Lynn Painter is an angel and you can’t change my mind.
I haven’t disliked anything by her and I don’t see it happening.

Happily Never After was such a fun book. The concept was so unique and it was very well done too. Are professional objectors a thing? I’m actually curious now.

I enjoyed every single character but my heart holds a special place for Larry. Elderly roommates? Please sign me right up.

There’s not a ton of spice in this one, but it’s not closed door either. I think it’s just a little sprinkle. Enough to get your gears going. 🤪

Overall this was a fantastic book and I look forward to many more by Lynn.

No, no, no. This book wasn't for me. I didn't like the characters. I didn't like the plot. I didn't feel the chemistry. The story felt gimmicky.

Back in the days when I watched soap operas, the wedding episodes were always my favorites. Nothing ever went smoothly. Who can forget Tina showing up at Cord and Kate’s wedding on One Life to Live, coming back from the dead with a baby in her arms? (It wasn’t actually her baby, but that’s a different story.) Or when Greenlee showed up in the nick of time to stop Ryan from marrying Kendall on All My Children? Of course the most famous interrupted wedding of all time was on General Hospital, when Scotty confronted Luke before he could marry Jennifer Smith, and Luke ended up on the run with Laura rather than on his honeymoon with the mobster’s daughter. Oh, those were the days.

Lynn Painter’s latest romantic comedy, Happily Never After, reminded me of those terrific episodes. The action starts off as Sophie Steinbeck’s wedding is ruined: When the preacher asks if anyone objects, a man stands up and tells Sophie that her fiancé, Stuart, has been cheating on her. The wedding’s off, and… plot twist! Sophia actually hired the man who objected. She’d found out about the cheating, didn’t want to call off the wedding because her father worked for Stuart’s father, and hired Max instead.

After a night of drinking and bonding over their different views of love, Max and Sophie decide to go into the lucrative wedding-objecting business together. Seems there are a number of folks engaged to cheaters who can’t call off their weddings because of powerful in-laws. And these folks are willing to pay well to have someone else do their dirty work.

At the same time, Max and Sophie start fake dating so his father can retire and move to Florida, and she can get promoted at her day job. While the feelings between them grow, Sophie continues to insist she doesn’t believe in love. Then they get a call to break up the wedding of Max’s ex. When Max hesitates, Sophie realizes she’s jealous. Will the final break up be of the objectors themselves?

Max and Sophie have great chemistry, and Painter has a true ear for dialogue. At its best, the characters reminded me not of soap opera greats, but of Harry Burns and Sally Albright. Sophie’s “love isn’t real” stance is almost as strong as Harry’s “men and women can’t be friends” point-of-view. Their back-and-forth is the best part of the novel.

For readers who don’t enjoy explicit sex scenes or fake dating, Happily Never After may not be their cup of tea. But if you enjoy clever dialogue, beautiful people, and traditional romantic comedy tropes, spend a few hours with Max and Sophie.

Thanks to Berkley for the book in exchange for an honest review.

What a delightful read. It was pure entertainment. This is my first Lynn Painter book but it certainly will not be my last. The romp between Sophie and Max was a wonderful ride. Their banter was something to write about. The development of their relationship was just a joy to read. Do not let this novel slip through your fingers. READ IT. Thank you Berkley and Shelf Awareness for the advanced copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

The premise had so much potential but I couldn’t enjoy the book the way I would have liked. It felt jumpy and I didn’t love it.

There were moments I liked, moments I loved but those were fewer and fewer as the book progressed. The only relationships I loved were the roommates.

I typically love Lynn Painter but this one was just ok for me. I felt the relationship didn't develop as deeply as it has in some of her previous work. I did love the premise though and the humor as always was on point.

Speak now or forever hold your peace. Who would have thought that a book based on two people who stop weddings, would be so swoony and sweet! Happily Never After is about MMC Max, an ethical objector, who gets hired to stop weddings in which one party feels stuck in having to make the worst mistake of their lives. FMC Sophie hires Max when she finds out her fiance has been cheating on her, but Sophie’s dad works for her fiance’s dad and she doesn’t want negative repercussions of calling off the wedding to fall on her dad. After Max does his thing and she is free, a few turns of events and months go by before Sophie ends up joining Max in his endeavor and they begin to object at weddings together.

Ugh, they’re so ship-able!!!! Max and Sophie = one of the great couples of the year. It’s February, but I’m calling it. The story is dual POV so we get to fall in love with them concurrently and watch up close as they begrudgingly fall for each other. Add in some real colorful side characters, mainly Sophie’s octogenarian roommates who don’t keep their opinions to themselves, and we’ve got a great time!
I read this book quickly, was tickled and grinning throughout, and weeks later I am still thinking about it and smiling!

Big thanks to Berkley for the free ARC

what happens when you fall in love with the person you hired to ruin your wedding?

after finding out her soon-to-be fiancé was cheating on her, sophie hires a random person to come and crash her wedding in hopes of getting out of it unscathed. enter max, who swoops in to object and save the day. the two of them form a friendship out of the disaster and then reconnect a few months later with the mutual agreement to crash weddings together !!

lynn always knows how to get the job done because this book was sooo fun to read!! the banter was hilarious and was giving wedding crasher vibes. romcoms are one of those genres that i’ve fallen off the wagon for, but picking this up was a like a breath of fresh air. it was lighthearted, funny, and easy to read!

thank you netgalley for the arc!

i know that this book came out over a month ago but don’t blame me, im just a simple little mood reader…

i will say, i was a bit skeptical coming into this because lynn’s adult novels have always been hit or miss for me but this was just simple and adorable. it had a fantastic plot and i loved the chemistry between sophie and max. one of my complaints lies with how sophie didn’t have much development in terms of her being ok with believing in love. i feel like that could’ve been a bit smoother overall. i also wish this was a bit more slowburn and had a better build up for when they finally got together.

but this was quick and cute so i overall had a very enjoyable time reading this one!

The objectors are here. And they’re here for justice.

I’m convinced that Lynn Painter can do no wrong. Everything she writes is pure gold and will make me both swoon and laugh at the same time.

This book was a riot. I loved the premise and it was carried out beautifully! Two cynical individuals coming together to break off weddings when either the bride or groom is being wrongly treated? I. Am. Here. For. It!!!

And then the chemistry between Sophie and Max?? I fell for them as a couple instantly even if they both took longer to come around (*cough* I’m looking at you, Sophie!).

So often books feel as though they move too quickly or too slowly, but I truly appreciated the pacing of this one. It gave me a chance to love them as individuals as well as a couple, and to see them come together in a way that was both fluid and fun!

Seriously though, if you’re looking for a new romcom to keep you laughing and that’ll bring a smile to your face? I promise you’ve found it with this one!

Tropes:
- Fling to forever
- Jilted bride
- Friends to lovers
- Weddings gone wrong

This was a really cute rom com. Lots of sexual tension and teasing. I don’t know if I agree with their little business, but they have a cute story. I liked the 80 year old room mates the best. Cute little read. Thank you

Today I’m reviewing Happily Never After by Lynn Painter. In this contemporary romance, we follow human resources VP with a great sense of humor, Sophie Steinbeck, who finds out her fiancé is cheating (again) right before her big day. She can’t call it off, so her bestie hires a professional objector to save the day. When Max, the objector, enters in a tux and a melt-your-heart genuinely he cares kind of guy, both Sophie and Max won’t know how to handle their instant chemistry and blooming friendship in Painter’s latest romance novel.

Tell me about something that you find irresistible? Something that you crave like that first sip of coffee, or the taste of your favorite meal. Where that insatiable something can possibly be boarder line obsession.

Lynn Painter’s writing.

Painter knows her craft and delivers on every level. Take her latest novel Happily Never After. Plot: two people team together like their the wedding Avengers, to save couples from the doom of marriage. Add in witty banter, hilarious dialogue, adorably quirky side characters, cats, and theirs more, but I’d like for you to discover them all, and you have an instant favorite author.

Not only do we have a charmingly funny story, but we have two very real people dealing with their own road blocks and setbacks. And although it’s not immediately obvious to Sophie, how right Max and her could be as a couple, because she's still not over her last break up. A break up that is similar to that of a healing wound, where the new skin hasn't solidified and the pain ever real. And at some point both Max and Sophie find themselves at a crossroad with no map or GPS to help navigate themselves and their ever growing feelings to safety.

And what makes this one stand out (besides the wedding crasher plot) is that initial spark between these two from the opening chapter. How its fueled and sustained, even when Sophie is at her lowest low, they both manage to find a way to keep the spark from going out.

A must read from start to finish.

The premise of this book was super original and perfect for a hilarious read. The witty banter and side characters helped keep the enjoyment of this book high. The character growth, and cynic-to-lovers going on was also original and perfect. Wasn’t a fan of the excessive use of the F word, but I’ve come to realize that is just the author’s style. This book was hilarious though and a fun read.

Thank you to the author and publisher for the advanced copy of the book to read and review.

Huge thank you to Berkley Romance and Lynn Painter for the ARC of Happily Never After. Lynn is my auto read rom com wrtier, It doesnt matter if it is YA or adult swooning I am there for it! From Better than The Movies to The Love Wager ( that was one of my fave rom coms of 2023) Lynn is guaranteed to make your heart swoon . 4.5 stars!
Read if you like:
-Friends with benefits
-Wedding shenanigans
-He falls first
-“Fake dating”

I always know that classic rom com movie vibes are going to be present with a Lynn Painter book : Add a dash of Runaway Bride ( Sophie hires Max to "object " at her wedding when she finds her fiancé was cheating. ) then a little bit of The Wedding Date because they are fake dating while getting paid to break up weddings. Max doesn't want a relationship, Sophie wants a fling. He has his important job in an architecture firm and she is on the rise to VP. Why cant they use each other to fool her boss and his parents into believing they are really dating?
I adored their banter, their face time antics, and how hard Max fell for her.
"F#$% love and relationships, I just want to be with you because you're my GD favorite person."

And the little old roommate Larry.. he was precious and fitting that a character named Sophie Steinbeck has a man like Tom Hanks talking in her ear. Absolutely my favorite rom com of March 2024!

this book was such a cute read! the perfect palette cleanser! lynn painter writes such cute romcoms! she really never misses!

HNA has Everything you expect from a Lynn Painter book: hilarious characters, chemistry dripping off the page, quirky side peeps, and slightly bonkers but totally believable circumstances bringing couples together.

What I especially love about Lynn’s characters is how hard they fall for each other, and how strong the connections are by the time the characters realize it. They get to know each other so well, and oftentimes it’s only *that* character they really open up to and trust to be their authentic selves with.

That was most definitely the case with Happily Never After, where our protagonist Sophie meets Max the day he interrupts her wedding ceremony to object to the marriage. Sophie, who was in on the scheme, connects with Max instantly, and rekindles that friendly connection a few months later, when Max asks her to help with another wedding-related objection plan. They realize they’re a dynamic duo, in and out of the wedding chapel.

When they figure out hanging out could be mutually beneficial to their respective work situations, they decide to play up their platonic relationship.

This was so cute! It felt like a 2000s rom com. I feel like maybe something was missing and the conflict was kind of meh. but I loved the fmcs roommates and the banter between the characters. I love Lynn painter. I will read anything she writes.

This was one of the cutest romcoms EVER! This was such a fun read. Such an adorable friends to lover trope plot revolving around two wedding objectors.

Sophie and Max meet when Sophie finds out that Max is a professional wedding objector. She then hires him to object to the marriage of Sophie to her cheating fiancé. Sophie and Max decide to work together objecting at various weddings. They have both sworn off love, but will their budding friendship turn into more?

I loved the banter between Sophie and Max as their friendship developed. The author did a great job in developing their characters, as well as their friendship. I enjoyed the snarky humor they used when talking to one another. I found myself chuckling out loud during certain parts. It was great to see the two of them develop a friendship and not falling in love right away. Healthy love is the best love.

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Loved this one! It was such an interesting story with the whole wedding objectors angle. I loved how unique that was. I find the book to be funny and delightful. Loved the two main characters.

So cute! I loved both Max and Sophie and the idea of an objector. The part about Max's ex felt rushed but the book was still great overall.