The Ex Talk | ARC Review

Synopsis

Public radio co-hosts navigate mixed signals in Rachel Lynn Solomon’s sparkling romantic comedy debut.

Shay Goldstein has been a producer at her Seattle public radio station for nearly a decade, and she can’t imagine working anywhere else. But lately it’s been a constant clash between her and her newest colleague, Dominic Yun, who’s fresh off a journalism master’s program and convinced he knows everything about public radio.

When the struggling station needs a new concept, Shay proposes a show that her boss green-lights with excitement. On The Ex Talk, two exes will deliver relationship advice live, on air. Their boss decides Shay and Dominic are the perfect co-hosts, given how much they already despise each other. Neither loves the idea of lying to listeners, but it’s this or unemployment. Their audience gets invested fast, and it’s not long before The Ex Talk becomes a must-listen in Seattle and climbs podcast charts.

As the show gets bigger, so does their deception, especially when Shay and Dominic start to fall for each other. In an industry that values truth, getting caught could mean the end of more than just their careers.

Review

I enjoyed this rom-com! The banter, the public radio fun, and the lovely characters made this book so great to read.

First, I want to point out how much I loved that this book “centered around” public radio and podcasts. I had a lot of fun learning more about public radio and seeing our main characters go through their podcasting/radio experiences. I think these experiences made the book a lot of fun! I feel like I don’t get to read about radio/podcast hosts enough so I was so happy to be able to read about them here. And falling in love nonetheless!

The romance in this book was great. Dominic was such a doll. He initially brought some brooding and strictness to the relationship which contrasted beautifully with Shay and her passion and heart for radio. I was really wanting to snatch Dominic up for myself. Master’s degree and all. It was also infuriatingly wonderful how they both thought they knew what each person wanted. It led to some angst and slow-burn-ness, which I’m all for.

Similar to TODAY, TONIGHT, TOMORROW, Solomon points out some cases of sexism as seen in the workplace. I loved the strong females featured in this book and how they were more than willing to stand up for what was right and how things should have been handled.

The one thing that I didn’t like, and that caused me to give this a lower rating than I was initially going to, was the ending. Something was off for me. I felt like things were resolved without really being discussed or talked about. It seemed like the true conflict resolution was sacrificed for a big, romantic gesture. I was pretty disappointed by the ending to say the least.

Despite the ending, I enjoyed the rest of the book. I can’t wait to read what else Solomon writes as I’ve loved her two books so far.

Disclaimer: I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Rating

To check out my other reviews, click here. Or to check out more books by Rachel Lynn Solomon, go to her GoodReads profile or her website.