
3.5 STARS
Release Date: September 18, 2020
SYNOPSIS: This summer was supposed to be spent lounging on the beach, madly in love with my boyfriend. Until he decided to move to Singapore, and break up with me an hour before his plane left. Now I’m stuck in a Hamptons house share with six of his closest pals, including his best friend … who despises me. Since the moment Smith Redfield laid eyes on me, he’s hated my guts. I’m serious, I think the raven-haired restaurateur gets physically sick just being in my presence. And he’s never been shy about hiding that fact. There was the time he cackled when I landed face first in a pile of Manhattan trash bags. Or the night I tried to throw my ex-boyfriend a surprise party, and Smith had strippers crash the bash. Or maybe it was New Year’s Eve, when he got in my face and called me a sheltered goody two-shoes who wouldn’t know passion if it smacked me in the lips.
He’s rooming right next door for the summer months, and I don’t think more animosity could exist than in the hallway of our vacation rental. As if I wasn’t already sporting a bruised ego and broken heart from the way his best friend left me. But the more midnight run-ins we have, the more I can’t help but think about the way his mouth would feel against mine. With each heavy-eyed glance over the dinner table, I’m starting to wonder if the damaged alpha male doesn’t harbor more than just loathing towards me. After all, they say hate is the closest emotion to love. And with the way we’re skating that thin line, it’s bound to burn this whole house down.
REVIEW: When I saw this cover and read the synopsis, I just needed to have this book in my hands. Molly is Smith’s Best Friend’s Ex, which always adds a little spice to the mix. And I really appreciated how the author portrayed the Molly’s breakup with with her ex–which I think is key in making the dating a best friend’s ex work! He wasn’t malicious and there wasn’t a lot of drama, but it was done in a way where I fully supported Molly ending up with his friend. It was so fun getting to know both of these characters.
I really do enjoy an enemies-to-lovers romance, but sometimes when the two main characters are enemies they take it a little too far. That’s how I felt about Smith and even thought he had his reasons, I didn’t really like him for the first part of them book. I did appreciate how he realizes it won’t be so easy to start treating her better when he’s been treating her poorly for so long. Both Molly and Smith are dealing with their own issues and they play a big part in the interactions they share. The other thing I really appreciated about this story was the distinction between them as a couple in the Hamptons versus when they got back to their normal lives. It was another aspect that made this story more realistic. Overall, I’m glad I picked this one up!
Thank you to Carrie Aarons for an eARC in exchange for an honest review!

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MEET THE AUTHOR

Author of romance novels such as The Tenth Girl and Privileged, Carrie Aarons writes books that are just as swoon-worthy as they are sarcastic. A former journalist, she prefers the love stories of her imagination, and the athleisure dress code, much better. When she isn’t writing, Carrie is busy binging reality TV, having a love/hate relationship with cardio, and trying not to burn dinner. She’s a Jersey girl living in Texas with her husband, daughter, son and Great Dane/Lab rescue.
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