This book has changed me, irrevocably. Ever heard of those books that make you look at things differently? This book has changed how I look at my entire life. And that’s not overstating it, I can assure you. And let me just grab some eye drops before I start this review because this book has made me cry so much (multiple times, at that), my eyes hurt. 🥲

The book is bittersweet and induces an ache in your liver (read the book for reference 😉). Tom and Jules’ chemistry is sizzling, but there’s something else you can’t name albeit the knowledge that it exists. There’s something so beautiful about their connection, as rivals, enemies, friends, lovers, that makes you swoon. And their banter, oh, it made me snort so hard my friends kicked me out of the room. 😐

And did I mention it yet? Jules is the CEO of a tech startup, GoodGuides, which she started with her best friend, Alan. She dresses up and who she wants to be, and she stands up to tech bros like a pro. Yeah, total girl boss! 🥵

I especially love Alan, Dr. Abebe, and Stewart and how the author has appreciated all people involved in a patient’s journey. I’m sure a lot of these details are fictitious, as presented in the author’s note, but I can’t help but wonder if she had similar people who supported her, I hope she did. 🥺

This book gives you a new perspective on life, a new perspective on people battling for their life every single day, and though the book doesn’t stress it, it provides a fair glance at how crooked the foster system and manipulative families can be. If one thing, I would love to recommend this book to everyone who wants a fresh start but is too afraid to grab it. And to everyone who’s struggling, I’m here for you 🤍

Enemies to Lover and Office Romance in one.

"I guess that's the ironic thing about facing death-- there's no better crash course in learning how to live"

The story was quite predictable at some parts but nonetheless I still enjoyed reading it.
I like how the novel showed that despite the cruelty we see within the world around us, there are still people who show humanity to help people especially to those people who are striving to expand their lives, to recover from a deadly disease.

"life doesnt have to be perfect to collect perfect moments"

I like how the characters find comfor in each other and facing the storm

- Enemies to lovers
- Office romance
- Chronic medical issues
- Grumpy/sunshine
- Lots of pierogis ;)

I could not put this book down! This book went beyond the typical rom-com. Both MC are so easy to. fall in love with. Each overcoming their own adversities. Jules' fun loving, easy going, relaxed style despite her chronic illness is inspiring! Tom/Thunder is the perfect grump! Coming out of his shell slowly and surely, The banter between the two is gosh darn adorable.
The way Laura tackled the medical issues, transplant and after-math of the procedure was beautiful!

Cannot wait to read more from this author!

It was such a refreshing read! I've never read a romance with an enemies-to-lovers x transplant premise. So, of course, I read this book in a single day. The narrative, the flawed and realistic characters, the portrayal of PSC, which I had never heard of before and gave me an understanding of the condition, and the ending were all enjoyable aspects of the novel. However, the relationship appeared to happen really quickly to me. They disliked each other one minute and were in love and having sex the next. So it was sometimes confusing and moved too fast. I also didn't sense any chemistry or connection between the main characters. Overall, it was a pretty decent read.

Unlikely Match:
Overall, this book was filled with a lot of delightful rivals to lovers tension. It was a perfect beach read if you want to have some substance. I really appreciate the theme of friendship and kindness, but I gotta say that my favorite scene was when Jules was yelling at Tom for kissing her. The ending was really sweet and I think the novel got resolved perfectly.

THINGS I LIKED:
A lot of the jokes made me giggle, like the 5'10" person in a 5'3" body- I definitely felt that!!! And "we had sex" followed by Alan's "no shit, jules" had me guffawing.
I appreciate the depiction of Jules's struggle with her health. It felt just informative enough that it made sense and read like an actual doctor giving information, but not like the author was shoving medical facts down your throat.
Jules and Alan's friendship was so sweet! I like how they went back and forth.
Peter is an amazing character, as is the doctor!
I definitely relate to Jules feeling out of control and lashing out.
I like how this book sort of balances/merges multiple tones in a very seamless way. It's heartfelt and genuine, but also very comedic and puts a positive spin on a serious situation.
Jules's relationship with her family was super real and vulnerable.
Tom and Jules's nicknames for each other are hilarious.
I love how protective Tom is, especially since it's not of Jules, but of someone she cares about.

THINGS I DIDN'T LIKE:
I understand that we need context for the story, but the beginning was extremely info-dumpy in my opinion.
This felt kind of performative feminist to me in the way that she kept throwing out buzzwords like "generic male perspective" seeing as no one actually talks like that.
Alan in particular says a lot of things way too up front, like when he's telling Jules not to confront Tom. He seems professional and formal, telling her directly the things we should be inferring from something he says more casually.
I was frustrated that Jules didn't want to tell anyone about her illness only because her motivation seemed rocky.

This is a cute, enemies to lovers, office romance that you can devour within a day. It’s got fantastic main characters that you can’t help but fall in love with. The story is full of romance, sometimes heartbreaking, emotional but truly beautiful. I loved it from beginning to end.
Thank you NetGalley and the Author and Publisher for this ARC for my honest review.

An emotional read - had me in tears several times.
Jules has almost put her life on hold, waiting for the transplant that looks less and less likely. When she meets Tom they don't get on, but then they get to know each other - is it already too late for them?
I loved this book!

Unlikely Match hit me right in the feels! This book had me smiling, laughing, crying and getting hungry for perigees. I didn’t know what to expect when going into this read but it was truly fantastic. Workplace, forced proximity, enemies to lovers, major life overhaul - a rollercoaster in the best way possible,
*Please be mindful of trigger warnings which the author lists in the beginning (which is amazing and so awesome to see a writer care for the hearts/minds of potential readers!)
10/10 recommend this book!

Thank you so much to NetGalley, Laura Bradbury and Grape Books for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you NetGalley and Laura Bradbury for this early copy of this book!

This book has my heart, soul, mind, everything. It was so so good, and everyone should read it. The characters, the story, the real life. All of it filled me with emotions, and I almost don’t have words.

Laura and I connected on Instagram a few months ago when I posted about my best friend having a double organ transplant. She told me a little about her own story, and her book, and she connected with my friend as well.

There were moments in this book that made me sob, solely because I knew the emotion first hand. I’ve watched a loved one suffer, rejoice and fight.

I appreciated her trigger warnings at the beginning.

Only other thing to say is be an organ donor; you literally could save someone’s life.

This book had me in my feeeeeeels!

Enemies to lovers, office romance.

Jules is living with PSC, and is in need of a donor. She is a warrior and a badass and CEO of her startup company GoodGuides. Tom is the head of the tech company Who shares space with Goodguides and who is in competition with them for a chance at funding from an investor.

Jules and Tom get off to a rocky start, and the banter between them is electric. She doesnt want anyone to know about her health battles, so with the help of her best friend and COO, Alan, She does her best to lead the company while navigating trying to find a donor, and keep on going.

This book made me laugh, it made me cry and it reminded me of some very important life lessons. Time is not guaranteed, life is messy - people are messy. All of those things in mind, we all deserve happiness. Family isnt always blood. Its those who weather the storm with us so we can sit on pink sofas drinking champagne to celebrate the victories.

I loved the supporting characters in this book so much.

A very heart warming and realistic look at love while still giving a happy ending. I loved the epilogue as well.

The only negative thing I can possibly say about this moving romance is that Bradbury is unfortunately too good at putting the awfulness of being sick into words and my brain is too good at making me feel ill right along with Jules. So I did struggle a bit in the parts of the book that get really dicey for poor Jules and her health, enough that I had to walk away a couple of times to recoup.
However, it's that same great writing that had me coming back and reading more. You fall in love with all the characters, and they feel as alive as anyone you can meet IRL. Jules' story with Tom pulls you in, but you stay to read more about her best friend Alan and all the people that have such a big impact on her life. Even the people you end up very deservedly hating will unfortunately feel all too real on the page.
And don't even get me started on how great the banter and the initial antagonism turning into attraction are because I will be here until I run out of space to write. Even when things weren't looking good for the couple, their interactions were gold for anyone looking for some good friction in their romance.
It's a fun, romantic, and inspiring read with two main characters that have a lot to offer and a story that is sure to make you think. I loved it.

Very happy thanks to NetGalley, Laura Bradbury, and Grape Books for the emotional roller coaster of a read!

Thanks for the early read it was a super fun book to read and different in the aspect of transplant and love the grumpy sunshine thing too it's always to read and I'm glad they had a happy ever after

First off, I want to say thank you to Laura Bradbury for the advanced copy of the book! I've never read a transplant romance but knowing that Bradbury has had personal experience with PSC and receiving a transplant made reading her story so much more touching and meaningful!

Jules and Tom are a swoon-worthy, grumpy-sunshine, deep pairing and I love them so much! Their journey is one of more than just romance but one of self-discovery and Bradbury presents that in the perfect way. My heart was pounding a lot while reading the book, so many ups and downs and unknowns, and I really enjoyed all the tropes.

Thank you NetGalley and Grape Books for the advanced copy. All opinions are my own.

I have mixed feelings. I really liked the first half of the book and loved the dynamic between Tom and Jules. However, I didn’t love their relationship as much for the second half of the story, it felt like Tom’s character kind of shifted and changed for the sake of conflict and I think it could’ve been done a bit differently. Overall a quick and easy read and there were definitely some super cute moments!

This was probably one of my top reads of the year i fell in love with jules and tom as character and their relationship felt so natural. while being a book about illness it did not consume the story of jules and at no point did i feel like if you removed her illness she wouldn’t be a fully fleshed out character! a sign of great writing skills! Gave christina lauren vibes !

Jules, a CEO of a tech start up who has to share work space with another tech star up, has to navigate life with PSC.

I absolutely loved this book. I really loved that it was a different kind of love story due to the fact the main character, Jules, has PSC. Seeing what life is like for someone who has a terminal illness was a great insight for me. I haven't had anyone in my life be dependant on a transplant to live so I haven't really had to think about what it would be like to live that life. This book helped me sympathize with those who are battling this. I would suggest that this is a great book for anyone to read just for that different prespective.

SPOILERS

Jules' story was so heartbreaking and heartwarming in the same breath. There were times I wanted to reach through the book and strangle her selfish family. There were times I wanted to reach through the book and squeeze Allen and tell him how much I loved him and how he was an amazing friend. There were times I wanted to reach through the book and kiss Tom - because, um....he's really freaking hot in a damaged boy type of way.

I love a good slow burn enemies to lovers romance and Laura Bradbury delivered it to me! Due to the nature of Jules' disease there isn't much time for this slow burn to take hold, but it was a rollarcoaster - even If I did know that Tom was going to be the one to save the day. I really enjoyed how they explored their relationship post donate. It's easy to feel indebted I suppose to the person who literally saved your life and both Tom and Jules had to navigate those feelings and make sure that the romantic relationship they wanted to have wasn't only continue because of that liver donation layer.

I'm happy there was a happy ending for Jules. And Tom. AND the author., Laura - because she's also getting her second chance at life.

All in all, I do recommend this book. I felt all the feelings and I am thankful.

I ADORED this grumpy sunshine-medical trauma-workplace romance. It had almost all my favorite tropes.
Jules was sassy and bold, without crossing the line into unbearable and cold. Tom was grumpy with redeemable qualities and fierce.
I learned more about the tech/start up world , picked up some medical knowledge and fell in love with another author throughout this book.
I loved the flow. The plot wasn’t full of fluff or unnecessary add-ins to add pages. It was exactly what the story needed to flow forward.

HIGHLY RECOMMEND TO EVERYONE WHO WANTS TO READ A CUTE AND SWOONY BOOK.

Wow, this book is really good! This book gets you to understand the thoughts and insecurities for people with sickness especially those who had lower chances of getting healthy again. It has a rare orphan disease of bile ducts and liver (PCS) and color blind representations, which is very new and unfamiliat to me, and Im glad to learn more about it through this book.

I like how the author wrote the clashing personalities of these two and make them work together their differences. This book also elaborates on how letting go your past and embraces the new you can be a huge turner in your life. Sometimes you need to go through terrible phases in life in order to realize you have been strong all these times. But this is not easy to do, not even me. It takes a long time to digest and fully embraces the idea that you can still be you despite the changes happened to you.

There is no right or wrong decision when it comes to a croosroad in your life. Any decision is high stakes no matter which way we approach it. So, we could only pray for the best and trust our instinct, and deals with the aftermath after we chose. That's how life works. We tried our best, and if it works out, it will. If it don't, then we figured out how to deal with it. But it isnt as simple as that. What matters is that we tried our best.

The writer makes it understandable for both Tom and Jules's coping mechanisms. With both having different map in front of them, they got to work a lot to finally came to conclusion: either stay as friends or be something more.

This is not just a romance book, but it also tells you to embrace your imperfect life before and after your big changes, because every seconds matters.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC! What a sweet and sad book. There is a happy ending, which pleased me, but plenty of tear-jerking moments along the way. The protagonist was awesome, fully fleshed-out and easy to rally behind. The love interest came off as a bonehead at first, but rapidly it became obvious that he was more than just how he acted on a terrible day, which I enjoyed immensely. I cried twice and still loved it!

Jules and Tom are both CEOs of start-up companies, which recently moved into a rent-free shared office space. Their first encounter set them onto a warpath with each other.
Which makes their task given by the office owner to collaborate oh so much more difficult. Not to mention that they both have to also compete for a funding opportunity.
Sounds complicated?
Let's throw Jules' terminal illness into the mix. She's running out of time - fast! - and the prospect of getting a liver transplant is bleak. As her body keeps shutting down and making it harder for her to get out of bed every morning, butting heads with Tom seems to bring back some of her strength.

Jules has an awesome character, you can't help but rooting for her from the start.
From the first page she is interesting, fierce, wise, self-assured, and you feel like she could be a friend. Her story is so captivating, you keep turning the pages until you find yourself at 4 a.m., coming out of a daze and having read the whole book in one sitting.
Let me say, it was a roller coaster of emotions. About 20% through I was bawling my eyes out. And a few more times after that.
Don't get me wrong, there's loads to laugh about because of some awesome quips and banter.
But damn, the story is very authentic, showing a side of having an illness you don't see much in contemporary romance. And I learned a lot while reading this.
Then there is Tom. He probably won't become my favourite book-boyfriend, but he deserves an honourable mention. He acted selflessly and bravely, despite his own hardships, and he had a great learning curve throughout the book... there was just something about him that didn't feel quite right to me.
Also, the erotic scenes seemed to be a bit incoherent and how they were written... it was all over the place and I found it kind of cringy.
The friendship with Alan was amazing, I would have loved to read more about their time together, but I understand that it wasn't in the cards for this book. Just in general the side characters were brilliant! Not to mention the shift towards appreciating the family you gather around you rather than the family you are born into.

I would highly recommend giving this book a try!