Receptionists Izzy and Lucas must work the same shift at struggling Forest Manor Hotel. Their search for the owners of abandoned wedding rings adds an assignment neither can simply avoid. Berkley
The appeal is everyday obligation: they keep encountering the person they have decided to dislike. This is workplace proximity through a concrete shared task, rather than a locked-room story.
An appealing shared-work romance with meaningful vulnerability, qualified by an episodic structure and a misunderstanding that one critic finds overextended.
Provisional Eikna score: 3.7/5. Four core dimensions cover 85% of the quality weight. Ending satisfaction and reread appeal remain unscored; heat is excluded. Researched editorial assessment; no firsthand reading claimed. Evidence confidence: moderate.
A numeric heat level has not been established. Read the review’s heat and content discussion for attributed descriptions before choosing. An unknown level is not a closed-door or no-spice promise.
The heat-level guide explains detail and frequency; the glossary entry for spice separates sexual content from quality.
Happily ever after (HEA). Reported by Miss Bates Reads Romance. Checked 2026-10-06. This describes the outcome, not its quality or the closure of every wider plot.
For the difference between romantic commitment and wider plot closure, compare HEA, HFN and cliffhangers.
Standalone or continuing-series status is not established in this summary. Read the existing format and series guidance for any available context; do not assume a missing series entry means the book stands alone.
The series-order guide explains what to check when a complete romance belongs to a connected world.
| Title | The Wake-Up Call |
|---|---|
| Author | Beth O’Leary |
| Inspected edition | Berkley · Paperback |
| Publication scope | 2023-09-26 |
| ISBN-13 | 9780593640128 |
| Edition page count | 368 pages |
The author or publisher evidence identifies the work. Publication dates refer to the stated edition or release scope, not automatically the first appearance of the story. Unknown identifiers and formats are left open.
Publishers Weekly finds their cooperation convincing and the hotel’s financial stakes believable. Publishers Weekly
For readers who prefer romance to develop through competent work, the useful question is whether irritation survives seeing the other person help.
Miss Bates sees Izzy’s sociability and Lucas’s caution as responses to family loss. Miss Bates Reads Romance
That makes changing an opinion more consequential than discovering that a supposedly difficult colleague is attractive. Grief gives the surface contrast something to protect.
Publishers Weekly enjoys the supporting cast. Publishers Weekly
Miss Bates finds the guests and friends make the narrative episodic. Miss Bates Reads Romance
Choose according to your appetite for a community around the romance. An ensemble can provide warmth while repeatedly interrupting the conversation you most want to hear.
Miss Bates finds tenderness in the relationship but thinks its misunderstanding lasts too long. Miss Bates Reads Romance
Repeated contact does not automatically produce honest communication. If prolonged mistaken assumptions are a reading limit, the attractive setting will not remove that structural obstacle.
Miss Bates identifies a closed-bedroom-door treatment. Numerical heat remains unknown. Miss Bates Reads Romance
Family bereavement shapes both leads. Miss Bates Reads Romance The hotel faces bankruptcy. These are selected reading cautions. Publishers Weekly
Best for readers who enjoy a busy hotel community, competitive cooperation and guarded people becoming kinder to one another.
Publishers Weekly values credible emotional stakes. Publishers Weekly Miss Bates prefers tighter focus. Miss Bates Reads Romance
Purchases through Amazon, Bookshop.org and Libro.fm links may earn us a commission. As an Amazon Associate, Eikna Romance earns from qualifying purchases, at no extra cost to you.
The inspected Berkley paperback has 368 pages and was published September 26, 2023. Berkley
A direct US product edition has not been verified. The Amazon link is a title-and-author search, with no specific format or availability promised.
We may earn a commission from purchases through our links, at no extra cost to you. Search Amazon for the title and author.
The inspected Bookshop.org product is Paperback. Its title, author and ISBN 9780593640128 were checked; current price and stock are not established.
Quality scale: 1 substantial weaknesses; 2 weaknesses outweigh strengths; 3 mixed; 4 strengths outweigh limitations; 5 exceptional sustained strengths. Half points are allowed. Weights: romance 30%, characters 20%, writing 20%, emotional impact 15%, ending satisfaction 10%, reread appeal 5%. A provisional overall score divides the supported weighted sum by its supported weight and rounds once to one decimal. Heat is descriptive and excluded. These scores express the evidence-based judgment explained in this review.
Cooperation versus delayed clarification
Provisional dimension score: 3.5/5.
Protective habits beneath apparent opposition
Provisional dimension score: 4/5.
Warm ensemble, episodic movement
Provisional dimension score: 3.5/5.
Tenderness earns qualified investment
Provisional dimension score: 4/5.
Descriptive, excluded from quality
Outcome held separately
No documented rereading basis
Izzy and Lucas are assigned the same hotel shift and a shared lost-property task during a financial crisis. Berkley / Penguin Random House
The constraint is a required shared shift and assignment, so expect occupational proximity and repeated conversations rather than physical imprisonment.
No. This researched assessment uses named criticism. Ending satisfaction and reread appeal remain unscored.
Compare professionals obliged to cooperate despite a difficult shared history; a wedding project replaces the hotel’s rescue effort.
For a quiet guarded hero revealing himself through practical care, with rural shared living replacing the busy hotel ensemble.
Compare a restorative retreat and people reassessing their lives, with hospitality creating a different setting for closeness.
The forced proximity guide includes this book among other choices. Compare those options if its premise appeals but a limitation gives you pause. The Explore the romance trope guide explains the surrounding reading route and what to check before choosing.
An appealing shared-work romance with meaningful vulnerability, qualified by an episodic structure and a misunderstanding that one critic finds overextended. Best for readers who enjoy a busy hotel community, competitive cooperation and guarded people becoming kinder to one another.
Search Amazon for the title and author when this balance matches what you want to read.
Checked October 6, 2026. The How this assessment was researched preserves attributions and research limits. Unknown details do not establish absence. Purchasing links use our account.
Hachette UK: Publisher explicitly categorizes this title as contemporary romance. Classification verified; checked 2026-10-07.
Penguin Random House: Rival receptionists Izzy and Lucas are assigned the same hotel front-desk shift during its busiest season; returning lost rings offers a route to protecting the hotel and their jobs. Compulsory work contact. Contact mechanism verified; checked 2026-10-07.
The contemporary forced-proximity collection compares this arrangement with shared homes, journeys and professional obligations, so you can choose the kind of repeated contact you want.
The rivals-to-lovers reading collection explains the particular competition or relationship history behind this choice and compares it with other reviewed books.