Eh, this didn't end up working for me. Truly, this book felt like a bit of a drag. It was so incredibly slow moving and almost nothing happened in it at all. So I was quite bored while reading this. What didn't help though is that the romance was so poorly developed in my opinion. First of all we are constantly told that these two absolutely despised each other growing up, and the idea of them even getting along somewhat is unimaginable for the several side characters. However, we are never being shown that. Yeah, they weren't close growing up but from we got to see they got along just fine. They were also almost instantly in love with each other in this book. Like honestly, there was no developement of feelings. They were really into each other at the start, and they were just as into each other at the end. Except now they are actually together. So yeah, the romance wasn't great and that definitely didn't help the fact that the rest of the story was quite boring. I didn't completely hate this book though. I really liked the inclusion of mental health in this book, and the different discussions around that. I thought all of that was really well done in this book. So yeah, it gets a bonus star for that.

Big thanks to St. Martin's Press and Netgalley for this advanced copy!

Mazey Eddings has quickly become a must-read author and The Plus One, the third book in this series, is another win for her. I love these characters so much. Indira and Jude are so wonderful together, even though they both clearly have had substantial emotional trauma in their lives, their story of working together to work through it was so wonderful to read. I appreciated the depiction of therapy, mostly as a journey and not something that just automatically fixes everything. But their love is fantastic and hot and I love LOVED having the other characters from the series back.

This book was touching and funny and wonderful and I can't wait to read more from Eddings.

I thought that this book was adorable! I had heard such great things about Mazey Eddings, and this book did not disappoint.

Indira and Jude were so cute. I loved their playfulness with each other, and I loved how they just complimented each other perfectly. Indira was about to be emotionally stable and vulnerable for Jude, and he was able to be a fairly solid rock for Indira while she went through her break up.

I loved that everyone was rooting for them, and I found that I was, too.

Seriously I loved loved loved this book. Thank you so much for gifting me an ARC.

Mazey Eddings just has a way with words and characters. I've enjoyed every book she's written and The Plus One is not exception. This story is breezy, yet deep. I loved falling into a sweet and hilarious rom com story with the most thoughtful exploration into mental health. While this cover looks light and fluffy, I had tears in my eyes as I read about the two MCs and their bouts through various hardships in life. Well-done all around! I look forward to the next book she writes.

Thank you St. Martin's Press and Netgalley for the gifted copy.

I LOVED this book so much that I had to start a new list for "Books I must Reread". I really thought this was going to be another of your basic romcoms but it was soooo much more. The author does an amazing job of creating characters that you just can't help falling in love with. While the main focus of this book is the relationship between the main characters it is also about the relationship of the main characters with themselves,. You get the story in alternating views from the main characters and Eddings does a fantastic job of making you feel what they feel. This book delves so beautifully into mental health and how desperately we all need to be kind to ourselves before we can be there for others. This is a book I have a feeling I will be reading again and again.

The Plus One by Mazey Eddings was a beautiful read. It was unexpected compared to the rest of the series. There was a lot more depth to this book with the therapy talk and PTSD experiences. It is not your typical rom com but beautiful none the less. The characters are deep rooted and bring great substance to this book. I had tears and smiles throughout.

As usual if I see a book where there’s a fake wedding date, I know I’m going to love it. And then this is by Mazey, so yep I definitely did like it. This was actually my favorite of the three I think. I rated them all 4 stars, but for real for real, this one was my favorite lol

So first things first, I really liked the way the mental health aspect was done. It was a good depiction of PTSD and anxiety. It wasn’t one of those ones where the main character is suddenly healed. It was more like the main character is healing from this thing and the other main character is helping them. Those are the themes in mental health representation that works best for me. As someone with anxiety, I wasn’t healed when I met my husband, but I did feel highly blessed to have found someone who helps me overcome those anxious times and those panic attacks. This is exactly like what happened in the book. BUT I still think they got together too soon? I really think they should have given more time to healing themselves vs them being together so quickly. Does that make sense?

I also really liked the way Indira handled her situation. She was really a bad ass for not killing him. But then again, I think it would be really weird because of the peanut butter thing. Yeahhhhh It was weird. But I was proud to see Indira taking charge of her mental health by therapy. I did wish Jude had been more receptive. Especially since he had all the proof that it helped. But I did understand him not wanting to talk to her. I just wish he had talked to someone.

The romance between the two of them was really cute tho. Best part hands down was the day after Halloween. In true Mazey Eddings fashion I was laughing loud and long. But even though I liked watching them fall for each other, I liked seeing them together more. They had so much fun together and they were really into each other. It was refreshing to see. The spice was ok. I think I would put it at a 3. It wasn’t a huge part of the story because it started so late in the book, but once it started happening, it was happening frequently lol

Mazey’s writing style was what really sucked me in. Indira’s family and relationship issues and Jude’s past work experiences were tough to read, but I had to stick it out to see what happened to them in the end. Her work will do that to you. It’s emotional and might reduce you to tears, but there’s some comedic relief (i.e. the peanut butter thing lol) and a really super sweet romance to keep you invested. I know it said on Goodreads that there was was no more in this series, but I really have to say I need there to be more. Please be more. I need to know how these people are and how the one we didn’t get books on are doing too. This series was too fun to lose!

This book was unexpected compared to my experience with the rest of the series. It was way more rooted than the last and not as lighthearted as the first.

I loved the way it dealt with mental health and PTSD. And it had two of my favourite tropes, fake dating and enemies to lovers!

Over all a fun read and I'll recommend it to all my contemporary romance readers at the library!

It was great meeting you at apollycon. I have loved all of your books! You don't shy away from adding mental health issues and letting people who live with them know that they belong in the romance space as well.
Brother's best friend, banter, and chemistry.
Jude has been in Indira's life since they were kids but he has come back from his last medical humanitarian trip not the same. Loved planning for Collin and Jeremy's wedding. Indira's ex is in the wedding party so Jude steps up and becomes her fake dating arrangement. But then it becomes more as they realize that they feel safe with each other. This story was funny but was also dealing with some trauma before the relationship which is a healthy way to approach. Being honest and showing what that can look like is important.
I do love their joint project at the end because exactly as you said just because you can't see the wound doesn't mean it's not there. Mental health matters.

Thank you stmartinspress for the e-ARC for my honest and voluntary review.

Thank you for the opportunity to review this book! I really enjoyed the story as well as the characters!

After spending three years working as a surgeon in war-torn countries, Jude has briefly returned home for his best friend Collin’s wedding and is having trouble adjusting back to civilian life. Indira (whom we were briefly introduced to in A Brush with Love and Lizzie Blake’s Best Mistake) is a children’s psychiatrist who, after walking in on her boyfriend with another woman, decides to move in with her brother Collin and his fiancé… Unbeknownst to Indira, her childhood enemy Jude is also staying with Collin. Eventually Jude and Indira call it truths and decide to be each other’s fake dates during the wedding festivities; Jude needs Indira to help him deal with his PTSD and Indira needs a date to save face around her cheating ex, who is also in the wedding party. The more time Indira and Jude spend together, the harder it is to deny their growing feelings for each other.

The Plus One is the third installment of Mazey Eddings’ A Brush with Love trilogy, but can be read as a standalone. It’s a contemporary rom-com featuring the childhood enemies to lovers, forced proximity, and fake dating tropes whilst exploring themes such as mental health, love and heartbreak, marriage and divorce, trauma and war, family and found family, commitment, and abandonment. The Plus One is ideally suited for fans of books like The Charm Offensive by Alison Cochrun, Mr. Wrong Number by Lynn Painter, Count Your Lucky Stars by Alexandria Bellefleur, The Ex Talk by Rachel Lynn Solomon, Set On You by Amy Lea, Paris Daillencourt is About to Crumble by Alexis Hall, The Co-op by Tarah Dewitt, or The Singles Table by Sara Desai. Trigger warnings for The Plus One include PTSD, anxiety and depression, divorce and abandonment, and cheating.

First off, the cute childhood memories and connections that Eddings interwove into Jude and Indira’s love story were delightful and so was Jude and Indira’s funny and witty banter! I appreciated that, even though there were a fair number of events leading up to the wedding, the novel wasn’t overly focused on the wedding as due to the cover art and title, one might assume that most of the novel would be set at the wedding. Without spoiling anything, a highlight of the book was Jude and Indira’s Hallowe’en shenanigans and I really appreciated that Jude and Indira didn’t experience the stereotypical third act break-up.

Although all the therapy sessions and talk of mental health in The Plus One was refreshing and relevant, at times, I found it to be a bit much and some readers may find these scenes to be triggering or challenging to read. Other slight let-downs was hoping for the main characters from A Brush with Love and Lizzie Blake’s Best Mistake to appear a bit more and although it was necessary to the story, all of the contract negotiations and legalities (related to Jude’s humanitarian work) that were included at the end of the novel weren’t enjoyable.

Overall, I was a bit disappointed as I didn’t enjoy The Plus One as much as I did the first two books in the series, but if you like fake dating, forced proximity, and enemies to lovers, you should definitely check out The Plus One!

HOOOOOOH MY GOD. I loved this one SO MUCH. It was so incredible. I LOVE that she mixes serious mental health issues (in a non-performative way) with A LOT OF SPICE. It was VERY NICE. 🤌🏻

I NEED MORE. PLEASE. I COUNT DOWN TO THESE. GIVE ME MORE!

Super cute and sweet book - I love the fake dating trope, and this one did it well. Great read, I like this author a lot!

It pains me to give a Mazey Eddings book anything less than 5 stars, but I just didn’t love this one unfortunately. I think Indira & Jude were really great and I did enjoy their romance, but I think this one was just a little too (unexpectedly) heavy for me. I love seeing mental illness representation, but it’s definitely something I have to prepare myself for beforehand and I think I just wasn’t fully prepared for that heaviness all throughout the story and I feel like oftentimes it kind of overshadowed the romance aspect. Overall, it was an okay read, just not my favorite of the series. Thank you sm to SMP Romance & netgalley for providing me with an arc in exchange for an honest review!

The Plus One is the third installment of the A Brush With Love series. This book follows Indira and Jude, childhood enemies turned fake dating with a side of forced proximity. This was definitely my favorite in the series as it handles mental health topics with grace. As someone who suffers from anxiety and questioning her own self worth, reading about Indira’s journey was inspiring.

Thank you Mazey Eddings, St. Martin’s Press, St. Martin’s Griffin, and NetGalley for a digital arc of this book. It has easily become clary of my top ten books of 2023.

Indira and Jude had such a wonderful romance story. I loved that they had so much dislike for each other but as they reflected on their past they realized that they truly cared for each other all along. Both of them were able to be such safe spaces for each other and I loved that when Jude was going to shut down or pull back Indira wouldn't back down. There so many love stories that would have had a full break up session with the MMC figuring things out through reflection but I loved that these characters went through that questioning period of their relationship together. I really enjoyed all of the discussions surrounding therapy and how important that experience was for both main characters.
I can't wait to continue reading other books from Mazey Eddings!

“Memories of you are inevitable”

A super cute and well-executed romcom!

As Indira returns to her apartment to salvage her relationship, she finds her boyfriend with another woman. Upset and frustrated she decides to stay with her brother even though it’s only a few weeks before his wedding.

To her surprise, she finds Jude, her brother’s best friend, also at the apartment staying there until the wedding. Indira and Jude grew up together and always manage to get into each other’s nerves but there’s definitely a spark in there!

What I really liked about this book is how it handled mental health issues and how it avoided some of the common romcom themes that can be a bit annoying. It felt a bit long towards the end but I liked how things wrapped up and thoroughly enjoyed it!

“You can hurt and also be loved.
You can feel sadness and also laugh and feel joy. Good emotions can coexist with hard ones.
You can struggle and suffer and learn to heal while you also love. The best place to start is by giving yourself permission to feel with abandon. Feel everything.”

Oh my goodness. Mazey can do no wrong! Jude and Indira were everything. The spice had me weeping and fanning myself simultaneously, the hard topics were handled with so much care… I’m so grateful for Mazey, her stories, and the representation she puts out into the world!

The Plus One has all the tropes and feels I didn’t realize were going to be in the book. Going in I thought it was just a brother’s best friend, enemies to lovers, fake dating book, which it is but the focus on mental health brought another level to the book I wasn’t expecting.

Dira walks in on her ex cheating on her, so she packs up her cat and immediately goes to her brother’s house, where his best friend is of course staying with him leading up to the wedding. Jude, having been granted time off to attend his best friend’s wedding, is attempting to deal with extreme mental health issues and trying to hide all of that from everyone around him. The only one who can tell? His best friend’s little sister who he despises…or does he? When Dira realizes she’s going to have to see her ex at the upcoming wedding festivities, and realizing Jude needs someone to ground him from overstimulation, she suggests they fake a relationship in order to get through everything.

While this book is the third in a series it can be read as a standalone, which is what I inadvertently did. There’s heavy emphasis in mental health issues being dealt with by both main characters and the healing journey they both begin is interesting to read about.

Thank you St. Martin’s Press, Netgalley and Mazey Eddings for the ARC.

THE PLUS ONE, the newest installment in Mazey Eddings romance series, was unexpected in a great way. In the previous two books I haven't enjoyed Indira as a side character very much so I wasn't sure how I would feel about her own full-fledged novel, but I enjoyed her romantic arc almost as much as the last book. Mazey Eddings does lack some consistency to me as a romance author (first book was 2 star, second book was a 5 star, and here we are landing at 3.5 stars) but I do see so much potential for her. I love how she doesn't shy away from the gritty and the real in the inner lives of her characters.