THE AUDIO WAS PHENOMENAL!!!

Joe Arden is on of my all time favorite male narrators & Imani Powers was wonderful. I felt as if both of these narrators really embodied the characters and were perfect choices.

I am still on the verge of tears after the ending of this book. This is a very hard one that dives into PTSD and the general importance of mental health. I thought it was just beautiful. Indira & Jude are two amazing characters that both are suffering in their individual ways. Together, they bring out the best in eachother and I just love them so much.

Mazey Eddings will forever be one of my fave authors!

Tropes:
Childhood Enemies
Forced Proximity
Years of pining

3.75 stars

Thank you to netgalley for a free e-copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I liked this story, I read the first in the series A Brush With Love but skipped the second one because it was about accidental pregnancy and I can't read about that atm. I was curious about this book and actually liked it a lot. I appreciated all of the talk about mental health, it was great how in depth it went into talking about PTSD and therapy. Also good spice in the book. Sometimes it went from 1st to 3rd person which kinda took me out of the story and made it not flow as great but other than that I really liked it and would recommend.

Thank you to the publishers, author and NetGalley for the free copy of this audio book.

This was a cute little read. I didn't realize this was the 3rd in a series but definitely able to be a standalone. I'd probably go back at some point to read the others. The characters were likeable and I enjoyed watching their relationship unfold. The narrators did a good job too.

4ish stars

This was a fun read. I requested it knowing I had enjoyed a previous book from the writer, but I didn’t actually realize they were part of the same series; this was the third one, which means I’ll need to go back and read the second one at some point. Either way, it works as a standalone story, and the only thing that clued me in was a handful of familiar character names (as well as having medical settings as the backdrop for the book). I appreciate how this is a rom-com that also tackles some really big issues (ex. PTSD), all of which I thought were handled with care, including a list of content warnings at the beginning of the book. Overall, I had fun with this book; something about the way this writer crafts her stories just works for me, and I’m looking forward to checking out other work from her in the future.

Cute love story with a focus on the importance of mental health. I would definitely recommend paying attention to the trigger warnings that the author provides. I enjoyed the characters and the chemistry they had. I’ve not read the previous 2 books in the series (which you don’t need to have read to read this book) but I’ve added them to my TBR - can’t wait to read more from Mazey Eddings.

Thank you, Netgalley and MacMillan Audio as well as St. Martin's Press, for the ARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I absolutely loved this book. All of it. I loved the inclusion and handling of PTSD and anxiety. I loved the main characters in general, the writing, the plot. It was such a wonderful romance with depth and heft, but it still made me laugh out loud.

Mazey Eddings’ writing is so comforting, funny, heartwarming, and relatable. The Plus One was another complete knockout.

Indira thought she had it all together until she walked in on her boyfriend, another girl, and a lot of peanut butter. Jude does not have it all together and is doing everything he can to convince those around him he does. Jude is Indira’s brother’s best friend and these two have not been able to stand each other since childhood. They are forced to endure each other’s company for Indira’s brother’s wedding and the many accompanying events. But enduring each other’s company turns into a fake dating scheme which turns into something more.

Jude was thoughtful, selfless, and incredibly sweet. Indira was confident, attentive, and encouraging. I loved their relationship and how they were able to be there for one another when it really mattered. There were times when my heart was breaking and times when I was cracking up. It has everything you could possibly want from a romcom. I love the characters that Mazey Eddings writes and it’s an extra special treat to see some of my other favorites pop up.

Imani Jade Powers and Joe Arden did an INCREDIBLE job bringing Indira and Jude to life for the audiobook. There were some incredibly emotional moments in Indira and Jude’s story and they could not have been voiced more perfectly.

Whatever Mazey Eddings writes, I’m reading!

The Plus One by Mazey Eddings

Indira is at a crossroads with her current relationship she finds her boyfriend with another women in their home. She runs to her brother's house who is in the process of getting married. As she arrives to her brother's house she finds her brothers high school best friend Jude who is staying there. Indira and Jude end up supporting each other even though they did not like each other growing up.

This is book 3 in A Brush with Love series. This one pulls at your heart with the discussion of PTSD from Jude who worked overseas with a medical unit that works in poor countries or dire situation countries who may be fighting in war. Jude feels broken and thinks life will never be right for him again he is on a seven-week break. Indira is also dealing with a break-up and feeling not capable of doing her job as a therapist.

It was funny at times where I laughed out loud and other times it was serious talking about trauma and PTSD. This story was done right in how these topics where discussed which made the story more engaging and it helps the reader become invested in caring about the characters.

I have enjoyed the series so far and only need to read book one which will be read real soon. Narrated by Imani Jade Powers and Joe Arden who did such a good job putting emotion into the story and bringing life to the characters. This was a five-star read for me and I recommend this romance to anyone who loves romance there are some tropes in this one, but the story flowed really well which made for a quick read.

Thank you to Netgally and MacMillan Audio as well as St. Martin's Press for a free copy of The Plus One for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own.

The Plus One is the third romance in the A Brush with Love series and the first book I have read. After a breakup, Indira ends up crashing with her brother and his fiancé, but little does she know that her brothers friend, Jude, is also staying with them. Indira and Jude have known each other since childhood and have been enemies almost as long. What happens when sparks start to fly between these enemies? There’s a fine line between love and hate, after all.

This was an enjoyable read and is definitely a standalone even though it is sort of a series. I enjoyed the characters and the complexity of the emotions running through both Indira and Jude. I liked the different dynamics in all of the relationships and enjoyed seeing how different actions affected each person differently, like how Indira and her brother both reacted differently to their fathers actions. I’m always a fan of enemies to lovers romances and this one checked all of those boxes. If you are a friends to lovers lover or you want a good romance to read, give this a try!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC audiobook!

Thank you NetGalley, and Mazey Eddings for providing me with an ARC copy of this story in exchange for my honest opinion and review.

The gist of the story description, adorable cover art, and narration characters really drew me in wanting to review this story. Childhood enemies to lovers, fake dating, forced proximity ALL are tropes that call my name! If you love any of these - this story will be for you!

I will admittedly say I had to stop listening audiobook to this however. While the overall story was good, and the narration was enjoyable - some of the heavier content in the story was a bit triggering for this reader. To be fair - Mazey does state at the VERY beginning before the first chapter about mental health triggers, and explains she did her best to handle things with care, and respect for her readers. I greatly appreciated the warning, and proceeded with caution knowing there could be some stuff that made me uncomfy. I had a brutal birthing experience that left me with PTSD - and there are some mental monologue from our leading MMC that simply triggered me more than I felt was worth it. This wasn't any part of the author - just my own experience. I will definitely give this author another chance in the future, and still would encourage others to try it out for yourselves! What is triggering to me - definitely may not be for others.

The Plus One is definitely my favorite in the series! I loved that both Indira and Jude were written to show how anxiety and depression can affect people differently. The past of each character was well explained, and the relationship between the two characters felt real. The chemistry was easy and natural, and the friendship of the other women from previous stories was reflected on so we still got flashbacks of past characters.

I received an advanced copy. All thoughts are my own.

Indira Papadakis walks in to her boyfriend cheating on her with some random girl and an alarming amount of... peanut butter? Don't worry, it only happens at the worst possible time, when she has numerous pre-wedding festivities to attend for her brother's upcoming nuptials. Who wants to go to these events single and alone? The best solution, obviously, is to team up with said brothers best friend Jude. You know, her single biggest nemesis she had while growing up? Surely nothing bad or sexy will happen.

After reading Mazey Edding's last book in this series about several friends in Philadelphia, I was excited to get approved for this advanced audiobook of this book. I have to say, I do think that this book was the best one yet! This was such a fun and quick read! I LOVE a good forced proximity and friends to lovers troupe and this checked all the boxes. I found Indira and Jude to have such an authentic friendship as well as relationship. This made the story much more believable. It was refreshing to read about mental illness including anxiety and PTSD written in such an eloquent way as well. We love some representation in our new novels, so yay for that as well. The narrators were perfect, they did a great job at playing the parts of Indira and Jude, and I loved listening to them read! I am a sucker for a happy ending too, and this ending was just perfect and tied up all the loose ends.

Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for an advanced copy of this fun and steamy read. All opinions within this review are my own.

I loved Lizzie’s Blake’s Best Mistake so I had to pick up The Plus One!

Some facts are indisputable. The sun rises in the east, sets in the west. Gravity exists. Indira doesn’t like Jude. Jude doesn’t like Indira. But what happens when these childhood enemies find the only thing they can rely on is each other?

Enemies to lovers, Brother’s best friend and lots of mental health/PTSD Rep?!?! Yes please! Mazey Eddings has the ability combine humor, spicy chemistry and heavy subjects like PTSD on such a flawless way. I absolutely loved Indira and Jude’s banter. And there were some hilarious bathroom scenes. Highly recommend The Plus One out on April 4!

Indira and Jude's story was an intense and powerful love story. As with many of the romances I'm reading these days, there was way too much explicit sex for my comfort level. But what I appreciated about this story was how these two had always been a part of one another's lives. When they looked back on their history with each other, it almost seemed inevitable that they would end up together at some point, which I really enjoyed.

I also appreciated how they were there for each other, especially as Indira helped Jude take the steps necessary to safeguard his mental health, no matter what the consequences were. In some ways, it seemed as though he wouldn't have lasted much longer if she hadn't come back into his life. But her care and connection with him helped him to work his way into a better place, and the outcome of all that was wonderful.

Thank you to Mazey Eddings, Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for an advance review copy.

Therapist Indira walks in on her boyfriend having an affair and leavers for her brother’s house only to find that her brother’s best friend, Jude, who happens to be her childhood nemesis is already staying there. The pair agree to be civil while staying with Indira’s brother and helping put together the finishing touches on the brother’s wedding. Jude, a doctor, is clearly suffering from PTSD from his work with a medical NGO but has one year left in his contract and does not know what to do. Indira’s ex is part of the wedding party and therefore constantly around so Jude and Indira agree to fake date at the wedding events to make things less awkward, but of course the to cannot help sparks of animosity turning to sparks of chemistry.

I enjoyed the first book in this series (A Brush with Love) but didn’t care for the second (Lizzie Blake’s Best Mistake), so I was not sure what to expect with this one. I was very pleasantly to find that this was my favorite of the three. I am always a sucker for enemies to lovers and especially love it when an added dynamic is brother’s best friend. I absolutely adored both Indira and Jude. Both were very complicated characters that complemented each other well. I really liked that while Indira is a therapist she never treated Jude a patient and I liked that she herself was in therapy and could admit that she doesn’t know everything or have all the answers. I enjoyed seeing the characters from the previous books again. I’m not sure if this series is going to continue or if this was the final book, but either way I’ll read Mazey’s next book.

I really enjoyed the audiobook. I found both Imani Jade Powers and Joe Arden to be compelling narrators that really brought the characters to life and kept me engaged throughout the story. Thank you to NetGalley, Macmillan Audio, and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC and ALC in exchange for an honest review.

My first Mazey Eddings and I really enjoyed her writing style. I also really enjoyed the narrators. Where this book broke down for me were two places:

the bait and switch of the premise, title and cover with the actual book. From the cover/title/premise I was expecting a breezy fun rom-com centering around fake dating for a wedding. This is kind of where you think the book is heading and it has a funny upbeat quality to it. Then suddenly it turns into a very heavy war/PTSD book and they are fake dating for a very brief interlude before they are just straight up having sex. Romance readers are looking for a specific vibe or feeling. Promising a fun and breezy wedding romcom and then subbing in a traumatized surgeon at the last second feels bad. Why was this book even called The Plus One? Like ... this is just the tiniest crumb of the storyline, and by the time the wedding rolls around they are a couple! I don't get it at all. If your book is serious, have a serious noncartoon cover and have a title that matches the premise.

My second problem was Jude's backstory of PTSD dealing with war-torn medical work. So depressing and not what I am looking for in a romance. I want an uplifting story and I want to feel great, I don't want to deal with trauma for what ends up feeling like a BIG chunk of the book. I got tired and bored with this aspect of the book, which felt like it took over, for the most part. This felt like contemporary fiction with a splash of romance thrown in.

I LOVED their banter and the silliness in this book sometimes had me cackling. But then the tone would quickly turn and get super heavy. Not my bag. If you are into giant emotional transformations and really suffering heroes, this one might be for you but it didn't do it for me.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC in exchange for my honest review.

This whole series has me in a chokehold— this book is no exception.

Indira and Jude are childhood enemies who are forced into proximity, and I am sure you can figure out where the story goes from there.

While this was not my favorite in the series (Harper and Dan still have the crown), I was delighted with how intricate and well written the characters were. Mazey did such a great job handling their stories despite it feeling a little heavy at times. The heaviness may have distracted from the romance and happiness, but so is life. I did feel that Jude was the main character and Indira was a side character, which isn’t the norm but also wasn’t a bad thing.

I am excited for the next (and last?) book in this series! Can’t wait to catch up with everyone.

Thank you to Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I’ll be honest. I went into this not realizing it was the 3rd book in a series and I was worried I’d be lost at some parts. While past characters did come up, which I’m sure adds something extra if you’ve read the first 2 books, it did not deter from the current story not knowing theirs.

This story was much heavier than I thought it would be touching on mental health and ptsd. I found this was all done in a very sensitive manner and I really liked the depth it added to the story. I completely fell for both Indira and Jude. I loved their bickering banter in the beginning that evolved into playful barbs. Overall I really enjoyed this story and the narrators did a fantastic job on the audiobook. I can’t wait to pick up the first 2 books now.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for a copy of this audiobook. This review and opinions are all my own.

After witnessing her live-in boyfriend actively cheating on her, Indira is left with few options but to stay with her brother and his fiancé in the weeks leading up to their wedding. To make matters worse, her brother's best friend (and her own personal nightmare), Jude, is also staying with the couple while he's on leave from his overseas medical career. As the two are working through their own personal problems separately, they decide teaming up to be fake dates to the upcoming wedding may work in their favor. But as the wedding looms closer and the two spend more time with each other, they face the very real possibility that they may in fact have more in common than they ever expected.

While I appreciated the author giving her readers a content warning before the book, I felt a little underprepared for how much space those "contents" would really take up in this book. This book is marketed as a romance/chick-lit, but right off the bat we are deep diving into a lengthy narrative about PTSD and mental health. While I'm all for mental health awareness across genres, it felt too heavy and trauma-based for what is initially presented as a "fake dating romantic comedy".

There were aspects of this book that weren't explored that, had they been, could have added more depth to the overall storyline. I wish the author had given her readers some insight into the relationship of Jude and Indira as kids and what lead to them turning into "enemies". From what we learned, they grew up and experienced high school and parts of college together...but then seemed resentful and disliked each other as adults--but why? What caused the hostility and how was it so quickly negated? There were way too many troupes (enemies to lovers, fake dating, forced proximity) and way too many sub plots (Jude's PTSD and mostly unexplained trauma, four friends story lines, Indira's daddy issues, Jude moving away, the wedding, their future, etc etc). The ending was also dragged out and unnecessary--we as readers didn't need a touch base after a year, and then again after several years. Overall the author did a great job with the general narrative and is a talented as a descriptive writer, but there was entirely too much going on in this book for it to work for me.

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin's Griffin, and Macmillian Audio for the ARC!

As my first experience with an audiobook, I was blown out of the water. Mazey Eddings truly included the reader within the story and allowed for all thoughts and feelings to be very apparent. Since I am a big fan of the enemies to lovers trope, this book warmed my once frozen over heart. By changing perspectives throughout the book, it gives a well rounded detail of the plot and the feelings of each character. By including topics such as PTSD, it made the book very relatable and allowed for readers to feel heard while escaping their day to day lives. "The Plus One," was filled with many heart-warming moments, many laughs, and overall was an extremely satisfying read. I felt that certain moments were slightly too short or too long, however it didn't take away from what was being written which was fantastic.