This book was an absolute delight. If you're looking for a true NEMESIS to lovers situation, look no further. I haven't seen this much true angst since The Hating Game and trust me when I say I was LIVING FOR IT. This book was full of exactly the kind of lighthearted sass that I needed this week and I had SO MUCH FUN reading it. 10/10 do recommend.

✨ ALL THE STARS! ✨

You Deserve Each Other is Sarah Hogle's debut novel and a 2020 favorite read for sure!

Refreshing, authentic, and filled with laughs. I've never seen such rawness from book characters.

I loved how total opposites Naomi and Nicholas are. They're flawed. He has some good character development and Naomi has good inner monologue. He was arrogant but misunderstood. And Naomi is immature at times but so sassy and headstrong.

This story gave a pretty accurate depiction of the inner workings of a relationship. The struggles. The arguments. The lack of communication. The dishonesty. Two people that lose their way at one point and have to find each other again. I couldn't help but fall in love.

This story was simply fun and filled me with so much happiness I could burst! Sarah Hogle is an author that you definitely need to watch out for. I'm looking forward to reading more of her work in the near future.


*I received a complimentary copy of this book from GP Putnam's Sons through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.*

3.5 stars

For the first 15% I honestly thought I was going to DNF this book. I found both Naomi and Nicholas to be so annoying and irritating, and I did not imagine that I would be able to actually finish the book. From the beginning I got the sense that Naomi was self-absorbed and vain and rude and so aggravatingly conceited and basic. Then there was arrogant, better-than-thou, know-it-all, condescending Nicholas.

But I reread the synopsis, and reminded myself that this is supposed to be a lovers-to-enemies-to-lovers story. So I stuck with it. And as they both realized that neither of them was happy with things, and not wanting to be the one left holding the bill for a cancelled wedding, it became an all-out prank war between the two, trying to push the others buttons enough for them to call it quits.

That is where the story started to get good. It started to get funny with moments of emotional vulnerability. Watching them try to one-up each other was entertaining.

I will say that this was pretty easy to read. It flowed well, and despite not liking either character in the beginning, I still found the story weirdly compelling.

This isn’t a book that I would call a favorite, and I wouldn’t recommend it for everyone, but it overall was a pretty good read. I’m glad I stuck it out past my initial dislike of the characters. As the story progressed and the facade of acting perfect and in-love faded away, both became a bit more relatable and real.

You Deserve Each Other is being compared to the much admired, and one of my favorite enemies to lovers stories, The Hating Game. Did I think it deserved that comparison? Kind of? There were definitely similar elements. Naomi and Nicholas did seem to hate each other, once the gloves came off their snark was spectacular, and when they took off the blinders their love for each other was glorious. For me there was just a small difference; Lucy and Joshua’s attraction for each other gave their bickering an underlying heat that was fun and made you eager to turn every page. Naomi and Nicholas strived for that same heat, but during their hate period it was more War of the Roses than The Hating Game. I just didn’t feel that connected. At least until closer to the end.

Naomi and Nicholas made such an unlikely pair. He was a successful dentist, handsome, and smart. She was pretty but wasn’t book smart and only held small time jobs. There was an unbalance that was really hard for me to get past. It made their snark a little uncomfortable. How do you laugh at someone who doesn’t have a college education and is a little sad in life? Nicholas was obviously not a bad guy, so how do you buy Naomi’s hatred? It wasn’t until Naomi finally opened her eyes and allowed herself to open up to hurt that this book really took a turn for the better. That moment gave these characters heart and allowed the reader to see what motivated them to act the way they were acting towards each other. It allowed us to move on, and again, fall in love with them.

If you are looking for the next The Hating Game, I don’t think you’ll find it in You Deserve Each Other. I also think you shouldn’t be comparing one book to another because it doesn’t give You Deserve Each Other a chance. This was a very good book that could stand on it’s own. Naomi and Nicholas were NOT Lucy and Joshua, they were their own brand of insecurities and snarkiness. In the end I liked them for their own story and invested myself in their HEA. What more can you ask for?

❤️❤️❤️❤️

I received a copy of this ARC through NetGalley for my honest review and it is honest!

WOW EVERYTHING. So much snark and hijinks and love. I want more about these two.

Naomi and Nicholas are an engaged couple who have hit a few snags in their relationship and have basically fallen out of love, but neither wants to be the one to call off the engagement and end the relationship. As the wedding countdown continues to tick, Nicholas buys them a cabin in the woods in hopes of saving Naomi and their relationship. When the two start letting their guards down and acting more like themselves, they start having fun and rediscovering what made them fall in love in the first place.

I was so wary of this one when I started reading. They plot sounded like a lot of fun and the cover was so cute, but when I began reading, I was not into it. Naomi seemed mean, and Nicholas seemed stuck up and I was pretty sure I was going to DNF at chapter three. I put the book down, read a few others, and then came back, hoping it was just me and I wasn’t in the mood the first time. Thank goodness that’s all it was, because when I started reading again, I was sucked in immediately and found both characters charming in their own ways, especially when they started to really let loose and let their true personalities that they’d been hiding even from each other really shine through.

I loved the writing and the snarky dialogue and the pranks they played on each other. Reading about Naomi and Nicholas rediscover their love was so enjoyable, I laughed and cheered for them on every page. This was truly a delight to read and I cannot wait for Sarah’s next book. I really hope whatever she writes, there’s more with these characters at some point!

*Thank you to G.P. Putnum’s Sons and Netgalley for a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.*

Okay so this one was a struggle for me to read. I think I’m beyond fed up with toxic relationships in books. I hate seeing people glorify books that have men who are entirely to blame or vice versa. But thankfully this book saves itself. Without giving too much away I really enjoyed where this one went and appreciate the ending. This one gets 3.5/5 rounded up to 4/5.

DNF at the halfway point. This is not the right kind of book for me. I was frustrated early on that Naomi put up with so much from Nicholas and his mother without standing up for herself. Then I started to sympathize with her for a few chapters. But I started to think that Nicholas was trying to work things out with her, and she was being impossible. The prank war starts to escalate to immaturity, and I was done. I disliked Naomi so strongly by that point, and it was impossible to push through to what I presume was a happy ending.

This will be a GREAT FIT for other readers - there are plenty of 4 and 5 star reviews for this book. I am just not that reader.

This book is in two parts, one where the story is firey and sweet, complex and charming. The other where the main character is so annoying and selfish and their partner is just as bad. The only problem is, Naomi’s personality is so awful that it made the first 50 nearly 60 percent of this book, very challenging. I don’t always get along with characters, I understand that some liberties need to be taken and certain traits are magnified to make more drama, but oof, she needs more likability. What’s so weird is that she has it in spades in the last 40-50% of the book. I will say the second half is a 5 star book, but the first half is not..

OᐯᗴᖇᐯIᗴᗯ: Nicholas and Naomi are engaged to be married, but they don't really like each other much. Or at least Naomi is convinced that Nicholas hates her as much as she hates him. The catch? Naomi is convinced that whoever calls off the wedding will be stuck with the hefty bill. This leads Naomi to wage a campaign of cruel pranks and mental games to get Nicholas to break it off the wedding. Which is what they both want anyway, right?

ᗯᕼᗩT ᗯᗩᔕ ᘜᖇᗴᗩT:
◇ Nicholas. Despite all the immaturity being thrown at him, he seemed like a stand-up guy.
◇ The friendship between Naomi and her junk store coworkers reminded me of my friends. I just wish they had told her to grow up.

ᗯᕼᗩT ᗯᗩᔕ ᗰIᔕᔕIᑎᘜ:
◇ Naomi was completely unlikeable. Even when she began to see the error of her ways, it came too late and seemed insincere. I was shouting at Nicholas to leave her!
◇ For a book billed as a romantic comedy, it found it really to be neither.

ᖇᗩTIᑎᘜ: ★★

Thank you to Penguin Group Putnam and NetGalley for a digital ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Okay, at the beginning of this book I didn’t really like either main character. But that turned out to be a good thing. Because as Naomi and Nicholas come back together and start to like each other again, so do you. It was an interesting journey with these two. It wasn’t long before I was rooting for them to work it out.

You Deserve Each Other is a wild ride. Naomi and Nicholas are the epitome of chaos and I loved it so much. Every prank they pulled, every time they sabotaged each other, it was so funny. And eventually they become the partners-in-crime they were always meant to be and that’s even BETTER because they turn all that chaos against the people that are causing many of their problems.

Plus the slight bit of angst that comes from Naomi when she realizes she still in love with Nicholas, but isn’t sure where he stands really hits you in the heart. The growth of both of these characters is just the best.

My only complaint is that I really wish this had been dual POV. I know a lot of people prefer a first person POV in romance, but I think that having Nicholas’ POV in here would have added so much to the story. I would have absolutely loved to see what was going through his head at the beginning, when he decides that they’re going to try and really make this work, etc.

Two years into their relationship, and Naomi Westfield doesn't remember how she fell in love with Nicholas Rose. They are engaged and live together in a boring white rental in Morris, Wisconsin, and she finally realizes that she resents Nicholas's constant complaining about his coworkers, his lack of attention to her, his obsession with his overbearing mother, and his mother's perpetual interfering in their wedding planning. One day, it all comes to a head when both Nicholas and Naomi realize that their relationship is all wrong, but neither of them wants to be the one to call it off. If Naomi calls it off, she'll be responsible for paying for the elaborate wedding that she had virtually no part in planning. If Nicholas calls it off, his mother will no doubt force him to have her grandchildren with some last-resort friend's frozen eggs. With only three months until the big day, it's come down to a game of chicken - who will annoy the other so much that they break and call it off?

Of course, this doesn't work out as intended. While trying to sabotage their relationship, Nicholas and Naomi start actually having fun, rooting out and fixing the problems they have with each other, and falling in love all over again.

The main reason I liked this book was for Hogle's fantastic, fun, and hilarious writing. Romcoms can struggle with cringeworthy writing sometimes, unrealistic heroines, unnecessary rotating perspectives, no round characters. Not true for this one. Hogle tells the whole story from Naomi's point of view, showing her to be a flawed, sometimes dumb, sometimes diabolically smart, human. She writes the initial stages of their hatred so well, showing that both of them had real flaws needing to be fixed, real problems that happen in long-term relationships. The back-and-forth sabotaging between Nicholas and Naomi is super fun to read, and I amazingly also found the gradual mending of their relationship to be fairly realistic and satisfying - it does feel like both of them grow as individuals.

The only thing that made me knock off a star is that the last 15-20% of the novel, when everything is almost rosy and happy-ever-after, is pretty unrealistic. It definitely goes into "professions of love and grandeur" territory, the kind of romantic spiels in movies that sound great and are so sweet they rot your teeth, but very few human men would actually say. I also found myself not being 100% convinced in the newfound chemistry between these two - it was almost more fun to see them hating each other.

Nonetheless, this was a sweet and fun romcom with an inventive premise, a total delight to read. Thank you to GP Putnam's Sons for the ARC!

Naomi Westfield is engaged to be married to the handsome, thoughtful Nicholas Rose. They are a saccharine pair, complete with their own wedding hashtag (#TrueLovesKissFromARose) and schmoopy social media posts. Naomi has a dark secret, though: she despises Nick and desperately wants out. But she can't really afford to initiate the break-up, so she has to get Nick to want to leave her. And away we go.

<blockquote>
I look at Nicholas and realize I am actually marrying this man. Forty percent because I love him and sixty percent because I'm too afraid to call it off.</blockquote>

I don't quite know what to say about this book. I read it in the fall, and put it away for a few months so I could re-read it closer to the book's release date. Sometimes you're not in the right headspace for a book, and a later read can improve your impression of it. I wanted to give it a little space in the hopes that I could approach it in a different spirit later.

On the plus side, the characters are beautifully drawn. It's hard to believe this is Sarah Hogle's debut! And there are a lot of laughs to be found here in this lovers-to-enemies-to-lovers arc.

Here's the thing: while enemies-to-lovers can a fun trope, there's a delicate balance to be struck. If you can't root for one of them, the pair can be hard to sell. In this case, Naomi is a brat. She's an absolute, unrepentant brat. I'm not sure how old she's supposed to be, but she's doing a great impression of a 12 year old.

Naomi's inner monologue is mostly immature, but occasionally vicious. You know those things you don't say because you know once you say it, you can't take it back? Too many of those. I find love stories don't work as well when that's the predominant tenor of the inner monologue of the character you are supposed to be rooting for.

(Maybe it would have worked better from alternating perspectives? Or would that just result in hating both halves of the couple?)

The couple does come around--it's a romance, after all, the HEA is guaranteed--but I personally felt it to be too little, too late. By the time Naomi stops trying to sabotage her relationship, I was rooting for Nicholas to call it quits and find a new love.

Wow! This book was an absolutely entertaining tear-jerker! I loved this one so much! The two main characters - Nicholas and Naomi spend the book working their way back to one another. The two fiancees somewhere along the way to their wedding have fallen out of communication and love with each other. But as they compete in the competition to drive one another crazy they start finding their way back to each other and remembering why they fell in love in the first place. I thought this book was so sweet, and so fun to read. I thought these characters were so fleshed out, and really felt like real people. Such a great book!

5⭐️ You deserve each other was our pick for last week. It was hilarious! Prepare to shake your bed laughing! This is @sarah_hogle’s debut, oh my oh my! So good! This is exactly what we needed for quarantine week 4! Lovers to enemy to lovers might be one of my favorites tropes. 👎🏼 Naomi’s insecurities, were a bit too much at times but it made some hilarious pranks. Were they petty? Yes. A lot. But oh so entertaining! Naomi was insecure and she misinterpreted things a lot of times, but how would you feel if you had a family who didn’t care to see you? She felt like she wasn’t worth it. So not so much of a negative, I really didn’t find much I didn’t like. The issue with families wasn’t resolved, but then again, issues with families don’t always get resolved in real life right? 👍🏼 The steam wasn’t too much or too graphic. That’s a plus for me. I liked both characters. Naomi was hilarious and Nicholas turned to be so sweet. ❤️ Their pranks are the best! And when they join forces against some relatives, they are even better! Please, read this book! I’ve read 16 books this year, and this is in my top 2. Thank you @netgalley @putnambooks and @sarah_hogle for an advance readers copy.

A charming, witty and laugh out loud story! I enjoyed every minute of it! Naomi's insecurities and self sabotage are a little bit of each of us. Nicholas's determination to not lose her was so endearing. A great debut!

This book is a sleeper agent! It quietly sat in my kindle, slowly creeping up on me in my TBR and when I picked it up, it ruthlessly held me hostage for the rest of the day. Hogle has penned a quick-paced, uproariously funny romantic comedy pitting fiances against each other in a game of chicken. Told solely in Naomi’s perspective, readers are treated to pranks and schemes all designed to frustrate the other into pulling the plug on their relationship.

Naomi, for all her lunacy and self-absorbed perspective, was relatable in the strangest way. It was baffling how she stayed in a relationship that clearly wasn’t fulfilling, and yet I have a friend who has done just that to avoid being wrong about their significant other. I can’t express how much I loved the lengths that Naomi would mess with Nicholas and his family. Nicholas was a charming troll if a bit full of himself. Starting the characters as horribly immature allowed for some fantastic, slow-burn character growth. By the end, I was rooting for the relationship.

Hogle’s making me rethink my hesitation on second chance romance. I howled with laughter and my heart-ached in those angsty moments of uncertainty. I will neither confirm nor deny tears. I’m so glad I had the opportunity to read and review this gem of a debut novel! I am excited to see what she come up with next. I definitely recommend this to fans of Christina Lauren, R.S. Grey, and Tessa Bailey!

**I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
**Reviews posted to Amazon and B&N

All the stars for this awesome book! I’m guessing this will be in my top five of 2020. The chemistry between our two main characters was so well written; both when they were fighting and when they we loving. So well done.

Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin for an advance copy. All thoughts are my own.

Fun rom com with an enemies to lovers trope with a twist. Naomi and Nicholas are engaged and living together. Unfortunately, since their engagement, instead of growing closer together, they seem to be growing apart- and getting on each others' nerves. Nicholas's overbearing mother has taken over the wedding planning and is quick to talk about the high cost. Naomi and Nicholas figure out that they are having similar feelings and do their best to make the other one so miserable they they will call off the wedding (and be responsible for the expenses).

At the beginning of the book neither character was particularly likable. This book is told from Naomi's perspective, so we only get her perspective. However, though her changing viewpoint, we are able to see how both she and Nicholas are able to shift and see some of their behaviors and interactions in a slightly different and more compassionate light. It was rewarding to watch how their personal growth was reflected in their relationship.

Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for an advance digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Naomi and Nicholas have been engaged for over a year now and are the perfect couple on social media. They are currently living together and planning their wedding in a few months...but here's the deal - they aren't so in love with each other anymore and actually kind of hate each other.

I have to be honest and say I wasn't quite sure what to expect when I started this book. An engaged couple who are petty and mean to one another within the first few chapters had me re-thinking this book. But the writing by Sarah Hogle is so funny and beautiful and honest. I honestly cannot put into words how much her writing touched me. I have so many passages simply highlighted because I was left in awe.

Although Naomi and Nicholas have their flaws, the growth in their relationship once they acknowledge these flaws was beautiful. I loved it that the relationship wasn't simply one sided and neither Naomi or Nicholas were the villain. It was more than simply putting an end date to their relationship, but rather working through their problems and deciding if what they have is worth fighting for.

This is an absolutely wonderful debut by Sarah Hogle and I cannot wait to read her next book! If you're looking for a book that has the perfect amount of humor, sadness, angst and sweetness then pick up this book!

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher.

Nick and Naomi are the perfect couple. Except that it's just pretend. Underneath all the instagram hashtags and perfect pics, their relationship is in big trouble. They each want the other to break things off and they pull out all the stops to push each other away. Only as things gets worse and worse do Nick and Naomi find themselves finally being honest with each other -- honest enough that their relationship might stand a chance.

I've seen multiple reviews about how unlikable this couple is -- especially Naomi since the book is from her point of view and we hear her inner dialogue. I am certainly not touting this as a relationship manual or an example of how to be a good girlfriend (and neither is the author), but I actually found Naomi to be very honest. The characters grow, mature, and changes and for me, that's where this book is so amazing.

This is a book where a couple comes from a truly troubled relationship and through hard work, communication, and honesty, turns it around. There is so much hope in that and I loved cheering for Nick and Naomi as they made it happen.