Marry Me, Juliet
In this witty, sparkling series of rom-coms set on the same season of a reality dating show called Marry Me, Juliet, our couples find love in... well, the most likely of places.
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Blurb
A hilarious and heart-warming romantic comedy that examines how the unlikeliest of loves can bloom in – well, the most likely of places. Perfect for fans of The Hating Game and The Spanish Love Deception.
When Cece James agrees to be cast as a ‘Juliet’ on the next season of the hit television show Marry Me Juliet, it’s certainly not for the right reasons. She’s knee-deep in debt and desperate for the associated paycheck. The last thing on her mind is the hunky ‘Romeo’ waiting for her at the end of the gravel driveway.
But Dylan Jayasinghe Mellor isn’t your usual fame-hungry TV star. An Olympic gold medallist with calloused hands, kind eyes, and a propensity for panic attacks, it turns out he’s not here for the right reasons either. As a spokesperson for a men’s mental health foundation and the franchise’s first non-white male lead, Dylan’s got a charity to plug and something to prove.
When Cece gets eliminated on the first night, it seems like her and Dylan’s awkward first meeting will be their last conversation. But a global pandemic sees the TV set thrown into lockdown, and suddenly Cece and Dylan get a little more time together than they’d expected.
Will love bloom when the cameras stop rolling?
Review
Here for the Right Reasons by Jodi McAlisterKats rating: 4 of 5 stars
This is the first Jodi McAlister book I have read.
As the book opened - during the Pandemic, I could relate to the anxiety and stress that Cece and her flatmates Aro and Flick, their drunken decision to enter a reality tv show Mary Me Romeo ( the title was a bit weird to me since the end of Romeo and Juliet is tragic! but hey ho it's just a made up show)
Cece ends up being a contestant - and due to the pandemic, they are all in an "estate" on large lands with two houses on it - one the main mansion and then the smaller house that the rejected contestants get sent to. ( I had to giggle at that name for the house that held the rejected Juliets, it was aptly named)
The storyline does have a bit of 'Romeo and Juliet' angst as Dylan and Cece aren't able to officially continue to create their romance on the show as Dylan sent her home the first night!
Cece ends up being asked to be the "friend" as in the show normally Romeo's are able to get help from friends and family but since they are all in quarantine that's not possible.
The storyline is a good one, showing both the realities of staring in a TV show, and how that would be affected by the lockdown, there are plenty of funny parts, heartwarming parts and then some sad realities too, and the characters in the book are able to relate quite a few issues that the current world has created - or pre-exist, such as Racial issues, anxiety, and depression. All well written into the story so that it was relatable to the reader.
Cece's history, as a child who had grown up in the foster/care home system, was very well written. she felt very real and one memory had me in tears as I read it. The author Jodie McAlister did a great job in making Cece real to me.
Dylan though, he came across as a bit wooden to me, and although his past is explained in the book I really didn't get the same feeling towards him as I did to Cece.
I really enjoyed the book, but as the story came towards the end, Dylan came across as being shallow for not stepping up, yes he may redeem himself at the end but it still for me wasn't soon enough. The ending was a bit anti-climatic but it did round the story off for the pair, so all in all this has been a great rom-com read, it would make a great holiday beach read.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher & author for a copy of this book, my review is my honest thoughts only.
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