This book was way too raunchy for me! So I had to dnf, but I enjoyed the authors writing 💖The characters also had humorous banter.

DNF
This book sounded promising. Unfortunately I cannot get with the characters. Both the heroine and the hero are in love with other people and decide to be in a fake relationship that then turns into a sort of friends with benefits sort of thing. It was really hard to read how the heroine wanted to kiss the hero but then at the same time was in love with his brother. And this was still happening at 40% into the book.
I did like certain things, like the heroine’s friend, Angela, and that the heroine is a librarian. I just didn’t like the story.
Thank you to Forever Pub for the ARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I really enjoyed this romance. It was a quick read and a cute fake dating storyline. And I liked how the author handled the FMC being plus sized - it was realistic.

I thought the premise sounded fun. Unfortunately this one was a miss for me. The characters felt very immature and while this definitely wasn’t YA, there were times it felt that way. This also felt too long for me. Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the free ebook to review.

💞💞💞WOW💞💞💞 This book was one of my favorite romances I’ve read this year. It was real and raw. It was sweet and honest. It was challenging and healing. I could see myself in parts of the main character and all the relationship dynamics (friendships, siblings, lovers) felt so real. I’m a sucker for the “get over someone by getting under someone else” trope and this did not disappoint but it was also so much more than that. I LOVE that the couple used communication and were open and honest with each other from the jump (well….for the most part..) The progression of the main characters holding on while letting go was such a beautiful unfolding. 😭 brb gonna go cry that it’s over now

This "damaged friends with benefits" is SO DELIGHTFUL <3 Marcela is a plus size Mexican American librarian who's in love with her best friend who happens to be her ex who ALSO happens to be newly engaged. Enter the ex's older brother, Theo - an ex NFL player who's nursing an unrequited love of his own - who's now back in town and down for a no-strings-attached relationship with Marcela in hopes they both get over their first loves. Both main characters are such SWEETIES with great banter and wholesome, thoughtful gestures they extend to each other <3

Loves:
- I have never read a plus size FMC written in such a relatable way - "my butt, however, is surprisingly flat"; "The lavender dress squeezes my middle so tight that love handles are clearly visible on my sides."
- Librarian FMC - book clubs, necessity of diversity in libraries; he gets signed up for a LIBRARY CARD and is so excited about it :')
- MMC is a terrible liar; loves a front clasp bra; "i'm not the type of person to pine in secret"; he asks her for book recs!!!
- I have a fondness for San Antonio, so to read about UTSA, Whataburger, the River Walk and more was such a nostalgic treat <3

Quotes:
- "I've found that I don't have to work hard to get the answers I want from him. I just have to ask."
- "Unqualified therapy sessions on the couch that lead to other kind of sessions in the sheets,"
- "I like you. I like getting to know you, no matter how hard you make it."
- "I don't just want more kids to read - I want them to see themselves in the books they're reading."
- "But I want to save myself from the pain of loving and losing him more than I want to protect him from the pain of losing me now."
- "I want the expectation, dammit. I want you to demand more from me, and I want you to believe I can give it to you."

Two broken hearts decide that the best way to get over their first loves is with a no-strings-attached relationship in this spicy and charming debut romance.

Let me start by saying I knew absolutely nothing going into the book, but I was quite pleasantly surprised just how cute it was. I love that the romance that blossoms is between a librarian and a retired NFL player. It doesn’t get more swoon worthy than that.

I think my favorite part of this book was how real the relationship and the personal dynamics felt. It wasn’t always hearts and butterflies. There was real work that had to go into it. And Marcela’s personal growth was *chef’s kiss* perfectly written.

All in all a sold 4 star read!

Thank you to Netgalley and Forever Publishing for the advanced copy.

Okay, let me get this straight.

She’s in love with her best friend, even though he’s been in a committed relationship for almost a decade and is even engaged. This best friend has a brother, who just so happens to be in love with his brother’s fiancé.

So these two end up together instead? I’m only at 9% after over a week of trying so I’m giving up.

A quick and cute read. I loved watching Marcela learn more about herself, who she is, and what she needs throughout the course of the story. This was a romance first but also full of emotion as each MC grew into who they are without the attachment beliefs of what past them has told them. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the free advance copy.

Spicy!! I always love a Latina main character. As someone who married a white man, the love interests being white and the way the different cultures collide was cutie.

I thought I knew how this would end, but the author had me wondering for a while! I loved this book, it was so dramatic, romantic, and sweet. The summary immediately dragged me in for the sake of the family drama?! Brothers?! In love with each others partners?! Get me out of here, but love to watch it happen to others! I love book drama. The drama in the summary definitely delivered!!

I love this author, but the workplace grand gesture threw me off simply because my husband is a teacher and if I did this grand gesture at his rural high school, I think he would leave me and I would totally deserve it! Cringe.

I’ve never read a book that had an epilogue only be a month later, but in this case it made sense and it was the perfect amount of hopeful without being delusional.

I can’t wait for book 2 in the series — even though this one just came out! There’s a playlist at the end of the book to be enjoyed only after you finish since it contains spoilers. Also so unique! I’ve always seen the playlists at the beginning. Can’t wait for more from this author!

Overall, I loved the chemistry between the characters and that they had so much substance to them.

Thank you NetGalley and Forever Pub for this book in exchange for an honest review.

This was an overall enjoyable and fun read! I loved the character growth throughout the book and can’t wait to see what the author puts out next

The Next Best Fling is a fantastic debut romance with thoroughly developed characters and inclusivity I love seeing in this genre. Theo was so much more than the usual himbo jock and I loved getting to know him as Marcela did. I’ve read several romance books now where the FMC has trauma regarding her father walking out on her family when she was a child - so I wasn’t a big fan of seeing this storyline again. However, Marcela was multifaceted and I appreciated witnessing her growth and self analysis of her flaws so she was able to become more trusting. I loved the chemistry between Marcela and Theo, it was seriously top notch! I enjoyed this read and think it’s a solid choice for any romance lover who enjoys a few messy characters.

Thank you to Forever, NetGalley, and the author for sending me an early copy!

Lost track of time but managed to finish this arc right in time for release day!!! We get: humor (some very niche for librarians, which I absolutely loved), fat rep with realistic occasional body confidence struggles, fake dating (ish), conflict that makes sense (external and internal). And come on, the most gorgeous Leni Kauffman cover (I think I maybe found out about this book when Leni shared her art, so thanks to her for that!).
There is also:
-smuggling books home
-flat butted curvy FMC
-chemistry and spice that felt classy (less descriptive than some things I've read recently but not in a way that made it feel lacking)
-swoony he falls first
-third act "break up" that I liked but at the same time really gave me "yelling at the tv" style rage and had me admonishing Marcela in my head and out loud a couple times.
-family dynamics that don't necessarily end the way they would in other books but are true to life (including a really good "villain" character who kind of had Hans from Frozen vibes)
-an ace side character!! Love to see it and Loveless referenced
Etc etc etc

Thank you to NetGalley and Forever for the ARC!

I really enjoyed the journey the female main character took through this book. Personally, I don't like that she felt she was in love with someone most of her life and then in 2 weeks changed her mind, but i also feel like that's oddly realistic right now. I really appreciated that the male main character was not only in her same dilemma of pinning for an engaged couple and also had more dimension to his character. I feel like most of the time in best friends brother trope they hinged on the friendship and the guy doesnt have a personality. In this one I really enjoyed the male love interest. I also like the third act breakup gave her time to actually process the events and if she was really into the love interest.

4 stars

This was everything I wanted right when I needed it. Just the right amount of angst to tug at you. Definitely plan to read more by this author in the future.

💕 New Release 💕

*thank you @net-galley and @gabbywritesalot for the ARC. All opinions are my own*

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5 /5

🌶️🌶️.5/5

📖 Curvy, Librarian FMC
🏈 Ex NFL player MMC
😉 Fake Dating to get over their first “loves”
📚 Bookish Cosplay AND Grand Gesture

📚 Description: Marcela Ortiz is in love with her best friend, Ben. But when he proposes to his long time girlfriend (and Marcella’s friend), Alice, she forces herself to move on. At their engagement party, Marcela runs into Ben’s brother, Theo, and overhears him rehearsing a speech to tell Alice not to marry Ben. In an effort not to blow their engagement up and also work to get over Ben, Marcela gets Theo to agree to leave the party and go to her apartment. Hopefully they can help each other move past their first loves and move on to their forever…

💭 Thoughts: This was a SUPER solid debut novel, and I can’t wait to read more books that the author puts out into the world. It made my sports romance and librarian heart super happy!

🏷️: Debut Novel, Librarian, BIPOC author, Fake Dating

I found this book really tedious and repetitive and was tempted to not finish it several times. I’m not a fan of the miscommunication trope, and with all of the main characters lying through most of the story, I was bombarded with it. Overall, I felt that they were all immature, especially with the excessive drinking, and I just couldn’t buy into the premise of pining for 8+ years with unrequited love. Marcela’s love interest and Theo’s younger brother Ben is a manipulative, narcissistic jerk whose actions traumatized Theo and whose controlling interference in Marcela’s love life (which she, sadly, allowed) kept her emotionally tethered to him. His fiancé Alice wasn’t much better, in my opinion, although her actions were just selfish. The fake relationship between Marcela and Theo made sense, in theory, but they were lacking the chemistry to take it to the next level and spent too long clinging to their crushes, especially Marcela when the blinders for Ben were coming off. They also didn’t really seem to have anything in common, her a librarian who doesn’t care for football and him an ex-NFL player who doesn’t read. Overall, just a miss for me. Not recommended.

I received a complimentary ARC of this book from Forever Publishing through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed are completely my own.

Thank you NetGalley and publishers!
What a fantastic little romance this was! Great premise, fantastic characters and a totally satisfying ending! If this is going to be a series, then sign me up for Book #2!

The Next Best Fling by Gabriella Gamez is the first book in the Librarians in Love Series. This is Marcela and Theo‘s story.
 
Marcela is a plus size book lover and librarian, and I could immediately relate to her, and she had so much potential. She is secretly in love with her best friend Ben, but nothing ever comes from it, and he is about to marry someone else. For the wedding she picks up his brother Theo and the two spend some time together and they are very casual with each other. Theo is an NFL player, and he was super sweet, but he wasn’t necessarily in the right mindset to start a new relationship.
 
They only got together because they couldn’t have whom they actually wanted and that isn’t a very stable ground to start a relationship. The whole romance plot was such a back and forth that it was getting quite toxic. For too long it was unclear whether Marcela would end up with Ben or Theo and it was almost like a love triangle. At some point that annoyed me so much that I honestly wish she would have looked for love elsewhere and just broken contact with them. Especially Ben rubbed me the wrong way and his behavior was often unacceptable. The writing style was really good and I’m definitely looking forward to reading something else by this author and I just think this story wasn’t for me.
 
Overall, The Next Best Fling had a lot of potential but turned out different than I would have liked. 3 stars.
 
(ARC kindly provided in exchange for a review.)

💞The Next Best Fling by Gabriella Gamez OUT NOW💞

How do you get back at your crush? Fake date his brother!

Marcela has had a crush on her best friend Ben for ten years. Now, he’s about to get engaged to his long term girlfriend, and she knows it’s finally time to move on. That is until Ben’s older brother, Theo, tries to drunkenly confess his love to Ben’s new fiancé. Marcela knows she needs to intervene and takes Theo home before he can give his speech. Everyone assumes they hooked up and are now together, and Marcela realizes she can use this as an advantage to help her get over Ben.

Fans of Emily Henry’s newest novel Funny Story will love this one as they are very similar! I love the fake dating turned to real dating trope. 4✨