I liked this book but it felt a little flat. The romance was nice but nothing exciting. Caine and Violet both could have used more fire in their personalities.

Cute, easy read. Perfect for a weekend or the beach. Thank you to NetGalley for the advance e copy.

This book was a good read for me and it was super entertaining to read and I would definitely recommend

It was light, fun and cute. If you’re a fan of My Fair Lady and rom-coms, this would be your jam. Cain is the grumpy, brooding long lost grandson and heir to a multimillion dollar company and Violet, the rich socialite, takes on the challenge to turn him into a respectable member of the Upper East side elite. The characters are fine, but they seemed to lack some chemistry. For most of the story, you can barely tell that Cain is interested in here beyond flirting with her for fun. The plot is also pretty predictable, but that helps with the pace of the book. Could this book have been better? Sure. But it was fine and good for a cute, fast read. Thanks to NetGalley for the eArc in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you Simon Audio for the gifted audiobook.

This book is compulsively readable. It sucks you in with its premise and characters. Cain Stone is the newly discovered heir to the family company and is an all around southern grump. On the other hand, Violet Townsend is the picture perfect, people pleasing, New York socialite. So when Violet's adopted grandmother asks her to bring her newly found grandson up to snuff in terms of New York's elite, Violet of course says yes. I liked the fun banter between the two leads and how they both had satisfying character arcs.

Bonus: this book has a fun Valentines day conclusion, so mark this down for your TBR for next February

Content Warning: One Open Door Scene.

this opposites attract between a new york city socialite and the long lost southerner grandson of a ceo with plans of early retirement and no other heir left to pass her empire to. sounds simple enough.

violet is tasked with turning cain from a perceived aloof southerner to a new york businessman, after the latter finds out that he’s related to the matriarch of a billion dollar company in need of a successor. with a vote by the board ahead and the stubborn, hesitant cain not the least bit interested in becoming a new york city yuppy, violet, ever the people pleaser, wants nothing more than to fulfill edith’s wish for her grandson to become the next ceo of the family business. rising to the challenge, violet embarks on a journey to help cain grow closer to a grandmother he had no clue of and to become the man that is worthy of a business.

of course, that journey opens her up to her own growth into the person she wants to be rather than the person she wants to be for everyone else. the build up between the two was everything a romance reader could want, where they bicker and argue and throw jabs at one another, while also recognizing that beneath all the bluster, is a worthy person and opponent. they see shared hurt and pain from a past that’s not spoken with words, but in actions and gestures. when the two finally do let their guards down enough to reveal their true feelings, it becomes more engrossing to see how the tale will unfold and how they’ll find their happy ending.

violet remains a very strong-willed character from start to finish, finding more of her inner voice in time and standing her ground. cain’s stubbornness is endearing rather than annoying and those southern manners are often on display in small moments throughout. i loved the flow of the story and the epilogue was a perfect cherry on top. along with the perfect pupper and their conflict being something that isn’t drawn on for longer than their courtship, i would highly recommend this to anyone who wants to read a light-hearted enemies to lovers.

This book was so much fun! It was my second book by Lauren Layne, and it most definitely won't be my last.

Made in Manhattan is a reverse My Fairy Lady story. Violet, a Manhattan socialite, is recruited to "makeover" the rough and tough Cain, who is vying for a spot at the head of her friend Edith's company. This opposites attract rom com is cute and fun. I flew through the whole book in a day and could easily visualize it as a movie.

I read some other reviews that said they didn't love the main characters, but I liked them both and was fully invested in their relationship and their back and forth banter. It's time for me to go back and check out more of Lauren Layne's books!

Thanks to Netgalley and Gallery Books for sending me a copy in exchange for my honest review.

Actual rating: 3.5 stars

This was a very fluffy rom com - I liked it, but I didn’t love it as much as To Sir, With Love. In general, I felt like this didn’t have a ton of substance to it, but it was still really fun to read. It’s fast paced and quick to read overall. I enjoyed the premise of a My Fair Lady (but reversed) situation - it is admittedly somewhat problematic to try to change someone to fit in in society, but that’s addressed some in this book which made it better.

I really liked Violet overall. She’s always been the type to mold herself to fit what she thinks people want and expect from her, and she’s very good with people. She’s very kind and funny as well! Violet realizes that she wants more from her life than things just being “fine” and actually wants passion in her life. I really enjoyed her journey and how Cain fits into this with helping her to have the courage to be more of herself. She and Cain have similarities with losing family members/growing up without parental figures, and I do feel like they fit together pretty well. Cain is a jerk several times to Violet, but Violet does push back and calls him out (which is good).

Cain is very brusque and doesn’t fit in with the posh New York crowd. I really liked how he wants to earn things rather than have things presented to him because of his blood/family ties. I can definitely understand this and appreciate it. He isn’t the nicest to Violet, but it’s fun to see her break through his walls. He can be very sweet, especially to Violet’s dog which was cute to see.

I also enjoyed several side characters like Edith, Cain’s grandma/Violet’s surrogate grandma, and Ashley, Violet’s best friend. Edith wants to keep her business in the family and actually has a bit of a romantic streak. It’s super sweet how she takes Violet in and cares for her. Ashley is entertaining and wants the best for Violet. We also need to mention Keith - I definitely didn’t like him much, but I enjoyed seeing where his journey ends.

Overall, this was cute and enjoyable, but I could have used more to the plot to really love it. However, I’d still recommend this if you’re looking for a light, easy to read romance!

My video review can be seen on my booktube channel (around minutes 12:01-14:52 of this video): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aMXeOmpPEpc

When reading the synopsis of this book you can see where it's going. It's a little bit predictable, but I still thought it was cute. I thought it ended well though!

What a great book! I couldn't stop reading it! Violet is a socialite who put to the task of "polishing" Cain to Manhattan standards. The banter between the two of the them kept me laughing. As their relationship grew, Cain had me swooning!

This is a feel good story that I will read again and again!

I loved this take on My Fair Lady, though I wished it didn't reference it so much in the book. I felt that by mentioning he was getting 'my fair lady-ed' took the fun out of the situation and though some of the circumstances were the same, it wasn't completely. Otherwise, a fun read.

I think this was one of my favorite Lauren Layne books ever, and I think it was one of her best written. There were a lot of really good, intricate details, the characters were really well developed and it wasn't a corny romance. "Made in Manhattan" made me really happy, brought a smile to my face, and is a great, quick read to pull you out of a slump!

A reverse My Fair Lady in modern times written by the wonderful Lauren Layne is just the book for any romance addict. A story of a man who is more comfortable in jeans being transformed into a gentleman by a grumpy pearl wearing socialite makes for a lighthearted and endearing story. I am a huge fan of this author. i loved this book.

There is something so special about the connections and love stories in Lauren Layne novels—and Made in Manhattan is no exception. The novel exploring the complicated and sometimes combative relationship between Violet and Cain is perfectly written and executed. The character development and growth of both main characters throughout the novel is so authentic. The reader really experiences the romance as it moves from curiosity and butterflies to heart-pounding and deep love. Made in Manhattan is another beautiful novel gifted to readers by Lauren Layne.

4.5/5

Made in Manhattan by Lauren Layne is just what I needed at the moment, and it totally made me question why I haven't read Layne's entire backlist already. I have had her Central Park Pact series on my TBR for quite some time and I absolutely adored To Sir, with Love, so it isn't really a shock that I loved this one so much. I really enjoyed the banter between Violet and Cain, and there were so many laugh-out-loud moments that I loved. There was also something great about the juxtaposition of a guy from New Orleans clashing with a girl from Upper East Side Manhattan. I thought the play on this title from the movie Maid in Manhattan was really fun as well, although I have no idea if it was intentional in the slightest.

One of the best parts for me ended up being the audiobook which is narrated by Sura Siu. She was such a joy to listen to and I thought she captured the feel of the book and the character's personalities perfectly. And while I highly recommend the audio, I am really just going to be recommending Made in Manhattan to everyone who loves a nice, light romcom with endearing characters. There is also a deepness to the story that really hit me where it counts, and while it is light like I said, there is just enough of the emotional as well. Once I started this, I didn't want to put it down, and I honestly think I might need to start calling Cain my book boyfriend. As a thriller lover, it is always hard for me to pinpoint one, but he was pretty great and exactly what I would want in a man. If I wasn't married of course. ;)

Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for my advanced listening and digital copies of this book. All opinions and thoughts are my own.

I loved the grumpy/sunshine trope here between Cain and Violet! This gender-reversed retelling of My Fair Lady was a fun and fast read. While I wish it had been steamier because there was fantastic chemistry between the MCs, what I loved most was seeing Violet's character development and how she finally let herself open up and discover who she is and what she wants. This book gave me all the butterflies! Another great read by Lauren Layne.

Such high hopes for this "reverse My Fair Lady" RomCom. But I was utterly disappointed.

It wasn't funny, so take the Com out of it. It wasn't romantic, so take the Rom out of it.

Huge lack of chemistry, unless him calling her 'Duchess' all the time is supposed to be spicy. It wasn't.

And being pissed all through the story because you inherited a billion dollar company from a family that didn't know about or recognize your existence is such a huge problem and excuses you being a complete asshat? Boo-hoo. No, it doesn't. Take the money and run then if you have such a problem with it dude. Geez.

Superficial characters, superficial plot. Cover is beautiful though!

This is a book that I think we see a lot of character growth, but somehow I was still disappointed. Violet seems to have her realization relatively fast, and does make some changes, but really I just wanted more. I wanted more of an ending, and an epilogue that wasn't quite so far out. ⭐️⭐️⭐️. Read if you love the Manhattan socialite scene.

Violet has always worked hard to please everyone around her, but mostly her grandmother. After her grandmothers passing, her best friend Edith takes Violet under her wing. She has a big ask now however. Edith’s son passed away recently leaving no legacy to take over the family business. Lucky for Edith, while going through her sons things she found out she has a grandson. Now she just needs Violet to teach the man how to become CEO, starting with dressing him correctly and traching him proper manners. Needless to say, New Orleans Cain is not a fan of any of it.

My first Lauren Layne novel was To Sir, With Love and I absolutely adored it! After reading this one I can gladly say that Lauren Layne is a new auto buy author for me. I fly through her books and the stories are just perfection. I love the mix of Manhattan with New Orleans, especially since I was just in New Orleans recently! This book was just the perfect rom com and exactly what I needed this weekend!

Lauren Layne is that classic romcom author that I will come back to again and again because everything she writes is like a cup of hot tea. You know that her stories will be reliable on charm, fun, and romance with a dash of angst and sex.
Made in Manhattan is a gender bent Pygmalion. Lauren Layne even discusses it at the end of the book where she mentions she's written the classic story before but wanted to come back to it. This time, it's the guy who needs to fit in with society. Violet Townsend is tasked with making sure Cain Stone is ready to take over the company. The problem is that nobody knew Cain Stone existed until his father died. He's brash, foul-mouthed, and thinks jeans are fine for the board room. He's just in it for the money. Or is he?
Violet spends the book molding Cain to work with the elite but there's a twist. She starts to loosen up and understand the other side of things. That is one of the aspects that made me enjoy this book a lot more. They balance each other out as the story goes on. The sex is a little light but I expected that. Is the book formulaic in that they deny their feelings, go for it anyway, deny them again for angst, and get together at the last minute? Absolutely. That's why I loved it. As I said, Lauren Layne is predictable and I will come back to read every one of her stories because I know what I'll be getting.