DNF at 20%

Sadly, this book (by a new-to-me-author) just didn't work for me. It's a marriage of convenience trope and yet the author totally skips over hallmark scenes of that trope.

The reader gets no scene of the proposal of this arrangement AND no actual courthouse marriage scene. Did they kiss in front of the judge? Shake hands? Was there chemistry?

We don't know why the hero is traveling directly after their quicky wedding. Or why the heroine wants to open a bar when she hates her job at the one she works at.

This entire story felt skipped over. I stopped reading around 20% because I knew almost nothing about the main characters and they had no chemistry since the had had almost no scenes together.

I loved this book so much. I really liked the way koa managed to get esther to rely on him, instead of having everyone rely on her.

I can't believe I missed the rest of the bridges and bitters series and I will definitely be adding those to my tbr right now.

I really loved Esther as well. She is such a real person with real emotions and thoughts. And then Koa, who is amazing and caring and also probably very hot but I guess he's fictional so that is kinda sad. (How dare he not be real)

Recommend to anyone who loves love.

Thanks to netgalley and the author for sending me an eARC in exchange for an honest review

I’m a sucker for a marriage of convenience and I love how the author did it in this book. This book can be read as a stand alone but it is part of a series of that makes sense LOL. The series it’s part of is the bridges and bitters.

This is the first book I’ve read by this author and in this series. I didn't feel lost when I read it which is always nice. Her characters are well rounded, real, and relatable I also really appreciate Lainey Davis keeping things short and sweet. . If you like RomComs, found family, humor, drama, feels and spice then this book is for you.

Thank you NetGalley and Lainey Davis for allowing me to read this ARC for my honest opinion.

Last Call was a lot of fun and I love that it's based on a strong woman and found it to be pretty enjoyable!

3.5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️✨

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and Lainey Davis for providing me with an ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

This was an enjoyable read by Lainey. I found the characters to be interesting and enjoyed the friendship amongst the group.

I did tend to agree with Koa that a lot of Esther’s family and friends just bombarded her with messages while they were on their getaway while knowing she was meant to be having a bit of a detox from her phone and experiencing new things.

There just wasn’t anything overly special that stood out to me about the book and it’s not one of my favourites hence the rating

It was a delightful short novel.
I LOVED it ❤️ . The author did her best and she writes the most amazing characters. I think it can be read as standalone but I belive it's better if you read the rest of the series like I did.
All this time Esther has been married to Koa!!! First I couldn't belive it but then I was so engrossed in the story that I forgot it. The story was filled with humour, family squabbles and almost everything you can think it can contain.
I will miss this them so much 😭
However I'm looking forward for the authors new books!!
Rating ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
Spice 🌶 🌶

Marriage of convenience. This is a great book with amazing characters that you will root for. This book had me laughing at some points. I loved it!
I just reviewed Last Call by Lainey Davis. #LastCall #NetGalley
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I love how all the books in this series are based on successful women. Esther's immediate success opening her bar may not be very realistic but it does make a fun location for special events. Ester is a control freak, the exact opposite of her on-paper only husband Koa. This story of them really connecting as they prepare for his immigration interview is full of laughs and sexy scenes. Koa is one of my favorite male main characters in recent memory. Strong but sensitive, thoughtful but with his own issues.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for letting me read this! I'm excited for more stories from this cast of characters.

The story of Esther and Koa, a fake marriage and now they finally work things out. I liked how it was told from.Both points of view.

This was a very cute story. I loved that it was a bit different as far as the marriage of convenience that I’m used to.

I didn’t like the time jump I felt a little cheated I think in knowing some of the details.
Once the female MC gave in and let herself be taken care of I enjoyed it a lot more.

Def a cute read ❤️

This had to be my favorite of the series so far, and I was a little nervous that it was Esther. I loved Esther and Koa, because I've been an Esther at times, and I understand how hard it is to accept help from others, especially when you've been in survivor mode for such a long time. The way that Piper had always said that "Esther is always moving when shes at work, and I wanna emulate that" is very telling as to how Esther is as a person. Loyal to a fault, and has been at the helm for so long.
Koa, man, what a dream boat. I also enjoyed how it was kind of a second chance romance as well as a marriage of convenience. Because usually the books are about how they stay married a few months later. But I appreciated that they already had a history and despite it supposedly being a farce from the get go, that they still cared for each other even if they didn't really realize they did.
One of the things that I love about this series is the FOOF group, and I'm sure I share the sentiment that I want one of my own where I live. Just the women raising women up. And just having great friends and resources for when shit gets sticky and life lifes. I also really appreciate Lainey Davis keeping things short and sweet. Reading this series to get to this book has been an absolute delight, and I love that she keeps it to ~200 pages, and doesn't use a lot of word fluff to get the point across. Her characters are well rounded, real, and relateable. Even if they're the CEO of a company that is bananas. 100% recommend the series and this book!

The book's upbeat cover and quirky description made it sound like a light, funny romcom. But it really wasn't. It started with a pretty depressing chapter (childhood neglect, dire poverty, abuse) which is not the best way to open a story for people expecting mirth & cheer.

The plot wasn't exactly implausible - marriages of convenience are a reality in a country with such hostility towards immigrants (especially people of colour). I really hoped for more nuance about their individual experiences and the kind of angst and blind hope that drives such people. But it was all neatly tucked away with zero familial bonds, and unspecified amounts of wealth.

Everything just seemed to magically work out for the protagonists. That is of course a feature of light-hearted romantic comedies but this one wasn't that. I got to about 40% of the book and still, things hadn't smoothed out so I gave it up. I don't see the book on Goodreads yet so I'm assuming this is an early galley edition. I do hope the author will consider these aspects because it seems like she does have a story to tell and can write.

REVIEW
Thanks to Netgalley and the Publisher for this ARC. I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
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I'm always up for any romance with a Marriage of Convenience trope, and this didn't disappoint. One of the things I liked best about this book is the presence of a Maori character, my first experience.
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I really liked the MCs, they were brave, and I understood their struggles in trying to let go of the trauma their parents left them. Especially Esther, I admire how she made life better for her sisters. This was also the first time I'll read about a character named Esther, the name is quite popular here in Nigeria.
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I liked the supporting characters, too, the Storm Sisters and the FOOFs. They were amazing!
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All in all, the romance was cute, simple, and easy for me to finish.

*4.75

I liked the time jump after they get married, it really shows how their relationship grew even if they weren't together. When he came back and immediately got involved with her family and friends it made my heart warm. They really learned to trust each other. It could be five stars but I feel like I wanted a bit more from them at the end.

I received an arc through netgalley.

This was the first marriage of convenience book I’ve ever read, and I think it was a good one to start off with! I didn’t, though, expect the marriage to happen so fast. It’s probably because I’m not used to this trope that I wasn’t expecting it.

I really enjoyed how fast Koa seemed to mesh into Ester’s life and how he immediately wanted to be there for and take care of her. He was a sweetie. I’m a sucker for reverse grumpy x sunshine and Lainey did it well!

The only criticism I have is that the time jump came out of nowhere; I wasn’t expecting it at all. It made things feel a bit rushed at first. It took me a bit to get used to it, but once I did I had a great time reading!

It was a nice, short read, and I’m definitely going to read the rest of the Bridges and Bitters books! 3.5 ⭐️s

I went into this book thinking it was going to be a really sports-heavy book. pleasantly, I found that the story felt really balanced. Koa and Esther's story is so emotional! but it is in the best way possible. It was heartwarming to watch the two discover so much about themselves and why they need each other. I loved the inclusion of details from the New Zealand culture. (I may be mixing my countries/cultures here) Throughout the whole book, I was picturing Koa looking like Dwain Johnson.
I am so excited to see (via the author's note) that they will be writing books for all of the Storm sisters! I can't wait for that. Now I'm off to read the rest of the books in the Bridges and Bitters series!

This was a fun green card marriage trope story. I was really interested in it because the MMC is Māori and I haven't read a lot of stories featuring them.

I did think that it could have used a little more development in the beginning to show how the marriage came about - it just seemed like, we meet BAM, let's get married to benefit each other. The whole deal making could have been more.

It has a little spice in it, maybe a 1.5 🌶️ rating.

Last Call is the 4th book in the Bridges and Bitters series. I did not read the first 3 books but that did not stop me from enjoying this book. Koa and Esther are interesting characters with complicated histories. I am interested in going back and checking out the past books in the series.

This was a fun quick read for anyone who loves marriage of convenience tropes.

Koa is such a sunshine-y golden retriever and Esther is a grump who has the world on her shoulders. I really liked their dynamic and I appreciated the more in depth take on each others problems than the "we're different" and therefore don't get along.

I was a bit disappointed that there wasn't more rugby (especially from Koa's perspective). He has travelled the country for 10+ years and he barely mentions it and the only gameplay is from Ester's perspective which would have been a great time to do a rugby for newbies, but we barely get any description of the game(s). The third act break-up was a bit over the top for me as well, but the reunion did make it worth it - I appreciated the depth of feeling we finally got to see from Ester.

Koa is one of my favorite characters I've read in a long time. I did really like that effort that the author put into making Koa a character that is native New Zealander, and his struggles with his heritage and culture felt real and intrinsic instead of an afterthought.