Overruled by Lana Ferguson follows Danica Pierce and Ezra Hart, two rival divorce lawyers and sworn enemies. Dani has sworn off love after her last relationship ended badly, but she can’t seem to stop sleeping with her enemy. One tiny problem with their tryst, Ezra wants more than just hookups and Dani thinks of him as an insufferable playboy. When the biggest case of Dani’s career comes across her desk and promises a shot at making partner, her only problem is that the opposing counsel is the one man she can’t stay away from. Will Dani be able to win her case, and will Ezra be able to win her heart?

My personal opinions: I wasn’t exactly sure about this at first, but by the end I came to love it. The romance was delightful, the court cases were intriguing, and there was a cat (which always adds points in my opinion). Frankly, I did get really pulled in by the dramatics in Bianca’s case and Ezra’s family. I definitely need to read more from Lana Ferguson.

Thank you so very much to Berkley Publishing Group and Netgalley for allowing me to read this e-arc!

While I wasn’t a huge fan of Under Loche and Key, I was a HUGE fan of Overruled! I used to love Suits a few years back, so getting to read a lawyer romance felt like coming home. The banter between Dani and Ezra was top tier, and when I tell you I was SAT for all the courtroom scenes, I mean it. I was practically cheering during the divorce battle because I desperately wanted Bianca to get what she deserved. Their arguments felt so realistic, especially with them literally going head-to-head in court.

If I had one wish, it would be for the prologue to show their first meeting. I just wanted to understand why Dani hated Ezra so much from the beginning. That background would’ve made their relationship more realistic to me.

You know who else I want to be happy besides our main characters? Eli. He was a total ass in the beginning, but by the end, I was completely sold on his redemption arc. I am officially requesting a sequel where he gets his own story and someone to love. Also, I selfishly just want more lawyer romance in my life!!

And lastly, I don’t think I’ve ever loathed human beings more than I loathed Alexander and Lorenzo. We all hate fantasy villains, sure, but real-life villains like them hit different. It’s the kind of evil that actually makes my skin crawl. The lengths people will go to for money or power is just straight-up vile.

Overall, I definitely think this was a hit for me! I will continue to read anything Lana puts out (especially very excited for her omegaverse sequel...).

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

This book was an unexpected delight. I loved the tension and chemistry between Ezra and Dani. Their jobs made their dynamic a little different than I am used to reading but it made it so interesting and fun to read. I loved the side story of the case they were working on. I was extremely engaged through the whole book.

Court is in session, and we the readers find Lana Ferguson guilty of writing an undeniably swoony, addictive romance! I literally devoured this in one sitting. I truly appreciated the deeper themes woven into the story and every quippy moment between the two leads had me giggling like a fool the whole way through. This book is really more than just a romance with great spice. It had relatable themes of difficult family dynamics, living up to expectations, work-life balance, and a few others. But DANG if Dani and Ezra are law-breaking-level hot, and what an insanely satisfying ending!

Thank you so much to Berkley Romance and NetGalley for the free eARC of this amazing read!

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review

I would recommend if you're looking for (SPOILERS)

-m/f contemporary romance
-workplace rivals
-this is just a hookup
-starts with a bang
-hate how attractive you are
-he falls first and hard
-roasting you is my love language

I just love this book. The banter, the sexual tension, how gone he is on her and how she slowly breaks down her walls to let him in. Absolutely unputdownable.

Divorce lawyers
Enemies with Benefits
Palpable chemistry
Steamy smut
Easy, entertaining read
“This is the last time”
Endearing side characters
Open door romance

You can always count on Lana Ferguson to deliver the funniest spiciest romcom. She's an auto buy author for me and I am always looking forward to her books.

“I’ve loved you for ages, Dani. I’ve just been waiting for you to catch up.”

Ezra, how does it feel to carry the entire book on your shoulders??

Ezra was amazing. Ezra is the reason this rating isn’t like 2 stars.

3.5 stars

“I want to touch you and make you realize that all I ever think about is touching you, that sometimes it’s the only thing that gets me through the day.”

So, I guess to start, I went into this thinking there would be some great tension, rival lawyers fighting on either side of cases. That screams tension. Give me! But you know, they were already hooking up so there was zero tension. Ezra basically says he’d date her, and Dani saying, “but I hate him” blah blah. They literally had sex on page one. That’s the opposite of rivals-to-lovers tension I want.

Dani. What a fucking spoiled little brat. Her entire personality focused on the fact that she was so angry, for the last like 15 years that her parents divorced and remained best friends. That her “whole life was a lie” and “she’ll never trust again.” I’m sorry?? On what fucking privileged planet do you live on? Grow the fuck up. I wanted to strangle her so much. You don’t have an actual problem, this isn’t an actual issue. Does Lana hate women?

“I came over here because seeing you was the only thing in the world that I could think of that might make this day less of a goddamned nightmare.”

Also, I dunno if Dani was supposed to be written as good at her job but she was a literal idiot. Every single thing caught her off guard during the case, what a horrible lawyer with no poker face. And she’d just freeze each time, be overwhelmed, but Ezra was a calm and collected cucumber, so I ask again, does Lana hate women? None of the FMCs I've read have been written well by her.

You know, I hate the 1-D friends that are always featured in books like these. They all pretty much have the same voice, no substance, and exist only to comfort or tell off the FMC in some sassy way.

Most of my quotes are from Ezra. I think that says something. I have more but honestly, I don’t want to think about this anymore.

I think maybe I’m done with Lana’s books for now. I've read 3 and I haven’t really loved, or even really liked, any of them.

Thank you so much to Berkley for this ARC! I literally never get approvals from them and this is probably the last I’ll get because I basically tore it to shreds. *sobs*

4 stars.

"Overruled" by Lana Ferguson boasts a lawyerly enemies-to-lovers plot featuring excellent side characters, an adorable cat, and some delicious banter. Although it has some flaws, I did enjoy this novel for the most part. I think the enemies-to-lovers is done the right way here. Ezra and Dani are the opposing counsel on a huge divorce case ripe with scandal, intrigue, potential blackmail, cheating, and many secrets to uncover. They are hooking up outside of the courtroom, but it's purely physical... at least, it is at first. Very steamy late-night sessions quickly become "more" as Ezra and Dani find they cannot stay away from one another (despite her best efforts). While the case they're working on gets shadier and twistier, the two of them need to find a way to keep their work life and their blossoming relationship separate. It doesn't help that Dani has been burned in the past and strives to keep Ezra at arm's length as best she can while he quickly falls head over heels for her. Drama with Ezra's father and brother makes matters much more complicated when family secrets about him, too, are revealed along the way. Speaking of the drama, I thought it was riveting. Ferguson does a fantastic job making you absolutely HATE Alexander Hart (Ezra's dad) and Lorenzo (the man Ezra is defending). The drama was good enough to engage me throughout the book. I *loved* the spi. Lana writes some truly fantastic, titillating stuff here. My main complaint lies with Dani. I will say that I like how she is portrayed as a strong, competent lawyer with an amazing brain. Still, she *did* get a position in a family friend's law firm, so.... nepo-baby, much?? While her previous relationship trauma is valid, I *hated* her complaining about her parents. Her parents were divorced when she graduated from high school, and they remained the very best of friends. They are both happily remarried, and both couples (including Dani AND her friends!) get together frequently to have weekly dinners, parties etc. GIRL WHAT?! I get that divorce is traumatic for kids and teens (okay, for *everyone*), but I only *wish* my parents' divorce was as amicable as hers! I'm sure I'm not in the minority about this. If your worst problem in life is that your parents split up but remained best friends and are both in new, happy, loving marriages, your life is GOOD. Talk about first-world problems. "People are DYING, Kim!" Beyond this, the third-act breakup is expected and a bit trite, but it gets resolved rather quickly, so it didn't drag the book down too much. I do believe Dani experiences some growth toward the end of the book after she and Ezra are on the outs again, which means she's not a total lost cause, though I can see how other readers might disagree. Overall, I liked this book quite a bit! It's a quick, fast-paced read with enough here to keep readers engaged and interested.

Thank you to NetGalley, Lana Ferguson, and Berkley Publishing Group for the complimentary ARC of this book. All opinions are my own. I was not compensated for this review.

After hearing praise for the author and thinking the premise sounded fun, I decided to request an ARC of this one. I had hoped to like this more. In the areas that it works it is a great book, in the areas it doesn't it is eye roll inducing. 🙄 Let's dig into this mixed bag.

Two opposing divorce attorney's bump heads in the court room and give into their desires at night. It sounds like an easy way to build tension. What killed this for me was the FMC, Dani. Her behavior was extremely immature. Every time she spoke to Ezra the MMC her side of the dialogue came across preposterous to the point of sounding cartoonish. Her words were weighed down with so much profanity that it lacked impact. Let me be clear, profanity doesn't turn me off from books, but if you want those words to have the desired effect less is more. The way she treated Ezra made me feel like he deserved better. If Dani was a male character written this way there would be zero tolerance for her behavior. Do better! Her backstory as an excuse? Puh-lease. I had zero empathy for her character and that is rare for me. Ezra the MMC was clever, warm, and humorous. His character's backstory was painful and made me appreciate the level of kindness he was able to show. Plus, he had a cat.😻 Enemies to lovers?? Not in my opinion, Dani holds it against Ezra that he's attractive and good at his job. Grow up, girl. Seriously. He isn't holding anything against her besides his body. Those are not enemies. Work related rivals maybe. There is a cute romance blooming between a pair of supporting characters that I was rooting for. The buildup and tension were palpable. I became more invested in their story than the main plot. The divorce case Ezra and Dani were working as opposing counsel on was intriguing also. As much as I didn't like Dani on a personal level, professionally speaking she was a great lawyer who cared about her client. The author's writing style is relaxed with a smooth flow, making this an easy read in that regard. The last half of the novel shows a vast improvement over the first. The spicy scenes are where this novel shines. 🔥 Ferguson writes these encounters with a creative flair that went beyond the usual song and dance. Cheers 🥂 to her for that! (If you're wondering these are explicit scenes.)

It's a little early to say if I'm an outlier or not but be sure to check out other reviews if this novel has piqued your interest.

Despite my dislike for the FMC I would give this author another try because I liked her easygoing writing style.

Thank you to Berkley for providing an Advance Readers Copy via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

Thanks to Berkley for an early review copy.

Lana Ferguson returns to the sphere of contemporary romance in this story about two rival lawyers. Dani and Ezra are on opposite sides of a high profile divorce case, and on Dani's part, they have begrudgingly have a history of hooking up. As the divorce trial progresses, Dani realizes she has the wrong impressions of Ezra. Reader's will appreciate the banter between Dani and Ezra, and the progression of the story,

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for an advanced e-copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Overruled by Lana Ferguson had so much more depth to it than I originally thought it would. A lot of haters to lovers romances can be very fluffy, but this book had a good level of intrigue to it as well. Both main characters (Dani and Ezra) have a sad/tragic backstory that was introduced before you’re midway through the book which I loved. I’m glad both characters were lawyers as it just added to the nonstop banter throughout the novel. I only rated this novel a 3/5 because although I really enjoy Lana’s style of writing, I thought Danica was just like a mean girl with very little character growth and that Ezra deserved better.

This one was alot of fun. I enjoyed the story and how it all came together. Thanks for the opportunity to read this one!

I enjoyed reading this book. It took me by surpice because I had assumption about this book being friends with benefits. Nope! This book started about two people who know each other, did not "love" each other but know to push each button. The male falls first but doesn't know how to open his heart fully by being committed. Two people who are attracted to each other, they have their highs and lows, and they don't realize in the end that they are meant to be together. This story has it all sad, laughter, and a bit of anger and full hope, and romance.

I will read anything that Lana Ferguson wants to put out, to be honest! This was so incredibly fun, and I really LOVED the chemistry of the main characters! the banter was great, and I really liked the peek into the legal world. This was incredible and I am absolutely going to be adding it to recommendation lists!

Thank you so much to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC!

Lana Ferguson has become one of my autobuy authors and her new book Overruled is one you don’t want to miss!

Two rival lawyers have an Enemies with Benefits relationship that causes trouble in the courtroom.

First of all any book that takes place in my home of Austin Texas gets all the stars! The I-35 references were spot on 😉 The chemistry between Dani and Ezra was hot hot hot. And let me tell you this book is not lacking in the spice 🥵it also checks the snarky banter box! The romance is sweet but I also enjoyed the family drama. There was also a small element of mystery that I appreciated.
You’ve got to check this one out on pub day 7/1/25.

Rival divorce attorneys with a no strings attached sex arrangement find themselves on opposing sides of a big case in this latest from Lana Ferguson. This book had lots of spice, emotional depth and fantastic narration by Samantha Summers and Connor Crais but for some reason it just didn't hit quite as well as the author's past books have for me. Still a great read/listen just not my fav by Ferguson. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy and @prhaudio for a complimentary ALC in exchange for my honest review. Recommended for fans of the movie Laws of attraction by Pierce Brosnan and Julianne Moore.

Ferguson crafts two deeply flawed yet endearing protagonists. Danica’s guarded nature stems from past heartbreak, while Ezra hides his own trauma behind humor and charm. Their banter is sharp and playful. The novel delves into themes of trust, vulnerability, and the complexities of modern relationships. The legal setting adds a unique layer, with courtroom tension mirroring the emotional stakes between the characters. Blending sharp wit, courtroom drama, and steamy chemistry, this novel is a must-read for fans of enemies-to-lovers and workplace romance tropes.

⭐️: 3.5/5

Lana Ferguson’s books have been hit or miss for me, especially when they’re contemporary romance instead of paranormal romance. I really liked both of her paranormal romances, but since this one is contemporary, I was less sure whether I’d love it or not. I have to say, although I had some reservations about this one at the start, it ended up winning me over and I enjoyed it, overall.

Like any typical book by Lana Ferguson, the spice is early and often 😂 I think what kind of threw me off about the beginning is that we kind of get allusions to why both main characters, Ezra and Dani, are the way they are, but we don’t get too many finite answers until part of the way through, and then once we do, it’s kind of hard not to judge Dani for her behavior toward Ezra. Like, I know it’s not ok to rank trauma, but like, when it comes to childhood trauma, Dani’s…wasn’t that bad. Which is kind of a shitty thing for me to say, but it made her come off as just an immature whiner. Once she starts to come to terms with it all, she becomes more bearable, but still.

I also hated the third act breakup because it was worse than contrived, it was ignoring the most obvious fact-based scenario and disregarding the reality of how situations work. It was silly and weird, and made me roll my eyes so much that the inevitable reunion didn’t hit as hard as it could have.

One thing I really liked about this book was the closure and catharsis it provided at the end. I hate in rom coms when we don’t get to see the villain get their comeuppance, and instead it’s just like “and we never thought about them again.” I like seeing RESULTS 😂

Overall, this book was a quick read, and ultimately I liked it, but there were just a few things that kept it from being a great rom com for me!

Thank you to @netgalley and @berkleypub for providing this eARC in exchange for my review!

Another great read by Lana Ferguson! It was full of banter, romance and an actually interesting story which makes this a perfect summer read. Ezra and Danica made the perfect pair, after all their ups and downs. And I would actually really enjoy stories about some of the side characters because I really liked them too. Overall, this was super cute and for fans of enemies to lovers.