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Hot & Cold

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He’s hot, he’s cold, he’s everything I desire.

Boys. Men. Whatever you want to call that seemingly foreign species. I’ve always been lost with what to do in their presence. There is no hope for the mess that is me, Lexie Harper. Maybe college will be different.

Bumping into Liam—literally—seems kismet. The perfect first boyfriend for a girl like me. He hits all the marks, yet something seems to be missing from this puzzle.

Then there’s Josh. I’m free to be who I want with him; the pieces all fit so effortlessly. Unfortunately, it’s forbidden for us to be together, which makes him shut me out. Despite this, I have a yearning for him that burns hotter every time we collide.

While my mind bounces between both men, I’m left needing to make a decision. Being the girl who always plays it safe, the direction seems obvious.

That is, until Josh and I are thrown together for my first college project and I learn desire consumes us both. Maybe it’s time I broke the rules and let my heart make the choice.

Can I handle the on-again, off-again relationship with the one who sets my soul on fire?

Hot & Cold is an adult romance novel, intended for audiences 18 and older. Content warnings include strong language, explicit sexual scenes, and mature situations.

360 pages, Kindle Edition

Published December 11, 2021

About the author

Shayna Astor

19 books304 followers
Shayna Astor is a native New Yorker, currently residing upstate with her husband and two children. Getting all four seasons, her favorite are the cool, crisp days of fall.

When Shayna isn't writing, she can be found reading, spending time with her kids, or playing video games with her husband. Being an avid coffee drinker, she can almost always be found with a cup of coffee in her hands.

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5 stars
54 (34%)
4 stars
41 (26%)
3 stars
42 (26%)
2 stars
13 (8%)
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6 (3%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 38 reviews
Profile Image for Author CaelanFine.
1 review7 followers
November 24, 2021
It’s rare to read a college story that is so beautifully written, undeniably authentic, and downright sweet and spicy. The romance is real and the steam is well placed. The author deserves recognition for using that steam as part of the natural progression of the relationship; it’s refreshing and makes this book perfect for any palate.

This was an easy 5/5 because the pages just melted away. You’ll either relish in reliving the anticipation and excitement of college love, or experience it for the first time. Either way, I highly recommend Hot & Cold to anyone who is looking for a well-written, romantic story where the spice is on point.

Lexie
attractive curly brunette
Lexie is the classic new college girl who’s looking to reinvent herself. She’s smart, beautiful, but shy and modest. Luckily, she’s adopted right away by a goodhearted, peppy and outgoing blonde girl who makes this transition much easier.

Brittney
attractive blond girl

Brit is such a well developed character who has her own personality that’s easy to love. She’s outgoing and really drives the story. She drives Lexie’s character arc in such a fun and real way. You can’t help but adore her pep and appreciate her friendship.


Josh
attractive brunette guy
Ok, if Kelso went to college, was smarter and had the same great hair (he’d be Ashton Kutcher, oh wait he is). Josh is book-boyfriend material (and that’s coming from a guy). He’s handsome, strong, tall, handsome, sweet, caring, and oh yeah handsome.

Liam
attractive blond guy
It sucks when nice guys finish last, but if you hang in there you’ll see why we can give Lexie a pass here. He’s good looking, patient and sweet. So, what’s up, Liam?

college dorm building
Every good college story starts with the fresh experience and this one doesn’t disappoint. The excitement and feels are all there. It’s college. It feels like college. You feel like making sure the characters have enough quarters for laundry.

couple at a concert
Quickly we get into the action of Lexie’s exploits into new relationships. It begins with a tour and then a car ride. Soon there’s a concert and before we know it, she’s caught in an isosceles love triangle, you know, the kind that we all love to hate and hate to love.

couple holding hands
The situations she finds herself in are exactly the ones we all have, college or not. Sometimes we want to shake her, sometimes we want to slap her, but often we just want to hug her. She’s a real person who’s just trying to make sense of this confusing new world.

couple kissing
This is a slow burn, so it isn’t until about half way in that we really get to the mushy parts. This is where that kid from the Princess Bride would stop faking sick. This isn’t just “a kissing book.”

girl upset
It’s also where we see how the book got its namesake. There’s a back and forth that adds just the right amount of suspense to the relationships. This is where we really see the characters begin their transformations as we get into the deeper parts of the story.

couple in bed
The wonderful reward for all this heartache comes on strong and sets us up for the climax (pun intended). We get some spice.

couple in bed again
But it’s always sweet and it’s always nice. And, it always fits (no pun intended that time). This is NOT a book that relies on steam to keep the reader’s attention. It’s just a good read that happens to have some smexy time as part of the character’s arcs (yeah, I don’t see anyone complaining about that).

couple sunset
It goes without saying but I'll stay it anyway. We’re given a heart pumping ending with a HEA that leaves the reader satisfied and content. It ends exactly how we would want it to, maybe even a little better.

2 reviews1 follower
December 12, 2021
This is the first time I have been given the opportunity to read an ARC book. I thought this was a good debut novel for the author. It was a very sweet love story and I just loved Josh's characters even when he kept going back between "hot and cold". Which brings me to a few negatives. While I really liked the book I felt like the last 30% kind of dragged and could have been condensed down to 10-15% and while I liked how the Epilogue told you how there happily ever after continued I felt like a lot of it was "I love you so much Josh" "And I love you so much Lex" over and over just written in different ways. But there was thing that really bothered me. It was that there wasn't one mention of a condom in the entire book much less the use of one and I felt like this was a little unbelievable. At the beginning the mother talks to Lexie about being safe and then she talks again to her towards the end. At this time we find out that Lexie took her friends advice and started taking birth control, and that's where the conversation basically ends. I just don't think a girl who questions whether or not she means anything to a guy who supposedly has slept with countless girls wouldn't make him wear one condom. Especially when she was a virgin. I guess I probably wouldn't have had so much of an issue with this if the mother didn't talk about being "safe" *wink wink* because of these few things I gave it 4 stars, but the over all story was good and I enjoyed reading it.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Vanessa Sheets.
Author 1 book19 followers
December 6, 2021
I can't believe this is Shayna's first book! Her writing pulls you in within the first few pages, leaving you needing more of the story with every page turn. I love Lex's personality, and connected with her right away. Brit is a firecracker... that friend every girl needs in her corner. Josh and Lex's love story is one for the books, and had me reading while I was doing laundry and washing dishes. And that cover! Breathtaking! I seriously cannot wait to read more of Shayna's stories, and will be impatiently waiting for her next book!
Profile Image for Kira.
869 reviews29 followers
July 21, 2022
Shayna Astor is a new to me author and wow this story was so good! It was the perfect mix of cute and sweet! Josh and Lexie are just the cutest! They have the perfect chemistry between them. Josh even though he was a jerk to start turned out to be the perfect guy! I just love the dynamic between him and Lexie! I will definitely be reading more of Shayna’s books! I couldn’t put this one down that’s how good it was! It was a refreshing love story even with its kinda ups and downs
Profile Image for Renee McDougle.
67 reviews
December 1, 2021
What an amazing debut book! I love the push and pull between Josh and Lexie, it leads to amazing steamy scenes! This is a college based book, so if that’s not your cup of tea, this book isn’t for you! It also includes a bit of a love triangle. She only picks one in the end!

Lexie is starting her freshman year of college, she’s leaving her best friend Lauren of 15 years. Lexie and Lauren have an amazing bond and it shows throughout the book.

Fast forward to move in day, she meets Brittany, best friend number 2! Every girl needs a best friend in college! Lexie is super worried about who her roommate is going to be as well, she tried teaching out to her and got nothing in response. Back to Brittany 😂 she’s basically a duplicate of Lauren, helping Lexie navigate the boy aspect of her life. She doesn’t have a lot of experience in that department.

Enter love interest number one: Liam! They hit it off right from the beginning, he gives her a tour on campus, we watch their relationship build!

Then we meet Josh. Handsome, dreamy, older (only by a couple of years). Super hot and cold towards Lexie. Wants her one minute, doesn’t “remember” her name the next. Josh is one of the RAs and they aren’t allowed to have relationships with other students. That’s where the push and pull comes from. He wants her, but he’s not allowed to have her.

The chemistry between Josh and Lexie is 🔥. Then of course we have Liam, who starts to show his true colors. There’s some talk of are Lexie and Liam together? Are they not?

POSSIBLE SPOILERS:




Lexie looses her V card to Josh. He ends up leaving the next morning and it’s a HUGE misunderstanding. She ends up driving to go see Lauren and when she gets back, we really start to see their relationship build!




If you don’t like the possible cheating aspect of books, you might want to heed caution before reading this.

Of course we get out HEA, and I couldn’t be more happy for Lexie. She battled a lot with her emotions and finally put it all out on the table. She does still have hang ups, which her mom and Lauren help resolve over Thanksgiving.

Overall I loved this story, I love the connection between Josh and Lexie. The hot and cold, push and pull always makes for extra steamy scenes!

Amazing debut book Shayna! Congratulations!!! 🍾🎈
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Shyanne Verbitsky.
20 reviews4 followers
November 27, 2021
I was lucky enough to receive this book as an ARC. I will be the first to tell you that I tend to stay away from "spicy" romance novels due to the fact that they just don't tend to have the kind of story build up I'm looking for, instead just full of sexual acts and no worthy dialogue.

Possible Spoilers follow:

That was not the case with this book. While Hot & Cold contains some spicy scenes there is a nice build up to that point. The main character, Lexie, is relatable in a lot of ways. You can feel her inner turmoil being fresh in college and struggling to understand her feelings for the "Hot & Cold" Josh or the 'nice' Liam. I personally always had an off feeling about Liam, he just rubbed me the wrong way despite his niceness, which made it easier for me to (however wrong it may have been) to justify Lexie's actions. Watching the build up and connected between the characters in this book had me wanting to keep reading so I could get to the point to where it all exploded (in fireworks or a bomb, depending on who ;) )

The ending made my heart happy.

Ultimately, I'd be happy to read this book again.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
89 reviews3 followers
December 2, 2021
This is a beautiful coming-of-age story about a young girl going away to college and being out on her own for the first time. Away from home and the security of her outgoing best friend, it's her time to find herself and come out of her shell. She meets a gorgeous guy who she is not allowed to pursue due to his position at the dorms, but resisting him will prove futile. This story shows us that sometimes love and feelings are impossible to ignore. Very spicy with the story leading up to the climax the author knows you desire in a romance novel.
Profile Image for Zoe_isreading.
577 reviews46 followers
December 7, 2021
Shayna has created such a wonderful heart-warming slow burn romance for her debut novel!

I was immediately drawn into the story and couldn't put it down once I had started. Lexie's story is one a lot of people will be able to relate too. She's definitely a character I can see everyone enjoying reading! I loved Brit as well, she's literally the type of friend we all need!
I'm not going to give too much of the story away, but Josh is just completely hot.

This is an amazing debut novel from Shayna, and I can not wait to see what she does next!
August 12, 2022
This is my first Shayna Astor book and I thoroughly enjoyed it!! It is hard to believe this was her debut book.....WOW! This book was a great coming of age story where we got to experience the journey of Josh and Lexie's relationship and all the ups and downs (hot and cold) and let's not forget about the steamy moments! I love authors who give us an epilogue...nothing better than a look into the character's life now.
5 reviews
November 25, 2021
A wonderfully crafted slow burn romance, Hot and Cold will warm your heart while simultaneously frustrating you. The main character’s journey is one that’s relatable and satisfying. The author creates a strong connection between the characters, leaving the reader wanting more.
An enjoyable read, Hot and Cold is the perfect story of finding love when you’re not supposed to.
Profile Image for Dolly Remphrey.
64 reviews5 followers
December 12, 2021
Overall, I enjoyed this book. I suppose with the title I should have known there would be a lot of “hot and cold” between the main characters. And there was. A lot. And in the end the issues seemed to be worked out way easier than they made them out to be. So I’m not sure why there was so much back and forth. It was very well written and I look forward to reading more from this author.
Profile Image for Alison Miller-astor.
283 reviews1 follower
January 3, 2022
Wow, really hard to believe this is a debut book!!! I'll say right up front that I am definitely NOT the target audience for this book (I don't generally read Romance, and I'm older than whom it's written for), and yet I really enjoyed the read! Looking forward to seeing more from this fresh new talent!!!
Profile Image for Keeley.
66 reviews2 followers
May 23, 2022
Yet another smash hit!!

I honestly have fallen in love with this authors books. She writes characters so beautifully but also flawed so you identify a little in these characters so they are a little raw. Honestly just another perfect read. I don’t think many authors can write book boyfriends the way Shayna can but damn where do I find a guy like these?
Profile Image for Claire Graves.
104 reviews
July 27, 2022
Overall, I liked this quick and easy read. There were a few cheesy chapters towards the end, but the epilogue hit my reading satisfaction.
If you’re into contemporary college romances with two main characters that shouldn’t be together but choose to disregard rules, this may be a good one to check out.

140 reviews
August 1, 2022
I found this story more interesting than some currently popular authors whose writing I found boring ,(let's just say there were some people on vacation that were particularly annoying) But, fair warning, this book does contain a fair amount of spice.

Goodreads definitely needs to start allowing half star readings because I probably would give like this book a three and a half to a 3.7.
Given that this was the author's first novel, I think that there is so much promise here and I'm excited to read her other works!
Profile Image for Jasmine Lopez.
132 reviews
February 5, 2022
Sweet young love

I enjoyed Lexie and Josh's love story! She's young and inexperienced and college is where she is encouraged to find herself. But being with him isn't allowed and she's not a rule breaker.
947 reviews2 followers
March 24, 2022
This was a great slow-burn college romance. The constantly changing dynamic of the main character’s relationship keeps the reader engaged in the storyline. I could not put this book down and I am excited for Shayna’s next book release!
52 reviews
March 18, 2022
This was a good read! It’s a slow burn, and there is kinda sorta cheating depending on how you view it. The push and pull between the main characters had my emotions all over the place, I loved it!
The shy girl that hasn’t had a real relationship finds herself torn between the safe choice and the forbidden follow Lexie, as she heads off to college and comes out of her shell and has new experiences.
February 2, 2022
So Entertaining!

Great book reminiscent of young love. Characters are well-developed and the plot line is intriguing. Perfect amount of spice and allusion. Well done Shayna Astor! Look forward to more books in the future.
258 reviews4 followers
February 20, 2022
Engaging yet repetitive

I wasn't a fan of the cheating but I really enjoyed this book. It's a better story with better developed characters than I normally read in YA books. I would like to have given it 4 stars, but the same scene and dialogue played at least a have dozen times with Josh pulling her close and pushing her away. Then the same repetition occurs with Lexie being scared about breaking the rules. The story really dragged because of that. It was a sold debut book though and I would be happy to read more of her work.
Profile Image for Sara Tallary.
Author 5 books147 followers
January 24, 2022
It definitely keeps you on the edge of your seat as you read. And let's not forget the HOT AND COLD attitude that Josh has. He's constantly, CONSTANTLY, flipping back and forth. Honestly, it gave me whiplash. LOL. I can sort of understand how it made Lexie feel. One second he's into her, and the next he's being a total jerk. It makes you love him and hate him all at the same time!


I really liked the beginning of Hot & Cold, when they were so back and forth with each other. I'm here for the drama, so it was very entertaining for me. I felt like the end could have wrapped up a little faster than it was, but it was nice to see how Lexie and Josh worked through their issues! I also really enjoyed the side characters and how Brit and Lauren mirrored each other so much!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Jen.
345 reviews1 follower
March 8, 2022
Toxic relationships. The H’s behaviors and antics are bipolar and toxic and the h was a glutton for punishment. They are supposedly struck with instalove but he so toxic and indecisive. She is steadfast in her ability to let her hurt her constantly…. Literally throughout the whole book.

Her cheating was so unnecessary because she never cared for her supposed bf. She literally would duck her bf to just get a glance at the H. She didn’t try to entertain him but she got mad when someone else did. That was just too stupid

When they finally got over their “issues” he went from bossy to controlling and parental. He was literally sending her to her room to brush her teeth at one point.

This one is a no for me…
Profile Image for AmyKatherine1974.
199 reviews2 followers
November 24, 2021
Liam or Josh? Liam or Josh?

Josh is hot but he runs so hot and cold.

Liam is steady and constant but Josh makes Lexie hum inside and out.

Liam is safety.

Josh is forbidden fruit.

Can Lexie handle his back and forth about their relationship? I won’t tell you- you’ll need to read this book for your self.

This new adult novel by Shayna Astor has everything I look for in a read: realistic situations, characters I can identify with, and a compelling plot that makes me keep turning the page!
Profile Image for Joelle Lynne.
Author 13 books188 followers
November 26, 2021
Hot & Cold is a slow burn, sweet romance, that is worth every single moment.

I loved following Lexie's story and her struggles with coming to terms with her life in college. She tries to grasp her new found independence as a young woman. She finds herself tossed into the struggle between what she thinks is the safe choice and the forbidden choice.

I lived for the back and forth between Lexie and Josh and it was so worth it when they finally give in to one another.

This was a stellar debut for Shayna and I can't wait to see what else comes from her.
Profile Image for Garnet Christie.
Author 9 books149 followers
December 11, 2021
A lovely college romance with all the steam and feels!

Whew! This book! The title is Hot & Cold, but nothing about this book left me cold. 😏 This book is amazing packing all the steam and sweetness into one story. I laughed, cried, screamed at my kindle for the right person to win (Spoiler, he does.) and had the biggest smile on my face at the end that my cheeks were sore. It's hard to believe this is Ms. Astor's debut because it doesn't read like one at all. I can't wait to read more from her.
Do yourself a favor and pick up a copy because it is amazing!
Profile Image for Hanna.
35 reviews
February 8, 2023
The tension and chemistry between Lexie and Josh is what I enjoyed most about Hot & Cold! This is a sweet college romance that is realistic. The relationship between Lexie and Josh was refreshing as the progression of their relationship built up naturally. While Josh and Lexie don’t get along at first, it is clear that they both have hidden feelings for one another that they can’t act on. I’m convinced Josh just might be the sweetest guy I’ve ever read about! The epilogue also added to the book wonderfully!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Veronica.
104 reviews1 follower
March 13, 2022
definitely a slow burn

Like the heading, it was a slow slow slow burn romance. I almost gave up midway but pushed through. I actually really liked Josh but my issue was with Lexie. I wanted to like her but her being so naive in college got under my skin a bit. I just couldn’t buy it especially since she’s described as being so hot. I also think this could have ended much earlier and the main reason was the heroine. The epilogue was a kind of cheesy otherwise it was okay.
Profile Image for Linda.
527 reviews29 followers
January 16, 2022
Wow, what a great book. A cute but sometimes steamy romance of two college kids. Lexie, a girl who’s new to dating and Josh who has a rep for being a ladies man. What inspires between them is a rollercoaster of emotions and a complicated relationship. A page turner for sure and it makes you want to keep reading page after page.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 38 reviews

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