Book Review: Unlikely Match by Laura Bradbury

April 26, 2023June 4, 2022 GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

Rating: ★★★★
Audience: Contemporary Romance
Length: 348 pages
Author: Laura Bradbury
Publisher: Self Published
Release Date: May 26th, 2022
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Could the man I hate be the perfect match I need?

I’m Jules Kelly, a certified bohemian boss babe, whose hip tech company just won subsidized office space in the coolest co-working space in town. From a distance I seem poised to take over the world (or at least the travel industry), and I would be if it weren’t for two big complications:

1. A rare and seriously inconvenient disease is tanking my health by the day, and my only hope for a cure—a transplant—is moving further from my grasp.

2. A soulless database company is sharing my new office space, and its coldly gorgeous, judgmental, CEO is on a path to world dominance (at least in his mind).

Tom Davenport represents the very worst of bro culture in the start-up world. Naturally, we despise each other.

The thing is, as much as Tom’s antagonism annoys me, he has an uncanny ability to conjure up my fighting spirit and vitality at a time when my illness is robbing me of both. I’m drawn to him in ways I can’t (or would really rather not) understand.

A mysterious angel investor forces our companies to compete for a life-changing amount of money just when my relationship with Tom becomes infinitely more complicated. To make matters worse, things get cutthroat just as my time starts to run out.

In order to survive, I must decide if I can truly trust my most unlikely ally of all.

Unlikely Match is a high-stakes and steamy workplace romance that will leave you feverishly turning pages.

For those of you who love wry (and sometimes a wee bit dark) humor, emotional intensity, loyal friendships, insane chemistry, and forced proximity in the context of high medical stakes, Unlikely Match is for you.

REALLY DANG GOOD.

This was a buddy read win y’all. It wasn’t really on my radar until a friend asked to read it together and wow, it delivered.

I loved that this was a very unique romance. It’s also heavy. Yet, the author does a great job balancing all of the weight with a great love interest and a sweet romance + some seriously amazing friends and other side characters. I love learning more from books and this one brought a whole new disease to light for me. Also it increased my awareness of the nature of transplants and how that side of medicine works. It was extremely enlightening because the author went through this entire process.

The romance was filled with all sorts of witty and snarky banter centered around start-up culture. Two competing CEO’s that can’t get enough of snapping back at each other. It has a nice little rivalry vibe, but with immediate intent for a friendship. Tom is an utter cinnamon roll and I loved how gung-ho he was about being with Jules. And when he overstepped he could recognize that and establish boundaries. I loved the discussion around mental health and medicine and how going through something so traumatic can play a forever role in your life.

I wish there was a dash more lean on the romance side because I just loved them that much, but it was an amazing read that I could not put down. Highly recommend as something different in the romance genre!

Overall audience notes:

Contemporary Romance
Language: some strong
Romance: two brief open door
Trigger/Content Warnings: heavy discussion about the world of medicine in general (doctor’s visits, needles, hospitals, etc.), PTSD, grief, therapy scenes, transplant surgery and recovery

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ARC Book Review: Falling Hard for the Royal Guard by Megan Clawson

April 25, 2023February 19, 2023 GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

Rating: ★★
Audience: Contemporary Romance
Length: 368 pages
Author: Megan Clawson
Publisher: Avon
Release Date: April 27th, 2023
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Love is in the heir in this royally good rom com debut releasing in Spring 2023 – perfect for anyone who likes relatable heroines (with great hair), hot and aloof book boyfriends (with great hats), near misses, almost kisses and a corgi or two.

Despite living in an actual castle, happily ever after is evading Margaret ‘Maggie’ Moore.

From her bedroom in the Tower of London, twenty-six-year-old Maggie has always dreamed of her own fairy-tale ending.

Yet this is twenty-first century London, so instead of knights on white horses, she has catfish on Tinder. And with her last relationship ending in spectacular fashion, she swears off men for good.

And then a chance encounter with Royal Guard Freddie forces Maggie to admit that she isn’t ready to give up on love just yet… But how do you catch the attention of someone who is trained to ignore all distractions?

Can she snare that true love’s first kiss… or is she royally screwed?

A right royal rom com, perfect for fans of Red, White and Royal Blue and The Royal We.

Thank you to Avon for the ARC.

NOT FOR ME.

I don’t even much feel like writing this review because this book and I did not get along. I was expecting a cute romance set in London, learning a little about the guard life, sweet dates, some good kissing, etc.

What did I get?:

A big history lesson that did not further the ROMANTIC plot of a ROMANCE book whatsoever. Took up too many pages.
The love interest is hardly actually in the book. HE LITERALLY RUNS AWAY MULTIPLE TIMES.
Multiple bad Tinder dates that beg the question, WHY.
Third act wildness that caused me to laugh, because if not, I might throw my book.
Everything was over the top and not in a good way (clearly, HA).

I just…this let me down so much. And I’m going to end it here because I would not recommend it.

Overall audience notes:

Contemporary Romance
Language: some
Romance: make-outs
Violence: low
Trigger/Content Warnings: loss of a mother (off-page), a manipulative gaslighting ex boyfriend

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ARC Book Review: Love Buzz by Neely Tubati Alexander

April 22, 2023February 23, 2023 GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

Rating: ★★★☆
Audience: Contemporary Fiction
Length: 304 pages
Author: Neely Tubati Alexander
Publisher: Harper Perennial
Release Date: May 2nd, 2023
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

A chance romantic encounter during a wild night at a Mardi Gras bachelorette party sends strait-laced Serena Khan’s carefully constructed life into chaos.

A wretched maid of honor. A hangover from hell. Raucous Mardi Gras crowds. There isn’t much Serena Khan is enjoying about this four-day New Orleans destination bachelorette party for her semi-estranged cousin, the bride-to-be—until sparks fly with a handsome stranger, who, like her, is also from Seattle. After their conversation is cut short, Serena is overwhelmed by the desire to find the charming man with the brooding eyebrows, but her list of clues is pretty short:

His name is Julian.
He lives on Chamber Hill.
He works at a tech company.
He loves Lil Wayne and Nirvana.

The need to find him is, for Serena, both irresistible and totally irrational. In a few short weeks, her college alumni magazine is featuring her in a “Life at Thirty” feature, cementing her as a success story. She will have officially achieved the safe, stable life her late mother insisted upon. Julian is not part of the plan.

As she combs Seattle for her New Orleans flame, stripping away the perfectly curated life that would have made her mother proud, Serena must decide if the pursuit of real passion is worth it—and fast, before she destroys the life she always thought she wanted.

Thank you SparkPoint Studio for the ARC.

GREAT DEBUT.

I really did enjoy this read. I will say first off, it is NOT a romance. There’s a romantic super sub plot, but overall this is much more fiction. I loved watching Serena figure life out. I could easily relate and connect with her on finding what makes you passionate. What makes you want to get out of bed each day and who you want to spend those days with. It’s complex handling all of that and grief and I thought this was a beautiful debut within those themes.

I had two little things that niggled at me. One being, the only love scene in here was a dream?? I didn’t love that and it felt really misplaced. And secondly, I do wish there was a bit more romance!! It started off strong and I wish Julian was a bit more woven into the entire story.

Honestly though, great read. I finished it in a day and would easily recommend it to others. I loved the setting and the characters. They all helped Serena reach a place in life where she felt more at peace. And I love that.

Overall audience notes:

Contemporary Fiction
Language: some strong
Romance: one open door
Trigger/Content Warnings: alcohol consumption, loss of a mother, grief depiction

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ARC Book Review: Why Trey Let Me Get Away (Famously in Love #1) by Kortney Keisel

April 21, 2023April 14, 2023 GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

Rating: ★★★★
Audience: Contemporary Sports Romance
Length: 320 pages
Author: Kortney Keisel
Publisher: Self-Published
Release Date: April 28th, 2022
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Second chances are relationship Hail Marys. I’ll either win Whitney’s love or go home brokenhearted.

Trey:

Whitney Savittieri is the one that got away, and I’ll do anything—including strategizing with my teammates—to get her back.

Never mind that she’s giving me the stiff arm and wants nothing to do with me. We’re going head to head, and I’m playing for keeps.

I’ve been in a lot of pressure-packed games, but the stakes are higher this time—my heart and my happiness are on the line.

Whitney:

I’m avoiding my ex like the plague—like a really, really handsome plague.

While Trey’s risen to fame in the NFL, my life has gone so far off track I’ve derailed and am careening into a ditch.

So I promised myself I’d never love again. It’s too risky—a woman can only take so much disappointment.

Giving us another chance is a mistake my future and my heart can’t afford.

Thank you to the author for an eARC.

ALL THE STARS FOR TREY.

This book was a good time and the lighter escapism read I was hoping for when it landed on my kindle. I LOVE sports romances and was ecstatic a closed door author I adore wrote one.

For the football aspects, I thought there was a perfect blend of Trey’s life and practices, games and such, but never so much to take over the point of the story, the romance. Easily one of the highlightable features of the plot. I have been missing football and this helped quench that!

I LOVED TREY. He was the shining beacon throughout the entire book. I loved how nervous he got trying to talk to Whitney. I loved how hard he worked for their relationship and the truly genuine good soul he has. He’s got that big golden retriever energy that never gets old to me. I want to soak up that optimism he holds on to so well.

Whitney was where I ran into issues. I was surprised at her reasoning for breaking up with Trey and how poorly it came off for her character growth. I understand some of her side of the story but I wish Whitney herself had put more effort into the relationship or at least apologizing in general.

In the end though, I loved this book. I needed something quick and enjoyable that made me laugh and grin and OH EM GEE I FORGOT TO MENTION THE KISSING SCENES. Absolutely the hottest thing about this book. Perfectly executed closed door romance kisses are my kryptonite and I was begging for them to kiss and THEY SURE DANG DID.

Overall audience notes: