Review: "Isn't It Bromantic?" by Lauren Baratz-Logsted

I loved guy's guy Johnny Smith when we met him in The Bro- Magnet. He was funny and charming and, quite frankly, it was difficult not to like him! Having never expected to meet a woman as well-suited for him as D.A. Helen, he is almost shocked when he falls in love and marries the love of his life. Now it's on to wedded bliss, right?

Wrong! The trouble starts on the honeymoon when both Helen and Johnny contract a pretty nasty virus. Johnny provides his new wife with the pill that will make her feel better, but that means that there is nothing left for him and he will need to ride his illness out. Surprisingly Helen decides to leave Johnny on his own while she enjoys the sights, and it just goes downhill from there. The rest of the book details those first few tricky months of marriage between Johnny and Helen, and we quickly discover that marriage may not always be what it is cracked up to be.

I am a huge fan of Baratz-Logsted's books and was so thrilled to have the opportunity to review Isn't It Bromantic? Johnny Smith is one of my favourite characters of hers to date and I couldn't wait to find out what was going to happen to him next! I loved catching up with him in this well-written and entertaining story about a new marriage and the concessions that we must make to make our spouse happy. Having been with my husband for more than a decade I could certainly relate to some of the scenes! I appreciated the return of the characters from the last book whom we had already grown to love and I enjoyed the fun and relatable plot.

My only complaint was that I really didn't like Helen in this book. I liked her in the last one, and was disappointed that I didn't like her in this one at first. She became really abrasive and unlikable almost right away! Being pretty can only get you so far. That being said, I did see glimpses of the old Helen that I really liked throughout the book and how Baratz-Logsted chose to deal with Helen's personality change made complete sense to me. Her attitude was relevant, but it didn't make her endearing to the audience at first! I also missed Sam in this one. She was there, but not as much as before. Sam is definitely one of my favourite characters in this series.

I really love this series and I already cannot wait for the next installment. I have a feeling that whatever is next for Johnny and Helen will be absolutely entertaining! My thanks to the author for providing me with this review copy.