Heroine Prickly, Prideful Martyr
This book is the first in the author’s Lit Lovers series. In case you're wondering, Lit Lovers is the name of a romantic book podcast featured in the book, run by some of the novel’s secondary characters. There are probably several podcasts out there like it, and it is certainly a fun idea to base a series around. I listened to the audiobook version of this novel. It has two narrators, one for the hero and one for the heroine. I will admit that I found this book a little confusing at first because it has so many characters we hear from. Some are brother and sister; some are potential romantic partners; some are just good friends. It's a sizeable group to keep track of just if you’re just listening. If I had the book version, I probably would have made a cheat sheet to show how everybody was related or connected. Audible does allow authors to include a PDF with their audiobooks, and the author should consider writing up such a character sheet to help her struggling readers!
I wasn't wild about the heroine in this book. She came across as a prickly, prideful martyr, someone who would rather lose her family home than admit to her more well-to-do brother that that was where her finances were heading. She is also really prejudiced about the hero because of his family, even though she knows nothing about him personally. He’s actually a pretty decent guy, though he does have a few faults. <<< SPOILER >>> I also wasn't wild about how she treated the hero after their intimate moment, just cutting everything off without a good explanation. He certainly didn't deserve that treatment, no matter his flaws. I hate it when heroes do that to heroines in what is supposed to be a love story, but it is no better with the gender flip! <<< END SPOILER >>>
At the book review website I got this audiobook from, the author stated it has witty banter. Personally, I didn't find their banter *that* amusing, especially when they were face to face. As part of a challenge, their pets carried on a text conversation through them. While I would call that mildly amusing, I wouldn't go so far as to call it witty. Because the heroine was such a prickly character, I felt like I couldn't really get into the book and enjoy it as I hoped I would. As such, I do not feel like I can recommend it.
I received a promo code for this book, but that did not affect my review.