💫 The Love Wager 💫
By Lynn Painter
Publisher: Berkley (March 14.2023)
Genre: Rom Com

Truth bomb, never been much of a romance reader… having grown up with books that had no grit (the grit I’m speaking about means depth 😂) but lots of open door 🔥 I ventured far from this genre. Until booksta came into my life. Now every single month I seem to find another contemporary romance or rom com that makes me smile, laugh out loud or relate to in the best possible way.

But what I think must be the hardest to write is GOOD banter; the LOL, smirking to yourself type of banter that makes romcom gold. And honestly one of the best must go to new-to-me Author Lynn Painter.

My first by her was Mr Wrong Number (gold) and now this one. Both were so darn good.

It’s the one night stand that leads to a bet (aka the love wager) about who will find the love of their lives first. And whomever loses has to pay up! But, as their friendship and date escapes at a taco place continues, Hallie & Jack find that the friendship goes from joking around to a love that they’ve both hoped for.

It sounds predicable but I’m going to say it was more “predictably perfect” and that even if you assume what the ending might be, it’s all about the journey. Loved it!

Psst. It gave me the same smiles as when I was reading the romance duo Christina Lauren’s “Unhoneymooners”.

Also pssssst… this was my official first book that Berkley sent me and I’m still doing a happy dance about it!!! Thank you, thank you., thank you

I was hooked from the first chapter on this one. It was funny and chaotic in the best way and had me ready to see where this was going. Cue the second chapter and I was an absolute a goner. This was such a fun book it had me smiling and swooning.

The banter between Hallie and Jack was off the charts, and I honestly still can’t get enough of them (cue, a reread 🤪).

Mr. Wrong Number was one of my top reads of last year and I can already tell you that this will be a reread and one of top reads of 2023!

I am quickly become and Lynn Painter STAN!

Melli’s Book Breakdown
🌮 One Night Stand
🌮Friends to Lovers
🌮Only One Bed
🌮Fake Dating
🌮Rom-Com
🌮Great Banter
🌮Laugh out Loud
💗🌮🌮🌮🌮🌮

I was so happy when I opened my email and saw I was approved for the Love Wager eArc. I read Mr. Wrong Number last year and really liked it!

Love Wager did not disappoint. It was such a cute rom com read! It was dual POV and tropes include fake dating, one bed and guy falls first.

Lynn Painter is going onto my favorite authors list.

Thank you NetGalley, Berkley and the author for this eARC in exchange for an honest review!

The Love Wager was such a blast to read. Lynn Painter has quickly become a must read author for me and this is my favorite book of hers yet!

Hallie and Jack meet at a wedding in an exciting way and this one pulled me in from the very start. Jack is recently single and Hallie has been single for a while but is ready to get back to looking for love. After meeting at the wedding, they find each other on an app and chat up (as friends of course) and decide to make a little wager.

Who can find love first? To keep them both motivated to keep dating and going outside of their comfort zone, but they have tacos together after the dates to look forward to. These two have so much chemistry, but because of how they met they’re determined to stay friends. Until Hallie needs a date to her sisters wedding and another wedding changes everything.

Jack was such a fantastic hero. He made me laugh so many times and I loved watching him fall for Hallie. Hallie was great too. Honestly, I loved both of these characters so much. The conflict towards the end wasn’t my favorite, but thankfully things came back around pretty quick and I truly adored the ending!

Not only was this super fun and romantic, but it had so many troupes I love. Friends to lovers, only one bed and pining. This is a must read romance!

Holy HOT tamales - that was some spicy fun!!

I loved Lynn Painter’s book Mr. Wrong Number last year. That delightful one revolved around Olivia Marshall finding love after she texted a wrong number and fate intervened. Well in this next book in the series, it’s her brother Jack’s turn to find love, and once again, fate may have something to say!

After breaking up with his girlfriend and having an ill-advised drunken hookup with a cute, spunky redheaded bartender named Hallie at his sister’s wedding, Olivia signs Jack up on a dating app hoping he’ll find true love. Hallie has also been dumped by her long-time love, Ben, and she and Jack decide that rather than diving deeper into a purely sexual relationship with each other, they’ll just be friends and be each others’ wingmen on dates as they both search for “The One”. They even make a bet with each other to see who will find love first.

There’s one teeny, tiny problem. After weeks of fun and flirtatious texts and calls, one or both of them just might have some actual real feelings growing, and neither of them is prepared to risk their friendship to find out. When they have to pose as boyfriend and girlfriend at Hallie’s sister’s wedding for the benefit of her family, it’s not the alcohol that’s blurring the lines this time!

Jack and Hallie may be my new favorite rom-com couple. Their banter is laugh out loud funny, their friendship is charming and sweet, and their chemistry is *ooo la la!*. Seriously, you could fry an egg on these pages. I had so much fun with them as they navigated their messy feelings.

My one and only complaint is that the plot followed the expected course with the miscommunication/non-communication trope and requisite last minute crisis. I really wish that wasn’t a predictable part of EVERY.SINGLE.ROM-COM.EVER. Despite this, I loved the story overall, and I thought this was even better than the first book in the series!

I highly recommend both books in the Mr. Wrong Number series if you like witty, sarcastic humor, romance with some extra spice, and a light, fun time. I’ll be eagerly waiting for Book #3!

★★★★ ½

Thanks to Berkley Publishing, NetGalley, and author Lynn Painter for this ARC to review honestly. It’s due to be published on March 14, 2023.

I remembered enjoying Mr. Wrong Number, which is why I wanted to check out The Love Wager when it popped up on Netgalley, and it did not disappoint. Lynn Painter writes great banter and is especially great at incorporating texting - I wish I could think of the zingers she does!

What I appreciated most about this book is the chemistry between Hallie and Jack, and maybe not for the reason other readers will. Moreso than their romantic chemistry. I loved the weirdo-friend energy they had. The teasing, the incessant taco eating, the silly/mean nicknames - they felt like people you might actually know in real life for being their unfiltered weirdo selves with each other.

I look forward to what Lynn Painter writes next!

This book was able to be fun, funny, AND sweet all at the same time, so I'm counting this as a winner.

I was quickly drawn into this fast paced romance. Hallie and Jack were both fun to get to know and I loved the easy conversations and banter between them. Their meet cute/awkward a great start for these two. As they try to navigate finding true love, just not with each other, they make a wager as to who will find it first. I usually don't enjoy the wager trope as it becomes the source of conflict later on in the book. Author Lynn Painter did a nice job balancing the wager aspect and keeping it fun. With great pacing and chemistry, I recommend this for any romance lover.

Thank you Berkley Publishing for the advanced copy.

The Love Wager by Lynn Painter was such a fun book! I did not read Mr. Wrong Number (it's now on my audiobook holds) but you don't need to read this one.

After a rough breakup and a year of cocooning herself, Hallie is ready for her spring of new and it was a one night stand with Jack, (who she met at a wedding she was working) that was her catalyst to quit her 2 additional part-time jobs, move into her own apartment and start dating again. Until she matches with Jack on one of the apps. They start messaging and forming a friendship that sets a bet on finding love first...

One night stands to lovers might be my new favorite trope! First, I loved the chemistry, especially on the texting between these two and also them both going on dates with their other dates and their recaps with each other. I loved that this book had so many different dating scenarios that made me laugh, plus you have the friends to lovers and also some fake dating and only one bed thrown in too. I laughed as I read this entire book.

I could have done without the silly third-act breakup, but it's a romance novel so I know what to expect.

Definitely check this one out, and while it's in the Mr. Wrong Number Universe, you don't need to read that one first.

Thanks to @berkleyromance for my advanced copy! It comes out March 14th!

4 ⭐️

"The Love Wager" is a really fun follow up to "Mr. Wrong Number" that follows Olivia’s brother, Jack, and a bartender at Olivia and Colin’s wedding, Hallie.

Jack and Hallie have a hot one night stand on the night of the wedding and then come across each other on a dating app. Neither of them is interested in a romantic relationship with the other, but they become best friends and make a wager about who will find love on the app first.

Lynn Painter just has a way with writing really cute comedic moments and great banter between her characters. Jack and Hallie have amazing chemistry and they’re so fun to read about. I loved their taco dates and they had a really sweet friendship that you just couldn’t wait to become more.

If you like friends to lovers, fake dating, and one bed this is a must read.

My only issue with this book is that we didn’t get to see Olivia and Colin at their own wedding! I loved "Mr. Wrong Number" and I just wanted a bit more of a glimpse at Olivia and Colin’s HEA.

*Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I received a gifted galley of THE LOVE WAGER by Lynn Painter for an honest review. Thank you to Berkley Publishing for the opportunity!

THE LOVE WAGER is the sequel to last year’s MR. WRONG NUMBER. Hallie and Jack meet over an engagement ring and a romance gone wrong. They wind up in bed together with Hallie trying to sneak out of the hotel room the next morning. Hallie has decided to take on adulting with a fresh start, determined to find love via dating app but immediately finds Jack.

Jack and Hallie know they aren’t interested in each other, but both acknowledge they want to find love. They make a wager to push themselves to be the first to find love and when things go wrong they can commiserate.

This was a fun read overall! I really enjoyed both Hallie and Jack and the friendship that they developed. I though this gave a really good foundation for the real feelings that of course begin to develop. I though the author did a good job of showing them actually trying out relationships with other people and showing why they weren’t working.

The overall plot of this one is exactly what you expect from the synopsis. There are communication issues (to be expected) which aren’t always my favorite elements in romance and definitely some typical tropes evident in the synopsis, but I did enjoy that the characters recognize being in the midst of romance tropes.

Overall this was a fun quick read and I’m glad to have picked it up!

I was amazed by how much I ended up loving this book. This is my first book from this author, so I was definitely getting used to the writing style. There were times that I felt like I was taken out of the narrative, a few too many pop-culture references, and some of the jokes didn't land right, but overall there were many things that surprised me.

First and foremost, I wasn't expecting the book to be a one-night stand-turned-friends/wingmen-to-lovers storyline. I really thoroughly enjoyed that. I will admit the fact that there was some fake dating thrown in there too was even better, and the one-bed trope? Perfect.

I thought the dating app situations were very spot-on. So much so that at times I found myself cringing over how accurate they were. I also loved the reliability of the characters. So often these stories can lose that but overall I felt like the characters were real and genuine. They seemed to have very distinct motives and they meshed well throughout the story. I really loved the ending. From the 50% mark forward it took me only a few hours to complete the book which in my book is always the mark of something good. I definitely enjoyed this one, and now I need to go back and read the first book in this series because I need to see how Olivia and Colin got together.

I'd recommend this book to anyone who loves the friends-to-lovers trope.

Hallie and Jack hook up at a wedding and find themselves on the same dating app. They end up talking through the app and motivate each other to find “the One” , They start by texting each other about their dats and then begin setting up their dates on the same night. When the dates don't go well the pair meet at the Taco Hut to commiserate. Hallie and Jack decide to make a wager to see who finds love first.
What a fun romance this was. Lots of great banter and the friendship between Hallie and Jack was so fantastic!! I really liked this one.

4.5 ⭐️

Thanks to NetGalley for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review,

#NetGalley #TheLoveWager #LynnPainter

Lynn Painter!!!!! You’re a legend!!!

I will buy anything LP writes, I’m not kidding! Even when Netgalley sends me an advanced reader copy!!

Anyway, Hallie and Jack 🥹 I loved seeing them go from strangers to one night stand to friends to pining to lovers! I couldn’t stop reading!!! I was addicted!!

Can I date Jack? Honest question.

Loved it!!!!

Frothy with fun banter, I found this latest Lynn Painter novel easy to read, and I did end up reading it quickly. I sometimes though make the mistake of thinking that a light, quick read will be satisfying in its own way, but for me, I almost always end up annoyed with generic characters and an overly predictable plot. Such is the case here. At times this second book in the Mr. Wrong Number series was just too close to the plot of the first book, including indistinguishable characters and the use of texting to bring two people rather haphazardly together. Both books also share a central conflict of a misunderstanding caused by the hero's carelessness (selfishness?) that cuts the story in half. I noted after the 50% mark that I could see the misunderstanding coming and I let myself play out exactly how it would go; darn, it turned out nearly exactly the way I predicted.

From the start of the novel, I found myself torn between feeling genuinely amused by some sharp dialogue between Hallie and Jack, which is admittedly very funny in places, and frustrated by the shallow treatment of major events in the characters' lives. Jack meets Hallie, a customer service clerk in a jewelry store, while buying an engagement ring for a woman he's not in love with and by all appearances is vapid and self-centered. Just hours later Jack meets Hallie again, except now she is working her third job as a bartender at a wedding where Jack's sister is getting married. They chat and the girlfriend to whom he is about to propose rushes over to accuses him of cheating and throws a drink in Hallie's face, whereby Jack promptly cancels their relationship. Minutes later he and Hallie are getting it on in the kitchen, elevator, and his hotel bedroom. These events which take place in the opening chapter are either meant to be slapstick or angst-y. To me they just feel like the harbinger of what's to come, and I wasn't wrong. The entire book follows one flimsy premise upon another. Plenty of convoluted plot twisting from the author to keep these two characters apart when clearly they only want each other. Their reasoning for being friends only, to then being wingmen for each other on the dating scene, to being friends with benefits all feel ridiculously contrived.

Witty dialogue is the book's saving grace, and this author definitely has a knack for the epistolary format. Otherwise, this will not be a memorable book for me.

THE LOVE WAGER - LYNN PAINTER
4⭐
PLOT -
Hallie and Jack hv a one night stand . Hallie realises she has hit rock bottom and decided to become a full in adult even signing up on a dating app. Jacks sister forced him to be on the app and they find one another there but they agree that they are not interested in each other but they are each other's perfect wing person to find The One and make the deal sweeter is by putting a wager to see who can find true love first....that's until Jack agree to being Hallies fake date for her sister's wedding and then all bets are off.
Do they still feel that they aren't interested in each other or things get too serious between them?

MY THOUGHTS
This was a super quick read for me..finished in a day.
The witty banter via texts was fantastic making the story breeze by.
Read it you like -
Friends to lovers
One bed/Fake Dating.
One night stand
Hint of a love traingle.
Reading this will for sure make you crave "TACOS".
Thank you Netgalley and publishers for this arc in exchange for my honest review .

The Love Wager is the second book in the Mr. Wrong Number series which can be read as a standalone. This book features Jack (Olivia’s older brother) and his love interest, Hallie (the wedding bartender). Hallie Piper tries to become an adult after leaving a hotel room, and while looking for love on a dating app, she finds Jack, the guy whose room she left. They agree not to pursue each other romantically but become partners in their quest to find true love, often meeting for tacos after their dates. However, things get complicated when they make a bet to find true love first and pretend to be a couple at a wedding. The Love Wager features friends-to-lovers and fake dating tropes. I love the way that Lynn Painter successfully develops the growing friendship between Jack and Hallie with delightful texting banter and sizzling chemistry. The narrators chosen for the audiobook were perfect and kept me engaged in the story. This book is an entertaining, lighthearted, and enjoyable read. I can’t wait to read more from Lynn Painter!

Okay, so I'm realizing that I prefer Lynn's YA to her adult romances, but this was still a fun read. Lynn's writing is really witty, and her banter is top-tier. I wasn't in love with the characters or the romance itself, but I know this book will find the right audience!

A big thanks to Berkley and Netgalley for the e-ARC in exchange for my honest, unbiased review.

A one night stand to friends to fake dating to lovers romance… that’s quite a satisfying mouthful! I loved these characters and the shifts from situation to situation. Sweet and sexy in equal turns.

If you loved Mr Wrong Number, and it’s charming flirtatious texting, then you’ll be happy to know that the author organically involves more messaging in this story too! It’s an entirely new story but the same vibes persist. Fun, lots of chemistry, but also friendly. There’s also plenty of steam but it’s also a little restrained, which I know some readers appreciate. It’s a great balance.

Hallie and Jack have a great story with some genuine laughs along the way. There are a few details here and there that niggled but overall it was easy to move past. It’s a fast and delightful read that I highly recommend.

Thank you to Berkley Publishing Group for the advanced reader copy and to PRH Audio for the complimentary audiobook. These opinions are my own.

The Love Wager is so much fun. I will read anything Lynn Painter writes. I am convinced that some is the queen of relationships that take place via text or messaging. And the banter is so good!

Jack and Hallie have a one night stand. Then they match on a dating app and become each other's wingmen through the world of online dating. I don't want to reveal too much plot, so I will just say this book managed to incorporate all of my favorite and classic rom-com tropes.

The audiobook is read by two of my favorite narrators, Zachary Webber and Kristen DiMercurio. They do such a fantastic job and brought me even further into the story.

Although it's a spin-off in the same world as Mr. Wrong Number, this can absolutely stand alone. If you are looking for a fun rom-com that will make you laugh and smile I highly recommend this.

4.5 stars rounded up