I have enjoyed every book I have read from Tawna Fenske and The Two-Date Rule is no different! I loved Grady and Willa - they had such great chemistry and I was drawn to them immediately. This is definitely one of my favorite romances this year!

It was a good story with likeable characters, I read it in one sitting because I was intrigued by the plot

I really liked this book and the romance between Willa and Grady.

This book has such a funny and sweet meet cute, you can just imagine their faces when she addresses him in a way he never expected. They meet at a stripper night at the club where his band often preforms.

Well he gets a date out of her but when she tells him that she only dates a guy twice, he gets very intrigued by her. Since their date went really well he figures out how to be with her without it being a date, like mini golf, a picnic on his family day at the smokejumpers base, a drink with friends after one of their concerts and so on. The closer they get and the more relaxed she gets with him the two-date rule seems to become history. But what happens when her past catches up to her and his relaxed relationship towards money and life creates a void between them? Can they ever get back what they had before all these problems overtake their lives?

Grady is such a great guy, he is a smokejumper, very easygoing, he wants to take care of Willa and help her when she needs it, he is also there for his family and friends when they need it. He lives this life because he doesn’t know if there will come a day when he will not come back from a fire.

Willa has grown up poor and with a father who is a drunk and no mother. She is fighting with anxieties of loosing her home and job as an adult so she lives a very closed of life and has her own company at home. She works a lot and doesn’t have life outside of her two best friends and her father.
Grady helps her let go and become more relaxed and she learns to live with her anxiety.

They are so great and sweet together and their chemistry is just amazing and hot. The side characters are very sweet and strong and they help Willa and Grady through their problems when they are apart.
It was great learning about smokejumpers life and all that comes with it. The anxiety rep is amazing in this book too. I could really identify myself in Willa’s anxieties about making mistakes, losing your job and your identity and become homeless. All these thoughts running through your mind with no outlet.

I can definitely recommend this book,

I got this book from Entangled Publishing and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you so much.

The two date rule is the story of an insecure woman who is doing whatever she can to survive adult hood and never experience her child hood again. Willa has the best friends and when one night a place with strippers leads to an embarrassing but funny moment with a smoke jumper things are going to get interesting.

Grady is used to not having a plan. He risks his life constantly and well he doesn’t want anyone to be left behind but these two are going to be on quite the journey when they do everything in their power to get around Willas two date rule.

The Two Date Rule had some good moments, however, not as quick with the wit as other books by Ms Fenske.
Review copy received from Entangled Publishing via Netgalley

Fun, sexy and heartwarming journey filled with engaging charters, witty dialog and sweetly thrilling twists. Was a great read from beginning to end. Really enjoyed this fun read and looking forward to more from this series!

I loved this book and all of the characters (except Bronwyn who needs a boot up the backside). Even the pets were adorable. Willa and Grady's insecurities were so relatable and they were the perfect people to help each other grow. Willa's past was heartbreaking but I love that she was able to move past it and build the security for herself that she always wanted. I love Grady's laid back attitude and his willingness to meet Willa halfway. There were an amazing, hilarious couple and they made each other better.

I'll be upfront - it took me a while to finish this book. I just couldn't connect with the lead heroine. And while my actual rating is probably something closer to a 2.5, I just didn't enjoy this one as much as I have enjoyed other Entangled titles. And again - this may just be me.

I found that the writing at points tried a smidgen too hard to be *quirky* and funny - it just didn't hit the mark for me. For example, at one point the heroine says internally "Willa closed her eyes, then opened them again because she was driving and didn't want to die." While there was certainly some lovely writing and reflections on greater topics like love, sacrifice and work-life balance, there are occasionally lines that had me cringing at its "telling" nature. You know, as in show not tell? Throughout the book there are also text-message conversations, which were really cute at points, yet again, at others - i just found confusing - like when the lead Grady, sends a message, yet it turns out he accidentally sent the wrong one and then another wrong one? I'm not sure, but it just was incredibly confusing.

But, on a more positive note - the romance itself was quite cute. The whole concept of a 'two-date rule' did have me a bit annoyed at Willa, the lead, but eh - humans can be weird. Grady was lovely as a male lead though. They did have wonderful chemistry and balanced each other out well.

Overall, although a nice story, I just found myself getting a bit confused or disappointed by some of the linguistic choices - but I guess that's not really the point of a romance novel is it... Still - would recommend giving it a try, but it just wasn't for me.

Note: I was very generously gifted an ARC of this novel by the publisher and the author in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.

So this was my first book by Tawna Fenske but I must read more. This one kept me laughing and reading until it was over and left me with a smile on my face. This book had great characters who owned their flaws and worked together to grow together. I recommend this book totally.

A determined courtship…

The humour started early and had me smiling from the get go. Even though there were funny bits throughout, the emotional elements soon took over as the rule soon got in the way of what could be…
There was a reason why Willa had her dating rule and it was steeped in pain. Willa hid it behind an avid work ethic and rules that kept her life steady and safe. Grady saw Willa and that was it for him, meaning he had to constantly morph his approach, to match wits with his smart and romance-phobic woman. He was going to marry her; if he could just get her on board…

If I wore a hat, it would be tipped off to Grady. His unwillingness to let Willa retreat meant she had to face what her decisions were doing – to both herself and the man she could love… The back and forth was full of friends, frivolity and a serious undertone that tempered the heat with stark emotion…

Another great story from a must-read author.

Have you ever read a story and then say I will review later and forget, that is what happened to me I read it before cruise and totally forgot, along with others..shoot I need to catch up...So I read this and immediately liked myself some hottie firefighter, I mean firefighter, who doesn't love one. So we meet Willa and her friends who are out for the night and they really have to use the bathroom at the club they are at, but the line is long however the mens room empty (you know we always have this problem) Willa asks Grady if he can get them in the mens and she will pay but she swears he is a stripper, Grady goes along with it but not for money a date..They go to there date and while she does enjoy she has a rule two date max because she wants to be successful since she grew up poor. Grady whom again I sigh every time he comes on the page gets around this and Willa succumbs, she was not my favorite but after getting more of her background I gave a break and was happy she got to get her happiness.

Admittedly not my favorite Tawna Fenske book. Yes it is well written and had at least one laugh out loud moment for me, but there was an overall downer tone to this book. Willa has some hangups due to her childhood and alcoholic father. Grady seemed to have some stuff going on too, but those were glossed over more. In fact, it felt like there was a reveal coming about where he lived, but nothing was ever said. They talk about moving in together, but the way I read the book he avoided taking her to his place and they were always at hers. I always love a good bargain, but Willa took it to a whole different level and then Grady is the opposite, spending what he has when he gets it.

The romance itself was great - that part I really enjoyed. I really love the nickname she gives him in the beginning. Her two date rule concept and the way they were working around it was really cute. I would have preferred more of the lighter aspects of the romance to dominate the story. That said though, I do look forward to other stories in this series.

Thanks to the publisher for a review copy via NetGalley.

The two-date rule was a good read. It had a really interesting concept and characters with lots of depth and complexity.
I liked the relationship between Grady and Willa. You could feel their connection right from the beginning. They couldn’t be more different, but it worked.

I did struggle midway through the story, it felt a bit weighed down by a lot of filler and internal monologue that was repetitive. I loved it when it was just these two together and wanted more of that.

Good story and great characters. If you’re into opposites-attract romances, give it a try.

This book had a really strong beginning but it got a bit too predictable towards the end. Of course the two times she turned off her phone, she lost business. But I loved the concept of "non dates" and how they transitioned away from that in a natural way. The hero was really great in this story and I loved his profession. Overall I really enjoyed this book and it did make me smile while reading it

This book was not for me. I quit half way through chapter two. I just couldn’t get into it no matter how hard I tried.

These two impressed me with their determination and avoidance, and that's a good thing. Lol. Both are afraid of life but for different reasons. Both will deny it. Both are exactly what the other needs....also heavily denied.

The Two-Date Rule is fun, funny, and heartwarming. Neuroses aside, Willa is a complicated woman. Work is first and all. Meeting Smokey wasn't in her plans. (Though that was one helluva meet cute!) With a first date that tops all other first dates, it should have been clear from the beginning that Willa was way in over her head! Thankfully she is too stubborn to realize it before it becomes permanent.

Grady, or Smokey... (I'll leave that part as a surprise), has what has got to be one of the most underrated sexy jobs. A smokejumper isn't just a fireman; they are firemen on steroids that jump out of planes. So, definitely underrated in the sexy department, also extremely dangerous. Uniform chasers will definitely be trailing behind but as we learn, not for long. Its a difficult job and schedule. Leading him to believ Willa's rule is the perfect solution to a smokejumpers time constraints. Too bad he didn't get the memo; the rule is set in stone.

These two tread the waters of their non dating with the determination of an Olympic synchronized swim team. I enjoyed every minute I got to watch their resolve go down in flames. 😗

Yes but definitely checked all of the boxes for a contemporary romance but something was just a little out of my reach for allowing me to really really love the story it was just OK to me and I read this author again

The Two-Date Rule by Tawna Fenske ((Smokejumper #1) is a fun, fast paced read featuring an over achieving heroine (Willa) and a hot smoke jumper/musician hero (Grady). Sweet, steamy and funny in all the right places, The Two-Date Rule will leave you smiling. My only issue is that the ending seemed a tad bit rushed. A solid 3.5 stars.

What a fun romance!
Great premise, humour, steamy, and relatable characters.
I connected with the H probably because of similar pasts, though not to the extent of hers. I understood her thoughts and why she strived to work hard so she'd never be in that situation again.
I found the main characters banter to be fun and witty. I laughed numerous times. Loved their "not a date" dates and how they got to know one another.
I enjoyed reading about how they each compromised for each other. One eases up and the other settles down.
I will definitely be reading the rest of this series when it becomes available.

I was hooked on this book. It is well written.

It is a little more serious than the usual stories that Tawna writes but it is still good.