The Love Plot by Samantha Young is live!
This is such a gorgeous read! A funny, romantic, utterly charming opposites attract story with two absolutely fantastic characters in a fake romance. I laughed and swooned, and I felt so much for these two, and I absolutely loved their story.
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Audiobook narrated by Savannah Peachwood
Blurb
There’s a magnetic attraction when a happy-go-lucky gig worker agrees to a fake relationship with a rich, uptight New Yorker in this steamy romantic comedy from New York Times bestselling author Samantha Young.
Star Shine Meadows is all about freedom, thanks to the hippie parents who raised her. Juggling her jobs as a professional costume character actor and a line sitter, she believes in no expectations, no stressful ambitions, and no-strings-attached relationships. So when she meets a birthday girl’s grumpy uncle while working a princess party, she can’t help but needle him. She’ll never see him again, and honestly, he’s pretty hot.
Rafe Whitman may be a veterinarian with a great bedside manner, but that doesn’t mean his patience extends to anyone with opposable thumbs. His family will not stop nagging him about finding “the one,” so when he runs into obnoxiously cheery Star again, he makes her an offer: He’ll pay her more than she would make doing her odd jobs if she’ll pretend to be his girlfriend at family gatherings. She can stop sitting in line waiting for someone else’s new phone, and he’ll get his family off his back.
When the tension between them heats to a breaking point, Star’s desire for “no strings” is tested against Rafe’s staunch stability. They say opposites attract, after all….
Review
5 stars!
This is such a gorgeous read! A funny, romantic, utterly charming opposites attract story with two absolutely fantastic characters in a fake romance. I laughed and swooned, and I felt so much for these two, and I absolutely loved their story.
Star Shine Meadows is the daughter of hippies (no real surprise there). She is a free spirit, kind, honest and open, an optimist who sees the best in everyone and everything, and she lives her life on her own terms. She knows she is seen as flighty and a bit of a hippie, but she is fiercely intelligent. She speaks from the heart, she does what makes her happy, and makes no apologies for any of it. She’s an absolute delight, and I love her!
“Just because my life doesn’t fit into your idea of what a life should be doesn’t mean it’s bad.”
Star meets Rafe while she’s entertaining as a Disney princess at his niece’s birthday. He’s a grumpy a-hole who clearly thinks very little of her career choice, so when she is working at her second job as a line sitter (being paid to wait in line for a client), she calls him out and gleefully embarrasses him.
Rafe is intrigued by bright and bubbly Star. He is an uptight veterinarian, from a wealthy family who incessantly pester him about his single status and are constantly setting him up with single socialites. He’s desperate for anything to keep them off his back, so he hires Star to pretend to be his girlfriend for six months to give him a break.
It’s fantastically entertaining watching Star enter Rafe’s world. She is a breath of fresh air in the midst of the wealthy, stuck-up elite. She doesn’t hide who she is and she is proudly outspoken, yet she’s an absolute sweetheart and is always polite, and Rafe loves every moment of it! The book is written entirely in Star’s POV, so we’re never too sure of what Rafe is thinking, but there are meaningful looks and hints dropped that had my heart bursting with anticipation of what was to come!
“I’m glad this is working out how you hoped.”
He met my gaze. “Oh, it’s definitely working out better than I’d hoped.”
I stared at him. What did that mean?
While it’s a little awkward to begin with, Rafe and Star soon find their groove, and they’re so good together. You can feel the attraction between them, and I was cheering as all of that chemistry between them comes to its inevitable climax.
He closed the distance between us, cupping my face gently in his hands. “I don’t want to fake this anymore when for me…this is very real, Star.”
But while Star is ready to dive on in to explore all of that mad lust, it’s Rafe who actually wants more. He’s truly falling in love for the very first time, and I loved seeing him fall so hard.
“If it were just a blinding attraction, I’d fuck you right here in this elevator.”
And now my nipples were hard.
“But it isn’t. I have real feelings for you. So I can’t do the casual thing. I’d just be asking to get hurt.”
This is such a gorgeous story – not only a sweet, heartfelt (and seriously sexy) romance, but as we watch Star trying to fit into Rafe’s life, we follow her journey as she navigates a whole new world and figures out her place. While I’m a romance girl through and through, I loved Star’s personal journey just as much as I did the romance. I admired her, and I felt so much for her as she struggles between maintaining her individuality with falling in love for the first time and trying to fit in somebody else’s life. Her search for happiness is so beautiful to watch, and though they do struggle a little bit finding their way, Rafe is there and supporting her through it all, and I loved watching these two find their happy ending.
I could not help but fall madly in love with Rafe and Star, and this book has so many beautiful messages. For so many reasons, I loved it so much – 5 stars.
An Advanced Copy was generously provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Meet Samantha
Samantha Young is a New York Times, USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestselling author. She’s been nominated for several Goodreads Choice Awards. Samantha writes adult contemporary and paranormal romance, YA urban fantasy and YA contemporary fiction and is currently published in 31 countries.
She resides in Scotland.
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