The Revenge Mishap

The Revenge Club #2

by Jax Calder

Rule #2 of Revenge Club: Don’t fall for your target’s brother.

LEO
I'm Leo Brennan. Tech consultant. Negotiator of billion-dollar deals. Master of the corporate death stare.

And I’m currently wearing a sparkly pink unicorn onesie with a light-up horn while screaming “I believe in magic!” at a roomful of sugar-crazed six-year-olds.

How did I get here? I tried to get revenge on my nemesis with a syrup-related “accident” at a restaurant. Except, I hit his lookalike brother instead. On his birthday. And broke his ankle.

Now I'm making amends by playing nursemaid to him and helping him out with his jobs, which includes dog walking and becoming Sparkle McHornface, the sidekick to a children's entertainer called Captain Giggles.

The worst part? I'm starting to actually like the guy. And he has no idea the real reason why he’s on crutches.

ARCHIE
Oh, I definitely know.

The handsome stranger who “accidentally” baptized me in maple syrup thinks he's so subtle. But I've figured out his connection to my estranged brother, and I also know something else.

Guilt is a powerful motivator.

And watching this grumpy tech millionaire wrestle with drooling dogs and declare himself a “pretty, pretty unicorn” to a room full of six-year-olds? That's entertainment I can't pass up.

But somewhere between his disastrous balloon animals and surprisingly tender moments, something else is going on. I'm falling for the real Leo behind the corporate armor.

Which is dangerous because I’m currently hiding my own secrets.

And the last thing I need is someone unraveling them.

The Revenge Mishap is what happens when revenge goes sideways, grumpy meets sunshine, and two men discover that sometimes the messiest mistakes lead to the sweetest love.

Genres: M M Romance, Romance, Contemporary, Forced Proximity, Grumpy Sunshine, LGBT, Queer

432 pages, Kindle Edition

First published May 8, 2026

About the author

Jax's stories are all about light-hearted conversations and deeply-felt connections. She loves exploring exactly why two characters are the only ones who’ll make the other truly happy, and the journey they take to reach their happily-ever-after.

Jax lives in New Zealand and is a rabid sports fan, a hiking enthusiast and has a slightly unhealthy addiction to nature documentaries. As an extrovert who spends way too much time in her own head, she loves to connect with readers. To read her exclusive novella Being Set Up, sign up to her newsletter: https://jaxcalder.com/newsletter-sign.... You can also join her Facebook group Jax's Crew (www.facebook.com/groups/jaxcaldercrew) for bonus stories plus exclusive excerpts from her upcoming books.

Reviews

[Snjez]

This was a lovely story. It was also silly and too OTT at times, but I had a lot of fun reading it and it even made me tear up. Not once, but three times!

I loved Leo and Archie as characters. Loved the mystery surrounding Archie in the beginning. Their relationship didn't develop in a way I'd prefer, but I think it fit the storyline. I just loved all the banter and sweet moments between them, so the rest didn't bother me too much in the end.

I don't know how the author does it, but she makes me root for romance in situations that I would normally find unforgivable. Book 3 will be another case of me thinking 'there's no way I'd fall for someone who did that to me'. So yeah, can't wait for that one! 😅

[Chelsea]

Your honour, I fucking loved them.



Probably even more than book 1.
They were endearingly cringey.
I love the way they banter.
I love their silly jokes.
I love Archie being OTT, but also brilliant.
I love to see a serious man embarrass himself.

As much as I understand that there was way too many kids parties in this, I was eating up any character development between Leo and Archie like a starving man.

AND I LOVE ME A CHANGING ROOM ROMP.
oooooooooooooooooooooft.
(and soft hand holding moments)

[Pauline]

This was just the right read for this WEATHER FROM HELL, where you can’t concentrate on anything substantial and just need some light, entertaining escapism. So this hit the spot!

I giggled so much at these two guys and their antics. They’re silly and ridiculous but everything about them worked so well for me and my current state of mind 🫠
The banter! The flirting! The ‚antagonistic‘ games! Their mischief! Their smiles and sexual tension and actual conversations - it all gave me such a mood boost (and believe me, I needed that)!

But beneath all the fun and silliness were two genuinely three-dimensional, contrasting characters who had me intrigued right from the start. Archie, especially, was hiding real depth and some intriguing secrets beneath all that sunshiney chaos, while Leo was an utterly lovable grump. The fact that they were both hiding something made them feel more balanced!

Their chemistry was delightful and had me giddy and when Jax added some sprinkles of my fav tropes (fake dating and ‚only one bed‘) into the mix I couldn’t stop kicking my feet 🥰
Also: could this be the hottest Jax Calder yet?!

Had a great time and I’m very much excited for Gus’ story now! 💕

4,5⭐️

[~ Dαni(ela) ♥ ♂♂ & semicolons ~]

~2.75~

There were at least 100 pages here that could have been deleted. How many times can we read about Captain Giggles, Sparkle McHornface, Snugglesaurus, and their accompanying antics?

I got to 41% before realizing there had been no plot progression beyond the setup of the story: In an attempt to get revenge on Vaughn, a former colleague who stole his tech-genius idea, Leo accidentally hurts Vaughn's younger brother, Archie. It's a whole thing, and Archie ends up on crutches, with Leo as his whipping boy.

The antics at the kids' parties were funny, if juvenile, and I laughed out loud several times. But there was only so much of this I could take before boredom set in.

Fortunately, Archies's godmother, Elizabeth, showed up, which led to the men confronting their feelings, at least temporarily, before they both decided that acting like idiots was the way to go.

Vaughn returned as the supposed hero, but let's be real, nothing justifies stealing other people's ideas and cutting off your baby bro because your itty-bitty feelings were hurt. Vaughn was an immature, jealous asshole and did not deserve the redemption arc he got.

Spoilerish rant about Vaughn: Instead of reaching out to Archie after giving Archie the cold shoulder for a year for no reason except spite and envy, Vaughn sets up a fake meeting with Leo because he saw Leo in one picture with Archie on Instagram. That seems like way too much effort for a self-serving weasel like Vaughn.

And how did Leo not insist on knowing the details of the meeting? That's not how the consultancy business works. Surely, he would have needed to prepare? Plus, wouldn't Vaughn have been suspicious about being recorded? Leo was apparently so smooth with his recording app, Vaughn never noticed. Riiight ... 🙄

Vaughn didn't make amends with his brother of his own accord; he did it so the recording would be deleted. What's noble about that?

Why didn't Leo and Vaughn just talk to Archie (separately or together) like the grownass men they were? A conversation was really needed here, but nope, apparently it's easier to lie, pretend, and run away to America.

The entire situation just felt contrived.

Oh, and let's not forget that Leo and Archie's relationship was essentially built on deceit; they were lying to each other the entire time. They talked it out briefly in the last chapter, but it was too easy by far.

Even though there were some truly adorable moments in the story (the initial restaurant/ER fiasco, Leo's first attempt at dog walking, Leo & Archie's visit to the museum with Elizabeth, Archie rocking trivia night), I couldn't justify fully cheering for these MCs, and my rating reflects that.

[Sarah]

Never did I ever imagine myself reading a romance with MC’s going by the names of Captain Giggles, Sparkle McHornface and Snugglesaurus. Meeting Destroyer the Dildo definitely felt like more familiar ground for me 🤭.

This was a silly rom-com style book with just a few too many kids birthday parties for me to entirely love it but I still enjoyed Archie and Leo’s antics.

I have fallen tragically behind on reviews so keeping this short and sweet. I had a good time and I’m interested in the catfishing story of Gus coming next.

A book club book success!

[Carol [Goodreads Addict]]

The Revenge Mishap is book two in The Revenge Club series by Jax Calder. You know, sometimes you find “that” author that just hits the mark for you every single time. It’s the perfect combination of humor, swoony romance and steam. I have found that in Jax Calder’s books which keeps me coming back, book after book!



Leo Brennan is thirty years old. We met him in book one, The Revenge Game, as Andrew’s best friend. Leo is a very wealthy tech consultant. When Leo is at a business dinner at a novelty restaurant in London, he’s convinced he sees the man who wronged him eight years ago when he was just a naive, young, trusting new employee. But his quickly thought up revenge plan goes horribly wrong and the man who it turns out is NOT his enemy, but the younger brother of his enemy, ends up with a broken ankle!

Archie Mansley is twenty three years old. He is working hard to get his children’s entertainer business and his dog walking business off the ground. He’s with his friends on his birthday at the restaurant when he is very inconveniently attacked by maple syrup which leads to a whole bunch of things that go wrong. His birthday ended up with a visit to the hospital and a broken ankle. How will he keep his dog walking business and entertainer business going? Thankfully, the man responsible for all of this feels guilty. Archie isn’t above using that guilt to his benefit and recruits Leo to help him out with his businesses.



Not only is Leo helping Archie out, they end up as roommates since Archie needs help around the house. As they spend time together, Archie starts to see little glimpses of a different Leo. At the man who will do anything, no matter how embarrassing, to make the kids happy at the parties. At the man who takes the dogs safety and well being to heart while walking the dogs for Archie. At the man who is slowly letting down his guard, smiling more, laughing even. And in return, Archie is little by little, revealing himself to Leo.



Both of these men have secrets. Both have family issues. And both have walls up. Leo is supposed to just be helping Archie during his recovery. But as each day passes, the idea of leaving becomes more difficult.



This book is over four hundred pages. I did feel a little lull in the middle which is probably normal for this long of a book. But, the wait was worth it for the super sweet, swoony ending. I really did enjoy this so much. These two were perfect for each other. At the end, there is a hint as to who the next book will focus on. I can’t wait to read it.

[martina (the life of a chaotic reader)]

let’s face it, jax calder’s worst is probably some author’s best.

this is not her best work at all. it started off strong (as usual), but as it sometimes happens with her full length novels, the middle dragged.
and it dragged a lot. we should’ve cut at least 100 pages from that middle. there are only so many kids parties that can be entertaining.
so, by that point i was ready to (very painfully) rate this three stars, but jax is the best at the big reunion and make up.
i almost cried and it bumped the entire thing up to 4 stars, sue me.

something that i really don’t understand is why jax only has two modes: novella or too long for a rom-com.
i fear i will live with this question for the rest of my life.

am i excited for the following one?
not really, tbh. i don’t think i could sympathize with a catfisher, but it’s jax, so i’ll give it a chance.

[Jackbees]

Absolutely Wonderful! This was so fun. The banter and the antagonising that goes on here is so well done and so satisfying. I don’t even hate this cover for a change. This and its predecessor “The Revenge Game” are both excellent and I thoroughly recommend.

*I had to deduct 1 star because there was a discussion of whether pineapple belongs on pizza and I am very much over anyone thinking that is funny, which brought this down from its original 6 stars 😉.

[Gaby]

“Because you make me laugh and you drive me insane, and I don’t know which one I like more.”

This was such a fun and lovely book. It starts with complete chaos, which NGL gave me a bit of anxiety, and then it just went uphill from there.

Leo and Archie were perfect for each other; their banter and chemistry were off the charts. I liked how well-matched they were. Both of them keeping a secret from each other definitely made the whole dynamic seem more balanced for me.

The kids' parties were surprisingly funny, and I loved seeing them flirt and have fun while wearing ridiculous costumes.

“Do you want some syrup?” he recovers to ask. “Thank you. How refreshing to have maple syrup offered to me in a controlled, consensual manner.”

[Kati *☆･ﾟ]

4**** stars


First: I liked this book wayyy better than the first one in the series and if you ask me, there is no reason not to read this one as a standalone. No prior knowledge is necessary even if the characters and storyline for book one are referenced here and there.

Second: I admit I basically skipped all the birthday parties. Kids’ parties are too real life for me to enjoy reading about and I had absolutely no interest in seeing Leo making himself a clown alongside Archie in either a unicorn onsie or an inflatable dinosaur costume. No thanks.

Third: I was very much intrigued by the story around the brothers Archie and Vaughn as well as the historical beef Leo had with Vaughn that triggered The Revenge Mishap in the first place.

Fourth: I very much liked the romance between Archie and Leo. I loved their banter and their tender moments. And not to spoiler anything but damn I’m a sucker for one MC masturbating and the other one getting totally wild watching it. *sorry not sorry for telling you this


Five: I am crazy excited for Gus’ book next. A guy who got catfished? Can’t wait.


***************
The Revenge Club

Book 0.5 - Hired by the Enemy - 4.25 stars
Book 1 - The Revenge Game - 3.0 stars
Book 2 - The Revenge Mishap - 4.0 stars
Book 3 - The Revenge Scheme - release 05/27

[Sjoukje]

Bought the book in advance off her website over a month ago because I was sure I’d wanted to read this book as early as possible. It was just delivered yesterday evening and I downloaded it instantly. And that was a good decision. I love it!!

I just had to finish it right away and it even made me miss my tram because it had one more chapter than I expected and I guess that made the time disappear faster than it should.
Now I’m in said tram getting motion sickness because I need to share with you how much I loved reading this book (and apparently typing and tramming is something that shouldn’t be combined).

Anyway: Jax Calder is the absolute queen of hilarious mm romcoms. This book is even better than all earlier books. And I already loved all of those.

Leo is perfect! He’s a bit stiff, horrible background, enough reasons to be a mess, but also very much not a mess. And Archie is just the best. A bit evil but so sweet at the same time.

The way they meet and the things that follow them are ridiculous. The whole Elisabeth storyline is only possible in books (because come on, why on earth would you fake a relationship for a visiting godmother in real life?) However it was the perfect way to get the story where it needs to go.

I did not get the connection between Gus and Vaughn, that was a bit weird and didn’t get explained well enough for me. That’s literally the only thing I didn’t like about this book.

What I thought was really amazing was how much I enjoyed the whole mortification aspect of it. Normally I get a lot of vicarious shame when reading things like this (even more on television btw). And here I couldn’t get enough of it. I’d love to see the movie adaptation of this book actually 🤩

Anyway: five stars, will reread and recommend very much!!

[Elisa Glendenning]

3.75 🦄 Stars ✨

Revenge is a dish best not served with maple syrup 😅

23 yo Child Entertainer, Archie vs. 30 yo Tech Consultant, Leo
Grumpy/Sunshine
7 year age gap
Forced proximity
Fake Dating

Overall, I enjoyed this. Despite some niggles with pacing, it was well written. The MC’s had terrific chemistry and it was ridiculously funny at times, but it didn’t affect me emotionally quite as much as book #1.

Leo Brennan, gets more than he bargained for when an attempt to get revenge on his nemesis, Vaughn Mansley, goes spectacularly awry. Not only is his aim mistakenly directed at Archie (Vaughan’s brother), Archie consequently ends up with a broken ankle and requires alternative accommodation, a live-in nursemaid, personal dog walker and sidekick for his childhood entertainment shows. Consumed with guilt, Leo steps up.

I love how quickly Archie realised it was no accident and turned the tables, ensuring a fair amount of humiliation on Leo’s behalf 😅. The subsequent orchestrations and mutual retaliation pranks had me laughing out loud. Whilst I think JC could have toned it down just a tad, Leo was thankfully a willing participant and a worthy adversary who gave as good as he got. Yet, I will say that Archie’s deflections and subsequent conniving occasionally made me uncomfortable. He’s hard work that’s all I’ll say 😅

However, sparks fly when these two get together. Their banter was top notch. The emotional intimacy in one particular scene was chefs kiss supreme 🫠🫠

I had a few issues with broken bone logistics, and the fake dating that Archie contrived out of the blue, but I ignored the first and warmed up to the latter 😂

Stop looking at me like that,” I say. “Like what?” “Like you’re taking notes.” “I’m always taking notes.” “Well, stop it. This is sex, not a board meeting.” “My board meetings are nothing like this.” “I should hope not.” I sink down on him, and we both groan. “Although it would certainly liven up the quarterly projections.” “Are you going to keep talking?” “Have you met me?”

Not that I’m a glutton for punishment, but the third act separation wasn’t as impactful as anticipated. Possibly down to Vaughn’s insertion back into Archie’s life. Although, Leo’s note and the way they got back together had me misty eyed 🥹

Anyhoo, I had a good time and am intrigued about Gus’ story if there’s another in the series. Not sure how he would exact revenge on someone who romantically catfished him out of a sizeable fortune but knowing, JC, he’ll learn the hard way and it’ll be priceless. I just hope this conman has more of a conscience than Vaughn appeared to have. That guy got off lightly imho.

[Jamie]

I really had fun with this one. It was silly and funny but I also really loved the romance. I loved the way their interactions slowly changed over time, how they bantered during the parties, how they kept trying to one up each other with their revenge. I think the book had the perfect balance of silly rom com vibes while also having such a swoony romance that you can see slowly develop. Just overall really enjoyed everything!

[Mal]

This book is an astonishingly good escape! Everything is right only when something has gone horribly wrong. I was laughing throughout the book, Jax Calder imbues Archie’s characters with supreme wit and Leo is called to match him leading to a battle of ridiculous dares, pirates, dinosaurs and unicorns, hilarious dog walks, superior acts of kindness and falling into lust and love. The attraction is apparent from their first coherent meeting - before that honestly everything is moving too fast and is too funny.

This book has sweet consideration, gentle almost subliminal touches reaching out and caring for the other - massively swoony z these are layered characters with strong back stories even tho Archie is quite reluctant to reveal his and it’s eas saddening to be shown what they had both been through and still a joy getting to know them and watch them fall in love

Cannot emphasise enough how much you need to read this book.

[Monikat]

A bundle of laughs, giggles and misguided revenge.🎈🥳🎉✨🦄🧜‍♂️

[Vanna]

5 Stars!! ❤️
I’ll be honest: I didn’t think I would love this series as much as I do. Just like the first book (Andrew and Justin’s story) completely surprised me, The Revenge Mishap absolutely blew my mind.
Jax Calder has created two wonderful, deeply layered characters in Leo and Archie. While they come from completely different backgrounds, it’s how their experiences have shaped them that really makes the story shine. It turned Archie into this sunshiny, happy-go-lucky guy and Leo into the ultimate serious "grump."
Yes, this is a take on the grumpy/sunshine trope, but it is so much more than that. I was obsessed with their witty interactions and the constant competitions between them. One of my favorite parts was that Archie already knew what was going on, yet he kept playing the game just to guilt-trip Leo! It made their fake-boyfriend dynamic feel so fresh and unique rather than cliche. Watching the fake relationship slowly start to feel real was everything.
This book made me laugh, it made me cry, and ultimately it just gave me so much joy, I can’t recommend it enough! I am already vibrating with excitement for Gus’s story next.

[Heather]

4.5⭐️

Another really funny and entertaining book from Jax Calder.

Archie and Leo’s meet-cute was very funny, and they continue to go down the revenge rabbit hole and end up falling for one another. They’re polar opposites; Archie is as unserious as you can get. Full of jokes and a talented wind-up merchant. Leo is the serious one, and despite him being the reason for the events that unfold, he takes to helping Archie as seriously as one of his meetings.

You do still get the emotional pain of misunderstandings and traumatic childhoods, but it doesn’t feel as deep because you’ve got that humour threaded all the way through the story. Archie’s brother was a bit of a shit; he does start making amends, but I feel like he got off lightly.

I’m looking forward to Gus’ story. I can’t imagine falling for someone who catfished me and took my money 🤦🏽‍♀️😆

My only negative was I did wish they’d had the conversation a bit sooner in the book because it did make parts of it a little repetitive, but I thoroughly enjoyed it nonetheless.
………………………………………………..

I got an ARC from GRR, and this is my honest review.

[Renée]

This was actually very good. There were a couple times in the first half where I nearly rolled my eyes right out of my head over some of the plotlines, but the second half stole the show. I had leaky eyes for a few moments.

[Liya]

~3.5
The story dragged a bit in the middle, plus I have some niggles with the plot. But both MCs were so likable, and the banter and sweet moments were top-notch, so rounding up.

[Renae Reads]

I really enjoyed this fun and entertaining romantic comedy that is filled with hilarious moments alongside ridiculous misunderstandings. Archie and Leo have a hilarious meet-cute that ends in one horrible injury that forces both to spend time together, and in that time, they quickly learn so much about one another and how complementary they truly are.

Overall, this is a very heartfelt romance that has its fair share of misunderstandings and hijinks, but underneath all of that is a ton of heart from both Archie and Leo. They both undergo a lot of personal growth from their experiences and past traumas and eventually learn to lean on one another. I love the second chances given throughout this story and cannot wait for the next revenge club adventure.

*** I reviewed a complimentary copy of this story.***

[A Low Nicole]

Home sick today so went on a reading binge. Sorry for all the updates 🙃🤧. Also, it accounts for a bit of the grumpiness.

While there were some really funny, clever bits in this book, starting from the opening lines and scene, it was hard-going after a bit. Logical inconsistencies and endless kids birthday parties and lies ended up just feeling kind of contrived.

Like, two comments about how just because Leo works in tech, it might be a give away that he knows Vaughn. Dude. I live in a city full of tech bros and they don’t all know each other while also living in the same city.

And how can Leo, after realizing how good at pattern recognition and puzzling Archie is, not figure out that he may have put two and two together and realized that he’d been intentionally targeted by Leo? I kept waiting and waiting for this to happen and to lead us to…something other than birthday parties and dog walking.

I also kinda found it hard to believe that Archie had two PhDs in his early 20s. Sure, he’s super smart, but those fuckers take time and a shit ton of energy. Maybe by the time he’s 30, but come on. For me, the fetishizing of intelligence can rub the wrong way when an author hypes it up too much, especially without being more overt about the cost. Archie is WAY too socially well adjusted and comfortable for someone who has spent their young adulthood in highly competitive and rigorous academic programs.

And yeah, the Vaughn confrontation was a total let down on all fronts too.

Still, I can totally see how the upbeat, quirky vibe could really appeal to some people and be enjoyable. I think I liked the first one ok. I’m bumping this up to three stars simply because I can see why people would have a good time reading it.

[Mir (fighting for her life to not read AI)]

This is fully carried by two extremely lovable leads who were so warm and wonderful with each other. I had such a great time but I did lose a bit of steam at the 80% bullshit. Also I loved this in spite of all the children’s parties, not because of them lol. I also despised the forgiveness of Vaughn. Can we just not? For once?

[unhingedreaderaunt]

Unfortunately this fell flat for me and I DNF’d at 27%. The prose wasn’t up to Jax’s usual standard, which is a shame because I usually love Jax Calder’s books and I’ve been looking forward to this one for awhile.

There were numerous lazy shortcuts where, instead of a direct description where the reader is shown what’s happening in the author’s typical style (using adjectives to describe actions, body language, facial expressions, etc), I was repeatedly “told” in phrases with this off-putting, repetitive syntax, like this:

“… he heads for the door with the focused determination of a man who …”

“… with the enthusiasm of a man being asked to do overtime on a Friday.”

“… with the carefree joy of a creature who …”

“… with the clinical detachment of someone who …”

“… the relief of someone who’d been …”

“… plodding along with the resigned air of a philosopher who …”

(these are all direct quotes)

Instead of describing how a character is doing something, they’re described as a man/as someone who’s doing it. Describing how a person would do x instead of just describing the character doing x added a filter/extra layer to every action, essentially putting me in the back seat of the action rather than the front seat.

This syntax is used in place of descriptive adjectives even when describing the tone of voice in which something is said:

“… he says in the tone of a man negotiating …”

“… his voice was patient. The voice of someone explaining something obvious …”

Or things are done with a “particular” or “specific” nature, like:

“… with the particular neatness of someone who …”

“… with the particular blankness of somewhere …”

“… his eyes are sparkling with the particular malice of someone who …”

“… the particular quality of silence …”

It’s so lifeless and repetitive; I’ve never experienced this with Jax Calder’s books before. I even went back and checked some of her recent books to make sure I wasn’t imagining things. I searched the following phrases in three of her recent books: “of a man”, “of someone who”, and “the particular”.
There were 0 results.

However, in this book:
“of a man”: 19 results
“the particular”: 6 results
“of someone who”: 20 results

Jax’s books are usually more descriptive, immersive, and emotional; this was such a deviation from her usual style. The repetition really took me out of the story and honestly felt kind of lifeless.

Or, in other words, I read this with the particular boredom of someone who felt like they weren’t reading a Jax Calder book at all.

[Em Jay]

3.75 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

A fun read that finally got me out of my reading slump 🙌🏼 Was there plot points that made my eye twitch? Yes. HOWEVER, nothing that was strong enough to derail my overall enjoyment. When Leo tries to enact his (childish) revenge scheme on a former friend/colleague, and mistakenly does so to the younger brother Archie, it creates a series of Mishaps (ha, see what I did there?) that were equally silly, funny, and heartwarming. I’m going to get spoiler-ish so I’d stop reading now if you don’t want to know 😉

⛔️

⚠️

⛔️

⚠️

⛔️

⚠️⚠️⚠️⚠️⚠️SPOILERS⚠️⚠️⚠️⚠️⚠️

⛔️

⚠️

⛔️

⚠️

⛔️

So to start off with the good, I really enjoyed both Leo and Archie as characters. I know a large theme is reinforcing that Archie is not too much, but I’m not gonna lie he was in fact a bit much 😆 BUT that is ok because it worked and I enjoyed him all the same. A lot of the tropes used in this are some of my favorites (forced proximity, fake dating, slow burn) and I thought they were executed well. I mean make no mistake it was all a bit ridiculous, but it’s a silly book so it fit. I enjoyed Leo and Archie letting their guards down around each other, and the teasing and banter. Their first time was also 🔥🔥🔥

For the stuff I didn’t love…I really felt like Vaughn got off wayyyy too easy. You’re 25-26, very much not a child, and you steal a colleagues work so Mommy and Daddy will pay attention to you again? And then after stealing said colleagues work, years pass with you enjoying the benefits of what you stole and you still turn on your brother out of jealousy? The timeline didn’t added up and quite frankly Vaughn didn’t seem that sorry. Archie should’ve told him to kick rocks to be honest. I love Jax’s stories but I do think she suffers a continued problem with not always sticking the landing. Leo’s self removal didn’t bug me but I do wish we had gotten to see a fully fleshed heart to heart with him and Archie at some point when they reconcile.

Like I said, overall I had fun. I’m interested in Gus’s story and hope I never have to read about Vaughn again 🫶🏼

[Fernanda (ivyfer_isreading)]

Incredibly funny and heartwarming

[Tania]

(a note on the cover: I don't understand why we didn't get the unicorn onesie here, that would've made it so much better :)

This one was fun and an easy read, and thankfully more enjoyable than the first volume in the series. The plot is completely unrealistic but it did make me laugh a few times

[Paulina | bitofabookcase]

Laughed out loud, but also cried a bit 🥹🥹 lovelovelove

[Diana Brennan]

I loved it, I laughed, I giggled, my heart ached at times, and I read one of the most beautiful and most intimate intimate scenes ..it was beautiful Jax 😍 I felt all the feels ❤️ . Thank you for the arc GRR

[Heather MMRomanceReviewed]

What a breath of rom-com air... love all of the situations that Archie dreams up for Leo... and how their relationship evolves as they get to know more about each other! With a slow burn, grumpy/sunshine story that also puts the past into perspective, this was both a fun and emotional read.

[Theodore]

DNF @ 77%

I had a LOT of notes while reading this, but only because it felt like it was so close to being good like the first book, but had some fundamental issues that bothered me.

Notes I took while reading:

The novelty and humor of the intro was unfortunately betrayed by how "tell-y" it felt. Both Leo and Archie giving us expo dumps about how they think they knew each other and what led them to the present was so dull. It was alright when Leo did it to explain his history, but I was over it when Archie did it for who he thought Leo was + when he just internally mused about his relationship with his brother. Especially in such a long book, these things could've come out more naturally as the MCs interacted with each other.

The story could've done a better job of making Leo's childhood issues more impactful. Us only hearing about Leo's conversation with his sister where she told him that "throwing money at problems can't solve everything" after Archie had said the same thing made it feel contrived, particularly when Leo had been throwing money around at most of the problems and hadn't thought about the interaction at all (it would've made sense for him to reflect on it when money didn't work a lá the NHS wait time). It would've been nice if we'd actually seen the scene with his sister before all this started and if it had been referenced as something that bothered Leo, since then it could've served as a set up rather than just coming out of nowhere and having little effect outside of an internal monologue.

Again, it happened for when Leo was dancing in the unicorn suit. He gives us his spiel about how growing up poor meant that what little dignity he had, he "fiercely" guarded. He even gives examples of times when his social standing made him feel constantly embarrassed "every single day" and yet he's magically able to move past that trauma because a kid danced in front of him and didn't care about how he looked. You're telling me that something as strong and reinforced as "I was embarrassed every single day because poverty made me feel lesser to all the other kids" was undone by a rando kid dancing? The start of page 79 is when Leo tells us about the constant embarrassment he felt growing up poor, and it's also the end of page 79 where he gets over it and dances without abandon. Even ignoring the fact that dancing in a humiliating costume for a crowd of people is already inherently embarrassing without the added baggage around dignity, that's crazy fast. Why even bring up the dignity thing if it Leo was going to get over it after a single page? If it was going to be addressed that quickly, the author shouldn't have tried to make such a big deal out of it by connecting it to a supposedly core part of Leo's character with lines like "dignity has always been important to me" and connecting it to his unfortunate childhood. It should've just been "omg, I can't believe in doing this" because the situation was already inherently undignifying, and it would've been more believable for Leo to work past that simple indignity because it wouldn't have had such heavy baggage associated with it. The way the story has it lessened the weight of Leo's past because of how easily he was able to shrug it off.

Archie worries that he's being "too much" and "exhausting" after an innocuous conversation about TV shows and crime dramas, so what does he do? He asks Leo to grab his sex toys for him. Yes! Surely that isn't "too much" to ask from an acquaintance that he's already: forced to move in with him, walk dogs, and dress up as a unicorn + perform at a kids party. That's also ignoring the fact that he still hadn't been sure about Leo's sexuality (but even if he was aware, asking someone to grab your big ass dildo was still supremely inappropriate).

The only way I could even see a justification for that scene was if Archie was only worried about being seen as "too much" in a very specific way, aka, being too observant. It's kinda implied to be the case, but WHY hadn't we seen more evidence of this supposed shame prior? We'd seen Archie being more knowledgeable and observant than what was expected with his knowledge around dog and kid behaviors, but nowhere was it ever hinted at that he ever felt self conscious about any of it. And it definitely wasn't like he was overly attentive to an unreasonable degree either, since you can reasonably assume a dog walker would know certain dog patterns and a performer would be aware of child psychology. Those pieces of info definitely weren't required, but also not so out of the way to be considered problematic. We do see his tendency to be overly verbose appear a lot more later on (something I also take issue with for reasons) and it's also clarified way later in the book that Archie is talking about his eidetic memory specifically being exhausting, but that first scene makes it sound like it was a more generally exhausting personality rather than a specific quirk causing him to be "too much". This idea that it was a general personality thing gets reinforced later when we get the flashback showing Vaughn telling Archie he was "too much" which then made it even more confusing since Archie seemed to have narrowed down that general accusation to his eidetic memory all on his own.

Was I missing something fundamental with my understanding of Leo and Archie as characters? Leo's childhood hardships just felt tacked on since they only seemed to come up and be resolved in one scene. Archie's supposedly deep seeded trauma around people telling him he was exhausting to the point where he constantly self-edited and curated his actions, but it only showed up after he already made Leo do things that toed the line of being unreasonable WITHOUT any hint that he was conflicted about any of it like he should've been if he truly was vigilant about being "too much". And if he was only concerned about being "too much" in context of being overly observant/knowledgeable, that isn't shown at all before we're told it's suddenly apparently a fundamental shame he held.

Page 118: Leo draws comparisons between Archie and Vaughn saying that Archie follows the same pattern that Vaughn did with regards to the manipulative way they interact, except Leo sees more behind Archie's deception that makes him not attribute it all to malice. Still though, it should be noted that Leo still drew comparisons between the two brothers at this point.

Page 143: Leo to Andrew: "He's nothing like Vaughn." Uhh, false? Regardless of whether Leo perceived Vaughn and Archie's respective deceptions as malicious or benign, him saying they were nothing alike was objectively incorrect for his character BECAUSE HE SPECIFICALLY POINTED OUT THEIR SIMILARITIES in a significantly important scene. (Leo later points out that he sees similarities between Vaughn and Archie again in page 169, so idk why he tells Andrew that they were nothing alike here)

Archie uses his real last name on business cards then shows extreme distress when someone almost recognizes him based on it. Why did he even use his real last name? It's a business card. He already used a nickname for his first name soooo why couldn't he do the same for his last name? I suppose you can argue it's because parents would look him up before hiring him to see if he had a record, but then wouldn't he have needed to use his real first name too if it that was the case?

After a bit, I guess Archie just drops the whole "I constantly self-edit" thing because he actually just spews out all of his observations and knowledge he gained from his eidetic memory without any hint that he was self conscious of it. I guess you can take that to mean that he felt comfortable enough around Leo to let his guard down, but it would've been nice if the book had been more explicit about that considering how big of a deal that should've been for Archie. As it is, it just seemed like yet another "worry" that doesn't actually affect the character after the scene where it was introduced. Archie later explicitly makes a point to mention that he wasn't going to self-censor (at the museum where he explains the paintings to Leo and his godmother) but that was so long after he stopped actually doing so in the first place.

Things beyond the start of the fake dating felt a bit too fluffy imo. I mean, not only did that feel so very out of nowhere for Archie to suggest doing, the overall conflict just felt too weak. More on that at the end.

Ok, yeah. I called it quits when Vaughn shows up and Leo blackmails him into reconciling with Archie. Because of course Leo cares so much about Archie that he's willing to force his brother to get back on good terms with him. Why in the world was Leo ok with forcing Vaughn to reconcile on false pretenses when he himself was feeling guilty about their relationship which started on false pretenses?

Maybe if this book wasn't so long, I'd have been able to finish, but the amount of characterization issues and my general feelings towards the main conflict just got in the way.

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Overall issues I had:
Leo's past literally doesn't matter here because him coming from poverty and the trauma that came from that stopped showing up when this became the "Archie's too much" show, so idk why there was so much set up on that part (like what happened with his rocky relationship with his brother who was being sent to rehab for the 12+ time?). If you cut out all that "boohoo I was poor" stuff and just kept the Vaughn betrayal thing, Leo would literally be the same character, just with fewer lines.

Archie never acted like someone who self-edited or someone who was concerned with being "too much" in my eyes. The story tries to sell this idea that Archie thought he could only ever be either overly knowledgeable OR overly humorous, but never both, and him choosing to be one or the other was self-editing. To me though, he was already bordering on too much when he was supposedly toning it down (particularly when he asked Leo to grab his sex toys) so it just seemed like he wasn't actually concerned at all with that fear. I'd have expected a character who was scared about being exhausting to always question their actions with "is this 'too much'?" (to which most of Archie's actions would probably land closer to yes than no).

And my biggest issue is the fact that I just didn't find the main conflict to be as dramatic as the book was trying to make it out to be. The concept of starting a relationship on a lie (or lies in this case) and having that deception later shake the MCs belief in one another can work (look at how the first book succeeded in it) but I had issues with how it's executed here.

In the first book, Andrew's lie was: "I'm not going to tell you that we already know each other because I started doing this to make you feel bad". That worked as the main conflict because if he had revealed his secret, there was reasonable justification for Justin to re-contextualize ALL their romantic scenes together to be malicious. The worst outcome there was Justin going, "I can't believe you intentionally didn't tell me your real identity and faked all your feelings to get back at me for making your life hell in high school" and that's believable. Deepening the relationship worked as a double edged sword there because the deeper Andrew and Justin's relationship got, the stronger the potential hurt to Justin, and if Justin had re-contextualized their entire relationship as a revenge plot to hurt him, then it made sense for him to think that Andrew was trying to maximize the pain by making him fall in love. Love was a believable weapon in their story.

That's not the case at all for Leo and Archie.

While Leo's lie isn't the main conflict, it's still presented as one from his POV so here's my problems with it. Leo's lie is: "I thought you were Vaughn when I sprayed syrup on you". Ok? Ignoring that Andrew already knew that, what would've been the worst case scenario here? Was it believable that Andrew would've broken up with Leo just because Leo wanted to spray Vaughn with maple syrup at the restaurant? Did Leo seriously think their relationship was so fragile? Remember that Andrew breaking his leg was genuinely an accident too, so it's not like Leo meant Vaughn physical harm. What if we add the foundation of the relationship into that lie? "I started this relationship with you because I wanted to get back at your brother." Sure, that would've been a good conflict, to make Archie feel like he was just being used as a pawn in revenge, but literally nothing Leo did could even be re-contextualized under that premise. The worst outcome would've been Archie going: "I can't believe you got me a ground floor apartment, picked up dog poop, dressed up as a unicorn/dinosaur/mermaid/etc, endured children's birthdays, grabbed my dildo, genuinely listened to my rambling, and made me fall in love with you just to get back at Vaughn!" 🙄 Does that make any sense? Unlike Andrew and Justin, deepening the relationship between Leo and Archie did nothing to to conceivably make Leo's revenge against Vaughn any more or less vicious. If the author wanted to play that angle, then Leo should've done things that could be reinterpreted as manipulative/only done to use Archie to get back at Vaughn. But he didn't because Leo only ever did things Archie asked him to do/things to make Archie's life easier/genuinely thoughtful things.

The real main conflict here is though is Archie's lie, of which I also have big issues with. Archie's lie is: "I know you know who my brother is, and I know you thought I was him when you accidentally broke my leg." Ok, there's more meat in this one because it's the real conflict that's being presented as the relationship nuclear bomb, but again, this has problems. If Leo had found out that Archie knew, what was the worst outcome? "I can't believe you made me take care of you, pick up dog poop, dress up as a unicorn/dinosaur/mermaid/etc, endure children's birthdays, grab your dildo just to get back at me for trying to get back at Vaughn!" Ignoring that "get back at Vaughn" meant spraying him with maple syrup, it sounds like a reasonable thing to be angry about if you ignore the fact that Leo recognized that Archie was explicitly fucking with him about dogs, outfits, parties, and dildo thing AND was willing to engage with him back on all of it. What changes about their back and forth with the knowledge that Archie knew? Does any of that make sense to be mad about if Leo thought the motivation was payback for his revenge attempt? What becomes weaponized? It's not like Archie was recording any of the embarrassing moments as potential blackmail material. At worst, Leo thinks Andrew is a manipulative dick. Yeah, the relationship probably ends, but would it be salvagable? Maybe. More importantly
, is "I can't believe you were a dick to me" satisfying enough to serve as the reason for a third act breakup of a 400+ page book? It isn't for me. Let's extend it to the foundation of the relationship then. "I started this relationship with you to get back at you for trying to embarrass my brother." This is the truly nuclear option because the worst case scenario here is that Leo thinks Archie is a psycho for going that far to get him back for the attempted maple syruping. Going to this extreme is definitely too OTT to even consider because of the sheer difference between the effort in the action (embarrassing Vaughn) and the reaction to that (gaslighting Leo into thinking Archie was in love with him).

Also, Archie's relationship with his brother isn't even really developed until 60%ish where his godmother tells Leo about how much Vaughn meant to him (SUPER late for a dynamic that's supposed to be important to a character)

Idk, maybe I'm strawmanning too hard here and boiling down Leo and Archie's conflicts too much, but that was the narrative framing I used to understand their motivations, and a lot of the time, they didn't really make sense. Starting a relationship on a lie is bad, but unless there are specific actions that actually give the MCs plausible deniability about the foundation of their relationship, it doesn't end up working or being satisfying enough to write a plot around. The first book makes the very strength of the relationship the smoking gun for Justin to use as evidence for Andrew's maliciousness. This book doesn't have Leo doing anything to believably convince me that Archie would've thought he was being used to hurt Vaughn, and Archie didn't do anything questionable enough to make a third act breakup/reconciliation feel at all cathartic.

This gets 2 stars for me because the writing itself was OK (showed a good amount of things, made Leo and Archie feel like ok characters, was amusing at points), it was just the conflict I took issue with and how it didn't particularly make sense to me.