No More Horrible Dates

High Tea #3

by Kate O'Keeffe

What do you do when you want to find your happily ever after, but you're stuck in a fake relationship with the last guy you'd ever want to date?

Twenty-five-year-old Erin Andrews has got a problem. She works for the country's most successful rugby team but a bitter past tells her all pro sports players are self-satisfied, arrogant jerks. There's no way on this sweet Earth she'd date one. That's why she agrees to a pact with her best friends to find good guys to date, and for her that definitely does not include guys like the "Wild Boy of Rugby," Nick Zachary.

So, when Nick is in desperate need of a reputation rehab, the big bosses turn to her as the nice, ordinary girl who can get his image back on track. For Erin, being that girl is the last thing she would ever want to do. That is until she realizes just how much being Nick's high profile fake girlfriend can do for her dream of becoming a fashion designer.

But playing this game of make-believe begins to feel real, and Erin wonders if the "Wild Boy of Rugby" could be her happily ever after...

No More Horrible Dates is a fun, feel-good fake relationship story for fans of Sophie Kinsella. High Tea is a spin-off of Kate O'Keeffe's bestselling Cozy Cottage Café series. Escape to New Zealand in this fun, feel-good chick lit series!

Genres: Romance, Contemporary, Chick Lit, Rom Com, Clean Romance, Sports, Ebooks

247 pages, ebook

First published October 31, 2019

About the author

Kate O'Keeffe is a USA TODAY bestselling and award-winning author who writes exactly what she loves to read: laugh-out-loud romantic comedies with swoon-worthy heroes and gorgeous feel-good happily ever afters. She lives and loves in beautiful Hawke's Bay, New Zealand with her family and two scruffy but loveable dogs.

When she's not penning her latest story, Kate can be found hiking up hills (slowly), traveling to different countries around the globe (back when we used to be able to do that), and eating chocolate. A lot of it.

Get a free book when you sign up to Kate's newsletter at kateokeeffe.com.

Reviews

[Milla · Rating 1 out of 5]

Y’know that guy in university who smokes weed for the first time and somehow corners you into a conversation where he philosophizes about how we could actually be living in the matrix right now and wouldn’t know it?

This book is the romance novel version of that conversation. A very pedestrian, common idea garbled up by someone who has no actual idea of what they’re saying or how to say it well.



Maybe I’m being too mean lmao but I’m sick of books like this with stilted dialogue and cringy “look how funny and relatable and quirky I am” narration.

Bitch bye!

[Euodias · Rating 5 out of 5]

SO SO GOOD! Out of all 3 books, this is probably my favourite one! Lots of laughter in this book and Erin is just so relatable. Reading the books in order made the experience so much better too because you feel so much more connected to the characters. I love the friendship between Sophie, Darcy and Erin. Makes me feel like I actually know these characters. The romance (although cheesy at times) was so freaking cute. ** It has a fake dating troupe and I'm a complete sucker for that so it's right up my alley. The series ended off so beautifully I cried happy tears :')

[romancejunkie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Erin Andrews agrees to fake a relationship with rugby player Nick Zachary, when she realizes that it could help with her dream of becoming a fashion designer, even if she at first could barely stand him.
But as they go on dates together to help Nick recover his good reputation, she sees a new side to him and see that in true he is a sweet guy and the lines between fake and real begin to blur as they fall in love. Super cute story!!
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Belinda · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think this is my favourite book from the High Tea series... well I did like the first one too, they are equal!

The first chapter of this book is hilarious, and it sets the scene for Erin's story. We did see most aspects of her life from work, family and of course dating. I still get annoyed by the use of the word "mom" when the story is set in New Zealand, but I guess that is minor.

All in all this is an easy read at a time I really needed a nice distraction. Plus the story revolves around sport and I do like sport!

[Racheli Zusiman · Rating 4 out of 5]

הספר השלישי בסדרת High Tea, על החברות סופי, דארסי וארין. זה הספר שהכי הכי אהבתי.
ארין היא מנהלת חסויות של קבוצת רוגבי וחולמת להיות מעצבת אופנה. כאשר ניק, אחד מכוכבי הקבוצה ההוללים, צריך "שיפור תדמית", על מנת שלא לאבד את החוזה עם נותנת החסויות הראשית, ארין מתנדבת להתחזות כחברתו, למרות שהיא ממש לא סובלת את ניק השחצן. ארין מקווה שהחשיפה כבת זוגו תעזור לה לקדם את שמה ואת חלומה להיות מעצבת אופנה. מנהלת היח"צ של הקבוצה מארגנת להם כל מיני דייטים על מנת שיצלמו אותם ביחד, ומסתבר שניק הוא דווקא בחור די נחמד, השניים מתיידדים, וההמשך ברור...
ספר ממש מתוק וכיפי, ובכלל זו סדרה מקסימה. נהניתי מאוד לקרוא! וחבל שנגמר...

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was just okay. Not sure if I will read anything else from this series at this time. I did get this copy free through my Amazon First Reads monthly book.

Fake dating trope.

Erin who has nothing but bad dates offers to fake date a rugby player whose team she works for to try and salvage his reputation.

[Jackie · Rating 4 out of 5]

An another adorable story about bad dating. Everyone should definitely read this. Realistic and fun.

[Mika · Rating 5 out of 5]

Easily a 5/5! My favorite story in the trilogy 🥺 so swoony, sweet, and delightful — made me smile very much as a romantic who loves intellectual banters too! ALSO fake dating + a pro athlete + non tall fashion girly? COUNT ME IN

Just didn’t like how abrupt the last chapters were BUT really enjoyable, couldn’t put it down! Charming lead characters and reading it in order is such an experience — Erin’s relatable to me ✨

[LMR · Rating 4 out of 5]

No More Horrible Dates: A romantic comedy of love, friendship . . . and tea (High Tea Book 3) (Cozy Cottage Café 7) By: Kate O'Keeffe
It's Time For "No More Horrible Dates" & A Laugh or TWO!
He's been a VERY bad, BAD Boy...
And gotten HimSelf IN some HOT Water,
Sooo He's gotta have a Fake GirlFriend to OverHaul His image as a Rake!
Enter the Laws who's just made a pact to have "No More Horrible Dates,"
Much less... "No More Horrible Dates" with Guys of His ilk!
See He's a PLAYER... In MORE ways than ONE,
And She doesn't Date jocks who know Noth'n 'bout RoMANce!
But...She wants Her Fashion Line,
Sooo it's Quid Pro Quo TIME...
And She'll just have to sideline Her "No More Horrible Dates" pact for a Time;
HowEver, there seems to be SomeThing MORE to HIM than meets the Eye,
And as She Dates this Guy...
She begins think'n She just might have "No More Horrible Dates!"
But WHAT will happen when their Time expires...
One-Click "No More Horrible Dates" & see for YourSelf!
I was granted, via B00|{$P®0UT, an ARC of Kate O'Keeffe's "No More Horrible Dates: A romantic comedy of love, friendship . . . and tea (High Tea Book 3) (Cozy Cottage Café 7) By: Kate O'Keeffe." I recommend this book to others based upon its own merits. All opinions expressed within this review are uniquely my own & freely given!
Until next time... Happy Reading!

[Araison · Rating 5 out of 5]

Definitely my favorite in the series ♥

[Issy Warnham · Rating 2 out of 5]

Could have been 3 stars but it was so short it just felt rushed. Enjoyed the characters though

[Kate Rose · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really did not enjoy this book. I found the way the dialogue was written really hard to get through. The characters were also incredibly shallow and everything felt a bit too childish.

[Thalassophile_takemetotheocean · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was funny. It was a quick read. The characters are so likable. This book is about Erin, who has a bad history of finding weird men. Her and her friends have had enough, so they create the No More Bad Dates Pact. This pact will help them find nice guys to date by vetting them after the Initial Contact and before the first date.

Erin works as the Sponsorship Account Manager for the New Zealand Hawks rugby team. When the most obnoxious player, Nick Zachary, jeopardizes his reputation, they come up with a plan for him to be seen 'dating' a normal, good girl to clean up his reputation. He is sponsored by Bennett Motors who are thinking about dropping him. Erin volunteers for the job with the ulterior motive to put her name out there to start her fashion design business.

As Erin gets to know Nick, she concludes that she may have been hasty in deciding that all jocks are the same. Nick has a secret that made him act like the wild child of rugby. This was a sweet, clean, and funny book.

[Jaycee Weaver · Rating 4 out of 5]

My favorite of the series

I’m on a romcom kick right now, and this trilogy of clean, fun, Kiwi reads has been just the escape I needed! Outlandishly bad dates, a friendship pact, and now a fake relationship turned real makes this the perfect little series for light, escapist pandemic/quarantine/summer/anytime reading. Definitely going to check out the pact serious previous to this one.

[Jamie Bee · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have read all the books in the series, as well as the one that this series was spun off from. I thoroughly enjoyed all but one of them, the first of the spin-off series. Luckily, this particular installment is another that I enjoyed. I found the heroine’s head an interesting one to be in. The books in this series always start with one of the bad dates, and this one was particularly horrible yet very amusing; I believe I actually did laugh. I find myself wondering how the author continues to come up with these hilarious bad dates. I enjoyed the last one, where the man affirmed that he was gay after kissing the heroine, but this one may have it beat. After this particularly horrible date in this book, the heroine is swept up into a fake girlfriend scenario because one of the star players on the rugby team she works for needs an image transformation. He needs to clean up his act publicly and so will be dating her for two months the image overhaul. The heroine, because she is around so many athletes, does not like to date them. Even though this is a fake scenario, she has to spend a lot of time with this person to set up their “relationship.” She's always found him to be arrogant and cocky in their few interactions but feels this could be a great way to get the clothes she has designed seen in public and perhaps lead to a fashion career, which is what she's always hoped for. I found this book to be an enjoyable read, and I particularly enjoyed the gentle humor and the interaction between the girlfriends.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

My book blog: https://www.readingfanaticreviews.com

[Emily Pennington · Rating 5 out of 5]

Erin Andrews is the Sponsorship Account Manager for the Hawks rugby team, so her first non-negotiable rule is that she doesn’t date jocks, even though that’s all she is surrounded with! She is in a pact with Darcy and Sophie to just be happy for now and not date jerks. However, secretly, she really does want to find “The One” and she wants it to be as romantic as possible! Which is why she doesn’t date jocks. Her world is full of arrogant, self-interested, womanizing professional rugby players who wouldn’t know romance if it leapt up and slapped them in the face. She meets Chris Gower in the grocery store line and asks if he plays sports.

Going through all sorts of questions, Erin finally asks Chris who he purchased flowers for? They were for his great-aunt who had recently died. He invited her to go out for a drink since he swore he was not a rugby player. But there were still rules to follow here -- because the members of the pact she belonged to were sick of dating a string of jerks, weirdos, and straight-up idiots. So she had to have their approval first. But he was so perfect! Until he drank way too much and took her to his great-aunt’s wake… which was actually his dead girlfriend’s wake. It didn’t go well.

At work, the bosses need a nice girl to pretend a fake relationship with rugby player Nick Zachary to clean up his reputation. Nick Zachary is sponsored by Bennett motor. But an embarrassing incident may jeopardize that, and the team can’t afford losing that sponsor. Normally she would never, ever date one of these guys. But this could actually help her reach her dream of becoming a fashion designer. It’s only for a short time, right?

Barely tolerating Nick based on his bad reputation alone, they begin to date and she starts to see another side to him. Feelings begin to change as she gets to know the real person under the façade. Could they actually fall in love?

This was another cute and funny story about the horrors of the dating world and how the ladies survived it. Grab your copy – you won’t want to miss this hilarious story line and the great dialog that keeps it happily moving along.

[TrishAM · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the third book of this series by Kate O'Keefe that I have read and I have loved them all. If I am honest I don't think that this was as funny as the previous two but that is just my opinion.
The series is based on three BFF who in the past have all made disastrous dating decisions, so decide to set up a pact whereby whenever one of them meets a prospective date, the first meeting should just be for coffee and before a date can be arranged the "victim" must be vetted by all the team. This system worked perfectly for Sophie and Darcy leaving just Erin without a regular boyfriend,
Erin works for a Rugby club, although she hates "jocks" with a passion due to a previous bad experience, but she has aspirations to be a fashion designer..
When Nick Zachary, a star player, land himself with a reputation as a bad boy hell raiser, the company sponsoring the rugby club threatens to pull out. A plan is devised to parade him in public with a respectable fake girlfriend to lessen the damage. Erin sees this as an opportunity to show off her designs so she offer to do the job even though she can't stand the man.
The story and romance unfolds from here and Kate O'Keefe has a brilliant touch with banter and repartee between the pair. Things don't always go to plan and there are some hurdles along the way in this endearing story. If you are looking for nail biting drama or torrid sex then perhaps this isn't the book for you but if you want a sweet funny read then I can recommend this book

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Ashlee · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story definitely has some classic rom-com feels to it. There's the highly involved group of friends, countless past bad dates, and those cringe worthy moments that make you thing "did that really just happen?" I did enjoy this story overall. I liked the dynamics between Erin and Nick. Though, Erin did hold on to some major grudges for an awfully long time. I enjoy the fake relationship trope, which is what initially pulled me in to reading this story. And I wasn't disappointed. I felt like the progression of their feelings felt gradual enough for me to not question what in the world was going on. I can't stand when main characters go from nothing at all to walking down the aisle in what feels like 2 days. I didn't feel that here. Then, when the inevitable tension fueled part of the story came up, I just had to keep reading to see how things got resolved!

I was a bit concerned when I saw this was labeled "High Tea #3" indicating it was book 3 in the series. I thought there was a possibility I was being dumped into a middle of the series with no context and it would be all over the place. I can say I was pleasantly surprised. It reads really well as a standalone book. I have gone to look up books #1 and #2 and can see how they relate to this one, but it wasn't necessary to read those in order to enjoy this book.

I received a free copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Kristi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Erin is dealing with a broken heart, has a job working with jocks and has made a commitment to not date another jock. But when her company needs her to fix Nick's bad boy rep by fake dating him, she realizes it will give her opportunities to get her on the path to her dream career. Spending time with him she begins to see there's more to him than what she thought. There's twists, comical moments that have you laughing out loud. A great ending to this fun series.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Meg Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a delightful romantic comedy which is a perfect read if you want an upbeat happily ever after story. It makes me smile just reviewing it. The characters are engaging and it's easy to relate to them. Erin avoids all pro sports athletes because of a bad past experience. However, now because of her job with a top rugby team and her nice girl image, she is roped into a scheme to date a player to help his image. She goes into this willingly, falls for this player against her better judgement, gets confused by his antics and the story unfolds.
I found this book difficult to put down as I was enjoying it so much. The playful banter, the good winning out, the day to day living, the honesty of it all was just refreshing.
I have enjoyed this entire series and will no doubt read it again just for fun. Well done Kate O'Keeffe

[Shelley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Erin is a budding fashion designer, stuck in her regular job as a sponsorship account manager for a rugby club. Enter Nick. Dubbed the bad boy of rugby, he's at risk of losing a lucrative sponsorship deal unless he can turn his image around. Erin sees an opportunity to promote her clothing and agrees to fake date him to clean up his image, despite having sworn off pro athletes years ago.

This book lacked a little depth for me and is perhaps best suited to a young demographic- there's a lot of BFF, babe and OMG going on in there. Outside of that, it's a pleasant and easy read.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Regina · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 / 5 pink gorilla stars

After Sophie and Darcy have found their respective HEAs, it's now finally Erin's (and Nick's!) turn.
And this heart-warming story has all the ingredients I enjoy so much in Kate O'Keeffe's books: there's a likeable cast of characters, witty banter galore, some truly hilarious - and also some reallyreally cringeworthy- moments, and, of course, a swoon-worthy romance.

While I appreciate a good fake-relationship story, especially seeing the friendship develop and slowly grow into more, it feels like the No More Bad Dates Pact and its rules just played a minor part here.

I am sad that this is the final book in the High Tea series - I had so much fun with these three ladies! - and I'd love to read more stories set in the Cozy Cottage world!

[Jenn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Between a broken heart and a job working with jocks, Erin’s commitment to not dating another jock is high, until she has an opportunity to help her company fix Nick’s bad boy reputation by fake dating him, which will give her designs exposure and hopefully set her on the path toward her dream career. As they spend time together, Nick is so much more than she thought and soon he is the next guy to be vetted as part of their no more horrible date pact. Everything seems perfect until she sees a haunted look in his eyes and evidence that he’s gone back to his ways. I loved the twists and the comical quips. Great final story in this adorable series,

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Sherri · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another great read by Kate O'Keeffe. Erin has had some terrible dates and hates jocks but is secretly looking for a HEA guy while her friends are looking for a HFN guy. At work she takes on a fake relationship with bad boy rugby player Nick, to clean up his reputation. Will it remain fake and will he pass the HFN vetting process?

[Lisa Proskin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love Kate O'Keefe's writing, the Cozy Cottage series and the other High Tea books, so I was very excited to read Erin's story...I wasn't disappointed. The book brings us back to the characters from these series and, to me, the best part is that the characters are the same. Their personalities and actions are consistent with all of the other books so it is like seeing old friends. As for Erin's story, it is her search for her HFN (Happy for Now) and perhaps HEA (Happily ever after). It's funny, sad, realistic and just an enjoyable read. Cheering for Erin's happy ending makes the book difficult to put down. I only wish that there were more friends in the pact!

[Elizabeth McDaniel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Erin doesn’t like rugby players. At. All. Nick is a rugby player with a bad reputation. He needs an overhaul before he loses his endorsements and maybe even his place on the team. Erin works for the team and offers to be his fake girl friend to polish his reputation. Can these two make it nice in public? Can she get over her aversion to rugby players? Will they accidentally fall in love? Fun read

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Cali Jewel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this laugh out loud, sexy, fun and engaging adventure filled with exciting charters, fun to quote witty banter and undeniable, unexpected passion.... was a great read from beginning to end. Excellent reading and looking forward to the next fun filled journey!

[Tracy Fritts · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story is a delightful, fun, and romantic read. It is wonderful written and a good storyline. I love all the characters. It was a joy to read.

I read and reviewed an advanced of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review. All thoughts and opinions are of my own.

[Lenda Burns · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really like this series and the author.
Her books are humorous and spirited.
I laugh with her quirky characters and follow the twists of her plot.
If you love romantic comedy this series is it.

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

O'Keeffe's books keep getting better and better. Her characters are so engaging, and I love the way she brings in the characters from the Cozy Cottage Cafe series without spending too much time telling me the plot of the earlier books. Erin spends a lot of time in the background in the first two books, so it was great to get to know her.

Also, wow. I mean, I've had some bad dates. So has everyone I know. I've written some bad dates. But... wow. O'Keeffe has written the gold standard here. The bad date to end all bad dates. Fantastic book. I loved every minute of it.