Cute and fun! As Lynn Painters books always are!!! Characters who are figuring it out and stumbling into one another in a way that just makes sense.

If you're in the mood for a fun, lighthearted, low stakes romcom- I've got a book for you!

It was fine and had enjoyable moments during the read, but I can tell that this one isn't going to stick with me like Better Than the Movies. I think the pacing of the plot was great, but the character/relationship development was lacking because both main characters felt like shells of any typical Hallmark romcom lead from any romcom that you've seen. This book spent a lot of time telling me how much chemistry Sophie and Max had, but I just didn't buy into it. I need more banter, more tension, more *something*.

There was spice, but it was almost like closed door spice? I'm not sure if that makes sense, but there would be some graphic descriptions and then a fade to black. It's the first time I've come across that, but honestly I didn't mind it.

Overall, a decent romcom, if a little forgettable and predictable.

Thank you to Berkley for this ARC!

OKAY WAIT this was cuuuute! i've still never been to a wedding where there actually was a chance for anyone to object, so that's funny, but using objecting as the context for this storyline was fun! i didn't totally buy into the FMC's original reasoning for why she was willing to go through with her marriage to her scum of a fiancee until The Objector came onto the scene to save her, but putting that aside, i thought it was a unique meet cute and the way their story played out was fun and flirty! it was a great audio listen, too, and i flew through it, totally picturing it as a katherine heigl/josh duhamel movie! (tell me i'm wrong!!!)

Thank you to PRH Audio for the complimentary audiobook and to Berkley Publishing for an advanced readers copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Happily Never After is a fun, light-hearted romance that I enjoyed reading/listening to in one day.

Sophie is at the altar on her wedding day when Max objects to it. He is paid to object as Sophie knows her fiancé has been cheating…again.

A few months later, Max contacts Sophie and they decide to team up together to object at other weddings. This leads to them spending a lot of time together. The chemistry between the two is evident and leads to some steamy scenes (nothing too graphic). But, both are anti-relationships. Can they deny their feelings for one another?

This is a great story with amazing banter. I love Sophie’s geriatric roommates, Larry and Rose. So funny. Their banter with Max AKA Julian was the best.

The narrators, Helen Laser and Sean Patrick Hopkins, were new to me. They did a wonderful job with the snark and emotion. Very enjoyable!

I LOVED every second of this book. And I almost can't articulate why. The story wasn't absurd. The characters don't have any major flaws. There's no crazy drama. No one is secretly rich. And it just makes the whole story just so freaking adorable and delightful.
Sophie is confident, funny, smart, ambitious, and effortlessly cool without being annoying or unlikable. Painter struck the perfect balance with her. I found Sophie so relatable and saw a lot of myself in her and just wanted to be friends with her! Max is charming and emotionally mature and perfectly matches Sophie's wit, intelligence and ambition. Their banter is to die for.
The chemistry is immediate and blatantly obvious but it never becomes frustrating. Painter is somehow able to pepper in deep moments and thoughts without losing the overall lightheartedness of the story.
I was smiling every time I picked this up to read.

Luckily Sophie Steambeck heard from Word of mouth about The Objector Max Parks, if there is a valid reason for objecting Max will intervene during the wedding ceremony and take all the pressure off of the dis center, in this case Sophie. After finding out her fiancé Stewart was cheating she wanted to call off the wedding because Stewart’s dad was also her dad‘s boss she felt she was in a pickle at least until she heard about Max. Little did Sophie know she would begin accompanying Max on his objector missions and enjoying it. Both Max and Sophie don’t believe in having relationships where he just doesn’t want to be bothered Sophie doesn’t believe they exist but after they start hanging around each other and feeling the extreme chemistry for reasons original to each of them they both need to play at having a relationship Sophie because her boss ED is worried about her work home balance and so she wants to pretend she is out having fun to ensure she becomes a VP at her company Max is doing it because he wants to take over his dads company but his mom refuses to move to their home in Florida unless her baby boy is stable and in a relationship and oh yes his dad asks him to do it so he can buy a boat he’s had his ion. So why not do it with someone you have overwhelming chemistry with. Eventually they’re doing everything but calling it a relationship and enjoying it but once they put a stop to it the extra curricular activities Sophie may learn love really is in obtainable goal in Max WILTSE but doing things that make someone else happy isn’t that bad after all? From a hick in a headlock to a male chauvinist pig being punched in the face it seems these two surprise each other at every turn but will they be smart enough to object to their own opinions about love and relationships? I usually struggle with rating a book but when I was finished with Happily Never After I knew immediately it was a five star read. Sophie is one of the best characters I have ever met. I think writing must be fun because we can always answer those questions I wonder what would happen if… And that seems what Miss painter has done with happily never after and bought a great job I loved this book and found it hard to put down a really really funny awesome read! I want to thank Berkeley publishing and net Galley for my free arc copy please forgive any mistakes as I am blind and dictate my review.

I love Lynn Painter's books. They are just so much dang fun. And this book was no exception.

Sophie is a bride with a big problem - her fiancee is a cheater, but if she calls off her wedding, her father's job will be in jeopardy. What's a girl to do? Luckily, she's "saved" by Max, who makes it his life's work to save people from bad marriage choices.

What comes next is a wild, hilarious tale of two people who don't want to admit their feelings for one another doing everything they can to avoid being in love.

This book is a lot of fun, but it also has a lot of heart, and I really enjoyed it.

I loved Mr. Wrong Number, so I was super excited to read this one. As an Omaha, native, I love that Lynn Painters books are set where I live and I know exactly where the characters are when she references that one Starbucks on Dodge street or the Whole Foods in town. I really enjoyed the wedding crashers theme of this book, but I had a bit of a hard time connecting with the main characters. That's on me and not the book. The supporting characters stole the show. The MC's roommates and Dad made me laugh out loud. I highly recommend this one to other romance book lovers out there! Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book.

Happily Never After is the first book I've read by Lynn Painter and it won't be the last. I don't normally pick up a ton of contemporary books but there was something about this book summary that made me want to pick it up.

Our main characters are Max and Sophie and the way they meet is definitely unique. Max is originally hired to break up Sophie's wedding. To provide some context, Sophie had found out a few days before her wedding that her fiance, Stuart, was cheating on her and her best friend somehow found out about the "objection" services Max provides and asked him to save Sophie from a marriage she couldn't call off due to reasons. After the non-wedding, they all end up celebrating the successful break up and then they go their own ways but out of the blue, Max reaches out to Sophie with a proposition (help him with an objection for a good friend) and that is the start of everything.

I loved both of these characters. They both had been burned in their relationships in the past so they really go into this thinking they are friends only but along the way, they each became the other's "person" and they don't know what to do about it. I say that, but I have to tell you, these two aren't afraid to share their thoughts with each other about what they want...they may not be fully honest about their feelings but they are not afraid to take the next step from friends to friends kissing to more.

If you're looking for a book that has a great friends to more story, consider picking this one up. The banter and relationship between Max and Sophie was my favorite thing about it. Of course, there are solid side characters (Rose and Larry) and the story itself is well done and I loved how Painter tied it all together. I'll be looking for more from Painter in the future for sure.

Lynn Painter is a wolf in sheep’s clothing
I expected a sweet, charming romance that would match the vibe of the cute, illustrated cover. Imagine my delightful surprise when “Happily Never After” started with an interrupted wedding, a fight, and a curse flying from the microphoned mouth of the preacher.

All hell broke loose as his groomsmen followed, though it was unclear if they were trying to hold him back or incite the forthcoming brawl. It was a cacophony of male yelling and gray tuxedos in motion. His mother yelled, “Stuart, no!” Just as Stuart punched the objector square in the face. “Oh my God,” I said to no one in particular, watching in disbelief as the objector took the punch without his body moving, as if he hadn’t even felt it. Stuart’s father looked right at me as he loudly muttered, “Jesus Christ.” And Pastor Pete apparently forgot that his lapel mic was on because he sighed and said, “Are you f*cking kidding me?”

Touche’, Lynn Painter. You got me good. I really wish I would have been invited to this wedding. It would have been the highlight of my year.

Unique Meet Cute

Photo by Nathan Dumlao on Unsplash
The Objector and the Jilted Bride. Amazing! Sophie and Max had me invested in a heartbeat. Their meet cute was so completely out of the box and unique, I couldn’t have asked for anything better.

Of course, we go on to find out that the bride was in on it the whole time, and neither Max nor Sophie have any desire to be in a relationship, but I digress. It’s still an exceptional take on someone being left at the alter, and what’s more, it becomes the start of a beautiful friendship.

Sophie thinks the idea of The Objector is brilliant. There are so many people who would have benefitted from being able to cancel their weddings without the onus of being the one labeled the quitter. When Sophie finds out that Max needs a woman objector for an upcoming event, she delights in the opportunity. Naturally, attending the objector events together allows for Max and Sophie build their friendship and use it to mutual advantage. Feelings develop, much to everyone’s chagrin but mine. Nope, I was jubilant as I devoured every single page.


Final Thoughts
Max and Sophie are a delightful pair. Sassy, snarky, open to a challenge, these two characters are a breath of fresh air. Not to mention that Lynn Painter uses some of my most favorite tropes. Between the fierce independent woman, the wildly entertaining side characters, and the emphatic way that these two idiots vehemently deny they’re in love with each other, I was putty in Lynn Painter’s more than capable hands.

“Happily Never After” is waiting at the alter for you, and I promise I will not object if you decide that it’s one of your favorite romances of the year.

𝙃𝙖𝙥𝙥𝙞𝙡𝙮 𝙉𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧 𝘼𝙛𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙗𝙮 𝙇𝙮𝙣𝙣 𝙋𝙖𝙞𝙣𝙩𝙚𝙧
𝗠𝗬 𝗥𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗡𝗚: ★★★★★

I absolutely LOVED every second of reading this sweet, sweet story! I truly could not get enough of Sophie and Max! From the moment we met Max as Sophie’s hero/wedding objector and he saved her from marrying her cheating ex, I knew they were destined to have some serious chemistry.

I adored all of the banter between the two of them and more than anything, I fell in love with how amazing Sophie was! From always speaking her mind without hesitation, to her humor, to how fun she was and her outlook on life, it was so inspiring and refreshing. It was nice to actually have characters in a book that didn’t hide everything and they actually had easy conversations!

Larry and Rose, Sophie’s roommates, have to be my absolute favorite side characters! I need a Larry in my everyday life. He was such a fun character and I adored his personality and his friendship with Sophie.

I loved that Max was a wedding objector to try and help people out of bad situations. Sophie going along and helping him out on some of his wedding jobs was a perfect match. The time the two characters spent together and developed their friendship was my favorite as their chemistry was palpable. When things started warming up and they became friends with benefits it was pure magic and I just couldn’t get enough!

Painter delivers another fun romcom that totally hits the spot!

Lynn Painter became a must-read author for me in 2023 after reading The Love Wager because I adored her writing, the story pacing and the chemistry of her characters. That’s why Happily Never After became one of my most anticipated new romance books of 2024 and its fun storyline did not disappoint.

What happens when one person who doesn’t believe in love and another person who hates love and relationships meet and fall for one another? Well, you get one fun story that has you hooked until the very end.

I absolutely loved how Sophie and Max meet. Max is hired to object at Sophie’s wedding because she finds out that her fiancé has cheated on her again and she can’t call off the wedding herself given that her father works for her fiance’s father.

So Max gets her out of her nuptials by objecting and that night they end up drinking together and Sophie notes that she could have a lot of fun objecting at weddings too. When Max gets another wedding gig that he could use her help on they reconnect and the rest is history.

The whole business about objecting at weddings was such a fun hook to the story and it was super cute to see them at work. Of course, the entire need for them to object only solidifies their respective attitudes toward love and marriage and yet hanging out together only fuels their attraction and chemistry together.

Turns out that they use this to their advantage – pretending to be more than just friends for her boss’s sake (as she wants a promotion and needs to demonstrate better work/life balance) and her his parent’s sake as his dad won’t retire and they won’t move to Florida until they think he’s “settled.”
So throw in some fake dating and some hot chemistry and a shared belief about love never being enough and you’ve got two people who are just really fun and easy to root for.

While their back stories aren’t long as to why they don’t believe in love, I didn’t need them to be. The focus was more on seeing how these two really fit one another and if they could just get over their “no-relationship” hang-ups they could really be happy together since they already are.

Throw in some geriatric roommates for some comic relief and a much-needed heart to heart and the novel was an easy read that I really enjoyed.
I think this would be a light, fun summer read since it has the focus on weddings but I recommend it for any time of year.


*Thanks to Netgalley for the advanced reader copy. All opinions are my own.

#HappilyNeverAfter: ⁣
⁣
Thank you @berkleyromance and @librofm @prhaudio partner for my gifted copies. #BerkleyPartner #berkley ⁣
⁣
“When you’re a baby, you don’t stop taking steps just because you’ve fallen once, or you’d never walk. The falls help you learn how to walk”⁣
⁣
This was such a fun romcom with a great premise! I loved Sophie and Max’s relationship, all of the people (bye Stuart) in their lives. Of course, Larry & Rose stole the show.⁣
⁣
The wedding scenes were tears in eyes from laughing funny. I think it showed different relationships and how there’s so much people don’t really know you’re going through. Helen Laser and Sean Patrick Hopkins were so good on dual POV. It paced well, they brought the banter and snark. Highly recommend. ⁣
⁣
What I didn’t like was Max towards the end. I felt like there was really no backstory of his feelings to really justify why he did what he did, but I just know I was fuming for our girl Sophie. Add this to the list of “why are men like this” I liked the reconciliation and felt like he was genuinely sorry, so all is well that ends well! ⁣
⁣
Out 3/19!⁣
⁣
QOTD: Name a song that would be the soundtrack to your life.

A fun romance with a unique premise that delivers! You truly believe in and cheer for the romance between Sophie and Max, and watching it unfold on the backdrop of failed relationships and conflicted beliefs on love made the romance even sweeter. Lynn Painter once again delivered witty characters who you can't help but root for.

Stooopppppp this was so fun!! One of my favorite reads of 2024!

I adored both Sophie and Max! Their banter was incredible, and their chemistry was 🔥🔥. I loved how deep their connection was from the get go. Their back and forth had me in hysterics so many times!

Also… I NEED this to be a movie. It would be so cute and fun, and I’d take every friend I know to see it. :)

This author can never write a bad book! This was such a good story and I loved all of the characters that were apart of it. It was so unique and I loved how she portrayed the love story within this book.

I read almost 25% of this book and had to walk away. I think I'm just not the right demographic for this novel. If you love rom-coms and can really suspend your disbelief this will be fun for you.

I'm old and jaded and just could not deal with the absurdity that was the plot.

4.75 ⭐️ My favorite Lynn Painter story! I ATE this up!!


WHAT TO EXPECT:
✨ romantic comedy
✨ he runs his family construction business and a professional wedding objector
✨ she's an HR director who hires him to object at her wedding since her fiance cheated
✨ "let's be wedding objectors together"
✨ they are both cynics and very anti-relationship
✨ "we're just friends"
✨ idiots to lovers
✨ insane chemistry
✨ he falls first
✨ amazing banter
✨ calling each other by their last name
✨ open communication 👏
✨ 2/5 🌶️ (open door but not explicit)
✨ "good girl"
✨ hilarious, nosey geriatric roommates
✨ working with an ex
✨ dual pov
✨ adorable epilogue


My Thoughts:

Happily Never After is a wonderful low-stakes romantic comedy filled with laughter, love, and spice. The premise is incredibly original, the pacing is phenomenal, and the characters have depth and are extremely lovable. I was entertained every step of the way and never wanted this story to end.

Here are some of the highlights:

The very first few sentences. "The moment my dad raised my veil, kissed my cheek, and handed me off to Stuart, I wanted to throw up. No - first, I wanted to punch my groom right in his besotted smile. Then I wanted to vomit." Like, how can you not be instantly hooked by this???

Max and Sophie individually. I absolutely adore them. I love how Sophie is a strong independent woman with amazing aspirations who is also witty, fun, and generous. And I love how Max is passionate, charming, easy-going, thoughtful, family oriented, and kind. I found them to be incredibly relatable and was constantly rooting for them.

The 'idiots/friends-to-lovers romance. From the get-go, Max and Sophie instantly connect and have insane chemistry, explosive sexual tension, and witty banter. But what I love most is how they develop a friendship before things turn romantic. The 'just friends' trope can be hard to write convincingly but Lynn Painter did this perfectly. Since Max and Sophie both have an aversion to love, it makes sense why they would be comfortable being just friends. By focusing on the friendship aspect of things, they built a solid foundation for a relationship without even realizing it. It was beautiful seeing two people who have closed themselves off from love slowly fall for each other without even realizing it. Theirs is the best idiots-to-lovers story I've ever read.

Some other things I loved about their relationship:
- Their open communication. They both always say what they're thinking and are on the same page.
- Their banter was simply phenomenal. I laughed so hard.
- Max calls Sophie 'sunshine'
- Max and Sophie call each other by their last names: Steinbeck and Parks.
- They can be 100% themselves without judgment.
- They see the best in each other. 🫶
- Max is always hyping Sophie up and encouraging her in regards to her career.

Just FYI, there are a few non graphic, open-door sex scenes that will definitely leave you hot and bothered.

The wedding objection premise. I've never heard of a professional wedding objector but I think it's brilliant! There's a lot of pressure with weddings, so if you don't have the balls to call yours off, why not hire someone to object for you? It's brilliant. And I LOVED every single wedding objection scene. But my absolute favorite was the redneck wedding. 😂 I've reread it a few times because it was just so comical.

Sophie’s geriatric roommates, Larry and Rose. I'm not gonna lie, I wasn't sure how these two would fit into this story when they were first introduced, but by the end I LOVED them. Larry are Rose are fucking hysterical (especially when they give Max shit) and their relationship with Sophie was sweet. I wish Lynn Painter would write an entire story about these two finding love because I'd buy it in a heartbeat!

The only reason this isn't getting a perfect 5-stars. . .

There was some ex drama I didn't love that was the main conflict at the end. HOWEVER, it does make sense with the story and was resolved quickly. This is a personal issue, but I just don't like when people still care about their ex and say they 'always will'. I just don't really understand this. It gives me the ick.

Just days before Sophie is set to marry Stuart she see's a provocative text from another woman on his phone, nude picture included. Devastated by her new knowledge she sets to right this wrong in spectacular fashion by having an Objector in the pews on the day of her wedding. When the time arrives and the priest asks if anyone knows of any reason why they shouldn't be married, Max, the Objector, will call Stuart out on his cheating in front of everyone thereby giving Sophie the out she desperately needs.

When Max arrives at the bridal suite to collect his fee's he finds Sophie and her best friend drunk as can be and decides to join them. Many drinks and many laughs later they finally depart ways.

Until months later when Max texts Sophie to see if she can help him with Objecting at the next wedding he has lined up. From here they become quite chummy with one another but as Sophie insists to everyone that will listen she does NOT believe in love and has no desire to be in a relationship with anyone, not even the hot as can be Max. Can he convince her otherwise? You'll have to read this to find out.

I've enjoyed previous books from Painter in the past so I was thrilled to get an arc approval for her latest. The banter, the chemistry, the humor is all here and I loved that. So much. One of my favorite parts of this novel - Sophie's septuagenarian roommates Larry and Rose. Those two were a hoot! I wish we could have an entire book about them and their shenanigan's in the future.

But, a couple of things didn't work out quite as well for me this time around.

First of all, the swearing. Listen, I drop f-bombs too and I'll never be accused of being a pearl clutcher in the face of, let's say, colorful language, but this was a little over the top. It started to ruin the banter I had been enjoying so much. Joking around together is one thing but when your having a deep conversation it just seems like maybe that isn't the time and place for multiple f-bombs.

Sophie's adversity to love started to become grating because it was all she ever talked about when it was quite obvious that she was in deep with her feelings for Max. I kind of wanted her to just shut up and grow up.

Four or five pages describing a kissing scene became redundant after four or five times of it and while the doors weren't left wide open they were open a little further than I prefer, but that is definitely a me thing.

My quibbles aside, there is plenty to love here and I think rom-com fans are going to devour this with a smile on their face. Painter is definitely proficient in giving a reader heart palpitations and isn't that why we all read this genre? 3 stars!

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for my complimentary copy.

I absolutely loved this book! I’ve always loved the witty banter between Lynn’s characters and this novel is the perfect example.

Sophie is marrying the love of her life when someone objects to her nuptials. This would ruin the wedding, right? Except Sophie and her bff hired Max to interrupt and force her fiance to admit he was cheating on her. Sophie dodges a bullet.

A few weeks later she runs into Max again and now she wants to join his operation as a professional objector. They go from wedding to wedding helping out people who don’t want to go through with the big day. They always have proof of infidelity so they can back up their claims. But going to so many romantic events helps bring the two MCs closer together. Especially having to pose as a couple so many times. What if they were friends with benefits? It couldn’t hurt.

Because of what they both went through and their current situation, both Max and Sophie are skeptical of true love. But maybe it’s just because they haven’t met the right person yet. I think this is my favorite of Lynn’s novels yet. It had such a funny premise and the characters were just so genuine.

The real stars of the show are Sophie’s hilarious septuagenarian roommates who are so nosy, but give great advice. I need Larry’s story next!

Thank you @berkleybooks and @lynnpainterbooks for my gifted ebook.