This was fantastic! While I enjoyed the first book, I wasn't super head-over-heels in love. This one is my favorite so far! It had everything I wanted and the relationship between the characters was fantastic. I really loved getting to know Mack and seeing the way he and Liv interacted on and off the page. I'll be excited to promote and recommend this next month!

I was borderline obsessed with Bromance Book Club and there was no way I was going to miss out on this story.

Love love loved Liv and Mack. She’s combative and cranky. He’s charming and slick. Together there’s loads of button pushing and enough chemistry to choke someone. I loved seeing the book club and Rosie is delightful.

Plot wise, it’s heartbreaking and empowering and so many other emotions I wasn't quite expecting. This story will ring true for so many women and the commentary in this story had me balancing between white hot rage and utter despair. I admire the strength these women showed because even though they might be fictional, their narrative is not.

Overall, it’s a story I immediately wanted to reread. I can’t wait to flail about this with other people who have read it. And to the survivors: I believe you.

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

Undercover Bromance by Lyssa Kay Adams is the 2nd book in her Bromance Book Club series. I really enjoyed the first book in this series, and looked forward to what Adams had for us in Undercover Bromance; and I will say this was as much fun or even better than the first book.

Braden Mack is our hero in this book, and you can’t help love him. He is not only charming, sweet and caring, but he is a gorgeous hunk. I loved Braden (Mack) and his book club friends, who are always there to help their fellow buddies. It is fun and at times humorous to see these hunks discuss romance novels, and make suggestions to each other how to handle women with care and love.

We meet our heroine, Liv Papandreas, as she works for a famous restaurant as a sous chef. Mack is being interviewed, when Liv accidently drops an expensive cupcake on his lap; Liv’s boss is incensed. When Liv catches her boss making sexual harassments to his hostess, she confronts him on his behavior and is fired. Liv finds herself out of work, and her nasty boss is making sure she will never work again in the restaurant business by telling lies about her.

Mack discovers this and tries to help Liv, who is Thea’s sister (heroine in first book) and Gavin’s wife; but at first, she is snarky to Mack. Mack is determined to help her, and enlists his book club friends to help bring down her ex-boss. In a short time, a slow build romance will begin between Liv and Mack, though I have to say for at least half the book, I really wasn’t crazy about Liv and her stubborn, arrogant and nasty treatment of Mack. But that does change in time, and they made a great couple (if she would open her heart to the perfect man). Mack was such a great hero, as you couldn’t help swoon over him, and we knew in time he would find a way to crack Liv’s shell.

What follows is a fun story, especially with the guys trying to help, and the hilarious situations they find themselves in. Lots of fun. I also enjoyed the relationship between Rosie and Hop, an older couple, who were Liv’s friends. Both Mack and Liv had their own family issues from their past, and they needed to move on from that. I also liked the story line focusing on women’s fight against sexual harassment and abuse issue, which is similar to the ”me too” movement.

Undercover Bromance was a humorous fun story line, very romantic, and a fantastic group of alpha’s that had me laughing throughout. Lyssa Kay Adams did a wonderful job writing this fun story, which you need to read. I know I will be waiting for the next book in this series.

Is it just me or is Braden Mack a total dreamboat? Even in the last book, his charisma swooned me but in this book, I was completely won over! I really enjoyed this romance novel, I finished it in ONE, yes ONE day because it was just so darn cute, I couldn't get enough!

Liv gets fired from her job as a pastry chef at one of the top restaurants in Nashville. She finds her boss, Royce who is a successful TV restauranteur and probably the worst kind of human known to man, sexually harassing women. She wants to bring this issue to light but he threatens and tries to make her life a living hell. On the same night Liv gets fired, she was delivering a dessert to the table where Braden Mack was sitting with his date. Braden was not expecting to see Thea's sister so distractions and accidents happen which is why Liv finds herself in Royce's office, waiting to have a talk with him when she witnesses something that will change her. Liv is on a mission to bring down Royce; Braden feels guilty that Liv lost her job, so they team up to bring down Royce.

Undercover Bromance is a perfect book to just sit back, read and relax over a weekend. I enjoyed the sarcasm, snarky humor. I found myself laughing out loud from the things Liv would say. Which is weird because I honestly could not stand Liv as a character, she was immature, made rash and impractical decisions, and acted like she didn't care about anyone but herself, but I loved her sarcastic and snarky comments, those were the best parts. I love it when a book can really make you hate a character at first but then by the end, you love that character because of the development - that is why I am giving this book 4 stars because I love it when the author adds character development within the story. Allowing the character to learn and grow from mistakes and experiences. And of course, Braden is his ol' perfect self, always trying to do what it takes to impress a woman! I loved learning about Braden's past experiences and how they have shaped him.

I would have loved to see a bit more romance in this book like the last book but overall I really enjoyed it! Highly recommend, I cannot wait for the next book!

What is this book about? Undercover Bromance is the companion novel to The Bromance Book Club which I absolutely adored last year! Basically, these stories center around a group of prominent men who like to read romance novels and form a club to help each other with their love problems.

What did I like? As with The Bromance Book Club, the idea of a book club for men who unashamedly enjoy romance novels and use the “knowledge” they learn from said romance novels to better their love lives is amazing and Lyssa Kay Adams knocks it out of the park each time. I also really liked how the topic of masculinity and societal expectations is mentioned and talked about in this book!

I was pretty unsure about Mack’s character in The Bromance Book Club but I’m thankful that Undercover Bromance was his story because it totally changed my opinion about him! There’s definitely more to him under the surface of easy-going charm and we need more men like Braden Mack in the world 💕

What didn’t I like? I know she’s written to be this way for characterization purposes, but I could not stand how stubborn Liv was at times. Girl, I know you want to be independent and self-reliable but there is nothing wrong with asking for help when you need help, instead of constantly trying to do things yourself and ending up in even deeper trouble.

Overall thoughts: I highly recommend these books to any fan of romance. Undercover Bromance is a spectacularly follow-up to The Bromance Book Club and I look forward to reading whatever shenanigans these men end up getting into in the future.

I truly enjoyed this book. It is a great followup to the first in the series. I like that these books also include the story from the man's POV. The characters are believable and the plot is fun and easy to follow.

The author make a believable romance between these characters and it includes some of my favorite characters from the first book. The characters aren't perfect people which is good, but their flaws are not enough for you to dislike them.

Warning: There are some mentions of forced sexual contact, but it is not graphic.

I would read this book again or bring it along for a fun beach read. You do not need to read the first book to get into this one but it would be best as the idea behind the book club is explained in more depth in the first book.

I really hope the Russian is next in line for his own book.

Thank you to Net Galley for an ARC in exchange my honest review!

Undercover Bromance follows the story of Braden Mack, club owner/businessman extraordinaire and the founder of the Bromance Bookclub, and Liv Papandreas, feisty pastry chef and Thea’s sister from the first book. After (accidentally) dumping a $1000 cupcake into the lap of Mack’s date at a celebrity chef’s restaurant where Liv worked, Liv saw the chef harassing a young employee and was summarily fired. Mack feels responsible for throwing Liv off her game, thus leading to her firing, and so he offers Liv a job. Liv doesn’t want this kind of help from Mack and instead enlists him to help her expose the douchebag chef for who he really is—after swearing Mack to secrecy about the whole ordeal (haha, right).

Overall, I really enjoyed Undercover Bromance—especially Mack and his softy side that emerged from under the smarmyish bravado that was his signature in The Bromance Bookclub. The sparks that flew between Mack and Liv were fun, particularly when they annoyed each other. The interactions between the Bromance Bookclub are worth the read alone; I readily admit to possessing the sense of humor of a 5-year-old, so I cracked up at the Russian and all of his cheese encounters. However, it is just plain fun to hear a bunch of macho dudes talking about their favorite smut books. I do have to say that some of the angsty conflict stuff between Liv and Mack annoyed me, SPOILER ALERT particularly in regards to him “lying” about his identity because it seemed like something one wouldn’t particularly want to admit to, and it’s really not like the two talked about Mack’s father ALL that much. Liv’s anger was overblown IMO END SPOILER. But all together, this book was a super fun, super cute, romantic suspense-themed romp, and I can’t wait to see where the Bromance Bookclub will take us next!

When I saw The Bromance Book Club everywhere, I decided I needed to read it. It sounded cute and I love a good rom-com, especially if it has a little twist that makes it different. And I enjoyed TBBC but I didn’t love it like everyone else seemed to. But still, I couldn’t resist the pull of its sequel with Mack and Liv as the MCs. And now that I’ve read it, I can say I’m glad I gave it another chance.

Some of my biggest problems with TBBC didn’t show up in its sequel and that made me extremely happy. First of all, they only include one excerpt from their book club book, so I didn’t end up having to read exactly the same thing twice. And while Mack relies A LOT on his knowledge that comes from romance books, that’s actually one of his biggest challenges. And I really loved that. Because the first book has Gavin pretty much saving his marriage by copying everything in the passage from the romance novel he’s just read. But Mack needs to rely on more than just his reading history because he needs to learn how to be authentic and real and just himself. And the copying and not truly understanding his wife was one of my biggest issues in TBBC. The sequel seemed to deal with that a lot better. For me, at least.

Also, I liked the MCs better in this one. I didn’t necessarily like everything they did or agree with them but I found them much more interesting than the first one. Liv and Mack have a lot of baggage. And it may have taken a while but they do eventually work through their issues and confront the pain they’ve each been holding onto.

This one is sort of sold as romantic suspense, but there’s really only a tiny hint of that. If you don’t like suspense, I wouldn’t pass on this for that. It actually deals a lot with sexual harassment in the workplace and a revenge plot Liv is working on to take her former boss down. I was actually a little disappointed because I was looking forward to some drama and maybe a few intense and dangerous scenes. But the climax doesn’t go the way I had hoped and instead just kind of sizzles out. The focus is very much the romance, which is fine, but don’t expect anything too thrilling in terms of a sting operation.

I also really enjoyed the addition of Rosie and Hop and Noah and Alexis and Sonia. And the continued meetings with the Bromance Book Club add a lot of fun moments. I could honestly do without The Russian’s intestinal problems but that might just be me. The development of the enemies to lovers romance between Liv and Mack was great to watch. They had some really great moments together, some really good banter and chemistry, but their moments of softness and vulnerability together were definitely my favorite. This book deals with some very important issues like workplace harassment, sexual assault, and toxic masculinity. It was great to see the men really understanding that the issue is one men need to confront themselves if we’re really going to move forward but it also felt a little heavy-handed and in your face at times. I’m sure most women already know these things.

Overall, while this book did take me a little bit longer to get into than I liked and the climactic scene with the chef wasn’t entirely satisfying, I’m really glad I stuck with it and gave the series another chance. If you were lukewarm about the first one, give this one a try! It was fun, heartfelt, current and romantic. I really enjoyed it.

Much like the first book in this series, Undercover Bromance is swoon-worthy and will be a smash among the rom com/contemporary romance crowd.

Characters relying on inspiration from the romantic suspense novels they’re reading? I. Was. Here. For. It.

Five star read, you won’t regret it!

I love this series with my whole heart. Honestly, even with the book that the characters being one that I normally don't reach for, I was still eager to know more about how it wove into their situation. The Bromance Book Club is fast becoming my favorite romance series and Lyssa Kay Adams a favorite author.

The Bromance book club of Nashville is back as they try to use the knowledge they've gathered from reading romances to help own of their members with his love life. Mack is a ladies man and never has a problem finding a date but he can't seem to have a relationship. Liv does not trust any man and when she is fired from her job as a pastry chef after confronting the bad boy celebrity chef she has even less reason to trust a man. But Mack and Liv are on a collision course as they try to expose the bad behavior of the celebrity chef. Will they be able to break down their walls and face their own truth? Will Mack's knowledge from romances help his love life? A fun story of friendship and love.

After meeting Mack in the previous book, I couldn't wait for him to find his own happy ever after. He was just as charming and lovably over the top in Undercover Bromance as he was in the first book, and I enjoyed seeing him and Liz verbally spar and go head to head. There was lots of fun banter and a delicious build up between them (the innuendo filled scene at Mack's house was the best!), but as much as I liked Liv and Mack, I didn't love them. It took a bit for me to get into the story and I felt like the pacing was a little slow. I never truly felt hooked or invested in what was happening. The ending wrapped up a little too neatly and quickly, but the epilogue left me smiling. I did appreciate that the author tackled some heavier topics (sexual harassment, domestic violence, sexual assault) throughout the novel and they were balanced really well with the laugh out loud moments.

I love the idea behind the Bromance Book Club series, so I definitely missed that there wasn't an ongoing accompanying "manual" story this time around to go with Mack and Liv's journey. There is a book that is mentioned a few times and highlighted once, but I would have loved to see it incorporated more into the story. I enjoyed seeing the other members of the club and catching up with Gavin and Thea. The Russian provided some great comic relief and we finally find out his name! I'm curious to see if he will be the hero of the next book (although a certain mysterious IT guy and Liv's friend, Alexis, both had quite a bit of page time too). Overall, this was a fun read, but sadly, I didn't love it.

*I voluntarily read an advance review copy of this book*

I didn’t even think it was possible to write a sequel as good as the first book in the series, but some how she’s done it!! Mack is the perfect lead in a book and I really loved reading him and Liv’s journey together all with an underlining story of smashing the patriarchy. Love love love, so excited for this one to come out! Thank you so much to Berkley Publishing Group for my ARC.

Even better than the first book. Lyssa Kay Adams does a great job in showing alpha males in a different light. They are vulnerable, romantic, and communicative. The combo of Braden and Liv was fantastic. The chemistry was there in that brief meeting in Bromance Bookclub.
Undercover Bromance kicked things up a notch and it was great! The funny banter, the hot, sexual tension, the theme of women speaking up against sexual harassment, makes this a great book.

Okay, I didn't think it was possible to love this book more than the first, but I stand corrected! Undercover Bromance is just special. I LOVED Mack and Liv's story. I was rooting for them from the moment that he stole her left Chinese food in the first book. And can we just talk about the members of the book club? I normally find secondary characters and their storylines a waste of time. I normally find myself rushing through their parts so I can get back to the main characters, but not with this book! The other members of the Bromance Book Club are my favorites! I love the bickering between Gavin and Mack (there's even more of it in book 2!) and the Russian is as funny and lovable as ever. I just loved this one!

Good contemporary romance. Some of the conflict was projected and "surprises" were anything but. I'll read other books by Adams.

Such a great follow up! Loved the character development, inhaled the book in an afternoon because of how enraptured I was.

<blockquote><i><b>“Who are we?” Mack said, standing all. “We’re the Bromance-Fucking-Book-Club.” </blockquote></i></b>

i received a complimentary copy from netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

okay, i'm not even gonna wait to review this one. i have feelings and i need to express them NOW. listen, the bromance book club was one of my top reads from 2019. when i heard there was a sequel featuring liv and mack, i nearly died of happiness. those two completely won me over in the first book, and even then i wanted them together so badly just from the few lines of interaction they had. liv's snark and mack's flirtatiousness were just a perfect fit in my book, and everything in <i> undercover bromance </i> just further convinced me of that fact. PLEASE LET ME TELL YOU WHY.

so. the book begins with liv walking in on her boss, royce, sexually harassing one of her coworkers. royce is a big and powerful honcho in nashville, so after he realizes liv saw everything, he proceeds to fire her and threaten to ruin her career. this is where mack comes in. after hearing about liv's story, he is determined to take royce down, no matter what it takes. liv is stubborn though, and thinks she can do this all by herself. thus begins a delicious tango between the two that leads to both facing the truths of their pasts and learning to move on from painful memories and trauma.

obviously the big appeal of this book is mack and liv themselves, but there is a plethora of new supporting characters that give this book so much life. rosie, liv's landlord and friend, is a spitfire of a woman who could put liv in her place when she needed to. hop, rosie's kinda-but-not-beau, is just as feisty, and it's super enjoyable seeing his viewpoint about feminism and women's rights shift throughout the novel. noah (the star of the next bromance book club novel!) was a delight, 10/10 would marry him if i could. and of course, our faves from the OG bromance book club are back and funnier than ever (seriously, the russian was comedy gold in this one).

i don't even know what to say. the plot was so enticing and had me on the edge of my seat, the relationship was so deep and meaningful, and seeing my faves from the bromance book club back was so much fun. if you loved the bromance book club, you're gonna *adore* this as well.

I adore this series. The bromances, the brilliant way Adams weaves in topical issues without beating you over the head with a lecture, the way she addresses tropes – gently admonishing the bad - while wholly embracing the genre with love and respect.

I had heard rumblings that this one would be romantic suspense and that gave me pause. One of the things I loved so much about The Bromance Book Club was the humor and I didn’t want the writing style to change to something heavy.

While there is an undercover element and investigation – the winning formula from the first book is still in play and as funny as ever.

Liv is the pastry chef at one of the hottest restaurants, working for a celebrity chef who is volatile and about to go on a book tour for a cookbook of stolen recipes, including one of Liv’s.

Mack is known as a player, but he wants to settle down and thinks his current girlfriend, Gretchen, is the one. He takes her for a fancy dinner where Liv works – ordering the famous $1000 Sultan cupcake, which Liv has to come out and present, with great flourish, with her douchecanoe of a boss. Mack recognizes Liv (readers of book #1 know they didn’t hit it off in that one lol) and tries to give her credit for the pastry – which asshole boss is NOT pleased about – and she ends up dropping the cupcake in Gretchen’s lap.

This sets off a spiral of events that leaves Mack dumped for the first time in his life, Liv fired, and the discovery that her boss is more than just a yelling jerk but also sexually harassing the female workers.

Mack tries to smooth things over and Liv isn’t having it.

Which leads me to the elephant in the room – if you read Bromance Book Club, chances are you (meaning me) do not like Liv. She’s stubborn, quick to judge and sticks her nose & opinions where where they don’t belong. I’ll be honest, she isn’t a whole lot better here but I also think Mack softened her in a way that let you see her side of things and with her POV – you can see that some of her snark also come with an eyeroll and not intended as gut punches. Mack also lets most of it roll right off and hits right back – not being mean, but challenging her at every step. If she’s wrong, he calls her out (as do a few other people) and if she’s right – well he heeds her judgement. They work as a couple and even though this romance took a bit of a backseat to the larger – take down the predator arc – I liked them.

Liv and Mack partner to take down her former boss and enlist the help of the book club as well as a few newly introduced characters, who were all great additions. Undercover Bromance has a lot of smart things to say, and to think about, regarding #MeToo, including the need for men to confront men, the idea that & jokes that were funny 10 years ago aren’t allowed to be told now, and how women support (or don’t) other women and they way they choose to handle their own situations.

It also pokes a bit at the romantic suspense genre and how men feel the need to jump in and take control of the case and save the girl. Mack started the Bromance Book Club and has given some of the best advice to help the guys save their marriages but in his own romantic life? Well, he tries a little too hard to make it romance novel perfect. His bafflement and confusing over how to handle Liv is hilarious because he’s coming unglued while everyone else can clearly see what’s happening and how to handle it.

The guys are supportive as ever and this is just such a clever, enjoyable series to me. It balances a few heavier aspects while still making me smile.

I do have a few minor quibbles though. Mack is keeping a secret and Liv’s relationship Kryptonite is secrets. When it’s finally revealed I kind of sighed. The I’m not worthy trope is not one of my favorite things – even though I understand where Mack was coming from. And Liv’s reaction to it was so bad that it erased so much of the goodwill she earned. I really wish that was written a bit better or had a bit more time to play out.

The other thing is Liv and Thea have a complex relationship. I didn’t realize how much until seeing it from Liv’s side. It definitely made me empathize with her more. It’s clear how much these two have been through and support each other but still have issues and I had hoped there was a moment for them to really talk or address it more.

I’m not sure who will be next but there are so many great characters to choose from. am I weird that I want The Russian to get an HEA?? He has a bit of a stinky reaction to cheese and I can't fathom how you make a romantic farting hero but I want Adams to try. lol I discussed it with a friend and we thought a dietitian girlfriend? I would love a romance that showed some of the messier sides of coupledom ha!

In Adams’s hit romance novel, married couple Gavin and Thea work through their marriage problems with the help of their friends and an unlikely guide: a historical romance titled Courting the Countess. I loved the premise of this book and recommended it on both an episode of my podcast, What Should I Read Next? and in a blog post called "50 engrossing and adorable rom-com movies and books..."