I really enjoyed the first book, but I can't really say the same for this one. I didn't hate this, but this just wasn't what I was looking for in the sequel to The Bromance Book Club.

Now, the humor was still there, at some points, so definitely points for that. I also absolutely adore The Russian, and in all honesty, would have actually much preferred to read Rosie and Hop's story rather than Mack and Liv's.

What my dislike probably boils down to is the fact that this book tried so hard to do so much, while also attempting to be a romance novel. I just never got why the character's circled each other and ended up together. Zero chemistry. Mack is like a glass of milk, and Liv is like surströmming. The thing that made me not hate Liv as a character is the intentionality of her being an insufferable dick. She has baggage and it's acknowledged. Doesn't take away from the fact that she just pissed me off.

Then there's the plot. I do think that the discussions between Hop and the rest of the men were good, but they should have gone further. Now it felt a little bit too much like the author preaching to the choir. The plot itself was wholly predictable, unoriginal, and really uncomfortable in that I'm sure every woman can recall a situation like that, if not from personal experience, at least from secondary knowledge.

I was also really sad for how small a part the Book Club played in this installment, and how over the top the intervention scene was. I mean, I know the men in this (or the first book) are not realistic. This is a romance novel, they aren't supposed to be realistic. But damn the author just decided to abandon all attempt at making things believable, there.

And finally, there was the ending, which went pretty much as expected when no attempt at being original was made. The end result of the whole Royce case was as satisfying as it was going to get, but the way they got there just felt almost trite. I don't know.

I guess what I'm trying to get at is, I wish the author didn't decide to deviate from the genre of the first book. Keep romance romance and pick a different genre for the heavy handed social commentary. ( )

A fun follow-up to the first book. And this one we explore the life of Mack, leader of the group. This book was fun to read, nothing terribly surprising in the plot. I did roll my eyes at a couple of the woke scenes where the book club brethren talk to a guy from an older generation about what's acceptable. They weren't wrong, but they did come off a bit preachy. ( )

DNF'd; really disliked the 2 main characters. The first book in this series was original and interesting but this second one is full of tropes and is trying too hard to have witty banter. Will give the 3rd one a shot just in case this is the only dud. ( )

I was surprised to find myself liking this second book a lot more than the first one! In fact, I really enjoyed this one while the first book was a bit blah (although I ended up finishing it and was compelled enough to read the second one). ( )

Would you stand by if you saw someone being sexually harassed?

When Brayden Mack's date goes wrong, he runs into his friend's sister-in-law and the trouble begins. As the chain of events unfolds, the sister-in-law, Olivia, ends up witnessing a co-worker being sexually harassed. And this is when the action (and romance) begins!

I loved that the book used the same narrator as The Bromance Book Club. His delivery is fabulous! I love that the author brings humor and action to a romance and keeps me listening chapter after chapter! The build-up of the book was more than just the romance, it was the grand jesture!

I didn't find the same magic as I had with the previous book, but no complaints with this one!

4 stars just because I adored the Bromance Book Club and this just didn't live up to it. ( )