Book Review: The Proposal

Title: The Proposal 
Author: Jasmine Guillory 

Genre: Adult | Contemporary | Romance
Publisher: Berkley Books
Publication Date: October 30, 2018
Source: Publisher
Format: e-ARC


When freelance writer Nikole Paterson goes to a Dodgers game with her actor boyfriend, his man bun, and his bros, the last thing she expects is a scoreboard proposal. Saying no isn't the hard part--they've only been dating for five months, and he can't even spell her name correctly. The hard part is having to face a stadium full of disappointed fans...
At the game with his sister, Carlos Ibarra comes to Nik's rescue and rushes her away from a camera crew. He's even there for her when the video goes viral and Nik's social media blows up--in a bad way. Nik knows that in the wilds of LA, a handsome doctor like Carlos can't be looking for anything serious, so she embarks on an epic rebound with him, filled with food, fun, and fantastic sex. But when their glorified hookups start breaking the rules, one of them has to be smart enough to put on the brakes...(goodreads)




The Proposal was entertaining but not as memorable as The Wedding Date. 
Plot: Carlos saved Nik from awkwardly explaining her situation to a news crew shortly after she turned down her boyfriend's very public proposal. The two hit it off and kept running into each other until they had no choice but to acknowledge their attraction and lay down the ground rules. 

When I read The Wedding Date, I fell in love with the push and pull of the relationship and the commentary on the challenges of interracial dating. The Proposal was a bit more light-hearted and was missing the emotional appeal that The Wedding Date had. At the end of the day, The Proposal was cute and the ending put a smile on my face. 

Characters:  Nik was a woman I desperately wanted to learn more about and I felt that The Proposal barely scratched the surface. It was clear that she had trust issues and had been hurt badly in the past, but we never delved into what made Nik tick. In fact, Nik's friends kind of stole the show and I hope that Guillory decides to write another book that features Nik's best gal pals. Carlos was just as sweet as he was in The Wedding Date with a bit more stress. In The Proposal, we learned about his relationship with his family and the burden that he carried. It was good to see Carlos play the leading man and I loved how emotional he was. 

Worldbuilding: While The Wedding Date took place in the Bay Area, The Proposal explored the L.A. area. I loved the biting commentary on the L.A. social scene and all of the food! Seriously, Nik and Carlos had the most delicious dates. 

Short N Sweet: The Proposal didn't compare to The Wedding Date but was still fun. 


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