A little different from Eddings' previous rom-coms, although still as heartwarming and delightful as her other books. She is an absolute must read author for me. I love her characters battles with real world issues, instead of things all magically working out with a billionaire saving the day. I love how Indira and Jude reluctantly lean into one another and their journey together. I appreciate the mental health representation in these books so very much. Another 5 star read!

Indira (sorry, can't get used to this name--especially when her brother has such a common name like Collin) and Jude become lovers after a lifetime of being pests to each other. Their romance is witty, kind, supportive, and super sexy. The heavy emotional stuff is very, very heavy. Lots of crying from both and I don't love when characters cry. A few times is easy to understand, even cathartic, but every other page is draining. I love the other cast of characters and haven't read the rest in this series. I'll be doing that pronto. Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC!

Thank you to NetGalley and Mazey's team for the ARC of this book for an honest review!

What can I say about this that accurately represents what this book has done for me and likely will do for others? It's hard to find fictional stories that handle healing, therapy, self-love, self-worth, and what it means to take a healing journey for yourself with someone accurately, but this book hits all of the boxes.

Gosh, I kind of want to gate keep it because it's such a special book! (I'm kidding, I would never.)

Indira and Jude's childhood nemesis to tentative-friends to lovers was such a heartwarming story. I was kicking my feet, giggling, screaming the whole time. What Mazey is able to capture is true love -- love of friendship, love of family, love of self, and romantic love. This is a romance for all buckets. There were some of the saddest moments I've ever read in a romcom, but it was followed by moments where I (literally) laughed out loud, too. Indira's relationship with her brother was so real and raw and freaking hilarious (as the youngest sister, I fully support all of Indira's exploits).

This is a 5/5 star read. It's heavy at points, but it's worth it. The journey always is. I will be keeping all of the characters from A Brush with Love with me. Thank you, Mazey!

Indira is recently single and attending all of her brother’s wedding events in the company of her ex and his new girlfriend is not her idea of fun. To make matters worse, her childhood nemesis Jude is back in town for the wedding after several years working abroad as a doctor in countries experiencing humanitarian crises. Jude is also not having a good time at the wedding events after struggling to be around people after the trauma of the last few years. They come up with a mutually beneficial fake dating scheme but realize they may have been wrong about each other all along.

Oooooook cute book alert!! I LOVED A Brush with Love and was so excited to read this one.

Things I loved:
-enemies to lovers
-fake dating
-getting to see the characters from the other books and where they are now
-therapy rep
-mental health rep
-good communication between Indira and Jude
-spicy
-dual POV

This was such a sweet and touching read. I really felt for both of them and enjoyed seeing their relationship progress.

Thank you to NetGalley and St Martin’s Press for the advanced reading copy in exchange for my honest review!

This book was absolutely fantastic! Based on the title and description of the book, I thought it was going to center around the wedding and a fake dating scenario, but I think the book has a more descriptive storyline that really pulls you in! I love the way the characters were written and the banter between the two main characters from childhood all the way up until present day! It's been a while since I've read a 5 star worthy book, so definitely pick up this one when it comes out April 4, 2023!!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early copy of this book.

I read some of the glowing reviews of this book and was really looking forward to it. However, I appear to be in the minority because I frankly had trouble just finishing it. I typically read a book in a day or two; this book took me about 10 days to read because I just wasn't enjoying it and I was happy when I finished it so I could read something else.

The book was well written and I did like the characters and I thought the mental health issues were treated appropriately. However, the lack of pace was annoying because I just kept waiting for something to happen. Instead, the backstory was ever so slowly revealed and i found that I just didn't care.

I suspect a lot of people will very much enjoy this book; unfortunately, I wasn't one of them.

This was another fun read by Mazey Eddings. Indira and Jude are the perfect enemies to lovers, with forced proximity thrown in for good measure. I appreciate the focus on mental health and therapy - helping to normalize these topics and remove the stigma. Plus, when Dira and Jude finally give in to their mutual attraction, things get spicy! I hope we get to see the journey of Alex and Thu next!

Thank you to Netgalley for the arc!

I really enjoyed the plus one, it had childhood enemies to friends to lovers which is a trope that i really enjoy.

Something that stuck out to me was the mental health representation in the book. It is something that both of the main characters are seperately struggling with but end up finding comfort and safety with each other. I thought that Indira and Jude's connection was really beautiful and i enjoyed seeing their relationship come to life.

I give the plus one 3.5 ⭐️

This was really good! It walked a fine line between a romance novel and general/women's fiction, which I was fine with. The representation was great, I loved that both characters talk at length about their respective mental health, and the therapy rep was wonderful. I'd definitely recommend it for anyone looking for a nice romance novel with depth.

3-3.5 star read!

tw: PTSD

This book is the third book in this series by Mazey Eddings; however, it can be read as a stand alone.

This particular story follows the love story of Indira and Jude. The tropes are childhood frenemies (brother’s best friend) to lovers I’d say. There isn’t as much of an enemies vibe as I’d say, so that’s why I’d go with frenemies. The banter is pretty good between the two and I loved their friendship triangle with Collin.

I do have to say that although I loved the focus on mental health and invisible illnesses, I feel like the individual character’s background stories weren’t fleshed out enough. I feel like something is missing in this book and I don’t know what. Also, I wish there was a bit more tension between the love interests.

Overall, such an easy read and I love the mental health awareness!

Thanks so much to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press/ St. Martin’s Griffin for sharing this wonderfully sweet electronic advanced reader copy with me in exchange my honest thoughts!

I'm in love with Indira and Jude's relationship. This had all my favorite things enemies to lovers, fake dating, spice, banter. I found myself relating so much to Indira. I also really appreciated the focus on mental health/therapy and dealing with Jude's ptsd. Most importantly this book has heart and is very real. Thank you net galley for this arc!

I really enjoyed this one. It has several different tropes! Fake dating, the best friend’s brother, childhood friends turned lovers, enemies to lovers… It speaks heavily about therapy, and the importance of it. Whether it be for a break up or a doctor losing a patient. The banter, quirky flirting, and the reminiscing about their childhood I loved reading.
Dira’s brother is getting married soon but she’s going through hard times, so she temporarily moves in with her brother, whose best friend, Jude, is also staying due to hard times. It was fun reading about Jude, Collin, Jeremy, and Dira all in the same house. Dira eventually gets the plus one of her dreams to her brother’s wedding!

Thank you Net Gallery for the ARC! I’ve so far read every ARC of Mazey’s and they’ve all been phenomenal. I loved Harper and Lizzie’s stories but Indira’s hit too close to home. Talks of mental health was amazing and the brothers best friend trope? Chef’s kiss. Overall this book had everything from the romance to important topics to friendship and amazing story that keeps you hooked from the beginning!

Such a cute romance, and I loved the main characters! I would definitely recommend this enemies to lovers and this is such a great series by Mazey Eddings. I thought she handled the nuanced conversation about mental health well and it was really relatable.

4.5 rounded up

Thank you to the author, St. Martin's Press, and NetGalley for providing a copy to review!

I really enjoyed this title! The protagonists were flawed and awkward, but so very likeable. I really appreciated that PTSD and its long road to treatment were presented so honestly and realistically, and yet it still seemed to work in a romance in such a lovely and satisfying way!

rating:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶️🌶️

tropes:
enemies to lovers
brothers best friend
forced proximity
healing

This is book three in the brush with love series and follows Indira! She was always so supportive in the previous books so i was excited to be able to learn more about her!

Like in all Mazey books, there are very serious topics discussed in this book like ptsd, anxiety, depression and some dark flashbacks. please check the trigger warnings before reading! Though there are serious topics and themes throughout this book it was still an amazing read.

Indira catches her boyfriend cheating on her so she leaves and goes to stay with her brother and his partner for the time being. however, when she arrives she learns her brothers best friend, Jude, is also staying there while on leave from his job. Indira has loathed this man for years and can’t imagine a worse person to be stuck with. The more time they spend together though, she can see he is suffering and she wants to be there to help.

Indira and Jude just understand each other and are somehow the calming spirit for one another. watching them work through their own issue’s and struggles together was so emotional and also so special.

I also once again loved seeing our beloved side characters make their appearances and giving their comforting support. While also giving us that much needed comedy.

I really enjoyed this book and i can’t wait for everyone else to be able to read this too! if you enjoy a good enemies to lovers with a splash of brothers best friend and forced proximity… you should read this!

Thank you NetGalley, St. Martins and Mazey Eddings for this Advanced Readers Copy in exchange for my honest review!

I devour every one of Mazey Eddings's novels, but this one was special. Jude and Indira have made a wholesome and lusty home in my heart. Their love for each other is so authentic and the spice is PERFECT. Thank you Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC. As a thank-you, I will not shut up about this book. Anyone within a fifty-mile radius of me is not safe.

This is one of the hardest books to review? Why you ask? Because it’s not a traditional romance where the male comes in and swoops the girl off of her feet. Instead, we have two flawed characters who essential save each other while maintaining a healthy relationship (even through the fake dating).

This book includes fake dating trope, wedding trope, boy next door trope, and mental health awareness including PTSD. Lovers of these tropes as well as lovers of books where the main characters learn how to communicate with each other in a positive way, should read this book.

I loved that we got to see these characters develop together but when looking at the romance as a whole, we see that their development happened within weeks. I think that’s only thing I didn’t enjoy in this novel. They went from essentially frenemies to saying how much they loved each other.


I received an arc for an honest review.

3.5 stars rounded up.

Having read the first two books in this series, I was excited to get more of the fabulous Indira. While this book definitely had Mazey Edding's signature writing style --- seamlessly combining laugh out loud moments and tender moments of connection, it lacked that tangible sense of chemistry between the two characters the first two books had. It didn't feel like a true enemies to lovers plot line and the relationship felt very static, even as the couple explored the possibility of transitioning from a fake relationship to a real one.

I did love the honest and raw conversations about therapy and the importance of prioritizing mental health though!

Overall, an enjoyable read but Mazey set the bar high with the first two books in this series and that wasn't quite there for me.

Thanks to Netgalley & the publisher for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you for this book in exchange for my honest review.

I had high hopes for this book, The Plus One by Mazey Eddings. However, I was immediately disconnected due to the plot. It just didn’t engage me.