I had high hopes for this book, the cover seemed cute and the synopsis drew me in. Unfortunately, it was kind of disappointing. Randi is a Type A, up tight, loner college student just trying to get through her party school until graduation. With limited options for housing, she moves into a party house and immediately clashes with her housemates. One is particularly violent, which I find disturbing. The night she moves in Randi meets Buck, an older graduate student living out of a mobile home parked in the pasture behind her house. Buck is immediately attracted to Randi, but Randi fights her attraction to Buck at every turn. My issue with this book: Randi goes from “I hate Buck” to “I like Buck” to “Get away from me, Buck” to “I love and want to marry Buck” in a weird, uncoordinated, disjointed turn of events. You read her feelings, but you don’t feel how her emotions change. There’s more focus on the drama with the partying housemates than Buck. Even when she’s in love, Randi comes off as a cold shrew. It’s unfortunate, because this storyline had potential. ⭐️⭐️

DNF @ 15%

I wouldn’t normally DNF so early on in a book but I am incredibly bored and unengaged. The writing is almost as if it has ebbs and flows of parts that are making sense and parts I have to re-read 4 times because someone just came out of a cottage and there’s a pasture but her aunt is there too for a bit and I’m just a bit confused?

The characters are also grating on me quite a bit. We’ve got 24 year olds acting like 12 year olds and that’s a no from me. The cover was very cute and is the main reason why I requested through NetGalley but unfortunately it’s not for me.

I was so excited to start this book. But I could not connect with the characters. It was a forced finished for me. I was very disappointed by the use of the “r” word. Personally offended honestly. I requested because the cover and the name. But this book is a no go for me.

This had such a cute setup and cover, but the actual book was pretty offensive. Relied on stereotypes and casual use of the "r" slur. I won't be posting a review on Goodreads or Amazon since I DNF'd by the half point.

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an e-arc. I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Had to DNF the book, thus I will not be giving feedback on this title.

Thank you to NetGalley for the eARC.

I'm DNFing. The main character is way too unlikable. Plus why is someone who is out of college always at college parties? The cover is so cute but the story seems to be lacking.

⭐️⭐️ I really wanted to love #buckupbuttercup but my gosh this fell so short for me. I pushed my way through since I got the copy from #netgalley 📚 I really disliked the brush off of assault that occurred and the main character Randi was the most unlovable character. The story was just lacking in making you invest in the characters and the story line it was following. I’m just so sad because I think this story had so much potential #bookstagram #bookreview

This was a surprisingly charmless and disenfranchising novel. The protagonists are unlikable and not even very realistic in their quirks. The story meanders from meanness to meanness and the main characters spend most of the book hating each other/everyone while being inexplicably secretly attracted to the other. It was a hard slog to get through.

Story: Hippie Randi just wants to put her head in the sand, do yoga, study and get through a grueling college schedule. Cowboy Buck is reeling from the end of a bad relationship and just wants to get through his school work while having a relaxing time at night with the frat girls. When Randi arrives at the school in Oregon, she ends up at what she thought was a quiet boarding house but is instead the big party frat house of the school. Buck, meanwhile, brings his trailer onto their property to save on rent. What ensues are mean girls, a lot of drinking and puking, Randi endlessly complaining about everything (including her best friend who lives in town), and Buck constantly being aroused by Randi in yoga pants.

The blurb of the book is nothing like what is inside. There is no 'fake girlfriend/boyfriend scenario'. Randi is an asocial oddball who is close to OCD about everything. Buck is laid back, likes to get laid, and spends most of the book saying "Darlin'" with a drawl. It's about as much a caricature of a cowboy as you can get. Add in a party girl with serious attitude who spends most of the book screaming profane insults, another girl who can't be bothered, and a friendly best friend who Randi spends most of the book wishing would go away - and you have the gist of the characters.

By the middle of the book, I was bored. Literally, it was complain, party, clean, party, whine, clean, whine, party and Buck doing nice things for a really unpleasant Randi. And honestly, I can't say I was cheering for Randi (or anyone else, for that matter) to hook up with the insouciant Buck anyway. He felt like an underdeveloped character - very cardboard and almost a manic pixie dreamboy of sorts.

I can't say I recommend this book. You'd have to be in a mean spirited mindset to really enjoy it. Forget about feel good romance between two characters you want to see together: with these two, you hope no one is stupid enough to ever date them. Reviewed from an advance reader copy provided by the publisher.

Thank you to NetGalley for the eARC.

Similar to other reviews I've read, this disappointed me. The "R" slur - no way. Not one I'd look to read or recommend again.

When the charming cowboy meets nerd specs girl, there is no shortcomings in banter and fun. Buck is the ever charming cowboy who vaults into a room and gets all the attention. Randy, who can reside inside library all day if she can. Unfortunate circumstances brings them together in sharing same yard living space. It is slow set romance, but it is not burn. It would have been much more good if the transition between POV is mentioned in titles, at times it's hard to catch upon who is currently sharing their view. Few nagging points made me feel this book is not for me. It was total slow at start, but the end is totally rushed, like it jumped from 10km/hr to 500km/hr in a fraction of second. I love happy endings, but rushing towards endings just don't do it. Maybe I'm not a country side romance person after all. The overall writing was good by the author.

This book was disappointing. I could tell what the author was trying to accomplish, but the book just didn't quite get there. The characters weren't very likeable and the author used the same lines over and over. I can't count how many times Buck leaned against something. It just wasn't well written. The ending did give me the feeling that I want when everything works out between the two love interests. That is the only reason that I'm giving 3 stars.

Up-tight college senior, Randi Becker, just needs a quiet, peaceful place to study and finish her triple degree in business, finance and marketing. She rents the perfect place online, and arrives to find out it’s the opposite: party house central. Buck Montgomery wants a break from the partying, bed hopping and drinking of the past year trying to mend his broken heart. He moves to the country and meets Randi. She’s exactly what he needs, he only has to prove it to her.

I enjoyed reading Buck Up, Buttercup, a light hearted, steamy rom com. The characters had some great arcs. Buck started out intriguing and interesting, but became creepy, juvenile and controlling, but by the end of the book, he was a stand up perfect guy for Randi. Randi started out mature and self aware and became needy and helpless, then finally the strong independent woman. This book pleasantly surprised me and I’m glad I read it!

This book was... bad. There was an extreme amount of slut shaming which was disappointing to read in 2022. I DNF at 20%

Thanks to NetGalley for this arc.

**Some spoilers**

I thought that I liked this book. I read it very quickly and found myself wanting Randi and Buck to be together instantly. However….. as soon as I finished reading the book I felt gross.
This book is full of college people in their 20’s who care about nothing but getting blackout drunk. When someone (Randi) comes in and truly wants to do well in school, she’s labeled as a weirdo. Everyone in this book is against her in some way, including her supposed best friend, her aunt (who manipulates her), and even Buck who always has an excuse for his behavior. Add to that the fact that lied to her throughout the entire story. TW: Derogatory names were used, attempted rape, death of family members, aggression under the influence, drugging.

This book had so much potential, and it fell so flat. The characters are unlikable, the writing style feels robotic, like you're being told something instead of seeing/experiencing it. Then, there's the whole "r word" thing, which quite honestly, we should be so far past as a society in 2022. All in all, this cover won me over, the book itself was definitely not a winning read. Won't recommend this, definitely has potential, but needs some major reworking before it's going to be where it has the potential to be.

I didn't care for this book from the beginning. The racism and use of the r word were unacceptable. I had such high hopes for this book but was very disappointed.

This book was so frustrating. I thought it started out great and loved the premise. But I was expecting it to be a laugh out loud rom-com and it just wasn’t that. I completely understood where Randi was coming from, taking on a massive workload and then being saddled with horrible roommates. And hey, throughout the entire book I found myself getting angry every time they pulled stuff, so I guess I did connect with Randi, though I also found myself getting angry at her for all the stuff she allowed everyone to get away with. She is supposed to be a smart, dedicated young woman and yet she only partially stood up for herself. And as for the romance angle, that made me even angrier because Buck was a jerk from the moment we met him and pretty much remained a jerk the entire way through. I just couldn’t understand what the heck she saw him especially given how he treated her. Everyone except for Randi seemed to be alcoholics and there is no other word to use to describe Buck other than toxic. And yet saying all that, I kept reading. There was just something about the story that kept pulling me back. Of course part of it I know was that I kept hoping there’d be some ah-ha moment and Buck would quit being a jerk, but honestly that just never happened. In a way this book is like the kind of horror movies where you find yourself yelling at the people on the screen. How can they not see what they are doing is wrong? And yet I still enjoy those kinds of movies and in a way I still kind of enjoyed this book, even if I did find it frustrating. Would I recommend it to others? I honestly have no idea how to answer that. I know I found it engaging enough that I never once considered not finishing it and is definitely a book I’ll remember, so I guess that’s something, but it was definitely not the fun loving rom-com I expected based on the blurb and the cover. I’d like to thank Water's Edge Publishing and NetGalley for allowing me to read and review an eARC of Buck-up, Buttercup.

https://www.amazon.com/review/RM8QMW1FWSIP2/ref=pe_1098610_137716200_cm_rv_eml_rv0_rv

I received a complimentary copy from the publisher and all opinions expressed are entirely my own.

This is an an opposites attract and enemies to lovers romance that follows Randi who has rented a room in a quiet little farm house full of other studious college goers. But alas it's not what it seems and to add to the drama is the cute cowboy Buck who moves out back. Its perfects for readers that love a lot of angst.

i disliked it the moment i started it. the mc was so annoying to me and the plot overall was annoying. felt like a bunch of teenagers in high school getting drunk 24/7 and partying instead of ADULTS in college.

buck didn't even feel like a love interest, and felt like to me a 'love interest' that everyone hates and reminded me of a book boy that i did not want to be reminded of when i read this book 😐. it may just be me but i hate when the love interest's drink a lot? it may just be me but i hate it so much and i did it trust buck whatsoever throughout the whole entire book.

*mentions of the r slur*

seriously? it's 2022 and we are still putting fucking slurs in books? it's so annoying. it was so pointless to put it in there and so unexpected. the whole entire book had that vibe that it didn't have the best vibes going for it but i just ignored it until i hit the fucking part it said a SLUR. seriously author, do. fucking. better. i bet any money you know exactly what you were doing.

i originally did applied for this book on netgalley because the blurb and cover was cute and seemed like a fun book to read but it was terrible. please, spare yourself and never read this book for your own good.

*thank you netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read this*

Buck up buttercup

Thank you for my free copy of this book.

I was first drawn to this book because of the cover, it’s cute, fun and colourful and looked like the type of books I’m usually drawn to and read.

The writing style of this book was good, however I did not enjoy this book as its content was problematic. For a book released so recently, I was not expecting slut-shaming, sexual assault being discussed in a flippant manner and the stereotypical women bashing especially between the female characters. It’s 2022, we need to do better. Unfortunately this is something I was not able to ignore when reading the book. I wanted this book to be better and I was unfortunately disappointed.