Iris Kelly Doesn't Date: A swoon-worthy, laugh-out-loud queer romcom

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I have GAD and I actually was lowkey offended by this lol, we're not some incapable beans defined by anxiety who can't go thru a single interaction w/o throwing up). I loved seeing Adri get jealous because she thought they were dating—hello getting the only one bed FAKE OUT LOL—and it wasn’t a crazy leap to think that the fake dating was actually pretty logical (given the circumstances). And while I've seen some criticisms of Iris Kelly that are fair, I still have to say I had a great reading experience.

Yes, even Astrid—who, by the way, gives off such extreme Lemon Breeland vibes that I’ve since had to go back and rewatch a few episodes of Hart of Dixie.The romantic leads have genuine romantic chemistry which makes the rest of the book feel lacking in comparison.

Blake balances the sibling tension between Delilah and Astrid with the main romance plot between Delilah and Claire, all the while developing the setting of Bright Falls, Oregon. Blake introduces her readers to a new character, Jordan Everwood, who has arrived from—yes, serendipity and irony are real things, folks—coastal Georgia. I must start by saying that this is a very biased review because for me Ashely Herring Blake can do no wrong and this was proven by the final book in the series, Iris Kelly doesn’t Date. Described (charitably) as passionate and strong-willed, she loves to talk (and talk) about popular culture, queer theory, utopias, time travel, and any other topic that she has magpied over the years.We get a little bit in the way of Stevie setting boundaries with her friends, explaining what she needs from them, and asking them to respect her as a person and her choices, but it wasn’t enough for my taste. From their meet cute to the very end, it was fun and cute with just the slightest touch of angst and enough spice to keep it fun. So describing a stranger at a bar as “female-identifying” felt very weird because unless that person was wearing a pin or holding up a sign stating that, looking at them is not enough information to go off of to determine that they are, in fact, female-identifying. To get her mind off everything, Iris tries out for the lead role in a local play, a queer retelling of Much Ado About Nothing, but comes face-to-face with Stefania, whose real name turns out to be Stevie. She'll stick to her commitment-free hookups, thanks very much, except no one in her life will just let her be.