No Words by Meg Cabot

Meg Cabot, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Princess Diaries, returns to Little Bridge Island with a new story about an author with a case of writer's block and an arrogant novelist who have to set aside their differences as they get through a weekend long book festival that just might change everything - including their feelings for each other. Welcome to Little Bridge, one of the most beautiful islands in the Florida Keys, home to sandy white beaches, salt-rimmed margaritas and sizzling romance . . . Jo Wright always swore she'd never step foot on Little Bridge Island - not as long as her nemesis, bestselling author Will Price, is living there. Then Jo's given an offer she can't refuse: an all-expenses paid trip to speak and sign at the island's first ever book festival. And when she finds out Will won't even be on the island, there's no reason to refuse. But when she arrives on Little Bridge, Jo is in for a shock: Will is not only at the book festival, but seems genuinely sorry for his past actions - and more than willing not only to make amends, but prove to Jo that he's a changed man. Things seem to be looking up - until disaster strikes, causing Jo to wonder: do any of us ever really know anyone? Why do readers LOVE Meg Cabot? 'With a sunny island backdrop populated with loveable characters, this is the perfect sexy spring/summer read to lose yourself in' Bolu Babalola, bestselling author of Love in Colour 'Funny and enchanting . . . Meg Cabot is a total delight' Popsugar 'Meg Cabot is a fabulous author' USA Today '[Meg Cabot] is the master of her genre' Publishers Weekly 'Her trademark humour makes for compulsive reading' Publishers Weekly

Disclaimer: I am a long time Cabot fan.
I was super pumped for this book and reserved from the library the first moment I got. And I'll admit I read it pretty quickly. Like always, Cabot's prose style is extremely readable and turns pages. Elements like the book within the book were fun. I also enjoyed both the variety of author personalities and the fact that none of the characters were perfect 1:1 for actual famous authors. The author/ fan interactions also felt cute and real. Also, I will admit that I enjoyed the cat puns.
The (non)- spoiler bad.
- The central “conflict” never felt fully explained. Every time it came up, it felt like the characters were saying “Well, you have to understand....” without ever actually resolving the issue.
- The Harry Potter mention. I totally respect people who love Harry Potter, it was a part of their childhood etc. That being said, indirectly promoting Harry Potter in a published work is just unnecessary at this point. Some of your readers have been traumatized/hurt by J.K Rowlings very public views and at this point HP references take me out of the story. If you must mention a book of the genre, use Circle of Magic etc. ( This is not related to me subtracting stars, but I felt I should mention it. Some people may not want to read this book because of this mention.)
- The main character has like...way too little respect for other people's privacy. It felt invasive and gross.
Potential spoilers beyond this point!
I'm sorry, but this romance plot is completely non-sensical. He said something mean about an author who was also plagiarized *which was completely unneeded*. He could mentioned how badly their writing styles mesh because they write in wildly different genres. Therefore plagiarizing both is just weird. And then she *wildly* overreacts. Refusing to even attend the same convention? Really?? I get not wanting to socialize with him/ not wanting to be on the same panel. Totally reasonable. But she acts like he led a campaign against her or something. It makes the character come across super melodramatic and less likeable compared to the rest of the book. And then! She tries to flesh out a characters background using his personal life. Like, using someone as a vague inspiration is one thing. Diving into his super private business because apparently you can't create your own tragic back story for a character is another. It just felt *super gross.* True, he wrote an entire book that was loosely inspired her, because he thought she was hot. In comparison, it still felt less squicky. Points returned for : no stupid lying, hilarious mentions of their relationship in the press, emails being at the end of the book, excerpts from authors book, and nods to previous Little Bridge characters.

This was my first Meg Cabot book and I am not impressed. The main character, Jo, is a vindictive b—! The story is predictable. Too boring!

3.5 stars rounded up!

I really enjoyed the insight into author life that we got here. That was super interesting. Overall the romance was mostly just an okay for me and the book within a book reminded me why I don't read male authors very often.