4.5 stars! Back to back great reads from Painter, she’s turning into a romance author I’ll come back to again and again.

The premise of this was great and it DELIVERED. Dual POV romance books remain supreme. Painter is so effortlessly hilarious; I speed through these books because I’m just constantly cackling and having a grand ol time. Hallie and Jack were adorable and this hit all the perfect fake dating notes.

Even though overall I enjoyed it, the miscommunication is HEAVY and I’m truly so tired of the third act breakup. I know it’s a hallmark of a romance story but I’m BEGGING for some new kind of conflict. Other than my frustration over those bits, this was so much fun!

Typical plot.. Two people make a bet on who will find love first., not realizing that they should be betting on each other. Jack and Hallie agreed to fake date each other for a weekend wedding. When they pretend to be a couple, things change and they forget why they had the wager.

What a lovely frolic of a romance! Lynn Painter's "The Love Wager." The development of the relationship between the two protagonists is bumpy enough to keep someone reading and sweet enough to make them sigh. I highly recommend this delightful romance.

Yes! It’s amazing to return back to Mr. Wrong Number universe which opens at Olivia and Colin’s wedding! But this brand new book is about Olivia’s brother Jack and tiny bartender/ tax accountant Hallie Piper!

They meet at the wedding where Hallie works as bartender and Jack is best man. Quick correction: they met a day before where Hallie works as saleswoman at jewelry story ( yes, she works at two part time jobs, taking a break from corporate taxes which can be understandable!) recommending him the best ring to him to buy for his future wife.

When Hallie tells Jack how they met ,the jealous girlfriend appears out of nowhere,steals the scene, accusing them having an affair. She even throws Chardonnay at poor Hallie’s face who still tries to explain she didn’t bang Jack! But at the end of the night she banged him as a consultation for dumping his girlfriend/ possible future wife!

After steamy one night stand later, Hallie performs crawl of shame ( she literally crawls to run away from his hotel room)

That hitting the rock bottom moment makes her realize: she has to make urgent changes in her life to look like hot mess sh*t show!
She plans to move from the apartment she shares with eccentric roommate, quitting part time jobs to return back tax accounting full time ( poor girl), having a new haircut helps her look like more adult!

She also decides to give a chance to the dating sites. But when she begins to scroll, one of the first names appears on her screen is Jack: her steamy one night stand.

She sends a teasing message to him and he immediately writes him back . They finally find an interesting way to motivate each other to find the right person. They start a bet: the first one who finds his/ her significant other will win! During this dating process, they will be each other’s wing-person, arranging the dates at the same place. If their date doesn’t work as they planned, they will meet at Taco Hut and eat their sorrows! As you can imagine they keep eating lots of tacos!

When Hallie’s sister wedding approaches, she quickly starts to look for a plus one! Jack volunteers to be his fake date. The sparks already fly between them after their own taco dates and now forced proximity may push them each other like magnets. Could they survey from this and save their friendship!

Well, I have to admit, I loved Mr. Wrong Number a little more! Friends to lovers is also great trope but I prefer enemies to lovers a little more!
I think the quick one night stand between characters killed my excitement because they already had passionate night and moved on!
The other thing bugged me was Jack’s fast move from proposing a woman he lived with and having one night stand, searching for dates at online apps! He made his own explanation about why he is desperate to find his soul mate but I found this reason a little weak. I wish their one night stand would be a little later after the wedding scene!

I still enjoy their banters. I laughed aloud. It reminds me of Colin and Olivia’s banters from first book!

The high chemistry between them was still explosive!

It was short, entertaining, cuddling, funny, unputdownable! I’m giving my four friends to lovers/ fake dating , chicken tacos with cheese stars!

Special thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing for sharing this enjoyable digital reviewer copy with me in exchange my honest thoughts.

I don't think I've ever finished a book so quickly before. I actually could not put this book down and was so sad when it was finished. I absolutely loved it. I'd give it 6 out of 5 stars if I could. I was laughing out loud at multiple points, swooning, and eating up this one-night-stand-to-friends-to-lovers trope novel. It was fun, sweet, and I couldn't get enough. This was my first book from this author and I already cannot wait to read more. Highly recommend to anyone.

The Love Wager was a fun and breezy read set in the same world as Mr. Wrong Number. The writing style is casual and we get both points of view, which is always a plus in my book. There are also a lot of text conversations so I was able to fly through the pages and finish this in one sitting.

I enjoyed this one a lot more than Mr. Wrong Number and thought the characters were pretty relatable at times, although I would have liked a little more depth. The plot is pretty predictable and the lack of communication wasn’t my favorite, but overall this was an easy and enjoyable romcom!

I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book; all opinions are my own. Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley for allowing me to be an early reader.

Another heartwarming, laugh-out-loud rom-com from Lynn Painter! And how CUTE is this cover?

I loved this story so much and I love this author. Had it not been for a recent buddy read of Accidentally Amy, I might never have even known to request this title. I have since purchased Mr. Wrong Number, Better than the Movies, and The Do-Over and Better Than the Movies, so hopefully I can get to those soon!

Jack and Hallie are adorable as best friends who are each other’s perpetual wingmen, so to speak. After one drunken night with each other in a hotel they make a bet to see who finds true love first. Their flirtatious but not quite direct texting and banter make this a one-sitting read that you do not want to put down! Jack and Hallie make the very best of friends, but when they agree to attend a wedding together, as fake lovers, that’s utterly entertaining.

This is quickly becoming one of my very favorite types of books to read. Loved it.

All of these tropes/elements and more:

💕Hilarious banter
💕Friends-to-lovers
💕Fake dating
💕Forced proximity
💕Only one bed

And some fairly significant spice 🔥

If you like Jess and Nick in New Girl, you’ll love Hallie and Jack in The Love Wager!

Thank you @netgalley and @berkleypub for the digital arc for my honest review! I’m so grateful for the opportunity to read and share my thoughts on this book.

Thank you Netgalley and Berkley Publishing Group for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

This book was SUPER CUTE and the chemistry was palpable, but it fell just a little short of being a 5 star read for me.

Things I liked:
-I loveeee a good bet/wager trope. Seriously, I think its so underrated in romance books. The premise of this book is what drew me in initially and the payout did not disappoint. I loved the set up for the story and the gradual shift relationship from friends to more as they tried to one up each other.
-C H E M I S T R Y. These two characters have it. The fun, flirty texts they exchanged turned my heart into a puddle of goo. Seriously, the room turned a few degrees hotter when these two started going back and forth with each other.
-Short, easy to read chapters. This may be a silly thing to some but there is nothing worse then slugging through a book with long chapters. I really liked the pace of this story and think the short chapters played into that a lot. It was a quick, easy read and the story flowed very smoothly.

Things I didn't like:
-THIRD PERSON PERSPECTIVE!!!! ESPECIALLY considering the chapters are told from both characters perspectives. There is literally no reason on earth this story couldn't have been told from a 1st person perspective. It makes it harder for me to immerse myself in the story when its told as if I'm an outsider looking in rather than actually being in the character's shoes.
-Lack of spice - listen, if this was supposed to be a clean romance I wouldn't even bring it up BUT... it seems like this was intended to be spicy because the author definitely didn't shy away from it. In fact, the scenes were built up SO WELL because of the tension between the characters. But once you reached that part it was just kind of... blah. I just think the story would have flowed a little more and really wowed if those scenes were fully explored.
-did I mention I hate third person perspective?

Overall:
Super cute read, light, and fluffy. Definitely recommend for anyone needing a book to escape in.

I dropped what I was doing and read this book in one sitting after getting approved. This book was SO GOOD. The banter was great, the chemistry was great, the characters were great. I could envision all of this playing out in real life.

Thank you NetGalley for eARC in exchange for honest review.

a really funny, cute, and steamy read

this whole premise was like built for the perfect romcom. jack and hallie have a one night stand, later reconnect while on a tinder-like app and form a bet to see who can find love first. throw in a friendship forged on bad dates and tacos AND a fake dating scheme at a wedding...like tell me that doesn't sound perfect?

what i liked:
i loved getting to see them form a friendship. most of the books i've read that feature the friends to lovers trope, the characters already start off as friends, but I LOVED getting to see jack and hallie BECOMING friends.

the vibes:
- one night stand-to friends- to lovers
+fake dating
- hallie is funny, chaotic, and trying to get her life together after a bad breakup
- jack is a charming, sweet, and sarcastic guy who wants to find 'the one'
- one bed trope
- witty banter

the one thing i just didn't love was the miscommunication!! like, i get it, in real life i would totally understand feeling scared to talk to my BEST FRIEND about developing feelings for them, but for some reason i just hate that in books.

i loved so many things about this book and didnt like alot of it. I loved the idea, two people making a wager to see who would fall in love first on a dating app, it was funny and I laughed out loud alot. most of the story is very easy to enjoy and to follow along with. I felt myself wishing the characters werent so bad at communicating. There was so much back and forth and denial and it felt very frustrating. I also felt like too much of the story was boiled down to sex scenes and I wanted more. regardless though, I found it very fun and the love confession in the rain was great. lynn has a way of writing excellent banter and it makes her stories enjoyable.
Read this if you love friends to lovers, fake dating, only one bed, amazing banter and horrible dates that will make you laugh so hard.
Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley for the ARC.

A really cute story. I liked the fact that they really learned about each other before getting together. It wasn't a typical storyline. It was a fun and funny way to get to the HEA!

Working the bar at a wedding reception, Hallie Piper inadvertently gets caught up in an argument between the best man, Jack Marshall, and his jealous girlfriend. After watching them break up, Hallie rounds out the night with some heavy drinking with Jack, a hot one-night stand, and the walk of shame come morning.

The whole evening wakes Hallie up to the fact that she needs to change her life, so she proceeds to get a steady job, move into her own apartment, and reluctantly sign up for a dating app. Her first round of swiping through prospects leads her to finding Jack again, and they begin to banter on the app and check in with each other after dates. When Jack proposes a wager on whoever finds their perfect match finds, Hallie's all in. But it's not long before these new besties start having feelings for each other...

This follow-up to Mr. Wrong Number is a fast-paced, breezy rom com for those who can relate to the trials and tribulations of dating apps in today's world. The banter between Hallie and Jack really carries the book, and you can tell early on that they will eventually pair up but just don't know when and how they'll make it happen. I didn't find much depth in the characters, but the banter kept me invested in their journey anyway.

Read this if you love: one and done, friends to lovers, fake dating, only one bed, sharing dating app horror stories, falling in love with your wingman

Thank you, Berkley Romance and NetGalley, for providing an eARC of this book. Opinions expressed here are solely my own.

Hallie and Jack's first encounter was a one-night stand following his sister's wedding where Hallie was bartender...it also immediately follows Jack's somewhat dramatic breakup to his would-be fiancé. Hallie doesn't think much of it until she and Jack match on an online dating site. They reconnect and have to figure out if the feelings they have are friendly or more than that. When Hallie has a family wedding to attend where she'll see her ex, she has no choice but to ask Jack to come as a decoy. It's a sweet romance with laugh out loud moments.

4.5 stars

This is leaning more towards 4 stars but the beginning was so solid I rounded up.

Let's start with my likes: I liked the multiple points of view. It really helped you get into the heads of both of our protagonists. Speaking of our main characters, I really enjoyed them both individually, they were relatable likeable characters with good chemistry. I also love Lynn Painter's writing style, it flows and feels genuine with regards to the characters' dialogues. I also adore that is is canonically in the same world as Mr. Wrong Number, and I loved the Colin and Olivia cameos throughout the book.

Now for my dislikes. My issues with this book were pretty much the same as Mr. Wrong Number, but got overshadowed by the amazing banter and fun writing. Without going into too much detail, I do not like the starting off their fakelationship with dishonesty, and the way this communication issue with quickly solved at the end seemed rush and disingenuous (the pacing overall at the end seemed pretty rushed). A reason I may have enjoyed this book so much is it is a little reminiscent of other BookTok reads (i.e. Unhoneymooners, Spanish Love Deception & Love Hypothesis). There was one scene in particular that had an almost identical scene to the Love Hypothesis, and the premise of the second half of the book is essentially The Spanish Love Deception.

Overall though, it was highly enjoyable and I can wait to see what Lynn Painter has next!

THE LOVE WAGER is the absolute stunning new novel from Lynn Painter. Painter already took over BookTok and the rest of the internet with her book BETTER THAN THE MOVIES, so I was so excited to read this one. This book was do charming and witty, and gave me all the swoons. I truly could not put this book down until I reached the final page. Lynn Painter is slowly becoming one of my go-to authors and I am so ready to see what she writes next!

Bartender Hallie Piper witnesses a disastrous near-proposal turned breakup and winds up crawling (literally) out of the would-be groom's hotel room the next morning. Deciding she's hit rock bottom, she gets on a dating app to find a real relationship. Only the first guy she sees on the app is her handsome one-night stand, Jack Marshall. Deciding they are absolutely better off as friends, they make a pact to help each other find "The One." Except their dates never seem to go as well as they hope and they wind up eating tacos and watching movies together more often than not. When Hallie needs a last minute date to her sister's wedding, Jack is happy to step up and pretend to be her boyfriend so Hallie doesn't have to face her ex alone. Already blurry lines get blurrier.

The Love Wager features classic rom-com tropes (friends-to-lovers, fake dating, only one bed) made fresh, charming, and sexy with authentic, likable characters, witty banter, and plenty of steam. Fun to read and easy to recommend.

Lynn Painter is an autobuy for me now! She’s so funny and I love the way her characters address problems (quickly lol). This book was so sweet and the spice was *chef’s kiss* 100% recommend

This book was amazing. I finished it in a couple of days. The characters are hilarious, the plot is smart, and nothing was overdramatic. This gave me "Hating Game" vibes, without the intense hatred. The banter between the leads was near perfection. I love that the male protagonist can be so completely comfortable with his besottedness of the female protagonist. No overly macho toxicity... love it!

I am officially obsessed with Lynn Painter. After reading and loving ACCIDENTALLY AMY, I requested this one because I needed more, and I loved this book just as hard.

Hallie and Jack meet at the beginning of the book and have a one night stand at his sister’s wedding… so it started pretty early to be an amazing time for me. After this, they become best friends. I LOVE when friendships start in the book, and not previously (like 15 years before), so this was the kind of friends to lovers I adore. There’s a lot of texting, and I had so much fun with their conversations. This is one of the funniest books I’ve ever read.

The romance was top tier. They both started online dating to find The One… but it always ended up with them having tacos together afterwards. I think this should have been their biggest green flag to know they were, in fact, each other’s One. They were perfect for each other and the chemistry was undeniable. The little fake dating weekend was hilarious because they agreed to fake date, and the procceeded to… date. Dummies to lovers has new captains.

I love love love adore adore adore this book. Lynn has a new superfan, and now I’ll have to control myself not to read her entire backlist in two days. Can I also get more of Ruthie? Because she’s both adorable and a badass and I’m in love.

Rating: 4.5/5
Steam level: Open door, 3-4 scenes, low level of detail

Big thanks to PRH International, Berkley and Netgalley for my ARC. Opinions are my own!