"Deeply Personal" by Suzanne Collier is a contemporary romance that explores unexpected love between two career-focused individuals. This slow-burn romance is sprinkled with humor and delves into themes of starting anew and embracing vulnerability. While some readers appreciate its lighthearted and feel-good nature, others have noted issues with pacing and character development. Overall, it's a heartfelt story about finding love when least expected.

I am a huge fan of traditional romance, although there are certain “tropes” that I enjoy more than others. One of my favorites is “fake relationship.” Because of this, I was super excited to read this book.

I was pretty nervous to read this book, as it does look like this author is new to the genre. I needn’t have worried too much. Although the book is told in third person, I did like that it had alternating perspectives.

Usually, when reading a book like this, there is a character that I am “rooting for” more than the other. The interesting this about this book is that I was never on any one character’s side.

Ultimately, I truly enjoyed the book, and felt completely satisfied with the ending. Not to be a spoiler, but there was a question that I would have liked to have answered in the book. Because of that, it keeps me from giving this book five stars. It is still a solid first entry into the genre, though!

**I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.**

Thank you to NetGalley and Splitrail Publishing for providing me a copy of this book. I wished I had liked this book but I simply didn’t. I felt like the author started with the one plot of the book and then changed it 30% of the way through. The description of the book was that they would swap skillsets (him training her/her remodeling his condo) but we never got any real scenes with them doing that. In fact, he never even trains her, at all. Instead we’re taken through chapters about how they run their businesses. The plot had so much potential but ultimately fell flat for me.

⭐️⭐️⭐️ (3.25)

This book started off like a cozy promise. Turkey Trot. Fainting heroine. Personal trainer hero who literally sweeps her off her feet. Fake dating. Skill swap. It gave all the rom-com cues I usually adore. I was ready to melt.

And for the first 20–30%? I kind of did. I was vibing with it—the meet-cute was adorable, Jessica felt like the kind of overworked, slightly messy but lovable woman I root for, and Paul had just the right amount of “sweet but avoidant” energy. Like maybe this was going to be a healing story in disguise.

But then… something shifted. I kept waiting for the book to circle back to the setup it sold me. The idea that Paul would train her, help her reclaim her health, that maybe movement would become part of her healing arc while she redesigned his life (and maybe his heart). But the swap never really happens. She fixes his condo. He… kind of floats around, flirts, suggests fake dating for business reasons—and suddenly, we’re deep in side character subplots, business technicalities, and long monologues about furniture.

Don’t get me wrong—there are sweet moments. Some internal reflections that felt grounded and real. But the chemistry? It never fully lands. The emotional intimacy between them felt more like colleagues warming to each other than two people falling helplessly in love.

There’s also something frustrating about feeling like the story changed genres mid-way through. I signed up for a slow-burn rom-com, not a lightly dramatic career-woman-takes-on-life-alone-while-sort-of-dating story. It’s not bad. But it’s not what it told me it would be either. And that disconnect? It lingered.

The ending had its soft swoon, sure. But I couldn’t help thinking how much more meaningful it would’ve been if the story had stayed true to its setup. The emotional punch that could’ve landed if we’d actually seen them help each other grow, instead of just orbiting around their individual struggles.

It’s not a bad book. It’s just a bit confused. Like it had a great first date vibe, but ghosted me halfway through and came back with a new personality. I wanted to love it more than I did.

Thank you to NetGalley and Splitrail Publishing for the ARC.

Unfortunately, the novel fell short of my expectations. Jessica's character was difficult to connect with and overall unlikeable. She was obsessive about financial struggles but then treated everyone to a party where they call all bring a +1. It often felt like it would say one thing and then do another. She would need to expand and hire new people if this deal closed, but she was struggling to make payroll and would not be able to sustain the expansion. This emphasis on her career detracted from the development of her relationship with Paul, while not fully portraying eithers development. Additionally, I felt like their relationship went from fake dating to facetiming because they missed each other from 0 to 100.

The narrative structure also posed challenges. While written in the third person, the story attempts to present a dual perspective, leading to confusion and disrupting the flow of the plot. This approach made it difficult to fully engage with either character's internal experiences.​

Moreover, the depiction of Jessica's health condition lacked depth. Despite the initial emphasis on her heart issues, the story fails to realistically portray the lifestyle changes and daily challenges associated with managing a chronic illness. This oversight diminishes the authenticity of her character's journey and missed an opportunity to provide meaningful insight into living with such a condition.

Jessica and Paul should have been a cute couple, but instead they had the chemistry of an 8th grade laboratory. It was messy and convoluted, and I wanted it to work well but it just didn't. It's a cute premise with a lot of promise, but needs more umph.

Fake dating
Meet cute
Romcom
Closed door
MMC personal trainer
FMC interior design


I LOVED the beginning of this book. The meet cute at the turkey trot was everything. Then about 30% in it lost me. I struggled to feel connected to the characters, didn't feel their connection. It took me weeks to finish this book 🙃 when I'm normally a fast reader.

Arc given through netgalley by Splitrail Publishing

Requested and received an ARC of this book from NetGalley almost three months ago but only got to reading it now. The premise sounds similar to another book I have come across on Romance booktok, which also I have not read.

Deeply Personal revolves around an interior designer who is recently been diagnosed with a health condition and a physical fitness trainer. Both of them have had traumatic experiences with parents as children, which comes up often as something that brings them closer but is not really a narrative point.

The book is somewhere between a breezy read and a romance with angst or deep feelings and I think the writer has hit the sweet spot. There is enough feelings and emotions about their lives but also the romance is pretty sweet and fluffy and transitions from their fake dating to real dating smoothly. The book has no smut, which is a big change for me in romance books these days, but I enjoyed that more than I thought.

The only problem in the book for me is - she has a health condition, he is a fitness trainer - WHY is he not training her? I truly thought that would be the premise looking at the cover and the blurb.

I would definitely recommend this book - like I said it’s above, it’s a light read without being foolish. Thanks NetGalley and SplitRail Publishing for the ARC.

Deeply Personal – Review

This book is everything I love in a rom-com; heartfelt, hilarious, and packed with slow-burn chemistry, haha.

Jessica and Paul’s story starts with a rescue, but their journey is about so much more than just attraction. Their banter is sharp, their dynamic is relatable, and watching them trade skills (fitness for design) makes for some truly fun and flirty moments. This is something I feel like could happen in real life and that is what makes it hit so close to home. As someone who has watched a friend deal with health issues and then meet her love during a doctors appointment, it was an awesome experience reading this book.

If you love romance with lots of humor, cute moments, and characters you can’t help but root for, This book is a must-read! Perfect for fans of Tessa Bailey, Elle Kennedy, etc.

Deeply Personal is a lighthearted romance centered around the classic fake dating trope. Paul is hopelessly awkward around Jessica, leading to some amusing moments, while the story also touches on important health-related themes. Though the plot is enjoyable and clean, it follows a very familiar formula, making it somewhat forgettable. A fine read, but not one that left a mind blowing impression.

Ooof. This book was kind of rough. I probably would have stopped reading it. The pace was slow and the entire style of writing was just not for me. The characters were lackluster and I just kept waiting for something exciting to happen in the plot… but it never appeared.

Deeply Personal got off to a good start for me, but then it quickly petered out after that. I felt like I never really connected with the characters beyond surface level, and the opening YouTube quotes to start chapters drove me crazy.

Thank you to NetGalley for this, but, unfortunately, I couldn't connect to it. I was so EXCITED to read it when the description said it was " perfect for fans of PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT by Sara Adams, FIX HER UP by Tessa Bailey, and SET ON YOU by Amy Lea," which are three of my favorite books. It had elements I would normally love the elements - the meet cute, the fake dating, the forced proximity of working together. - but it just didn't feel like there was a strong plot and the actually writing felt choppy. So much of it felt like it fell off - conflicts didn't seem to pay off, things were resolved too easy, and I just didn't feel like these characters really hit for me the way I hoped they would. It didn't bring the energy of those three books and I think that's what set me up for disappointment, because I was looking for something specific and it just didn't fulfill the promise.

Deeply Personal by Suzanne Collier is the story of interior designer Jessica who has a medical emergency during her local Turkey Trot fun run. When she fainted, Jessica was whisked off to the medical tent by Paul, a local personal trainer. Soon Jessica discovers that Paul has a client that she is desperate to work for and Paul needs to update his condo and so they decide to pretend to be dating because doing so would be mutually beneficial. Of course this leads to a LOT of shenanigans and things become real for both of them as they get to know each other better.

This was a quick and fun read with nothing too extremely deep. There were some funny moments and it was a bit of a slow burn on the romance side with a little bit of a lack of chemistry described between our main characters. If you can look past that and if you enjoy a fun, HEA story with a little workplace romance and fake dating, then you'll enjoy Deeply Personal.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest thoughts.

If you like a double meet cute, no third act drama, fake dating, realistic love then this book is worth reading for you.

There is banter between the main characters which is always a must have in romance books.

Jessica meets Paul when she collapses from dehydration at the Turkey Trot fun walk in a small town in Tennessee. From there there is a slow burn relationship. Jessica is hurt from her past relationship and Paul is a commitment-phobic. In this book we follow their love story.

Honestly, i wanted to love this book. And the beginning looked like it had promise. But it wasn’t it for me.

Based on the description of the book, i thought it would be a romance that blossomed between a personal trainer and an interior designer, while they worked out together and she re-designed his home. Instead it brought in a completely unnecessary fake dating situation. I felt like it was just there to check off of a trope list.

The writing was pretty choppy, and there really wasnt much of a plot.


The good: they did have a good meet-cute. The story has promise. It’s cute if you’re wanting a pretty basic quick read. It does have a HEA.

Feeling a romcom vibe? Check out DEEPLY PERSONAL by Suzanne Collier

I really enjoyed DEEPLY PERSONAL - I found it full of emotion, complex characters and engaging writing.

Though there were some predictable elements, and the pacing was slower in some parts, the book themes were relatable and full of touching moments

Thanks to NetGalley and Splitrail Publishing for the ARC! Opinions are my own

This book started off strong for me but then fell a bit flat for me. I almost DNF'd because I felt like it didn't quite have enough substance. However, there are parts that I enjoyed, just not enough to keep me as engaged as I normally am for a cute love story. The second half of the plot didn't quite pace the way the first half of the book did, so it felt a bit disjointed/mismatched with the first portion of the book. I felt the characters need more development as well, they were one-dimensional and I couldn't feel their chemistry. I think this could be further developed so that it would be much better!

Cute romance! Loved reading about the interior design elements and also appreciated the emphasis on a healthy work-life balance and prioritizing your health above all!

There’s a particular kind of disappointment that comes from picking up a book expecting cozy, romantic charm—something light yet meaningful—and instead finding yourself slogging through a mess of underdeveloped conflicts, contrived resolutions, and extraneous subplots that seem to exist purely to frustrate. Deeply Personal by Suzanne Collier promised a heartwarming romance about two professionals learning from one another, healing together, and perhaps—just perhaps—falling in love along the way. Instead, what I got was a book that lacked depth in all the places that mattered most and was, ultimately, a fairly forgettable read.

I liked Paul and Jessica as a couple. Their banter was genuinely enjoyable, and when they were together, the book had a spark that suggested it could have been something more. The idea of them exchanging expertise—Jessica shaping Paul’s chaotic man-cave into a livable space while he helped her with her health—was promising. If this had been the book’s sole focus, it might have worked better. However, Jessica never actually works out with Paul. She becomes Vegan and reduces her caffeine intake and starts taking walks. Great stuff, but not how the book was marketed.

Paul’s relationship with his grandparents also had some nice emotional beats. I liked the warmth of those scenes and even the explanation regarding Paul’s fear of commitment without over-explaining it. It was one of the few things in the book that felt organic rather than force-fed.

But that’s where my praise runs out.

Jessica’s entire arc revolved around her struggling business, her inability to trust love, and her significant heart condition. The business stress? Conveniently resolved at the last minute consistently. And her literal medical emergency? Oh, don’t worry, the power of romance and some walking apparently made it all better. No lasting consequences, no real struggle—just a neat little bow on top.


Paul, on the other hand, had pointless side stories competing for attention. There was the weirdly intense client who clearly wanted him in ways that had nothing to do with personal training. There was his ex, whose only real personality trait was being his ex. And then there was another ex whose child Paul had inexplicably bonded with before running for the hills. And of course, because we needed even more unnecessary drama, the stepfather the child ends up with is clearly a bit of a douchebag. When Paul runs into the kid later, the child snubs him, which is played as this big emotional moment for Paul… but why? What was the point? Was it intended to make us get the ick for Paul, because that seems to defeat the point of a romance book.

If Deeply Personal had focused on what it did well—the genuine chemistry between its leads, the idea of their mutually beneficial partnership—it could have been a sweet, solid read. Instead, it overstuffed itself with half-baked subplots and character arcs that resolved in ways that felt too easy, too tidy, and ultimately unsatisfying. I didn’t hate it, but I certainly didn’t enjoy it enough to recommend it.

📖 Read it if you love: Low-stakes, no-conflict resolutions, really convenient storytelling, interior design talk.
🚫 Skip it if you dislike: Forced drama, medical issues being magically healed, unresolved ex drama for the sake of it.