I really enjoyed the banter and antics of this book but it did cause the two main characters to come off as quite unlikeable at times which was hard to come back from.

Thank you, Penguin Random House, for giving me an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I TRIED TO KEEP HIM AT A SAFE DISTANCE WHERE HE COULD ONLY SEE THE DECENT PARTS OF ME, AND IT MADE US BOTH MISERABLE.

Cheers to my second 5-star book of 2019! If you added this novel to your TBR just because of its adorable cover, that’s okay. Do yourself a favor and read the book when it comes out next year. I’ve read fewer than 15 New Adult books since I became a bookworm, and this one is tentatively my most favorite. I can’t recall any other story featuring lovers who become enemies and then lovers again. I guess I now have an ideal literary formula!

You Deserve Each Other is told from the perspective of Naomi Westfield, a headstrong woman engaged to Nicholas Rose, a successful pediatric dentist. Supposedly, they have a perfect relationship. But in reality, they’re suffering from cold feet. Since calling off their wedding might be super costly, Naomi and Nick engage in a hilarious battle of wills. The rules are simple. The winner can back out of the engagement without strings attached, but the loser will have to cover the enormous bill. Have you ever encountered such a clever premise?

I was very invested in the plot because it made me think of my big brother, who plans to propose to his girlfriend soon. Because of this association, I sometimes imagined Nick and Naomi as my brother and future sister-in-law. Gleaning from the book, courtship indeed entails putting your best foot forward. Sometimes, it’s like wearing a mask or building a facade. And then when you take your relationship to the next level, you unintentionally (or deliberately) show your true colors. That’s when the misunderstandings or fights begin. Then, you might wonder how on Earth did you end up with your husband or wife. Was Shakespeare right when he said that love is blind?

I’ve never seen my brother and his girlfriend argue. I’m often their third wheel, so I always observe them as they hold hands and speak to each other in Motherese (baby talk). James, my second brother, loves to make fun of them. Haha. I don’t want to sound pessimistic, but I bet that things will change between Maui and Kyleen when they finally marry and live in the same house.

Couples cannot avoid conflict forever. Fortunately, you can use conflict as stepping stones to a stronger relationship. I know this because I’ve witnessed a lot of arguments in my family. My parents and grandparents have been married for decades, but they aren’t immune to petty quarrels. Ugh, I should stop before this review becomes an essay on marriage.

Deborah Rose, Nick’s mom, reminded me of my own mother because of them had a lot of opinions regarding their children’s romantic interests. The only difference was that Deborah was more of a control freak, whereas Mama was more of a counselor. I disliked Deborah because she was an insufferable stage mom. She doted on Nick like he was still a child and basically took over his and Naomi’s wedding plans. Harold, Nick’s spineless dad, made things worse by letting his wife take charge of everything. I deeply understood why Naomi was scared of becoming a member of Nick’s family.

Naomi and Nick’s “competition” was the best part of the book. If this novel became a movie, it would be an epic rom-com. The characters resorted to the most childish tactics just to annoy each other. I’ll never forget how Naomi tried to make Nick wet his bed by putting his hand in a bowl of water while he slept. Her plan failed, but it was funny, nonetheless. It was delightful to see their pranks evolve from malicious to playful/flirty.

The reasons for the couple’s mutual hate were mostly valid. Naomi resented Nick for staying silent whenever Deborah insulted her; Nick resented Naomi for limiting his career growth. There was much miscommunication between them because their engagement was built on a facade of perfection. They might have avoided this dilemma if they had acted genuinely from the start. Who knew that courtship could have an element of deception?

Overall, I highly recommend You Deserve Each Other because it comically illustrates how honesty and familiarity are prerequisites to a happy and fruitful marriage. However, please know that I’m not an advocate of cohabitation. If you want to know your partner’s true colors, you don’t need to emulate the protagonists and live together before your wedding. Perhaps by staying true to yourself during the dating period, you could avoid lots of unpleasant surprises after marriage? I know that it’s easier said than done, so don’t roll your eyes at me. xD

I was looking for something a little lighter to read than the WWII nonfiction I've been reading lately, so I was excited when I was approved for an advanced copy of You Deserve Each Other. It has a cute cover, and, although I've never seen the movie inspiration for this story, How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days, the concept sounded like it could be fun. Maybe along the lines of Shakespearean romantic bickering. However, that was not the case for me. Did I hate this book? No, and in fact I found it engaging enough that I didn't want to put it down, and finished 70% of it in two days. I even laughed a time or two while reading this book. But much of the time I was reading I also spent wrestling with the characters, trying to sort out what was actually going on, because this book did not seem to align with its promotional description.
The fact that the book was not as advertised was probably my biggest problem with it. Had this been billed as an engaged couple with mental health issues dealing with personal issues and finding their way back into love and a stronger relationship, I would have enjoyed it more, because I would have known what to expect. As it is, this isn't even a normal love/ hate, enemies to lovers story, as the two main characters were already (engaged) lovers who then started to hate each other, before the story even began. (Much of this is told, not shown, which is another big frustration of mine.)
And yes, the characters seem to be dealing with some serious psychological baggage, especially Naomi, who appears to suffer from not only some kind of attachment disorder, but also incredibly low self esteem, and an imagination so active as to almost be delusional. As Nicholas points out, she copes with situations by disassociating with what is going on, too. She's honestly not very likable for most of the book, as she screeches and acts vindictively towards Nicholas in some pretty terrible ways, with an incredible amount of paranoia and suspicion. Perhaps this is part of why I struggled to see Naomi as a woman in her thirties...she comes across much more like a barely out-of-school new adult. Or a less likable Jenny Lawson. Or both.
Nicholas has people-pleasing and mommy issues of his own, but I honestly found him much more sympathetic than Naomi for the entire book. He could be really high-handed and somewhat condescending--usually just annoying, but he made A LOT of big life decisions without consulting the woman he was engaged to. I didn't blame her for being annoyed about that, although I didn't really blame him for not wanting to try to argue the topics out with her either. But, unlike Naomi, I was never in question as to his motivations. I was mostly confused why he was ever drawn to Naomi to begin with, much less why he stayed with her. Perhaps it really is a case of opposites attracting, as Naomi could not be more opposite from his dreadfully overbearing mother. That's easier to understand once we finally see them starting to reconnect in the second half of the book, when we also begin to see what about their personalities would have attracted them to each other and kept their relationship fun at first--but that's a long time to wait to understand the connection between main characters in a romantic story.
In general, the style of writing was just not my cup of tea. Everything is extremely descriptive, mostly written as Naomi's internal thoughts, in a way that blurs the line between what she's observing and what she's imagining COULD happen or be. (Ex-were the walls of one of the rooms in the new house really midnight blue with stars painted on them? Or was she seeing the room as it could be/ as she'd want it?) I kept having to reread passages to try to understand what was actually going on. These imaginative musings makes the narration confusing, and pads the book with unnecessary description so much that by the end of the book I kept catching myself skimming paragraphs to find where the action of the story picked up again. Descriptions were also extremely flowery without actually being helpful. What do eyes the color of the four horsemen look like, for example? Red, white, black, and pale? Perhaps we'll never know. The author did create a lovely setting for Naomi and Nicholas, as she details the new home and its rural setting beautifully. It was almost a third character, and sounded charming and lovely.
In general, there was little in the way of true friendship or even good family relationships in this story. Aside from the rocky relationship of the two main characters, all of their family is almost cartoonishly terrible (which does not necessarily make them unrealistic, sadly). There is absolutely nothing redeeming mentioned about any of their family members, or about most of their other relationships. This isn't a healthy way to live. Even friendships were separated into his and hers, mostly revolving around work, and most of them are not particularly healthy relationships. (Zach may have been funny, but he was cruel and honestly kind of a jerk. Melissa existed only as a nemesis with a grudge. Seth was an unlikable bully). At least they realized that themselves as the story progressed, and started focusing on the few friends that they had who were healthy, but it was still staggering how isolated they both seemed.
There wasn't much diversity in this story either. I realize that the setting is in the rural northern Midwest, so having one character being described as in a gay relationship (not shown. sigh.) and another who wants to move to Alaska because (possible?) native heritage was perhaps better than nothing. It was not clear, however, if Brandy was actually an enrolled tribal member, or just a DNA-test/ family legend pretendian. Not that is really mattered much anyway, I suppose, as she did not figure in the story often or for large sections, and her possible heritage only seemed to affect her decorating choices. Everyone else in the story seemed super white, straight, cis-gender, able-bodied, etc. So very white.
Aside from a cute cover, and a surprisingly readable, engaging story, however, there was one other noteworthy commendable aspect of the story for me. Naomi is presented as a formerly mediocre student who has not attended college and holds down a series of dead end, low paying retail jobs. That kind of existence is something that is not often represented in books, at least in romance novels. It's a snap of reality in an often highly unrealistic genre, and I appreciated the honesty about struggles like worn-out cars, limited budgets, and depressing job hunts, and even the camaraderie that is built by working with a team of people under those circumstances. Maybe it wasn't the most cheerful part of the story, but it gave Naomi a bit of authenticity, as her experiences align with that of so many of my friends and family. I also appreciated that Nicholas, while obviously financially stable, is neither a millionaire nor a blue collar worker who drives a pick up truck. I'm not sure I've read about a dentist as a romantic hero before, but a financially stable, educated working man made for a refreshing change of pace in a contemporary romance novel.
If you've read this review and thought, ooh, that doesn't sound bad, then this might be the book for you. If you can't stand flowery descriptions and/or unstable MCs, or a very white setting, perhaps look for something else to read instead. At least you have a better idea what to expect going into it than I did.
Thank you, #Netgalley, for a chance to read and review an advance copy of #YouDeserveEachOther

Enemies to Lovers is not always a slam dunk for me - it is hard to get past the nastiness and my personal view on life is that when people say things when they are mad you get a clear picture what they really think and they don't get a pass on the "I didn't really mean it, I was just blowing off steam". Here the mad part of the story is funny and awful and necessary to the HEA all at the same time - because this pair really has no idea of what the other is thinking.

The book starts with a prolog that includes the first date and the blush of new romance and then jumps straight into the dysfunctional cohabitation and engagement which quickly blooms into the war of the Roses - or rather the war between Nicholas Rose and his intended Rose-to-be, Naomi. In some ways it is sad that we don't get to see much of what made them ever want to marry each other and come in at the point where their relationship has devolve into something apathetic on the surface with simmering resentment underneath all wrapped up in a total lack of communication and set aflame by Nick's Mother-in-Law. (She is truly horrible - snide, and backstabbing to Naomi and manipulative and controlling to Nick and his dad.)

Because we start at such a bad time in the relationship and at a point where Naomi is at the end of her rope, it is a bit hard to warm up to the pair at first. They both behave really badly and it is hard to see any kernel of once or future love in that behavior - I probably should be ashamed that I found some of that humorous, but I did. That said, around half way the author does somehow manage to turn things around and does a pretty decent job of setting up the friends to lovers part of this second chance story, which did bring me around to wanting the pair to have the HEA I wasn't sure was possible or deserved.

So even though this was a bit slow to get rolling, I did end up really enjoying You Deserve Each Other and I will certainly be watching for more from the author.

This is an unpaid review of an ARC received via NetGalley, the book is set for release in Spring of 2020.

Well. I just flew straight through this book. I couldn't stop. Romance novels don't tend to surprise me anymore, but this one sure did. The first 25% of the book I was absolutely certain that things were going to happen a certain way, and I was most definitely wrong. In the best way.

I loved every second of reading I squeezed out of 'You Deserve Each Other.' There was SO MUCH TENSION. And I love Naomi. Her inner monologue is probably the best thing since ever. She gave me flashbacks of a modern Catherine Moorland.

You Deserve Each Other is a great debut for author Sarah Hogle. Overall I did enjoy this story. Although it took me about 50% of the book to really get into it. But, the fact that I didn't DNF it, says a lot! Plus I would share this would fellow readers. Especially those that are into this specific troupe, like I am.

I look forward to reading more from this author.

When I got to 44% (chapter 10), I had to put this one down. The more I read the more I wasn't liking the female character Naomi and the story was losing my interest. Another one where the premise sounded interesting, but then it just started to get ridiculous with the two unhappily engaged people each trying to force the other to end the relationship. I really think this story would have benefited from a dual pov from also hearing from Nicholas's pov. That might have made the story more interesting.

I received this book at my request and have voluntarily left this unbiased review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to review this book.

I. LOVE. THIS BOOK. Where do I begin? Naomi and Nicholas are the perfect, fairytale couple--beautiful, hard working, doting. Except, it's all a lie. Sarah Hogle took the classic trope of hate into love and turned it on its head. Here, we have a couple that is engaged, but aren't happy at all. In fact, Naomi is sure they actually hate each other, and sets out to blow up their relationship. What happens, though, is that the two of them begin to discover that their carefully constructed public personas have almost killed what was once a genuine relationship.

The characters are AMAZING. From the beginning, I felt like I knew Naomi personally. She could be me. She's so real she all but steps from the pages. Smart, sarcastic, snappy, sassy. She has a snarky streak a mile wide, and a host of qualities that make her less than perfect, but it is in her imperfections that I came to love her so much. She has this tough shell that hides deep insecurities from everyone, including Nicholas. She is one of the most vivid characters I've read in a long time.

Nicholas is also well fleshed out. He is a man trying to be everyone for everybody, but somewhere along the line has forgotten to be himself. Watching him become who he wants to be is thrilling. The character growth isn't huge or unrealistic. The couple's problems aren't sugarcoated, and watching them try to work through them is a thing of beauty.

In short, this is everything you want in a snappy read. It's funny. It's real. It has heart. You don't want to miss this one!

Relationships are hard! No matter how long you’ve known the person no matter how in love you are; relationships can be down right brutal! Hogle did the most amazing job highlighting just how hard love and relationships can be! There is so much that has to be down individually and together than if communication is lacking it’ll all fall apart!

Nicholas and Naomi are going through one of their toughest times when it should be the most precious time in a relationship! It was amazing seeing them fall in love as they got to know one another again!

I won’t lie at times I was like what omg she’s so juvenile and he’s just a jerk! As I kept reading I kept seeing glimpses of myself in the early stages of my marriage and I began to relate to Naomi and understood her insecurities and why she was so reactive! What I loved most was just how much Nicholas loved Naomi! He didn’t give up and made sure to go head to head to battle for their love and that’s something i absolutely adored about this book!

This is my first novel by this author and it most definitely isn’t my last!

Usually, I hate the idea of second chance romance, or a story where we start with a couple established and play the game of going back and forth from history to present.
However, this story was so fun and interesting. There was not a lot of backstory given, but I preferred it that way. There was enough provided that you could feel the loss of love and chemistry, and why it happened without the chaos of every other chapter being a different point in time.
It was so funny and beautiful to see them find the paths that they needed to grow separately/together. The flowers were hilarious, and so dramatic. It was so funny to know at the beginning of the story you want to see them tear them apart, but by the end you want to see them figure it out again.

Nicholas Rose and Naomi Westfield have the perfect life, her Instagram says so. Who wouldn't want to marry a successful dentist who has parents that are paying for the whole wedding? Naomi, that's who. Feeling exhausted from trying to meet her future Mother-in-laws ridiculous standards, tired of being bulldozed by said future Mother-in-law, and feeling ignored by her fiancé and like she doesn't even know him any more, Naomi decides it's time to call it quits, she wants out. Unfortunately for her, who ever calls it first will end up paying for the wedding. Now all she has to do is convince Nicholas to break up with her first.

This book is a solid 10/10, five isn't enough, and 10 might not be either. Naomi is fed up but doesn't want to be the first to break, her plotting and planning had me honestly laughing out loud, it's been a while since a book sent me into a fit of uncontrollable giggles. I absolutely ADORE Naomi and her refusal to quit, she's so funny in a dark sort of way. I wish I was more like her, or that she could be my real life friend. I can 1000% relate to some of the unhealthy relationships in her life and just wanting the person who's supposed to love you most stand up for you. It's so hard to have an opinion of Nicholas since the story was solely from Naomi's pov. I just wanted him to love her and tell her, but of course that's not the way it's written, so I was left guessing. The single pov absolutely adds to the emotions of the book, the uncertainty of their future. The descriptions are fantastic, the details of events or locations painted a really complete picture in my head. I tried to take notes but all I ended up with were Naomi thoughts and quotes. There are not enough words for me to say how FANTASTIC this book is, I'm excited to see where this author takes her story telling.

This books started out slow but ended up picking up. In the end. I really enjoyed the book. I will now read more from Sarah Hogle. This book tells such true stories of relationships and makes you really think about things you have been through.

I’m on the fence about this book. I hated the characters at first. And hated what they did to each other. I really think there should be a TW about domestic violence too. But the book DOES turn around and they find the right way to communicate/ love each other, and I start to like the characters. But the domestic violence really made me upset to read about and I don’t like to read that.

The author was really great with imagery, character development, plots, etc. Its just the subject matter for me.

So I don’t think I will review this on Amazon/ Goodreads then, to bring your ratings down.

Just not my cup of tea. I thought it was well written, and engaging, but just did not like the characters at all.

This book was so much fun! There were times when I hated both Nicholas and Naomi. At times, I wanted to shake or scream at one or the other of them. But when they worked together, they really worked. I loved watching them kick and scream their way back to each other.

This was such a cute and different story! I really try to avoid knowing the plot line of a story before I begin reading it, and this was really threw me for a loop! Such a cute story about a couple who is engaged and has some issues they need to try to work out. I loved the main characters, I thought they were expertly drawn as really dynamic people who had pluses and minuses. Everyone has things they can work on, and I though Hogle did a great job of creating people who were both fun, and funny, and yet still realistic and had faults. I really didn't know what to expect, and ended up devouring this book - such a fun, funny read!

The cute cover and the reference to The Hating Game definitely drew me to You Deserve Each Other. Unfortunately, it was just not for me.

Naomi has to be one of the most unlikable characters I have ever read. For about the first 60% of the book I really thought she’d be better suited as the narcissistic villain in a psychological thriller rather than the heroine in a Romance. She is just so, so awful and self-centered. She spent the early days of her relationship with Nicholas lying to him and then got mad when he thought that’s who she was. She refused to communicate and every time Nicholas tried to be honest, she would not take any responsibility for the things she’s done wrong, but would turn it back around on him. She was so mean and vindictive. I really couldn’t stand her. Nicholas also didn’t hep matters by often retaliating her bad behavior. However, he wasn’t trying to get her to break up with him like the sick game Naomi thought they were playing, but wanted to get an actual reaction out of her and get their relationship back on solid ground.

Even though I was not enjoying the book at all, for some reason I kept reading it and a little over halfway through it began to get better. Naomi and Nicholas finally have real conversations and start to make positive changes. There were even several cute and humorous moments. It made me sad that the first half of the book was so frustrating because it had the potential to be such a sweet, fun story, but the second half was not enough to make up for the first.

Overall, You Deserve Each Other ended up disappointing me. It did have some funny and cute moments, but Naomi was just so unlikable for the first half of the book (and still not great in the second half). She really came across as a sociopath to me and I felt bad for Nicholas. While I wouldn’t personally recommend it, I’m sure that there will be many people that find it funny and enjoy it much more than I did.

Overall Rating (out of 5): 2 Stars

Thank you netgalley for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
This novel was ridiculously funny and heartwarming! Naomi and Nicholas fall out of love with each other after they move in and find hilarious ways to get on the other's nerve. Unfortunately we only have Naomi's point of view so we don't really know if Nicholas really wanted to break their engagement.
I was laughing out loud at some of their antics. I loved that the author shows us how they slowly earn each other trust and rebuild their relationship based on friendship and having each other's back. Well done.

Naomi and Nicholas have a picture perfect love story...or do they? Look beyond their Instagram photos and you'll find that almost as soon as they were engaged, things started to fall apart. Now they are locked in a battle of wills...who will be the first to give up and break off the engagement? This hilarious and heart-wrenching title is like reading "Kristan Higgins meets the The Hating Game". A refreshing and reflective look on relationships, this atypical romance shows the work required for two people do to fall in love with each other again. Hogle does a great job bringing to life Nicholas' motivations through the eyes of Naomi. Readers will root for this couple while also wondering exactly how things are going to turn out. This was a very enjoyable, captivating read full of characters both quirky and realistic. Here's hoping we see a movie version of this sooner than later! (Advanced copy read courtesy of NetGalley. Opinions are my own.)

Thank you to G.P. Putnam's Sons and Netgalley for my free copy!

YOU DESERVE EACH OTHER by Sarah Hogle won’t be published until April 2020, but I advise you all to mark your calendars now because this book is hilariously charming. The story follows Naomi and Nicholas, a couple who’s about to get married but have fallen out of love, yet are trying to find their way back to one another before the big day. I’m not sure I’ve ever read a contemporary romance that follows this trope, but I enjoyed it a lot! Not only is the writing full of wit and humor, but I think at its core this novel is about the importance of communication in relationships. I predict this will definitely be a hyped romance come next April.