The Perfect Date was nothing like I expected and it sadly didn't work for me. The romance wasn't there but I did like that it was short and fast read.

I have mixed feelings about this book, and with more care and editing I would have enjoyed it more than I did, but overall it was a cute read.

I gave this book a try, but with the weird obsession with every person’s weight (like even random background characters), the bad attitude of both main characters, and the almost weird obsession with repeating that he plays for the Yankees over and over again, I just couldn’t finish. I really thought the premise was good and the cover was adorable, but the book just doesn’t deliver.

Thanks to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for a digital galley in exchange for an honest review.

There are usually two veins in any story that draws me in as a reader. First, strong characterization and second, situations that evoke a ballroom of emotions that connect me with the characters. In The Perfect Date I didn't really like Angel or Duke and wish they had never met. If I were Angel's friend, I would probably advise that she's surrounded by disgusting men( like her boss, Frank and Dr.Collins who both expect sexual favors from her) and that Duke is no better. Duke is a cliched baseball player hiding his medical problems and hoping Angel will play the part of his girlfriend to stem the media frenzy around his career. Oh so many things proceed to worsen for the couple and I became so turned off by the way in which the author tried to smokescreen some serious issues.


So the only emotional response I was feeling by the end of this ARC was anger and frustration. In some ways this is exactly the reason why Fifty Shades never worked for me. I just cannot buy into sex and loneliness turning into a "love story. " Especially when the male protagonists, such as Duke, actually exhibit signs of violent behavior and physical abuse towards the female protagonist.





Goodreads review 08/06/ 9
Publication Date 11/06/19

I have to start this review by saying I'm disappointed. The blurb was so promising and I had been looking forward to reading it. But as I started I just couldn't connect to the characters. Maybe it was the fact that it kept jumping from one POV to the next without a real separation so it got confusing really quickly. The plot could have been a great book but it never delivered. I kept expecting that WOW moment but it never came. Both MC's were saying one thing but doing something else. And the chemistry - it never felt real and the drama was just too much for me.

I really wanted to like it but unfortunately I didn't!

I really wanted to be in love with this book. Sadly, that did not happen.
But I did read every part of it, so let me tell you what I thought was the most important thing: THE WRITING WAS GREAT. It flowed really well, it was so easy to read, but at the same time it felt elevated throughout. I liked the pacing they went with, and the voice of the narrator was also well suited. I think the characters felt vivid, they were placed on the page nicely. But I think that also took away from my impression of the book cause some character’s trademarks weren’t my cup of tea and I had a bit of a hard time connecting because of it.
However, this book seems like a solid, fast read, if not for anything else, but simply because of the writing style.

Gritty, realistic opposites-attract romance

Angel and Duke run in wildly different circles; he's a famous professional baseball player and she's struggling each day to provide for her son while she attends nursing school. After they cross paths a couple times, Duke's image needs a bit of wholesome credibility so he asks Angel to be his fake girlfriend whenever they're in public together. As they get to know each other, the differences in their lifestyles and circle of friends become nearly-insurmountable obstacles.

The writing style is unique in a romance book in that we're not directed to see each main character as always doing the right thing or even acting reasonably. Angel is constantly having to rein in her temper, while Duke shows a surprisingly pouty side and occasional lack of backbone. There's also an intriguing storyline running throughout that adds betrayal, mystery, and a bit of a crime drama element. The HEA expertly wraps all the assorted narrative threads nicely. I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book.

When St. Martin's Press' publicist offered me an advance copy of The Perfect Date to review, I readily accepted after seeing the cover and the name of a PoC author. I was like, "Yay for representation and inclusion."
I had high hopes for this book as I love some of its elements: multicultural main characters, placing a priority on education, desire to rise up from poverty. I thought I would be able to relate to the heroine since I also have a little boy. I thought there would be strong family support and solid female friendships.

I thought wrong. The Perfect Date did not live up to expectations. The writing is unpolished, the pacing is uneven, and the editing is unsatisfactory with plenty of grammatical errors and head hopping points of view. The main characters are unlikable and the many sub-plots are too heavy and angsty without let-up.

I cannot even consider it a proper romance since the main focus of the book was not Angel and Duke getting together to form a loving relationship. Each went about their own way - Angel to deal with the creep of a doctor she works for while studying for her exams, and taking care of her sickly son; Duke to return to playing baseball while hiding his injury and warring with his blackmailer of an ex-girlfriend. Their association was forced, their meetings combative. They never had a perfect date, so the title doesn't fit.

Only Angel's friend Gabrielle and her son Jose are positive representations of people of color. The rest, including Duke, are abusive, drug addicts, amoral cheaters and blackmailers, and in the case of Angel, whiny and hot-tempered.

Contrary to the blurb, The Perfect Date is not fun. It's a soap-opera drama better suited to a reality show on TV. If you're a fan of that, this book might be for you. Sadly, it is not for me.

I love the concept of this story bit feel like the depth I was looking for didnt come through. There was a lot on the surface of this story and I wanted more.
I also felt it was a bit jumpy between the characters and how the story flowed. I know part of it was reading the advanced reader copy was missing some of the final layout edit and that may have helped to better see when the character view changes.

Angel Gomez was an unwed mother by the time she was sixteen & her personal mission has always been to show the world that a Puerto Rican girl is not to be messed with. The only thing that matters to Angel, now, is providing for her son and earning enough tips at the club to complete her nursing degree along the way. Caleb “The Duke” Lewis is a star pitcher for the Bronx Bolts whose romantic escapades make delicious fodder for gossip columns. But lately he’s been trying to keep a lower profile—so much so that when he meets Angel, first while she’s in her nurse uniform and the next time behind the bar, she has no idea who Duke is, fails to fall for his obvious charm, and ends up throwing a drink in his face!
I read the blurb & thought I’d give this book a try as not my usual genre, whilst I did overall enjoy it I didn’t love the main characters & found it very hard to like them & to connect with them. I much preferred Duke to Angel as I found her to be abrasive & had a huge chip on her shoulder. I struggled to finish the book & it took me days to actually finish as I kept dabbling in it between reading other books & that’s so unlike me as I usually devour a book in under a day. It was well written & I'm sure others will love it but unfortunately it wasn't my cup of tea.
My honest review is for a special copy I voluntarily read

I am really sorry but this book was just not for me. I didn't like it as much as I wanted to. The whole time while reading it I felt like I am missing some part. I needed more emotions. I don't know I guess it wasn't what I expected to be. But over all the story was sweet and I love heroes who are smitten with their girls. The chemistry between them was good. But as I said I always wanted a bit more. Thanks to the publisher for the ARC but this time just it wasn't my cup of tea.

I'm going to blame myself for this one since I went into The Perfect Date with the expectations of enjoying a cute and fun contemporary romance. I wasn't prepared for the drama and cattiness that I read instead and it made the book less than enjoyable for me.

I don't even feel like getting into a long rant over what I didn't like about this book, and there wasn't much that I did enjoy, but overall it just wasn't the book for me. The romance got buried under all of the drama happening and that drama is also what had me unable to connect to either character. Honestly they both seemed like jerks to me and I really didn't appreciate how the author went so hard with the whole "Every female is a bitch - other than the heroine, of course" thing. I've read it before, it seems to be a trend, but it's not one I appreciate.

Bottom line, I didn't like it but I would never tell other readers not to try a book that seems interesting to them. So if the blurb intrigues you and you're ready for some drama llama, this may be the book for you.

*I received an ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. *
2.5*
I must admit that I requested thing book firstly because of the beautiful cover that screamed rom-com and secondly I was sucked in by the blurb. I was ready for an intense, sweet romance with some tension thrown in. Unfortunately this book just didn't do it for me. While I enjoyed the main character Angel, who is a single mom working her hardest to provide for her son. Duke and the relationship between them fell flat for me. While it did have some beautiful moments and great suspense. The over behaviour of Duke just left a bad taste in my mouth. Writing style was okay and could have had some improvements. It wasn’t enough to make up for what the book failed to deliver. This is a novel I desperately wanted to love but in the end just wasn't for me.

I liked the cover a lot and thought it would be a cute romance, but I was wrong. I liked the main character Angel OK, but the other character Duke Lewis was a jerk throughout the book. I'm sorry I spent the time I did reading this.

Thanks to St. Martin's Griffin and NetGalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I received an ARC of this book to read through NetGalley in exchange for a fair review. The Perfect Date by Evelyn Lozada and Holly Lorincz is a modern day retelling of the Cinderella story set in the world of professional baseball. Angel Gomez is a struggling single mom who attends nursing school during the day and bartends at night while trying to make a better life for her young son. She meets Caleb “The Duke” Lewis a star pitcher for the Bronx Bolts when he shows up at the medical clinic she is doing her practicum in to get treatment for his injured ankle and because he is trying to hide how badly his ankle is he asks her to pretend to be his date so that the press and his coach won’t get wind of the reason for his visit to the clinic. I enjoyed the story and it’s peek into the dark side of professional sports and do recommend it. More sweet than steamy. Publishing Date June 11, 2019 #NetGalley #ThePerfectDate #StMartinsPress #StMartinsGriffin

I liked the premise of the book, but I couldn’t get into the story. This book was well written, just not my style.

I had a really difficult time rating this book. On one hand I love how there are diverse characters and the voice sounds authentic. What was difficult was how every single person in this book except for a couple, were just terrible people with no values and morals. I understand people are flawed and some worse than others, but there were so few people with redeeming qualities. I also understand difficulties in life having had many myself, but it just felt like one negative after another. It was a bit off-putting.

I did like how the Duke showed a kind and compassionate side for children, and how they finally had their HEA. But it was a brutal ride.

Angel is a young single mom, working multiple jobs while going to school. She's nearing the finish line for nursing school, and so close to providing her son with a more normal, less struggling to get by, sort of childhood. Nothing has come easily to her, but luckily she has a best friend, Gabriela, who has her back no matter what. Things can be especially difficult financially since her son Jose suffers from asthma and paying for his medication often means no groceries. As she's finishing up her clinic practicum, she's forced to avoid the slimy doctor who gets a little too close and touches her shoulders too often. But she has to play nice so he'll help with Jose's medication.
Caleb, aka the Duke, is a Yankee pitcher who is not quite recovered from an ankle injury. To save face, he pays the clinic doctor under the table for treatment, but while there can't help but be captivated by Angel, who he runs into again and again (sometimes by accident, sometimes on purpose). To keep the press off his trail, he asks Angel to play his fake girlfriend to explain his presence at the clinic. Angel's thrown into the deep end of what a rich baseball lifestyle looks like, and what secrets may be hiding beneath the glitzy surface.
This book was a quick read, with a lot of redeeming qualities. The characters had fairly rich back stories, allowing for you to really understand their motivations throughout. No one was perfect (as in life) and they screwed things up and made questionable calls, but ultimately, they were realistic. Angel and Duke's attraction and romance made a lot of sense, especially since they started off pretty rocky. I liked seeing a badass feminist woman take charge of her life. Angel was a powerful woman with her priorities in place. One thing I'll say is I thought there would be a lot more baseball in the book, and there really wasn't.
The writing style left a bit to be desired, and I wasn't 100% thrilled with the ending, which felt abrupt. Overall though, a good diverse addition to the growing contemporary romance genre.
A review copy was sent to me through netgalley.

I don’t know what I expected, from the summary you know that the love interest is someone famous. But I did not like that aspect of the book at all. Or more specific how Angel acted towards him, and because of him. In the beginning of the book we learn that Angel is this strong independent teen mom. She is about to get her
nurse diploma, get a good job, and create a great life for her son. Then this famous baseball player comes around and everything changes.. I don’t like that at all!
I really liked how in the beginning of thee book they were showing that being a teen mom can turn out in a good way. Angel was putting her son before everything, but her son became less and less present towards the end.
What I really did not like is that Angel started to feel bad for him, and was putting her own problems aside. Like yes some bad things were happening in his life, but that doesn’t mean her problems, which were created by him, were not important.
I don’t like it when people totally disregard there own problems/life for this love interest that’s been in there life for 2 days..
So by the ending I was quite annoyed by him and didn’t like the ending..
This rating is given because I did like the beginning couple of pages. And her son was quite. And she had a really good friendship with this girl, and I think I liked her better than the main character!

This is a fake to real romance but with lots of mean attitudes and behaviour.

Angel Gomez may have become a single Mum whilst only sixteen years old but she's determined to do the best for herself and, more importantly, for her son. She's studying to become a nurse, currently on placement in an emergency clinic and also working in a cocktail bar to help pay the bills. She has lots of sass - and needs it. However, she lives up to her name in many ways but has no time for love or romance. She is extremely worried about her young son's asthma, so much so that she's actually writing the final paper for her nursing degree concerning the horrendous difference in death rates for children with asthma depending on their ethnicity.

Caleb Lewis is nicknamed 'The Duke' and is a star pitcher for the Bronx Bolts. He's had a terrible year after being shot in a gangland shoot out which also resulted in the death of his best friend and team mate. As situations develop which have her pretending to be his girlfriend to enable him to explain visits to the clinic without confessing that his injury isn't fully healed, romance starts to blossom but his attitude and her concerns over her son both put strains on their potential relationship. Add in to that unexpected money worries for him, his father's secrets and what really happened in the shoot out and it definitely isn't just a romance!

There are some humorous moments in this story which also has a significant element of suspense. It is an engaging read though with characters who seem nastily real, often somewhat derogatory in their comments and attitudes because they are portrayed warts and all. Both main characters have others trying to push them to do things which they don't want to but will the pressure be too irresistible? The story is a part of their life journeys and whilst the romance is a key element, there is also a developing of the rights and wrongs of decisions made by various characters. If sexual harassment is a trigger for you, avoid this book - though the perpetrator does get caught. You're never quite certain how these will be resolved but I will say it has a heartwarming happy ending and I found it an easy, relaxing read though I don't think I'd relate well to anyone at all like either of the main characters at the start of the story! If sexual harassment is a trigger for you, avoid this book - though the perpetrator does get caught.

I requested and was given a copy of this book, via NetGalley. This is my honest review of the book after choosing to read it.