I liked this book from the go. Full pun intended..

Jo and Go host a podcast on staying single. Jo is now getting married and Go aka Margo has to rethink her life. Should she continue the podcast or try something new?

Enter Declan a nemesis from high school now the best man to Margo’s maid of honor. Is what she suddenly is feeling towards Declan true or something just for the clicks?

I really like Margo has a main character. She is sex positive and doesn’t apologize for who she is. I thought Declan challenged her in an interesting way. Could I see the third act break up coming the entire time? Yes. I still enjoined it.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC! I was so excited to read this book when I came across it. This was an enjoyable, easy read! It started to drag a bit around the middle, but it didn’t stop me from speeding through. As a fellow podcaster, I found their struggles to create new content and be present on social very relatable!

I wished I loved it more than I did. Overall, it was a solid 3 stars for me.

This reminded me a lot of Ten Rules for Faking It so if you enjoyed that one, you may enjoy this book too! Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this arc ebook in exchange for an honest review.

Seven rules for breaking hearts is a very modern love story featuring two best friends and a podcast on rules to stay single and not catch feelings. As these rules start to disappear for one reason or another it creates lots of laugh out loud and swoon worthy moments all taking place during a wedding centered island vacation. With a little bit of spice and personal growth thrown in to this comical romance, this book is a great read and highly recommended.

I received an advanced review copy of this work and offer my honest opinion voluntarily.

Seven rules for breaking hearts was a light hearted modern romcom about friendship, finding your authentic self, and the pressures of social media while doing so.

Margo has sworn off commitment and love, and very publicly so. With the help of her best friend Jo, Margo cohosts a podcast dedicated to establishing rules for the modern day woman to avoid catching feelings, remain in control, and protect their hearts.. The duos entire life was abruptly shaken when Jo has a whirlwind romance and decides to get married. As the maid of honor, Margo has no choice but to attend the two week wedding event, while being forced to play nice in the sandbox with the Best Man and her High School nemesis; Declan.

Will Margo finally let her walls down and break all her precious rules to find true love?

The characters were lovable, the banter was laugh out loud funny, and this is the perfect light, feel good read! A big thank you to NetGalley and St, Martin’s Press Group for the ARC!

This was a really fun, summer read! The enemy to lover trope was well executed in a fun setting revolving around a wedding. I found the podcast portions an interesting perspective and would recommend if you’re looking for a light, fun filled romance.

Probably somewhere between a 3.5-4 star read. This was a solid enemies to lovers with good chemistry between Margo and Declan and a bit of spice! at times it got predictable of course. I enjoyed the podcast aspect as that was a unique touch. I also appreciated that the issues between the couple seemed realistic and wasn’t conflict just to have conflict as you sometimes get with beach read types. Would recommend for a quick, easy fluff read!

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you NetGalley for an advanced copy of SEVEN RULES FOR BREAKING HEARTS by Kristyn J. Miller. It took me a minute to get into this book and to like the MC and feel the chemistry between her and the LI. But once I got there, I flew through the rest of the book and really enjoyed how real their relationship felt, down to the heartache. I also enjoyed the Catalina island setting having been there once on a cruise, and the general California-ness of the whole vibe. I enjoyed watching the character grow and learn and not necessarily have it all figured out at the end, but she was ok with that. It was fun and made me feel things and I enjoyed myself.

**3.5 STARS**

What happens when two women who have a podcast about how to be single and happy and then one woman defects and gets married? Well they definitely can’t continue making a podcast about staying single! So it’s definitely a problem between Go and Jo. They have to figure out how to move forward with their podcast, but it’s hard letting go – especially for Margo.

This rom-com has a little bit of everything that makes it a fun read. A wedding party travels to Catalina Island for two weeks, there’s an enemies to lovers kind of romance between Margo and her old classmate Declan (who happens to be the best man – she’s the maid of honor of course) and being stuck on an island for two weeks – well…anything can happen. And something does happen between Margo and Declan but it’s ruined by one person withholding information from the other. I thought the parts where they bickered was fun and they even got some steamy scenes. The two are opposites where Declan is more on the quiet side and doesn’t know his way around social media as compared to Margo who’s job requires she be on social media all the time.

Speaking of the job – Go and Jo are podcasters but we get mostly Margo’s perspective of the show because Jo is basically all but out of the duo. Jo fell in love and she’s getting married. Where does this leave Margo? A little bit floundering and trying to figure stuff out. I’d assume Margo and their group of friends are Millenials because they mention high rent prices and having to move back home to get their feet under them again.

I think the friend group/wedding party didn’t add much to the story. I would have like to get more out of them just to liven things up a bit. I also wanted a little bit more from Declan’s character but I guess that’s just how his personality is.

Overall, this is a good light-hearted romance and it would be a perfect book for summer time.

Why you should read it:
*you want a light-hearted, quick and east romance
*it’s got a wedding party traveling and spending time together
*Margo and Declan’s romance – plus there are sexy scenes between them

My Thoughts:

This rom-com has a little bit of everything and I think it’s a great book for a summer read!

I really enjoyed this book. I have never heard of this author, but I really liked her writing style. I like books where the story flows and it’s easy to read, while also engaging you in the storyline. The main character was very likable and I found myself rooting for her and a happy ending, even though she made some mistakes and you knew they would catch up to her. If you are a fan of romance novels, you will enjoy this book.

✨ BOOK REVIEW ✨

Genre: Romance
Pages: 352
Goodreads: 3.8

Do you ever just read a book and get exactly what you’re looking for out of it? Seven Rules for Breaking Hearts did just that for me! It ticked every box that I enjoy in romance novels (obvs not counting smut 😉).

Enemies that become lovers, awkward conversations, opposites attract, and cute childhood stories?! Honestly just put me down for all corny romance books now 🙋🏻‍♀️🙋🏻‍♀️🙋🏻‍♀️

An easy one day read that I highly suggest you add to your TBR to make sure you read over summer once it publishes!

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️


Margo Anderson is sworn off commitment. Alongside her best friend, Jo, she runs a viral podcast featuring rules for hooking up without catching feelings. So when Jo surprises her by deciding to get married and taking up a sponsor's offer to host an all-expenses-paid wedding trip on Catalina Island, they have the whole internet to answer to. In a scramble for content to appease their disappointed listeners,
Margo cooks up a social experiment: Break all her own dating rules, just to prove that it's a bad idea. And she's found the best man for the job in the groom's best friend and her old high school nemesis, Declan Walsh.

But the more time they spend together through cake tastings and wedding party activities, the more Margo can't ignore their obvious spark, and she may actually be enjoying getting to know Declan. But can she let go of the rules to let him in?

💭 Do you have any enemies turned lovers books to recommend? I feel like this will be my go-to the next few months!

Thank you @netgalley & @stmartinspress for my digital ARC in exchange for a review.

I received a digital ARC from St. Martin’s Press, St. Martin’s Griffin in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

I believe that this novel makes for a great summer read. It is a story of two best friends who have a podcast. Over one summer, they’re beliefs that made them start the podcast in the first place change, and they have to figure out what to do in the aftermath. I think the premise is a good one. However, the storyline was a bit to immature for me. I think it took too long for Margo to learn what she did by the end of the story.

I appreciated the way everything wrapped up. I only wish there was more about Margo and Declan’s relationship once it developed into what both of them wanted.

Definitely light and easy to read. I had a hard time sticking to the reading for the first couple of chapters but once the storyline picked up, I was hooked. It was a cute read filled with the banter of enemies to lovers, a single girl who was confident in staying single forever, and a redhead nerdy scientist who was crushing on a girl for years, with no insight of when his chance to show her would come.
Two best friends turned podcast hosts are figuring out how to take the next step in their lives when one friend has now put their podcast rules aside to begin the next season of her life. This rom com is the perfect quick and light read that has just enough to add some tension, but leaves you yearning to learn more about Declan and Margo’s connection, especially after some twists along the way.

Rating: 3.5/5 stars

Seven Rules for Breaking Hearts centers around “Go” (Margo), one half of a popular singles podcast that she has with her best friend, Jo. Jo is getting married to one of their high school classmates and MOH Margo is floundering at the loss of her single friend and possible changes in the podcast and their sponsorships.

Margo has sworn off love but after losing a sponsor, she decides to throw out her rules and go after Best Man Declan, another former high school classmate. Declan had been in love with Margo for most of their high school time, so he’s playing for keeps. Can Margo see what she’s missing by giving a chance on love?

I liked Margo, her character development and how she confronts her vulnerabilities. I loved the banter between Declan and Margo and loved the mini flashbacks of Declan’s feelings about Margo. I thought the friendship of Margo and Jo was not as developed.

Read this if you like:
💙He falls first
💙Media influencers
💙Enemies to lovers

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for this eARC. Seven Rules for Breaking Hearts comes out May 16, 2023. A good early summer read!

From the first chapter, this book had me HOOKED. The premise was so interesting and unique to me. I loved a lot about this book.

I always start with what I don't like, but honestly, I'm not sure there was much. I liked how self-aware the third act conflict was. It wasn't something that neither character took responsibility for, and then it was just resolved. Margo understood why she was wrong and actually worked to remedy it on all sides.

I will say that the friendship between Jo and Go seemed to lack real heart. I mean, I could understand the bond from what Margo was telling us, but it didn't really translate well into their interactions.

This cast of characters was funny and charming. I loved living in Margo's head and getting to know her as a person. I loved Declan's whole, "I've been in love with you since forever, and I've been dying for you to look at me" thing. It was very cute.

I will definitely recommend this book LOUDLY.

Seven Rules for Breaking Hearts had such a fun premise, I couldn’t wait to start it, and it was really fun. Margo has sworn off love—her and her best friend Jo even have a podcast where they help empower women to stay single. But when they need a refresh on content, Margo decides to throw out the rules and sets her sights on the best man, only he’s playing for keeps. There was a lot I really enjoyed. Margo has a lot of depth and vulnerability. She’s honest and interesting. And best man Declan is adorable. He’s endearing and funny and just everything a book boyfriend should be. Their spark is undeniable and the banter was so witty and engaging. Where I wanted more was with Margo and her best friend Jo. Margo has a lot of conflict with how the podcast affected her friendship and while the two are fun friends and support each other, I think their resolution needed some more work to match the depth and vulnerability of Declan and Margo. There was so much about friendship in this story, and I wanted more. But in terms of the romance, it was sexy and funny and Margo is just a character you can really root for.

Based purely on the blurb for this book, I had moderate-to-low expectations. I’m thrilled to say that I was so wrong about it! I so enjoyed this book! Yes, the MCs can come across as vain and shallow sometimes, but isn’t everyone a little self-absorbed at 25? And I loved that Margo wasn’t completely in denial about her life. She slowly but steadily opened up, talked about her issues, and welcomed change. She probably still needs therapy, but she made herself vulnerable to Declan and it worked for me.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher.

I just wanted to start this off by saying, WOW, I really loved this book! I will be buying the physical copy of Seven Rules for Breaking Hearts on pub day for sure! This book had me laughing out loud and forcing my husband to listen to me read passages that I thought were hilarious. Stayed up until 2am finishing it, which I rarely do considering I have to kids under 5 that don't sleep in. As someone who listens to many many many podcasts, I loved reading about podcasters, I really enjoyed Jo & Margos friendship! I loved that the whole story felt realistic and not too Rom Com corny and I appreciated that Declan from the beginning knew he wasn't someone who could hook up and be done, he got attached easily (samesies!) and just seemed like a normal guy! It was actually really nice seeing the guy be the one who gets attached easily and the girl who is more into hookups! I want more of Declan and Margo!!!

A absolute wonderful feel good romantic comedy that anyone who is a fan of the genre will fall in love with

REVIEW: Seven Rules for Breaking Hearts

“….if there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s that love doesn’t play by the rules in the first place.”

——————-

Margo wants nothing to do with love. Her parents divorced when she was in high school and it left her with some relationship trauma. She and her best friend, Jo, have made a career out of podcasting about how great life is as single girls. But now Jo is getting married and they need to figure out how to move forward with a podcast that doesn’t really represent them. Jo’s wedding is taking place over two weeks in Catalina, paid for by podcast sponsors and Go has the brilliant idea to break their rules as an experiment. Her subject of choice is the groom’s best friend, who happens to be a boy who she dislikes after a few run ins in high school. Over the two weeks, she quickly learns that she may be in for more than she bargained for.

This is one of those cute rom-coms that you can’t help but enjoy even though it uses some common tropes. Go is more than immature for her age and does a ton of growing in the two weeks, some of it is definitely cringey. But more in a “I’ve been there sort of way” than anything. I liked that the characters were well fleshed out and quirky. I enjoyed their banter and if you’re a steam person, there is definitely some of that, although you’ll have to wait for it.

Read this one if you liked Unhoneymooners, People We Meet on Vacation or The Hating Game. It’s a perfect beach read!

Thanks to St Martin’s Press for gifted access via Netgalley. All opinions above are my own.