Everything I've come to expect in a Christina Lauren romance - humor, spice, and little of everything naughty and nice.

They had fun with these tropes: marriage of convenience/fake relationship; one-bed; forced proximity; opposites attract; grand gesture.

However, I'd also offer a few trigger warnings, including abusive parent, toxic childhood, and sexual harassment/retaliation (brief). The way Liam's family treats Anna is appalling.

Overall, I really enjoyed the book. It was well-written, fun, and juggled some heavier topics of money and privilege. Does have language and spicier scenes, would not recommend to those who prefer a tamer romance.

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC in return for an honest review!

Fans of Christina Lauren books will not be disappointed in the least by this one. Think: Crazy Rich Asians meets The Unhoneymooners (one of my favorites of theirs, BTW).

Fake dating and marriage of convenience is so HOT right now and this one meets all the expectations. I’m always a sucker for a good fake dating book. This one has a slight twist…a fake marriage? Legally married but in name only. I loved watching their love blossom.

I enjoyed the beautiful tropical setting for this one. It very much reminded me of The Unhoneymooners, despite being a completely different location. It’ll make for a great summer/vacation read. Where the book differs from The Unhoneymooners is the romance. It’s slightly less comedic situationally and the environment feels more tense due to the MMC’s toxic family surrounding them. (I seriously wanted someone to sucker punch the awful dad.)

I really loved the slow-burn romance for the couple in this one. I adored Liam and enjoyed Anna. I loved the two opposites and their gradual character arcs throughout the novel.

I thought the story was really well thought out with high stakes—making the story more intense—while still staying in the rom com realm.

I’m hoping there’s a book two with younger brother, Jake at some point. 🤞

🌶️ multiple open-door scenes
🙉 crude language throughout

***Thank you to Netgalley, Christina Lauren, and Gallery Books for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Anna Green marries Liam "West" Weston for affordable housing. She thinks they are divorced when he moves out years later only to discover not only are they still married but Liam is the son and heir to a very wealthy family. His family owns a chain of grocery stores, Weston Foods. In order for him to receive his 100 million dollar inheritance and step out of the control of his estranged father, he hatches a plan to bring Anna (his "wife") to his little sister's wedding on a private island in Indonesia. There, they have to pretend to be married in order to convince his family until the date he will receive his inheritance and they can divorce. Along the way real feelings develop between the two.
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I thought this was cute but lacked substance. I felt like the MCs had lust but were not necessarily in love? It was also a bit too predictable for me. However I enjoyed Anna. She's funny, strong, and caring. Also enjoyed the tropical vibes. This would be a great book to read on a beach vacay. However, if you want to read another Christina Lauren book set in a tropical paradise I'd suggest "The Unhoneymooners".

A huge thank you to NetGalley for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

I laughed out loud plenty of times, which is a huge win for me. The imagery of the vacation local actually had me looking up islands in Singapore too. One word. . . .Goddamn! IYKYK!

I loved this book. It’s a little steamy to recommend to students, but so do good. I loved Liam and Anna’s relationship from the start. I wish it were longer!

The Paradise Problem
Christina Lauren
Pub: 5/14/24
5☆

I held out and waited to read this one while on vacation and I’m SO glad I did. Only a CLo book could make an early morning flight, middle seat, between two manspreaders feel like paradise. 😂 Thank you for helping me escape.

The Duo does it again! This book was so much fun to read. I abso-freakin-loutely adored Liam and Anna! Like literally couldn’t get enough of these two. Their banter, their tension, their steam, ALL of it was pure perfection. It was everything I have come to love in a Christina Lauren romance and so much more. I was laughing, swooning, sweating (quite awkward on a plane w/strangers), and struggling to put it down. I did not want it to end and already cannot wait to reread with the audiobook!

What I loved;
🏝️ Opposites Attract
🏝️ Marriage Of Convenience
🏝️ Paradise Setting
🏝️ Forced Proximity
🏝️ Hysterical Banter
🏝️ Top Notch CLo Steam
🏝️ Strong Female Lead
🏝️ Rich People Problems

Hear me when I say you need to pre-order now because The Paradise Problem is an absolute must read. This book was utterly gorgeous inside and out. That cover! OMG it’s stunning and I can’t wait to get my hands on a finished copy.

A huge thank you to NetGalley and Gallery Books for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

I enjoyed this book from the minute I started reading it. I laughed out loud. This storyline has a bunch of twist and turns but in the end romance and love wins. I recommend this book. Thanks for the advanced copy NetGalley. #NetGalley #ParadiseProblem

Christina Lauren is a great author duo who always goes on my to pick up list for any book they release. They never fail to deliver a fun, quick story that keeps me turning the pages.

Their newest release, The Paradise Problem, has some great romcom vibes. Fair warning, the premise is fun, but the storyline is definitely a bit over the top at times and will need you to suspend reality a bit. In a lot of ways, it really gave me classic romcom movie vibes.

While the first part of the story really had me caught up, the second half dragged a bit for me. It felt like a matter of two many competing elements and not enough time - it kind of muddled things for me. While this wasn’t my favorite CLo read, I definitely think it will be a fave for many readers. For me personally this one was more of a mixed bag.

What I liked:

🩵 Anna’s moments with Liam’s niece Reagan.

🩵 Anna’s relationship with her Dad, David and her love and devotion to him.

🩵 Tropes: Marriage of Convenience and Fake Relationship

🩵 Banter and interesting initial premise

🩵 Complex and varied familial relationships


What wasn’t working for me as well:

➖ The lack of likable characters - they were really all pretty toxic and awful. They had moments of good or redemption but overall I didn’t like any of the main or secondary cast really 🤷🏼‍♀️😅

➖ the spice, definitely a personal preference here. I’m not a spice person much anyway, but I need / want that emotional build up. Here it felt all sexual / physical with little relationship building, it was too much and cringy for me. (Certain references to naming things 🤦🏼‍♀️).

➖ Too many competing elements that didn’t feel fully explored, tied up and left the story feeling muddled for me. (Was this meant to be a romcom, a family dynastic drama, a social commentary…?)

➖Anna, she had likable moments but I found her overall to feel immature and irritating. A bit too much with her not like other girls, hot mess vibe.

Overall, it was a quick, fun read and one I think fans of CLo and the romcom Pretty Woman will really enjoy. A great pick for a poolside and/or vacation read. I look forward to seeing what they write next.

Thank you to NetGalley and Gallery Books for the opportunity to read an early copy! All thoughts and opinions are my own and freely offered.

They’ve done it again. An absolute banger. Marriage of convenience at its best.

Come for the tropical location, stay for the only one bed sitch and dreamboats that are Anna and West.

My new favorite book of theirs!!

I ate this book right up. In typical Christina Lauren fashion, it sizzles and sears and downright bewitches you. Before you know it, it’s 2 AM and you realize you’ve read it all in one breathless sitting. Brimming with a host of tried-and-true tropes, THE PARADISE PROBLEM is simply addictively good romance.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC.

Christina Lauren meets Crazy Rich Asians. Delightful story, great character development. Anna is the female character who I think comes directly from the authors: beautiful, intelligent, and potty-mouthed. Liam is the apple who fell far from the tree, which is beneficial for all readers. I never hated him.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an early copy of the story. Perfectly lovely.

This book took me by surprise as I wasn’t expecting to like the main character at the beginning, but the authors did a great job at making her become a real person and I had no choice but to like her and root for her. I loved how candid and down to earth Anna was, how authentic and rooted, and how she just rolled with the punches and kept smiling. I loved how she kept being herself without getting blindsided by the ostentatious people surrounding her. I really enjoyed the banter and the chemistry between her and Liam, and how they were just there for each other.
The beautiful description of the island of Pulau Jingga was so vivid, I felt like I was there in a vacation myself (and then I had to search whether it was a real place or not). That part reminded me a bit of The Unhoneymooners.
I thought the ending was great and loved that there was a long epilogue, and even though I couldn’t put the book down, I was sad for it to come to an end. This was a five-star read for me and I think it’s up there with The Unhoneymooners, Love and Other Words, and The Love Hypothesis, which are my favorite books by the authors.
Thank you to Netgalley and Gallery Books for the ARC.

Christina Lauren must be magicians who sprinkle their books with a captivating spell that makes readers stay up past their bedtime to finish their books. The authors are so great at writing charming female protagonists and Anna in this book is no different.

This is honestly a classic romance (fake dating, tropical island, rich people doing terrible things, steamy scenes, strong female friendship for the main protagonist, etc). A must read for CL and or contemporary romance fans.

Thanks to NetGalley and Gallery Books for early access to this book in exchange for an honest review.

OMG!! Thank you NetGalley and Gallery Books for the opportunity to read this early edition. Christina Lauren does it again. This one has everything- a fake (real ) marriage, a vacation in paradise, horrible in-laws, money, power and love. Anna Green and Liam Weston had a marriage of convenience in college. Anna thought they were divorced, having never actually read the papers. Three years later Anna is shocked to learn they’re still married and Liam needs her to gain his trust fund. Adventure on a tropical island leads Anna and Liam towards a love match.

I have been a long time fan of the writing Duo Christina Lauren and have read every title on their shelf. I was especially excited to get my hands on this one so thank you NetGalley for my advanced copy in exchange for my review.
Although to be fair, I knew I would love it before I even started! I had no idea what to expect and brought it on vacation with me. It will be the absolute perfect summer beach read of 2024. I can always rely on their books to give me two main characters who I will always root for, and whose banter and chemistry is always page turning. Which is surprising because I lost track of the amount of fake dating/fake marriage books I have read and yet I loved this one. It felts fresh even using a very common trope. I also loved the extended family characters and everything they added to the story. I also feel like the location was it's own character and I wish I was a guest at the wedding.

I’m forever and ever obsessed with this lovely duo!! Christina Lauren books never fail to make me swoon and this one is no different.

This is another absolute gem from Christina Lauren! I adored this book!

Anna and West had a marriage of convience in college, but what Anna doesn’t realize is that they are still married three years. West now needs her to play the role of devoted wife at a major family event. I loved what a hot mess that Anna was in the beginning! The interactions between Anna and West were top notch!

I will be buying a copy when it is released and recommending to everyone!

Thank you to NetGalley and Gallery Books for an eARC!

A perfect summer read!

A new take on the bajillionaire romance, plus a touch of rags-to-riches, complete with hilarity and unnecessary opulence. I absolutely devoured this one! I always love a good Christina Lauren romcom, but this one is such a good time. The drama and dysfunction in the too-rich-for-their-own-good Weston family was ridiculous and entertaining but just sad enough to hit you in the feels. Definitely the best marriage of convenience trope I've ever read. Bring this book to the beach, you won't regret it (:

Well, this duo has done it again. The romance, the banter, the family drama, the lush setting, the spice--just delightful. I simply could not put The Paradise Problem down and finished it in a day. The chemistry between the main characters was delicious and I love how they supported and stood up for each other. I'm always a fan of forced proximity/one bed (hello, overwater bungalow!!) and fake dating/marriage. But I cannot stand insta-love. Thankfully, this plot addressed that by giving them a solid background which made the progression of their relationship more believable.

The side characters added a lot to the story. West's deeply toxic family had me yelling at the book and I'm so glad he got to experience a loving father figure by the end. I enjoyed reading this island romance during the cold winter months, but it would be even better as a beach read with a fruity drink in hand.

I really really loved this book!! So good and such a page turner. Best book in a long time! Thank you for the ARC!!