ONE-STAR ROMANCE was anything but. Sparks absolutely do not fly when Natalie is forced to walk down the aisle with a man who gave her book a one-star review in her best friend’s wedding. Make no-mistake there was no insta-love here, but over the years as their best friends celebrate milestones they find themselves drawn together.

While the alluring cover may appeal to your rom-com loving heart, this story has so much more depth and will appeal to a wide swath of readers. This story is just as much a tribute to friendship over the years as it is a story of romantic love.

Laura Hankin realistically explores how friendships can shift with new seasons of life. It can take time, consideration, and work to carve out space for a friendship that looks different than it did a decade ago.

READ THIS IF YOU:
-have ever met the right person at the wrong time
-are drawn to stories about writers
-appreciate a slow burn love story over the years

RATING: 4/5

Many thanks to Berkley and Netgalley for an electronic ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This one didn’t work for me.

I was hoping that this would be a cute romance and that I would fall in love since it deals with books, but I feel like this one is categorized wrong. I would consider it more women’s fiction since the romance of it is very small and I feel like we get to know more about the love life of side characters, than the FMC. I also didn’t understand why she didn’t talk to him in the first place after finding out and instead harbored it for forever. All of this could have been avoided in some ways. I also don’t think the time jumps helped either.

Besides the plot, I wasn’t a fan of the FMC some of the things she did/said was just kind of wild, haha. She didn’t read the room.

Overall, this wasn’t for me and I am definitely sad about it.

What a perfect read.

The irony of this makes you want to leave a one star for a book called one-star romance, but this is such a delight and just hits all the right feels.

Although, part six made me cry like a baby.

Natalie and Rob quickly became favorite book characters (like ever) with their dynamic, banter, and the obvious romance that was being fought. I felt like there was just the perfect amount of drama, emotion, and events that it was such a good read. Ha no pun intended.

Well written, great dialogue, perfect amount of tension with the characters, and lastly, the story. Chef's kiss.

Thank you NetGalley and Berkley Publishing for my E-ARC.

Now go grab a copy of this book, read it during this heat wave, and enjoy!

One Star Romance was the perfect read for my day. A wonderful blend of romantic comedy and women's fiction, Natalie and Rings story gave me all the laughs and romance for a fun day and just enough drama and emotion so it felt like I had a great trusted Fri nd with me sharing their story. Vividly written, with excellent dialogue and great tension this is the perfect read for the day when you want something to hold you with a solid story but yet not weigh you down with too many emotional punches. And, the best part there just the right blend of laughs, giggles, and You Have To Hear This quotes so you can still annoy...erummm engage with your family and share your book with them 😂💖😇

Thank you @berkleypub @berkleyromance @prhaudio for my complimentary copy. My thoughts are my own.

I went into this one expecting a rom-com, but it was really more of a narrative/women’s fiction story, and I loved it!

The story unfolds over a period of several years. Rob and Natalie first meet at the wedding of their best friends. Natalie has recently published a book and she is angered when she receives a one-star review on Goodreads. When she realizes the reviewer is Rob, she becomes furious with him. Her hatred of Rob continues over several years as they meet periodically at the major life events of their mutual friends.

The author expertly weaves in the back stories for both characters over time. The male main character, Rob, is a lovable type A personality - always striving for perfection, worrying about his career, and trying to impress his popular professor father! Rob is also vulnerable, and I just wanted everything to work out for him!

Natalie is not as likable as Rob. She is immature, and even petty. She does grow up over time, as she gradually resolves her feelings of a kind of loss as her best friend moves on in life, and she eventually sees Rob for the vulnerable, lovable character he is.

I enjoyed both the print and audio versions of this one, and I want to give a shout out to the author, who perfectly narrated the story!

Laura Hankin tackles a more straightforward romance novel in her latest release, One-Star Romance. I was eager to read this after absolutely loving her previous two novels that fell more in the general fiction category!

In One-Star Romance, readers follow along on a When Harry Met Sally type story, except with two characters who are always at odds rather than good friends. Natalie and Rob are connected through their two best friends, who have fallen in love. At the wedding, things turn frigid when Natalie discovers that Rob anonymously gave her first novel a one-star review.

This sets off a chain of events over years and years where the two meet at various gatherings and navigate their complicated relationship - sometimes drawing closer and finding comfort in each other and sometimes feeling like they couldn't be more different.

I really enjoyed the time jumps - discovering where each of them were at different points in their lives. This is a slow burn at it's best! They truly saw the best and worst of each other, resulting in a love story that happened when they both were ready to embrace it.

This will be a great read for anyone who loves stories set over longer periods of time and enjoys the tension and build up on an enemies to lovers romance!

Thank you Berkley Pub and Berkley Romance for the free book and thank you PRHAudio for my #gifted listening copy of One-Star Romance! #PRHAInfluencer #PRHAudioPartner #BerkleyBookstagram #berkleypub #berkleyromance #BerkleyIG #berkley

𝐓𝐢𝐭𝐥𝐞: 𝐎𝐧𝐞-𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐫 𝐑𝐨𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞
𝐀𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫: 𝐋𝐚𝐮𝐫𝐚 𝐇𝐚𝐧𝐤𝐢𝐧
𝐍𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐫: 𝐋𝐚𝐮𝐫𝐚 𝐇𝐚𝐧𝐤𝐢𝐧
𝐏𝐮𝐛 𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐞: 𝐉𝐮𝐧𝐞 𝟏𝟖, 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟒

★★★★★

This book was so good! I knew when I heard the author speak at the Berkley Summer Preview event that I would enjoy this book, but I had no clue that I would end up loving it this much! The premise was so unique and I just loved the set up of this book. I loved how it was told in different parts and spanned over 10 years. Natalie and Rob were also complete opposites and I loved watching their lives change throughout the book. There were so many times I found myself laughing, and other times I found myself getting emotional. It was just such a great blend. I cannot say enough good things about this book. It worked really well for me!

★Slow Burn
★Opposites Attract
★Enemies to lovers
★Spanning over 10 years, Told in Multiple Parts
★Laugh Out Loud Funny
★Emotional and Heartwarming

🎧I alternated between the physical book and the audiobook, narrated by the author, Laura Hankin. I always love when the author narrates the book and Hankin absolutely nailed this one! She was absolutely perfect and once I started listening to the audiobook, I did not want to stop. If you enjoy audiobooks, I highly suggest you read this one with your ears!

Posted on Goodreads on June 18, 2024: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/144922955?ref=nav_profile_l
**Posted on Instagram - Full Review- on or around June 18, 2024: http://www.instagram.com/nobookmark_noproblem
**Posted on Amazon on June 18, 2024
**-will post on designated date

Thanks to Berkley for a free copy of One Star Romance by Laura Hankin which comes out today!

This romantic comedy is about a struggling writer who is the maid of honor and the best man who gives her debut novel a one-star review. While they had chemistry at the engagement party it was just before the ceremony that Natalie figured out the one-star review was from Rob. They hope they never see each other again but as best friends to the couple their lives intertwine every few years as they celebrate life's milestones.

I love the writing style and the story but I'm found Natalie super immature. It's made it hard for me to like her and want to root for her and Rob. I get that your early 20s can be tough and this is a book about friendships evolving. The fact that Natalie's book is a little too close to reality and that Rob is the first person to call her out on it and that Gabby won't even read it speaks volumes... the ending redeemed itself a little bit not enough for me .

Laura Hankin is a special writer. Her range is very impressive and I always enjoy her books. She is such a strong writer and I thoroughly enjoy her words! This book was interesting and captivating. Definitely worth the read.

Thanks to NetGalley, Berkley Publishing,, Berkley Romance, and Penguin Random House for this copy of "One Star Romance."

It was a beautiful book, although different from what I was expecting. It was definitely an exploration of relationships and how they change over time, both Natalie's and Rob's and that of their best friends.

Their story would have me all misty-eyed one minute, then laughing the next. It develops over 10 years as Natalie, Rob, and their best friends are trying to determine their best life paths (and life partners).

Natalie wants to be a writer and feels like she's floundering at finding the way to fulfill her dreams. Rob is a linguistics PhD student and has a well-defined plan to achieve (what he thinks are) his.

And you know from the description that he gives her book a one-star rating and they "hate" each other. So yes, an enemies to friends to lovers trope but it's so, so much more than that.

This had so much potential, but I just didn't enjoy it as much as I thought I would. I guess it's just not the right book for me.

One-Star Romance had the potential to be more than it's title meant however; I found the romance lacking. I wasn't invested or believed in the romantic connection Hankin was trying to portray with Natalie and Rob. However; I continued reading until the last 75ish pages when cancer was thrown in as a tactic to bring Natalie and Gabby back together. Being a spouse to someone with cancer, I could not continue reading when there was no prior warning (a simple trigger warning or website link) in advance letting me know that was coming up....especially as this plot point played a huge part in the last quarter of the book.

This was one of those books that just kept breaking my heart and putting it back together, but in the best of ways. I couldn’t put it down because I just loved these characters, especially Natalie. It was so rewarding to watch her growth throughout the story, fumbles and bumbles included. She’s so utterly human, and flawed, and easy to relate to, as is Rob – mister One Star himself.

This novel had me cheering for them at times and yet not at others, and then cheering again. It is such a great story. Loved it!

This book made me cry so much more than I expected and I really enjoyed it!! I thought the writing was so good and funny and I was thoroughly entertained the whole time.

This is one of the books that was featured on the Summer Booked with Berkley Season Preview, and when the author talked about the premise I was instantly sold. Basically, the best man gives our main character’s book (the maid of honor) a 1 star review and she finds out. Do you see the dislike to like potential?!?! The tension potential? The forced proximity of these two being stuck in eachother's lives because their bffs are together??? UNREAL.

To be honest, sometimes when a premise is this juicy I get a little scared because I've been let down by good premises too many times. This book did not let me down though!! The tension! The banter! The growth! I loved it all.

I really liked how time passed in this book!!! I felt like we got just enough information on what was happening in each phase of our characters lives to leave us really curious what was going to happen the next time we saw them (which was like a year or so later usually). I felt like this was also a clever way to let us get to know all the characters well, by seeing them in different situations. I found the progression of the story unpredictable (in a good way!!!) and I thought this was really nice and it allowed me to just be along for the ride because I couldn’t guess what was going to happen next.

I also liked how messy this book was, things weren’t always neat and easy and I feel like that made these characters more believable. Our main characters and their friends have believable flaws and struggles, and we see them grow throughout the years and I loved this.

Speaking of MESSY, something I often run into is loving/relating to a main character and then going to look at other people’s reviews (which I love doing right after finishing the book) and then finding out that a lot of people found them unlikeable. I’m not sure what this says about me, but this has been happening to me more and more often (anyone else?). I will say that Natalie did some cringeworthy things BUT also, that just makes her more relatable to me bc who among us doesn’t have whole eras of their lives that haunt them?

Rating: 4/5 stars

Natalie and Rob are maid of honor and best man at their respective best friends’ wedding and they have quick chemistry…until she finds out he left a one-star review of her novel on Goodreads.

The premise of this one feels like every bookstagrammer’s dream, and it was a lot of fun! I enjoyed the writing style, found some really wonderful quotes, and connected with a lot of the characters, including the MMC Rob. The audio (read by the author!) was also really well done.

I did have a few issues with the FMC, and the structure of this one (spanning the course of several years with numerous time jumps) is generally not one of my favorites, but it was done really well here, so most of my issues are just a me problem! I would generally recommend this book, though I’d also caution to check the CWs, as there was a big trigger that popped up with very little warning.

Finally and with all of that said, I can’t end this review without a shoutout to Angus, one of the best secondary characters I’ve ever read in a novel bar none. That man was sweet and kind and funny and a total teddy bear. He deserves the ENTIRE WORLD and I will fight anyone who hurts him, full stop.

CW: Cancer; infidelity; dementia

This book was so cute and fun! The main female character, Natalie, was a tad bit annoying, but I could appreciate most of her growth through to the end of the story. Rob was adorable, so was Angus, and even the goofy heartthrob, Tyler. While this book had the tropes of a fun romance novel, the author really gave these characters deep storylines and conflict that felt relatable (heartbreakingly so, at times). I also liked that the conflicts changed and grew as time passed. A great read, I'd definitely recommend!

It took me a minute to get into this one, as it was in third person and I do prefer first person POV for romance, but once I kept going, I ended up enjoying this one. The story takes place over several events that bring our two main characters together. We mostly get more from Natalie’s viewpoint, but as the story goes on we get more from Rob’s as well. They have a bunch of misses, starting with some misunderstandings, then getting over those things and it seems like maybe they can connect, but then something else comes and gets in the way and messes it up. Often a mispoken word to someone, or a misunderstanding occasionally too. Or they’re just in the wrong place at the wrong time, with both having their own significant others.

I ended up really connecting with Natalie a lot though, when it came to how she started feeling about being left behind as her friend, her best friend especially, seemed to be moving on to different phases of her life. Pretty much all my college friends did that. And I got left behind. As they got married and started hanging out with their husbands’ friends who were also married. When they had kids it was even more that I lost them. And I understand why it happens. But I also totally understood Natalie in this book at that point. Then towards the end Rob’s father suffering from dementia hit a bit hard for me with my own stepfather’s journey over the past few years.

I still liked the book though, and think it was definitely worth a read, lots of emotion and great takes on things.

This was such a fun romance! This is my fourth book by Laura Hankin and I'm definitely a fan! The banter, the plot, the chemistry was all great. It's such an easy and fun read. I really liked both main characters too and I found them somewhat relatable. This story deals with friendship that I also thought was so relatable as friends from college deal with growing up and apart in different phases of life. I enjoyed the time jumps too because I loved reading about Natalie and Rob without getting into the weeds of their day to day life. There are some trigger warnings dealing with dementia and cancer so research more if needed. This was low on the steaminess but the tension of the relationship had a great payout. Overall, this was a great summer beach read and I definitely recommend if you are looking for a romance.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy. 4.5 rounded up.

This was one of my most anticipated releases of 2024 and I really loved it!

Natalie is forced to walk down the aisle at her best friend’s wedding with the man who gave her book a one-star rating on goodreads.

Knowing that the premise was based on what actually happened to the author made it even more appealing to me 👏

I loved that the story was told in different parts, each part flashing forward a year or two. I really enjoyed seeing the characters at different stages in their lives — and the timeline allowed the main characters to really grow before ending up together.

ONE STAR-ROMANCE is so much more than a rom-com. Natalie’s friendship with Gabby is a huge part of the story. Hankin created a friendship that felt so genuine and relatable, especially as Natalie and Gabby had to navigate how their friendship changed during different seasons of life.

🤧 get your tissues ready because you’ll feel allll the emotions while reading.

Synopsis: Being Maid of Honor and Best Man together for a wedding becomes awkward when Natalie finds out Rob left a one star review of her novel on Goodreads.
Thoughts: I loved this, but friends, this was not a fluffy romcom as you may be lead to think by the synopsis.
One Star Romance is more a story of friendship and family and the bonds that remain through the ups and downs of life. There were some very heavy topics in this book that I was not prepared for, but they were handled beautifully. I loved the writing, the overall structure and the pacing of the story. The female characters were fine, but the male characters were freaking amazing. Rob is one of the best male love interests I've read in awhile, and I challenge you not to be absolutely enamored with Angus by the end.
Overall, this was a funny, relatable and heartwarming story that I highly recommend!
Read this if you like:
romance as a side plot, dual pov, found family, friendship, self-discovery