Book: Sugar & Shadows : An Enemies to Lovers Romance by Daphne Elliot
Reviewed by RachelHasNoShelfControl
Rating: 4.5/5
😤 Rivals/Enemies to Lovers
🤰 Accidental Pregnancy
🏡 Small Town
🫶 Acts of Service
💘 He Falls Hard
👨👩👧👦 Found Family
🏠 Forced Proximity
🛏️ One Bed
😒 Grumpy x Grumpy
Sabrina was such a fun character. I related to her SO much. The overachieving kid who gets pigeonholed into a stereotype, leaves town determined to prove everyone (including herself) wrong, and eventually comes home when life throws her a curveball. She needed a break and a redemption arc, and I loved watching her get both.
And the TAPS team she builds around her? THE BEST. These side characters had me laughing one minute and threatening to cry the next. 😂
Gabe is the reluctant mayor of Maplewood and desperately needs a redemption arc of his own, just for completely different reasons. He and Sabrina being childhood rivals, but while she left town, he stayed and took a very different path.
Turns out, they're a lot more alike than either wants to admit. When they team up to save the town after losing the permit for the Maple Festival, things get even more complicated thanks to one night, a snowstorm, one motel room, one bed, and leading to an accidental pregnancy. 😏
There are SO many hilarious and feel-good moments that kept me invested. My two favorite were Sabrina yelling at Gabe and announcing her pregnancy all angry...in front of an audience and Gabe asking Sabrina's mom if she can sleep over? I may have snorted.
I also LOVED how much the overarching subplot moved forward in this book. After two books of the actual murder and then tiny little crumbs, getting this much development was SO satisfying. I’m completely invested and desperate to see how everything shakes out.
And THEN Daphne goes and drops a HUGE teaser for book 4 and LITERALLY ENDS THE BOOK?!
Ma’am...Illegal play on the field. 🚩Penalty is giving me book 4 ASAP (before everyone else). 😂
Thank you, Daphne and The Author Agency for the ARC.