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The Rule Book by Sarah Adams

5 reviews

turnthepages_nl's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes

5.0

I LOVE ITTTTTT

Nora is ADHD coded. I felt so seen!!! (Not intentionally written as ADHD, I checked with the author. But it still feels like ADHD, at least in the way how it looks in me!)

Derek has dyslexia and was diagnosed later in life. He has not been treated well as a child and has a big sense of failure. The journey he goes on was truly beautiful and I felt so seen as a neurodivergent reader. The feeling of not being enough, how you try your hardest and still you 'fail' in the eyes of society. The way this was talked about and handled was done very very well.

Nora is often seen as too much. And she is learning and growing to become fully herself and not feel sorry about it. She is super badass and very good at what she does as an agent. And I loved the relationship between her an Nicole (her boss and mentor). The way both women are going about the powerimbalance in the workplace. I loved how much of an example Nicole was to her!

But most of all I loved the emotional vulnerability between Nora & Derek. The way they are growing and learning to love and be open again. I was rooting for them from the very start. The sweet moments + the banter had me kicking my feet many times!

Also, the scenes with the other LA Shark boys were absolutely hilarious but also heartfelt.

Sarah Adams is an amazing author and truly has a gift for creating a safe and loving space for readers to feel seen and loved. To feel validated and supported. I hope she writes many many more stories! ✨️💕

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katebrownreads's review against another edition

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4.0

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ashs_bookshelf's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring lighthearted reflective relaxing sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

*WARNING! I'm not sorry for the football puns*

~Hot Take~
I love Nora and Derek. I see myself in Nora, a little quirky & different. She does what she loves and isn't embarrassed about it. And Derek, he is a giant teddy bear with muscles.

🏈 Touch Down!
Anyone who loves sports, second chance, close proximity, Rom-Coms with a quirky, fun but determined FMMC and a take no shit, but gentle & caring beast of a MMC, this book is for you!

ExCollege sweethearts are reunited when Nora Mackenzie's career comes to rest on Derek Penders' shoulders, BIG shoulders.
Their breakup in college was not handled well, more like fumbled. But Nora has worked too hard to become a sports agent, and in a world dominated by men who don't want her there, she has to stay focused. She can't let their past get in the way of her career. After all, that blindsided her before. But Derek holds a grudge. When Nora broke it off in college, there was no real explanation. She just left, leaving him heartbroken.So! A little game of revenge is what Derek wants to play.
Nora is given Derek as her first client, and this has to work! But Derek plans to make her quit. Rules are laid out, more so to make Nora's job difficult, but when a night in Vegas sees that Rule Book thrown out the hypothetical window, a new game is put in place to save both their careers.

NOREK (my portmanteau for these cuties) are the ultimate field goal! Their witty banter is fun and a huge part of the tension growing between them. There is burn🔥, I'm not talking grass burn. It's a slow and exciting burn. But the story isn't slow by any means. It is one of those books that holds your attention completely. You WILL shut out your own family to keep reading. Responsibilities? Who has them?

Characters we know and love from The Cheat Sheet return, bringing that comfortable & nostalgic feeling. As always, Sarah Adams writing has pace and immerses you in the characters' world, and makes you wish you could score a touchdown with book boyfriend Derek Pender.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶🌶

*Thank you, @netgalley and @hachetteaus for this ARC for review consideration. These are 100% all my own opinions.*

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yvo_about_books's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful lighthearted fast-paced

4.75

Finished reading: March 4th 2024

"We all make choices in life and some of them are necessarily more gray than others. This is one of those times."

*** A copy of this book was kindly provided to me by Netgalley and Headline Eternal in exchange for an honest review. Thank you! ***

It's no secret that I'm a huge fan of Sarah Adams' writing, so you can imagine that I was shocked when I discovered that my first Netgalley wish granted in years turned out to be for her newest story The Rule Book. I enjoyed the first book The Cheat Sheet back when I read it in 2021, although I admit it wasn't my absolute favorite among her books... Still, I was VERY excited to receive the opportunity to read The Rule Book early. And WHAT a read it turned out to be! I loved every single minute of this enemy-to-lover slash second chance romance, and it's probably one of my top favorites by her.

While set in the same world as The Cheat Sheet and futuring a lot of the same characters, The Rule Book can easily be read as a stand-alone without missing out on too much. This is because this very much Derek and Nora's story, which is completely new. I can't deny that I loved seeing the rest of the characters again though, and their banter and friendship brought back great memories of the first book. The banter in general is one of the things that makes this story stand out; the interactions between Derek and Nora are simply brilliant and especially Nora uses some extremely hilarious phrases.

The Rule Book is part enemy-to-lover and part second chance romance; while the enemy part was shorter than I hoped it would be, there were plenty of funny moments to be found along the way. The story does feel more like a second chance romance during most of the plot, as it is pretty obvious how the two main characters still feel. The building up of tension is really well done though, and I especially loved the whole fake honeymoon and scenes set in Mexico. The whole story seems like an Easter hunt for romance tropes!

Part of the reason this story works so well (and her books in general for that matter) has a lot to do with its characters. Sarah Adams has a way of creating the most fantastic, relatable, flawed and likeable characters, and it was SO easy to start rooting for both Derek and Nora. True, certain aspects of their appearance and personality are quite cliche, but I personally didn't mind as I was having too much fun getting to know them better. The secondary characters are great as well, and already knowing most of them only made me enjoy meeting up with them even more.

The writing is flawless, and I literally couldn't stop reading. The Rule Book isn't just about the romance though, as there are quite a few more serious topics incorporated along the way. I especially appreciated how the story shone a light on dyslexia, parental pressure and gender inequality in the workspace, although they aren't the only topics discussed. The more serious topics helped balance out the lighter moments and resulted in a richer and dynamic plot. The sports/injury recovery angle also made for a great addition.

I might be biased, but I consider Sarah Adams to be one of my favorite romance authors and The Rule Book is one of her best stories to date. There is so much to love in this book, and I cannot recommend it enough if you enjoy the genre!

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bookrecsbyjess's review

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funny lighthearted relaxing medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes

5.0

Thank you to Random House Publishing for this ARC of The Rule Book by Sarah Adams. All opinions are my own.

Sarah Adams is my favorite author, and The Cheat Sheet was my favorite book I read in 2022. When I saw that she was writing a sequel to it, I knew that I wanted to read it as soon as possible.

The Rule Book is now my favorite romance book of all time! It’s THAT good!

I don’t know how she managed to top The Cheat Sheet, but this book just had everything I could’ve ever wanted in a romance: witty banter, shenanigans, romantic declarations of love, only one bed, and a hilarious and supportive friend group.

The entire time I was reading this book, I had the biggest grin on my face and was constantly giggling because of how it made me feel.

Derek and Nora are THE couple. They had amazing chemistry and hilarious conversations. Nora is so smart and great at comebacks. Derek is so charming and protective, and I just really enjoyed them together.

Derek’s teammates were so funny, and I loved how they reminded me of the Bromance Book Club from Lyssa Kay Adams’ series. Their constant barging in and advice added to the story so much.

I also loved how Nathan and Bree from The Cheat Sheet were part of this story as well. I loved how they kept trying to help Derek and Nora get together.

Overall, I would recommend this book to everyone. If you only read one book this year, it should be this one.

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