Member Reviews

Thank you Netgalley for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
This was a regular, simply written romance. The heroine gets stuck for a night with her ex fiance friend whom she resents and they try get through the night without killing each other. I thought the heroine was a bit too whiny and desperate in the quest for love. I felt zero connection to her and Lucas was pretty bland as well. Not as great as I originally hoped.

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This was a nicely told romance between Lucas and Elena they both share a mutal friend/ex Scott. 7 months before Elena was going to marry him when bitter Lucas after a divorce warns Scott against marriage and he dumps Elena so she hates Lucas and blames him.

The two come together at a friends cabin in the mountains and get snowed in together. Elena is a doodler and creates this graphic that Lucas ends up sharing with a client and then he asks to use it and that is how they end up working together.

This was a nicely written and fun story about two people who hate each other but who start falling for the other as they work on this campaign together. I really enjoyed it. I have never read this series before and so the story easily stands alone.

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I just love this series This is the third book in this series and it was so great to go back and see what was happening with past characters. This book was about Lucas and Elena. Elena used to be engaged to Scott until his best friend gave him some friendly advice. Then he broke off his engagement with Elena. Elena has never gotten over Scott and still blames Lucas for destroying her life. Lucas now needs Elena's help with something and in return he is willing to help Elena get Scott back. Now Lucas and Elena are working closely together and feelings start to overwhelm them both. I thought this book was so romantic and it showed you that sometimes you can find love in the most unexpected place. I highly recommend you pick up this book. I do warn you that once you start this book you will not be able to put it down until you are completely finished. Thanks Net Galley. I voluntarily reviewed this book in exchange for an honest review.

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I received a free copy from netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This was the first book I have read by this author but I really enjoyed it and would love to read another book by her. The main leads work well together and the relationship feels real.

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This was quite a nice story. The relationship grew quite naturally and flowed really well.. I didn’t like Scott too much but I think that was the point of the story whereas Lucas ticked all the boxes.

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I’m a bit torn over this story if I’m honest...I liked the premise and I loved the style of writing, but I didn’t take to our heroine Elana, she came off as a bit pathetic and sometimes not very nice...I get she wants what her parents had but it was just hard to believe that she would so easily forgive her ex and so desperately wanted him back...Lucas was decent enough but I didn’t really care what happened to these characters which was a shame

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Elena is a romantic, and she wants a love like her parents shared. And she almost had it with Scott, till he broke off their engagement.
A turn of events has Elena working with Lucas on an advertising campaign. And as she gets to know him better she sees he’s not as bad as she first thought. As friendship starts to develop into something more, and Scott coming back in her life who will she choose.
Romancing his rival is a sweet, fun romantic read. I enjoyed the storyline and found it different from anything I have read so far. Elena though a little tiresome with her views on love and marriage, Lucas was just perfect.

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Elena works at the hotel in Cape Harmony. She was dumped by her fiancé months ago, she blames his best friend and best man Lucas for the break up. Lucas had an unhappy marriage and she believes that he talked Scott out of marrying her. After all these months she still holds out hope that Scott will come back and they'll live happily every after the way her parents did before their untimely death.
She runs into Lucas and the two have at it. She accuses him of all wrong doing, the guy doesn't stand a chance. And the more she tells him about what he said, the more he realizes how wrong she is. And as time goes by how wrong she is for his friend. Lucas is sworn single and married to his job. He needs to make partner. The more time Elena and Lucas spend around each other the more he relaxes, she's feeling things she doesn't think she should be feeling and things head in a direction. Alas, she will still not let the whole nonsense she's got burned into her brain about Scott, needing to be engaged in December and all the other mental fairy tales she's got going on. I have to say I really liked Lucas, but Elena at times wore me out with her frequent breaks from reality. But the book was still a great read while we ride the crazy train with the two of them! I loved Lucas. I love the setting as well and Jennifer is such a great story writer! Can't wait for the next book!

arc from NetGalley and Entangled for an honest review

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I received a copy of Romancing His Rival by Jennifer Shirk from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is the second novel by Jennifer Shirk that I have read and I thought the storyline was so much better than the first. I really liked the main characters, Elena and Lucas, and enjoyed their dialogue as the plot played out. Plus, the chemistry between them was hot! A rom-com, Romancing His Rival started with Elena's broken engagement to Scott. A romantic who wants her happily ever after with the man of her dreams (she thinks that man is Scott), Elena is understandably hurt and blames Scott's best friend, Lucas, for being the catalyst for the breakup. Elena wants to win back Scott and get her happy ending so when Lucas needs Elena's help, he dangles talking to Scott on her behalf and to help smooth their path back to love. As Lucas and Elena work together, they begin falling for one another.

I liked that Elena was relateable in her tunnel vision of wanting to get back with her ex and being so determined to do so that she ignored the signs that someone else - someone better (Lucas) - was right before her eyes. Also appreciated that Lucas cared so much for Elena that he was willing to concede the field to his friend, Scott, if that was what (who) made Elena happy.

All in all, this was a fun book for a cold winter evening. I would read a future novel by Jennifer Shirk without hesitation.

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Elana thought that Scott, her former fiancé, was her soulmate. She even blamed Lucas, his best friend, for Scott’s decision to breakup. After an unexpected run in, Elena made a deal with Lucas to help her convince Scott to give their relationship another shot. However, the more time that Elena and Lucas spent together, the more they both came to realize that they had feelings for each other. Unfortunately, Elena was convinced that confirmed bachelor Lucas would never want a real relationship with her. Needless to say, this sweet story ends with Elena becoming engaged to Lucas instead of Scott.

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The story of Elena and Lucas.
He is her enemy, after he talked her ex-fiance in cancelling the wedding. So being snowed in an apartment with thim does not put her in the best of moods.
But the more time they spend together the more she is thinking about him and the less she wants her ex back.

Looking forward to reading the rest of this series

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Elena's fiance, Scott, broke up with her after a discussion with his friend, Lucas. To say she's heartbroken would be an understatement. She can't believe Lucas deliberately sabotaged her engagement to Scott. Elena is holding out hope that Scott will eventually change his mind and want her back. But if she never sees Lucas again, it would be too soon.

Lucas is jaded due to his ex-wife. She really did a number on him and now he has no desire to ever marry again. He's okay with being single. His job is all that he needs to be happy. He doesn't regret talking to Scott about his marriage, especially because he doesn't think that Elena and Scott actually fit. He has no doubt that Elena loves Scott. But Scott on the other hand.... he just doesn't see it.

When circumstances beyond Elena's and Scott's control brings the two together, Elena doesn't know how to react. She's still angry and blames Lucas for her broken heart. But Lucas will do anything to get her to work for his firm, even talk to Scott. Elena see this as an opportunity to have Lucas right his wrong. She's determined to get Scott back.

But the more Elena and Lucas work together and get to know one another, the more their feelings for each other start to grow. Will Elena continue on her quest to get Scott back? Or will she finally let him go once and for all? And will Lucas be able to let go of the past and give himself a second chance at a HEA?

I enjoyed this addition to the Accidentally Yours series. But I have to be honest, it wasn't my favorite. I think it's because Elena was SO adamant about getting back together with Scott. It became repetitive and, for me, started taking away from the story. But the bright spot was most definitely Lucas. Even though he wanted to be with Elena, he also wanted her to be happy. And if being with Scott makes her happy then he'll put her happiness before his. I absolutely adored him!

Jennifer Shirk is definitely a favorite of mine. Whenever she releases a book, I instantly grab it and can't read it fast enough! I can't wait to see what she has in store for us next!

Content: Mild-moderate language. Mild romance.

*I voluntarily reviewed an advanced reader copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are solely my own.*

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*Thank you Netgalley and Entangled for the ARC!

I didn't think this book was the love triangle type. It was, but kind of wasn't. Even though I usually stay away from these books, I enjoyed this one!

Elena Mason is miserable because her fiancé Scott called off their wedding. And the reason has a name: Lucas Albright III, Scott's friend. Lucas' experiences with love (involving him and his family) has never worked out, thus he really thinks marriage has to be very well thought out.

Consequently, Elena hates him, although one "incident" changes everything. Suddenly they start working together and she begins to see who he really is. But what about her feelings for Scott? She's torn throughout the whole book (which was understandable, but sort of annoying at times). I loved Lucas, he was so sweet.
It was a quick and very cute read, I recommend it! 4.5/5

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I voluntarily read and reviewed this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for letting me read this book. I enjoyed it because it's a bit different to other romances I've read. The setting of the book gave it a homely feel, and it helped that it's set around the Christmas holidays.
The ex is embedded throughout the story and it didn't bother me too much because he wasn't a bad person, he just wasn't right for Elena. The two main characters Elena and Lucas are quite lovely and haven't found their ideal version of love. As the story continues and they get to know each other better, they figure out that maybe love isn't what they thought after all.
3.5 stars

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Talking her ex-fiance Scott out of marrying her, Elena holds a grudge towards his best friend Lucas. When they end up working together for a joint project, fighting ensures but what happens when fighting starts feeling a whole lot like falling in love?

Overall, I felt as though every spoken sentence was Scott this, Scott that. The lead heroine infatuation and clinginess to her ex-fiance who ended their engagement due to her on nonaccomplishments was a major turnoff. Whenever Lucas was around, her pettiness would resurface and repetitive lines on how he ruined her relationship started to become a nuisance. Apparently Lucas had planted some kind of crazy notion in Scott’s head that she wouldn’t make a good executive wife. Elena had such high hopes that Scott and her will get back together which was repeatedly mentions a 100 times during the course of the seven chapters I managed to read before dropping this like a hot potato. It seemed like she wanted to mold herself to his ideal partner and no woman should ever do that. Lucas was probably the only likable character but there's only so far that could that you. With how the heroine acted and the direction the storyline was going, I have decided to dropped this series by chapter seven at 45%. I can't believe I wasted my time reading this.

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This is Elena and Lucas book, Elena can't stand her ex fiance best man Lucas! She knows it was Lucas that talked her ex out of getting married! All her problems stem from Lucas! Lol Lucas has his reasons for breaking them up and they're good reasons but Elena would never believe him anyway! Lucas wants nothing more than to make partner at his advertising firm, and a big account that's coming up can do that! But he has to work with Elena to do that! This book was a nice sweet cute read! I personally like a little more steam in my reads than this had, it was a good read if you like the ya reads! Thank you Netgalley and the publishers for sharing this book with me!

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This is a sweet story about Elena, a homebody whose deepest wish is for a family of her own. She thought she had found it with her former fiance. However, his best man, Lucas, talked negatively about marriage with him and he then dumped Elena. Elena blames Lucas for being dumped.

When circumstances throw them together again, after the fighting, they begin to talk and, slowly, Elena starts to rethink everything she had thought she wanted. When they begin to work together, neither is sure what to make of their attraction to each other. What follows is a charming story that I just loved. I loved Elena and how she was forced to rethink her life, and Lucas, who also had a epiphany about his life, and how he made changes to reflect his new priorities.

Fans of the genre will love this book. The author is on my must read authors' list and, if you enjoy contemporary romance, should probably be on yours as well.

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"Romancing His Rival" is simply enchanting- a perfect read for the Valentine's season. This romantic comedy follows Elena and Lucas in alternating third person limited points-of-view. Elena is a romantic who wants what her parents had- happiness brought on by a great relationship. She believes that she found it in Scott, who proposed the way her father proposed to her mother (at the Empire State Building) and who sends her flowers on Fridays the way her father used to send to her mother. However, everything came tumbling down around her when Scott broke off their engagement saying that she wasn't the right type of executive wife- and his best friend Lucas was the one who convinced him of that.

"Love is a lot of things, but I'd hardly call it sade. There's the devastating risk, but also the unbelievable beauty of it."

Elena is approaching what would have been their wedding date, and so takes the offer from her wedding planner friend to stay at the nice condo of someone she planned a wedding for, who just happens to be Lucas's sister. When Lucas also shows up and a snow storm traps them there, Elena is finding it hard to continue to hold a grudge for the way he broke up her engagement.

"Happiness won't come to you. It has to come from you."

Lucas did not mean his statements the way his best friend took them, and he certainly didn't mean to break Elena's heart. He has had a skeptical view on marriage, after his ex-wife cheated on him/his marriage failed. He has no interest in getting married again. Although he truly believes it is for the best that Elena's relationship ended, he is willing to strike a bargain. Her artwork will help him land a deal that will result in him becoming partner in exchange for helping her get Scott back.

"Love just kind of sneaks up on you and won't let go."

As they spend time together through plots and work, they both find themselves surprised by the other. This was completely adorable and lovely and all the fluffy. There are also some important messages about making yourself happy and realistic expectations for relationships that I enjoyed. This title is short enough to be read in one sitting, and this is great, because it's hard to tear yourself away from this couple and their story. Full of fantastic fun and clean romance (nothing more than steamy kisses), this is sure to be a Valentine's hit! I highly recommend for lovers of rom-coms.

Please note that I received an ARC from the publisher through netgalley. All opinions are my own.

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