Kat’s boyfriend of six months tells her he’s leaving for an audition in Vancouver to be the host of a reality dating show, asks her to watch his pet hedgehog Jojo, then tells her that he’s never coming back. Mick, with his older brother and younger sister, runs the family funeral home, where Mick hasn’t quite found his place.

After a meet-cute worthy of a rom-com, Kat and Mick become friends. Each is attracted to the other, but they keep it to themselves. He values her friendship above the risk of more. Meanwhile, Kat confides in Mick that she’s created a list of the attributes for her perfect guy, since she’s picked so many losers in the past. Kat really likes Mick, but starting a relationship based on physical attraction is what doomed her in the past, so instead, she looks to Mick’s brother Joe, who checks off every feature on her Mr. Perfect list.

I absolutely adored Too Wrong to Be Right! Melonie Johnson nails the friends-to-lovers trope with Kat and Mick, bringing readers humor and all the feels. I knew I’d love this book from the beginning when Kat spends time with her grandma, evoking longing for my own Granny, making me deeply nostalgic. I could feel the love between the pair, and I had a few tears in my own eyes.

Ms. Johnson continues to evoke emotions when she brings the Kat and Mick close to more and then pulls them away. The longing is intense, and my heart would race with each kiss that left Kat and Mick yearning for more. As this dance continues, they grow to be close friends and confidants. It’s so obvious to the reader, as well as the pair’s families, that they are falling in love, yet each chooses not to risk more. It was frustrating (in a good way) to watch them each wait for a sign from the other to indicate they wanted more.

Too Wrong to Be Right is a joy from beginning to end. A true rom-com, it made me laugh and played with my heartstrings. Mick and Kat’s story evoked a wide array of emotions and left me contented. I highly recommend!

My Rating: A-

After being dumped unceremoniously by her boyfriend of 6 months (after agreeing to take care of his hedgehog), Kat is even farther away from her goals than ever. She keeps dating assholes(and seriously, who would give up JoJo, the sweet spiky ball of love that she is??) and she’s no closer to starting her own flower shop. So when she literally bumps into Mick while pinning a boutonnière to a dead man’s suit(talk about meet disaster), the friendship and zing of attraction that follows is too good to be true. Her heart has a knack for picking the wrong guys - and it’s time to find Mr. Right once and for all.

This was adorable! I loved the settings of this book - not often is a funeral home depicted with so much life in it! The family dynamic of the O’Sullivans was a great contrast for Kat’s lack of connection to her own(besides Babcia), and I loved the way that older adults were depicted and valued in this story. As a seniors activity centre director, meaningful relationships with older adult characters are always especially great to see in a romance novel!

The chemistry between Kat and Mick was great, and I liked the respect each had for the friendship despite growing attraction and feelings.

The idea of JoJo the hedgehog in tiny outfits was so cute, and I also loved Seamus the cockatoo’s potty mouth. Unique pets were a fun addition!

I didn’t love that Kat was going against attraction while thinking Mick’s brother, Joe, was her Mr. Right, but it did make sense for her mindset.

The ending was so cute, and I genuinely loved the epilogue (thank you for leaving marriage and babies out of it without ruling out the possibility!)

This book is another win for Melonie Johnson, and I’m looking forward to more stories from her!

“𝘓𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘴𝘦𝘦𝘬 𝘪𝘵.”

Kat’s had terrible luck with boyfriends. The latest one dumped her and left her his hedgehog. Not a euphemism; it’s a real hedgehog. With this latest disappointment, she decides her instincts are terrible, and that she’ll only date Mr. Right.

Enter Mick, co-owner of his family-run funeral home. They have a unique meet-cute, and take to each other. There’s a good vibe between them but Kat strictly wants to be friends, only, and asks Mick to be her wingman, instead.

I liked the setup, and understood why Kat’s confidence took a knock after her last breakup. They’re so cute together, and Mick’s so charming. When things heat up they go from 0 to 60 in seconds!

However, I didn’t like the conflict that arose between them. It’s my favorite (not) miscommunication trope resulting in an argument that escalates. Kat’s reaction felt so contrived; I could feel the wheel turning in her head as she glommed onto the argument to push Mick away because she was scared.

Back to the fun things - its many moments of humor and sweet interactions like between Kat and her grandmother. The side characters are delightful, too. And it’s set in Chicago so I loved the setting. I’ve enjoyed reading Johnson’s books before, and this was just as fun!

Thank you to @netgalley & @smpromance for my review copy. This is my honest review.

𝗧𝗼𝗼 𝗪𝗿𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼 𝗕𝗲 𝗥𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 is available February 28th.

After her latest relationship breakup ends up becoming the owner of a pet hedgehog, the heroine is fed up with falling for a certain type of hero. The heroine decides to make a Mr. Right checklist and searches for that person who hits all the boxes. A meetup with the hero at his family's funeral home brings instant attraction between them, but the heroine wants to keep things in the friend zone. Yet as the heroine gets to know the hero better, will she let their attraction become more or will she let her past keep her from being happy with the hero?

This is an entertaining Melonie Johnson book. The story has this positive vibe that I enjoyed. I really appreciated the animals that enriched the story with their presence. There were also some strong secondary characters that helped the story progression. I liked the hero more than the heroine and would have liked more details about him in the story. Also, certain areas in the book needed more details for better transition. However, it's still a solid entertaining Melonie Johnson book and I look forward to reading more from the author.


** Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the review copy. All opinions and thoughts in the review are my own. **

The story begins with Kat Kowalski who resides in Chicago and works is a floral shop. She has dreams of one day owning her own shop, she is dumped by her boyfriend and ends up with his hedgehog Jo -Jo as her nocturnal new pet.

Mick works at a funeral home which is his family's business. Unfortunately, it is not his dream, He hopes to one day become a grief counselor and help people with his psychology degree.

Mick and Kat meet over a corpse at Mick's family funeral home. Mick is immediately smitten, but Kat has sworn off dating until she can find a man who meets her list of ideal qualities.

I felt throughout the book that Kat has too many expectations for Mick and made the mistake to date Mick's older brother Joe because he met everything on Kat's list. Well, fate decided to step in, and Kat couldn't deny the chemistry between her and Mick.

The only downside for me was that I found Kat to be whiney at times. But overall, this is a cute and funny lighthearted rom-com and will have you rooting for love to conquer all,

Many thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

Summary
After yet another crappy breakup, Kat is determined to try something different. She makes a list of the perfect guy for her, and requirement #1 is that he must be the opposite of the handsome charmers she is normally attracted to. While delivering flowers for a funeral nearby, a run-in with one of the parlor owners will have her literally falling for her Mr. Right.

Why did I pick up this book?
I was gifted this Advanced Reader Copy by NetGalley. I thought the premise sounded cute, and have been seeing Melonie Johnson on Instagram for a while.

What did I enjoy about it?
My favorite part of this book was the adorable grandmas that both Kat and Mick had in their lives. I always appreciate when the voice of reason or encouragement comes from someone other than a friend in these types of books. I also appreciated the lesson about having to compromise on our goals/dreams because sometimes they don't work out as perfectly as we hoped, but are worth taking the leap to find happiness.

What did I not enjoy about it?
Kat was a challenge for me. It is clear she feels abandoned by her parents and now seeks approval and affection from others, but to the point of emotional dependence. She also handled multiple situations of conflict in a very immature way, conflicts that could have been talked through and avoided. She writes Mick off immediately as "the type she always falls for" with absolutely no supporting data - why?? Last, I'm disappointed the author took the time to look up a number of Polish words, but couldn't be bothered to research the spelling of kolaczek/kolaczki, arguably the most well-known Polish pastry.

My sincere thanks to St. Martin's Griffin and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this book and give my unbiased opinion of it in the following review.

Too Wrong to be Right is the first book I've read by Melonie Johnson. This is a strangers to friends to lovers rom com that takes place in Chicago over a period of several months including the holiday season. The main character, Kat, is literally dumped at the beginning of the book by her shallow boyfriend who also leaves his pet hedgehog with her. She tells her girlfriends that she is over falling for good-looking jerks and makes a list of the attributes her forever man should have. Of course, the first guy she meets after making the list completely catches her interest but is nothing like her list. They have a fun "meet cute" at a funeral home where there was even a sarcastic bird named Seamus who added some spicy commentary that made me chuckle.

I loved the character of Mick. He was at his own crossroads and trying to figure out which path he wanted his life to follow. He reluctantly finds himself in the friend zone with Kat and has to watch her date his brother because Joe DOES fit her criteria. At this point I was still liking the book a lot, but it started dragging and there was so much miscommunication or NO communication. There were a few steamy scenes that I thought were a bit awkward and, in my opinion, would have been better left out or maybe at least saved until the end. I did enjoy the author's writing style. I would be interested in trying another Melonie Johnson book in the future, maybe a story about Joe. Hint Hint. I can see lots of romance readers enjoying this, so will recommend to people I think would like it. For me, this one rates 3 stars.

I really enjoyed Too Good To Be Real so I was excited to read this one. However, it didn’t live up to Too Good To Be Real.

I really wanted to love the story, but it just missed for me. I really wanted Kate to open her eyes and accept how she felt about Mick earlier, regardless if she was “going for the opposite of what she normally went for.” I also really don’t like brothers almost being pitted against each other, especially with a past.

When the two main characters did get together, it went from zero to sixty to zero. And then zero stood for months. I’m all for a slow burn, but this didn’t hit for me.

I would give this author another try as I really enjoyed the first one.

Too Wrong to be Right by Melonie Johnson
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After her boyfriend dunps her and leaves her with an unexpected new pet, Kat is done with chasing after the wrong guys. She is determined to find Mr Right, which means finding someone she normally doesn’t look for.
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This one is a tough one for me to review. There were a lot of fun quirky things about this story: hedgehog, two fun grandmas who love romance novels, a funeral home, an unexpected trip to the urgent care, cup cozies crocheted to look like penises.
I think the main thing holding me back from loving this one was that I struggled to relate to,and like, Kat. There were a few things she did in this book that frustrated me and I wanted to throw my hands in the air towards the end.
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3⭐️⭐️⭐️ This one was good but not my favorite. I’m sure there are others who will enjoy it though.

Thank you to Netgalley, St. Martin's Griffin, and Melonie Johnson for the opportunity to do an ARC read for this title. My thoughts and opinions on this work are my own.

Poor Kat, the FMC, get dumped by her boyfriend and becomes the new owner of an adorable hedgehog. Jojo becomes her pet when said boyfriend flees to Canada for a reality show audition. She vows that she will never date anymore charismatic assholes. So she comes up with a list of attributes to find Mr. Right. She meets Mick at a funeral home while setting up florals for a funeral from the shop that she manages. He is everything that she thinks she does not want: handsome, snarky, and kind of just drifting through life at the moment. She also meets her Joe, Mick's older brother, and the funeral director. He checks all the boxes on her list, but doesn't give her that spark. Kat through a series of misadventures, including a bloody concussion for Mick (hilarious situation), finds that Mick just might be the person that she was looking for all along.

I absolutely loved this title. I knew this book was going to be a winner for me when I read the scene in the funeral home when Kat almost fell into a coffin with a cadaver and Mick pulled her out in time. I must have an absolutely morbid sense of humor, but I could not stop laughing. Kat and Mick's chemistry was on point. It almost ended up being a love triangle story, but thankfully did not go that route. I absolutely adored all the side characters. Jojo the hedgehog and Seamus the cockatoo get honorable mention as well for being so damn funny and adorable.

Kat, a florist, is determined to find her Mr. Right with a checklist after getting dumped by her ex-boyfriend. When delivering flower arrangements to a funeral home, she stumbles across Mick O’Sullivan at his family’s funeral home. There is such a strong chemistry between Kat and Mick, but Kat decided to follow her head this time by ticking off her perfect Mr. Right checklist, instead of following her heart. So, Kat and Mick become close friends instead. Would they be able to stay friends forever?

This is such a cute and humorous romance story. It is definitely not a meet-cute story, but such a good friends-to-lovers story. Each character has different personality and different backstories, and they just complete the story. It also makes the slow burn more interesting and fun to read. I like the dual POVs, but not really a big fan of writing in the third-person instead of first in each of those POVs.

Overall, I enjoyed the book, and would recommend this book to those who are looking for a rom-com or a friends-to-lovers romance.

𝑹𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This was an entertaining, well-written book. It was cute, funny and sweet, though I wasn't a fan of some of the lack of communication and ridiculous expectations and assumptions shown by the main characters. I enjoyed this book and will continue to look out for books by this author.

I’ve been eagerly waiting for the audiobook version of this latest romcom from Melonie Johnson and it was the first thing I picked up today!!

Let me tell you, it did not disappoint!! You’re going to want to add this hilarious friends to lovers romance to your TBR if you enjoy any of the following:

🦜🦔Quirky animal side characters

🤣Meet-disasters

💞Love triangles done well

💬Great banter

🍿90s romcom vibes

🌶️Just a bit of spice

If any of this appeals, I highly recommend you pick up Too wrong to be right, especially for fans of books like The dead romantics by Ashley Poston!

Many thanks to Netgalley and St Martins Griffin for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you to @stmartinspress and @smpromance for an advance copy of Melonie Johnson's Too Wrong to Be Right. 

This is an enjoyable and entertaining read. However, I didn't connect with the fmc and the mmc. I felt like Kat was taking advantage of the fact that Mick likes her and that he would do everything for her. It was a cute story, but the delivery felt flat.

When her boyfriend ditches her for a job in another country, florist Kat decides to stop dating until she meets a man who checks all her boxes. So no matter how swoony Mick makes her feel, she decides they're better as friends. But with so much chemistry between them, can they keep their relationship platonic?

This novel is a delight. It's light and fun with lovable characters, a heartwarming plot, and a cute hedgehog. It makes me want to give my e-reader a hug. No one does rom com better than Melonie Johnson.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received. This is my honest and voluntary review.

Too Wrong to Be Right was just a little too wrong to be right for me, sadly..

Kat has just been dumped, again, by Mr. Wrong. Saddled now with her ex's hedgehog, Kat is rushing off to a funeral - her least favorite place to be - when she runs, literally, into Mick. The pair instantly hit it off, but Kat is determined not to fall for her typical type again, so she firmly puts Mick into the "friends only" category. But will she regret that decision when she realizes he might actually just be Mr. Right after all?

This was the first book of Melonie's that I read and I tried my best to get throgh it, but I just couldn't seem to get any traction in the reading. I ended up skipping around 70-80 pages and then started skimming as I hoped maybe I was just missing the flow and it would appear, but then the back half of the book became about Kat trying to date Mick's brother all while realizing Mick was the best man standing right in front of her. It felt like a lot of drama was added in towards the end to reach a certain page amount, and either that should have been addressed or the drama should have been more substantive than it was. Sadly, it was a miss for me.

This was a fun romance. I liked the funeral home aspect and really think it's an underrated setting. The friendships were the best part of the book and I really wish there was more with the different groups of friends. I was less impressed with the main characters and their (mainly Kat's) inability to get it together. Also, I could have done without hearing how skinny and blonde and beautiful and sexy she is all the freaking time. 3.5 stars.

**Thank you to St. Martin’s Press, NetGalley and Melonie Johnson for allowing me to receive an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!**

This book has such a fun premise. I found myself reading this book so quickly because I really just fell in love with it. I felt so connected to the female protagonist and I had a great time empathizing with her series of crummy boyfriends. I always love books with dual POV’s and this was just a terrific read. I really enjoyed seeing the male perspective to the main relationship.

Too Wrong to Be Right is Melonie Johnson’s latest romantic comedy and the sequel to Too Good to Be Real. It can be read as a stand-alone but will be better enjoyed if read in sequence.

Florist Kat Kowalski is disillusioned with romance after her 6-month boyfriend dumps her to go onto Vancouver for a reality dating TV show and leaves her his pet hedgehog, JoJo. Kat feels lonely and left behind as her two best friends make plans to move in with their respective boyfriends and give up their weekly get-togethers. She realizes that she keeps dating Mr. Wrong’s and composes a list of qualities for Mr. Right.

Then Kat meets Mick O’Sullivan at his family's funeral home. Their immediate chemistry warns Kat to keep things platonic; after all, following her heart never worked out in the past, and this time she’s determined to listen to her head. Kat struggles to remain just friends with Mick, while he is interested in a relationship. However both Kat and Mick have a lot of emotional baggage to overcome, involving both family issues and their respective careers.

Too Wrong to Be Right is a hilarious slow-burn romance featuring memorable human characters and the greatest cockatoo and hedgehog in literature. Kat and Mick are realistic main characters, and the cast of helpful and interfering family and friends just add to the overall charm of the book. I highly recommend this book and hope that the author writes a sequel featuring Mick’s siblings.

I received an Advance Review Copy (ARC) from NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Too Wrong to be Right
Author: Melonie Johnson @meloniejohnson
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
🔥🔥🔥

This was such a sweet and hilarious romcom 😍

After a breakup with her current boyfriend and becoming an adopted mom to a pet hedgehog 🦔, Kat realizes that she dates the wrong guys. Every guy she has dated has ended up being a big asshole. She wants change but she’ll have to figure that out for herself…

Kat and her best friends make a list of qualities her next boyfriend should have that will make him her Mr. Right. Oh shit….

Kat meets a man, Mick and his siblings, Joe and Mary-Kate who own a funeral home. Kat and Mick end up making a business deal with her flower shop and his funeral home. Throughout this process they become good friends, but we all know they both want to be more than friends, their just idiots that share one braincell.

This book was perfect and hilarious. Seamus, the no filter-cursing cockatoo 🦜 was it for me 😂🤣 This damn bird had me laughing so hard I might have woken up my children at one point 😂😂😂

And let’s not just forget the beautiful princess, Jojo the hedgehog 🦔, ladies and gentleman

Thank you @stmartinspress and @netgalley for this ARC for my honest review! I can’t wait to read more from @meloniejohnson

Don’t forget to pick up your copy or download it on 2/28/23 📖