I totally get why this series is popular and I love that Adams flips toxic masculinity on its head, but I do not think this series is for me. To note, I have not read book two in the series, so maybe that would've helped? I do adore the cover and low key still want to read book 4 bc of the Russian, but think it will let me down so!!!

I did enjoy this book enough, but I did not care enough to get invested in the story.

It also was pretty emotional and discusses some darker/emotional themes which were just a bit much for me since I thought I was getting a light rom-com and it was pretty emotional. Also, I am not a fan of pining and maybe friends to lovers???

TW: organ donation, loss of parents (off page, but discussed), sexual assault (prior to novel, but discussed in detail)

TW/CW: grief, death of a parent via cancer, death of a parent via the military, discussion of past sexual assault, toxic masculinity

Review:

Bromance Book Club - ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Undercover Bromance - ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

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

It's no secret that the Bromance Book Club series is one of my all-time favorites. This series has tackled so many important topics, while still managing to be light-hearted and assessable. Crazy Stupid Bromance follows Noah and Alexis, eighteen-month after the events of Undercover Bromance, and reminds me why I love the friends to lovers trope so much.

"I try to assume the best in people until they give me a reason not to."

–>plot<–

This book has a couple of underlying plot threads but mostly focuses on family and healing. Noah and Alexis grew close after the events of Undercover Bromance, and are now best friends. One of the things they realized they both have in common is losing a parent. Alexis's mom passed away due to cancer a few years before the start of the book and Noah's father was killed when serving in the military when Noah was in his teens.

Grief is also a huge part of this book. Noah and Alexis both have to come to terms with the fact they haven't fully processed these deaths and the repercussions this lack of healing has resulted in. As someone who just passed the two-year anniversary of a difficult death, I really resonated with this conversation of grief. I definitely resonated with Alexis when she talked about avoiding the hard emotions in lieu of the positive ones and how this has halted the healing process. 

"There was no trauma competition in this room."

This also leads to the other large theme of this book - healing. Alexis is healing from her sexual assault and her café is a place for other victim-survivors to go to in order to start their healing process. Noah and Alexis are also forced to deal with their unresolved grief and need to decide if they're going to take the difficult steps to complete the healing process. 

There was also a really interesting conversation about family and found family in this book. Alexis saying "we're related, that doesn't make us family" was such a powerful statement. Too often you have the notion of blood resulting in obligatory behaviors and you have people dismissing the value of close family members with absolutely no blood relations. 

This book did a fantastic job of balancing these serious and at times heartbreaking moments with other light-hearted moments in the book. Like the other books in this series, I found myself laughing out loud following the antics of these guys. I also enjoyed the nods to Alexis having to deal with a literal Karen, though Karen was the actual worst.

A main theme of these books is addressing and counteracting toxic masculinity and I feel like this book did the best job of not feeling preachy, but also showing that guys who know what not to do still have room to learn what to do. 

"But I promise you -- and this is a promise I won't break -- that a day will come when you feel at peace again.

Final Thoughts:

This series is one where I will find myself reading every installment, regardless of who we're following. I absolutely adore this series and what it's trying to do. I love that this series will address series topics while remaining light-hearted. Noah and Alexis both have difficult backgrounds and a lot of room to heal, but they're able to remind readers that some of the hardest things to heal from are also the most important. I feel the need to reiterate, this one has definitely been my favorite so far and I hope it's one you choose to pick up later this month. 

*All quotes were taken from an advance copy and may not appear in the final text.*

Another standout from Lyssa Kay Adams. My favorite line: "we always run during the grand gesture!"
We look forward to our upcoming interview of the author on the #AmWriting Podcast.

CRAZY STUPID BROMANCE by Lyssa Kay Adams is another solid book in the Bromance Book Club series! I really enjoyed the first two books in the series so I was really excited to read this third book and it did not disappoint. This time we follow the romance between best friends Noah and Alexis who we met previously in book two. The friends to lovers trope is my fave! There were some really steamy parts in this book but I really liked the heavier parts about each of them dealing with their own family issues. Also loved Alexis’s cat Beefcake who’s on the cover of this book! I’m so excited there’s going to be a fourth book in this series, Isn’t It Bromantic?, and I really can’t wait to read it! I definitely recommend the Bromance Book Club books if you’re looking for a good romance series.

I knew reading this would be a fun time since I loved the other two in the series so much. I was not wrong, I laughed SO MANY times. Noah's relationship with Beefcake was EVERYTHING. I loved Noah and Alexis together, they were so real and humble compared to the other two couples that we have read about. I appreciated how they approached their relationship as friends first and let that take the lead in resolving their conflicts. The Bromance group did not disappoint in this either, always being pro-women, embracing things that might seem "feminine" and make sure to keep other men accountable for things they say and do--the way they are constantly flipping the narrative is so awesome.

Special thanks to Netgalley and Berkley for making my Bromance Book Club loving dreams come true with this ARC.

Rating: 4.5 Stars

The Bromance boys are back, and this time, they want to help their pal, Noah, get out of the friend zone. Noah met Alexis right when she came forward as a survivor of sexual assault and harassment. Since then, he and Alexis have become best friends, but it is obvious to everybody else, that she owns his heart. Now Noah must decide if he is willing to risk their friendship and take a chance on love.

I keep saying this, but I really hope there are many, many, MANY new initiates into the Bromance Book Club, because I simply relish being in this world. As with the previous books, my favorite parts were when the men were on page together. Those moments spent with them are always fun-filled, but there are also a lot of deep and meaningful things discussed among them as well.

I always enjoy the book within the book, and we had another great one here - the NFL player who walked out of her life. The first chapter was fantastic, and I know I would enjoy this book, if it were real. I have to give Adams kudos for coming up with these additional stories. Seeing the men trying to tie the lessons from the books to their own lives is always great, and something that makes this series so special.

BUT, I came for the romance, and as always, I was not disappointed. The friendship shared between Noah and Alexis was so wonderful. The love, care, and tenderness was already there, but they had the wounds of their pasts to deal with before they could take it to the next level. Both suffered from daddy issues of sorts, and this was a barrier for them. That plus another subplot made this installment a bit weightier at times, but Adams is quite gifted at keeping heavier topics on the light-side, and they never bog down the story. Seeing this pair deal with their ghosts and move towards a future together was truly gratifying, because I found them to be a phenomenal couple.

Overall, I was ecstatic to be back in this world. The friendship between these men, the stellar romance, and the spotlight on live organ donation were all pluses for me, and I am jumping for joy that we will be getting The Russian's book next.

Crazy Stupid Bromance centers on Alexis Carlisle, owner of ToeBeans, a cat café and sexual assault survivor advocate, and Noah Logan, a former hacker who now owns a computer security company. Noah has been a bedrock for Alexis since she publicly accused a celebrity chef of sexual harassment. Although he is in love with her, he is loathe to jeopardize their friendship by pursing a relationship.

Thus far, Noah has scoffed at the Bromance Book Club, but his friends give him a copy of the next book and promise to help him transform his relationship with Alexis if he only reads the “manual” and takes their advice on love. At the same time, though, a new customer comes to ToeBeans. Alexis is sure she is there for support, but instead, she tells Alexis news that changes her life forever. Noah is torn between supporting Alexis as a friend and showing her his true feelings.

I have to confess this is the first Bromance book I’ve read, although now I plan to circle back and read the first two installments. Skipping them was a detriment in terms of character development, but perhaps positive in that I didn’t have any expectations of the book.

Alexis was facing real, serious problems and they happened to resonate with me personally, so I was very invested in her story line. Because she is a cat rescuer and vegetarian, I couldn’t help but love her. Yet, her giving nature meant that she often neglected herself. Noah was frustrating and made many mistakes, but I suppose that’s the point of needing the Bromance Book Club! What’s great about them is their willingness to reflect and make changes. Alexis’s saturnine cat Beefcake, who scorns everyone but her, is possibly my favorite character, though I do love the Russian as well and am very excited that he is the focus of the next book. The only thing I didn’t really like about the book were the sex scenes: I don’t mind a lot of steam, but these felt a little forced and awkward.

Both characters grew individually and as a couple as the story unfolded from their dual perspective, and I think anyone who enjoys rom-coms would find this entertaining.

I will gleefully read any book in this series and not even know a both about it.

I loved Alexis and Noah. She’s stronger than she thinks and he’s gooey-er than he knows. Together they have such a supportive relationship that it was delightful reading them figure out how to progress into something new. Of course it was fun seeing the rest of the group and the club.

Plot wise, it was mostly good. I really struggled with parts of the family things that happened and found myself angry with Alexis for some of her decisions. I wanted more fluff between Alexis and Noah (because they sure af deserve it); this seemed more drama filled and it was unexpected.

Overall, it was another great story. I absolutely love this group of characters and could easily read them forever.

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

I think fans of the series will love this Crazy Stupid Bromance, and while I enjoyed the book’s earnestness, I have to admit it wasn’t my favorite of the three.

This friends to lovers book about Alexis, owner of the ToeBeans café (feel like I missed something in the last books explaining this name; mentioning feet and coffee together wouldn’t be top of my ways-to-market-a-café list) and computer-genius Logan who is of course a millionaire. Both are afraid to take their relationship to the next level for fear that’s not what the other wants. When a stranger shows up at Alexis’s café, she drops a bombshell that blows everything up.

I think I read this one too close to the second book. I should have spaced them out more because back-to-back the formula for the series was front and center. There’s the guy who doesn’t think he needs the club and resists their help, the romance book assigned to said guy fumbling his way towards love (BTW, the book Logan was reading didn’t make any sense to me in the context of what he was going through), and the big fight/misunderstanding where the Bromance Book Club must pull their only-half-sober friend off the couch and lead him to his aha moment about how he’s sabotaging his chances at love to avoid being vulnerable. And the thing is, I just don’t think people are this simple. One realization, in my experience, doesn’t change everything. In fact, more often than not, it doesn’t change anything at all. I also had a little trouble with why it’s always the guy who has to apologize and make some big grand gesture even though I often don’t think they’re at fault. And finally, just to go all in with my whining, what’s with all the winking? Mac did it a ton in Undercover Bromance and I wrote it off as his thing, but then Logan started doing it, and I just don’t see that much winking in real life.

I really do think if you’ve liked the series up until now, you’ll like this one. I know for some, the sweet relationship makes this one their favorite. Just maybe leave a little space between books.
Thank you @berkleyromance/ @berkleypub for my arc in exchange for my honest opinion.

I was so excited when I was able to get my hands on the 3rd book in the series.
I enjoyed the first two a lot and this one did not disappoint.

Crazy Stupid Bromance follows Noah and Alexis. I was excited to be getting Alexis story because I loved her in Undercover Bromance. This is probably my favorite friends-to-lovers romance ever. Their friendship was so genuine and I was rooting for them from the start! This series just makes my heart happy!
Im gonna go ahead and say this is by far my favorite of the series!


Lyssa Kay Adams is so witty and hilarious I found myself laughing out loud so many times. I’m sure my kids thought I was crazy.

If you have not read any of these please do yourself a favor and read them!
They are so fun!

Thank you @netgalley and @berkley for the early copy of this book.

I continue to get such a kick out of this series. It continues to openly pander to my desires, and the fantasy of a group of men willing (enthusiastically!) to work at their emotional intelligence, and undo toxic masculinity in their lives is a potent one. That they are choosing to do this through a romance novel book club is both sweet and silly. (It's also practical! The men rightly point out that all these romance novels are a huge window into the desires and needs of the people they want to form healthy relationships with.**)

**I do wish it were a bit less white-feministy. Some queer and trans/gender-nonconforming characters would be nice, or even just a nod that not all women are cis and that gender is malleable would be adequate at this point. I really don't know how up on those things the author is, despite possessing a relatively racially diverse cast, it's not exactly intersectional.

This book follows two characters we met in the previous book, eighteen months after they met each other. Alexis was Liv's friend, one of the survivors who came out with allegations of sexual assault against a celebrity chef, and Noah is the former hacktivist turned security expert that helped the Bromance Book Club bring those allegations to light. Alexis also owns a cat café called ToeBeans, which is very important because it's adorable, and basically I want to know why no one in my city has done this. Her rescue cat Beefcake plays a not insignificant role in the book.

Anyway, Alexis and Noah have developed an emotionally intimate friendship, and are basically best friends. Both of them secretly want more from their relationship, and both of them are afraid to take things to the next level, for lots of reasons. They get a little push when Alexis's formerly unknown half-sister comes into ToeBeans (at first Alexis thinks she's another sexual assault survivor, as many of them have been seeking her and the café out as a refuge and place of healing; Alexis even runs weekly yoga classes for them). Turns out Alexis's biological father is dying from kidney failure, and Alexis is his last chance at a donor match.

There were points where I grew very frustrated with both characters for their poor life choices, and I think that means the author didn't do quite as good a job making me understand those choices in the moment. (At one point I highlighted something Alexis said/did and wrote as a note in my Kindle app: "You are stupid.") But overall, this was really sweet and funny, and the presence of the book club continues to act as a fantasy Greek Chorus of enlightened masculinity doing double time as group therapists and friends. I also thought the secondary plots with Alexis's surprise family, and Noah dealing with his own family issues that he's been repressing for years worked really well. Unlike in the second book, the focus here was Noah and Alexis and their relationship, and the main plot only enhanced that instead of taking up space.

I'm very curious to see where she goes next with this series. The next book is listed and has a release date, but no details yet. (Context clues from this book would indicate that the Russian may be up next, and if so, I have no idea what to expect from that.)

I loved this so much!! I loved being able to get to see the bromance book club back together. Alexis and Noah are best friends who both have difficult family lives. When Alexis finds out she has more family members than she knew about, her whole world turns on Its head.

The friendship that develops into something else between Noah and Alexis is sweet, meaningful and so romantic. I love the two of them together. I love the way they complement each others personalities and how easy everything is between them. I do wish we saw more of the bookclub!

This was such a refreshing romance novel that featured a woman overcoming sexual abuse and her supportive best friend (male) who cares deeply for her. Realizing that the friendship could be more (and he wants it to be more), he seeks out his male friends who are focused on dismantling toxic masculinity. They help him come to terms with who he is and how he feels about his relationship, helping him overcome years of pain and blocked emotions. A fun read filled with humor, friendship and of course love.

Thank you Net Galley & Berkeley Romance for the early copy in exchange for my honest review!

---

Guys. I actually read this book with the biggest smile on my face from page 1 until the ending. And dare I say.......... this may be the best book in the series. I say that because: it is the most real. Noah and Alexis' love story is FRIENDS TO LOVERS and everything about them, from 1) why they won't get together to begin with.. 2) the little fights they get into.... is so painfully and beautifully real.

Also, let me be clear that I'm not your typical romance reader! Some romance books truly do rub me the wrong way, but The Bromance Book Club series never does and that's for one reason, and one reason only: IT IS. SELF. AWARE!!!! Lyssa Kay Adams is literally poking fun of the romance genre the entire time, which makes me love it even more. And *THAT* ladies and gentleman, is how to turn a non-romance reader, into a romance reader for life.

I have fallen in love with this book series. Like the other instalments in this series, Crazy, Stupid Bromance is light, fun, hilarious, sweet, romantic, steamy, and everything else I could ask for in a feel-good novel.
Noah and Alexis were introduced in Undercover Bromance, and I was beyond excited to find out that they would be the couple in this book. The novel opens a year and a half after the events from the second book, and Alexis and Noah have become best friends. Unfortunately for Noah, who is hopelessly in love with Alexis, he’s afraid that he’s now stuck in the friend zone. Little does he know, Alexis might just share some of his feelings…
I just can’t handle how freaking hilariously wise romance novels have made these guys in the Bromance Book Club. The parts where the entire group gets together to stage “interventions” (which is seemingly becoming a regular occurrence in this series) are definitely a highlight of these books. They have such a comfortable dynamic, and they always seem to know what’s going on or what’s wrong with each other, though they seem to be hopeless when it comes to their own love lives. Which is why having this group is so important.
While the focus of the novel is somewhat equally distributed between the romance between Alexis and Noah and Noah’s joining the Bromance Book Club, the author doesn’t neglect other relationships in the characters’ lives. Alexis has her own plotline involving her family (no spoilers!) and Noah comes to terms with his father’s premature death fifteen years earlier. While the main attraction of these books is the cutesy romance and the unique idea of guys reading romance novels, there is a lot more to this book that involves self-discovery and acceptance--for both Alexis and Noah.
There are also quite a few laugh-out-loud hilarious moments. I love the vicious cat, Beefcake, and Noah’s genuine fear of him. The scene where the guys are preparing for a massage at the spa had me laughing so hard that tears streamed down my face. And, of course, like with the previous books in this series, literally everything that comes out of the Russian’s mouth had me in hysterics. I know his primary purpose is to be comic relief, but I really, really hope that he will be the star of a future instalment in this series. That said, I’m 90% sure that Colton will find love next time.

I recommend this book to anyone looking for a laugh while reading a wholesome (yet sometimes quite steamy) romance.

I have really been enjoying Lyssa Kay Adams series, with The Bromance Book Club being one of my all time favorites. This one was a bit meh to me unfortunately.

This is 100 percent my favorite book in The Bromance Book Club series, and that is saying something considering I love them all and have rated each at 5 stars. Somehow, they just keep getting better and better.

Alexis and Noah are best friends. (Friends-to-lovers, one of my favorite tropes, le sigh…) Alexis owns a cat café and Noah is a computer security expert. After coming into the public eye as a victim of a celebrity chef’s sexual harassment, Alexis forms a support group at her café for other survivors. It’s there that a new customer approaches her, but not as a fellow survivor. This woman claims to be Alexis’s sister. Completely shocked, Alexis turns to Noah, the only man she trusts.

This book tugged on my emotions hardcore. As stated above, I LOVE friends-to-lovers. Especially if they’re both also harboring secret feeling for the other, and of course, they are! The idea of an already established relationship with years of development and chemistry really appeals to me and makes the relationship more believable. Add in the stuff with Alexis discovering a new side of her family and there’s just every emotion happening on the page. Anger, shock, confusion, joy, love. It’s all there and it’s so, so good.

Noah is such a great hero. He’s got problems with his own family but he always drops everything to help Alexis because of his love for her, and because he’s genuinely a good, caring person. I loved the intervening of the Bromance Book Club as they shared their “manuals” with Noah to help him move outside of the friend zone. All the boys are back with the addition of another new member who I’m hoping will get a book in the future as well. The Russian also gets more attention as a side character this time around, still poking fun at, but also adding a more serious tone to his story in order to set up the next book in the series. I cannot wait for that one!

Also, Beefcake the cat, OMG. The cutest. Beefcake’s relationship with Noah is hilarious.

If you want something with a lot of heart and emotion while still bringing the laughs, this series and this book are definitely for you! Now I’m just counting down the days until the release so I can read it again and hold the actual book in my hands!

*Thank you to Netgalley and Berkley for a free ARC in exchange for an honest review. *

So, the heroine of this book owns a cat cafe, and it's a friends to lovers romance... I just knew this would be a great read. And it was! I've enjoyed all the 'Bromance Book Club' books and this was no exception. Noah and Alexis story was fantastic.

Alexis is a cafe owner and a sexual assault survivor. She uses her cafe to help other survivors, and though she's worked hard to move on from her assault, she's not really dated. She has a best friend named Noah that is a computer whiz. It's pretty obvious that they're attracted to one another, but they keep it as friends only. They never miss a day of talking or texting and see each other most days, but never have taken that step forward.

Noah and Alexis had so much chemistry, but above all that they had the most solid friendship. I think that was the scariest thing for the both of them- the thought of it not working out and losing their best friend. I can imagine that's not an easy hurdle to jump but when these two finally got together, I was so dang happy. And I especially loved how the cat started to like Noah by the end ;)

One of the things I love most about this book is how they talk about romance books. In the real world, reading romance isn't always looked upon the same way as reading other genres, but there are so many great and important things from this beloved genre. We all read it for THE JOURNEY.

The books in this series are so fun and enjoyable but also talk about important topics. I love Lyssa Kay Adams writing so much and I'm glad this series is continuing. I'm super excited to get to The Russian's story! The first two books he was joked about a ton, but this book you see a different side to him and I can't wait!

If you're looking for an emotional, sweet, and steamy friends to lovers romance give this one a go! And if you haven't started The Bromance Book Club series, I can't recommend it enough!

This is a series that has been hit or miss for me. I loved The Bromance Book Club, but Undercover Bromance really turned me off. I did not like how they handled sexual assault and survivors of abuse. I was very nervous about the potential for mishandling of Alexis' story since I didn't like how she was treated in the previous book. However, I decided to give it a chance since I liked the first book so much and I'm glad I did. It was great to see Alexis get her HEA with Noah and I enjoyed their friends to lovers story. The series redeemed itself a bit and I will continue reading - mostly because I am holding out for Vlad's story!

Here's the thing about Lyssa Kay Adams' writing: She takes characters I either didn't like or just didn't care that much about from the previous book in a series and makes me fall in love with them. She did it in Undercover Bromance and again in Crazy Stupid Bromance.

Alexis and Noah were both characters that I just didn't have much attachment to from the last book. Noah, I was slightly interested in based on his job and relationship with Mack, but I thought Alexis was just part of moving the last plot on. I was wrong! These two characters were very deserving of their own book. They made this friendship to relationship story so sweet. Their friendship was so supportive, and their chemistry was off the charts. To be honest, Alexis and Noah already seemed like they were in a relationship prior to actually being in one, so the transition was super smooth. I loved all their ups and downs and the direction the plot took. Crazy Stupid Bromance was another gem in this incredible series.