I put this ARC off for awhile and what a mistake that was! I thoroughly enjoyed this second chance romance. In a gist, Deacon and LaRynn inherit a shared home from their grandmothers after their passing. After not seeing each other for 8 years following heartbreak as teens, they tentatively decide to team up to fix the house. Throw in a marriage of convenience to access some reno money and forced proximity forcing these two to face their past and overcome so much miscommunication, and you have this gut-punch romance story.

The characters were flawed and real with so much depth I feel like I knew them personally. The romance had me smiling and swooning, but the emotional journey had me tearing up and in all the feels. Highly recommend this one!

ARC received from NetGalley for review.

This is the second Tarah DeWitt book (I finished Savor It in June) and she's one of my new favorite authors.

Writing a second chance romance can be such a tricky balance, but Tarah pulls it off effortlessly. This book was so GOOD! Like I thought about it days after reading it, which is how I know I really loved a book if I'm still thinking about it post read.

One of the things I loved a lot about this book is how Tarah takes the usual romance tropes like marriage of convenience, forced proximity, second chance and lovers-to-enemies-to-lovers and puts her delicious spin on it!

I really loved seeing the flashbacks of Larynn and Deacon as teenagers and then how they're dealing with each other and their feelings in present day. Their journey back to each other was emotional, funny, adorable, and spicy!! It's just really such a great read and I loved everything thing about it!

Do yourself a favor and get this book when it comes out on Nov. 12th!

Thanks to Netgalley and the Publisher for the digital arc of this book in exchange for my honest review.

The Co-Op. The most fun romance story, that somehow handles grief with the perfect amount of grace and humor. This book has every trope you need: marriage of convenience/fake marriage, enemies to lovers, one bed, second chance romance and more! I love that Deacon and LaRynn learn to communicate and feel all their feelings.
Something everyone should learn. The spice is spicin' and the romance is sweet. How are Tarah's characters so loveable?! Even the side characters have my heart!
This book will be out on Nov 12th, preorder now!
Thank you for the ARC St. Martin's Griffin!

The Co-op was a cute, romance that took FOREVER to actually let happen. I was so annoyed by that but other than the slow burn, it was good, The characters are adorable and the author did a good job.

“Play house with me?”

I adored this book to so much! Rynn comes back to her grandmother’s place to fix it up, only to be reconnected with Deacon. In order for them to fix it up they must access LaRynn’s trust. The only catch is she must be married. This is A SLOW BURN, marriage of convenience.

LaRynn comes back feeling lost and uncertain, which I can totally relate too. I loved seeing her find stand up for herself and finding her happiness. Side note, I loved that Tarah made her tall.

Deacon, I love you! He is a cinnamon roll but fiercely protective of Rynn. I was giggling at there banter. He was so smitten. I loved seeing him and Rynn get past well their issues. I cannot stop thinking him.

“I hate when I have to spend my days waiting for my nights with you. Or my nights waiting for my days with you.”

Tarah DeWitt gives all the good banter in this novel. Enemies to lovers is a favorite trope for good reason and her building of it is masterful in The Co-Op. I can’t wait to see what she does next

2⭐️

I went into this thinking I was going to love it. I had seen such great reviews, and normally, I am pretty easy to please. I'm not too harsh of a critic.

I read the first 19 chapters about 2 weeks ago and can't really tell you what I read except that I didn't like it. I almost DNF'd because the story is just all over the place. The FMC, LaRynn, her mood flipped on a dime. The story went back and forth between past and present, and even though it was labeled as such, I would forget that reading because it's like nothing changed.

This was a marriage of convenience trope, and normally, when that happens, you're supposed to be proving to those around you that you're married. Well... Deacons mom came over, and they just kind of acted like awkward friends. The angst that should have been there was missing. And the miscommunication from the past took FOREVER to resolve, which really messed with the whole story, in my opinion.

I loved the premise of the book. I was thinking it would be so cute, friends to lovers, to enemies, who now own a house and decide to renovate it. The parts I did love were the renovation when they finally decided to be "friends" (after they were already married) and work together to get the house finished.

What spice there was was really good, in my opinion, but I wanted more.

This one just fell flat and I'm really sad about it.

Thank you, Netgalley, for the ARC and the opportunity to review the book.

First of all, I love this new cover! So beautiful. The story is really good- I’m a fan of enemies to lovers! The banter and bickering had me laughing.

This book was on my TBR for far too long. LaRynn and Deacon were friends to enemies to lovers that still had all the same feelings and lots of fire. Add in marriage of convience with a dash of forced proximity, and you have a perfect trope round up. They both own half a house, they need to fix up said house to sell it and get out of each other's hair. He has the skills and she has the funds, but only if she is married. (cause of course) So when they get married and start fixing up the house, they obviously keep fighting one another and old feelings.
There was so much tension and I absolutely loved that we got to see both POV because Deacon was just as crushed when she left as when he crushed her heart all those years ago. When you find the one, but you are too young and scared to realize it? That is what this is. But when it comes back into your life, you need to grab ahold of it with both hands and cherish it and not let go.
I loved there was no third act break up! Yay! I just fell in love with the whole story and am mad I didn't get to experience it sooner.
Thanks to St. Martins, Netgalley and Tarah DeWitt for an early copy.

The Co-op is full of my favorite tropes: second chance, marriage of convenience, and forced proximity, and Tarah delivered! I devoured LaRynn and Deacon's story!

LaRynn and Deacon have history. They had a summer fling in their late teens that ended poorly, and their grandmothers (the "grands") were also married. LaRynn hasn't seen Deacon since their romance ended, but the grands have both passed away and LaRynn and Deacon have inherited their home. They are reunited for this home renovation, but that's not the only work they have to do!

I really enjoyed that this story was told in dual-POV and dual-timeline. Both characters grow so much, especially in terms of how they communicate their wants/needs and thoughts/feelings. It is a sloooooooow burn with top-notch tension, but it is really worth it. Tarah knows how to write a love declaration, and these two are DOWN BAD. I also appreciate that there was no third-act breakup and the epilogue was truly one of my favorites of all time. I want more of them!

The Co-op delivered and Tarah continues to be one of my favorite authors. I highly recommend this one!

The Co-Op by Tarah DeWitt is another unputdownable rom-com full of heart, passion, grief, and renewal. Deacon and LaRynn are two sparking energies full of feelings, and I couldn’t help but get swept up in them as well. Dewitt’s novel about renovation underwent its own renovation, and the difference is exciting and palpable. My only critique is that I never wanted it to end. Forever an autobuy author, many congrats to Dewitt for the inevitable success of The Co-Op.

did not realize this book is part of SMP when requesting. This book was great. It would’ve even better if SMP would follow the demands of the boycott and do the right thing.

a new all time fav!!! tarah can do no wrong. the ultimate black cat x golden retriever that had be not being able to put my kindle down. this was unreal and i couldn’t get enough. i want to pick up my kindle and reread it all over again.

this book was everything my black cat x golden retriever lover heart wanted/needed and more so! there wasn’t a single thing i’d change about this story. i wish i could go back and erase my brain so that i could read this for the first time all over again. tarah dewitt is easily one of my go-to and all time fav authors. she never fails me. i will read any and everything she writes. this book had so much depth, tension, and unforgettable moments that left me gasping and SWOONING.

The characters have depth, and their journey from animosity to cooperation is engaging. However, the pacing of the book is uneven. The beginning is a bit slow. The alternating timelines add an interesting layer to the narrative, but the abrupt stop of the alternate timeline in the last 30% of the book feels jarring. One of the main issues with the book is the lack of communication between the main characters. Their inability to express their feelings and have a meaningful conversation about their past makes the story feel dragged out. Overall, The Co-op has potential, but it falls flat in execution.

4.5 stars // this is my 3rd Tarah Dewitt book - and I’ve enjoyed them all, but this is her best imo. It’s sweet and sexy and endearing. It’s split pov and dual timeline. We got a second chance romance, marriage of convenience, forced proximity… and tension for miles.

Thanks to NetGalley for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

3.7 stars - I really enjoyed this book! I thought the chemistry between the two main characters was on point and loved all the side characters (especially their neighbor). I am normally not a big fan of lack of communication between the main characters and books, but I feel like they did this well and they didn’t push it too far. Super cute and definitely worth a read.

Maybe there will come a day where I read a marriage of convenience and don't love it, but today was NOT that day!! This book was so good! LaRynn and Deacon were first brought together when staying with their grandmothers over the summer, they have a summer fling which ends in a disaster. After the passing of both of their grandmothers, they inherit the home which is in desperate need of renovation to be worth anything. And these two are desperate to sell it. LaRynn luckily was left an inheritance which would help them to fund this renovation, but with a stipulation that she must be married before she can access it. The rest as they say is history. It was so good! So much funny banter, sweet moments, and one of my most favorite love confessions I have ever read! Also as I am an overly emotional person, and this also has one of my most favorite epilogues, I wept. Read this, everyone.

What a phenomenal book by Tarah. I was taken away at how much this hit home for me. This revamp did her major favors!

The Co-op is a story about healing, reconciliation, and building from the ground up. LaRynn and Deacon felt like such tangible characters. Outside from dealing with their relationship and learning how to re-communicate with each other, they are fighting battles on other fronts as well. Its no wonder that it takes them some time to figure things out and find common ground. Its because of this that their relationship building and connection felt realistic and genuine. I felt very connected to LaRynn and how she felt at certain times when she was learning to become comfortable with Deacon again. It’s tough and sometimes embarrassing, to be vulnerable the way LaRynn was. The way she voiced her concerns and the way Deacon learns to listens to her made me feel so emotional. Tarah’s writing here was amazing.

This book is so special. Second chance romances are hard to do right, but this is done beautifully.

The Co-Op was such a wonderful story. An old summer fling, then being forced to roommate. I thought the main characters were believable and realistic. I also enjoyed the few side characters. This story went back and forth between views and also time but it wasn’t bothersome. There was more sexual tension than spice, but still described well. This is the second book by Tarah Dewitt I’ve read this month, and I am hooked. I experienced a nice roller coaster of emotions while reading this. If I didn’t start it so late at night, I would have finished it in one sitting.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martins Press for the early review. All the above opinions are my own.