When it comes to love, there are only two types of people in this world: Those who believe it exists and the rest of us—the realists.
All that lovey-dovey crap you feel sometimes … it’s in your brain. That’s right. Hormones.
For the past five years, I’ve been dishing out advice to anyone who’ll listen. I tell it like it is. If you write to Ask Adelaide expecting syrupy words or fairytale musings, you’ll be sorely disappointed. I prefer to slap you with a dose of cold, hard truth, minus the sugar. You can thank me later.
Not to be a hypocrite, of course, I follow all the rules I preach: No second dates, no sleepovers, no exceptions. One red flag and I will ding-dong ditch you faster than you can blink.
No one has better control of their heart than me.
At least I did until I met Nash.
| Title: | Dating Brooklyn |
| Author: | Peyton James |
| Series: | Naked in New York (Book 2) |
| Pages: | 310 |
| Category / Genre(s): | Contemporary |
| Trope(s): | Opposites Attract Enemies to Lovers Neighbours to Lovers |
| Point of View: | First Person, Present Tense, Heroine’s Viewpoint Only |
| Location: | New York, USA |
| HEA: | ✔️ |
| Release Date: | 5th January, 2022 |
 |  |  |  |
Cute, sassy and engaging
I am new to Peyton James and despite hearing much about her books around the ‘net, I’ve just realised that she herself is fairly new to romance as this is just her 3rd published novel. This is also the 2nd book in her Naked in New York series but each stands completely alone and has a completely different set of characters.
So to this book… the blurb would have you believe this is a simple tale about a crabby advice columnist who finds herself ignoring all her own advice when it comes to the man she’s fallen for. While it is that, there’s also a huge secret that Adelaide is keeping, a career going up in smoke, a potentially vengeful ex, and a forced eviction by a billionaire property developer…who just happens to be our hero, Nash.
Our story is told entirely from Addie’s point of view and while I was wary at first, by the end of the story I really loved her. She was unashamed about her views on love and dating, and always happy to tell people how she felt about things yet she had a vulnerability about her that felt honest and, at times, quite raw. I sometimes wondered if she was making too much of the secret she was hiding, but at other times I could completely understand why she went to such great lengths to protect herself and hide it.
Because we never get to hear what Nash is thinking or feeling, in many ways he remained a mystery to me even at the end of the book. He shares some of his own backstory with Addie but with the way things turned out, his own insecurities didn’t have a chance to affect or even ruin his and Addie’s relationship. I do have to applaud the use of “I think he really likes you” comment that’s made to Addie. I’ve decided we don’t get enough secondary characters telling the main characters that the other main character fancies them.
“…made hearts come out of my eyes!”
The story went along nicely and I found the writing engaging, cute and likeable. I was, therefore, quite surprised when it came time for the sex scenes and things get descriptive. I’m not talking pure filth, but there were good times and we were right there to see it all!
Perhaps it was because we only had one point of view, or perhaps because of the way it was written, but at times I felt that the relationship between Nash and Addie wasn’t actually the main focus of the story. Addie had a lot to deal with and a lot to work through in order to be able to get her happily ever after and only when she’d done this did the romance take centre stage in my opinion. This isn’t necessarily a complaint, but it did make me think. With that said, the ending was adorable and made hearts come out of my eyes! Happy sighs.
We get a couple of excellent secondary characters in this story and I liked that by the end of the story they’d formed a small friend group. Nash’s friend, Hunter, and Addie’s manager friend, Anja are both big parts in the book and I would love to see them get their own stories. While the possibility of them being right for each other is nixed in this story, I still might be pinning my hopes on a Hun-ja coupling! And while I’m strangely vocal about my dislike of characters with this same first initial appearing together in novels, I’ll concede that it’s fine with Addie and Anja as they sound so very different and because we only ever get the story from Addie’s POV, it’s obvious which one’s which when reading.
Another set of thumbs up from me for the adorably cute cover. I can find cartoon covers a bit hit or miss but I really love this one and the styling of the whole series.
Peyton James has been a great find for me and I’m really excited to read more from her and to find out where she goes next. This was almost a 5 star read from me but while I ended up opting for 4, I would still recommend this book to anyone who loves a funny, sexy and sassy romance.
* I received this book in exchange for my honest review. *
Peyton James writes contemporary romance stories about love and loss and everything in between. She is the author of the Naked in New York series, as well as several standalone novels, including Chasing Lucy. By day, Peyton is a Communications Specialist for one of the fastest-growing municipalities in Canada. In her spare time, you can find her in the sunshine with her four children or stealthily hidden from the chaos writing on her MacBook.
 |  |  |  |  |  |  |
Excerpt from Chapter 1:
On any given day, there are six million singles searching for love in New York City. Some will go it alone, swiping left or right, relying on fate to meet their perfect match. Some will turn to friends for advice, and others will settle for meaningless hookups.
The rest will turn to me.
Adelaide Quinn, New York’s toughest online dating coach. I’m tough because I’ve lived through love. I’ve lived through the highest highs and the cruelest lows. I’ve had my walls torn down and my heart demolished. I’ve been hurt, lied to, cheated on and misled.
But I’m good now. Because now, I can see through the bullshit. It’s my superpower—and it’s how I earn my living. I teach people to spot the fake and the phony. To settle for nothing but the best. And more importantly, I teach them when and how to walk away.
There’s no denying I’ve broken up more relationships than I’ve rescued. But I’ve also saved many from inevitable heartbreak. Love me or hate me, this is who I am. I speak the truth. Take my advice or leave it. It’s up to you.
© Peyton James, 2022
Naked in New York Series:
No Comments