This was such a sweet and fun read, a story between two people oozing with sexual chemistry and matching energy as they meet through a one-night stand, later finding each other in a dating app, and creating a wager to motivate each other on finding their soulmates.

It was so obvious that these two are a match made in heaven (their ENERGY LEGIT MATCH) yet they don’t know that and it made me want to jump into the book to bonk their heads into realization. Though, it’s actually such a nice thing to see them turn into best friends who care deeply for one another. That friendship foundation definitely set them up for success at love, but I won’t tell you how that came to fruition so go get your hands on the book now!

Lynn Painter fused sexual tension, the soulmate trope, one-night stand, dating app wingman, taco dates, best friends to lovers, fake dating, and the one-bed trope together so beautifully and intelligently. If those tropes do not make you want to run to order this book, then I don’t know what will.

I have to say that, personally, I felt a bit underwhelmed with how the story came about from 75% to the end, and I want to see more action from Jack and Hallie. Nonetheless, their matching energy (yes I shall repeat this over and over because it’s THAT good), back-and-forth banter, and their deep love for each other still made it up for me.

This is the second book of an interconnected standalone series. I didn’t get to read book 1 (Mr. Wrong Number) yet but I had a good time reading, and regardless if you’ve read the first book or not, I think you’ll enjoy this one too.

Rating: 4.5 ⭐️

Thank you Netgalley and Michael Joseph, Penguin Random House for this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Lynn Painter is slowly becoming one of my favourite contemporary romance authors. This is the first time in a while I've stayed up late into the night to finish a book.

Our FMC Hallie decides to join a dating app after having crawled out of the hotel room of a one-night stand, and ends up finding Jack on the app (her one-night stand). The two quickly become friends and make a bet/agreement to help each other out and find the others soulmate.

This book was hilarious! The banter between Hallie and Jack was phenomenal and it had me cackling several times, embarrassingly so I might add. Jack has to be the best love interest that Lynn Painter has written and the chemistry between the two... *fans self*. I'm not the biggest friends-to-lovers fan but Lynn Painter managed to make me fall in love with both Hallie and Jack, and their relationship. This is the type of book that had me kicking my feet and squealing because the banter and tension was too much.

This book also features cameos from the characters of Mr. Wrong Number which I always love.

This book includes:
- Faking dating
- Friends-to-lovers
- Dual POV
- Hilarious banter and shenanigans

All I can say is run, don't walk when this book drops. If you love contemporary romances and are looking for a cosy read, read the Love Wager immediately. Lynn Painter does not disappoint.

I received an advanced copy for free through NetGalley, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

The Love Wager - Lynn Painter

This is the first book I have read from this author, and wow I will definitely be back for more! I think overall it was the chemistry that sealed the deal for me, Hallie and Jack are just perfection (mainly Jack, my god his character will stay with me a long time after reading this book). I can't think of any negatives to comment I just adored it from start to finish, I raced though it in two days, I could not put it down!

Thank you so much Netgalley, Michael Joseph and Penguin Random House for an advanced copy in return for my honest views.

Jack breaks up with his girlfriend because of her attitude the day of his sister’s wedding and ends up drinking with the bartender, Hallie leading to them having a one night stand. A few days later they both find each other on a dating app and become friends and make a bet about who can find love first.

This is my second book I’m reading by Lynn Painter. My first was Better Than The Movies and I’ll be honest it was not my favourite, but I wanted to give her adult novel ago and I actually enjoyed this one a lot more. I will definitely be picking up Mr Wrong Number soon.

4.5⭐️

You know when you notice yourself smiling like an idiot when you're reading, that was me reading this whole book!    
   
Hallie and Jack start out as a one night stand and after a very awkward morning after without swapping any contact info, they end up reconnecting later on a dating app. They both decide they absolutely do not like each other nor do they want a repeat of that first time but they are willing to be wingmen and help each other find love. After a series of failed dates and lots of tacos, and in a quest to find 'The One', they decide to make a little wager to see who can find true love first..    
   
God I loved them so much.. the banter, the chemistry, the humour and the 2005 Pride & Prejudice references 🙌🏼    
   
“𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘥 𝘮𝘦 𝘣𝘰𝘥𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘰𝘶𝘭, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘐 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘦𝘦 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦𝘴. 𝘗𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘦 𝘵𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘮𝘦 𝘮𝘺 𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘭𝘥 𝘴𝘰 𝘸𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘨𝘦𝘵 𝘰𝘯 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘭𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘺.”   
   
I flew through this book in one 3 hour sitting, I couldn’t put it down. What I didn’t realise until I started it was this is book 2 after Mr Wrong Number so I got to meet the MC’s from that book. I have it on my shelf so I’ll be reading that asap.    
   
This is a definite contender for my top romances (and definitely my favourite couple) of 2023 so of course I've had to pre-order a physical copy!   
   
Read if you like-    
• one night stand to friends to lovers   
• fake dating   
• one bed   
• he falls first   
   
U.K. publishing date- 30th March   
   
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

"𝚈𝚘𝚞'𝚛𝚎 𝚊 𝚍𝚊𝚖𝚗 𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚘, 𝙹𝚊𝚌𝚔. 𝙸 𝚊𝚙𝚙𝚛𝚎𝚌𝚒𝚊𝚝𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞."
"𝚈𝚘𝚞 𝚜𝚑𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍𝚗'𝚝 𝚎𝚗𝚓𝚘𝚢 𝚖𝚢 𝚜𝚞𝚏𝚏𝚎𝚛𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚜𝚘 𝚖𝚞𝚌𝚑."
"𝙸 𝚔𝚗𝚘𝚠. 𝙸𝚝'𝚜 𝚊 𝚌𝚑𝚊𝚛𝚊𝚌𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝚏𝚕𝚊𝚠."
"𝙸𝚝 𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚕𝚕𝚢 𝚒𝚜."

🍷🍷🍷🍷 / 5

🌶️🌶️ / 5

»»————-✼————-««

Review:
I haven’t read a romcom in a while! The dark romance, ya and fantasy has been taking over my life so it was nice to take a step back and dive into a romcom to relax! And dive I did, I binged 70% of this book in a day😅 I couldn’t put it down I was obsessed!

I adore Lynns writing style, someone described it as personal and honestly I think that’s the best way to describe it! I also loved the mixed media, the text message threads really added to the story and definitely paid homage to Mr Wrong Number! I really enjoyed the slower progression of their friendship in the beginning, well as slow as it could be after boinking at his sisters wedding😂 and then it really picked up pace wise at the 50% mark and I was like damn that went from 0-100 real quick😂 I am a big lover of the fake dating, one bed trope and Lynn incorporated them perfectly! There were parts I was doing that silent giddy scream while kicking my legs and with the hand IYKYK don’t judge me😭 This was my second Lynn Painter book and I honestly can’t wait to read her other works. I’m so greatful that I got an ARC and I’ve preordered the paperback so I can add all my highlights and tabs!🥹

Hallie is my favourite I adore her! She’s very true to herself; about pretty much everything accept her feelings for Jack, and she was such a pleasure to get to know (that sounds so creepy wth Pip😅). I love that she is such a people pleaser she got a cat to not hurt Rosie’s feelings (also I love how waky and crazy Rosie is and I would love to see more of her!🥹). Hallie and Jack are goals honestly I adore their friendship and I freaking died at some of the things Jack says to her🥹 I have about 60 screenshots that I will 100% make into a quotes reel at some point😂

Jack is probably a weakness of mine right now😂 he is utter perfection omg stop I can’t stop thinking about him😅😭 he truly worships the ground Hallie walks on and I am so here for it! He- dhdhdjsjjsjd I can’t I have no words😍

Anyway I thoroughly enjoyed this fabulous book and I think you should read it because honestly why not and also because Jack is perfect and Hallie is adorable and they are just very cute together😍😍 Also not normally a friends to lovers fan, but my god I loved this one! So you definitely, probably, might enjoy it too😅

For lovers of:
- Friends to lovers
- Fake dating
- One bed trope
- Bets / wagers
- Dating apps

This is a wonderful, fun, light-hearted romcom read with brilliant characters and a believable romance. The two MCs have amazing chemistry and are detailed, interesting, and relatable characters individually. I completely fell in love with Hallie as a character and I hope to see a bit more of her (as we do get a little bit of a crossover with the leading couple from Painter's novel 'Mr Wrong Number').
The premise of the book covers most of the plot as you'd imagine it. The plot itself is fast moving, especially at the beginning, and is overall well paced with steady character development and interesting dynamics throughout. The final act drama felt a little needless and anti-climatic but this is a cozy romance with very little stakes so I wasn't hugely upset about that. This is on the more adult side of romance books with some steamy and spicy scenes, but all in all a very wholesome and lovely book to read.
I will be definitely adding this to my list of romcom book recs.
Thank you so much to NetGalley and Penguin Random House for this free eARC in exchange for an honest review!

I really enjoyed The Love Wager, I kind of knew I would because ever since reading Better Than the Movies I’ve been a big Lynn Painter fan. I’ve now read two of her other works and while they aren’t as good, I still really enjoyed them. The Love Wager is definitely my second favourite.

This book had me at fake dating. It’s one of my absolute favourite tropes and it’s done very well here. Especially as they already have a ‘romantic’ connection, that isn’t really romantic as it was a one night stand, but they both knew it meant more.

Lynn Painter knows how to write charming characters. Hallie was so funny and I don’t want to say goofy as it sounds mean but I also hate the word quirky. She knows how to have a good time and she has these little ‘quirks’ that make her very lovable.

The romance was frustrating in the best way possible. It did get a bit ridiculous at one point as they literally told each other they have feelings for each other but still did nothing about it. That back-and-forth got a little annoying after a while, but they were so cute together that I could overlook it.

There were a lot of fun settings in The Love Wager and I especially loved the hotel and surrounding areas of the wedding. Also, the wedding! I love weddings in books and this one was pretty great. It was very fun, funny and actually quite spicy. Let’s just say that the hotel kitchen would not pass a health and safety hygiene test.

The Love Wager was a super quick read and entertaining from the get go. It’s definitely filled with a few cliches, but aren’t most romance novels? The friends to lovers trope was done pretty well and I really loved the cast of characters.

This was so cute, quick read and I really enjoyed it. I felt like it was an easy read and it flowed well. There were a lot of tropes in this one, which felt like they were there to misdirect, which I did find enjoyable as it was not a typical romance. I enjoyed Hallie as a FMC and will have to go back and read more from Painter.

“𝙄𝙩 𝙘𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙𝙣’𝙩 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙗𝙚𝙚𝙣 𝙖𝙣𝙮𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙮𝙤𝙪.”

𝘽𝙤𝙤𝙠 𝙍𝙚𝙫𝙞𝙚𝙬:
I picked this book up on Saturday and completely devoured it! Lynn Painter has fast become an auto-buy author and I just can’t get enough!

I enjoyed watching Hallie’s and Jack’s friendship develop into something more. There were a couple of times I was screaming oh my gosh, just kiss each other already!! Painter does an incredible job at creating loveable characters who are both swoon worthy and completely relatable. There were so many laugh out loud moments, and moments which had me smiling like an idiot because these characters are just the cutest!

𝙍𝙚𝙖𝙙 𝙞𝙛 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙚𝙣𝙟𝙤𝙮:
📱Dual POV
📱Fake dating
📱Best friends to lovers
📱Forced proximity
📱One bed trope
📱Guy falls first

𝙁𝙖𝙫𝙤𝙪𝙧𝙞𝙩𝙚 𝙌𝙪𝙤𝙩𝙚:
“..𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘦𝘯𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩. 𝘠𝘰𝘶’𝘳𝘦 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘧𝘦𝘤𝘵, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘧 𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘵𝘰𝘰 𝘧𝘶𝘤𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘴𝘵𝘶𝘱𝘪𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘦𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵, 𝘪𝘵’𝘴 𝘰𝘯 𝘩𝘪𝘮”

𝙍𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you so much to the author, Penguin Books SA and Netgalley for an eARC of this book.

After a one night stand, Jack and Hallie 'meet' again on a dating app. They decide to have a wager to see who will find love first? You hope they realise they are actually perfect for each other and end up together.

This was so much fun! It gave me strong Josh and Hazel’s Guide to Not Dating vibes and that’s one of my favourite books so I loved it!

I loved Jack and Hallie from the start and I was invested in their story from the first time they met. Their chemistry was clear from the beginning but they didn’t act on it right away and seeing them slowly fall in love as they got to know each other better and became best friends was truly heartwarming.

I loved their witty banter and their overall dynamic was so fun! This book actually made me laugh out loud, which doesn’t happen that often.

I think it did get a bit too slow at one point and I wish they’d just told each other they were starting to get feelings, especially because it was so clear what was happening, but it was still a really fun and enjoyable read.

If you’re looking for a cute, fluffy romcom check this one out. You won’t regret it!

★ 4/5 Stars ★

A big thank you to Michael Joseph, Penguin Random House and Netgalley for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review.

This was utterly delicious. Hallie is definitely up there as one of my favourite female book characters and teamed with Jack the pair were just delightful. The chemistry, the romance, the sexual tension...all a solid 10/10. The most beautiful story!

This was very enjoyable! I truly do enjoy Lynn's writing style. However, I did feel this story didn't know what it wanted to be - friends-to-lovers? Fake dating? A little bet in-between? It was a lot of tropes in one story and I felt that shift each iltime we moved from one trope to another.

Still an enjoyable read though for sure!

I really struggled with the beginning of this book. Hallie and Jack's wedding encounter was full of stereotypes and cliches. She was the super cool, laid back, funny bartender at his best friend's wedding while he had a 'blonde-bimbo', stuck-up jealous girlfriend. I didn't enjoy the humour and I found there were too many interruptions in the dialogue to insert funny quips or other irrelevant explanations. I also didn't like the initial narrative of wanting to find love as 'pathetic'.

However, the book got a lot better as it went on. This is an accidental friends-to-lovers, he falls first, fake dating scenario. There were a lot of turns in the story which made it really fun to read especially because Hallie and Jack really were having the best time with each other. The third-act breakup conflict was resolved quite well and overall I didn't find it predictable. `Once I got over the beginning I couldn't put it down, it made me smile a lot and feel warm inside. Jack and Hallie were all about the memories and it was very cute.

Ladies and gentlemen, she did it again! I like Mr Wrong Number, so I was really happy when I was given an ARC for The Love Wager and it did not disappoint. It’s light-hearted, funny, sweet, steamy, and all those references to Pride & Prejudice (2005) made it for me. Even though the lack of communication annoyed me a bit, I think it was handled in a nice way and the breakup act was swiftly resolved. It’s safe to say this book has bewitched me body and soul. And I love...I love...I love it. I never wish to be parted from it from this day on.

I highly recommend this book to everyone!

Much thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review.

This story follows Jack and Hallie, Hallie who has recently broken up with her long term boyfriend and Jack who has broken up with his girlfriend. The pair meet via a one night stand and reconnect via a dating app, whilst their friendship develops they make a wager to see who will fall in love first.

My overall thoughts of this book was that I couldn’t put it down and loved reading it. I especially loved it as friends to lovers is one of my favourite tropes. I loved this light hearted romcom and the banter between Hallie and Jack throughout the book and especially at the taco restaurant after their dates. I also loved the text conversations throughout the book. The secondary characters in this book including Olivia and Collin for Mr Wrong Number was amazing too.

Another amazing book by Lynn Painter!

This was the perfect quick read! I felt it shared a lot of similarities with The Spanish Love Deception but with more banter.
Seeing Jack and Hallie become instant best friends was fantastic, you could really feel the chemistry and the way they bounced off each other.
I do wish we had a little more, for instantce the fake dating part would've been even better if it lasted for longer
But overall I throughly enjoyed it
Thankyou Netgallery and Penguin for the ARC

A great laugh out loud, curl your toes from the cuteness and speed read because this book is impossible to put down.

Tropes I loved:
✨Insta-lust turned to friends to lovers
✨Fake Dating
✨A dating bet
✨One bed trope
✨He falls first

Hal and Jack had a spontaneous night of ‘railing’ the first night they met at a wedding. Jack just dumped his almost fiance, and Hallie is in the ‘spring of her life.’ Both of them are ready to find real and the forever type of love, so they both start using a dating app. The dating app starts a wager between the two of them, of who will find love first. Loser has to give the winner a massive gift. And so their journey to find love starts. While both of them are actively trying to find someone, they end up spending almost every minute together. These two just click, and are the epitome of cute best friends, but the lingering attraction just doesn’t fade.. even with a love wager in play.

Seriously this was so cute. It was quick, witty and super fun to read. These two really fit each other like gloves. They just ‘get’ each other you know?
So cute, everything you want in a rom-com!

Thank you so much to the author and Netgalley for gifting me an eArc to read

This was a fast, fun and enjoyable read. Perfect for what I was looking for.
Jack and Hallie have pretty instant chemistry. The way they bounce off each other was fun to read. But also seeing them fall for eachother.
While I do wish Jack wasn't so freshly single I can look past it.
Another thing I disliked was what caused the 3rd act break up. I get 3rd act break ups are popular but I just disliked what he did and didn't feel the need to tell her.

But overall this was great. I hadn't read book one in the series so everyone was new to me. But I definitely want to read more by this author in the future.