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A slick conwoman meets her match in a hot and nerdy small-town librarian in this debut romance, perfect for fans of Spoiler Alert and Act Your Age, Eve Brown. Conwoman Harmony Hale has sold lies up and down California for years, never looking back at her crafty scams or one-night stands. Now she’s come to Brookville, California, with her sights set on its wealthy mayor—the man who stole her father’s music-streaming algorithm and ruined his life. Harmony is finally ready to take him down, with her trusty con of selling a nonexistent music festival. All she needs is the cooperation of the man who owns the potential festival site. Autistic librarian and piano teacher Preston Jones spends his days fighting book challengers trying to shut down his library programs. He’s responsible for raising his selectively nonspeaking little sister and needs to focus on keeping his job. He doesn’t have time for a romance like the ones in his books—and certainly none for the brassy festival promoter who wants to use his land for her “Coachella North.” Preston sees things in black and white, and he sees Harmony—amazing curves, flashy smile, and all—as nothing but trouble. But when Harmony promises to help him win the public over and save his youth programs, Preston finds himself wondering if this hustler with a heart of gold might be the someone he’s been waiting for. Soon things are getting steamy in the stacks, and with her con coming to a crescendo, Harmony needs to choose: revenge and running again or the happy ending she never saw coming. Romance readers and musical theater fans alike will adore this steamy, gender-swapped homage to The Music Man.
Publication Year: 2024
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~~Thank you to NetGalley and Headline for the ARC!~~
I think this is where I must part with Ms. Schwartz.
Despite my meh feelings on her sophomore novel back in April, I still wanted to believe. I've been wanting to read more romance, anyway. But, man, this was just so boring.
Both main characters are so bland and don't have much going beyond how they're described in the synopsis. I was able to tolerate Preston a bit more, but Harmony's POV made me want to drop so badly. Not because she as a bad character, but because there's so much excessive focus on the music festival con that wasn't interesting, whatsoever. It's almost impressive that Schwartz made pulling off a con so tedious to read.
Another thing that really bothered me was how preachy this book got. Don't get me wrong, I'm very left-wing and very much agree with all the stances this book makes throughout the story, but the delivery was very much a bad after-school special. It made it such a grating read.
I honestly don't have much more to say. I'd rather not waste anymore energy on this book, nor anything else Schwartz may publish in the future.
0read if you like:
- musical references
- polin vibes
- morally grey fmc (ish)
thanks to netgalley and alcove press for the advanced copy!
0Realistic portrayal of autism in a main character? Check. Fat heroine who simply lives her life? Check. Compelling story and a well-textured romance? Also check. Loved this book.
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