Well Matched The addictive and feel-good Willow Creek TikTok romance

Ich habe mir so einiges von diesem Buch versprochen und wurde enttäuscht. Das Fundament war da: Alleinerziehende Mutter, fast erwachsenes Kind, jüngerer Lover, Kleinstadt. Ich habe versucht April zu mögen. Ich habe versucht Mitch zu mögen. Ich habe versucht beide zusammen zu mögen. Aber die zwei passen einfach nicht zusammen. Aprils Liebesgeständnis und Geste zum Ende vom Buch war nett, aber was aus den beiden und allen anderen Charakteren wird war mir wirklich egal. Ich musste mir mehrmals während des Lesens ins Gedächtnis rufen, dass April tatsächlich 40Jahre und nicht 20 ist, denn durch manche Aussagen und Verhaltensweisen war das nicht ganz klar. Die ganze Geschichte aus Aprils Sicht zu schreiben hat den beiden und ultimativ dem Buch keinen Gefallen getan. Hier wurde von Wochenende zu Wochenende gesprungen und teilweise auch mehrere Wochen auf einmal übersprungen, sodass alle Ereignisse nacheinander passiert sind, in Realität aber über Wochen und Monate gespielt haben.

„Well Played“ is a fun and entertaining rom-com that I recommend to every romance lover out there, especially those who enjoy the fake dating trope.

„Well Matched“ is the third book in Jen DeLuca’s „Well Met“ series, but it can easily be read as a stand-alone as well. Now that April’s daughter is about to leave for college, she can finally get out of Willow Creek. In order to better be able to sell her house, April needs help with some home improvement, however, and Mitch is just the guy to give her a hand. In return, she agrees to play his girlfriend in front of his family, who won’t stop pestering him about still being single. All too soon, the line between playing pretend and reality starts to blur, though, which is not convenient at all… I did enjoy „Well Matched“ quite a bit, but also had my issues with it. I am not a big fan of love stories with big age gaps. I don’t have anything against them per se, since I am a firm believer of love is love, no matter the age, sexuality, ethnicity, religion etc, but big age gaps just make me uncomfortable somehow. Since April has the same reservations in that regard and some opinions and character traits that I share, it was very easy for me to empathize with her. I still found her to be quite frustrating at times, too, though. Mitch on the other hand is a total sweetheart. I liked him ever since his first appearance in „Well Met“, so I was quite happy to see him get his own story. I did like the dynamic between the two of them, but thought that they should have talked more openly with one another sooner. I hate miscommunication and while that isn’t exactly what happens here, it would have been smoother sailing if they had had more honest conversations from the get go. Also, I love one of the underlying messages: Don’t care too much about what other people might think. You are the main character of your life and should not be taking a back seat. All in all, „Well Played“ is a fun and entertaining rom-com that I recommend to every romance lover out there, especially those who enjoy the fake dating trope.