Solid Slow Burn Romance. This is one of those romances where both people come into it with some pretty hefty emotional baggage – that each is very cognizant of their own and knows they need to work on, thus providing most of the actual drama here. Those looking for external drama/ suspense will only find the barest touch, deep in the text, and thus this may not be the book for you if that is something you *must* have.
For those looking for a more laid back “I’ve gone through hell and need to heal myself, but this person is extremely interesting” type romance, this is much closer to that kind of feel, and I think you’ll like it quite a bit. It *is* the third book in a series and possibly the finale of a trilogy, but it also works decently well as a standalone, so long as you don’t mind previous characters showing up and thus knowing that prior couples from other romance novels actually (shockingly! -note the dripping sarcasm there) wound up together.
The presence of a minor yet recurring (and somewhat essential, at least in the endgame) non-binary character is one of those things that some will actively buy the book specifically because it has this kind of character, and others will actively avoid this book for exactly the same reasons. You do you, no judgement at all here – unless you one star the book because of this character. That, I absolutely condemn you to some minor irritation for a day over. After all, I’ve now warned you about this, and you chose to read the book anyway.
Regardless of what you thought though, please do leave a review wherever you see this one after reading the book yourself. I’d love to hear what you think.
Oh, and a note about the “spice level”: Apparently Sullivan is known for closed-door romances, and this is exactly that. Things get a touch more interesting than basic kissing, so I think I’d rate this somewhere around a poblano pepper or so. It may cause some heart palpitations for some and yet be quite bland indeed for others, but for most it will work well enough to provide a solid flavor without being overwhelming.
Very much recommended.
This review of Maybe This Once by Sophie Sullivan was originally written on September 30, 2025.