A review by downtown_kb
Bet Me by Jennifer Crusie

emotional funny lighthearted 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? Yes

4.5

She gets dumped at a bar and then goes to dinner with a man as part of a bet. They agree afterwards to never see each other again but it seems the fates have other plans and they can’t seem to stay away.

Jennifer Crusie really captures the 90’s rom-com era feel with her books and I just love it. It feels almost nostalgic. I love the banter and the sarcasm with just a dash of ridiculous/over the top. And her cast of characters are a lot of fun. 

Loved the fmc’s sass and personality and it was fun to watch the mmc going from a commitment-phobe to head over heels. I will always be a sucker for the mmc who is freaked out by his own feelings. 

This holds up pretty well despite being published in ‘04. I will say there is a lot of the fmc’s insecurity about her weight and some fatphobic comments (especially at the start of the book) but it mostly comes from her controlling jerk of a mother. I think this was the biggest element that ages the book, it's clearly a product of the time with all the talk that stems from diet culture. On a personal level, the fmc disagrees that there is a problem with her weight and the mmc loves her body, and helps her gain confidence back too by encouraging her to embrace how she is, so that was even better. Also, they were child-free by choice so that was nice to find. 

The end of the book gets pleasantly ridiculous and the epilogue was fun too with a quick wrap up for all the characters. 

I really think I'll continue to read through her backlog.

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