Take a baseball player at the top of his game with a marriage on the line and invite him to a book club. This book club has men reading romance novels so they understand how to relate to their wives. It is a refreshing twist on the second chance love story. Gavin (grew up with a stutter) and Thea (her father nicknamed her "Shotgun") have some baggage to unpack and this book deftly explores those themes. What I appreciate most is the message to work hard to preserve the marriage you are in. A wise pastor once asked his congregation: "How do you know you are married to the right person?" Answer: "You're married to them!" (Sadly there are desperate situations where abuse or illegal activities are occurring and this does not apply.)

Thank you to Berkley and NetGalley for a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

“From the moment I first saw you, I have been half a man, because you’ve always held the other half of me.”

Thea asked for a divorce, but Gavin won’t just give up her wife like that. Now, the bros are to the rescue. Their solution? Read romance. 😉

Oh, I absolutely love this book! I couldn’t even think of what’s not to love. 😍❤️ When I found out that this book has a bunch of hotties reading romance novels to save their relationships, I just had to get my hands on it! Lol 😆

This book was really so much fun to read. I think it was cute, sassy and sweet. Lots of funny parts too! I love every character and their personalities. I love all the relationships here from Thea and Gavin’s to the Bromance Book Club. I also love the feminist side of it. Finally, I love how unique the whole story is. It’s so different from other rom-com novels that I read.

Definitely. Worth. Every. Second. Of. My. Time!

This is a romance novel that I can definitely see myself reading again, maybe in the future. But for now, I love it and really enjoyed it and I would highly recommend to get this book.

Thanks so much for my digital copy of The Bromance Book Club! 🤗

I wanted to like this way more than I actually did. The concept is great -- a bunch of woke men get together to read romance novels to learn woo their wives and girlfriends and have great conversations about gender roles, feminism and relationships? Sign me up. However, the plot felt a little slimy to me. Gavin literally repeats word-for-word and moment-for-moment the things he reads in the steamy romance, and man, if I found out my partner was doing that, I would be FURIOUS (which Thea ends up being -- and then she forgives him?). I feel like the men in the book were encouraged to see their wives complexly and figure out their needs, but instead of just talking to the person they're in a relationship with to work toward a common goal, they manipulated their way back into their wives' hearts by copying the moves of a fictional character. They deal with some extremely heavy relationship issues, but the characters' dialogue is so lighthearted about these serious topics, it's very jarring at times. Great concept, less-than-great execution. :/

When I saw the premise for The Bromance Book Club by Lyssa Kay Adams I knew that I had to read it and that gut feeling paid off. Hilarious, heart-warming tale about a group of men who help a teammate save his marriage using romance novels to guide them.

"Snuggle up with The Bromance Book Club tonight. A lovely mix of bookish fun, heartwarming romance, swoons, laughter and friendships. "- Caffeinated Reviewer

Full review will post at Caffeinated Reviewer on November 5th. It will be uplifted on all social media. Reviews will cross-post to Amazon and Goodreads. Link included to post.

This promised a fun and sweet storyline but yikes - the cringe! It all just felt so affected and forced. The juxtaposition of the heaviness of the serious realistic marital issues with the frankly absurd dialog and ridiculous characters made this book difficult to enjoy. If this had been two different books - one a heartfelt contemporary exploration of a couple struggling in their marriage, and the other a tongue-in-cheek comedic romance that mocks its genre with good natured self awareness - I’d give both 4 stars. This mishmash however, didn’t really work for me.

This was a pretty alright book. The writing was average, the sexy scenes did their job, but I didn’t connect to the characters as well as I could have.

I really love how this book actually discusses the important discussions surrounding marriage and a healthy relationship. However, the feminist bits were SOOOO NOT SUBTLE! It was almost parody like instead of subtly informative.

An all-male book club was something I had to read. The Bromance Book Club had me hooked from the first page. Gavin Scott was a sexy stuttering baseball superstar who found out his wife, Thea had been faking the big O their entire marriage.

It was hilarious how all these big strapping baseball players were trying to help Gavin save his marriage. The story within the story was just as good. It is refreshing to get the male perspective on love and to see how Gavin struggled to understand his wife. Of course, his ego was bruised. Whose wouldn't and when he and Thea got to the root of their problem, their love evolved. Gavin decided to start courting his wife again, making her kiss him every night and Gavin reading to her was so sweet. Gavin's stuttering was cute and I liked how Thea embraced all of him and didn't hesitate to stick up for him even when she was pissed and disappointed with him.

Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Absolutely loved the gender role reversal in this book and how the author gets into the mind of Gavin and the other men in the book club. It was fun to read the excerpts from the romance novel the men use to better understand the women in their lives. Can't wait for the sequel!

This was a cute book about a man using romance books as his guide to find his way back to his wife. The premise was unique and I can't wait to read the second one in the series!

This book was entertaining but oh so very cringey. Gavin’s POV was just terrible. I enjoyed Thea’s parts more but in the end this was just a little too much and also not enough for me.

Gavin’s Scott’s marriage is in trouble. The revelation that Gavin’s wife, Thea, has been faking the big O, sets in motion what might be the end of his marriage. Gavin finds help from his buddies who have a bromance book club, where they read romance as a way to help them improve their relationships.

I was pleasantly surprised by this book. I liked this book because the characters were experiencing very real issues Gavin and Thea make efforts to work on their marriage, but it seemed like when they take a step forward, they followed up with a step backwards. It was clear that Gavin and Thea’s issue were bigger than the big O. They breakdown of the marriage started before this revelation. It was also apparent that both Gavin and Thea brought baggage into their relationship, that remained in their marriage. This book also demonstrated the realities of marriage. How two people can love each other but still struggle in their marriage.

I thought the bromance club was a charming concept, and enjoyed Gavin’s team mates as they attempted to coach him.

*I received this book as an arc from netgalley.

Baseball star Gavin Scott’s three-year marriage has hit the warning tract. His wife Thea’s startling revelations about their love life have shaken him to his very core. When the couple separates and appear headed for divorce, Gavin is devastated. He still loves Thea—and is sure she loves him too—but he’s at a loss as to how to win her back.

Seeing his distress, Gavin’s teammates step up to the plate with their unique approach to repairing relationships. These macho sports jocks invite Gavin to join their secret group—the Bromance Book Club—whose members read romance novels (which they call “manuals”) in search of advice about what women want in relationships.

Once he gets over his initial misgivings and lets his guard down, Gavin—with some help from his fellow Nashville Legends—embarks on a plan to rescue his marriage by courting Thea, using techniques he learns from a Regency novel. But, as the saying goes, the course of true love never did run smooth. Gavin and Thea face the age-old question—Is love enough? Beyond rekindling their romance, they come to realize that to save their marriage, they must commit to building mutual trust and respect.

The Bromance Book Club is a thoroughly entertaining romantic tale filled with passionate moments and laugh-out-loud scenes. It’s easy to fall in love with the cast of characters and root for them as they navigate the ups and downs of modern romance.

A rom-com about a book club where men read romance novels in order to save their marriages - that alone was enough to make me pick up the book!

The Bromance Book Club was a fresh take on second chances at romance for married couples. Gavin's marriage is falling apart - he found out his wife was "faking it" and left without a fight when she kicked him out of the house shortly after. He's drunk and miserable, until his friends from the team give him the kick in the pants he needs to fight to save his marriage, in an unorthodox way. Enter the book club - which you don't talk about to anyone outside the book club. The group of men read romance novels, and apply what they learn about what women want to their marriages to become better husbands and lovers.

I personally found this book hilarious at times, and I loved the small touches of feminism thrown in here and there. I felt like it was a pretty solid read if you're looking for something romance-y but still pretty lighthearted!

I hated the first part of this book and according to other reviews, I'm the one of the few. Gavin wants to save his marriage. After he finds out that his wife has always been faking it (it referring to orgasms but she's really faking everything) he gives her the cold shoulder until she kicks him out. Little does he know that that was a test and when he complies with her wishes, he failed. Because giving each other tests is really a healthy thing to do and should be done instead of talking clearly to each other regarding issues.

I understand that Gavin was in the wrong. The first part of the book hits me over the head with this. He even has an entire book club (who are not well written) to tell him all the things he has done wrong. But Thea is never told this. Instead, her sister tells her that she's right about leaving Gavin because Gavin left when Thea told him to? Seriously, whenever the sister spoke, I kept on thinking that they have a lot of problems with marriage because of their parents. So many problems that counseling needed to happen with everyone. Personal, marriage, and family counseling.

Thea turns herself inside out to be a perfect baseball player's wife. Does Gavin want this? No. Does she ever tell him that she's unhappy before talk of divorce? No. Does she expect him to be like her playboy father? Yes. Her realizing that she's part of the problem came way too late.

Random rant: Please stop bringing up The Little Mermaid when you want to show how 'woke' you are. It's as annoying as bringing up Stockholm syndrome when talking about Beauty and the Beast.

This was one of my most anticipated books and when I finally got it in my greedy hands, I was a bit afraid that it might not live up to the hype.

Love love loved Thea and Gavin. I loved the loyalty and the absolute love between them. I loved how Gavin was ready to absolutely anything to get her back. And...I don’t have words for this group of men who shamelessly read romance to help their relationships.

Plot wise, it was everything I wanted. I was happy to see that Thea was trepidatious and didn’t give in right away. The flip between the story and the snippets of the book Gavin was reading was just fantastic.

Overall, it was exactly what I wanted to read. I loved these characters and this story and I can’t wait to read it again.

**Huge thanks to Berkley for providing the arc free of charge**

I received an early copy from the publisher via Netgalley.

I think at this point if it is a Rom Com and Berkley is publishing it, its definitely going to be good! I've loved every single one I've read!

The Bromance Book Club is about Thea and Gavin. Gavin finds out his wife has been faking her orgasms and a fight happens and eventually Thea asks for a divorce. Gavin doesn't want that but doesn't know how to patch things up. Enter the bromance book club. Gavin's friends and teammates get him to start reading romance books and using the situations in the books to understand what his wife needs-what they need to fix their relationship.

The characters and situations were all great, the book was laugh out loud funny. And since it's told in Thea and Gavin's perspective and through snippets from the book Gavin is reading it went really quickly. Highly recommend this book!

So I finished this in one night. This story is going to suck you in so get ready with some snacks and a cozy blanket.

I was immediately drawn to this book because of the premise. A secret romance book club where bro jocks meet to read smutty historical romance books to gain insight on courting and romancing women? Yes, please. I love how enthusiastic the existing members are about how the club has helped them with their romantic partners when they were struggling. I felt like we needed more book club meetings, though. They met maybe 3 times, and each time it was really funny and endearing to see how earnest the guys were in trying to help Gavin repair his marriage with Thea.

This is a romantic comedy, but it felt much more emotional to me compare to other romance books I've read recently. Primarily because the couple involved are married and have children. You could see how confused and hurt the children were because of the fighting. You get the sense that these two were crazy about each other at the start of their marriage so it just devastating to see how the marriage was falling apart after only three years or so.

It seemed everything was caused by Gavin's stubbornness to let go of his hurt pride, but the author did a great job of showing readers that there were some very big underlying issues in the marriage - from both partners. Each person brought a lot of unresolved emotional baggage into the relationship. And the lack of effort to communicate frequently and meaningfully caused a lot of cracks in the marriage. There were times where I felt Thea was being really unreasonable, especially when you see how hard Gavin is trying to show her how much he wants to make their marriage work. But at the same time, that distrust and defensiveness comes from her own issues and that does get addressed in the book.

There's no denying that even with all the frustrating tension between the two, Gavin and Thea have some amazing chemistry. No wonder they got hitched so fast! I love how each are so drawn to the other. It was really fun seeing Gavin flirt with her and be all super sexy to draw out Thea's competitiveness and feisty spirit again.

Overall, this was a little more emotionally heavy than what I was expecting but I still enjoyed it a lot. It was definitely a page-turner.

4.25 Stars / 2 Steam Fans

Gavin and Thea is a married sports couple that is having problems within their marriage. This story is their journey back to each other with the help of romance novels. I really enjoyed this story, I loved the dynamic between Gavin and his guy friends that are helping him out, Thea and her sister, and the kids are such a fun interjection into the story to keep it light. I am glad that the story didn't use romance novels as the end all to be all guides to keep your marriage together but more like a guide to seeing things differently.

This specific video review will be included in the September 2019 wrap-up.

For other video book reviews check out my YouTube Channel: Steph's Romance Book Talk.

Charming and hilarious, "The Bromance Book Club" puts a fresh spin on the tired theme of second chances that helps rejuvenate the theme. It's not often an already married couple is the subject of a novel, which made the plot refreshing and kept readers engaged. It made it more relatable and opened itself up to more readers who might not have picked this book up otherwise. It was also nice to see these men take full ownership over their relationships and not shy away from their emotions. They showed the women in their lives the respect they deserved and wanted to better themselves as people, which is not often seen in novels.

Adams was wise in displaying both Gavin and Thea's points of view in order to demonstrate both sides of the relationship, which strengthened the plot and allowed the reader to form their own opinions. It showed the difficulties of not just a marriage, but a relationship and how it takes two to make it or break it. Adams is a gifted writer and she immediately draws the reader in with her prose. The book flowed beautifully and she developed her characters quite effectively. Not once was there a hitch in her pacing and everything just came together so perfectly. Not once did it feel like a shallow rom-com and it's all a testament to her writing.

"The Bromance Book Club" is a book I will be highly recommending to readers and am excited for the sequel.

Sweet, sexy, and highly entertaining, I had a blast reading this love note to romance novels!
When problems in the bedroom lead to his marriage going down in flames, baseball star Gavin must try and win back his wife with the help of his teammates and an array of romance novels as guidebooks.