A review by bribreez
Mixed Signals by B.K. Borison

emotional funny hopeful lighthearted medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

5⭐️/ 3🌶️

Back in the small town of Inglewild, but this time with the story being centered on Caleb and Layla! Our favorite resident baker and our former deputy turned substitute teacher falling in love! With familiar faces from Stella, Luka, Beckett, and Evie, the story continued to bring that wholesome, sweet, and heartwarming feeling while reading! Within the first few pages, I cannot stress to you how much this book brought me joy and I was smiling silly the whole way through! As much as I’ve enjoyed each book within the series, I gotta say Caleb and Layla’s story was probably hands down my favorite! 

Dating isn’t always easy, and Layla can DEFINITELY attest to that. After many disastrous dates, including the most recent one where her date was basically rude and dashed away with the silverware, Layla wasn’t having the best of luck in the love department. Just as she thought her night was ruined, Layla came across a familiar face with none other than Caleb! For the longest time, Layla didn’t really think much of Caleb other than being a nice, sweet guy who always came to her bakery, but seeing him outside of their small town, she started to see Caleb in a whole new light! Caleb admittedly also was having some problems when it came to dating so, in a bright idea came the proposal that Caleb and Layla should have a “no string attached dating” in order to help each other out! Of course, I could see where this was going, but I was HAPPILY along for the ride. 

From the moment I started this book, I could not contain my smiles! This story was sweet, humorous, heartwarming, and immediately had me falling for Caleb! CALEB MUST BE PROTECTED AT ALL COSTS! Whoever told Caleb that being a “nice guy” wasn’t exactly a good thing, I’m going to slap them silly! I ADORED the way Caleb was so sweet, and kind! If I met Caleb in person, best believe I’d snatch him up and he’d be all mine! Alas, Caleb was meant to be with Layla (lucky) and the way he treated her was exactly the type of man Layla deserved! 

If you love reading about a man who is obsessed with the woman of his dreams, that perfectly describes Caleb. Caleb has always had a crush on Layla, and while Layla started to see Caleb in a new way starting in the beginning of this story, for Caleb he had always felt a certain type of way towards Layla. I really appreciated seeing all the ways that Caleb went about trying to come up with cute date ideas for him and Layla, it just showed how much thought Caleb put into everything. Despite Layla and Caleb’s first two dates resulting in Caleb hurting/ embarrassing himself, Layla had fun with him. Plus, the way that Caleb saw Layla and how he described the way he felt about her in his p.o.v. had me swooning and wishing I was Layla! Caleb was the ultimate sweetheart and he brought me plenty of smiles.

Layla was an independent woman, but even she wished she could find her own happiness with someone. From the beginning of the story, Layla had struggled with dating specifically that the men she met were horrible or just plain weirdos. Seeing Luka, Stella, Beckett, and Evelyn all happy together made Layla feel left out in that she didn’t have her own person. I could relate to some of what Layla felt in that she just hoped to meet someone who would make her laugh, support her, listen to her, and be her partner in life. I think we can all agree that we all hope to meet that special someone who makes our heart beat a little faster, and brings us a sense of peace. When Layla and Caleb started their date(s) proposal, it showed Layla all the ways she deserved to be treated with respect, kindness, and love. Plus, who wouldn’t love a man like Caleb who was so endearing and wonderful to put so much thought into each date?! Layla initially just thought of Caleb as the man who frequented her bakery, but this time around she saw Caleb as a man she wanted all for herself! 

Although Caleb was a bit of a shy guy and sweet, oh boy he could turn on his charm and confidence when he wanted to. I found it also endearing the way that Caleb had to work up to a momentum in his confidence like, slowly but surely he would go from sweet man to a man that would make you melt! Caleb went from complimenting Layla and planning thoughtful dates to him saying things like, 

"You want to hear how I'm breaking apart, getting to see you like this?" 

And

"You're doing so good, sweetheart. So good."

Yeah Caleb already had me swooning earlier with his romantic, sweet words and gestures, but reading what he said and did with Layla had me melting on the floor and reconsidering that Caleb was most definitely not a shy man, he was capable of turning on that sex appeal, and Layla was more than happy to see it all! 

OMG THIS STORY WAS SWEET AND HEARTWARMING! With each book in the series, I’ve come to adore the characters in different ways. Before this book, Evelyn and Beckett were my favorites, but once I started reading Caleb and Layla’s story, they immediately stole my heart! Layla and Caleb were always those characters I had hoped to see more of with each story, and finally I got to see all their quirks, backstories, and just more of them in general. From the moment I started reading this book, I was smiling nonstop! I couldn’t get enough of Layla and Caleb together! I loved Layla, she was an independent, lovely yet also sassy woman who knew when to take charge in and out of the kitchen! Plus, the way that Layla eventually changed over the course of the story in learning to see that she deserved more in relationships and more. Caleb was the man for the job, but more importantly he had always had a crush on Layla for the longest time! Talk about “he fell first” trope, Caleb was exactly that and more with Layla! Caleb was naturally a thoughtful and romantic man which was *chef’s kiss! Caleb immediately caught my eye, and had me swooning left to right, with his sweet, thoughtful kindness, but also had me melting on the floor with his sexy confidence! With the added fun of seeing Stella, Luka, Evelyn, and Beckett in the story it was all around a great and fun story to read! As of right now, this was by far my favorite couple/ book in the series, but who knows maybe with Charlie and Nova’s book that could change. Definitely recommend this book and series if you’re looking for a story with small town romance, lovable characters, humor, and heartwarming feeling.