The cover of this book confused me, but now it makes sense. The heroine is a baker. The cake is actually an important part later on in the book. It represents the MC’s journey together. (Possible spoilers ahead)
Usually with betrayal books, you’d feel a gut punch when the betrayal happens. That didn’t really happen to me in this book. You could see the red flags the heroine’s husband was waving from a mile away. That’s not to say the book is bad, because it’s not. I always enjoy some petty payback. The wife doesn’t actually know what’s up until 20%
So the heroine has been married to OM (husband) for years. She runs a bakery, he’s some corporate guy. He has a “work wife” named Amanda. He does all the typical things cheating husbands tend to do. The heroine finds documents first and now she discovers he’s been stealing money from her/bakery. She leaves and stays with her BFF, Leo. Leo has always been in love with her.
Anyway, you get some VERY detailed smex scenes between the husband and Amanda. There is even a part where the heroine shows up at his work, and Amanda is under his desk giving him a blowie (she doesn’t know)
After a few days, the heroine decides to go back to her home and get more clothes. Now she walks in on Amanda and her husband having smex- in her bed. 😡 I did snort when the heroine slapped Amanda twice.
So…this is where I started to get a little bored. Everything after this is just evidence being gathered on the cheaters and the heroine falling in LOVE/LOVE with Leo. There’s a lot of inner dialogue and self reflection. It’s not terrible but I found myself skimming a lot of this. You get POVs from the cheaters, Leo, and the heroine.
I felt like it was missing something that would give this more excitement.
Everything is wrapped up tidy. Both cheaters go to jail. Leo and the heroine start a relationship. Leo is actually pretty perfect. Definitely a MMC written by a woman.
I did like the epilogue and finding out the heroine and Leo adopted kids.
I loved Leo's character and wished they didn't have so many lost years. James ugh what a p.o.s. I wanted him destroyed and he got what he deserved. Amanda also got what she deserved. After hearing everything they said about Olivia and what they did to her they deserved more than what they got. At least neither got a HEA.
Olivia was Emotionally abused, cheated on, and stolen from but she came out on top with the help of Leo and some dedicated friends and Family.
What an enjoyable read. It had enough angst and doubt thinking the FMC was never going to grow a spine and leave her a-hole husband. The affair was full on with the OW and the husband and OW were viscous in their treatment towards the FMC.
A cheating best friend’s to lovers book where our FMC gets a new H which is her bff.
The FMC - Olivia is married to a scum bag, he is the definition of a chauvinist pig who constantly gas lit her. He has an affair with his assistant who is also a selfish self serving POS
In the background we have her BFF Leo - who is our MMC. He loved her from the beginning in university to the point he changed his playboy ways and stood by her thru her marriage and breakdown.
The scum bag husband pretty much stole money from the FMC and their marital funds to set up a new life with the OW. These two pretty much had it out for the FMC, to the point where they even have smexy times in his marital bed when the FMC and his work colleagues were down stairs in their home.
Ultimately - our MMC helps the FMC out by hiring an old contact to dig up the hidden truths of the affair as the scumbag and the OW were very careful and also caused enough doubts to people outside the marriage that the FMC was unstable. The divorce is finalised, the scumbag and OW have hardships and our FMC and MMC live happily ever after.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
This book has a h with a new H and shows the h’s husband and the mistress cheating. The author shows the husband as a piece of shit, but……Is it just me or does the h in this book emotional cheat on her husband as well? Ok, hear me out. The husband is emotionally and physically unavailable, but the h is always hanging out, talking and texting with the new H and leans on him for everything it seems. She sees this as them being just friends but men and women usually can’t be friends. USUALLY.
She seems very oblivious anyway if she falls in love with her husband and the whole time, I’m wondering WHY? The author just kinda skimmed over their relationship but someone this cheat-y usually don’t get away with stuff like he did for so long no?? How many late nights and excuses can one person come up with before the other gets suspicious?!! That really made me go “huh?” And think this girl just doesn’t care or is super dumb.
But i liked that the ex husband and mistress create drama and get their due. And i love how great the new H was in protecting and helping h with the whole fall out.
Wow this author made you hate the cheating mofo bc man oh man did I want the fmc to ruin him and send him to prison! 😉 And the fmc leveled up with her new man and I liked her happy ending. I’d totally read more from this author.
I enjoyed this story of Olivia a sweet baker married to James... Ugh!!! Leo her best friend who has loved her for years. Amanda a ,beautiful on the outside but ugly on the inside, co worker of James. Olivia discovers some things that don t match up. Dates, an unexplained signature, and other weird things. When the unspeakable happens will Leo's love shine or fade? Find out...read this book!!!!
While this is the usual cheating trope, it is written very well with characters you love and characters you love to hate.
Of course, if anyone has suffered betrayal, the icing on the cake is the just desserts for the two cheaters James and Amanda.
And of course, the story has you rooting for Leo and Olivia to discover they have feelings that are more than just the friendship they’ve had for years. For them to realize they are in love. There are two people who you actually want to see end up together. And they do.
The journey is interesting. At times painful because there is on page cheating by Olivia‘s Husband James. I believe James is a narcissist in the true sense of the word. And what an ego! He never ever feels remorse for the way he treated Olivia, his marriage, and even his mistress Amanda. Amanda was mentally unstable, in large part driven to that, by James’ lack of loyalty and his inability to truly love anyone but himself. They do not remain together and they do not have an HEA, in large part that is their own doing because they didn’t really learn nor change.
The HEA for Leo and Olivia is really good. Definitely worth the read.
If you read a lot of these cheating/betrayal/revenge stories, you will have read this plot. The work wife and the cheating, thieving, husband who gaslights the naive wife. I am surprised how clueless Olivia is about what is going on.
Finally, Chapter 8 she learns how bad it is. Then she catches them fuc*ing in her bed. Amanda is victorious! James panics big time. He starts a big 'gaslighting' campaign to make people doubt Olivia.
The author gives the arch villains, James and Amanda, their POV. We see that James is a real sociopath and narcissist. Amanda plays a role in how this ends, but WHO CARES what she thinks? She's a caricature of all the nasty, vicious, sneering, OW who are proud they've got the husband. She calls Olivia the baker's wife (odd, she's the baker not the wife of a baker). So funny that Amanda also realizes James betrayed her when he ran after Olivia. Oh poor Amanda; get lost. Start picking out prison clothes.
I'm curious about Leo and the shady characters from his past.
The pace is very slow. I skim most of the rest of it - lots of filler as the complicated investigation takes time.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
The FMC, Olivia, was naive and a pushover. If she didn't have Leo to go to bat for her then her husband would have gotten away with it all. I objectively see the injustice but I was also yelling in my head to stop making my it so GD easy for James.
An issue that really annoyed me was the cake illustration before every chapter. It was too much. The way James caved at the hearing and spilled incriminating details was in complete contrast to who his character had been up until that point. The way his character was written, I have a hard time believing that even if he were drugged in the manner Leo suggested that he would go down with the ship or used his signs of distress to be taken to a hospital to address whatever he was slipped and regroup his strategy for when they end up at another hearing. As for Amanda, attacking her vanity was petty but 🤌🏼 It's satisfying to read when the realisation sets in that the married man they're hoping to claim doesn't actually care.
So, we have the cheater husband trope in this one. The cheater is with a subordinate of his, which everyone should know is an HR no-no. They are doing all the typical stuff including padding expenses and the OW hidden under his desk giving him a BJ. It’s getting really ugly, and now he’s stealing marital funds.
The FMC has a bakery! I liked this aspect of her character because although I’ve read several, this isn’t quite as commonplace. Plus my side hustle in my youth was designing and decorating wedding cakes so this was fun for me.
Yes I’ve had some different job experiences…😂
Anyway the husband and the OW are simply gross and the FMC discovers what’s happening because of the money. She gets really upset about it and goes the her best friend’s house. He’s the real MMC and the other timeworn trope of unrequited love.
Better than average but with a truly great epilogue. That earned it the four stars.
KU and worth reading although it’s a bit longer than it needs to be…just my opinion..
2.5 Star This was a betrayal-and-divorce story . Found it interesting to read.
I did find the heroine a bit naive for not noticing the signs, but then again, not everyone is naturally suspicious. Most people don't expect their loved ones to betray them, so it's understandable that she trusted her husband. Still for a business women she came across as naive and stupid. Also if not for her Bestie(H2) the perpetrators would have gotten away , they were way too smart than her.
Leo was amazing, and I genuinely felt that without him, Olivia would have lost everything. He was her rock when she needed one the most.
The comeuppance for both the husband and the other woman was quite satisfying, even if it's the kind of justice that rarely happens in real life.
A small point: the author could tighten the editing. Early in the story, the heroine is described as having green eyes, but later they suddenly become brown. It's a minor detail, but continuity errors like this can be distracting.
Cheating = h sees her husband/OM (not the H) with the OW in her own marital bed. OM had been cheating for almost a year and doing his level best to make the h doubt herself and constantly gaslit her
h sees OM with OW = see above
OW/OM drama = OW worked with the OM to try and take everything from the h, OW was the subordinate of the OM and turned on him to try and save herself...didn't work. Comeuppance? OW goes to jail for a bit and then has a disappointing and miserable life. OM lied to the h, stole from the h, basically was financially and emotionally abusive to the h, tried to take out the H with a lawsuit but failed. Comeuppance? went to prison for a bit and then had a failed life after.
h and H were best friends (because H who was in love with h knew h had loved the OM so settled for BFFs). H helped the h when all the betrayals were coming to light and was the hero who got all the dirt on the OM to help h get justice.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
This narrative offers a compelling exploration of profound betrayal, unrequited affection, resilience, and an ultimately fulfilling resolution.
The story masterfully incorporates elements that deeply engage the reader, including betrayal, manipulation, disdain, clandestine schemes, and the full spectrum of tactics employed by the antagonist, which are depicted with poignant heartbreak. The enduring and transcendent loyalty of the friendships, which persevere through immense suffering and pain, is particularly remarkable. The subsequent triumph of the female protagonist, supported by the unwavering commitment of the male protagonist, provides a deeply satisfying and redemptive reading experience. The epilogue is exceptionally well-crafted, extending the protagonists' journey into their later years.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book and highly recommend it.
I don't get it. Was James always this atrocious excuse for a human? Or did he just morph into being a waste of space slowly, or overnight?
How did Olivia or anyone not pick up on this after being together for years? Total dupe. Her husband absolutely despised her and she had no clue, and there was no reason for it either. Albeit, she also was a doormat dependent, and he was a master manipulator- but she couldn't be that clued out about the demon in her bed. In any case James made a good villain. He was a masterclass gaslighting douche.
But thank God for Leo bc Olivia was no match for James' level of diabolical. I sorta thought Leo was too much of a simp. He wasn't a charismatic character to me, but he got the job done and ended up with the gal.
This was a story about Olivia who is married to James he's a cheat ,a liar and basically a egotistical ,mentally abusive man.Leo is Olivia old friend whose secretly been in love with her since he met her ,so when Olivia finds out not only is James cheating with Amanda who is equally as nasty as he is he's also forged documents that could ruin olivias life esp her bakery .Leo steps up and helps her in every possible way ,he's such a lovely character as is her friends from the bakery and James and Amanda get everything they deserve ,great ending and epilogue
I liked this story a lot. The cheating POS husband was such a selfish, manipulative prick. And the whore he cheated with was just as awful. It was fun experiencing them get what they had coming to them by the end (and boy did they!). This story has on page cheating, if that's a thing you can't read. For me, it added a lot more hate for these scummy shitheads. The heroine gets an upgraded Hero she deserves. Good stuff!
This was a story about taking a stand and not being manipulated. it’s about choices, some people made wrong choices, others took a chance with their heart. There are mature themes in this book so it’s recommended or 18+. I do recommend for anyone looking for this trope of betrayal and rising above for a chance at true patient love.
This story starts with a very manipulative couple that are not married to each other, but try to gaslight the wife in this story (Olivia) James (the husband) steals money from his wife Olivia and is very rude and very fake. As this story continues you find out that Leo is actually in love with Olivia and eventually marry and have children. I recommend this book!
Her husband was an unbelievable asshole. His mistress a total bitch. MFC soooo naive. Good thing she had MMC who had loved her for years to be her knight in shining armor to come and save her. This book was somewhat entertaining. An average read for me. Her other books have been better, IMO.
I really enjoyed this story. I loved the dual POV and getting to see the story from all sides. I wish there had been more in depth angst going on, but it didn't take away from the good story line.
It was a long book and a crazy MMC. The FMC was to soft she did not have a backbone. The OW was a little crazy but she lied to also by the MMC. This was not my cup of tea.
I loved this story. It started out rough for the main characters but it did not disappoint. I love a happy ending. I love when the one that gets crapped on in the beginning ends up with the best ending!!!
The narrative was really heartbreaking the lengths that her husband went to basically try and scam his wife. Parts were hard to read but it ends with a HEA