This is much lighter than Carsen Taite’s usual stories. As a former law student (in another life), one of the reasons I enjoy her books so much is all the legal stuff. Yet she’s also really good at romance, and romance is all this book is about. Sure there are lawyers and a case, but they’re mostly background for the relationship between Campbell and Wynne.

After five years of working for big law firms hoping to make partners and having no life outside of work, best friends Campbell, Grace and Abby decide to leave their jobs and create their own law firm. On the same night, due to a carpet incident, Campbell literally falls into the arms of a beautiful woman, Wynne, whom she vaguely remembers from law school. When a client makes them work on a case together, Campbell finds out that the mousy student she’s known has turned not only into a beautiful and sexy woman but also a very smart one.

It’s a romance so of course they fall in love, despite the fact that each is supposed to be fighting to get the client to choose her firm in the end. Yet from the start they don’t really manage to see the other as the enemy. It’s obvious they try, but what’s meant to be will be (it wouldn’t be a romance otherwise).

It reminded me a bit of Melissa Brayden’s Kiss the Girl, what with the best friends founding their own company together, each bringing her own strengths, and one of them falling for the competition. But the writing is very different, and so are the characters, so it didn’t feel like I’d already read that particular story.

This is the first book in a new series, and I’m already looking forward to the next one.

I'm a huge fan of this author so maybe my expectations of this book were too high - unfortunately it fell a little flat for me. I loved Campbell as a character but couldn't see how or why she connected with Wynne. The rom-com style dialogue throughout the book sounded a little too Melissa Brayden-like - it didn't feel like the author's own tone of voice. Having said that it was an enjoyable enough romance.

I received an ARC copy of this book from the Publisher via Netgalley and voluntarily leaving my review.

Campbell is tire of working for a boss who a jerk so when a reunion comes around she convince her two best friends Abby and Grace from law school to quit their jobs and start a law firm with her.

Wynne works at a law firm where her boss is a jerk and thinks his way is best.

Campbell and Wynne both went to the same law school but they never really interact with each other but they did notice each other.

When a client from Wynne law firm doesn't think they aren't doing what he thinks he want he decide to go to another firm and he choose to take a chance with Campbell firm.

Braxton decide to have both firm present to him and his board members who is better at winning a his case as him and the other board members like both presentation Braxton wants Campbell and Wynne to work together.

Campbell and Wynne wants to win but will they let their attraction distract them from their goals.

I like the friendship between Campbell Abby and Grace and how each courage each other strength.

Wynne and Seth friendship was great too.

I like how close Campbell are with her siblings after her parents dies.

Wynne with her family was hard especially with the father.

This was a great legal romance and I like how you got to see how you prepare for a case.

Great characters and sizzling chemistry.

Book 1 of the new Legal affairs Series is a winner in my book. This one concentrates on Campbell and Wynne. The characters are lovable (Campbell being my favourite) and the story line is great. The pace is just about right and I enjoyed the character development. One character I would have liked to have punched was Wynne's boss. He was a total a-hole.

Looking forward to reading more of the series in the future. Highly recommend!

'ARC provided by both NetGalley and The Publisher in exchange for a honest review'

**'No story is a straight line.If you as a good writer can tell a story, create characters, devise incidents and have sincerity & passion,then it doesn't matter a dawn how you write...'

'PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT' is an impassioned, conversational, probing, fiercely inconclusive beginning series with a dialogue that was every bit provocative, misogynistic at times and even entertaining from start to finish. The storyline do also paints a disquieting portrait of the law, many circles of lawyering and statutes relating to the telltale process of a lawsuit.
Carsen Taite has great insight about the experience of lawyers, legal professionals and all things legislative because of her background knowledge with the many different legal terms and statements mentioned throughout this series. She's also an extraordinary writer and demonstrates her prose mastery with her summations of the complex lawsuits presented. Her passion for writing these legal series is infectious -- and it always resonates on every page.
The two protagonists in this series are so different as readers will come to realize:- Campbell does stand out from her two best friends also law partners. She is not idealistic when it pertains to any of their clients. She is bright, loving, passionate about her job and is very close with her siblings.
As for Wynne, who is considered to be a workaholic, do not have a good relationship with her parents and only has one goal in mind -- to become a partner at the law firm that she has being working at for the past five years. When she meets Campbell it's the last thing that she needs because of her (Campbell) adorable spirit and charming personality that she was afraid will lure her into trouble (reveal her true feelings).
They were both chosen to work together in defending a company -- a company that both were vying to become their sole legal representative. While interacting, business is mixed with some steamy pleasure where they discover in each other their happy yearning and good lovers but the end result will see someone getting their heart broken.

In it's predictable windup, things did calm down and readers did see the stars align for everyone. A highly recommended first series!

I was thrilled to read Carsen Taite's latest legal romance, "Practice Makes Perfect," which is the first installment of her brand new "Legal Affairs" romance series. Book 1 started off with the introduction of three besties since their law school years, Campbell, Grace and Abby, all 5th year associates currently slogging their way to make partner in bog-standard big law firms they were "enslaved" in! Taite's first MC for Book 1 was obviously Campbell, the "leader" of the trio, so to speak. A maverick, slick, always thinking outside the box coming up with big ideas, Campbell was 1/3 of the popular trio nicknamed "Charlie's Angels" back in law school with the other two "Angels" being Grace and Abby, obvs. The trio was not only popular but were part of the "in-crowd" and all that whilst at school, you get the idea. After pitching her "Big Idea" to her besties - opening their own law firm with equal partnership - Campbell set out to land a potential big deal for their firm....but with a caveat....obviously!

Enter Wynne. I loved how they first met. Flirtatious, teasing, alluring, instant chemistry! There was this scenario which I thought was adorable because it was reminiscent of "The Ugly Duckling" story. Yup. I'm sure you can venture to guess who the ugly duckling-turned-beautiful swan was! Needless to say, the entire scenario from their accidental meet to the moment of realisation, was deliciously fun to read! I loved Wynne right there and then in all her ice queen (minimally) glory, amplified by her quiet, reserved persona and awkward beauty! Yay! And another interesting thing is that she and the trio went to the same law school, too and always had a "thing" for Campbell during their 3 years in school. So running into each other 5 years later....ahhhh, serendipity, eh? Brilliant!

Back to the trio, I absolutely adored their chemistry and camaraderie! I would have liked to explore more about their inter-relationship especially in the realm of their new firm, i.e. sharing of responsibilities, hiring and firing, business development and all that where we'd see them working together as peers and mates. There could've been more fun office scenes developed especially with the "revolving door" assistant changes which finally stopped with one whose persona was downright hilarious! Also, I wish there were further info about Abby and Grace, i.e. their personality traits in comparison to Campbell's, their dynamic with each other, but I reckon Taite wants to keep them for the next installments down the line, which I'm assuming (or hoping!) Abby and Grace will take on each subsequent installment for themselves. But that's just me, asking too much! In any case, what Taite had depicted about them in this story worked out well enough. It sure left me more curious about them, that's for sure!

Speaking of Abby and Grace, the other secondary characters were interesting. One person, in particular, whom I was intrigued by and curious to know more of, was Jennifer, Wynne's secretary whom she shared with her department. The brief encounter of her character that Taite had allowed in this story gave me a distinct impression that she could be a very compelling character to delve into in the next installment, thanks to Taite's astute description and portrayal of her. Perhaps pairing her off with Grace or Abby, eh? Oooo...that'd be interesting, wouldn't it? I already got the sense that Jennifer isn't one to be taken advantage of and she could be...yup, feisty! Imagine that dynamic with one of Campbell's besties, eh? Just sayin'! Don't mind me!

The other characters, namely Seth, Wynne's bestie since law school where they formed their own clique of two, hating on the "Charlie's Angels" which immediately reminded me of Ross and Will's "I Hate Rachel Green Club" on "Friends!" Remember? Hilarious! Well, read it and see if it doesn't remind you of that! Seth was not really fleshed out but what Taite had provided worked for me since I was not very interested in him other than being Wynne's sounding board. I was much more interested in Campbell's mates instead and Campbell/Wynne's budding relationship (plus, Jennifer, too, despite her scenes being so few and far between, not to mention, brief, yet I was intrigued). Other than Seth, there were Campbell's sibs, Justin and Perry, which I thought was endearing to read about especially when Campbell's family history was revealed. Whereas, the revelation about Wynne's parents and her upbringing was totally unexpected but I was pleasantly surprised because whilst it was unfortunate, it was also refreshing to have that history which explained so much about Wynne's POV when it came to issues relevant to her life, career, matters of the heart, her overall psyche. There were a couple of antagonists in the form of Wynne's horrible, misogynistic boss and her colleague who had the hots for her whose roles were to create angst, drama and rifts between Campbell and Wynne as the story progressed and their relationship deepened.

I must say, as I read this book, I realised it had a similar trope to Taite's previous book, "Love's Verdict." Two attorneys competing for the same top spot, ending up having to collaborate together to win the case involving a celebrity before realising that they'd fallen in love with each other, with some drama unfolding before all became well. Only this time, Campbell and Wynne were from two opposing, polar opposite-type law firms - one was a big, established, reputable firm whilst the other was a chic, sleek, start-up firm; both of them knew of each other from law school but from different worlds (Ms. Popular vs. Ms. Outcast); the fact that Wynne had always been attracted to Campbell, unbeknownst to the latter; and the so-called "top spot" they were competing for this time was for all future business of their big client's. But this one also had an ice queen, rich girl/poor girl trope, too, which I must say, Taite always churns it well in the context of her characters and the nature of her stories. Reckon it's her forte besides her top-notch writing and storytelling quality pertaining to everything related to the American legal system. You can venture to guess who the rich one was and who wasn't.

I loved the dynamic between Campbell and Wynne. Same age, profession, ambition, workaholic nature, goal-oriented but what veered off from their shared traits was their attitude, worldview - all could be traced back to their childhood, upbringing. Safety and security, unconditional love and support, family, friends. Wynne had nothing of those. We all know that our core beliefs, who we are, can be traced back to our roots - upbringing, exposure, awareness. When life reaches a turning point, there's always a choice to be made. Life is about choices, innit? At the end of the day, it's our choices that make us who we really are deep down, at the core. Anyway, loved Taite's depiction of their differing backgrounds. The little snag that hit Campbell and Wynne regarding the case they were collaborating with and how they dealt with it had a lot to do with their outlook, specifically Wynne's. That was Wynne's turning point. She had to make a choice. That was her cue to reflect on her life, decide once and for all, what she really wanted and desired out of it. A choice, a decision, that would mark the first day of the rest of her life, moving forward.  I thoroughly enjoyed her way of making things right in the end! Endearingly romantic!

Back to Campbell and Wynne's relationship, I loved their chemistry and their push-pulls were fun to explore. However, I wish Taite delved deeper into how their relationship developed and grew from rivals to friends and eventually to lovers, especially when their fraternising was highly inappropriate in light of the fact that both their firms were competing for the highly lucrative business. I had hoped to explore more about the nuances, intricacies of their "forbidden" (more like "frowned upon", really!) intimacy and their dilemmas that came with the territory, juggling their personal feelings for each other whilst maintaining their professionalism for the sake of winning the case, in Taite's depiction of their relationship and the character development. Plus, one of the two antagonists who played a role in creating waves toward the end was not really fully fleshed out, which I thought would've enriched and given more depth to Campbell and Wynne's relationship. In the end, whilst their rivalry and romance were fun and enjoyable to read, the end-result was a light-hearted one with minimal angst and emotional depth between the two otherwise intriguing characters. But then again, that's Taite's style, though, which I happen to enjoy very much, so there! And have I mentioned that I absolutely LOVED Wynne?! Shame there weren't more of her and her icy, awkward, nerdy self, though. Oh well...beggars can't be choosers, can we? Ignore me, just being bloody greedy, that's all. I'm grateful for this adorably engaging character that Taite deftly crafted for this story, that's for sure!

When all's said and done, as a big fan of Taite's stories (as she's my go-to for all things legal/law-based!), I really enjoyed this first installment of the "Legal Affairs" series. Taite managed to establish the core characters of the series along with the peripheral ones, and the circumstances/situations revolving around them personally and professionally in this book, which I assume will be expanded further and more deeply in subsequent installments. The ending was written like a cliffhanger (no worries, it's all good!), a prelude to Book 2, perhaps? Regardless, there has to be a status update especially about Wynne's future, surely! Nevertheless, I look forward to the next installment which I'm hoping will be either Abby or Grace's turn to have their back story and romance explored! I'm still holding out hope that Jennifer will join the legal eagles at Clark, Keane and Maldonado! Ohhhh.....I'm rubbing my hands in anticipation already! Come on, Ms. Taite!! Give us Book 2 soon, will ya? 

I defo recommend this to all who love some light and delish romance between two alluring and compelling MCs (especially mini-ice queen Wynne!) with fetching chemistry surrounded by some fun thrills with the legal stuff, office shenanigans and overall camaraderie spirit!! Well done, Ms. Taite, and thank you for providing another reading pleasure for me!

I was given, with much thanks and appreciation, an ARC of this book from BSB via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

This is the first book in a new series and given it centres around three friends who set up a new legal practice I'm assuming there are going to be two more books. In her acknowledgements, Taite says "As much as I enjoy a dark mystery or a gripping crime drama, I'm a sucker for pure romance...when I know there's going to be a happily ever after." That sentiment pretty much sums up this book; there is no real crime or gripping drama - the very things that I really liked in some of Taite's earlier works. Anyway, that's more a reflection of my expectations of 'a Carsen Taite novel' as opposed to viewing this purely as a romance novel.

Looking at this as a romance novel, the two leads are good characters, Wynne & Campbell (again with the bizarre names) were in the same year in law school but didn't know each other. Now they have to work together on a major lawsuit, while also competing for the client's ongoing business for their respective firms. Wynne works for a old school, old white guy firm, while Campbell is one of the three who have just set up their own shop. This is one of many points of friction between them. Despite the professional conflict the friction quickly turns to heat (surprise, surprise).

As a romance novel 7/8s of it was very well done but then, as I've noticed with a few other recent Taite offerings, everything gets tied up really quickly in the last chapter! I read this on a kindle and I keep the percentage off so until I was finished I didn't know I was at the end; it came as a big shock. Up until then the pacing had been quite even, both the romance and the legal case had been building and then, boom! All sorted and in a neat bow.
Very frustrating.

As I am typing this, I am still trying to figure out how to express what I am feeling about Practice Makes Perfect. This romance is following 3 lawyer friends and how they will find Love. Book one (this one) is about Campbell and Wynne. Campbell and Wynne know each other from Law school and become competitors when vying for a contract with a billion dollar company. Wynne works at a large firm while Campbell is one of the founders of the new startup firm. Of course there is an a-hole boss and of course not everyone plays by the rules. There is physical attraction between Campbell and Wynne but to be honest everything else falls flat. The story line starts off strong but quickly fizzles out. Campbell is more carefree than Wynne and is willing to share some details about her life, but Wynne is a closed book. For the life of me, how would the two really be willing to start a relationship based on little knowledge of one another. I really did have high hopes for this one but ultimately was disappointed. Maybe if the plot was developed more, this one would have been better. Before starting the book, I thought I would really like to read the next two, but not so sure now. I haven't read many of Taite's book but did enjoy Pursuit of Happiness and Truelesbianlove.com.

I will rate this one 2.5 stars.

Now, this book was fun to read! I love Carsen Taite's books because they're always so nicely plotted and filled with legal terms and situations! This book was no exception! And Campbell and Wynne are such a cute couple; I loved their relationship development!

Lovely story. I don't think I've ever read anything by this Author. Loved Campbell is just very lovable. Wynne was alright too, took me a minute to like her thought.

Over all very well written book highly recommended. I actually read it in one setting Which is very rare

*ARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for a honest review.

Campbell is a young associate trying to make partner in the big firm she's working for. At the 5th reunion since graduation from the Uni, she meets two of her old friends and they decide to venture off on their own and start their own law practice.

With the help of Campbell's brother they get the opportunity to snag their first big account, a billionaire who developed a really popular App but due to the complex nature of how these social media platforms work, he starts facing some lawsuits. As he's unhappy with his current representation he proposes that Campbell should work on a specific lawsuit case with the person assigned by the firm currently responsible for his company. By the end of this trial period he will decide who's gonna be his next legal representation .

The competitor happens to be an old law school classmate, Wynne. While these two are determined to win this account, there is a huge attraction simmering between them that makes everything more complicated.

These one was a page turner and even though Taite's books are not typical romances, this one must have been one of her most romance focused books so far. Really liked it and would highly recommend it.

This story felt a little bit flat to me. It wasn't bad really, just lacked the depth I was hoping for. I kind of felt the attraction between the two main characters went a little bit fast for my taste, especially since the both of them where professionals in their field. When the intimate scene did happen the initial tension between them was good, but the actually scene itself I found lacking.


The plot beyond the romance was pretty good. I was genuinely interested in the legal jargon and happenings. The author did a good job keeping my attention in the sense.

Overall it was an interesting short read, but lacked in the actual romance department.

A breezy legal romance.

Campbell has had enough of working for her jerk boss. At a reunion, she proposes that her law school besties join her in venturing off on their own to create their own law practice. They need to drum up new business and through the help of Campbell's brother's inside connections, they get the opportunity to try and snag the hot social media mogul, Braxton. He is not happy with his current representation. Who just happens to be a beautiful old law school classmate, Wynne. The two compete to win but how can you truly compete when there is so much attraction simmering.

This was a light and quick read. Not tons of angst. It was an extremely slow burn romance. The characters were cute. I especially liked Wynne.

Though I really enjoyed reading the story, I have to say that I couldn't quite get behind their feelings for each other. They mostly annoyed one another and bickered. But there was attraction, for sure.

I do recommend this to people who like romance, main characters who initially don't get along, law, social media, family, and donuts.

<i>I received an ARC from the publisher for an honest review</i>

Netgally Review:

I think this was perhaps my least favorite Carsen Taits book so far. I am a long time fan, but this was incredibly boring. One thing I did like was the bog law/ tech subjects and personalities. It was a new and interesting environment for plot.

Carsen Taite is one of my go-to authors. If she writes I’m going to read it and read at that exact moment I will. I know when I pick up one of her books I am going to get a top-notch story. Her newest book Practice Makes Perfect we begin a new series focused around an Austin based law firm owned three besties, Campbell, Grace, and Abby. I knew within the first couple of chapters of Practice Makes Perfect that Taite had written something truly special. I was dazzled!

I am a romance junkie. I love a good medical drama, legal drama, insert trope here, but what truly makes my heart sing for joy is the relationship between the two leading ladies. I want, I need the romance to be the standout. Catch the bad guy, save the life, win the gold, sure, but let’s get back to the love story. Taite in this one brings the romance front and center, and damn it’s good!

Campbell Clark is spontaneous. This character trait serves her well at times. Her spontaneity convinces her overworked besties to quit their well-paying jobs at large established law firms to venture out on their own and open a boutique law firm. This is Campbell’s big idea and now she has to land the client’s to keep her best friends bank accounts in the green and their dream viable.
Wynne Garrity knows all about being over-worked. She is on track to being a partner at her Austin based law firm. She just has to keep killing herself to get there. Her boss is a maniacal jerk, she has zero social life and spends all of her time surrounded in paperwork. It will all be worth it, right? 

Wynne and Campbell know each other from law school, Campbell popular and charismatic, Wynne hyper-focused and solitary. There two come back into each other’s life when both of their law firms are trying to woo a Facebook-like company’s account. These two are pitted against each other for the business until the proprietor decides to throw them together to work on a lawsuit. They have to work on this case all the while being the competitor. Not to mention, and this is big, they are wildly attracted to each other. Let the sparks fly!

This book has two fantastic leads, an attention-grabbing plot and that sizzling chemistry that great authors can make jump off the page. While all of Taite’s books are fantastic, this one is on that next level. This is a damn good book and I cannot wait to see what is next in this series.