Not That Kind of Guy

I voluntarily read and reviewed an ARC of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
DNF @ 49%


I tried, I really tried because I thought this was one I was going to love. It isn't often we get a book with the male lead as the not in the position of power. The synopsis also made him seem super sweet and not macho alpha – I mean, this at least is true. 

Look, I'll take some fault with not liking this one. I swear the synopsis changed from when I saw it– had I saw Vegas and “put a ring on it” I would have run away. I don't like that trope because all the decisions that follow aren't usually logical which made it even worse here since they are supposed to be so smart! On the topic of the characters, let me say I couldn't pin down their personalities since they seemed to change some times or at least their actions made them seem different. And Matt is still put in power because – surprise!– he is ridiculously rich and his parents put out a grant that Bridget wants to earn. 

So... after Vegas I realized I was hate-reading the book– reading it only to complain about their actions, their weird conversations that felt like they were having two different conversations at once that required them to have the same conversation later! It was a bizarre read. 

Anyhow, this author is definitely not for me. 

Writing was better than [b:Not the Girl You Marry 44082130 Not the Girl You Marry Andie J. Christopher https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1550779727l/44082130.SX50.jpg 68549157], and I found these characters more engaging and complex than in that book, but the plot here just didn't make much sense to me - I know the author is (or was?) an attorney, but if she ever practiced criminal law, I'd be surprised. As a defense attorney, it really got in the way of my enjoyment of the book, because 1) at the beginning, it talks a lot about this big case of hers and the complaining witness backing out at the last minute, which definitely happens, but then ... she just shrugs and goes to Vegas? It's never brought up again, not even in a sidebar "oh, it's too bad we had to dismiss this case" type of way, and maybe it's meant to show she's burnt out, but it's odd to spend that much time on it at first and then never mention it again. 2) A big huge motivating factor for her in this is to get a fellowship and pay off her loans, which I totally understand but also ... income-based repayment is a thing and so is public service loan forgiveness. I have a ton of loans myself, and they're a lot, but this just seemed like a sort of cliche thing to be a motivation (especially because, again, Vegas trip). 3) This is the most minor, but there's an aside about how she hates having to offer plea bargains, because she'd rather have people face trial and be put away for a long time. Which, ugh gross, but also, people go away for long periods of time after plea bargains as well, and felony case loads are big enough that most cases are resolved by plea, so a DA who insisted on taking everything to trial wouldn't last very long. All of that probably isn't that big a deal if you're not me, but unfortunately I am me, and it did interfere with my enjoyment. I expected to like this more than I did, which is kind of a bummer, because I do like the premise (fake marriage is one of my favorites and so is mutual pining), but I certainly didn't hate it. Kind of like the movies it's based (loosely) on, it's a good way to spend an afternoon but maybe not something that'll stick in your mind for a long time. But In These Times, sometimes that's all that's needed, a little bit of distraction and relaxation.

3.5