Ana Karina, a second-generation Cuban-American from New Jersey and now in her thirties, works for a large New York company that produces dozens of reality shows and documentaries for TV, and for the past eight years she’s been the producer of "Marry Me, You Fool!", a reasonably successful weekly show about highly original marriage proposals. Not dating, not weddings, just the proposals. To Ana, it’s all about optimism and hope. Most recently, however, her set-up of a proposal involving a Central Park fountain, a children’s choir, a flock of trained swans, and a tenor, went south when the guy went down on one knee and the girl who insisted she loved him fled in terror. So much for that budget and now Ana’s worried that she might get sacked.

Ironically, of course, Ana herself hasn’t been in a relationship since her boyfriend in college years ago, who turned out to be a jerk. But she still can’t stop thinking about him. Her best friend since their college days is Gia, who was born in Brazil, and is gorgeous, smart, and also in media, and who seems to get whatever she wants. (The longest she has ever been without a devoted boyfriend is twelve minutes.) Right now, Gia’s busy planning her wedding to Matt, a millionaire entrepreneur. Or, rather, Ana’s doing all the planning, which is taking almost as much of her waking hours as her paying job. But the bonus is Landon Wright, Matt’s own best friend (and Best Man), and Ana has had a major crush on him since the first time she saw his photo. But then there’s that electrician working on her sets who has asked her out and who is more than a decade her junior. And also the older artist Gia is trying to set her up with and who is more than a little creepy.

It’s not-bad rom-com, partly because the author herself is a Cuban-American with fifteen years’ experience in producing TV shows about love and relationships, so one may assume she knows what she’s talking about in terms of the background and setting. The book tries a bit too hard in places, but that’s a common fault of debut novels. As a first effort, this one is definitely worth your time.

I loved this book SO MUCH! It had me laughing right from the start. Sure, Ana was an immature MC but that seems to be the trend in new romance lately. I think it was done well. As for dating more than one guy at a time, at least she was putting herself out there and it was probably a lot more real than many would like to admit. I also think super sweet best friends have been done to death.

This story was right up my alley of interest with me being a huge fan of the TV series Unreal. I would love to see more from this author! 4.5/5 Stars

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
Thank you to NetGalley and Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for this ARC.

I have mixed feelings about the story. While I liked Ana’s growth and her willingness to take chances, I didn’t love her personality, her relationship with Gia, or the abrupt ending. I think for most of the characters, I wanted more development so I could understand their motivations and perspectives.

Ana is an interesting character. Picky and snarky, she is a bit self-centered and a very career oriented at the start of the book. I didn’t think she was super likable initially. She’s a little judgmental and really snarky, and I had a hard time connecting with her.

Ana’s best friend Gia is not the most likable either, and I kind of wondered why they were friends. There seem to be some unresolved issues going on, and they are never really addressed. On top of that, Gia is just not nice. She does a lot of inappropriate things that betrayed her fiancee, and I just didn’t get it.

Ana has a great career and is super motivated (and an awesome list-maker), but she feels like she’s missing something. She starts to say yes more and takes chances she wouldn’t have before, which results in some interesting experiences. I think Ana learns a lot about herself and what she wants in life as she dates men who don’t quite meet her criteria on the course to finding a deeper and more meaningful romantic relationship. I wish the romance were explored more because it has so much potential. Unfortunately, the story fell flat for me. Thanks to NetGalley and Forever Publishing for providing me with a copy of the book. All thoughts are my own.

Cute cover, cute premise, and a light, easy read. Ana was a fun MC and I enjoyed the voice of the novel. I'd definitely look for more from this author in the future.

Thanks to Forever for providing a copy of this book to read through Netgalley in exchange for a review.

FIrst off: this cover is 5 stars!

The story was cute, but oh good lord it dragged on for me. I don't think anything really got going until around the 70% mark and that's just too long for me!!

ALl in all, a cute and sweet story, but one where I never fully connected with the main characters.

This one ended up being a miss for me. I felt like I was watching a plane crash and I just had to sit by as it fell. The parts of the book that worked were few and far in between. I just wasn’t having fun while reading it. If it hadn’t been an ARC, I probably would have DNFed it unfortunately.

I LOVE a book about a TV show, so I knew going in that this was going to be a fun read for me.

Of course, I very much enjoyed the book. The somewhat chaotic plot moved quickly and it was easy to root for Ana and all of her antics. At times, she did seem a bit immature, but I think that can be true of anyone going through a stressful time.

Overall, I really enjoyed the book and thought it was an impressive debut. Thank you forever for the advanced copy!

I finished ANA TAKES MANHATTAN just a couple of hours ago and I’m conflicted.

I think I liked it? I also think I probably wouldn’t recommend it to others.

⭐️ rating: 3.5 STARS ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
📖 genre: romance? woman’s fiction?
🔥 steam: closed door, weird fetishes mentioned

Let’s start with the things I liked:
✨ The character of Ana was funny. You could see she was a perfectionist and dedicated to her friends and career.
✨ I loved the frequent use of lists in the book! It gave a different kind of insight into Ana.
✨ The moments we did get to see between Ana & Richard were fun and definitely flirted with being “enemies-to-lovers.”
✨ It was interesting to see Ana try to date multiple men at once.
✨ It was for sure laugh-out-loud funny.

Things that didn’t quite work for me:
✨ It took about 40-50% of the book for me to actually figure out the plot. So I enjoyed the second half more than tue first.
✨ A lot of the characters were so one dimensional. Even Ana was a tough nut to crack - but she had a “revelation” at the end which gave her some depth.
✨ There we’re so many characters and plot lines that you didn’t really feel yourself get invested in any of the characters.
✨ Gia. That’s it.

That all being said - I enjoyed the writing style & the overall story was one that I liked seeing! You don’t often see books about just dating multiple men without it turning into an orgy or just a lot of open door scenes.

I’d read another book by Decos!

I saw a lot of reviews saying the characters were immature and I didn't feel the same. I actually really enjoyed this book! It was a pretty quick, easy read. A lighthearted romance!

There's a good sense of humor in the writing and I found myself laughing out loud numerous times! I also found myself rooting for Ana despite her being a mess.

The only thing that irked me is it felt like EVERYONE was cheating/sneaking around on their significant other. I also found myself slightly annoyed with Gia for like 80% of the book. 🙃

had absolutely no expectations going into this book and I was so happily surprised by the end of it. Loved the build up, the fact that who she was going to end up wasn't completely obvious, and the behind the scenes of the show are fabulous. I enjoyed the character of Ana, how determined she was and how nothing in her happily ever after in this book meant compromising her standards or her path.

Ana Takes Manhattan is the very best kind of reality tv chaos. Ana's own life is a bit all over the place, and her love life is admittedly a train wreck, despite being responsible for filming a television show about proposal and marriage. Throughout the book, Ana learns more and more about herself, lets go of her list (a la Mr. Malcolm's List), and finally appreciates her true value and worth. The scene with her dad and the chandelier made me cry big ugly tears in the best way. 💛 Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the free advance copy.

I really enjoyed the overall premise of this novel. The reality tv aspect was fun and something I feel like you don't see too often in a book. At the beginning of the novel, I thought I knew where this was headed. The girl meets several guys, goes out with them, finds the right guy is actually standing right in front her. For the most part, my gut was spot on. I do think the execution of the book could have been done a little differently. The book felt choppy to me. Timelines went rogue and entire chunks of time just went missing. I also felt like there were multiple themes of the book that fought to take priority. On the one hand you had the "lists", on the other you had Gia. Then you had Ana's tv show and her dating escapades. While they all worked together in the story, it seemed that they all tried to take over as the major theme of the book. It's like while I was reading, I would have to constantly ask myself is the point of this book her dating, her lists, or her dates? All this to say, I just felt like the book didn't flow well together. It has the potential to be wonderful. I found myself laughing so hard and times and I most definitely was cheering for Richard to grab her attention. I would just maybe like to see one or two themes removed. Maybe not focus on the lists or even Gias big wedding. It was all just too much clumped together.

Thank you so much for the opportunity to read this novel!

Thank you Read Forever for providing me with an ARC.

Ana is single and her best friend Gia is getting married to the perfect man who covers off Gia's wish list. Ana hasn't dated much since she and Sam broke up. Ana is a producer for a reality tv show that covers marriage proposals. She helps people set up the perfect proposal as they are featured on the TV show. The show Ana works on is very popular and has been a great success. It's probably the perfect time for Ana to start going out dating and having fun.

This was a cute romcom that focuses on Ana's dating life and work life. Ana is quite independent and has been living on her own for a while and she's still getting over the trauma of having lost her mother. Her father has remarried and she's happy for him but she's not particularly fond of his new wife. Her relationship with her step mom is pleasant but not close.

I enjoyed the book and it was a great light read before bedtime. It kept my attention as I read it and would certainly read another book by her again. There would be certain friends I know who would enjoy reading this book. I would rate this book a 3.5.

So, I really enjoyed the first scene where we see Ana at work. When everything goes down I was intrigued and wanted to see how the situation was resolved. Then we meet her BF and I was not a fan. Things went downhill after that. Their friendship felt one sided and made me question Ana’s judgment. The plot moved along slowly and I had a hard time remaining interested. I would still suggest others read it because the story is well written and they might like it. I just wasn’t into it. 2.5 rounded up to 3 stars.

Thanks to NetGalley and the Publisher for the ARC.

Ana produces a reality tv show featuring perfect proposals but her own love life is far from perfect and she can't find Mr. Right. But she has a plan, and a list, and maybe Mr. Right isn't just one man. Meanwhile, she has to help plan her best friends wedding and figure out a way to save her career.

Ana is a woman that likes to make lists for everything in her life, trying to keep things organized. But can her list of expectations in a man be what is keeping her from finding true happiness? While she is a reality tv producer helping others with their happily ever after, she can't seem to find the man of her dreams.

I enjoyed the work aspects and the sense of humor that the narration brought, but there were a few things that bugged me mainly the best friend whose personality rubbed me the wrong way. Ana going from no men in her life to suddenly having multiple that she is interested was also a bit of a turn, but at times worked for me.

The book was a little slow to pick up into the romance, but once it got there it was worth it and saved the book for me, even if it was a little predictable. This was definitely worth the read.

I'm not quite sure how to rate this book. I think a 3 1/2 will do but rounded up because I did finish it!

I agree with several other reviewers that the characters seemed to be very immature (I believe that they were almost all supposed to be in their 30's, but I am not sure if it was ever pointed out),

Ana is a reality Tv producer who has been on the slow track to fame and has also been screwed by love. Ana has this habit of making lists for everything and be prepared for them every few pages. This one list is supposed to help her find a man - "Open‑toed sandals? Gross. Mr. Casual. No, thanks. Barcode tattoo? Cut!"

Of course, the men (yes, that's correct), she has four men on the string now that she is seriously looking, and none of them flip her switch except for the ex that messed her up. I'm not going to tell you whcihch ne she ended up with, but you'll figure it out because it is a well-used trope.
So many of the characters were immature, selfish, and very annoying-at least, that is how I saw them.

I did enjoy this book enough to finish it. It is a fast read that would be perfect for the beach.

*ARC supplied by the publisher Forever, NetGalley, and the author.

Ana Takes Manhattan by Lissette Decos

Pub Date: 28 Feb 2023



When I first started to read this it took a while to grab my attention. But once I was hooked I didn’t want to stop reading.🪝

I liked the FMC Ana and loved how funny the writing was when it came to describing the men that Ana was dealing with in her dating life. I found my self trying not to laughing at 3 am while my husband was fast asleep. 🤣

I didn’t like how Ana’s best friend seemed more like a frenemy than a bestie. Her and her boyfriend seemed keened on pushing Ana to date a certain guy for them to get something in return. That was a red flag 🚩and turn off for me.

I expected some spice but there was none at all so if you’re the type of person that likes to read romance with no spice this is a great choice. You get a bit of romance but I feel like it was somewhat PG . 🚫🌶

Overall I give this ⭐️⭐️⭐️ stars and would recommend it to someone that’s looking for a quick romance read with no spice but hilarious moments.

Ana is a reality show producer who really doesn't click with the guy who she has to work with to wrap up an episode. Hijinks ensue! I enjoyed this cute story. The reality show aspect was especially fun. Thanks to the publisher for the ARC.

Discovering and being true oneself, and finding the love you deserve where you least expect it

Ana is a producer on a Reality TV show where couples propose to their love ones in extravagant and unexpected ways. Although she is surrounded by love at work she can't seem to find it for herself. She has lists with who her perfect man is and everything he isn't and is holding out for Mr. Right. When her best friend who is soon to be married convinces her to just put herself out there and maybe be surprised, she ends up dating a few guys who are all wrong for her. She learns a lot, makes a few changes and maybe figures out that her guy has been there all along she just didn't realize it.

There are very few things about this book that worked for me, and while it was mildly entertaining, it felt more like a train wreck you cannot look away from, or in this case put down. The characters were all very immature and awful for the most part, there is also way too much infidelity for my liking. It was cliche and cringy in many places, and overall there was not enough humour, chemistry, and overall fun. I really wanted to enjoy myself, I love reality tv, and latinx women being unapologetically themselves and finding love, but this one was a huge miss for me.