3.5 - This one is a cute rom-com-esque quick read that is more about finding your path than then comedy part of a rom com. It was heavier than I expected, which I didn't mind and enjoyed the journeys of Natalie and Rob. I did feel that young Natalie was pretty. self absorbed, but aren't most people when they are just starting out their adult journey? Enjoyable & entertaining read.

Though Natalie and Rob really, really do not want to see each other again (like, ever), events related to their married best friends keep them in the same orbit. Some meet-ups are hilarious, some involve heartbreak, and others force them to face both the truth of their feud, as well as the depth of their feelings. For me, One Star Romance was a perfect mix of found family, friendship and romance!

3⭐
Genre ~ friendship fiction
Setting ~ New York & New Jersey
Publication date ~ June 18, 2024
Est Page Count ~ 400 (39 chapters +e)
Audio length ~ 11 hours
Narrator ~ the author
POV ~ multiple 3rd
Featuring ~ 7 part story, slow burn, enemies to lovers, no steamage
Medical trigger warnings are hidden on my goodreads review.

I've gotta give 1 star to the romance part of the story because it took ages and ages and ages for it to happen. Like I'm talking years. I'm boggled by the title actually. This is much more about friendships and one's life journey to figuring themselves out.

We have Natalie & Gabby who are bff's and Rob & Angus who are bff's. On Gabby and Angus's engagement night Natalie and Rob meet. And then they keep meeting again and again for milestones in Gabby and Angus's lives.

What a journey this is ~ we begin in May 2013 and end in May 2021. Each part has at least a year time jump, so it made it seem slow moving for me. I'd much rather read right along with the events as they play out and not be told what happened in the gap of time after the fact. Maybe that's just me.

I wasn't super impressed with any of the characters really, but the story itself has some relatability with all the life happenings. I can appreciate how sensitive topics were handled with care.

So, in conclusion, I liked the story well enough once I got my mindset out of this being a romance. But I feel that information should be given up front because if I'm being told this is a romance then I expect it for a lot more than just 6% of the book. Based on the cover, which I do like, and the title, I'd expect much more loving.

I seem to be in the minority with this one as the 4 and 5 stars are rolling in in abundance.

Huge thank you to Berkley and PRH Audio for the free e-book and audiobook!

This book was truly a delight from beginning to end! I don't think you'll be seeing any 1-star reviews for 1-STAR ROMANCE!

This was my first book by Laura Hankin and not only did she write a uniquely fun book, but she also narrated the audiobook flawlessly.

Imagine being the maid-of-honor at your BFF's wedding and realizing that the best man you're walking down the aisle with is the same man who recently gave your novel a one star Goodreads review. The audacity! Natalie could just let it go and move on, but she doesn't and now she's forced into situation after situation where she reluctantly (but also maybe not so reluctantly ;)) has to spend scads of time with Robert, AKA the 1-star reviewer.

While this still has the easy breezy feel of a rom-com there were heavier things happening which really add a lot of depth to the story and made me care more about the characters.

I did think the friendship between the two female main characters Gabby and Natalie was slightly toxic and overly co-dependent especially on Natalie's side, but also that could just be me wanting to run away from obsessively clingy friends! I could also argue that it was written this way to help with some character self-discovery along the way.

Overall, this was definitely one I'll be recommending! It's out on June 18th!

Spanning about eight years, this book begins with one of the funniest meet cute conversations I’ve ever read. Rob and Natalie’s best friends are getting engaged and they (R&N) are finally meeting for the first time. Their chemistry is crazy compelling, but I almost dreaded knowing that I’d have to wait almost the whole book for the HEA! Fortunately, it’s a very brisk read. I eagerly read from one chapter to the next. (I think my most surprising favorite thing was a chapter from Zuri’s POV. Gabby or Angus might have made more sense, but I soooo appreciate how much the chapter humanized Zuri).

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for providing me with an egalley of this book to read and give my honest review. The opinion expressed here are my own.
Natalie is a budding writer. Rob is an academic. Thrown together for their best friends' wedding, they are forced to interact despite seemingly hating each other. When Natalie finds out Rob gave her book a one-star review, she is determined to never like him. But over their years from their 20s to their 30s they get thrown together over and over again and find what they thought was making them enemies was actually an attraction they might not be able to avoid.
I loved the idea of this book. Two people who couldn't be more different continuously thrown together only to find they can't stay away. A perfect enemies to friends to lovers trope. And also a those who are meant to be will be. Because despite their years apart, and the relationships those years bring, they always end up back in each other's orbit.
The pacing in this book was a medium pace. I was neither drawn to pick it up and continue reading nor was I disliking it. There's a lot of humor used in the book as well as sarcasm, which may or may not be easily understood by the reader. This is my first book by this author and I thought her writing was good. I liked the dual POV but then the author snuck in third person omniscient POV from a side characters and that was just really weird. Also the third person POV sometimes made it hard to realize whose POV I was actually reading and took me out of the story trying to figure it out. Given the jumps in time, I felt like this needed to be more clear and it was very frustrating at times that it was not.
Natalie was a fairly relatable character. I did find her a bit whiny and really wanted her to take hold of her life which seemed all over the place. It was like she was constantly having trouble becoming an adult. I also found her obsession with Gabby, her best friend, a little odd. Her life kind of revolved around Gabby and how she could always keep them being friends despite them forming their own lives as they get older. And she doesn't take any kind of responsibility for her actions but likes to think all the bad things that happen to her and due to outside forces she cannot control. In fact, she creates these situations on her own and it's not until the end of the book that we see her shift into understanding the need to take hold of your own life. It seems the point of Natalie's character was to show how you can only rely on yourself, but it took a super long time for Natalie to come to that conclusions and felt a bit dragged out.
I liked Rob's character. He was extremely pragmatic. And the fact that he was willing to accept a relationship which he thought of as love but was certainly not was a testament to the damage caused by his relationship with his father. You can see he has never received praise from the man and that has caused him to too easily accept a life he truly doesn't want and is not happy with.
Their romance was a very slow burn. But I will say, I never truly felt the pull between them. I just felt like they were always angry at each other and much of the time for no reason. Natalie carried her grudge of Rob's one star review but didn't take responsibility for what she actually wrote in the book and how it might affect others. The romance definitely didn't feel like the central plot to this book, which I kind of wanted it to be given the enemies to lovers trope.
The plot line rumbled along throughout most of the book and I felt like I just kept waiting and waiting for something to happen between Rob and Natalie which I know was the point but it felt a bit drawn out. I knew there would be something huge that would bring them together at some point. I wasn't thrilled with what it was. I cannot imagine the plot turn that happened would be the reason these two would finally realize they wanted each other. Maybe it was the "you only have one life" and "you never know what might happen" vibe that did it but it wasn't completely clear.
Overall, this was a cute read. It's a commentary on how to navigate the shifts in life as you get older. It touches on friendships, love, loss, Dementia, cancer, and the pandemic as it's told over a 10 year time span. This one will be good for an easy and fast beach or pool read for the summer.

Millennial romance. Boring for this Gen X reader. Can’t connect to,the experiences of these contemporaries any,ore.
pDNF.

I pulled an all-nighter last night, and woke up without an alcohol hangover, but a BOOK HANGOVER.

I set myself up for a little date (with myself). I needed to set the mood and channel my inner romantic. I haven’t read a romance in a bit and I was reflecting back on the times I would steal my grandmothers cowboy riding paperbacks. Anyway, I poured myself a glass of wine, lit some candles, and jumped in the tub.

Laura Hankin, my girl, you have done it to me again. You rock my world.

This is not your typical romance. This is also highly comedic. I laughed, I cried, I laughed some more. I was completely consumed and addicted to this book. My tub water got cold, my skin pruned, but I just couldn’t get out. I needed to finish.

I absolutely adored Hankin’s debut, The Daydreamers but One Star Romance is the book that just keeps on giving .

This one’s a no brainer folks, pre order this sure to be bestseller.

Check out this teaser :

Natalie and Rob couldn’t have less in common. Nat’s a messy artist, and Rob’s a rigid academic. The only thing they share is their devotion to their respective best friends—who just got engaged. Still, unexpected chemistry has Natalie cautiously optimistic about being maid of honor to Rob’s best man.

Until, minutes before the ceremony, Nat learns that Rob wrote a one-star review of her new novel, which has them both reeling: Nat from imposter syndrome, and Rob over the reason he needed to write it.

When the reception ends, these two opposites hope they’ll never meet again. But, as they slip from their twenties into their thirties, they’re forced together whenever their fast-track best friends celebrate another milestone. Through housewarmings and christenings, life-changing triumphs and failures, Natalie and Rob grapple with their own choices—and how your harshest critic can become your perfectly imperfect match.

After all, even the truest love stories sometimes need a bit of rewriting.

writing: fantastic | plot: flushed out | ending: rob deserves better. fight me

my opinion

Wow. Laura Hankin can WRITE. This one is hard to rate because if not for two things, this is an uncontested banger. But I hated those two things so much that if the rest of the book had a similar vibe, this would've been a one star (ah, the irony). But since I stayed up until 2:30am reading this, and it was largely a banger, I'm going with a 4.

The cover and title may lead you to think this is gonna be a cute 'n fluffy romcom but nah, this takes you places emotionally. This is NOT a romance. It's about love—in all definitions of the word—but it's not overwhelmingly romantic. Rob and Natalie don't go on any dates, there's no wooing to be had. It's just emotional turmoil—mostly told with irreverence, but hitting the serious notes when needed—intermixed with flashes of personal success and growth. And I LOVED it. Very introspective, very raw, very flushed out. Absolutely zero notes when it comes to the writing style, plotting, and storytelling structure.

To my surprise, the male characters in this book were top-notch. Rob was distinct, his background detailed, his behaviours believable, and most importantly, he was likeable. I loved how he stood up for Angus... Oh, Angus, you sweet summer child. He was what the booktok girlies call a golden retriever. His heart was the size of Canada. While we weren't given the same insight into his background, his voice and mannerisms shone clearly. #TeamAngus.

HOWEVERRRRRRR let me make this clear: the things I disliked about this book filled me with the same level of disdain as a Freida McFadden book recommendation does. While I enjoyed Rob and Angus, I wanted to put Natalie in the sturdiest of headlocks. Holy. F#^k. She was absolutely insufferable for 2 reasons:

1. Her obsession with her and Gabby's friendship was bizarre, bordering on creepy. Maybe it's because I've never had a lifelong friend (I'm deeply unlikeable if you couldn't tell), but Natalie's love for Gabby felt more than just platonic. Of course you're going to prioritize the person you legally contracted yourself to, share finances with, and perhaps went splitskis on a baby with, over your platonic female best friend. Grow UP. Unfortunately, she never addresses how whack ass her expectations of this friendship were despite them being so central to the book's main conflict.

2. She refused to take accountability for her shitty actions. I won't go into spoilers but I don't think she had a right to hold such an aggressive grudge against Rob for one-starring her book given his reason. Perfectly acceptable. Unlike you, he's a good friend who protects their bestie's feelings instead of trying to monopolize them.

And this brings me to the second "thing" I could not stand in this book. It felt like the author was using Natalie as a mouthpiece to air her grievances about those that give one star reviews. She accused them of "delighting in their cruelty" and being "basement dwellers living with their mom." Sure, Natalie, but stay with me for a moment. What if....... they just didn't like it and decided to share that opinion on a website intentionally designed for readers to post book reviews????? A hot take, indeed. In fact, Natalie wasn't just pressed about those dared to give her book a less than glowing rating, she was even annoyed with three-star reviews. It irks me to no end when authors try to publicly clap-back at "bad" reviews. Save that shit for your private group chats.

Wow, this turned into an essay. If you made it this far, I apologize. But also, thanks.

pros & cons

pros: exceptionally well-written, perfect balance of sarcastic, witty, and serious, robust story, main and secondary characters (except Natalie) were clearly drawn, loved the storytelling format, made me fuck up my sleep schedule because I couldn't stop reading

cons: Natalie needed to extract her head out of her ass, Rob should've ended up with Angus tbh, seemed like the author was using Natalie as a mouthpiece to tell us how she really feels about people who leave one star (and even three star) reviews

I’ve been a fan of the author over the past few years and when I saw she was switching things up and writing a rom com I was super excited to see what she would do. Also the fact that it’s based on a TikTok she made that went viral? 🤌🏻💋Natalie and Rob are MOH and BM at their friend’s wedding and she finds out he gave her novel a one star rating on Goodreads. SUCH a good premise and it just gets better from there. I absolutely loved the structure, its split into several parts and follows both of them over a ten year period at pivotal points in their lives. As much as it’s a romance it also heavily focuses on friendships and the structure really allowed the author to show the development of all the characters over the years. It’s also really charming and funny manages to have a ton of depth that never felt too heavy. If you like slow burns, lots of humor and memorable characters this was fantastic

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and publisher for allowing me to read this ARC. This charming story is a perfect beach read. The romance is a slow-burn and you are able to see how their relationship plays out by transitioning from past to present during the key points of their lives. You can tell that these two should be together, but you never know if they're actually going to be together because their timing is awful and they both are able to find partners that will work for them, that they could have a happily ever after with. It was a bonus to get to know the secondary characters as well as we did since many of them stay in their lives throughout the story. Overall this book is a lighthearted read, but it does touch on cancer and the pandemic.

WOW. This book took me on a journey. I felt ALL the feelings. This is not just a romantic comedy, it's a heartfelt, feelgood book about life. It's about friendships and love, the struggles, the heartbreak, the horrible fights, the gut-wrenching tragedies, and how we come together (or sometimes fall apart).

Early in the book I said this reminded me of When Harry Met Sally: two characters frustrate each other but also understand each other in surprising ways, keep coming together at different points in their lives for the big moments of their mutual best friends' lives. But now I think it cheapens it to say this is some kind of knock off of that movie. These characters are fresh and original, and they are written so well, growing and changing over the years.

I laughed and cried, enjoyed the banter and the fiery love-hate vibe Rob and Natalie have. Low on the spice level. Highly recommend! If this is the author's first foray into romantic comedy, I hope she plans to write more!

A struggling writer is forced to walk down the aisle at her best friend’s wedding with the man who gave her book a very public one-star rating. If you like Opposites Attract and Best Friend's Best Friends relationships you'll definitely enjoy this one! Laura Hankin does a great job at pulling at those feelings of not being up to speed with the rest of your friends. As someone who is currently in that phase in life, I totally relate to the feeling of everyone changing around you while you're standing still. While this is a romance story, it hits hard on the other loves in your life whether it is familial or the friendships that feel like family. I really enjoyed this book, it's a total slow burn. I wish we had gotten to the relationship between Natalie and Rob sooner. This was more a story of missed connections or almosts.

Thanks to the publisher for the ARC in return for an honest review. This book releases 6/18.

While this was cute and fun this was not the rom com I was evicting. It was much more literary fiction imo. Which is fine but not really my cup of tea. With that being said I did still enjoy the story it just wasn’t what I prefer to read.

ONE STAR ROMANCE is a wonderfully witty, 'bent' view of a bumbling couple navigating adult relationships in Ms. Hankin's new fabulously, funny story. It stars Natalie, a pretty writer, who finds out at her best friend's wedding, the man she walked down the aisle with, trashed her new novel. Angry over Rob's harsh review, Natalie hopes to never see him again. However, life is funny and throws them together time and time again.

Rob and Natalie don't mesh. The only thing they have in common are their best friend's. Every time there is a party, celebration, etc. they meet again and they become a little bit more receptive towards each other. There's an undercurrent of attraction between them. Little by little they open up to each other. Will they find their own, unique way to a happy ever after?

ONE STAR ROMANCE is a bright, fresh tale written with a deft touch to human aspirations, relationships and compromises. Natalie and Rob, what a conundrum. He is attractive and opinionated, while Natalie is pretty, sassy and artsy. They get under each other's skin, literally and physically. The story takes it time bringing two opposites together, who navigate life-changing events, while struggling with their own undeniable chemistry. Will Rob and Natalie shatter their defenses, to write their own life, love story? Absolutely hilarious, incredulous romance!

This book begins with Natalie and she has a best friend named Gabby. The two have been best friends for years and they’re living in an apartment in New York, living out those Sex and the City dreams we all have. Unfortunately, things quickly go up in smoke as Gabby gets engaged to her boyfriend, Angus.

Of course, that results in Natalie being Gabby’s maid of honor and her having to be in contact with Rob who is Angus’ best man. From the first moment, it’s clear the two of them have some weird tension but aren’t ready to act on it. However, things start to ramp up as the book is broken up into different sections.

Once it moves ahead to the wedding, we find out that Natalie has published a book and based a few things too closely with her own life. She ends up basing the main character’s best friend’s husband as the doofus of the group, resulting in Rob giving her book a poor rating. From there, it results in a feud between the two that they can’t seem to get over.

Eventually as Gabby and Angus hit some big milestones, the two end up having to meet up time and time again. While they don’t exactly become best friends, that underlying tension is still there. Of course, we also see the rotating door of relationships the two end up in and even how their friendships with Gabby and Angus shift along with their respective careers.

While One Star Romance is a romance, it also feels like a coming-of-age story and a tale of friendship, love, and loss. Honestly, I would have loved to see more of Natalie and Rob’s romance but this book was so much fun. I especially loved how things played out with Natalie and Gabby as that felt incredibly realistic.

Overall, One-Star Romance is a book that’s perfect for the beach as it’s a fun and quick read that you won’t want to put down even if you’re applying sunscreen. However, you should because that’s the most important beach rule. Either way, if you’re intrigued by the title, I think you should give One-Star Romance a try.

I really liked the premise of the book, and the interactions between Rob and Natalie were fantastic.

Unfortunately, Natalie is really unlikable for at least the first full half of the novel, and I found it hard to root for her until nearly the end. I understand that her character is meant to be making bad choices, but she really is so selfish and careless of others, seeing everyone else's lives as extensions of her own way past the age when she can be excused via youthful ignorance. Angus is flat for most of the book, up until the last couple of episodes. Rob takes too long to become fully developed, and the various aspects of his character don't always match up.

And yet.... I liked the book. It's okay.

Thank you for the approval to read the earc! I love the concept of this book and that it takes place over years. It was a well written book and easy to read.

TW though- cancer. My father was just diagnosed and so I didn’t love that I wasn’t aware it would be a plot point. I might have not read this had I known. I am trying so hard to avoid mention of it and was pretty surprised when near the end of this rom com it was brought up as a significant plot point.

Besides that I did enjoy reading . Angus was the best character. The two leads were mostly likable and their growth was engaging. I will say that I struggled more towards the end with feeling their chemistry but I think that was solely the cancer stuff.

RATING: 4/5 STARS

Not a one-star romance at all! The premise of this book was very interesting, and it was executed well! I think this book is more realistic and messy than the typical rom-com, and I enjoyed that. I would recommend this for fans of YOU, AGAIN by Kate Goldbeck.

Natalie and Rob are best friends to the newly engaged couple Gabby and Angus. When they first meet, sparks fly, and their banter is hilarious. As the wedding approaches, Maid of Honor, Natalie, becomes a published novelist. She’s optimistic her book will be successful until she receives a one-star review for it on Goodreads. Already fearing her relationship with Gabby will inevitably change, Natalie starts to spiral.

This was the slowest of slow burn romances, but I kept turning pages, eager to see when these two awkward people finally commit to their attraction for each other. In the end, this is the story of the evolution and growth of each relationship in Nat's and Rob's lives. After nearly 10 years of bumping into and hate-lusting each other, the planets align. 4 stars from me for this One-Star Romance.

Thank you to NetGalley, Shelf Awareness and Berkley Publishing Group, Berkley for this complimentary ARC. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.