Falling for the enemy has never been so deliciously complicated in this standalone romance where a sexy single dad meets his unexpected match! Get ready for all the feels!Never have I ever been so infuriated by a man I wanted to kiss.They say opposites attract, but I beg to differ. Combust is more like it. Because every single time I talk to Zach Nolan, I see red.The too-good-looking, too-smart, … red.
The too-good-looking, too-smart, too-effortlessly charming single dad who works down the hall from me has turned getting under my skin into a sport. Call it the battle of wits between the wedding planner and the divorce attorney.
Trouble is, when we’re forced into closer quarters planning an engagement party for our best friends, I start to see his other sides.
And I fear I’m falling for the enemy.
***
I’m not out to make friends. My goals are simple — fight till the end for my clients, and my family.
The last thing I need is a vibrant, outgoing, snarky, and surprisingly big-hearted wedding planner to spend my precious free time with…except, watching Piper bond with my daughter just might break down the cinder block walls I’ve built around my heart these last few years.
Second chances don’t come around for guys like me…or do they?
NEVER HAVE I EVER is a sexy, frenemies-to-lovers romance in the Always Satisfied series of standalones! The series includes SATISFACTION GUARANTEED, INSTANT GRATIFICATION, NEVER HAVE I EVER, OVERNIGHT SERVICE and the novella SPECIAL DELIVERY, and they can be read in any order.
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Widowed father and divorce attorney Zach Nolan, and wedding planner Piper Radcliffe are part of the same group of friends in college. They never really got along. Their main mode of communication was bickering and bantering despite years of sharing the same office space. The two are thrown together when their friends get married with Zach as the best man and Piper the maid of honor. They start seeing each other in a different light, but their budding relationship is made complicated by Piper’s close friendship with Zach’s daughter. Can they overcome the past and challenges of the present?
Never Have I Ever has got to be one of my top favorite books this year! This book drew me in and didn’t let go until the very end. Piper and Zach have great chemistry and I enjoyed the snarky, witty banter. I loved Zach and Piper’s relationship with his children. This book had me laughing, swooning, and yes, sometimes even crying- the parts wherein Zach remembered Anna made me cry.
Never Have I Ever is a slow-burn, enemies-to-lovers, second-chance romance written in dual narrative. No cliffhanger and no cheating.
I received this book at my request and have voluntarily left this unbiased review.
Rating: 4.5 Stars
I liked how the author did her prologue. Our main characters talk to the reader letting us know a little bit about them.
Zach Nolan seems to be a cynic and seems to need a life adjustment. It’s interesting to see how he changes once he’s around loved ones. You have to hope that he’s redeemable especially when you see how loving he can be. Piper is one that makes things happen. She’s a people-pleaser but that’s not hard since she loves what she does for a living. She’s quirky. He’s straight-laced. There’s no way that two more opposite people can make something work. But since Ms. Blakely is the author, you know that anything is possible.
This is one of those books that it’s very easy to see myself reading more than once. The only thing to make it better is to listen to it. You will be able to hear how the narrator puts in the emotion that you may not be able to when you read it yourself. If this is your first book in the Always Satisfied series, you can be rest assured that this story is a standalone. There are plenty of happy moments, there are plenty of humorous moments, but there’s also plenty of smile worthy moments. Once you finish this story, you may find yourself wanting to check out the other titles that have come before and those yet to be.
I was not compensated nor was I required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.
NEVER HAVE I EVER is the third instalment in Lauren Blakely’s contemporary, adult ALWAYS SATISFIED erotic, romance series focusing on a group of former college friends. This is attorney, widower and single father Zach Nolan, and wedding planner Piper Radcliffe’s story line. NEVER HAVE I EVER can be read as a stand alone without any difficulty. Any important information from the previous instalments is revealed where necessary.
Told from dual first person perspectives (Piper and Zach) NEVER HAVE I EVER follows the enemies to friends to lovers relationship between attorney, widower and single father Zach Nolan, and wedding planner Piper Radcliffe. As a divorce attorney Zach rarely sees a happily ever after but the death of his wife has jaded our hero to second chances including his own. When mutual friends plan their ‘I do’s’ Zach finds himself face to face with wedding planner and the bane of his existence Piper Radcliffe, the woman who stirs something long thought buried and dead. Forced together for a destination wedding in London, England, Piper and Zach will take their relationship up to the next level, a level that many threaten any hard-fought attempts at friendship. What ensues is the building romance between Zach and Piper, and the potential fall-out as Zach struggles to move forward leaving Piper to pick up the pieces of her broken heart.
The relationship between Zach and Piper is an enemies to lovers. Zach rarely sees a happy ending because of the multitude of divorces he has had to preside over; and Piper is the perpetual optimist regarding marriage and love, except when it involves her own lonely heart. The $ex scenes are intimate and passionate without the use of over the top, sexually graphic, language and text.
There is a large ensemble cast of colorful and energetic secondary and supporting characters including Dina, Heather, Charlie and Jessica, Steven and Jason, Zach’s children Lucy and Henry, as well as Piper’s sister Paige, and Piper’s friend and hairstylist Adrien. We are reintroduced to Sloane and Malone (Delayed Satisfaction / Satisfaction Guaranteed #1).
NEVER HAVE I EVER is a story of second chances, of a sorts, for two people who have loved and lost but lost on a different end of the relationship spectrum. The premise is engaging and captivating; the romance is seductive, impassioned and hot; the characters are dynamic and charismatic. NEVER HAVE I EVER is a wonderful addition to Lauren’s ALWAYS SATISFIED romance series.
Frenemies-to-lovers at its very best! Lauren Blakely can take any trope and make a hit story out of it.
Blakely mixes sassy, determined, independent, wedding planner Piper with sexy, jerk, single-dad, divorce attorney Zach to come up with a perfect story of two people who have known each other for years, never really got along, then finally realize they might be just right for each other.
This is definitely a case of opposites attract. Where Piper sees the potential in relationships, Zach only sees the heartaches and eventual endings. But when they have to work together, their differences no longer seem to matter in the face of their growing attraction.
If you enjoy frenemies-to-lovers and/or single-dad romances, you definitely won’t want to miss out on this one.
I don’t think isn’t a book of Lauren Blakely’s that I don’t LOVE!
Never Have I Ever, another page turner, and a single dad is one of my all-time favorite types of stories, add enemies to lovers and cute kids it’s the trifecta in a book.
Zach and Piper are part of great group of friends from college. They didn’t care for each other in college, fast forward to their 30’s and there is still no love loss, until there isn’t. Sit back, grab some wine and get ready for the time of your life. The writing is perfection, the main characters are witty and fun and the cast of supporting are just that supporting.
The back and forth banter, sexual innuendoes and the tender moment will have you wanting to read it all in one sitting. Who doesn’t love a happily ever after.
A divorce lawyer and wedding planner working across from each other is sure to have these two cross enemy lines. Zach and Piper have known each other since college. They run in the same circle with the same group of friends, but they can’t stand each other (or so they say). Zach was a single father to two amazing kids (single dad not by choice) and Piper (who knew Zach’s story) had a bond/relationship with Zach’s kids, especially with his daughter Lucy. After Zach and Piper are asked to be best man and maid of honor at their respective friends wedding things between them begin to fire up a bit. I loved this enemy to lovers romance. I loved the relationship Piper had with the kids and vice versa. I loved how even when Piper and Zach couldn’t stand each other he trusted Piper with his kids.
One of the things I enjoyed about this book is definitely how the Never Have I Ever Game plays a role in so many key conversations. I also loved how Zach was a straight forward man and he let Piper know exactly where he stood and what he wanted.
My favorite line in this entire book came from Lucy when talking about her dad and said, “I can write a book, he deserves a book.” My heart melted.
Enemies to Lovers!!
Never Have I Ever by Lauren Blakely is another fabulous book! Zach is a divorce attorney, while Piper is a wedding planner. Put them in the same office space, and the two spar while their chemistry grows.
I really liked Zach. He was very concerned about his children, and he wasn’t looking to sow his wild oats. He was being responsible and caring father first. I found this refreshing after lots of authors going the way of one night stands, etc. Piper was another strong character. She built a relationship with Zach’s daughter Lucy, before she even gave Zach a chance.
Another fun book filled with realistic situations and smart connections.
I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
What do you get when you cross a wedding planner with a divorce attorney? Lauren Blakely’s new story!! A Frenemies story that pulls at your heartstrings. Loved Piper’s relationship with Zach’s kids. Zach finally wakes up to himself and realises that what he needs has been in front of him the whole time. A beautiful story that I couldn’t put down!!
A wedding planner and a divorce lawyer?! Yes, please! This Frenemies to Lovers story was an absolute joy to listen to because the narrators delivered a wonderful, character-driven story. I adored the romance between Piper and Zach. Their chemistry smoldered, but they also built up an understanding between them about what they valued in their lives. Their love affair was both sexy and heart-warming!
The single dad hero and his too adorable for words kids stole the show in this story. There is a scene near the end where Zach’s daughter absolutely melts my heart and made me cry all the tears!
Of course, being a LB book, there were cameos from so many of our favorite couples and an epilogue that perfectly wraps up the HEA. I finished listening with a smile on my face and the feeling that love conquers all.
Favorite line: “This feels like everything I didn’t know I was missing.”
6 Hearts
Never Have I ever not fallen in love with a Lauren Blakely book.
Never Have I Ever is Lauren Blakely’s new epic enemies to lovers romance. I don’t know if it’s their banter, the smart, sexy, single dad, the tough, strong heroine or just the feel of the story, but it is one of my favorites of Lauren’s and that’s saying a lot. I’ve read every one of her books. And I do have my favorites. Zach is now fighting Chris for my top spot! Seriously, Chris! I had the pleasure of listening to this story before reading it. I loved listening with open ears. Not knowing what was going to happen next. Letting Jason and Amanda paint the story for me. They are so fantastic that I literally listened non stop. There’s something magical about this story of Lauren’s and these narrators. Zach and Piper have been in the same friends circle for years but they don’t exactly like each other. He’s a single dad and a divorce lawyer. She’s a wedding planner. Piper has bonded with his daughter, Lucy and Zach has a soft spot for their relationship. They now share an office space and when they are forced to spend more time together to plan a joint engagement party, things get interesting. The barbs and jabs turn into innuendo and flirting. Zach is seeing a different side of Piper and he likes what he sees. A lot. Could this be his second chance at love? Is that even possible? Piper believes in love but she never saw the snarky lawyer as her match. Until one night, they just click. Everything falls into place and they share a few special moments. Piper actual likes the man and his fun ties. He’s sexy and has the most beautiful smile. Zach can’t stop thinking about Piper. He needs to see her. But he doesn’t know how to juggle being a single dad and dating but Piper makes him want to try. She makes him want. She makes him need. They weren’t looking for each other, but sometimes you find happiness where you least expect it. I loved that they were mature adults. They didn’t let a little communication error ruin everything. Piper acted like a mature woman and didn’t hover, throw a tantrum or get clingly. She just knew what he needed. What they both needed. Zach manned up when he needed to. Spoke his mind and didn’t let his second chance at love get away. I loved the way Zach talked to his kids. Lucy and Henry are the perfect secondary characters. Every time he spoke to them, cooked for them, gave them a kiss, I fell deeper in love with him. Piper is confident, beautiful and knows who she is and what she wants. She has friends, family and loves life. Overall, I absolutely adored it. I laughed, cried big fat tears, got very hot and bothered and just smiled the entire time. It was just delightful ;). Never Have I ever not fallen in love with a Lauren Blakely book.
“Get your lips on mine. I need to taste you.”
I need this intimacy. I need her in my arms. “I need you, Piper.”
Emotion overload!! In.The.Best.Way.Ever! This book was like the perfect blended cocktail of deliciousness!
It was, all at once… A frenemies-to-lovers, a second chance romance, and a single dad romance. So perfect y’all!
Zach and Piper ran in the same social circles back in college. Zach became a divorce attorney and Piper became a wedding planner extraordinaire They were most definitely frenemies. Zach like to run off at the mouth about how he thinks couple will fare in their marriages. Piper being a wedding planner did not appreciate that. AT.ALL!
Fast forward to ten years after college and Zach is now a widower with two kids and a successful shark of lawyer. Now… One would expect him to be mean and jaded and angry at the world because of what all he’s lost, but he’s actually wonderful. He’s an amazing dad, great brother, and fantastic friend. Even his motivation for wanting to become a lawyer is not what you would expect. He just wants to be a great lawyer, help his clients and raise amazing kids. When best man and maid of honor duties require him and Piper to spend more time together, that thin line between love and hate starts to blur. Zach and Piper find themselves caught up in a whirlwind of a friends-with-benefits arrangement that quickly becomes so much more than either of them could have ever expected.
Will this budding, err relationship be able to go anywhere when they are hiding it from everyone they know?
I absolutely loved Piper! She was sassy and sweet and beautiful and I want to be her BFF! But she was also selfless and giving and would do anything for those she loved. I loved what she did for her sister. My heart melted at her sweet friendship with Lucy. She was so giving to everybody else I wanted her to get her HEA probably more than I have wanted that for a character in a long time, and she was a strong gal. She wasn’t broken or damaged. She was just so good at heart she deserved all the goodness life has to offer.
This book was full of fabulous secondary characters. Zach’s adorable kiddos, Lucy and Henry. The rest of their college crew and friends. It added even more to an already fantastic story. Then the steam. Oh.My.Gosh! The hotness factor in this book. I loved every. single, I needed to fan myself moment of it!
These are my favorite kinds of second chance romances where a widower/widow and children are involved. This book talked about it, but didn’t harp on it to the point of depression. This book was fun, hot, hilarious and sweet. It was perfect. I definitely recommend it.
-This was the BEST second chance romance. It was sweet and Hot, funny and just perfect it had the absolute best secondary characters. I loved Zach’s kids.
– HOLY HOTNESS! That’s it! Just whooo!
Cliffhanger Warning- No Cliffy! Y’all are going to love this HEA as much as I did.I just know it! #PERFECTION
Although Never Have I Ever is quintessential Lauren Blakely when it comes to the sexiness, the heat, the witty banter, and the fun and flirtiness, it also has a more emotional element than many of her contemporary romances and that’s what really drew me into Zach and Piper’s story.
I like that Ms. Blakely can bring the feels without bringing the drama.
Piper and Zach are what I’d call frenemies- not quite enemies, yet not quite friends. I really enjoyed their dynamic- the wedding planner and the divorce attorney sure had the sparks flying!
But I loved that this wasn’t just their story, as a couple. It was Zach’s story of coming to terms as a widower, learning to move on, live and love again. It was his story as a single father, navigating the new normal for himself and his kids. It was Piper’s story, as a strong, independent business woman, as a sister and aunt, as someone who was dealing with her own past insecurities. All of this made for such a heartfelt, endearing, and really delightful read.
Zach is such a wonderful father, I really love the relationships he has with Lucy and Henry- they each have such a special bond with him. You could just feel how much Zach adored his kids and my heart would just be bursting with love at their scenes. I appreciated that Lucy and Henry weren’t just used as a plot device, they really were the third main character in this story.
Lucy kind of stole the show there at the end, and I loved.
Never Have I Ever is probably my favorite book from Ms. Blakely in this past year. I’m definitely going to grab the audio so I can revisit these characters.
Zach and Piper’s story is such a sweet second chance story. It shows you that love doesn’t just come around once in a lifetime, just when you least expect to.
Never have I Ever was a book that made reading so much fun! It was entertainingly addictive, had beautiful family and friends and some really steamy moments! It also touched on subjects that we all go through at certain times in our lives!
I just loved Piper, what an amazing woman! Fantastic at her job, incredibly thoughtful to her sister and I really felt she was destined for great things to come!
Zach, just wow, talk about charming! But can the love hate friendship go beyond that, will they succumb to the sizzling chemistry? Or do his thoughts get in the way!
This book was so heartwarming, so beautiful and the way Zach was as a dad, was just wonderful, as every dad should be! I loved the banter and I loved how Zach’s daughter Lucy showed him how things should be! She was definitely wise beyond her years!
Beautiful, just such a beautiful story!
I adored Lauren Blakely’s “Never Have I Ever” and found it very difficult to put down. I basically ignored my family and friends for an entire afternoon just so I could finish it! I really did have all the feels as I read, from tears of sadness to tears of laughter and joy.
The main characters, Piper and Zach, were incredibly well-developed and likeable. I loved their initial relationship and banter as frenemies, and their interactions only got better from there. Both Zach and Piper carried a lot of emotional baggage from their previous relationships, but I was amazed by how well they handled it. I particularly liked how they communicated with each other instead of bottling up their feelings and letting things build to a gigantic explosion in the end.
I also loved that Zach was able to acknowledge his love for his first wife, Anna, but still recognize that he had moved on from her loss and was ready to fall in love again. I really appreciated the book’s message that there can be more than one great love in someone’s life, and in this case, Zach was blessed to have found both Anna and Piper.
The secondary characters in this book were fantastic, too. I enjoyed meeting some of the characters from earlier books in this series, such as Sloane and Jason. In addition, Zach’s children, Henry and Lucy, were adorable and nearly stole the show in a few places. Lucy was wonderfully smart and confident, and Henry was so calm and sweet. Their growing relationship with Piper was lovely, and it was very sweet how she fell in love with them right along with their father.
Overall, I really can’t recommend this book highly enough, and I very much look forward to reading more of this author’s books in the future.
*ARC provided by the author via Candi Kane PR. All opinions expressed are my own.
Lauren Blakely is one of my favorite authors, and books like these remind me of exactly the reason why I LOVE her books so much! This is a enemies to lovers, opposites attract, friends-to-lovers, second chance, single parent romance. There is so much depth to this story, and it has all of the feels! It is one of my top reads in 2019!
The plot of this story is so engaging and addictive. The witty banter between the H and h is funny & entertaining. Their interactions are the best! I honestly don’t know how else to describe it. Their chemistry is sizzling and off the charts. Zach is the swooniest guy! I fell in love with him. He was sexy, confident, a wonderful father, and funny and boy does he know how to push Piper’s buttons. Piper is unique, witty, quirky, sassy, independent, and also Zach’s six bit’s change. The secondary characters add so much depth. I loved all of them!
This is a must-read! Needless to say, I LOVED IT! Lauren Blakely did a great job of writing a beautiful romance that will stay with me for some time to come. It was engaging and wonderful from start to finish (even though I did shed a few tears at times), and I hated for it to come to an end. I look forward to seeing what she has in store for us next.
P.S. What makes this even sweeter is that 100% of the proceeds from this book is going to an animal charity. Can you not love this any harder???? I think not!
****ARC generously provided in exchange for an honest review.****
Wow! Talk about your opposites attracting! Zach is a divorce attorney and Piper is a wedding planner.
They met years ago when Piper was a small wedding planner and Zach was happily married with a child, at a wedding. Time passes and Piper is more successful at wedding planning and Zach is still a divorce attorney, with an evil edge to him and he’s now a widower. Zach and Piper don’t really get along but……….
Their offices are near each other and, oh my, the bantering that goes on between them! Can these enemies become friends and what happens if it turns into more? Zach has quite the reputation for not being very nice, some say he’s heartless.
Great story! As always, I not only loves the characters and the story line…….I loved the humor!!!
This book had so many things I love! Sexy single dad with great kids, a strong and feisty heroine and all the emotions a book can carry. It was so touching, sweet and with the great banter I always get with a LB book.
A BRILLIANT EXAMPLE OF A FRENEMIE’S TO LOVERS ROMANCE.
Piper is a wedding planner she loves to send the bride and groom off on their dream life together, making their special day magical.
Zach is a single widower, a divorce lawyer, he’s a shark in the court room and although at the beginning of this book he is happy and in love, he is also a realist and puts the mockers on Piper’s wedding couples by predicting how long they will last, he knows real love when he sees it, he is good at studying people, except for himself.
Zach and Piper do not get on, they have known each other years, have the same circle of friends but they are so mismatched when it comes to work and views but they do work in the same building sharing the same floor so avoiding each other is impossible.
Zach has two children and his oldest girl adores Piper and whenever she is at her daddy’s office she goes over to see Piper, maybe its her Barbie type room and all the fun stuff she has in comparison to her daddy’s boring office but Zach’s daughter adores Piper, she’s the bees knees, Zach doesn’t think so until it’s like he has an epiphany and starts to get feelings towards Piper he hasn’t had before and the feelings become more intense when they are thrust together as Best an and maid of honour at their friends wedding pre-nuptials.
NEVER HAVE I EVER is a feel good romance, I liked how the author didn’t focus on Zach’s previous wife and marriage and kept it light. Never have I ever is fun and hot in all the right places with plenty of laugh out loud moments. Overall it’s a great balanced out read that keeps you turning the pages.
Leads to a hea and told in first person dual pov.
Another awesome read by Lauren Blakely. This side of romance isn’t my go-to but when I do, I find I thoroughly enjoy Ms. Blakely’s books for a lighter read. She makes them fun, sexy, light-hearted, hot as hell and the characters are always such fun to read. Never Have I Ever was just that for me, and something I needed, but hadn’t realized it. It was a enemy to lovers romance, with two complete opposites.
Piper is a wedding planner. She is cute, sweet, sassy and all-round an awesome female lead, I adored her.
Zach is a divorce attorney and a single dad, and I love single dad romances. I was putty in this man’s hands and I think that trope being added in made this romance that much more perfect. It was still a light read, yet it held a little angst… not too much, but not too little, then add in the oppsites attract and enemies to lovers and you get a masterpiece like this is.
You put these two together and you have quite a pair. The chemistry was off the charts, the push and pull, the back and forth banter was delightfully fun to read, then you add in the sexual tension between these two. It was pulsating and thick as hell.
This book gave me arrange of feels, and I think that added in slight angst was icy on the cake.
5 Stars!