I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy from NetGalley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
The Fixer Upper
by Lauren Forsythe
Published by St. Martin's Griffin on August 2, 2022
Genres: Second Chance Rom-Com
Pages: 304
Format: Kindle
Source: NetGalley
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Get Your Copy at: Amazon
In this funny and sharp romantic comedy, a woman with a knack for turning her boyfriends’ lives around starts a professional service to help wrangle men, only to be unexpectedly matched with an old flame.
Ever since she can remember, Aly has been fixing everything around her: her parents’ marriage, her colleagues’ work problems, and her friends’ love lives. After a chance meeting with an ex who has gone from a living in his parents’ basement to a married project manager in three years, she realizes she’s been fixing her boyfriends, too…
So, Aly decides to put her talents to good use and, alongside two work friends, sets up The Fixer Upper, an exclusive, underground service for women who are tired of unpaid emotional labor. Using little tricks and tips, Aly and her friends get the men to do the work themselves – to get out of the job they hate, sign up for that growth seminar, to do more parenting. Before long, a high-profile Instagram star hires them to fix-up her app developer boyfriend. There’s just one catch – he’s also Aly’s childhood best friend and first love. As Aly tackles her biggest “fixer upper” yet, she’ll have to come to terms with their complicated history and figure out how much to change someone she’d always thought was perfect as he is…
The Fixer Upper by Lauren Forsythe is a humorous look into romance and the roles of the sexes in them.
Can Aly help Dylan and Nicki to the alter?
Alyssa Aresti
Our female lead is Alyssa or Aly to her friends. Aly’s life hasn’t been easy, but she has learned to cope by fixing things, primarily guys. She has dated many guys since college, but none of the relationships stuck. However, she finds out that all of them are better human beings, have great careers, and most are in good relationships. This is when her friends decide to start The Fixer Upper, a business that helps women “fix” the men that they love. I loved the premise, but you have to get past the manipulation, which Aly is alright with at the beginning, but then she seems to grow a conscience.
At work, Aly is jumping through hoops to gain the promotion to brand manager. The Brand Manager is a position she created, wrote the description, and has been doing without the title and pay for the last few years. After all of her boss’s delaying and sabotaging assignments, the job is settled during the same month Nicki hired her to work with Dylan. The one time that she takes time off is the time frame that they judge her on her ability to do everything that she already is doing.
I liked Aly from the beginning. She is intelligent, sweet, friendly, and remembers things about people even those close to them don’t bother to learn. Aly has some baggage that she hides from everyone until she and Dylan become friends again. Alyssa’s growth throughout the book is fabulously written. I was rooting for her initially, but as the story went along, I was more invested and truly liked her more. Some parts drove me crazy, like her boss. OMG! That guy was a piece of work. Mentor…he is NOT.
Dylan James
The male counterpart to Alyssa is Dylan. They were childhood best friends, but it didn’t end on a good note. Dylan is known to be a chameleon. As in, he changes himself for each lady that he is dating. He does this until he can’t do it anymore and then breaks it off. Currently, Dylan is dating Nicki, the Kitty Litter Princess (#KLP). Yes, that is right. Wow, talk about a spoiled brat. She ultimately wants Dylan to conform to her brand. This is where The Fixer Upper comes into play. Nicki hires Aly, Tola, and Eric to “fix” Dylan and his business and include a proposal. She is giving them one month to make it happen.
Dylan is mad at Aly when they first meet and acts like they don’t know each other. The scene is quite funny. As we get to know Dylan, we realize he has as much baggage as Aly. The two complement each other well; at least once, Dylan quits snarling at her.
I think Dylan is a brilliant character. Dylan is hardworking, dedicated, a great friend, and has a good heart. If only he could stop worrying about failure. Oh, and his relationship with his father is the opposite of Aly’s with her mother. These two had me hoping for the happily ever after for them and that the event that leads them together wouldn’t hurt either of them too bad.
Five Stars
The Fixer Upper by Lauren Forsythe has so much to offer. The story and the writing are fabulous. Ms. Forsythe knows how to put together a magnificent story with fantastic characters and a lovely setting. I thoroughly enjoyed reading The Fixer Upper. My rating is five stars for The Fixer Upper by Lauren Forsythe. I highly recommend it to all of you romance readers out there.
Thank you for dropping by! I hope you enjoyed this review of The Fixer Upper by Lauren Forsythe.
Until the next time,
About Lauren Forsythe
By day, Lauren Forsythe is a content marketing manager, finding ways to get writing into people’s eagerly waiting eye-holes, and by night…well it’s the same thing, but with more wine. Lauren writes books about strong women, men with pretty eyelashes, and friends that save your life.
When she’s not writing, you can find her blogging about relationships, ranting about the patriarchy, and ending her boxing workouts with a celebratory mini-roll or three. She firmly believes you can find confidence in the perfect bold lipstick and that all her problems would be solved if every dress had pockets.
Lauren lives in Hertfordshire with her husband, her newborn son, and a rescue cat that gets more pampered by the day.
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