Title: First-Time Caller
Author: BK Borison
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★
Feelings:
- Loved the representation of LGBTQ+ couples and blended families.
- The radio station setting. After countless reality show and fake dating plots, this setting felt unique and plausible.
- Lucie is a strong female lead. She simply is who she is.
- Borison resists the urge to have her characters jump to conclusions for manufactured "angst" — Lucie actually uses her mind.
- The interfering adolescent daughter? An absolute delight and the MVP who sets the whole story in motion.
Reflection:
First-Time Caller is the kind of romance that creates a world that feels lived-in and real, populated with characters who feel like people you actually want to know.
The radio station setting elevates this above the crowded contemporary romance shelf. It is creative, charming, and gives the slow burn a natural rhythm.
That said, no four-star review is without its honesty. There is a late-in-the-story moment where a miscommunication. The kind this book had so carefully avoided up to that point. It was frustrating and almost ruined it for me.
She expressed a boundary. He misread it entirely. And then, in an attempt to make it right, he did the exact thing she said she did not want. Somehow, she was perfectly fine with it. For a book that so deliberately focused on honesty, this just didn't sit well with me. It did not ruin the story, but it was hard to ignore given how well everything else had been handled.
Still, First-Time Caller is a genuinely enjoyable read — funny, heartfelt, and full of the kind of quiet, earned moments that make romance worth reading.
Favorite Quotes:
"My eye twitches. I'm the villain. I am definitely the villain and this is my origin story."
"I don't want to settle for something just to say I have it."
"You don't have to be alone to be lonely."
"I don't hold myself accountable to other people's impressions of me."
"I force my shoulders to relax. No. I won't jump to conclusions. Aiden has never given me reason not to trust him. I'm not going to start making assumptions from a fragment of a conversation I wasn't supposed to hear."
About the Author:
From the Publisher: New York Times, Sunday Times, and USA Today bestselling author BK Borison writes cozy, contemporary romances featuring emotionally vulnerable characters and swoon-worthy settings. When she's not daydreaming about fictional characters doing fictional things, she's at home with her family, more than likely buying books she doesn't have room for.
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