I thought this was very good and I will have to add this to the shop shelves. Thank you for the chance for us to review.

When I first started this romance, I wasn't sure what to expect. I haven't read books with the theme of someone crushing on a taken person. I was hesitant because I was worried about the drama or cheating. However, I was pleasantly surprised that none of those occurred--okay maybe some drama, but it added to the story. I loved that the two main characters became friends naturally and had strong communication/boundaries.

I'm happy and thankful I was able to read an ARC of this book. This is one of my new fav reads of the year, and I am excited to read another Gamez book!

This was a fun, messy, enjoyable romp! I loved the representation and tropes that this book had right off the bat - Latinx, plus-size FMC, best friend's brother, fake dating. This was easy to read and get lost in - I found myself empathizing and connecting with Marcela right away. Angela was an excellent best friend character and the library setting and love for books written throughout the story was like a warm hug for me as a reader. I love seeing a character with such a clear love of reading that is embedded in the storyline and not just added as an afterthought.

The unrequited love square/triangle situation was a little messy - but ultimately came together in a really satisfying way. I could see how Marcela's insecurities would be triggered by a situation like that and I was glad that the MMC took the lead on being clear about what he wanted throughout the storyline. Definitely a lot of drama that kept the story moving. I kind of wanted to see more of Alice - buy the end of the story I was such a big fan of hers, but she didn't get a lot of attention throughout most of the book.

Overall, I really enjoyed this story and I'm looking forward to the next one in the series. The cover is gorgeous - Leni is one of my favorite illustrators - please, please keep hiring her for book covers!! Stunning! Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC of this book.

This was a fast flirty read with a lot of heart. Librarian Marcela has been in love with her best guy friend for years, but he’s about to propose to their mutual friend Alice. When she learns that Ben’s older brother, NFLer Theo, is in love with Ben’s fiancée and intends to announce it at their engagement party and ruin everything, Marcela intervenes and drags Theo home with her to sleep off his bad ideas and alcoholic overindulgence. She confessed to her unrequited love without naming names, and they bond over their lust and longing, and as they spend more time together, their chemistry blossoms into friendship and attraction. Both Ben and Alice seem to in disbelief of and then against Theo and Marcela dating, which creates plenty of drama and conflict. Marcela needs to understand why shallow Ben broke up with her in college, and that it isn’t fair for him to dictate who she sees; Theo needs to repair his relationship with Ben, preferrably before the wedding.

Marcela’s teen librarian job is a wonderful subplot, but sometimes gets a little didactic in championing freedom to read. Peripheral characters from her boss to coworkers to the kids in her book group are enchantingly drawn. The writing is vivid, food descriptions are salivating, and the grand gesture will set bibliophile’s hearts a flutter.

I received a free advance reader’s review copy of #TheNextBestFling via #NetGalley courtesy of #Forever.

This was undoubtably messy and easily resolvable with a few adult conversations and therapy. We spend a bit too much time in Marcela's head and she makes some incredibly problematic decisions in which I am still very concerned for her future endeavors. And, I'm a librarian, but the slightly over-the-top inclusion of YA books, sections, and titles might have been better suited in a suggested readings list at the end.

And the things that take you out of a story? Having a first date as a fancy dinner in the YA section of a public library. I...don't think so.

Loved this book so much. It was such a windy journey full of angst and raw emotion. I loved every minute of it. It is a true story of friends to lovers and getting over the wrong person to find the right one.

What a great debut novel by Gabriella! Being Mexican American and working at a public library myself, I knew I had to get this book. So many of the things that Marcela mentioned about being a library girl in her youth and then working her way into a library is so much like my story. The connection and genuine interest they had for each other despite them wanting it to be a a "rebound" was so nice. And why expectations are so high, like I want someone who did all the things Theo did for her. All in all, great book and can't wait to read more in this world!

I had so many high hopes going into this one. What’s not to love about a librarian finding love? Not only that, but they were in San Antonio?! It’s where I was born, but now live in Ohio. I thought I was going to love this so much.

To me, this was just a fine romance. There are things I liked about it and things I didn’t like. I’m going to start with the things I didn’t like. This way, we end with the good stuff. I know miscommunication is a huge part of romance books, but this was too far. The lack of communication was frustrating as all get out. There are instances where characters walk away from a situation and go radio silent. Umm… excuse me, what? How immature are you?! A lot of this plot felt all over the place. The characters were just okay and a bit too surface-level. I expected so much more from Alice!

Marcela was a character that I liked and disliked. I loved her passion for her work. Being a librarian and donating her books, making sure kids can read is amazing. Her issues with her body and second-guessing why someone likes her were so valid. I thought she was such a sweet and endearing character, most of the time. Her obsession with Ben (I sort of get it) was too much. She changes her personality and the things she likes based on his opinions. I know a lot of people do this in real life. I’ve probably done it a time or two in High School. I am disappointed in her best friend for not pointing this out years ago.

Theo was flawed and dreamy, at the same time. I might like the “let’s like each other to get over others” trope. They are much more honest about who they are in the beginning. It’s such a great base to start a friendship that turns into a relationship.

Ben is Ben. He will be what you assume, and that’s all I’ll say.

I did like the representation we had with Marcela and the librarian aspect! As a bookworm, when will that not be something I love?! It brings me back to the days I worked in a library. I loved her friendship with Angela and her relationship with Theo, for the most part. There are many sweet moments to counteract the frustrations.

Overall, I thought this was just fine. It wasn’t the best or worst I’ve read. I hate that I’m so neutral, but it’s where I’m landing with this one. It made it so hard to review!

Thank you to Forever and Netgalley for providing me with an ARC! All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This was another book that I really regretted requesting. The cover is so cute and it absolutely fooled me into thinking that it would be some cute romantic fling, when it was really just four narcissistic people all seem to hate each other, and none of them wanted to be together, really.

I guess I should’ve known that you can’t romanticize a story about two separate people who wanna break a couple’s engagement/wedding, and that fault is my own. However, The fact that this is poorly written, has terrible characters, and should have never existed as the book is not on me. The couple that get together for the fake dating whose names I’ve already forgotten have no chemistry, even after they start to “fall in love.” This author even managed to Make being a librarian sound like the most boring thing in the world, which is a true testament to this book is that my life revolves around books.

I could go on and on about how much I hated this book, but I have already wasted enough of my time on this title and I refuse to waste any more of it. I will mention one more thing though. There is a lot of unnecessary drinking in this book, To the point where it’s bordering on binging and alcoholism. I do not have a personal problem with alcohol, But I do have friends and family who have struggled. What is supposed to be romance and identifying that was not a good time. For someone who is actively struggling, that’s not the best thing to run into a book without a warning. It would be one thing if it was contributing to the plot, but it’s not. There is no plot, only garbage.

I LOVED THIS BOOK SO MUCH🥹
once i started this i couldn't put it down, i finished it in less than 24 hours and absolutely recommend this book. LOVED LOVED LOVED the latina and plus size representation.

this book had so much depth. i was swooning, i was crying. i was rooting for marcela and theo so hard. i hated that she was pining for ben, it felt so wrong but i felt for her nonetheless...they were all friends before so it was...complicated. then theo comes along and is also pining for someone else and it ends up bringing the two of them together. i was so hooked. theo has my whole heart🫶🏽 the spice scenes could have been better, it wasn't spicy in my opinon it was about 🌶️🌶️/5...but it was angsty.

read if you like:
📚fake dating
📚pining for other people
📚friends to lovers
📚best friend's brother
📚librarian fmc
📚former nfl player
📚latina rep
📚plus size rep

The Next Best Fling had a cute premise--two people in love with other people who help each other out when the people they're in love with become engaged to each other. Did you catch all that?

Marcela and Theo have been in each other's circle of acquaintances for a while but get to know each other when Theo's brother (Marcela's original love interest) and his girlfriend (Theo's original love interest) become engaged, much to their chagrin. Marcela and Theo become each other's plus one to all sorts of events and it's through these dates that they get to know and care for each other. It becomes clear, from early on, that Theo's brother is a complete douche and Theo is the superior brother of the two. Thankfully, Marcela picks up on that sooner than later.

While I enjoyed the idea of this novel, some of the execution didn't work for me. Something was a little off with some of the dialogue, which I found distracting. I also thought it went on a little long and so I found my interest waning. That being said, there were some cute scenes and a lot of potential for future books in this series.

Oh where to begin. 😂

Marcela used to date Ben in college. He decided they are better off friends, he instead starts to date her friend Alice.

Theo is Ben’s brother. Theo has loved Alice since high school.

When we begin this novel, Marcela is still crushing on Ben, Theo is still crushing on Alice, Marcela and Alice are no longer friends, Ben and Alice are engaged, and Ben and Theo have a very complicated brother relationship. Are you following? Do you feel like that Always Sunny meme with the stressed guy and all the strings? 😂

Marcela and Theo decide to be each other’s rebound, fall in love, etc etc, some mistrust, a third act breakup, Marcela has some daddy issues that are pretty unnecessary if we’re being honest this story has enough going on.

But the villain of this novel, is BEN. An actual garbage of a human being. Like Marcela, girl, call the red flag guy because 🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩. His story ended how it should have. He was hit by a bus.

Just kidding. 😈

Anyway, overall, this story was so messy 😂. The writing was just okay. It went on a bit longer than it should have. I just had SO many issues with Marcela and Ben’s 🚩 “friendship” and I could not BELIEVE Alice let it go on for like 8 years 😂. Absolutely ridiculous.

If you love a messy romance though, you’ll probably like this. I expect more books will come with stories for all the friends.

Thank you @netgalley and @readforeverpub for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

I had such a fun time reading this book! I do with it was a smidge shorter, I definitely felt as though some could have been cut. That being said, I can't wait for more from Gabriella Gamez!

I absolutely loved The Next Best Fling and I am so excited to read future books that Gabriella Gamez writes.

Marcela, a librarian, is hopelessly in love with her best friend, Ben, who as it turns out is basically the biggest jerk. However, I really enjoyed the fact that it was slow buildup of how much of an unlikeable character that he was. In comes Theo, the football player who falls in love with Marcela and while they start out as a fake relationship, we see it turn very real.

I loved how real that all of the characters felt and we also had some amazing side characters (who better get books of their own!) that really added to the story. This book had great character development, great relationship development, and great banter. It left me feeling teary eyed and swoon all at the same time.

Thank you to Forever and NetGalley for the e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I found it readable, not necessarily my most favorite book. I felt the story to be a bit held back by all the messiness. I wasn’t a huge fan of Marcela, I found her making things more complicated than they needed to be. I wanted something different for Theo in the end..

I voluntarily read an ARC of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
This book was easy to read. The author made it easy to like some characters and dislike others.
It was slightly predictable with Ben coming back and being a suck-up, but that's how these unrequited love stories usually go.
Theo was so lovely and I'm glad they didn't have a big breakup or argument towards the end.

This debut was such a fun ride! Marcela and Theo’s journey pulled me in right from the start. I mean, who doesn’t love a fake dating situation, especially when it’s all about getting over unrequited love? Marcela was so relatable—plus-sized, Latina, and a total book nerd with her librarian vibes. I loved how much her passion for books came through!

Theo was such a sweetheart too, and while I wasn’t sure about his whole "in love with his brother’s fiancée" thing at first, his chemistry with Marcela made me root for them. Their dynamic was steamy and sweet, whether they were sneaking kisses in library aisles or spending late nights at bars.

That said, the second half dragged a little for me with all the back-and-forth miscommunication, and the pacing felt off at the end. But, honestly, it didn’t take away too much from how much I devoured this book—it was a quick, easy read that kept my attention.

Overall, Gabriella Gamez did an amazing job for her debut, and I’m definitely looking forward to reading more from her in the future!

4/5 ⭐️

There was so much character growth in this book and it really was so sweet. Marcela is way too good to be stuck on a jerk like her best friend and luckily she is there to save his brother. There were so many cute scenes that had me grinning like crazy. I am so excited for the next book.

Thank you to Netgalley for this ARC in return for an honest review.

Once I started this I couldn’t stop. Best friends brother done in a way that was unexpected. Best friend is who she’s been longing for for years just for him to become engaged and then you fake date his brother but come to find out best friend is trash and brother is the most swooniest, heart on his sleeve giant football player??! Oh and he’s in love with brothers fiancé?! Give me all the drama I ate this the fuck up!! I wanted to skip sleep some days and if I wasn’t pregnant and exhausted that would have been no issue. Marcela stood in her own way a lot but Theos constant assurance and confidence in what they had was all we needed. This is also very much for the bookish girls, Marcela’s job, her at home library, her desire to get books into young people’s hands, the book club and all her little jokes and tv comparisons were perfect. Let’s not forget the grand gesture we all hope for. I loved this soo much

DNF- Going into this book, I knew the basic premise, but after reading the first few pages….she’s been pining over this guy for eight years and he’s been dating one woman the ENTIRE TIME? That is not okay behavior. She’s essentially sticking around, hoping he dumps his girlfriend? That’s just yucky.