The two main characters meet and instantly I feel like I dislike them. There’s no chemistry, no banter.

Dylan kind of forces himself into her life when she says she doesn’t date anyone at the moment, for a very legitimate reason.

Scarlett thinks very highly of herself in the beginning of the book. She actually wonders at some point if there are bugs in his hat… I mean come on?!

Then all of a sudden she is okay with him coming over to her apartment and he randomly gives her a peck on the lips while persuading her to go on a date with him. It’s just weird. Not rooting for these two at all at the moment.

DNF at 30%

3.5 rounded up because it kept me interested enough to read in one sitting.

Love at first sight, closed door romance. Dylan sees Scarlett and knows it’s love, chases her while also becoming a famous musician. Scarlett deals with her own past (dead boyfriend) and present (awful boss).

The banter was lacking, it felt like something was off in the writing and I didn’t really feel their chemistry for most of the book. Also, knowing it’s a love at first sight this makes sense but I struggled to see why either character quickly falls in love with the other. We don’t know a ton about them and they don’t know much about each other, either.

A few other issues I had with the book - early on, it appears that Dylan says her name even though he doesn’t know it yet? Maybe I read this wrong but that felt like a pretty big oversight. Also, all of the women in this book are servers in some way, and I didn’t love it. All of the men have big powerful jobs while the women are below them. Finally, I was little confused on time passing during second half and how quickly Dylan becomes famous. It feels like a lot of time has passed but also that only a couple of months has gone by, so this was a little distracting.

Slight spoiler - The main conflict comes earlier than I expected in the book, again giving us even less time to understand why these two are meant to be together.

This book was a great romcom. I enjoyed the witty banter. It was a fabulous read and I highly recommend it to fellow romcom readers!

Anyone But You by Jackie Ladbury
Rating: 4/5
Release Date: 19 June 2024

Scarlett De Verre has given up on men, focusing on her career as a flight attendant to leave her past behind. Dylan Willis, an aspiring rock star stuck in small London gigs, falls for Scarlett instantly and pursues both fame and her affection.

Despite her reluctance to date someone seeking fame, Scarlett can't deny her attraction to Dylan, and they soon become inseparable.

As Dylan lands a recording contract, Scarlett celebrates with him. However, their journey to stardom faces a challenge when Scarlett's undisclosed past comes to light, making her the centre of media attention instead of Dylan.

Dylan is portrayed as a lovable, albeit awkward, character with a heart of gold. Despite his clumsiness and tendency to say the wrong thing, he genuinely cares for Scarlett and falls for her first. He brings sunshine to the story with his unwavering loyalty to Scarlett.

Scarlett, on the other hand, struggles with inner turmoil and initially pushes Dylan away due to her own insecurities. While she may come across as cold at first, as the story unfolds and her backstory is revealed, her behaviour becomes more understandable.

The narrative is presented in third person, a refreshing departure from the usual first person, dual/multiple POV format. The descriptive writing style immerses readers into the story, allowing them to fully experience the characters' journey.

I would happily recommend “Anyone But You” if you enjoy an easy, sweet contemporary read.

Thank you so much to NetGalley, Joffe Books | Choc Lit, and the author, Jackie Ladbury, for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest and fair review.

I really enjoyed this story at the beginning. The characters were likable. The plot was far-fetched perhaps and a bit cliche, but I didn’t mind; it was a light, easy read. There was a cute niece and a cute dog, etc. The story got a bit darker later, but had a good message about the dangers of drugs.

Later in the story, though, I was put off by all of the cliche, contrived fights and miscommunication leading to weird games; the mixed messaging about unwanted kisses and about alcohol overuse; and the inconsistent character motivations. It didn’t lead me to believe that Dylan and Scarlett could have a happy, healthy relationship.

Even though the story wasn’t my cup of tea, I could still see many others enjoying it!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the free eARC. This review contains my honest opinions.

Content note: story contains references to off-page drug use.

**Advance copy provided for an honest review. Thank you to NetGalley, Joffe Books and Choc Lit! All views expressed are entirely my own**

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, I couldn’t put it down! I was in the mood for a feel-good, light read and this definitely scratched that itch for me.

We meet our male main character first, a street busker named Dylan who wants to make a name for himself with his music. He spots our female main character, Scarlett (an air stewardess for a private plane company), one day while busking and is immediately enamoured when she stops to listen to his music and gives him some money. Dylan hopes to see her again so he can ask her on a date, and looks out for her every day while he is busking. When they see each other again, Scarlett gives Dylan a frosty reception and tells him she doesn’t date. Scarlett’s ex died of a drug overdose two years prior, and she hasn’t been with anyone since - stuck in her grief and guilt over not getting him help. Dylan won’t be deterred, though, and makes it his mission to get Scarlett to fall in love with him.

Dylan is an absolute cinnamon roll, I loved his character! He has his flaws - he’s seriously awkward and seems to suffer with a bad case of foot-in-mouth disease, but he means well. He’s seriously ride or die for Scarlett and he definitely falls first. The whole premise gives off serious grumpy/sunshine vibes, but in this instance he is the sunshine.

Scarlett just can’t seem to get out of her head and out of her own way. I found her a little irritating at first because she’s super standoffish and cold toward Dylan (poor guy is trying his best!) but as the book went on and we got more backstory on her, you can kind of understand why she acts that way in the beginning.

The writing is in third person, which I quite enjoyed. I’m so used to first person, dual/multiple POV stories that this was a nice change for me. I found the writing to be excellent, very descriptive and immersive. I was gripped from start to finish by this book and I feel it absolutely deserves 5 stars!

Overview of the book:
Friends to lovers
He falls first
Celebrity characters
CW: off-page drug overdose
Fade-to-black sexual scenes
CW: sexual harassment (not by MCs, FMC’s boss is harassing her)
HEA
Part of a series but can be read as a standalone
Cinnamon Roll MMC
Grumpy FMC
Slight ow/om drama (no cheating between MCs, but there are misunderstandings and jealousy)

Would I recommend this book? Absolutely! If you’re looking for a sweet contemporary romance, and enjoy the friends to lovers trope, this is definitely the book for you.