The premise of this sounded cute but the characters leaned too heavily into pranking each other. It felt very juvenile for their age.

I’m SUPER late to review this ARC. This book came out last year and I finally read it. Now I’m mad at myself for taking so long to read it because it’s SO good! The Blum family and the Stark family grew up together. Molly and Jude, the younger ones, were once friends, but early on became enemies. They would prank each other and call each other names. So when they get stuck picking out a venue together for both of their parents’ anniversaries, Molly already knew it was going to be awful. But somewhere along the line they become friends. And when it comes time for the party, they each bring dates… that closely resemble each other. But are they good together?

This was a great rom-com, as you can see from what I said above, I wish I would have read it earlier! This book has some of my favorite tropes: enemies to friends to lovers and exact opposites. The families of these two seem like so much fun – families that I would love to be a part of. Are Molly and Jude sometimes childish with their pranks? Yes! But that is the FUN of the book!

But alas, the romance. Oh the romance. I really thought these two had great chemistry and it was so nice to see them finally get together. Though, there were some really hard moments and fighting for them to figure things out. Both said some hurtful things. But that’s reality. I know that I’ve said hurtful things in the heat of the moment. These two are no different.

So romance readers, check this one out if you haven’t already!

"Someone Just Like You" is the first novel I've read by Meredith Schorr. The novel centers around lifelong arch nemeses, Molly and Jude, who are forced to work together to plan their parents' anniversary party. Although they stopped talking to each other due to a high school prank that went too far, snipes and hijinks continue as they are once again forced together, creating some unexpected sexual tension.

It's a contemporary rom-com that includes crowd favourite tropes like enemies-to-lovers, forced proximity, and the girl/boy-next-door. While these are all my favourite tropes, the story and chemistry between Molly and Jude fell a little short. I hoped to read more witty banter between the two, but it was just a bunch of childish pranking.

Overall, it felt like an average read for me. It had all the promises of my favourite tropes, but just fell flat. While it might not be a hit for me, it might be of interest for readers looking for a book with those tropes and has Jewish representation.

The set up of the book felt contrived and forced. It was a miss for me unfortunately. This is fun read. The pranks they played as adults bothered me,

I really enjoy Meredith Schorr's novels, however I have been putting this one off for so long because I really don't like the enemies to lover's trope sometimes authors can take it a little too far. However, I didn't realize that it was also a next-door neighbor trope. That's one that I love.

The pranks didn't last too long, and it was a very well-rounded book. It was a contemporary romance, that showed tons of growth between both characters as well as tons of romance between the two. It was such a cute love story with so many different side characters which I really enjoyed when those are included. I also enjoy the Jewish representation Meredith Schorr always puts into all of her books.

Thanks to Net Galley for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review as always, all words are my own.

I was compelled to request this book by the premise (I mean, lifelong archenemies? Sign me right up) but sadly I felt it failed in execution, primarily because I felt no chemistry between the main characters and found both Molly and Jude to be profoundly childish, particularly in the first half. While things improved after the the pranks stopped, the choices of both characters felt rooted in teenage secret keeping and poor communication, which I just do not have time for. I did appreciate the New York setting - the author is a native New Yorker and you can really tell - and the Jewish representation that felt realistic and grounded in way that is often lacking, but overall this was a miss for me and not one that I'll recommend.

I really thought about DNFing this one a few times. Thankfully after the first 1/4 of the book it did get a little better…but then frustrating again.

First off, these are supposed to be grown adults, but their childish behavior and pranking was just too immature. I also didn’t really care for Jude much at all. I didn’t really feel the chemistry with him and Molly. I did like Molly’s growth through the book, but it overall was just not my favorite.

Thank you to NetGalley and Forever for an advanced copy of this book.

Long time enemies, lots of juvenile pranks, a few grudges and you have the makings for a budding enemies to lovers scenario. Unfortunately, I wish they had outgrown the pranking sooner than they did.

This book has one POV and could have worked for two. I'm a sucker for multiple POVs especially when one character is a little less likeable.

A charming and funny rom com that's perfect for a quick, enjoyable read. The story is light-hearted and full of smiles. Cute characters and storyline!

Thank you NetGalley and Meredith Schorr!

This was so well written. I was engrossed from the first page and it ticked all the boxes of my expectations . I would definitely recommend to others.

Love a good modern romance, enemies to lovers. The author does a great job writing the chemistry between Molly and Jude. Nice and relaxing easy read.

I love anything by Schorr, and this is just as romantic as her other one. It’s full of love and hope, and I can’t wait to see what she comes up with next.

Unfortunately I have tried to read and review this novel multiple times. I keep getting to about 15-20% and just want to put it down. I don’t feel appropriate rating due to not getting far enough in to form an opinion. I just don’t think it’s for me! My apologies!

This was a very good book. I enjoyed reading it. The characters and plot kept me interested. I would read another book by this author.

I loved the cast of secondary characters, the pranks and the emotional depth in this story!! Jude and Molly had great chemistry and a shared history that helped make up for the somewhat insta-love plot twist. Both characters deal with personal issues and career changes which made for a well-rounded story in my opinion.

This went from “kinda cute” to “cringe” to “um why do they even like each other?!” I love enemies to lovers, I love rivals to lovers but this was bully behavior and “pranks” aren’t my love language so this was just not for me.

2⭐
Genre ~ contemporary romance
Setting ~ NYC
Publication date ~ July 25, 2023
Page Count ~ 353 (44 chapters +e)
Audio length ~ 9 hours 54 minutes
Narrator ~ Justis Bolding
POV ~ single 1st
Featuring ~ childhood rivalries, enemies to lovers, minimal steamage

Molly (27) & Jude, along with their 2 siblings each, grew up together on the same street. Their parents are great friends and all the siblings get along, except for Molly and Jude who have been at odds since they were young. Now, 10 years later, they are planning a joint anniversary party for their parents. They are not thrilled about sharing the task of finding the venue and end up going back to their old ways and playing some pranks on each other.

Ugh with the pranking. It's fine~ish as kids, but when it's adults it comes off very immature. Didn't care for the prank that drove a wedge in their friendship back in high school or how it was handled when it was revealed in the present. I did not feel their chemistry and I was not rooting for them to live happily ever after at all. The only thing I liked about them was how they supported each other career wise.

Safe to say I didn't like either main character, but more so Molly since we only had her POV. Would I have felt differently if we had Jude's POV, too? Who knows. The way she responded when she learned some news at the party attested more to her immaturity. I did, however, enjoy her friendship with Esther. But then again I was bugged about Esther keeping a secret from her bff, that wasn't even that big of a whop.

Overall, as you can see I didn't love this one. It had a few fine bits and a great dog named, Yoggi, but mostly it was a miss for me.

Sometimes I find a rivals to enemies/opposites attract romance fun, but Molly and Jude - who’ve known each other since birth and were friends until first grade - just got under my skin. I didn’t find their pranks funny, just extremely immature for supposed 27 year olds who had careers and lived on their own in NYC. And there was so much repetition when it came to Molly talking about Jude…I searched for the word “Jude” in the ebook and it said it was present 831 times in a 350ish page book.

Overall, it was a quick read and may work better for others. Unfortunately, it just wasn’t for me.

In this delightful enemies-to-lovers rom-com, "Someone Like You" by Meredith Schorr, readers are treated to a witty and charming tale of love, rivalry, and unexpected connections. New Yorker Molly Blum finds herself reluctantly teaming up with her childhood nemesis, Jude Stark, to plan their parents' anniversary party. With years of rivalry and pranks behind them, Molly and Jude are experts at hating each other—but as they work together, sparks fly in more ways than one.

The synopsis promises a pitch-perfect blend of humor, banter, and sexual tension as Molly and Jude navigate their complicated relationship. From their sniping and hijinks to the development of a reluctant friendship, the story promises plenty of laughs and heartwarming moments. The dynamic between Molly and Jude, fueled by their past history and undeniable chemistry, is sure to keep readers engaged and rooting for them to find their happily ever after.

With its engaging premise and well-drawn characters, "The Party Planners" offers a refreshing take on the enemies-to-lovers trope. Fans of romantic comedies will find themselves thoroughly entertained by this witty and entertaining novel, which proves that love can sometimes be found in the most unexpected places—even amidst a war of pranks and rivalry.

Read this if you like enemies to love trope! If you’re a fan of Debbie Macomber, this is something that is right down your alley. Many thanks to NetGalley for the ARC