I recently finished reading Well Met, the first book in Jen DeLuca’s Well Met series, and it’s been on my TBR list for a while. It features one of my favorite tropes, Enemies to Lovers, and is set in a fictional small town in Maryland, where the characters are working together to volunteer at the Renaissance Faire annually. I was glad to find the audiobook version at my local library via Libby, which allowed me to listen to the book while running errands and taking care of things around the house. 

Brief Storyline: The FMC, Emily, recently dumped by her boyfriend, decides to relocate to Willow Creek, Maryland, where she assists her sister and her niece until she finds her own place. Before she knows it, she’s not only helping her sister, who is recovering from a car accident, but she’s also volunteering at a Renaissance Faire for her niece. She’s dressed as a wench, trying to fit in with everyone at the Renaissance Faire, but one person in particular is making it difficult for her. In comes the hero, Simon, who hasn’t been that friendly to Emily, and she has no idea why. 

The book was an enjoyable start to the series, filled with new beginnings for Emily, humorous moments, and an emotional and romantic journey for both Emily and Simon. It’s told solely from Emily’s POV, and I believe it would have benefited from including Simon’s POV, too. I wanted to understand his feelings and motivations better, primarily when he acted differently in his pirate costume and seemed to claim Emily when another guy was around. 

I liked the storyline behind this book and the characters, especially Emily, on finding herself after a break-up with a guy who didn’t deserve her in the first place. I also enjoyed the setting, where the characters are at a Renaissance Faire. The issue I had while reading (or, in my case, listening) was I wasn’t entirely convinced about the relationship between Simon and Emily. It’s mainly due to the poor confusion Emily was dealing with when it came to Simon always flirting with her in costume and how he was with her from the beginning. This is where I would have loved to have Simon’s POV. Then, maybe I would have believed their romantic storyline more. 

I was more invested in reading Emily’s story and how she was making friends, finding herself after her break-up, and reconnecting with her sister after so long while also forming a relationship with her niece. I loved that journey for her, even though she was dealing with Simon, giving her a hard time at the Faire most of the time. Overall, it was an enjoyable book, and I give it three stars. I do plan on reading the next book, especially when Jen DeLuca introduced so many secondary characters that I feel deserve to have their own HEA. If you enjoy romantic comedies with moments of laughter and emotion set in a Renaissance Faire, this book is worth checking out. 

What to Expect:
✔Small Town Romance
✔Enemies to Lovers
✔Forced Proximity

What a fun story! There was so much I thoroughly enjoyed. From April and Emily really developing a sisterly bond, to Simon’s first time kissing Emily (as himself), to the small-town wholesomeness, Well Met is a charming summer read!
 
The only real issue I had with the story was Emily’s lack of comprehension skills overall.

Like, obviously Chris isn’t going to train you in additional responsibilities and then fire you, Emily, new part-time employee or not! Obviously you’re getting a promotion! 🙄

Emily was a repeat offender with these weird, short-sighted conclusions, but by the end of the book she finally got it right.

Like many romances, Well Met did rely heavily on the miscommunication trope. However, these miscommunications, while relatively frequent, were also quickly cleared up — a much more realistic approach to miscommunication than the usual “letting things grow and grow and grow and then causing an unnecessary and melodramatic third-act breakup.”

I disliked the cover, as it seemed to show Emily’s misinterpretation of the situation with Simon in the first half of the book, rather than the reality. His posture and gestures indicated disgust, which was never actually the case — he’s just intense, reticent, and has his own stuff going on.
 
A perfect, fun beach read I definitely recommend!

This was a great feelgood read while being emptyheaded myself. 🤩😅 Just enough plot and character intrique to keep me hooked (and enough to deepdive into analysis if I felt like it), but I didn't need to make an effort to follow the plot. Very enjoyable! Bonus points because there are multiple possible characters subtly hinted for potential sequel romances. I'll be sure to grab the next book in this series as well!

Super lovable characters and I loved the whole Renaissance Faire aspect of the story. I think this could be a fun future reread!

Ugh... I wish I had DNFed this, unfortunately. I love the Renaissance fair I've been to so I thought it would be a cute setting for a romance novel. Sadly the story and characters just lacked depth. Sometimes that can make for a fun, light read, but I struggled to suspend disbelief enough to enjoy. And then the icing on the cake (derogatory) was when Emily, a gal Simon had known for what, 6 weeks? Told him

he basically needed to get over his dead brother and put her first.

Grief is complex and this book didn't have the depth to handle that topic.

Edit: if I find out the lasagna + milk for dinner mentioned at the end is a Twilight reference, I'm adding half a star to my rating for that Easter egg 🤣

I can say this book was "Well Met". 😉 
I'm glad I came across this story, it's a fun small-town romance, taking place at a Renaissance Faire during the summer.
I read this in one day, it was super cute and enjoyable. Emily is a fun protagonist, seeing her bloom and get to know people around her, make friends and let her voice be heard was so nice and heartwarming. 
As for Simon, he went through a great character development. I loved how his personality was hidden away at first and how he let it show gradually as he got more comfortable around Emily. 
The romance between them was great, it didn't feel forced by the author. However, it was strange that they started as enemies for no reason. I think it could have been more natural if they started as friends, instead of hating each other for no reason on their first encounter.
Overall, I enjoyed reading this book so much, it made me want to organise a Renaissance Faire as well, and I would recommend it to anyone who wants a fun, easy-to-read small-town romance for summer.