Roomies

There was never a dull moment reading this book! Fantastic banter and chemistry, great pace and flow, a wonderful and relatable heroine and a guitar-playing Irishman who will melt your heart with his music and accent. Plus, it’s a slow burn, marriage of convenience romance, so duh. Of course, it’s a win for me. Holland Bakker had no idea she’d go from admiring the uber-handsome and talented busker she dubbed as Jack at the subway to actually talking to him and getting to know him, let alone marrying him, but that’s what happens. She wants to do something to help her uncle Robert, the man who gave her a job in Broadway—all backstage since she’s not as musically talented as her uncle—and when an incident happens that might leave his play hanging, she knows she’s found a way to actually do something. Calvin McLoughlin has been staying illegally in the US since he graduated from music school, hoping he’d reach his dreams in New York. Four years later, an opportunity finally comes knocking on his door. Unfortunately, his decision to stay illegally bites him in the a** and he can’t accept the part to play in one of his favorite plays on Broadway. But then the pretty girl he kind of saved at the subway, who is coincidentally related to the man behind the play, offers to marry him, and the rest is history. I love Calvin and Holland, both as individuals and as a couple! Holland is a twenty-five-year-old woman who hasn’t figured out how to do what she wants to do in life. She put everyone in her life first and did everything she can to help them. She did a lot of growing up in this book, and I’m so happy she did! Calvin knows what he wants from the very start and is passionate about his dreams and music. While it looks like Holland gave more to help Calvin reach his dreams, I think Calvin helped her just as much. He pushed her to step out of her comfort zone and encouraged her to pursue writing, her real passion. I love that the whole applying for a visa thing did not go on the back burner like some marriage of convenience novels of this nature tend to do. We saw how nerve-wracking it is, saw what Holland and Calvin needed to do—the forms, the interviews, everything. And most importantly, we saw how difficult and emotionally taxing it is for the couple. Because of that, I felt more connected to them as a couple and as people. It’s pretty light throughout the story, but there were a few angsty scenes here that made my heart ache. Fauxmances and marriages of convenience tend to become messy when lines are blurred and people involved in the arrangement aren’t sure if it’s still just a purely business deal or a gateway to happily ever after. Since Calvin and Holland are practically strangers, there are a lot of things they don’t know about each other, things they might not understand at first. It’s not as steamy as this duo’s previous works, but it’s still filled with sexual tension and its fair share of bedroom antics, if not sweeter than the others. The feel of this book is more similar to Dating You/Hating You, the book they released before Roomies, than Beautiful Bastard, but the humor, great flow and character dynamic, and a writing style that’s entertaining and addictive is still very present. Roomies is a sweet, fun, and romantic read that was perfect to end the year on a high note. I know there are still a few days to go before we say goodbye to 2017, but this book definitely made my year in book blogging a more fun one. Special mention to Robert and Jeff Okai for being amazing uncles to Holland. I love their family dynamic, Holland and Robert’s especially. Tropes: Marriage of Convenience, Celebrities—Broadway POV: First Person, Female POV Standalone: Yes

I was torn on whether or not I should read this book-- I've really enjoyed a whole bunch of Christina Lauren's work but heard mixed reviews on this one. It is much more of a "romance" novel than an erotica novel (which is how I would characterise the Beautiful series, personally), but it definitely wasn't as sweet or heart-felt as Autoboyography, which became an instant favourite for me. The story gives us Holland, an MFA graduate with a serious bit of writer's block and a lack of direction in her life, and Calvin, an Irish man who came to study at Julliard years before and overstayed his student visa by four years. She hears him busking at a subway station and becomes transfixed by his music and makes stopping by to listen to him a regular thing-- and then he happens to be there the night that she's mugged at the platform. He doesn't do anything heroic or attempt to help her (in an effort to avoid the police and revealing his status) and all of this is fresh on her mind when her uncle's Broadway show (a hit that seems to be on par with Hamilton in the story) loses its leading violinist. Holland suggests that her uncle come to hear Calvin play music and they decide to hire him on as a guitarist for the production, before they become aware of his immigration status. Spurred on by a horrible boss who makes a reckless suggestion, Holland proposes a marriage of convenience so that Calvin can work for the production and because she, as it comes out in the story, is a "supporting character in her own life" (OUCH RIGHT). Anyway, romance, misunderstandings, mutual attraction, and immigration interviews ensue. Things I Loved: - Holland never tried to be anything other than what she was-- a privileged girl from a good background who had hook ups with people in high places and who was just... stuck. I feel like it was honest. Other readers seemed irritated by her character, calling her immature and irritating, but I didn't perceive her that way at all. Had she been whiny and *unaware*, I would have had a serious issue, but she was self-reflective and hated herself all the more for it. - Holland and her relationship with her uncles. fantastic. - Okay, her uncles are both fantastic. They're great characters and I really enjoyed their presence in the narrative and felt like it balanced the main relationship well. - When they had problems, they TALKED. It may have taken a day, but characters actually freaking talked about active problems. There was plenty of angst and tension, but not over stupidly obvious stuff. Things I Liked: - Calvin was alright. He was less fleshed out at some points than I would have liked, but his passion and desire to do what he loved was a very good contrast for Holland (and a good sparking point) and Holland's access to means meant that the relationship was fairly well-balanced. - It wasn't too steamy. I am still coming around on reading more physical intimacy, so the Beautiful series was... a lot for me. But this struck a nice middle ground. Things I Didn't Like: - I felt like Lulu was entirely unnecessary as a character from beginning to end. I literally didn't understand the point of her at all. - The trope of "and now the characters need to give each other several months of space to figure stuff out" at the end is a thing Christina Lauren embraces and takes to an extreme and it drives me absolutely mad. Overall, this was a cute, super fast read-- it was a good popcorn read. I'd recommend it if you're a fan of music or theatre or the arts in general and are looking for a swift, fluffy book between more intense books. If you're big into the Beautiful series, then this isn't going to live up to your standards. Stars: 3.5/5

Jamais déçue par Christina Lauren... j'ai dévoré le livre en 1 journée !! Cette histoire vous prend et vous ne pouvez pas décrocher.... AMAZING

Fue un libro divertido, lindo y directo. Me gusto bastante y siempre me tenía sonriendo con respecto a algo. Vale la pena para pasar el rato.

Sus libros son geniales

It's a over-all cute and romantic story. Good for a nice break from all the angst filled heart-wrenching stories where someone or other is/has died. Also, given the stressful situations, it's a perfect fit.

From my favorite co-authors comes another amazing story! I loved the music aspect of it too! Its a story that could easily have been experienced in real life! Its fun and sexy, and heart-wrenching and glorious! Great job!