I found myself enjoying this read however the more I think about the more that I'm sure that there were things I think could have worked better for me and I find a 3/3.5 star rating is the right place to sit with my thoughts.

I really enjoyed reading about the characters and seeing what they were going to do along with watching their romance develop as the story went on. I don't think I've really read anything like this before in a really positive way and there were so many scenes I had a great time reading but there were also parts that I wasn't so taken by and definitely wished had been done differently, and found to be sat in the middle of two different directions I would potentially have enjoyed more.

I thought the con part would be good fun but in many ways I found that it and the romance were competing for page space with neither really winning. The parts of the con that we saw definitely weren't the parts that interested me and I would have either liked a larger focus on the con with it taking up more page space then the romance or it taking a proper backseat and just being a side plot line with a larger focus on Preston and Harmony's relationship developing as I just found the way it was done didn't really work for me. Instead we saw lots of Harmony and Alice, her partner to pull off the con, dealing with the issues arising or the challenging members of the town instead of how they pull these things off, so I do think either less or more would both have worked better for me.

The thing that initially pushed me to pick this one up was the Autism Librarian representation which was probably actually my favourite part of the book. I liked that we saw both Preston and Lacey, his younger sister, who are two autistic siblings who both find things challenging and I liked that it showed how big the range of the autistic experience can be with Lacey's struggles with school and her classmates and just how Preston approaches his adult life making adaptations to make things work better for him. It was also nice to Preston understand how Lacey struggled and make their life fit him rather than her fit their life, and as he did so you could easily tell that he got it and wanted her to have a better experience than she previously had or he did at times.
I also really liked that Harmony just worked with him and didn't try to change him instead supported him when he struggled, doing what she could to understand and make things easier.

Overall I found this to be a book I had some really positive feelings towards but wished other parts had been done differently. I would recommend it and the representation to others to read and might consider picking up more from this author in the future.

Well written with two clear voices to differentiate the POVs. Though the same repeated typos/formatting issues were very annoying.

I loved the autistic pov. I was hesitant at first because we're usually described as such charicatures, but this was refreshing, and I'm so happy to see us getting better more accurate representation (in that there's a large variety of ways one can be autistic). Preston had clearly worked on integrating many coping strategies into his life, and he grew on me very fast. I would've loved to see more about some of his struggles, in his mind, other than over talking. I adored how Harmony did her own research and was so accepting of everything, it would've been cool to see her thought process focus on that even a little bit though.

I had a much harder time enjoying Harmony's character; I did not like her for most of the story, she annoyed me for a chunk of the book. She came off as vapid, flighty, uncaring, and selfish. However, the snippets of her being a real person, like when she changed her whole mood because of a positive text from Preston, started to endear her to me. It became clear the parts that annoyed me were an act she had put on for herself too, and she was much more likeable when she let her true self shine.

The writing also did an excellent job at showing how much thought Harmony was putting into the smallest of her actions to manipulate people, something I found lacking in some other similar stories.

Usually with a romcom you can just sit and get lost in the moment, but there was underlying tension throughout, that never went away, because you know they're going to get hurt when the truth comes out, right at the begining. I kept reminding myself it would end well, because it stressed me out so much. There is a HEA so I wasn't always sure how, and I'm happy with how the book tied everything together.

Cute story about 2 different characters who find each other eventually. Nice little romance touches along the way. Worthy of 4 stars.

I had high expectations for "My Kind of Trouble" due to its interesting plot of a con woman, inclusive characters, and dual point of view narrative. Unfortunately, the novel falls short of these promises in several key areas.

Despite the engaging premise, the characters themselves are disappointingly bland. They lack the depth and complexity needed to truly captivate readers. As a result, I found it challenging to connect with or care about their journeys. The writing, while competent, does not succeed in immersing the reader in the world of the story. I struggled to stay engaged, often feeling detached from the unfolding events.

The book is also plagued by a lot of filler content that seems superfluous. There are numerous passages that could be skipped without losing any crucial plot points. This is particularly evident in the "character bonding" scenes, which felt uninspired and monotonous. The attempts at deepening relationships between characters come off as dull rather than meaningful.

The romance, which is a central element of the story, comes across as superficial. It relies heavily on physical attraction rather than a genuine emotional connection, which undermines its potential impact.

In summary, while "My Kind of Trouble" has a promising setup, its execution leaves much to be desired. The lackluster characters, disengaging writing, and overuse of filler content result in a reading experience that fails to deliver on its initial promise.

Conwoman Harmony Hale has been tricking people everywhere she goes by selling them the idea of a non existent music festival but when she ends up in Brookville, where she has her eyes set on the mayor whom she has a past with, things don’t seem to be going as smoothly when the man whom owns the potential festival site doesn’t seem to be convinced of her plans. When they ultimately come to a mutual agreement, Harmony finds herself conflicted since she’s starting to feel more for this local, dorky librarian which wasn’t what she had planned. So now all that’s left for her is to choose between getting her revenge or maybe finally finding something she thought she would never have again, love.


* I gave this book three stars. I didn’t think it was bad but I also didn’t find myself really wanting to continue it. I thought it was a bit boring at times but I think that might be because I wasn’t vibing with the whole “conwoman” thing. I do feel like this was a good debut, the writing was very pleasant and the autistic representation was very well portrayed. I will read more from this author in the future.

My Kind of Trouble was a very fun enemies to lovers good time.

Harmony had a rough time to life after her dad was betrayed by a former business partner. She pushed through and found her calling: scamming bad guys in small towns. It has all built up to her latest job, avenging her father. When she gets there though, things aren't as smooth as normal, including an unexpected roadblock of the local librarian, Preston.

This was a really enjoyable book and I loved the autism representation as an autistic person myself. I found that harmony tred a very fine line of being likeable and manipulative, and it didn't always work for me personally. I could have done with one or two more twists and mini successes in the plot to keep it exciting but I'm very glad I read it.

I think this is where I must part with Ms. Schwartz.

Despite my meh feelings on her sophomore novel back in April, I still wanted to believe. I've been wanting to read more romance, anyway. But, man, this was just so boring.

Both main characters are so bland and don't have much going beyond how they're described in the synopsis. I was able to tolerate Preston a bit more, but Harmony's POV made me want to drop so badly. Not because she as a bad character, but because there's so much excessive focus on the music festival con that wasn't interesting, whatsoever. It's almost impressive that Schwartz made pulling off a con so tedious to read.

Another thing that really bothered me was how preachy this book got. Don't get me wrong, I'm very left-wing and very much agree with all the stances this book makes throughout the story, but the delivery was very much a bad after-school special. It made it such a grating read.

I honestly don't have much more to say. I'd rather not waste anymore energy on this book, nor anything else Schwartz may publish in the future.

"My Kind of Trouble" is a romance written by L. A. Schwartz, here at her debut.

I loved this book! Fast, light and fun, it entertained me so much. The effervescent writing and teasing pace kept me glued to the pages, pushing me to finish it in a few hours. I'm not particularly fond of romance books written in the third person, and "My Kind of Trouble" is written in third person, but I admit that didn't bother me.

The small town of Brookville won me over with its delightful settings and extremely picturesque atmosphere! The accurate and vivid descriptions allowed me to easily imagine the various places and I liked them a lot!

Harmony and Preston, protagonists with their respective third person povs, won me over! Harmony is a skilled con artist, who acts not out of malice but motivated by a kind of sense of justice. Having arrived in Brookville to take revenge on its wealthy mayor, responsible for ruining her father's life, she is ready to create a spectacular new con. Harmony is an ironic, determined, and cunning woman who beneath her deceptions and manipulations hides a good heart and deep scars. I liked her, amused me and found her well delineated! Also I loved her being plus size! My heart, however, goes to Preston, an autistic librarian and piano teacher, totally dedicated to the care of his younger sister and committed to confronting those who want to shut down his library programs and get him fired. I loved Preston and found the representation of autism really well managed! Preston's little sister warmed my heart, but in general I enjoyed many of the secondary characters. The development of the relationship between Harmony and Preston made me laugh, smile and swoon and I can't express anything but kudos!

Thank you to the Publisher and NetGalley for giving me an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

It was refreshing to read about a con artist heroine and a librarian hero! Schwartz' originality shines through with her touch of characterization and plot development and leads to the sweetest romance for book lovers and artists, alike. While I do not read third-person very often, I was only bothered by a few vague moments but really enjoyed Harmony and Preston's story. The representation also felt as authentic as the romance and I enjoyed seeing all the trouble a librarian and con artist can get up to! Would recommend for fans of Dishonestly Yours by Krista & Becca Ritchie!

Cute! The only thing that disturbed me was the third person. I liked the representation, both characters represent two different communities. Curios to read more about this author!