I truly was excited for the premise of this book, especially because I ADORE the enemies-to-lovers trope. Also, who doesn’t like cartoon romance book covers? That’s pretty much an insta-buy for me at this point.

Now on to the review….

I honestly could not stand the main character Posy and I found her impossible to root for. She just isn’t likable as a main character. For us readers, it’s really difficult to finish a book with characters that you despise and cannot relate too.

Since this was a debut and a new author, I try to look for potential in future books, but this was just a huge miss for me. In all honesty, I gave the extra star (more like a .5 star) because I asked myself, was there a possibility that the idea could have been great? Eh….Maybe 🤷🏻‍♀️

Thank you to NetGalley and publishers for providing an eArc in exchange for an honest review.

This started so well I was hooked from the start. I did think the ending was a little rushed and would have loved more detail towards the end. I did really enjoyed it, though.

I really wanted to enjoy this book, because the premise of it sounds so fun and exciting. But ultimately it just fell flat for me. The characters did not feel well written, and I just could not find myself liking and rooting for the main character. Posy. That just ruined the romance for me.

I really liked most of this book. A few times I felt as if I forced myself to read it as there were parts that were a little boring, long winded and felt they didn’t have to be in the story.
With that out of the way I definitely adored the opposites attract, class reunion romance. Very fresh and fun!

Rating: 1 out of 5 stars

this book took me so long to finish because I was sooooo bored the whole time. there was no build up. like tell me how the book was supposed to be slow burn but there was NO development between the characters? there was nothing to build them up to their feelings and to their alleged love for each other. like when did feelings start getting involved because they like never talked before they did it? very much disappointed.

Lucas and Posy were the head boy and girl of their school and hated one another. She was rich and he was "HelpBoy" because his parents worked at the school. Years later, Posy wants to invoke the bylaw that says if the head boy and girl marry, the school will pay for the wedding and honeymoon. This will allow both of them to benefit in their careers.

Because this was a romance, it was expected that Lucas and Posy would get involved. However, I was over sixty percent through the book when anything happened between them and if there were any signs that either had any interest before that, they were not big ones. I feel as though they went from "hate" to "together" way too fast.
The wedding planning was funny and I think Posy had a lot of growth throughout the story.

Thanks to NetGalley for this advanced copy in exchange for an honest review!

Whilst I didn't hate this book, I really despised the character of Posy. To the point of actually getting fed up. She was vapid, vile and I think when you read a romance novel like this, you really want to root for the characters. I wanted Lucas to run a mile. Cute concept, but would have liked Posy to be more likable.

This was a DNF for me. Which almost NEVER happens! Posy was just so unlikeable - I couldn't bear it.
The chemistry between Posy and Lucas is non existent. And the use of fat shaming and just downright mean "jokes" is not funny. at all. I understand this is a debut novel, so I'm hoping these are just some growing pains, but unfortunately, this book completely missed the mark for me.
Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins UK, One More Chapter, One More Chapter for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Book was a struggle to finish. No real likeable characters. Writing was good but the story was very blah. There wasn’t enough payoff at the end to make the struggle to finish worth it.

I was excited to be given early access to this book but was super disappointed. I usually love fake dating and enemies-to-lovers tropes, but this one really missed the mark. I've said it before, and I'll probably say it again, but a badly written character can make or break a book, and in this instance, it broke it. Posy is a horrible main character (whose personality contradicts itself based on who she interacts with) who is impossible to relate to. The story is also problematic because Lucas isn't a very likable character either, though not as bad as Posy. To be honest, there were parts that I had to skim just to finish it.


Note: Thank you to Netgalley & publishers for allowing me access to this arc in exchange for an honest review! Please note that all opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.

I wanted to start this review off by saying that this book is apparently the author's debut novel, and as such, I thought it was only right to make sure not to be so harsh when it comes to writing this book review. After all, the debut novels are always the hardest.

The premise of this book sounds like something I would definitely enjoy— rivals to lovers, fake dating trope etc. I was so excited when my request got accepted via NetGalley. However, this book did not do it for.

First let's talk about what I did like about this book; the tropes. I did like how the book used the rivals-to-lovers trope for the most part. There was some banter between the characters which was fun, and the build up of the relationship throughout the book was good. That being said, I felt like the characters lacked chemistry and that's where the romance fell short. For the most part, it was like reading two separate characters and their own stories run parallel throughout the book but they never really connected properly. This is why I wouldn't call this an enemies-to-lovers book because it missed what was vital to the relationship—the chemistry.

I also didn't like the constant fat shaming and jokes made throughout the book. To an extent, I understand that the author probably wanted to sprinkle some jokes here and there, but there was just far too many fat shaming jokes in this book that I was really uncomfortable. I also felt like the book could've been shortened by a bit and there were a few scenes that were unnecessary and seemed to only exist to fill a word count.

Lucas was a good character. He was likeable for the most part and seemed liked he had good character development by the end of the book. On the other hand, Posy was just straight up unlikeable and one dimensional from start to finish.

I truly wished I liked this book more. I know the author and everyone who hadn't a hand in publishing this book worked damn hard to publish this book.

2 stars.

Thank you Netgalley and HarperCollins UK, One More Chapter for this ARC of 'The Reunion' by Elizabeth Drummond in exchange for an honest book review

The premise of The Reunion first grabbed my attention. Posey Edwins and Lucas O'Rourke were opposites in school. At their ten-year reunion, they find nothing's changed...until Posey gets cut off from her family's fortune. And with a career opportunity on the line, she needs Lucas and a fake wedding to get her to Hawaii.

The ingredients were there for this to be a fun read, but it fell short. Overall, there were enjoyable moments in The Reunion, and I consider it a 3-star read.

I am not going to be able to finish this book unfortunately. It annoys me on so many levels, it's really unbearable. I don't want to force myself to finish it so I won't.
Posy is unbearable, one of the most annoying characters I've read about ever. She is so unlikeable, and not in a good way. Then we have the fat jokes, the hateful stereotypes and I just don't want to rile myself up anymore so I won't continue because this book is really not worth it.
It is definitely not worth anyone's time or money.

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

Two rivals, Ten years, and a high school reunion.

Ten years ago Lucas and Posy hated each other. But, as they reconnect at their high school reunion, they start to realize those feelings of hate might be turning into something more. A snobby rich girl, and a hard working scholarship guy are both facing hardships in their life and together as they reflect on the past years and look forward they start to wonder if their feelings for eachother could be something.

Honestly, this was not my favorite book. It was slow at the beginning and I REALLY did not like Posy. She was entitled and had no experience doing anything for herself. But as the book went on, the pacing got better. If only the beginning of this book was like the last half.

Overall, it was a cute and decent read.

The Reunion by Elizabeth Drummond was an easy read, albeit one with unbelievable plot. The main characters Posy and Lucas, from opposite ends of the socio-economic spectrum had gone to school together and were enemies. Fast forward to their 10 year high school reunion and Posy recently cut off financially by her wealthy father, needs to come up with the money to book a trip to Hawaii. Posy convinces Lucas to pretend they are getting married, to get their alma mater to pay for the wedding based on a long-forgotten clause in the schools bylaws.

Thank you to NetGalley, Harper Collins UK, One More Chapter and Elizabeth Drummond for an eARC of this book, in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and One More Chapter for the chance to read this ARC!

The Reunion is a charming, enemies-to-lovers story with a unique twist. Posy and Lucas hated each other in school but a chance encounter at their 10-year reunion changes everything. They realize that they can help each other amidst some hard life circumstances at the expense of their old school. This book was an easy read but I wish the main characters had a bit more depth to them. Parts of the story felt rushed and there are a few stereotypes that bothered me a bit but I did enjoy the writing style. Overall, it was a light read perfect for a lazy rainy day or a day at the beach!

This is a cute book if you enjoy the enemies to lovers trope! I enjoyed how different Posy and Lucas were — I really enjoyed their back and forth banter while being able to appreciate their individual personality quirks! This was a quick, fun read and another book that’s making me fall more in love with rom com books!

The Reunion by Elizabeth Drummond

Who: Former high school classmates Posy Edwins and Lucas O’Rourke.

What: A crackling romance.

When: Modern day.

Where: UK, specifically England

How: Posy, newly cut off by her wealthy father, needs to book a flight to Hawaii for a photography convention to get her career off the ground. Posy enlists Lucas’s help to defraud their alma mater, a private school, by taking advantage of long-forgotten clause in its charter: if the Head Boy and Head Girl of a graduating class ever marry, the school is liable to pay for the wedding. Lucas agrees to pretend to marry her to get cash from the school, which Posy will use for her plane ticket, and Posy promises to help connect Lucas with her family’s rich associates to boost his client base for his wealth management company.

What I Thought:
I’m only recently on the romantic comedy book train, and I really wanted to enjoy Elizabeth Drummond’s debut. There are a lot of familiar tropes in romantic novels, including enemies-to-lovers and fake dating, and many of them are at play in this particular book.

A significant portion of the plot revolves around economic shaming: both of Lucas’s parents worked at the elite private school where Posy and Lucas first met, and his nickname was “Helpboy.” Talk about revolting. Posy’s family has a toxic habit of referring to her by the nickname “Hurricane,” referring to the fact that her life is generally a mess and that she leaves messes and chaos in her wake. I almost didn’t make it through the first few chapters, to be honest – the “we only tease you because we love you!” attitude that Posy’s family hides behind hit a little too close to home for me.

The characters did their best to rescue this book: Lucas was really well-developed, as was his family, but Posy was sort of flat and hard to relate to, as she only really treated a few people kindly (including her bestie, Tara, who STOLE THE SHOW. Can we please have a book about Tara?)

There were a few points in the book where I felt kind of emotionally invested; sadly, it just wasn’t the book for me overall.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC of this book!

If you can suspend belief you'll likely enjoy this story. I unfortunately struggled.

I also never felt the chemistry, things felt very rushed, then very slow, then wrapped up too quickly.

Just not for me and unfortunately moving on.

The Reunion was an adorable and heartwarming take on an enemies to lovers trope. Posy and Lucas are charming, funny, and adorable. The book was a quick read that kept you engaged and interested.