4 and a half stars!

“The sun rose in the east. Set in the west. Indira annoyed Jude. Jude annoyed her back”.

Childhood nemesis’s, Jude and Indira, despise each other…or do they? The two decide to fake date to help each other get past their individual hardships and endure the approaching wedding of her brother and Jude’s best friend, Colin. All starts well, but then the lines start to blur between what’s fake and what’s real.

Indira is a therapist. You would think she has it together. Not so. Cheated on and dumped by her live in boyfriend and now crashing at her brother Collin’s to get by.

Jude. A broken hero who was effected from his humanitarian work as a Surgeon has left him with deep emotional scars. Now back home for his best friends wedding and struggling to adjust to ‘normal’ life again.

This was an amazing story about two people realizing that their emotional struggles, trauma, and short comings do not detract from their personal self worth. Learning to let go of what doesn’t serve you. It was touching and heartbreaking at times, but also a wonderful romance. I could not put this one down. I love when a book is all encompassing.

What I loved:
▪️All my favorite tropes in one book and done so well!
▪️Indira. I loved her snarkiness (is that even a word?) 😂
▪️Jude. I’m a complete sucker for the broken hero story line.
▪️The writing: I love all of Mazey Edding’s books, and this was no exception!
▪️The banter between Jude and Indira. They were so cute together and had me giggling out loud!
▪️The angst and build up between them.
▪️The ending, it wrapped up well and the epilogue made me smile and feel so happy inside.

All of it was so very good! I highly recommend this one. It’s very emotional so be prepared. Don’t sleep on this one. Thank you to @netgalley for this #arc in exchange for my honest opinion!

I think this is almost a perfect romance book. I like the relationship & chemistry between Indira and Jude. I loved the silly and playful banter. I liked that they were communicative and that their problems were big and real and not anyone's fault. This really would have been a 4.5-5 star romance for me. Except. Except for the extremely detailed sex scenes. I'm not super into spice, I prefer a clean romance or at least a "and then they fell into bed" type deal. Build it up and then let me use my imagination as I see fit. The sex scenes were super detailed and that just didn't work for me. Also. C*nt. Like. Can we not. I gagged over "sweet, wet c*nt". That's just. Not It. Some things are better left to the imagination. If the intimate scenes has been more allusive, I probably would have full on loved this one. This probably works for a lot of people, just not for me. 3.5, rounded up

I just want to shout from the rooftops how much I love, adore, can’t get my hands on quick enough (fill in any other adjectives for I NEED IT NOW) any book by Mazey Eddings, and she’s absolutely done it again with The Plus One. I’m not going to bore you with a synopsis – you can look that up all on your own, but I will say I absolutely love Indira and Jude and this book. I just want to wrap them both up in a warm hug and never let them go. This book has it all and I mean Mazey gave us all the things – fake dating, enemies to lovers, brother’s best friend, forced proximity – all the quintessential tropes in one book and guess what?!? NO THIRD ACT BREAK-UP! Thank you thank you thank you!

In all seriousness, she has taken a very heavy topic by tackling the struggles of mental health and written beautifully flawed and relatable characters with Indira and Jude. Even with the topic of mental health and struggles being a huge aspect of this book, it’s also filled with so much joy and love and hope.

If you can’t already tell from all the shouting from above, you must read this book and you should do it now. And while you’re at it pick up her others because you can’t go wrong with anything written by Mazey Eddings.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book provided to me through NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Thank you to Mazey Eddings and St. Martin’s Press for giving me the opportunity to read this book for a fair and honest review!

The Plus One by Mazey Eddings
Rating: ★ ★ ★
Genre: contemporary romance
Format: ebook
Length: 320 pages
Trigger Warnings: mental illness, panic attacks, medical trauma, abandonment

✨Read this book if you enjoy✨
fake dating
Enemies to lovers
Mental health rep
Brother’s best friend


Thank you to Netgalley, St. Martin’s Press, and Mazey Eddings for an e-arc of this book in exchange for my honest thoughts.

Coming home to find your boyfriend cheating on you should be bad enough, but it just so happens that Indira’s now ex-boyfriend is also part of her brother’s upcoming wedding. Insert Jude, Indira’s childhood nemesis and brother’s best friend. Indira and Jude decide to pretend to be each other’s date to make it through this wedding.

Please be aware that although this book seems to be a typical romcom, Mazey Eddings books discuss heavy topics. The author does a great job of listing triggers in the book, but please do your research.

There were so many moments that I really loved in this book but I’m worried they might be considered spoilers so I’m going to be purposely vague. I loved all the comforting moments throughout this book. I also really loved that Indira was a psychologist who didn’t have everything figured out. Just because people help others who are struggling doesn’t mean that they don’t struggle too.

Personally, I wish that this book was more of a slow burn, I felt that Jude and Indira got together way too quickly. Even though I really appreciate all the mental illness rep throughout this book, I also felt like it was a little too heavy for what I was expecting. But I will say that I think Mazey Eddings always does a great job with the mental illness rep. I just personally wanted something lighter, problems of a mood reader.

The Plus One by Mazey Eddings
A Brush With Love series #3. Contemporary romance. Can be read as a stand-alone. 5e epilogue does wrap up all three relationships of the series.
Indira was the pesky little sister of Jude’s best friend and neither liked the other. When Indira walks in on her boyfriend being unfaithful, she moves in with her brother at the same time Jude is staying there as well. Wedding prep is keeping the circle of friends busy so Indira and Jude end up faking a relationship. Fake, real, who can say what goes on behind closed doors?

🎧 I listened to an audiobook version alternating with an Ebook. The narration was done by Imani Jade Powers and Joe Arden. I like that the series was all different narrators so listening doesn’t get the stories and characters mixed up. The narrators compliment each other very well while each takes their gender POV. Both gave amazing performances on the stress of PTSD, the overwhelming sounds of everyday and, of course, the passion they eventually felt for each other. For me, the audio gave the characters life and a specific “look” that I don’t generally find with an ebook.
I listened to the audio at 1.5.

There are trigger warnings mentioned in the beginning of the book which was helpful to understand the depth of Jude’s detachment. I admired Indira for her support and stance to Jude. Yes, she had training but her words are heartfelt.

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley and Macmillan Audio.

I loved this book! Thank you to netgalley and to the publisher for this advanced copy! I’m back and forth between 4.5 stars and 5 stars but I’ll mark it as 5. I’ll be promptly reviewing this on all my socials because I need everyone to know how awesome this book is! I really really enjoyed the mental health representations in this book and they felt really honest and accurate (based on my experiences and those of others close to me). I think mental health discussions are so important especially in books and I don’t think I see it talked about nearly enough in the romance genre. I also really appreciated the message that you don’t have to be “fixed” or “healed” from all your trauma to be worthy of love and to love others. I couldn’t agree with this sentiment more! I will definitely be reading more from this author and I am so thankful to have received this book!

5/5 Stars

I truly loved this story and I think it's my favorite out of this series.

I thought that Mazey did a fantastic job in writing this story, especially with Jude and his struggles with mental health. The thing I love about The Plus One is the honesty that she brings to Jude's situation and the overall reminder that it's okay to ask for help. This story felt incredibly raw with the perfect balance of romance to keep the story realistic but optimistic.

I thoroughly related to Indira and her struggles with her abandonment issues and wanting someone to love her. I thought Indira was incredibly accepting and patient with Jude, which really blossomed into a beautiful love story between the two of them. Their relationship was extremely believable and made me reminisce about the people I grew up with. The spice was immaculate.

Overall, Mazey created this story with such grace and love, which truly made me feel happy. She continues to excel in normalizing mental health and neurodiversity with her writing.

I can't wait for the next one!

Thank you to Mazey Eddings, Netgalley, and St. Matin's Press for this E Arc in exchange for a honest review.

Thank you St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the e-ARC of the book.

The Plus One is an amazing story about childhood enemies Indira and Jude who reunite weeks before a wedding of their favorite person Collin. As the wedding approaches, we follow the characters though childhood memories, mutual teasing and some past trauma.
This book has it all - complicated topics, reminders of the importance of the mental health, humor, and some spicy moments.

book review: The Plus One by Mazey Eddings
rating: 4/5 stars

Mazey Eddings’ books are like a warm hug. I leave them feeling mushy gushy happy-in-love and, honestly, that’s exactly how I want to leave a rom-com.

the first book I read by Mazey was ‘Lizzie Blake’s Best Mistake’ (if you haven’t read that yet, run don’t walk). Lizzie (as well as Harper from ‘A Brush with Love’) make cameos in this book — you don’t have to have read those before — but this girl group is so fun that I highly recommend reading all their stories!!

The Plus One is perfect if you love:
- childhood friends (more like childhood frenemies hehe)
- fake dating!
- angsty banter that’ll make you laugh
- important messages about mental health
- reality of how life can get messy & it’s okay to need help
- quick reads (read this in one day!)

I never knew that childhood enemies to lovers was a trope I needed in my life but *aha* I do. The ANGST between Jude & Indira… it is the type that can only be achieved by spending a lifetime being adorably annoyed by someone. i love how they need each other (even though they’re loathe to admit it) and how they compliment and care for one another in all those little ways that matter. there was a gentleness to this duo that got me right in the feels. that’s not to say that things don’t get steamy though (; the chemistry is 📈

the trajectory of Jude & Indira’s relationship felt very real. in fact, this entire book felt very real & raw. this is not one of those heads in the clouds romance books. it has very intimate & honest displays of mental health from both of our MCs. i could feel the empathy in Mazey’s writing; it was exceptionally graceful and well-done.

highly recommend this one and i can’t wait to read more from Mazey Eddings!! definitely an auto-buy author for me

thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for my e-arc in exchange for my honest review!

"𝘙𝘰𝘤𝘬 𝘣𝘰𝘵𝘵𝘰𝘮 𝘸𝘢𝘴, 𝘪𝘯 𝘧𝘢𝘤𝘵, 𝘨𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘸𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘵 𝘢 𝘊𝘩𝘦𝘦𝘴𝘦𝘤𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘍𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺 𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘤𝘬 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘮𝘺 𝘤𝘰𝘤𝘬𝘵𝘢𝘪𝘭𝘴 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘦 𝘴𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘤𝘳𝘰𝘴𝘴 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘥 𝘦𝘹, 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦, 𝘈𝘕𝘋 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘨𝘶𝘺 𝘺𝘰𝘶'𝘥 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥𝘩𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘭𝘺 𝘸𝘢𝘭𝘬𝘦𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘰𝘯 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘯𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘥. 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘮𝘦𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘳𝘰𝘳."

I went into this book not at all expecting to feel all the feelings that I felt during, especially during the second half of it. I say this in a good way, but seriously... lots and lots of feelings.

*SPOILER ALERT & TW/CW*
This book contains a lot of mental health talk, specifically around PTSD, and it deals with some really heavy stuff. That being said, the author has a lovely CW page at the beginning of the book for those who may not want to proceed.

Indira and Jude may just be my new favorite book couple ❤ and I mirror a lot of feelings Jude has about Dira being his "safe space" in my feelings for Matt. He's MY tether when the world starts to become too much.

Thank you Mazey, @netgalley and @stmartinspress for the advanced copy of this book in exchange for this review!
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#bookstagram #booksta #books #booksbooksbooks #avidreader #ilovereading #thetwistedlibrarian #professionalbookworm #theplusone #mazeyeddings #whatsnikkireading #book20of2023 #judeandindira #enemiestolovers #childhoodenemies #mentalhealth #ptsd #therapy #philadelphia

This was fantastic! I loved Indira and Jude. They have known each other since they were young children since Jude was Indira’s brother’s best friend. They are not huge fans of each other but with Indira’s brother getting married, they somehow find themselves living in the same house. After deciding to be each other’s dates for all of the wedding festivities, the fake situation starts to become very real.

Jude and Indira were wonderful characters. Both Jude and Indira had a lot of issues to deal with personally and I liked the way they supported each other. I thought that the story dealt with mental health and therapy in a very positive manner. I thought that they were really good for each other and the chemistry between them was palpable. I really enjoyed their journey towards a happily ever after.

I thought that Imani Jade Powers and Joe Arden did a fantastic job with the narration of this book. I thought that they both did a wonderful job of bringing this cast of characters to life and I thought that their voices complimented each other very well. They added just the right amount of emotion to their reading and I am certain that their performance added to my overall enjoyment of the story.

I would definitely recommend this to fans of contemporary romance. This book is the third book in the Brush with Love series but it reads perfectly fine as a stand-alone. I had a great time with this book and look forward to reading more of this author’s work soon.

I received a review copy of this book from Macmillan Audio and St Martin’s Griffin.

🌶️🌶️
💜 This story was absolutely beautiful and so so meaningful! It was like a love letter to therapy, and as someone who has mental health struggles and goes to therapy, it really hit me in the feels.
"Because feelings matter. They’re chemicals mixing with experiences and some deep, unknown part of a human soul. They make us who we are..."
💜 I absolutely loved the 2 main characters, Indira and Jude. The journey of watching them grow and come closer together was so so funny and so sweet! Mazey truly captures the feeling of falling in love.
💜 There was also such good mental health rep.
"I always felt like this raw nerve. Everything touched me. Every feeling hit me with an overwhelming force." Um, is Mazey living in my head?
💜 The found family in these books is also just so adorable and I loved it so much! You get to see more of the characters from the last two books and see where they are at too.
💜 I'm truly so happy to have read this trilogy! I highly highly recommend and I can't wait to meet Mazey Eddings at Apollycon!

The third book in this series that I really like. Each book focuses on different neurodivergences or mental illnesses. She highlights them in a way I really like with the benefits of each. That being said, this book fell a little flat for me compared to the other two. The chemistry just wasn’t there and the end seemed too easy. I’ll still easily look to grab everything this author does though!

The Plus One by Mazey Eddings is the third book in her very popular A Brush with Love series and like all the books in this series can be read as a stand-alone.

Story Recap:
Indira has her life together. A great job, a terrific boyfriend, and her own car. But, when she finds her boyfriend on the couch in an amorous embrace with another woman, Indira realizes she doesn’t quite have it all together yet. She moves in with her brother, Collin, and his fiance only to find his best friend, and her childhood enemy, Jude, living there too.

Jude has returned from his job as a doctor who goes to remote locations to assist in humanitarian crises. His last assignment has left him feeling lost and not himself.

Jude and Indrira are thrown together often as they assist with Collin’s wedding and they decide to go to the wedding as dates as neither feels like finding a real date for the wedding.

My Thoughts:
I have been waiting for Indira’s story for a while. She was always the practical one of the friends, and I knew she has a big story inside her, and boy, was I right. There is so much more to Indira than I expected She constantly has feelings of anxiety and self-doubt and isn’t nearly as put together as she appears to others. Jude was a very complex character as well. His time abroad has changed him and left him with PTSD.

This is one really emotional book. Both Indira and Jude have a lot of deep-seated issues to deal with as well as falling for each other. And they are perfect for each other. I loved watching them each deal with their own issues as they fell in love and learned to trust each other.

Recommendation:
I highly recommend The Plus One to anyone who enjoys romance. I received a complimentary copy of this book. The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

There are so many elements in this book that I really feel as if I need to break it up into two different parts. I picked this book up fully thinking it was a romcom, and obviously, it is. It is also a look into mental health and the ways that we can help people who may be struggling in ways that aren't immediately obvious. When these two elements were put together, it made for a romance that really took the relationship to the next level.

The Romcom itself was adorable, it had a perfect mix of enemies to lovers and brothers best friend trope that had me swooning from the minute Indira and Jude started bickering. I loved watching their relationship develop and seeing them look back on their shared memories with new meaning. It was funny to watch as their banter went back and forth, but also as they teamed up to also give Colin, Indira’s brother and Jude’s best friend, a hard time as well. My only real problem with their relationship is that the switch from enemies to lovers seemed to happen really quickly. I didn’t feel as invested in the switch as I would have hoped.

So much of the story also revolved around mental health and it was beautiful to see the love and support that Jude and Indira gave to one another as they struggled with some really hard to deal with topics. Jude struggled with PTSD after working as a doctor in places around the world suffering from humanitarian crises. While I cannot comment on the realistic nature of the description of his PTSD because I have no experience with the topic, I can say that Indira’s support as he came to terms with his mental health was beautiful. I really appreciated that there was no misunderstanding or unnecessary breakup, there was only love and support as they started their relationship. Indira faced her own struggles with a father who left her family and Jude was supported Indira through the complicated emotions that came with her family and her brother’s wedding. There is so much more to this element of the book, but commenting upon it feels like taking away from the experience of reading it.

There are many situations and topics that someone could find difficult, please make sure to check trigger warnings!

⅘ stars
3.5/5 spice

Thank you to Netgalley and St Martin’s Press for the opportunity to read this eARC in exchange for my honest opinions

I am in love with Indira and Jude. Friends since childhood, their witty banter and genuine love and support for each other is refreshing.

As with her other books, Eddings does a great job with the representation of mental health. Jude is suffering from PTSD and I appreciate the sensitive yet real life depiction of this illness.

While this is book in the series, you can definitely read as a stand alone. And if you love this book as much as I do, definitely pick up the other books. They are all great!

I have not read the first two books in this series and it was not a detriment.

Much more "real" than other romances. Very much in the mental health space. Probably one of the more realistic fake dating troupe books I have read.

Jude has PTSD and the book does a great job of being inside his head and trying to explain through his thoughts and feelings what that is like. Indira is a likable character with abandonment issues, and also a psychiatrist. The addition of their childhood relationship (he is her older brothers best friend) is a great part of this book.

Many many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press/ St. Martin’s Griffin for sharing the digital reviewer copy with me in exchange my honest opinions.

I absolutely love this one! From the beginning I was drawn in until the very end. Such a cute story can’t wait to read more by this author.

I enjoyed The Plus One by Mazey Eddings. This is an enemies to lovers, fake dating, complex family interactions, forced proximity romance. Indira's older brother is getting married and his best friend, Jude--Indira's childhood nemesis/fascination--is home for the run up to the wedding. They find themselves in forced proximity and Indira finds out some things about herself and about Jude. Jude struggles with severe PTSD and anxiety resulting from his medical experiences in war-torn, refugee, and natural disaster situations. Their forced proximity brings their attraction to each other to the fore but there is some emotional baggage, angst, and feelings to sort through before they can move forward.

Jude is the best part of this book in my opinion. His trauma, PTSD, anxiety is so accurately and sensitively addressed. His self-doubt broke my heart. Indira's gentle compassion and empathy for him was wonderful to read--the way she recognized what was going on and was determined to help him.

This was an introspective book, about grief, fear, compassionate caregiving and self-love. I loved Indira and Jude's awkward initial interactions, her realization that he was not well, her efforts to help, the way he opened up to her eventually and let her help. This is about breaking and healing and putting yourself back together with compassion.

This was the part of the story I liked the best--the way the two of them found each other and saw each other in a different light as adults, acknowledging the bond and fascination they have always had for each other.

Worthwhile read. It is good to see PTSD and anxiety being represented more in the romance genre.

I think Mazey Eddings' series has been so unexpected. I have had different reading experiences with each of these books, liked them all in different ways, and maybe liked this one the best? Not sure yet!

The first book was cute and lighthearted; the second was a bit over-the-top, but this one is very grounded. It focuses on mental health in a meaningful way that I'm sure every reader can relate to. while I think many rom-com stories focus on the whirlwind nature of romance, I loved how this portrays a healthy, working connection between two people. it feels very real and genuine.

Would definitely recommend and will keep reading Mazey for years to come.

Thank you, St. Martins press, for the ARC!