Reviewed by Becca

TITLE: And the Next Thing You Know

SERIES: Why You? #2

AUTHOR: Chase Taylor Hackett

PUBLISHER: Lyrical Press

LENGTH: 290 pages

RELEASE DATE: February 6, 2018

BLURB:

Not the one you’re waiting for . . .
Jeffrey Bornic is getting over his ex. Really. So what if the rising-star attorney is angrily sleeping his way through most of Manhattan’s male population? When the time is right, the perfect partner will show up. And Jeffrey knows exactly what he’ll be like: an ambitious, polished professional who’ll make the ideal other half of a fabulous power couple.
Theo McPherson is definitely not that guy. He’s a short, fiery red-head who works in the arts and wears sneakers held together with duct tape. If it weren’t for the fact that Theo is his best friend’s little (literally) brother, Jeff would be crossing the street to avoid him. Theo, meanwhile, has nothing but contempt for guys in suits, and seems to have deliberately set out to make Jeff’s life miserable, all while grinning at him in that exasperating way that he has.
At least it’s hard for Jeff to keep moping over his ex when he’s butting heads with Theo—and suddenly wondering if the last guy he’d ever fall for might be exactly that . . .

REVIEW:

I laughed so hard with this book. Oh dear heaven, I was rolling. When I first picked this book out to review, I didn’t know it was part of a series. So I didn’t read the first one, (which you can read this without the first and be able to understand everything), but I read the blurb and some of the comments to get an idea about this one. I was expecting one thing and got one of the best books to read. So great. And I have to tell you, I loved that there was NO sex in this book. None. Nada. Zilch. This book was all about the relationship. Yes, sex was implied. You know they had sex at one point, but it wasn’t talked about. It was about the building of a connection between two people. About intimacy. Hurts. Loves. And all the good and bad in between. And it was amazing.

Jeffrey just wants to move on with life. Being dumped by your boyfriend so he can go back to his ex, is not the best feeling in the world. He is angry and upset and to top it off, he is sick of being set up on dates by his best friend, Rebecca. To make matters worse, now his ex’s best friend is working in his office. Things can’t get worse. When he goes to meet Rebecca for lunch, he sees a young man sitting there. Not believing his eyes and groaning that she did it again it seems, he sits down and begins to tell this young man that he does not want a date with him. Rebecca’s brother, Theo, is in shock. Where does this guy get his nerve? As if he would ever date a suit. Theo proceeds to put Jeffrey in his place and it sets the tone for them. Neither can stand the other and wouldn’t dream of dating each other. Would they? Can Jeffrey actually fall for this exasperating little man?

Ok. So when I read the blurb and comments about the first book, I got a pretty good idea of who Jeffrey was. A pompous, stuck up, know-it-all jackass, who needed to be taken down a few pegs. But as I started this book, I actually felt sorry for him. I mean, yeah, he’s snobbish and a bit of an ass, but when you get to know his life and the way his family is and some other things, you begin to see a different side to him. Plus, I mean, come on. He got dumped by his boyfriend so he could go back to his ex. Whether there was love there or not, that’s hurtful. And to feel like you’ve been cheated on. Devastating. So I couldn’t help but feel for Jeffrey. But Jeffrey has his flaws for sure. And when he meets Theo, Theo doesn’t hesitate to point them out and put him in his place. Theo has his own flaws. Being such a little guy, he is picked on often. Being gay along with it gets him more comments. And being poor (his shoes are duct-taped) makes it worse. He wants to be taken seriously. He wants to not be seen as a bump on a log. But the idea of ever dating this suit, ha! These two had me in tears from laughing so hard. The snarky comments they traded back and forth to each other. The insults. The pranks. Tears were streaming down my face. But even with the hateful comments back and forth, they started settling into a friendship. An odd one, yes, but one nevertheless. And both had to learn to never judge a book by it’s cover.

I think that’s a big lesson in this book. Don’t judge a book by it’s cover. And to not be surprised when love comes in unexpected packages. Don’t settle for whatever. Go read this book. Please. It’s so funny and so good.

RATING:   

BUY LINKS: 

kensingtonbooks

amazon