Thank you netgalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Overall it was a great romantic story. A couple who have been together since high school are in a huge rut. It's not until Rosie is hit on at work by a very attractive man that she realizes that something has to change. I found the conflict very fascinating because it definitely reveals how men and women communicate differently and how everyone expresses their love in different ways as well. It's obvious that this couple is still very much in love, they just don't speak each others' love language.

Characters are easy to relate to and having the luxury of getting both pov's in alternating chapters helps readers realize long before the couple themselves that the love is true. The question in the end is if both are willing to change to give the other what they need to feel appreciated and loved.

I really enjoyed Fix Her Up, honestly way more then I had anticipated, partially since I don't always like contemporary romance and because it was my first Tessa Bailey, so I couldn't WAIT to get my hands on Love Her or Lose Her. However, though I liked Love Her or Lose Her, I didn't think it was as good of a fit for me.

I'll be the first to admit that the marriage on the rocks romance isn't my thing. I don't love established couples, so right off the bat that's a strike against the story. However, Tessa Bailey writes sex scenes that I love to read, so I was hopeful that I would still love the story.

I have to say, I loved that we got two non-while MCs (POC in romance rep, baby!), and I liked the friendship/girl power aspects of the story. Tessa Bailey can write well, and I'll never stop liking her dirty talking sex scenes (yes, please!). But the rest...

I was really annoyed at how contrived the relationship troubles seemed. I mean, Dominic was insanely devoted to Rosie, so I couldn't help but wonder if just a little simple communication, like Rosie saying she was deeply unhappy about how they haven't been talking enough, would have been enough. Dominic didn't even resent her or anything... it was drama from nothing.

I also hated how Dominic busted in on Rosie's girls night out in the city. I would have flipped out on my husband. A girl is allowed to go out for drinks with her friends, god damn it. Dominic edged towards too overprotective and possessive for my tastes, and I know that's how Tessa Bailey likes her men, but I didn't love it here. I also think the story just had too much sex in it (I can't believe I'm saying that...).

While I enjoyed Love Her or Lose Her, It isn't my favorite from Tessa Bailey. However, I think book number three is going to be a REAL winner!

This was an alright romance, I finished and got some vague enjoyment out of the story.. Too cliche, Tessa Bailey is beginning to feel like she's just writing the same thing with different characters, the tone is barely distinguishable imo. Maybe if you haven't read many of her works you would enjoy this more. It just lacked any depth and uniqueness, I needed a little more from the characters.

Thanks to Netgalley for my advanced ecopy!

Thank you Avon Books for the opportunity to read and review Love Her or Lose her. This book was a joyful ride but also an awakening as marriages are hard and take so much work. Rosie and Dominic had my heart the entire time.

I am usually not a fan of second chance romances but Tessa Bailey may have changed that for me. I absolutely loved the dynamic of this couple and the push and pull they naturally have. Watching them fall in love again gave me all the feels.

I was completely riveted by the unique and charming story, Love Her or Lose Her by Tessa Bailey. Rosie and Dominic Vega are high school sweethearts who are now married and though they love each other, life has gotten in the way. Rosie wants more from her husband and their marriage. Dominic loves his wife deeply and will do anything to make her happy. Which is how they find themselves working on their marriage with a very unique marriage counselor. Now they are remembering why and how they fell in love. I loved reading about Dominic and Rosie as they found their way back to each other. This story was full of all the best kind of feels through an emotional and tender journey.

Thank you Netgalley for the early copy.

I enjoyed this book so much. The characters were very entertaining and fun. I loved their banters. Dom and Rosie had an amazing chemistry. The side characters made the story that much more fun and interesting.

The sexy times were a little too much. I feel like it could have been turned down a notch. But overall really good book.

This one's a winner!
I think that this is only the second book that I've ever read where the main characters are already married. And it was really good. I wish we'd have more books like this: a married couple but their story is just as exciting and amazing as your typical romance novel.
This is only my second book by Ms. Bailey and I'm so glad I read it. This one might be my favorite read in quite a while. There's not the whole rigmarole of meeting each other and all the ups and downs of a new relationship. You go into this book happy, and you leave it with a wistful smile on your face. Love Her or Lose Her is so much more than the story of Rosie & Dominic. It is the story of marriage. It is a story of need; both being needed and allowing yourself to need someone. It is so much more than I thought it would be.
Tessa Bailey just might have found a new fan in me. My review really can't do this book justice. Just read it. Read it now. You'll be glad you did.

YES it's a modern day marriage in trouble that I didn't know I wanted! It's the best one I have read. I wasn't sure from the description if their therapist would make a mockery of therapy, but the things they do really aren't a mockery. There are moments of humour with the therapist but not at anyone's expense.

Tessa Bailey just keeps getting better and better. Rosie and Dom's marriage has gone from being hopeful to just existing. Rosie shocks Dom by coming home and announcing she's leaving one night because she can't live like this anymore.

Dom spends a lot of time thinking about being a provider because that's how he sees his value for himself and for Rosie. He is possessive and protective of her safety. While he was overseas (in the military), Rosie grew on her own and he realizes how much throughout the book. Love Her or Lose Her is about how they can reconnect and build their relationship again.

I'm not going to spoil Dom's secret here, you will find out soon enough as a reader of the book. Because you should read it! It's an excellent contemporary and perfect for those who want to cheer on a couple as they work through their issues and reunite.

Oh wow! I didn’t expect to tear up while reading a Tessa Bailey book but I did and I’m not even mad about it.

This was a terrific story. One that will touch your heart and have you rooting for this couple.

Their marriage isn’t completely over. They each have some work to do but their love is strong and the way Dominic is about Rosie. Once walls start crumbling down and these two get back to their better selves, their love blooms again.

Bailey takes us on a story of fighting for your love, a second chance at the marriage they started with. I absolutely loved everything about this book. EVERY.SINGLE.THING

Highly recommended.

*I was given a free advanced copy of this book by Net Galley in exchange for my honest and voluntary review.*

Okay, there were so many issues with this book. There was a lot of rampant misogyny and the main characters were so blatantly idiotic that it was maddening - seriously, Rosie legit didn’t realize that she was part of the problem? Like...what? Ugh. Was not a fan of this book. The first one was fine but I was not impressed with this one.

This story was the epitome of a second-chance romance. It had the right balance of steam, thoughtfulness, characterization, and I got a perfect sense of how the two main characters found, lost, and found their way back to each other.

Tessa is one author that I enjoy everything from and this book is no exception. I really liked this one. It's the third book in the series but you don't have to read the others to enjoy this one. Tessa does a great job with the background of the characters. It was steamy and fun. This one is different from normal romance books, which is one reason I enjoyed it, because it takes place in the middle of the relationship. It's a very good read.

Thank you Netgalley, the author and publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I was a tad concerned that I would be a bit confused because I had not read Tessa Bailey's first novel in this series. This was not at all the case. The author did a fantastic job of allowing me, the reader, to understand that there was a bit of a back story between other characters, and perhaps a future story to come with others. I enjoyed that. This invested me to the characters briefly so that I would come back for me. Good Move, Ms. Bailey.

I was captivated within the first chapter of the story. We meet Rosie who finds that she is unfulfilled with both her job and her marriage. We follow along as she goes after her own dreams that have been put on the back burner.

Dominic is the husband who seems to be not fulfilling Rosie. He goes to crazy lengths, at least they seem crazy to him, to make sure Rosie comes back to him.

I quite enjoyed this read. It was quite steamy at times and there is brief language present. It was thought provoking and instilled in me a desire to search for something I am passionate about such as Rosie is.

Thank you Net Galley, HarperCollins, and Avon books for a chance to read an advanced copy of this book. As a reviewer and reader I would like to state that these are my own and I was not influenced by any outside sources.

Most romance novels are about the beginning of a relationship. Some are second chance romances where a couple is reuniting after years apart. Very few romance novels are set in the middle of a relationship. That's exactly where Love Her or Lose Her is set. It's set amidst the chaos of relationship gone bad.

Rosie and Dom are childhood sweethearts whose relationship has fallen apart. The crumbling of their marriage has happened gradually for Rosie, but is a surprise to Dom. Dom didn't realize Rosie was unhappy. Rosie is ready to walk away, but Dom is willing to do whatever it takes to save his marriage.

What I loved about Love Her or Lose Her was the journey it took me on. It's a story about remembering why you fell in love with someone, figuring out where things broke down along the way, and learning from your mistakes. Dom and Rosie were unique characters going through a made up situation, and yet I could see the truth in their story. It was eye-opening at times to see what Rosie and Dom were going through. There was blame, lack of communication, poor communication, actions, lack of actions, frustration, longing, anger...and yet there was a whole lot of love. Once they opened themselves up and communicated (with the help of a therapist) there was learning and understanding. It's easy to blame others for a situation without examining our part in it. I loved how Tessa Bailey was able to show this within a relationship. The fact that she was able to do that while adding humor to a very serious story was amazing.

While I loved this book, I do have to admit there were a few things that could have been done better. One was that Dom's nickname for Rosie. He uses honey girl a lot. Honey girl is an awkward nickname. It's like an odd combination of honey and baby girl or something. It made me cringe every time I read it. The second thing was that Dom's back story could have been explored more in-depth. He shut down when he came back from war and it felt like that was barely touched on. The last thing was the POC representation. It was weak, to be honest -- just mostly food that Rosie cooked and the color of her body. It would have been nice to have more or better representation.

Overall, Love Her or Lose Her was a sweet story about two people on the brink of divorce finding their way back to each other.

Rosie and Dominic are middle school sweethearts who've lost the *emotional* spark in their marriage. If you read the first book in this series, Fix Her Up (or as my friend referred to it, "the one with the aroused clown," you'll remember Rosie (Zumba and the Just Us Club), and her troubled marriage. I say emotional spark because the physical connection is very much still present, at least on Tuesdays, which is their designated sexy times day. But this Tuesday Rosie has had enough. Instead of letting Dominic silently ravish her, she pulls out her suitcase and leaves him, ready to end the marriage. After some intense conversations, Rosie gives Dom an ultimatum: last ditch couples' therapy with the most woo-woo, hippy-dippy therapist she can find on Long Island. Armie delivers the woo-woo in spades (prolonged eye contact, making each other laugh with mouths full of marshmallows, building a campsite for an orgy (???)). Also he tells them not to have sex, the one thing they still do successfully, so they can focus on communicating again (cue the tortured glances and desperate phone calls).

I am a huge sucker for people going to therapy and processing their feelings. Dom has a lot of trouble verbally communicating his feelings, because of his upbringing and his experiences in the service, and doesn't want to get "brownie points" for all the little things he does for his wife without her knowledge. Rosie desperately wants words of affirmation and GUESS WHAT THEY TALK ABOUT LOVE LANGUAGES. Obsessed, not only because it leads to Rosie washing her husband's car to show him how much she loves him/drive him wild in her yoga pants. They come to realize they both have a role to play in keeping their marriage healthy and happy. Of course, even as Dom starts to let down his walls and communicate more openly with Rosie, he's still holding something back...

Tessa Bailey is known for her dirty talk and explicit scenes, and this book is no exception. I really liked that this book features a married couple doing the work to put their relationship back together. If that's something you're into, you might also enjoy Sarah MacLean's The Day of the Duchess. There's some very good groveling in this book, as well as sneaky sweet romancing (I love a man who anticipates his partner's needs). One thing that stood out to me as missing was the familial connection. I loved the scenes in Fix Her Up with the Castles, and I wish we had met Dom's parents, at least via phone. Overall, I really enjoyed this book and am looking forward to purchasing a physical copy, and the next in the series.

***I received an ARC from NetGalley and am posting my honest review.***

4.5 stars

So, so, so good! And steamy.

Rosie and Dominic were emotional, frustrating, and so in love. Keeping secrets and not communicating are never good for a marriage, and I felt like I was right there with Rosie and Dominic, being frustrated right along with them. Tessa Bailey is becoming a fast favorite author of mine!

Unfortunately, I didn't enjoy this second installment in Bailey's Hot and Hammered series quite as much as the first book, Fix Her Up, but it was still a fun, quick read that I think a lot of contemporary romance readers will likely enjoy. Love Her or Lose Her follows a married couple (unusual for a romance novel!), Rosie and Dominic, who, despite a deep love for one another that began when they were childhood sweethearts, find themselves at a point in their marriage where they're only truly able to connect in the bedroom; otherwise, their communication has completely broken down. Rosie in particular has been feeling the strain, and kicks off the novel by leaving Dominic, as she's feeling unappreciated and unsatisfied both professionally and in their relationship. The plot of the novel revolves around Rosie and Dominic's attempts to reconnect through a hippie version of last-ditch couples counseling Rosie initially proposes as a challenge to Dominic, thinking there's no way he'll let his guard down enough to try therapy, and Rosie's efforts to start her own restaurant, which she's been dreaming about her entire life.  We also get to see glimpses of Georgie and Travis, the main characters from Fix Her Up, as well as what's presumably the setup for the third book in the series, a meet-cute between Bethany and new-in-town, cowboy hat-wearing Wes.

On the positive side, this eARC really saved me when I found out that my flight had been delayed for 4 hours and was stuck at the airport, finding myself not quite in the right mood for any of the physical books I'd brought with me but looking for a fun contemporary romance. It's a quick read, Rosie is a likable main character, and Bailey's writing is snappy and funny. I continue to enjoy the girl-power aspect of this series that centers around the women in their community forming the "Just-Us League," a group designed for female support and empowerment, and how Georgie, Rosie, and Bethany lean on each other and have each other's backs.

On the negative side, I wasn't so much a fan of Dominic, and I felt that there was a lot of his backstory that wasn't explored thoroughly enough for me to root for him and Rosie as a couple. He was also very possessive, and there was a definite feeling of him reinforcing traditional gender roles in certain aspects of their relationship, which very much did not work for me. The actions of all the male characters in this book were often very unappealing; one scene in particular, when Rosie and her friends are planning a girls' night out in the city, and their love interests are so insecure and upset by this that they follow them all the way to New York to exhibit possessive behavior and deny them a night out with their girlfriends, really rubbed me the wrong way. I'll still definitely look to read more Tessa Bailey in the future, as I did enjoy Fix Her Up quite a bit, but overall I don't think this was quite the right book for me.

I received an eARC of Love Her or Lose Her from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This storyline is definitely more emotional & digs a bit deeper than the first book in this series. It still delivered with the steam & I really found myself rooting for this couple. I think I’m most excited for the next book in this series, though.

5 Truth Telling Stars
* * * * * Spoiler Free
People sometimes dismiss romance books as all fluff, sexy talk and simple stories. That there is no real "There, There". Oh, how very wrong those who assume they know. Authors who take the time to create, highlight issues, and share outcomes dive into subjects that span all sorts of real-life challenges. They do it with a deft hand and draw audiences who are better after reading experiences they can relate to and possibly see themselves in the outcomes.

Not every romance book is with millionaires, oops, billionaires or hiding royalty or rockstars. Those books are fantastic and I have been a huge reader of all of them. The enjoyment of the variety of different types of genre is a huge bonus. Even under the umbrella of the books I mentioned, all had a core and lessons to learn.

Tessa Bailey, a favorite author, took a risk with this book...at least she thought she did. She mentioned she must have been nuts to write a romance about a married couple thinking about divorcing and on the surface, I would agree...

BUT HOLY COW!!!! I can testify this book was one of the most romantic I have read...and it could be due to the fact, I was married for many many years...and I was able to understand exactly what was presented and how important the journey Ms. Baliey was taking us on.

As the blurb tells us, we have this couple, Rosie and Dominic Vega, who were high school sweethearts who married, he goes to fight in the desert and then he comes home. We meet them after they have been married for years...and a pattern has developed.

There is no problem with the chemistry...they are in sync on all levels with that. No, there is another issue that is equally or even more important, they seem to have lost the way to communicate with each other.

Honestly, this is all you need to dive into this book, I promise. If you treat yourself to this read, you will go through so many feels...and the sexy times are totally Tessa Bailey Certified. Dirty Talking, Swoony Moments, and Chemistry Off the Charts.

Oh, and Huge Plus...The couple is older than 21. So go forth and get this book. You may see couples you know caught in a pattern they need to break. You may learn a new way to reach out to your loved one and understand how to show your love for them in a way they understand better...or even more telling, a way to talk about how you may wish to have love shown to you.

I Say Thank You, Tessa Bailey, for taking that risk and writing this book.

A gifted copy was provided by author/publisher for an honest review.