You Had Me at Chateau by Portia MacIntosh (Paperback)

Amber Page is a rom‑com novelist in a rut. Her editor has just told her to “up the spice” in her books—a terrifying idea for someone who writes sweet, cozy love stories. When she’s offered a place at a writer’s retreat in a stunning château in the French Alps, she jumps at the chance for a fresh start.

Once she arrives, the retreat is not what she expected. Instead of being surrounded by serious writers, she finds an eclectic group of eccentric romance authors. They offer “helpful” guidance, but mostly get in her way. Amber struggles to reconcile her vision of love with the advice she’s given, and her attempts to write something sexier keep falling flat.

Then two men enter her life, and everything gets a little more complicated. Forced proximity, romantic banter, and unexpected chemistry turn her real world into a rom‑com of its own. Amber wonders whether the retreat was the break she needed — or just the beginning of her greatest love story.

As she spends her days navigating relationships and inspiration, she learns that writing about love might be easier than actually living it.