Well, well, well. Goodness gracious. I had never read Lynn Painter before and apparently I’d been missing out because $@/%#¥£! she knows how to write romance!

There are some books that are just plain enjoyable from start to finish, and this was one of those books for me. The writing is snappy, breezy, and upbeat, with just the right amount of laugh out loud humor and steaminess to result in pretty much the perfect romcom.

Our main characters Sophie and Max first meet when Max serves as The Objector at Sophie’s wedding. Yes, she’s hired him to stand up and stop her wedding after finding out her fiancée cheated. They strike up a friendship and then strike up a partnership as they object at other weddings. At first I wasn’t sure how that storyline would work, but it actually shows how they really get people out of bad relationships and it ended up being a fun part of the story.

Both Sophie and Max have sworn off love because reasons, but they both need to appear to be dating someone for other family-professional-growing up reasons, so they enter into a little fake dating situationship and ohhhhhhh boy.

The romance in this book is off the charts. That’s all I can say. I’d tell you to leave it to your imagination but Lynn Painter won’t allow it. The doors, they are open. The heat, it’s flaming. The tension, it’s thick. I will say I was disappointed yes that there were, indeed, enough hotel rooms for Sophie and Max to each have their own on a objecting trip. Rude.

I absolutely loved Sophie and Max (or should I call them Soph and Maxxie… or even Steinbeck and Parks??!). They are both successful in their professions, and I really appreciated how they had their own good things going, so their relationship just added to their lives instead of filling a gaping bleak hole.

The third act crisis was blessedly not long, drawn out, or based on a lack of communication. Thank you for that. 🙏

I just really had a fun time reading this and I loved rooting for our couple. They were both nice, funny, smart and always said what was on their minds… practically PERFECT!

Thank you for this ARC… as you can see I loved it!

Lynn Painter’s Happily Never After has a hilarious premise - Max has a side hustle of being a “wedding objector” and meets Sophie because she needs his help as a bride! They strike up an unlikely friendship months later, and there is UNDENIABLE chemistry. Lynn Painter knows how to write smut!!!!! This entire book, in my opinion, is full of insanely palpable chemistry and funny banter. I didn’t love how unnatural the dialogue felt at times, like it was so cheesy my chest hurt lol, but her writing style kept my engaged the entire time. I loved the side characters (shout out to my main man Larry) and how easily you fall into this contemporary romance.

Thanks so much to Berkley and NetGalley for the arc in exchange for my honest opinion.

I flew through this book! Absolutely loved the story & both MCs and the dual POVs. Romance, spicy scenes, humor. This one has it all.

Thank you NetGalley for this eARC!

Wow, this book. I have no words. I've read a lot of books this year, but this one is gonna top my 2023 favorites list. Sophie and Max had off the charts chemistry. The way they met and the friendship they develop had me swooning page after page. Loved the side characters, Larry and Rose, Sophie's elderly roommates have to be some of my favorite side characters. Overall I'm gonna give this a solid 5 stars.

Thanks NetGalley for the ARC!

This BOOK!! Anything Lynn Painter writes, I will read because she just knows how to write an amazing love story. The banter is always top notch and it feels so natural to watch these (fictional) people fall in love. I loved the “meet cute” that was not a meet cute at all and it was very unconventional (because he was objecting to her wedding and then she starts going into the business) BUT it was absolutely perfect. I could not recommend this book enough.

I also want to say that there are moments in this book that I cannot stop thinking about!!! The grocery store “date” being one of them. UGH so good!

I love Lynn Painter. She is my favorite rom com author. Her characters are funny, relatable and people I wish I could get to know. I read this in a day and couldn't put it down! Another hit, in my book!

Lynn does it again! Filled with swoony moments, hot chemistry and funny banter, this is another great rom com with Lynn's signature style. I thought the story itself was fun with the objector part of the plot and the meet cute that tied in to it. I liked how both were career driven and both celebrated each other's achievements! So cute!

i loved this book so much it was funny, sweet, not at all what i expected from the title or i mean the first title i should say, if you read her books this one is less spicy than the others but its still a great read i loved every second of it larry and rose are by far my favorite characters in the book, i will be recommending this to everyone i know

Max has a unique side job, and he meets Sophie while working it. Sophie is on the hook to marry a cheater, but her friend has hired Max to object at the wedding and bring his cheating to light. Sophie and Max then strike up a plan to object at weddings together and their friendship is formed based on a mutual dislike of relationships and love.

I loved this book! I’m a huge fan of Lynn Painter’s adult novels (I haven’t read any of her YA books). This one is full of the banter, sweet and spicy moments, and lovable characters that I have come to expect from her books. If you enjoy friends to lovers, characters who don’t believe in love, unconventional elderly roommates and side characters, and good- intentioned scheming, this is definitely a book you’ll want to get your hands on!

Thank you to Lynn Painter, Berkley Romance, and netgalley for the arc in exchange for my honest review.

At this point, I think Lynn Painter could write a phone book and I'd love it. Her characters are real, nuanced and clever. The banter can make me laugh out loud and that's really saying something for me. Too often, the books says "laugh out loud funny" on the back, but it's not. I read the first bit of this book at the end of an earlier book and the complete version is more than worth the wait. Thanks, NetGalley and Berkeley Books for this chance to read such a feel good, truly laugh out loud novel.

Lynn Painter is a romance standout and always writes the sweetest stories! "Happily Never After" will be a fan favorite.

oh miss lynn painter, i love you so endlessly. you have done it once again. there's truly never an instance where i'm not in complete awe of your work.

this book was equally funny as it was charming and heartfelt. something you're able to do so flawlessly. whether there was banter or heartfelt conversations, i immediately fell in love with soph and max. like hello? the bride to be falling for the guy who objected her wedding? that is BRILLIANT. absolute excellence.

lynn truly know show to deliver on a rom-com and i believe this one definitely took spot as my number one favorite of her adult novels. i loved everything about this book and i'm so excited for the world to get their hands on it.

thank you netgalley, lynn, and berkley for this arc <33 forever thankful.

I want to cry from how good this book was😭😭❤️ Lynn Painter never disappoints and OMG the plot had me HOOKED I SWEAR—

This is definitely in my top fav reads of the year and I will be thinking about this book consistently for the next 3-5 business days🫶

Quick writing, extremely readable, comfortable. I stopped after chapter 1 (4%), but an easy three stars, four to five for the right readers.

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley for the ARC.