Hello Everyone,
Today’s review is on Secretly Yours by Tessa Bailey.
Date Read: February 10th, 2023
About the Book
A steamy new rom-com about a starchy professor and the bubbly neighbor he clashes with at every turn…
Hallie Welch fell hard for Julian Vos at fourteen, after they almost kissed in the dark vineyards of his family’s winery. Now the prodigal hottie has returned to their small town. When Hallie is hired to revamp the gardens on the Vos estate, she wonders if she’ll finally get that smooch. But the grumpy professor isn’t the teenager she remembers and their polar opposite personalities clash spectacularly. One wine-fueled girls’ night later, Hallie can’t shake the sense that she did something reckless–and then she remembers the drunken secret admirer letter she left for Julian. Oh shit.
On sabbatical from his ivy league job, Julian plans to write a novel. But having Hallie gardening right outside his window is the ultimate distraction. She’s eccentric, chronically late, often literally covered in dirt–and so unbelievably beautiful, he can’t focus on anything else. Until he finds an anonymous letter sent by a woman from his past. Even as Julian wonders about this admirer, he’s sucked further into Hallie’s orbit. Like the flowers she plants all over town, Hallie is a burst of color in Julian’s gray-scale life. For a man who irons his socks and runs on tight schedules, her sunny chaotic energy makes zero sense. But there’s something so familiar about her… and her very presence is turning his world upside down.
My Thoughts
Thank you to HarperCollins and Netgalley for giving me an eARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.
This was a really cute rom-com that I honestly think is one of Tessa Bailey’s better books!
I loved Hallie and how she wants to save her late grandmother’s favorite store, but yet she is also adrift and self-destructing in some ways. But she was a lovable character and while some of the things she does are kind of juvenile, once you find out more about her upbringing it makes sense. I really liked that her and Julien were good foils to each other, while seeming to be a good couple.
Julien was also great, although he was a little slow when it came to making a move, especially in the third act. I will say though that I do appreciate that he wasn’t as alpha as some of Tessa Bailey’s other male characters that I have encountered so far. Yes, he did have some alpha tendencies, especially in the steamy scenes, but he wasn’t borderline controlling.
Another aspect that I appreciated about the novel is when we see Hallie struggle with her body image – which is a little strange because she comes off as super confident – but it was also comforting in some ways. I think because it is a reminder that most women struggle with their body image.
I also really liked the romance. I thought it was sweet and I also liked how there was a little bit of time for them to get to know each other. The third act break-up was ling of ridiculous. They both should have tried to talk to the other person, instead of assuming the worst.
Overall, I really liked Secretly Yours and I can’t wait to read the companion book – Unfortunately Yours – which comes out later this year and follows Julien’s sister, Natalie. 4/5 Stars.
Happy Reading,
Janelle L. C.
Meanderings of a BookWorm 