3.5 Stars
You shouldn't judge a book by it's cover, even if that book is an arse.
Ibbie and Walt hate each other. And for the past year, since they're friendship circles joined thanks to Jemma and Reid's relationship, they've been at war. From annoying each other to pulling pranks and cockblocking, they've constantly been at each other's throats. Ibbie can't understand why Walt just won't give up and leave her alone so they can just mutually exist, even though it is kind of fun to piss him off. The truth is, Walt just doesn't want to stop pissing Ibbie off, because then his true feelings for her would be hanging on the line. When Ibbie starts going out with Walt's older brother Aleix, he's forced to face his feelings for Ibbie. Meanwhile Ibbie can't believe that Aleix and Walt are related, and she's enjoying the time they're spending together. Until he completely shuts her out and the only person she can turn to for help is Walt.
Yay Ibbie's story! She's been such a fun and crazy character since being introduced in the first book, so I was very excited to get in her head and her own story. To be honest, back when I read Falling For Him, I totally expected Ibbie to be set up with Zac, but slight disappointed aside, I still loved the direction Ibbie's story went. Plus, I just loved seeing the continuation of Blair & Silver and Jemma & Reid's stories.
As much as I enjoyed Ibbie and Walt's story, I really wish it had been longer. At times the story felt rushed and like we were missing out on some real character development and change. The 'enemies to lovers' stories really work best when there is a longer and slower build-up, especially in this case where we've only had two minor mentions in the previous books and not enough time to really see these characters develop, particularly Walt. I also just really wanted to see more of Ibbie's lift, particularly when it came to her acting and relationship with her sister. A full-length novel would have been fantastic for this story.
Despite it's length, I did really enjoy following Ibbie's story - she's such a dramatic and eccentric person who I loved to read about through Blair's eyes back in Falling For Him. I do wish we got to see a little more of Walt, whom we briefly met back in Jemma's book Something Real. It was actually great to see a new friendship circle and their relationships, and again this is something I wish we got to see more of (like, I need a Dahlia/Fabia book and more of Christien).
Overall, this is definitely a great read, and super quick as well. I've really been enjoying the Fortunate series, and this was another fun installment - bring on the final book! (I'm so not ready to say goodbye to all these characters). If you're a new adult and romance fan, this is definitely one to check out.