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3.36 AVERAGE
3.36 AVERAGE
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Ms. Hartl is another new author for me who cleverly tickles your funny bone while getting some well-deserved revenge on some egomaniacs, players, cheaters, and grifters on behalf of betrayed women everywhere.
Heartbreak for Hire (H4H) is an undercover operation that specializes in a variety of revenge schemes for jilted lovers, annoyed coworkers, and frenemies.
Brinkley Saunders is an aspiring artist who has worked for H4H for the last two years after her douchebag of an ex cheated and gaslighted her to the point of destroying her self-esteem and causing her to drop out of college. Now she is one of four Heartbreakers. They were brought on because they had all been broken at one time or another by the type of men they targeted. Brinkley specializes in egomaniacs who need to be taken down a few pegs. No one knows about her undercover job, even her mother, a professor at Northwestern and her worst critic about how Brinkley is wasting her life. But Brinkley's job is getting a little stale and she's not enjoying it as much after her last cute-meet with a target named Mark who just didn't seem to fit the profile. In fact, she almost broke rule number one of don't sleep with your target until a phone call got her out of that mess. But did it, really? Apparently, with protests from her current employees, Margo, owner of H4H, has an unpopular idea to bring male Heartbreakers into the mix, and guess who Brinkley is partnered with? Yes, you guessed it, her former target, Mark, and he's not happy. Let the games begin.
Professor Mark Cavanaugh is a sweater vest, tweed-wearing anthropologist (think Indiana Jones) who has worked hard to be where he is at in the cutthroat world of academia, but it's not his true passion. He just wants to teach middle school kids and not deal with university politics, but he wanted to make his grandfather proud so he aimed higher.
Brinkley and Mark are so good for each other despite their misunderstandings and bad decisions. Mark listens to Brinkley and notices things that are important to her. Something that she has not experienced before and it frightens her. She doesn't want to fail in a relationship again. Their witty banter and hot chemistry are entertaining, and as their attraction slowly builds into a passionate bond they push each other and discuss their dreams. Though Mark disappointed me toward the end, he fixes his mistake with a cute gesture involving her tortured cat, Winnie.
There are a number of supporting characters including Margo, Brinkley's boss, a woman Brinkley looked up to until she sold out to money. Emma, Brinkley's fellow Heartbreaker, is a supportive friend who gets out of the job first and moves on with her life. Brinkley's selfish and unsupportive mother is my least favorite character. She made her daughter feel unworthy all those years when she was carrying a secret that was more egregious and hypocritical than anything Brinkley did. And last but not least there is Brinkley's poor angry cat, Winnie, who is forced to wear clothes. In my opinion, Brinkley deserved every scratch and bite she got.
I recommend this unique and funny rom-com filled with smart, sassy, messy characters dealing with self-worth, forgiveness, and following their passions.
Thank you to Ms. Hartl, Gallery Books, and Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read this book with no expectation of a positive review.
Heartbreak for Hire (H4H) is an undercover operation that specializes in a variety of revenge schemes for jilted lovers, annoyed coworkers, and frenemies.
Brinkley Saunders is an aspiring artist who has worked for H4H for the last two years after her douchebag of an ex cheated and gaslighted her to the point of destroying her self-esteem and causing her to drop out of college. Now she is one of four Heartbreakers. They were brought on because they had all been broken at one time or another by the type of men they targeted. Brinkley specializes in egomaniacs who need to be taken down a few pegs. No one knows about her undercover job, even her mother, a professor at Northwestern and her worst critic about how Brinkley is wasting her life. But Brinkley's job is getting a little stale and she's not enjoying it as much after her last cute-meet with a target named Mark who just didn't seem to fit the profile. In fact, she almost broke rule number one of don't sleep with your target until a phone call got her out of that mess. But did it, really? Apparently, with protests from her current employees, Margo, owner of H4H, has an unpopular idea to bring male Heartbreakers into the mix, and guess who Brinkley is partnered with? Yes, you guessed it, her former target, Mark, and he's not happy. Let the games begin.
Professor Mark Cavanaugh is a sweater vest, tweed-wearing anthropologist (think Indiana Jones) who has worked hard to be where he is at in the cutthroat world of academia, but it's not his true passion. He just wants to teach middle school kids and not deal with university politics, but he wanted to make his grandfather proud so he aimed higher.
Brinkley and Mark are so good for each other despite their misunderstandings and bad decisions. Mark listens to Brinkley and notices things that are important to her. Something that she has not experienced before and it frightens her. She doesn't want to fail in a relationship again. Their witty banter and hot chemistry are entertaining, and as their attraction slowly builds into a passionate bond they push each other and discuss their dreams. Though Mark disappointed me toward the end, he fixes his mistake with a cute gesture involving her tortured cat, Winnie.
There are a number of supporting characters including Margo, Brinkley's boss, a woman Brinkley looked up to until she sold out to money. Emma, Brinkley's fellow Heartbreaker, is a supportive friend who gets out of the job first and moves on with her life. Brinkley's selfish and unsupportive mother is my least favorite character. She made her daughter feel unworthy all those years when she was carrying a secret that was more egregious and hypocritical than anything Brinkley did. And last but not least there is Brinkley's poor angry cat, Winnie, who is forced to wear clothes. In my opinion, Brinkley deserved every scratch and bite she got.
I recommend this unique and funny rom-com filled with smart, sassy, messy characters dealing with self-worth, forgiveness, and following their passions.
Thank you to Ms. Hartl, Gallery Books, and Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read this book with no expectation of a positive review.
The concept of Heartbreak for Hire is so much fun, and it reminded me a bit of the movie The Breaker-Upperers. It's funny, and easy to get invested in. There's a scene that is probably one of the funniest things I've read in a book, and I would love to see this as a movie or show.
I really enjoyed the first half of the book with all the heartbreak antics, and I wish that's what the book still would have focused on in the second half. However, it started going downhill for me with a silly misunderstanding between the main characters that was blown out of proportion, and had me rolling my eyes.
After that, the vibe turns from funny to sappy and focused on family drama. I started losing interest, and it was a bit disappointing after such a solid first half. The ending wrapped up way too neatly, and it felt contrived. I would still check out a sequel if one ever exists, though.
I really enjoyed the first half of the book with all the heartbreak antics, and I wish that's what the book still would have focused on in the second half. However, it started going downhill for me with a silly misunderstanding between the main characters that was blown out of proportion, and had me rolling my eyes.
After that, the vibe turns from funny to sappy and focused on family drama. I started losing interest, and it was a bit disappointing after such a solid first half. The ending wrapped up way too neatly, and it felt contrived. I would still check out a sequel if one ever exists, though.
This was a fun rom-com that has a very interesting plot. I really wanted to love this one but had a hard time connecting with the characters. Many of the things that fell flat for me, were redeemed by the end of the book. I felt that the love story had progressed fairly quickly and did not feel that there was much development. I did not like Margo (Brinkley’s boss), she felt borderline abusive and manipulative.
I love enemies-to-lovers and Sonia Hartl does an excellent job with the banter. Brinkley and Mark were very cute together but their romance fell flat for me. Overall, this was a cute read.
I love enemies-to-lovers and Sonia Hartl does an excellent job with the banter. Brinkley and Mark were very cute together but their romance fell flat for me. Overall, this was a cute read.
Whew. This book was written. The main kernel of the plot was a good premise. Unfortunately, the characters sucked. Enemies to lovers is a trope I generally enjoy. Brinkley's mother is awful. Brinkley's ex-boyfriend is awful. Brinkley's ex-friends were awful. Even Brinkley's boss is awful. Brinkley herself doesn't have many, if any, redeeming qualities of her own. I mean, Emma was OK? I guess? Don't bother. It's not worth your time.
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
Content Warnings
Moderate: Gaslighting
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
relaxing
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Tried listening to the audiobook and could not handle the narrator’s voice! Way over-pronounced every word and had a weird fake breathy thing going on.
This book enticed me like all other cartoon, cover romcoms, and had me wanting to know more even with such a cheesy ending. They were ups and downs, and it’s some points had me questioning what am I reading but I couldn’t put it down some unneeded dialogue and a strange concept of work yet once overlooked made this a good lighthearted read