Loved the concept of it, but I still couldn’t connect with any of the characters but still really happy I feel like i wasted my time reading. Still enjoyed the banter and the smut but like I said just an enjoyable fast read. Loved the feminism though!

This book is great! Would definitely recommend. Thanks so much to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

What a real life yet fictional couple we have here. Nina and Leo are wonderful fun and relatable too. Anyone who suffers with panic attacks will immediately recognize Leo and how his mind works. He and Nina have been mean to each other as a way to deal with their own insecurities and also an attraction to each other. Two totally relatable characters in a well told story make an enjoyable read.

#Netgalley #ForButterorWorse. #ErinLaRosa.

I'm not going to post a review on Goodreads or anywhere else online, but I did not enjoy this writing style. It just was not for me! The premise is interesting, and I tried to finish, but could not.

This was a fun enemies to lovers romcom. Nina and Leo end up as local celebrities thanks to their televised cooking show. They then agree to fake date to build more buzz about their floundering restaurants. Of course they begin to see better qualities in each other. I loved the banter between the characters. Check this out if you are planning to read a romcom.

This book was so cute, and was such a fun read, I highly recommend! The plot kept me hooked in, and the banter between the characters was so entertaining. All the characters were so well developed. I love this book so much, 5/5 stars!

I adored this book! I absolutely loved the cute, fake dating romance and all the fun characters, and the anxiety rep was very well done. I do wish we could have seen a little more of their “fake“ dates but overall I thought the pacing was really great. Overall, a really sweet read!

The cover drew me in, but the story turned into a perfectly witty, delicious book that is set in the culinary world (a favorite of mine). I really felt Nina and Leo’s struggles and their relationship was very relatable. This book is perfect for someone who likes the enemies to lovers trope, a slow burn, fake dating and a hint of spice.

Erin La Rosa is a newly discovered author to me and I am excited to read her future works. I would love to see some more stories with the side characters so we can get to know them better!

I want to thank NetGalley, Erin La Rosa and Harlequin Trade Publishing, HQN for the e-ARC of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are honest, my own and left voluntarily.

For Butter or Worse by Erin La Rosa is a rom-com novel that mixes in two romance tropes. The story is an enemies to lovers romance that brings those enemies closer together as they find they need to fake date one another. It’s also one that changes the point of view giving both sides of the story.

Nina Lyon is a chef that found herself rising to fame when she began hosting the television show, The Next Cooking Champ! Nina’s time on the show hasn’t been easy though being paired with Leo O’Donnell hosting so Nina has made the huge decision to pull out of the show.

After wrapping up her time with Leo though Nina finds that the public isn’t exactly on her side and Nina isn’t sure what to do. However, when Nina runs into Leo and the two end up photographed in what appeared to be a compromising position it becomes apparent the public would love to see the together and a little pretending may help both of their careers.

I have to say I really wondered if I would like For Butter or Worse by Erin La Rosa but the fake dating side is one of my favorites so I took the chance despite not being a huge fan of enemies to lovers. When finished with For Butter or Worse I was really glad I did pick it up as it was a really fun read that did have me laughing but also got me to root for our enemies too. Along with having some laughs this one also had a deeper side to it that also made the pages turn and all sides to the story wrapped up together nicely making me add this author to my list to read again someday.

I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.

The premise of this book was a recipe that included all my favorite rom-com recipes: enemies to lovers, fake dating, cooking! But I ended up not enjoying it as much as I wanted.

The enemies part was so convincingly done, with Nina being so spiteful and Leo being so sexist, that I actually didn't really like them as the story went on. They both seemed so selfish in what they demanded from the other, especially on Nina's part with all of the unaccepted apologies, that I was put off...it's not my idea of romance to make each other grovel.

The development of feelings between the two MCs seemed flimsy, like she shared that her mom had died, he shared he had anxiety, and now they care about each other? Like, I still don't know why Nina fell for Leo, other than his pecs and waffle iron abs.

The spicy scenes were meh. And then when Nina explicitly sets the boundary that she and Leo are just in a casual relationship, and then later becomes upset that they aren't emotionally connected, it was so frustrating, as were the continuous misunderstandings.

I liked the side characters, and there was a lot of diversity representation. The struggles of a female chef in a male-dominated career field was a major theme as well.

I really wanted to love this one, but I just didn't feel the characters were loveable enough for me to care about their HEA.

This book did enemies to lovers to perfection. The animosity was just right, the tension drawn out to the exact amount that I got impatient but not annoyed, and the chemistry was palpable. I loved this book so much!!!

For Butter or Worse was so well written. Let's start with the punny title. Im a sucker for a good pun. It had all my favorite tropes-fake dating and enemies to lovers. And as a foodie, this book was everything. It made me hungry at times lol. Nina and Leo were perfect together. I also really appreciated the classic rom com vibes, the mental health representation and conversation. I could see myself in these characters at times. Im looking forward to reading more from this author

This was a cute and funny rom-com that incorporates cooking and the beloved enemies to lovers trope. I love cooking shows and rom-coms so I was excited about this one. I love how the male main character fell in love first but didn't know how to show he cared without picking at the female main character. The writing was good and I felt the pace of the book was a nice one, it didn't drag.

Overall, I rated this book 3.5 stars. I had a hard time getting into it for some reason. It's hard to put my finger on exactly how I feel about the book - the tropes were well defined: enemies to lovers with a fake dating sub-trope. The pacing of the second half was more engaging for me than the first half. I felt a little disconnected from the characters in some portions of the story line and Leo's redemption arc was a little muddled to me. I think this was a well written book and have already added the second book in the series to my TBR list on Goodreads. Thank you to NetGalley and HQN for this review copy for me to read and provide thoughts on.

I absolutely loved Leo and Nina! Their banter and energy were great. I also loved that they both had very real problems that they were working on outside of their own conflict which provided a lot of body to the story. The build up to their romance as perfect and had me literally squealing. Can’t wait to see what Erin La Rosa comes up with next!

This book was just what I needed to get out of a reading slump, meaning it was fun and the chemistry was on point. Nina and Leo were a riot to read about, though the dialogue was a little over the top sometimes. Over all, it was a super enjoyable and fun read.

I love a good Belgian waffle, and on that waffle, I want to see the butter. Just a tiny bit of syrup, but visual butter. I love butter. 😂 For Butter or Worse is such a good title for this foodie rom com and Erin La Rosa’s fiction debut.

Nina is a trained chef trying hard to climb the culinary ladder in a male-dominated field. She’s currently a co-host of the reality show, The Next Cooking Champ. This may be her ticket to recognition. Leo, a restaurateur, is in her orbit on the show, and he’s always joking with Nina, which she doesn’t appreciate. This last joke makes her quit the show. The paparazzi catch them in what looks like a “secret romance,” and this may be what’s best for their careers to get a media boost, so they play the role. Their feelings come next, though.

The story is centered on fake dating and enemies to lovers tropes, which I enjoyed, as well as both Nina and Leo and their chemistry and banter. I also appreciated how anxiety was addressed. A steamy, entertaining love story!

I received a gifted copy.

Thank you NetGalley and publisher for this ARC publication for an honest review.

For Butter or Worse
by Erin La Rosa
Pub Date: 26 Jul 2022

I actually liked this a lot more than I thought! This was an enemy to lovers storyline with both heart and heat. Nina and Leo were so fun with the bickering and witty banter, and all their "non-dates." I was highly invested in both of them and loved watching the progression of their relationship. And all the food talk was a bonus!

I look forward to reading more from this author!

I’ve observed an emerging subgenre of romance defined by the presence of men apologizing. In many ways, this is refreshing and much appreciated; for eons tropes have revolved around women coming the see the correctness of a man, of eventually succumbing to the always-right man, of being educated by the much more qualified hero of the story. Not only does this “wear her down” trope play out spectacularly problematically in sexual contexts, but it also is just so tired. Romantic leads recognizing they’re wrong? Apologizing? Fantastic.
I think, however, as the novelty wears off, that this trope may lose its substance, and I’ve perhaps reached that point with For Butter of Worse. I wanted to like it. A long time issue with the enemies-to-lovers trope is the fake-enemies-to-lovers out there; you bait me with a little bit of initial rudeness, a meet-ugly, so to speak, but the protagonists get over this almost immediately, and they are really never enemies at all–I cry. Such is not the case here; Nina and Leo are aggressively enemies, that is for sure.
I’ve flown too close to the sun, it seems, though, because Nina and Leo are so brimming with hatred from each other (diction chosen intentionally–it's not dislike, it's not annoyance, it's hatred) that they are irredeemably horrible to each other. They are so horrible to each other that, by the time we get around to the lovers' part, the slow warming to each other and recognition of the other’s good qualities, rings hollow and unromantic. It seems that La Rosa is so set on making her love interest apologize she’s willing to have him commit pretty unforgivable acts just to warrant it. The accompanying apology train necessary to right the wrongs that occurred before they viewed each other as actual human beings left a sour taste in my mouth. Misogynistically slandering someone’s name? Ruining their career prospects? I don’t care how cute the apology is, you don’t belong together.
So I amend my prior wish. Apparently, I do not want just enemies–I want enemies who still have moral boundaries. Hold the knife to their throat, sure, but don’t actually stab them in any vital organs. I suppose La Rosa is to thank for this realization.
Thank you to Harlequin Trade Publishing and Netgalley for the ARC, gifted in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I thought I was going to love this one. A baking show with enemies to lovers co-hosts? Sign me up. That said the writing style really threw me off (was not a fan) and the pacing was not there. It was literally chapter one and barely had an enemy interaction when her internal monologue was already shifting to the lovers point of view.

I did not buy their relationship at all and the characters fell very flat for me. I also felt the use of the miscommunication trope in the last act caused unnecessary drama and forced a very rushed resolution.

Things I did like though: the representation of a man with anxiety/therapy. The interaction between the FMC and MMC after her dizzy spell was endearing. The hospital scene at the end was well written and I felt the emotion there.

Overall had to force myself to finish this one.