ARC for honest review with no compensation Received from NetGalley

The Love Scam by MaryJanice Davidson is book 2 in the Danger, Sweetheart series.

This story is about Rafe, who ends up in Venice but doesn’t know how he got there, Lilith , a little girl who claims he is her father..which he knows nothing about and Clair Delaney, who seems to know all about them.

Rom-com, twin brother, kind of confusing but overall a good read.

This story has so much potential, unfortunately it was greatly hindered by the writing style employed.

The writing reads much like a stream of consciousness – which can be used with great results – unfortunately I would argue that isn’t the best approach to take with a narrative piece such as a romantic comedy. The story was further rendered clunky and confusing by the POV shifts, which at times had no clear indication of who was narrating.

If anything, I related to Rake’s confusion of just how he ends up in Venice, because I was confused most of the time as well! The descriptions are vague, the story leans heavily into the preposterous and I found it difficult to follow. Several times, I had to reread paragraphs just to get a grasp on what was going on. Honestly, I feel as though oddly pretentious epigraph and index should have been a warning for what was coming in this story.

Lastly, I just couldn’t sympathize with Rake’s woe-is-me obsession with his brother. He’s white, he’s male and he’s rich, but feels overshadowed by his brother? Cry me a river.

This had the potential to be a great summer read, but I just couldn’t vibe with it and ultimately had to DNF it—which makes me so sad because I was so looking forward to this! I struggled up to 45% and decided to forgo the rest as I really felt that a lot of thing that were happening felt inauthentic and/or forced.

I struggled to get through this one. I put it down at 60%. It seemed a bit forced and not genuine. Will try again in the new year.

I had not read the first book of this series and feel that I may have enjoyed this book more if I would have done so. This is definitely a romcom, but felt that the romance part kind of got lost within the story. I was hoping I would have liked this one more, but do think I will give the first book a try and maybe I can appreciate this second book in the Danger series more!

This was my first book by this author. I liked the premise of the book, a spoiled rich guy loses all his money in another country and has to rely on the help of a "stranger" and a little girl to figure out what happened. Rake, wakes up sicker than a dog, and stumbles out of a hotel room that he woke up in, and falls into the canals of Venice. He doesn't remember how he got there or what happened recently. Delaney comes along and offers to help him and introduces him to a little girl named Lilith. Their adventures are entertaining. I like the way the author writes with humor, but she goes back and forth from the present to what happened previously. She put quite a bit of italian sentences in the dialouge, which don't get explained until the end of the chapters, so it was a little confusing at times. Took me a few chapters to figure that one out. I didn't dislike the book, it just took me a while to get into the story.

Rake wakes up not knowing how he got to Venice or where his wallet is as he falls into a canal. Claire has the answers to Rake's questions but she's not willing to tell and he also has a daughter named Lilith. This is a crazy, sarcastic read that I didn't care as much for as I had hoped, some may find it interesting.

I received a copy of this book via Netgalley and am leaving a review.

The Love Scam was an enjoyable read with a lot of funny moments and some great character development. I found the dialogue and storyline to be a little difficult to follow and stay interested in. This book had so much potential but fell a little short for me.

Super fun read from the queen of snarky rom-com! This is a different read from her Undead series, which I loved, but still entertaining, easy read, albeit a bit confusing at times

This was a cute book.
I did not read the first book when I started this one so I stopped and read it first and thank goodness I did otherwise I would have definitely missed important key parts in this book.
I thought this book was fun, cute and it held my interest on seeing where Rake and Delaney were headed.
Good book and I will check out more from this author.

It took me some time to get into this book,but once I did, I did not regret it. I loved the storyline. This is the first book for me by this author

Thanks NetGalley for this preview!

This book was odd-started off in a hangoveresque where am I and how did I get to the other side of the world premise that honestly did not make sense to me. I didn't love Rake or any of the other characters enough to be invested in them. Lilith was sweet but also part of me never trusted that she was telling the truth. I struggled with the writing and the plot. I was a little bit let down.

I tried desperately to like The Love Scam. I spent many days forcing myself to get through it, but in the end, I found myself frustrated and thoroughly confused. Is it because I didn't read the first book? Entirely possible.

Rake Tarbell is a Hot Mess. When he wakes up in Venice, he has no idea where he is, how he got there, and is missing most of his possessions. This might bother other people (myself included) but Rake has bigger problems, which include Lillith, the young girl who claims to be his estranged daughter, and Claire Delaney, the alluring private investigator who drops Lillith off with him.

I found myself confused from the get-go and the further I read into the story, the less clear I became on the plot. I was driven through the book by a personal need to know how the plot and storylines came together; I was so unsure and confused as to why events were happening, consistently re-reading a paragraph or page to ensure I was understanding correctly, and oftentimes asking myself, "What did I miss?" I found the writing style to be frustrating because, halfway through the book, I still had no idea what was going on. It wasn't mysterious or funny or flirty; it was a tangle of information. It didn't make my brain work in a good way like a strong mystery or thriller does– it left me wanting to turn the lights off for a while.

Because I found the plot so hard to follow, the characters weren't relatable or enjoyable enough to overcome the disappointment I felt and were overshadowed by the confusing plot. I didn't realize that this was the second book in the series, but if it's any indication of what the first book might be like, The Love Scam and any prequels or sequels won't be books I'll pick up (again).

Rake Tarbell is in trouble. When the fabulously wealthy and carefree bachelor wakes up horribly hungover in Venice, it’s not something that would normally be a problem...except he has no idea how he got there from California. Or who stole his wallet. Or who emptied his bank account of millions. Or who in the world is Lillith, the charming little girl claiming to be his long lost daughter.

Thank you for the copy of The Love Scam. I was intrigued by the cover and synopsis for this one. I tried to pick it up a few times, but I was not able to connect with the story line and characters. Unfortunately, it did not work for me. I'm sure that others will like it and I have seen several favorable reviews for it. Thank you again for the opportunity to read The Love Scam.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for my copy of the book in exchange for an honest review. I will not be sharing my thoughts/reviews outside of Netgalley in a review

The Love Scam was fun, light, and quirky. Thank you NetGalley, MaryJanice Davidson and the publisher for the e-reader for review. All opinions are my own.

Ok so yes, MaryJanice Davidson has a particular writing style and it is a little wild and zany. This is certainly no exception. The characters were interesting and fun, and although there were some plot skips and jumps that didn't quite make sense, it was just so much fun I couldn't help but love it.

This book was a little slow in the beginning but did pick up later on. It's a little hard to understand at times but still a good read.

This was a very difficult book for me to get into! The beginning just really made it hard for me to finish. It failed to peak my interest, and then because of that, I basically just thought of finishing the book as a chore. It was fine, but just not for me!

I’ll admit, I almost DNF’d this book because I had trouble understanding what was going at the beginning. The middle and end moved a little quicker because I wanted to know how the story would tie up. I’m glad I finished it but overall, it just didn’t quite hit the mark for me.

Thank you to MaryJanice Davidson, St. Martin’s Press, St. Martin’s Griffin, and NetGalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.