Great and fast read! While the plot is predictable with the two main characters partnering up for revenge, the laughs and slow burn are believable. I read this book in less than 2 days, I couldn't put it down and thought it was great writing! I would absolutely recommend picking this book up and checking it out!

I loved everything about this. Everything. Bi representation, revenge, reality television dating. This book was so fun from start to finish and managed to make a wildly out-there premise seem completely believable and realistic. My only disappointment is that I can't watch the show for myself.

A massive thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for giving me an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I've been extremely excited to read NEVER EVER GETTING BACK TOGETHER since I first heard the premise, and it did not disappoint! Two years ago, Maya's boyfriend Jordy cheating on her with Skye. Now, she's being invited to a reality dating show to rekindle her romance with Jordy, and she takes the opportunity to get revenge by exposing the real him on national television. On the show, she meets Skye and the two team up to get revenge while also falling for each other.

Oh my god, this premise is sooo cute and the book lives up to it! It's also extremely funny - Maya's voice especially is hilarious, so many great one liners, such as:

"I pick up another, because pacing is for chimps and I am a chaos gremlin."
"To my delight, she seems to be showing him the respect he deserves: absolutely none, he's not fucking royalty."

I found myself actually laughing out loud so many times during this. I was hooked on the romance too, Maya and Skye are such a great couple with the perfect amount of tension. They start off hating each other (Maya thinks Skye knew Jordy was cheating), so it was a great enemies to lovers plotline. Overall I loved this, and I think it's going to become a booktok favorite!

I absolutely LOVED this book! The best revenge is truly finding happiness afterwards, and Maya sure does it! Watching the relationship between her and Skye bloom was so good. I loved their chemistry and their honesty at the end with each other.

This was alright! The romance was cute, both of the main characters felt well-rounded, and I liked that it was set on a reality dating show.
I wanted to like this more, because I've loved Sophie Gonzales' other books, but there were some things that didn't work for me. I didn't understand the Genovia-like, made-up country setting. I felt like we needed more information about Chalonne to connect with it. I also wanted the dating show parts to be more fun and twisty, but they were pretty straight-forward. Most of the supporting characters were also fairly one-dimensional, which was disappointing.
Overall, this was a cute, fun read with a sweet sapphic romance at the centre, but I was hoping for a little bit more!
Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for the e-ARC in exchange for an honest review!!

I enjoyed the book and watching the growth of Maya and Skye and the different challenges they had to face. The main trope of enemies to lovers is one of my favourites, but I felt like some of it was a little rushed. We seemed to skip from hate to love fairly quickly without much of the falling part! The concept was great (with the reality tv show), and I did love the representation in this book. I just felt like it fell a little flat! I also enjoyed the women backing women as the story went on and Jordy was fun to hate!

Overall, it was a fun little read but just had some missing pieces for me.

Thank you to Net Galley, Sophie Ramirez and Wednesday Books for giving me an opportunity to read this book early in exchange for an honest review!

**Thank you to NetGalley for gifting me a digital ARC of this novel, which releases on November 9th, 2022

Sophie Gonzales’ Never Ever Getting Back Together is a cute and hilarious enemies-to-lovers romance that stole my heart in mere minutes. This book is easily on my top three reads of 2022. No question, this deserves five glowing stars.

To begin with, I absolutely loved the plot. Gonzales takes two phenomenal female characters, uses a man to position them against each other, then flips the story so they fall for each other and take their ex down together. I mean, seriously.

Second of all, Sophie Gonzales knows how to write love lines!

——
“I kiss her back, and that energy builds up, thrumming from my throat to my fingertips until I feel like a dying star. Like I’m about to shatter into a thousand shards of light.”

“The contact of our skin sends lightning bolts down my arm, and my nervous system explodes with the energy.”

“The spark of bravery I couldn’t ignite earlier today is back. And with a word, it becomes a fireball.”
——

This book was quite literally a dream. I started it at the airport before I slept on the plane and in the morning I woke up and couldn’t wait to open it back up and finish it. I enjoyed the romance element of this book, but I really loved the friendships that blossomed between the women. Perrie is a queen, hands down. Her commitment to her relationship with Maya and the other girls over that with Jordy was top-tier best friendship. I thought Lauren was sweet and definitely the peacemaker in the house. Kim, despite her seemingly annoying persona early on, grew on me as she developed her sense of self-worth. And, of course, this wouldn’t be a review without the lowdown on my girls Skye and Maya. I loved both of these characters so much. The slow realization of how fast their love sparked was beautiful to watch unfold. However, as individuals, they both have very admirable qualities. My favorite Skye scene was when she refused to hear Jordy’s opinion about short hair and worked with Maya to give herself a pixie cut. Get it, girl! And, of course, Maya pulling through in the show’s finale with her bold declaration is truly unforgettable.

I could write many paragraphs about Jordy, but I’ll limit this to simply say that he is an easily dislikable villain and women deserve better than men like him.

Ultimately, this was an engaging, comical, and heartwarming novel. Sophie Gonzales certainly delivers a story that deserves to be a bestseller. For those who enjoy romance with a side of laughter, read this book as soon as you can!

1 Sentence Summary: When Maya gets offered a chance to go on a new reality TV show, Second Chance Romance, for a chance to rekindle a romance with her ex-boyfriend Jordy, she decides to do it just to get revenge on him for cheating on her, but when she arrives she finds out she has to share a room with Skye, the girl Jordy cheated on her with—she’s not happy about it, but as the girls start to get closer they form an alliance against Jordy, and a connection neither of them expected.

My Thoughts: This was awesome! Two girls uniting to take down their scumbag ex-boyfriend and falling in love along the way???? There was sooo much drama (in a good way)!

Maya & Skye’s relationship developed very naturally (no instalove, yes!) and was realistic and super cute.

Jordy was just ew. He made me so angry and I spent the entire book wanting to punch him in the face. I will not waste any more space in this review talking about how awful he is, but he was awful. The ending was supremely satisfying though (take that, Jordy, ha!).

I loved all of the contestants and how they banded together and the power of girls and friendship ugh yes!

Also, I laughed so much while reading this. It was so fun and entertaining and chaotic and everything you could want in a YA romcom.

Recommend to: fans of romance and reality TV

(Warnings: swearing)

As a queer person who watches the Bachelor franchise shows I feel like on some level this was written for me. Never Ever Getting Back Together does amazing in mixing together what makes shows like the bachelor compelling with a wlw romance. I was worried going in that the story would be too male centered for my own reading preferences however early on it becomes clear that is not the case here.

The main characters are likeable and getting both POVs was helpful to the plot. The romance was cute and fit this narrative well. It had a very new adult/young adult feeling and was breezy fun read. I finished it quickly, I think the plot following the reality show format made it easier to devour in one sitting.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you NetGalley for the eARC of this book! This wasn’t my exact flavor of bookworm food, but nonetheless I still enjoyed this story.

What I loved:
📚 the humor - seriously had me laughing like watching a good Netflix romcom
📚 the revenge 😂😂 revenge romances always crack me up without fail
📚 I love the Bachelor for the drama and this book delivered 🙌

What I wished for:
📚 getting to know side characters more, I know the purpose was to tell the main character’s story but I wanted to get to know so many other of the intriguing side peeps!
📚 more story development, overall it fell a little flat for me
📚 I wanted to connect with the main heroine more but it just wasn’t there

Like I said before, even though this wasn’t exactly the book for me, if you’re looking for an LGBTQ+ romance that will make you laugh, this book is for you!

Never Ever Getting Back Together is a charming and cute novel. Maya and Skye meet in a very unusual way - competing on a dating show trying to win the heart of their ex, Jordy, along with several other of Jordy's exes. While Skye joins the show hoping to re-ignite her relationship with Jordy, Maya has joined the show in order to shine the light on the true Jordy: a cheating boyfriend who lied and convinced everyone that Maya was crazy, manipulative, and unhinged. When Maya meets Skye, the woman Jordy cheated on her with, nothing goes as Maya planned.

Never Ever Getting Back Together is a delightful story where characters work together on their quest for revenge and along the way learn that even though it truly hurts, taking a leap and risking a hard fall is worth it every time. If you're looking for a light hearted romance story that has themes of women supporting women, then this is the one for you! I loved how when Maya finally convinced Skye and the other girls, they joined her plot for revenge and supported her throughout the entire experience. Instead of the typical girls tearing girls down to get a mans attention, the women in this book band together and have each other's back!

Please note: I did receive a free ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review :)

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I absolutely SPED through this! Something about books based on reality shows almost makes you feel like you're watching one. And the best part is that you don't have to wait for the next week's episode - you can binge the whole book in one or two days.

I enjoyed the idea of the revenge plot. The female relationships (both good and bad) were a lot of fun and the author did a great job of building rage upon rage against Jordy, who was the absolute worst. I liked Maya and Skye's characters, but felt we could have got to know them each on a deeper level. One thing I didn't realize before reading was how young they were. For some reason, I expected them to be closer to my age, not just going off to college. I think I would have liked it more if they were in their mid to late twenties, but I also appreciate a good YA novel every now and then!

Based on how much I enjoyed this reading experience and how quickly I devoured it, I rate this book 4/5. I'd recommend it to fans of One to Watch by Kate Stayman-London, as well as Dead Famous by Ben Elton, though that one is quite different!

Tired of having people believe her awful ex’s version of the ending of their relationship, Maya decides to expose the truth on national television. She agrees to join Jordy’s other exes on a second chance reality dating show where royalty-adjacent Jordy acts as the Bachelor. To make matters worse, Maya’s assigned roommate is none other than Skye, the woman Jordy cheated on her with. Skye and the other contestants must decide if they believe Jordy’s version of Maya, as unhinged and obsessed, or if Jordy is a liar and a cheater. Meanwhile, Maya discovers an intense attraction to Skye.

Enemies to lovers is one of my favorite tropes and it’s well executed here. The story is told in both Maya and Skye’s perspectives, which gives the reader insight on the women’s relationships with Jordy, their motivation for joining the show, and their love/hate relationship with each other. The reality dating show format with competitions and eliminations creates conflict while adding humorous elements, such as the cheesy host and the terrible promo booklet that declares “love is worthless.” Maya and Skye are both nicely developed and unique characters. Their relationship arc is rich and satisfying.

Isaac, the producer who is assigned as Maya and Skye’s handler, nearly steals the show, making him one of my favorite characters. Jordy, while clearly the villain, is less developed, but I loved to hate him. Having Maya figure out how to manipulate Jordy and having the women develop fierce friendships gave the story a fun, feminist feel.

When it comes to a romance, I adore a great epilogue, but unfortunately, that’s where the book fell a little short for me. All the threads are tied up nicely, yet I would have liked a stronger sense of a happily ever after. Perhaps the relatively young age of the contestants (late teens, early twenties) was a factor. The character’s ages meant that one of the exes had a middle school romance with Jordy (note this was age appropriate as Jordy was also in middle school at the time,) which felt a little like a stretch to fill contestant spots and was a touch cringy. On the other hand, the new adult age of the players kept the contestant pool to a realistic and manageable six.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Thanks to Wednesday Books, an imprint of St. Martin’s Publishing Group, for providing an Advance Reader Copy via NetGalley.

What a fun book to read. A reality show featuring royalty (sort of) and his past girlfriends in order to find the one that got away. Thrown in some scorned ex-girlfriends and you have yourself a show guaranteed to get ratings with all its drama. Jordy Miller is the worst hero ever!!!! I loved that through Skye and Maya you got to see him for who he truly is.

Maya is going for revenge. Jordy cheated on her and claimed they had broken up and she was a jealous, scorned ex-girlfriend with a bit of stalking problem. Skye is giving Jordy a second chance after he ghosted her but claimed he did just didn't get her texts. Skye is who Jordy cheated on Maya with. Now these two much room together in the mansion the network is putting the contestants up in. Cue the drama.....ratings through the roof!!

I loved the way this story evolved. I liked seeing both Maya and Skye's POV. This story had heart, romance and redemption.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press, Wednesday Books for the ARC of this ebook. All opinions expressed are my own.

Sigh. When this book became available I jumped on the chance to read it, because who can pass up the absolutely gem of a concept? Two reality show contestants fall for each other instead of the guy? Hard to walk away from that.

Overall, this book is very cute, but maybe it's just that I don't gel with Sophie's characters. This book definitely seems to want to be New Adult given the ages of the characters and the overall vibe, but the characters all seem quite young and immature for their ages, and frustrating at times. I didn't totally buy the way the story evolved, and while I did enjoy the central romance between Skye and Maya, I just couldn't hang onto any real emotional center to this book. One that felt worthy of the (albeit young) adults around which this book revolves. Perhaps after three of Sophie's books (with the wonderful exception of If This Gets Out, which I LOVED) this is my sign that this isn't going to be a match made in heaven for me. I know lots of folks love her books, and have loved this one, and I think that many folks will love this. It's certainly cute and the concept is brilliant. Just didn't work so much for me.

This is honestly one of the best books I have read in a long time. I read the full thing in about 5 hours with barely any breaks. The story drew me in and it was just impossible to put down! I loved how imperfect the characters were, and I love how human they felt. This book was incredible and so much fun to read.

Description: Maya broke up with her cheating ex Jordy two years ago, She still can't seem to escape him. His sister married royalty and by proxy, he is kind of famous now and literally everywhere. He's captured the hearts of the world and everyone thinks he's the sweetest most eligible young man. Maya knows better. She is absolutely shocked when she receives a call asking if she would like to go on a dating show in which Jordy re-dates his ex-girlfriends. It's a hard no, until she realizes she can use the opportunity for payback. One thing she didn;t take into consideration when she finally accepted, she would be living with the girl that Jordy cheated on her with...Skye. Unexpected chemistry and sparks fly between the two as they form an alliance to see this revenge plan through.

I was so excited for this one. I really thought the general idea and plot of the story was amazing. This was the first book I read that had a reality show as the backdrop, I mean we have so much reality tv out, how was this not already a thing?! I really wanted to like Maya, but she sometimes came off as annoying and just too hell bent on ruining this guy who honestly shouldn't even matter anymore. The relationship between Skye and Maya seemed forced. One minute they hated each other, the next they have thoughts the other is pretty, then they're in love? It was too much, too fast. The banter and comedy with them was very good. I just would have liked a bit more context. And also, more of what happened after the show wrapped. It was somewhat rushed in the end.
I still would recommend it because it was very funny and I liked a lot of moments in this story.


Thank you NetGalley, Sophie Gonzales, and Wednesday Books for this advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

Wow, this book was truly just what the doctor ordered after total and complete dystopia in the real world. When Maya goes onto a reality show with the intention of outing her ex as a sexist cheater, she gets more than she bargained for. Amazing peg-turner for fans of The Charm Offensive, The Bachelor, Love is Blind, or other reality dating shows. This book was so satisfying and was truly a salve!

The concept of this book is so fun and so good, following two women who both dated the same guy and now are appearing on a reality show to compete for his love - the only catch? One of them is only in it for revenge on the guy who cheated on her... with one of her fellow contestants. This concept is juicy and ripe for so much to happen, and while I liked the book, I didn't fully love it as much as I was hoping that I would.

My main quibble is that I wanted more of Skye and Maya falling for each other, which comes a little late in the book. A good portion of the first half is the two of them hating each other, which feels a little rough when the reader already knows that Maya is telling the truth about everything involving Jordy, while Skye is blissfully naive and tends to be really rough on Maya as a result.

But what I loved was both Skye and Maya fighting their own respective issues in order to come to a place where they can actually be with each other. If some of that gets shortchanged, like Maya's future plans being a very minor part of the book despite it feeling integral to her epilogue, it's easy to look over because of how much the journey of the two of them being together matters. I also really did like the other contestants, but again, I wish that there was less of the women turning on each other early on, especially when we lose some of them for being eliminated from the competition.

ARC provided by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I absolutely love every book I’ve written by Sophie Gonzales. This was a really good book, and I enjoyed it even more than I though I would. It was interesting getting a little look into the behind the scenes of a reality dating show. It didn’t go the way I thought it would, but that’s okay. Would definitely read a sequel to this just to revisit the characters..