What a cute cover! I think this felt much more new adult/YA than I wanted it to be. I personally do not drink so I didn't vibe with all the excess drinking that was included in this one. It really took me out of the novel and gave me a little bit of a distaste for the characters. I will give a future book a try!

The Next Best Fling is a romance about a librarian who is in love with her best friend. When he tells her he's engaged, she tries to be happy for him, but everything changes when she overhears his brother, ready to break up his engagement because he's in love with his brother's fiance. She steps in and stops him from making a bigger mess of things. While working together to get over the person they think they are in love with, they end up falling for each other. It's an interesting take on the best friend's brother trope.

This is such a good debut romance, and I always love a sports theme.

Many thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for sharing this book with me.

The chemistry was off the charts, I absolutely loved this book. I have not stopped talking about this book with my friends. I just thought the characters and narrative were so heartwrenching, and I was so absorbed in the narrative.

Thank you to NetGalley and to the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Ok, I must begin by saying - I hate the longtime pining over an ex/old lover/what-might-have-been trope. Absolutely despise it. BUT when I started this book, I didn't know much, I just knew that it sounded like everything I wanted - bookish FMC, friends with benefits - I was like yes, PLZ! Then I started it and got WORRIED. After finishing it, though, I can say with complete confidence that Gabriella Gamez absolutely crushed it with this debut. Marcela was not too whiny for me like I feared she might be, and her and Theo together were HOT HOT HOT. They fell together so naturally for me, and sometimes the fake dating / friends with benefits trope can feel unrealistic (even though it's my favorite), but this didn't!! I was so here for their chemistry and the progression of their relationship from acquaintances to friends to friends with benefits to lovers - and probably some blend of this along the way. I loved how emotionally mature this book and these characters felt (ok minus ben but he sucks). While it pained my heart for Marcela and Theo to take time apart towards the end of the book, it was truly what their characters needed to do some self-reflection. I love when a third-act breakup (if this can be considered that?) is necessary for the narrative to develop and not simply used because the romance structure calls for it. They can often feel forced, and this didn't - SO good!

I will say the ending was so random and unnecessary? It was an odd note to end on from an otherwise flawless book.

I wanted to love The Next Best Fling but I just couldn't. I loved the premise of it and was so excited to read but this book just wasn't for me. It was too repetitions and I didn't really care for the characters. There was no chemistry between them and Theo just felt blah to me. It was messy. I didn't mind the mess at first but it got tiring after a while. I felt like I was slogging through rather than enjoying it. To be fair there were enjoyable parts but just not enough to keep my interest or the desire to continue. DNFed at 43%. That said I would read another book by this author.

Fun, flirty and the main character is a YA librarian. Plus sized characters that are still desirable. Much enjoyed,

ARC from the publisher via NetGalley but the opinions are my own.

Gabriella Gamez’s The Next Best Fling is a charming and vibrant romance that perfectly captures the excitement, unpredictability, and heartfelt moments of falling in love when you least expect it. With witty dialogue, relatable characters, and a refreshing premise, this book is an absolute delight.

I really wanted to love The Next Best Fling, especially because the FMC is a librarian, but unfortunately this ended up just bumming me out. The characters entire relationship was built off lies, lies between each other as well as lying to their family and friends. It just felt doomed and even though they figured things out in the end, it didn't feel great. I'll still be curious to check out other books in this series because I liked the writing and concept. Just wish everyone sucked a little bit less.

This book was messy — I loved every minute of it. We have a fake dating trope along with the best friend’s brother and … it undoubtedly delivered.

This was fun, hilarious, wild and crazy. I loved the plus sized rep as somebody who is plus sized themselves. It was swoonworthy and the MMC was the cutest man ever. A total cinnamon roll.

I will without a doubt seek out this authors books as they release.

sigh, I don't know what I expected. I was hopeful about this and, in many ways, it did deliver. But tbh the cute moments of the romances were just not enough to keep me from being distracted by everything else going on. I also just didn't want the FMC to be the way she was.. I'm also just not a fan of hugely messy romances and this one had that in aces. It was honestly just too much at times and it took away from the romance for me, to the point that I'm not even sure I cared about the romance all that much by the end of it.

I loved this book so much! as a plus sized latina with anxiety i really saw myself in the FMC. the setting was also fun, i love a workplace romance. the MMC was also a really nice character and i really enjoyed him! i also love fake dating so this really checked so many boxes for me. thank you so much for the early copy of this book! 4.5

SOOORRRRYYY nothing can get me like fake dating mixed with best friend's brother as a trope.... chef's kiss!!! Reading The Next Best Fling was sooooooooo entertaining, Marcella as the fmc was chaotically beautiful. THEO!!!!! the man that he is...... gosh I loved reading them go through the mess of finding love with each other.

The fact that this is a debut for an author is phenomenal!!! Well done!! I can't wait to read more in the future.

The cover, and description originally drew me in, but the rest of it kept me engaged the entire time. I loved getting to know these characters, and I found them completely relatable, especially Marcela. Her inner thoughts felt all too similar to my own at times, and I would love to be friends with her. Then there was Theo, and he is a total sweetie! Tough on the exterior, but soft on the inside. He was kind, caring, and a relatable in his own way. And don't even get me started on the secondary characters. They all bring a smile to my face, except one, and I am really hoping we get more from them in the future.

Thank you Netgalley and Forever for the eArc!

Lately I’ve seen a lot of writers who just make their FMCs insufferable and I just want to know why? I was so excited to see a plus sized fmc but I couldn’t root for her, she was so extremely insecure and had no personality whatsoever and that took away from the book. Also, this book was MESSY all caps, and I… I just couldn’t, it was too much and it made me dislike the story all together. I really had high hopes. 😪

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for a copy in exchange of my honest review.

I listened to this one on audio and I ended up really liking it! It’s messy, which doesn’t always work for me, but in this case, it made the story more relatable.

YA Librarian Marcela Ortiz has been pining over Ben Young for over a decade. She hasn’t gotten a chance to get over him because they are best friends. If you’ve seen The Holiday, it is like the dynamic between Iris and Jasper Bloom.

On the night of Ben’s engagement party, Marcela stops Ben’s very hot football player brother from confessing his love to Ben’s fiancée Alice. See… messy. Marcela escorts Theo home from the party and everyone thinks they left together to hook up when they attend brunch the next day. Theo and Marcela decide not to correct the assumption and begin a fake dating arrangement which quickly turns into a rebound fling.

As time progresses, Marcela begins to piece together more details about the feud between Ben and his brother, all while her feelings consistently grow for Theo. Readers follow her journey as she finally lets go of Ben and opens herself up for a new love.

I think it can be hard to sell a love story when it begins with a main character pining for someone else, but in this case, it worked for me. Pining after Ben is the safe choice for Marcela; she knows what to expect, even if it is heartache. It took a lot for Marcela to finally allow herself the closure and the confidence to take the risk on Theo. I think deep down she knew that her and Ben weren’t really going to happen and by putting him on a pedestal, she didn’t have to face the other issue as to why she doesn’t trust men (her dad abandoning her as a child). Facing her feelings for Theo also forces her to deal with some unresolved trauma on her journey to a happily ever after.

One of my most favorite things about fake dating is how the participants feel more at ease to be themselves because “it isn’t real.” Thus, they become more comfortable with each other more quickly because they have nothing to lose. Marcela let herself finally be seen without the weight of expectations weighing her down.

Theo is a very sweet MMC, and I really enjoyed his character. Once he decides to pursue a relationship with Marcela, he really prioritized getting to know her and you could tell he had fully closed the Alice box. The date he planned for Marcela was very sweet and shows how much he wants to know her.

Overall, despite the love squares of this book and a whole lot of unrequited love, I did enjoy the romance between Marcela and Theo. The audio was fantastic! Ruby Corazon did a wonderful job- I will definitely be looking to see what other books she has narrated.

The main character is a librarian? Always a yes from me! I really wasn't sure if Theo and Marcela were going to end up together as they both had strong feelings for other people at the beginning of the book. But their chemistry and feelings were off the charts, and I totally bought into their love by the end of the book.

Thank you to netgalley and the publishers for providing me with an arc for an honest review.

this book gave me such a high heart rate in the best way. I'm looking forward to Gabriella Gamez's next book!!!

This was such a great read by Forever. Getting to know the characters throughout the book kept me smiling so much!

Thank you to the publisher for an early copy of this book. All thoughts are my own.

Folks, we have a love square, I repeat a love square!

The drama in Next Best Fling is high, perhaps too high at some points, but great for anyone interested in angst or sibling love triangles. I thought the ending dragged on too long, but overall I liked (but didn’t love) this book.