Second chance romance perfection!

Love seeing these high school sweethearts meeting again in life and drunkenly end up married in vegas. This makes for the perfect rom com.
I needed her story after meeting her in book 1 and this book does not dissapoint!

Thank you to Berkley Publishing Group and NetGalley for providing me with a digital copy of "The Partner Plot" by Kristina Forest in exchange for an honest review.

Celebrity stylist Violet Green is running on fumes. Her career is flourishing despite a very public, very messy breakup with her cheating fiancé. Between consultations, fashion shows, and awards galas, she has no down time and no relationship. So when she runs into her former high-school sweetheart Xavier Wright in Vegas, what's the harm in indulging in a little casual fun?

They wake up with a fake wedding bands, have a laugh, and part ways again. Only to be pushed back together soon after when she accidentally blurts to a reporter that she has married her old flame. To further complicate matters, a serious injury forces her to take a few weeks off from her non-stop career.

Meanwhile, former college basketball athlete Xavier is aiming for bigger things in his own career. He's been content with his job coaching high school basketball, but he's pushing for a job at the college level. His prospective boss wants a candidate with stability so Xavier is willing to go along with the fake-relationship Violet has inadvertently concocted. She moves into his place to rest and recover from her injury, all the while playing happy newly weds.

And of course, they find their old chemistry has never really gone away.

Second chance romances are hard to pull off in a meaningful way. The couple in question has broken up before, so the author has to find a way to make that split acceptable. Somebody screwed up. How does one make that forgivable?

Kristina Forest more than ably does exactly that in "The Partner Plot." She successfully demonstrates the personal growth that her characters made both before and during their reunion so that by the end of the story, they make perfect sense together. It was wonderful.

The characters are excellent. They come across as passionate, flawed, loving, and real people sorting through their lives. There are a few poisonous characters on the sidelines but for the most part, their damage is minor.

This book is perfect for readers looking for legit, identifiable emotional development between two adults who loved one another in the past.

I was looking forward to this one as I loved The Neighbor Favor. TPP starts off cute— kinda YA-ish for a lil bit to lay the foundation of Violet and Xavier’s relationship that began in high school (side note, my mama would’ve killed me if I was around here carrying on the way Violet was 😂). As the story goes on, we encounter these two again but as adults who are both single, Violet living her best life in the fashion industry as she always dreamed of and Xavier’s career not looking quite as he dreamt as a professional basketball player but now a high school basketball coach and a teacher at their former high school.

I loved the fact that Xavier was an educator and his passion and commitment towards his students made me so happy (believe it or not, it’s so rare these days).

I thought this love story between Vi + X was very authentic especially with the things you do when you’re in love— texting with a huge smile on your face, and the effort Vi put towards trying to cook a meal for X. 💕🥹

I do recommend this one and I recommend audio for it too— it was my fave format to read this one. I struggled with the ebook alone during certain chapters as I would start skimming the details about things that were happening with their careers. Although, I was way more into Xavier’s career than I was Violet’s (I always love reading about educators). 😂

**Lily + Nick’s cameo 🥹💜 I missed them! Might have to reread TNF!

I’m looking forward to reading Iris’ story next! ☺️

⚠️: if you enjoy closed door romance, this isn’t fade to black and I can’t say that it’s excessively descriptive but it’s there on the page especially in ch 19.

Read if you love:
👰🏽‍♀️ fake marriages/marriage of convenience
👰🏽‍♀️ second chance romance
👰🏽‍♀️ Black love— cause it’s giving ✨🖤
👰🏽‍♀️ swoonin 😉

Kristina Forest is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors. I absolutely loved The Neighbor Favor and because I love books about books I was afraid I wouldn't love this one as much but I was so wrong. The second chance romance between Violet and Xavier was so sweet!! Even the conflict was soft and sweet because both characters always had the other's best interest at heart. Just a really lovely romance. Looking forward to Iris's story next year and enjoyed the Easter eggs about her relationship with Angel.

Between the cover and the blurb, I was excited to pick up my first book by Kristina Forest!

Xavier and Violet are high school sweethearts whose relationship ended in a breakup not long after they started college. Years have passed and Xavier is the basketball coach at their old high school and Violet is living her dreams as a celebrity fashion stylist. They cross paths in Vegas where they spend a drunk night together, ending in “I do” at the altar. Their alleged marriage has benefits for both of them, and they decide to use it to their advantage.

Xavier and Violet clearly missed each other and you could tell no other partner could measure up for them. They’d needed the time to mature because even now, they both had insecurities they needed to confront before pursuing their lost love.

It did take me awhile to get into the story and finish it because I wasn’t as invested as I thought it would be. The plot was a bit of a stretch. While the author’s writing was great, but sometimes 3rd person POV makes it harder for me to connect unless the story is beyond phenomenal that I don’t even notice.

I am definitely ready for Iris and Angel’s story!

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley and am voluntarily posting a review. All opinions are my own.
I’ve really enjoyed everything Kristina Forest has written to date, including her prior adult romance, so I was excited for The Partner Plot. I did wonder how some of the aspects mentioned in the blurb would come to fruition, like the marriage of convenience, but I had hope I would at least reasonably enjoy it. Unfortunately, I was severely underwhelmed.
The one thing I think Forest got right was the characterization, with both leads being strong presences throughout. I also enjoyed getting insight into Violet and Xavier’s respective careers, hers as a celebrity stylist and his as a high school teacher and basketball coach.
And while not marketed as a series, I liked the sisterly dynamics at play, with Lily, the female lead of the prior book being in a supporting role, and their other sister, Iris, being set up for the next book.
But for all that it claims to be a second chance romance, there is no chemistry, no lingering sparks between the two. And while it was billed as a “marriage of convenience,” the cop-out that it was ultimately “fake” was the first death knell in there being absolutely no stakes keeping these two together. I felt I knew more about their careers and why those were important than reasons they should be together! And the reasons for keeping up the charade also made zero sense! All of this added up to me not caring whether they got together or not.
While this book did not work for me, it does seem I’m in the minority here, and others really enjoyed it. If you enjoy low-stakes, tropey romance with Black leads, I’d recommend checking it out to see if it works out better for you.

Violet & Xavier are high school sweethearts determined to make it big in their respective fields. When Xavier's basketball dreams are derailed by an injury, he breaks up with Violet in a misguided desire to not hold her back.

Years later, when they see each other in Vegas... well, they wake up married. Pretend married, that is. I learned you can have a "pretend wedding" apparently. When their friends & family find out, they decide to go with the flow and keep pretending.

If you love second chances, marriage of convenience, one bed, The Partner Plot has all the things! I really enjoyed Kristina's writing style and will be checking out her backlist.

Things I loved:
-Characters are adults who are realistic about relationship challenges
-Great communication
-No third-act breakup
-Fantastic plot development
-BIPOC characters
Things I didn't love:
-The opening of the book - it's Violet & Xavier in high school and I'd have preferred they did later flashback(s) instead of frontloading. (that's just my personal preference)

Thanks to #NetGalley and #berkleypublishing for the opportunity to read and review. All opinions are my own.

Not every author can pull off this kind of trope extravaganza, but Forest brilliantly combines second chance romance, marriage of convenience, small town romance, and a hint of celebrity glamor. Her experience in writing YA translates to a charming story of two high school sweethearts who reunite in Vegas and wake up in the same bed, with rings on their left hands. One night of reckless fun turns into a mission to boost their respective careers, but as Violet, budding celebrity stylist, and Xavier, high school English teacher and basketball coach, spend more time together as fake husband and wife, their teenage feelings come rushing back.

This was cute! I'm not always a second chance romance girl, but add in a fake marriage and forced proximity I picked this one up so quickly. I loved the growth both of the characters showed, from being high-school sweethearts that fought constantly and couldn't or wouldn't communicate properly to adults who had dealt with a lot over the years and were able to find each other and have open and honest conversations about what they wanted.

Violet and Xavier were just so cute together and I truly enjoyed reading their story! Thank you to Berkley Romance for the eARC, all opinions are my own!

4.25 ⭐️
I loved this book so much!!! The second chance romance in here was EVERYTHING and I adored their relationship so much. If you’re looking for a cute romance with a loveable FMC/MMC this is for you!!

The Partner Plot is my first read by Kristina Forest (though a couple of her other books are already on my tbr shelf), and it was a great introduction into her work. I enjoyed reading this second change romance featuring Black love.

Though Violet has a career in fashion styling, the book felt very real, down to earth, and relatable. I appreciated that the main conflict revolved around insecurities surrounding time and career goals and not something incredibly toxic. I think so many people can relate to struggles with finding a balance between career and personal life, especially in your early to mid 20s.

Although Xavier's reasoning for breaking up with Violet was so incredibly frustrating, it was SO believable. It's human nature to make rash decisions in general and especially as a teen. But I could definitely respect his insecurities. Initially, I was thinking that something more dramatic happened when they broke up. Even though it didn't turn out to be super dramatic, I could understand why it would scar Violet as it did. That first real teenage heartbreak can really do a number on you.

The only complaint that I have is that the pacing seemed a bit off for the last about 15-20% of the book. Things started to go down hill for a bit, and I began to think that they may not get their HEA (which to me, would have made it even more real). I kept checking how many pages I had left, because it didn't feel that there was enough time for things to resolve organically in order for them to end up together. Because of that, the HEA seemed a bit rushed to me.

Overall, I really enjoyed this one and can't wait to read more from Kristina Forest. Thank you to Netgalley and Berkley Pub for an advanced copy! All opinions are my own.

Two themes I love FASHION… & BASKETBALL… say no more!

Love Love Love… Violet and Xavier, High school sweethearts with big career goals and plans of being together forever! Until long distance and a sport injury changes the forever part of their story… fast forward years later and a surprise run in, in Vegas and a night that neither one remembers the next day leads to a marriage of convenience and possibly a rekindled romance.

My favorite part in romances are following a character’s career path! In The Partner Plot you get to see this with both Violet as a successful celebrity stylist and Xavier a high school teacher and basketball coach.

I had no clue this was a follow up to THE NEIGHBOR FAVOR and I’m 💯 going to be checking that one out! THE PARTNER PLOT reads fully as a stand-alone but I’m looking forward to learning more about Violets sister Lily.

I listened to the audio and absolutely loved the narration of the alternating POV done by Aure Nash and Benjamin Charles!

Thank you Berkley Publishing Group & PRH Audio for the gifted ALC

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[WILL POST THE REVIEW ON PLATFORM ONCE ACCEPTABLE] 3.5 Stars rounded to 4! Thank you, to the publisher, for this eARC via Netgalley in exchange for my honest opinion!

I was already familiar with the author Kristina Forest based on her other works, namely “The Neighbor Favor” which touches on Lily, Violet’s younger sister love story with her love interest. So I was really excited to get the chance to dig into Violet’s story, especially after learning what we do in Lily’s book about Violet’s past relationship. The "Partner Plot" is a second-chance-fake-marriage trope love story.

I really enjoyed getting to know Violet and Xavier both as adults, and looking back to their time in high school and university through the dual point of view. Also loved the cameos from Violet’s siblings and some of the characters we met in “The Neighbor Favor.” I do wish Violet and Xavier’s love story had been developed a bit more but I still found myself glued to the book to see what would happen next. Overall, I continue to be a Kristina Forest fan. Cannot recommend this novel and her others as well. Looking forward to Iris’ story as well!

I would definitely recommend it to those who enjoy contemporary romance and adult fiction.

This book was very underwhelming. It wasn't like her first book. I think it had potential but because the two characters were high school sweethearts the premise wasn't as exciting as the last book. I will still read more from this author in the future. But I love the feeling that I got from the last book and this book I felt like didn't have that heart and soul that the previous book did. I felt like the book could have ended very early, but I am excited to see the spin-off for this one.

I, enjoyed the story of Violet and Xavier. I'm normally not a second romance type of girl, but I understood why the relationship ended and their journey back together was very sweet. I, do feel that the story was a tad bit long, but overall I enjoyed this cute story.

I really enjoyed THE NEIGHBOR FAVOR by this author. I picked it up because the plot had a lot of potential and seemed like a great marriage of convenience/second chance romance.

This book excels at quite a few things - I think the marriage of convenience aspect of this worked well and was entertaining but there needed to be a bit more angst/banter for this to feel like a true second chance romance. The romance at times felt secondary to their journey of self discovery and their careers and I definitely needed a bit more from the characters.

That being said, i LOVED the representation here and unapologetic blackness. So refreshing in a romance novel! i will definitely read more from this author.

This was a warm and wonderful second-chance romance. It was so cute and I loved these characters. The flirty banter was so sweet I absolutely adored the romance!
Thank you to NetGalley, the author and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

I liked this one. Maybe not as much as the first one. I liked that it talked about how much work two people would put in to make their relationship work. I liked that it mixed celebrity with the common person.

THE PARTNER PLOT by Kristina Forest is the second book I read by the author and I really enjoyed this book. The story was beautifully written. It was an incredible story that displayed second chance romance, vulnerability, strong women, and good man that support their women without harbouring resentment to them.

The characters were amazing especially Violet and Xavier. I enjoyed watching their journeys and growth throughout the read as well as them both find self love and self worth in themselves. As they both struggled with finding their place in this world. Something we all can relate to.

I loved the relationship and connection between Violet and Xavier. Their chemistry was incredible they were honestly made for each other. Their relationship felt natural and realistic and showcased amazing healthy communication between partners as they dealt with the challenges of live together.

Overall this was an enjoyable romance story

Did I enjoy this? Yes. I am all for a fake marriage trope and revisiting Violet, Lily & Iris from The Neighbor Favor was great. However, this one felt a little boring? There wasn’t anything that stood out or captivated me, it was just fine. It’s hard to say after reading the Neighbor Favor because I adored that one from start to finish. I liked this one too, but felt like it was missing something for me. I am curious to read the next book about Iris & Angel, I love a series on love, especially when it’s centered around siblings.