There’s just something about seeing a book about a book lover!

I loved Marcela and watching her grow over the course of this story. Her friendship with Angela is so special and having someone like that in your corner is a rarity, but so good to see.

Theo was great at someone who is actively aware of his flaws and truly trying to make amends and better himself. The honesty was so refreshing. And when she showed him her BOOKS!?! Gahhhh *swoon*

This was a really fun read! Thank you to NetGalley for this advanced copy!

I received an E-Arc from the publisher and Netgalley for an honest review! Thank you.

This story was so cute and emotional! Gosh I don't know where to start.

There was was cute moments, spicy moment and moments that made me giggle. I was not expecting moments where I had to do a double read to make sure what I read was happening! It was that good.

Theo and Marcela both had discoveries to make throughout the story. Feelings and life! The story and characters showed that relationships can be scary and you never know what can happen. Sometimes relationships and life is a risk and sometimes it is not. It hit some pretty real truths like a roller coaster ride going up and down and sideways. Whoo!

The connection between Marcela and Theo were great characters in this book. I think they were made for each other but do they end up together or not?

This beautiful story took me a few day to read due to life being busy. I will say that the cover is so pretty. I may have to purchase a physical copy of this book due to the it's cover and the story.

This is a must read!
You must get it for this summer.
Put it on your list.
Pick it up in July 2024 and you won't regret it.

I’m just too old for the Gen Z drama. The maturity levels of the main characters is pretty low. And they’re drunk most of the book.

DNF

This book was really good! It starts with the slightly messy drama of Marcela being in love with her best friend Ben. She is devastated when she learns he is getting ready to propose to his girlfriend. At the engagement party she catches Theo, Ben's brother preparing to confess his love to Ben's fiancé. Marcela manages to convince Theo to leave the party. They join together with a plan to fake date to cover for their unrequited love. Ben and Marcela have incredible chemistry! The book was funny and touching. I really enjoyed watching them grow as individuals and then grow together to become a strong unit. I will be very interested in reading more books fro Gabriella in the future!

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

LOVED THIS! First, the representation was immaculate. I always love a good plus sized romance but this was special and had other representation as well.
Theo is absolutely swoon-worthy and Marcela is sweet and relatable.
As a book nerd I love the librarian aspect and all the references to other book series.
I CANNOT wait for the next book in this series. Well done Gabby!
Thank you NetGalley and Forever publishing for the ARC.

Guysssss when Forever sent me an email gushing about this book, I grabbed it from NetGalley SO FAST. Gabriella is a debut author and I’m so impressed!

Librarian Marcela decides to have a rebound when the toxic guy she’s loved for years gets engaged. What she doesn’t plan on is the rebound being with his brother Theo, the NFL player, who happens to love the fiancée. But when they decide that a rebound with each other will get them to move on, they get a lot more than they bargained for.

Read this if you like:
🏈libraries
🏈plus size FMCs
🏈football
🏈steam
🏈sassy friends
🏈he falls first
🏈messy families

Very excited to see what else this author will do!

I loved this book!! It was fabulous and well done. The characters were on point and I thought the plot was well developed. I would recommend this book to others.

Let me start by acknowledging that this was one of my most anticipated releases for 2024. I RAN when it was announced that ARCs were on Netgalley and dropped everything to start reading it that night. And Gabriella did not disappoint!

This book follows Marcela, a plus-sized Latina youth librarian and Theo, retired NFL player. I adore Marcela and Theo is made for the book girlies. Theo was so swoon-worthy. Them together? Immaculate! At times, they feel messy, but that’s what makes them feel real!

I couldn’t put this one down! From holding my breath to intense hatred, laughing, and tearing up, this book made me feel it all. Marcela’s growth was the most precious part of this story for me.

I’m still shocked this is a debut novel and I cannot wait for the next story!!

"The Next Best Fling" by Gabriella Gamez is a steamy and heartfelt romance that explores the complexities of love, friendship, and unexpected connections.

Marcela Ortiz, a librarian harboring secret feelings for her best friend, finds herself entangled in a web of complications when she crosses paths with Theo Young, the older brother of her unrequited love. What starts as a mission to prevent Theo from confessing his feelings for Marcela's best friend at an engagement party quickly evolves into a tangled mess of misunderstandings and simmering attraction.

Gamez expertly crafts a narrative filled with palpable chemistry and emotional depth, drawing readers into Marcela and Theo's journey as they navigate their burgeoning feelings for each other. From library aisles to late-night bar encounters, their relationship unfolds with intensity and passion, blurring the lines between rebound fling and something more meaningful.

One of the novel's strengths lies in its exploration of familial dynamics and the impact of secrets and misunderstandings on relationships. Marcela and Theo's bond is tested by the complexities of their respective family dynamics, adding layers of depth and tension to their romance. Gamez deftly balances moments of steamy romance with moments of emotional vulnerability, creating a nuanced portrayal of love in all its messy glory.

The characters in "The Next Best Fling" are well-developed and relatable, each grappling with their own insecurities and desires. Marcela's internal struggle with unrequited love and Theo's conflict between loyalty to his brother and his growing feelings for Marcela are portrayed with authenticity and sensitivity.

While the plot may venture into familiar territory for romance readers, Gamez injects fresh energy and depth into the narrative, keeping readers engaged and invested in Marcela and Theo's journey. The pacing is brisk, with plenty of steamy moments and unexpected twists to keep readers guessing until the very end.

In conclusion, "The Next Best Fling" is a captivating and passionate romance that will leave readers swooning and rooting for Marcela and Theo's happily ever after. Gabriella Gamez delivers a compelling story filled with heart, humor, and sizzling chemistry, making this novel a must-read for fans of contemporary romance.

An adorable romance!! The FMC and MMC in this have really great chemistry and it's a really unique take on the friends to lovers trope. I like that the characters are really flawed and help each other grow rather than judging each other for their mistakes and vulnerabilities. Their pasts and traumas are really well thought out and complex which gives them a lot of depth and the author does a great job of releasing information slowly so your perspective of situations changes over time. My main critique is that I'm not sure the third act breakup was entirely necessary and it went on for way too long, in my opinion. If you like a little angst, it's very possible you'll disagree. But overall, this book was really cute and so fun. I think a lot of romance readers - especially the ones who always wanted a partner that would buy us special editions of our favorite books and set up dates in the library - will like this novel.

Super- duper cute and really relatable. I really appreciated the concept of these two obviously flawed people coming together and helping each other.

On paper there’s actually not much I didn’t like about this. Plot, characters, it wasn’t overtly ridiculous or too serious. Ultimately though this just didn’t quite hit the right spot to get me super invested. Still, enjoyable and I’d be happy to recommend to someone in the right mood for it.

The Next Best Fling HOOKED me from the very beginning. I am a sucker for a good fake dating trope. I also love a strong, confident female main character, and she’s even a librarian! The male main character is so swoon worthy. He falls first and falls hard. Their story is such a delight!

Thank you NetGalley and Forever for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own

I gasped on page two. I was absolutely ecstatic at the turn we took and the premise of the book. Unfortunately, I didn’t enjoy hanging out in Marcela’s head, and three chapters in, I lost interest. The writing is easy to follow. I would guess three to four stars for the target audience.

Thank you to NetGalley and Forever for the ARC.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

What a love triangle? Love square? Ben loves Alice. Marcella loves Ben. Ben is besties with Marcella. Theo loves Alice. Theo and Ben are brothers. Simple, right?

My first Gabriella Gamez book and it won’t be my last! She did such a great job of building the relationship between Theo and “Marce.” I found myself smiling while reading their story!

Not suitable for teenage readers.
Tropes: Fake dating, professional athlete, plus size, open door romance.
🔥🔥🔥
🦋🦋🦋

Truly soooo cute!! I love the librarian romance aspect! And the idea that it’s her best friend, who is engaged!!!! I could cry! So freaking good!

I highly recommend reading The Next Best Fling for anyone who likes sport romances or the fake dating trope. Marcela and Theo have amazing chemistry and you will be rooting for them from the start.

Marcela and Theo are an unlikely couple and, boy, are they adorable. The Next Best Fling is the very best kind of messy. Marcela has a long time unrequited crush on Ben. Ben just got engaged to Alice who is the object of Theo’s affections. Theo and Ben are brothers. (Still with me?) What better way to get over a broken heart (or two) than a rebound fling? That’s the beginning for Marcela and Theo. What happens next is unpredictable and utterly enjoyable.

Gabriella Gamez has written a fun, flirty rom-com that touches on deeper issues of trust and self-acceptance. It captured my heart from the first page. Things I loved:
- Marcela is a librarian who loves books; really loves books.
- Some favorite tropes: fake dating and he falls first.
- Well written, plot advancing spice.

If you like your rom-coms sweet and spicy with characters who deserve a happy ever after, this is the book for you. With a release date of July9, 2024, it will be a perfect summer read.

Thank you to NetGalley and Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for the opportunity to read this ARC in exchange for my unbiased review.

THIS IS ADORABLE!

If you’re a fan of messy, messy romance books, this absolutely delivers. It also delivers an incredibly poignant lesson on recovering from trauma imposed on you (TW: parental abandonment) and a childhood full of toxic competition.

So, she (Marcela) is in love with her best friend (Ben). Ben’s brother (Theo) is in love with Ben’s new fiancé and long-term girlfriend (Alice).

This is already a lot of mess AND then Marcela catches Theo about to confess his love to Alice AT HER ENGAGEMENT PARTY and Marcela shoves him into an Uber to stop an impending kerfuffle.

The next day everyone assumes they hooked up and they go along with it. And keep going along with it.

They’re honest enough with one another about the fact that they are each into other people but that they enjoy spending time with one another. Their spicy scenes are so 🌶️🌶️🌶️. I love how much Theo validates her even when she’s insecure about being a curvy girl.

At times, she’s in awe of why this ex-NFL player would be into her and his response is some version of why would I not be into you? I LOVE this for her.

I also absolutely love seeing a woman who is confident and in love with her career. SHE’S A LIBRARIAN. And I truly love a book about books and seeing Marcela share her love of books with others makes me giddy. AND THEO DOES ONE OF THE SEXIEST BOOK THINGS I’VE EVER SEEN. It would have broken me in the best of ways.

Theo starts as someone who is hung up on someone unattainable but it’s really not long before he lays everything out for Marcela. He falls first. And hard. And over and over.

I’m in love with this one. Get your hands on it and all the copies on your shelf.

OK - I did not expect this book to have as much depth, heart and soul as it did (I judged the book by its cover).

This was an incredible story of healing, faith, love, trusting yourself and confidence. Marcela and Theo both jumped into something to heal a wound, to survive a pain that they were both feeling. They grew into falling in love, healing themselves and seeing the toxicity around them for what it really was.

5 stars.

I was HOOKED after the first few paragraphs. It’s clear that Gabriella Gamez is a talented writer. The Next Best Fling is the story of Marcela and Theo as they attempt to get over their exes- who just happen to be engaged to each other. To make matters more complicated, Marcela is in love with Theo’s brother.

This book was a solid 3 stars for me. I loved the authors writing style, but I would have liked to see some smoother transitions. I also didn’t really feel the connection between Theo and Marcela, and would have loved to see more “build” and development of their relationship. I would recommend this book to anyone that loves a good romance novel, fake dating, and a love triangle. I would definitely pick up the next book that this author puts out and can’t wait to see what is next in store for her! Thanks to the author and Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for a copy of this book in return for an honest review.