Well Met
Author: Jen DeLuca
Trope: Slow Burn, Enemies to Lovers, Grumpy/Sunshine
Point of view: Single, First person
Relationship: MF
Type of series: Standalone part of a series
In a nutshell: All's faire in love and war for two sworn enemies who indulge in a harmless flirtation in a laugh-out-loud rom-com.
Emily knew there would be strings attached when she relocated to the small town of Willow Creek, Maryland, for the summer to help her sister recover from an accident, but 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?
This summer was only ever supposed to be a pit stop on the way to somewhere else for Emily, but soon she can't seem to shake the fantasy of establishing something more with Simon, or a permanent home of her own in Willow Creek.
What I thought: I wasn’t expecting to love this as much as I did. I don’t know anything about Renaissance Faires and was pretty far off my radar as far as what I think I would think of as fun on the weekend. But call me a convert, because I adored this book! Enemies to Lovers is one of my favourite tropes and Emily and Simon’s story met every unknown hope I had for them. Grumpy heroes and sunshine heroines get me every time, throw in a medieval village and a delicious slow burn and I’m officially looking up Faires near me. Book one in the Well Met series, I can’t wait to dive back into this world that has absolutely captivated me.
