I'm sorry to report that I found this book to be one of the worst books I have ever read. Perhaps the genre is not just for me. I had thought it was chick lit, which I read widely because it can be relaxing and smart and funny at the same time. This one went off the rails very quickly. The characters are cartoonish exaggerations of types, without the nuance that makes people interesting, and their reactions are cartoonish. Imagine flipping out because your sister lost a job a few hours earlier and you found out before she had a chance to tell you? Would steam really come out of your ears for this? The core relationship is simultaneously dull and full of tedious overworked stereotypes. He's too handsome and successful to find a girlfriend; she's too feisty and independent to accept his help when she loses her job as a pastry chef; a cupcake can cost $1000 (okay this one might be plausible). Anyway, I was deeply disappointed in this book. Editor - heal thyself!
I don't post negative reviews on GoodReads or on social media, so no link will be provided this time.

I BLASTED through this book within the course of an evening! UNDERCOVER BROMANCE brings back the wit and chaotic good energy of the Bromance Book Club. This time, we’re focusing on its suave and popular founder Mack, and our heroine is Thea’s cutting sister, Liv. Both characters have major differences, but they come together in a plot to overthrow the famous, celebrity chef Royce, who not only sacked Liv from her job but also has been caught sexually harassing female employees. Their plan? Work together to expose his nefarious deeds to the media. What they didn’t expect? Falling in love.

I really can’t get over this dialogue. Liv has a sharp tongue that she uses to build barriers to her soft heart, while Mack is this rakish fellow who is used to being popular with the ladies. Together, they were a riot, and I loved seeing their interactions. Bring in a liberal boomer named Rosie, an ex-cop farmhand named Hop, as well as the rest of the dynamic characters from THE BROMANCE BOOK CLUB, and you get a cast of colorful characters that you can’t help but laugh with and love.

“Liv sat up straight. “I don’t want a man. I don’t have time for a man. They’re needy, clingy, and never keep their promises.”
Mack whistled. “Damn, girl. Who hurt you?”
“The patriarchy,” she deadpanned.”

Adams, as always, does a wonderful job in fleshing out the characters. Liv has thick walls to protect herself, especially given her father problems, and she hides behind sarcasm. Mack is honestly a romantic and is looking for his own happily ever after. He knows how to ROMANCE a girl, but not LOVE her. His strength lies in his very feminist outlook and defense for the very capable women in his life. I enjoyed the way Liv was called out for not empathizing with Royce’s victims (initially), and handling the guilt that the women experienced in the wake of their situations. It was a good reminder that while these events are happening, it’s a really sensitive topic that you have to approach with EMPATHY, not ACCUSATION.

“”I used to think I knew what I was doing with women, Liv,” he whispered. “But then I met a certain pastry chef, and my whole fucking world turned on its head.””

One thing I wanted to see more of was Liv’s devotion as a pastry chef. It wasn’t super important in the story and was used as a plot device more than anything, but I think it could have been used to further justify her reasons on not wanting to be a burden and how far she’s gotten due to those feelings. I would say the same with Mack and his relationship with his mother, that was left with a tense feeling and never resolved (this goes hand in hand with his secret, which was brought up as a plot point. But again, never explored as a way to further character growth). Another questionable aspect was this metaphor to the Star Spangled Banner during sex that I never want to read again (LMAOO). Other than that, UNDERCOVER BROMANCE was a tension-filled romance that readers will definitely enjoy! From Liv’s sarcasm to Mack’s hopelessly romantic ways, this sequel will live up to expectations brought from the first book.

I enjoyed the sequel as much as the original, maybe more!
Braden and Liv were both such fun in the first book and I loved watching them bicker and fall in love.

I finished this book in only a couple of days, mainly because I had the time around the holidays to burn. While I thoroughly enjoyed The Bromance Book Club, the first book in the series, earlier in 2019, this one fell a bit flat for me. The side plots and characters of this book were well-written and quite enjoyable but the main romance plot was lack-luster and felt rather repetitive and childish.

I would recommend this book to anyone who read and enjoyed The Bromance Book Club if only because the humor and fun characters are still there. However, it wasn't my favorite romance novel.

When it comes to romance series, my reactions are pretty polarized. Either I hate number one and will not even attempt any of the rest or the author can’t write them fast enough for me. This one????? Man, I just love it. The entire concept of a bunch of successful hotties learning how to become relationship experts via way of romance novels is already a novel – nope too corny even for me - fresh idea in a genre full of the same ol’ tired tropes and these guys not only bring the hotness, but also the hardy hars.

This second installment features Liv, the sassy sister from the first book, and Mack, the “playboy” of the bromance club sect. The two pair up in order to take on the task to bring down Liv’s former boss who is a real Harvey Weinstein of a human. Of course, they eventually also make with the smexytimes.

This one wasn’t as sexy as the first (c’mon – nightclub/restaurant owner < major league baseball player every single time), but I loved the humor (a good diarrhea joke never fails to make me laugh) and I would probably read 72 more books in this series.

ARC provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

"Fear is a powerful motivator, but so is love."

I didn't think it would be possible to love a couple more than Thea and Gavin, but here we are. With Bromance Book Club, we saw a married couple rediscovering each other. Going into the sequel, I couldn't imagine Liv and Mack even liking each other, let alone ever being that married couple. I was proved very, very wrong. Mack is your typical playboy club owner, He's always wining and dining a different girl and, let's face it, he's pretty cocky. Liv is a no-nonsense pastry chef that doesn't let anyone in. What could possibly bring these two together? I loved seeing Mack try (and often failing) to use his romance novel skills in real life because is that really what women want?

I loved watching the characters develop and grow throughout their stories. They made me laugh, they made me tear up, and I found myself rooting for every single one of them (well ALMOST every one of them). We also had a very powerful Me Too storyline. Liv's sleazy former boss thinks he can get away with anything but he's about to be taught a lesson. Watching everyone work together and support these women was a great thing to see.

I was delighted to be brought back into the bromance world and is it too much to ask for one more? We need to hear Alexis's story now, right??

Undercover Bromance was a lot of fun, adorable, a bit cheesy and predictable, but overall a LOT of fun!! And I actually enjoyed it even more than Bromance Book Club. And that’s mainly thanks to Liv and Mack, and an entertaining story with some amazing LOL moments.

Again, I really enjoyed the author’s writing. And the idea of a male romance book club allowed for some interesting sub plots, for example the way the group rallied around each other, with advice that’s clearly taken from romance novels, and not in a step by step kind of way, more like drawing from the knowledge that comes with reading tons of romance novels. The group got it down to a science by now, especially Mack. Of course that makes the entire book also a bit unbelievable and cheesy - lol.

But besides that, this book made me laugh out loud so many times, I actually teared up while laughing so hard. Not every author can write dialogues as witty and funny as Liv and Mack had going between them. The one liners were GOLD!!! The back and forth between the couple was fantastic, Liv’s snarky demeanor and Mack’s charming personality, worked perfectly together. Actually the entire cast was immensely entertaining to watch in action. They guys were hilarious together, and putty in the hands of their women.

The book wasn’t just about the banter between Liv and Mack. The author tackled some more serious subplots as well. Both Liv and Mack had some baggage they had to deal with. Some judgmental tendencies from Liv, that had their origin in her past, and a secret Mack carried for a long time allowed for some tension. As well as an overall sexual harassment undercover plot that brought the entire group together.

All in all, I had a wonderful time with this book, and can’t wait to read the next one.

Thank you so much Berkley Romance for the advanced copy of Undercover Bromance! This book was epic! It was full of so many feelings, super fun, as well as heartbreaking. Full review to come!

Solid follow-up to The Bromance Book Club, both of which are a nice twist on the standard contemporary romance novel. The characters were well-developed and likeable, the dialog was snarky and fun, and the "romantic" scenes contained a decent amount of steam.

I enjoy the literary analysis of romance novels and their tropes that Adams manages to incorporate into the storylines of these books. With this one, I also appreciated the way she addressed the topic of sexual harassment/assault in this novel.

So, who's up next? The first novel included some fairly obvious foreshadowing of the brewing attraction between this title's main characters (Liv & Mack), but I didn't get a strong vibe from anyone in this novel. My best guess is Alexis & Noah (M/F), or possibly Vlad & Geoff (M/M), either of which would be awesome and definitely go on my TBR list.

After reading the first book in this series, I knew that I needed more of this series. Lyssa Kay Adams is fighting the patriarchy, creating men that women can get behind! I urge all men to join a romance book club - most would be the better for it.

Braden Mack is the founder of the Bromance Book Club yet he's the only one not in a relationship. Sure, he can get it and has flings constantly. But he hasn't found the one. He is wining and dining his latest lady love when the pastry chef drops a thousand dollar cupcake on the date's lap. Oops.

The pastry chef just happens to be Liv who you might remember from the first book in this series as the man-hating, usually angry sister of Thea. Liv is a little (ok, a lot) prickly. And this cupcake drop gets her fired which just makes her more prickly. On top of that, as she gets fired she finds out her boss who she already thought was a bit of a douche is a CERTIFIED douche who sexually harasses his female employees and threatens them to keep it all hushed up. I meant it when I said certified.

And Liv is already prickly, but this takes her over the top. As someone who already doesn't trust most men, this just cements her feelings. Braden Mack's determination to help her solve this problem isn't making anything better. And to make it EVEN WORSE, he keeps sneaking through cracks in her walls and worming his way into her heart. Pesky little man.

This book was cute, but it didn't hit me in the feels the same way Gavin and Thea's story did. As with the first book, I love that the men are more prominent characters than the women (for the most part), but the downside to that is I didn't really connect with Liv. I get being a #nastywoman, but Liv was kind of a jerk sometimes. I liked that her judgemental-ness was worked into the story because it really wasn't a great personality trait. Mack was a much more sympathetic character, which I doubt was necessarily the intention.

I love this series and will continue to read any future books. Whose story will be next? The Russian? Hop and Rosie? I'm here for whatever. Enlightened men for the win!

Toxic masculinity? Who? What? We don't know her... 4.5 stars! (Maybe 5? IDK, we'll see how it sits with me)

If you have read CATCH AND KILL or SHE SAID in the last few months, or if you are just exhausted by the never ending cavalcade of bullshit unearthed by Me Too, this is the romance for you. I just loved how meta this book is, both with our current social moment and with the romantic suspense genre itself. This kind of meta quality won't work for everyone, but I am 100% in the tank for it. & thought it was really well executed I loved all the explicit discussion of what worn tropes in the genre are saying about men and women, relationships, gender dynamics, power, etc., and I thought these moments were handled well- either with comedic effect or just stated eloquently. After reading the first book in the series, I was really hoping that a book with a trope mixture that better aligned to my preferences would hit it out of the park for me, and... yep. This did.

Can we also just appreciate that this book manages to be so serious and so funny at the same time? I laughed out loud multiple times, especially with the book club scenes. The Russian and his cheese, man. It doesn't take much to make me laugh, what I can say. But yes, I love the comedic tones of this and the character work is really great. The whole cast makes me smile, and I'm excited to see more with this group of characters. I especially loved Mack in this book, and loved seeing him grow from being lovable but inauthentic to being vulnerable & ready to have a real relationship. I'm hoping Gretchen, Alexis, & Sonia will come back as heroines of their own books at some point... maybe with the Russian?

I already know that some people are going to struggle with this heroine (in a way that they likely wouldn't if she was the dude... le sigh)-- she is stubborn & judgmental, no getting around it. But I loved the journey that Adams takes her on, which mirrors the hero's: how to be a strong ally to other women. She has the fire & determination to do the right thing (I LOVED her in the opening scenes), but she doesn't always know how to direct that energy in a way that's supportive to the women she's trying to help. I was very moved by her growth as a character-- she learns not only to trust herself and to trust the hero in her relationship, but also to trust other women & listen to what they need.

Only demerits here: a) I wish we'd gotten more of the book they were reading like in the first one; b) I do think pacing is a little off in this -- too much build up and not long enough in the "execution" of their plans; c) I wasn't 100% sold on the transition from hate to love... again, less time in the build up would have helped this; and d) the final reveal about the hero's past was.... a lot.

CW: Described sexual assault

Please tell me there is another one coming?

I love all the guys in the Bromance Book Club and need more of them.

I loved Mack and Liv's story. Could maybe Vlad get his own story? or could Noah join the book club?

This is a wonderful follow-up to The Bromance Book Club, which was already a favourite of mine. Undercover Bromance follows Mack and Liv's story and with some fun to start, leads into sensitive topics that are very real in our world today. While the two work on figuring a difficult situation out, they also work on figuring each other out. Mack and Liv have demons they need to be honest about but until that happens, the two will continue to hold the other at an arm's length, whether or not they mean to. The Book Club is back in this one, with support and humour to make you laugh. Overall, a great read. Loved this one.

Trigger Warning: this book does discuss sexual assault.

After finishing book 1, Bromance Book Club, I was excited to see where this installment would lead. I enjoyed Mack's character though Liv got a little on my nerves after a while. Mack has the patience of a saint and it must be love since he's determined to stick with her. Parts of what made the first book really stand out, such as the integration of excerpts of the regency romance, was missing from this installment. The Russian continues to be my favorite character. He adds a lot of humor. What's with him and the chicken?! I hope this series continues because they are enjoyable reads.

After reading the first book in this series I needed instant gratification with a book 2. I LOVE these Romance reading book club boys. Braden Mack is the founder of this little club that of men that get in touch with their and their women's feelings by reading the romance. The porny parts are just icing on the cake.


Braden is the typical he-man pretty boy of the group. He owns several nightclubs in Nashville and seems to be able to have all the ladies. They just don't stay with him. He is wining and dining his latest lady love when the pastry chef drops a thousand dollar cupcake on the date's lap.
The pastry chef just happens to be Thea (from book one's) sister Liv. Liv is a fighter. She believes in standing up to evil men and the evil man she is dealing with is her boss famous chef Royce. He is a dingleberry who just pays women hush money after he does the feely feely to them or destroys their careers if the do not play along.
He a douche.

So how did this story go for me? I honestly didn't like it as much as book one. It just felt kinda rushed and I didn't really ever get mad enough at the douche chef. I know he an asshole but it just never felt personal enough that I wanted to jump in and punch his face.
There were a few times when I kinda thought it was over the top with the men in the bookclub being almost too mushy also.
I mean I know they were planning strategies but I wasn't feeling it.



And dare I say it? I didn't really like Liv a whole lot. We wouldn't be besties.

Now for what I did love...and I DO like this series and will happily read any more that I can get my hands on.
Love number one...and probably enough to count as number two also.
The Russian

Love number three:
The chicken vagina discussion


I just snorted thinking about those things.
Booksource: Netgalley in exchange for review.

If you enjoyed The Bromance Bookclub then you will love the sequel. Mack returns as your typical male looking for fun yet wanting a relationship, like fellow bookclub members. Incidentally, Mack crosses paths with Liv, and what seems as an obvious connection the two fight it along the way. Lyssa Kay Adams continues her combination of romance with hilarious moments.

LOVED THIS BOOK. I really enjoyed the first in this series, but some parts felt a bit forced, this book improved upon that and was so delightful! TW for workplace/sexual harassment.

TW/CW: sexual assault, workplace harassment, domestic abuse, blackmailing

Review:
HUGE THANK YOU TO NETGALLEY AND BERKLEY ROMANCE FOR PROVIDING ME WITH AN ARC IN EXCHANGE FOR AN HONEST REVIEW!

So, if you haven’t seen my review of The Bromance Book Club, the TL;DR is that it is easily one of my favorite books of the year. I loved how heartfelt, funny, and overall entertaining the book was and was SO excited to read the sequel early.

I’m going to be honest with you guys, this book had a drastically different tone and dealt with some hecka serious topics, though it was still an overall fun read.

“Fear is a powerful motivator.”

—>characters<—

Mack – Braden-Fucking-Mack, aka the creator of the Bromance Book Club. Despite being able to help his friends save their marriages, has not been able to settle down himself.

Liv – No-nonsense side character from book one who gets into some serious shit after catching her boss be a scumbag. Also, doesn’t like romance novels.

“The fact you started reading romance novels to learn to be a better man shows that you already were a better man than he could ever dream of being.”

–>plot<–

Okay, so this book’s tone was WAY different than Bromance Book Club. The light-hearted nature is pretty much gone after the opening scene.

This book really is a commentary on the #MeToo movement, the way the first book was a commentary on toxic masculinity. In the opening chapter (well chapters, like first 2 or 3), Liv witnesses her boss assault her co-worker after a not-so-great encounter with Mack and his current arm candy.

Now, Liv is on a mission to take her sleaze bag ex-boss down and teams up with Mack, not her first choice, but she’ll take it, to take him down.

Mack, on the other hand, is facing this truth that despite being the creator of the Bromance Book Club and helping his friends save their relationships, he is the only member of the club without a long-term partner. He’s now forced to use his methods on himself and figure out his story.

Now, one of the things I really enjoyed in the first book was how the book club book that was picked for Gavin helped him with his marriage by directly challenging what was missing in Gavin’s marriage. That was definitely missing during this book, though I didn’t feel like it was as needed. Like, I liked the callbacks that we did get, especially when Gavin and Mack were GOING AT IT, but also it felt like it was trying to be a gimmick, but not really. I don’t know. I’m happy that the author didn’t rely on the romance novels in this book as a trope and allowed Mack and Liv to have their own story, but also some more book club would’ve been fun too.

All plot set up aside, watching the romance develop between Mack and Liv was actually really fun. I wouldn’t totally call them enemies to lovers, but there was a little bit of work Mack needed to do to win Liv over. I thought their romance was done pretty well overall. I thought it developed organically (despite the actual drama that initially brought them together) and I found myself rooting for them over the course of the novel and was so invested in their story.

Oh and I don’t fault Mack AT ALL for wanting to keep his secret and he definitely was NOT in the wrong for keeping that and Royce was a total douche for playing that card. That’s all I’m going to say to avoid spoilers.

“And we always run for grand gesture.”

Final Thoughts:
Despite the more serious tone of this one, I still enjoyed it just as much as the first book. I thought the development of the side characters was done so well, as well as focusing on building Liv and Mack’s relationship. I found myself flying through this book and I got so invested in the overall narrative. Lyssa Kay Adams is slowly becoming one of my favorite authors and I hope she continues to write more books in this series.

I really enjoyed this one story wise. In fact, I think I liked it even better than The Bromance Book Club in that regard. I think I just liked the characters in this one better. Mack is such a big personality, which could easily have been annoying, but was instead just endearing.

If I could not give this ARC a star rating I wouldn't because there was one steamy scene that was a bit uncomfortable for me. The characters are getting it on while angry, which I think was supposed to come off as passionate, but instead read a bit too dubious consent-wise for my liking. As far as I'm concerned, the line, "Just so you know, I haven't actually agreed to sex again" should be explicitly addressed before the characters, you know, have sex again. It seems pretty obvious it wasn't meant to be that way given the rest of the context but still. It stands out to me even days later while I write this review. This was an ARC so maybe that will change in the final copy. It could easily be fixed with a bit of dialogue.

Olivia Papandreas “Liv” is working as a pastry chef in one of the most prestigious restaurants in town. After witnessing a crime at work, she’s immediately fired by her boss, and reality TV star, Royce, who owns the club. Trying to pick up the pieces of his own broken heart, Braden Mack ends up caught up with Liv trying to expose her former boss for who he really is. Along the way, Liv and Braden try to resist the temptations that they pose to each other. With witty and laugh-out-loud dialogue, quick-witted Liv and romance-reading Braden will have you rooting for them in no time. With memorable side characters such as Rosie and Hop, as well as the members of the Bromance Bookclub, this book will have you devouring its pages and plot.