HER LEADING MAN by Maggie Dallen

UNLIKELY COUPLE - 4 stars

Plot - 4 stars - Caitlyn is an unassuming, but friendly girl who is living a life of quiet contentment. After a difficult breakup, she is now seeking out temporary roommates to keep herself in her expensive apartment. Her latest roommate turns out to be the same guy she shared a disastrous date with, as arranged by an online dating site.

Writing - 4 stars - The story caught my attention right away with the funny date scene, then it proceeded to move forward quickly and easily. Dallen was able to create a warm character who turned out to be solid and friendly and strong. And our hero--Ben--started out as a disaster and ended up being the hero that Caitlyn was looking for.

Characters - 4 stars - Caitlyn is sweet and quiet and nice, but not in an annoying way. I liked her backbone, especially when she dealt with her annoyingly over-the-top date. And she is totally loyal to her friends and her job, despite criticism from her family and her ex-boyfriend. Ben is the typical playboy type, but he also is coming off a bad breakup and is just looking for some fun. He enjoys baiting Caitlyn, but in a gentle way. Their chemistry is warm and fun. They are not a particularly exciting couple, but their story was more friendly than explosive, which is not to say they don't have a few steamy scenes together. I liked the combination of gentle strength and professional extrovert.

Title - 4 stars - The title makes a lot of sense because of the characters' intention to save a local classic-movie theater. And Caitlyn has expressed her desire to find "another Cary Grant" since today's men don't show her the romance she's hoping for.

Cover - 4 stars - The cover follows the classic-movie theme, showing a theater marquis and bright lights.

Overview - 4 stars - This feels like a sweet old-fashioned romance, although there were also some hot moments. Apparently the romance of the era Caitlyn enjoys came through. I enjoyed the camaraderie of the group of friends who are trying to save a dying classic-movie theater. And Ben, although not the typical movie-star hero, has a heart of gold beneath his playboy exterior (even though he doesn't know it).

The story begins with Caitlyn and Ben's first date. Ben is a sloppy drunk and makes some rather callous and crass comments to Caitlyn so finally when she had enough, she left. She had no further plans to pursue online dating. That had been a disaster. Her friends wanted her to start dating again because she had mourned the breakup with her boyfriend a year earlier. Ben had just caught his girlfriend in bed with his friend from work and was considering this a rebound date.

Caitlyn was surprised when her date disaster showed up on her front door. He was her new roommate and she couldn't be more annoyed but she didn't have a choice because it had all been arranged by an agency. As they spend more time together, they realize they like being around each other.

Caitlyn worked in a yarn story and loved to knit and her former boyfriend told her she was frigid and boring. She loved old movies and she wanted a man in her life like her image of Cary Grant. He was perfect! Ben was handsome but just the opposite of what she thought her perfect leading man would be. Then as they spent time together they began to show interest in each other. But, neither wanted to get into another relationship so they compromised and just had a physical relationship. That relationship was great but that was all it could or would ever be. Until they wanted more. . .

I really enjoyed this storyline but I was frustrated by the continual f-bombs. I feel that it detracted from the story and is just something I don't enjoy in a book that I am reading for enjoyment.

This was sweet and sexy with some fun characters. Caitlyn works at a yarn shop and is someone who enjoys life's comforts. Her idea of a fun evening is hanging out on her couch while knitting, watching movies, or talking - or all of the above. Her ex found this boring and left her feeling inadequate. She has a horrible blind date and then is stuck living with that date. Ben, the bad date, was nervous and drunk and doesn't remember his bad behavior. He is also recently single, having found his girlfriend cheating on him with one of his collegues. This means couch-surfing and working from home for awhile. And fighting his attraction for Caitlyn, since he isn't a "relationship guy."

I really liked how they were so normal and hung out at home watching things while she knit (as someone who knots & crochets and loves movies, including Cary Grant ones, this was right up my alley!). These two had chemitry and their romance really shined. I am a sucker for genuine bonding with hot chemistry. There was good rapport and banter between Ben and Caitlyn.

Their arrangement was basically as you would expect, and there weren't really any surprises here, but it was a nice escape. The drama was low-key, portrayed in a very genuine way. Caitlyn's strength really coming out was nice to watch as was Ben's. They grew as people from start to finish.

The friends were a fun addition, too. I am most intrigued by Alice and what exactly was going on with her. She had some great insights and felt like a fantastic addition. I hope her story is next in this series!

Caitlyn loves to knit and teach her craft at the yarn store she works at and loves her job. Her long time boyfriend dumped her and after six months and Caitlyn decides to stop holing up in her apartment and start going out with her friends again. Then Caitlyn takes advice from one of her friend and decides to give online dating a chance. She states on her online profile she is looking for someone like her all time favorite Cary Grant. Then she accepts a date and goes to the restaurant to meet him and he is already drunk and he keeps slamming the way she is dressed, her job , everything. He sits eating bread going on and on then tells her she needs to get laid and he is available. Caitlyn decides she is through with the date the he spills beer all over her lap and she leaves. Ben had been staying with his friend Gregory while his condo was being renovated. Ben and his girlfriend had broken up when he caught Olivia in bed with Alejandro one of Ben’s partners at work. Ben hasn’t been back to work since. Ben has no memory of the date but hadn’t heard back from the woman so let it go. But Gregory and his girl Olivia are volatile so Ben is looking to sublet a room until his condo is ready. Ben finds one and goes to the apartment the room is at and Caitlyn answers the door and horrified to find Ben is suppose to sublet her room. But Caitlyn needs help with the bills so she lets Ben move in. As time goes on Ben finds he is attracted to Caitlyn but he is now a no relationship kind of guy after the breakup with Olivia.
I like this story . Didn’t like Ben at all at first . Why did Ben get drunk if he knew he had a date with someone he had yet to meet? I did like Ben as time went on. I felt bad for Caitlyn when she was on the date and then to find he was to be her roommate. Caitlyn was sweet and I liked her character a lot and she really did have some good friends. Ben’s friend Gregory definitely added to the story also. This was a fun read. Not a lot of drama involved especially after Caitlyn got to know Ben better . they really did make a sweet couple. I liked all the characters a lot and the ins and outs of this story as well as the plot and i recommend.

As a lover of old movies, Cary Grant, and knitting picking this book up at NetGalley was no brainer to me. And it turned out to be a fun read, a story filled with good friends and an intriguing romance storyline from a disastrous date to roommates to friends with benefits to... Yes, it takes a wild and windy road for Caitlyn and Ben to find their HEA.
Caitlyn's self-esteem was a bit fragile after her ex took an ax to it as they broke up. Now she is finally ready to try dating again and in walks Ben, drunk, crude and insulting. Oh, Ben...
I liked Caitlyn, she is a knitting, old movie loving person. She is loyal to her friends, she has the no business sense, but she does what she loves, she has made a life she enjoys for herself, and now all she needed was her Cary Grant.
Ben was also devastated after he found out his girlfriend and business partner were having an affair. Ben had some issues from his childhood when it came to his parent's relationship and his father's way of being a bully. Ben could be fun, caring, considerate, and sweet one moment, yet he could be complete opposite at times especially when alcohol was part of the picture. And it was a lot, I haven't noticed or paid attention to alcohol consumption in romance novels before, but here I noticed it, it stood out, as the main characters over indulge several times with consequences to their lives.
The author really did an amazing job with Ben's character development in this story. With so many scenes against him, she managed to turn the boat around so that I grew to like him and care for him, despite all his imperfections and rude behavior.
I liked the story, it was lively, light and amusing at times. It was well written and had a good rhythm to it. It had a real life vibes to it from the evening at the couch knitting and watching movies to the nights at the bar, and fun with the friends. The cast of characters has a wide variation of personalities, and I believe this series will be filled with upbeat, festive and fun people and events. A perfect read for a weekend evening, very much of a feeling of the eighties romantic comedy movies.
~ Three Spoons with a teaspoon on the side

Sweet and fun, with some sparks at the beginning and grand gestures at the end, just like in the movies.

I really liked this story. The author had me at knitting and yarn because it is something I love. The chemistry between the two characters was off the charts but Ben , our hero, was kind of a jerk at the beginning. Great read.

I want to be BFFs with this book. It had a rough start for me, but I truly think the few sharp edges I encountered will be smoothed out in final editing. Once the story got going I forgot about those hiccups and just strapped in for the ride.

The first chapter of this book had me thinking there was NO WAY the author was going to be able to make Ben likeable. Talk about a jerk! Sure he was drunk, but why would you get drunk on a first date? Especially if you knew you acted like a douche when you drank too much? Ugh! I couldn’t stand him and felt so bad for Caitlyn. The way the author, Maggie Dallen, was able to turn things around says a lot for her writing talent. Now I can’t wait to read her other books to see if she’s such a master all the time.

The chemistry and interplay between Caitlyn and Ben, before there is even any physical contact, is like to cause a 5-alarm fire. The build up to their first kiss had the butterflies in my stomach in a flurry! There’s a snafu that happens during that interlude, which took the butterflies from 60-0 in no time flat. Once again I couldn’t figure out if Ben is just a jerk or an idiot. (Spoiler: he’s an idiot)

Once Ben and Cait come to their agreement I couldn’t help but fall in love with them as a couple. They were fun and sweet with each other and it just melted my heart. Of course, I could also read the writing on the wall and knew the euphoria couldn’t last. And the way the fallout is written had me mad at neither of them. There are a lot of books that have me rolling my eyes or yelling at a character because of an action (or inaction). I somehow sided with them both!

I could not put this book down. It was fun and sexy and funny and smart. I love Caitlyn’s group of friends and their love for the old movie theater and old movies. I want there to be a story for Ben’s friend Gregory because he certainly captured my attention. This book had everything a contemporary romance should have and an HEA that did not disappoint. Beside a few rough edges in the beginning and a bit of a timeline issue (that may well be my own obsession over timelines in books and not really anything that anyone else will even notice), I found this to be a perfect read.

caitlyn has a thing for cary grant. she wants a boyfriend who is silver screen worthy. her ex, she's come to realize was decidedly not cary grant. and her first date with ben is definitely not dreamy. though it's also probably more cary grant than she could have ever dreamed. i mean, in the philadelphia story or bringing up baby it's definitely not love at first sight in her leading man for either of the leads.

ben does his best to make a giant ass of himself on their date. and then as luck would have it, he ends up being her sublettor. the thing is, ben isn't as gigantic an ass as he first seems. and the time they spend together begins to mean something. slowly they become friends. but they are also friends who have incredible chemistry.

because that's the thing about cary grant. the man had incredible chemistry with his leading ladies. all that bickering was foreplay, and that's what cait and ben have going on. so when they do let go of their inhibitions and fall into bed together, it's pretty amazing.

and sure there's some silliness and a giant misunderstanding, but they figure that all out. caitlyn's friends are a fun crowd and are secondary characters begging for their own stories, and since this is the start of a series i'm sure we'll see more of them.

I loved the concept behind the story, but more than the way in which the plotline has been narrated, my favorite would be the two lead characters of Ben and Caitilin. There's something sweet and charming about them that you immediately feel like relating to them in a person. The secondary characters definitely intrigue me for the rest of the series as well.

Having your worst blind-date ever show up at your door as your new renter begins a delightful tale. A great way to spend a rainy afternoon.