Thanks for the free book @berkleyromance, @prhaudio, & @librofm!

This was my first read by Lynn Painter, but it definitely won’t be my last!

My only regret is that I binged it in one sitting, and coming back a week later to write this review it’s all a bit blurry.

I fell in love with the romcom genre as a teen watching movies, and this gives book gives those golden age of rom com movie vibes - the kind of feel good movie you can watch over and over again. I can see myself pulling this book back out as a comfort read just like those movies became comfort watches!

🎧 Both narrators were so well suited to their characters and really brought the story to life!

A fun, quick, relaxing read! Perfect for in between heavier books when you wants something fun and entertaining. The audio of this was great. I really enjoyed the premise and it made me laugh several times.

This was cute as always! Lynn Painter always writes such cute and endearing characters that you can’t help but root for! The whole plot with them being hired objectors for weddings was so fun because they were so cheesy about it. The side characters were also such a blast. Faithfully a Lynn Painter stan for life 🫡

I absolutely LOVED this books. Reminded me of a 2000s rom com. I was not expecting it to be this funny! I was laughing out loud while reading this! Possibly, my favorite rom com I have ever read! I can not recommend this enough.

I absolutely loved Sophie. Empower females in books are always welcome. I love how she never filtered herself for anyone. She put herself out there exactly how she was and people accepted her or not . Sophie and Max made a genuine friendship before things turned romantic. The elderly roommates were another welcome and funny addition. I really like that message that you can be friend with any despite their age. This was also the perfect amount of spice. The spice added to the plot and didn't feel forced at all.

This book was an absolute joy to read — the best thing I’ve read this year. The on page chemistry between the characters was red hot and the premise of breaking up weddings together was adorable and hilarious. Cannot recommend it enough.

Lynn Painter is FLIPPING HILARIOUS and she might be the best writer of romantic banter publishing today. Yes, facts. Happily Never After is an absolutely delightful read and super steamy to boot. While our couple Sophie and Max definitely need to get out of their own ways, their love story was entertaining and sweet. Painter's best yet.

I'm not going to lie--I was a little creeped out at how many times Max thinks of Sophie as "young looking." Is that supposed to...be hot?? In all honesty, it was probably only like 2-3 times that this happened, but it was still a bit alarming to me.
Otherwise, this was a decent romance novel. To be honest, there are romance authors I'll read and feel the need to read all their books immediately (Tessa Bailey, Emily Henry, Ali Hazelwood, etc.), but I didn't feel that way after reading this one. It was cute and definitely had an interesting hook (I never thought about wedding objecting could be something you could hire someone for), but to be honest, it was just that. Cute.
All in all, if I'm ever in the mood to read romance and have exhausted all other options, I may pick up another Lynn Painter. I am certainly not objecting to reading her body of work, but I will say that I didn't feel compelled to immediately pick up another one.

What if you really needed to get out of marrying your fiance!? Who would you call to come object at your wedding. Well Max ends up as an objector who helps women get out of saying I do with out them calling off the wedding immediately.

Sophie Steinbeck cannot believe she is in this situation. But she can’t anger her future father in law, by calling off the wedding even though her fiance cheated on her again!

She ends up helping Max object to a wedding later, and then they realize how much fun it is to object together. As they do this, the two are very opposed to relationships and struggle with their developing feelings for each other.

This is an amazing premise! So creative in could objecting at weddings be a lucrative side gig. It is a fun read with like able characters, that you are rooting for the whole time.

The objectors...two friends who break off weddings by standing and saying "I object!" during the ceremony nuptials. As Max and Sophie work more weddings together, the closer they get and the more Sophie tries to believe in her anti-love beliefs.

Oh goodness this book had so many LOL moments I didn't want it to end.. When Sophie sits in the front basket of the bicycle so max can drive her home so her feet wont hurt.
There were so many good quotes I highlighted that I cant begin to type them all but here's one of my fav's:

"She was like a stubborn puzzle who didn’t want to be solved, which made me want to toss all the pieces into the air. And then solve it anyway, just to piss her off."

A few other's I like are:
"There are 7.8 billion people in the world, how can you ever be sure you've found the one true love of your life if you havnt even met 1 percent of the people on earth?"

"In my opinion, an adult couple needs a king-size bed so they could each sleep without having to touch eachother. sex was sex and sleep was sleep"

i wasn’t as much as a fan of this book. it just lacked something. the concept was really cool and reminded me a lot like the wedding crashes but i think the two main characters were kinda annoying? idk, it just felt off for me and i usually love lynn’s book!! she is one of my auto buyers but a little gutted that this book didn’t land for me!!

📚ARC Review📚

Hey Chaotic Lovelies!

First, thank you @berkleyromance for my free copy of Happily Never After! #berkleypartner

I wanted to share my thoughts on this cute romcom!

Pub date: March 12, 2024

Happily Never After by Lynn Painter

⭐️ 3.5
🌶️ 2

I liked this story! It was a very quick read which surprised me because I wanted more.

I really liked the idea behind “the objector’s job” and thought Sophie helping on some of them was really cute. Both Sophie and Max are easy characters to like but I just didn’t feel the need to be fake dating.

I felt like the side characters were not easily likable and it was hard to really enjoy the story because of that but overall it was good!

Tags 🏷️

#berkleyig #berkleyromance #honestreviews #latinabookstagram #romancereader #bookdragon

this book was absolutely adorable & i looooved the banter!! i always love lynn painter’s banter in her books. they always make me laugh or smile while reading. i think this book is very interesting in regards to neither of the two main characters believe in love. i have not read a book before where neither believe in love/want love. however, i loved that they work together to ensure that people who are stuck in terrible situations have an out that is honorable to everyone involved. i think this book is super cute, but it isn’t my most favorite lynn painter book. that being said, this book would make an amazing movie!! i definitely think the script would be killer!! also, i want her two senior citizen roomies. ya gotta read the book to find out! they are a HOOT!! definitely pick up this book & read it if you want a light fluffy & fun romcom!!

thank you so much to lynn painter, berkley romance, & netgalley for an arc in exchange for my honest opinion!!

I love Lynn Painter’s books. They entertain me endlessly and she just plain makes me laugh. This book was no exception. Ever wonder if anyone actually says “I object” in a wedding ? Well, Max’s job is to be an objector. He is hired by friends, family or the actual bride or groom to object before a wedding or marriage gets seriously messy. After Max objects at her wedding and she slowly gets her life back Sophie wants in on the action and together they become the objectors, but no surprise here they became so much more.
.
I Huge thank you to @berkleypub @berittalksbooks @thephdivabooks @dg_reads and @netgalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

I absolutely adored this one!! I've always been a sucker for fake dating romances, but this one was definitely the top out of all of the ones I've ever read. I loved Max so much, and their issues seemed relatable and at a reasonable timeline, which made the book much more appealing!

I absolutely loved this book! It was fun and witty, and it kept me hooked the whole way through! The banter between the two main characters was top notch, and the wedding objector premise was unique and fun, which helped set this book apart from other romance books. Lynn Painter is the queen of romcoms, and I will read (and love) anything she writes!

This was an amusing start to a book, paying someone to expose your intended and object to your wedding so you don't have everyone get mad at you for calling it off. What is great is that the almost-bride-to-be ends up becoming friends with her objector. and helps him tackle a wedding together. What ensues is a journey to figuring out what they both want in life, a great friendship, and growth from past hurts that have left them not believing in love. The side characters? Chefs kiss! Larry and Rose MADE this story for me, their commentary and meddling is exactly what I needed.

Funny, sexy, and swoony. Nobody writes friends better than Lynn Painter. She does top tier banter. And her first chapters are God-level. Lately she's been putting the first chapter of her next book at the end of her current one as a teaser, and let me tell you how I PINE for the whole thing after reading just the sliver. I remember when I got to this chapter at the end of Love Wager--it knocked my socks off and I was SO EXCITED to read the rest!

I really enjoyed this one! It was my first Lynn Painter book and I feel like it was pretty much what I expected after seeing others talk about her books. I thought it was such a fun read and I really liked the main characters - especially Max! The way the two main characters met was so unique and I loved how their friendship/relationship developed. Overall just a good time.

As usual Lynn Painter knows how to write a fun fast paced story. I loved the whole idea of being an objector of a wedding. This definitely gave Wedding Crasher vibes. I LOVED Max! As for Sophie, she was fun, but I found myself getting rather annoyed with her because of the excuses she was making to justify that she isn't in love or that love doesn't exist. Although, neither wanted a relationship, you could see how easy it was for them to connect and the chemistry was definitely there.

4.5

cute, steamy, fun! the unique concept grew on me. loved the alternating POVs! this one kept me entertained throughout. solid rom com!