This was a slow start but God was it worth it, I love this so much. I will protect this couple like it is my own child.

THIS BOOK. Add it to your TBR for April right now! I loved Eddings’ A Brush with Love, especially for its anxiety rep, and someone missed the second in this series (not to worry, it’s on its way!) but omg this third one is SO. GOOD.

Indira movies in with her brother and his fiancé a month and a half before their wedding after walking in on her boyfriend cheating with her. The only problem with this set up? Her brother’s best friend is already there and Indira and Jude have gotten on each other’s nerves since childhood. However both of them are struggling - Jude is battling horrible PTSD after years of working in war zones or natural disasters as a doctor and Indira’s abandonment issues that stem from her dad leaving have reared their head with her recent breakup. They decide to pretend to date for the wedding - Jude can use Indira to escape crowds and Indira can use Jude to buffer between her ex and his new girlfriend. However the more time they spend together, the more they realize they maybe have loved each other for a long time. Can they make it through the wedding and help each other with their mental health issues?

Ok, tropes first … it has brother’s best friend! Enemies to lovers! Childhood knowledge! Fake dating! ONLY ONE TENT! Just all the best ones.

Even better is the story. I was so invested in both characters, was rooting for them so so hard. My first cry of 2023 was this book cause my heart just shattered for Jude especially. Eddings did such a good job representing PTSD and the hard journey to healing and I just absolutely love these kinds of representation. Like the bar has been set so high for 2023 reads.

MINOR SPOILER -

there is no 3rd act breakup thank the good lord.

I went in pretty blind to this one, and was expecting a carefree romcom that I could binge on the beach - and while this is a love story, and has a happy ending (there’s no spoilers there the forward calls it out) there’s definitely some heavier topics.

When Indira walks in on her boyfriend, getting funky with peanut butter and a random female, she finds herself staying in the guest room of her brothers house. But she’s not the only guest there - her childhood rival and arch nemesis, Jude, is on leave from his job and is staying at his best friends house too.

Jude and Indira are both battling some internal demons - Jude isn’t himself since he’s seen some awful things with his work with GHCO. And Indira still has unresolved issues from her father and past relationships.

As Jude and Indira spend more time together, does their rivalry change? Is it friendship? Is it something more?

On surface level, The Plus One is an enemies-to-lovers and fake-dating trope, but it’s honestly so much more than that. It digs DEEP and goes into the harder parts of relationships when one, or both, individual is dealing with mental illnesses.

This book was real and raw, and yet still had a happy ending.

I recommend checking The Plus One out!

Thank you to Net Galley for the ARC. All reviews and thoughts are my own.

Thank you for the advanced copy. Indira and Jude HATE each other, the bicker, they fight, like I said they hate each other until they start fake dating.

(3.5 ★)

The Plus one by Mazey Eddings is a fake dating romance that centers on doctor Jude Bailey and psychiatrist Indira Papadakis.

Although I can see that it's the first half and that nothing much happens, it was extremely difficult for me to get through. It just wasn't for me. Also, I don't understand why the story kept going on about the peanut butter incident as it served no relevance for the plot.

But, I will say that this was a very heartwarming book with just the right amount of bickering, tension, forced proximity, and spice.

In all, this was a well-written, sweet novel, and Jude and Indiria were perfect partners in every way.

*Thank you to St. Martin's Press, and to the author, Mazey Eddings, for providing me with this e-arc in exchange for an honest review.*

Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for a review!
I would like to start by saying that this is the third book in a series of standalone novels that follow a group of friends. While this story can be read on its own, I would recommend reading the previous two books (A Brush with Love & Lizzie Blake's Best Mistake) which are both great. The Plus One follows Indira and Jude who are childhood enemies. Jude also is Indira's brother's best friend. When Indira walks in on her boyfriend with another girl she is forced to stay with her brother and his fiance in the weeks prior to his wedding. Jude is also staying in the house while he is home from working as a doctor in war zones. While Jude and Indira call themselves frenemies, they decide to fake date for the wedding so Jude is less overwhelmed and Indira can get her ex off her back.
This novel had me laughing one minute and crying the next. Jude and Indira's banter was hilarious and I am glad it continued throughout the book even after they got together. The sad moments were when we saw how much Jude's PTSD affected him. I liked that we got to see Jude work towards improving his mental health with Indira's help but I'm glad she did not treat him like one of her patients. I liked to see Indira going to therapy as a therapist and showing that even someone with the knowledge of the mind still sought help when she needed it. I also loved the snippets of couples from previous books and it makes my heart happy to see them happy. I did feel like there was a lull in the story towards the end but I still enjoyed the story overall. I am so glad I read this book and this series as a whole because of the mental health representation!

Thank you st martins press and netgalley for allowing me to read this book. This book is definitely a brothers best friend romance more than an enemies to lovers. I didn’t expect this book to get as deep into the mental health issues as it did but it was so good to add that realistic depth to the characters! The sexual tension was intense! I love how they weren’t trying to fix each other and just loved each other through the struggles.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

mazey eddings does a great job at captivating you into every story. i found that every book she writes, it gets better and better. i loved the first book in this series and i continued to love every book after.

i think that with her characters, she adapts her writing to draw you into their story.

i feel in love with indira and jude. they are childhood enemies to lovers, and he is also her brother's best friend. there is also some fake dating in here because said brother is getting married.

another major component i loved was their occuaptions. i do not think that it eclipsed the whole story, but it added to their characters. indira is a psychiatrist, and jude is an emergency medicine doctor. since i am studying to be in the medical field, getting to read fiction where medicine is involved is very inspiring.

overall, this story was even better than i expected and the details that the author goes into really lets this story take its own life. mazey eddings is such a great author, and i cannot wait to see what else she writes.

I really loved Jude and Indira’s relationship! Had all the best tropes but the way the author handled mental health topics was what sealed it for me. I thought she was sensitive and realistic.

I loved how all the stories lines for each character were so unique!

The story was so cute and the writing was so good. Mazey's writing is extraordinary, honest, pure, and her characters are so realistic! You get caught up in their journeys and became so invested in them. I admire the author's approach to mental health issues and how she realistic portraited them in the story. The Plus One is very enjoyable and I look forward to reading other books by this author.

Refreshing truly, The Plus One by Mazey Eddings is Jude’s story and centers around his PTSD. Psychiatrist FMC (Indira) and Trauma Surgeon MMC (Jude) are childhood nemesis turned adult nemesis who realize they love each other. A very honest, warm, love story based on loving people through their darkest hurts.

Thank you to NetGalley, Mazey Eddings, and St. Martin’s press for providing me with this ARC in exchange for my honest review of this book.

"The Plus One" took me by surprise. Based on the cover and synopsis, I thought this would be a light-hearted Rom-Com. I can pleasantly say though that this was so much more than that (and no knock on rom-coms because I love them).

While I haven't read the previous 2 installments in this series, this novel as a stand-alone felt very grounded and realistic in the way all of the characters were portrayed. Except for one action taken by a side character in the beginning, all of the characters thoughts and actions felt very realistic and made the characters feel fully-fleshed out.

I wasn't expecting the slightly darker themes in this book to hit as heavily as they did. The male main character, Jude, suffers from PTSD, and this is a major plot point for his character arc. Mental health and self-awareness were big themes in this book and I appreciated the care and respect the author used in writing about these experiences.

Overall I highly enjoyed reading this book and how the author gave a fitting conclusion to this series.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

<i>*This book was given to me by NetGalley in return for an honest review*</i>

I was not expecting this to be such an emotional ride! Eddings has an impressive way of writing about mental health issues that comes through very genuine on page. I loved both the characters and their personal journey and seeing them find each other. Really, really love this author!

First, I just have to say that I LOVE that the author does an amazing job of looking at how PTSD can really affect a person's life and the importance of having someone in your life that can help pull you out. The acceptance of getting therapy when it is needed is beautifully portrayed in this story. I love the enemies to lovers aspect too. And while the plot is absolutely beautiful and needed, I personally could have done without the detailed spicy scenes and all of the f-bombs. I think it somehow cheapened the importance of what was really needing to be said. But maybe that appeals to more people and now more readers will know how to possibly help someone in need? Thank you Netgalley for providing me with an ARC.

I absolutely loved this book. The author does a great job of navigating traumas of the characters and reminds the reader why therapy is so great but at the same time you’re getting that forbidden frenemies to lovers and siblings best friend love story that I love. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes that trope and who admires real life struggles in our from coms.

I’ve read and enjoyed everything by this author. I will say this one is definitely deeper and more emotional than her first two books. They all deal with mental health issues, but this one was definitely a deeper dive. If that isn’t triggering for you, then I highly suggest checking this book out!

There’s a hurt/comfort role reversal which was nice to see, and I don’t think Mazey would write a book that didn’t have some humor. Oh and if you read the first two books we get to see how everyone was doing, and I loved that!!!

With all 3 of Mazey Eddings's books so far, I've found a lot to love.

Dual POV romances are my bread and butter, so I liked this one after just barely starting. But the thing I love most about her is that her books never fail to make me laugh. The one liners in this are incredible!! A+ dialogue.

It's hard to pick a favorite character, with the way she writes them all so well. You end up loving each one more than the last and feel so much for them.

From reading the premise of this book I had really hoped to enjoy this book, but something about it really fell flat. I couldn't connect with the characters and that was frustrating, and then the writing was difficult to enjoy. The flow of the book seemed to be all over the place, and I had hoped that it would grow on me throughout the book, but honestly it was not enjoyable for me. I liked the idea of what it was about but did not enjoy the book as a whole. I don't mean to give a bad review just because, but this book was very difficult for me to into. Overall, wouldn't recommend.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC!

Mazey Eddings is quickly becoming one of my favorite reads. This book is my favorite of the trilogy thanks to the mental health descriptions and dealing with that in personal relations. Just gah!

First, thanks to @NetGalley and the publisher for the copy of the book in exchange for my honest opinions and ratings!

This book was so unexpected and wonderful. It was deeply emotional without bogging down the romance or making it overtly sad. The characters are so relatable and fun, and utterly angry and hot for each other.

Our heroine Indira is a psychiatrist who is whip-smart, super witty, and loves to torment her brother's (and her) childhood friend our hero Jude. Jude is a surgeon that's struggling with some serious trauma from working to help people in some war-torn, underdeveloped areas. They both end up living under the same roof just before their brother/best friend’s wedding.

This book is just beautiful, and I found myself laughing, crying, and even highlighting passages to make sure I covered certain points with my own therapist. The romance is steamy and lovely, and the supporting characters are hilarious and special therefore I have to give this book 5 stars because it deserves no less.