I just loved this. Listened in less than 2 days I couldn’t stop listening. Enemies to lovers is my fav!

The Next Worse Thing is another enemies-to-lovers story but it was a refreshing version of it. Personally, I was tired of this trope in so many books and initially thought I would be put off by the use of it in The Next Worse Thing. Fortunately, it just felt right in this story.

Ivy is helping with all the planning and setup for her brother's wedding. Then her brother's best friend, James returns to their small town to also help. Since they were kids Ivy and James always argued. What made this books use of this trope different and enjoyable is the whole town wanted Ivy and James together and knew they were a perfect match long before they even knew it.

Even when they started to figure it out they didn’t want to admit it to themselves which will have you screaming at your book. These characters were both very likable and you just wanted them together.

I really like Ivy and James as characters but Ivy was a little less developed than James. Besides not realizing she loved James Ivy does not have any character growth. In contrast, James learns what he really wants in life and prioritizes making it work. He is a different person by the end of the book.

This book was extremely refreshing for me. The reason I say that is because of the romance parts of the book. So many books go into an extreme amount of detail that in my opinion are not needed. The Next Worst Thing gets the passion and love that Ivy and James feel without all the explicit details and imagery. This part alone is why I would recommend this book.

This childhood frenemies to lovers rom com was a treat to listen to! Both narrators were perfect castings for the main characters. I loved the tension and chemistry between Ivy and James!

This was such a cute romcom! I loved this book so much and I got lost in the story so cute!
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book. All opinions expressed are my own.

This was cute but just didn’t quite hit the right buttons for me. They were supposed to be enemies but it honestly felt like that wasn’t there. They talked about it a lot but there wasn’t a lot of recent evidence to support it. The entire time felt like attraction.

🌀Synopsis
Ivy is planning to take over the inn that her grandparents owned and her first task is planning her brother’s wedding. She’s determined to make it the best so they can enter into a competition to help promote the inn for weddings.

The first problem is that her brother’s best man, James, is also her old nemesis. The two have hated each other since childhood but are thrown together now to make sure the wedding goes well.Then her grandparents tell her they may accept an offer to sell the inn.
Just when everything seems to be falling apart, things with James start falling together. They get an opportunity to talk and even go through things that happen in the past. However, when the day of the wedding arrives all things go haywire.

The bride runs off. The buyers of the inn show up and turn out to be James’ bosses. Ivy is left broken-hearted.

James ends up leaving his job and trying to prove his love to Ivy but she has to find her way out of the chaos.

The Next Worst Thing by Sara Woodley is a laugh-out-loud romance. Ivy, manager of her grandparents' inn, is in a life-long feud with her brother’s best friend, James. Unfortunately, or fortunately, Ivy and James, best man, must work together to plan the brother’s wedding. The author formed good, believable relationships between the characters. I also enjoyed a few of the secondary characters including Fran, an older eccentric lady, and Daisy, Ivy’s friend. Justis Bolding did an amazing job with the narration of Ivy’s chapters. Oliver Hunt was enjoyable too, but his American accent left some to be desired. I would definitely recommend this lively, clean, romantic comedy for others to listen to or read.
Thank you NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for this advance copy in return for an honest review!

This was a very sweet little romcom, though really it probably should be classified as YA because it is *squeaky clean*-- like almost to the point where you had to suspend disbelief that these people were adults. However, it was still cute, lighthearted, and very enjoyable. I enjoyed the dual POV and alternating voice actors, as well-- I thought it added a lot to the narrative style. Thanks to Dreamscape Media for the ARC of this audiobook!

This was such a sweet, cute rom com! I loved the enemies to lovers and brother’s best friends tropes. I really liked Ivy and James. They had issues from their past, but actually tried to communicate with each other. I thought the narrators were fantastic! Once I started listening, I didn’t want to stop. I definitely want to check out future books in this series!

This was a cute and sweet rom com. Ivy and James had a feud going on while growing up, but are forced together as they prep for Ivy's brother's wedding. I totally ate up this childhood frenimies-to-lovers theme! I chuckled and was thoroughly entertained throughout the whole book. It was fairly predictable, and the miscommunication bit did make me cringe, but thankfully it was quickly resolved. I think this would be perfect to read after a really intense book when you just need the comfort of a light HEA as you get your emotions back in check. The way the title of the book was tied in at the very end left me like 🥰 I absolutely need a sequel staring Luke and Daisy! As for being an audiobook, Oliver Hunt is a British narrator reading the part of a British character. So that was authentic perfection and I VERY much enjoyed listening! Justin Bolding was lovely too!

Thanks so much to Netgalley and Dreamscape Media for this gifted ALC!

This was such a cute rom-com! Loved the story, the inn, the characters, and the evolution of the characters’ relationships.

Thanks to #NetGalley and the publisher for early access to this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

James and Ivy have been at each others throats since they were kids. Constant pranks, jokes and getting under each others skin any way they think will work. This week they have come together for Ivy's brother who also happens to be James' best friend get married. The wedding is taking place at the Inn that Ivy's family owns and she is hoping that it will help put the Inn in the wedding world and get them more publicity. Ivy and James get sent on numerous wedding errands together and realize that spending time together isn't so bad after all. Ivy's grandparents are in town and will also be meeting with someone who is offering to buy the inn which Ivy did not know about. She realizes that James is somehow connected to someone buying the end and struggles to fully trust him since he did not tell her originally.

I thought it was super cute and love the enemies to lovers troupe. I see there is a second book in the series and I can't wait to read that one as well.

Cute rom-com involving enemies-to-lovers, a hotel that needs to be saved, and a wedding that's getting more stressful by the day. The main characters were entertaining and I love a small town with meddling residents. I would totally be up for helping run a hotel in a charming town, such a fun plot point.

Ivy and James aren't necessarily actual enemies, but they bicker a lot and Ivy is holding a grudge from when they were younger. James clearly likes her and I find it funny how he teases her and riles her up. They fit together so well and we see several instances of them being on the same wavelength without trying.

I liked Ivy's brother Luke and couldn't understand how he was marrying someone so awful. What did he possibly see in her? I'm hoping the next book in the series will follow him and I'll be checking to see about a release date.

I voluntarily read and reviewed this book. All opinions are my own. Thank you to Dreamscape Media and NetGalley for the copy

A sweet, fun, enemies to lovers story featuring a wedding that is being planned by the worst/best of friends. I enjoyed listening to this audio book very much 4.5

Very cute. Easy to read, quick paced. I enjoyed the characters and especially loved the setting. If you love the enemies to lovers trope, then this is for you!

Very cute romcom about second chances! These characters were thrust together by fate to see how they'd fare the second time around.

The Next Worst Thing by Sara Woodley was an adorable romcom! The main couple was easy to root for and I am happy to see there will be others in the series. If you love small towns, enemies to lovers, swoony romance with dual POV this book is for you! Spoiler warning: zero spice, but great story line!

Narration was a bit slow, but nothing that can't be fixed playing with your preferred speed :)

Thank you to Dreamscape Media and NetGalley for this ALC.

The Next Worst Thing by Sara Jane Woodley
4/5 Stars
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•••Spoiler free review below•••

I thoroughly enjoyed every second of this dual POV romance!

Ivy is running around in circles trying to make sure everything at her family's Inn runs smoothly while simultaneously trying to plan her brother's wedding. Nothing can distract her...except her brother's best friend and long time enemy, James Weston.

This story was swoony and funny with lovable characters and fun, small town vibes. I listened to the audio version and both narrators were perfect at capturing our main characters. I can't wait to find out what happens in book 2!

The Next Worst Thing was released in April but the audio version will be released October 4th and if it's not already on your tbr, it should be!
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Special thanks to Dreamscape Media and NetGalley for sharing an arc with me in exchange for my honest opinions.

This is a sweet, clean little romance about Ivy and James, Ivy's brother's best friend. Ivy hasn't seen James, her high school nemesis, in years but he comes to town for James' wedding and their old rivalry starts to rear its ugly head. I loved how sweet James was to Ivy and how their romance slowly blossomed. The epilogue was more of a TV show ending than a novel ending. I feel like we were left hanging with regard to Ivy's brother's fiance, but assuming that's because this will be a series and details will come later. If not, more deets on the fiance, please!

Aww, this was very cute. Even though this was pretty standard, Ivy and James's story was very cute, and I like how things were set up for future books with the side characters.

I do wish Ivy and James's tragic backstory misunderstanding had been directly addressed earlier in the story- even if it had just been in each character's internal monologue. It was a bit frustrating as a reader to not know for so long exactly what happened that caused Ivy to mistrust James. Since the information is withheld for so long, Ivy's dislike of James feels a little uncalled for.

Easy fun read. Ivy & James’ back and forth was actually cute. 4 stars. Enemies to friends is one of my favorite tropes. I will be recommnding this book at my next book club. Thanks to Netgalley for allowing me to listen and review this book.