#moderating love

Goodreads

Publication Date: March 5, 2026

About the Book:

What happens when your biggest critic turns out to be your perfect match? Devin: I've spent two years defending true love against the internet's biggest cynic. I'm a moderator for a forum for queer love stories, and my fellow moderator TruthGuardian has been the thorn in my optimistic side. He debunks every romantic meet-cute with spreadsheets, statistics, and enough cynicism to drain the romance from a Nicholas Sparks marathon. He calculates the exact cost of hoarded grocery items. He fact-checks power outages at Trader Joe's. He thinks love at first sight is just "compatible pheromone profiles." We've turned arguing into an art form, and I know more about this stranger than some of my real-life friends. But when a cute guy approaches me in a coffee shop, I'm about to learn that sometimes the most improbable love stories are the ones we're already living... Moderating Love is an 18,000-word grumpy/sunshine MM romance about falling for your complete opposite, one snarky message at a time.

My Review:

5 stars

This was super cute. Like, fangirl kick your feet and squeal cute. The meet-cute was adorable. Everything was adorable.

I loved the two main characters. Their easy banter and connection was palpable. I completely believed in their love story. And the twist was delicious. Well, it's not much of a twist really, since they give it away in the blurb. I just don't know what else to call it. The hook? Maybe the big reveal, when they each realize just who it is they're on this blind date with.

It's the perfect bite-sized romance. It's short and sweet, but it doesn't feel shallow or empty like novellas sometimes do. It feels like a fully-fledged romance. Just without the third act breakup, which is refreshing.

I can't wait to read the second one. The teaser at the end of this really hooked me.

Also I recommend the bonus epilogue, which I think you can get by signing up to the author's email. It was also really sweet.