I love the Russian and was unbelievably excited to see him shine in Isn't it Bromantic?! Everyone's favorite cheese loving hockey player and champion of the Grand Gesture finally takes center stage. The fourth installment of Adams' Bromance series has all humor and heart I expected, while also offering a poignant (and angsty in all the ways I love) backstory of childhood friends. Vlad and Elena grew up secretly in love with one another, but each too afraid to say anything. Now, several years later, they are in a marriage of convenience--living separate lives in different cities. But Vlad decides he wants more than convenience. Unfortunately, the chasm between him and Elena is more than geographical. With the help of the book club, some meddling neighbors, and a black market cheese monger, Vlad and Elena begin to find their way back to one another. But are either truly ready to bare their hearts and find the happily ever after they deserve? This series is excellent for anyone looking to laugh, cry, and sigh and Isn't it Bromantic? is my favorite installment thus far!

"Isn't It Bromantic?" is about Vlad, our favorite Russian Hockey player, and Elena, his mysterious wife. This is the best one Lyssa Kay Adams has written for the Bromance Bookclub series. I read this until my eyes could no longer stay open and when I was forced to put the book down I counted down the minutes until I could get back to reading it. I loved both point of views equally which NEVER happens for me. Elena is everything I didn't know I needed. She is strong, feisty, and career driven. Nothing can get in her way except her own pride. She has been living in Chicago attending college since arriving in America with Vlad. She is brought back to Nashville after Vlad sustains an injury that will keep him off his feet for awhile. I do not want to spoil anymore of this mysterious gripping story so I will leave it at that. This book has witty banter, animal sidekicks, mystery, danger, amazing side characters, even better friendships, and of course romance. I am obsessed with these books and I will recommend them until the day I die. Thank you NetGalley and Berkley Publishing for the opportunity to read this fantastic book!

First off, THANK YOU letting me read an advance copy of this book! I have loved this series for two main reasons.

1. seeing a group of male friends help and consistently show up for each other needs to be more common. I think it is, but hearing and seeing it is beautiful.
2. I live in Franklin, TN so it is so so so fun to see where I live represented in a lovely way.

Okay Vlad & Elena. This one will make your HEART SWELL. You know the feeling I am talking about. Where your heart almost kinda hurts a bit (fun fact: scientists can't figure out what that is!). There's a ton of miscommunication, which can be common in romance but this one is done SO well. There's 100% reason and understanding of why they are miscommunicating and why that person would feel the way they do. You will find yourself switching from Team Vlad to Team Elena on who is right and wrong.

I honestly hope this series never ends

4.5 stars. Such a great series, and this might be my favorite in the series so far!

The heroes get lots of page space/screen time. The tension in the relationship seems realistic, and is compounded by other real-world problems.

In this book, the heroine had a complex back story but her motivations weren't as clear in the text-- we saw what Vlad saw her do; the narration doesn't include her feelings about it, or what she's thinking, so she seems less clear as a character.

Highly recommended for contemporary romance readers. While the whole series is a treat, this book can probably be read alone, or out of order.

I really like this series, and this book was no exception! Unfortunately, it feels rare to read about men with healthy friendships, discussing mental health and how to combat toxic masculinity. It was fun to read about Vlad, since before now, he wasn't a particularly vocal character. I also appreciate how his (and Elena's) Russian heritage was celebrated. I'm curious who the next Bromance protagonist will be, Colton maybe?

An advanced reader copy was provided to me by NetGalley.

The ultimate but of the joke in previous novels gets his own starring role in the fourth book in the series. I was always a little uncomfortable with how much of of a "joke" his bathroom time was, but this book definitely addresses it in a sensitive manner.

The characters and author have found their stride in the book club. One of the things I disliked in past books was that a lot of the friendships felt forced, however, by this point in the series, the relationships and interactions feel intimate and you can tell this group cares about each other deeply. While the past books have focused on new members in the club, the Russian was an established and important member of the bookclub, so you can tell he is a beloved member of the group.

The progression from the first book the fourth is lovely, as one of the more long standing members, Vlad had been the most accepting and feminist from the beginning, and it is nice to see how he got that way. Coming from a culture that puts a premium on toxic masculinity, Vlad has been able to retain his softer side throughout the book. Even at times when he feels himself gravitating to those behaviours, he is able to see them for what they are.

The female lead, Elena, is also interesting. She, like Vlad, comes into the relationship with differing expectations and like all romance novels, miscommunication is the biggest enemy.

I was frustrated with one element of the book, which is that in the beginning, you are introduced to a source that is important to Elenas story, and then that plotline is wrapped up so closely to the end that it felt like that character would never be addressed again. I was worried that storyline would be dropped entirely due to how little it was addressed throughout most of the story.

Overall, a fun, lovable read. Def. my favourite of the books so far!

If you love the other books in the Bromance Book Club series, you’ll absolutely love this one too. It has everything: our favorite Russian, cats, humor and hijinks, lovable side characters, steamy scenes, and of course, the other members of our favorite book club.

I wasn’t a fan of Elena’s though. She was super immature and flakey and I’m so tired of the worn-out romance trope where one of the lead characters runs away every time there’s a disagreement or a miscommunication. Stop buying plane tickets to Chicago every time one of Vlad’s comments rubs you the wrong way and then having angsty monologues about how he let you leave. Please. I’m literally begging you.

I also felt like the author attempted to make this book move into the romantic suspense genre, but the suspense arc (and literally everything having to do with Elena’s dad and Elena’s own journalistic endeavors) was super, super abrupt and ultimately fell flat. Honestly, that whole storyline could have been completely omitted without really changing anything in the story.

As soon as I got this book I stopped everything I was doing to read it. As soon as I read that Vlad was getting a book I was excited and his story gave me everything I was looking for. We know Vlad as the sentimental Russian with some tummy issues from the first three books, but we had no idea what he was hiding under that crazy exterior. Vlad has a wife, a wife that he hasn't seen in years but is hopelessly in love with. He joined the Bromance Book Club in hopes to make his marriage a real marriage and learn what Elena would want.
He married Elena six years ago when he came to the United States from Russia. She had to get away after her father disappeared and she knew she wasn't safe there. Vlad was her childhood best friend and there was no one else she would rather be with, but she questions how much he is doing out of duty to her and isn't he actually loves her. This sets in motion a string of events that last six years, until Vlad is ready to make this a real marriage. He is tired of having Elena so far away, but she doesn't want to burden him anymore than she already has and suggests they divorce instead. Vlad is crushed, but when he gets injured playing hockey six months later, Elena is by his bedside when he wakes up. She says she will stay to help him recooperate, and with the help of his bookclub as well as the Loners (a group of widowers he has befriended) these two will have to face feelings they have been hiding for years.
I enjoyed seeing all the guys from the bookclub band together to help Vlad. It's funny that we can see things so clearly outside our own situation, but when we are in it things get murky and we let our feelings overshadow what is right in front of our faces. Vlad didn't think he was good enough for Elena, he loved her for so long but she seemingly didn't want to be with him, but it was clear from the outside looking in that she cared for him deeply. The forced proximity pushed these two to communicate and face their fears. This love story was probably my favorite of the series because Vlad is just such an intensely complicated character.
Thank you to Berkley, Netgalley and the author for an early copy of this highly anticipated book for me!

This series gets better with every book. Readers will appreciate the thoughtful complexities of endearing characters who create a social commentary in swoon worthy sentences. Sexy, smart, and completely addictive.

I am so glad I got to read an ARC of this book, but I'm also sad because it makes it that much longer before I can read a (hopefully!) 5th book in the series. It always bothered me a bit that the Russian's gastrointestinal problems were used as some sort of comic relief. As someone who also suffers from a gastrointestinal disease I really (and literally) felt the Russian's pain. So I'm glad in this book he is on the mend in that respect! He's such a gentile giant of a man and a great emotional character. I'm glad he got his own happy ending! It's not my favorite in the series, but that doesn't mean it's not a good book! It was fun to read and really moving at times.

Finally!! A book about the Russian! This was so tender and sweet. I was thrilled to learn more about the Russian and his story.

Another fun book about the "Bromance Book Club." This book tells the story of Vlad - the Russian - as he's know in the group. In this fun story you get to learn more about Vlad's past and his personality. The new characters that Adams introduces are fun and made me wonder who will show up in the story.
I really enjoy these characters and their stories. Thanks NetGalley for the advanced copy. #isntitbromantic

Disclaimer: I got this ARC in exchange for an honest review. Full review will be up on Pop-Culturalist the week of publication :)

Vlad is a Russian hockey player and despite his appearance he is a sensitive guy. He’s sweet, caring, and loves cats!! This book is adorable and funny. He has a marriage of convenience and helped his wife continue her education financially. He waited patiently for her to come back and during that time she fell in love with him. However, she never came back. I’m not a fan of the other protagonist, Elena but overall this book was a lot of fun to read! I will be doing a more in-depth review in July.

This book made me laugh, cry and cheer. Thank you for writing a book about The Russian Vlad - I’ve read every single book in the series and this is my favorite one by far. (And thank you for allowing him to find a diagnosis for his unfortunate flatulence and shitcedences)
Not gonna lie - 2021 has been tough, but being able to be transported back into the Bromance Book Club world where good and decent men insist on treating women with kindness and respect.... it was a balm to my heart that I didn’t know I so desperately needed. Thank you Ms Adams!

The Russian finally has his book! Marriage of convince to lovers, childhood friends, Russian mobs, hockey, and Vlad makes for one of the best in this series. It’s funny, swoon worthy, and brought all of the best from the bromance book club. I can’t wait for the next 2 installments.

I just really love this entire series. I was nervous about getting to the Russian as he hasn't been my favorite of the boys (the competition is stiff), and yet I loved every page and totally devoured the book in one sitting.

Getting a better view of Vlad's world - with neighbors, and pets - really just drove home what a sweet, gentle, and romantic soul he is. Reading him flirt was one of my favorite things.

Elena. ELENA! What an amazing character. Strong, feisty, loyal, loving and deeply complicated. My only question is how do we get Lyssa to bless us with a book on Elena's time in Chicago?

I was skeptical of The Russian as a romantic lead--in the earlier books of this series, he's mainly a flatulent comic relief, who has surprisingly deep insights into the romances the guys read. But hockey star Vlad gets redemption here (as well as meds for his gluten allergy), as he finally admits that he wants his marriage of convenience with childhood friend Elena to be real. For her part, Elena is determined to make her own way, and not be too dependent on the sweet and caring Vlad.

Parts of this worked well. Vlad and Elena's mutual yearning was poignant. The men's friendship was as strong as ever. The subplot of Elena's journalistic endeavors was less successful. It seemed like Adams wanted to write a romantic suspense novel, but the danger never had any real teeth, and Elena's investigation was forgotten for whole chapters at a time.

Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher, and the author for the ARC to review. All opinions are my own.

I love this series! This book was so cute! Vlad is on of my favorite Bros. I thought the introduction of "the Cheese Man" was interesting. Possible new addition to the bookclub? Maybe his own book? Lyssa Kay Adams can't put books in this series out fast enough for me.

It is so great to see a character who was comic relief for the past 3 books finally get his HEA! The author flips the marriage of convenience trope by having the heroine as the undecided and self doubting character and the hero as the virgin, pining away for his lawfully wedded wife. Ya gotta love The Russian!

I have been waiting for the Russian’s book, and it didn’t disappoint. In fact, it's my favorite of the series now! I just love Vlad so much, and Elena is his perfect match. I wanted to shake some sense into both of them, but they got where they needed to be with some help from his book club guys and the Loners (who I absolutely loved)! Such a great second chance at a first chance, really!