Lyssa Kay Adams read her first romance novel at a very young age when she swiped one from her grandmother's stash. After a long journalism career in which she had to write way too many sad endings, she decided to return to the stories that guaranteed a happy-ever-after. Once described as "funny, adorable, and a wee bit heartbreaking," Lyssa's books feature women who always get the last word, men who aren't afraid to cry, and dogs. Lots of dogs. Lyssa writes full time from her home in Michigan, where she lives with her sportswriter husband, her wickedly funny daughter, and a spoiled Maltese who likes to be rocked to sleep like a baby. When she's not writing, she's cooking or driving her daughter around from one sporting event to the next. Or rocking the dog. You can find Lyssa online at LyssaKayAdams.com, or on Instagram @LyssaKayAdams.
The first rule of book club: you don't talk about book club. Nashville Legends' second baseman Gavin Scott's marriage is in major-league trouble. He's recently discovered a humiliating secret: his wife, Thea, has always faked the big O. When he loses his cool at the revelation, it's the final straw on their already strained relationship. Thea asks for a divorce, and Gavin realizes he's let his pride and fear get the better of him. Welcome to the bromance book club. Distraught and desperate, Gavin finds help from an unlikely source: a secret romance book club made up of Nashville's top alpha men. With the help of their current read, a steamy Regency novel titled Courting the Countess, the guys coach Gavin on saving his marriage. But it'll take a lot more than flowery words and grand gestures for this hapless Romeo to find his inner hero and win back the trust of his wife.
I've had my eye on this book because I've heard so many things about it, but was wary about the premise. I mean, a professional athlete who joins a book club of other high-profile guys who read romance in order to win back his wife? That felt so specific, and I guess I was worried that some elements wouldn't live up to the potential. Well, I am here to tell you that that's not the case at all: Lyssa Kay Adams 100% delivers on this premise, doing right by all of her characters and the romance genre overall. Not only are the goofy elements of the plot delivered on with real comedy, but it's balanced out perfectly with the more emotional and heartfelt parts of the story. Working on marriage is a tough topic, and one that Adams handles with care, while also leaving plenty of room for joy and jokes. I found that balance made this one of the best books that I've read in a while.
This book is genuinely one of the few that has made me laugh out loud. Part of the reason (okay, the whole reason) is because of the authentic bromance that Adams develops between Gavin and the rest of his book club. While they help him figure out exactly how to win Thea back, there are some hijinks and bumps in the road that are truly hilarious. I truly believe that these men have cultivated a friendship out of a completely ludicrous idea, and that it works for them. That's part of the reason this book works so incredibly well. There are also some comedic moments regarding Thea's and Gavin's twin daughters, as of course there only could be. All of it works so well together to create a believability to this, while also not sparing a single second of comedy.
One of my favorite elements of the book was how the past and the present kept colliding as Thea and Gavin worked through their issues. Both of them had to figure out what hurt them in the past that affected how they were able to presently communicate. But it's more than just that—their daughters are like copies of Thea and her sister, Liv, who also lived under a contentious roof. While it's not expanded on in nearly the way it could be, I often felt like Amelia and Ava were Thea's chance to do better than her parents, and to make sure that Amelia and Ava don't become a future Thea and Liv. I felt like this constant pressure of the past and the future on the present kept the stakes high for Thea and Gavin. It's also what kept me rooting for them the whole way through.
There are apparently 4 more books in this series, all available to read now, and I seriously think I'll be checking those out in the future, because I'm not sure I could resist more Bromance Book Club content! Until then, you can find Lyssa online at LyssaKayAdams.com, or on Instagram @LyssaKayAdams.
*This review can also be found on my Goodreads page*
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