I ABSOLUTELY ADORED THIS BOOOKKK!! Even though I hated My Fair Lady, this book is the perfect combination of swoon worthy moments and hysteric giggling. The queen of character and relationship development, , Lauren Layne has once again written a book that makes me SO JEALOUS of what the MCs have. Lauren Layne. So many moments in this book had me so soft and teary.

The book starts off with a very fun comparison of the FMC, Violet, to our fav Manhattan socialites, from Blair Waldorf to Charlotte York and Holly Golightly. From this moment, I KNEW Lauren Layne was pushing out another banger. Our put-together and posh FMC is charged with turning the scruffy long-lost grandson of her rich surrogate grandmother to someone fit to take over the corporation. Of course, Cain Stone (YES his name is Cain Stone and IM DEAD) is disgruntled with the proposed makeover and Violet doesn't want her feathers ruffled by the r o u g h n e s s of the Louisiana native. With the fun makeover montages to the hot chemistry between the two, I couldn't put this book down.

As usual, Lauren Layne is able to serve up such WITTY dialogue and flirty banter, and I'm falling in love with both the characters along the way. My only complaint is how tropey this all is. In fact, at one point, Violet's BFF Ashley legit calls Cain out for following a common MMC romance trope and I'm like "yas queen call him out." And while I'm the first to say I LOVE a good trope weaved into the story, I think the final one to set up the final conflict/conclusion was done in a ~tad forced manner. Also, I loved both the characters and how they work together, but Cain is personally not my cup of tea. He's a tad too rude to Violet in the beginning (which granted, some of it is justified) and he's just so r o u g h, but I definitely see the appeal of this.

Overall, this book had me believing in the HEA and the beauty of romance again. Lauren Layne has once again smashed it with such a beautiful swoonworthy book, and I would 10/10 recommend!!

Violet is a Park Avenue princess. She’s got the pearls, the right accoutrements, and the skill to navigate any social situation. Which is why her longtime family friend recruits her to transform her bayou born and bred grandson, Cain, into a polished CEO to be. And somewhere along the way, between etiquette lessons and shopping sprees, she finds herself thinking maybe she can do with some changes in her life too.

This is a frothy, lighthearted spin on My Fair Lady/Pygmalion.

Violet was a lovely leading character. For the world she was brought up in, she had a kind heart. I enjoyed her growth from a bit of a wallflower to an confident woman. I only wish she was less of a doormat, she was too keen to change herself to make herself more appealing for the man in her life, which was a little disappointing.

While I enjoyed the banter between Violet and Cain, he was a rather two dimensional character. Now, I love a good grumpy king with a heart of gold trope, but Cain was just kind of a jerk for the whole book. I think having a dual perspective POV from him and Violet would have helped elevate this book so much. It was a bit of a missed opportunity because maybe it would help make him a more developed and relatable character.

This novel felt <i>very</i> short. I would have loved for it to be longer so that more time could have been used to develop their upscale Manhattanite lifestyle and to build up the tension and relationship between Violet and Cain. The story ranks an easy 2 on the spicy scale, with the word “boinked” being used multiple times which is decidedly <i>un</i>sexy. As it was it felt like the author was just trying to hit the plot points needed in order to wrap things up quickly. As a result the ending felt very rushed.

It was an easy breezy read and a fun bit of escapism! But it wasn’t the decadent read I was hoping it would be.

My thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC

The "My Fair Lady" trope is not one of my favorites. However, I've loved the last few Lauren Layne books that I've picked up, so I thought I would give Made in Manhattan a try. And while I didn't mind the story, it definitely isn't my favorite Lauren Layne book.

The story is a flipped My Fair Lady- an Upper East Side socialite is tasked with giving the long-lost grandson of her mentor a Manhattan makeover. Naturally, the grumpy grandson is not thrilled with the makeover, but wants to take over the family business and needs to impress the elitist Board. Cue a dressing room montage, complete with a quirky salesperson, and our socialite questioning her entire existence.

As I said above, I didn't mind the story. In fact, my biggest gripe and the reason I rated this three stars instead of 4 or 5 wasn't even around the makeover trope. Instead, I felt that the main characters weren't very well developed- especially our socialite heroine. Part of her character is that she becomes whatever the people around her need, but I still found her development jarring. The love story, however, was cute- especially if you love a grumpy hero with a bossy heroine.

My Fair Lady is one of my favorite films I watched during my childhood. It features a classic rags-to-riches heroine played by the one and only Audrey Hepburn. Gender swap and set it in New York? Sign me up!
Violet, posh and wealthy, is tasked with overhauling Cain with his appearance and mannerisms. His down South worn tees and distressed jeans won't do him any favors in garnering anyone's approval, let alone the board of directors for his grandmother's international business. Cain is resistant and stubborn and Violet's uphill battle is apt to give anyone a headache.
I read - and loved - To Sir, With Love earlier this year. I started this book expecting similar flow and was a little surprised at the considerable uptick in both language and steam. On reflection, however, I do think the language Cain uses is completely within character. Overall, Made in Manhattan was an entertaining and quick read.
Thank you to Gallery Books and NetGalley for the advanced copy. All thoughts in this review are my own.

I loved this book. Loved it! I was in the mood for a quick and easy read and this completely delivered. I devoured it in a single day. I simply couldn’t put it down.

Made in Manhattan follows Violet, a New York socialite. Her grandmother’s best friend-turned-family member Edith has found out quite a secret, a grandson she never knew she had. With her only sons recent passing, Edith is hopeful that her grandson Cain might be the right fit to take over as CEO of the family business.

It’s not only Edith’s decision, though. The board needs to vote him in and Edith is worried about Cain’s appearance and his “lack of manners.” She asks Violet to help smooth out his rough edges. We follow along as Cain is given a makeover, takes etiquette lessons and tours NYCs art scene. Slowly Violet and Cain learn that there is more to the other than what shows on the outside.

I really enjoyed Violet’s character growth. She already seemed as if she had good morales, at least better than those considered her equals. I enjoyed watching her learn who Cain was on the outside made no difference to who he would be as a CEO and how asinine her New York elite society really is. Cain annoyed me with how he pushed Violet away as she attempted to make her feelings known, but he wised up in the end.

Thank you Gallery Books for the ARC and opportunity to read this book.

This book was fantastic and this author never disappoints. I love her stories and this one was no exception. I can't recommend it enough.

I know one thing when I pick up a Lauren Layne book, she will deliver the feels.
Cain was gruff and rough and Violet was prim and proper and the two of them had tension in spades. It just goes to show you that your soulmate might night look exactly how you picture in your mind.
Cain is the long lost son of the Rhodes empire and his grandmother is Violet's closest "aunt". She has no family left and Edith has also lost her family so the two of them become their own sort of family. Edith finds out her son had a son she didn't know about, enter Cain.
He is from NOLA and really doesn't like this uppity situation in NYC, but he is willing to stick it out to see if he has what it takes to run the billion dollar family business. Edith enlists the help of Violet to get him acclimated with the people and places he will need to become familiar with in order to fit in.
Neither of them want to change, but they start to realize they are more similar than they once thought. I loved the ending of this book the most because these people who have lost so much in life, start to realize that they need to fight for what they do have. The end left me with happy tears and I think I went back and read it about three times just to drink in the feels again and again.
Thank you to Lauren Layne, Netgalley and Gallery Books for an early copy.

Lauren Layne never disappoints, and this book was no exception. Another winner from this auto-buy author for me.

After discovering Lauren Layne during quarantine, I’ve quickly made my way through the vast majority of her books and can say I am probably up there as far as big fans go. That being said, I knew going in to her latest, Made in Manhattan, that I would not be disappointed, and I was mostly correct.

This story tells the classic tale of pygmalion and teacher, seemingly in reverse, although as the book heads towards its conclusion, it’s less clear who is really whom. Loaded with witty banter and charm as well as her classic ode to New York City, Layne once again gives us the romantic tale we have come to expect and even look forward to several times a year. Oh and can I mention my love of her supporting character Alvin, the worlds most lovable hypochondriac? Seriously. Love.

If there can be an negatives found in this book it would be this: the story is told in the third person which gives you less of a depth of character than in a lot of her other work. It prevents the reader from fully engaging with the characters and understanding what makes them tick.

Fortunately, the good outweighs the bad, and I would still recommend this book as the charming, cute, romantic book it is. And hey, who doesn’t love another version of Pygmalion?

Thank you Net Galley and Gallery Books For providing me with the arc in exchange for an honest review.

Loved Lauren Layne's latest - Made in Manhattan! Can the country guy keep up with the City folk? That's what Violet is about to find out. And perhaps the country guy is more credible than she's giving him due for...

Ok Lauren Layne has a fan in me! I have loved every book I’ve read by her. They are light, fun, swoony, and have fantastic settings and characters.

This was no exception. The grumpy man and the sunshine girl will butt heads as she tries to help him fit in her world. The chemistry was 🔥🔥 and I loved Cains banter and how he made Violet so awkward.

So, the setting was also stinking fantastic. Like who doesn’t love a good New York book? That alone got me hooked. Throw in a passionate romance and some witty banter and I’m all in. This was a pretty decent slow burn, but the chemistry jumped off the page. The banter had me laughing out loud and I couldn’t get enough of this couple.

Four and a half stars ⭐️
🔥🔥🔥🔥- one open door scene but not super descriptive.

For starters, 'Made in Manhattan' is a 'My Fair Lady' retelling but in somewhat reverse order. Violet Townsend (MC) grew up in a privileged world in the Upper Eastside on Manhattan. It's not all rainbows because her parents pass away when she was a child, so she ended up moving to stay with her grandmother to raise her. But being a sad start to the story, the grandmother also passes away - Leading Violet to have to stay with her grandmother's best friend, Edith. As Violet grows up, she assists her new grandmother figure who is a CEO of a huge family business. Then comes the twist where Edith finds out she has a long-lost grandson named Cain. Enters brudy and rough around the edges love interest.

I loved this reverse My Fair Lady retelling, but wish there was more to the story but as I've stated - It's a retelling. I think because I knew the whole concept of the story, I was not left on the edge of my seat.

I can’t deny it… I absolutely loved this book! 😍 I *may have stayed up until three in the morning to finish reading because I couldn’t put it down. 😏

*Read as “I did, and I’m not even a little bit sorry that I’m tired and cranky today because of it.”

If you appreciate a great enemies-to-lovers trope, then you should give this a read! 🤗 The tension between Violet and Cain was almost palpable at times and kept my undivided attention. I loved the match-up of the two and their inevitable character transformations. Mainly, I loved that, while they tormented each other all throughout the makeover process, Violet came to Cain’s defense whenever his intentions were questioned.

While I’ve tried to think of something I didn’t like or appreciate about this book, I can’t seem to think of anything. The writing was on point, and the story’s pace flowed so well, it made for an easy and enjoyable read. I loved this book from start to finish and will definitely be adding this to my book collection when it comes out on January 18, 2021. 💃🏻

Now, please excuse me while I recover from my book hangover. 💕

One of my favorite quotes: “Christ,” Cain said with a startled laugh. “What the hell sort of kids did you hang out with? My dreams started and ended with working at IHOP so I could have pancakes whenever I wanted.”

A special thank you to Netgalley, Gallery Books, and Lauren Layne for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review!

Made in Manhattan is a great twist on My Fair Lady. Violet has only known riches in money but she is poor in family. Her parents are dead. Her grandmother is dead. Her only family is an unofficial grandmother by the name of Edith. She cannot say no to Edith, who is also all alone.

When Edith asks her to help recreate her newfound grandson so he can pass muster with the board what is Edith to do but say yes. Cain never knew his father. Cain never knew a rich life. He does know bitterness. He does know anger. He does know how to be difficult and that is just what he will be.

Tensions grow with every page turned. Violet refuses to give up no matter what Cain throws at her. Every time I thought that things were changing for the better, something would happen. Not always for the good. Usually not for the good. Somethings can't be stopped. The power of love is one of those things.

The back and forth of emotions made the story a wonderful read. The chance of a happy ending had me flipping page after page. The romance had me swooning and feeling giddy. Cain just left me drooling and not wanting the story to end.

3 stars for the latest Manhattan Moment by Lauren Layne! Violet is a socialite known for her impeccable manners, people pleaser attitude, and willingness to do anything for her grandmother’s best friend. When Violet is tasked to teach a newly-discovered grandson how to mingle successfully with NYC’s elite in order to take over the family business, Violet jumps at the Cajun challenge that is Cain Stone. Cain is uninterested in her uppity opinions or Manhattan makeover. As Violet and Cain challenge each other in this reverse take on “My Fair Lady”, they challenge each other to grow for the better and also learn to accept people as they are, not as they can be made-over to be. A quick, light read to escape to New York and New Orleans, I do wish there had been a bit more conflict and struggle. Beyond the usual love/hate chemistry and the Manhattan/Nawlin’s mannerism clashes, I would love to see a bit more conflict and character growth. While I loved to see Violet grow to see the beauty in living life fully and eating carbs, it didn’t feel like she developed and grew as much as Cain did throughout the story. Still worth a quick escapism read on a rainy afternoon on the couch! Thank you to Gallery Books + Netgalley for this advanced reader copy.

Lauren Layne writes romances that are just bursting with charm. I read them with a perma-grin attached to my face. This reversed Pygmalion is no exception. I loved Violet almost instantly although we could not be more different. She is a heroine who is all heart. When asked by the woman who is like a second grandmother to her to help her newly discovered grandson learn to fit into the Manhattan upper echelons, Violet instantly says yes. When she meets Cain she realizes he is not going to make it easy on her. Cain is resistant to just about everything but Violet keeps trying- culture, shopping, she introduces him to her NYC. The more time they spend together the more she wonders who really needs to change, Cain was a lot harder to care about. Who wouldn't have reservations in his shoes? However he takes it to an unnecessary extreme and ventures into just plain mean at times. For me, it was annoying but didn't take away from the overall shine of the novel. Violet and her journey alone would make this book a keeper and while Cain doesn't always deserve her, the moments they share made my heart happy.

I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I loved Lauren Layne's Central Park Pact series, so I was excited to get a chance to read Made in Manhattan. This gender-swapping take on My Fair Lady is a fun romp of a tale that I read quickly. Violet and Cain start as pretty stereotypical prototypes as the NYC ice queen and the Southern yokel, but as they learn about each other, their characters are broadened.- though perhaps not quickly or deeply enough for this reader. Still, a quick escape of a love story for fans of Layne's work that will likely satisfy.

Many thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for sharing this book with me. All thoughts are my own.

I loved To Sir, with Love and was immediately drawn to Made in Manhattan. As someone who has grown up with countless girl makeover-type stories (Clueless, She's All That, Never Been Kissed, etc), it was fun to see this reverse My Fair Lady storyline play out.

Lauren Layne's books have this special quality where I can fly through them with a smile on my face. The interaction between Cain & Violet is feisty, although frustrating at times. The author captures NYC in such an enjoyable way and I also really liked getting to experience New Orleans a bit too.

There is a lot of heat and chemistry between the main characters, but closed-door steam. The side characters, even Violet's dog, all add to the overall experience. I really enjoyed this one!

Thank you to NetGalley & Gallery Books for an advanced copy of this and the opportunity to share my honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

With Made In Manhattan, once again Lauren Layne has delivered another wonderful, lighthearted and charming RomCom set in a New York setting that makes me want to go live in one of her books. This book, much like her last release To Sir, With Love (also highly recommend if you haven’t tried it yet) is another standalone romantic comedy set in New York and a retelling of a classic romance movie. Made In Manhattan though is a gender swapped retelling of My Fair Lady.

As I’ve come to expect from Ms. Layne’s reads, she delivered loveable characters and a man worthy of book boyfriend status – she also included the slow burn tension and banter that I’ve come to expect and love as well. The story is lighthearted and charming and has the payoff at the end worth waiting for. For me, this book was started and finished in the same day – I was just wrapped up in it and loving the dynamic between Violet and Cain. I was sad for the story to be over and that I hadn’t savored it more, but I honestly cannot wait to read what she comes out with next!

Thank you to NetGalley and Gallery Books for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Review posted on Goodreads 10/30/21. Instagram post to be done for release week @thebookishdachshund, as well as to online retailer Amazon.

4 Stars! This was a cute book. I liked the main characters but I also didn’t like them. They were witty with funny banter but the “romance” wasn’t really there. Violet was a snob but got better near the end and Cain was mostly an angry jerk. If they fell in love, I didn’t see how it happened. That being said, it was a cute read and I enjoyed it. I laughed, I cried, and I reminded myself they were fictional characters and just finished the book. Haha!
*I received this book at no charge & I voluntarily left this review.*