Triple Sec

 I received an advance reader copy thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books in exchange for an honest review. The opinions expressed are entirely my own.
 
Mel is a bartender working at a high end cocktail bar when she meets BeBe, a beautiful lawyer with whom she clicks, until she learns that BeBe is happily married to her partner Kade.  Still, Mel is intrigued and gets pulled into their social circle expecting only friendship.  Then BeBe tells Mel that she and Kade have an open marriage and she wants to date if Mel is interested.

Mel is has recently divorced her wife, who it seems is her only prior long term partner and who cheated on her.  She is gun shy and not sure how to navigate this new reality.  While Mel is initially only involved with BeBe, it isn't long before Kade expresses their interest in Mel as well.  Rounding out the story is a cocktail competition for which Mel tries to come up with the perfect concoction and a gay BFF/Roommate with his own non-monogamy situation.

What follows is a fun, fluffy poly-amorous romance.  I liked this but didn't love it.  It spent a lot of time educating Mel, and by extension the reader, on the way polyamory works and checking off the romance tropes and checkpoints.  But maybe it's just not for me.

A love letter to deconstructing, to breaking down walls, to change, to rebuilding, to finding yourself and what that means in a fun, queer romcom package. 
Every character (main, side, random one time appearance) was crafted so wholly and  each personality shined. I love character driven stories especially when the characters feel so real. They were messy and nervous and chaotic and so full of excitement and energy and so easy to relate to. 
While the main relationship focus was the romantic one I love that the platonic love of the friendship didn't fall by the wayside and Mel found a way to make sure all of her relationships were being tended to.
I do wish we had a bit more time with Kade and had more on page of  getting to know them but it didn't take away from the experience for me. 
I love how communication had such a big focus and it wasn't just something that came naturally. It was hard sometimes (because it is) and they all had to find the ways they communicate best. 
Anywho, all this random brain dump means is that I LOVED this book. I love the characters and their story. I love the emotion and care they took with each other. I love the little jokes, the insecurities, the growth, the friendships, the lovers, all of it. I love Mel, Bebe, Kade, and Daniel. They hold a special place in my heart now and as far into the future as they can

Parings: 
FX, FF, FFX
Tags and tropes:
Non-monogamy/polycule, “my girlfriend's wife”, service workers and service tops, idiots to lovers, queer af, forced proximity, insta lust,  sarcasm is a love language, Bebe is the Drunk People Whisperer, get in we're gonna go overthink this, scary but in a hot, artistic way, no 3rd act break up, communication is key, this is just sex I'm definitely not gonna fall in love, oh shit I think I'm in love

big thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the review copy. All opinions are my own

Thank you to NetGalley, Simon & Schuster, and TJ Alexander for this A R C !!

I was so excited to read this from the moment I heard about it

This was such a cute & simple story!! I loved the queer polyam representation and I hope I get to read more books like this in the future!

Unfortunately, I didn't find myself connecting with the characters much, they fell a bit flat for me. I wish that they were more fleshed out. Alongside that, I wanted more relationship development between the 3 of them especially Mel & Kade but I just didn't get that. I felt very detached from their relationship.

Surprisingly enough I actually did enjoy the smut scenes in terms of what was going on but if I cared more about the relationship between the characters I would've loved it so much more.

A little bit later on in the book there was a scene where mel basically yells at an employee for misgendering Kade & not only did it add nothing to the plot I kind of felt like it was unnecessary.

I wasn't really interested in Mel's drinking competition & the outcome with how the competition would go was very predictable. I just feel like the time talking about the competition could've instead been more relationship development & going deeper into learning the characters.

Overall I am really glad I read this book, it was sweet & cozy & a pleasant read.

PUBLISH DATE: June 4 2024

Thank you NetGalley + Atria Books for the advanced readers copy in exchange for my honest review!