⭐️⭐️⭐️ (More like 2.5, but rounding up)

This book had all the ingredients for a fun romance—forced proximity, a grumpy-sunshine dynamic, and a heroine working in the publishing industry (which is always a cool setting). Freya, a literary agent obsessed with romance, is suddenly forced to help save the career of Jake, an author who just got canceled for admitting he doesn’t even like romance novels. Cue the awkward tension and lots of bickering.

The setup had potential, but pretty early on, I noticed a pattern—Freya spends a lot of time doubting herself, overanalyzing everything, and repeating the same internal struggles. She’s supposed to be focused on her job and career, but honestly, it felt like her biggest concern was figuring out why Jake doesn’t believe in love, rather than, you know, actually doing the job she was supposed to be doing. Meanwhile, Jake has his own personal struggles that led to his big PR disaster, but we don’t really get to see much of his growth until very late in the book. Their chemistry was fine, but I never fully believed in their emotional connection (until muuuch later in the book).

The middle dragged for me. There were too many repetitive conversations—Freya doubting herself, Jake regretting his mistakes, both of them skirting around their feelings. Even though the New York setting was nice, I genuinely think at least 10 chapters could have been condensed, because at a certain point, I was just waiting for something new to happen. The dialogue was often longer than necessary, with characters repeating the same thoughts in different ways.

One thing I did appreciate was how the book handled consent—Jake always made sure Freya was comfortable before taking any steps forward, which is a refreshing change from what we usually see in the genre.

However, by the last stretch of the book, I was struggling to stay engaged. The climax took too long to arrive, and after so many repetitive conflicts, it felt a bit underwhelming. And then, in the final chapters, the dialogue became oddly simplified—almost cartoonish—like the book suddenly started over-explaining everything as if the reader couldn’t follow what was happening. It was a strange shift that took me out of the story.

Overall, this wasn’t bad, but it lacked that spark that makes a romance really stand out. It had potential, but I think this easily be a 20 chapters shorter and better structured. If you love rom-coms and don’t mind some drawn-out introspection, this could still be an enjoyable read!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC!

A glitzy New York literary conference, a grumpy bestselling author, and an ambitious assistant tasked with salvaging his reputation — Long Story Short had all the right ingredients for a swoon-worthy bookish romance. But despite the promising setup, it left me underwhelmed.

While the premise held plenty of potential, the predictable plot and one-dimensional characters made this story feel disappointingly formulaic. Jake and Freya’s romance leans heavily on outdated stereotypes: the "older, jaded man-child" paired with the "young, inexperienced woman" at the start of her career. Their ten-year age gap could have added depth with more nuance, but instead, it only highlighted Jake’s immaturity and Freya’s lack of complexity. Their chemistry relied on frustrating miscommunication and surface-level tension, making their eventual connection feel more forced than fated.

While the execution didn’t fully land for me, I appreciated the creative literary conference backdrop. However, it lacked the immersive spark I was hoping for — barely scratching the surface of the glitzy publishing world when it could have been a richly atmospheric setting.

That said, the side characters’ happy endings were a welcome reprieve, offering brief but heartwarming moments. Their subplots added some much-needed emotional depth and authenticity, bringing a touch of warmth to the story. Another highlight was Victoria Walters’ writing style, which was easy to follow, making this a quick and accessible read.

Ultimately, Long Story Short is a light, easy read — pleasant enough for a weekend escape, but too predictable and surface-level to leave a lasting impression. That said, fans of trope-driven romances may still find its familiar beats comforting and enjoyable.

Apparently, this was part of a series because the author has several other books related to the characters in Long Story Short. However, it can act as a standalone.

This is my first Victoria Walters book and I have a lot of opinions.

Long Story Short follows 25-year-old Freya, an aspiring agent and assistant to a badass agent who gets assigned to go to New York help handsome, yet messed up rom-com writer Jake, 35, fix what he screwed up.

First, I have to say the writing is decent. I stayed up until 4 am reading this, which doesn't always happen. I was too caught up in everything and couldn't put it down. However, the dialogue was a bit simplistic and cliche, and it was like they were in high school, not in their 20s.

Second, the third-act breakup was actually quite good. I hate third-act breakups because they're useless and the action is all because of a misunderstanding and gets solved in 24 to 48 business hours. This one was a bit more complex, although yeah, still a major misunderstanding at play that could've been fixed with good communication. Typical rom-com.

Third, hell yeah for the sexy scenes! SO. GOOD.

Fourth, and what puts me off everything is the age gap. After 25, I don't feel like there any issue with age gaps, so I'm not actually upset about the 10-year-difference but Freya's age. It makes no sense for her to be this young, story-wise. Sure, she's an assistant and aspiring agent, but she wants it to happen... ASAP? like, girl, what, you've been an assistant for six. months. ASSSISTANT. six. months.

It would make more sense to make her at least 28, based on absolutely everything about her, her behavior, aspirations, and personality gives off older character, so it isn't too early to edit her age, Victoria. Jake can be 38 to keep the age gap, but 25 is way too young. and SIX MONTHS? in six months you barely learn the job you're at, let alone start training for a new one. I know it's a rom-com, but still. SIX. MONTHS.

I also don't really see it as an enemies to lovers, since they are... hardly enemies.

Thank you NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was a fun and quick read. I thought that the conflict between Jake and Freya was believable and that their characters were compelling.

Thank you to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for this ARC.

Freya, 25, is assistant to literary agent Hayley Harper. She wants to become a literary agent herself so when Hayley asks her to travel to New York to do damage control to a romance author's reputation at a five day romance convention, she happily accepts.

Said romance author is none other than Jake Richards, 35, whose books she loves but who has publicly declared he doesn't believe in happy endings but will take the readers' money anyway. Freya tries to get him to be more honest with his readers, in direct contravention of Hayley's instructions. I actually counted, the word "honest" appears 88 times during the book. Honestly!

The plot to this enemies to lovers story is very simple and predictable, the list of tropes is long, with the inevitable miscommunication and third-act break-up, the heroine is ditzy and chaotic, wears unprofessional clothing but being honest to the point of being rude means Jake declares her "unique", "a breath of fresh air" and "not like anyone he knows". He himself is grumpy and nursing a secret about his parents. His jokes at the beginning are wholly inappropriate but he gets better. There is an age gap of ten years which I personally don't mind but some readers might not like.

There is spice a couple of times but it's entirely skippable if you're not into that sort of thing. What's not quite so forgivable is the stiff dialogue and the notion that the most popular romance author would be male. Most male authors, if they write in that genre, try to make it edgy or literary or they only write love stories without happy endings (I am looking at you, Nicholas Sparks!) David Mulberry, the crime writer with contempt for the romance genre is quite typical - it's often thought that romance doesn't require particular skill.

Hayley Harper is a bit of a cartoon villain. I'm hope agents like her don't exist!
There is a cute meet cute, New York is described well and Tessa from The Paris Chapter makes a short appearance. Altogether this is a sweet romance in the literary world that won't tax you unduly, and it's nice there's some redemption for David.

3.5 stars

I really enjoyed this book! The characters were relatable, the plot was interesting, and the story was great! I would definitely recommend!

This is a cute, fun book about a wanna be literary agent eager to prove herself. She’s sent to a romance convention with a disgraced romance writer and together they are supposed to try to reignite his failing image. It’s a cozy, feel good romantic story.

Thank you to NetGalley, Boldwood Books, and the author for granting my request to read this e-ARC and provide my honest opinions.

As soon as I read that this was set behind the publishing industry, I knew I had to read this, and I'm so glad I did because this book is so, so good.

Forced proximity! Literary agent and best-selling romance author! Age gap! The author did a fantastic job with the tropes, characters, and the setting 🥰.

The romance was not rushed into; I was swooning, y'all 🥰. The one thing I didn't like was the miscommunication trope. The miscommunication trope brought a bit of a gap between our main characters, but that ending, damn.

Overall, I loved this book ♥️.

This book had an interesting premise, but sadly, the execution didn't quite deliver for me. I liked the idea of a romance between a literary agent and her client, but the dialogue often came across as forced and unnatural, making it hard to get more into the characters. The conversations didn't feel like real-life exchanges, which sometimes pulled me out of the story.
I also could not really feel for the FMC, as she somehow *always* found herself in situations where put her foot in her mouth or did something embarrassing. The MMC made inappropriate remarks that were not it when regarding their work relationship.
This book was not 100% for me, but I could see someone really enjoying it! It is a lighter read and the workplace romance trope was kind of reimagined, which was a nice twist.

This was my first book by this author and I wasn’t disappointed. It was the kind of romance book that takes you into its bubble and gets you quickly to the point you don’t want to put it down. Great characters with relatable insecurities who you want to succeed. The right balance of romance, sexiness and reality leading to the perfect ending, exactly what you want from a Romance story. A lovely escape from real life that leaves you just feeling happy.

An enemies to lovers novel, this book is quirky and cute. Freya is sent to NYC with romance author Jake to save his career after he made a huge confession about hating romance books, and was overheard by a reporter, who, of course, published it. In the process of attempting to salvage what is left after the damage was done, Freya finds out why Jake actually made those comments and everything else surrounding the drama. The unlikely duo of course ends up falling in love, but what kind of risk will that put to her starting career? There is miscommunication and strife, but the journey to get to the HEA is worth it! Both characters are really likable, and if you’re up to date with this author’s writing, you will see characters you have met in other books, which brings a really nice sense of familiarity to her novels.
What I like most about this book is the author’s dedication to her character, Freya, staying true to herself while being under immense pressure that is being a professional in a challenging industry. I like that she was quirky and brutally honest, and I definitely appreciated how she was a diehard romance reader, but the author allowed her to open her mind to other genres, which to me as a reader is something I find special because it’s too easy to find your genre and box yourself in. It made me connect more with the character.

As far as the blurb went, I was all the way down for this. Grumpy-sunshine, awkward-meetings? Sign me up.

But well, that was where it sort of stalled for me well. The premise was great, the execution a lot less so.

The writing, at the start, made the whole read feel like junior fiction instead of N/A or adult romance. The rather simplistic/stilted voices made both Jake and Freya more cardboard characters than flawed, three-dimensional protagonists, with just the central plot driving the story of Freya needing to rehabilitate Jake’s image despite her inexperience in all ways. New York then, became the place where they got closer and of course, a spanner must be thrown into the works and a good misunderstanding (a personal peeve of mine because communication just can’t come easy between adults especially in romantic fiction?) messes things up.

I couldn’t quite put my finger on it, but much of the dialogue felt like it was taking place between mostly teenage girls. There sometimes wasn’t much distinction between Jake and Freya and Freya’s friends; Jake’s own narrative voice was in some ways, as awkwardly feminine as Freya’s, just from an opposite point of view and that wasn’t anything I could get used to even when I got halfway through the book.

Things definitely got a bit more interesting after the halfway mark though, and just as I was about to give up on the flightiness of Freya’s behaviour and her repetitive internal monologues, the growth and development that emerged from there was in fact, a welcome change of pace and depth.

I’m afraid this wasn’t quite the book for me after all. It’s an easy read in retrospect and I do appreciate the happy end for all involved (including the side players), but it was just difficult to enjoy the flow of the narrative.

I love grumpy sunshine I pretty sure that goes back to my childhood favorite movie being Beauty and the Beast. As well as he falls first, as long as we the reader get to watch him fall first. Which is really great when we get dual point of views.

This was a light and cute read about enemies to lovers. The book was cozy and feel good - an easy rom com for the summer!

This was cute, but it felt long. As I was reading, I thought, "Oh, we've got to be more than halfway through. Perfect." I looked down to see I was only 30% finished.

This is a quick read that is ideal for those who like their romance novels with a side of spice! I found the plot to be interesting and it made me appreciate the work that goes into plotting a romance novel. I enjoyed the beginning of the book, which really framed the plot. However, as the book progressed, I found the pace a bit too quick. I think author Victoria Walters includes a lot of rich ideas that could have been given further substance; it just felt like a sprint to the finish to a novel that had enough material for a marathon pace.

Overall, Long Story Short is a cute story with a quirky and loveable main character who lives life as authentically as we all should!

I was excited about the premise of this book (I’m a sucker for anything set in the publishing industry), but was ultimately left really disappointed. The writing and dialog felt so stilted and awkward that it left me physically cringing at points. I had such high hopes, but this one wasn’t a fit for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

My feminist rage forced me to stop reading this book.

After knowing each other for only a few hours and fresh off a flight, Freya puts Jake in his place, and rightly so– his response? “It’s fine, Freya; no need to put on your schoolteacher voice about it. Maybe you should lie down for a bit.”

AAARGH.

OK OK the FMC is very much ditzy (being flustered always; not being aware of her professional environment; wearing a (straw?) hat, sleeveless dress, and cowboy boots for a flight to NYC, to name a few) so perhaps the MMC was a tiny bit justified to do an eye roll, at the most, but to effectively tell her to calm down and stop being hysterical?

I am ready to cut a bitch.

Grumpy does not mean rude AF. He does not have to hate women. And sexual ‘jokes’ between colleagues about first times wink wink nudge nudge are a HR violation and not a cute “how did you two meet?”-anecdote.

On top of that, this story could use some editing to cut out unnecessary sentences and remove spelling mistakes (you two, versus, you too).

I should have stopped when the bestest romance writer in the world was a MAN. Which is the topic of the first chapter ;)

Shoutout to the very very cute cover!!

DNF at 14-17%.

Thank you to Boldwood Books for inviting me to read this book. I received an ARC of this book (thanks!) and these are my own opinions.

This was a really lovely and sweet romance that I flew through in the space of twenty-four hours. I enjoyed Freya and Jake's chemistry from the get go, they were a fun duo and their short trip to New York was a great time to follow their fling and how they were going to get Jake's career back on top. The writing and dialogue flowed easily and the outcome was incredibly satisfying. I had a lot of fun with this one and it's made for the perfect read whilst the sun is out.

I really liked this book! It was perfect for the relaxing afternoon that I had planned after a long work week! The story is well written, the characters relatable and there are a lot of cute moments!

It’s really funny that i read this book while on twitter people are raging because all the books that you can find at target are seemingly written for a woman audience and they said that there are no men author anymore while here the best romance writer is indeed a man! What a coincidence!!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this ARC!