Review: The Romantic by Riley Hart
SYNOPSIS:
Parker
When it comes to The Vers, the queer podcast I host with my best friends, I’m The Romantic. The one who’s looking for love in all the wrong places. If there’s a jerk close by, I’ll find him. I’m beginning to think my Mr. Right doesn’t exist.
It’s definitely not Elliott Delgado Weaver, the shameless flirt who keeps asking me out. We’re not supposed to run into each other in Vegas or get drunk together. We definitely aren’t supposed to wake up married…only, we do.
Before we can figure out what to do, Elliott’s family finds out. He doesn’t want to let them down by telling them it was a drunken mistake. My parents had the perfect marriage until my mom passed, and since I’d hate for my father to discover what I did, Elliott and I decide to pretend we’re in love and stay married for six months. Better to amicably divorce later than own up to our screw up, right?
All I’ve ever wanted is my happily ever after, and now I live with a serial hookup artist who never planned on settling down.
But then, why is Elliott so good to me? He takes me on dates, makes me laugh, and touches me like I’m someone to cherish. He’s shown me I’m a sucker for praise, and lucky for me, he loves giving it to me. Our marriage is playing tricks on my heart because suddenly I’m wishing my happy ending can be with the husband who doesn’t think love is for him.
REVIEW:
*Book Received in Exchange for Honest Opinion/Review*
This story was utterly charming, its the type of read that leaves you conflicted. On one hand, I wanted to binge read the book and devour it as fast as possible; on the other hand I wanted to read the story slowly and savor every detail. In the end, I did a bit of both.
Accidental marriage, semi-enemies, I was here for it. Elliot has been relentlessly pursuing Parker for a year now. This back and forth banter was the most delicious kind of foreplay that builds up to a drunken wedding. Now Elliot and Parker are stuck together for six months. I absolutely adored these two together; the chemistry between them and the playful bickering is top notch. They had me endlessly grinning from ear to ear.
In a pleasant surprise that I wasn’t expecting but loved was the character growth. Elliot discovering his sexuality and really learning the meaning of love was so beautiful and endearing. Parker, my sweet precious Parker, found the happily-ever-after he had been searching for but too afraid to grasp. Both men blew me away with how much they grew, both as individuals and together. Their relationship; from the dates and the sexual tension, to the praise kink and dirty talk, it all just worked together seamlessly for these men.
Overall this story was an absolute delight. Was the plot predictable at times, yes. Did that take away from the story, absolutely not! And don’t worry, the rag-tag team members of The Vers are back with all the snark and group hugs you could hope for. This is quickly becoming one of my favorite Riley Hart series and I can’t wait for Marcus’ and Corbin’s romances.
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