I really enjoyed "The Bromance Book Club' so I had high hopes for this one and it totally delivered! While Liv was a little bit frustrating at times I loved her sass and I loved Mack's heart. At times I found myself laughing out loud, between their banter and the Book Club's interactions. I hope to read more books in this series!

This book. Oh, man. This book.

This book is why you should NEVER judge a book by it's genre, and why people should really just stop giving romance books the cold shoulder for no other reason than they are shelved in the "romance" section. A genre does not define a book, at least not by the standards most people associate with those genres. Most of the (well-written) romance books I have read have had so much heart and so much grit and have way more depth than most people would think they do, and this novel is no exception.

Not only is this one a stellar sequel and quite often laugh out loud hilarious, but it tackles some really hard hitting topics and it does it so damn well. It's not a spoiler, because it's in the synopsis, so let's just say that the way Lyssa Kay Adams talks about sexual harassment/abuse is so freaking powerful I was in awe of her. It's so not a cut and dry thing - it's not black and white, no two people's experiences are the same, and it's just so damn hard to find the way out or to make the "right" decision when you're in the middle of it. I will say, as someone who has gone through it, I do fall in the camp of needing (eventually, when you can, in a safe way) to tell someone - because a predator is a predator and they should absolutely be held accountable for their actions, if only to make it clear that those sorts of actions are not to be tolerated in our society. One of the best parts of this book for me is when two women were talking about a predator - essentially, one woman was in the camp of "How dare you ask me to do anything about this, I am literally trying to cope and it's so damn hard and f*ck if I owe you anything" and the other woman was in the camp of "How dare you NOT tell someone and hold him accountable?" - and the hardest and best part about it is, to me, they were both right. There is NO right answer, it's all SO difficult, and even though the emotions of grief, guilt, sadness, and heartache are similar from one abuse/harassment to the next, the way of moving forward is rarely similar.

It took me 11 years after I was first abused to say no, and three more years to go to an authority figure to attempt to bring him to justice. I was lucky, I know that - with no real evidence my case was taken on by very good lawyers and we were able to move forward and he pleaded guilty rather than face the trial (something that, in it's own way, I've had a lot of trouble with - he spent 2 years in jail for stealing 11 years of my life, as opposed to the thirty+ he was facing had I gone through the trial, which admittedly would have been a harrowing experience). All of this is to say ... this book is powerful, and good, and heartbreaking, and REAL. It doesn't preach to you the right answer for these kinds of situations, because, let's face it - there aren't any *right* answers.

In related news, as previously mentioned, it's laugh out loud funny, has really powerful characters, and is just such a dang good book. I finished it in a day and had a quite cathartic cry, and felt so keenly the power of books and stories and authors. I will forever be grateful to Lyssa Kay Adams for this story and this book. I cannot wait for the sequel, and I implore you to give this one and it's predecessor a shot, even if they are not your normal "genre". Romance is for everyone, y'all.

Thank you to NetGalley & Berkley for the opportunity to read and review this book before it's publication date! This is no way affected my review, opinions are my own.

Since the first book in this series was my FAVORITE romance of the year, I was more than happy to get the ARC of Undercover Bromance! This series is such a fresh take on romance and romantic comedies. I tell all of my friends about these books from the male perspective that gets relationship advice from romance novels! This installment lives up to the hype! Maybe a contender for favorite romance of 2020...

Undercover Bromance by Lyssa Kay Adams is a cute and funny romantic comedy. This is the follow up book to The Bromance Book Club.

Liv is working as a pastry chef at a popular restaurant until the night Mack walks in with his date. By the end of the night she has been fired. Liv cannot stand Mack but he seems intrigued by her. They decide to work together to take down her boss. The cupcake she dropped was not the only reason he fired her. Can they work together?

Mack was great in the first book and I loved him being a main character in this one. Liv is seen in a different light as her background comes out. She's strong but she's also insecure. I liked her so much more in this book. There are laugh out loud moments as readers get to know more about the members of the book. I love this series and look forward to the next book.

Thank you to Netgalley and Berkley Publishing Group for the opportunity to read and review this book.

***I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Romance
Release Date: March 10, 2020

This is a wonderful second book in the Bromance Bookclub Series. I found myself rooting for Mack more than I have for any other rom-com hero. Adams is a fantastic writer; she keeps the story fresh, fun, and current.

“I’m just a man with a heart, and you’re breaking.”

The founder of The Bromance Book Club has met his match.

Braeden Mack may have founded The Bromance Book Club and has helped his friends save their relationship, but the master has now become the student. It takes Olivia Popandreas to show him he’s not as knowledgeable as he thinks when it comes to women, relationship, or romance.
He was tired of watching his fiend live happily ever after while he fruitlessly searched for the future Mrs. Mack- someone he could spoil, grow old with, and cherish…He was the founder of the damn book club but the only one who’d never experienced the real thing. So, yeah, he was working extra hard this time to stick with it because, dammit, he wanted his own happy ever.

It’s rare you find a book where the lead male character is a true romantic, but that is just what you get with Mack. He loves love and isn’t afraid to say it. He just can’t seem to find it. He wines and dines women like the best of them but after a few months his relationships fizzle out. Now Mack is determined to find a relationship that lasts, and Liv seems to be the one he wants, but she wants no part of him. Especially since she considers him part of the reason she lost the one job that could make her dreams come true.

When Liv discovers how horrible her former boss really is, she sets out to expose him. Mack is not about to let her take this ride alone so she reluctantly partners with him.

The two set out on a “catch him in the act” adventure that brings them closer than Liv is comfortable with. During their time together Mack’s attraction to Liv grows and Liv isn’t completely immune to him; but the self-proclaimed man hater isn’t about to let him cozy up to her and feed her dreams full of lies.
Mack quickly learns that there is a story behind Liv’s cold heart and he’s going to get to the bottom of it.
I really enjoyed this book and the chemistry between Mack and Liv was amazing. The banter was hilarious. It had me laughing out loud more than once. Each gave as well as they got.

Hop nodded at Mack. “He eating with us?” Live and Mack spoke at the same time. “no.” “I’d love to.” Liv glared at him. “You’re ot staying for dinner.” “What’re we having?” “Whatever you’re allergic to.” CLASSIC!! 😊
While I really liked Mack, I wasn’t a huge fan of Liv. I don’t know what it was, but it took me a long time to really time to warm up to her. She has “Daddy issues” with a capital “D”. I think she was just a little too jaded/guarded/cynical for me; but I guess I can understand why.

With that being said, there were times when you could see Liv’s hard exterior cracking and the desire to actually want to have a special someone in her life.
“Maybe you should tell me what else happens in this fantasy of yours.” “We talk.” “Dirty talk?” “Boring talk. How our days went, movies we want to see, weird thins customers ordered at the restaurant, stupid things that happened at the bar.” “I could fill up an entire day with that.” She laughed. His chin rested on the top of her head. “Why is this your fantasy?” “I don’t know.” “Must be a reason.” “I just like the idea of having someone to lean on sometimes.” She hadn’t really meant to admit that but something about the warmth of his skin and he thud of his heart had lulled her into an unguarded moment that she would surely regret later. “The night I got fired, I wished I had someone to lean on.” Beneath her ear, his heart raed. 
What did you do instead?” “Watched TV and cried.”

Liv isn’t the only one with issues. We learn the reason behind Mack’s obsession with romance novels and the secrets he keeps about his childhood.
Definitely a good read. Characters from book one, where we first met Mack and Liv, have returned which added to the charm of this book.

Undercover Bromance by Lyssa Kay Adams is the second in the Bromance Book Club series and this one follows Liv and Mack. If you’ve read Bromance Book Club you’ll remember Liv as Thea’s sister who has been hurt one too many times and sworn off men. Braden Mack is the founder of the book club and has helped saved dozens of marriages and relationships despite never being in one himself.

When Liv is fired from her job, no thanks to Mack — she discovers something horrifying about her former boss and vows to take him down. Mack wants to help her but Liv is determined to proceed on her own. Until she realizes that Mack may have access to vital resources for her plan. And not at all because she starts to see glimpses of the real him. While Mack is used to dating women who are head-over-heels for him, but somehow he can’t stop thinking about their verbal sparring and her feisty one-liners. As they work together to take down one of Nashville’s most powerful men, might they see that what they’ve each been searching for is right in front of them?

I loved this one!! The banter was EVERYTHING! Liv was so firey and Mack was hilarious and watching the two volley back and forth was just pure comedic joy. I was chuckling to myself the whole time and I think my family thought I was a borderline lunatic. This one is a slow burn but does have a little bit of 🔥 played out which was just perfect for me. I loved getting to revisit this group of guys and the entire book club and I hope another book is in the works because I have come to enjoy this world so so much! The way Adams takes on toxic masculinity in all of these books just deserves ALL. THE. CLAPS. 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 You’ll have to exercise a little patience as Undercover Bromance doesn’t release until March 10 but it is well worth the wait so get those preorders in now!! // ☕️☕️☕️☕️ 1/2

This book made me laugh so f**king hard. Oh my goodness can Adams write funny dialogue. Without going to any spoilers it does follow Liv and Mack trying to take down the bad guy for sexual harassment and how they get to know each other better. I thought this book handled sexual harassment and assault very well and the conversations told between all the characters about the matters of it.
Also toxic masculinity is touched on by Mack with Hop (older farmhand) about how it seem like nobody "can't take a joke or teasing" but Mack tells "bad guys get away with it because the good guys look the other way.
Really can't wait for more books in this series and I HAVE TO KNOW MORE ABOUT THE RUSSIAN HOCKEY PLAYER WITH DIGESTIVE ISSUES!!!

I've been looking forward to this sequel ever since I finished reading The Bromance Book Club, and it was just as great as I hoped it would be.

This time the focus is on book club founder Mack and Thea's sister, Liv. They begin to fall for each other Liv vows to take down her serial sexual harasser former boss, and Mack agrees to help her do it. One of the best parts of this series is that the characters within the romance novel talk about romance novels, so there are points where the characters are talking about how great it is that in romance novels the hero and heroine always end up together and the villain gets what they deserve and how real life is more complicated, while they're in a romance novel where the hero and heroine are going to end up with each other and the villain is going to get what he deserves. I thought it did a nice job of addressing the ways in which the real world works differently, while still providing the satisfying ending you want in a romance.

Liv Papandreas has gutted it out as a sous chef with a temperamental boss, but when she catches him sexually harassing a young hostess, she confronts him and is fired. Her NDA means that she can't tell anyone why she needs to avenge these wrongs. In addition to exposing this monster, she needs to find a new job and her brother-in-law's book club friend, Braden Mack keeps showing up. He's got enough juice as a nightclub owner to help, if she can only trust his motives and discretion. Braden calls in reinforcements: the Bromance Book Club. He needs all the help he can get to convince Liv that there are happy endings and that not all guys are scum.

Why I started this book: The first was charming, with strong supporting characters and I wanted to see more of the Bromance Club in action. Netgalley is a great resource for impatient readers...

Why I finished it: Once again the support characters shine more than the main couple. Oh, don't worry, Liv and Braden are good, but the Bromance Club steals the show... and they are picking up more members. Once again, I finished the book smiling and marking my calendar for the next installment of this series.

✨ALL THE STARS!✨

"Braden Mack thinks reading romance novels makes him an expert in love, but he’ll soon discover that real life is better than fiction."

Undercover Bromance, book 2 in the Bromance Book Club series by Lyssa Kay Adams was just utter PERFECTION! I fell head over heels in laughter and love with Braden Mack in book 1, The Bromance Club, and once again Lyssa did not disappoint with this novel.

Braden Mack is the hilariously charming bachleor among the club. He's single and ready to find love like the rest of the guys. One wrong date proves he's doing things wrong... That is until he joins forces with Liv to bring down her former narcissistic boss whose harassing his employees.

“I used to think I knew what I was doing with women, Liv,” he whispered. “But then I met a certain pastry chef, and my whole fucking world turned on its head.”

Liv Papandreas was first introduced to us in book 1. She's Thea's baby sister and she's headstrong, snarky, and a bit sassy. She detests liars and cheaters. It all centers from her father abandoning them. She isn't quick to fall for Mack's charm but the more time they spend together the harder it is to fight the attraction.

“I just want to wake up next to you,” he said quietly. “Is that all right with you?”

Liv and Mack are total opposites which was the ideal enemies-to-lovers, love/hate relationship trope we all love and crave. Such witty banter and oh so sweet moments between these two characters and I just couldn't get enough of it!

Secondly, the beauty of this book was that it wasn't just a romance story. Their was so many issues and backstory that was brought up and handled in a respectable manner. I lived for those laugh-out-loud lines, especially when the Bromance Club was involved.

Undercover Bromance quickly become a top read of the year for me. Wit and heart went into this book and these characters felt like one big family. I cannot wait for more books in this series. I'm really hoping the Russian is next!


*I received a complimentary copy of this book from Berkley Romance through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.*

Was I worried about second book syndrome? Yes. Was this just as good if not better than the first? Yes! I just adore this entire concept. The Bromance Book Club won me over with its humor and take on toxic masculinity and the romance genre as a whole. Undercover Bromance tackled even more in such a tasteful way. While this still touches on the same type of story (ie dudes learning how to romance from romance books), it also addresses things like workplace harassment and sexual harassment. I love this entire series and can’t wait to see where she goes next!

I thought the first book in this series was wonderful, but this one was even better. Braden Mack takes center stage in this book and is about to fall in love for the first time in his life. Sure, he has had plenty of girlfriends and he is always helping out the guys in the Bromance Book Club with advice when they have problems with their wives, but he has never been in their shoes. That all changes in this book! So there is the romance aspect of the book which is great, but the bigger issue tackled in this book is workplace sexual harassment. I had so many emotions while reading this book. I cried, I laughed, I was rooting for things to work out, and scared that things would go horribly wrong. This was an excellent read that I couldn't put down, but also didn't want to end.

I received a complimentary copy of this ebook from Berkley Publishing Group through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Ugh, this one is even better than the first! I loved that there was a side plot to keep the action going, and I LOVED Mack and Liv. Makc is this super macho guy who acts like he has it all together and like he's got the perfect love life, but once we meet Liv and see them together, it's clear there's a ton lacking from that part of his life. The side characters, the action, the love story, and the writing were all awesome. Would definitely read again.

4/5 stars

Thank you to the publisher for the early review copy via netgalley.

I definitely still really enjoyed Undercover Bromance, however not as much as The Bromance Book Club. Undercover Bromance follows Mack and Liv, both characters were in book one as secondary characters. We still get a small amount of the Bromance Book Club and the characters. But this one was nowhere near as funny for me, the main funny parts were basically fart/ poop jokes about the Russian. The other thing was the first book had a bunch of passages from the book that Gavin was given to read. In this book Mack chose a romantic suspense and we got one very short passage from that book.

So this book still was a great romance but that's why I dropped this one down to a 4 star. It just didn't have the same feel to me.

Let me start by saying that I adored the first book in this series so I had high expectations for this next story from the Bromance Book Club. Lyssa K. Adams met every one of my expectations and then some. This book expands on the framework set up in “The Bromance Bookclub” and continues the stories of all the characters with a focus on Mack and Liv.

I don’t want to get into too much plot, but will issue a significant content note for sexual assault. That said, Adams tackles the topic with a deft hand. The characters all respond in many uniquely human ways (good, bad and everything in between) while carefully navigating what it means to address sexual assault and be a survivor. That this topic was addressed while also weaving a romantic tale of two difficult people finding each other is a testament to how well this book is written.

The most unique part of the book is the friendships forged by the members of the book club. Genuine male friendship and intimacy is hard to come by, in literature and in life, so seeing this group of men bond and support each other is a wonderful parallel plot element. What separates “Undercover Bromance” from the herd is this vein of masculine kinship that just feels so great.

After a long dive into historical romances, this series has reignited my love of contemporary romances. Add this one (and the first book in the series) to your “to-be-read” lists immediately!

The Bottom Line
This is an enjoyable romance that manages to bring that heat, heart and humor while also addressing some serious issues. I’m definitely sticking with this book club to see what happens next.

I enjoyed the second installment in the Bromance Bookclub series. It was a fun read that I finished over the course of a weekend, however I don't think it was quite as good as the first book in the series. I didn't really connect with Liv or Mack, although I do enjoy the 'bromance' aspect of the books. I like the side characters and I am interested in future books featuring their stories. There is mention in the book of sexual assault and harassment, so if that;s something that really bothers you, you might want to tread with caution. It's not intense but just fyi.

Undercover Bromance is funny, sweet and fierce romance. Lyssa Kay Adams attempts to tackle many themes in this book and in most cases she succeeds. The book does deal with the sensitive subject of workplace sexual harassment so Trigger Warning. However the way that this subject is dealt with is interesting and I enjoyed the ways that Adams examines it. Both the hero and the heroine are fierce and combative but it is such a treat to watch them lower their guards and fall in love. I think if I had one complaint it would be that there were times that the romance seemed to be put on the back burner in favour of the other plots.

This book continues the awesome male relationships that began in the first one. I love reading about all the guys getting together and working out their problems. It's such a positive picture of male friendship and there are many times in Undercover Bromance that capture this. It was fun to read Mack's story - especially since he was the founder of the bookclub - and watch how he struggled to follow his own advice in wooing Liv but also his reconciling of his past. He was such a standout in the first book and appreciated that we got his story next.

Liv was such a great character and just like with Mack, I loved watching her character progression. I liked the position that the author put her in and I felt like how she dealt with the situation was really interesting. Liv was such a tough, fierce heroine and the author did such an amazing job with bringing her walls down, making her vulnerable and yet never diminishing her spirit.

The Bromance Bookclub was a great, fun read and yet I loved Undercover Bromance even more. This book is fun yet poignant and after reading this I look forward to seeing what comes next.

A group of men who read romance novels in a book club to help them be better partners to their women? Sign me up. When chef Liv Papandreas loses her job at a trendy restaurant due to a #MeToo situation, the last person she expects to help her is Braden Mack. Inspired by the romantic suspense in his bookclub, Mack sets out to help Liv get justice, but somewhere along the way, they may just want to find each other.

Let me just tell you, I am hooked on these male romance readers and I hope Lyssa Kay Adams writes these books forever and ever! I love how she created voices and plotlines so distinct from The Bromance Book Club and it did not feel like she was writing the same plot with different characters over again. A sure sign of talent to me...now, how long before we get book 3?!

4.5 Stars!