The Ex Talk, by Rachel Lynn Solomon
Goodreads ¦ Amazon
Series?: No
Publisher: Berkeley
Release Date: January 26, 2021
Length: 336 pages
Source: ARC
Format: E-ARC
Times Read: Once
Rating: 5/5

Shay Goldstein has been a producer at her Seattle public radio station for nearly a decade, and she can’t imagine working anywhere else. But lately it’s been a constant clash between her and her newest colleague, Dominic Yun, who’s fresh off a journalism master’s program and convinced he knows everything about public radio.

When the struggling station needs a new concept, Shay proposes a show that her boss green-lights with excitement. On The Ex Talk, two exes will deliver relationship advice live, on air. Their boss decides Shay and Dominic are the perfect co-hosts, given how much they already despise each other. Neither loves the idea of lying to listeners, but it’s this or unemployment. Their audience gets invested fast, and it’s not long before The Ex Talk becomes a must-listen in Seattle and climbs podcast charts.

As the show gets bigger, so does their deception, especially when Shay and Dominic start to fall for each other. In an industry that values truth, getting caught could mean the end of more than just their careers.

ALL! THE! BEST! TROPES!

♥ I am a longtime fan of Rachel Lynn Solomon. I’ve been reviewing her books since I started my blog, and I always love them. I gave Today Tonight Tomorrow 478,000 howls/5, and Our Year of Maybe earned 5 plus approximately 1 million thumbs up. Search Rachel’s name, and you’ll find her on almost every list and book tag I’ve ever posted. I’m always on her street teams, and in my spare time you can often find me casually sending her messages as if she were my friend.

So when I found out she had not only another YA (We Can’t Keep Meeting Like This, out June 1st) but ALSO her first adult romance coming out this year?? I WAS SO EXCITED!!

♥ Rachel is always good with the tropes in her YA books, but this one was PACKED with them and THEY! ALL! WORKED!

Only One Bed (WITH FULL CONSENT) is one of my very favorites, and it came along with Stuck Together. Fake Dating, though, is just the absolute best. It creates so much tension, so many glances and brief touches.

But here, Fake Dating is turned on its head and we instead get Fake Used to Date. Shay and Dominic have such great chemistry, and we get to see them create their own backstory. The scene where they are working on this in the office after hours…whew.

♥ There’s this phrase that Shay and her friend use and as soon as I saw it I couldn’t get over how perfect and amazing it was for this quietly feminist romance:

WWAMWMD? What would a mediocre white man do?

I need to start using this one in my every day life because really, doesn’t that just say it all?

Final Thoughts: If you like office romances, you’ll love this. If you like podcasts, you’ll find the radio tidbits fascinating. If you like Rachel’s YA work, you’ll love seeing how her writing changes slightly for an adult book but still sounds like her. This was an incredible adult debut, and I can’t wait for her next one!