An ambitious chief of staff risks her career and her heart when she falls hard for her new colleague in this steamy workplace romance from the author of Getting His Game Back.

Isadora Maris is damn good at her job. After nearly a decade in state politics, aggressive lobbyists and stonewalling senators are no match for her diplomacy and unflappable commitment to her principles. If all goes according to her meticulous plan, she’ll soon be managing her boss’s successful campaign for U.S. representative and she'll finally land her dream role: congressional aide in Washington, D.C., where she can really make a difference.

But Isadora’s cool professionalism is knocked off-kilter when she meets Karim Sarda. Karim is gorgeous, brilliant, and seems to share many of her ideals. So why’s he working for the California senate’s most detestable scumbag? Given their bosses’ fierce political rivalry, Isadora deems Karim off limits. She can’t tarnish her reputation by flirting with the enemy and she’s been betrayed enough times to keep people at a distance—no matter how flushed she feels whenever he enters the room.

Karim knows that struggle all too well: still processing the wounds from his former marriage, he’s ready for a fresh start. But Karim can’t hide his attraction to Isadora’s commanding presence. Her strength is captivating, even as he recognizes something fragile beneath the surface.

When Karim and Isadora succumb to their undeniable chemistry, their initial desire blossoms into something more—something real. But if Karim’s boss takes control of the California Senate, everything Isadora worked for could be destroyed. Will workplace politics shatter their chance at love before it even begins?

Well written romance featuring politics and rivals to lovers.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

Oh isadora and Kareem! This book! The banter! Reading this before midterm elections has been fun. I love these two. The political careers, the banter, the chemistry it’s all so good!! Definitely would recommend!

3.5 stars rounded up to 4.. Let me start by saying that I LOVE political novels with a little romance. I enjoyed The Hopefuls by Jennifer Close and Meet You in the Middle by Devon Daniels, so I was immediately drawn to the plot of this book. It was my first time reading a book from the author and I thought she wrote vivid main characters who I could imagine working with in real life.

The book is a dual perspective narration between Isadora, chief of staff to Daniel Etcheverri, California State Senate Majority Leader and Karim, the newly hired legislative director to State Senator Julian Brown and nemesis of Senator Etcheverri. Isadora and Daniel meet before either of them knows their connection and sparks immediately fly. However, when they run into each other at a work meeting the next week they have to pretend like they are meeting for the first time. Well, sparks fly again and they embark on a very steamy secret romance.

I loved, LOVED the plot of this book, but without giving too much away, I felt like the “scandal” was a bit contrived and took away from the author’s obvious political knowledge.

Thank you to NetGalley for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

Isadora is great at her job and is striving to land her dream role in Washington. Relationships aren’t on her radar until someone working for her political rival catches her eye. Karim doesn’t want to hide his feelings but is willing to do anything for her.

This was pretty cute. Personally wasn’t my cup of tea. I didn’t really connect to Isadora or Karim.

I have mixed feelings about this book. While I did like certain aspects, there are more things I didn't like than things I did. I had high hopes, because it reminded me of Meet You In Middle by Devon Daniels, which I adored, and I thought this would be similar to that book. First of all, I don't think it's very well written. It seemed very basic, almost like a fanfiction or even a young adult novel. Some of the dialogue and interactions between Isadora and Karim were very basic, and somewhat cringe, and could have been a lot better. The book opened with a 'meet cute' that I really liked, but then it fell flat and was dull. It took WAY too long for these two to follow up regarding their initial meeting. I highly disliked that Karim called Isadora beautiful every other sentence - it's cute and hot at first, but then quickly loses its meaning and validity if used so often. Both Karim and Isadora made way too many sex jokes, and it felt childish, especially because they are both supposed to be these prim and proper professionals working in politics. There was a LOT of political lingo, and yes, that drove the plot, but if it's not your thing, then here is your warning. I do appreciate that this book featured an interracial couple, and the MMC was going through a divorce during a bulk of the book. I also liked that emotiomal abuse, trauma and mental health were discussed and handled well. Borderline personality disorder is mentioned, but I don't like how the author chose to have that character with BPD be abusive - not everyone with BPD is abusive, and I think it sends a bad message, indicating that people with BPD are automatically abusive. I did like that complex PTSD was also discussed, as pointing this out helped one character grow and realize that they too had been a victim/survivor of abuse. I think the spice/smut was done really well, and I definitely enjoyed those parts. Overall, it was a cute and fun read but leaves a lot to be improved upon.

Special thanks to NetGalley and Dell for providing me an electronic copy of this ARC.

This ARC was provided to me via Kindle, from Random House Publishing Group- Ballantine and #NetGalley. Thank you for the opportunity to preview and review. Opinions expressed are completely my own.

Charming and delightful, make time for a night in just to read this one.

Trigger warnings: emotional abuse, narcissism, personality disorder

I loved this book! A loosely Romeo and Juliet inspired political rom-com with a serious look into how to move forward from emotional abuse from someone who is mentally ill. It was really sweet to read the moments of vulnerability between Isa and Karim. Moderately spicy and has a political scandal at the center of it to drive the plot forward. Highly recommend giving it a try!

4.5 ⭐️

3.5 Stars Not the Plan by Gia De Cadenet is a great star-crossed lovers tale (per the multiple references to the Montagues and Capulets) about a chief of staff and a legislative aide to state senators who are enemies. This book reminded me a lot of Jasmine Guillory’s books, especially with main characters of color, set in California, and with characters working for the local/state government. Isadora and Karim were cute and both had experienced some pretty heavy emotional trauma from loved ones. The political drama with Karim’s boss was interesting to see play out. Overall, this book was a bit predictable, but a great story that I’d recommend.

I so wanted to love this book. I loved the characters, but the storyline just did not do it for me. I expected more from the Julian storyline, and it seemed to wrap up so quickly. Additionally, the ex-wife and mother storylines were good ones - but more could have been done with them. The author had so many good ideas and plot lines, that it just felt like a little too much and each one could have been fleshed out more. I'd read more of Ms. De Cadenet's books in a heartbeat - she clearly had great stories! It just didn't come together for me on this one.

"Not the Plan", by Gia De Cadenet, is centered around Isadora and Karim, who are working on opposite sides of the political aisle. After a meet cute on an airplane, they don't meet again until their bosses are both running for the same political seat. Sparks fly, and they have to learn how to navigate their relationship on the down low. There is a side story about Isadora's narcissistic mother and how she has to develop boundaries to get away from her controlling ways.

Overall, this was a cute if predictable book. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

I seriously binge-read this novel in a day and I loved it!
I have to get my hands on Getting His Game Back because Gia De Cadenet can write a hell of a romcom novel.
Not the Plan was one of the greatest stories I've read in awhile.
The representation was great and the characters were so lovable, believable and fully fleshed-out.
Such a powerful, satisfying read.

“I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.”

Random House,
Thank You for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

Not the Plan is a political romance that begins with an adorable meet cute that doesn’t lead anywhere until our couple reunites when they find themselves working on opposite sides in a war for leadership of the California State Senate. They try their best to stay away, but the attraction is far too strong and they enter into a forbidden relationship.

This book is great for anyone who loves political intrigue and the scheming that goes on behind the scenes. It also has a very steamy romance! Isadora and Karim make one hot couple!

The book does have serious triggers. The on and off-page abuse that both main characters endure from family and past relationships could be difficult for some readers. However, these scenes could help others to recognize gaslighting and manipulation in their own lives, which could be helpful, as these kinds of abuse are often covert and more easily ignored by outside parties.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book and I look forward to more from this author.

Thank you to Dell/Random House and NetGalley for the use of this ARC. All opinions are my own.

As a women trying her best to 'not be into politics to stay sane', this may not have been a great pick for me. With all the policy, political slang and contraversal topics...it was a bit hard to grasp some of the work aspects of this one.
Overall this was cute and quirky. I loved how shy Karim is portrayed but when Isadora needed him. I loved the interracial coupling- go advancement in romance! Because this rarely happens and I’m all for it!!! Lastly the ending was just the cherry on top.
Will def catch more of this author.

*ARC Review*

My two favorite genres are romance and politics, so I was thrilled when Ballantine Books granted my wish to read Not the Plan.

Let me tell you that it did not disappoint. The book starts with a delightful meet cute before getting into the meat of the story. Isadora and Karim work for rival legislators in California. They try to hide their attraction for each other for the sake of their work reputations until it is simply impossible. They are like magnets and just cannot stay away.

Despite being in rival offices, you still root for both characters the entire time. Isadora is the epitome of a strong independent woman, and Karim is a dream man filled with sensitivity and passion.

I was not expecting a major focus of the book to be on the trauma of emotional and verbal abuse from loved ones, but I thought it was discussed beautifully. The characters gave each other strength in their time of need and helped each other grow. It was really lovely.

The story is engaging, the romance starts early, and there is plenty of political drama.

This is a new favorite for me.

This book had me smiling the entire time! From political intrigue and insider happenings, to an adorable central couple, it had something for everyone!

❀ ARC review ❀
To be entirely honest it did take me while to get used to the writing style. Especially with all the political talk, but of course there’s going to political talk. It’s a political work romance duhhh *mentally cursing myself*.

Overall this was cute and quirky. I loved how shy Karim is portrayed but when Isa needed him. Boom he was always there. Also can we applaud De Cadenet for making this them a interracial couple working in politics! Because this rarely happens and I’m all for it!!! Lastly the ending was just the cheery on top. Isa might have missed but she did land lifetime of seeing more green shirts lol.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for a review!

I was so happy to have my wish for this title granted and after reading it I was not disappointed. This was a lovely story with likeable characters, intriguing political drama, and steamy romance. The story was fast paced and kept me totally engaged while the romance aspect was heartfelt and genuine without feeling cheesy.

This book was super cute and I really, really enjoyed reading it! I loved the dynamic of the characters!

This book being about politics, is a little different from what I would normally read, but I really enjoyed it! Isadora and Karim work at rival offices. I thought they were charming together and I didn’t know what side I wanted to root for! This was a cute book that also had some more heavy and emotional moments. Overall, I really enjoyed it and couldn’t put it down!

Look for this book February 7, 2023

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing - Ballantine for this arc!

A fresh start from past relationships. A new job, a new city, and a new colleague you mistook for a therapist on the plane. Granted she did spill coffee on him. Karim and Isadora immediate hit it off but try to deny their feelings because they work for two different groups. And not just any groups but two senators going for the same spot, president pro tem. The more they work together they soon realize maybe can be together and still do their jobs.
I very much enjoyed Not the Plan by Gia de Cadenet. To me it was a beautiful story about Karim and Isadora both severing traumatic relationship to be together. Learning to trust one another, and how to proper love each other, they both grew as the book progressed. Throughout the entire book, I loved seeing Isa and Karim develop into their own team, outside of work and anyone else’s opinion. #TeamIsadora ( and captain, Karim) The buildup of their relationship was perfect and I could’ve read on and on about Karim and Isadoras future. As Karim said, “It wouldn’t be starting over, Isa. It would be starting our next chapter.”