Secretly Yours
“All moments are not equal. Every second was not a grain of sand in an hourglass. Time was bigger than him. Maybe time wasn’t something that could be controlled at all; it was about making time matter with the people he cared about.”
I've always been told Tessa Bailey books are hit or miss. I've only read her Bellinger Sisters duology prior to Secretly Yours, both of which I enjoyed, so I had high hopes for the first installment of A Vine Mess. Although Secretly Yours is quite different plot-wise from both Bellinger Sisters books, this novel still had the same humor and flow as Bailey's previous books.
Summary:
Hallie Welch plays by her own rules. As a florist, she goes into each garden without a plan, letting the flowers tell her where they want to be planted. Her house is a mess, she wears ten necklaces at a time rather than choose one, and at 30 years old, she's never had a boyfriend because she's still hung up on her high school crush.
Julian Vos, on the other hand, has life scheduled down to the minute. He's taken a year off from teaching at Stanford to write a historical fiction time travel novel, and like the creative he is, Julian has scheduled his writing into meticulous 30 minute non-stop sprints.
To ensure his focus, Julian is staying in the guesthouse on his family's vineyard, home to the luxury vines that produce Vos wine. But when his mom hires Hallie to redo the landscaping around the guesthouse, Julian's practiced concentration is broken by the beautiful, bubbly blonde and her three crazy traipsing outside his window. Meanwhile, Hallie is ecstatic to have a second chance with her crush after their almost kiss when she was fourteen. Except Julian doesn't remember her.
Determined to not let the snub affect her, Hallie decides she and Julian will be friends. But after a drunken girls' night, she makes the mistake of pouring her feelings into a letter (anonymously, of course)--and leaving it for Julian to find. Much to her surprise (and embarrassment), Julian responds, beginning their whirlwind secret correspondence just as Hallie and Julian grow closer in real life.
Week after week Julian and Hallie learn more about each other, breaking down their walls and playing into their ever mounting sexual tension. As their relationship becomes more and more real, Hallie knows she should tell Julian that she's his secret admirer, but after living life precariously for so long, it suddenly feels important for Hallie to be cautious with Julian.
Will secrets ruin Hallie and Julian's burgeoning relationship? Will their polar opposite personalities clash irredeemably? Or will they provide each other the balance they've been looking for?
Thoughts:
I thought this was a cute, classic romance concept falling perfectly in line with Bailey's collection of books. I'm definitely more of a Julian than a Hallie, so at times I found her character annoying, but Bailey did a good job adding depth and backstory to round out her carefree attitude. I really connected to Julian's intense scheduling and anxiety, but I wanted to know more about his black outs--especially following the vineyard fire years prior. Although Bailey eventually describes the scene, I was still left with more questions than answers, and I think exploring Julian's mental health more could have been a good choice.
Something that caught me off guard were the salacious sex scenes. After reading the Bellinger Sisters duology, I knew Bailey had a penchant for spicy sex, but there were certain scenes in Secretly Yours that went a bit further than I was used to. I would definitely recommend caution for any readers who don't like anything racier than a typical Ali Hazelwood or Emily Henry sex scene.
Overall:
Secretly Yours is cheesy, raunchy, and a classic example of a 'just kiss already!' romance. Bailey clearly knows the genre like the back of her hand, and has followed up her extremely successful Bellinger Sisters series with a promising start to her new duology A Vine Mess.
My Rating: 4/5
Goodreads Average: 3.41/5
Information:
Secretly Yours by Tessa Bailey (Avon)
Publication Date: February 7, 2023
ISBN: 9780063238985 (PB) 9780063239029 (HC)