This book just wasn’t for me. The characters were unlikeable and difficult to relate to.

Thank you Netgalley, HarperCollins UK and One More Chapter for the digital ARC.

I wasn't sure when I began The Reunion by Elizabeth Drummond if it was going to be too "posh" for my tastes. But the writing kept me engaged. I loved Elizabeth's use of words. I am a collector of words and I'd read and smile as I'd live in Josh's head for I related much more with him than Posy.

Posy is a bit of a partier and late bloomer where she has had life kind of served to her on a silver platter and wasn't too high of character in school toward Joshua and called him "Helpboy" because his parents worked at the school and all the privileged kids looked down their nose at scholarship Joshua. So the author had a feat in front of her to get this shallow, spoiled, British socialite protagonist to make her likable. It took a while for me. Basically until the end at the altar but the author made you feel she redeemed herself and that perhaps she deserved Joshua in the end.

Joshua of course grew into a very good-looking man from his high school days and the bench scene I think is my favorite scene after the altar scene. This is a sweet book, not a lot of bite but the growth of Posy makes the read worthwhile.

Thank you for the opportunity to review this book.

2.5 stars

Here’s the thing: I powered through this book because I wanted to know what happened. I read it in one sitting. But I also didn’t like it? It was a weird experience. Like watching an accident in motion, I suppose!

Usually enemies-lovers, fake dating, high school rivals would tick so many boxes for me. But this book didn’t work for me. I actually quite liked the writing and I could feel that the author is sharp and clever. I know that this book would have been an extensive labour of love, and I have tried to consolidate my thoughts to be respectful and hopefully helpful:

- I appreciate a slow burn, but it took a really long time for the leads to feel something for each other, which made the back half of the book feel unrealistic
- I think the “let’s catch them out” chapters from the school’s perspective jarred the reading experience a little
- Posy was an interesting character. Super unlikeable. You could sense her growing in the end, but I’d love to have seen her character growth amped up as a reader reward for sticking with her
- It felt very… old school. Why does settling down = responsibility? Maybe less of a focus on getting married and more on sensible financial choices/self sufficiency would help
- A few fatphobic comments made me a little uncomfortable

There are the guts of an entertaining comedy in here. I wish the author all the best, I’ll definitely keep an eye out for more of this sharp writing.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an ARC of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
This is a tricky book to rate. While I found it easy to read, and the characters were relatable, I didn't find that I liked them all that much. I wasn't super invested in what they'd decided to do, and kind of wished we readers had more time to see Posy and Lucas fall in love. Wouldn't really classify it as romance, more of a general fiction.

I'm usually a huge fan of fake dating and rivals to lovers but this book just couldn't do it for me. For starters, Posy was the most unlikeable spoiled brat I've ever read about. I've read It Happened One Summer by Tessa Bailey and it did include the spoiled rich girl cut off from her dad trope but the difference was that Piper actually grew as a person and wasn't even that bad, unlike Posy. I mean come on she's an adult and literally bullied poor Lucas in this fake marriage situation. I don't remember much about Lucas but I wish that poor man the best of luck dealing with Posy for the rest of his life. Also, it's 2022 why do we still think it's okay to write fat jokes? I don't mean to be rude but if you can't make a "funny" joke without taking a jab at others then maybe you shouldn't write jokes at all. People like my sister read books so that they can escape reality and they sure as hell shouldn't have to deal with immature fat jokes while doing that. I had high hopes for this book but unfortunately, I was disappointed.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I’m a huge fan of the enemies-to-lovers and fake dating tropes, but the characters in this were too unlikeable for me to root for them. Even at the end, I don’t think they became tolerable or learned enough to redeem themselves. I didn’t like them, and I wasn’t totally convinced that they even liked each other. The whole concept of everything being reliant on this weird bylaw also really, REALLY tested my suspension of disbelief.

This is the debut book by this author. It's a enemies to lovers, fake dating story that is a quick and entertaining rom com read. Posy and Lucas went to high school together and were, you guessed it, rivals. Ten years later they meet at a high school reunion and both are down on their luck. Lucas is in jeopardy of losing his business if he doesn't find an investor and Posy has been cut-off financially from her father. Though they can't stand each other, they come up with a plan to help them both get what they want. All they have to do is convince they are madly in love when everyone knows they hate each other. But as they spend time together and put on a show for everyone, the pretending becomes all too real.
This was a quick read and a fun and entertaining story about two people from completely different worlds. The characters weren't as likable to begin with, but they do grow on you. I am interested to see how this author's work progresses in future works.

I received a complimentary copy from Netgalley and am voluntarily leaving my review.

Love this author. It was a super fun and easy to read book. Would 100% recommend it to a friend.
The love story was just amazing and super real.

Thank you to Netgalley and HarperCollins UK, One More Chapter for a copy of this Arc in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I really wanted to love this book,Two high school rivals. Ten years later. A vow not to fall in love . . .

The synopsis sounded full of promise, and I really loved the cover of the book. but that, I am afraid is is where it ends. The story was totally absurd. Posy Edwards attends her high school reunion and comes face to face with her nemesis Lucas O’Rourke. When things aren't going her way she basically then bullies him in to doing her bidding as she did when they were in school. There is just nothing nice at all about her, she is a rich, spoilt brat that has spat her dummy out because her father has cut her off. There is just nothing likeable about her at all.
Really didn't like this book.

I can’t even with this book. It was so bad! Just everything about it! Except the cover. The cover was cute.
Cons:
- the plot was under developed
- the characters felt flat and were hard to empathize with (super snobbish)
- I could NOT stand the heroine
- severe overuse of common tropes
- it felt like reading a wattpadd book
Pros:
-cute cover

It’s a pretty funny enemies to lovers. I really enjoyed it. I will say I thought the main character was annoying but she has development! Overall I got it done in one sitting, no spice though for those of you wondering!

This was a cute enemies to lovers romance. I found it hard to connect with Posy initially, but her character growth eventually won me over. I enjoyed seeing Posy and Lucas' story come together. This author did a great job of pulling at my emotions throughout. A quick, enjoyable read.

I normally love fake dating and enemies to lovers BUT I did not enjoy this one. Posy was a difficult character to connect with and because of that, I struggled to get through the book.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this arc ebook in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

DNF 37%

I gravitated towards the book because of the academic rivals/enemies to lovers/fake dating tropes but the story itself was dull and was hard to get through. I did not connect or resonate with any of the characters and it was hard to empathize with what they were going through regardless of whether they fell into the the super-rich, entitled category or even the "regular" class ones. The pace of the story was so slow. I was not even halfway through the book and the fake dating still hasn't happened and the characters still dislike each other.

DNF 21%

Fake dating + enemies-to-lovers, this has my name aaaalllll over it. Sadly it didn’t work out for me. I couldn’t stand Posy.

Thank you to Netgalley and Harper Collins UK for the early copy, but this just wasn’t for me.

This had a very 00's rom-com vibe, very fresh and very fun. I loved Posy a lot but wasn't as keen on Lucas Nevertheless, I finished the whole book, and I came away smiling - there's nothing more you can ask for when it comes to this genre.

Posy and Lucas were not friends in school, but an encounter at their school reunion sets them up for an unexpected romance!

This was a fast and fairly easy read, but the romance wasn't particularly convincing and the plot dragged quite a lot. I didn't like either of the main characters either apart of together, so overall it was a bit of a disappointing read!

I received a copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

This was a cute story and an easy read. However, I didn’t find it particularly unique or feel connected to any of the characters. I was annoyed by most of them and maybe indifferent towards them by the end. I love cliche romances but this one seemed to lack the tension, yearning and passion I look for.

thank you netgalley and harper collins publishing for an ARC of this book!

1 star

this book had a promising premise but really missed the mark for me. the two main characters were very unlikeable and constantly made me angry. the fat jokes were so frequent and just not ok, and made it hard for me to enjoy anything else. overall, the plot was a bit all over the place and had me skimming.

I absolutely adored this book. It had major “Sophia Kinsella Shopaholic” vibes and I could not put it down. The ending brought tears to my eyes and I shouted with glee. The character development was strong. I love when you start out loathing a character but there is a complete 180 degree turn that makes you adore them by the end. A very easy read with a lot of hiccups and speed bumps to keep you engaged. This will make for a wonderful summer beach or pool read.