So Not Meant to Be is the second book in Meghan Quinn's Cane Brothers series! I'm actually reading this series backwards for some reason but it's fine! Each book can be read as a stand alone with no issues. So Not Meant To Be is the story of JP Cane and Kelsey! They start as co-workers and have a great banter and relationship dynamic. As much as I loved their story, they don't even compare to Breaker and Lia--best friends to lovers story ever.

Meghan Quinn is a great author and has so much romance and angst thrown in every book. I can't wait to see what she writes next!

This was a light and hilarious story that kept me entertained throughout. A great friendship turns into romance.

So Not Meant To Be by Meghan Quinn

My rating:
4/5
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Kelsey is ready to find love and is thriving at her organizational business. When she is forced to go to San Francisco with JP Cane for a job, she is determined to not fall for her obnoxiously handsome and rude coworker, JP.

This is the second book in the Cane Brothers series and it did not disappoint!

I have to admit I started this one over a month ago and I just wasn’t feeling it so I ended up taking a break from it. I was at about 30% when I picked it back up and from there I really loved it! I am so glad I picked it back up.

I really loved the banter between the main characters and the enemies to lovers vibe with flirting between them. I also enjoyed that we got to continue Lottie and Huxley’s story in this one! I also really loved how there was some super cute illustrations in this!

There was a couple cringe moments in this one for me. Some of the things the author wrote was a bit of a turn off for me but the actual spice parts of the book were PERFECT and the slow burn was what hooked me!

I would absolutely recommend reading this series. A Not So Meet Cute was SO good, it was actually one of my favorite reads in 2022.

I can’t wait to read book there to follow Breaker’s story!

Thank you netgalley and Source Books / Bloom for the ARC! This is out now so go pick up the first book in the series before you read this one!

Megan Quinn writes swoon worthy heros and fierce heroines, evidenced in enemies to lovers So Not Meant to Be.

Kelsey is set on finding love, open to anyone but her arrogant price coworker J.P. He's everything she's not and won't stand for his kind gestures. J.P. figured anyone would fall for his charm. He's quickly thrown off by Kelsey's attempts at staying away and pretending their date never happened. They are so (at least Kelsey thinks) not meant to be!

I really enjoyed the first half of Kelsey and J.P.'s story but found the middle half to drag on. I wanted MORE to happen and there were parts were J.P. and Kelsey should have given into their tension. Glad to finally get to their happily ever after, I found myself quickly skimming some pages.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing this eARC of So Not Meant to Be.
This book is the second installment and it features the POVs of Lottie's sister Kelsey and Huxley's brother JP. Kelsey can't stand JP. Or does she? But they have to work together. So there's no way she'll be able to escape him. But then she has to go to San Francisco. And JP has to go with her. Will they be able to survive these two weeks they have to spend in each others company?
I have to say that I enjoyed reading this book. It was fun and a fast read.

This cover is so cute. I am loving this series. I love organization so Kelsie and I are kindred spirits. JP is a playboy that thinks he only ever wants one night with a woman. Something is different about Kelsie. I loved the story. The romance and spice was so so good. I will be reading the next one. Thank you to NetGalley and SOURCEBOOKS Bloom Books for the arc in exchange for my honest review.

Après un excellent premier tome et comme ce livre traînait dans ma PAL VO depuis un moment, j’ai donc décidé d'enchaîner avec l’histoire entre JP et Kelsey et je ressors de ce livre un peu mitigé…

Je ne spoilerais pas pour celles et ceux qui attendent la parution de ce tome en français mais je dirais juste que j’ai été déçue par le personnage de Kelsey auquel j’ai eu du mal à m’attacher et à trouver de l’empathie. J’ai un peu plus apprécié JP mais j’ai trouvé qu’il s’effaçait un peu trop à certains moments… Le point fort de ce livre, c’est l’humour qui est toujours aussi présent et qui fait du bien au moral

En bref, un second tome plus en demi-teinte pour moi

I enjoyed this one!

This was definitely a solid enemies to lovers, forced proximity story. JP and Kelsey started off hating each other until they're forced to take a work trip together.

I did struggle with connecting to JP until probably half way through the book. His character and some of his actions were just a bit abrasive for me. But I eventually began to like him more and got into the story.

It was a fun read with some genuinely laugh-out-loud moments.

So Not Meant to Be is the second in the Cane brothers story and this one focuses on JP and the sister of the main character from the first book, Kelsey. In general it was an ok book and a quick read, with that Meghan Quinn mix of humor and spiciness. However i thought this book was just not my favorite of her offerings. I liked JP but was lukewarm on Kelsey and was so frustrated by the way the characters just did not talk to each other. I worry about their future relationship because they need some therapy through these issues. It was nice to see Huxley and Lottie's story continue and I loved the When Harry Met Sally -esque podcast interludes. Looking forward to book 3.

This is the second installment of the Cane Brothers series. I've recently started reading this author and have really been enjoying her books. This book was entertaining, to be sure, but while I absolutely loved the first book, I would've liked to see Kelsey not so dead set to always believe the worst in JP. JP was just a sweet, misunderstood guy and was miserable because the girl he liked so much just wouldn't give him a chance. But he never gave up and continued to try to get her to trust him and prove to her she could count on him. She eventually got there, but it just took a little bit longer than I would have liked. Despite my thoughts on the character, the story was definitely engaging and kept my interest from start to finish. This will definitely not deter me from reading more of her books, as I think she is a very good author and I really enjoy romantic comedies. The humor was great, and had me laughing and smiling and ultimately, I enjoyed the story, so I'm definitely looking forward to reading the next Cane brother installment.
My thanks to Netgalley and Sourcebooks Bloom Books for providing a complimentary copy. This is my honest and voluntary review.

This book was just “meh” for me. I felt like I was reading it because I had to finish it instead of reading it because I wanted to finish it. I can’t quite put my finger on what it was.

This book made me irrationally angry with the female main character. I think she was one of the most annoying main characters I have ever read. I kept wanting the male main character to realize he was too good for her and find someone better. I get it that the female main character had insecurities but they would present themselves in the annoying ways. I also felt like she kept making assumptions about the male main character that made no sense based on what he had told her, what his actions had been and what the other characters were telling her about him.

I really liked the male main character and the authors writing style. I also found the illustrations in the book to be a really great surprise. If it wasn’t for those three things I would not have finished this book.

This is the second book in the Cane Brothers series. This story follows JP, the middle Cane brother, and younger brother of Huxley, the main male character in book 1. JP is a millionaire who has been known to flirt and not likely to settle down. However, things change when he begins spending time with Kelsey, the sister of his brother’s girl, Lottie. Kelsey brings JP’s world into focus and provides him with a happy feeling he just can’t get enough of. When they have to go on a 2 week long business trip together, the angst and romantic tension finally spill over and the results are spicy and heated!

Fairly predictable rom com but it was still a good read that I enjoyed it. It was also a quick read.

So surprised by how much I loved this. I did enjoy A Not So Meet Cute, but this was rom com perfection. JP enjoys flirting with Kelsey but she is not interested - they’re colleagues and he’s her future brother in law. However, it becomes impossible to ignore their attraction.

This is the perfect mix of cute, funny and spicy. To be honest - JP and the pigeons equals comedy gold. I found Kelsey to be a such a likeable FMC and I really felt for her and her insecurities. Very much looking forward to the next in the series now. The little excerpts from Kelsey’s podcast interviewing couples from Meghan Quinn’s previous books is such a treat for longtime readers.

What to expect:

- lols
- enemies to lovers
- friends to lovers
- forced proximity
- he falls first
- very spicy

4.5 ✨

please note that the trigger warnings and topes/themes may contain spoilers
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
HEA: yes
spice: several open-door spicy scenes
TWs: grief, death of a parent (recounted)
standalone: book 2 in the Cane Brothers trilogy (technically can be read as a standalone but more context is added when read as a series)
final thoughts: I once again wish the MMC had to grovel a bit more for their HEA but overall, I loved this book. There was some cute and funny banter, and I loved being able to see both 1st person POVs to see how and why they were reacting the way they did. Kelsey was honestly completely blind for most of this book which got me frustrated at times, but JP was the saving grace of that (even if he did get me frustrated now and again too). Love this series and can’t wait to read the next one.

read this book if you love

😬 angst
🏝️ forced proximity
🧑‍🤝‍🧑 great side characters
💓 slowburn
💵 billionaire
😂 romcom
🧠 “it’s always been you”
🤜 rivals-to-lovers
💞 friends-to-lovers
💼 workplace romance

Review of “So Not Meant To Be” by Meghan Quinn

3⭐️

Okay, hear me out. I loved part one in this series so much and I thought Lottie and Huxley were totally meant to be. But in this one, I hard such a hard time reading about JP. At many points, this MMC was so unlikable, ohmygosh. Honestly, this leg-grasping, shorts-pulling scene as well? I had a cringy frown on my face. And that wasn’t all to be honest, I just really didn’t like JP, haha.

That being said, I did really like Kelsey, although she was a bit too “soft” for my taste, accepting all of JP’s weird things, but making a scene about that e-mail? I don’t know, I just have some questions, haha.

Alltogether, I must admit I liked this story. It’s an enemies-to-lovers story, billionaire romance (we love) and there’s some cute and nice parts to this. Storyline, yes. Characters, mwah. Will I read part 3 in this series? Probably, yes, because I am excited about Breaker’s story. This one, 3 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this E-ARC. All opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

So Not Meant to Be is the second book in Meghan Quinn’s Cane Brothers series and boy does it deliver the laughs! It’s an enemies-to-lovers workplace romance that centers on the middle Cane brother, JP. JP is a charmer and has won the heart of everyone who works for him. Well, everyone except for Kelsey, who thinks he’s just obnoxious and refuses to give in to his charms. She also very much disagrees with JP’s belief, a la When Harry Met Sally, that a man and a woman cannot work together and just remain friends. When Kelsey is forced to not only go on a business trip with JP, but to also stay in the same penthouse with him, JP’s theory is put to the test with hilarious and heartfelt results.

I adored JP and was charmed by him immediately. He’s a flirt and he’s very intrigued by Kelsey, and he likes to push her buttons to get a rise out of her. Kelsey, on the other hand, took some getting used to because she came across as a bit prickly and judgmental in the beginning. Once I got used to her personality, and especially once she and JP started to get to know each other better, I really warmed up to her. I also love the forced proximity trope so it was definitely a good time watching the two of them share the same space as they slowly work through their feelings for one another. As always with Meghan Quinn’s writing, the humor, and especially the banter, is top notch and had me downright cackling at times!

So Not Meant to Be was another fun installment in the series and even though this is a series, the books do work as interconnected standalones so if When Harry Met Sally is your vibe, you could easily start with this one.

I really enjoyed the next instalment of the Cane Brothers, it’s enjoyable to see already loved characters pop up on Kelsey’s podcast. I think it’s a nice touch and also a great way to get the smallest of snippets of other beloved characters stories that make you just want to read their tales.

JP is the ultimate cute goof, it’s nice to see a male character go through all his different struggles and his total addiction to pigeons!

Great read, really enjoyed :)