ABOUT THE BOOK
Hung Up on You
by Marie Landry
Publication date: January 14th 2020
Genres: Adult, Contemporary,
Julia is single and happy, thank you very much. Try telling that to her happily-coupled bestie, though. She’s so determined to pair Julia off, she brings an extra guy friend along on a weekend getaway, in what’s clearly a set-up attempt. Julia’s interest is immediately piqued by sweet, sexy, nerdy Zack. There’s just one problem: he’s still hung up on his ex. Big time.
Despite knowing that – and despite her attraction to him – it doesn’t stop her friends from throwing them together every other second, insisting they’d make the perfect couple. But Julia is determined to friend zone him. At least until he suggests they pretend to date to get their respective friends off their backs.
At first, their fake “dating” is more friendship than fireworks. But as they get closer, the lines begin to blur between them, and Julia realizes she has to either shut down her developing feelings for Zack or let him in. The question is: can she fully trust him with her heart? Or does his heart still belong to his ex?
EXCERPT
Todd frees himself from the jumble in the hall and comes forward to kiss Dee’s cheek, then mine. Kai follows suit, giving Dee a peck on the lips before stopping in front of me. He grips my shoulders lightly, the way he always does when we see each other, and bends to kiss both my cheeks. “I’m happy to see you, Jules,” he says in his deep, measured voice. “I’m glad you could come for the weekend.” He leans forward and whispers, “Don’t be too mad at her. You know her heart is always in the right place, even if she tends to overstep.”
I don’t get a chance to ask what he’s talking about before he steps to the side, giving me my first look at the mystery stranger in the hall. His glasses have fogged up after coming in from the cold, but as the mist clears, I get a better look at his dark-blue eyes. The uncertainty on his face likely matches my own as he looks between the two couples. His eyes land on me next, and the crease in his forehead eases slightly, his frown morphing into a tiny, shy smile. He takes off his hat, revealing thick brown hair that stands in every direction, even after he attempts to smooth it down.
My stomach does a little flip. I get it now: this is a setup. I should probably be irritated, and that’s clearly what Dee expects, but this guy is cute. Really cute. He has a bit of a nerdy vibe, which isn’t my usual type, but there’s something about his shy, almost boyish smile that piques my curiosity. I usually resist Dee’s attempts to fix me up, but maybe I’ll cut her some slack this time. I’m single, I’m young, and there’s nothing wrong with a weekend hookup every now and then, right?
Dee steps forward and gives the guy a quick hug. “I’m so glad you decided to take Kai up on his offer to come. We’re going to have so much fun!” I’m vaguely aware of butterflies taking flight in my stomach as Dee turns to me. “This is Julia Coleman, my best friend. Jules, this is Zack Clayton. He and Kai work at the same insurance company.”
Zack steps forward, pulling off his right glove to shake my hand. Warm skin, good grip. His smile gives me a girl-in-a-romance-novel reaction: weak knees, heart fluttering, skin buzzing with awareness. Up close, I can see the crinkles around his eyes and the shallow dimple in his right cheek. I’ve always been a sucker for a cute smile.
“Nice to meet you, Julia.”
Oh god, and his deep, sexy voice. It’s the perfect complement to those beautiful eyes and adorable smile. I’m a goner.
MY REVIEW
This author is new to me, and I was pleasantly surprised by this romantic and funny story filled with friendship and new beginnings.
When a “chronically single” woman meets an incredibly shy man who is emotionally unavailable, their ruse to have a fake relationship to appease her meddling best friend does not go as expected.
When Julia first meets Zack she is charmed by his adorable nerdy shyness and gallantry, but he is stuck in time and cannot get over his ex-wife who dumped him for another man. Julia’s done the whole unrequited crush thing before so Julia and Zack become friends and come up with a plan to create a fake relationship to get her best friend Dee off of her back. The problem is, Julia is falling for a guy who still wears his wedding ring.
I love Julia and Zack’s relationship. Their nerdiness is endearing and the way they slowly discover each other is delightful and satisfying as well as very insightful about how people deal differently with failed relationships. Julia is a capable young woman who is happy being single and comfortable with her life and her patience and willingness to just listen to Zack to win his trust shows her strength of character. Zack seems like a cute lost puppy, but when he comes out of his shell and gains confidence with Julia’s help, he is pretty sweet and loveable. Who can resist a man who wears Captain America pajamas, reads books and loves to watch Outlander?
Overall, I was captivated by this lovely friends-to-lovers story with a strong female protagonist who is a bit of a knight in shining armor.
Thank you to Ms. Landry for giving me the opportunity to read this book with no expectation of a positive review.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Marie Landry’s life revolves around books; when she’s not writing them, she’s reading them, taking pictures of them for bookstagram, or blogging about them. An avid reader from a young age, she loves getting lost in characters’ worlds, whether they’re of her own making or someone else’s. She particularly loves coming-of-age stories with as much of an emphasis on self-discovery as on romance…but don’t leave out the romance!
When not doing bookish things, Marie can be found daydreaming (in general, but often about traveling through Europe), marathon-watching shows on Netflix, and taking photographs. She lives in a cozy apartment in Ontario, Canada with the best roommate ever, and only sometimes imagines it’s actually a flat in London.
Follow Marie on her website, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and Goodreads.
