THE STAND-UP GROOMSMAN – Jackie Lau
Berkeley
ISBN: 978-0593334324
October 25, 2022
Romantic Comedy

Toronto & New York City – Present Day

Vivian Liao’s best friend Lindsay announces her engagement to Ryan and asks Vivian to be the bridesmaid, which means that she will have to come face to face with Melvin Lee again. A year ago, Vivian was enamored with Melvin, who was a TV star alongside Ryan and even drew a picture of him, which she presented to him when they were introduced by Lindsay. But Melvin treated her with disdain by mocking her career choice of banking instead of her going into art, which doesn’t pay the bills. But with their best friends now engaged, Vivian and Mel will need to play nice with each other.

Vivian still thinks Mel is a pompous jerk, even though he tries to charm her by making her laugh. Despite her vow to avoid him except for wedding stuff, she is soon showing up at his comedy club gigs and going out to dinner with him. An agnostic relationship soon turns into a friendly one, which leads to more than just having dinner. Once the wedding responsibilities are over, will they go their separate ways? After all, her life is in Toronto, while his home is in New York City.

Mel is a funny guy. While he doesn’t have his best friend Ryan’s looks or body, he is still popular enough to be recognized from the tv show they once starred in together. Yeah, he started off on the wrong foot with Vivian, but he only wanted to encourage her to explore her dream career rather than stay stuck in a job only because it pays the bills. As he gets to know Vivian, he becomes attracted to her. If only they were living in the same city because he knows that they would be spending all their time together.

THE STAND-UP GROOMSMAN opens with the fateful first meeting of Vivian and Mel. He is always looking for a laugh, which she liked at first. But when he started questioning what she did for a living, he mocked her. Her crush on him then led her to crushed feelings. Part of the prose in this tale has Mel talking to the audience as he’s doing his stand-up comedy act. He is influenced by his family and life experiences. Will he use what happens with Vivian as part of it? She is sensitive because she has low self-esteemed caused by her family never appreciating her. Cross that with a comic who makes fun of people, and it is clear why things started off rocky between Vivian and Mel. Turns out that he is a good guy, one who even stood by her while she was sick. This causes a change in their relationship, but they still have barriers to overcome.

There are plenty of laugh-out-loud scenes in THE STAND-UP GROOMSMAN, but you will also find emotional ones to make you care for both Vivian and Mel. They click in the sexual chemistry department but will need to find ways to make their relationship work for the long-term. Don’t miss the fun and laughter in THE STAND-UP GROOMSMAN.

Patti Fischer
Romance Reviews Today

Thank you to Berkley Publishing Group and NetGalley for the advanced reader copy and to PRH Audio for the complimentary audiobook. These opinions are my own.

Mel and Vivian's first meeting did not go well. She had worried that meeting one of her favorite celebrities in real life could be a disappointment, and wow, it was. And now they have to spend a great deal of time together as their closest friends get married.

I was impressed with Mel's comedy sets. Writing comedy is tough, and the sets fit his character a d humor well, with a range of good and off days. I also really appreciated how the story dug into comedy as a mask for sadder emotions.

I was also thrilled by the LGBTQ representation. Both Mel and Vivian are bisexual, and there was a lot of discussion about how that doesn't change based on who they happen to be with at the time. The book tackled several heavier issues as well, as it explored their relationship and what it means to be in a relationship.

I did not enjoy the male narrator, James Sie. His vocals for Mel and all the women made it more difficult for me to like the characters. Eunice Wong did a great job narrating. I preferred reading the ebook to listening to the audiobook for this one and would even give the two different editions different ratings.

I really enjoyed reading about Mel and Vivian. I loved that I had already read Donut Fall in Love about their friends and their initial meeting. But this can also stand alone.

What a delightful story!

After a rather inauspicious meet-cute when their respective best friends got together in "Donut Fall in Love," Vivian and Mel are thrown together again when Lindsay and Ryan plan their wedding. This time around, the attraction is still there but they are definitely taking a friends-first approach.

One of the things I love best about a Jackie Lau book, besides all the delicious food recommendations that are effortlessly worked into the story, is the inclusion of the extended family, especially grandparents. Mel's grandmother is a lot of fun, the kind of grandmother everyone should meet at least once in their life.

Both Mel and Vivian are charmingly anxiety-ridden, resulting in much of the drama of their relationship focusing on working through their insecurities and past trust issues, both independently and together. These are the most authentic-feeling characters that I've ever read -- truly, they feel like people I've known for years.

This is an outstanding "ordinary, everyday" love story and I highly recommend it for anyone who loves contemporary romances. I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book.

I can’t put my finger on it but this one was just hard to get through. I think some of it might be because I want invested in the couple themselves. I get that she liked him before she met him, but I just didn’t see enough development after their first failure of an introduction. I loved seeing her work through her family problems and just in general her need to not be reliant on anyone

Thank you PRH audio for my gifted copy! I enjoyed this one, but not as much as Donut Fall in Love. I really liked the narration for Vivian, but not so much for Mel. I really liked Vivian’s character and really appreciated the backstory of her childhood. I liked how Mel and Vivian developed a friendship and then how it blossomed into more. I really liked how this one was resolved.

What a cute love story! I loved how it was based in Toronto, with so many nods to my favourite places. I also loved how differntly this was written, with the inclusion of a character who was a standup comedian. Amazing to get bits of a standup routine in this book! I loved how this showed a different side to LGBTQ love - and explored the biases some people hold against different types of people. Overall, a fun and quick read!

Jackie Lau is my favorite contemporary romance writer, and I know I can expect a well-rounded book filled with complicated characters trying to deal with grown-up situations from her. The Stand-Up Groomsman isn’t my absolute favorite Lau, but it’s still a straight-up delight, and well worth a read.

Vivian Liao is an introvert who has learned how to hold herself with grace and cool reserve in public. When she meets her personal hero, Mel Lee – the co-lead in the popular series Just Another New York Sitcom – during a night out at a comedy club, things go disastrously when Mel sees Vivian’s fan art of his character and he interrogates her career choices in front of their friends - he wonders why she’s in corporate finance when her art skills are so refined. Vivian storms out.
Unfortunately for Vivian, she and Mel are destined to meet again. One year later, her best friend and roommate, baker Lindsay McLeod, is marrying Mel’s best friend and co-star, Ryan Kwok (hero and heroine of Donut Fall In Love). Vivian is the maid of honor and Mel is the best man, which means she and Mel are stuck spending time together doing all sorts of wedding-based activities. Vivian still isn’t pursuing her artistic career, and Mel still wants to be liked for the real him. Cake tastings, karaoke parties and other wedding events ensue, and the more time Mel and Vivian spend together, the more they start to like each other. But can the past be truly forgotten?

Romance, the hard stuff of growing up and the fun stuff of good food and good friendship – that is what a Jackie Lau romance is made of. The Stand-Up Groomsman is more of the same, even though there were a few weak points that put this one on at B-level - it's good, but not as great as her other books.

Tightly-wound Vivian and easy-breezy Mel are definitely archetypes to a degree, but they spring free of their tropes and come to life beneath Lau’s pen. The wedding preparations are a lot of fun to follow, and their career battles – Vivian has to choose between finance and art – are also compelling.

Some people are going to have issues with Mel’s introduction to Vivian, and with the notion of a fangirl finding love with her idol, but soon enough he’s vulnerable (his father left when he was a child, so he’s got residual issues) and they’re on an even playing field. It’s a good romance, a fun one, and a sharp portrayal of a lovely and growing affection between two nice people.

The Stand-Up Groomsman has weight, but also dances with the joy of finding love, finding your art, and finding your calling.

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I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGallley and am voluntarily posting a review. All opinions are my own.

The Stand-Up Groomsman picks up shortly after where Jackie Lau’s previous Berkley title, Donut Fall in Love, left off, this time following supporting characters from that book. It can be read as a stand-alone, although I do recommend reading the first book, even with some of the issues I had with it.

I personally liked both characters in this one a lot more than its predecessor, because they both feel more nuanced and three-dimensional. Lau is a master of creating distinct characters, and that’s something I feel was missing in book one that she more than made up for here.

First off, Melvin Lee is everything. I love that he’s not the most conventionally attractive (compared to his friend and co-star Ryan), but he more than makes up for it with his personality. He’s funny and super sweet, even if he can be a bit abrasive at times. But he’s also deeply complex, and I love seeing the layers of how his image impacts his sense of self, navigating the world as a bisexual Asian comedian with depression.

Vivian is a similarly deep soul. She’s more shy and guarded, which I relate to, even if her background doesn’t entirely resemble mine. Her family dynamics provide context for her desire to maintain solitude for the most part and keep most intimate romantic connections at arm’s length. While she’s also wounded, it’s fascinating how it manifests in different ways, to the point where she doesn’t feel initially that she has anything in common with the outspoken Mel.

I really liked how the relationship arc addressed their respective personal issues, culminating in them finding happiness in a way that suits them. There’s no drama for the sake of it, and the HEA feels earned. The arc and plot this time around also felt it merited the tradpub novel-length, improving on the first book, which I feel dragged things out unnecessarily.

This was a solid read from Jackie Lau, in keeping with the quality with the majority of her work thus far. If you’re looking for a contemporary romance that has equal parts humor and heart, I recommend picking this one up!

I received a gifted galley of THE STAND-UP GROOMSMAN by Jackie Lau for an honest review. Thank you to Berkley Publishing Group, PRH Audio, and Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review!

THE STAND-UP GROOMSMAN follows Vivian and Melvin. Vivian was once a big fan of comedian Mel… then she met him. When they meet, it does not go well and they’ve vowed never to meet again. Unfortunately Vivian’s friend and roommate is now engaged to Mel’s best friend so as a bridesmaid and best man, they will need to spend quite a bit of time in each other’s company. From trying to get along for the sake of their friends to actually finding out they enjoy each other’s company, their relationship has a long ways to go.

Though this is the second book in a series and this book definitely follows on the heals of book one, this would absolutely work as a standalone. We first met Vivian and Mel in DONUT FALL IN LOVE and saw their disastrous first meeting, but we get the replay at the start of this book and that really delivers all you absolutely need to know.

To be honest, I didn’t particularly like Mel in book one. He’s a jokester which makes sense with his job as a comedian, but he comes across with a strong personality that I wasn’t sure would work with the much more introverted Vivian. He definitely would be too high energy for me in real life. That said, getting to know him better in this book did make me like him a lot more and I think the pairing worked out well.

This book also takes a look at the family and career dynamics for both characters, the good and the bad, as well as their identities as both main characters are bisexual. We see this in Mel’s comedy sets as he portrays (and edits) his life for public consumption and in their day to day discussions with each other and the people in their lives. The book deals with the way people perceive and misperceive sexual identity.

THE STAND-UP GROOMSMAN comes out on Tuesday!

Mel was one of Vivian’s favorite actors and comedians; however when they met in person for the first time a year ago, things didn’t go well (Donut Fall in Love, book 1). With their friends getting married, and both in the wedding, the pair decide to be civil, but what develops is a friendship… and more.

The Stand-Up Groomsman is an unconventional romance, allowing readers to see that not everyone’s love story ends the same. I appreciate the positive message that love doesn’t cure anxiety and messes, but it can help fulfill a person.

Vivian and Mel both struggle with mental and emotional health issues. Vivian raised her younger siblings because her parents worked all the time, and this has skewed her perception of love. Vivian has had to give to those she loves without getting anything in return, so she prefers not to love. Now that she’s finally found footing on her own, she doesn’t want to share that with anyone. When Mel shows her affection and attention - takes care of her because he cares about her - it makes her uncomfortable and creates an internal conflict. Her view of relationships is so narrow, she truly struggles with the concept that there are other ways to love and be loved.

Mel, on the other hand, is free with his love and cares a lot for others. He goes from one relationship to another, but they don’t seem to last. He knows things are different with Vivian, but he struggles to get her to see what they could be together. Mel suffers from depression and anxiety, which color his thoughts and humor. The author does an excellent job using Mel’s stand up routines to get readers inside his head and heart.

Vivian’s scars are deep and it takes a lot for her to overcome the pain. I love that Mel is perfect for her… he’s patient, giving, and loving. The author does an excellent job of describing their emotions: both the joys and the fears. My heart hurt when it wasn’t working, and I was filled with joy when they would make progress.

Overall, The Stand-Up Groomsman is a delightful, emotionally-satisfying tale that allows readers to enjoy falling in love within a non-traditional romance.

My Rating: B+

Included as a top pick in bimonthly October New Releases post, which highlights and promotes upcoming releases of the month (link attached)

I loved The Stand Up Groomsman! As an older reader myself, I really love reading romances with protagonists that are more mature and in their 30s or older. And I cannot get enough of the enemies to lovers trope. I’d been looking forward to this after reading and enjoying Donut Fall In Love, and Jackie Lau’s steamy follow up did not disappoint.

Thank you @netgalley @prhaudio for copy of this book. This book is part of the Donut Fall In Love series and can be read as a standalone. I really enjoyed Mel and Vivian's story and their backstory from the first book. I enjoyed the forced friendship as they are in Ryan and Lindsey's wedding. Mel's grandma stole the show - I love how funny she was. The narration was spot on with grandma's voice.

Four and a Half Stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭒
The Stand-Up Groomsman by Jackie Lau is the second book in her popular Donut Fall in Love series but can be easily read as a stand-alone. This romantic comedy is laugh-out-loud funny with an endearing romance.

Story Recap:
Vivian Liao’s roommate just got engaged and has asked Vivian to be her bridesmaid. Vivian is excited until she finds out that Melvin Lee will be the best man. Vivian doesn’t know Mel well, but when they met, Mel made derisive remarks about Vivian’s career in finance. She loves his comic routine and watches videos of him online, and has gone to his shows when he is in Toronto, but she knows he’s a self-centered know it all.

Melvin Lee is a stand-up comic and he’s intrigued with Vivian, but he can’t get past her cold exterior. When they are forced together to do wedding stuff for their best friends, they start to get to know each other better.

My Thoughts:
I thoroughly enjoyed this book and laughed a lot at the jokes. Just like at a comedy club, not all the jokes hit a home run for me, but most of them were funny in my opinion. Also, just like at a comedy club, there was a lot of bad language, however, I did not find it gratuitous, but it was obvious. I also believe it was authentic as most stand-up comedians I watch use a fair amount of bad language so I thought it fit the character.

Mel is such a wonderful character. He is loud, abrasive, and likes to be the center of attention, but deep down inside he has a heart of gold. He’s funny, endearing, and authentic. Vivian is shy, aloof, and well-controlled. Vivian has had a tough upbringing and has her reasons for wanting to be alone and keep her life neat and tidy. And although she becomes attracted to Mel, his chaos does not fit her lifestyle.


Recommendation:
I highly recommend The Stand Up Groomsman to anyone who enjoys romantic comedy. I received a complimentary copy of this book. The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Lovely, lovely book. It stands alone sufficiently, and it joins the ranks of my favorite Jackie Lau books. (I just checked; I've read 21; I'm still two books behind in her Cider Bar Sisters series.)

When they initially met, Vivian and Mel got off on the wrong foot: shields up, weapons out. Being in the same wedding party (for Lindsay and Ryan, the couple in the first book) means they're forced to interact, however politely and distantly. They struggle to see each other, until in one completely in-character moment during karaoke, their trajectories intersect, and they see each other, and they start seeing themselves better, too.

Which is an abstract way to say that this is an introspective, opposites-attracts romance, in which the two of them find and make common ground. There's so much interesting character work going on, with their family backgrounds and their ideas of themselves and their futures. I loved reserved Vivian so much. And Mel's stand-up was so interesting: it's easy to see the humor as a self-defense mechanism, an audience-friendly processing, but I really enjoyed the way we saw Mel externalize the pieces of his life and his relationships, and how with that first bit he wrote about Vivian, he was able to give that back as a gift to her, to see and understand her, to weave her into the story of his life, to give her that bit of security and reflection and connection.

I was not wild about the Bleak Moment. I know that sort of insecurity-accumulation is realistic, but it felt so obligatory a plot point, a stark comparison to the rest of the book's interesting, nuanced character work and thoughtful, personal character dynamics. But this is mostly me being a jaded romance-genre veteran. The story works, and I did really enjoy this book.

FTC Disclosure: I received an advance review copy of this book.

3.5⭐️
Thank you Penguin Random House International for my e-ARC

Vivian hates meeting new people. She wasn’t at ease around an unfamiliar face, but over the years, she’d become adept at hiding her anxiety. And now she was going to meet a man. She felt like she knows him because she’d watched every episode of Just Another New York Sitcom. Melvin was her favorite comedian. But when they met up, everything was a disaster. Mel was being a jerk and judgmental in her career. After a year, they met again because of the wedding, both of them will be the bridesmaid and best man. They don’t have a choice but to see each other again.

Melvin was a comedian. He knows that Vivian was mad at him because of what he did 1 year ago. But then he saw her at the audience while he was at the stage for his comedy show and he can’t believe it. After everything, they finally get along. Overall, this is a fine read but I loved Donut Fall in Love more.

The stand-up groomsman is a slooooooow burn, dual POV, enemies to lovers/opposites attract open door romance featuring two bisexual Asian MCs. One of my most anticipated books of the year, I was so excited for this sequel to Donut fall in love by Canadian author Jackie Lau and it truly did not disappoint!

I think what I loved most about this book was that both MCs were in their mid-30s, trying to navigate life and love and their big Asian families. Vivian Liao is a prickly, butchish, newly out bisexual who has always been the caretaker in her relationships (both familial and romantic). A big fan of Melvin Lee as an actor and stand-up comic, the two meet at their friends' bachelor/bachelorette parties only to get off on the wrong foot.

Eventually the two slowly build a friendship and start to take things to the next level but it takes Vivian a long time to trust Mel and give in to the love and comfort he offers. I thought both characters were so well developed and it was refreshing not to see a simple, easy romance. Each has work to do in their personal lives before they're ready for the romance and I enjoyed seeing them go on that journey individually and together!

Great on audio narrated by Eunice Wong and James Sie. My only critique was that I thought the story was a tad longer than it needed to be. Highly recommended, especially for fans of authors like Jayci Lee, Lillie Vale or Lily Chu. Much thanks to NetGalley and Berkley for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review. I switched between the audio and ebook versions and enjoyed both!

I read and loved Donut Fall in Love last year but if I thought I was easily swayed by sweet treats and abs, I was wrong. In this second story--beautifully connected but wonderfully different--we see quiet, focused Vivian forced into spending more time with depressed, loud comedian Mel for their BFFs' upcoming wedding. While Vivian was once a huge fan, their disastrous first meet left him thinking her cold and her thinking him rude. But the initial attraction from before Mel stuck his foot in his mouth remains, and their shared interests bring them closer together.

I love Vivian and Mel, I love their story, and I love everything about this book even thought there's no doughnuts. Our two deliciously imperfect stars seem perfect for each other in a relatively realistic love story. I'm also deeply impressed by Lau's ability to actually include funny stand-up in a book--which is typically a different skill many authors lack. Extremely impressive!

Thanks to Berkley for my eARC! All thoughts and opinions are my own.

5 stars- 10/10

An absolute *hug* of a romance book! The Stand-Up Groomsman is sweet, funny, and sexy. There is nothing swoonier than a man who can make me laugh. Mel is a perfect book boyfriend, and this is a charming, feel-good story!

• Enemies to Lovers
• Forced Proximity
• Opposites Attract
• Wedding
This was what is sure to be my first of many Jackie Lau reads. I really enjoyed this book immensely; it had a great balance of romcom banter and levity that was enriched by some deeper issues and representation woven in throughout the book.
I found both leads (Mel and Vivian), to be interesting and well-rounded characters. I loved that they each had their own clear driving experiences and journeys. I think that both were a unique blend, not necessarily the personality or experiences I’m used to reading about in a romcom and it made it feel very fresh.
I enjoyed that Vivian was a strong female character, I loved her reasoning behind her job vs hobbies and I really liked that she was put together and a came off a bit serious and sophisticated when we meet her. I loved reading about her family experience since I don’t often see the age gap of siblings dynamic and that was very relatable for me.

With Mel, I could not help but picture him as Kimchee (from Kim’s Convenience, a recent watch and easy favorite), and his bestie Ryan as Jung from the same. I loved his character. I loved that he was a bit over the top and fun, but that he had his own struggles and varying sides to him. He was so sweet and just had a great heart (also, the hedgehogs 💖). I also adored his grandmother.

I had fun reading this one and definitely recommend for those who enjoy a balanced romcom with the levity, deeper issues / representation and heart. I’m excited to try my next Jackie Lau read (the one before this in the standalone series) now that I’ve picked up a copy and find out what happened for Lindsey and Ryan.

Thank you to Netgalley and Berkley Romance for the opportunity to read an early copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own and freely offered.