I liked our main character, Addie from the start. After we get walked through her "delinquent" forgery of essays, we quickly are introduced to Addie's high school lover (on only one occasion before he left for college), Declan. From there I could feel the high stakes heist vibes that had me excited to keep reading. What starts out as a blackmail mission/make-over romcom quickly became a spicy mess of a book. I'm going to be honest, I didn't thoroughly read through the description of this book on Netgalley so I was a bit taken by surprise when it started getting erotic. Not a bad surprise though if i may so, though.

The pace of this book was quick, engaging and easy to keep up with. It had a clear timeline and a simple flow to its plot. Throughout the book we are dealing with a dual life. Addie has to balance her college life full of the papers she still owes, her own assignments leading her to graduate, family drama, and Declan's threat of expulsion which bleeds into her new life Declan threw her into. This life consists of all the glitz and glam of the upper life and art dealers. Oh, and the super hot art dealer himself, Jack Nolan, that despite all of Declan's warnings about Addie can't help be drawn into. Because, he's hot, mature, and not the picture Declan painted. It's definitely a lot for one college senior to balance. There is a lot going on in the plot line but it is seamless and incredibly entertaining.

I'm once again going to have to be honest...I have never read an erotic book. This was my first one. Let me tell you, there is a good amount of hot and steamy in this book but the fact that it is still plot driven helped balance it out for me and my tastes. One thing I will point out and need people to be aware of is this book's TRIGGER WARNING - suicide is involved in the plot.

Addie, Declan and Jack Nolan are the big three for us here. Addie is a college senior, stripped of her inheritance after her parents died and in her desperation to pay for and finish college, she writes other student's papers for money. While I might not condone her methods of earning college funding (as she later also gets paid to be an escort to Jack Nolan), I do applaud her determination and drive. I myself had to pay college myself and boy, is it a hard thing to do. She is witty, charming, and your average girl. She has insecurities, trouble with moral judgement, and many self doubts. She is beautifully and wonderfully normal, making her that much easier to relate to.

Declan is Addie's first but most recently her blackmailer. Under the threat of turning her in for her college "job", he enlists her in his own scheme of revenge on Jack Nolan- an older gentleman with a high society reputation of being one of the best art dealers and curators. Declan plays a much smaller part than I thought he would but his presence never fails to have you feeling Addie's anxiety and pressure. He is a genius artist and the biggest pain in the side. Jack Nolan is hot and...more charming than we are lead to believe. Each character are tightly intertwined in the best and worst ways possible. They were a perfect compliment to each other's characters for plot and development.

This is a new adult/adult read so things get pretty spicy. I wouldn't say XXX rating but a generous R rating. It was hot but it wasn't the main drive of the story. It had purpose to the plot and the character's development. Overall, I enjoyed every aspect of this book. A good four star read!

What was missing to make it a 5 star read? It lost me a bit about 3/4 in. I think it was the Declan aspect that every now and then popped up as an unsteady reminder that this was not just a romance book and had a very dreaded expiration date on happiness. This of course is part of the plot and much needed to have the book make sense from beginning to end. However, I feel like it could have been a bit more seamless. It felt a bit too rushed in the end.

Thank you Netgalley and publisher for providing me this book in exchange for an honest review. The things that drew me into requesting this book was the description and lovely book cover. After I was approved it took me a little bit to officially pick it up but shortly after I quickly was sucked into this book. You get introduce to three main characters in this series Addie, Jack and Declan. Addie is a college student looking to find a way to afford paying for her schooling. She does so by writing papers for other college students. She eventually gets caught by her TA Declan and instead of turning her in he plans to use her to get back paintings that were stolen from him. This is where Jack comes along a much older man who runs art galleries and expos and the person who stole Jacks paintings. Addie is informed that Jack makes contracts with women so he can have a piece of arm candy and she can get paid. As the story progresses so do the demands and relationships within the book. Everyone in the book has a secret or two and its only a matter of time before something gets out and could ruin everything for Addie.

I really enjoyed the writing in this book and for the most part I enjoyed the characters and getting to know them. I rate this book 4/5 stars and if you like age gaps, blackmailing, contracted relationships this book is for you.

Initially I was drawn in by the cover and decided to dive in after reading some reviews and the summary. After reading so many describe this as “scandalous”… I was expecting more. It’s not that the story wasn’t filled with manipulation, sex, and conflict, but more that it all felt contrived. After the first half I kind of did a speed read to the end to get through it because I wanted to roll my eyes at so much of it. Mental health was used as a plot device in a way that didn’t sit right with me and so much of this just felt like it belonged on a bad 90s movie.

A captivating debut novel!

I decided to read this on a whim, and I’m so glad I did! It’s well-written and captures the feelings the story tries to convey. The book is more emotionally charged than I anticipated, which is a pleasant surprise. It expresses how complicated family relationships can be and how words and misunderstandings can shape our decisions positively or negatively. I empathize with Adelaide, who seems never to get a break. She’s far from perfect, but her actions don’t frustrate me because I can understand her actions and her indecisions. I like Jack as well, more and more as the story progresses. Do note that the story has the following:

- age gap romance (22 to his 38)
- blackmail
- talk of suicide, mental health
- death of loved ones (happened before the timeline)

Thank you, NetGalley and Marmack Books, for the e-ARC.

Rules of Arrangement is the first novel by Maren Mackenzie, but for a first book it is extremely well written! Sometimes it takes some chapters to get fully acquainted with the characters and to get sucked in to the plot… It was not the case with this one! Without giving much away, the story revolves around Adelaide Wright, a 22-year-old student at Cranst University. Adelaide has a little side-hustle writing papers for other students to pay for college. It seemed like Adelaide would make it to graduation day without being exposed, but a chance encounter with her childhood crush turns Adelaide’s world upside down and no amount of Peach Schnapps will get her through it. Declan, her old neighbor, proposes a deal to avoid exposing her to the University, but will the art dealer Jack Nolan prove even more ruthless than Declan?
I loved every part of this story! It had the right amount of steamy and sexy scenes, that were so well writen and so easy to imagine (which is always a nice bonus with this type of romance books! We all know why why we keep reading them!!). I sort of felt bad for Declan, but Jack and Adelaide were perfection… And most of all, this book made me feel so many emotions, a real rollercoaster that I would certainly embark on again! If you don’t know what to read next, I highly recommend starting with Rules of Arrangement! It is already published, and it is the sort of book that you’ll read in 2/3 days without even noticing it ;)

This wasn’t quite what I expected from the blurb. College senior Adelaide gets blackmailed into catching the eye of Jack, a high-powered art dealer who’s known for having paid girlfriends. But she has to protect her heart when she gets to know the man behind his icy public persona.

This book was more serious and emotional than it looked. It’s got a few steamy scenes (but definitely didn’t belong in the erotica category on Netgalley). I enjoyed it more than I thought I would. The age gap between Adelaide and Jack was a little uncomfortable. Even though he calls her an “old soul”, she’s still 22 to his 38. Both of them have some serious family trauma to deal with.

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

I dived into the book solely because of the beautiful cover. It is so intriguing and exquisite- I couldn’t stop myself from devouring this book.

I completed this book in one and a half day, binge reading all of it in a go.

The story is exceptionally well written with characters that are so realistic. I loved the scenes where her brother was coming and trying to like maintain the peace. And OMG THE SCENE WHERE SHE FINDS OUT THE TRUTH IN THE HOSPITAL

My heart was in my throat wondering what will happen next.

What I didn’t like is that their reunion/resolving issues happened when she got injured. There could have been a better scenario. (This is my personal opinion. I don’t like guys/girls coming back after a fight just because their partner was injured)

Apart from that, this was an amazing read!

What a wonderful debut novel! Overall it was a very fun read that is easy to fall into and be full immersed in.

I found myself simultaneously rooting for and suspicious of all the characters the entire time - and loved every single moment of it.

Jack and Declan’s character arcs were completely unexpected and the constant questioning of both their intentions mixed with the building dread of doom looming over everything made it that much more enjoyable.

Jack and Adelaide’s dynamic was a whiplash of emotions from start to finish. I felt that most of their relationship was based off of sexual tension and desires rather than genuine connection - but it was done in a way that felt purposeful and made sense for them both individually and together given their circumstances, age-gap, and personalities.

I was expecting more art-heist and scandalous plot points overall, but still enjoyed the book nonetheless.

I am so eager to continue reading more of Maren Mackenzie’s work after this and will highly recommend this book moving forward!

Thank you NetGalley and the publishers for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Rules of Arrangement is a steamy suspense/romance about a college student, Addie, running a paper selling business to fund her way through college, which eventually results in her being blackmailed by a former classmate, Declan, into entangling herself with a wealthy benefactor, Jack, as a means for Declan to seek revenge on Jack. Addie finds herself unable to separate her emotions from her transactional relationship with Jack nor entirely resent and vilify Declan. There are some heavy moments, so this isn't a light, fluffy romance, but it is a quick, fast-paced read.

I could not put this one down. I loved the way the author wrote the dynamics of this family and it was easy to understand Charlie's desperation. It was very propulsive. I had to know what was going to happen and I stayed up much too late reading it. I like the romance, but i could have done with more to explain why Jack was so drawn in by Charlie and what it was that kept him coming back. Overall I liked their story and I appreciate that they both made their mistakes and that the story took on forgiveness in many different layers.

I cannot overstate how much I loved this book. I was drawn in by the summary and the gorgeous cover and I was not disappointed.

Some highlights:
- The description and emotion of the family dynamic; families are complicated, especially when dealing with trauma and grief. I thought that the author did a great job of showing three different perspectives from Adelaide, Michael, and Samantha of how humans deal with family loss.
- Balance of the relationship between Jack and Adelaide. I had so much fun seeing Adelaide challenge Jack when he's seemingly surrounded by yes-people. The chemistry was off the charts.
- The pacing and development of the story was wonderful. I was never bored and always looking forward to what the next chapter would bring. I also appreciated the element of mystery in recovering the paintings as well as Jack and Adelaide's past.
- The plot was really unique and I so appreciate a romance book that doesn't have a high degree of predictability through it. Obvi I want a HEA in any book, but this was a serious page turner because I genuinely did not know what was coming next. I was so invested in all of the characters and found myself rooting for all of them.
- Jack. Everything about Jack. Period.

tl;dr: Maren Mackenzie knocked it out of the park with this novel!!

It's a good read if you love the genre. Gives exactly what it says it will give, nothing more, nothing less. I'd recommend it for a quick read!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with this eArc in exchange for an honest review.

I have mixed feelings on this as it deals with contracts leading to romance and love. I feel like I liked the characters but did not love them.

dnf; was hugely turned off by the amount of commentary on how the mc was very young in comparison to the li, and how “men her age” were never good enough. i’m sure thing is someone’s thing but it’s really not mine.

I absolutely loved this book! From start to finish, this novel was face paced and engaging; I couldn't put it down. The plot had just enough twists and turns to keep me guessing, but not so many I would get lost along the way and lose focus.

Maren Mackenzie poses a typical college student, Adelaide, faced with something we can all understand and provide sympathy for: looming debt and the fear of where that next paycheck comes from. Adelaide resorts to her own personal strengths--writing--and finds herself at the center of a semi-illegal business. Throughout the rest of the novel we get to experience Adelaide's resourcefulness play through while she tries to balance a new double life.

When Declan, an old friend with a shared history, resurfaces on Adelaide's domain, Adelaide shifts her financial gains focus to more pressing matters. She agrees to aid in Declan's scheme of seducing a well-off, highbrow art enthusiast. Adelaide's only goal: retrieve the lost paintings and help her friend find his spark for creating art again. The only problem? Jack Nolan, preconceived art snob, may not be as cold and appalling as Declan has made him out to be. Becoming increasingly intertwined in a web of lies created by both her and Declan, we bear witness to Adelaide push back against each force waiting and wanting her to fail.

In this novel, Mackenzie has created many complex characters who we get to befriend, empathize, and learn with. Adelaide's character teaches us how intricate and messy family life can be. Declan shows us it's okay to reach out and ask for help when you are struggling because there are always people around you who want to help. Jack exemplifies the epitome of not judging a book by its cover; there is always more to be discovered when you take the chance to get to know someone.

This book deals with mental health, independence, and estrangement. Maren Mackenzie does an commendable job taking each for what they are and showing readers to embrace who they are, and to go out and claim what they want.

Thank you Netgalley for sending me an arc in exchange for my honest review.

Oookaaay. Im going to talk a little bit much about this book. First of all it was a good book. Was it perfect? No. Was it not perfect? Also no. Lol I know it gets confusing.

When I started to read all i can think about is Fifty Shades series. Because you see, theres an arrangment and that totally gives fifty shades vibes. Also Jack Nolan is a Christian Grey kind. Yes, like i said, at first i thought it was going to be like fifty shades. Bu i was wrong. Yeah there are a lot of smilarities but when you go through the pages you see the difference.

Jack and Adelaide has so much chemistry. You can feel it at the very moment they met. I am not going to talk about the main things in the book because it can give you guys so much spoilers. All i can say is there are secrets. You learn some of them while you read. But theres two of them which was really surprising. I was like, what the hell? Totaly plot twist. I liked it btw. Its not just a regular love story.

Also theres a +18 stuff in the book and i like the authors writing way about it. It was not that much but also not less. She make it worth it lol.

I really enjoy the time i read this book but the ending has a little problem.
First of all it was too fast. Second of all it was too short. I wanted to read epilouge about it but there werent any. Third of all, I couldnt feel the love. I mean okay theres a sexual tension and a lot of chemistry but where are the feelings? I just couldnt feel it. So yeah i liked this book but i dont addore it. If you have time and you want to get out of reading slump its a good choice...

There is points in this book that I really enjoyed! The smut was pretty good and the plot was interesting. What I had a hard time with is the relationship between the main character and two “love” interest. Both ended up being a little toxic at some point and I am not sure if the conclusion fixed that. I still want to give it a 3.5 ⭐️, but there was just something’s that rubbed me the wrong way.

MY FAVOURITE FIND OF THE YEAR!

I loved everything about this book, it's more high art than your beloved erotic romance novel and juicier than your favourite rom-com! The characters, the love story, all of it - chef’s kiss!

If you are in the market for a dazzling hidden gem of a novel with a beautiful cover written by a first time writer that you can buy millions of copies off for all your friends… this is the one for you!

*** I received an early complimentary copy of this book. The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own

This book was given to me by netgalley, this is an honest review and all options are 100% of my own and freely given.

Tw: for talk of suicide and mental health (in book and review)

Tropes: age gap, forbidden love, fake dating

This book made my heart ache for the main character. Adelaide is a young adult of 22 years of age, that is just trying to make it through college. But when a not so smart decision of writing papers for other students cones to bite her in the butt. Especially when the old boy next door who had once been a lover comes back into the picture. He ends up being the teachers aid.he finds out about her side Hussle and decides to use this against her. he uses this to blackmail her into seducing the art dealer he thinks stole his art work.

This book was captivating, with fake dating turning into the real thing and an age gap romance. The authors writing is amazing and fulfilling, and left me wanting to read more. It definitely made me want to consume the story and made me want to keep turning the pages.

I want to also touch on how relatable the characters are and the mental health situations are. It also shows how important it is to reach out to someone or to help someone when you notice they or yourself are having a mental health crisis. Please call the hotlines or talk to someone! You are not alone.

This book was full of secrets, betrayal, lies, blackmail, forbidden love, drama, emotional journey, mental health awareness, trust building, suspense, a detective adventure, character building and self growth. Kept me on my toes!

This was not at all what I expected and I ended up loving it. The characters were great and the story was engaging. So much so, that I finished it in a day. Will definitely recommend.