Well Met
by Jen DeLuca
Synopsis
All's faire in love and war for two sworn enemies who indulge in a harmless flirtation in a laugh-out-loud rom-com from debut author Jen DeLuca.
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.
Review
Well Met is the contemporary romance of my dreams, and a surprisingly poignant book to my twenty-something mind. Featuring a Renaissance Faire, Enemies-to-Lovers, a brilliantly-named bookstore and beautiful repartee, it plays right to my long-held fantasy that if I simply don the right corset and step into the woods, love will find me. Hopefully in the form of a dashing pirate. At the same time, this book isn’t afraid to confront feelings of loneliness, uncertainty in a new community, and the process of healing from deep, life-altering loss.
At twenty-four years of age and recently robbed of the future she’d long dreamt of, Emily could not be more relatable to me. She carries this story well as the main character, equal parts anxious and hopeful as she takes care of her family and tries to find a place in Willow Creek, all the while battling gaping wounds left by her old life in the city. Displacement becomes an interesting antagonist to the story, constantly reminding her that this isn’t her town, she didn’t grow up with these people, and her life may very well belong somewhere else. Though she engages in constant verbal sparring with the Faire’s coordinator and her designated love interest, Simon Graham, it is herself she ends up fighting against the most.
As for Simon, he is nerdy in that English-teacher way, uptight, strict with rules, and unbelievably charming the moment he lets those walls drop and steps into his annual Faire persona of a flirtatious pirate captain. He’s got his own demons to be sure, but like Emily he feels that his only chance of surviving them is to pretend they don’t exist and to dive headfirst into this crazy summer role.
Together, they put off a fair amount of steam whether it’s going over costuming decisions, table placement in the Faire tavern, or a pretend ceremony that feels all too real. By the time they finally kiss, DeLuca has her audience hovering on the edge of their seats. She has a masterful hand when it comes to crafting tension and then releasing it at just the right moments. Her love scenes are extraordinarily memorable, yet not because they go wild on one another (though those parts are appreciated). They are memorable and lovely to me because not once does she forget these characters’ squishy centers and the fact that deep down, both are hopeless romantics with a lot of love to give. In subtle phrasing and delicate touches, she preserves tenderness between them in a way that made my heart throb and left Emily and Simon in my mind days after finishing the book.
It’s easy to get overwhelmed by the number of beautiful, well-crafted, funny romances on the market today, but this one definitely stands out from the crowd. I cannot wait to revisit Simon and Emily months from now, and am sat on the edge of my seat waiting for the day we get to step back into her wonder of a Renaissance Faire for book 2.
Recommendations
The Unhoneymooners by Christina Lauren — Contemporary Romance, enemies-to-lovers, fake relationship, lots of banter! Olive Torres must pretend to be happily married to her long-time enemy to score her twin sister’s dream honeymoon to Hawaii. Explore further here.
The Hating Game by Sally Thorne — Contemporary Romance, enemies-to-lovers, banter, humor, STEAM. Long-time enemies Lucy and Josh work as executive assistants in the same small publishing house and play passive-aggressive games to antagonize one another. This all comes to a head when suddenly, they’re up for the same promotion. Explore further here.
