Shy bookworm Amy McIntyre is about to compete for the chance to interview her favorite author, who hasn’t spoken to the press in years. The only way to win is to step out of the shadows and into the spotlight, but that level of confidence has never come easy.

The solution? A competition coach. The problem? The best person for the job is the guy she’s secretly crushing on…local surfer celebrity Toff Nichols.

He’s a player. He’s a heartthrob. He makes her forget basic things, like how to breathe. How can she feel any confidence around him?

To her surprise, Toff agrees to help. And he’s an excellent teacher. Amy feels braver—maybe even brave enough to admit her feelings for him. When their late night practices become less about coaching and more about making out, Amy’s newfound confidence wavers. 

But does Toff really like her or is this just another lesson?

The Bookworm Crush is such an adorable, light read and I was practically all smiles the entire time that I was reading it. It’s the spin-off of The Replacement Crush that focuses on Amy and Toff, but this book can be read as a stand-alone. You don’t need to read The Replacement Crush first. I personally planned to, but it didn’t work out that way. Though that book just jumped to the top of my TBR!

Amy is a shy bookworm who is presented with a chance to win a once-in-a-lifetime chance to interview her favorite romance author (who hasn’t done any public event in twenty years). However, the only way she can really win this thing is to step into the spotlight and that takes a certain level of swagger that Amy just doesn’t have. So she enlists the help of Toff, the local surf stud, to help her come out of her shell so she can win this contest.

I knew I liked Amy and Toff right from the start of the book, as well as their friends and family. The banter and nicknames they all have for each other had me either gushing or laughing – especially Amy’s family. The teens are, of course, dealing with their own side drama as the story goes on that adds to why they act the way they do, and some of it leads to Toff being so dang sweet to his dad and future step-mom that it brought tears to my eyes.

One thing that some readers might find annoying is the amount of references to other books and pop culture in this book. I didn’t mind it too much, but it did seem a little excessive at times. I was pleased that I knew all the references, but if someone who doesn’t know them were to read this, they might get annoyed. Otherwise this book is great. It reads so easily, the story plays out swimmingly, and honestly this book is too adorable to not pick up and love!

If you’re looking for a cute, romance to take you out of the craziness we’re dealing with in the real world, then you need to pick up this book as soon as possible!

Rating 5/5 stars