This was a very quick read that I thoroughly enjoyed. If you’ve ever seen the movie, “Life As We Know It,” I’d say the Godparent Trap is the book replica. After a terrible car accident, Colby and Rip are left to care for, Viera and Ben, his sister and her best friend’s children. Naturally, the two have never gotten along and are complete opposites from the way they deal with grief, their jobs, eating habits and parental styles. As Colby and Rip step into their new role, and are forced under the same roof, can the two overcome their differences and realize maybe their hate has always been mistaken for love?

This book covered some heavier topics but was sweet and written in an upbeat way. RVD included the perfect amount of humor, banter and childhood antics to bring smiles when you felt as though you were going to cry. I also love when kids play a major role in stories, and Ben and Viera were easy to fall in love with. Rip and Colby were great main characters. I loved watching them find their new normal, learn how to co-parent, open up to one another and slowly realize what was there all along. I also really appreciate when an author includes content/ trigger warnings at the start of the story and for this one, it was definitely a smart move. The one thing I did not love was the inclusion of Heather as I thought it added some unnecessary drama to the story.

Read if you like:
-Forced proximity
-Enemies to lovers
-Children in romance books
-Found family
-Books the focus on grief and recovery after trauma

Thank you NetGalley and Forever pub for this ARC in exchange for an honest review. Pub date: 7/19/22

How can such a horrible event ever be anything more? Two polar opposites become godparents to two kids after their parents die and things will never be the same. How can they find the way forward together while grieving and learning to become parents? Rachel Van Dyken tugs on the heartstrings with this one but brings beauty to such tragedy. It’s hard not to laugh as anyone can relate that life doesn’t always turn out how you think it should. Instead those unexpected, chaotic moments are what makes life perfect.
Loved this story! It will be one that sticks with me for a while.

I am leaving this review voluntarily after being sent a free book

This was a quick read with so much heart! It reminds me a lot of a movie with a similar premise, but even better because we get a better look into the thoughts of the two main characters. Their chemistry is palatable and they have so much thrown at them while learning about each other. The two children were really great. Books with children can be made or broken with their personality, but this book benefited from them. I did think the ending felt rushed, but this book was a joy and I recommend it.

It’s a sad where two people have to become parents of two kids because there’ parents diied but Rachel did it in a fun way where you know if your a parent you know the funny problems but it’s also a love story it was really good

Cute story with great characters that made it hard to put down. The character dynamics were great and I thought their chemistry was there from the start.

This is such a touching and heartwarming story. I loved the characters and the family they created. As it says in this book, joy comes from sorrow and this beautiful story is a great example of that.

This book was amazing from start to finish. The chemistry between Colby and Rip was off the charts. You will cry, you will laugh, and you will cry some more while reading this story. My heart broke for the children of Monica and Brooks, but Rip and Colby kept it interesting. This was my first book by Rachel Van Dyken and certainly not the last.

This book was just like the movie “Life As We Know It” and seriously was adorable. I’m not usually a fan of RVD’s books but this one was a winner. It was fast paced and a bit emotional, but overall a solid read.

The Godparent Trap by Rachel Van Dyke is heartwarming, emotional, and hilarious while dealing with grief, loss and the idea of found family.

Tissues will be needed! This book had me both smiling, laughing and tearing up while reading. I loved this book so much and I definitely cannot wait to purchase this book in paperback so I can reread it. It follows Rip and Colby, two complete opposites sunshine and grumpy that are now the guardians and sole caretakers of two children. Rip after losing his sister and best friend must step up and be the father figure and Colby who was best friends with Rip’s sister must figure out how to co-exist, co-parent and learn to accept their new normal. The children are the absolute funniest and sweetest, the way they were rooting for their godparents to be together to form a new family. The hilarious moments of being a parent, trials and errors, the fun moments; the rewarding ones and the emotional ones, this book does deal with grief, loss and finding a found family and learning that life is what you make of it, nothing is promised and we have to cherish all the moments and the people we love.

I loved seeing Rip and Colby fight their tension and feelings because everyone sees it and seeing how they balance each other and they learn to lean on each other and make each other better was one of the sweetest moments. Rip realizing that perfection isn’t real and that what he wants isn’t what he always needs. I loved this book so much, it was so sweet, emotional, steamy? Fun, flirty, endearing. I would’ve loved more of a epilogue for me personally, I thought it ended a little too soon, almost a little rushed? Maybe that’s just me wanting more on them but I love this book, i definitely recommend this book!

This book was cute, easygoing and a breeze to read. It also has some of my favorite tropes! However, since it is fast paced certain parts felt rushed. There were certain scenes that definitely deserved a bit more attention and development, due to how angsty they were. It was giving more “telling” and not “showing” which takes away a bit from the moment.

Also not a fan of the… “incident” towards the end. But that’s just a personal preference.

The book is still enjoyable and has a lot of sweet, cute and funny moments. The kids are the most adorable menaces, Colby and Rip are easy to like and Banks is the cherry on top of it all.

Okay, yes, this story is a romance, and a really sweet one, but more than that, it provides a really lovely commentary on grief, recovering after a trauma, and parenting. Rip and Colby were really sweet together, and I enjoyed watching them figure out their new normal while slowly falling for each other. I appreciated the respect for stay at home parents thrown in there because it is really hard, and we don’t get enough credit, so I loved watching Rip and Colby try to navigate that!
As far as side characters go, I LOVED Banks, but I thought Heather was unnecessary and their arc wasn’t needed.

I was given an ARC of this book by NetGalley and Forever (Grand Central Publishing). All opinions are my own.

Thank you the the author , publisher, and NetGalley for the chance to read an early copy of “The Godparent Trap.” Overall, I found this to be a sweet read and surprisingly upbeat for the somewhat sad premise. I think RVD did a good job of balancing sweet funny moments with some tear provoking scenes. I thought the romance between Colby and Rip was believable and the reader really felt the chemistry between the two. I also loved the two children. By the end, I was wishing for more from this unconventional family. I definitely recommend this book!

Joy and Sorrow. Is what this book brought me. I laughed and oh did I cry So much. I was looking for a cute and fun read. This book sure did deliver. I love books that evoke emotion.

Colby and Rip become parents after their best friend and sister die in an accident. Instant family, only thing is Colby and Rip hate each other. Now they have to console and parent two grieving children.

This story follows Colby and Rip. Rips sister and best friend (both are friends with Colby)die in a tragic accident. They leave behind two children and a house that is already paid. They were both named the guardian of the children . Now their biggest struggle: to work together and raise both the kids. One date years ago caused them to truly hate each other ,but as they continue raising the kids and working together will they realize that hate can be mistaken for love?

I’m not going to lie, my heart went out to both Colby and Rip. They both lost people they care about and are thrust into the parent role . Their history and chemistry is evident from chapter 1 and it’s truly captivating. I really had a hard time with Rip in the beginning because it’s clear to see Colby is truly trying .

Grief affects people in different ways, and Rip already had the loss of both his parents , so it’s understandable why he gets frustrated with Colby. But it is also evident that there is some envy and yearning to be more like Colby .

The circling they did for a good chunk of this book drove me insane . I was continuously waiting for something to happen and when something did it was worth the wait . They learned to work on their grief both separately and together .

The relationship between Rip and Colby was truly beautiful (and their banter was quick, sassy and fun) and I loved how the author wrote them both as individuals and as a pair. Romance was a big factor of this book, but so
Was grief and how life is not easy ; that life can be very difficult but beautiful.

I highly recommend this book and I give it 5 stars. I. Will have to read more from this author.

This is one of my all-time favorite tropes. I would definitely recommend this to anyone looking for a quick romance and who loved the movie "Life As We Know It."

Colby and Rip are left to care for their best friends, Monica (Rip's sister) and Brooks, two children. Colby is an adventurous food blogger who travels around the world, and Rip is a Type A accountant. They are left to navigate grief and childcare together. 

Banks was fantastic!

The kids were adorable!

This was a short read on grief and healing while redefining the meaning of family. I have to admit, at the beginning of this book, I was not a fan of Rip and couldn't imagine how I could come to like him. I hated how he made Colby feel and how he treated her like trash. While he did go through character development, he was still not my favorite character. In the end, he was just okay. I loved Colby. She was doing her best. Life is hard, and she was trying. She definitely took responsibility and stuck with it even though she felt like she wasn't doing enough. I loved the slow burn at the beginning of their relationship. While there was already an attraction there, we got to see it develop into compromise and a sort of friendship.

I wish it was longer. The story went too fast and ended too quickly for me. They went from a possible slow burn to escalating quickly into a relationship and then ending it. This could've been a more developed slow burn, where they got to explore more of their feelings, and we could have seen the true healing process where they navigated healing with the kids and falling in love. It felt like the moments of healing were being glanced over. This all happened in a couple of weeks, and it made it seem like they were 60% healed at the end. I wish there was a bigger time gap to show the struggles of balancing the kids, their new relationship, more of the conflict with Heather and Banks, and self-reflective healing.

Thank you, Netgalley and Forever, for providing an early copy of this book.

This was an easy satisfying, emotional rom-com. While it might be a little too close to the plot of the movie Life As We Know It, and the ending felt like a big stretch in a variety of ways, I still enjoyed it. It made me laugh and it made me cry. Overall, a very cute book.

I always hate to write reviews like this (and won't post this to GR), but . . . this was a DNF for me. I am a total goober for this set-up (accidental kid acquisition, forced proximity, force cooperation), and was SO excited when I came across this on Netgally. Unfortunately, I only got about 25% of the way through before I couldn't stand it anymore. This just isn't a "hate to love" scenario that's done well. Character motivation was all over the place. The mains are vile to each other and will be DEEPLY repelled by one another (like, in a fundamental "i disagree with who and how you are as a person and i'm saying it to your face in a hateful way) in one sentence, and in the next be lusting after the other person?? I do genuinely like hate-to-love, but this just gave me whiplash as a reader, and seemed to make no sense, logical, emotional, or otherwise. I appreciate the chance to read and review it, but THE GODPARENT TRAP is not for me, and just got me jonesing for this trope done well (i.e. the movie Life As We Know It).

The Godparent Trap was the perfect read! Chaos, messy and real come to mind. If you're a parent you know how crazy life can get. Colby and Rip get thrown into a place that neither were prepared for and the outcome 🙌. RVD never seems to disappoint when it comes to smooth story lines, intriguing characters and ripping emotions out of you. Don't worry, she'll mend you back together. With that being said, take the chance with this story. You won't be disappointed.

So fun. I read through this one in a day. The kids were my favourite part of this. Trigger warnings for talk about loss of a loved one. Thank you to the publisher for my copy.

Thanks NetGalley and Forever Grand Central Publishing for the opportunity to read The GodParent Trap in exchange for my honest review.

Life As We Know It is one of my all time favorite movies so when I discovered this book I KNEW I had to read it. I was not disappointed. Although I did not care for Heather while reading this story. I felt like she added something to the story but at the same time didn’t? But I LOVED Banks and everything about his character. Colby and Rip are two different people but I love how raising the children brings them closer and understand each other. It was a heartwarming story with grief, sad moments, but a lot of fun moments!