Romantic comedy fans are going to love this witty, sassy and feel-good romp by Laura Carter: Two To Tango.

Brooks has worked hard to get where he is today. The successful Manhattan gym owner had vowed to prove all his doubters wrong and show them that he could make something out of himself. Having put so much time, energy and effort into his business, Brooks is not about let anyone get in his way – and he certainly is not going to let a perky British influencer to disparage his reputation and make a mockery out of everything he stands for. Even if watching Izzy lead a salsa class on his premises has sent his heart rate soaring through the roof.

Whenever Izzy slams Brooks, her book sales soar. However, when their media feud forces them to get far too close for comfort for two weeks, Izzy and Brooks realise that first appearances might be deceptive and that they might have misjudged one another. Brooks isn’t the vacuous gym rat she had thought him to be and there is far more to Izzy than likes and clicks. Could the two of them have far more in common than they initially thought? And might these two sworn enemies end up falling head over heels in love with one another?

Laura Carter’s Two To Tango is great fun! A heartwarming, hilarious and highly enjoyable romantic comedy written with style and flair, this witty, engaging and engrossing read will go down a treat with fans of Beth O’Leary and Emily Henry. Sexy, stylish and sparkling , Laura Carter’s Two To Tango hits all the right notes and is an uplifting page-turner rom-com fans are going to lap up!

This was a cute enemies to lovers mainly closed door romance.

I did struggle a little bit with the body image representations.

Wow eagerly awaited second book in the series from Laura but can also be read as a stand alone.

What a fun read with a mixture of laughter, romance and hot in some places.

izzy is a Fitness influencer and Brook owns a gym, Izzy writes a piece about Brook that is not nice but later realises she made a mistake and things start to heat up between them.

I really don't wanna spoil this story but all i can say is read it for yourself!

3⭐
Genre ~ contemporary romance
Series ~ Brits in Manhattan #2
Others in the series The Law of Attraction
Setting ~ NYC & London
Publication date ~ September 11, 2023
Page Count ~ 290 (40 chapters)
Audio length ~ 7 hours 50 minutes
Narrators ~ Jessica Preddy & Nathan Adams Stark
POV ~ dual 1st
Featuring ~ gym owner, fitness influencer, single dad, close proximity, opposites attract, rivals to lovers, enemies to lovers, no steamage

*Previously titled Playing to Win. I have no clue if any content has changed*

Brooks (35) & Izzy (28)
Did not love my first impression of Brooks, but I warmed up to him and even felt bad for him a couple of times. His daughter is 18, so this isn't a young kid/single dad trope, more of see my grown daughter when I can, but still love her to pieces trope. He still bugged me at times, like when he kept a big secret. And regarding that big secret I did not care for what Izzy did before she knew about it one bit. Even before that I wasn't feeling her too much. She's a socialite that is bankrolled by her parents in her late twenties. I am not familiar with that world, but she was quite unlikable and immature.

I do enjoy some good old competition but being set in the fitness world is not something I can relate to. Seems a lot of this one was not relatable for me. I did like the conclusion of their competition though.

A little too much with the 'enemies' at times, but I did like it overall.

Series notes:
Fine as a standalone as book 1 characters only made a few appearances.

Really well done romcom, reminiscent of the shows and films I loved growing up. Laugh out loud moments and a good plot.

What a whirl wind these two go through. Instant chemistry that is great to see blossom from bickering to too hot for each other.

Brooks is a dedicated single dad and successful gym owner in New York City, still trying to prove himself to his past love and her disapproving parents. His life gets complicated when Izzy, a spoiled socialite promoting her fitness book, enters the scene, causing friction with her entitled attitude. Despite Brooks' lingering feelings for his ex, Izzy's behavior annoys him, leading to a love-hate dynamic. Their competition in fitness and diet adds humor to the story, but the romance falls short for the reader. The presence of familiar characters from a previous book adds depth to the narrative. Although not a fan of the main characters, the captivating writing style keeps the reader engaged until the end.

I loved Two to Tango, book #2 in the series. Frienimies to lovers and a splash of spice. Enjoyable contuatikn of the series!

There was too many aspects in this book that I didn't care for. As someone who wants to get more involved in the exercise and nutrition some of the information was not what I expected.

Thank you to Boldwood Books and NetGalley for the advanced copy in exchange for a copy.

Rounding up from 3.5 stars.

An enemies to lovers with very little spice. At first, I could barely stand either Izzy or Brooke. Their combative spirits were ridiculously overheated, bordering on foolish. The most engaging and mature character was Brooke's 18 year old daughter. As the story progressed, I grew fonder of the pair as they grew more vulnerable and fully developed.

What should getting fit take?
Salsa or weights?
High protein and treats
Or low protein, no meats?

Different trainers have different ideas
But when they clash will it end in tears?
A challenge to try the others ways
What will happen in fourteen days?

A romcom with fitness and fun
With different goals and ways to get things done.
Enemies they may start out to be
But what will they end up - read it to see!

A story that made me smile and laugh, too
With family secrets and surprises all the way through.
For my complementary copy of this book, I say thank you,
As I share with you this, my honest review.

thank you to netgalley for the advanced reading copy. I really enjoyed this and will be getting copies for my shop.

This was a simple, fun, easy and quick read. The perfect type of book for your holiday, beach, pool kind of read. This is a first for me by the author and one I enjoyed and I would read more of their work. The book cover is eye-catching and appealing and would spark my interest if in a bookshop. Thank you very much to the author, publisher and Netgalley for this ARC.

This was a quick one sitting read, which is always a plus for me. The book was enjoyable to some extent, but I had a few problems with how the nutrition was handled in the book, as this can be a very sore subject for many people. I did read the first book in the series as well, so I like this universe and will continue the series.

A fun enemies to lovers story for Brooks and Izzy. I liked both characters and wanted everything to work out for them. Looking forward to the next book in the series.

This is the second installment of Brits in Manhattan series. I do enjoy this book a lot than the previous one, maybe because it has dual POVs with fair amount of chapters between Izzy and Brooks, so we got more time to understand the depth of each character better. I love their competitiveness and how it's gradually become their way to get to know each other. Overall, it's been such a sweet and cute read for me.

📖 ARC REVIEW 📖

Thank you @theboldbookclub for an early copy of Two to Tango by Laura Carter. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. 🤍

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐/5
Release date: September 11th, 2023

Blurb: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/195938346-two-to-tango?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=9MULQKmCRi&rank=1

🛑Read on with caution; review may contain spoilers🛑

Two to Tango is an enemies-to-lovers romance between two fitness buffs Brooks and Izzy. The two have different views regarding maintaining a strong and healthy body, and what started as a PR stunt to promote Izzy’s new book and Brook’s gym turned into something more. Though their banter and bickering were funny and entertaining as hell, they were both too childish in my opinion. Their romantic chemistry was alright, but there was more focus on their bickering than on their romantic relationship. I wished I got to see how their relationship grew into something more without a lot of their fighting and childishness. And I also wished a lot of their miscommunication was handled with much more maturity for people their age.

As for character growth, after their experience together in trying out each other’s exercise and diet, they seemed to have grown better apart than they would have if they were together. Their time apart gave them space to pursue what they wanted, Izzy with her singing and theater, and Brooks with his new gym and apartment with a view.

I honestly don’t know how their relationship will progress since most of their romance and character growth were only implied, but I overall enjoyed their bickering.

Thank you so much NetGalley and Boldwood books for this ARC. This is my second Laura Carter book and another that was quite enjoyable.

The book is good fun, it’s flirty and had a little bit of spice in it. I love the opposites attract troupe because although predictable usually is good fun to read about the journey the characters go on before the end of up together.

While I liked the characters in the book I did feel there was a missed opportunity to really open the story up to us, the filming in his studio / gym to come out of nowhere and fell that additional content would’ve made a huge different.

I liked the spark between the characters and that I didn’t have to think too much when reading it.

Laura Carter is a brilliant brilliant author. I have adored this book from beginning to end. I devoured this in just one sitting.

This is a book that is flirty, fun and filled with emotions. Brook and Izzy are just brilliant. Carter has had me full on laughing at this one. It’s just been a delight from beginning to end.

The banter and the antics are just brilliant. Carter is a must read author because this is one that I have fallen in love with from the beginning.

This has been the perfect read. There is nothing negative which can be said about this one. It’s truly just wonderful.

🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

My first book from Laura Carter, and possibly my last. The main characters were surprisingly immature and just...toxic. I expect a little of that in contemporary romance (conflict often drives the plot) but these two just were not plausible. Also neither of them seems like they would be good trainers and their nutrition and exercise advice grated.