In Your Dreams by Sarah Adams
- May 25
- 3 min read
I've been waiting for Sarah Adams last novel in the When in Rome series to come out, and In Your Dreams was finally released in December of 2025. It has been chosen as an Elle Book of the Year and an Amazon Editors' Pick for Best Romance. It deals with bullying, panic attacks, medical content, grief, mentions of the death of parents.
For as close as she is to her family, Madison Walker has always been known as the crazy one of her siblings. The one that never says no to a dare, the one who was caught skinny-dipping as a teenager, the one who will stay until the bars kick her out. The one that can't settle, can't stay focused, can't stop screwing up, who is too emotional. She thought that maybe when she went to culinary school, she could prove all the talk wrong. And she did graduate, but just barely, and after her terrible internship in a professional kitchen, she can't step food into a kitchen without having a panic attack. She hates the idea of tucking her tail between her legs and heading back to Rome will know they were right about her. But then she gets the opportunity of her dreams. To be able to design and run her own kitchen in a brand new farm-to-table restaurant owned by a guy that she's known for as long as she can remember - her brother's best friend James Huxley. Little does she know, James has his own reasons for starting the restaurant. Namely, he would do almost anything to keep Madison close by... and his farm needs the money that a successful restaurant would bring in. If Madison can't get this restaurant off the ground and prove to everyone, once and for all, that she has what it takes to be a professional chef, it may spell the end of the farm as well.
What a sweet novel. I really enjoyed this. Was it a little corny at times, yes. Do some of the relationships feel a little too good to be true, sure. Did I love it anyway, yes I did. I can't be certain when I personally fell in love with James Huxley as he's been a fixture in the prior three When in Rome books, but I am so happy that he finally gets his own story. His relationship with Madison is the best part of the book, which is really good for a romance novel but is also not always the case. Solid, dependable, patient, and super hot in a pair of work boots - I'm not sure what else you may want in a guy. Madison, on the other hand, is not patient and has not been particularly dependable up to this point (although I'm not sure how she looks in work boots), but I enjoyed her development through the book. Her self-doubt after being torn down by a mentor of hers is very realistic and I loved how she overcame it with time and healing, how she didn't allow it to take away her passion. But it's not all Madison and James. James is working on dealing with generations of pressure and a broken relationship with his only sibling, and I'm really proud of him for doing the hard things.
I'm giving In Your Dreams by Sarah Adams 4.25 stars out of 5 and a spice rating of 2.25. It is definitely the spiciest of the When in Rome books and I'm not upset about it. A completely satisfying way to say goodbye to the Walker siblings and Rome, Kentucky.
For more from the author, check out https://www.authorsarahadams.com/
Pairs well with jalapeno cornbread and knowing what you like, even if others don't like it.
My favorite quotes:
"'You're a beautiful, delusional little woman.'"
"Has James been a fuckboy all this time and I've never noticed?"
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