Fun, contemporary rom-com romance. Brinkley Sanders has a secret job. She works undercover for an agency that specializes in getting revenge for woman whether it is co-workers, bosses, or past lovers. Usually it amounts to publicly shaming or getting the goods on them for a law suit. The premise is fun and creates some funny moments but eventually you see it isn't the best business model and can be a bit mean. Brinkley meets Mark while on an assignment that goes awry. Next thing you know Mark is coming to work at her agency. Mark's connection to the world of academia further complicates things as that is her mothers world and Brinkley has hurt feelings connected to her past.

Overall I enjoyed the book. Fast paced, sweet and steamy, I read it all on a lazy afternoon. I know this is coming out as a summer read but it was my distraction for a horrible news week with protesters storming the Capitol. Mark has his own back story and was wonderfully supportive of Brinkley and her dreams. The side-characters co-workers and Brinkley's mom add to the story but others seem one dimensional. I wish I understood Margo, the agencies owner, a little more. I thought she might be helping heal hurt girls recover but then her motive seemed to be profit centered. I wasn't quite clear on that or why she made the decision to add men to the all female office. This has the same vibe as Sally Thorne's "The Hating Game" and I can see it being compared to it.

Thank you to NetGalley and Gallery Books for an ARC ebook in exchange for an honest review.

This book is a total smash success in my opinion. It was pushed for fans of Sally Thorne and Christina Lauren, to me that is a perfect fit! For all those fans out there of Thorne's debut The Hating Game, this will be a must read. The heroine Brinkley is both smart and confident. Hart's book is a page turner, an addictive read for a day inside. I cannot recommend this book enough!

One of my favorite rom-coms of the year so far. I loved how light this book is, without a lot of drama. It is a great escape for a few hours, with a confident and smart protagonist and and adorably kind yet sexy love interest. Definitely recommend!

The premise of this book is fantastic: Scorned women who are able to act out revenge on the egotistical men who had wronged other women by using their own vices to take them down. What woman wouldn’t want to live out their fantasies of taking down the men who have mistreated and taken advantage of others.

This story is about as good as it gets for enemies-to-lovers. There are so many heated fights between these two over topics that I can’t imagine getting past if this happened to me. You can feel the hate between them, the disdain reeks from each of their words, but under it all you can see their evident chemistry.

I love the slow unraveling of Brinkley with every push of Mark. He has a natural charisma that goes beyond his good looks and “penis funnel” that knows exactly how to communicate with Brinkley. Mark is the exact thing Brinkley needs in her life. He challenges and gets her out of her comfort zone and sees the potential in her that she refuses to acknowledge because of years of people who she thought care of tearing her down.

The ending was messy, shocking, and one of the situations I thought were overly exaggerated, but at the same time brought so much meaning to the book. The author charmed me into feeling like Sydney Bridtow from Alias by making me feel like a covert operative taking down bad men one at a time, made me smile and swoon over the cute professor in a sweater vest, and broke my heart over how many times a person could hurt another. I felt the empowerment in the story when Brinkley took her life into her own hands and decided what was best for her.

The writing is fantastic. The flow of her words sucks you in from the first chapter. It’s vivid and imaginative while connecting you both to Brinkley and the story. As the reader you are invested in the outcomes of the story. The humor was well placed and had me laughing at Brinkley’s inner monologue and quick wit comments. I really enjoyed this contemporary romance and can’t wait to see what else this author has in store. Thank you to Gallery Books and NetGalley for this ARC

This is the first time I read this author and I really liked the story.

There's a lot going on with family relationships, friendships, colleagues at work, politics at work, in academia. Lots and lots.

Heartbreak For Hire, the company where Brinkley works, seems a bit sketchy. Not in the way they do business, but in terms of why and how.

When Mark and Brinkley meet, there's attraction, not only physical, but also intellectual. They do have their secrets and, as the relationship deepens, the stakes get higher until you can see there will be a big blow up.

The writing is good, and so is the pacing, and I liked the growth the characters had.

Definitely not clean.

I received a copy from the publisher via NetGalley and this is my honest opinion.

Heartbreak for Hire by Sonia Hartl was adorable and addictive. It was sit one spot finish it in a day good. This book made me gasp and laugh out loud. How far would you go to get back at a man, someone who cheated on you, stole from you or made you feel like dirt? Would you key his car or send him a glitter bomb? What about breaking his heart? That's where Heartbreakers for Hire comes in. You can hire one of the Heartbreakers to humiliate the guy. Brinkley is a twenty something who dreams of being an artist, but drops out of her master's program after a terrible breakup, so she becomes a heart breaker. This sets in motion a fun romcom set in Chicago. Hartl masterfully crafted more layers than baklava to fill this novel with juicy dialogue and scenes I would love to see play out in real life.

I've been in the mood for a page-turning rom-com, and this was the perfect fit. Admittedly, it's one of those books that requires overlooking that pesky little thing called reality, but it's worth it. Heartbreak for Hire was charming and, at times, laugh-out-loud funny. I finished it in one day. I can't wait to read more from this author.

"Heartbreak for Hire" is an okay romantic-comedy that had some cute moments. The relationship between the main characters, Mark and Brinkley, was enjoyable and overall the book was very good.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

This is a cute rom-com with enemies to lover’s trope. There are many fun moments that made me laugh so hard I cackled like a witch. This has the vibes of ‘Hating Game’. If you love that book, I am pretty sure you would love this.

Brinkley works for ‘Heartbreak for Hire’ where four of its employees are women and it is run by a Margo. Commissioned by jilted lovers, disgruntled employees, she takes revenge on people by deflating their egos and humiliating them publicly. It gets awkward when Margo hires male heart breakers for the first time and one of them was Mark. He was Brinkley’s target; she was paid to take him down but that turned out a little steamier and forced her run away from her job.

She is on a mission to make Mark’s life miserable so he can quit his job. Her machinations are extremely amusing. Their snarky and witty banter had me rooting for them. She has to fight off her attraction and stick to her job in hand to achieve her dreams of opening a gallery.

I loved Brinkley, she is such an independent, hard-working, passionate and ambitious woman. I admired her tenacity in resolutely holding to her dreams despite her academic mom’s persuasion to make her enroll in masters by giving up her dreams and constant nagging.

Mark is also a great character, he's kind and very patient with Brinkley until she sees him for what he really is. Their sizzling chemistry is too hot to handle.

Overall, I absolutely recommend this delightful, witty, and smart rom-com.

Thank you NetGalley and Gallery Books for this arc and in exchange for my honest thoughts.

I received this book complimentary from NetGalley but all opinions are my own.

Oh man! This was so sweet. I really loved the premise. The characters were well-drawn and interesting. I loved how Brinkley and Markus met and how they got together. I love the Chicago setting. This was just so well done. A really quick but really enjoyable. I will definitely keep an eye out for more from this author.

This book is hailed as a fun romance read for fans of Christina Lauren and Sally Thorne, and so immediately, I knew I'd be interested in this one, especially after I read the summary. Here, twentysomething Brinkley works at "Heartbreak for Hire," a Chicago based company that helps women take back their power and get revenge on the men that jilted them. This undercover gig helps her earn enough money to eventually open her own gallery while still getting her frustrations out on her ex and helping to empower other women. When her boss reveals her plans to hire male employees to join the team, she questions whether or not she's in the right field. Then, we find out one of her former targets Mark, who made quite the impression, is hired as one of these new hires. Mark's an adjunct professor struggling on the academic ladder, quite the attentive and attractive nerd. Soon, Brinkley learns people aren't always what they appear as they start working together and she trains him closely. They have such delicious snappy banter that pulls me in and yearns to see what will happen next. This book is full of witty and captivating language that had me turning the page and polishing off this read in a single setting in only a few hours. The premise does give me such "The Hating Game" vibes and its tone and language are whipsmart, witty, and banter-laden that backs that idea up. With that similar tone, rich and authentic characters, a heck of a plot twist, and more, it's such a delicious, juicy enemies to lovers romance read.

Workplace romance? Check. Steamy, dreamy professor? Check. Headstrong heroine who's getting revenge on trashy men on the daily? CHECK. Everything about this book-the cover, the title, the description-drew me in, and I am so happy to say that I loved every bit of it.

Brinkley, who works for Heartbreak for Hire (H4H: a super secret service that allows women to pay to get revenge on the jerks in their lives), is mortified when her boss announces that H4H is now hiring male heartbreakers. To make matters worse, her assigned trainee is Mark, one of her former targets (and the only one she's ever been honest about herself with). If she wants to fulfill her dream of opening an art gallery, Brinkley's going to have to find a way to work with Mark and keep her job. As the chemistry between them grows, can either go on to fulfill their dreams with their hearts intact?

I made the mistake of beginning this book at 12am and I did not sleep until I literally couldn't keep my eyes open any longer. I haven't devoured a book like this in awhile, but it was SO DELICIOUS. Brinkley is like every Sex and the City heroine mixed into one kick-ass heartbreaker who's still learning how to heal from past wounds. Author Hartl knew just how to balance the romance with other human emotions and struggles, all while refusing to allow anyone to steal Brinkley's limelight. I could not give a more enthusiastic 5/5 stars.

So many thanks to NetGalley and Gallery Books for the opportunity to read this ARC in an exchange for an honest review.

This book was a bit silly... and predictable... but also a lot of fun! Our main character breaks hearts for a living... until one of her marks (conveniently named Mark) captures HER heart. Will they wind up together? READ TO FIND OUT! The most unbelievable part of this book was how easy it was to get a professorship at Northwestern! This book is perfect for those lazy, stay inside days of the pandemic. Thank you to netgalley and to Gallery Books for the ARC!

Heartbreak for Hire by Sonia Hartl is an excellent and unique modern rom/com novel. It has it all: sass, romance, and excellent plot and cast of characters that all kept me engaged.

I really enjoyed the premise of this book with the concept of almost “undercover operations” with the company called “Heartbreak For Hire”. It was refreshing to see a group of strong, independent, and creative women leading this brigade to set right the wrongs that have been done to clients that have been lied to, scorned, abandoned, hurt, and what have you. Sure, some might say there was an underlying tinge of maybe something bitter and aggressive, but if it all involved men, I doubt that thought would surface. I thought it was ingenious.

I enjoyed Brinkley Saunders. Despite the deals that have been handed to her, the disappointments, and let-downs, here she is advocating for others so that at least she has been able to help address someone else’s issues and leave them in a better place emotionally then where she is at the moment. Is she perfect? Nope. But that is what is endearing. She is flawed, but that makes her realistic and interesting. I thought the plot of H4H and the inclusion of Mark was perfect. There was chemistry, there were sweet moments, and there was fire-quick banter and prose. All leading to a great ending.

I think the author has a great concept with this book and I think there is potential for subsequent novels.

5/5 stars

Thank you NetGalley and Gallery Books for this arc and in return I am submitting my unbiased and voluntary review and opinion.

I am posting this review to my GR, Instagram, and Bookbub accounts immediately and will post it to my Amazon, Instagram, and B&N accounts upon publication on 7/27/21.

Brinkley has worked at Heartbreak for Hire for 2 years, ever since she went through a terrible breakup. She loves getting revenge for her clients and sticking it to men who remind her of her ex. Then, girl meets boy. Mark is one of Brinkley’s targets before he suddenly shows up as her new co-worker at Heartbreak for Hire.

As a counselor, I enjoyed the psychology talk and felt the academic sabotaging (though for me on a smaller scale).

I loved Mark and was rooting hard for him. He was sensitive and kind and extremely patient with Brinkley. Like most romance novels, Brinkley and Mark had unresolved issues they needed to work through in order to make it work.

I couldn’t put this one down and read it in a day. Have you ever picked up some ARCs, and they just didn’t feel like a real book? This one wasn’t like that. This felt solid to me.

What I didn’t love were the intense sex scenes. I’m no prude, but these scenes went from 0 to 100 REAL QUICK. Some of the dirty talk made me cringe because it seemed so out of character.
Lastly, the ending just felt a little rushed.

Thanks, Netgalley, for the ARC.
3.75/5

I loved this!! Wow! I loved how Brinkley has passions and opinions outside of her job and relationship. I thought the meet cute and the resulting relationship was excellent. I am just over the moon with this book!

I thought I was going to love this book. It started off.... ok and then it went downhill for me. I didnt like the main character. I thought the premise was rom com. It was not rom com at all. It was a little more mean girl.

Heartbreak for Hire is a quirky romcom that has laugh out loud moments. The plot is like the opposite of Hitch (the movie) and it was fun to see Brinkley and Mark go on their revenge assignments. There were some moments that I wished were explored a little more to see Brinkley and Mark's relationship outside of work. Overall, it was certainly an enjoyable and escapist read!

A unique premise, a steamy romance, and a fierce female lead overcoming the garbage the world has thrown at her? Of course, it's a a Sonia Hartl novel! Hartl's first adult romance is engaging and funny, and my only complaint is that some of the secondary characters weren't given as much time on the page as I would have liked. More friendship to go with the excellently developed romance!

This was a fun book to read. The twists and turns in the plot were great to keep me buried in the book, I really enjoyed the author's writing styles, and you cannot help but love the characters. I don't want to spoil anything, but I absolutely loved the ending!!