ARC Review: Do I Know You? by Emily Wibberly & Austin Siegemund-Broka

Eliza and Graham are anticipating an anything-but-sexy, weeklong getaway to celebrate their five-year anniversary. Nestled on the Northern California coastline, the resort prides itself on being a destination for those in love and those looking to find it. For Eliza and Graham, it might as well be a vacation with a roommate.

When a well-meaning guest mistakes Eliza and Graham for being single and introduces them at the hotel bar, they don’t correct him. Suddenly, they’re pretending to be perfect strangers and it’s unexpectedly…fun? Eliza and Graham find themselves flirting like it’s their first date, and waiting with butterflies in their stomach for the other to text back.

Everyone at the retreat can sense the electric chemistry between Eliza and Graham’s alter egos. But when their scintillating game of roleplaying ends, will they still feel the heat? 

• Title: Do I Know You?
• Author:  Emily Wibberly & Austin Siegemund-Broka
• Publisher: Berkley Romance
• Publication Date: January 24, 2023
• Genre: Contemporary Romance  
• Source: ARC provided by publisher in exchange for an honest review
• Targeted Age Range: Adult
• Rating: ★★★★★

As a newly minted Wibbroka stan, I couldn’t have been more excited to be approved for their newest adult romance — Do I Know You? Do I Know You? follows Eliza and Graham, who have been married for five years, although their relationship is starting to grow a little stale. When Graham’s parents send them off on a week-long vacation to commemorate their anniversary, the two of them decide to take this opportunity to rekindle their romance.  Pretending to be strangers for the week, Eliza and Graham  engage in a game of flirtation, making it obvious for everyone else at the retreat to see their chemistry. But as the week comes closer to an end and it’s time to say goodbye to their alter egos, will what they’ve learned on vacation be enough? 

I found Do I Know You to be such an interesting premise, and it reminded me a little bit of Sarah Hogle’s You Deserve Each Other, meets 36 Questions: A Podcast Musical, meets Just for A Minute from High School Musical the Musical The Series. At its very core, Do I Know You is a story about what it means to love and more importantly, to not give up on love. Eliza and Graham know that love isn’t everything, but the fact that they’re committed to staying, and to trying something new — no matter how ridiculous sounding it might be — says a lot about how the two of them view their relationship.

I was also reminded a little of the opening line of Emily Henry’s People We Meet on Vacation: “ON VACATION, YOU can be anyone you want”.  And that’s exactly what Eliza and Graham are on this trip. They’re shinier versions of themselves that they don’t get to try on in their normal lives. Different paths are explored, different stories and dynamics — a game of playing pretend and wishful thinking. Graham’s self-doubt comes out in his new persona: Investment Banker Graham, who is charming and confident. Eliza’s rocky relationship with her sister Michelle, and fear of abandonment comes out in a different way: Vacation Planner Eliza, who is used to running around from place to place, and has a very tight knit relationship with her sisters. Graham learns, through Vacation Planner Eliza, that his very real wife misses being spontaneous and the flirtation. And through Investment Banker Graham, Eliza learns about Graham’s insecurities too. 

One of my favorite things about Do I Know You? is that it’s told in dual-POV. Being able to see inside both Eliza and Graham’s minds allowed their fears to feel more real, especially when they weren’t being upfront with each other about it. Eliza and Graham had very distinct, and different voices, and while it wasn’t always clear to the other person why they were acting a certain way or why their marriage wasn’t working, the reader was always in the loop.

While I wish that we’d gotten more information about Eliza and Graham before their marriage turned stale and rocky, I do appreciate the way it unfolded, and how we got to learn about snippets of their lives through flashbacks and little tidbits. From the get-go, I was rooting for Eliza and Graham. There’s no room to doubt that the two of them have a lot of love for each other; it’s just that they’ve forgotten how to rekindle that spark. There was so much tension and so much flirtation between the two of them, and I was just screaming for them to get it together. 

Despite the third-act breakup being one of my least favorite things ever, I did appreciate how it was done in Do I Know You?, as well as the resolution. I think everything was tied up nicely with a bow, and I think that the third-act fight was incredibly necessary. All the events were leading up to it, and the way Eliza and Graham handled it made the two of them a stronger pairing. 

Overall, I absolutely adored Do I Know You?, and I absolutely cannot wait for whatever Wibbroka writes next! 

Links for Do I Know You?: Goodreads | TheStorygraph | Bookshop.org | IndieBound