Book Review: Roomies

How was your weekend? Mine was alright, we didn't really do a whole lot, but that was just fine. I organized my desk (again, don't judge me) and I was able to get the Valentines made for Penelope and Lucy's class and helped Penelope make her Valentine box. I did get some reading in so I can stay on top of my Goodreads goal this year so I'm not reading like a maniac at the end of December. Like last year. Gulp.  

Roomies - Christina Lauren

Marriages of convenience are so...inconvenient.

For months Holland Bakker has invented excuses to descend into the subway station near her apartment, drawn to the captivating music performed by her street musician crush. Lacking the nerve to actually talk to the gorgeous stranger, fate steps in one night in the form of a drunken attacker. Calvin Mcloughlin rescues her, but quickly disappears when the police start asking questions.

Using the only resource she has to pay the brilliant musician back, Holland gets Calvin an audition with her uncle, Broadway’s hottest musical director. When the tryout goes better than even Holland could have imagined, Calvin is set for a great entry into Broadway—until his reason for disappearing earlier becomes clear: he’s in the country illegally, his student visa having expired years ago.

Seeing that her uncle needs Calvin as much as Calvin needs him, a wild idea takes hold of her. Impulsively, she marries the Irishman, her infatuation a secret only to him. As their relationship evolves and Calvin becomes the darling of Broadway—in the middle of the theatrics and the acting-not-acting—will Holland and Calvin to realize that they both stopped pretending a long time ago?

Normally I am a big fan of Christina Lauren, they are usually funny and/or steamy, and reliably good. Unfortunately.... I didn't love it. I think my problem is that I've discovered after this book that the friend or stranger getting married in order to solve a problem trope is not my favorite. I don't think I even like it at all, in fact, so I know now to just take a pass on those ones because yeah... not my thing. 

In Roomies we have Holland, who becomes mildly obsessed with a man named Calvin who plays music in the subway. She almost dies but he saves her, only to mysteriously vanish when police come around. Once she finds him again, she gets him an audition but soon after she learns that he isn't a legal US citizen and because he has gone past his Visa requirements, he will be deported. 

Unless he gets married. 

Naturally, obsessed Holland is totally on board, and Calvin reluctantly agrees. They have to make their relationship believable for the immigration inspector, so it becomes a very crash course in getting to know you that honestly, nobody with half a brain would believe. 

On face value, this sounded fun and interesting, but as we get going I realize Holland is a bit much. She wasn't likeable for me at all and I can see how Calvin is reluctant, she would be difficult to get rid of. But, he moves in with her because you know, you have to look like a married couple, and in my head I'm like- who agrees to marry a stranger AND move in with them? I listen to enough crime podcasts to know statistically, this usually doesn't work out well. Holland in general was just... I definitely wouldn't want to hang out with her and I'm not sure if she was supposed to be immature and awful or her character just wasn't developed enough, but I just couldn't like her. Calvin was alright and honestly, I wanted him to run and never look back. Shack up with anyone else other than Holland because she is seven shades of nuts. 

I know this was supposed to a comedic, "isn't this a hilarious but also fun 'how you met'" story, but I just didn't think it was funny. I felt oddly uncomfortable through it, and I am a fan of romance novels and can generally get through one in a day but this one took me weeks. For real. Weeks. 

If you're looking for a fun and light romance, keep looking because this isn't the one. 

Book Review: The Unhoneymooners

What a dang week. Honestly, you guys. I've had a lot of people interaction this week and I'm just completely over all of it. Ugh. The worst is that this was maybe my easiest week of the summer? Next week starts summer school (Jackson is doing it to get familiar/comfortable with his new school), tennis, Little Gardeners class for Pep & Lu, speech, doctor appointments, and god knows what else I didn't write down. I need a nanny. Or to win the lottery so Matt can be home all of the time to help me take kids to things. It's just really exhausting. I won't even get a nap ANY OF THE DAYS.

I'm going to stop talking about my life right now and give you this book review which again, YOU ABSOLUTELY NEED this book. I know I'm doing a lot of shouting but if we were at lunch chatting right now I'd likely be very loud in my declaration of love for this book.

The Unhoneymooners - Christina Lauren

Olive is always unlucky: in her career, in love, in…well, everything. Her identical twin sister Ami, on the other hand, is probably the luckiest person in the world. Her meet-cute with her fiancé is something out of a romantic comedy (gag) and she’s managed to finance her entire wedding by winning a series of Internet contests (double gag). Worst of all, she’s forcing Olive to spend the day with her sworn enemy, Ethan, who just happens to be the best man.

Olive braces herself to get through 24 hours of wedding hell before she can return to her comfortable, unlucky life. But when the entire wedding party gets food poisoning from eating bad shellfish, the only people who aren’t affected are Olive and Ethan. And now there’s an all-expenses-paid honeymoon in Hawaii up for grabs.

Putting their mutual hatred aside for the sake of a free vacation, Olive and Ethan head for paradise, determined to avoid each other at all costs. But when Olive runs into her future boss, the little white lie she tells him is suddenly at risk to become a whole lot bigger. She and Ethan now have to pretend to be loving newlyweds, and her luck seems worse than ever. But the weird thing is that she doesn’t mind playing pretend. In fact, she feels kind of... lucky.

I'm just going to throw out there that if ever there was a character that was like me in every way, it is Olive. Her awkwardness around guys? Me. Her inappropriately time sarcasm? Me. Looking kind of questionable in outfits? Me. Terrible liar? Me. Pessimistic and feeling like things are too good to be true and when is the other shoe dropping? Me. I loved Olive as infuriating as she is. I also kind of loved Ethan because he kind of reminds me of Matt in some ways and that was really fun.

Anyways. In this book we have a wedding that ended hilariously horribly so Olive and Ethan end up having to take the honeymoon so it doesn't go to waste because nothing was refundable and you couldn't change dates. The only problem, they hate each other and they have to pretend to be newlyweds and you can see how this is going to go. The ultimate theme of this book is that lying will get you nowhere in the long run and it always comes out one way or another. The banter between Olive and Ethan is so great (and funny) and I can really appreciate it because that's how Matt (my husband) and I talk to each other at times and it's just fun.

I absolutely loved every page and I found myself rooting for Olive and Ethan the entire time, I was laughing, I loved the ending, I loved the entire thing. If there is one book you add to your summer reading list, make it this one because it was worth it. I couldn't put it down at all and I was really bummed it was over. This would make for a terrific movie, no question, and though this was different from the other books I've read by Christina Lauren (the Beautiful Bastard series), I really enjoyed this one a lot. I feel like anything I say isn't doing it justice and I hate that because this was maybe one of the funnest books I've read in a long time, easily going to make a top ten of 2019 list for me. No doubt.

   

I stalked my local Barnes & Noble for several days waiting for this and I found it misplaced on the wrong shelf so OBVIOUSLY it was a sign and I had to buy it. Anyways, all opinions are my own and I can't wait to hear what you thought of it. Maybe use these handy little affiliate links to keep this little ol' blog keep going. Smooches. 

Beautiful Player

I'm just going to start this review by telling you I need ALL of the books. All of them.

Beautiful Player - Christina Lauren

A bombshell bookworm. A chronic Casanova. And a lesson in chemistry too scandalous for school.

When Hanna Bergstrom receives a lecture from her overprotective brother about neglecting her social life and burying herself in grad school, she’s determined to tackle his implied assignment: get out, make friends, start dating. And who better to turn her into the sultry siren every man wants than her brother’s gorgeous best friend, Will Sumner, venture capitalist and unapologetic playboy?

Will takes risks for a living, but he’s skeptical about this challenge of Hanna’s…until the wild night his innocently seductive pupil tempts him into bed- and teaches him a thing or two about being with a woman he can’t forget. Now that Hanna’s discovered the power of her own sex appeal, it’s up to Will to prove he’s the only man she’ll ever need. 

YOU GUYS. I just... I literally don't know where to even start with this one. I can only tell you that I am going to purchase this entire series. Immediately. I read the first book years and years ago and I vaguely kind of remember it but honestly, I could stand to read it again and it would still be amazing. If you want a romance with really great characters that you will shake a fist at, and some romance (you know what I mean, ladies...), this is absolutely your next read. Hands down.

In this book we have socially awkward Hanna who (after being slightly admonished by her family) decides to reach out to Will, a friend of her brother's that lives in Manhattan and asks him to basically... teach her the ways of getting out there. Being social. Dating. The whole works. Things start out awkwardly when we realize that Hanna had always had a thing for Will growing up, and the age gap (she's 24, he's 31) is kind of a biggie- they are at different points in life. Will is a bit of a man whore and though she's no virgin, Hanna isn't a sex pot. She's awkward, she fumbles, she isn't sure what to do and she (in an act of desperation) asks Will to tutor her.

And tutor he does. *Swoon* Sexy times ensue but Will finds himself developing feelings for Hanna that extend beyond friendship. He has almost no experience in a monogamous relationship and he can hardly believe he's entertaining the thought. Then we have Hanna who is convinced Will isn't able (or willing) to change his man whore ways so she (of course) makes an ass out of herself versus being up front with her feelings. Which, considering how blunt of a person she is with everything else, the sudden clam up of her feelings didn't feel genuine. That is really my only critique of the book. I finished this over last weekend and I really, really, REALLY enjoyed it.