BOOK REVIEW | UNDERCOVER BROMANCE (THE BROMANCE BOOK CLUB, #2) BY LYSSA KAY ADAMS (SPOILER FREE)

March 14, 2021

Title: Undercover Bromance
Author: Lyssa Kay Adams
Pages: 230
Publisher: Berkley
Published date: 10 March 2020
Genre: Romance, Contemporary Romance, Humour
Kinokuniya | Book Depository

Braden Mack thinks reading romance novels makes him an expert in love, but he’ll soon discover that real life is better than fiction.

Liv Papandreas has a dream job as a sous chef at Nashville’s hottest restaurant. Too bad the celebrity chef owner is less than charming behind kitchen doors. After she catches him harassing a young hostess, she confronts him and gets fired. Liv vows revenge, but she’ll need assistance to take on the powerful chef.

Unfortunately, that means turning to Braden Mack. When Liv’s blackballed from the restaurant scene, the charismatic nightclub entrepreneur offers to help expose her ex-boss, but she is suspicious of his motives. He’ll need to call in reinforcements: the Bromance Book Club.

Inspired by the romantic suspense novel they’re reading, the book club assists Liv in setting up a sting operation to take down the chef. But they’re just as eager to help Mack figure out the way to Liv’s heart... even though she’s determined to squelch the sparks between them before she gets burned. (Source: Goodreads)

Not everyone is willing to take on the world in a great big fight. It doesn't make them weak or wrong.

Undercover Bromance is a second book in The Bromance Book Club series. The second book is a companion novel to the first one and the series is not connected to each other chronologically. Each book is centered around a different main character in the book club. So, you don't need to read The Bromance Book Club to read Undercover Bromance, but I'd recommend to read the first book first so you had some insights about the characters' personality!

I read The Bromance Book Club last year and enjoyed it a lot more than I expected. Thus, going into Undercover Bromance, I had high hopes because I love Braden Mack in the first book. However, I know the love interest, Liv is the annoying sister in The Bromance Book Club. I was skeptical to read in the beginning, but when I finally got around Undercover Bromance, Liv wasn't as annoying as I thought she would be. In the first book, there are times when I want to smash my phone against the wall because she was just so damn aggravating but luckily, my phone is still intact after finishing the second book.

I just want to wake up next to you.

This book is about Braden who is a playboy. His love life is magnetic and wild. He was born a flirt. But there is no one woman who could stay stagnant by his side. Until one day, Mack met Liv who worked at a famous restaurant on his date with his current girlfriend. Things between Mack and Liv start spiraling from there when the expensive gold cupcake made by Liv toppled over onto Mack's girlfriend's lap when Mack accidentally hit the tray.

Personally, I don't like enemies-to-lovers trope. Especially when the hate comes from nowhere. And I don't really see the chemistry between Mack and Liv. The reason why I got through the book was because Mack is a charmer and I imagined him flirting with me instead of Liv lol.

The book focused more on fighting for women's rights than the romance. I know it's a good thing to stand up for women, however, I think the feminism is too much. I came to enjoy the humor and jokes between the book club members like in the first book. But I was left feeling bored. It's not like I don't care about what happened to women in the book because I know that must be what reality is like. It's just, I was expecting something else and left with another.

Despite Liv being less annoying in the second book, I admit there are times when I had to put off reading to take a deep breath because Liv always acts like she's the best. She's egocentric. I hate her so much. She talks without trying to put herself into other's shoes. I wish I could go into the book and slap her. That would be satisfying.

Overall, the romance is cute because Mack is a charmer but I think the feminism could be turned down a notch.

Rate: ★★★☆☆

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