Hook, Line and Sinker by. Tessa Bailey | Book Review

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Title: Hook, Line and Sinker (Bellinger Sisters, #2)

Author: Tessa Bailey

Format: ebook (borrowed)

Pages: 385

Publication Date: 3/1/22

Publisher: Avon

Categories: Romance, Friends to Lovers, Rom Com

King crab fisherman Fox Thornton has a reputation as a sexy, carefree flirt. Everyone knows he’s a guaranteed good time–in bed and out–and that’s exactly how he prefers it. Until he meets Hannah Bellinger. She’s immune to his charm and looks, but she seems to enjoy his… personality? And wants to be friends? Bizarre. But he likes her too much to risk a fling, so platonic pals it is.

Now, Hannah’s in town for work, crashing in Fox’s spare bedroom. She knows he’s a notorious ladies’ man, but they’re definitely just friends. In fact, she’s nursing a hopeless crush on a colleague and Fox is just the person to help with her lackluster love life. Armed with a few tips from Westport’s resident Casanova, Hannah sets out to catch her coworker’s eye… yet the more time she spends with Fox, the more she wants him instead. As the line between friendship and flirtation begins to blur, Hannah can’t deny she loves everything about Fox, but she refuses to be another notch on his bedpost.

Living with his best friend should have been easy. Except now she’s walking around in a towel, sleeping right across the hall, and Fox is fantasizing about waking up next to her for the rest of his life and… and… man overboard! He’s fallen for her, hook, line, and sinker. Helping her flirt with another guy is pure torture, but maybe if Fox can tackle his inner demons and show Hannah he’s all in, she’ll choose him instead?

Content Warning:

Life has been so busy for me the past few weeks that this book was exactly what I needed to sweep me away for a little bit, fall in love with the characters falling in love and not think about my problems 😅. Let’s get to what I did and didn’t like:

+ I love that we are back in Westport, where the ocean is near, and the Bellinger sisters are together again but this one is all about Hannah, the supporting actress, the one in Piper’s shadow, the sweet sister who has her head all up into music. I loved Hannah from book one because she seems down to earth, she’s more practical about things and even has a normal job. She’s trying to work on being the “leading lady” in certain aspects of her life, like with her job and with Fox.

+ The best part of this whole book was Hannah and Fox’s relationship. They go from friends…and yes I think I can say they are friends even though it’s been only a few months of really texting each other. But it continues when she comes back except the physical attraction is now an issue – they want each other…but the challenge is trying to decide if it’s worth ruining the friendship for and I love that they make it work. I’m more of a lover of the “enemies to lovers” trope…but maybe I’m emotional because of PMS, but this one had me in my feels. I love that they were trying to understand one another, be honest even if it was scary – they listened to one another. Love that because relationships are a long haul and knowing how to get through the bumps are so important. And they have their own way which works for them.

+ Speaking of physical attraction 🔥 – these two were definitely hot for one another. But I like how they tried to talk about things before actually getting to the point of acting on it.

~ I felt like book one had more of an emotional connection between Piper and her dad’s memory, the town and the bar. Sadly Hannah doesn’t have that connection because she doesn’t remember him and that is realistic but she was hardly at her grandma’s place, or connecting to anyone really in the book except for with Fox. BUT…I totally get it, some people just need their space and she even said she liked the idea of moving from Westport to be able to work, and have space so they could figure out their relationship with Fox without people always giving their two cents. So I respected that about her. I just felt like there wasn’t much of Piper in the book or anyone else, this really focused on Hannah and Fox relationship.

~ I think some parts about Fox’s commitment issues got a bit repetitive in the middle of the story. I get it that he had to work through these issues though and actually I think it’s relatable (I grew up with a few guys like this.) There are those guys out there and it’s sad that they think their only worth is their looks and being a F-buddy, which is why I thought it was sweet how he connected with Hannah and how Hannah saw who he really was and was patient enough with him.

Tropes: friends to lovers, forced proximity, afraid to commit, small town

Spice Level: 🌶🌶🌶🌶

Why you should read it:

• Hannah and Fox are perfect for one another, she’s trying to be more confident in her job and he has major insecurities, especially when it comes to his feelings about Hannah – but what I love about them is they try to listen and understand one another. They are each other’s safe space. They grew together which melts my heart!
• sweet, steamy, and funny

Why you might not want to read it:

• you didn’t like the first book…OR if you did like the first one, just know this one is different because Piper isn’t Hannah and vice versa. Hannah has a lesser connection to the town and her dad’s memory. Hannah is her own person but it would have been nice to have her reconnect more with her sister too – but that’s just me. I like when Hannah and Piper are together because they are the most loving sisters.

My Thoughts:

Overall, this was the perfect book for my current mood – I just wanted to escape and read a book with a happily ever after. I definitely felt all the emotions while reading Hannah and Fox’s love story. They are the cutest together with their shared love of music and wanting to take care of each other. This one gave me all the feels!

Book Links:

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

It Happened One Summer by. Tessa Bailey | Book Review ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I just kind of stand around waiting for things to happen, while other people seem to make them happen so easily. I can help others—I like doing that—but I’m a supporting actress, not a leading lady.

Tessa Bailey, Hook, Line and Sinker