Huge thanks to NetGalley and Azala Press for the ARC—I really appreciate the chance to read it early!

This was a fun, fast-paced romance that kept me hooked from the start. I’m a sucker for a good forbidden love story, and the first half totally nailed it. The characters had great chemistry, and there was just the right amount of emotional depth to pull me in.

That being said, in the second half, things got a little out there plot-wise, and while it felt a bit over-the-top at times, I still found myself along for the ride, curious to see how it would all wrap up. It wasn’t what I thought I was signing up for, but honestly, I didn’t mind.

If you’re into forbidden romance and don’t mind a bit of drama and unexpected twists, I’d say give this one a shot. I’d be down to read more from this author for sure.

I really did enjoy it. I thought Rowan and Julian were good together, too. Thought I felt they played on the student-teacher relationship more than necessary since she was a grad-school student and he was a professor.

Thanks to Azala Press for the arc. This was an interesting vibe. Not my usual romance, going for the forbidden romance. I made it to about 60% before I dnfed. I felt that it was too instalovey. I thought that as the book went on there would be more about themselves that they would have revealed. But Julian and Rowan meet one time and then again three years later... I thought maybe there was more to that story and then bam. The pregnancy trope just ended it for me.

oh this one just wasn't for me, it was insta-love and (spoiler) a surprise pregnancy trope. Those are just two of my least favorite things, I'm so sorry

If you're looking for a new contemporary romance with forbidden love set amongst a dark academia/prestigious music program backdrop, with a student/teacher relationship then this is for you! The cover is adorable as well. Really enjoyed this and would read more by this author.

This book was like tea to me. I was steeped in it, looking at their history together, watching the forbidden unfold. I don't always read romance. It either hits or it doesn't, but this? This hit. I like the teacher/student dynamic (fictionally, of course), and the backdrop of music made this more enticing. I love mutual obsessions too. Overall, solid 4.6!

This book started strong with interesting characters and an cool premise, but it just fell flat. One, everything just felt too rushed, but there was no depth to the characters. The characters just seemed to be stuck within their own personalities and didn't really grow or learn from their experiences. A lot of felt very unbelievable too and the twists just didn't make sense. They sort of came out of nowhere.

Omg i loved this book sooo much!! I was literally hooked from the beginning. Literally two of my favorite tropes surprise pregnancy and professor student! The book was just beautiful and the writing was beautiful. It was really tugging at my heart strings.

Solid 3-star romance read with forbidden love, student/professor romance and surprise pregnancy tropes.

The Lines We Cross was a romance with an intriguing premise and many redeemable qualities - forbidden romance, a music school setting, professor x student. Unfortunately, the overall execution was lacking for me. I think the author’s writing is very promising and emotionally evocative but my issues were with the plot and the pacing. The romance would’ve had much more impact if it was a slower burn with more build up but everything happened too fast making it feel like insta love. It also made it hard to connect with the characters and have that emotional investment because of the pacing. By the second half, too much was trying to be accomplished which left things underdeveloped and more to be desired. This one might not have been for me but I can definitely see other people loving it!

Reads like bad fanfiction.

There is a difference between cheesy romance, and just bad writing.


*Received an ARC via NetGalley in return for an honest review*


Writing Style
It must be stated that this reviewer is both a current writer, and avid reader of fanfiction. I believe it serves a great purpose for entertainment and self expression. Some of the greatest works I have ever read have been fanfiction. This being said, this book reads like <b>bad</b> fanfiction of either Reylo or Lily/Snape and I cannot explain how. Even if this work didn't originally start out as fanfic, I don't believe it meets the current standards for novels being published and the entire thing reads like it's from a very junior author who doesn't yet understand how adults interact with each other, especially in the world of academia. This is not meant to insult them directly, but because the characters are so one dimensional all you can hear is the authors voice as they have the characters walk about on the page and bring up talking points, instead of feeling like realistic beings being documented just existing in a world.

This entire novel also felt like it was taking heavy inspiration from The Love Hypothesis except it seemed to have no idea how grad school actually works and how professionals interact with one another. 'Write what you know' is the only advice I can give for this novel.

The writing was incredibly juvenile and insta-lovey, which clashed heavily with the explicit sex and surprise pregnancy trope you often find in erotica. Didn't know who it's audience was.

The author's own claim that "Trauma is hard. I should know. And unlike Penny Thea (a supporting character), I won't tell you <i>why</i> I know that, but I will tell you that a large part of the reason that I wrote this story the way I did was in order to explore the way that love and trauma intersect." I'm not claiming or trying to insinuate that the author has never experienced trauma or loss, but they are really bad at writing it. Both inaccurate, and not emotionally compelling in the slightest. It felt very insincere to read this at the end of the book when it felt more like erotic fanfiction (not shaming that part, sex is great) of pre-existing characters than any kind of exploration of trauma, because the trauma was so poorly represented it just felt like a plot device instead of a theme of the story.


Characters
Every character was completely flat and felt like bad copies of existing characters but only taken at face value, e.g., traumatised protagonist, he-fell-first grumpy male love interest, well-meaning but kind of bad friend, the random guy who assaults the mc to bring the two love interests together.

Rowan was ... inconsistent at the best of times and empty at the worst. Flip flopping between standing up for herself to drive the plot and 'tension' between her and Julian and then becoming a blank slate when trying to provide any type of emotional connection to her deceased sister. It is all told and not shown, I mean the literal whole reason she's even doing music is in memory of her sister, and get she feels completely emotionless when flat describing to the audience this ... "both taken band almost all the way through high school. That is, until Alex couldn't. Music has been her sister's dream. Rowan couldn't let that die." I can forgive a lot, I cannot forgive breaking the CARDINAL SIN of writing that is show don't tell. I just cannot believe the author has siblings or knows how to write them because in every flash/memory they call each other 'sister' and it's like being slapped by the fourth wall.

Julian was the copy and paste broody dark-haired love interest who feigns disinterest and cruelty to hide his INSTANT ATTRACTION to the main character. Don't think I'm just a hater, this is my go-to trope, but it was such a poor, unoriginal use of it I couldn't even read it for the trope-love. On PAGE 2 after seeing this random girl ugly crying, his internal monologue is literally "the most beautiful woman I've ever seen, and if I was a weaker man, I might just as to kiss you.". Cut to me banging my head against a wall. How on earth is it romantic in any kind of way to see a girl going through it and the only reaction is, damn, I'd hit that. He just sounds like someone who cannot feel empathy.

Amelia, aka, I realised that without another female character the book wouldn't pass the Bechdel test, so lets shoehorn in this completely replaceable character who exists solely to tell us all how cool the FMC is and get the plot moving. Pretty sure it still didn't pass the Bechdel test anyway.

Jack/Ethan. Crappy male characters who exist solely to harass the FMC so that the MMC can come in to save her and look incredibly feminist whilst doing it. This trope has been dead in mainstream media for over 5 years, and for good reason. If you're adding themes of sexual assault and harassment, make it to affect the plot and not just be a shiny badge for the love interest.


Pacing
13% through is the first kiss (chapter 4, and the like 3rd interaction with each other), and at 40% she realises she's pregnant. There are MILLIONS of templates, books, workshops etc, on how to structure and pace your romance, so in 2025 it's really no excuse to have the kiss be the 'reveal' that the two protagonists are interested in each other. Nothing more to add.


Felt impossible to read past 43% and had to skim for stand out scenes in order to get the grasp of the full story before writing the review. Truly, diabolically, bad.

Although it was a very well written story, I didn’t like any of the characters and the overall story. It also had a trope that I really dislike that I wasn’t aware of going into this book. I also didn’t like how fast they fell for each other it didn’t feel like a true connection between Rowan and Julian.

I found this story to be entertaining and enjoyable. However, I felt it to be a tad 2-dimensional; Not as in depth as I would have liked.
It read more like reading a plot instead of giving us an idea of the feelings around said plot. There was definitely emotion, but I would have liked a bit more. As for the plot-driving elements of the story, I could deal with the whole Jake thing. But Ethan being involved? I thought that was overkill. There was plenty of plot with just the accidental pregnancy trope that I didn’t feel the crime stuff was needed.
With that being said, I really did enjoy it. I thought Rowan and Julian were good together, too. Thought I felt they played on the student-teacher relationship more than necessary since she was a grad-school student and he was a professor.

*𝐈 𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐞𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐝 𝐚 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐲 𝐜𝐨𝐩𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐤. 𝐎𝐩𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐫𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐞𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐲 𝐦𝐲 𝐨𝐰𝐧.*

Okay, The Lines We Cross had me hooked from the start—chance encounter, forbidden romance, a broody Scottish professor? Yes. The tension between Rowan and Julian was palpable, and the music school setting added a beautiful depth to their connection.

But… the pacing dragged at times, and Julian’s restraint sometimes felt more like avoidance than actual conflict. Plus, a few plot twists were pretty predictable.

That said, if you love slow-burn, forbidden romance with plenty of longing and angst, this one will give you feels. Just be ready for a bit of a slow ride!

The Lines We Cross by Rachel Tork

This book was not what I expected and TBH…idk if it was for the best. There was just A LOT going on that I got whiplash and was like “what am I even reading?!” Ngl this was almost a DNF for me 😔

I was expecting a super sexy student/professor forbidden romance…and I did get that in the first 25% of the book and then I was hit with a surprise pregnancy (which is never my favorite but I thought it was ok, let's see what else happens,) but then the book almost took a thriller vibe and I just was not expecting it.

I always try to keep it as honest as possible for you all 💛 Reading is subjective so this wasn’t my cup of tea but that doesn’t mean that you won’t love it!

If you love:
❌Forbidden Love
👨‍🏫Student + Professor
🤰🏻Accidental Pregnancy
🔫Thriller Vibes
🌀Packed Plot
💪Protective MMC
🙃Stubborn FMC
🎶Classical Music

Give this one a try

#bookreview #netgalley #thelineswecross #studentteacherromance #suprisepregnancy

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher Azala Press for providing me with an eARC of The Lines We Cross by Rachel Tork in exchange for an honest review. I really appreciate the opportunity to read and review this book.

Unfortunately, I had to DNF at 43%. I really tried to push through, but the lack of communication between the characters made it frustrating to read. The tension between them was well-written, and the little bit of spice I did get to was enjoyable, but overall, the plot just didn’t hold my interest.

That, paired with the pregnancy trope just turned me off completely. I usually don't mind it if there's a valid reason, but I'm so annoyed with Amelia, Rowan's friend, who was being so insensitive with the way she broke the information to Julian.

While she's right to worry and ask Rowan to tell him, she shouldn't butt into the matter this way, completely disregarding her friend's feelings even though she clearly told her to stop.

That was the last straw for me.

Maybe I would have enjoyed this more at a different time, but for the past month and a half that I’ve had this eARC, I’ve struggled to stay engaged. Sadly, this one just wasn’t for me.

I'd rate it around 2 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley and Azala Press for this e-arc

4.25 stars

Okay from the cover and the premise alone I was so intrigued by this book and what an enjoyable read it was. This was a one day multiple sittings read and I could not put it down unless I had too. This book is a professor x student university romance set in the music department. First off I love the names Rowan and Julian so that was very fun to read with those named characters. I loved the bit of grumpy sunshine we get with both of them while sometimes I felt like Julian was overly harsh and mean, but overtime you see he was just trying to stay in control around Rowan I still didn't love that. I did like how they both caved not their feelings and let go of essentially whatever everyone else thinks when they were able to announce their relationship too the world. I think Rowan is a very strong character who gies through a lot of hardships and grief only to find this great guy who is her teacher and then is thrown a massive curve ball that you think will derail the whole relationship but actually bring the two closer together which I think was beautiful. Loved the suspense by the antagonistic characters loved the shock reveal of who it was that was good. Overall really enjoyed this book and would definitely recommend.

Thank you again to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for giving me an early copy in exchange for an honest review.

This was a book where my head felt very critical throughout, but my heart was eating up the vibes. However, the vibes became a little too excessive for me in the second half, and I had a hard time staying with the story.

POTENTIAL MINOR SPOILERS AHEAD

Here’s what I liked:

• 10/10 on the cover. Amazing cover, I truly love it.
• At the beginning, the book gave me The Love Hypothesis vibes, but music edition, yet it was still its own story.
• I ate up the forbidden romance plus accidental pregnancy trope in this instance.

What didn’t work for me:

• I never felt or even understood the MCs connection. I didn’t see a reason for Julian’s instant obsession with Rowan at their initial meeting years prior. When they do meet again, Julian is quite rude and abrasive to her, with no hint of anything else. For me, there was no reason to have a spark between them. In addition, I saw no reason for the antagonist(s) to take such PSYCHOTIC and insane actions – what even were his motivations? He seemed simply like a plot device to push the story forward.
• In addition, a lot of the time the characters acted more like immature high schoolers than grad students with their level of gossiping and bullying. And the worst thing for me was her “best friend” spilling her secret about being pregnant to Julian a DAY after she had just found out. That's not okay in my book.
• There were too many crazy huge plot twists for me. These events were so excessive and unlikely that without a really good reason, I just couldn’t buy it.
• As a mom, it was hard to overlook errors in how pregnancy was written.

In the end, this started off with some strong vibes, but didn’t end up being the story I was expecting, though I believe others will love it, and I hope they give it a try.

You can find my review already up on my Goodreads page, and a review on Instagram coming on Wednesday, January 29.

The Lines We Cross by Rachel Tork tackles important themes of love, identity, and belonging, set against the backdrop of a divided society. The premise is intriguing, following two characters from opposite worlds whose lives intersect in unexpected ways. The story has moments of genuine emotion, and Tork’s writing style is straightforward and accessible, making it an easy read.

While the book addresses meaningful topics, the execution sometimes feels surface-level. The characters, while likable, could have used more depth, and some of their decisions felt inconsistent or rushed. Additionally, the pacing of the story was uneven, with certain parts dragging while others seemed to move too quickly, leaving little room to fully explore the emotional weight of the narrative.

That said, the message at the heart of The Lines We Cross is powerful and relevant, and readers who enjoy socially conscious romance will find moments to connect with. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this ARC. While it wasn’t a standout for me, it’s a decent read with an important message.

This book has an intriguing premise, blending forbidden romance and emotional vulnerability. However, the romance between Rowan and Julian feels rushed, and their chemistry lacks depth. Rowan’s naivety is frustrating at times, and Julian’s internal conflict is underexplored, making key moments less impactful.

While it’s a quick read with potential, the underdeveloped characters and lack of emotional intensity leave much to be desired.