I can't get enough of Mazey Eddings humor! The author perfectly captures the daily struggles of living with adult ADHD without it taking over the story. My heart hurt for Lizzie and what she endures on a daily basis, especially how hard it is to maintain your focus. I absolutely wanted to punch her parents in the face and would fight anyone that treats their children that horribly.

Rake is the Aussie of my dreams and I couldn't get enough of him! I'd love to see more of him, possibly with appearances in future books? His willingness to step up to the plate and be honest from the get-go will make any reader swoon.

An accidental pregnancy is just what my heart needed today and this book delivered on every level. With hilarious banter, plenty of steamy moments, and moments that will melt your heart - this book is a must read for the summer!

I suspect this author is one whose writing style doesn't work for me. Sometimes I don't enjoy a particular book by a new-to-me author but still want to try that author's books again. Here though I am likely to pass on future Eddings books for a few reasons that I'll cover in my review.

I like some of the author's representation of her heroine living with ADHD. Lizzie's struggles felt authentic and worthy of empathy. Some of the strategies for coping with life obstacles and time management were interesting and most likely beneficial to many neurotypical people too. ADHD is handled well from the individual person's perspective as well as how others view her. Having said that, I quickly became confused by Lizzie's larger-than-life personality, and how or even if it fits into the author's ideas on ADHD. Lizzie is scattered and unfocused, which is understandable. But why is she so crude in her language choices and behaviors? Rake, the hero of the story, finds her crude language and at times outlandish public social behavior endearing, and I do think it's meant to be a dividing point between those who are able to value Lizzie for her big heart and uniqueness and those who can't abide a non conformist among them. I felt uncomfortable at my failure to find Lizzie charming when she was suddenly blurting out at a dinner party how well endowed her new boyfriend is. The book is filled with any number of such scenes that felt kind of cringe-y to me rather than charming, but also marks me as someone unable to embrace the wonderfulness of her social behavior. Lizzie finds her passion in life in the book as an erotic baker whose focus is on female genitalia. Okay, fine, but I needed clarification from the author why Lizzie is an exhibitionist and has an identity wrapped up in being sexually non conformist. Is Lizzie a free spirit or someone struggling to define herself outside of her sexuality? How does ADHD interconnect with Lizzie's sexual issues? I think there could be links but I struggled to make them and ended up feeling confused by her characterization.

The other significant problem in this book for me concerns Lizzie's pregnancy, which happens in the first couple of chapters and then takes center stage for the rest of the novel. Lizzie and Rake hook up at a bar and go their separate ways, and then weeks later she finds herself pregnant. The rest of the story revolves around the two strategizing how to co-parent while trying to sort out their personal relationship and get to know each other. I found this aspect of the book disconcerting in its stark and simplistic and even binary representations. Lizzie is the Good Woman because she chooses to carry her pregnancy to term. Rake's former girlfriend is the Bad Woman because she secretly had an abortion (and after cheating on him). Rake is the Good Man because he leaps at the chance to become a father two mere minutes after discovering a woman who is an essential stranger to him is having his baby. Both Lizzie and Rake throw themselves wholeheartedly into impending parenthood with no reservations or concerns. The book too is riddled with other one-dimensional characters, like Rake's misogynist villain of a boss, Lizzie's dismissive and toxic mother, and even Lizzie's misogynist first boyfriend. Lizzie has a group of loving and committed female friends who are also clearly marked as characters for future books in this series. But I could never distinguish any of them from each other - they are all fun-loving, beautiful and wonderful -- and all left me with absolutely no interest in reading their individual stories.

Mazey Eddings has been getting lots of hype, which is perplexing to me based on this book

Oh my, prepare yourself for some steam straight out of the gate!

The best part about the book for me was Lizzie, a protagonist who is living with ADHD. I learned so much about what an adult with ADHD goes through on a daily basis. There were times when Lizzie explained a routine that lacked organization or focus that sounded exhausting to me. Now, I have a better understanding of what a person living with ADHD is going through.

But, let’s get to the relationship! Rake was a hunky Australian hero and his insta-connection with Lizzie was hot, very hot! When Lizzie ends up pregnant, Rake does the right thing and learns what Lizzie needs and how to best support her.

I enjoyed this book for its depiction of what life is like for people with ADHD, the supportive relationship between Rake and Lizzie, and the idea that we have the power to swap a toxic family for a supportive found family.

This is my first Mazey Eddings book, and after finishing it makes me want to go back and read her first.

Lizzie is proof that messy can be beautiful. She’s all over the place. She doesn’t stay still. She doesn’t conform to the way people expect her to act. To Rake, she’s a breath of fresh air in his stale, closed up world. She is the sunlight.

Mazey Eddings writes ADHD very well. Reading about Lizzie’s day to day, before her routines and medications, made me extremely anxious, and I’m not really a type-A/organized/orderly person either. I feel an empathy with Lizzie and all of those people who have ever felt too much or too out of place. Eddings’ characters feel relatable and realistic, and multidimensional.

I hope that every Lizzie finds their Rake, and vice versa. Someone who sees the unconventional bits and loves them because of it, not in spite of.

Lizzie fierces loves Philadelphia, having left her small town home and family behind to first travel the world before settling there. She also has uncontrollable ADHD, leading to her not being what her parents consider successful - she’s single and has trouble holding a consistent job. But Lizzie is an awesome baker, and she finds an unconventional bakery where she can be innovative with her treats. After a prolonged STEAMY one-night-stand (what do you call that - a two-day-stand?) with an Australian in town for work, Lizzie has an unexpected bun in the oven. Unplanned pregnancy isn’t the main idea of the book, and it is involved in a way that feels more natural than other books I’ve read.
I listened to the first half of this book while packing and cleaning one morning. The audio is fantastic, with dual narration, and I especially loved the narrators’ Australian accents for Rake. While I was loving the audio, I also knew that as I got into bed and wanted to continue, I needed to switch mediums.There is a 100% chance I will fall asleep while listening to an audiobook and then not be able to find the place where I was when I fell asleep, driving myself CRAZY, so I’m not allowed to listen to audiobooks when I’m lying down any more. *cry*
Instead, I continued to devour Lizzie Blake by reading it (hearing the narration in my brain), and I had to force myself to stop and go to sleep. I eagerly finished reading the last half hour the next morning in bed even before I got a cup of coffee - it was that good!
This was the first book I read by Mazey Eddings. I read this as if it was a standalone, but we’ll see if there was anything I missed after I listen to A Brush with Love in the near future. Thanks to NetGalley for the ALC from Macmillan Audio and the ARC from St Martin’s Press/St Martin’s Griffin. This publishes 9/6, and I enjoyed both the audio and the ebook - if it sounds good to you, check it out!

This is my first read from Mazey Eddings. I enjoyed this book very much. It has its moments of funny, sad, and super sweet. It was well written so I'm definitely going to read her debut novel now. Mazey did a fantastic job representing ADHD. When reading the book, you feel like you're a fly on the wall just watching everything unfold. "SPOILERS* Lizzie had a couple of eventful *wink wink* nights with an Australian stranger. She found out she was pregnant. Well, this is a romance book, so you know everything works out, and the two moved in together to raise the child. It also makes me happy to see Lizzie eliminate the toxic people from life and just focus on what makes her happy. This is hands down one of the best books I've ever read.

Well paced romance, goes deep into the main female character and her struggles. It took a while for the man to open up and then to me the relationship really took off. If you've read the authors first book you'll enjoy this one as well.

Lizzie Blake's Best Mistake is the story of Lizzie and Rake. They are a one night stand that turns into an unexpected pregnancy. Added to this obviously giant complication, he lives in Australia and she is an unemployed baker trying to do life with ADHD. This story is fast paced and is filled with humor and a cast of characters that are easy to enjoy. I liked the tension and heat between Rake and Lizzie. I always appreciate a good external conflict over an internal one. I enjoy that we get a deeper insight into living with ADHD, but sometimes for me, Edding's characters are a little bit too loud in their representation. Instead of being a window into their life, it's like an open door with a giant fan. It's totally a me thing.

Mazey Eddings does it again!!!

I knew I loved Lizzie’s character in A Brush With Love, but I didn’t expect to be this obsessed with her after reading her story! Also let’s just add Rake to the book boyfriends list because holy WOW, this man is a dreamboat.

I love the way Mazey writes her characters. In this book, Lizzie struggles with a huge lack of self confidence as well as ADHD. She feels like a failure most of the time and tries to shove her giant personality into a small box, but throughout the book we truly see her blossom.

I wanted to cry when Lizzie was crying, I laughed at how hilarious she is, I felt butterflies over the pure kindness that she received from Rake.

This was a rom-com with a heavy focus on the female main character that was not dependent on the male main character which I LOVE!! Also it did not lack the spice!!

11/10 would recommend to literally everyone. I adored this book and I adore Mazey Eddings - please write a million more books. Also, would love another Lizzie & Rake story just because I adore them.

Loved this book! I'm a big lover of surprise pregnancy trope books and this is one of my new favs!!! Love Mazey's writing style and always recommend.

Thank you St Martin for proving an ARC, for me to review.

Lizzie is a spirited independent woman who is living with a roommate who happens to be one of her best-friends. Lizzie doesn’t believe in dating as she isn't the dating type instead she sets up hookups on her dating app. She will only hook up with someone once and has no desire to meet anyone a second time. Unfortunately, one of her hookups was harder to walk away from as she forgot some of her belongings at his hotel room. It turns out she's pregnant, so more confusion and chaos in her already chaotic life as she manages to get fired from jobs every few months, has accidents etc.

I read Mazey’s first book that she wrote and enjoyed it, however I enjoyed this one much more. This book was a very spicy read which is not my thing. What I loved about this was Lizzie has ADHD and the author gave the reader a sense of what is like living with ADHD as it is really challenging to live with. I have friends that have ADHD and as much as I try to understand what it is like this book was insightful and I feel I have a better understanding of some of the challenges that exist living with this neurodivergence.

Absolutely beautiful!! I devoured this book, could not put it down! Basically if Mazey Eddings writes it, I will read it. That's two books now of hers that have been 5 star reads for me.
This is the story of Lizzie who has ADHD and is floating through life thinking she's making one mistake after the next. But then she meets Rake and after two nights together, both of their lives change. I absolutely loved seeing the growth and change in Lizzie and seeing Rake begin to open up. This is dual POV and it's great that we get to see both their thoughts, feelings, and views.
I am already counting down the days until Indira's story- the next in this series!

I loved a brush with love so I had hoped this would be the same type of story. However, I found it too graphic for me. I liked the idea that Lizzie owns her sexuality and does not care about going to bars and meeting guys. But I do not enjoy reading books that have such graphic sex scenes so often throughout the story.

First of all, whenever I see a Mazey Eddings book I think “she has the cutest name ever! Is it her real name?). Mazey Eddings is also a great writer. Her writing style has cute and funny lines that keeps you engaged I’m the book. Unfortunately I had a problem with the pregnancy trope in this book. It just wasn’t done in a way I would have liked,

Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to read this ARC in return for my honest opinion.

I loved this book! The author has such a thorough and sensitive approach to mental health; I felt like I was able to learn so much about ADHD through Lizzie and how her mind works.

I just really loved Lizzie overall, and watching her so eagerly jump into motherhood despite all her anxiety over parenting with ADHD made my heart swell. She's going to make such a fun and supportive mom! Not to mention her chemistry with Rake, and the SPICE, oh my goodness. So dang good. People who love open door romance are going to be obsessed!

I'm honestly not a fan of the pregnancy trope, but I found that it didn't bother me here, which was a great surprise. I felt like it was handled really well! However, I'm not a fan of insta-love, and that would be the one thing that I wish was different for this story. A Brush With Love was similar - the reader gets a lot of open door scenes right at the beginning, and then the characters pull back for various reasons. This definitely gives some good sexual tension, which romance readers live for, but my personal preference leans to more tension without the initial reward! I love a good build up.

The storyline with Lizzie's brother was something I didn't expect to love so much. I was so glad to see him stand up for her, and I loved the scene where she and Rake got to spend time with them at their house. That gave me all the warm fuzzies! It made me think of spending time with my own sisters, and I feel like Lizzie more than deserves to have siblings who love her that much.

I literally can't wait to read more books in this friend group, and I'm so excited to see which mental health issues get their time in the spotlight next.

I usually don’t love the accidental pregnancy trope but I thought it worked so well for the book and I actually really enjoyed it. I think because I knew that was the major premise to the story I was prepared and ready for it. I think the author did such a great job of showing different representation throughout the book and making a sometimes unrealistic storyline feel very relatable. I can’t wait to keep reading the series and be able to get to know everyone in this friend group.

I know that accidental pregnancy tropes are controversial, but I tend to not mind them when they are done well. Often, the issue is finding one that is done well, but I can assure you that this is one! Full disclosure, in an exercise of embracing chaos I chose to read this ARC before reading A Brush with Love - as far as I can tell it stands alone, although there are mentions of Harper and Dan throughout the book.

Lizzie is a beautiful and chaotic character. Her struggles with ADHD is a central theme to the book, honestly almost more than her pregnancy. A pregnancy is the catalyst to get these two into the same space, but from there it’s more about their individual relationship hang-ups and personal issues as they find a way to co-exist. Rake is a stoic, but lovable character who manages to roll with the punches and handles well at almost every turn. He is so gentle with Lizzie and encourages her growth without trying to change her. The book follows their relationship as it develops and as they grow up together.

I loved the ADHD representation in Lizzie’s character. As someone who does not struggle with this, it was fascinating to read how her brain zipped from one thing to another, snagging on details here, or coming to a screeching halt there. It was eye opening and led to a full and rich character.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

⭐️ rating: 5 STARS ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
📖 genre: romance
🔥 steam: all the flames, very open door
👉🏻 tropes: accidental pregnancy, one night stand
pub date 9/6/2022

LOVED. LOVED. LOVED.
All the stars.

✨ Excellent mental health representation. I really felt like I understood how Lizzie felt everyday living with her ADHD. I loved seeing her describe how her thought process works.
✨ It was really fun to see the female be the complete horndog. Most of the time, even in romance books, the woman waits for the man to make the first move. I really liked that Lizzie absolutely did not do that.
✨ Bernadette was a really fun side character addition. She also made me want to go research everything I can about auras - because her immediate fit with Lizzie and trusting her so easily because their auras matched just fascinated me.
✨ Rake is a cinnamon roll hidden in a bad boy exterior and I love it.
✨ Seeing Lizzie find confidence in herself & in her ability to be a mom was heartwarming. I loved that she realized that she's not broken & she isn't "too much," she's just different and that's okay.
✨ This book made me really want a variety of baked goods - so don't mind me as I go patronize all of the bakeries in my area.

Short Review: Gah. Oh my heart.

"Every brain is beautiful, and they all deserve love exactly as they are."

Long Review: I loved Lizzie's character so much. I saw so much of my daughter in her. This book is such a wonderful bright spot in destigmatizing neurodiversity and mental health. It will warm your heart and make your heart hurt at the same time. Understanding, commitment, and love are huge themes in this book. Oh and pastries...you will be hungry.

My only criticism is that Rake seemed too good to be true. I am so happy Lizzie found him. I can see myself reading this one again and again.

I was very pleasantly surprised by this book!

I have never read an accidental pregnancy book because I was skeptical but I loved Mazey's first book and wanted to give it a try. I loved it!
Lizzie and Rake's chemistry was off the charts from the beginning and just got better throughout the book. I loved them! And would continue to read about them if given the chance.
I also really enjoyed the subplot with Lizzie's family.

Overall, a very great book and I can't wait for the next installment.,
4 stars