Amazon Best Romance of the Month Publishers Marketplace BuzzBooks: ROMANCE 2020-2021 pickFresh Fiction Fresh Pick “Fun, flirty, and fresh!” —Jill Shalvis, New York Times bestselling author A witty, sexy, and charming story from the New York Times bestselling author of the St. Helena Vineyard series that fans of Emily Henry, Jen DeLuca, and Kate Clayborn will adore. Growing up the lone Asian in … Henry, Jen DeLuca, and Kate Clayborn will adore.
Growing up the lone Asian in a community of WASPs, Annie has always felt out of place. Her solution? Start a family of her own. Not easy when every man she’s dated, including her ex-fiancé, finds “his person” right after breaking up with Annie. Even worse than canceling the wedding eight weeks beforehand? Learning the “other woman” plans to walk down the aisle wearing her wedding gown. New plan—find a fresh, man-free start. Too bad her exit strategy unexpectedly lands her working at a hospital in Rome, Rhode Island, rather than Rome, Italy, and sharing a cabin with a big, brooding, and annoyingly hot male roommate.
Home on medical leave after covering a literally explosive story in China, investigative photojournalist Emmitt embarks on his most important assignment—cementing his place in his daughter’s life. Three men and a baby might work in the movies, but with a stepdad and devoted uncle competing for Paisley’s attention, Emmitt has lost his place at the family table. Then there’s the adorably sexy squatter in his cabin, who poses another problem, one he’d very much like to solve up close and personal. But he can’t win—Annie has sworn off men, Paisley’s gone boy crazy, and Emmitt’s estranged father reappears with a secret that changes everything.
Annie and Emmitt are about to discover love comes in many forms, and sometimes the best families are the ones we make.
“Phenomenal…I highly recommend picking up a copy if this novel, it will have you crying, laughing and yelling but most of all you will end with a warm happy feeling that comes from reading a first class novel.”
—Harlequin Junkie, Recommended Read
“I cannot fully express how in awe I am with Marina Adair’s ability to create such complex and multi-faceted characters. “
—The Lit Buzz
“Marina Adair is a breath of fresh air…Don’t miss a word from this magnificent author!”—Darynda Jones, New York Times bestselling author
“Fans of Jill Shalvis and Susan Mallery will enjoy the modern family dynamic and small-town atmosphere.”
—Booklist
“An adorable, fun new contemporary romance series. Delightful.”
—Library Journal
“A hilarious romantic comedy”
—Bookpage
“A delight…entertaining, endearing, and realistic.”
—Frolic
“A true gem.”
—Fresh Fiction
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I never miss a Marina Adair story. This one doesn’t disappoint! She just keeps getting better. She’s been on my auto-buy since long before I was published myself. I savor every word of every Marina Adair book. Enjoy!
fun read and entertaining characters
This took me about nine months total to read, four months ago I actually decided to DNF at 50%, and for some reason a few days ago something made me pick it up to finish. I will say that I thought the second half was better than the first, but it still didn’t do it for me.
I found both Annie and Emmitt not particularly likeable; Annie was a total pushover and her first scene honestly made me so mad that I put the book down for five months. The instalove was too much for me and I never really cared about their romance. The flirting especially was awful, just so immature and juvenile, and the texts they sent looked like 12 year olds wrote them, with 2 and N and U instead of the actual words. Does ANYBODY actually text like that?? (Genuinely curious because doesn’t it take way more time and effort?)
There were a lot of different issues and storylines trying to be addressed, and as a result it all felt a bit shallow and chaotic and none of them were really explored deeply enough. It also needed some more editing – there were several instances where things didn’t make sense: something was said and then directly contracted a few paragraphs later.
Aside from these issues, the main reason I didn’t really like this was the overall mood and the feeling it gave me. There was just so much conflict and miscommunication and angst and hurt feelings and it was truly exhausting to read, especially because I didn’t care about any of the characters. This wasn’t so much in the romantic storyline, but between the main characters and everyone else. Annie and her ex, Annie and her parents, Emmitt and his daughter, Emmitt and his co-parents… reading this book just didn’t make me feel happy, which is like the only thing I really want out of a romantic comedy.
I’m glad I finished it, because I dislike not finishing books and the second half wasn’t as bad, but there are so many amazing romcoms out there that deserve your time more than this one.
I first read an excerpt of RomeAntically Challenged on BookishFirst.com and did not want to stop reading. I fell in love with the characters right away. Now that I’ve finished the book, I can say I loved it even more than I thought I would. Annie is such a deep and complex character, dealing with growing up Asian in a white adoptive family and feeling like she never completely fit anywhere. Emmitt was funny and charming but also sweet and sensitive. I loved the development of their relationship so it felt quite natural. I also enjoyed that there was so much more to the story like Annie’s broken engagement, Emmitt’s daughter and her two other dads. This was such a beautiful exploration of love in all forms – familial, romantic and friendship. It’s about loving someone enough to trust them and to love them no matter what. I’m so happy to see that it’s the first in the series because I want to see where Annie and Emmitt head next. I’m also hoping Levi and Gray find love in one of the next books. Add this to your 2020 TBR when you want a quick, sweet read.
Loved this book. Annie and Emmit were two people who, in their own minds, didn’t fit in or were misunderstood by the people who love them the most. They accidentally become roommates and then fall in love. Their respective backstories are what elevate this book from a typical romance to a women’s fiction romance. When a romance novel gives you something to think about, you know it’s a good one, and this one had some thought provoking issues.
Loved it. Love every book Marina writes.
It’s like stepping into the scene and being brought along on the H/h adventure in love and life.
Excellent. Highly recommend!!
Such a cute read! Absolutely loved it!
5/5 family-comes-in-all-shapes-and-sizes stars
I loved Annie and Emmitt, and I especially adored the three-men-and-a-teenager storyline. I was rooting for Annie to find her place, her posse, and – last but not least – “her” person, and I really liked how the everything came together at the end.
Looking forward to reading the next book in the series!
This story was well written and lovely to read.
It took me a long time to find the hitch in the story that made me not want to stop reading lol
Also I felt there wasn’t enough steam in the book for as hot as these two were for each other but if basing of off her daughter that might be why lol
I loved the ending and loved that it was left opened ended to imagine where their life will take them together.
I really love the cover of this book, it’s fun and colorful and I was looking forward to reading it. The synopsis of the story was intriguing and I thought that i would be enamored with the story line and the characters. Overall this looked like it would be a fun and enjoyable book.
Alas, it fell flat for me. No matter how hard I tried to get into this book I could not. I did not care for the characters at all. Anh’s character just made me cringe whenever she delt with her ex and by the time she grows a backbone it was too late for me, all I could envision was a doormat who is constantly begging for the approval of others.
I love a good bad boy character, but Emmitt just did not do anything to endear me to his character. I think that I find it hard to believe that there are men who will go out of their way to sleep with anything and everything and still have every character within the book fawning over them. He was too over the top for me.
This is not a horrible book and many people seem to love it. Unfortunately, I found it to be boring.
I don’t give out 5 star ratings very often but I absolutely loved this book! Yes, it was a sweet accidental roommates to lovers type romance and there was plenty of humor thrown in too. However, it was so much more than just that. The complex family dynamics, the theme of family being who you make it, reconciliation, learning to be true to yourself, forgiveness, the desire to fit in and belong, etc. Goodness! So much depth to the characters too. Yes, this was a fun, light read but it really resonated with me…and not just because I live in a town named Rome as well! It wasn’t fluff, if that makes sense. I highly recommend this book and believe it will be one I read again and again! I look forward to reading more from this author in the future!
From page one it was easy to tell this was going to be a book I’d enjoy. The humor, the romance, the emotional triggers-all of it came together to form a wonderful rom-com.
This book was very well-balanced which is perhaps what made this book as enjoyable as it was. The author had the perfect combination of humor and heartache, steam and sentiment. It was all so well balanced that I didn’t feel overly sad or humored, but was able to enjoy a rollercoaster of emotions.
As well, the characters in this book were fabulous. The two main characters have an enemies-to-lovers relationship that makes things so much fun and very interesting. But there are also the side characters, particularly the other dads, that add so much flair and personality to this book that I feel compelled to read the other books in this series.
When in Rome, buy this book and love it like I did.
Thoughtful representation of ethnic sensitivities and that of an adoptee even as character was American and much loved by parents. Multi-dimensional.
4.5
I’m a long time fan of Marina Adair’s books and this one totally delivered! Absolutely loved it 😀
This is a fun, charming flirty romantic comedy. For me, I thought it was a “Modern Day Take on Three Men and a Baby.” Without giving away any spoilers, the characters were fun, interesting and relatable. It was a fun, easy read and my first, but definitely not my last by this author. I received an Advanced Reader Copy and rated it a five.
A good read on how people interpret life events.
All I have to say is that this really must have happened to someone to be put in a story. Though it says it is a romantic comedy which for some I guess it could be. As a father, I wanted to!!!!!! Annie’s ex. He calls off the wedding after she had gone through with picking the venue and everything else. He though keeps the venue, the date which was here grandparent’s anniversary also keeps the money that he is to send back to her which he has. Then the topper is his new bride goes to the same bridal store and somehow everything is mixed up and her grandmother’s wedding dress is with the new bride. Then to make her day complete she thought she was accepting a job in Rome Italy, instead, she is in Rome Rhode Island.
Here the other part of the story is where she thought she would be living in a cabin by herself instead the man who owns the cabin has come back home. Emmitt, is one of three dads to a teenage girl which is explained in the story. She also has to deal with her mother as well. Emmitt’s story at times takes over at times for he is working through his own issues about life. Overall a good book and worth the read. I received this book from Netgalley.com I gave it 4 stars. Follow us at
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This book is about Anh Nhi Walsh or Annie who leaves Connecticut and moves to Rome, Rhode Island in the hopes to leave her old life behind and have a fresh start after being dumped by her fiance Clark. She meets Emmitt who is the father of a teenage girl named Paisley. Emmitt is co-parenting her with his other two best friends Levi (her Uncle) and Grayson (her stepdad).
Gray’s wife and Paisley’s mom Michelle passed six months back and the entire family is dealing with their emotions and trying to cope up with the loss.
I loved the forced proximity angle and the banter between Annie and Emmitt is incredible. They both are very intelligent and mature characters. I love Annie’s friendship with Beckett and Lynn.
The author has beautifully highlighted the challenges faced by Annie and Emmitt.
Annie is a Korean girl adopted and nurtured by white parents and her struggle an in to fit in both worlds and insecurities that she might not fit in any of them. Emmitt got to know he was the biological father of Paisley when she was five years old and by that time Levi and Gray were already in the picture has her dads. Since then Emmitt has struggled to fit in the family.
I felt the plot of this book was so unique and the characters were so relatable.
I’m a fan of the person and her writing. But I have to confess, after the first couple of chapters I was a bit lost and wasn’t sure if this book was for me and I think it had to do with the pseudo-character of the hero. Once his true feelings began to show, I was in and I’m glad I stuck with it.
This is the story of a woman who doesn’t think she’s worthy of love and a man who uses sex to hide his own insecurities. Annie is a pleaser, a healer, and at times a doormat. But we love her from the beginning and as her character develops we see her strengths. Emmitt has developed his asshole image to perfection. He’s injured, inside and out, and tries to hide it from the world. As he becomes more real in his dealings, first with his daughter, then with Annie, we begin to root for him. When honesty and trust enter the relationship, we can’t wait to turn the page.
This is an excellent book about getting in touch with your true feelings, finding your worth, and overcoming relationship fears. Stick with it. It’s worth it.