Tag: Christina Lauren

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The True Love Experiment by Christina Lauren

Robin’s Rave Reviews 20235 Stars

 

A new romcom, The True Love Experiment by Christina Lauren, comes out May 16. This was my first Christina Lauren novel, but since I had heard good things, I had to give The True Love Experiment a try! Read below. Maybe it will be just the book you’ve been looking for.

Synopsis

The True Love Experiment by Christina LaurenFelicity “Fizzy” Chen is a popular romance writer who hasn’t found her true love yet. She’s also going through writer’s block. Connor Prince, a documentary filmmaker and divorced father, is told that the company is going in a different direction, and he is expected to create a new dating show. He isn’t thrilled with the idea, but he does want to keep his job and continue to live near his daughter. Connor convinces Fizzy, the queen of romance novels, to star in the show, partially because she has a built-in audience from her books. Reluctant at first, she decides to do the show if the men she dates represent typical romance hero archetypes –  the Navy Seal, the vampire, the cinnamon roll (sweet and supportive),the cowboy, the one that got away, etc. The True Love Experiment TV show is right on track to air, except Fizzy may be falling in love with someone who isn’t a contestant. So much chemistry! So much flirting!

My Take

Ok, I’ll admit that my guilty pleasure is watching The Bachelor/Bachelorette shows. If that applies to you, this book is for you! I really loved the characters and plot of this story. I also loved the original slant on the dating show – a romance writer dating romance archetype love interests. However, it’s a spicier romance than I normally read. And watch out for the many F bombs. Still, I love the story so much, I had to recommend the book to those of you who aren’t bothered by the heat level and swearing. I gave it 5 stars because it was so entertaining, kept my attention, and included wonderful characters that stuck with me.

The Author(s)

Authors Christina Hobbs and Lauren Billings (the Christina Lauren duo)
Christina Hobbs (left) and Lauren Billings (right)

Christina Lauren is actually two writers: Christina Hobbs and Lauren Billings. Together they’ve produced eighteen New York Times bestselling novels, including The Soulmate Equation, In a Holidaze and The Unhoneymooners. Fans have been waiting for The True Love Experiment ever since Fizzy debuted as a character in The Soulmate Equation. (I didn’t know that until after reading The True Love Experiment, but it read fine as a stand alone. I have heard you should read The Soulmate Equation first (if you planned to) because reading The True Love Experiment first will give spoilers.

The True Love Experiment will be out May 16, 2023, but don’t wait! Preorders really help authors. You can order now from most bookstores, but I included this link to my favorite place to order books, bookshop.org. They support independent, mom and pop bookstores. You can even pick which store you want to support!

Thank you to Netgalley and Simon and Schuster for the ARC of this novel. The opinions are my own.

To get a sneak peek of my other upcoming book reviews, go to my last blog post. 

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@author.robin.shelley

Netgalley Member Professional Reader

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Sneak Peek of Upcoming Book Reviews

It’s good to be back! And I’ve got some good stuff for you. I’ve returned with a sneak peek of upcoming book reviews! You see, I’ve been reading a lot. What else was a girl to do while recovering from surgery?Twisty road in Nevada desert

Life is full of twists and turns, valleys and mountaintops. Although I prefer the mountaintops, I’ve been traversing my way through the twists, turns and valleys for the last few months, including surgery for my rotator cuff and bicep. Although I had a similar surgery done two years ago on the other arm, this one has been a much harder recovery. So, three months later, I’m still having pain and I don’t have full range of movement, but I’m working through the PT to recover. I just couldn’t wait any longer to reconnect with you!

When I couldn’t hold my arm up to type yet, I read. So – I have some great book reviews coming up! I’ll spread them out so you don’t have to rush out to get them all at once. I found it interesting that I was picking a wider variety of books, some out of the genres I usually read. But that’s great! Maybe my venturing out will give you something new to consider, too. Some books are brand new and others have been out a few years.

A new book review will come out later this week. Make sure you watch your email for it! If you don’t get email notifications when I write a new blog, why not?  I promise I won’t stuff your inbox. (I normally only write 2-3 blogs per month.)  Don’t put it off. I know how it goes. If you tell yourself you’ll do it later, you probably won’t. You simply need to type in your email address. Sign up on the bottom of any page on my website or go directly to https://robinshelley.com/home/contact-info/.  Do it! Do it now!

And now… (drumroll please), here’s a sneak peek at some of the book reviews coming in the next few months ( in no particular order):

The Liz Taylor Ring by Brenda Janowitz, Beautiful Little Fools by Jillian Cantor (for The Great Gatsby fans), The Peachtree Bluff series by Kristy Woodson Harvey, This Close to Okay by Leesa Cross-Smith , Big Fish by Daniel Wallace, The Last Secret of the Secret Annex by Joop van Wijk-Voskuijl and Jeroen De Bruyn (for those interested in the Anne Frank story), The True Love Experiment by Christina Lauren, Perilous Times by Thomas D. Lee, The Paris Daughter by Kristin Harmel, The Summer of Songbirds by Kristy Woodson Harvey, and The Secret Book of Flora Lea by Patti Callahan Henry.

Just a reminder:

Mother’s Day is just around the bend. Wouldn’t Mom love a good book for her spring/summer reading? If you order at bookshop.org, your purchase supports small, independent bookstores. You can even pick which store you want to support! (I’ve been supporting MacIntosh Books as they recover from the hurricane that hit the Sanibel Island/Fort Myers area in Florida.)