First-Time Caller by B.K. Borison
Series: Heartstrings #1
Genre: Contemporary, Romance
Pages: 437
Published By: Pan Macmillan on 11th February, 2025
Format: Paperback
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Book Synopsis:
Aiden Valentine has a secret: he’s fallen out of love with love. And as the host of Baltimore’s romance hotline, that’s a bit of a problem. But when a young girl calls in to the station asking for dating advice for her mom, the interview goes viral, thrusting Aiden and Heartstrings into the limelight.
Lucie Stone thought she was doing just fine. She has a good job; an incredible family; and a smart, slightly devious kid. But when all of Baltimore is suddenly scrutinizing her love life-or lack thereofโshe begins to question if she’s as happy as she thought. Maybe a little more romance wouldn’t be such a bad thing.
Everyone wants Lucie to find her happy ending… even the handsome, temperamental man calling the shots. But when sparks start to fly behind the scenes, Lucie must make the final call between the radio-sponsored happily ever after or the man in the headphones next to her.
Book Review
This is my 2nd book I’ve read from B.K. Borison and she did not disappoint!! I’ve really been enjoying her more recent stuff compared to her older stuff (I DNF’d the first book in the Lovelight Farms series). A friend over on Instagram recommended this book to me and I’m so glad they did. After loving Good Spirits, I knew I had to read more from them.
I’ll start off with the only criticisms I have and it’s the fact that I don’t think this book needed to be as long as it was. For me some of the scenes felt a little like filler scenes. This book could’ve easily cut out about 100 pages. I took off .5 from my rating because the book felt too long. I also want to mention that they author used a specific word during a spicy scene (referring to a woman’s part). Personally, I donโt like when this word is used in a book. The author could have used plenty of other, more suitable words instead.
Now onto everything I enjoyed! I really enjoyed the chemistry between the main characters. However, I will say that I much preferred Lucie’s character over Aiden’s. I had mixed feelings towards him all the way through. There were moments when he was a sweetheart but other times he was making me annoyed with his choices. It was nice to see their friendship blossom into a relationship as the book progressed.
The pacing was overall good but I don’t think it’s very slow-burn. The relationship between the two main characters develops quite quickly. The only real slow-burn aspect is the lead up to the few spicy scenes that are in this book.
The meet-cute situation was unlike anything I’ve read before and I liked that aspect. I honestly felt like I had the radio on and was listening to their broadcast. I appreciate the author adding transcripts throughout as a little extra (I love me some mixed media). There wasn’t a single side character I didn’t like in this book. They all had their own little purpose and I’m excited to find out more about Jackson in the second book.
This book had me all in my feels. It truly gives off rom-com vibes! It was cute, had me giddy at parts and also giggling at some of the exchanges between characters. Overall, this is a fun, easy read that will have you captivated from start to finish. Although itโs a typical romance, it keeps the cheesiness to a bare minimum and includes only a little bit of cringiness during the spicy scenes. Highly recommend!!
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