This one was definitely not for me.

The premise of this novel is that the main character, Brinkley, has quite a unique job where she works for a secret service that specializes in revenge for jilted lovers, frenemies, and long-suffering coworkers.

With this premise, I knew that this book was not going to be for me but I went into it with an open mind. There were way too many aspects of this story that were slightly touched on but never really explored further - academia, mental health, familial relationships. The romance aspect of this novel was so unrealistic and honestly cringey - I truly would’ve preferred had it not been there.

This one gave me The Hating Game by Sally Thorne vibes, and I genuinely disliked that book as well, so if you enjoyed that one you may enjoy this one!

A huge thank you to NetGalley and Gallery Books for the gifted e-book in exchange for an honest review!

I had a very hard time getting into this story. I wanted it to be a fun enemies to lovers kind of story, but I just was never able to get into the story. I will definitely be checking this author out again with a different book.

What can I say, I’m a sucker for a happy ending🤷🏼‍♀️ I loved the concept of H4H. I thought the business was super interesting & I loved reading about all the different assignments. I liked Brinkley & I loved her and Mark together. I thought they were really great together. I found myself rooting for Brinkley throughout the whole book so it was nice to see everything work out.

I really enjoyed this book! I love light romantic chick lit type books and this one was no exception. This one has a cute matchmaker revenge type twist that I really liked and I thought it was a very fun and creative storyline.
Different from the many romances that sometimes seem monotonous after awhile while.
Premise
Brinkley Saunders has a secret.

To everyone in the academic world she left behind, she lost it all when she dropped out of grad school. Once a rising star following in her mother’s footsteps, she’s now an administrative assistant at an insurance agency—or so they think.

In reality, Brinkley works at Heartbreak for Hire, a secret service that specializes in revenge for jilted lovers, frenemies, and long-suffering coworkers with a little cash to spare and a man who needs to be taken down a notch. It might not be as prestigious as academia, but it helps Brinkley save for her dream of opening an art gallery and lets her exorcise a few demons, all while helping to empower women.

But when her boss announces she’s hiring male heartbreakers for the first time, Brinkley’s no longer so sure she’s doing the right thing—especially when her new coworker turns out to be a target she was paid to take down. Though Mark spends his days struggling up the academic ladder, he seems to be the opposite of a backstabbing adjunct: a nerd at heart in criminally sexy sweater vests who’s attentive both in and out of the bedroom. But as Brinkley finds it increasingly more difficult to focus on anything but Mark, she soon realizes that like herself, people aren’t always who they appear to be.

This book didn't work for me. I really didn't care for the main character. The story really didn't keep me engaged.

I liked the tension and romance. It seemed a little juvenile that they didn't want to work with men and think that they're all horrible. I had a hard time believing them.
It was fun with her having different disguises. I liked the whole following your dreams. An epilogue would have been nice.

Thanks to netgalley for advanced copy

Hm.... a lot was far fetched and unrealistic. I almost DNF'd. I had SUCH high hopes for this book... but it missed the mark for me. The war between men and women bothered me a ton.

I was super intrigued about this book, but it didn't work for me. While I was expecting a witty, sexy rom-com, I was faced with a unlikable heroine and a one-dimensional hero. I did laugh out loud a few times, but mostly I just wanted to get the story over with. I wasn't impressed by any of the characters 9and there were many!) and didn't enjoy the lengthy internal monologues. I did not care to know how Brinkley went about preparing for her "missions"--what she wore, how she styled her hair. I would have appreciated these introspective moments if they would've led to more viable character growth, but they mainly centered on how she went about fooling her targets, academia, her art and her failure to pursue her dreams.

As for the romance, I wasn't convinced Brinkley and Mark's relationship was viable. Their initial foundation was based in lies (by omission, but still lies) and their subsequent interactions were bordering disrespectful. The author made it seem like they had a great chemistry, but for an avid romance reader who enjoys the steamy scenes, these encounters didn't do a thing for me. Mainly because I didn't think they added anything to the story.

Ultimately, I found that there were too many elements thrown into the mix ,which led to the story feeling disjointed. Not one element was delved into deeply and the ones that were touched upon at length lacked in their execution--especially the romance aspect of this story.

All in all, not the story I was expecting.

The cover drew me in and I loved the plotline! Super cute story!! I love a good storyline in the work place and this fulfilled everything I love!

Wow what a great RomCom. Just steamy enough that it gets your blood pumping but not so much that you lose plot, banter, and fun humor and hijinx. This enemies to lovers story is exactly the kind of sexy, funny, and swoon worthy story we need. With strong female heroine and a dreamy nerdy hero it’s perfect for us book nerds! I absolutely loved their chemistry. It was palpable. And a great original premise. Highly recommend!

The perfect romcom. Brinkley is a woman with a lot of baggage still trying to find her way years after a bad breakup. She is paid to get revenge on men that have wronged other women. Mark is one of her targets that she gets a little too comfortable with. I enjoyed reading their story.

Thanks to the publisher & NetGalley for advanced copy in exchange for honest review

“Even my horrendous breakup with Aiden had been worth it. If I hadn’t crawled where I did then, I wouldn’t have walked where I was now.”

Brinkley Saunders is working on the down low at Heartbreak For Hire, a secret service that specializes in revenge for jilted lovers. If you need a man taken down a notch, Brinkley is your girl! This temporary job is her way of saving up to fulfill her dream of opening up her own art gallery. Then in a fun twist, a new male coworker hired at HFH ends up being a target she was paid to take down. Is Mark really that bad? And if he is, why is it that he has her feeling in a way no man has before?

This book is a fun twist on the Will Smith movie Hitch. Instead of helping men get out of their league women, like in Hitch, Brinkley hits them where it hurts to enact revenge for her fellow women. She is damaged from old relationships and a particularly difficult one with her mother, but underneath that she has a big heart and dreams of her own.

There were some pretty 🔥 scenes as Mark helped to, ahem, relax Brinkley. Throw in some familial drama, daddy issues, and a horrible cheating ex and you have yourself a great story of healing and redemption for a broken heart.

Thank you to Netgalley, Gallery Books, and the author for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 Heartbreak for Hire by Sonia Hartl tells the story of Brinkley, a woman who has suffered a devastating breakup with her emotionally abusive long-time love. She is recruited by a company that employs her to work out her anger by setting up evil guys/men to suffer public humiliation. She justifies her work by noting that these are not “nice” guys until one night when she meets Mark, and in the middle of the embarrassing setup, she realizes he’s a pretty nice guy. The only problem, you cannot fall for a “mark,” and he has to go down. Issues ensue when they become romantically attached. The story takes another swerve when the all-female agency she works for hires him to be a heartbreaker, and she becomes Mark’s boss. It’s a frenemy to romance trope. The story was interesting, the writing was good, but the characters soon realize that their jobs are sleazy and hypocritical. Setting people up for a fall doesn’t seem enticing anymore when paid to be unkind. Not a bad book; I couldn’t get 100% behind being so mean to another person no matter what they have done. This will be a big hit, though since it was recently released. #meangirls #heartbreakforhire @netgalley #romance #romance @gallerybooks
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Thank you to NetGalley for this free ARC, but my thoughts and review are my own and without bias.

This is a supremely hilarious book. The characters are amazing. Brinkley works as a heartbreaker after having her heart decimated by her ex. Markus is a college professor and a former target of hers. The plot of the story is a fascinating premise. Mixing the serious world of academia with the business of payback is really “tongue in cheek”. It leads to some creative moments, witty conversations and outrageous escapes. There are startling discoveries to be made with every turn of the page.

Heartbreak for Hire is a mix of emotions. The book had a lot going on and easily could have been setup for a series. I did laugh out loud multiple times. My husband kept asking me what was so funny!

Loved the plot of having a female business that breaks men’s hearts so to speak. The witty banter between Brinkley and Markus was epic! The chemistry and steamy scenes between them were everything you never knew you wanted!

I truly hate to say this and give this score, but I am DNF-ing this book. I just fell way behind my reading schedule. I also picked this as a buddy read and totally missed each day's assigned reading. Sometimes it happens.
I gave the book a low score because 1) the concept was interesting and unique, but semi well executed and I think a little hard to picture this as an actual business. I just don't think the situations that occurred will realistically ever happen. 2) Because I put this down and will not be finishing. The character, while cute, did not captivate me enough to prioritize this read.

I hate giving low scores, especially to books I picked and featured, but I will always be honest on my reviews and posts.

I didn't love the narrator for this one. Her male voices were extremely forced and annoyingly nasally. It kind of turned me off to the book and as a result, it took me a long time to finish this one.

The story itself was good. Heartbreak for Hire was such an interesting concept! I'm sure every reader has some kind of revenge fantasy, and it was fun to be able to watch the employees of H4H play theirs out. Margo was definitely toxic and the company was obviously problematic, but in terms of the storyline it worked perfectly.

I liked Brinkley, but I never really found myself able to root for Marc. I'm not sure if they bad narration just turned me off to him or if I wouldn't have liked him anyways if I read it, but I never thought he was right for her.

Overall, this was a fun enemies-to-lovers story with a very interesting premise, but I can't recommend the audiobook. Bonus points for the sweater-loving demon cat!

I didn't love this book. I thought it was predictable and was trying to be a bit like Charlie's Angels for scorned women. The plot twists weren't surprising and I didn't love the main character.

This book just wasn't for me.

This book felt like “what if that Jennifer Love Hewitt and Susan Sarandon movie was a romance novel but with more infuriating characters and a hint of First Wives Club and a dash of Charlie’s Angels.”

The chemistry between Brinkley and Mark is delicious, but the external conflicts driven by secondary characters made me want to throw the book. A late plot twist is completely unbelievable if you know anything about academia and informed consent for studies, and the thread of parental alienation was over the top for me.

A solid read overall, but a 3.5 stars for me.

What a cute and fun book! I enjoyed the spin on this one and the literal LOL moments! Heartbreak For Hire was a fun and lovely read for the end of summer!