A heartwarming and lighthearted romance that explores the themes of love, friendship, and taking chances on relationships.

A fake relationship with your friend will be exactly what they needed. Trying to find the perfect person to complete you is easier when they have been by your side the entire time. Such a beautiful story!

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. First time reading this author, I will be reading this again

Fair warning: I’m 30 books behind on my reviews - I read this one in July and its almost October. I really don’t remember this at all. I even read the summary, and the only thing I remember is thinking that Finn’s infatuation with Brenna seemed a bit unrealistic. I don’t have strong feelings about it, but I do know I finished it which is a lot more than I can say for a lot of books lately. (I DNFed so many books this summer!)

Thanks to @NetGalley and Berkley for my ARC!

Love Jaci Burton! She is an auto-buy for me.
I loved the audio book!
The narrator is fantastic.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an arc in exchange for my honest review.

The Engagement Arrangement
Boots and Bouquets, Book 2

I Picked Up This Book Because: Blurb sounded good.

Media Type: Audiobook
Source: Netgalley
Dates Read: 8/11/21 - 8/15/21
Stars: 4 Stars

The Characters:

Brenna Bellini:
Finn Nolan:


The Story:

Very cute. Very enjoyable. The Bellini family is very close knit and alway show up for one another. Finn is dedicated to the woman he loves and I’m glad he finally got her.

Narrator:

This narrator did a wonderful job bringing this story to life. She had a challenge with several different accents and I think she did a good job.

The Random Thoughts:

Thank you to Dreamscape Media for my copy of The Engagement Arrangement by Jaci Burton in exchange for my review.

This was my first book by Jaci Burton! I l have been very in to small town romances lately and fake dating/engagement is a favorite trope for me. I liked this one for the most part. I wasn't that invested in the characters and the story though, but enjoyed it enough to finish it out. I did like the vineyard setting and the details that pertained to that in the story. And I think that the fact that I was enjoying the narration by Holly Chandler encouraged me to continue this one even if I wasn't as in to it as I hoped to be. I am such a sucker for the Irish accent, and she did a fantastic job with the book and all the characters. I will definitely keep an eye out for more books that are narrated by her.

Jaci Burton is an incredible author & this is an amazing book!! This is Brenna Bellini & Finn Nolan’s book (book 3 in series). Brenna asks Finn to be her pretend fiancé after a bridesmaid drops out of a wedding party she’s in & is replaced with her ex-husband’s wife. The Bellini family is wonderful & entertaining as always along with the rest of the characters including all the adorable rescue dogs! We also get to see Erin & Jason’s wedding (their story in previous book). You will love Finn & Brenna as a couple & he sounds just adorable! We would all be lucky to have a Finn in our lives! Their journey is a bumpy ride due to Brenna’s issues after a bad first marriage but you will be rooting for their HEA that they so deserve! So looking forward to the next book!! This can be read as a stand alone but would recommend starting with book 1 to get all the back stories. This book has all the feels, you won’t be disappointed!! I received an arc from Netgalley and the publisher for an honest review.

Love this book. Narration/narrator was excellent. Brenna have swore off men after her marriage ended in divorce. Fin have always loved Brenna. He's so patient. He saw her marry another man and saw what it did to her. Brenna needs a fake fiancée because her ex-husband and his new wife will be attending the wedding of a friend. Finn is more than happy to step in an help because he's optimistic that this would be his opportunity to win her over. As they spend time together, Brenna's feelings for Finn grows but she's in denial and poor Finn. Brenna's insecurities challenges their relationship and both Finn and Brenna had to make decisions that affected their relationship and future. Great story. Engaging from beginning to end. love the sisters.

This is such a fun read! Independent woman and a very patient man. The chemistry between the two just sizzles. You will totally enjoy. First time for this author and I'm definitely going to look for more

Sweet story about a girl who is afraid to fall for the guy she’s known almost all her life. Brenna’s tough and been through a bad marriage. She’s finding her way and is rushed to ask a long time family friend to help her fake an engagement to save face in front of her ex husband and former girlfriend (who are now married and part of a mutual friends wedding party). Brenna insists it’s just a little pretend but Fin’s feelings are very real and he’s just been waiting for an opportunity like this to show Brenna how he really feels about her. Some push and pull as they navigate this slippery slope of really getting to know one another.

I have been reading Jaci Burton's books for years and, whenever possible, I read what she has coming up, and that is the case with The Engagement Arrangement. Although it is the second book in a series, it read perfectly well as a standalone. However, I will be putting the first book in my TBR. Although I received the ebook for this title, I also received the audiobook, which was expertly narrated by Holly Chandler., especially when she used an Irish accent with Finn's dialogue.

Brenna and Finn are best friends who are both rather in love with each other. However, their friendship is precious to the both of them and so neither has addressed their feelings. When Brenna is invited to be a part of her friend's wedding party, she knows her ex will be there with his wife. In order to hold her head up high, Brenna feels that if she attends the wedding as an engaged woman, her ex and her friends won't make her feel so bad. So, she asks Finn to be her plus one, and to also act as her fiancé.

Although Brenna has feelings for Finn, she is determined never to marry again. However, the more they spend time together, especially having to act as if they are in love, they both begin to feel unable to resist their strong feelings. I enjoyed the chemistry between Brenna and Finn, especially with Finn's attempts to make Brenna to see him more as a friend. This story flowed smoothly and had a wonderful ending. I hope this series will continue and if it does, I will definitely be picking up the next book.

Many thanks to Berkley and to NetGalley for this ARC for review. This is my honest opinion.

The Engagement Arrangement was all many readers hope for in a contemporary romance: a likable and worthy hero and heroine, a believable problem complete with a realistic villain, and a heart-swooning resolution. I liked it, but it didn't grab my heart and hold it close for the book's duration. Again: for some light-hearted escape, it was fine; for me personally, I could too easily see the story's outline from the first page. Jaci Burton writes capably, and the narration was fine, complete with an enticing Irish brogue. I'm sure many readers/listeners will be happy with The Engagement Arrangement.

Many thanks to the publisher for an advanced copy of the audiobook!

This is book 3 (3rd installment because there's a 0.5) in a series set at a family winery + wedding venue. 3 sisters run the company with their parents, and they've got a close-knit friend group of Oklahomans with a few transplants (Irish handyman and Californian matchmaker).

This installment centers on Finn Nolan, who came from Ireland to live with the family in high school when his parents died and Brenna, one of the sisters (a recent divorcee). It combines longtime friendship and unrequited love (on Finn's part) with a fake fiance scheme.

Overall this was my least favorite of the series; I kept getting caught up in how stilted the writing was (the dialog is mechanical, and there are a lot of moments of unexpected/out of context explicit sexuality), even though I did think that the character development was pretty good. It also focused really heavily on the characters from the previous book and repeatedly referenced that plot in an expository way.

I'm invested enough in the characters that I would read another book in this series, but I probably would have dropped the series if this was the first book, based on the writing style. I'm giving it 2.5 stars, rounded up to 3 for goodreads.

Brenna Bellini is a vary happy successful woman and has no plans for getting married again. When she is chosen to be a bridesmaid at a friends wedding that is being held at the Bellini family vineyard, she is excited until she finds out who else is in the wedding party. Her ex-husband as well as his wife, who was her high school nemesis are in the wedding. She knows that this woman will rub being single in her face all weekend. She doesn't want to have to deal with that all weekend so she asks Finn to be her fake fiance. Finn has lived on the Bellini property since he came over from Ireland to work at the family vineyard when he was a teenager. His parents died and Mrs. Bellini was his mothers best friend. He was welcomed into the family when he arrived. Since coming to the vineyard, he has always been attracted to Brenna so he was very willing to be her fake fiance. As Brenna and Finn spend time together, she realizes that she is also attracted to him but she tries to resist him. This is a good book that I recommend.

The narrator, Holly Chandler, is excellent. She does a fabulous Irish accent. This is a steamy romance. Finn is a heartthrob from Ireland that agrees to have a fake engagement with Brenna whose family owns the winery/wedding venue where he works. Brenna is concerned that her ex and his wife (her high school nemesis) will be at an upcoming wedding. She doesn't want to look like a loser. No problem getting Finn on board because he has loved Brenna since he was 18. It's good that Finn is very patient because Brenna comes across as a pampered brat in my opinion. She makes all of her decisions based on her past experience with her ex. Finn must convince her that not every man is a jerk and she is worth the wait. She just has to realize Finn is exactly what she needs (and wants).
Thank you to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for this advanced review copy. In return, I am submitting my unbiased and voluntary review. All opinions and thoughts are my own.

Brenna Bellini plans never to get married again. However, when she discovers her ex-husband's new wife, who is also her high school nemesis, will be a fellow bridesmaid in an upcoming friend's wedding, Brenna decides the only thing to do is to pretend she is engaged to keep her ex-friend from looking down on her for being single. Finn Nolan has liked Brenna since he moved to her family's vineyard years ago, and he is only too happy to play the part of fake fiancé. He is certain that he can use this time to get Brenna to realize they would be perfect together.

I can see from the other reviews that I am in the minority on this book, but I just wasn't a fan. Neither of the main characters were likeable, and I'm not sure what the attraction was between them besides the physical. Brenna seemed very immature for her age. I love the fake engagement trope, but I have seen many better stories for it.

Many thanks to NetGalley for providing me an audio ARC of this book.

Love the cover and blurb! I have always been a fan of this author and this was a cute read.

What did I like? The narration was fun and light hearted. Brenna was a hard to like main character with her childish whims and ways but the narrator nailed it!

I’m glad I got the narration but I felt like Finn was beating his head against the wall that was Brenna. The book started off with the characters already knowing each other from the first book which felt awkward since I hadn’t read it. So read the first if you can!

Would I recommend or buy? Yes, this was a fun but light hearted read with a slow burn romance. The audiobook was 8 hours and great for an ideal work day! Four stars!

I received a complimentary copy to listen to and voluntarily left a review!

This was fun, sweet and a little sexy. I enjoyed this book I did but at the same time, I wanted a bit more. A bit more conflict, a tiny bit more drama, and I’m not talking crazy unrealistic stuff that makes you roll your eyes or want to strangle the characters but I just wanted a bit more of a conflict-climax. The book starts with a very obvious trope – hey guy I was practically raised with can you pretend to be my fiancé to mess with my ex-husband and his horrible wife who’s hated me since high school and we will totally not fall in love or anything during the process?!

I found Finn too perfect, he always said and did the right things all the time. Don’t get me wrong he was sexy as hell but so well adjusted. Also, in the first chapter, he finally put the moves on Brenna and there was zero mention as to why that moment after over a decade of pining was when he decided it was “go time” and that bothered me a bit. Yet, the book was still super sweet and I was completely invested in the characters and wanted to know how’d they get their “Happily Ever After.”

In the end, I’ll reiterate that this was fun and it was sweet and there were some very sexy moments. A nice way to spend an evening reading/listening.

I enjoyed this story. I liked hearing the reasons the engagement happened and really liked the characters. They were so enjoyable I was really rooting for them! This is a creative story that is a different concept than I have read this year – which made it more enjoyable.