A sweet story that makes you smile

"First-Time Caller" is the latest romance novel by B.K. Borison and tells a sweet story of a young mother and a radio host.

With "First-Time Caller" B.K. Borison has almost knocked "Lovelight Farms" off its throne and is now one of my favorite books by her.

Maya, Lucie’s daughter, made me smile all the time and I really loved the relationship between her and her mother Lucie. In general, I think the whole patchwork family is great because they are so warm and funny and you can see how much they love each other in every interaction.

The banter between Aiden and Lucie is top-tier! And that was definitely my favorite part of the whole book. That was definitely my favorite part of the whole book, along with the nostalgic feelings it brought up while reading.

Lucie is a pretty cool mom who is raising their daughter together with her best friend. But what I probably liked the most is that Lucie is a mechanic and you don’t see that very often in books!

Aiden is the host of Baltimore's romance hotline and isn't exactly known for his cuddly nature. He doesn't believe in love, which is pretty ironic considering he works on a radio show that’s all about romance. But hand on heart. I think Aiden is great! He can be protective, funny and thoughtful. He and Lucie are made for each other.

I give "First-Time Caller" 4 out of 5 stars.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC.

From the very first chapter, I knew this one was going to be something special. The banter? Perfection. The chemistry? Off the charts. The whole late-night radio call-in concept? Absolutely adorable and so well done.

I loved the way the romance unfolded, it felt so natural, so effortlessly charming, and I couldn’t get enough of these characters. The emotional depth was beautifully balanced with humour, making this a book I just didn’t want to put down.

Would I recommend it? A thousand times yes. If you love heartfelt, swoon-worthy romance with characters you actually root for, then add this to your TBR immediately.

Calling all romantics, even the reluctant ones…

B.K. Borison is a first time hit! This book gave me the giddy, kicking your feet, swooning goodness and wrapped it up like a 90’s romcom. I adored the characters, the premise, the setting and the execution was perfect. Think Sleepless in Seattle meets Stars Hollow, yet entirely authentic.

Aiden x Lucie. He’s grumpy, she’s sunshine. He’s a demoralised radio host and she’s a hopeless romantic. They’re perfect for each other and I’d marry him in a heartbeat. I loved that their romance bloomed slowly and organically behind the scenes of the radio station as they tentatively navigated their mission to find Lucie her one true love.

This romance felt fresh and nostalgic all at once. It’s new yet familiar, sweet but with a gorgeously portioned dollop of spice, I honestly cannot fault it. The story is sweet, tender, electric, exciting, raw and oh so fun, everything a great romance should be. It felt like slipping on an old, favourite sweater, worn but comforting.

First Time Caller was perfect and I truly cannot recommend it highly enough.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an e-arc of this book.

*3.5 stars*

I did enjoy this book, and I enjoyed the exploration of love (in all its forms) throughout the book. I really connected with Lucie and her desires from her life, and this is one of the first times in a book where I was literally highlighting so much of the text because I felt so seen in a character.

I feel like if I’d read this whilst I wasn’t travelling I could have connected a lot more to the story, cause I was reading it so disjointedly.

Lucie's unique little family was so adorable, and I love that it just made sense about her platonic love with Grayson, it never had to be explained in massive detail about how they were exes but also best friends.

I really enjoyed seeing Aiden's character development throughout the book. From the first phone call with Lucie, you could see him lighten up so much, but it was really clear even when they were interacting how much he was holding himself back, due to things that had happened in his past. I really loved how much he showed up for Lucie, even despite believing differently about love to her, and how he supported everything she wanted for herself.

This book had B. K. Borison's typical magic sprinkled all over it, and I'm really excited to read Jackson's book when that comes out.

This was ADORABLE. The characters, from Lucie and Aiden, to the side characters, all felt so genuinely real. The co-parenting dynamics between Lucie, Grayson and Grayson's husband Mateo, were so healthy and lovely and refreshing. The romance between Lucie and Aiden was slow burn and felt so natural, I felt so giggly watching them fall for each other! The only thing I struggled with was the third-act breakup - it felt so unnecessary for them, they didn't need to break up at all. Other than that, I absolutely loved this and I'm really excited to see which character will be the focus of the next book!

I just love this 🩷

Think sleepless in Seattle! Our FMC daughter calls into a radio station to find love for her mum , she eventually ends up there to seek love and go through people who’ve reached out whilst the radio host, our grumpy guy realises he’s head over heels with our main character.

Such a lovely , heartwarming romance and such a fun premise to have met via the radio.

A quick and easy book to fly through and enjoyable from start to end 🩷

My first B.K. Borison and certainly not my last!
I loved the premise - Lucie and Aiden meeting through a radio show and subsequently starting a segment on the show to find Lucie a date. What could possibly go wrong?!
I adored the healthy family dynamic between Lucie, her daughter and her ex-partner and his new partner, it was so refreshing. Mainly, though, I loved the connection between Lucie and Aiden. It felt so natural and real. The flirting and the genuine laugh out loud moments, the raw and emotional side to the story- I just adored it.

I knew this was going to be five stars about a quarter of the way into the book. This author crafts sentences so beautifully and had me smiling so much. I loved the whole nostalgic storyline that was inspired by “Sleepless in Seattle” which is a perfect movie. I loved Lucie so much. She is a single mom and auto mechanic doing her best when her daughter calls into a radio station to find love for her mom. The romance hotline host, Aiden, is a grump who no longer believes in love. The story progresses to Lucie ending up on the show on a quest to find love and Aiden figuring out he’s obsessed with her. I love found family as a trope and there was a huge amount of it. It was glorious. Jackson needs his own story as well as Patty and Aiden’s terrifying boss Maggie. I enjoyed every second of this lovely and healing story. I finished it very quickly and loved the dual POV chapters. I was so engrossed and had a lovely time. Read this if you want to feel hope about love again.

B.K. Borison made it hereby officially into my auto-buy always a good time favorite author list 🥂

"First-Time Caller" was so cute and adorable, yet emotional and heartwarming, but also entertaining, funny and steamy, all while being relatable, honest, and full of little things I want to remember about self-worth, love, and loss. I loved it.

"And a part of me, a teeny-tiny sliver of myself, is still waiting. To bump into someone on the street or pick up the wrong coffee order. For the right person at the right time in exactly the right place. To not have to try so damn hard at any of it. It's the romantic in me [...]. And maybe it's childish or naive or whatever, but it's me. I'm allowed to want soft, special things."

I fell in love with Lucie and her adorable family. I fell in love with Aiden and his loss for the right words. I fell in love with all the supportive friends and family, the feminism through and through, the jokes, the bantering, and most importantly - the growth.

"I told Aiden that I'm tired of wasting time on things that don't feel like everything I've ever wanted for myself, but I'm not sure that's true. I don't know what I want for myself. It's all twisted up in the things I think I deserve, then squashed under the things I'm brave enough to reach for. I don't think I've ever thought about any of it long enough to know what I want."

Also, as always, B.K. Borison delivered an amazing new book boyfriend, just saying... might be my favorite so far of hers. A few examples to support this thesis:

"'Who the fuck made you cry?' I snap."

"'You're bossy.'
'I certainly can be.'"

"'You have a pineapple pizza?'
'I do.'
'You said pineapple on pizza is disgusting.'
'It is.'
'Then why do you have it?'
'Because you said it was your favorite. And I want your favorite to be my favorite.'"

A call into the radio station by adorable daughter Maya to help get her mother Lucie back out there and date, results in a radio show by Aiden and Lucie to push this along.

"You tell me all the time you have all the love you need. That you're fit to burst with our family and all the people in it. But I thought, maybe just this once, you could have the love you deserve too."

And them sitting in the tiny booth together resulted in so many funny, cute, heartwarming, and toe-curling moments - I loved it so much. I don't even want to take anything away. But when you love romances with cute, movie-worthy scenes and adorable family and friends while helping overcome relatable insecurities and struggles to help them grow - this is the book.

"When the whole world tells you you're silly for wanting the things you want, you start to believe them. You start to think you're not worth it. That if the things you're waiting for do exist, they're not for someone like you."

I am in love with this book (also, the cover is to die for 😍) and will eat up everything B.K. Borison serves and leave no crumbs.

"'What do you need to fix?'
'Me. I need to fix me.'"

Thank you, Netgalley, Pan Macmillan and B.K. Borison for the arc in exchange for an honest review. This is my second arc and fourth book after Business Casual (Lovelight Farms #4) by B.K. Borison (which I loved as well), and I am so so grateful and happy - thank you!

"I want goose bumps. I want to be wanted."

"Yeah, I guess sometimes I do get lonely."

This is the first B. K. Borison book I have read and it won't be the last.

First Time Caller is a charming contemporary romance full of heartfelt moments and personal growth. We are introduced to Aiden who has given up on the concept of love and Lucie who wants nothing more than to experience the magic that love brings. Their chemistry is undeniable and the time they spend together throughout the book is very sweet and I was constantly cheering them on.

This book is perfect for those who enjoy:

- Forced Proximity
- Grumpy ✘ Sunshine
- Slow Burn
- Dual POV

Thank you Pan Macmillan and Netgalley for the e-arc to review.

First-Time Caller was one of my most highly anticipated reads for 2025, with Business Casual, B. K. Borison's last book, being in my all time favourites list at 7th place. So needless to say I have been putting this off a little despite being lucky enough to receive an arc.
The disappointment for not enjoying my time with this book is so real. It started off well, setting up a slow-burn romance but I was ready for some good tension between our main characters, Aiden and Lucie. Unfortunately, the main let down for this book was our MMC. What a red flag of a man. The jealousy and possessiveness? Stomach-churning. His attitude towards Lucie was nothing I could root for and this particularly manifested during the spicy scenes which were not enjoyable whatsoever.
I'm so confused as to why this romantic pairing makes sense, what do they have in common?
Lucie also has a 12-year-old, whose character I felt to be odd in terms of behaviours for that age.
There was a lot of conflict, but at the 90% mark another came up and I was genuinely fed up of reading this book, obviously this was then resolved unrealistically fast.
I've never rooted for a completely different man, but really Lucie should've picked Colin. Or even the other guy she went out on a date with, who I can't remember his name but know he was much more likeable than Aiden.
B.K. Borison, I love your writing style, but these two didn't work for me unfortunately. I guess I somewhat enjoyed the mixed media aspect with the radio show but I don't have many positives to say otherwise. I am so gutted I don't love this as much as I hoped. I'm probably not going to continue with this series, as the next book's set-up doesn't sound particularly promising.
1.5 stars (rounded up to 2 on NetGalley)

Thank you to NetGalley, Pan Macmillan and B.K. Borison for the opportunity to read this advanced reader copy.

Review posted to Goodreads, StoryGraph, Amazon and Waterstones.

I knew I had to read First Time Caller after reading and loving other novels by B.K. Borison. First Time Caller is not exception, and in fact may be my favourite book by Borison I have read so far!

Inspired by the infamous romance movie, Sleepless In Seattle, this story has all the warm, nostalgic feelings of a heart warming rom-com. On every page I could picture exactly how this would look on screen, and as someone that is a sucker for a 90's rom-com movie, I lapped it up. This book had be giggling and kicking my legs like a teenage girl. I mean HE LITERALLY KEEPS A LIST OF HER FAVOURITE THINGS IN HIS GLOVEBOX.

I think this book is filled with an amazing, fully fleshed out ensemble of characters that add so much to this story and give the reader the loveliest example of found family ever. What do you mean she lives next door to her daughter's dad and his husband and they all co-parent their kid as the best of friends?? Yes yes and yes I love it. And the three guys that she works alongside at the garage that look after her like interfering dads or uncles? I love them all!

I cannot wait for more Nora Ephron inspired stories from B.K Borison to read alongside the "it's the 90's and you're the leading lady in a nora ephron rom-com" playlist I found on spotify (highly recommend for the full fantasy of First Time Caller).

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for allowing me to read an advanced copy of this book in exchange of a review.

THIS BOOK!! I absolutely loved it with my whole heart. I adored B.K Borrison's Lovelight Farms series so I was really excited to hear that she was publishing new interconnected series and especially that they would be based on Nora Ephron films, and this first instalment did not disappoint. It felt so nostalgic to the Sleepless in Seattle film of which it was inspired by while also keeping the plot fresh and new. I loved the found family and the chemistry between the two main characters was electric!

Lucy thought she was doing okay... until her tweenage daughter calls in to a romance hotline, asking for advice on her behalf. Now she's looking for love on-air... but will jaded radio host Aiden prove to be a help, a hindrance, or something else entirely? Inspired by Sleepless in Seattle, I fell head over heels for this romcom - perfect for fans of Emily Henry!

Today is my stop on the tour for First-Time Caller by B.K.Borison 💖 Thank you so much to the lovely Chloe at Pan Macmillan for my copy and for having me on the tour!

I have been so EXCITED for this book!! I love B.K. Borison’s Lovelight series and Sleepless in Seattle is one my favourite films so I immediately knew I was going to love this!

I’m obsessed with the concept and our characters - Aiden who has given up on the idea of love and Lucie who wants to find the magic. They had such an instant chemistry that carried beautifully throughout the story, I couldn’t help but smile everytime they interacted! Lucie was such a lovely character - I’m pretty sure I fell in love with her too during this book 😂

Plus, the side characters were so fun and the humour throughout this book is amazing! I haven’t giggled out loud like that in so long and it gave me all of the same wonderful romcom feels that my favourite movies do!

This was such a magical and romantic read, I feel like my heart is about to burst! This is being added to my all time favourite reads list and is definitely going to be a comfort read for me that I come back to time and time again!

First-Time Caller is the rom com of my dreams, I loved it so much! 💖

EASY FIVE STARS!!! this is for all the classic rom com lovers. i loved the story, the romance, the characters, the pacing... every thing was perfect!! B.K. Borison - you have done it again!!

Another awesome book from Borison - I fell in love with Lovelight series and I can already tell this series will make me fall in love as well. Aiden is fed up of love, dealing with as your day job can make something lose its sparkle. Insert Lucie who is forced into the public eye because of her own daughter. This book made me laugh so much and it gave me the all the feels. I cannot wait for the next!

I was intrigued to read this one given all the excitement about it online but came to the conclusion that it's slightly over-hyped. That said, it's a good, serviceable romance from a reliable author who knows what their readers want and will suit anyone looking for a cute, easy read very well

I would like to thank the publisher for giving me the opportunity to read this book!
First-Time Caller was my first ever book from B. K. Borison, but definitely not the last! This story had everything I needed. It's like a warm blanket on a chilly evening. It was so refreshing seeing older main characters as the leads for a romance book. I resonated with everything Lucie stands for, and my feelings felt so validated by her thoughts and feelings. I cannot recommend this book enough!

Reading a BK Borison book is like slipping under a cozy blanket with a warm sugary drink, it's comforting and sweet.
Aiden and Lucie were so cute and I could not help but root for them throughout the whole book.