo más ... como una persona real y no un personaje de libro porque todo lo que le pasó lo tomó muy bien y jamás se vio que estuviera desconcertado por el cambio de su vida, ni siquiera al enterarse que estaba viviendo en un libro.


Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Stuck in the dating dumps, Leighton decides to stuff it all and dive straight into her TBR pile of books. Picking up a cowboy romance book however has an unforeseen consequence. She finds herself dreaming every night about her own life in the book - fending off the advances of millionaire heartthrob Killian.

I was hooked by the idea of living a life inside a book. It’s such an interesting concept and has me wondering which book I’d fall into if I had the choice. It was a shame that, once Killian became a lot more real than previously, the plot derailed itself. There just didn’t seem to be any problems or challenges that the characters needed to overcome that wasn’t solved in two pages or less.

Overall, a cute, easy-read, fluffy romance filled with near on all the tropes you could wish for.

A really interesting concept. I wasn't sure if I would enjoy the book. But I did enjoy it. I'm still a little unsure of the fictional character coming to life part of the story but if I ignore that part, then I loved it. Lots of fun romantic moments,