Once Upon a Time in Dollywood: Reese's Book Club
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4.3 • 104 Ratings
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- $10.99
Publisher Description
AN INSTANT USA TODAY BESTSELLER ∙ A REESE’S BOOK CLUB PICK ∙ AN NPR 2025 BOOK WE LOVE ∙ AN AMAZON BEST ROMANCE BOOK OF THE MONTH!
“A moving, captivating, beautiful debut! I can’t wait for the whole world to read it."—Jasmine Guillory, New York Times bestselling author of Flirting Lessons
A playwright must grapple with her difficult year and writer's block while falling for the single dad living next door in this emotional debut novel from Ashley Jordan.
Eve Ambroise may be a rising star playwright, but her personal life is falling part. Desperate for a fresh start, she breaks up with her fiancé, cuts off her parents, and heads to the Tennessee mountains. But keeping up the lie that she’s just on a writing retreat becomes near impossible when faced with the well-meaning townspeople and a neighbor who has just as much baggage as she has.
Coming off a contentious custody battle, Jamie Gallagher is restructuring what his life looks like as a single dad, and spending more days at his cabin makes his new “free time” a little less empty. Especially when he meets the beautiful—and prickly—woman next door. The last thing he needs is a new romance to shake up his family dynamics even more, but there’s something about Eve.
What starts out as a fling quickly becomes more serious, and it’s not long before Eve is running scared once again. She’s loved and lost in every possible way, and risking it one more time could finally break her. But like the fireflies that fill the mountains around them, Jamie's and Eve’s lives keep falling into sync. A fairy-tale ending could be in the cards, but only if the new couple can get out of their heads and put their hearts first.
“An entertaining, sexy novel that boldly explores trauma and healing yet still manages to be laugh-out-loud funny”—Library Journal STARRED review
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
This is the kind of heartfelt read that makes you truly believe in the power of second chances. Playwright Eve Ambroise is supposed to be on the rise, but instead, she’s reached her limit. Feeling creatively stuck—not to mention totally unseen by those closest to her—she abandons her family and her fiancé and heads to her grandmother’s old cabin in the mountains of Tennessee. Emotionally shut down and searching for solitude, she never expects to meet a handsome single dad named Jamie whom she just can’t stop thinking about. We love the flawed, beautiful, very real way that Ashley Jordan writes Eve’s story. Poignantly, part of Eve’s struggle is about understanding what it means to be happy when she’s been conditioned all her life to accept survival instead of joy. Watching her and Jamie cultivate a mature, empathetic relationship based on real honesty and communication fills this story with a feeling of hope that beats any fairy-tale ending.
Customer Reviews
Good
A good fun read. A little predictable,but a nice story
Worth the read…
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I give this book 5 stars.
When I saw it only had a 3.8 rating on Goodreads, I was curious to read through other reviews before adding my own. I have to admit, I was disappointed by some of the negative ones. From the very beginning, the author made it clear that this wasn’t your typical romance read. These characters came with baggage—they were HUMAN.
I never felt this was a slow burn. To me, it reflected the reality of most relationships: navigating healing, mental health, fertility struggles, identity as a Black woman, and the many compromises that come with love. Eve and Jamie aren’t “perfect” characters, but that’s exactly why their story resonated with me. They represent modern relationships, where both partners bring insecurities and past wounds, yet still learn how to show up, do the work, and carve out joy—not just together, but as individuals, too.
This book felt authentic, raw, and deeply human.