This is a really short and quick second-chance romance that is just a little over 250 pages. I initially enjoyed the beginning of the book where Dax and Abby first bump into each other at the coffee shop. I enjoyed the sparks, the tension and the banter and was looking forward to seeing where it would develop. Dax was super charming and I liked him as a MMC. Unfortunately, the book slowed down immensely after this and I wasn't liking the FMC at all and found her very frustrating. I understand that she has some trauma and history that prevents her from communicating well and committing to a relationship but it was a struggle and a half to read this. All I wanted to do was shake her and say you are self sabotaging yourself!

And so I am DNFing at 45%, I did enjoy what I saw of Starry and probably would have enjoyed the found family and grandmotherly advice and relationship Abby would have developed with her, but I just don't think the relationship between Dax and Abby was going to make up for it.

Thank you to Lily Parker and Joffe Books for the ARC.

I love a good rivals to lovers moment so I was super excited for this book! I also am a big fan of second chance romance if it's done right! I thought this book had a unique premise and loved how it tackled a lot of popular tropes. I felt it was appropriately paced and the story felt believable. The FMC could have communicated more but I guess I can understand why she was hesitant and not so forthcoming given the circumstances! Would recommend for anyone who loves a story filled with tension and yearning!

im ngl i dnfed this at 30% because i was so damn bored. i don't find our main character, the mmc gives me the ick and comes off way too strong, like ik they have a past together and all that, but still like as someone who's also walled up, that would make me run for the hills!!! anyways not my cup of tea

A swoony second-chance romance that delivers on tension, charm, and just the right amount of spice.

I had such a good time with this book! From the moment Abby bumps into Dax in that Manhattan coffee shop, I was all in. Their chemistry crackles right off the page — full of unspoken history, sharp banter, and emotional undercurrents that keep you turning the pages.

I’m a sucker for a second-chance story, and this one hits the mark: flirty, heartfelt, and grounded in real emotional stakes. The workplace tension? Delicious. The rivals-to-lovers edge? Even better. And let’s just say Dax is peak cinnamon roll in all the best ways.

I also appreciated the pacing — it felt fast and addictive without skimping on character development. Watching Abby and Dax find their way back to each other, balancing ambition, history, and heart, was incredibly satisfying.

Rom-com readers, especially fans of Emily Henry or Carrie Elks, will feel right at home here. The Best Worst Mistake is an absolute treat — fun, flirty, and full of heart.

- Second chance romance
-Friends to lovers
- Workplace romance
- Found family

A generally wholesome book, funny and witty and great characters overall. The lead dynamic is electric, evolving from tense to tender with plenty of laughs and swoons along the way. If you love a strong FMC, who are not perfect and carry some childhood trauma, and a supporting MMC this could be the book for you.
I did struggle with the first half of the book, but after that I couldnt put it down. There was not much happening in the first half of the book to keep me interested and the characters lacked depth, however the story picked up after it, im glad i kept on reading!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Color me excited when I learned this was the sequel to The Best Wrong Move, which I thoroughly enjoyed. I couldn’t wait to find out about workaholic Abby.

Abby Torres works round the clock at her law firm in the hopes of making partner. After her best friend moved to Hawaii to be with her love, Abby is left with her cat, who’s not impressed with her. When a chance encounter at a coffee shop with the one that got away happens, she decides to have one night of passion before going back to her limited existence.

Dax Harper has been in love with Abby since their situationship back in law school. When he see her again, he believes fate put her back in his path. But when she ghosts him after a magical night, he thinks maybe the universe is toying with him. But when a huge merger brings them back in each other’s orbit he’s not going to give up on her that easily.

I loved Abby and Dax, and their relationship! Abby has worked hard her entire life to prove her worth. She had a difficult upbringing. She grew up with parents who were addicts, and was finally placed with her aunt and uncle after social workers caught wind of her circumstances. Neglected as a child by her guardians, she grew up thinking that people leave and it’s safer to put up walls to protect your heart. Though Dax is her soulmate, she’s too afraid to take the plunge. I loved how patient Dax was with her, and how he didn’t pressure her to talk about her past or her reasons for pushing people away until she was good and ready to do it. Dax is a kind and caring man, who’s deeply in love with her. I enjoyed watching Abby’s walls slowly come down as she began to believe his love for her. It was heartbreaking to witness how small she’d made her world, and her realization that what she truly wanted most was a home with people who missed her and wanted to hear all about her day. Their relationship journey was lovely, and I appreciated how they took their time to evolve. I loved their HEA and was happy that Abby chose the life that truly filled her with joy.

I can’t wait to read Silas’s story next. What a great series!!

A wonderful read!
This novel drew me in from the very first page and kept me hooked until the end. The characters were vibrant and relatable, the writing was engaging, and the story had just the right balance of heart and humor. Highly recommend!
Many thanks to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for my ARC. All opinions are my own.

This was a cute read! I really like that the author wrote about a realistic career woman. I also really appreciated the bluntness and describing the treatment of career woman.

Tropes/Tag List
Friends-to-lovers
Sunshine/Grumpy
Forced proximity
Workplace romance
Found-family

First of all thank you to Lily Parker, the publisher and NetGalley for giving me early access to this eBook! All opinions in this review are my own.

Abby is a hardworking lawyer who hides behind her job to avoid dealing with her painful past. She doesn’t believe she deserves love and avoids connections. One day while grabbing coffee she runs into Dax. Her old law school fling. They were friends with benefits for years buttt when real feelings started to grow Abby panicked and disappeared. Dax never got over her. Now they’re thrown together again this time as rival lawyers fighting for the same big case. As they reconnect old sparks fly. But Abby still struggles to open up and Dax isn’t sure he can handle another heartbreak. To move forward Abby must finally face what’s holding her back and decide if she’s ready to let love in.


It was a good book! I didn’t love it as much as other books but it was okay!

I enjoyed this book, I still felt that there was something lacking from this book. I did not enjoy the female main character just being so bad at communication period. Glad it worked out better, just felt Dax laid everything and she played with his feelings

Lily Parker delivers a compelling second-chance romance that had me hooked from the first page. Abby and Dax's chemistry is electric, reigniting past sparks with a blend of sharp banter and heartfelt moments. Abby's journey from a guarded workaholic to someone open to love is both relatable and inspiring. Dax, ever the patient and understanding counterpart, complements her perfectly.

The narrative structure, unfolding initially over 24 hours before expanding over several months, adds depth to their rekindled relationship. The emotional stakes are high, and the payoff is immensely satisfying. Parker's writing is crisp, witty, and infused with genuine emotion, making this a standout in the genre.

If you're a fan of workplace romances with depth, sizzling tension, and characters you can't help but root for, The Best Worst Mistake is a must-read.

Some of my favorite books come from Emma Chase’s “Legal Briefs” series and Julie James’ “Just the sexist man alive” and “Practice Makes Perfect”. All of these are lawyer romances. So when I saw “The Best Worst Mistake” by Lily Parker I was so excited. I love nothing more when a the FMC and the MMC go at it against each other in the court room with sizzling tension and well placed jabs. This story had the added pleasure of also being a second chance romance as Abby and Dex were in law school together. Then with both presented with a career changing case they have to face off in the board room while their past crackles between them as Abby ghosted Dex and Dex never stop thinking of Abby. If you love lawyer/lawyer romances like I do you’ll enjoy this quick second chance romance.

I'll be honest, I struggled with the first half of this book. I started reading it 10 days ago, stopped and read another book, then came back to finish this one. The last 40% of the book is way better than the first part, so I'm glad I stuck with it til the end. Abby and Dax just seemed so robotic and emotionless in that first half and that made it nearly impossible for me to connect with them or want to see them get a HEA. And a whole lot of nothing happened during that time too, so it was really hard to push myself to keep reading. They worked all the time and that was pretty much their life. Abby seemed to be solely focused on work and nothing else in life and that made her come off as one-dimensional. But we see in the last half of the book that she really is capable of experiencing emotion. Her upbringing is what really made her the driven and work-focused person she was in that first half, but again, we don't see the 'why' behind that one-dimensional focus until that second half.

If you can stick with it, this book turns out to be pretty good. I thoroughly enjoyed the epilogue and the little life they built for themselves.

Second and third chances can change everything as evidenced by the evolution of Abby and Dax's relationship. It is no wonder that Abby pushed Dax away once she let him in and showed him where she grew up as a young child and how only through Miss Candie did she ever find how a mother should love her daughter. It was heartbreaking to see how much she wanted her to be her mother given she made sure she was fed and occupied where her parents if one could call them that neglected to notice that they actually had a daughter. Even when her aunt and uncle took her in, she had to find people like Olivia dud she know what a family felt like. Coming to LA was a turning point for Abby as she let herself be loved and vulnerable. She dud the things she had always dreamed of doing and let herself know that there is life outside of the office. She didn't have to feel alone. Starry cheered her on as she continued to evolve as the best version of herself. Silas' intentions were heartfelt and turned out to be better than her or Dax could have imagined. This book lets the reader remember how great love can be. The epilogue of two years later was simply amazing and I admit that tears were shed out of happiness. Taking a chance really does make anything possible.

I want to thanks NetGalley for the ARC

The Best Worst Mistake is a total delight; funny, flirty, and full of heart. Lily Parker delivers a charming workplace rom-com that had me grinning like a fool and flipping pages way past bedtime. From the witty banter to the sizzling chemistry, this book nails the perfect blend of enemies-to-lovers tension and feel-good romance.

The dynamic between the two leads is electric. I loved how their relationship evolved from professional friction to something so much deeper, with plenty of laugh-out-loud moments (and a few swoon-worthy ones too). The dialogue is sharp, the pacing tight, and the emotional payoff is just chef’s kiss.

This is the kind of book that makes you want to hug it when you’re done. If you love clever heroines, buttoned-up heroes who unravel in the best way, and rom-coms that actually feel romantic, you’ll adore this one.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I devoured this in one sitting and I have absolutely zero regrets.

The Best Worst Mistake is everything I love in a second chance romance—sharp banter, real emotional stakes, and a whole lot of longing. Abby and Dax have history, and you can feel every bit of it in their dynamic. The tension? Immaculate. The chemistry? Off the charts.

I loved that this wasn’t just a fluffy rekindled romance. There’s depth here, especially in Abby’s character. She’s guarded, complicated, and sometimes frustrating—but in the most real, relatable way. Dax is a literal dream. He’s funny, a little bruised from the past, and you can just tell he’s always been hers, even when she wasn’t ready to accept it.

The timeline structure was super unique. The first half unfolds over just 24 hours, and it worked so well to pull me into their emotional world quickly. The second half slows things down and gives us space to really understand Abby and what’s holding her back. Honestly, it made their connection feel earned.

Also… the spice? Yeah. It delivers.

If I had one tiny wish, it would’ve been to see a few flashbacks to their law school days—just to feel that old flame even more. But it’s not a dealbreaker. This story hit all the right notes for me: fun, emotional, romantic, and just the right amount of messy.

Thank you so much for the ARC!

A fun and quick read. An easy story to follow and entertaining characters perfect for a quick summer read

Having read the first book in this world, I was excited to finally get my hands on this one too. Seeing a little glimpses of Liv living her best life and adjusting to billionaire life was very funny and relatable.
However this story focuses on her BFF Abby, who deserves all the best things in life too. Lily Parker did a great job at writing another relatable character. Unlike her previous book, this one is a lot more emotional and less humourous, or at least it was for me. While I would easily classify The Best Wrong Move as a RomCom, I don't think The Best Worst Mistake qualifies for the comedy part. It was a lot more cosy and emotional romance.

I would've loved to see Dex and Abby together more and how they function in their new relationship, but this was a very sweet romance of about two people finally getting together on their third try, years later.
The story really focused Abby being honest with herself and opening up to the world, which was very emotional to read about.
In contrast, it felt more like Dex was just a prop for the story, than a fully fleshed out character. We know very little about him, and he seems to just exist for Abby's benefit.

While I hate the 3rd act break up, and love books who don't let that happen. I do think it has to be in a natural way.
SPOILERS ||
Having a big blow up moment, but nothing happening because she decides she doesn't care. Doesn't do it for me. Even if she decides to stay with Dex after what happened, a totally understandable choice since he did nothing wrong, I would've liked to see her go off on Silas. We know she's a strong woman who has no problem arguing with people. It felt wrong for her to have just let this slide with no reaction. Especially having not experienced the scene from her POV, so not understanding her feelings in that moment, it felt wrong. Or at the very least see Dex be mad at Silas in his POV, instead of hearing about it after the fact. ||
I don't think the use of multiple POVs was used to its best ability, and instead used to skip harder descriptions of what one of the characters was feeling, and an excuse not to write certain scenes. (Ok that might be a bit harsh, but idk how else to say it)

Overall, while it felt a bit short in the end, I enjoyed this little romance and I think anyone who wants something easy to read with a little depth, would enjoy it too.

A very sweet and cute second chance romance where you get a lot of feels for the mmc. I thought it was a good spin on the trope. I didn't love the secondary story (a tad boring), but I absolutely loved the romance story and their chemistry. It was unique enough to hold my interest and the spice was also great.

This was a fun very quick read with some spice and a great character arc. I really enjoyed watching Abby and Dax's relationship blossom, although would have loved more of them together and realising their feelings for one another. It was a great airport read, took me less than 2 hours to read and I enjoyed this one.