Book Review: Unfortunately Yours by Tessa Bailey

Title: Unfortunately Yours

Author: Tessa Bailey

Series/Standalone: A Vine Mess Duology (Book #2)

Genre: Adult Fiction, Contemporary Romance

Pages: 384

Publisher: Avon

Year Published: 2023

Format: Audiobook

"A down-on-her-luck Napa heiress suggests a mutually beneficial marriage of convenience to a man she can't stand... only to discover there's a fine line between love and hate.

After losing her job and her fiancé in one fell swoop, Natalie Vos returned home to lick her wounds. A few months later, she's sufficiently drowned her sorrows in cabernet and she's ready to get back on her feet. She just needs her trust fund to finance her new business venture. Unfortunately, the terms require she marry before she can have the money. And well, dumped, remember? But Natalie is desperate enough to propose to a man who makes her want to kill him--and kiss him, in equal measure.

August Cates may own a vineyard, but he doesn't know jack about making wine. He's determined to do his late best friend proud, no matter what it takes. Except his tasting room is empty, his wine is disgusting (seriously, he once saw someone gag), and his buddy's legacy is circling the drain. No bank will give him the loan he needs to turn the business around... and then the gorgeous, feisty heiress knocks on his door. Natalie has haunted his dreams since the moment they met, but their sizzling chemistry immediately morphed into simmering insults.

Now, a quickie marriage could help them both. A sham wedding, a few weeks living under the same roof, and then they can go their separate ways--assuming they make it out alive. How hard could it be? There's just one thing they didn't account for: their unfortunate, unbearable, undeniable attraction."

My Rating: 4/5

I really enjoyed this second book in the series. While something I didn't enjoy the idea of a marriage of convenience trope in current times is so entertaining to me. The plot was fantastic. The characters were fun and the setting itself brings me so much joy. But during the spicy scenes, there were certain phrases that I didn't love. And the audiobook wasn't as fun as the ones I'd read in the past. I do plan on continuing to read Tessa Bailey's books as they come out, but I will keep in mind that the vocabulary she uses to describe certain body parts might not be my favourite. 

Thanks for reading,

Sidny

Book Review: Secretly Yours by Tessa Bailey

Title: Secretly Yours

Author: Tessa Bailey

Series/Standalone: A Vine Mess Duology (Book #1)

Genre: Romance, Contemporary, Adult Fiction

Pages: 384

Publisher: Avon

Year Published: 2023

Format: Audiobook

"A steamy new rom-com about a starchy professor and the bubbly neighbor he clashes with at every turn...

Hallie Wlech fell hard for Julian Vos at fourteen, after they almost kissed in the dark vineyards of his family's winery. Now the prodigal hottie has returned to their small town. When Hallie is hired to revamp the gardens on the Vos estate, she wonders if she'll finally get that smooch. But the grumpy professor isn't the teenager she remembers and their polar opposite personalities clash spectacularly. One wine-fueled girls' night later, Hallie can't shake the sense that she did something reckless- and then she remembers the drunken secret admirer letter she left for Julian. Oh shit. 

On sabbatical from his ivy league job, Julian plans to write a novel. But having Hallie gardening right outside his window is the ultimate distraction. She's eccentric, chronically late, often literally covered in dirt- and so unbelievably beautiful, he can't focus on anything else. Until he finds an anonymous letter sent by a woman from his past. Even as Julian wonders about this admirer, he's sucked further into Hallie's orbit. Like the flowers she plants all over town, Hallie is a burst of color in Julian's gray-scale life. For a man who irons his socks and runs on tight schedules, her sunny chaotic energy makes zero sense. But there's something so familiar about her... and her very presence is turning his world upside down.

My Rating: 3.5/5

I think this is a really fun contemporary read with fantastic steamy scenes. Tessa Bailey does an excellent job of making unique characters that you can visualize with their own unique voice. I also appreciate that they have struggles that are relatable. The steamy scenes in this one were perfect, and I look forward to reading the next one! How can a marriage of convenience go wrong?

Thanks for reading,

Sidny