Left at the altar and has to team up with her ex-fiancee’s brother to secure a job? This has wacky hi jinks with a hint of romance thrown in all over it! Doesn’t it?

FIRST IMPRESSIONS:

I bought this book from Target when I went on a buying spree. I was so excited to see the real world again, I threw as many books as I could in my cart and ran home. A coworker said she was reading this, so we decided to read it together. The cover was so cute, I thought this would be a cute, fast read. Plus, it came highly recommended by Abby Jimenez. What could go wrong?

SUMMARY: A wedding planner left at the altar. Yeah, the irony isn’t lost on Carolina Santos, either. But despite that embarrassing blip from her past, Lina’s managed to make other people’s dreams come true as a top-tier wedding coordinator in DC. After impressing an influential guest, she’s offered an opportunity that could change her life. There’s just one hitch… she has to collaborate with the best (make that worst) man from her own failed nuptials. Tired of living in his older brother’s shadow, marketing expert Max Hartley is determined to make his mark with a coveted hotel client looking to expand its brand. Then he learns he’ll be working with his brother’s whip-smart, stunning—absolutely off-limits—ex-fiancée. And she loathes him. If they can survive the next few weeks and nail their presentation without killing each other, they’ll both come out ahead. Except Max has been public enemy number one ever since he encouraged his brother to jilt the bride, and Lina’s ready to dish out a little payback of her own. But even the best laid plans can go awry, and soon Lina and Max discover animosity may not be the only emotion creating sparks between them. Still, this star-crossed couple can never be more than temporary playmates because Lina isn’t interested in falling in love and Max refuses to play runner-up to his brother ever again…

WHAT I LOVED: I really liked…there was this…ummm…oh I know! I really enjoyed reading this along with my coworker. I thought we would have scintillating conversation about the book!

WHAT MADE ME SCRATCH MY HEAD: This wasn’t my favorite story. I couldn’t buy into the story of why Lina would be SO ANGRY with Max, but was only half as angry at her ex-fiancee. The explanation at the end wasn’t enough for me. Lina’s antics at “getting back” at Max were tiresome to me. I wasn’t looking for a book about someone who pretended to be “strong” only to act so…immature? Silly? Childish? Her smug attitude always had me rooting for it not to work. But I have always been that way. When I was a kid, I used to hope Tom would catch Jerry (Jerry was always so smug when he got away), or the Coyote would catch the Road Runner. I’ll analyze the “underdog” piece later.

What kept me turning the pages was the story line of “who would be hired” – would Carolina and Max win with Max crawling out of his brother’s shadow? I must know!

The Brazilian culture sprinkled throughout the book was interesting to read (although it made me want to try the food, which was difficult during a pandemic!) The only part that became a hassle was when the characters would speak another language, and I had to keep looking up what was being said. You could guess what the main point of the sentence was, but I love knowing what the translation is. Maybe reading on the Kindle would have been beneficial for that part.

FINAL THOUGHTS:

**This book did have a LOT of 4 and 5-star reviews! And I mean a LOT.