Hook, Line, and Sinker

I listened to this second book in the Bellinger Sisters duology right after listening to (and enjoying) the first book, It Happened One Summer.

Sadly, based on my experience, this book should be called Hook, Line and Stinker.

I enjoyed the 'forced living together' thang, but other than that, this was a far cry from the first book. Repetition, miscommunication and unnecessary third act conflict do not a good Romance make (in my books). 

My biggest problem was Fox whose inner conflict felt contrived and forced upon the reader. His entire emotional journey and insecurities are based on the fact that he's too hot and feels objectified by his hotness. After one failed college romance, he writes off relationships. Oh lawd!! Dramatic much? I quickly had enough of the 'poor hot man who will never be boyfriend material' pity party.

The narration for this audiobook was fine, but the beginning of this book is a long string of short texts back and forth between Fox and Hannah which did not work well in audio. This was an easy listen and there were the requisite Tessa Bailey spicy scenes, but I'm tired of cringy sex talk and romances featuring gruff, manly men. 

I want so badly to love Tessa's books, but I think I'll take a break from them for a bit since they're feeling repetitive and hard to distinguish in my book nerd brain.

My Rating: 2.5 stars

Author: Tessa Bailey

Genre: Romance

Series: Bellinger Sisters 2

Type and Source: eAudio from public library

Narrator: Lauren Sweet

Run Time: 10 hours, 10 minutes

Publisher: HarperAudio

First Published: March 1, 2022

Read: December 29 - 31, 2024

Book Description from GoodReads: In the follow-up to It Happened One Summer, Tessa Bailey delivers another deliciously fun rom-com about a former player who accidentally falls for his best friend while trying to help her land a different man...

King crab fisherman Fox Thornton has a reputation as a sexy, carefree flirt. Everyone knows he's a guaranteed good time--in bed and out--and that's exactly how he prefers it. Until he meets Hannah Bellinger. She's immune to his charm and looks, but she seems to enjoy his... personality? And wants to be friends? Bizarre. But he likes her too much to risk a fling, so platonic pals it is.

Now, Hannah's in town for work, crashing in Fox's spare bedroom. She knows he's a notorious ladies' man, but they're definitely just friends. In fact, she's nursing a hopeless crush on a colleague and Fox is just the person to help with her lackluster love life. Armed with a few tips from Westport's resident Casanova, Hannah sets out to catch her coworker's eye... yet the more time she spends with Fox, the more she wants him instead. As the line between friendship and flirtation begins to blur, Hannah can't deny she loves everything about Fox, but she refuses to be another notch on his bedpost.

Living with his best friend should have been easy. Except now she's walking around in a towel, sleeping right across the hall, and Fox is fantasizing about waking up next to her for the rest of his life and... and... man overboard! He's fallen for her, hook, line, and sinker. Helping her flirt with another guy is pure torture, but maybe if Fox can tackle his inner demons and show Hannah he's all in, she'll choose him instead?