While heavy topic of grief was very much present throughout the book, Van Dyken still managed to write an entertaining romcom that was very easy to read. I went through a roller coaster of emotions reading this book. It was funny, witty, sad, emotional, heartwarming, sweet, and even a tiny bit steamy. The flirty banter? Yes, please.

𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙚𝙭𝙥𝙚𝙘𝙩:
Opposites attract
Enemies to lovers
Bestfriend's brother
Grumpy/sunshine
Forced proximity

𝙋𝙖𝙧𝙩𝙨 𝙄 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙙:
☕️ The mugs
🍐 I want Banks to be my friend too
🧡 The kids
🤐 Swear jar
🦋 Butterflies (that scene REALLY hit home)

Overall, I enjoyed this one a lot and would definitely recommend it!

CW: death of loved ones (parents, sibling, friend), car accident, grief.

When I saw this book compared to Life as We Know it, I added it to my TBR immediately. I haven’t read any other books from this author but I really did enjoy this book. It was enemies to lovers but not too mean or anything. There were sad parts and funny parts. The romance is open door but not overwhelming to the storyline. Definitely would recommend to romcom fans!

If you’re looking for something cute that’s extremely fast paced and surprisingly light hearted, this may be for you!

Unfortunately it was not for me. It felt like a chaotic rip off of Life As We know It and not in a good way. It felt
extremely rushed. It deals with what should be deeply emotional things but I never felt the characters expressed any emotion other than annoyance with each other.

And speaking of annoyance, boy did I hate Rip. What a dismissive tool. Yikes. I truly did not understand why Colby would forget or forgive the way he treated her for the first half of the book, especially since there was no grovel at all.

Also very much didn’t like Heather, that entire plot line was entirely unnecessary and felt out of date for a book from 2022 (we’re not putting women against each other anymore.)

Okay so I *LOVED* the movie Life as We Know It starring romcom queen Katherine Heigl so when I saw this book was available, I had to request it. I loved this one, a solid mix of enemies to lovers plus being forced to work together?! Ugh, too good.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this arc ebook in exchange for an honest review all opinions expressed are my own.

After an accident, Colby and Rip have to learn to put their differences aside and raise their best friends children.

This book was amazing! Enemies to lovers while also having to learn how to work together to raise two children. These two balanced each other so well I just absolutely loved it !!

Thank you Netgalley & Rachel Van Dyken for the advanced reader’s copy of this book!!

QOTD: Are you a Godparent?
My A: Nope! Not yet, at least.
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So you ever watch a movie and think "Ugh! I wish I could READ this as a book!"? If you watched Life As We Know It with Katherine Heigel and Josh Duhamel and loved it, this one's for you! This was such a fun but emotional book. Two polar opposites brought together in grief and raising two children who just lost their parents, this story is just so so good. Grief is a hard topic to tackle and I liked getting two very different types of grief. I think there's a lot of people who will be able to connect to Colby and Rip, I know I did!
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Pick this up if you like:
The above mentioned movie
Opposites Attract
Forced proximity
Dual POV
sunshine (her) grumpy (him) trope
Enemies to Lovers
Laugh out loud moments
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BLURB:
Colby's living her best life: as a popular food blogger, she gets to fulfill her dreams of exploring the globe. But her world comes crashing down when a tragic accident leaves her co-guardian of her best friend's two adorable children. Not only does she need to put down roots—fast—but she'll be sharing custody with the one man she can't stand sharing a continent with, let alone a house.

Accountant-extraordinaire Rip values rules and plans. But when he loses his sister and his best friend and becomes an insta-guardian all in one night, Rip sees his organized life imploding. What he really doesn't need is his sister's irresponsible, flighty—albeit kind and gorgeous—best friend making it worse.

Rip doesn't trust Colby to take their new responsibilities seriously, while Colby can't believe Rip thinks children will thrive under his rigid control. Yet soon Rip and Colby discover they need each other more than they hate each other. Could it be possible that following their hearts is just what their new little family needs?

This for me was, unfortunately, a DNF. I think it was a writing style issue, which is of course subjective. I got about halfway through though, and I will say that the leads had excellent chemistry and the plot is quite compelling. The added aspect of taking care of two young children (in the wake of grief) is both funny as well as touching. It wasn't for me, at least in prose form, but I'm sure that lovers of this genre will go for it. It wasn't my cup of tea, but it's earned some merit. (Also, that COVER.)

This story had a lot of potential to be really good however, for me, it fell a bit short of it. It deals with a very tragic accident that throws the two main characters together to suddenly be parents. I feel the author did an alright job with incorporating some humour into this situation though the emotional and toughness of it felt kind of glossed over. It would have been really good to have had more “meat on the bones” of that part of the story.

**3.75 Stars**

The Godparent Trap follows Rip and Colby as they take on their new roles as parents to two young kids after their parents die unexpectedly. Rip and Colby are polar opposites which leads to a lot of tension in their new relationship in addition to the grief everyone is feeling as they navigate their new mormal.

I really enjoyed the scenes with the children. Both Rip and Colby were amazing with the children and clearly loved them deeply and wanted to do right by them. Obviously given the difficult nature of the situation, it would make sense for there to be tension between Rip and Colby and that there be a lot for them to work through, but Rip was definitely way too harsh in the beginning. I enjoyed reading as he let his guard down and opened up a little.

I was engaged and invested in the story line and the characters from beginning to end, though I did find the ending rushed and somewhat confusing and wish it was developed and explained more.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book. All opinions expressed are my own.

I absolutely loved this book. I could NOT put it down. If you've ever seen the move "Life As We Know It" with Katherine Heigl and Josh Duhamel, then you know exactly what “The Godparent Trap” is going to be about. Colby and Rip are left to care for the two children of Rip's sister/Colby's best friend Monica and her husband, Rip's best friend, Brooks. Colby and Rip are about as opposite as any two people could be: Colby is an adventurous food blogger who has traveled the world and Rip who is a type A, stuck-up accountant. Throughout the novel, Colby and Rip have to find a way to make their new life work for them while also figuring out what it means to be a family with people you never expected and realizing that forever was there all along. Rachel Van Dyken is an excellent author.  The way she wrote grief into the story of Rip and Colby was perfect.  One second they’re laughing and having fun and the next they’re sad and crying as they think of their lost loved ones.  You could see how guilty they feel for being happy and living when the people you love aren’t. 

I loved having chapters in Colby and Rip's separate perspectives.  The dialogue is great, and I loved the witty banter between the two. Their text chains are hilarious! I really enjoy dual POVs, especially in rom-coms so the reader is able to see thoughts and feelings from both MCs. I found that I felt connected to both of the characters because of that. The relationship between Colby and Rip was complicated and full of unresolved feelings and miscommunications. I found that I wasn't frustrated with their miscommunications because they were about things that would genuinely happen in real life, rather than the mundane and silly types of miscommunications that can be found in a lot of rom-coms. I think that the unfolding of their relationship happened in the best way possible - through the mutual love of the kids and the best friends that they lost.  I loved the flashbacks with Monica and Brooks. I thought they really helped show the backstory between Rip and Colby. The passion and chemistry between the two was palpable and I was rooting for them to make a life together. I also LOVED the kids and the way that they interacted with both Rip and Colby. I was laughing so hard at some of their interactions.  Banks was SUCH a joyful side character. His scheming to get Colby and Rip together was so kind and lighthearted that I couldn't help but absolutely adore him. I would kind of like to read the story of how he and Heather ended up together. I wished that there were a few more chapters between the end of the book and the epilogue.  I wanted to see a bit more of Rip and Colby’s life in the present.  I would recommend this to readers looking for a breezy, summer read (this will be published in July) who are also fond of enemies-to-lovers and forced proximity tropes.  Thank you to Rachel Van Dyken NetGalley and Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for the opportunity to review this ARC.

I've been provided with an ARC to provide my opinion. Thank you Netgalley and Forever Reads for my copy.  
Colby's best friend Monica is going away on a trip with her husband Brooks for a few days and has asked Colby to take care of her two kids while they are away on their vacation.  Monica's brother, Rip,  is  staying with the kids as well. 

Colby and Rip do not get along at all as they are very different.  Rip is very particular, meticulous, and tidy and  is an accountant. Colby is a free-spirit who maintains a blog, an active Instagram Account and writes articles for a magazine.   Colby and Rip went on a date a while ago which ended up being a complete disaster, they can hardly stand to be in the same room together. Unfortunately there is an accident and both Monica and Brooks are tragically killed.  Both Colby and Rip have been made guardians of the two children and must figure out a way to get along and not kill each other.

There are some triggers in the book around death, and it had some moments of sadness.  Aside from that, the book is a cute read which would be a great book to read while you are sitting at the pool, by the lake, or on the beach.  It falls under enemies to lovers trope which is often a fun read. It's not a complex story but deals with some complex emotions.  I enjoyed it.  The characters were likable, I was not a fan of the protagonists name and wished better names were selected (there are other reviews that agree with me).  I would rate this book a 7.75.  I do recommend this to anyone who enjoys romcoms.

Oof. I really enjoyed the movie Life As We Know It that has essentially the same storyline, so I went into this optimistically. However, it really didn't deliver for me in the end.

This book had a bit of a sandwich effect for me: I did not like the beginning, I liked the middle, and I did not like the end. From the beginning, I knew the author was going to have to work hard to redeem Rip. I truly do not understand why she had to make him so mean. I understand the whole being opposites thing and him grieving, but he said some absolutely heinous things that would be hard to forgive. However, once we got to the middle, I had warmed up to him a little bit (not entirely, but a little), and I liked their little family.

It initially annoyed me that they went from 0 to 100 real quick in their relationship, but I tried to rationalize it with their situation. I don't think someone like Rip would just change overnight, but whatever. Then, we got to the end which is literally insane and so unnecessary???? Like why don't we throw in another half baked tragedy to this story? It didn't make any sense to me. As for the epilogue, maybe I'm too bitter, but there is no way I would let Heather move in next door if I were Colby.

Overall, there were cute moments in this story, but it didn't add up to a cohesive, enjoyable book for me.

Thank you to Forever and NetGalley for providing me an ARC of this title in exchange for an honest review.

Goodreads review link (posted 6/9/22): https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4768596683

This cover and the title soooo cute. The story was basically a poorly written rip off of the movie “Life as we know it”. I really wanted to love it but the writing and the dialogue was blah. The characters were insufferable and I didn’t like anyone but the kids (and they didn’t even really have dialogue LOL). Grief was handled so poorly in this book as well.

I would recommend to those looking for a quick light read without too much substance.

Thanks to Grand Central Publishing and NetGalley for providing this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

The Godparent Trap follows Colby and Rip as they navigate their new life taking care of their best friends kids. As godparents, Colby and Rip have to work together to make their new situation work. Obviously, there is some tension between the two, as they are complete opposites...but you know what they say...opposites attract.

I really enjoyed the book! It was a quick read with some heavy themes. I was laughing and then crying. I felt as though some parts to the story could have been expanded or just had more information. The story went by so quickly but it was enjoyable.

If you’ve watched the movie “Life As WeKnow It” you need to read this books. This romcom enemies to lovers has it all! I finished it in one sitting !

Hold on to your hearts y'all - Rachel Van Dyken is about to take them on a bit of an emotional ride!

I was really excited to get my hands on this story. Despite the emotional triggers in the premise, I was confident that I was going to be swept away. And I did - in moments and scenes. However, overall I felt like the emotion in this story was told to me rather than shown to me. I wanted a deeper dive, more depth, and more time with Colby and Ben actually building the foundation of their feelings to help me feel more deeply connected to them.

I felt like Ben was mean in the beginning and I didn't really feel like that was resolved. I wanted more...grovel? Something to help heal the careless way he treated Colby at the start. I did really like Colby - though I think I wanted more fire from her. More of her standing up to Ben instead of trying to appease him.

In all, this was definitely an emotional story, but done as a romantic comedy with lighter moments and the messiness of raising small children. I enjoyed it. It was a quick, easy read. But it was missing something that kept me from really investing and feeling it.

I absolutely loved this book! When I first read the premise, I was thinking, huh, this sounds really familiar to a movie I watched previously and really enjoyed which made me excited to check it out. This novel brought so much to the table, it had a lot of the romance tropes I love with grumpy/sunshine, enemies to lovers, and forced proximity! This storyline also touched on some difficult topics and I felt it was so well done, and even with such a heavy main topic of loss/grief, this book surprised me by being extremely funny throughout! I laughed aloud so many times and I felt the author did such a great job capturing life with small children and the unexpected moments that come with parenting. I really liked the main romance and the tension in this book was great! No closed door romance with this one, however the wait is looooong but so worth it! I highly recommend this novel, I’m so grateful to have had a chance to receive a #gifted arc copy from Forever Publishing!!

this was cute and fun. i can see people definitely picking it up for a cute summer read which it will be absolutely perfect for

Who doesn't love a slow burn book that builds up to the most amazing story! Along with quite a few chapters of me sobbing my eyes out!

Rip and Colby have known eachother sense they were kids and now there forced to live together and co-parent after a horrible accident that took there best friends from them. Now they must learn to become a family and navigate parenting when one is a carefree person that loves to travel while the other is by the book and a neat freak with a touch of ocd.

Can they heal there hearts and help the kids to heal while dancing around thier feelings for one another? The Godparent Trap is such a good book and I wanted to choke Rip and Colby sometimes but ended up swooning over them! I absolutely loved Banks! He reminded me so much of Max!

So if your looking for a slow burn book with lots of tear jerker moments and who can forget the funny parts then this will be one you'll want to grab!

Thank you, thank you, thank you to Forever (Grand Central Publishing) and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review! If I could describe this book in just one word, it would be genuine. It was genuinely funny, genuinely sweet, and overall, a genuinely delightful read. I read this so quickly because I just could not tear myself away from these characters and this rom-com that I wouldn't really call a rom-com just because it centers around pretty difficult subject matter such as grief and the deaths of friends and siblings. Not a lot of authors handle grief well and they tend to water it down but Rachel Van Dyken did not shy away from it. Rip's behavior in the beginning, reeling with his own loss, is not excusable but it's raw and honest and ugly and that is what grief is. This book felt like a gut punch at times and I just really loved seeing Rip and Colby, on rocky footing, grow into who they need to be to take care of the kids and be bonded together for those kids, in the love they had for their friend/sibling, and then each other. Such a good book. I HIGHLY recommend it.

4.5 stars.