CBR18 Book 15: "The Proposal" by Jasmine Guillory

Page count: 325 pages

Rating: 3.5 stars

Nowhere Book Bingo 26: BIPOC rep by a BIPOC author

Reading Rainbow - Orange cover

Nikole "Nik" Paterson is bored and uncomfortable at a baseball game with her handsome, if rather self-centred, actor boyfriend, and his bros. She is absolutely blindsided when he surprises her with a public proposal, via the scoreboard, and to add insult to injury, he didn't even spell her name correctly. Nik is mortified, her boyfriend is insulted by her rejection, and things are about to take a nasty turn when a couple of strangers come to Nik's rescue.

Carlos Ibarra and his sister witness the proposal first-hand from a few rows behind her and when Nik's scorned boyfriends storms off, and a camera crew appears to be on their way to interview Nik, his sister insists that they step in and pretend to be close friends of Nik's, so they can lead her off to safety and away from the public eye and further embarrassment. They take Nik to a bar where her supportive friends are waiting, and share some drinks to decompress after the humiliating event.

Nik is certainly not ready for anything serious again any time soon, but her friends keep encouraging her to keep in touch with the handsome and kind Carlos, and it doesn't take long before they embark on a rebound relationship. Carlos takes his responsibility to his family members extremely seriously and doesn't want to be tied down to a long-term girlfriend. Nik just wants some uncomplicated sex and fun. Surely they can keep things casual and not catch feelings, right?

Jasmine Guillory seems to be a big favourite among some romance readers online, and while her books are fine, they just never seem to be all that memorable to me, and I only read about one a year. As is so often the case with me, I'm yet again way behind on my reviews, and having finished this book in the middle of February, I'm having a lot of trouble remembering specifics of the plot.

What I do remember:

- Carlos has this idea that he needs to be free to drop everything at a moment's notice in case any member of his family, close or extended, needs anything. Since he already works as a paediatrician, a job that demands a lot of his time, he has convinced himself that he can't have a girlfriend who will also make demands on his time. 

- Nik's ex-boyfriend is a real tool, and after being rejected (in front of a huge crowd of people, in an event he orchestrated), he starts sending her threatening messages. As a result, she drags her two best friends along for a self-defence class that they all end up loving. When he finally tries to confront her towards the end of the book, the lessons prove to have been very useful.

- One of Nik's friends runs a cupcake bakery and seems to need a lot of help, which keeps putting Nik and Carlos in close proximity to one another. 

- Carlos' cousin is pregnant, and her pregnancy is a complicated one. This means that he worries even more about her than any of his other relatives. 

- Both Carlos and Nik have many justifications to themselves about why they're not ready or able to commit to anyone in a long-term relationship, which means it takes a frustratingly long time for both of them to admit that they have feelings for each other. 

I don't regret having spent money on this (chances are, I got it in an e-book sale) or spending time reading it, but I doubt it will become a comfort re-read in the future for me. 

Judging a book by its cover: I like this new cover design a lot better than the original, which had a very nice blue background, but just faces in profile, seemingly floating on the edges of the cover. Not very appealing. This sunset view is much prettier. 

Crossposted on Cannonball Read

CBR15 Book 48: "Scandalized" by Ivy Owens

Page count: 320 pages

Rating: 4 stars

Still reviewing books I read in July. It's really quite sad that I haven't been able to get my act together more. Let's see what I actually remember of this book. 

Georgia "Gigi" Ross has been in London trying to investigate a sordid news story involving powerful nightclub owners and probable sexual assault and is pretty much exhausted when she's on her way home to the US. Once her flight gets cancelled, she feels close to a breakdown, especially after discovering that there are no free hotel rooms for miles. She finds an unlikely rescuer in Alec Kim, the older brother of her best friend from childhood (who moved away years ago, and they haven't been in touch for ages). He has access to a suite and offers her a room and a chance to shower and freshen up. Gigi is deeply grateful, yet also pleased to discover that the teen she once had a crush on has become a very handsome, charming, and friendly adult. 

While Alec might not have noticed Gigi much while she was running around with his sister as a tween, the attraction between them now is undeniable. Once it becomes clear that Alec absolutely isn't expecting anything untoward in return for letting Gigi share his hotel room, they go to the bar to share a drink and hours of reconnecting then lead to them acting on the attraction, spending a night of passion together. Gigi isn't really expecting to see Alec again and also feels quite betrayed once she gets home to the small flat she shares with her friend, and discovers while he seemed familiar as more than someone she once used to know. Alec is the wildly popular star of a huge BBC soap and in America to promote it along with the rest of the cast. He didn't want Gigi to know the truth about his fame during their night together, knowing that so many women are attracted to him for his celebrity status. He wanted Gigi to see him as himself.

Because their shared night together pretty much knocked each of their worlds, Gigi forgives Alec and agrees to keep meeting him in secret while he's in America. Their relationship is further complicated when it becomes clear that someone close to Alec could be a material witness in the sex abuse scandal that Gigi is trying to uncover, and it isn't exactly ethical for Gigi to be sleeping with a source. 

Ivy Owens is the pen name of Lauren Billings, one half of romance writing duo extraordinaire Christina Lauren. She wrote this book during the pandemic, which is an excellent use of her time. While Christina Lauren used to write and publish really steamy romances, their current output is a lot more fade to black, so it was nice to see that this book actually had some excellent smexy times. I also really liked the supporting cast, especially Gigi's soap and celebrity-obsessed roommate. 

While this book isn't going on my instant classics shelf, it was an entertaining read and I will absolutely be looking out for more books from Ivy Owens in the future. 

Judging a book by its cover: It's rare that I would prefer an animated cartoony cover to one with actual people on it, but I much prefer the UK cover that's on the book I own to the American cover, which has a kissing couple with fireworks in the background. This one is much more elegant. 

Crossposted on Cannonball Read.