Drawn Together

By: Juliana Smith

Narrated by: Ava Erickson, Connor Crais

A rival children’s book author and illustrator become reluctant friends over their mutual need to advance in their careers in this heartwarming, character-driven, slow-burn romcom set in fall NYC.

In a city that never sleeps, Flora is desperate to wake up and finally land her first big break. But if your twenties are supposed to be the best years of your life, Flora’s off to a terrible start. Five months into her move, she's barely scraping by—her closest companion a silent roommate, and her first major freelance job slipping through her fingers. Her best chance at making it is surviving the one commission no illustrator before her could: a notoriously impossible-to-please author who (quite rudely) rejects every single draft she submits. Flora’s timeline is short—and she's running out of chances.

To nail this project, she’ll have to lean into the dark, moody themes of his writing—no small task for someone known for illustrating woodland creatures in top hats. When she’s on the brink of giving up, a chance encounter with a surly stranger changes everything. Fletcher Harding, neighbor, a friend of her roommate, and a dark literature connoisseur, needs help writing a column on romance novels to achieve an advance in his career. Flora, a firm believer in happily-ever-after's, he decides is the perfect tutor.

On a hazy walk home, the two strike a deal: she’ll teach him about love stories, and he’ll teach her how to embrace the shadows in her work. As their creative boundaries blur, so do the ones between their growing friendship and something far more. But with both of them carrying the weight of their pasts—and the futures of their careers hanging in the balance—can they really trust a story where love is the final chapter?

Especially when Flora realizes the author critiquing her work is the very man she’s falling for.

©2025 Juliana Smith (P)2025 One Night Stand Studios

Heartwarming

I loved the characters the plot and just all in all the whole book! Fabulous must read and perfect for the fall!.

Incredibly romantic!

Flora Anderson is living the dream. Well, sorta. She's barely scraping by, living in an apartment in Brooklyn with a roommate she barely sees and seeing her big break as an illustrator slip through her fingers. She's been hired to draw for a notorious cantankerous author who rejects every single drawing she submits as 'too happy'. She needs to be darker, moodier, which is everything she's not. A chance encounter with a muffin 'thief' will change her drawings and her life. 
Fletcher Harding is a writer. He writes articles and he has to write about romance, something he feels highly unqualified for. So, he strikes a deal with the girl whose muffin he 'stole' and who, by sheer coincidence or divine intervention, is his friend's roommate. 
Two-person book club meetings and outings in NYC in the snow will bring Flora and Fletcher (who can never have a 'ship name, unfortunately) to find out about each other and there are secrets that can shake their budding relationship.
I absolutely loved this book! From NYC in the fall settings, to the wonderful characters, it's a sweet ode to finding your person, to being loyal to friends after they're gone.
The structure of the book is also interesting: it's almost entirely told in first person in Flora's POV with snippets at the end of the chapters in FLetcher's, letting us in on his feelings. That makes for interesting narration too. Ava Erickson portrays a delightful Flora, who thinks she's 'too much' but who just can't help being bubbly and sweet. She is also perfect as all the other female characters. Connor Crais voices the most green flag hero I've seen in a while - he's smitten and he carries a secret out of loyalty. He also voices all the other make characters brilliantly. 
I was completely smitten myself with their journey! It's an incredibly romantic and touching story that I highly recommend!
Note: closed door romance

Sweet and Swoony Dual Narration

Happy sigh…Drawn Together by Juliana Smith was a sweet, swoony, and cozy rivals to lovers romance that warmed my heart in all the best ways. I couldn’t get enough of Flora and Fletcher’s witty conversations, and love of books chemistry had me falling for these two so hard. Their slow burn friends to lovers chemistry was undeniable and meant to be.

Ava Erickson and Connor Crais perform this audiobook in duet-style narration. Ava narrates the majority of this book in Flora’s point of view with Connor adding the male dialogue making this a fun immersive listen. Ava’s soft, decadent voice captured Flora’s romance loving heart and determined spirit to make her new living arrangement work. Connor’s warm, inviting timbre encompassed Fletcher’s observant and thoughtful demeanor perfectly. Both narrators created a light-hearted, magnetic chemistry between Flora and Fletcher that made my heart melt.

Overall, I enjoyed this book. If you are a fan of a fall romance with a passionate children’s book illustrator, an endearing content editor, muffin meet cute mishaps, trivia night, making new friends, truths about the past, dream job books, two person book club, thirty second hugs, closet confessions, floatworthy first kisses, first date fantasies,secrets revealed, love declarations, and a HEA that will melt your heart, then you will love Flora and Fletcher’s story. I am looking forward to more from Juliana Smith.

Perfect Listen For A Cozy Fall Day

This audiobook is absolutely amazing. The book is such a cute fall read, but the audiobook takes it to another level. The duet narration is perfect and exactly how I imagined Flora and Fletcher to sound. Simply put, this audiobook is enchanting. I will definitely be listening to this every fall from now on.

PHENOMENAL!!!!

This was a breath of fresh air! The perfect fall cozy read. Flora and Fletcher were so fun and the banter was laugh out loud funny. The found family came out of nowhere and was like a warm hug. I ended up falling so in love with Lennon. The friendship that her and Flora developed was so special. Flora is a children's book illustrator and Fletcher is a children's book author. They help each other without knowing that they are connected more than they know. This is a closed door romance but this did not take away from the romance of this story. The no 3rd act breakup because they actually communicated. I absolutely loved it so much!
Incoming chaotic thoughts:
•"Word of the day" was such a fun concept
• He annotates romance books for her! ::swoon::
•30 second hugs
• He stole her breakfast on purpose
• He learns sign language to be able to communicate with her sister
& SO MANY MORE!
Ava Erickson and Connor Crais absolutely brought Flora and Fletcher to life in the best way. Their performance was done beautifully!