While this book does work as a stand alone, I think I probably would have felt like the main character was more developed had I read the previous book; I felt like I didn't really get to know much about the protagonist through this story and wanted more from her development. I also struggled with the age placement of the main characters and felt like they were acting quite immature for their apparent age. If you want something light and quick and silly, this is probably a great fit for you.

In "The Dating Dare," Tara and Seth have a meet-cute at the wedding of Tara's best friend and Seth's brother. Sparks fly and their chemistry is palpable. However, neither of them are in a place to begun a serious relationship, so they dare each other to have 4 dates and not fall in love. Obviously, they can't keep this dare and the relationship grows serious very quickly. The way they sneak around and keep this a secret from their families is humorous, and I also really enjoyed the chemistry between the two. This was a really cute book, and I can't wait to read more from Jayci Lee!

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

Review posted on GoodReads (February 23, 2021)
Review Linked.

4/5 stars!

A huge thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for sending me an E-ARC of this book for an honest review.

I was super intrigued by this sequel to A Sweet Mess because I had very mixed feelings about the first book. I thought it was good, but not amazing. This book really took everything I loved about the first book and added so much more! I fell in LOVE with Seth and Tara's romance and stories. I think one of my favorite things about Jayci Lee's writing is that her male characters are not the classic “masculine, dominant" guys. I really enjoyed Seth's softness and fell in love with his character.

Overall, I thought this was a fantastic sequel that you can read as a standalone. I also think that most of the writing craft issues that I found in the first book were fixed or much better in this book.

Overall, I thought that this book was super cute and I can't wait to read more from Jayci Lee!

Thanks for reading!
Caden Armstrong

Life is too short to struggle through a book you don’t love. And this one really became a struggle for me. I hadn’t read the first book in this series/universe, so didn’t know our heroine, Tara, at all. And 20% of the way into the book, I still don’t know her at all. I know she works at a brewery (works at? Owns? No idea. The book doesn't clarify). I know she has some weird hang-up about dating anyone her family has ever met because of a first love gone wrong in college (no idea why, because again, no backstory). And I know she's gets sloppy drunk when with a guy that she wants to be careful not to start something with... Because that makes a ton of sense too. And then we've got Seth, a fashion photographer who is but isn't pursuing his dreams and is a total Playboy but also has no lady friends to speak of and also appears a decent (and incredibly boring with no depth) guy. Perhaps their story improves once you get further in... But if you can't engage me by 20% of the way in...

I had fun reading this light rom com. I don’t read a ton of books in this genre, and I didn’t realize this book was part of a series. I have not read the first book, A Sweet Mess. Perhaps I would have enjoyed this book more if I had, but I do think it mostly works as a stand alone novel.

The chemistry between our main characters, Tara Park and Seth Kim, is evident right off the bat, and I was rooting for them to get together. But the obstacles keeping them apart felt a bit silly, and as such the storyline and characters felt very high school, especially considering how obvious it was they were both super into each other.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review

Let me preface this by saying I love cheesy, predictable romance stories. They are fun to read and that’s why I wanted to read this book. The issue I had, however, was that the “cheesy, predictable” part of this book seemed so forced. The guy knowing he had a player persona that he puts on was a little irritating. The girl refusing to answer who and when her first kiss was, though, simply because he broke her heart in college? That made me roll my eyes. I can’t handle the over the top reaction to something as simple as a truth or dare game. At that point, I lost interest in the story and where it was going to go.

The chapters felt too long and like too much was happening in them for the story to flow well. Not to mention, I felt like there was too much detail added into some things and not enough in others. I was so confused at first when they went to the brewery because there was nothing that let you know that the girl worked there, but you sure knew everything about every beer that they had and what prizes they won. I don’t know, it just felt like there was attention put into the wrong things.

To be fair, this was a DNF for me, so it may have gotten better. But the fanfic-esque writing style was just too much for me to handle. I wasn’t a fan of the parts I did read.

I really enjoyed this lighter, near Valentines Day read. The characters were fun to read about and there was more detail than usual about character backstory. I didn’t read the first book in Lee’s series, but I might go back and check it out now! This is a fun, feel-good romance novel that is needed in weird times like this. It’s a sweet one!

Special thanks to @netgalley and @stmartinspress for the advanced copy for my review!

I think this book was an overall sweet read. Something that wasn’t too heavy, and overall enjoyable. I really enjoyed Seth and Tara’s relationship. However, at the end I was a little disappointed at the information about the ex boyfriend and felt like it could’ve been announced sooner.

*Review to be posted on my blog on 7/19/21*

**2.5 Stars**

Likes:
*I enjoyed the first book in the series, A Sweet Mess, and wanted to know what happened with Tara, one of the secondary characters. This is her story.

*Tara’s personality is vibrant, fun, loud and she runs a brewery with her family. I could relate to her reluctance to fall in love after her past relationship.

*The second half of the book was better to me than the first. I did like seeing how both characters was going to embrace their growing feelings for each other. The four dates in the dating dare were cute.

*There’s a happy ending where Tara finally puts aside her ex-relationship trauma and goes for Seth and in Paris, no less, the city of romance, so the ending was great.

Random Notes:
*Triggers: abuse

*It’s lust at first sight with Seth and Tara, but they’ve known each other before they get together in this book since Seth’s brother and Tara’s best friend got together in book one. And the lusting is fine, there are some steamy moments in this book but for some reason, it wasn’t doing anything for me. Their passion for one another made me cringe a little – it was evident they really wanted each other, it’s in their thoughts constantly! I skimmed a few of those parts.

*Tara’s past with her ex finally affects her in this relationship because she starts to feel something for Seth but I kind of wish we knew more about it in the beginning of the story. It would have made me more invested in this “dating dare”.

Final Thoughts:
This is a light, fluffy romance and a quick read. It’s not my favorite of this romance series so far, but I did enjoy Tara’s character and their happy ending in Paris. I think with less internal dialogue (I get it, you really want to have sex with each other all the time lol) and more exploring of Tara’s past relationship and how it was affecting her, the story would have appealed to me more.

3.25
I received a digital copy of this book through Net galley for an honest review.

I want to start by saying I have yet to read the first book in this series but may in the future .This is the second book in the series following Tara and Seth, Tara is the best friend of Aubrey the character from the first book and Seth is the younger brother on Landon the character in the first book. We follow along as these acquaintances decide to have a fling after a drunken game of truth or dare. Seth is leaving for Paris in a month so they promise one another not to fall in love.

I really enjoyed this book it was a cute fun quirky romance not the most steamy novel but there were some definite spicy scenes. Tara was by far my favorite part of this book I really enjoyed her spunky attitude and thought she was well flushed out as a character. Throughout the story she does not curse but uses these made up curse worse instead that definitively had me Chuckling. The date scenes were cute and entertaining but at times I felt as though the transitions were a little jarring . I would just be getting into a scene and the it would end a little abruptly.

My main issue with this book was I felt as though Seth was a little bit flat. There were some stories of his past that were suppose to help you relate to him but I did not connect with his character in the way that I did with Tara. My other problem was that some of the back story felt like it was thrown in at the end(Tara’s past relationship issues) and I would have liked that to have been explored a little more throughout the story instead of it just being dumped at the end. I will say that this may be my own fault as I have not read the first book on the series and am going to look into going back to read it !

This is the second in a series and can definitely be read as a standalone book. However , I do think that it would be nice to read the books in order to better understand the secondary characters and how they all became such good friends. This is a minor point and of course I can now read the first book in the Sweet Mess series. This is such a cute romance . I really enjoyed watching Tara and Seth's dating dare progress from a 4 date dare to a relationship. Watching their physical attraction bloom in to a friendship and deep concern for each other's dreams. ( one slight criticism , please find some synonyms for growl) I also liked their relationships with their friends and siblings which added to the richness of their characters. All in all, a very enjoyable ,easy read romance to brighten these winter days. I intend to read the first book and will look forward to reading other books from this author.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review
#netgalley #thedatingdare

To start, I read this not knowing it is the second novel in the series, and I will be immediately reading the first (I a little bit wish I had known and read them in order)! With that being said, I really enjoyed reading this cute novel, I read too late into the night cause I really wanted to get to the part where Tara and Seth (the two main characters) get together.

The main premise is that Tara and Seth find themselves in a game of truth or dare that ends with Seth daring Tara to go on four dates with him, but not fall in love. Since both of them have been scarred by past relationships, it seems like the perfect plan! The story winds through their relationship as we learn more about each of their lives, histories, and passions, with some very steamy scenes along the way. The perspective changes from Tara’s to Seth’s which I enjoyed.

I liked the characters, their stories and families, and how they progress throughout the novel. There were a few people I was confused about as I had no idea who they were so I do wish there was a little more reintroduction (even though I am assuming they are from book 1). I appreciated getting the backstory on both Seth and Taras's relationships, but I think there were some huge points about Tara’s ex left out until the very end that needed to be mentioned earlier or just left out completely (TW emotional & domestic abuse). But otherwise, I really loved it!

This was a feel-good, fun romance novel that I definitely think is worth a read.

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

This was a cute story and I wanted to love it so much. Unfortunately, I just found it predictable and a little cringy. Tara and Seth are not looking for long-term commitments, but they immediately find themselves attracted to each other after their paths cross at a wedding. After a night of drinking, a game of truth or date turns into four dates. Outside of the dates, they pretty much run into each other each time they step out of the house (annoyingly predictable). The character development also was not there for me - they were pretty much thrown together in the beginning and they both came across as immature. Some parts of the book were cute but others made me cringe, specifically PDA and dirty thoughts in park with kids. I really appreciate the advanced copy for my honest review.

Oh my googly eyes!

I have been wanting to read this book since I finished A Sweet Mess so when I got the earc, I was actually jumping for joy and internally screaming!! I fell in love with Jayci Lee's writing and have read other books from her in the mean time, but it is finally the time to talk about Seth and Tara, and I am SO excited!

I am officially turned into pink goo from this book. It was just so sweet, so cute, Seth is so adorable as a character, his passion for art is noticeable in the book, you can feel how passionate he is for it, and Tara is super stubborn and just the best. I loved these characters right from the first book so it was so much fun for them to have their own story. One thing that I actually found very interesting is that eve though this is a second book of the series, the characters in the first book, Aubrey and Landon, actually didn't make too much of an appearance, which was nice in this case as it allowed Seth and Tara to really grow in a relationship and to shine on their own.

I am still a fan of Jayci's and I hope there will be another one in the series, (maybe one of Tara's brothers?? EEK!!) so I'll be here waiting patiently for that day to arrive!

Thank you to NetGalley and St.Martin's Press for the earc in return for an honest review.

This was cute, but a bit too much stereotyping for me to be honest. I kept waiting for something to differ the characters from a cookie cutter archetype, even in a small way, and didn't get it.... I liked the writing though, it just didn't feel like much of an effort to be honest

Would you accept a dare to go on four dates and not fall in love?

Tara and Seth have both been burned in the past and they don’t do relationships. So a game of truth or dare turns into four dates and they can’t fall for each other. Their dates have a some roadblocks, but they seem to find other ways to spend time with each other and soon their rules for dates and non-dates start to go out the window. Will they realize that what they are feeling for each other is real or will they continue to fight it?

This book is the second in the series and can be read as a stand alone. However, I think I would have liked to read the first one first for this book as there are some references to the first book I believe. I will say that I wanted to keep reading this book, and it was a lighthearted read which was what I wanted. There were some things that happened toward the end that I felt like should have been more throughout the story and not shoved at the end. But I will say, Seth pulled out all the stops for some of these dates🥰

Rating: 🧪🧪🧪🧪/ 5

TW: abusive relationships

To preface, I read this without reading the first novel in the series, and I am sad that I didn’t get the chance to do so. With that being said, I really enjoyed reading this cute novel! I feel like it made up for me not reading any romance novels in the spirit of Valentine’s Day so YAY!

Anyways...this book focuses on two main characters—Tara Park and Seth Kim. Tara’s best friend, Aubrey, just got married and she is starting to realize how quickly life can change right before your eyes. During the night of the wedding, Tara has a conversation with Aubrey’s new brother-in-law, Seth, who is a talented photographer as well as a known playboy, but Tara can’t help feel a strong attraction towards him. One thing leads to another and at the end of the night, Tara and Seth find themselves in a game of truth or dare ending with Seth daring Tara to go on four dates with him. Since both of them have been scarred by past relationships, it seems like the perfect plan! The story winds through their relationship as we learn more about each of their lives and passions, with some steamy fun along the way! The perspective changes from Tara’s to Seth’s, and it was awesome to get to experience both sides feelings during a blossoming relationship.

I really enjoyed the characters, their stories and families, and how they progress throughout the novel. There were a few people I was confused about as I had no idea who they were so I do wish there was a little more reintroduction (even though I am assuming they are from book 1). I appreciated getting the backstory on both Seth and Taras relationships, but I think there were some huge points about Tara’s ex left out until the very end that needed to be mentioned earlier so it could make more sense and be explained, or just not at all. But otherwise, there wasn’t much else to critique on. I was definitely involved in the story and wanted to know how it would all play out!

This was a feel-good, fun romance novel that I definitely think is worth a read!!

While I was not satisfied with how the plot progressed, this book has great potential. Hopefully the kinks get worked out in final editing. The chemistry between the two main characters was palpable and became the primary draw for me. Their pull kept me semi-engaged and helped me to push through to the end.

OMG - this was so cute! But to be fair I'm already a super huge fan of Jayci Lee and LOVE LOVE LOVE everything she writes. And this one was no exception.

I couldn’t connect to the characters and it felt some what rushed .the writing was fine . I did like how the characters were not white. I also liked how you learned about food a little bit .