I was not super excited to read a book set at a Renaissance Faire, but tried this out and … what do you know?! Check out my review of Well Met!
Well Met by Jen De Luca. Published on September 3, 2019 by Berkley.
Synopsis: When Emily relocated to the small town of Willow Creek to help her sister recover from an accident, who could anticipate getting roped into volunteering for the local Renaissance Faire alongside her teenaged niece? Or that the irritating and inscrutable schoolteacher in charge of the volunteers would be so annoying that she finds it impossible to stop thinking about him? The faire is Simon’s family legacy and from the start he makes clear he doesn’t have time for Emily’s lighthearted approach to life, her oddball Shakespeare conspiracy theories, or her endless suggestions for new acts to shake things up. Yet on the faire grounds he becomes a different person, flirting freely with Emily when she’s in her revealing wench’s costume. But is this attraction real, or just part of the characters they’re portraying?
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Review: Well Met
Maybe it’s because that my parents love things like Renaissance Fairs that I really don’t. That’s what kept me from trying this initially, but when I needed a few more books to fill out my rom-com readathon, I thought: why not?
What surprised me? I loved the parts of the book I didn’t expect to like. And vice versa.
Emily has moved into her older sister’s house to help her recover after an accident and gets convinced to volunteer at the local Renaissance Fair alongside her niece. She’s very reluctant, especially since the director of the fair is an annoying control freak who seems to have it in for her. But Emily begins to see that he does look pretty fine in that pirate costume….
I love a good small town story, I thought the cast of characters in Well Met was a lot of fun: Simon and Emily, Emily’s sister April and niece Cait, Chris the bookstore owner, Emily’s new friends Stacey and Mitch.
The Fair stuff was actually interesting and I didn’t mind it at all. Bring on the turkey legs!
What I didn’t I love as much? The romance. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: romance is a very taste specific thing. I’ve thought and thought about what the issue was. I don’t really have a preference between single POV and dual POV narratives, but I think that in this case, getting more of a glimpse into Simon’s head might have helped me understand him and the progression of his feelings for Emily.
I also wished I’d had the chance to see Emily come into her own more and come to terms with her past relationship and what she gave up for her ex .
There was a lot I really liked about this, and others on my Goodreads timeline have loved the romance, so if you enjoy hate-to-love stories, you definitely might want to give Well Met a try!
Want more rom com reviews? You can find all of mine here on my Rom-Com-A-Thon page!
I’m a fan of hate-to-love stories so this is definitely on my list but I’ve seen so many mixed reviews! I’m glad it’s still enjoyable anyway 🙂
Anika | chaptersofmay.com
I mean, it was technically hate to love but to me it came off as more one-sided if that makes sense.
Simon was sort of a controlling ass and Emily hated him. Later you get to understand him better, but my lack of insight into him combined with Emily’s past history with a controlling ass of a bf were a bit of a roadblock for me.
I had such a fun time reading this. I was especially delighted by the ren faire parts, maybe because I always wanted to go to one, but never had? Seems like a good time. Like you, I adored the cast. I did appreciate the friendship that grew between Emily and her sister and I thought her relationship with her niece was wonderful. I actually hope her sister gets a book of her own. She deserves an HEA
I think she is going to get a book – number three!
I am hoping that my library get this one because it sounds like it is such a good read. Great review!
Yeah, with the paperbacks you never know!
Seems like this one surprised you! I am sorry you didn’t like the romance, especially as it sounds like it is meant to be a big part of this book! But it seems like the character Emma was pretty cool and it would’ve been nice to see her independence grow even more…
I did like Emma!
Seems like there’s a lot to love about this book, even if the romance didn’t quite work for you.
Definitely! I will absolutely try future books in the series. I don’t know about other people, but often in a series of companion books, one couple is my absolute favorite and another … not so much.
I liked this overall but my problem with the romance was that Emily overcame a lot but then willfully ignored all her progress and what people were telling her.
I’m really looking forward tot he sisters book though.
Karen @ For What It’s worth
Yes, the dynamic of the romance was off for me.