How (Not) to Fall in Love by Lisa Brown Roberts
Publishing date: February 3rd 2015
Publisher: Entangled Teen
352 pages
Seventeen-year-old Darcy Covington never had to worry about money or where her next shopping spree was coming from. Even her dog ate gourmet. Then one day, Darcy’s car is repossessed from the parking lot of her elite private school. As her father’s business hit the skids, Dad didn’t just skip town, he bailed on his family.
Fortunately, Darcy’s uncle owns a thrift shop where she can hide out from the world. There’s also Lucas, the wickedly hot fix-it guy she can’t stop crushing on, even if she’s not sure they’ll ever get out of the friend zone.
But it’s here among the colorful characters of her uncle’s world that Darcy begins to see something more in herself...if she has the courage to follow it.
When I started reading How (Not) to Fall in Love I wanted some cute and fluffy teenage romance story. And that's exactly what I got, it just took a little different route than I have imagined in my head. The title of this book is a bit misleading, yes. You'd expect it to focus on romance, but in reality, this book focuses on family, trust, growing up and learning how to deal with new life. The romance is just a welcomed bonus.
All the trouble starts when Darcy's car gets repossessed from the schools parking lot, and Darcy then learns that her father took away leaving her family broke. With no income and being threatened to lose their home, Darcy has no choice but to accept her uncle's invitation to visit him in his shop and hope that he'll be able to help her and her mother somehow. While he can't help them financially, his company means Darcy a great deal, plus he has a really hot worker Lucas and Darcy can't help herself but fancy him.
Darcy's character really surprised me. I didn't expect her to be as strong as she was, and I definitely didn't expect her to deal with everything as she did. At the beginning of the book, I didn't exactly think she would be this huge spoiled brat, but I didn't think she would be as mature and collected as she was. You'd expect from someone who comes from a background like hers to watch down on everyone, but she was perfectly normal, and I really liked that about her.
Everyone else was really likable too. I especially have a soft spot for Darcy's uncle, and Lucas too. Yeah, let's not forget about Lucas. He was your typical sweet guy who looks like a supermodel and can fix pretty much anything he touches. Though a bit cliché, I ended really liking him. The romance was sweet and slow-building. That's probably a reason why I enjoyed it so much too. It progresses from a very good friendship to something more, and that's usually how I like my romances to be.
The only thing that bugged me in this book is Tri Ty, or Darcy's dad and the story that revolved around him. He became a millionaire on Harvest. It's a program used to motivate people not to give up. Maybe Darcy's dad did build a fortune on that, but for me the idea of motivating someone using the comparison of harvesting or planting plants was actually a little laughable. I just couldn't take it seriously, nor could I take the character of Tri Ty seriously.
But other than that, How (Not) to Fall in Love is a cute book, perfect for times when you just want to read a book with sweet romance, nice characters and just get away from everything.
Aw, this sounds cute!! I must admit, this wasn't on my radar AT ALL. But now, I think I may have to add it to my TBR. I would have definitely assumed she'd be a bit spoiled, based on the synopsis, but I am glad that isn't the case. The romance sounds absolutely adorable too- I agree, a friends-to-more slow moving relationship is just perfect! And why on earth is the dad called Tri Ty? I can't. But overall, the book sounds really good! Great review :)
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you enjoyed it too. We have the same rating and I was bugged too about the whole issue surrounding her Father. The romance was pretty sweet, I actually swooned! :P Great review!!
ReplyDeleteYeah, the thing with her father was really weird. Especially towards the end.
ReplyDeleteHonestly, I forgot if the book even mentioned his real name, I only remembered his stage name. I'm glad you like the book! :)
ReplyDeleteWell the characters look nice. ^^ And a slow-burn romance is ALWAYS welcome! And yeah, ahah, I did expect this to focus always solely on the romance so glad to know I was wrong! Great review :)
ReplyDeleteThis is actually the first time I have heard of this book! :) The foundation for the dad's becoming a millionaire really does sound quite bizarre. Planting plants can be relaxing, but as motivation?! I will need to read it to understand it, lol!
ReplyDeleteFaye at The Social Potato
A contemporary based on family, friendships and trust? GIVE ME. Based on the summary, I really thought Darcy would have been superficial and annoying. I'm glad that it wasn't the case. I'll definitely add this to my list! Great review :)
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