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Matchless
When Missy Bainbridge needs to quickly find a suitable date for a big family event, the last place she expects to find help is from the aloof businessman on her morning commute.
Missy is determined to make her bakery the sweetest spot on Boston’s Newbury Street. She’s poured her heart, soul, and a loan from her disapproving father into Missy’s Bakery & Cakery — and it’s finally starting to pay off. Her love life, however, is a disaster. Her grandmother, who raised her, has a list of suitors ready and waiting, each more cringe-worthy than the last. With the bakery starting to thrive and a fictitious boyfriend no one has met keeping the peace with her family, what could possibly go wrong?
Now with her grandmother’s milestone birthday celebration looming, Missy has no choice: she needs a real date . . . and fast. Enter the last man she’d ever imagine asking for help — her polished, rule-following, decidedly unromantic train companion — and he wants nothing to do with her scheme.
What Missy doesn't realize is that she is helping him instead.
Missy is determined to make her bakery the sweetest spot on Boston’s Newbury Street. She’s poured her heart, soul, and a loan from her disapproving father into Missy’s Bakery & Cakery — and it’s finally starting to pay off. Her love life, however, is a disaster. Her grandmother, who raised her, has a list of suitors ready and waiting, each more cringe-worthy than the last. With the bakery starting to thrive and a fictitious boyfriend no one has met keeping the peace with her family, what could possibly go wrong?
Now with her grandmother’s milestone birthday celebration looming, Missy has no choice: she needs a real date . . . and fast. Enter the last man she’d ever imagine asking for help — her polished, rule-following, decidedly unromantic train companion — and he wants nothing to do with her scheme.
What Missy doesn't realize is that she is helping him instead.
241 pages, Paperback
Published October 20, 2025
11 people are currently reading
1776 people want to read
About the author
Lynn Ricci
8 books56 followersLynn Ricci is a hopeless romantic at heart, so it's no surprise that she writes romance novels about love, friendship, and happily ever afters. Lynn lives in Massachusetts, and when she is not writing for business or pleasure, she can be found painting or reading on the closest beach.
Lynn Ricci's newest novel, Matchless, is due out in Fall 2025. She is the author of Chasing Yesterday, a contemporary romance with a touch of fantasy or mystical elements, released in 2025. Her other novels are The Dating Intervention, a contemporary romance, followed by Cursed, a paranormal romance.
Lynn Ricci's newest novel, Matchless, is due out in Fall 2025. She is the author of Chasing Yesterday, a contemporary romance with a touch of fantasy or mystical elements, released in 2025. Her other novels are The Dating Intervention, a contemporary romance, followed by Cursed, a paranormal romance.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
October 21, 2025
OMG this cute snack of a book is one you will eat right up!! (If you read it you’ll get my pun- the FMC is a baker 😜)
In addition to being a baker, our FMC Missy, commutes every day on the train. To me, there’s an old-school, romantic quality to riding the train. I would LOVE the option to read while on my commute! (Although my commute to work is 2 mins 🤷🏼♀️)
With tropes like…
🧁 slow burn
🧁 small town
🧁 fake dating
🧁 enemies to lovers
🧁 grumpy x sunshine
…you’ll be sure to giggle and kick your feet the whole way through!!
🧁 I loved this book SO much!! Fake dating is my favorite trope, so it was easy for me to love. I really enjoy Lynn’s writing…one of her other books, Chasing Yesterday, is another fave!!
In addition to being a baker, our FMC Missy, commutes every day on the train. To me, there’s an old-school, romantic quality to riding the train. I would LOVE the option to read while on my commute! (Although my commute to work is 2 mins 🤷🏼♀️)
With tropes like…
🧁 slow burn
🧁 small town
🧁 fake dating
🧁 enemies to lovers
🧁 grumpy x sunshine
…you’ll be sure to giggle and kick your feet the whole way through!!
🧁 I loved this book SO much!! Fake dating is my favorite trope, so it was easy for me to love. I really enjoy Lynn’s writing…one of her other books, Chasing Yesterday, is another fave!!
October 22, 2025
Matchless is such a fun and a delightfully sassy book…a must read! Missy is the main character — she is an ambitious and creative baker in Boston who is determined to make her bakery a success. But her love life is a different story. With her grandmother’s milestone birthday approaching, her fake boyfriend is out of the picture and she's backed into a corner to find a respectable date for the party - not like the guys she typically dates. Hence the title, Matchless.
With little time she turns to an upright businessman she met on the train on her daily commute to work/home, but she can't tell me if he irritates her or if she likes him. Can it be a match? You need to read it to find out!
I also like the colors of the book, i love pink! It attracted me to the book! This book is light, funny, and easy to read. Perfect for fall! Grab a cup of hot tea or cocoa, get cozy, and enjoy reading this book. Totally recommend!
With little time she turns to an upright businessman she met on the train on her daily commute to work/home, but she can't tell me if he irritates her or if she likes him. Can it be a match? You need to read it to find out!
I also like the colors of the book, i love pink! It attracted me to the book! This book is light, funny, and easy to read. Perfect for fall! Grab a cup of hot tea or cocoa, get cozy, and enjoy reading this book. Totally recommend!
September 28, 2025
A charming grumpy meets sunshine rom-com with banter, heart, and swoon-worthy sparks!
Matchless is a fun, opposites-attract rom-com that totally delivers on the grumpy vs. sunshine vibe. She’s chaotic and messy, he’s buttoned-up and broody, and their banter sparks from page one. Fans of The Hating Game and The Love Hypothesis will love the tension, while readers who enjoyed Emily Henry’s Funny Story will connect with the heroine’s vulnerabilities and quirks. A fun and light read with a dose romantic tension.
Matchless is a fun, opposites-attract rom-com that totally delivers on the grumpy vs. sunshine vibe. She’s chaotic and messy, he’s buttoned-up and broody, and their banter sparks from page one. Fans of The Hating Game and The Love Hypothesis will love the tension, while readers who enjoyed Emily Henry’s Funny Story will connect with the heroine’s vulnerabilities and quirks. A fun and light read with a dose romantic tension.
October 21, 2025
Matchless is a spectacular contemporary romance.
Missy Bainbridge is the owner of an up-and-coming Boston bakery. Her pastries and custom cakes are all the rage. Her bakery and besties fulfill her life but she's lacking in the romance department. She continues to attract the wrong types of guys, which is a disappointment to her grandmother and father.
The pressure is on when her grandmother expects Missy to bring a date to her birthday party. Now, she has to find a fake boyfriend in time to take to her grandmother's birthday party. Little did she see Preston, her annoyed train companion, coming.
All Preston wants is a quiet train ride to work. When he's continually interrupted by Missy, directly and indirectly, he finds himself becoming immersed in her life. After Missy's latest disaster of a relationship, Preston steps in to help Missy.
Matchless is a wonderfully written novel. The story is full of realism and emotion. I love the opposites attract trope that includes humor, banter, slow-burn romance, grumpy-sunshine, and tension. The characters are likable and well-developed. I loved watching the story unfold. I enjoyed the world created by the author, how the story was set up, and the ending I didn't see coming.
I'm excited to include Matchless on my bookshelf.
Missy Bainbridge is the owner of an up-and-coming Boston bakery. Her pastries and custom cakes are all the rage. Her bakery and besties fulfill her life but she's lacking in the romance department. She continues to attract the wrong types of guys, which is a disappointment to her grandmother and father.
The pressure is on when her grandmother expects Missy to bring a date to her birthday party. Now, she has to find a fake boyfriend in time to take to her grandmother's birthday party. Little did she see Preston, her annoyed train companion, coming.
All Preston wants is a quiet train ride to work. When he's continually interrupted by Missy, directly and indirectly, he finds himself becoming immersed in her life. After Missy's latest disaster of a relationship, Preston steps in to help Missy.
Matchless is a wonderfully written novel. The story is full of realism and emotion. I love the opposites attract trope that includes humor, banter, slow-burn romance, grumpy-sunshine, and tension. The characters are likable and well-developed. I loved watching the story unfold. I enjoyed the world created by the author, how the story was set up, and the ending I didn't see coming.
I'm excited to include Matchless on my bookshelf.
October 29, 2025
Imagine going through life, owning your own business and trying to find a match to settle down and have a companion but everywhere you turned, you only found and attracted losers. You had a crush on your childhood friend but had lost contact years ago, and nobody had ever stolen your heart like he did and you compared everybody you dated to someone who you knew you wld never be able to connect with again. That’s what Missy is dealing with
Then, you start talking to some random stuck up guy on the train ride to work everyday, just to have your best friend and her new boyfriend to hook you two up. But hesitation and the fact that you’re so busy with your bakery and fakery business that you have all but given up on love.
Preston, is a widower who isn’t interested in dating anyone esp Missy with her loud Pink hair and he finds her annoying and obnoxious, but they have started to become civil to each other and he defends her honor when a prestigious jerk tries to steal her business.
Will they finally connect and Missy give up her hopes of ever finding her childhood crush and finally open her heart to someone else, and will Preston finally be able to let his deceased wife go and open his heart to this crazy pink haired girl? You have to read to find out all the twists and turns in this book! It was so good. In some ways I saw myself in Missy. Such a great read!
Then, you start talking to some random stuck up guy on the train ride to work everyday, just to have your best friend and her new boyfriend to hook you two up. But hesitation and the fact that you’re so busy with your bakery and fakery business that you have all but given up on love.
Preston, is a widower who isn’t interested in dating anyone esp Missy with her loud Pink hair and he finds her annoying and obnoxious, but they have started to become civil to each other and he defends her honor when a prestigious jerk tries to steal her business.
Will they finally connect and Missy give up her hopes of ever finding her childhood crush and finally open her heart to someone else, and will Preston finally be able to let his deceased wife go and open his heart to this crazy pink haired girl? You have to read to find out all the twists and turns in this book! It was so good. In some ways I saw myself in Missy. Such a great read!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 18, 2025
A perfect match for my weekend!
Matchless, by Lynn Ricci, was such a fun romance! I devoured it in a day! With a sunshiny bakery owner and a grumpy businessman meeting on a train it provided all the slow burn that you want in a sweet romance. What I really enjoyed was there were other things at play in the story that made this a richer rom com with a twist at the end that I didn’t see coming!
Matchless, by Lynn Ricci, was such a fun romance! I devoured it in a day! With a sunshiny bakery owner and a grumpy businessman meeting on a train it provided all the slow burn that you want in a sweet romance. What I really enjoyed was there were other things at play in the story that made this a richer rom com with a twist at the end that I didn’t see coming!
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews