Book Review: Roll for Romance by Lenora Woods
- Maggie Christopher
- Jul 13
- 3 min read

Official Synopsis: For years, Sadie Brooks has declined her best friend’s standing invitation to join his Dungeons & Dragons campaign. But when she unexpectedly loses her marketing job and flees New York City to spend the summer with him in small-town Texas, she also runs out of excuses to say no.
In the game, she becomes Jaylie, a powerful and self-assured human cleric blessed by the Goddess of Luck with spells to heal her companions. But in real life, Sadie believes her luck has run out, and she hopes the distraction will give her time to clear her head and plan next steps.
She never expected Noah Walker—the handsome, outgoing bartender roped into joining them—to factor into that plan. Like Sadie, he’s new in town. But with a taste for adventure, Noah never stays in one place for long. He’s something of a traveling bard—just like his character Loren, the charismatic, lute-strumming elf. While Jaylie finds herself succumbing to the bard’s charms over the course of their party’s travels, Sadie also begins to fall under Noah’s spell.
As their relationship progresses in both worlds, Sadie can’t help but wonder if they might last beyond the game. But when a surprising new opportunity opens in New York, she must face the truth about why she lost her job in the first place—and whether she and Noah have found something in Texas worth staying for. Torn between her career dreams in the city and the exciting uncertainty of a new adventure, she will have no choice but to roll the dice.
Give me more DnD based romances this instant! I'm obsessed. This is the first one I've read that falls into the 'adult romance' category and I have no regrets. I was immediately rooting for Sadie and Noah, just like how their friends were. Sadie went through a lot when the story began, losing her job and moving in with her best friend in Texas, the addition of making new friends through a newbie DnD game was absolutely amazing. I liked how the story went from the group playing to the group in character, where we were able to see Sadie/Jaylie and Noah/Loren flirt in both worlds.
The way the elements inside the game were written were fascinating, and honestly even people who aren't big DnD fans, or know nothing about the game, would definitely enjoy it. I also like how because Sadie and the rest of the group don't know DnD well, there are moments that explain it in an easy/fun way to readers who might not be familiar, while also being not to distracting for readers who arm. Overall, loved the gameplay and the way it was incorporated throughout the story.
For Sadie and Noah in 'real' life, I also loved them. Sadie is working through deciding if she wants a new job in NYC or if she finally feels like she's at home in Heller, TX. She is supported by her best friend Liam, his gang of friends and then Noah. Noah is a drifter, who loves to travel and be in nature, but currently works for his friend at a brewery, helping it get started. One thing I also liked was how the drinks at the brewery were very fantasy themed, it all fit in really well together.
As Sadie and Noah explore their real life feels, their characters in the game are also catching feelings for each other. Sadie is still worried that she might leave, or even worse, Noah would leave, and their relationship is slowly becoming more important to each of them. One of their dates is them camping, and I absolutely loved it, especially as a city kid who has know idea how camping would work.
One of the other messages within the book I really liked was how both Noah and Sadie showed that you can change your mind about your jobs, hobbies, life and still be fine. We learn that Noah was an accountant in Chicago, but left after a break up and Sadie is trying to re-find herself after getting fired from her job in NYC. We get to see the two characters work on changing what and who they are with each other and I really liked that.
I really liked this book overall, and it is definitely a really cute debut novel. Also, can we just take a moment to appreciate the cover? The dice? So pretty.
I rated this book 4/5 (definitely closer to a 4.5 for those with Storygraph).
Roll for Romance comes out Tuesday (July 15, 2025!)
Comments