It was very emotional and an intense romance read. It was quite enlightening to know about the PSC in detail. But what I really liked the most was the character development of both the main characters, and that is something very much look forward to in my reads.

Jules Kelly battles for her life against a chronic liver disease known as Primary Sclerosing Cholangitis, well as her feelings for her new nemesis, Tom, in this beautifully heartbreaking and eye opening story.

To put it simply, this story was just so real and raw, and add in the fluffy romance parts, it was just pretty
much perfect.

I adored this absolutely not cliché romance. At first, I really despised Tom because, like Jules, I thought he was a "mysogynistic asshat". However, after explaining himself and learning about his tough childhood, I really liked his character. His back and forth with Jules was refreshing, just as it was for Jules, too. I never enjoy it when the two main characters keep important things from each other because it always comes back to haunt them but this time it really worked out in Jules' favour (However, she could have had that liver much sooner).

The romance aspect of the book is an enemies to lovers (SQUEAALLLL!!!) and a workplace romance. These are two of my most favourite tropes, so there was a very low chance of me not enjoying it. One issue I did have with the romance in the "Before" part of the book is that things between Tom and Jules seemed to escalate so quickly even though the climax was halfway through the book.

An aspect I really enjoyed is how there was a story beyond Jules' transplant. We get to see how Jules lived before her transplant and riddled with suffering, as well as her journey to recovery and adjusting to her new life. She had to decide on a new path for herself or to revert back to the life she had before being diagnosed.

I can't even imagine what Jules (and all people suffering from PSC) went through in her five years before getting her transplant, and after that still having to manage all the side effects of her medication and the possibility of more illnesses. Her suffering had me in tears most of the time.

There aren't many books I read where I walk away with an important life lesson after finishing it, as I read to escape from reality and its struggles. However, I think the most important and profound lesson I learnt from this book is to offer understanding and support rather than pity to those who are suffering. And to also be conscious of how we treat people as we rarely know what people are going through.

I love nothing more than the moment when the title suddenly clicks with the plot and dialogue. It was a very intense romance read for me. And I enjoyed every minute of it.

One moment I was smiling, one moment I was crying, one moment I was giggling, one moment I was screaming and all those moments I felt it all. The love and pain both the MCs shared and story they have had. I really enjoyed and loved it.

Honestly, I thought the idea of a transplant romance sounded a bit weird, but I have never been happier to have been so wrong.

First of all, the fact that Laura Bradbury wrote this from EXPERIENCE with PSC and a liver transplant is incredibly brave, and I am so thankful that she has done so.

This story dives SO much deeper than your traditional RomCom, as it explores how being terminally ill effects you body mind and soul as well as how it effects your relationships. Through this story we’re able to see a life that most of us are incredibly lucky to not have had experience with. We’re shown the before, during, and after of a liver transplant and the toll it takes on a person’s entire life.

The characters in the book are so well rounded and layered and their relationship was such an incredibly evolved yet at times frustrating thing! Jules is a “fierce fucking warrior” and I feel forever grateful for getting to “meet” her and see life through her eyes. I can’t pretend to know what being that sick or what needing an organ transplant is like, but seeing all of that through Jules’ eyes was an incredibly emotional and unforgettable experience. Tom is just…there’s so much to Tom that I think Tom is still figuring out. It was quite the experience to watch him deal with his past hurts as he tries to navigate his potential future with Jules. Their relationship shows us that nothing is set in stone but that certain things (and people) are worth fighting for. I feel so weird for enjoying the steamy scenes in a transplant romance, but honestly they worked so well-it didn’t feel weird or like they were an after thought-it just worked.

This book was informative, but it wasn’t written like a text book. I learned SO much about the life of a transplant patient, but on an emotional level as well. This story was an absolute gift, and I am so thankful to Laura. Bradbury for giving it to us. It’s quite possibly one of the best thing I’ve ever read.

I was given an ARC of this book by NetGalley and Laura Bradbury. All opinions are my own.

Just like Jules I have an autoimmune disease for which there is no cure and I gotta say I was really hesitant to read this book. Too many times people with chronic illness are portrayed so poorly but I am thrilled that was not the case here. I was captivated from the very first page! This book has everything I look for in a romance: witty banter, amazing chemistry, brilliant humor, and scenes that left me full of emotions. I can’t even describe what it felt like to see a chronically ill person portrayed so beautifully and accurately. I related a lot to Jules (right down to having God awful veins) and this book did a wonderful job of giving us a small glimpse into what it really is like to like with a chronic illness. And Tom? Don’t even get me started. He is fighting for a spot on my list of top book boyfriends. I loved seeing his character growth throughout the story.

If you like workplace enemies to lovers or just want a glimpse into the hard reality of what life is like for not only someone who is chronically ill but also those around them then this book is for you!

I hope this isn’t the last contemporary romance we see with a chronically ill hero/heroine!

Thank you so much to NetGalley, Laura Bradbury and Grape Books for this ARC!

I really, really enjoyed this book. It hooked me from the very beginning and kept me hooked the entire time!

Unlikely Match has everything I look for in a contemporary romance: excellent character development, captivating story, A+ chemistry, and funny banter. It made me feel all kinds of emotions, and I loved every second of it.

What I liked:

-The descriptions of living with a chronic and life-threatening illness were detailed, accurate, and heartbreaking.

-It was set in Victoria, British Columbia, which is one of my favourite cities!

-Jules and Tom were so human, complex, and beautifully flawed. They had rich backstories and amazing character development.

What I didn’t like:

-Honestly nothing other than that the story ended and I’m no longer reading it.

Seriously pick up this book and give it a read. You won’t regret it.

Thank you to NetGalley, Laura Bradbury, and the publisher for generously providing this ARC.

I finished this book in a day. I could not put it down.

What a gripping and moving read! What made it even more moving and authentic was the fact that as a liver recipient herself Laura Bradbury knew what she was writing about. I cried so many times reading about everything that Jules was going through. But there were so many moments filled with joy and hope, too, and it was all perfectly balanced.

Jules Kelly is dying and she needs a new liver, soon. Her family is very unsupportive and basically have no contact with her at all. Jules has a few friends at work - a start-up company she has started with her best friend Alan - who know about her illness and she wants to keep it that way, she doesn't want everyone to pity her, least of all Tom Davenport and others of the firm they share office space with.

Everyone should put this book on their readind list. Five stars.

I ABSOLUTLEY LOVED THIS. what a brilliant and unique concept. As someone with a chronic illness i related to so much of this book and it was so heart-warming to see parts of my world reflected in this book. Jules the protagonist was so strong and beautiful. there was a lot of focus of the emotional/mental side of medical problems, the trauma and anguish associated with it. It was evidence a lot of research and though has gone into this book - i believe the author is a transplant recipient herself and her knowledge in this subject shows. The romance was exquisite, there was a lot of brilliant humour, especially from the side characters. overall i absolutely loved this and would recommend to everyone, especially those with chronic illnesses.

I'd have to give this book a 3.5/5 stars. I LOVEEE enemies to lovers, but somehow I started to not love the dynamic between Jules and Tom by the end of the book. I liked that this story covered hard topics that are not normally written about, and it came across well as a reader.

However, my main issue was that the story was a tad predictable. Also the fact that Tom just basically goes along with whatever Jules wants. Overall I think it was a fun read, just a bit frustrating at times. One of my favorite moments in the story is the development of the nicknames--sooo cute! I also loved the friendship between Jules and Allen.

This is my honest opinion. Thank you for the ARC!

Very sweet. A tough topic, but dealt with in a human and thoughtful way.

Thank you to NetGalley and Grape books for the ARC.

I really liked this book and I had such a fun time. All the little domestic moments between Jules and Tom were so cute.

I received an arc through netgalley.

I loved this workplace enemies to lovers romance! Reminded me of The Hating Game. I couldn't help but stay up all night finishing this book!

“I realized I would go to the same lengths to make him smile as I would to make those sparks of annoyance burn in his eyes.”

4.5 stars!! Sucker for enemies to lovers 🖤

Jules Kelly is a badass, tech-start up CEO whose company is now sharing subsidized office space with her worst nightmare, a tech-bro named Tom who thinks he has her all figured out as a carefree hippie who always gets her way.

What Tom (and everyone else) doesn’t know is that Jules is silently fighting for her life and if she doesn’t get a liver transplant soon, will be leaving this world before she even has a taste of everything she wants from it.
The only thing that seems to pull her out of her physical and emotional funk is arguing with Tom, but how long can she keep her secret from him and everyone else?

This book made me feel every emotion and as someone who lives with chronic illness, I saw myself in Jules and could relate to so much of what she experienced.

I loved the banter, the tension, he raw reality of what chronic illness is like, and the toll it takes on not only the person who is sick, but everyone around them.

Thank you NetGalley and the publishers for this ARC in exchange for an honest review. I can’t wait to but my own physical copy!

𝘜𝘯𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦𝘭𝘺 𝘔𝘢𝘵𝘤𝘩 follows Jules on her journey of battling with PSC (Primary sclerosing cholangitis) and the aftermath of her recovery, all the while falling in love with her nemesis turned surprisingly swoonworthy crush.

- ~ -

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

No matter how much I may sugarcoat the story with the romance aspect, it goes deeper than all of that. It introduced me to a world I had no previous knowledge of and I'm always glad to have more exposure.

- ~ -

Jules, as the story stated, is an incredibly fierce warrior. She's a genuine soul, the kind of person you'd be blessed to have in your life or maybe as a character in a book. And I could probably poison her family without an ounce of guilt for the way they treated her.

Tom, on the other hand, is also a force of nature to be reckoned with; he's kind, thoughtful, caring and shyly humble about it all (it's a cute mix).

"𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘰𝘰," 𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘢𝘪𝘥. "𝘔𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨."
"𝘔𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘱𝘪𝘦𝘳𝘰𝘨𝘪?"
"𝘌𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘱𝘪𝘦𝘳𝘰𝘨𝘪."
"𝘞𝘰𝘸."

And together they share a romance made for the books (quite literally). Their chemistry is adorably sizzling but they also face challenges like any relationship and overcome them with the love they share for each other.

But as they say, it takes a village to raise a child.
Similarly, I'd say it took a village to help Jules on her journey. Despite the lack of support from her family, she received strength from the many people she met throughout, each leaving a profound impact that one can gain from even without context.

- ~ -

Overall: A very informing novel about the complications and uncertainties surrounding chronic health conditions and life in general but also about the support and hope it takes to recover (That too if one's lucky enough to).

4.46 / 5✩

𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘶𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘳 & 𝘕𝘦𝘵𝘨𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘺 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘷𝘪𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘥𝘷𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘥 𝘤𝘰𝘱𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘣𝘰𝘰𝘬, 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘤𝘩 𝘐 𝘷𝘰𝘭𝘶𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘭𝘺 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥 & 𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘦𝘸𝘦𝘥. 𝘈𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘮𝘺 𝘰𝘸𝘯.

Romance books dealing with physical sickness can be hit or miss. Sometimes they are too sad or somehow are spun into an illness cliché. UNLIKLEY MATCH, by Laura Bradbury, is not that type of romance.

Jules is dealing with a LOT. Not just physically (she has a failing liver), but she's also in a startup company with her best friend, has a family that is absolutely horrific (they see her as broken and do not take her illness seriously) and now she's got a workspace nemesis.

Tom just needs to get his startup successful. He's had a tough life growing up in foster care and he needs this workspace thing to work. The last thing he needs is Jules and her crew of work misfits.

As time goes on, Jules gets sicker. She needs a new liver and nobody, and I mean nobody, is there for her except her best friend and Tom.

Spoiler alert, spoiler alert, spoiler alert:

We follow Jules on her transplant journey and, of course, you can guess who her UNLIKELY MATCH is.

The story had lots of longing and sizzle. What was great about the journey was we see both Jules and Tom get therapy after the transplant. Jules also joins a transplant group to discuss all of the changes she's facing.

I'm a cancer survivor and I know the PTSD that comes with the diagnosis and treatment. I think most patients try to brush off the feelings of anxiety while waiting for the other shoe to drop. Jules and Tom's love story did not just end with them realizing their love for each other. They had to conquer ALL of the feelings that comes along with medical trauma.

I enjoyed this book so much. I will say, however, the story is very focused on Jules' illness (obviously). But the romance plot gets lost in all the medical jargon and events. At times, the romance becomes the B plot.

While the story is sad in some parts and you hurt for Jules, the theme is positive and heart-warming.

Thank you NetGalley and Laura Bradbury for providing me an e-book copy of UNLIKELY MATCH to review.

I rate UNLIKELY MATCH four out of five stars.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Firstly I would like to thank NetGalley and Laura Bradbury for an eARC of this book.

This story follows Jules Kelly and Tom Davenport. Jules and Tom are the CEO’s of 2 tech companies that are sharing a subsidised office space. The 2 characters are total opposites, Jules is a girl boss who is hippie like and comes from a rich upbringing whereas Tom is very much work obsessed and from a poor upbringing.

Split into 2 parts (before and after), we see Jules battling with the decline of her health and in desperate need of a transplant. The medical side of this book is what really gripped me and made me not want to put it down.

When reading this book i would recommend going into it as women fiction and not a romance although there are lots of elements of romance within the book. The romance between Jules and Tom didn’t feel gripping to me, I feel as though they didn’t have much chemistry and I got slightly confused with their relationship as I felt that it was very fast and then there was just nothing then it was fast again.

I loved the formatting of this book and found it very easy to read. One of the things that I didn’t like was the beginning of this book, I felt like it wasn’t gripping enough for me as it felt slow and I didn’t really want to continue however I am so glad that I did!

I was approved to read this ARC yesterday (May 19) and I sat down to start reading before bed and wound up staying up till almost 2am to finish it. Time literally did not exist when I was reading, that is how good this was, if you were on the fence at all I am telling you you need to go buy it and read it you will be so thankful!

This is certainly a tear jerker so have them tissues ready! Jules Kelly, our female MC, was one of the most well developed and strong willed characters i've read in the genre this year. I was sucked into every page of this book and I would without a doubt read more from Laura Bradbury!

Slow Burn Romance 🌶 🌶
Frenemies to Lovers
Opposites Attract
Excellent Banter

Story: 4.75/5
Cover Art: 4/5
Characters: 5/5

❗️CW: discussions of medical trauma, PTSD, hospital scenes, toxic families, discussions of parental abandonment and foster care system off page.

👏 Thank you to Laura Bradbury and Netgalley for the absolute pleasure of reading this novel!

I really love enemies to lovers in the workplace, so this was a super good fit for me. Reminded me a bit of the hating game, which I didn't love, but I think this was really good. I don't really have a ton to say other than that I really quite enjoyed this, and I would read it again!
The hospital stuff, I absolutely loved and that probably my inner greys anatomy fan losing her mind(IT WAS AWESOME, I LOVED EVERY INTERACTION IT WAS FABULOUS). Wow there she is.
Also, the title! So, so clever!!!
4 stars overall, it was cute, fun and only a little bit sad(debatable).
I was invited to read a free e-ARC of Unlikely Match by Laura Bradbury through NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are mine.