Title: Parks and Provocation
Author: Juliette Cross, SmartyPants Romance
Series: Green Valley Heroes #2
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Contemporary, Contemporary romance
Pace: Medium
Format: Novel
Year: 2022
I always love a good second chance romance. And there’s something about those moments in high school that you can’t forget that stick with us. So a combination of the two made me smile multiple times throughout reading this. Particularly when you realise how much of a torch Jed has carried for Lola since the very beginning.
As wonderful as the romance throughout this story is, its the very first scene that truly sets the tine for this whole novel. I mean, she locks her damn keys in the car (I’ve pretty much done this a thousand times). But, to top it off, her keys are in the ignition and the car is still running… I haven’t done that, but the humour and pure frustration of this moment had me giggling. That Cross mentions it in her dedication just made it a thousand times better.
Lola’s quandary about her emotions is a great sell. She starts off trying to convince herself that she’s just dating Jed to sell her podcast, but then… emotions. I also love that she spends a lot of time coming to terms with what her idea of success is. I mean, pride at mentioning who and what you are to people is a big part of our lives. But, most people just don’t actually judge you for your decisions. Its something that I’ve been working at coming to terms with myself.
Parks and Provocation is such a gorgeous and wonderful novel. Pretty much what I would expect from a SmartyPants Romance novel to be honest. It is just so damn gorgeous and sweet. Maybe not as many cameos as I was expecting, but still a sweet, wonderful and fun novel that took me away to a happier place for a while.
Earth and Skye 
2 thoughts on “Parks and Provocation by Juliette Cross”