Lizzie Blake's Best Mistake by Mazey Eddings was an okay read. Will I remember what it was about in a couple months? Probably not. I don't think there was anything in this book that made it original or different from other things like it.

It was just an okay read.

Lizzie Blake is such a fun heroine - she's sassy, sweet and just straight up hilarious. I really loved getting to know her and somewhat ended hoping there's more books with her in it because I just LOVED getting to know her.

Rake wasn't QUITE as much fun to get to know but I enjoyed him as well.

Their story is a fun one and there's definitely some spice so make sure you go into this knowing it is!

For anyone that's ever been told they are "too much"' this book will hit you in the feels.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Griffin for an eARC copy of this novel in exchange for my honest review.

SURPRISE PREGNANCY. Easily my least favorite trope. That coupled with the "evil ex" who got an abortion? Absolutely not. I couldn't get past it. DNF.

Seriously, I LOVED this book. As someone who has severe adhd, it affects so much including relationships. The only reason I am giving this a 4-star rating because pregnancy tropes almost always ruin books for me. Ryle is the man of every womans dreams. Mazey did a great job with Lizzies character development. I like that she went from extremely self-destructive and messy to loving herself more and less chaotic.

Content note: surprise pregnancy, abortion.

The year is 2022 and what we are not going to do is give the hero an evil ex that cheated and had a secret abortion. And we're certainly not going to do that in a surprise pregnancy book so we can contrast it to the heroine who, unlike the evil other woman, decides to keep it and includes him in the decision.

On a personal taste note, I hate that his name is Rake and that it's used to make a meta comment/joke about romance novels and Julia Quinn *insert "start the rapture" GIF* that one almost got me to DNF on page 6 and I sure wish I had.

Review copy provided by the publisher.

ETA: this is getting some traction so I want to clarify that this woman isn't a mustache-twirling villain, she's not even a character, really; she's backstory and her actions are used to explain why the hero has relationship hangups and also why he is so eager to uproot his life to be there during the pregnancy the moment he finds out about it. The book doesn't deliberately condemn her actions, but it's hard to not read it that way when the plot of the book is about a woman who makes the complete opposite choices. Perhaps with a different trope, this wouldn't be such an issue, but the book seems carelessly unaware of how that part can be read and it's hard to divorce this book from a genre that has a history of mishandling abortion and using it mostly to vilify female characters that aren't the MC, so even if that's not the intention here, that's how it comes across.

I really love this series. I really liked the way in which the author wrote about adult ADHD. This was a hit for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an eARC.

I received this book as an ARC from NetGalley.

NOTE: This is book #2 in the A Brush With Love series.

Lizzie Blake is a hot mess - disorganized, promiscuous, setting food on fire from her distractions, etc. Lizzie has adult ADHD and is struggling - big time. Due to family history, she does not let people close to her - she is a wham bam thank you sir kind of gal, no one is allowed a repeat performance.

Rake is an Australian in Philadelphia on business out for the night with his business associates when a hot redhead with eyes that suck you in, talks to him at the bar. He, too, is not one for relationships after being humiliated by his ex. However, Rake & Lizzie's heat is so hot, that they end up having a two-night stand and then he heads back to Australia. Neither one can forget the other. Fast forward two weeks - SURPRISE! She is pregnant - did you know condoms can expire??

What comes next is an unfolding story of love, acceptance, fighting for what you believe in, and learning to love yourself so that you can love others.

I am looking forward to book #3.

I loved this book so much. The writing just clicked with me. I really enjoyed the relationship and also the ADHD representation. It definitely made me feel seen. Lizzie and Rake were so cute together and I listened to this audiobook in like one day. 10/10 would recommend.

<i>Thank you SO MUCH to the publisher and author for giving me a review copy in exchange for an honest review.</i>

Y'ALL. I did not expect this book.

I honestly did not. I liked the first book well enough (this series follows a friendship of girls and this is the second one), I gave it four stars, but THIS ONE? THIS. BOOK. WAS. AMAZING. It. literally came out of nowhere, I swear. You have your ADHD, sex-positive, beautiful protagonist and your accent-having, caring and understanding love interest. Then there is a one-night stand that will change literally everything. Enter all the chaos of not really knowing each other, one bed, awkward first impressions and sex bakeries.

I don't rate a lot of romantic comedies as five stars, but when I do I HIGHLY OBSESS over it. It is a week later and I am still giggling from some of the scenes. Mazey does not hold back when it comes to second-hand embarrassment.

I am not going to go too much into this, because it's a rom com and those are better left going in blind. Just know this is 100% endorsed by ME.

I really enjoyed this story! The nuerodiversity representation was very powerful. Of course, I’m glad the love story worked out, but even more so I’m glad Lizzie found a place to work that really supported her both creatively and emotionally. It was a really sweet story and the connection to the topic from the author was very special.

Just like a brush with love this book was a little hard to get through at times- a little slow: I love the ADHD representation in it and just the overall way the author goes about things so I have to add a couple points for that. I’m overall glad I finished through with it and gave it a chance. It was a good contemporary read :)

What a lovely story! This book is beautifully written, and the character development was excellent. This was a fun romance full of humor and lovable characters. I was engrossed from the first page and it ticked all the boxes of my expectations . I would definitely recommend to others.

This book was so good! I loved the fact that the main character has ADHD and really showed what life could be like for someone with it. As someone whose husband has it, this was eye opening. The story was cute and funny and I just loved the characters! It made me happy, too, that Lizzie learned so much about herself, how to open up to others and be who she is, and to let others help her when she needs it most. I absolutely loved this book!

4.5/5 stars

This book was fantastic! I really enjoyed the author’s writing style and look forward to reading more from her!

I just adored A Brush with Love, so naturally when I saw Lizzie available for review I JUMPED on it, and it did not disappoint.

We met Lizzie in Book #1 as a scattered, flighty BFF to the main character. She was lovable and unforgettable, so it's natural she'd get her own book. Her ADHD has caused chaos in her life - she can't keep a job or a schedule, and relationships are near impossible. While waiting on yet another uninteresting blind internet date, Lizzie meets Australian hunk, Rake, by chance. Their chemistry is palpable, so she decides to take a chance on him (if only for the weekend).

Rake is only in town for a work trip, but charming Lizzie has his formidable walls dissolving. When weeks later she tells him that she's pregnant, he immediately decides to relocate to Chicago so they can raise the baby together. The catch? They both decide to put aside their sparkling chemistry in favor of a mature, responsible platonic relationship.

Watching these two tiptoe around their attraction was so fun! Witty banter, steamy scenes and playful friendship make this a must read.

Thanks to Netgalley, St. Martin's press and the author for an early copy to review.

Fairly quick read. Though I wish I had read the first book in the series first. But it was still a good and enjoyable read.

This book was steamy, fun and chaotic! I loved it. I hated the conflict, it honestly felt a bit forced (but I have to say I hate most 3rd act breakups so that did not deter my love for this book at all.)

Thank you #netgalley for an early read of #lizzieblakesbestmistake

Honestly I didn’t love a brush with love but I loved this one!!! 4 star read for me! Would’ve been 5 but I didn’t like the ending and I was kinda hoping for a marriage but I would definitely reccomend to friends

This was really cute. I'm usually not a fan of pregnancy tropes but this book managed to pull it off. I would say it was pretty slow in some portions and I definitely got mad at the main character every now and then, but overall it was enjoyable.

Maybe I’m just a sucker for babies in romance, but I honestly feel like this one topped A Brush With Love—which is impressive, because I really loved the first one! Anxiety and ADHD are both very close to me, and this representation is so well handled and thoughtful; I really love the way Mazey’s characters work through their issues in a nonlinear way that feels true to the actual progress and setbacks of living with mental disorders without ever acting like there’s something wrong with them. Also, yes Lizzie for standing up to your mom!! Too many toxic parents are forgiven in fiction, and her “I love you but don’t want you in my life” stance felt so healthy and refreshing, especially compared to the healing relationship with her brother.

Rake is just the sweetest, and while I understand his backstory rubbed some readers the wrong way, I personally feel like it was handled pretty well. My only real issue was the third act not quite working for me—I understood where Lizzie was coming from, but found myself frustrated by the way she continued to drag the issue out. This was a small thing though, and didn’t really dampen my enjoyment of the story.

Overall a solid story, lovely romance, and wonderful mental health rep! I’m looking forward to the next book in this series.