“Make a home with me here, Charlotte. Make a life with me. All this time, nothing felt right and nothing else has given me a purpose or made me feel like I belonged. Because it wasn’t a place I was missing. It was you.”

- Former pro football player and preservationist
- Historical restoration
- Grumpy (him) sunshine (her)
- Forced proximity
- Dual POV
- Narrated by Connor Crais and Vanessa Edwin

Recently retired NFL player Burke thinks he’s going to spend his early retirement days by the beach in Florida. That is until he gets a call saying his best friend and his wife were killed in a car accident and they left him… a house. His grandparents’ house to be exact. The historical house Charlotte was working on restoring when she got the news.

Burke begrudgingly works alongside Charlotte during the renovations, even if they butt heads all. the. time. Staying together in the carriage house doesn’t help the sexual tension sizzling between them. Then Charlotte hilariously proposes a no-strings attachment... via PowerPoint. I think this is when I fell in love with her!

We all know I love a good grumpy/sunshine dynamic and that was Burke and Charlotte! But Burke couldn't resist Charlotte's chaos. He was also such a softie – my kryptonite! His line after the “windshield incident” made me melt: “You’re my partner in this. So no matter how much we bicker, or how much we disagree, I will always have your back.” But he wasn’t just protective of Charlotte. He was also so kind to his sister, niece and nephew. SWOON.

This book did dive into grief and healing and I really like the depth and character growth. “We both need some fixing, Burke. But I’d rather do that together, wouldn’t you?”

You can read and listen to The Best Laid Plans via KU. But if you’re a listener, PLEASE choose the audiobook. Vanessa and Connor are magnifique!

I loved Best Laid Plans. I could not get enough of the banter between Burke and Charlotte. The moment these two meet the attraction is there, but neither of them is ready for the other. Burke is retired from the NFL and looking forward to just relaxing, but when his life turns upside down, he finds himself with a house and Charlotte - the project manager. Charlotte has been in love with this house she has started to manage, but when things change she is not sure what will come of the beloved house. Burke and Charlotte both ignore their attraction to the other and constantly go back and forth over every little thing, but what happens the longer they spend time together, especially since they become house mates until the project ends? Best Laid Plans is a heart warming, enemies to lovers journey that will hit you with all the feels. Grab those tissues, the tears will be worth the journey that Burke and Charlotte take us on.

This story is a poignant romance exploring love, family, and friendship. Burke Barrett, a former football player, faces life's challenges, including grief and unexpected inheritances. When he meets Charlotte Cunningham, a passionate restoration expert, their connection is palpable, yet the story doesn't shy away from addressing their emotional struggles, from infertility to childhood trauma. The novel beautifully captures the importance of chosen family and supportive relationships, creating a heartwarming atmosphere. While Burke's emotional struggles sometimes felt overwhelming, the book's realism added depth to the characters. Despite the heaviness, the story's genuine portrayal of love and its transformative power deeply moved me. This is a compelling read, evoking a mix of emotions that lingers long after the final page.

I felt a myriad of emotions reading this book. Karla did a fantastic job making this book layered and dynamic. It was so much more than a forced proximity, cutesy romance. Burke is grumpy, as we should expect from an NFL star who is forced into retirement unexpectedly due to injury and Charlotte is the sunshine, the unexpectant project manager hired (before he was in the picture) to restore his newly inherited home. Burke being thrown into all of these new situations at the drop of a hat is what leads to his grumpy front and Charlotte sees straight through it. I loved the push and pull between these two characters. Both strong minded, opinionated and that causes them to initially clash but the development to more is what is really great. 4/5 stars for me because I just wasn't super crazy over the ending. I will say though, I am intrigued to see the other characters in the series and watch their stories unfold as couples. Good series starter.

This book was great! I loved the storyline and the tension and the banter between the two main characters was so enjoyable. I loved how Burke and Charlotte were committed to his friends vision for the house and that it brought them closer and gave him peace

“Despite all the things I’ve done wrong, all the ways I need to make amends, I know that the thing I do best is the way I love you.”⁣

It’s been months since I’ve read The Best Laid Plans but it’s still stuck in my mind! And when it’s Karla Sorensen writing I know it’s going to be good.
Burke’s life is been destroyed by his sudden best friend’s death, and while he’s grieving he finds out he has inherited a house… and after an injury he had to retire from the nfl so he has some free time on his hands so why not stay and help this annoyingly awesome girl create the house she envisioned? Charlotte is a restoration expert who wants to restore that old house back to its former glory and maybe find love in the process…
This love story is a slow burn, with hot banter, some friends (?) with benefits, HGTV vibes, smut. I loved this romance, it has the KS signature 🦋
Thank you Netgalley for the opportunity! 💕

Charlotte is an expert on restoring old, historic properties. Burke is a retired football player who finds himself with just such a property in need of a major rehab following his friend's death. It's a little bit of a different twist to the home reno setup, which I thought was interesting.

My friends who read this one before I did warned me that it was a lot heavier than I was probably expecting. They were not wrong! Poor Burke is mourning his friend and still learning ti cope with his earlier than planned exit from the NFL, and now he's got the responsibility of dealing with this house he inherited on top of it all.

That said, Burke and Charlotte's story isn't totally marred in sadness and grief. There's a ton of great banter, lots of forced proximity goodness, and some interesting side characters that have me itching to read more.

The was an amazing read! I always love GrumpyxSunshine trope! The banter between Burke and Charlotte was top notch and so was the spice.

I loved both of the main characters back stories, they both had hard childhood's and I liked how they helped each other heal from that trauma. This definitely a more deep, emotional romance—it's not lighthearted.

The only problem was that Charlotte often had to do a lot of the heavy lifting with the emotional stuff. Burke had a lack of emotional intelligence that I kind of found annoying. I like it more when the main characters are self-aware and discuss therapy and know what needs to be done to help their mental health.

This book was a well written, emotional and beautiful read!

THINGS I LOVED:
- Football Romance
- Broken hero/heroine
- GrumpyxSunshine
- Found Family
- Forced Proximity
- No Strings Attached

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC!

Karla absolutely nails it when it comes to grumpy, growly men and the spitfire females that meet them step for step.

When Burke’s best friend and his wife are kiIIed in a car accident, Burke learns that he was left the sentimental, old house that his friends were preparing to restore. Puzzled by this and dealing with some other big life changes, the last thing he expects is the feisty project manager that is leading the home restoration.

The banter between Burke and Charlotte is top notch, but the moments they share when their walls drop were so touching and deserve a highlight too. The emotions that Burke goes through as he processes his grief, the loss of his friends, and his fear of letting them down were so raw and real.

I absolutely loved this book and am so excited to hopefully see some of the side characters get their time in the spotlight too!

What you’ll find: grumpy/sunshine, slow burn, killer banter, forced proximity, HGTV vibes/home renovation, a handcuffed meet cute, a meddling hippie aunt, and found family. This is the 1st book in Karla’s new The Best Men standalone series. It is dual 1st person POV and spicy, but on the milder side. The book and audio are both available in kindle unlimited.

This was the first Karla Sorensen book I've read, and I'm a fan.

This story was emotional from the very beginning. My heart was breaking for Burke with the grief and turmoil he was going through.

Charlotte was so fun. I loved her happy personality and how pulled together she was, but also kind of flighty at the same time. She was so real and relatable.

Burke and Charlotte were enemies in a way, but not really. It was more the crappy situation or the reason why they were put together that made them butt heads. Because there was so much flirty tension built up between the two of them. It was crazy good.

I loved the pacing of the book and how it was a slow burn, but yet there was enough happening that it didn't feel slow at all. We got to know Burke and Charlotte layer by layer. It was perfection!

I really enjoyed this one, and I have my fingers crossed that there is a book two of this series because I need to know what is happening with Liam (I think that was his name). Ok, off to add all of Karla's backlist to my TBR now.

Tis the season for football romance, and I am here for ALL OF IT! I think the characters needed a little more depth and growth but overall give me a sports romance any day and I will fall all into it

Another great book from Karla!

I have read a lot of Karla's books now and continue to really enjoy them. Karla is a huge football fan and the sport is present in many of her books, and this book is no different. This time, we have a former football player forced into retirement due to an injury who is struggling to figure out what comes next. Burke Barrett inherits a dilapidated house from his best friend, who passed along - along with his wife - in a sudden and tragic accident, leaving behind a two-year old daughter.
Burke isn't sure what to do about the house, but after visiting and meeting Charlotte, the restoration expert hired to oversee work on the house, he eventually decides to see through his friends' dreams of rehabilitating the home.

There is attraction from the get-go between Charlotte and Burke, and I enjoyed the development of their relationship, first from forced colleagues, to friendly, to friends with benefits, to something more.

The restoration of the house is a great analogy for the personal growth Burke goes through; grieving the loss of his friend; reconciling his feelings about his father; figuring out his life after the end of his pro-football career; how to be a good brother and uncle to his sister and her kids. Bit by bit, the house is rebuilt and so is Burke.

My fave character is definitely Charlotte's aunt Daphne. I want more of Daphne's story!

This is the first book in a series and I'm looking forward to reading more!

Burke (rhymes with Jerk) lost his friends and inherits the house they always wanted fix up. Charlotte (whose name should really rhyme with some that means ‘idealistic dreamer’) was hired to renovate, but then the owners died and the renovations appear to be cancelled. Charlotte the dreamer is crushed, and Burke the jerk doesn’t much care because that is just who he is.

But, opposites attract tropes being what they are, the two find themselves hopelessly attracting each other. Before long, these two are not so grumpy with each other and sweet times ensue.

Thank you to NetGalley and Karla Sorensen for this eARC! This one is out now and on KU!

This one was so fun! Not necessarily enemies to lovers, but Burke and Charlotte definitely had a bit of a rocky start. When Burke's best friends pass away and he inherits their very old house in need of some massive renovations, and right as he is retiring from football, he is not dealing well with any of it.

Enter Charlotte, the restoration expert his best friend's had hired to help fix the house. She's feisty and opinionated and really wants to finish the house, especially when she senses Burke wants to bolt from it.

These two have a SLOW BURN but it's so good! As they truly begin to open up to each other, and to work together to finish this house and honor their friends, they start to see that they just might be what the other needs. But they have a lot of walls to tear down - literally and figuratively - to make it work.

I really enjoyed the romance, all the side characters, the restoration projects…all in all I really enjoyed this one and definitely want to go back and read more from Karla’s backlist! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

My best laid plans went awry when I couldn't read this before it was available but lucky me, I then got to listen to the audiobook and my goodness, this fun, slightly angsty but really sweet grumpy/sunshine story really shined with the fantastic narration by Connor Crais and Vanessa Edwins. The story itself has moments of levity and moments when I wanted to kind of just yell at Burke to get through his angst. Charlotte was a sweetie and I loved her propensity for powerpoint presentations :D The enemies to lovers romance was well done, rolling out in a believable way, though there were some slow parts. Overall, I recommend the story and the audiobook and if you have KU, then the audiobook (free to listen!) is absolutely the way to go!!

The Best Laid Plans by Karla Sorenson

Burke & Charlotte 🩵

This book! Karla has always been one of my favs for Football romances. And while this one is not particularly football heavy. (He's coming off an injury and thrust into retirement). It's still just as amazing! These two rightnoff the bat had me in stitches! He's grumpy and in a sense rightfully so. Forced into retirement. Loss of a close friend. An internal war of what to do with a house that could be, and plans that he had that'll have to be put on hold. Burke Barrett, is hot as hell, grumpy, set in his ways and just looking to put his feet up and relax. Instead he gets a house thats falling apart, a spicy red head that won't take any of his crap! Grief that he can even figure out how to sift through, childhood trauma in a sense and learning to finally live life for himself!

While it's not actually enemies to lovers. It has those feels. They def get on each other's nerves in the beginning until they're able to peel layers back and realize they have more in common than they thought. Both with hard pasts. There's the push and pull. & While I can agree with some reviewers that sometimes it felt as Charlotte was willing to meet Burke more. Like she was pushing him to feel and he was continously holding back, it almost felt as his growth was stunted, he pulled it together in the end. Underneathe all that gruff is a man who truly does care. And i loved that Charlotte helped calm him and bring him out of his shell. I would have loved to see him help her unpack some of her baggage but i also loved the dynamic between her and Daphne. So im glad she had her! Overall it was a really good read!


**Reviewed on Amazon, Bookbub, Goodreads, Instagram & Facebook on 10.4.23

`*•.¸★☆ The Best Laid Plans by Karla Sorensen ☆★¸.•*´

A tough-as-leather football player. A happy-go-lucky historian. It’s love against all odds in a warm and emotional romance about found family, friendship, and the restorative powers of the heart.

Former Dallas football player Burke Barrett is weathering a lot of changes. He’s retired from football. He’s mourning the loss of his best friend. And now he’s been bequeathed a dilapidated house in northern Michigan he doesn’t want. To his surprise it comes with a long-legged, blindly optimistic renovation manager with big ideas for Burke’s inheritance. She’s passionate, irritating, and irresistible.

Restoration expert Charlotte Cunningham is used to rough exteriors. This surly client, with his stubbled jaw, towering physique, and inflexible attitude, is worth smoothing over. The attraction sizzles, and a proposal is in order: a romantic tryst to relieve the tension. No strings attached. A safe bet for both of them since Burke is prepared to renovate, sell, and move on.

A pet project with an end date. Does that go for love too? Burke must decide what he really wants and what he’s willing to risk. He should know by now that the best-laid plans can change in a heartbeat.

BUY LINKS:

Amazon IT: https://amzn.to/3F7X8er
Ebook- bit.ly/BestLaidPlansKS
Audio- bit.ly/BestLaidPlansAudio
Paperback- bit.ly/BestLaidPlansPB


REVIEW

The Best Laid Plans was fun to read, and it’s a story that puts you through a rollercoaster of emotions, it’s beautiful that way.
Karla Sorensen never disappoints me, I love her characters.
From the start Burke and Charlotte are hilarious with their back and forth. He’s a Mr Grumpiness in the flesh while she’s cheerful, sparkling, full of ideas and in love with the restoration project.
Burke is in a sensitive time of his life: he stopped playing football and he was good at it, and he is grieving the loss of his best friend Chris and his wife.
They left him a wreck of a house in their will, but it was Chris’ legacy, his dreams was bound to it and Burke knows how much his friend cared for this house and he can’t just get the rid of it.
And then there’s this maddening girl, Charlotte, the restoration expert who worked for Chris.
At first they can stand each other, and reading the exchange between them was so much fun, but their chemistry is explosive and the time they spent together too much so they have to come to terms with that.
I think in the future I’ll never attend a Power-Point presentation without smiling because of Charlotte.
I loved Burke, his feelings are so deep, he always shows to other people his strength, his determination, he loves fiercely his sister and nieces. He hides his inner conflicts, his doubts.
Charlotte is strong as well, but a different kind of person, what I loved the most was her empathy for Burke’s feelings and moods, she understands his struggles, why he just can’t show his emotions, and she gives him space, time. It’s one of her way to love him.
This first book in the Best Men series is amazing, can’t wait to read the next one.
I hope is going to be about Liam.

Tnaks to Netgalley and Montlake for the kind preview
RATING 5 STAR

This was a really wonderful grumpy + sunshine romance. It starts off pretty heavy (please check CW’s) and there are somber moments throughout, but ultimately it’s an uplifting novel.

Things to look forward to:
- forced proximity
- opposites attract
- touch her and die
- found family
- small town
- a new appreciation for PowerPoint
- fantastic secondary characters (Can Tansy please get her HEA next with a certain builder? I’ll also take one for a newly single dad surly Brit and his co-guardian)
- super sweet epilogue

I had both the audio and ebook for this one, but the narration was so phenomenal that I found myself mainly listening to it. Connor Crais and Vanessa Edwin might be my new favorite narrating duo. Their voices complemented each other so well and wow can Connor Crais bring the heat! I’m also a little embarrassed to admit how much Vanessa Edwin’s male voices work for me LOL.

Audiobook Review
Overall 4.5 stars
Performance 5+ stars
Story 4 stars

CW: death of loved ones (drunk driver related, past), death of parent (past), grief, panic attack (on page), strained relationship with parent (past), appendicitis (secondary character), emotionally abusive ex (secondary character, past), divorce (past)

There were parts of this book that I loved and it could have been a five star read for me if not for a few small details at the end of the story.

I love a grumpy MMC and Burke fit the bill nicely. Charlotte was definitely the sunshine, but not in a over-the-top kind of way. They were both guarded when they met from past relationships and I felt that the pacing of their relationship was done well. This is definitely a slow burn as they don't "get together" until 80%, but it was so worth the wait. I love a burn as long as there is good pay off and there really is here, from their first kiss to the first time they have sex.

The side characters brought some much needed lightness to the story given that so much of the plot surrounds grief. Daphney & Richard were fun & quirkly; Tansy and the kids made Burke a more well-rounded character and showed the reader that he is not always a super crank and can actually lighten up and have fun.

I was bummed about the 3rd act breakup. I really dislike it when a MMC is so clearly in love with the FMC but gets scared of his feelings and literally flees. Thankfully the breakup didn't last too long and when Burke came back, he owned his behavior.

I'm not sure the discovery of the letter from Chris was necessary at the end. At that point, I felt the story was wrapping up nicely and this was just kind of a sad reminder of the tragedy that had happened. I did absolutely adore the epilogue and the way Burke proposed to Charlotte. That was perfection! Thank you, N etgalley for the advanced reader copy of book. I always enjoy Karla Sorensen's books and will definitely read the next one in the series (maybe William & Tansy???).

The Best Laid Plans by Karla Sorensen is the First book in The Best Men Series. This is the story of Burke Barrett and Charlotte Cunningham. Burke is a former Dallas football player who has lost his best friend. Now he learns he has inherited a house in Michigan. Of course he goes to handle what to do with the house which leads him to Charlotte. Charlotte is a Restoration personal who wants to get her hand on the house. Enjoyed their story.