My So-Called Love Life

De: Lauren Blakely

Narrado por: Vanessa Edwin, Sebastian York

A delicious romantic comedy performed by Sebastian York & Vanessa Edwin!

I’ve got a list of people I absolutely don’t ever want to be stuck with on a boat, or a plane, or a train, and it starts and ends with the broody, grumpy, too-sexy-for-my-own good Axel Huxley.

Also known as this romance novelist’s number one nemesis.

The man is legendary for his mighty pen and his even mightier scowl. I tried to work together with the cocky thriller writer once upon a time, but the two of us are like vodka and good decisions. We don’t play well together.

Only now, our publishers are sending us on a joint trip across Europe to mingle with our most devoted readers on an old-fashioned luxury train. And thanks to a booking snafu, we have to share a sleeper car.

You guessed it—there's only one bed.

I'm not sure I can survive the next seven days and nights with my dangerously sexy enemy and all our fiery tension.

Which explodes one night in a desperately needed hate bang.

But the bigger plot twist is this—the more time we spend together, visiting the most romantic cities in Europe by day and discovering each other at night, the more I’m forced to face our past.

To let go of the hurt.

To see the man he’s become.

And when I do, I wonder if it’s too late to write a new happy ending for us?

(Please note: this book was previously titled My So-Called S-e-x Life! The story remains the same under the new title My So-Called Love Life)

©2023 Lauren Blakely (P)2025 Lauren Blakely Books

I love books in the book world!

My So Called Sex Life by Lauren Blakely is the perfect example of why Lauren Blakely is one of my top 5 authors and my number one audiobook author. She writes her characters with the narrators already in mind and I just love how perfectly casted these characters were.

I love books that take place in the book world, so that made My So Called Sex Life even more special. We have met Hazel and Axel in previous Lauren Blakely books, but you absolutely don’t need to read any of them before this book.

Hazel Valentine & Axel Huxley are both authors. He writes thrillers, and she writes romcoms. They used to write a popular series together, but one day in the middle of writing, he just ended it. No explanation, he just walked away. Now they are enemies, with all the snarkiness that goes with it.

When they are both offered an amazing book promo tour via train through Europe, it sounded great until they realized who else was on the tour. Let the banter begin! Being a romcom in the book world, I loved how Lauren teased the genre a bit by giving us all the super obvious tropes, yet keeping the story so creative and fun you can’t help but love it.

We have friends-to-enemies-lovers, forced proximity, single bed, slow burn, and unrequited love all rolled up into a fun ride with booklovers! I was listening to this book as I was planning Readers Take Denver, so it was a lot of fun listening to book signing stuff right as I was planning one. I have never met a Lauren Blakely character I didn’t love and admire, and My So Called Sex Life was no exception.

“I’m thirty-one, missy. I can work a phone, a power drill, and a twenty-speed vibrator.”

Likes:
•It took place in the book world.
•I loved both main characters and the side characters.
•All the cameos from other series, but you never needed to know that at all, they were more like Easter eggs for fans.
•The fun banter.
•Just the perfect amount of hot sex.
•Amy’s side story.
•I loved the train ride.

Dislikes:
•I didn’t like that it was a mystery why they parted ways the first time.

The Narration:
It’s been a while since Sebastian York has narrated a Lauren Blakely book, and I was so glad to hear it again! He was perfect for Axel, and Vanessa Edwin was spot-on for Hazel. The narration made the book even better.

The Down & Dirty:
Lauren Blakely never disappoints. I honestly love almost every book she has written, but I will say that this is one of my favorites, I think because it was in the book world, and I liked how she kind of made fun (in a loving way) of all the tropes. I hope we get more in this series.

Rating: 4.5-5 Stars, 3.5 Heat, 5 Narration

Meh

I love most of Lauren’s books, this one was not one of them. I was bored by this book. I found myself havi'ng to rewind quite often because it didn’t keep my attention.

Fantastic story and perfect performances.

This book gave me so much joy. From the very beginning, there was the witty banter between our sweet Hazel and broody Axel, and as we follow their story we are pulled into a love story that has been in the making for a long time and watch as these two find their two loves, writing and each other.

Hazel Valentine is a romance author who wants her characters to have all the feels and romance and best o's of their life. Axel Huxley is a romance thriller author and even though he gives his characters romance, that isn't the focus for him. When these two got together previously to co-write a series it was magical and the fans loved it but for some reason, Axel ended their partnership as well as friendship and fled to Europe leaving Hazel to have doubts about her skills. Now they are forced back together on a book tour across Europe on a train and the love gods have decided these two need to be forced a little closer together so these once friends, now frenemies are going to be sharing a bed.

This book is funny and the characters are wonderful. They have what we all have, doubts about their abilities, desires they don't want to voice, fears of what will happen later if they act on those desires, and hope for forever with their one true love. I loved Hazel as she is just fun. Axel is hot and just enough broody to make him desirable. The supporting characters are so much fun too. You will love the fans that get to travel with our couple and it makes fiction seem more real as we are all fans of our authors, and wouldn't it be wonderful to be able to travel on a train for a tour around Europe with said author and get to know them?

Now for the bonus, I listened to this book so not only is the story beyond five stars for me I also got the pleasure of Sebastian York and Vanessa Edwin bringing it to life for me. Talk about perfect casting for Hazel and Axel. Vanessa was the perfect choice for Hazel as her voice and timing were spot on. Sebastian was in my opinion the only choice for Axel. He became Axel and gave him everything LB had written him to be. As I listened I was not just listening to a book, I was along on the ride with Hazel and Axel as part of their tour and I was pulled into the story with them. It was so good. I loved it and highly recommend it.

So meta

This is super meta with lots of insider knowledge and wishful thinking about writing and publishing. The performances are fantastic. The reluctance to say their feelings trope is something I don’t particularly enjoy that’s why this didn’t get five stars.

Loved this friends-to-enemies-to-lovers story!

Hazel has been a wonderful side character in many of Lauren Blakely's books and I am so happy that she is finally finding her own HEA. She is a romance writer and a romantic at heart that just can't seem to find the right guy for her. Axel is also a writer but more of the thriller with a romance type of book and has also made questionable choices in women. This story is kind of a second-chance romance with a friends/co-writers to enemies to lovers progression.

I adore that this book takes place not only in New York, but on a train trip through several countries in Europe. The forced close proximity (one sleeping car for both of them of course), the romantic cities and settings, working together again, and then finally admitting their attraction, these two romantics finally find the happy ending that they have been writing for their characters for themselves.

Vanessa Edwin and Sebastian York are definitely two of my favorite narrators and they bring all the passion and vulnerability that these two characters demand and then some. Lauren Blakely writes with audio in mind and as a result her books have a flow and rhythm to them that makes the performances seem effortless and so connected that I can't imagine reading them any other way.