A fun and easy-going read with just the right touches of cute and charming. It stretches the imagination here and there but the focus on Olivia’s foibles and Colin’s journey of attraction made for great reading. Their growing chemistry was evenly built and the steam was just enough and not over the top.

I’m a sucker for text flirting and the style and plot device was well done. Again, just the right tone for fun and flirty but also wonderfully friendly. A touch saucy but also sweetly sassy. Olivia and Colin’s personalities and conversations were fantastic.

There were also some great little touches, like varied family members and friends, that filled out the story. I could read about Olivia’s time with her nephews all day. Her commentary on Paw Patrol cracked me up, ‘cause as an aunt of the same age boys, I also wonder about that dang mayor and her stupid chicken!

Overall, it’s a great and breezy romantic comedy. I had a few quibbles but they’re easy to brush aside. It made for a great few nights of relaxing and happy reading.

Unfortunately I struggled with this one, though I really think it's more on me than the author. I just wanted to share - I did give it a go, but the writing didn't quite land with me. Still, I think a lot of readers will quite enjoy it! I think I trend more towards the more intricate and emotional romances!

Loved it! So fun from beginning to end. It was spunky and sexy!

I was on the edge of my seat for text messages from Mr. Wrong number and the banter was incredible! Geez, this book was so funny and delightful. Read it when you need a laugh, because it definitely delivers!

This was SUCH a delight!
Looking for a rom com with some great com? Stop looking and read this.

You’ll love this if you like
📱 Texting relationship/secret penpals
✍️ Brothers best friend
📞 witty/sexy banter
📱 forced proximity
✍️ Hot mess heroine / Hot af hero
📞 He falls first

Olivia is a walking disaster but she is so damn endearing and her responses to Mr. wrong number are hilarious.

Colin is just all swoon and sex appeal. Good god. I wasn’t expecting it but here we are.

Great steam to sarcastic banter ratio
When Olivia wrote “I won’t tell you where he’s buried but just know I eat cake there sometimes when the weather is just right” I laughed out loud.

It was just so clever and sexy. Definitely recommend.
Thank you to berkley and netgalley for the arc.

This was a fun book and I do enjoy the way the author writes, the level of fun and enjoyable dialogue in this book make this book so much to read. The characters are fun and whimsical, the way they interact and are connected is a lot of fun. The book is it's own adventure and sometimes there may have been some unnecessary turns, but overall, it was a lot of fun to read. This is a light and fun read with fun banter throughout the book. I would say this was more of a 3.5 stars but raised it up because the dialogue was too fun. Would recommend to anyone wanting a light and fun read.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC!

This book is honest and funny. I loved reading about Olivia Marshall’s adventures in rotten luck almost as much as I enjoyed the heated banter between her and Mr. Wrong Number. Fun!

The premise of this book is that Olivia starts "sexting" a random number that texts her and they fall in love. Typical rom com, HEA book. It was really funny to read and the banter between the two characters was one of my favorites.

3.5 ⭐ A story where Mr. Wrong Number turns into Mr. Right

Summary:

Olivia Marshall's life is a disaster. After discovering her boyfriend was cheating on her, she inadvertently burns down her apartment building in Chicago. Single and homeless, she moves back to Omaha and crashes with her brother and his stuck-up best friend who has picked on Olivia her entire life.

Things look up for Olivia when she receives a steamy text message from a random wrong number, which ends in some harmless flirting. But over the course of a few weeks, they continue to message back and forth and Olivia finds herself opening up to Mr. Wrong Number. There's freedom in anonymity. But what if this stranger isn't actually a stranger at all? What if he's your brother's best friend - the person you've hated for years - and your current roommate?


My Thoughts:

It's my first book by Lynn Painter and definitely won't be my last! I enjoy her writing style and had a fun time reading this fast-paced, witty, and charming novel.


I loved the idea of getting a random text from a total stranger and hitting it off! We all know the risks involved with internet or virtual relationships - I mean who wants to be catfished? But how fun and even romantic would it be to meet your match this way. Almost seems like Fate. It's such a fun, bizarre concept that's the perfect set-up for a rom-com.


There were A LOT of moments that had me laughing out loud or smiling. Since their teenage years, Olivia and Colin have been dishing it out to each other. So expect hilarious banter between these two! Sometimes their responses were a bit immature, but when someone drives you crazy, you can't always keep it together. They really are the definition of a modern enemies-to-lovers story.


I actually like Olivia and Colin on the surface, but when I look a little deeper, there were some issues for me.

Olivia's unluckiness and clumsiness were a bit much and at times felt like an exaggeration to make her seem quirky. But really, she's a total mess and a terrible houseguest. It bothered me how she broke Colin's printer and spilled ink on the carpet but wasn't going to say anything, or how she tried to make him feel guilty for owning nice things. As if it's his fault he has nice things for her to break. This mentality worked for Olivia and Colin because of the nature of their relationship, but it was still rude behavior and made me dislike Olivia.

Colin was extremely generic. He's your typical rom-com male protagonist: a super sexy white guy with washboard abs. Colin of course also wears business suits because he works in finance and just so happens to also look like Ryan Gosling. There also wasn't any depth to his character. For example, I didn't understand who he really was or what he wanted. There were some issues with his family that are never really addressed but seem to play a big role in his development as a person. And then, there's his interest in Olivia. One moment he's not into her and then it's like a switch was flipped and he can't stop thinking about her. I would have liked to have understood him better on an emotional level.


Heads up: This story is full of sexual tension and steam, but nothing explicit. You never really know what you're going to get with a contemporary romance, but if you're looking for something a little more on the PG-13 side of things, this is it. This story gives you a little bit more than fade to black, where you are present during these moments but it's not graphic and the scene is basically over in 2-3 paragraphs.


While I liked the storyline, there were many mini-conflicts throughout this story that distracted from the main one: that Colin knew Olivia was Miss Misdial and didn't say anything. I don't want to be specific and spoil anything but from the drama with Olivia's new job to her relationship with Colin, there's a lot going on that made the storyline unnecessarily complicated. A lot of these conflicts seemed to be plot points used to further prove Olivia really is unlucky in all aspects of her life.


Overall, Mr. Wrong Number is a cute rom-com that will leave you smiling. If you love enemies-to-lovers, the brother's best friends trope, forced proximity, and slow-burn, you definitely should read this!



Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review! As always, all opinions are my own.

This book was doing SO GOOD. I was flying through it and even though the female character was “quirky” she was actually lovable!

However, I had to stop reading after the second instance of miscommunication. Could the author not find real conflict for this couple? This could have been a 5 star read. I truly loved the premise and the characters are great. But the conflict, not just with the couple, seems very undeveloped in this book.

Thank you so much to Berkley Publishing and Netgalley for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review!

I really wanted to love this book! I think it was a super interesting premise but ultimately tried to do too much. It tried to fit in all of the tropes (enemies to lovers, brother's best friend, opposites attract) so it felt a little chaotic. I really liked the two main characters. I think they were great and really worked well together, but the conflict between them really felt forced.

I think if they had talked at the coffee shop and had an honest communication there, I would have enjoyed it more. However, I hate that it took big life news for them to come back together, and then have that be the end. If we had a longer epilogue or a chapter of them working through it, I think it would have been more well rounded. Instead it felt rushed and ingenuine.

What a sweet, funny, romantic book! I loved Liz and Colin and how big hearted Liz really is. Even though she comes off as a hot mess at the beginning, I agree with Colin when he realizes that Liz is just so full of love, so present in every situation that she may not be as aware of her surroundings. Their love story is so sweet and loved following along on their journey. If you need a laugh and a feel good story, pick up Mr. Wrong Number. It'll make you cackle out loud, but also touch something in your heart.

I sped through this like I was auditioning for Fast and Furious 10. It was super easy to read and super compelling throughout most of the book. The chemistry was lethal and Colin was basically a golden Clark Kent. Their texting was fun and showed their compatibility. I was truly laughing and I love Lynn’s writing style and the sense of humor we saw in her YA debut is still here. There was a lot for me to love in this one, but I can’t deny that some parts let me down.

I’m into the reckless plan-cancelling type of pining that’s always been there. Mutual and embarrassing and irrevocable. I think it just adds an extra layer to the drama and angst and hopelessness to the romanticism. Here, Olivia had definitely always had a crush on young Ryan Gosling, Colin. Colin never saw her as a sexual being until he found out she was the mysterious woman he’d been texting.

Now this is FINE but it’s not that kind of brother’s-best-friend always-been-blazing-sexual-tension trope. He never really noticed her before, but his noticing her in the book didn’t stem from some huge makeover. He just learned she was funny and witty and what sexual positions she favored. I definitely appreciated that she’d always been herself, he was just a dense little pound cake.

For the majority of the book, Colin is a sex god of the supremely delicious variety. He’s got money, a good taste in fashion, tortoiseshell glasses. Sex on a stick and I’m definitely at that carnival. All the tickets. He makes a very very bad decision somewhere in the middle of the book and you’re like why my beautiful, handsome prince??? Sweet, pretty idiot. He’s got minor daddy issues but they never play too heavily into his brooding. I loved when he was absolutely wrecked and drunk and thinking karaoke was a great idea at the end.

Olivia was another situation completely. One of my favorite tropes is the reformed mean girl. This book is similar since Olivia starts at just about the lowest point possible. She’s not a mean girl, but a hot mess. (Think of Kiera Knightley in Laggies or Kristen Wiig in Bridesmaids.) Honestly, she’s not even a hot mess, but a flaming menace to society. We do see Olivia reform and I liked the journey, but she did push me a little too far. I stopped caring by the end because there were three breakup scenes and she caused two of them. Did she ultimately get rewarded multiple times for being a menace? Yes. Do I care as much about that as I do about the closed-door sex? Nope. Sue me.

But I also didn’t buy Colin’s whole thing about her not being a hot mess but a gorgeous gorgeous vibrant tornado. She messed up all sorts of shit, most of the time with little regard for the consequences. She is who she is and I enjoyed her most of the time, but damn she was stressful. I mean two out of three breakups Olivia? My poor heart. She also didn’t care about drinking his celebratory tequila which was kind of a dick move. I don’t think he should have been the one to apologize first.

Now, in complete honesty, here is the reason this book isn’t at least 4.5/5 stars. Up until about fifty percent, I was ready to risk it all for these crazy kids. Then I hit The Wall. It’s always either one of two scenarios. There’s the proverbial (sometimes literal if we’re lucky) wall that characters smash against and it’s great and I’m like “wow screw you gravity, you’re my BITCH!” and then there’s The Wall I hit when a romance is closed door. Once I hit that wall, it’s just really hard for me to care what happens in the rest of the book. So it’s a major issue when The Wall is *erected* at like 50% through the book.

It’s like you have this thing you loved so much that betrayed you body and soul, and it tries to smooth you over with “but it was crazy good porn star sex!” Over and over and over until you want to punch the proverbial fricken wall. It just really rubs me the wrong way when we get shut out of the sex and then characters are always just referencing how good the sex was. Salt in the wound much? Their chemistry was scorching until this point. Cruel and unusual.

These horndogs were so hot for each other but I barely felt the heat. Especially when they start the book talking about favorite positions and have blatant passion. My own personal David Lindhagen. Catch me shouting about being cuckolded by closed-door romance at a local bar.

Like I said earlier, there were three breakups in this book, and the main *sexual* event was around 50%. That’s a lot for me to handle without explicit sex so I settled on 3.5/5. I loved the first half and it was truly funny, but I just got tired of David Closed-Door Lindhagen, which took my remaining patience away from tolerating the gorgeous gorgeous tornado that was Olivia. ✨Crazy, Stupid, Cockblock✨

⭐️⭐️⭐️.5/5 🌶🌶/5

I rounded up on Goodreads but four stars really doesn’t feel right because I think I am just so disappointed. I don’t even know if I’ll reread. Three stars doesn’t seem all that right either. It could truly go either way between 3.25 and 3.5. Idk but note to whoever reads this, please just include explicit sex. It’s really about civic duty at this point.

This book was kindly provided by the publisher. All opinions are honest and my own!

Thank you to Berkeley for an advance copy of this book!


This was such a delightful read with characters that were so fun to follow. I also very much enjoyed the dual point of view for this story, it was very fitting. The way this was told was interesting and I enjoyed it because we don’t usually see that kind of sequence of events in romance books but it added something to the story. The only real problem I had was that the book dragged a bit at times and took my attention away from what was going on.

I had a wonderful time reading this and I highly recommend it!

this book was a light, fun read...the banter was great and their text conversations made me laugh out loud.

Not me just INHALING this entire book in less than 8 hours.

I literally could not stop smiling through this book. Okay, when the main conflict occurred, less smiling, obviously, but overall the whole book was so much fun and the banter and wit the characters had was spot on and so relatable.

Liv is a mess of a human being, and I loved her. She is the unluckiest human on earth, but is still absolute sunshine. Her overall bright demeanour and optimism, despite her setbacks, just made me so happy and she is such a strong person. She doesn't let the world or other people bring her down for more than a minute, and she keeps persevering no matter who tries to bring her down.

The romance was super steamy, but not super explicit. The tension though was *chef's kiss* This was a brothers-best-friend and haters-to-lovers rolled into one and I was living for it. Also, you know where all the movies are like, "I see you," and it's some revelation. Colin just gets that moment right and I love him for it.

Also, we love a book that's not overly dramatic. Reactions felt so human and so normal that it really added to the overall satisfaction I had with this book.

Mr. Wrong Number is charting as one of my favourite romances ever. I don't think I've ever smiled so much reading a book. I just couldn't stop!

Plot: 4.5/5
Characters: 5/5
World Building: 4.5/5
Writing: 5/5
Pacing: 4.5/5
Overall: 5/5

eARC gifted by Berkley in exchange for an honest review.

Mr Wrong Number

This book was so much fun and so easy to get lost in! I am all about romcoms right now and I think it’s because they are such an escape and give you all the feels.
I freaking love Olivia. She is a hot mess and it doesn’t stop her. Colin is oh so swoon worthy and you hate to love him. The banter and the chemistry between these two is just perfect. Old friends (or enemies) to lovers is my absolute favorite and this book delivers on so many levels! I love when you finish a book and days later you miss those characters. That is what is happening to me. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ after picking this up on a NetGalley whim! #winning

This was such a fun and entertaining read. I was laughing from the very beginning & fell in love with Lynn Painter’s writing. Within the first couple sentences to be exact. I knew right away that I was going to LOVE this. I literally stayed up to like 2am binge reading this because it was so good & I could not put it down. Every chapter kept me wanting more, especially since its a dual pov & I just had to know what the other was thinking. I loved the chemistry and the build up between the characters.

After accidentally burning down her apartment, Olivia moves in with her brother & his roommate. Who happens to be Colin, her brothers lifelong best friend who Olivia cannot stand. At the same time, Olivia is obviously going through some life changes, she is single, unemployed, & homeless. So it was nice to see how she blossomed, & to see how the man that brings the worst out of her, also brings out the best. It all starts with a text Olivia gets from an unknown number, & she decides to play a little sexting game with mr. wrong number. As the banter begins with Colin & Olivia, the sexual tension grows and the unexpected happens.

Overall I really enjoyed myself with this book and I absolutely recommend it. If you’re looking for a fun & fast paced romcom that will make you laugh, this one is for you.

You can expect:

* Dual POV
* Brothers Best Friend
* Witty Banter
* Crazy Sexual Tension
* Funny Sexting
* Enemies to Lovers
* Laugh Out Loud Romcom
* Forced Proximity

Loved this from the very first page!!! This book checked off everything I love in a romcom: cute cover, witty banter, enemies to lovers, brothers best friend and roommate tropes, dual POV and to top it off it was set in Omaha Nebraska. I was absolutely shocked when Omaha was first mentioned and then a few paragraphs later my hometown Of Gretna was mentioned. This was so much fun as a Nebraskan to read about classic Omaha places from Fleming’s to Ted and Wally’s! I even loved that I knew the different locations that were mentioned and laughed that she didn’t wasn’t to go to West O! The Times thing threw me off because that was a fake name, but I loved everything else!!!

I can’t wait to go back and read Lynn’s other book and any upcoming releases!!

Thank you so much Berkley for my gifted copy in exchange for a honest review!!

I liked the premise of Mr. Wrong Number, but I did not like the execution. I found there to be little to like in the main character Olivia, who seemed less unlucky than actually just very rude and inconsiderate. She was unlikable, not even in a way that was fun, she was just obnoxious. The love interest was boring and nondescript.

“We’re grown-ass men, moron. We don’t tell each other our schedules.”

there are books that you love (and that you’re sure you’ll love from the onset) and books that surprise you. Mr. Wrong Number was a pleasant, funny, witty, quirky, sexy surprise.

like lemonade on a hot day, Mr. Wrong Number was everything I didn’t know i needed. i loved Colin and Jess and Jack and all the name calling, teasing, and L O V E.

where can i find a mr. wrong number? asking for a friend.