This was a mixture of friends to lovers and enemies to lovers when I one night stand turns friends into lovers into enemies. Pause and check in three years later and Mac & Will both finally decide to put the past behind them to pursue friendship only.

Of course the memories of their steaming chemistry and smoldering desire puts a wrench in those plans.

The ending felt a bit more HFN than HEA to me, but was wholly satisfying and made for quite an enjoyable read.

I thought this was an okay book. For the most part I like the sibling's best friend stories, but this particular story seemed to move along at almost a snail's pace. I didn't know this was part of a series, although it seems that this could be read as a standalone.

Not for me. Couldnt get into the story. It had way to much filler and not enough story. Hopefully the next story by this author will be a better fit.

The reason for 3 stars... a beautiful British setting and a happily ever after. That’s about all that I truly liked in this book. Mac and Will were just so-so. Didn’t love ‘em, Didn’t hate ‘em. Honestly didn’t really care why/what happened to them.

Sexy, funny and romantic.
Mac and Will have a complicated past made awkward by a mix of friendship, family and attraction
When they meet again, years later after a disastruous ending encounter- things are even.more fraught.
Cause tied in with old resentments is an attraction that neither can resist and familial bonds and promises that haunt them both.
A fantastic romance, decided to engag.
Fans of Melody Anne will love this.

This book moved at a snail's pace. We spend so much time in the main characters's heads, where they repeat how much they want the other person, but that it can never happen I got bored to tears! If you spend 39% of the book insisting that you can't be together, you've totally convinced me. At that point, I don't want you two together.

Another problem I had was with the whole Best Friend's Sister Off-Limits trope. Women aren't chattel to be controlled by their brothers. This is the 21st century; we need to do better.

And so much of the drama could have been avoided with a simple conversation. If Mackenzie was his best friend, Will should have given her more than a "something's come up" text. My best friend CALLED me when her mother died, and she lives in a different country!

Can Phillips write? Yes. Did I miss out by not having read the first two books in this series? Not at all. That's a skill that some authors lack. Overall, though, it wasn't enough to save this story for me.

A good read from author Christina Phillips with some interesting characters.
Review copy received from Entangled Publishing via Netgalley

I cannot love this book enough. Just like “Once Upon A Player” Christina Phillips amazing writing will pull you in instantly. I could not turn the pages fast enough. This book is jam packed with all the feels you get in any of her books. Totally recommend

I really had trouble getting into the book initially and getting caught up in the emotions of the characters. The storyline was good, but it just didn’t stand out in my mind amongst other books in the genre. The blurb was great, but overall the book just fell flat for me.

A second chance at love and an even better chance at a great read is exactly what Christina Phillips offers in Not So Happily Ever After. Fast paced and funny, this book has everything required for a satisfying weekend read by the fire!

This is a Brothers best friend romance. The title is what drew me in. But the storyline kept me interested. It’s a second chances romance, nothing too atypical. It’s like going from zero to sixty, they basically grew up together and cross the line one night. Someone’s heart gets broken and leaves town.

Now to the present where they meet again. Both struggling with their futures. Both bound to familial ties that nether want. When they are forces to spend time together, they find the attraction still there. And the rest ensues.

It’s a decent story with a good plot line. 4 out of five stars. A big thanks to Netgalley, and the publisher and author for the ARC!

The title of Not So Happily Ever After got me curious, so I requested the arc on Netgalley. I hadn't read the first two parts of the British Bad Boys series, but you can read it easily as a stand alone. The story is about Mac (Mackenzie) and Will. Will is Mac's older brother's best friend and they have know each other for years. They have become good friends, right until they crossed the line and had a one night stand. Mac fell hard for Will, but the next day he stood her up. Heartbroken, Mac leaves town study Medicines, as a promise to her departed mother. Two years later, their paths cross again.
Both are hurt and struggling with their futures. Mac, because she really doesn't want to become a physician like her mother. Her promise to her mother is keeping her from following her dream to become an artist. And Will is equally bound to the family business by his mother. When Mac and Will are forced to spend some time together, they soon realize the attraction is still there. But how can the face the future? A wonderful story about second chances, difficult decisions and family ties. Four out of five stars from me and a special thank you to Netgalley for providing the arc.

The book had too many soap opera-ish situations for me to like it as much as I could and wanted to. I understood Will's reasons for not showing up the day after they slept together two years ago and I forgave him as a reader. Mac took her time doing that. I wouldn't understand how these two were working things out between them and overall I don't have the most positive feelings for this book. I didn't hate it, but I wasn't a fan of the main characters and their drama. This is the first time I am reading something written by this author and I am willing to give her a second chance, even if I wasn't one of the book's biggest fans. Some of the situations were a little predictable, but in a sense, they worked out. I have mixed feelings for the book and I think that 3-stars is a fair rating.

This book is #3 in the British Bad Boys series. This book can be read as a standalone novel. It is not necessary to read these in order, but it is enjoyable.

Mackenzie AKA "Mack" is still reeling for her feelings for her brother's best friend - when he appears at her door. They are to help a mutual friend, and not ruin the careful truce that has been declared. Can that actually work?

Will is not sure what to do or say. He really wants a future with the girl that is just out of his reach. He also wants a future where he gets to choose. Maybe the strength will come by standing by the side of the woman who can make it all happen.

This was a great story. I loved the banter with these two. I really love this trope and hope to see more. The book has all sorts of heat and sparks between this couple. The pace moves along well. I enjoy this series and hope to see more.


***This early copy was given by Netgalley and its publisher, in exchange for an honest review only.

2 stars
I wish I could have liked this book. I honestly lost DNF it. I felt nothing when reading it. I was skimming through most of it.

She’s loved him for a long time, but that one time (when they gave in and he became her first lover) changed their relationship forever. It wasn’t the sex actually, that was amazing, it was the next day when he was a no-show for art exhibition. They haven’t really spoken for two years and now they can’t not talk to one another. She has a college career to seriously evaluate, a benefit to plan, a celebrity to coddle and a seriously hot, incredibly nice man to resist. On his side, he has a family company that’s draining him, a mom recovering from a stroke in secret (who also happens to have a lover 20 yrs her junior), a dream job waiting, and the woman who has always owned his heart and their rekindled friendship within touching distance. Something has to give, right?

What follows is an engaging story about frighting for the things you want, giving into the things you crave and living a life that finally feels like happily ever after. I liked it a lot.

I received an ARC of this book, from the publisher, via NetGalley, in exchange for a fair and honest review.

3.75 stars--NOT SO HAPPILY EVER AFTER is the third instalment in Christina Phillips’ contemporary, adult BRITISH BAD BOYS romance series. This is investment banker Will Hamilton, and med student/artist Mackenzie Carter’s story line. NOT SO HAPPILY EVER AFTER can be read as a stand alone without any difficulty. Any important information from the previous story lines is revealed where necessary.

Told from dual first person perspectives (Mackenzie and Will) NOT SO HAPPILY EVER AFTER follows the friends to lovers, best friend’s little sister / friends with benefits relationship between investment banker Will Hamilton, and med student/artist Mackenzie Carter. Two years earlier Mackenzie Carter crossed the line with her brother’s best friend Will Hamilton, and in the resulting aftermath Mackenzie lost her best friend and the man that she loved when Will didn’t show up for her gallery showing. Fast forward two years wherein Mackenzie, now about to enter her third year at med school, struggles with her future direction including her ongoing attraction to the man that broke her heart. Enter Will Hamilton, Lucas Carter’s best friend, and the man with whom Mackenzie had fallen in love. What ensues is the friends to lovers, best friend’s little sister / friends with benefits relationship between Lucas and Mackenzie, and the potential fall-out as our couple keep secret their forbidden affair, as Mackenzie prepares to return to university, leaving a heart broken Will behind.

A promise to her dying mother meant Mackenzie Carter’s career had all but been procured by a university scholarship, but our heroine’s heart was destined for something else . Two years without her best friend, and the love of her life, pulled Mackenzie away from her art, and head long into her studies, studies she had no desire to continue or proceed. Will Hamilton has no idea why Mackenzie Carter pushed him away two years earlier but family obligations prevented Will from looking too closely, obligations that tied our hero to a job he no longer enjoyed.

The relationship between Will and Mackenzie is one of second chances, of a sorts, between former best friends who spent one glorious night together but the aftermath destroyed any hopes for a future. Mackenzie has never stopped loving the man who broke her heart but miscommunication, secrets, and family commitment meant Will and Mackenzie went their separate ways. The $ex scenes are intimate and seductive without the use of over the top, sexually graphic language and text.

There is a large ensemble cast of colorful secondary and supporting characters including Lucas and Violet (Once Upon a Player #2), Lucas’s friends Caleb, Harry and Alice (Cinderella and the Geek #1), Atomic Fire, boy band member Jake Myers, and their manager Jax; Lucas and Mackenzie’s father and his girlfriend Margo, and their friend Duke; as well as Will’s mother Cynthia, and her boyfriend Jeremy.

The world building follows several paths –from boy band melt-downs, to the lack of communication between parent and child, and the misunderstanding between former best friends. The multi-troped relationship between Will and Mackenzie has out couple treading a fine-line between secrets and lies, secrets they fear will break their family’s hearts.

NOT SO HAPPILY EVER AFTER is a story of family and friendships; secrets and lies; second chances, and startling revelations. The premise is engaging and energetic; the romance is emotional and encouraging; the characters are sexy and spirited. NOT SO HAPPILY EVER AFTER has a little bit of everything including romance and love; heart break and grief; humor and fun. I did have a small issue with the numerous thoughts and ‘asides’-we spend an inordinate amount of time inside the characters’ heads.

Copy supplied by Netgalley

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Mackenzie is the little sister of Harry and Lucas who were featured in the first two books in the series. Will is Lucas's friend and was close with Mackenzie too, until things went wrong a couple years ago after they hooked up.

When they decide to be friends again, old feelings come to the surface despite their efforts to keep it casual.

I liked this book, but it started out a bit slow. As the plot picked up, though, I found that the characters and story grew on me. Will was my favorite character, and there was a lot more to him than Mackenzie or we as the reader first realize.

Great storyline, intriguing characters, strong development. Overall, well executed. I really enjoyed this book and would recommend it for a weekend read to anyone.

I received a free, advanced copy of this book from NetGalley.com. This is my unbiased and voluntary review. It is a delightful story about a second chance with a friend to lover. And despite the title, they do get their HEA.

I have not read the previous books in the series, so read this as a stand alone. Mackenzie has two older twin brothers, Harry, a geek and Lucas, a professional athlete. Her mother was a reward winning physician, who expected Mac to follow in her footsteps, since she was the only one of the children who showed any interests in science. However, her real love is her art, which delegated to a hobby, after she made a death bed promise to her mother. Will Hamilton is Lucas's best friend. Growing up, Mac also was very close friends with Will. Will, also had a similar experience, in that after his father died, he promised to help his mother with the family business, a bank, while he is really interested in building an outdoor adventure business with his friends. Meanwhile, Lucas and a team mate set up the Rainbow Star Foundation, similar to the Make-A-Wish Foundation. Both Mac and Will are helping with major fundraiser. All of this is background from the other books, that I was able to glean from the narrative the author provided.

Right after Will's father died, his girl friend broke up with him because she didn't do family, after which he decided the single life was for him. But two years ago, at the Christmas Gala, Mac and Will kissed under the mistletoe, and they didn't stop with a kiss. But a misunderstanding the next day, left them both hurt and no longer in the friend zone. This year, Lucas needs both of their help handling the immature lead singer of the band they have booked. They are both eager to get back their friend, but can them keep things in the friend zone, when their hearts yearn for something more?

I enjoyed reading this book, as I love second chances. While I was first confused by all the characters, the author, skillfully woven into the narrative, the characters, their nature and relationships. I would go back and read the previous books, after enjoying this one.