This is the third book in a series (but can be read as a stand-alone) and I’ve read both of the other books. All three are fine romances on their own. They are cute, mostly fun, but deal with some pretty tough topics.

This one actually felt a little close to home and I found myself really identifying with Indira. Her fears about being loved were easy to relate to. Her therapy sessions were interesting and she had a good perspective on herself.

She ends up falling for her older brother’s best friend Jude, who she has known since childhood. The bickering is light and fun, and I also enjoy a good forced proximity situation.

One thing I really liked about this romance was no third act breakup. They actually… communicated! And the book was better for it. A couple of steamy scenes, but nothing too intense. I do agree with some other reviewers that it was a touch too long, and some things take pages when it could have taken a paragraph.

Overall, this is a decent romance. I’d recommend this one to a friend.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Mazey keeps getting better and better. I absolutely loved, loved, loved this story and these characters. I love this series and am so happy with how things wrapped up. Jude and Indira are definitely my favorite and their love for each other was so beautiful to read. Ugh, I just freaking loved this.

Have you ever felt like a plus one?

There is something sweet, spicy, and heartwarming about this fantastic book. With a serious plot and some truly laugh-out-loud moments, it's a winning blend. The setting is a fake dating trope with some unexpected twists.

I admire the author's approach to mental health issues. The situation is written about in a respectful and well-researched manner. As a result of reading the author's information, I felt more informed about the topic. Mazey Eddings novel The Plus One is very enjoyable, and I look forward to reading her future works.

The Plus One is available on April 4th.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for sharing this cozy novel with me. This is a story you don't want to miss.

#ThePlusOne

Not my favorite. Book is also more on the explicit side so be warned about that. In case you are looking for a clean read this is not it. I didn’t relate to the characters and the story very much so it wasn’t my favorite

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for sending this e-arc my way in exchange for an honest review.

When I pick up a romance, this is exactly what I want. I want to fall for the characters and root for them, individually and together. I want to have 15 more reasons why I should raise my standards for future relationships and why I love love. I want to have fun, cry, feel safe, and cozy while reading. I want to feel the love and care the author put into the book and Mazey Eddings hits all those points out of the ballpark every time. Every Mazey Eddings book just gets better than the last and instantly becomes a new favorite.

"Things have changed dramatically for Jude after camping-like the entire trip had shifted the tectonic plates of his heart, creating a devastating earthquake that made constant thoughts of Indira rattle through his mind."
This is an early copy and these lines may be changed/removed in the final version.

A childhood frenemies-to-lovers romance following Indira, who was recently cheated on and moved in with her brother until she finds her own space, and Jude, Indira's brother's best friend that has returned home to attend his wedding and struggling with his PTSD. Indira and Jude have always had a frenemies relationship where they teased, insulted, and joked with each other. Everyone around them has been wary of them being in the same room but now, it seems Indira and Jude can't stay away from each other. They have begun a fake dating relationship to show Indira's ex that she's fine without him and for Jude to feel more comfortable in triggering spaces because she makes him feel safe. Throughout their relationship, they worked through their issues (individually and together with some push back on Jude's part) and became reintroduced to each other after years of not being in contact.

I am in love with this book. I could not tell you how many times I squealed or swooned over the characters, how many times I smiled at the love and care the characters had for each other and support to heal. I LOVED the "you deserve love no matter your flaws and I love you, I will be here when you're ready" conversations. They just connected with me in ways I didn't expect and I cried. The therapists? Incredible reminders to allow myself grace and loving myself, allowing others to do the same. I just couldn't get enough of Indira and Jude and the pop-ups of Mazey's other characters. 5 out of 5 stars. My only complaint was the multiple time jumps in the ending chapters and epilogue confused me. I wasn't sure where exactly each event was on the trilogy's timeline and I feel like Lizzie's daughter should be older than a toddler? Other than that, this is another perfect book, another 5 stars from Mazey.

This book features strong representation and discussion of PTSD and panic attacks that could potentially be triggering for some people.

Really enjoyed the fact that this book was able to weave in serious topics (childhood abandonment issues, trust issues and PTSD) along with making me genuinely laugh out loud.

A perfect mix of serious and light, this book centered on Indira who has just walked in on her cheating fiance. She flees to her brother's house and who answers the door?!? The person she despises most and her brother's best friend, Jude. Most of her childhood was spent ribbing each other and things start off the same way in adulthood. But the close quarters of both living with her brother show them that they can be friends...and once they open that door, it's not too far to lovers. Will they be able to work through all of their issues both together and separately? Can love heal the broken pieces of you?

Much thanks to Netgalley and St Martin's Press doe the ARC.

I can't believe how this author was able to weave really tough topics (PTSD especially) with hilarious banter, a swoonworthy MMC, and steamy scenes. My heart absolutely ached for Jude, the MMC, who is on leave from a doctors without borders type assignment in which he's witnessed a lot of trauma. Indira, the FMC, is a psychiatrist, and there is so much attention paid to importance of mental health and how we shouldn't take it for granted. But unlike a lot of women's fiction masquerading as romance these days, the heavy topics didn't outweigh the developing feelings between Jude and Indira at the core. Watching them go from childhood enemies to tentative friends to can't-stop-thinking-about-you lovers was beautiful. I would recommend this to any fans of Kate Clayborne or Kate Canterbury.

Upcoming Release!
The Plus One by Mazey Eddings is book 3 in the A Brush with Love series and centers on Indira and a childhood friend, Jude.
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The book takes a look at abandonment, the importance of mental health & the access to it, as well as the effects of workplace (medical professional) trauma. This book felt deeper than the first two books, but that could just be how I interpreted it. As a veteran of the Air Force, there was a comment where Jude alluded to military service (to answer a question) would be my only critique…while Jude experienced trauma due to the area he was in as a traveling doctor, it is wholly different from combat trauma.
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The open-door romance comes much later as opposed to Lizzie Blake but each worked for their respective stories.
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I loved that Indira and Jude were childhood friends who drifted apart and didn’t really like each other, and reconnected. They fake dated, and then moved into real feelings. There is so much depth to this one!
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Thank you to @stmartinspress and @netgalley I felt like I won the lottery when I was gifted this copy.
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TW: cheating, trauma - PTSD to include (panic attacks, anxiety, depression), abandonment

Starts off well. Indira has just broken up with a douchebag cheater, right in time for Jude, her childhood frenemy, to walk back into her life. Cue both the enemies-to-lovers and brother's best friend tropes.

It kinda started dragging in the middle, too much will-they-won't-they without moving forward either the story line or the relationship.

Unfortunately, it never picked back up after that, but devolved into an in depth examination of the effects of PTSD. The relationship and storyline just got shoved to the side.

Started as a 4 star, dropped down to a 3 star for about the middle half, then unfortunately ended on a 2 star.

The cat was kinda funny though.

I can’t believe this was only the first book I’ve read by Mazey Eddings and now I need to go through her back list! I LOVED this book so much and was so excited to get this ARC via NetGalley and the publisher. This book was definitely 5 stars and I’ve got the rest of Mazey Edding’s books next up on my TBR!



The Plus One follows childhood frenemies Indira and Jude as they prepare for Indira’s brother’s wedding. Indira has just broken up by her cheating boyfriend who happens to also be in the bridal party. Jude is on leave from his job as a medical provider in emergency situations abroad and dealing with sever PTSD while trying to hide that from his friends. When they team up to fake date in order to help Indira keep away from her ex and give Jude an excuse to step out when overwhelmed, they realize that what they thought was hate may have been something a little more like love. These two childhood frenemies now reunited were so incredible- their growth and support of each other was phenomenal. Indira was so understanding and supportive of Jude even when he felt like he didn’t deserve it and Jude always had Indira’s back. I honestly want to reread this book again for the joy I felt reading any interactions between these two.



If you love childhood frenemies to lovers, mental health representation, and mature, lovable characters, please read this book. It was absolutely phenomenal.

Format - E ARC (netgalley)

Rating- ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️

Spice- 🌶 🌶 🌶

Series- A Brush With Love #3

Troupes- brothers best friend, childhood nemesis, enemies to lovers, forced proximity,

CW- PTSD, mental health struggles, panic attacks, parental abandonment

I don't want this series to end, there I said it. Mazey Eddings has created a world where people can struggle with their mental health and can decide to get help or not and still be seen as real normal humans. This has been a continuous thread though her books thus far and its so hearting to read.

Indira and Jude have known each other forever, and hated each other for just as long, but when your brothers best friend becomes your new roommate and your both in need of some support while said brother throws the most elaborate series of weeding events imaginable, it might just be enough to put the old feelings aside and grow some new ones.

I love Indira she’s sweet and feisty and not afraid to get as good as she gets with these mean boys she’s put up with and chanced after her entire life. The family dynamics between her and her brother are so much fun and aww inducing at the same time. But the banter and just down right insults she and Jude fire at each other will literally have you LOLing. I laughed so much reading this book but I also teared up quite a few times. Both Indira and Jude have been though some stuff, but only one is actually doing anything about it. And it’s hard to watch such a wonderful fictional human suffer the way Jude does and not get all in your feels about it.

The tension is taunt and the chemistry sizzling, and the steam is oh so spicy between these two. Like ya do when you’ve got Mazey at the keyboard. Pulling all the strings and throwing in all the interruptions.

I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention then found family across this series Harper, Thu, Lizzie and Indira have been like friends this past year (wow its only been a year since I read Harper’s book) and it’s sad to say goodbye to them. But that’s what Mazey does she creates these wonderful fictional humans you just can’t help but love and its always hard to close the book and know that’s all the time you get with them.

I know she has just gotten started and I can’t wait to read whatever Mazey will gift us with next!

Thank you Mazey Eddings, Netgally and St Martin’s for this advanced copy, all opinions are my own.

The Plus One by Mazey Eddings is a must read for 2023! Mazey Eddings is proving to be a novelist who is here to stay. Each one of her novels has been better than the last and 'The Plus One' is no exception. I fell in love with the characters from the first two books and Indira's story in 'The Plus One' elevates the already solid reputation of Mazey Eddings novels. 'The Plus One' takes the enemies to lovers trope and brings it to the next level with its humor, chemistry and character development. I smiled through this entire book, laughed out loud and felt all the feels. Indira and Jude's love story was so raw, real and honest (and also hilarious). One of my favorite things about Mazey Eddings books is she is not afraid to talk about mental health and she is so good at capturing real life emotion. I am amazed at her ability to weave hilarious dialogue between her characters with authentic deep conversations that create a real and heartfelt development of amazing love stories. 'The Plus One' is a feel good romantic comedy that has many emotional layers and the characters will steal your heart. The verbal sparring by Jude and Indira will have you realizing just like them that "roasting" one another IS a love language. Buy this Book! This one will be in my top of 2023 list for Contemporary Romance.

This is a great rom com that has such a good feeling to it. Two characters who have a lot of stuff and baggage to work through. So fun to see their growth and mental health talked about so opening in the book. I really enjoyed reading it. Seeing the two main characters growth from beginning to end through highs and lows was awesome!

🌟: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

mazey eddings never lets me down.
i was hooked from the first few pages of A BRUSH WITH LOVE, and i actually got emotional during the epilogue of this book, because these characters have become like dear friends to me throughout 2022! indira and jude are now imprinted on my heart the same way harper, dan, lizzie, rake, thu, and alex are (although I wouldn’t mind a little bonus thu and alex POV book one day?? maybe?? 👀)

this book has so many great things:
😤childhood enemies/frenemies to lovers
😏brother’s best friend
🧠PTSD representation
🌶spice that is EVERYTHING
💛comfort characters

indira just caught her boyfriend cheating on her. when she goes to stay with her older brother in the weeks leading up to his wedding, the situation is made worse when her childhood nemesis, jude (also her brother’s best friend) is also staying at the house with them. i don’t want to say more at risk of giving it away, but this is one y’all will want to pick up. if you can relate at all to finding someone in your life who miraculously had/has the powers to make you feel whole even when it seems like you’re shattering beneath their grasp, indira and jude’s story will tug at your heart and make you feel like you’re being held along with them. 💛

I enjoyed this book! Felt a little slow in the beginning and then was a bit rushed towards the end. Super cute characters and some good spicy scenes too!

No one pulls me out of a reading slump like Mazey Eddings. All three books in the A Brush with Love series are heartfelt and romantic, and books I will return to again.

In The Plus One, Eddings takes such care with her characters and depictions of mental health--something she truly excels at as an author. We know these characters feel broken, we know they will be okay, and we know eventually these lovable dummies are going to realize they're meant to be. Jude and Indira 4ever. Highly recommend.

Thank you to the publisher and Net Galley for providing me with an ARC of the book!!!

Indira & Jude 🩺💖

Indira is a psychologist in a relationship that’s going no where but she really does want to make it work. That is until she comes home early and her boyfriend is cheating on her. She leaves and goes to her brother and his boyfriend’s house and, she finds her childhood nemesis who is also her brother’s best friend Jude.

Jude is going through his own set of issues on top of this. He is suffering PTSD from being a trauma surgeon in third world countries. Yet the girl he is supposed to hate is the only one who can calm him down.

Now they have all these pre wedding events!
She has to see her ex and he can’t be in large crowds. So they decided to fake date.
But the charade can only go on for so long.

This was such a genuine and beautiful love story. It highlights the message that you don’t have to be strong all the time. That it’s okay to fall down several times and that it’s okay to rely on someone else. That’s what they are for each other. They are both very mature adults and handle their issues together and separately. I think this is my new favorite in the series.

With each moment in the lives of the girls in these books I fell more in love with each one. First with Harper, then Lizzie, and finally Indira. Each one feeling like they held little pieces of my brain and emotions with them. To feel seen in little puzzle pieces of each of these girls was soo refreshing. To see men who accept and embrace and fall in love with these girls with all that they are was so beautiful and gives me a little bit a hope for the future. And not only that, the girls embrace and fall in love with themselves and all their brain quirks.

This book made me smile and made me want to hug Jude and Indira for so many different reasons. And I could go on and and on but I don’t think I’ll have enough. I just loved it. If you can’t tell lol. And the epilogue was a beautiful wrap up for the girls that filled my heart with joy and just a tinge of sadness to let them go.


This book like the others is a 5/5 for me. I loved being in this world with the girls and I will miss them in this universe. I was so excited when I got approved for this book! You have no idea! So thank you to netgalley and st.Martins press.

I cannot wait for this one to physically come out so I can add this beautiful story to my collection. And Mazey Eddings for doing it for the neurodivergent people! ✨

This romantic comedy is not to be missed! The author does it again bringing serious mental health issues to light in a way that is easily relatable and shows the process of accepting such struggles and their healing process (with a big emphasis on it being a process). But the witty retorts and sweet romance between this couple as well as seeing old and familiar friends from throughout the series makes this a comforting read I devoured in a day. This wonderful book has enemies to lovers, fake dating, forced proximity, and second chance romance. This book is a 10/10 and a must read!

I received a free advanced review copy and am offering my honest opinion voluntarily.

Tons of fun romance novel tropes in this one with a surprising amount of heart and reflection. The main focus is on PTSD in one of the characters and how life is a continual journey of healing but we can still find love without being perfect. The author does a good job breaking up the heavy with sexy scenes and light laughs. This one got a few genuine laughs out of me. The characters were sweet and the romance was pretty spicy!