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 … 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 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.
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Sweet and funny and emotional. I zoomed through this one Sunday, totally compelled by the romance (and the bromance!). I’m so looking forward to seeing more of this book club.
I remember the day I first saw the cover of Lyssa Kay Adam’s The Bromance Book Club. I thought it was the most charming thing ever. After reading the book, I can attest that the words within the pages are just as charming. The author did such an excellent job in her exploration of the intimate and very realistic issues Gavin and Thea faced. It was a pleasure to root for these characters and I cannot wait to read the stories of the other members of the book club. Treat yourself to this delightful book. You won’t be sorry.
What I enjoyed the most about this book were the bromance book club meetings. The humor between the dudes was amazing and had me LOLling all the time. Mack was my favorite of course, and I am delighted he’ll be the lead in the next installment in the series, which I hope will be more of my romantic cup of tea: a boy meets girl kind of novel. Which is also the only reason why I didn’t give this book five stars. I always struggle to read romances about a couple having troubles and mending their relationship. I don’t care for all that baggage, I want meet cutes and I want first kisses.
Other than that, the book was great.
This book is terrific! It’s a witty, positive little treatise on what romance is really about. And the genius here is that she gets the dudes to articulate it in comical scene after comical scene. It’s so wise and meta and full of Things Romance Novelists Say. I love it desperately.
I cannot express how much love the idea of a secret group of athletes learning about romance from an historical romance novel, because Gavin has managed to screw up his marriage to Thea. Brilliant. The book is so good and so fun, and bonus, you get a bit of historical romance in your contemporary romance. Fast, fun read.
I finally finished! You all might be wondering what took me so long, right!? Well I just needed to take those extra moments to pace myself. I’ve realized I’ve been doing that a lot recently with reading and that in doing so, I have a greater appreciation of the book.
It was hard for me not to feel a little frustrated with Thea, the heroine. Due to her own experiences as a child, she was extremely jaded and could not overlook the mistakes Gavin made. I feel like he deserved a second chance instantly and I rooted hard for him from beginning to end; however, the story wouldn’t have taken the course it did if Thea was quick to give him that chance, sigh. How bittersweet
The Bromance Book Club by Lyssa Kay Adams was such a bubbly, laugh-out-loud, second chance romance filled with angst, two cute little girls, and a full batch of emotions!! Enough said about the wonderful characters involved throughout. This book wouldn’t have been what it was without them all. That being said I need Mack’s book right now, PLEASE. Thank you so much Berkley Romance!
This goes to show I’m not too old for a book called The Bromance Book Club. Even weeks after I read it, I can summon up a few laughs remembering the clueless male main character and his bros. Gavin’s marriage is in trouble. How far will he go to save it?
I loved the book-within-a-book aspect of the story. And Gavin reads historical romance! I don’t want to say more and spoil anything.
What a hoot!
Btw, I’m not the biggest romance reader, although from time to time I enjoy an unusual appetizer in the genre. This book was the full course. Adorable.
This book had so much heart in it, there were parts where I could feel everything these characters were feeling. My heart ached for this couple and the hard things they were going through, yet at the same time I loved the giggles that came with the book read during the book club. I love romance novels, and I love the cheesiness of the one the club reads to gain new knowledge. This author came up with such a fun book and I cannot wait to read more in the series!
I listened to this in audio and LOVED it! It’s a clever spin to a romance novel, and it was fun to see the both sides of the coin/relationship. I always enjoy it when authors include a bit of realism in their romances, making them more relatable to real people, whether it’s family issues or learning disabilities, etc. I’m almost scared to read the other books, knowing they can’t possibly as fun and wonderful as this one.
I laughed. I cried. I cheered for these two to find their way back to each other. A thoroughly enjoyable read!
I loved this book! I actually listened to it on Audible and the male narrator is fabulous!
The book’s concept–professional athletes (mostly baseball players) studying romance novels to help them with their romance problems–was unique and fun.
All the characters were relatable, even though they’re well-paid athletes, the conflicts and relationship troubles the hero and heroine faced were universal and identifiable, and their romance was truly one I could root for.
It’s a definite recommend for me, and I can’t wait to see what Lyssa Kay Adams brings us next!
Oh, I loved this book. It’s light and fluffy on the surface but it has a surprising depth that impressed me. Engaging, funny, sexy, and emotional. Check it out!
If you’re looking for an addictive audiobook with great male narrators, this is the one! What a sweet, sexy–steamy at times–funny, different romance. I loved the interaction between the guys as they coached Gavin through his floundering marriage–with the help of Regency romance novels and their super secret book club rules. Gavin is a memorable hero. A hunky pro-athlete, he’s also a vulnerable guy with a stutter who will do anything to win back his wife. I can’t wait for the second book in the series!
The Bromance Book Club is a you’re-gonna-burn-dinner book because you will not want to put it down. Laugh out loud with tons of heart, this is an absolutely adorable must read.
Quirky, humorous, and refreshing!
The Bromance Book Club is a lighthearted, charming read that takes us into the life of Gavin Scott, a successful, professional baseball player who after learning his wife wants a divorce decides to do whatever it takes to win her back, including taking advice from his friends, fellow teammates, and the seventh Earl of Latford.
The prose is playful and fun. The characters, including all the supporting characters, are amusing, bawdy, and engaging. And the plot told from alternating POVs is a sweet, flirty tale full of tricky situations, tender moments, hilarious mishaps, friendship, family, miscommunication, self-discovery, determination, and a little steamy, regency romance.
Overall, The Bromance Book Club is an alluring, easy, spicy read by Adams that has characters you can’t help but root for and a storyline that is highly entertaining.
The Bromance Book Club is a Grand Slam for a few reasons:
1. Second chance romance between a married couple! I love the idea that these two are fighting for their marriage after years together (and kids).
2. Group of alpha men reading romance with the purpose of being better for their significant other! If that doesn’t make you swoon, you are dead inside.
3. Genuinely funny! The interactions between the guys is great and there is certainly a lot of levity despite the crumbling marriage.
Gavin, our hero, is a baseball player, which I would imagine is hard on a marriage (so much traveling). I loved that he was willing to do anything necessary to save his marriage. After finding out his wife has been faking her orgasms for years, he doesn’t hesitate to get help from the Bros! That takes courage and humility, which is super sexy. He also has a slight stutter, so when he reads aloud from Courting the Countess to Thea I totally swooned.
Thea, his wife, was a bit underdeveloped in my opinion. She isn’t a bad character or anything, and I liked her, but despite the story being about her marriage, it isn’t really about her. However, I loved that she wasn’t immediately won over by Gavin’s new gestures. She was wary and that felt really natural to me.
The supporting characters are what will make this book a best seller. The guys are funny, charming, and not afraid to go against the modern ideas of toxic masculinity. I can’t wait to get more of their stories!
The story has snippets of the romance the guys are reading and I really thought that was a great touch to the plot. Overall, The Bromance book club will charm you, delight you, and make you believe in love all over again.
In addition to have the ebook and the paperback, I also snagged this book in audio and was not disappointed. The narrator was quite good and I thought the performance really helped make the story come alive.
ARC received via Netgalley for an honest review
Now, we have all read the stories of a woman trying to get her man back, and her friends all helping, right?
Well, this refreshing story from Lyssa Kay Adams is a wonderful role reversal with our guy Gavin desperately trying to win back his woman, with the help of his fellow male friends – and romance books.
Add the fact that they are married with children, it just added a whole other layer to their story.
We are so used to the perfect sports stars with the perfect everything, it endeared me more to Gavin that he has a stutter. When I thought I couldn’t adore him anymore, I learned that and realised I could!
Thea – man at times I just wanted to tell her to wake up and smell the roses and stop chastising Gavin for past mistakes, and see the man who is front of her. I got frustrated at her that she blamed Gavin for everything, when she had been hiding behind fake for so long and never said anything to him.
Oh, and please, do NOT get me started on her sister Liv. I wanted to jump into the book and tell her “why are you still here? Just be quiet for goodness sake”. However, I am looking forward to her story in the next book, and I hope I will like her more.
Gavin’s teammates were funny, wonderful men. They made me laugh, they made me sigh. It was great to see their take on things from the books they are reading to how they are relevant today.
I just really enjoyed The Bromance Book Club, and look forward to more.
Omggggg!! I freaking loved the absolute crap outta this. I laughed throughout the whole entire book. If you’re in need of sexy, romantic, and a laugh-out loud romance, READ THIS! And fast.
Gavin and his wife Thea are on the rocks—worse than on the rocks. She wants a divorce. So what does his best friend and a group of guys do? Well, invite him to their super secret romance book club! Where dudes struggling in relationships read and find guidance on what women want. Let’s face it, this plot and story is genius af. All I want to do is shout from the rooftop on how fun I thought the book was. From start to finish it was a hoot!
Gavin is your next book boyfriend…or husband. Yes, he’s had some minor setbacks on certain areas of his relationship. Mainly one that starts with a big O. But hey, there’s always room for learning haha. And learn he does.
The secondary characters are another reason I adored the story. I know men like this exist out there somewhere, right? Because if not, then that’s such a shame. I enjoyed the Bromance so much. It was just the thing I needed to put me in a good mood!
Serious romance with some hilarious scenes
I didn’t really know what to expect from this book. I knew it was a romantic comedy because of the premise, But I wasn’t sure if the story would be any good aside from the inherent hilarity of a bunch of guys reading and talking about romance novels. To tell the truth, that premise did lead to a few laugh out loud one liners and quotable sections of the book.
However, this was a book about a marriage in trouble with one of the parties Gavin, fighting to keep the marriage, and the other, Thia is past the point where she already gave up on the marriage. Gavin couldn’t take the fact that his wife had been faking the big “O”. His pride was hurt and his insecurities blew up. He didn’t react well to the news and Thea kicked him out and he wants to make his marriage work.
Thea blames him for leaving even though she kicked him out, but that isn’t the only reason she is done with him. So Gavin doesn’t have an easy road ahead of him to convince her to give him another chance. His best friend Del, from his baseball team brings him in on a secret club. Gavin thinks it is a joke at first but soon finds out that he really needs it.
The club gives him a regency romance novel to read where the Hero is in a situation similar to Gavin. The book club also offers him advice on how to win Thea back. The members are famous athletes and political figures from the area. Gavin is reading the novel throughout this book. It is funny to see the comparisons between his situation and the Hero’s from the book. The Bro’s in the club also tell Gavin about how steamy the romance novels can get.
“Gavin decided to catch up on some reading after putting the girls to bed, but holy shit. He had no idea a major sex scene was coming up. And not just any sex scene. This was fucking filthy. Did people actually do that shit back then?
Of course, we did, Lord Jelly Finger responded. Do you really think white, Western civilization invented cunnilingus in the twentieth century?
Whatever. All Gavin knew was that it finally happened.
He got a goddamned book boner.”
One thing I really liked which endeared Gavin to me was the fact that he has a stutter. He wasn’t the standard Sports Hero with all kinds of confidence and cockiness. I guess That was why I liked him so much more than Thea. Plus the fact that she basically blamed him for the fact she was faking it, saying he should have known. But did she ever tell him there was an issue? No she didn’t.
Overall the books was enjoyable and it did have some steamy moments. I will give this one a heat index of 3 out of 5 flames . The story was extremely interesting and I have thought for a long time that if more men read romance novels, us girls would have a lot more O’s than we do and there wouldn’t be so many fake O’s going on.
I voluntarily reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
4.5 stars
The moment I read the synopsis and saw the amazing cover, I knew I needed to read The Bromance Book Club. I fell in love with the idea of a bunch of men forming a secret romance book club in order to better understand women and help their own relationships. I will admit that I was a little worried that the book might not live up to all the hype and buzz, but I can happily say that for me, it was just what I needed and more. The Bromance Book Club is a hilarious and heartfelt romance that had me laughing out loud one moment and clutching my heart the next. The story is told in the 3rd person, but we do get to hear and know the thoughts of both main characters. There’s also a wonderful romance novel called Courting the Countess that runs parallel with the main story, which our hero, Gavin, uses to better understand his wife and himself.
Gavin and Thea’s story of a marriage in crisis is all too relatable. They are so perfectly human. Each making mistakes, struggling to find themselves, and facing hard truths. I may not share the same past histories and experiences as Gavin and Thea, but I think all relationships over time face challenges. I found myself contemplating my own marriage throughout the book and the give and take that occurs to make a relationship thrive. How sometimes you have to “open a vein” and lay yourself bare to come out stronger on the other side. The message of loving someone for their whole self and not despite their faults, was so powerful. I loved how Gavin and Thea both grew and matured individually through the course of the book and that in the process, their marriage did as well. One thing I found really refreshing was that Gavin was not the typical over the top alpha romance hero. He stutters, has insecurities, and he is all in for Thea and their daughters from page 1. All these things only endeared him to me more.
This review wouldn’t be complete if I didn’t mention the actual bromance book club. I loved the inspiration and purpose of the club, as well as the diversity of the members and how they each had their own insights into the “manuals”. I thought the secondary characters were just as wonderful as Gavin and Thea. Mack was especially hilarious and provided wonderful comic relief for some of the heavier moments. I’m excited to hear that his book will be next, especially after his awkward meet cute with Thea’s sister, Liv. Speaking of Liv, as a little sister myself, I can completely relate to the fierce protectiveness and unapologetic support she gave to Thea (even when it wasn’t necessary). I know her behavior may rub some readers the wrong way, but I believe her heart was always in the right place.
The Bromance Book Club is a fantastic read from start to finish and I’m already counting the days until Mack’s book!
*I voluntarily read an advance review copy of this book*