I thought this book was just okay. It was a decent-sized book considering there didn't seem to be a whole lot of substance. I felt that the characters were lacking in any real development, including the main characters. I stuck around until the end to see what happened, but I never felt like I couldn't put it down.

This book was read thanks to NetGalley


This isn't a bad book, but this idea of traditions being seen through western and modern eyes isn't my number one thing.

Is the book bad? No it isn't

Do I recommend it? yes isn't a bad book

The romance in it is good, so give it a chance and form your own critique

DNF 20% I tried with this one but unfortunately bumbling idiot American women aren't really what I want to read about. Maybe the author saves it, but it wasn't really for me.

2/5 Stars

Thank you to Netgalley and BHC Press for providing me with an e-arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

While this was a quick easy love story read, I find it was lacking in a lot of places. I would have liked to see more of the back story to why the characters fell in love, not just because of their looks. Their emotional connection was missing, it seemed very superficial how they got together. It was nothing more than her falling in “love” with the hot, rich guy. And him falling in “love” with the hot, interesting American girl. Also it was naturally a predictable book, from the beginning to the end. I couldn’t expect this to even last as a hallmark movie.

I really wanted to like this book. The description sounds like it should contain everything I absolutely love in a contemporary romance. Yet it reads a bit like a first draft where the author is laying down all of the ideas about where she wants to go and who she wants to involve without stopping to think about it making sense. I'm all for suspending some logic in favor of a story, but I never connected with Serena enough to care enough to ignore the things that didn't make sense.
I will say, though, that it does contain some pretty funny moments and memorable scenes. Which honestly only made me mad that there is so much potential and I wish it lived up to it.

Thank you to NetGalley and BHC press for the read!

Love Match was fine, but ultimately it wasn't the book for me. I struggled to connect with the characters from the start, which makes any book a struggle.

I genuinely wanted to like this book, but I felt like I never really got to know the characters. We meet them in the middle of their story and get it all told through backstory. They run into each other and then fall in love and I'm all for cheesy, cozy romances but this left a lot for me to desire.

I did not like this book even though I wanted to so badly. The plot was okay but I didnt love the writing and the way the characters seemed flat and unbelievable.

Thank you NetGalley, author Laire McKinney, and BHC Press for giving me a free arc of this book in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
2.5 stars
After reading the premise of this book gave me high hopes for this book, but unfortunately this book feel short of my expectations. The characters were surface level and all over the place with their actions and mind sets. The writing made for an easy and quick read, which could be finished in about three hours. I found their romance sort of insta-lovey but ended in a cheesy big romantic gesture. The plotline was pretty predictable, as romances tend to be, but the general “plot twist” was foreshadowed and obvious very early on. Overall, I would read another book by this author in the future. I would recommend this book to those who are looking for an easy cute romance.

Very easy DNF for me - this was not good at all. The writing itself reads amateurish, and the storyline is all kinds of problematic. Definitely not the book that the cover or blurb indicated.

I wanted to like this one, I was so drawn to the cover and the premise sounded very unique, but unfortunately it fell flat for me.

All of the things described in the synopsis were just glossed over, and the book jumped into the romance without much context at all. It all felt like it moved way too quickly which made it seem entirely unbelievable.

The relationship itself started almost instantaneously and it was too much for me.

I just couldn't get into it. I don't think the writing was great nor do I think the book was paced that well.

I really wanted to like this book but unfortunately I found the summary provided and the actual book are two very different things. It also had a very gimmicky feel and a main character who I didn't particularly enjoy.

Thank you to netgalley and the publishers for providing me with an arc for an honest review.

First of all, yayy for Indian rep (well, maybe not so much). This was a fast-paced story following Selena as she joins a harem to write an expose piece about how women are treated, to land her dream job.

The writing was okay-ish, and was quite easy to follow. I couldn't personally connect to any of the characters but that might be a me thing. The book does have it all, rivalry, royalty, harem, expose, deep discussions at all.

Overall, this was a good read, but not one that would stick with me for a long time.

I'm sorry for the review, but I will not share this one. It was a good idea, except the execution fell a bit flat for me, especially as I couldn't really connect with the characters. I guess the situation is difficult to write about, but I think even with that, the banter and personalities seemed immature.

This story was a modern take on the royalty-pauper trope with a fun twist. I liked how quirky and real Serena was from the get-go. She exhibited the exact jet-lag symptoms I have after flying which was more realistic than the perfect, off the plane depictions some stories have. And her relationship with Shai, while fast-paced, was refreshing. For me, this was not as much a realistic love story (we all know governments usually have more say on who royalty is able to be with) but it did create a version of what can be. ⁠⁠
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Personally, I felt like I was reading an adult version of a fairytale (Gail Carson Levine anyone?) and it felt nice to have something to fall into without being worried the whole time about what could go wrong.⁠⁠
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3 /5⁠⁠
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Triggers: alcohol usage, mentions of weed and slight drug consumption, mentions of sexual harassment.⁠⁠
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Genre: contemporary romance, romance, royalty⁠⁠
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Thanks to NetGalley and BHC Press for the ARC in exchange for an honest review and the opportunity to read this work of art.⁠⁠

Love Match by Laire McKinney is not your average travel romp. Instead it is a story of unexpected love, a tough as nails journalist, and a dashing real-life Prince Charming, all in the vain of Eat, Pray, Love or Pretty Woman. Serena McAllister is a delightful leading lady perfectly complimented by her male lead Prince Shailemon. Though the premise of the work seems unrealistic, the writing was well done and sophisticated.

This was a DNF for me, which I was bummed about because the cover and description really drew me in, To be honest, I was put off by the characters within the first chapter. There was no build up of any sort, or any background information given, we are just thrown into it, After that I decided to try to skim to see if it got better, not really. I skimmed to about half way and realized that the main character was pretty much as ignorant and annoying as I first thought she was.

Again, I feel like the description gave more background than the book did at first. Next, it seemed to be written in a really odd perspective, and it just did not seem respectful of different cultures, with the tone and such the author used, but again I only skimmed it so I could have gotten that wrong,

I think this book really missed with me. and generally did not meet my expectations,

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to review. All thoughts are my own.

I was unable to finish this book and thus will not be posting a full review at my blog. I appreciate your consideration.

I am really torn on this one. It was entertaining and a quick read - I finished it in 2 days - but Serena was a difficult character to follow as a protagonist. She was like an American version of Bridget Jones who decided to up and join a modern-day harem on a whim. Serena bumbled through every interaction and it was really hard to believe she and Shai fell in love in a week even with the few connections they made.