Thank you NetGalley and She Writes Press for the opportunity to read And They Had a Great Fall by Shelby Saville!

The story begins with Kat, a single mother living in New York on the fast track to becoming COO of a large tech company. One day an old friend from the days of the pandemic, Jake, randomly calls her while working on set as an actor in Copenhagen. He's going through a mental crisis and even though they haven't spoken in a year, he turns her life upside down by asking her to fly out to him. Both of them are faced with rekindled feelings mixed with new challenges of Jake's rising stardom.

This is Shelby Saville's debut novel and I think she knocked it out of the park with this story! I genuinely had a heart time putting this book down because I loved the style of writing, the characters, their banter, and so much more. I connected to Kat on so many levels but especially as a mother and the feelings of wanting to provide as a mother but also not miss out on their childhood. The references and extra tidbits of Copenhagen were fun to read about too!

There is an age gap between Kat and Jake but I feel like Shelby did a great job of showing a realistic representation of characters at different stages of life and having completely different lifestyles, without making it cheesy. I think the development of both characters was done very well. I think Jake's character could easily have turned into a spoiled, selfish celebrity. But with Shelby's writing, he became more than that and was multi-dimensional.

If you love a sweet romance that will leave you invested in the characters' journeys, then you'll definitely need to read this story!

Kat Green, a single mother from NYC, has big dreams and her biggest dream is providing an amazing life for her Daughter, Becca. After losing her Husband to Cancer three years ago, she feels the immense pressure of providing the best of everything for Becca. But when Kat receives a phone call from her old friend Jake, her life is suddenly turned upside-down. Jake is eight years younger, a celebrity, and she pushed him away almost a year ago. Suddenly, Kat finds herself traveling to Denmark to solidify a huge career promotion and face the relationship she wanted, but left behind. Does Jake still have feelings for her? Does she feel the same? What about her career?

And They Had a Great Fall is a solid debut by Shelby Saville. Being a big fan of The Idea of You, I jumped to request this book after a comparison was made in the synopsis. I do think this one was a bit better being the age gap was quite a bit less. I love TIOY, but that age gap is a little much for me ☺️

Both Kat & Jake have amazing character development and I enjoyed experiencing the ups and downs of their relationship. I really felt myself getting attached to both of them and rooting for them to work out! I also loved the Denmark & NYC backdrops. Shelby is a fantastic writer and I hope to read more from her in the future!

Thank you She Writes Press and NetGalley for gifting me an ARC in exchange for my honest review!

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC! Definitely similar to The Idea of You - I think this one feels marginally better because the age difference is less pronounced.

I liked Kat as a character, along with Emily. I think Jake had growing up to do but it was appropriate as he was young and naive and in his own bubble. I kind of wanted more Ben but I get it.

I think the story was fine, the plot was cute and their moments of learning to be together were cute, but I couldn’t truly get immersed in the whole thing. I would’ve loved a prologue or flashbacks where we’re introduced to Jake and Kat when they were getting close, so we could see the budding and blossoming chemistry. I think being dropped into an existing “situationship” didn’t give me the same depth of connection.

I thought I would give the trope another chance, but I think I just need to stay away because I don’t think it’s my cup of tea. 4/5 stars objectively, personally closer to a 3/5.

When I see that this is being compared to The Idea of You, I knew I'd like it! Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC. This is an entertaining story with characters that are complex and it was a pleasure to read a book all about them! Well done, Shelby. You are great at your craft.

I loved this book! Anyone But You Was One of my favorite movies and books so I was looking for a book similar to this vibe and I was not disappointed! It was very well written and I highly enjoyed it!