"Right Girl, Wrong Side" by Ginny Baird is a delightful romantic escapade that keeps the heart racing. With a charming narrative and well-crafted characters, Baird takes readers on a journey of unexpected connections and heartwarming moments. The story's engaging twists and turns, combined with Baird's knack for portraying genuine emotions, make it an engaging read for romance enthusiasts. "Right Girl, Wrong Side" is a sweet and engaging novel that reminds us that love can often find its way even in the most unexpected places.

I wanted to love this one a ton, because I adored the setting of Nantucket.

The feud between the families distracted me from the rest of the story and Evita and Ryan specifically. The whole thing seemed super childish. Cute story, just not as much chemistry out of the main characters as I would have liked.

Right Girl, Wrong Side
⭐️⭐️⭐️
Genre: Romance
Author: Ginny Baird

I requested a digital advanced readers copy from NetGalley, Sourcebooks, and Dreamscape Media and providing my opinion voluntarily and unbiased.

Synopsis: Busy flower shop manager Evita Machado can't wait to get to Nantucket. With a bad breakup behind her, relaxing at the shore with her folks and her brothers and their families sounds like the sure cure for heartache, and their vacation destination looks like an amazing place! But when they arrive at the quaint rose-covered cottage, another group has already put down stakes: the Hatfields.

Ryan Hatfield was Evita's former crush from high school, but their business rival moms refused to let them date. Now history professor Ryan is here for a week with his parents, who won them this oceanfront rental in a society silent auction. Once it's clear there's been a double-booking due to a bidding mistake, Ryan's mom digs in her heels, meaning to stay. When Evita's mom won't back down either, both sides tepidly agree to share the luxury accommodations by dividing the cozy space.

With the boisterous Machados livening things up and the strait-laced Hatfields tamping them down, can Evita and Ryan keep the peace between the warring factions while fostering a growing chemistry between the two of them?

My Thoughts: I was fortunate enough to have both the digital book and audiobook. I did switch back and forth a little but mainly listened to the audiobook. This was a lighthearted story full of old school war between two families. Ryan’s family did not show affection and acted very distinguished, above others. While Evita’s family is affectionate and loud. The families could not be more different and the parents also did not like each other, going back a few generations. Some mixup at a Nantucket Auction lands the families having to share a beach rental for the week and literally splitting it down the middle. The week is full of parent drama, MCs sneak outs, humorous storyline, with a touch of romance. Can Evita and Ryan convince the families to once and for all, bury the hatchet? I would recommend this story, it was a little slow burning, but overall it was enjoyable.

Evita and Ryan's mom had both participated in the auction for the holiday house in Nantucket and somehow, both thought they'd won. This brought their respective families together at the same location. Ryan and Evita, who have had a soft spot for each other since their high school lab partnership days, found themselves in close quarters again. Their chance to attend prom together had been foiled by their intervening parents. While Ryan's family is characterized by a restrained, poised demeanor with minimal displays of affection, Evita's large Puerto Rican family is the polar opposite—loud, warm, lively, and passionate.

The highlight of this book, in my opinion, is its focus on family dynamics. Although the main plot revolves around Ryan and Evita, a wonderful ensemble of secondary characters, each with unique traits and personal challenges, enriches the narrative. The sharp contrast between the reserved Hatfields and the exuberant Machados adds an element of humor and engaging conflict. All things considered, I found the book to be a delightful read.

It’s been a long time since I’ve read a second chance romance and this one was pretty cute. Two families with a long and troubled past come back together. No one is happy except for the couple who has been waiting for their second chance since high school. It’s time to make it all right between the families and with their relationship.

Liked it!

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

Right Girl, Wrong Side is a vacation rom com filled with miscommunications, two waring families and sweet main characters. This would be a perfect beach weekend reach with the fun setting of a Nantucket beach home and two families who both booked the same house the same week, oh and they HATE each other. The two main characters Evita and Ryan have had crushes on each other forever and now have the chance to spend time together, if only their mothers would get along for five seconds. I liked the large cast of characters particularly the Machado family and the healing of some generation trauma. My only complaint was it was a little on the long side.

I love when I read a book and I finish it and I say to myself, “what an incredible story” and that’s exactly what happened when I finished Right Girl, Wrong Side by Ginny Baird. A man and a woman who were friendly in high school and lab partners at one point are reunited for a crazy week when both their families wind up at the same rental home in Nantucket for the weekend. To say two families couldn’t be more different is putting it mildly, but having their two mothers still feuding after an incident when THEY were in high school which resulted in them not becoming more than friends makes them both realize they need to figure out a way for their families (namely their mothers) to get along and enjoy the week despite the mix-up. This was a story about being true to yourself, about how things from your past can interfere with your future if you let it, about forgiveness, family, life, and most importantly about love of all kinds. A feel good, long time in coming, sweet romance and while it may sound like a crazy plot and even a bit far-fetched, I absolutely adored it.

Evita Machado has a good life; a business she’s proud of, friends, and her family who loves her fiercely. Going on vacation with her entire family including her two big brothers and their wives and children, and her parents seemed like a good idea but knowing she must finally tell them that she and her boyfriend who everyone assume would propose soon broke up six months ago is giving her anxiety. Yet she knows deep down that her family will have her back and be supportive.

Ryan Hatfield really doesn’t want to spend a week at a beach house with his mom, dad, and 15 year old sister but sometimes as an adult you do things you don’t want to do to make the people you love happy. There’s no doubt the week long rental his mom won in a charity auction isn’t beautiful and located right on the beach pretty perfect, but his family is so disconnected. He knows at this age he should be past wanting his parent’s approval especially because he has a very respectable job as a professor just not a job at an Ivy League school which would be his mother’s preference. Add to that his 15 year old sister, Maggie, seems more out of sorts than usual and he can tell this isn’t going to be a relaxing vacation so when he sees Evita Machado standing in the kitchen of their rental home he has a bad feeling yet he also can’t help but feel a bit excited as well.

Watching Evita’s family of ten and Ryan’s family of four try and figure out how to share a house albeit a very large house for a week was hilarious. Their mother’s, Lissette and Daneen have an ongoing feud stemming from an election in high school and continue to try and one up each other as real estate agents in their hometown. From the beginning it was easy to see that Evita and Ryan wanted to figure out not only how to get their mother’s past their decades old argument but they were happy to have connected once again. There were some truly hilarious and outrageous moments and it was easy to see that these two families operated very differently in all ways and while there was no doubt that both families loved one another, Ryan and even his younger sister Maggie both began to see that their family didn’t have the same type of relationship that Evita’s family had. While at times I found the contrasts of the family a bit stereotypical, I understood what the author was trying to do.

As always when people can’t seem to get past petty high school BS, I wanted to tell both of the mothers to grow up and get some therapy and for the life of me I couldn’t understand why neither of them had (especially Daneen) given they were both highly driven and successful people it wasn’t like they didn’t have the means to do so. What I loved was that despite everything going on between their families Evita and Ryan were drawn to each other more and more throughout this story. They wanted to fix the problem largely because they both were beginning to realize how much they wanted the other in their life.

The conflict in this story came from their mothers’s feud, there really wasn’t any between Ryan and Evita and I appreciated that; they both knew their mothers were being ridiculous and petty and they didn’t allow themselves to get caught up in it.

It was interesting watching the dynamics of this group of 14 change throughout this story as allies were made, friendships formed, and everyone seemed to realize other than the two women that they enjoyed each other’s company despite their very different lives.

Sometimes reading a book just makes me really happy and that’s what Right Girl, Wrong Side did for me. Despite the conflict, craziness, and often pettiness there was a lot of laughter, good times, and two people falling in love even with their families at odds.

Evita and Ryan’s families have always hated each other. When both families arrive in Nantucket for vacation, they realized there was a mix-up - both families are staying at the same house the same week. However, the rivalry between the families don’t stop Evita and Ryan from going closer.

This was just dumb. Like I don’t believe that you’d randomly end up in a double booked vacation home with your family’s enemy and then you fall in love with. With the premise being unrealistic as this, the story has to be great - and this just wasn’t. I’d pass.

*3.5⭐️
This book gave me mixed feelings. The first half of the book was great! The moms were so petty towards each other, but in a funny and endearing way. I also loved hearing about Ryan and Evita in the past and how everyone seemed to know that they had been in love with each other except for the couple themselves!
My issue was the second half of the book. It felt like the parents began to feel less funny and more childish. I also didn’t feel the connection between Ryan and Evita as well in the second half of the book.
Overall, this was a nice, quick vacation romance!

Love this multicultural romance. I really liked how the characters in this book are active and bright. This story is when you meet a former love and feelings arise again. It was a fun little romance that lifted my spirits and brought warmth to my day. Maybe I wish there was a little more hotness between the characters but here we will see only hot kisses. Sometimes I understood the reason for the enmity, but sometimes I could not find the meaning and understand why the main characters are quarreling at the moment, it confused me a little. Also, I really like this cover!

Adore adore adore. This book was so cute. Evita and Ryan are just precious. Such a good rom com. Loved.

Cute (less death filled) adaptation of the Hatfield and McCoy story with two rival families stuck together in one beach house. It was pretty fun. I loved Evita’s family.

(4.5/5 stars - rounded up to 5/5 stars)

“Busy flower shop manager Evita Machado can't wait to get to Nantucket. With a bad breakup behind her, relaxing at the shore with her folks and her brothers and their families sounds like the sure cure for heartache, and their vacation destination looks like an amazing place! But when they arrive at the quaint rose-covered cottage, another group has already put down stakes: the Hatfields.

Ryan Hatfield was Evita's former crush from high school, but their business rival moms refused to let them date. Now history professor Ryan is here for a week with his parents, who won them this oceanfront rental in a society silent auction. Once it's clear there's been a double-booking due to a bidding mistake, Ryan's mom digs in her heels, meaning to stay. When Evita's mom won't back down either, both sides tepidly agree to share the luxury accommodations by dividing the cozy space.

With the boisterous Machados livening things up and the strait-laced Hatfields tamping them down, can Evita and Ryan keep the peace between the warring factions while fostering a growing chemistry between the two of them?”

**What I loved about this book:
I really enjoyed the plot of this book! It was unlike any romance book I’ve read before! The families (despite being a wee bit crazy in their dislike for each other) were so entertaining and I loved the relationship between Evita and Ryan! I think this book would make a great beach read!

What I loved about this book:
*forbidden romance
*forced proximity
*dual POVs
*closed door romance
*slow burn
*families feuding

This was a first time read for me by this author and I found it to be a very fun and cute story. Ryan and Evita went to high school together and Ryan was Evita's crush back then. Unfortunately, their mothers were business rivals and they were never allowed to date. Years later they meet again while on vacation with their families, only due to a mistake, they end up double-booked in the same cottage. Given the past rivalries between the mothers, neither is willing to give up the cottage, so they reluctantly agree to share the space. Being together at the cottage rekindles the old feelings Ryan and Evita had for each other, and this time they are not going to let their moms' issues get between them.
This was such a fun, cute, and humorous story. The dialogue and banter kept me smiling all the way through. The story was entertaining and sweet and I look forward to reading more by this author.
I received a complimentary copy from Netgalley and am voluntarily leaving my review.

I thought this book was super cute, if a little cheesy at times. Sometimes that is what you want/need from a rom com!

A cute fun summer read of two clashing families sharing a summer rental by accident with romance developing with a member from each family, with the families intent on keeping them apart. Really enjoyed this one… deep family values are emphasized and a very nice ending.

I want to thank Netgalley and the author for gifting me the ebook. I really enjoyed this novel. It was cute and light hearted with comedy mixed in there. A perfect weekend or vacation beach read.
The characters were likeable and also has a happy ending.

The Hatfields and McCoys. Romeo and Juliet. Family rivalries have existed throughout time, with some feuds spanning centuries. Ginny Baird's new novel Right Girl, Wrong Side plays on the family feud trope, but requires you to suspend disbelief because the basis for the plot is a bit outlandish.

When two warring families both "win" a weeklong stay at a sprawling Nantucket beach cottage due to a clerical error, they decide to tough it out by literally splitting the cottage down the middle with each family taking one side. It would ordinarily be bad enough sharing a vacation home with uninvited guests, but the Machados and Hatfields have history. The matriarchs of the families are involved in a feud spanning back to when they were in high school. They detest each other, but have no idea that their 20-something, conveniently single, daughter and son had a crush on each other when they were teenagers. Will the sparks be reunited over the course of the week as Evita and Ryan reconnect amidst family arguments, hilarious hijinks, and the seductive seascape?

Right Girl, Wrong Side is a spirited, clean romance bubbling over with spite and animosity. Imagine vacationing with your sworn enemy and you'll understand why this novel is filled with spats ... but it is also spunky! Both families push on despite their differences, and hopefully learn a thing or two about grace and humility from their time spent together in Nantucket.

Battles aside, Baird deposits readers into her wonderfully crafted setting, really building that anticipation for and sense of vacation, and making readers feel that they are enjoying Nantucket right alongside the Machados and the Hatfields. Both of these families have distinct personalities and ways of interacting with each other, and the polar opposite family dynamics are quite fascinating to observe. Although Evita and Ryan's romance is the premise of this book, it really takes a backseat to everything else that is going on.

It should be said that this book reads like YA. If it wasn't stated that Evita and Ryan were in their late 20s, you could easily assume that they were college-aged. This book is perfect for anyone who loves the YA vibes, but has transitioned to adult fiction. Also, being a book written for adults and not teens, I am surprised that Baird felt the need to explain both Twister and the Macarena. The characters in her book, with the exception of the children, all lived through the 90s when the Macarena had its heyday, and since when did Twister become a relic? I could see this blatant explaining if this was a YA book written for Gen Z, but for a book aimed at adult readers, it felt out of place.

Where was the editor?

This just was not good.

The characters are not interesting and if they are it's because they are weirdly cruel. The writing voice is... horrible.

Had to DNF because this was such a disappointment.