Bankrupt Love

Wishing Springs Romances #1

by C.L. Rain

She had it all...until she had to trade in her designer bags for catering chaos.

Harper Francis had it all—a glamorous PR career, billionaire fiancé, and impeccable style worthy of a magazine cover. Her life was as perfectly curated as her walk-in closet. But when word of her fiancé’s financial misdeeds goes viral, Harper’s perfect life crumbles faster than a pair of cheap heels.

With creditors hounding her every step and her reputation in shreds, a desperate Harper decides to flee the paparazzi and the penalties. As she passes through the quaint town of Wishing Springs, her flight gets grounded when a parking mishap lands her in community service under Mark Boone, a gruff caterer she once snubbed who sees payback in her predicament.

Stuck as Mark’s assistant, prim Harper has to trade pearls for pots as she tries mastering catering chaos. Worse, as they work closely planning events, Harper discovers Mark’s gruff facade hides talents that stir more than culinary magic.

When her scandal-struck ex comes courting with a tempting offer, Harper must make a choice. Returning to her old life of wealth and luxury may cost her everything.

Genres: Romance, Ebooks, Contemporary Romance, Contemporary, Fiction, Enemies To Lovers

254 pages, Kindle Edition

Published August 16, 2023

Reviews

[Maritsa Daumer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Arrested for eating chicken 😅

I almost didn't finish this one lol the start was very, odd.. imagine getting arrested for eating chicken in public, 😅 she gets sentenced to community service at a diner where she falls inlove with the owner I felt like it jumped from topic to topic and not enough detail description for me, I kept hoping that the chicken thing had been a joke but nope 😅

[Maven_Reads · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bankrupt Love by C.L. Rain Review

Bankrupt Love by C.L. Rain is a quirky, small‑town contemporary romance and the first book in the Wishing Springs Romances series, built around a classic enemies‑to‑lovers arc with a “riches to rags and back” twist. The story follows Harper Francis, a glamorous PR executive whose polished life, including a billionaire fiancé and designer wardrobe comes crashing down when her partner’s financial scandal explodes in the media and her world collapses around her. Fleeing the paparazzi, she ends up in the quaint town of Wishing Springs where a parking mishap leads to community service working for Mark Boone, a gruff caterer she once snubbed. Forced to trade her pearls for pots and pans, Harper stumbles through catering chaos, gradually discovering that Mark’s crusty exterior hides a tender heart and that her former life of luxury might not be everything she once believed.

Once I stepped into the story, I found the basic emotional skeleton of Harper’s personal journey from privilege to humility and toward a slower, more grounded life was an intriguing setup that could have lent real depth to the romance. On the page, the chemistry between Harper and Mark carries moments of charm, especially as they bump through catering disasters and awkward small‑town rituals, and I appreciated the seaside setting of Wishing Springs, which gives the story a cozy backdrop of local color and community feel.

If you enjoy quick, light‑hearted romances where a city girl clashes with an earnest small‑town guy and finds unexpected warmth along the way, there’s a sweetness here that can feel like a breezy escape, even if it doesn’t settle into something richly textured.

Rating: 3 out of 5
Because the irresistible fish‑out‑of‑water premise and potential for heartfelt growth were charming, even if the execution and character depth held it back from being truly memorable.

[Bri Riley · Rating 2 out of 5]

Quick read, it only took me a few hours but it was ridiculously ridiculous. It also jumped around a lot and left many loose ends. The progression of the story is also strange. Overall, a cute idea for a book but unfinished.

[Candice · Rating 1 out of 5]

Super quick read but was it worth it? NO!

I expected so much more from this book tbh. I downloaded it for SYKD and expected it to be a comedy/romance. It was BARELY a romance. Not at all funny and felt almost immature. When the two girls who are after Mark challenge each other in a swimming race, I almost lost it! These are grown adult woman and they’re racing each other because of jealousy?

Almost DNFed but im no quitter!

250 pages of my life I wont get back.

[Lindsay · Rating 1 out of 5]

Potential

I like the premise of the book, but I struggled to understand a timeline and needed more interpersonal relationship development. Everything seemed rushed and more surface level. We had our female lead have a life of luxury and successful career, be stripped away and she moves on at super sonic speed with only minor internal strife. Again, I like the idea of this book, but it needed about 250 more pages to give it the depth of characters and relationships, as well as a more thorough detailing of time.

[Jessica Schmidt · Rating 2 out of 5]

Huh?

I almost didn't finish this.
I didn't like the female main character. She was whiney, rude and didn't learn to let go but in an annoying way. The story was quite discombobulated, and there's a lot missing.

It was just hard to like.

[Rebecca Freel · Rating 1 out of 5]

not sure why I bothered to finish this book

I had hopes for a cute little room com. I was disappointed bc there was a lot of potential. This book was so predictable & seemed like the author just picked phrases & used them to death. At one point I thought missed a chapter bc the plot skipped so much.

[hannah · Rating 1 out of 5]

oh wow. that was just so bad. needed extensive proof reading and an entirely new plot.

[Becca · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a quick read, and honestly I'm not sure why I kept reading it - it was more than just slightly ridiculous. I did laugh a few times at just the absolute absurdity of the book (though I'll be honest - I was really hoping all of the chicken stuff was just an utter joke, but alas..). The progression is pretty strange, and there are a lot of loose ends that never get tied up. May be worth it for the funny points - but overall not worth the read in my opinion.

[Wolf (Alpha) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was such a cute story! I love how the characters started out and not liking each other at all, and how it slowly blossomed into a very true love. I love how it showed a woman of higher ranking lose all that she had, and end up working for a catering company. I love that she accepted it and made that catering company very successful. I loved how her and our male main character reacted to exes that tried to ruin their future. This book was not rushed whatsoever, but was also not too slow. I would definitely reread this at some point in time. I would recommend this book to anybody who loves a cute romance.

[elika lor. · Rating 2 out of 5]

Slight Spoilers

I literally feel like this emoji after reading this book🧍‍♂️

what did I just read. The only reason I finished it and gave it more than one star is because one, I refuse to DNF. And two, the writing was so bad it was good and everything was just…. so unexpected and odd LOL. It kept me entertained but I also couldn’t understand what was happening?!?!? I also wanted to know what happened to Mark and Harper at the end lol. I did enjoy them, but the writing itself most of the time and just the plot made me feel like I was watching one of those millennial tiktok compilations.

At first this book felt like a joke because…. GETTING ARRESTED FOR EATING CHICKEN OUTSIDE??? hell nah I can’t do it yall😂that’s literally at the beginning it’s how the entire rest of the book plot happens

also all of the dialogue had me DYING like no one TALKS LIKE THIS IRL like…. “no mere mortal could conquer such an impossible feat” HELLO??? WHY ARE THEY TALKING LIKE THAT THEYRE NORMAL HUMANS

I also felt that there were a small handful points in the book that I did not understand. Like certain parts where someone does something or is someone and apparently they’ve been that or done that this entire time and I just happened to miss it somehow??

And how Mark kept being secretive and not telling Harper his reasoning for not wanting to expand his business like JUST SAY IT DUDE omg and it just ended up being smth relating to his family😭😭like cmon ur not special suck it up

Also….. the word “genteelly” was used. genteelly. I had to look it up because I was like wtf did Rain just mean to write gently and IT LITERALLY COULDVE BEEN GENTLY IN THIS CONTEXT but apparently genteelly is a word yall am i dumb or did others not know this😭

One last thing; they had their first kiss, said “I love you” for the first time, and got ENGAGED all within THE SAME MINUTE. I WAS QUITE LITERALLY FLABBERGASTED THAT DOES NOT JUST HAPPEN

Anyway I know it sounds like I hated it (it’s close) but I don’t hate it. Like I said at the beginning, the writing was so fucking odd it kept me on my toes lmao. And at least Harper and Mark are happy LOL (Isaac was cool too lmao)

⋆｡ ﾟ☼ ｡ ⋆｡ ﾟ☾ ﾟ｡ ⋆

“Look at us. Suspended between heaven and Earth.” (Harper)

[LaRae Galloway · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nothing was going right for Harper! I felt so bad for her. Then Mark and her clashed all the time which was pretty funny! Very interesting to see how she got Mark to use her ideas. Really fun, entertaining book!

[Caitlin Griese · Rating 2 out of 5]

I don't have enough time to break down all the issues with this book. Really the only reason why I kept reading it was because it was short and it kept moving right along. I'm not a Hallmark movie person but this is what I imagine a Hallmark movie would look like. Big city girl who has it all ends up falling in love with a small town man who shows her the true meaning of love and fulfillment.

Here are some of the more ridiculous issues of the book. First and foremost, the chicken law. They want us to believe that firstly there is a law about eating chicken in public and that it would also lead to an arrest that would keep you in jail over night. Second I'm confused about the geography. Harper is from New York City. As far as I can tell, Mark catered an event for her in New York city, but then she ended up in Wishing Springs which the author keeps saying is in the south because of the way they speak and because of that "southern hospitality." Ridiculous plot point number three, getting locked in the wine cave. An employee took them down there. They don't just leave you there and not check everything before locking up for the night. Ridiculous plot point number four, the first grand speech. The author wants us to believe that at a charity auction they are going to accept a heart felt speech over cold hard cash. And I'm sorry, they kept having this battle between Gina and Harper. If they really need to fight to win Mark, she can have him. Because if he's too dumb to see what a toxic nasty person Gina is, why does Harper want to be with him? Ridiculous plot point number five, the second grand speech. Well if Harper made a speech I guess Mark has to make one too. But he's got to take it up a notch and turn it into a proposal for a woman who he has known for a few weeks. Then in the epilogue they are getting married some months later. So met, engaged, and married within the year. Ridiculous plot point number six, I'm not sure how long it takes an unemployed person to work off 100 of community service. A normal work week is 40 hours. Harper is there for weeks getting room and board for free and I guess getting some tips. There's no mention of exactly how long she's there or how she has clothes, little spending money, etc. The timeline and necessities are confusing.

The writing wasn't anything particularly good. I do wonder if it is on purpose. The marketing made it sound more like a rom-com, but it missed the mark. It's light and fluffy and an easy read but it's not what I was sold. It was very surface level, ridiculous, doesn't make sense at times, and the villains were cartoonish. I doubt I'll read anything else by this author unless somebody recommends it to me.

Ridiculous Hallmark book. Harper Francis is at the top of her game. She's a successful marketing boss who hosts lavish parties. We meet her as she's hosting her best friend's bachelorette party. She wants to give her friend the best party ever, but let's be honest this is about showing off for Harper. She's got the job, the rich fiance, the luxury apartment, and the looks. While she's throwing the bash she's approached by a disgruntled caterer who says he hasn't received the fifty percent deposit he was owed before the party started. She waves him off and tell him she'll pay up later and this isn't her problem right now. He leaves in a huff and she continues on her merry way. Everything comes crashing down a week later when it's discovered her fiance Bron has been linked to shady business dealings and all his assets, and hers by connection have been frozen while the fraud investigation is going on. With no way to pay her bills Harper flees Manhattan and stops Wishing Springs just to collect her thoughts and get a bite to eat. She gets her fried chicken to go and eats on a bench by the fountain. But she is arrested because apparently it is against the law to eat chicken in public. She is taken to jail and sees the judge the next morning where she is sentenced to 100 hours of community service. She tells the judge she's not from there and has nowhere to stay and no idea where to serve her hours. Local restaurant owner Mark pipes up from the back of the court room and says she can work for him. He's short staffed after being stiffed for his last catering gig for a bachelorette party. That's when Harper connects the dots. This guy is the same disgruntled carter from a week ago. Soon she is having to dice onions in her designer clothes. While working in the kitchen Mark's mom offers Harper a place to stay since she has nowhere to go; much to Mark's chagrin. So over the next several weeks Harper learns about the town, Mark, and the meaning behind hard work. She starts to soften her edges and opens her eyes to what small town life can be. Mark starts to see the softer side of Harper and starts to take it easier on her. Then it becomes undeniable that an attraction is blossoming. Just in time for the ex-wife to show up. Like a wrecking ball immature label chasing Gina Boone rolls back into town after seeing the magazine expose Harper helped the restaurant get. She is trying ever tactic to get back into Mark's life. They even end up in a swimming competition. Harper wins that because it turns out she was a state swimmer. Then there is the bachelor auction. Harper doesn't have a dollar to her name so when Gina outbids her by a mile, Harper instead gives a heartfelt speech about how much she cares about Mark and the town. The auctioneer and townsfolk are so moved by her speech that she wins the bid and gets to take Mark out on a date to the fair. They have a lovely time doing all the stereotypical fair events. But Gina isn't done yet. She gives it one last go when Harper's ex-fiance rolls into town. They try to convince the town mayor, and Mark's aunt, to turn the small town into a tourist destination. Then Bron dangles her old life plus more in front of her. Harper is slightly tempted but she knows she'd never really take it. Before she can say as much now it's Mark's turn to make a heartfelt speech where he ends up proposing to Harper and she accepts. Gina and Bron storm out in defeat. The epilogue ends on their wedding day. Her mom and three best friends fly in and are so happy for her. The day flies by in a swirl of happiness and love. Mark and Harper drive off into the sunset in the catering van.

[Daniella Ivette · Rating 1 out of 5]

Avoid it, if you can...

I almost DNF this book, but since it was free, I gave it a shot. Now I need Clorox for both my eyes and brain.

So we have Harper (posh rich biatch extraordinaire) who acts all uppity with the hired help (namely Mark, the poor, working class cook). Her bf (the actual moneybags)'s fortune is frozen, and she's now poor (not much of savings, I guess - did HE manage all their cash?). So she goes to slum it to some poorer town, and gets arrested for eating chicken (what kind of non-sense charge is that?!)

After getting her a$$ handed to her in a "how the other half lives" bunch of episodes, our girl gets the guy after some conflict with the stereotypical villain of an ex gf (as shallow as a kids' pool), they make up, and live happily ever after. Or something.

Flat characters, flat romance, flat....everything. I need some better reading material to forget this one. At least it was free (small blessings) and quick to read.

[Katie Stowe · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wanted so badly to like this book -- it's quirky, it's cheesy, super unrealistic, but still fun. But, I simply didn't. In fact, I almost DNFd it. I found the characters shallow, phrases overused, and details misplaced. There was no depth to the story and an awkward, choppy timeline. I felt like the story was being told from an outside-looking-in perspective, like the person telling the story didn't know the characters. It could have had a great plot if scenes were rearranged, details were consistent, and some *umph* was given. Again, I wanted to like it; it just fell flat for me.

There was one part of the plot that I really loved, namely the one heartfelt speech (*no spoilers* but readers of the book will know what I'm talking about) and the little twist on that. It was a really cute idea.

Favorite quote, simple and sweet: "You are my happiness."

[Pascale’s*ARC,Unwind,Read,Review · Rating 2 out of 5]

I somehow ended up with a bunch of books from this author, not sure how or why. Her vocabulary is quite good for her writing style just isn’t for me. I wasn’t able to record one of her other books on here as it doesn’t seem to have been published but was probably just for subscribers or somehow was free if I read another of her books. It was a disaster. A university that trains hit men and women and it’s just a job, no emotion, no reaction, just high-fiving each other when they “offed” someone. I found it quite disturbing and not funny at all, which was obviously the intent. This book has some potential but I found it very boring and I didn’t like the plot. I have no intention of reading any more of her work and ended up not finishing any of her books. I do not recommend.

[Kristin Zumar · Rating 1 out of 5]

I really wanted to like this book, I think the story line was cute. Unfortunately there were conflicting details in the story and references to things that had not occurred in the book were prevalent. Chapters ended in what I would considered an unfinished manner without follow up or closure in future chapters. I found myself re-reading chapters only to confirm the conflicting information I saw was, in fact, there. The timing of events throughout the book is vague. I also felt that adjectives were over-used and were added to fill space. Character development was lacking and it became hard to relate to them. I forced myself to finish the book even though the ending was going to be obvious.

[K D · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read this book because it was $0 and it qualified for one of the Amazon Kindle reading challenges. A first book for a supposed customer favorite series....
This didn't work for me and it was slow going. I switched books mid steam just to see if it was me or the book. It was the book.
The book is full of continuity errors. One sentence she's serving champagne as a caterer and two sentences late she's... Eating dinner at the table? I feel it needed some editing. Not spelling and grammar thankfully but the flow of the story.
It just didn't flow but presented distracting potholes instead.

[Lauren Barnes · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bankrupt Love by C.L. Rain is a quick Hallmark-y read. Books are so subjective and my opinions may differ from others. I really struggled to read and enjoy Bankrupt Love mainly because of the FMC. Her personality and general character traits made her unlikable to me. I am not going to go into further specifics as they’d be spoilers. I read the entire book start to finish rather quickly in hopes that there would be a development or something that would make me have a clearer understanding but I didn’t have that moment. This could be an amazing book for someone who loves hallmark movies or what I would consider a rather girly chick-flick book. I simply did not enjoy it for me.

[Madyn Rose · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked the plot. The idea of riches to rags is always appealing. In this case, Harper is our upper-crust spoiled socialite with a PR firm that caters to the ultra-wealthy. Until her scandalous fiancée is arrested for money laundering, she is ousted from her elite circle faster than a New York minute. She finds herself with no money, no friends, and the career she had built gone all in a split second. Harper has no choice but to flee.
This book sounded super cute, and the town antics were fabulous, but I hated Harper. I had difficulty connecting with her story ARC. I found her character spoiled, annoying & immature. I wish her ARC came a bit sooner.

[Liz D · Rating 2 out of 5]

🌶🌶 – totally closed door, if that’s your thing!

This one just didn’t work for me. Harper, the MFC, came across more immature than endearing—her reactions and behavior felt a bit too teenage-drama for my taste. And Mark, the MMC, barely felt present in the story. His role didn’t feel active or connected, which made the romance fall flat.

Another big issue for me was the lack of flow. Chapters would abruptly jump between scenes or timelines without any smooth transitions, leaving me a little lost and disconnected.

If you’re looking for a super light, clean romance, this might work better for you—but it wasn’t a hit for me.

[Mariah Lane · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a cute young adult book about a woman named Harper. When she loses everything, thanks to her careless fiance she has decided to leave the life she knew. She ends up in a small town called Wishing Springs and after a mishap she has to assist in a catering business. This was an easy read that went by fast. My only problem is when some chapters ended on an important part that needed to get addressed after it happened, showed up either the following day or a couple days after. That just took the real life aspect out of it for me.

[Annette · Rating 1 out of 5]

I gave up at Chapter 17. I like the male character, he was humble and comes across as a really nice guy but he needs a little bit more backbone. I didn't warm up to the female character at all, at first she was too snobbish, when her high and mighty self got a wake-up call, I was excited. She had a perfect chance to redeem herself yet she continued to be disrespectful about what Mark wanted for his business versus what she thought he needed, train wreck waiting to happen I just wasn't interested enough to continue this ride.

[Brittany Kollenberg · Rating 3 out of 5]

I feel so bad for having to give this book low ratings.!8; give it 2.5⭐️ so I rounded up to 3. I did not like Harper, didn’t really know Mark well enough to judge him. I found myself saying wtf several times during g this book. First and foremost when she got arrested for eating fried chicken. Harper was annoying when she was constantly talking about getting Mark to expand his business. Finally they got engaged before even officially saying I love you or even kissing. Not really a fan of this boom unfortunately.

[Mad Rose · Rating 2 out of 5]

You can't just be disrespectful about people and their way of life. The book started off funny enough with me hoping Harper would learn and grow, but not once did she apologize to poor Mark. I'm southern born and bred so the antics in this book really turned me off to it. People need to quit with their preconceived notions of how things ought to be and acting like their way of life is the only way. How about y'all step outside and breathe in the fresh air while leaving your micro bubble of comfort? Did not finish, could not finish, would not finish if you asked me.

[PollyAnna Joy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Harper and Mark

Sometimes something bad happens to bring something good. It's hilarious to me that Harper never once discusses how long it would take (did take) for her to complete her one hundred hours of community service. I would think that, at least at the start of her community service, that she would have made a lot of noise about the number of hours as a way to buy g Mark. Lol. All in all, Harper and Mark made an adorable couple.

[Willow McPeak · Rating 2 out of 5]

Wasn’t a big fan - overall I think the story in itself was good and could’ve been better. I did feel like this story jumped all over the place and also was just kinda odd and almost felt like it was being pushed in your face that it was southern?

I almost didn’t finish it but wanted to stick it through - once you’re 60% in the book it does start to develop more personalities to the characters and stories but then again everything felt so rushed.

[Kevlyn McIntosh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute

A fun, heartfelt small-town romance! Harper Francis goes from glam PR queen to community service assistant after her perfect life implodes, and sparks fly with Mark Boone—the gruff caterer she once snubbed. Their banter and chemistry kept me hooked, and I loved Harper’s journey toward authenticity. A little more depth in her transformation would’ve made it a 5-star, but still a charming, witty, and romantic read

[Naiomi · Rating 2 out of 5]

I went into this expecting a cliché romance and hoped it might still surprise me, but it didn’t. The MMC was introduced way too quickly, and the dialogue felt overly formal and cringy at times. There were a lot of plot holes and unexplained time jumps that made the story confusing rather than engaging. It’s a very quick read, which is a plus, but the pacing and structure need work. The book has potential, but it really needs stronger editing to be enjoyable.

[Leigh Dittman · Rating 2 out of 5]

1.5 stars

I really debated on finishing this book or not. The premise had potential but the execution was lacking. Characters were often flat and inconsistent. The story felt very unbalanced and the pacing was odd. There’s a lot of immaturity in both the narration and characters (grown women having a swim race to prove who’s better?). At least it was easy overall.