This book was cute, but kind of flat. I really liked the main characters & their chemistry. From the start it was clear that they really did not hate one another & that the sparks flew between the two of them. They just disguised it in hatred. However, I wanted to see MORE! I wanted more sparks, more banter, more of them as individuals, more from their relationship & more from the friendships that they had created. The location was perfect. I just felt like we touched on the surface of their lives - who they were as individuals & who they were as a couple. I read until the end, hoping that at some point I would get more, but unfortunately it never happened.

Lara and Sonny are enemies who work together who end up going undercover and an exclusive celebrity retreat - for couples therapy. Will a week in paradise be hell or will it turn these enemies into something else?

Thank you netgalley for my advanced reader copy

Enemies to Lovers is my seventh Portia MacIntosh read. I’ve enjoyed her other novels, so far, as they are fun romances that have an ease to them. This story’s title gives away the main trope. I can understand the want to have a related title, but it also has a negative where it sets up a huge expectation for the story. While the two main characters, journalists, Sonny, and Lara, do start off on opposite sides, they seemed more like rivals than enemies. Since I was expecting full enemies based on the title, it was a disappointment, however, it also continues my wish for another trope of rivals to lovers to become standard. The two characters work for rival magazines, but are sent to a private couples’ retreat, Eden, on a tropical island for a story.

While at Eden, there are vibes like Nine Perfect Strangers. There is something strange about Eden, a couple’s resort, where Sonny and Lara must pose as a couple to investigate. Since this concept introduces a thriller vibe, the novel had to try to balance the two genres. Between Sonny and Lara’s relationship being a will-they-won’t-they romance and the weird resort thriller, it is a lot to navigate. I loved the concept and felt that it was an ambitious attempt, but it never quite got there for me. I, unfortunately, never felt a connection between Lara and Sonny, so the romance genre did not quite get there. As the two characters are also in a place with weird happenings, the romance build-up must take a back seat. Again, I loved the concept, but the execution was not quite for me. I continue to enjoy MacIntosh’s work a lot, but I think more care was needed for the romance since this is primarily a romance novel.

**I give a special thank you to Netgalley and the publisher, for the opportunity to read this entertaining novel. The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.**

This would be a great beach read, I loved the tropical setting of the resort! The storyline is somewhat predictable but there are enough twists and turns to keep you interested. The personalities of the other couples added to the storyline and I enjoyed how everything tied up in the end. Great read and a fun glimpse into another world!

You really kind of have to let go of reality to enjoy this book. If your mind isn't open to reading it just for entertainment, you probably won't like it. This is pretty unbelievable as far as the location where the two main characters end up. They are reporters sent to a retreat for couples in a secret location trying to get the scoop on a famous couple.

The best thing about the book is the relationships the two make with the other couples and the way their mindsets change as far as using the information they have gathered. I did enjoy this book.

Thanks to Boldwood Books and NetGalley for the gifted copy. All thoughts are my own.

Enemies to Lovers - Portia Macintosh
2.5 stars (rounded up to 3)

This was an okay read. It didn’t blow my socks off but it was humorous at times to get you through.
Definitely more rivals to lovers and even then I don’t think the rivals part gripped me enough to be totally willing them on at the end to get together.
Feel like the author tried to grip onto tropes that everyone loves (enemies to lovers, fake dating, only one bed) and just tried to will something up with those.

Even so it could be an easy summer read, bit of a palate cleanser. Some of the flirty scenes gave those swoony feels. I will be keeping Portia Macintosh on my radar and if I see any of her other books, I will try those also 😊

A cute read about two opposing writers who work for similar magazine.
Sonny gets on Lara’s last nerve but he keeps popping up.
They are sent away to a retreat and act like they are a couple.
I wouldn’t have done all the exercises they were required ti complete for anything, especially the last one.
If you love tropes like rivals falling in love and enemies to lovers, this is the book for you.

This was a lighthearted romance that was extremely easy to read, so this would probably be a good choice if you just wanted to switch your brain off for a while and read something simple.

However, it wasn’t my cup of tea at all. The name of the book is overly simplified and the chemistry between the two main characters was non-existent. Whilst I enjoyed the couples retreat storyline and the interactions between the women, the romance fell <i>way</i> short of expectations and the writing was pretty lacklustre.

Loved it - love all her books - she just always nails it with rom -coms. Enemies to Lovers is totally delightful and well done.

Two journalists at rival magazines are forced to work together undercover at a celebrity couples retreat. A week in paradise should be wonderful, but it's their worst nightmare as these two enemies are forced to get along and act like a couple. The more they're forced together, the more it seems real... but what happens when they return home?
I normally like this author's writing, but this story just didn't click with me. There was some of the fun banter that I've come to expect from her romcoms and a few laugh out loud scenes, but I never really felt the romantic connection between the two. I thought Lara was actually kind of annoying and childish. The island setting was fun and the story had potential but ultimately just felt flat to me.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advance copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I thought I was going to enjoy this book but found it was.not engaging.

Lara and Sonny work for the same journalist company but are enemies and try to get one up on each other. They end up going on an assignment together to get the gossip on the celebraties.

I wanted to like the book and the characters but it just didn’t work for me.

I wanted to give the cheesy title the benefit of the doubt since I've heard about this author a lot and all the reviews were favory. To my disappointment, it wasn't that good of a story.
Lara and Sonny weren't even enemies to begin with. I'd say workplace rivals, but that's about it. By the chapter 2 it was obvious they had the hots for each other. That makes the title completely pointless.
I couldn't really grow to love either of them. They were both just really childish. I still enjoyed their banter, after all. The story had some funny moments.
The premise had potential, but it got quickly lost, which is such a shame.
It was a quick read for sure, but it really make me feel anything.

This one left me so confused. It is supposed to be a romance, but a portion of the book felt more like a thriller. The romance when it did occur felt super rushed and unexpected. The story was fast paced and had some good humor, just parts of the plot seemed confusing.

PORTIA MACINTOSH delivers an enjoyable & quick read about rival journalists who are forced to work together in order to gather celebrity gossip on one of the most popular couples in Hollywood. MACINTOSH presents this story in a unique fashion - her main characters, Sonny & Lara, are sent to a very exclusive, very expensive, destination known as Eden - that NO ONE can find. Every step to the actual resort is a secret (they take extreme measures)!

Lara & Sonny spend their time with only three other couples all hoping to work on their respective relationships. Each couple is unique. Each day holds a new challenge - including the tasteless food & lack of quantity. The challenges MACINTOSH has come up with are great. Since the story is told from Lara’s point of view, the thoughts running in her head at every point are funny and entertaining especially during each challenge.

Lara & Sonny themselves grow closer. They have a better understanding of each other. Lara finds herself enjoying her time in Eden, she puts her past behind for good and she learns about herself.

I was disappointed that there was not a strong focus on Lara & Sonny as a couple together. So many of the challenges pulled them apart. Of course, this being the case leads to a lot of laughs. Overall, I enjoyed the book and would recommend to anyone looking for a quick, fun & enjoyable read!

I really wanted to love this book but I could just not get into it. I have read other books by Portia MacIntosh and always enjoyed which is such a shame.

We meet main character Lara, and I really did not like her as a character at all and also Sonny, who again is not the most likeable.

Lara and Sonny join forces to go undercover at a celebrity retreat and I just found it quite bland and I was not really sure of the actual plot.

Thanks to Netgalley, the publishers and the author for allowing me a ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This story follows rival entertainment journalists Lara and Sonny and their love story. The writing style was simple and easy to follow along, but that’s mostly because it read like middle school fan fiction. The plot, the way the characters spoke, and the way everything was described were all very immature and made it very hard to follow along and stay invested. This didn’t work for me, but could maybe work for someone looking for an easy read where no critical thinking skills are necessary because everything is spelled out for you.

Lara and Sonny are work rivals who join forces on an assignment. The only catch is they have to pretend to be dating.

I love Portia MacIntosh. Her books make me laugh and are so clever. While this one held some of her usual charm and humor, it was lacking a little for me. I liked Lara and Sonny and wanted to see more of them together. The humor of the island and the whole retreat were spot on and I liked all of the quirky side characters.

All in all, this is a cute romcom that I just wanted a bit more from.

-work rivals
-fake dating

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the gifted copy. My reviews are always honest.

Lara and Sonny are both journalists working in the same building but on different magazines.
Lara doesn’t like Johnny, she thinks he is too big for his boots and Sonny is always trying to upstage Lara so when she gets the chance to get her own back she takes it, unfortunately it backfires and they end up having to go on an exclusive couples retreat to get some information about another famous couple who are there or they will both be fired
Can they get what they need ?
Not my favourite of Portias books but it did keep me reading

I have read a few of Portia MacIntosh's books and generally enjoy them. This one does not seem to be getting good reviews, but I enjoyed it. I liked the banter between Lara and Sonny. I also liked the friendships they formed while at the retreat. I really loved that it got them thinking about their lives and what they want. I do feel like the retreat itself distracted the reader from the relationship between Lara and Sonny, but I still think there was plenty of interaction between them.

This is a great story full of humorous situations written so well that it feels like you’re there watching, and laughing while you read!!
Lara and Sonny are sworn enemies since uni, and the time that they slept together. They mess up royally at work because of their need to mess things up for the other, and end up taking an assignment or else they lose their jobs!! It’s a couples retreat of all things!! Will they come out friends or still enemies?? Oh, the road to that end was well worth reading!!
Many thanks to Boldwood Books for the chance to read this arc copy via Netgalley.
#Netgalley, #bookandttonic, #portiamacintoshauthor.

This one was enjoyable but felt like another of the same story as beach lovers by Emily Henry, something the same sort of premise and the same sort of banter so it wasn't short of a lot of fun and the banter was good between the two main characters

3 stars