3.5 ⭐️
this book was such a fun and cute read, I love a small town romance and characters being in their 40s was a nice change from the typical age groups in romance books
if you love Mariana zapata books this one has a similar vibes to them
my only issue is that it was a bit slow in some parts

This was just an okay book for me. I felt it was much too slow. I also didn't buy the romance between the characters.

I went in blind to this book I've never read anything by this author or publisher, but I was attracted to the cover, and I was pleasantly surprised it was a cute, fun and easy book about two people who think that love might not be in the cards anymore.
I enjoyed the tension and chemistry between the main characters and also really liked the BoB plot, only two things I would change is that he was her sister's husband I wish he would have been a best friend's husband and the pacing at the beginning but overall a really enjoyable book!

*Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review*

I loved this small town, enemies to lovers romance perfect for fans of Staci Hart's Blum Sister's series! I'm a sucker for a good rivals to lovers romance and this one checked all the boxes for me. Much thanks to NetGalley and the author for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review!

It was a super quick read and fun and the characters were fun also it's in the dual pov that kinda just goes between the characters not in chapters but within the chapters

It's a good book but i feel like the author tried too hard to push the idea of a complicated relationship. The romance and the chemistry between the character are good, and their backstory sort of works. This book had so much potential and i would've loved it if the author explored other routes but the book still is good.

I'm sorry but this is just weird for me? I don't know, the pairing doesn't really sit well with me especially the fact that there's no chemistry at all.

Aside from that, the plot wasn't really convincing at all 🙃.


*thank you netgalley and the publisher for the e-arc*

This was a great romance novel, with characters I really liked! Overall, I would definitely recommend trying this book!

I received an e-ARC from the publisher.

3.5/4

Nick has moved back home to run the family business after his dad retires. His ex-wife's younger sister is living next door. Both are hoping to obtain a piece of land that will be determined through a bet.

I wasn't sure about this book at first. Nick is Melanie's ex brother-in-law and that is the part of the story I didn't care for. Personal preference. It wasn't that it was written weird, but the idea just isn't for me. The couple has been divorced for enough time that it shouldn't matter. Outside of that I enjoyed this book.I like the author's writing style. The story is well written, the characters are likable. It is set in a small town so this has community support and rumor mills.

Overall this is cute, lighthearted story. I would read another book by this author.

Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.

I received this book in exchange for an honest review. ARC provided by Entangled Publishing.

What’s the fun when you don’t bet to win? Single mom Melanie Hayes should absolutely, completely, and totally not be attracted to her next door neighbor. Nick Campagna can be her friend, her secret crush, or just the arrogant jerk next door, but nothing more. Even though it was a million years ago, he’s also her sister’s ex, and now, with Lakeside’s Battle of the Businesses in full swing, Nick’s also Melanie’s competition.

Their families have always been competitive, so it’s no surprise to anyone that Nick and Melanie are playing for more than just bragging rights. With a coveted piece of land on the line, Nick isn’t backing down. They’ve known each other long enough that it’s definitely not love at first sight. But attraction can happen in an instant, and this is one wager where winning is nowhere near as fun as playing the game.

I was so excited to read this after reading the synopsis, however I was expecting more out of this. The pacing started off so slow and there were far too many side characters to really develop depth. Melanie and Nick are in their 40s but read like teenagers. There is a lack of maturity in both the way they speak and act. Melanie acts like a whiny teenager with her family. I wish that there was more chemistry between Melanie and Nick. I liked the inclusion of having romantic characters that weren’t in their 20’s but unfortunately these ones didn’t work for me. The Battle of the businesses storyline also seemed juvenile and unrealistic. The Battle of the Businesses games didn't end up being very fun and the activities were so brushed over that it was obvious it simply existed so there would be some underlying plot to drive the characters together and the story onward. This book unfortunately wasn't for me or a lot of different reasons but mostly, I just couldn't connect to the characters and didn't care about them or their romance.

I'm going to start by saying this cover/title combo is *chef's kiss* perfect! I love the bright purple, the fun cover art and the clever name. Unfortunately, that s kinda all I liked in this book. I will admit that I've recently read a few 40+ romances and as a 27 year old I'm feeling slightly burnt out from trying to relate. So yes, this book got off on a disadvantage from the start with me. But I'm able to stretch my imagination when needed. What I couldn't imagine is a relationship actually working or lasting with these two. I think they just needed to hook up and then get over it. I never felt am actual connection between them and so would've loved to see a relationship built. You could've had them reconnecting as meighbkrs instead of extinction laws and getting to know each other as friends first. While this is fiction and things don't need to be realistic, I would like them to be believable.

I liked this one more than I expected, especially after finding out it was the second in the series. Luckily it can be read as a standalone and it didn't take me long to catch up on who was who in Lakeside. My favorite parts of the story were that I liked the age gap and that Melanie was a single mom. I didn't feel a lot of chemistry at first between Nick and Melanie but it just built very slowly. Overall, 3.5 out of 5 stars.

I was not able to finish this book. I did not get to connect with the main characters enough which is a bummer! I don’t like how quickly the confession of attraction was in chapter 2 and would have liked a bit more of a slow burn. The storyline did not really grab my attention as I was hoping. It was pretty slow paced with unnecessary side storylines in my opinion. I also felt like there were way too many side characters to keep track of! I wish I liked it because the description made me excited but I just could not get in to it.

My second by this author and I liked the first one so was eager to get on with this.

Older couple, ex brother in law (forbidden) romance - I was curious. Not Seeking Mr. Right had an age gap romance which was written very well and I was looking forward to reading this.

I felt this was a well written story (in spite of me taking longer than usual - so I can't say unputdownable), with interesting characters. Typical small town romance.

Melanie and Nick - were good, but at times I felt maybe they could have exhibited some maturity. (Being in my mid 30s, I do behave like a teenager at times which my 7 year old tolerates 😅 but I do put on my adult shoes at times). Apart from this, I did have some 'this would have been good to have' add-ons in my mind (including an epilogue - am a sucker for HEAs, epilogues and extended epilogues 😁) but those are trivial.

Overall, a good read.

I made it about 40% before marking this book as " did not finish"
I really wish this would've been in a dual pov instead of a third person it would've been so much better but I just couldn't get into.

This one was cute and fun! I loved the small town and the age of the characters. I loved the competition aspect. This book was well written and funny. It could be a little bit slow at times but not enough for me to stop reading. I’m definitely interested in more Natasha Moore books. Huge thanks to Entangled and Netgalley for allowing me to read and review this book!

Happy pub day to this super fun read! "Not Betting on Forever" by Natasha Moore is the second book in "The Single Ladies of Lakeside” series. The novel follows single mom, Melanie, and her not-so new next-door neighbor, Nick. Melanie and Nick are crazy into each other from the minute he moves in, but they have too much history. Their story is full of twists, turns, and betting on everything under the sun. This makes for a quick read but I wish their story was a bit longer! I hope to see more of them in the next books in the series!

Thank you NetGalley and Entangled Pub for the arc, it is greatly appreciated!

Unfortunately, Not Betting on Forever fell flat for me. I didn’t feel like Mel and Nick had any chemistry outside of sex, and even that was a bit cringe for me. The pacing was also beyond slow, and I struggled hard to connect with their story.

I had really high hopes for Not Betting On Forever but unfortunately for me, this book didn’t work on a lot of levels. I know many people will have issues with the fact the hero used to be married to the heroine’s sister but it was like two decades ago so that didn’t bother me. What did bother me was this late forties guy and middle forties woman acting like teenager/young college age kids. I had a hard time getting past their immaturity. I am a huge lover and promoter of seasoned/mature romance, but I feel if you are writing characters in their 40’s they should be mature enough to not act like teenagers.
Melanie is not happy that Nick has moved back to Lakeside to take over his family’s gym with his father retiring. As a teen she had a huge crush on Nick and spent a lot of time thinking about him, watching him in his room from the tree on a neighbor’s property, and even spending time with him when he was dating her older sister. She’s supposed to hate him because of their divorce but being that she never got along with her sister and he was her crush she’s never been able to truly hate Nick. Having him move next door is a problem, also a problem the way her body lights up when he’s around. Nick knows he must fight his growing attraction to Shelly, it wouldn’t be right to start anything with her give she’s his ex- sister in law but there’s just something about the way she makes him feel that has time thinking about pursing her.
It’s really difficult to enjoy a book when you don’t really like either of the main characters. They were okay but their actions just kept me from really caring if they got together or what happened as a result. Everything about this story felt convoluted and contrived and I had a hard time sticking with it to the end. Even the Battle of the Businesses felt “off” like what was the point because a food drive or a silent auction could have had the same results and not left business short-handed or have to close on four weekends just to participate, it just flat out didn’t make sense.
Again as with the first book in this series, I need to actually see the couple working on a relationship not sneaking around, not having a short “fling” only for them to jump to the I Love You stage. Having sex and rehashing relationship problems from your past is not working on a relationship. There just wasn’t any dept, no communication, someone “outing” your relationship, and then of course we have to throw in drama from the past.
It pains me that this book just didn’t work for me, but in order for a seasoned romance to work, the characters need to show some maturity in their relationship and that didn’t happen. I get the excitement of being with someone new, but a relationship is about more than lust and when all you have is se*y times and poor communication skills that’s not a relationship.

thank you to NetGalley for providing this advanced reader copy. all thoughts and opinions are my own.

this book has several tropes that i could get behind, which is why i initially requested to review this book. small town, rivalry, next door neighbor, all the things. i’m not typically one to go for stories where the MCs are older, and because of that, i felt that for myself, it was hard to connect to them. if you love single mom tropes, this is for you! but one thing i couldn’t get behind: her sister’s ex-husband. i don’t know, everything about that screamed “nope!” to me. i wanted to enjoy this book, but it was slow-paced and for it to be about people in their 40s, it was very cheesy and the character weren’t entirely likable. overall, not my favorite read but i would be willing to give the author another chance at another book sometime.