The Bromance Book Club

3.5 Stars

The main couple in this book are married and recently separated. Gavin is desperate to save their marriage, while Thea has accepted its demise. I enjoyed the unique take on this married romance story, but it was an emotional struggle not to be offended for Gavin. I was becoming incensed at how one-sided the responsibility of the marriage's breakdown felt. A third of the way in, Gavin was still shouldering all the responsibility. Common sense says one person alone is rarely the problem. The author wasn't convincing me that Gavin's offenses were worthy of his groveling or his alone, I should say. I also wasn't feeling empathy for Thea since the author had portrayed her as fairly bitter most of the time, even though she married Gavin while knowing the demands of a pro-baseball player. By all accounts, he seemed like a great husband, aside from their breakdown in communication, which ironically, seemed to be Thea's problem.

By the end, there was turnabout, but I felt like the author waited too long to show Thea's vulnerable side. The book did have some light and funny moments. The idea of a romance reading male book club was fabulous. That aspect of the book introduced some great secondary characters who elevated the story a little. I really liked how the author handled the ending and reconciliation, but I would have preferred more of a balance when it came to responsibility between the husband and wife throughout the rest of the book.

The audio was pretty good. I preferred the contemporary narration to that of the historical romance excerpts.

8 people found this helpful

I loved this!

I absolutely adore the premise of The Bromance Book Club by Lyssa Kay Adams . I have always said that men should read romance if they really want to know how to treat a woman, and this was a perfect demonstration. I also love a book where a married couple finds their way back to each other. Due to my own personal situation, this book hit me in the feels as well as made me laugh.

Gavin Scott is a famous baseball player. He is so busy with his career and his team, that he doesn’t realize he is neglecting his wife. When he discovers that his wife has been faking big Os since they got together, he is so butthurt that he he leaves when his wife tells him to after not speaking for weeks. Apparently she has been miserable for a while and never told him.

“Do you want to fight for your marriage?”
“Yes.” Jesus, yes. More than anything. And shit, now his throat was closing again.
“What are you willing to do?”
“Anything.”
“Do you mean that?”
“W-w-what the f***? Of course, I mean it.”

Gavin has a stutter that has affected his confidence his whole life. Thea was the one who loved him because of his stutter, not in spite of it. But due to an accidental pregnancy with twins, their relationship was fast-tracked. 3 years later, she hates the baseball life and she’s been faking it. When Gavin moved out, her sister moved in to help, and she was like the devil on Thea’s shoulder. Ugh, I hated her. But I LOVED all the professional sports guys who step in to lend Gavin a hand. They’ve all been through it.

“Everyone ready?” The guys nodded, mouths full. “Good. First rule of book club?” They finished in unison. “You don’t talk about book club.”
What. The.(bleep).
Gavin looked around for a hidden camera. This had to be a prank.
“A book club? That’s your grand plan for saving my marriage?”

Haven’t you ever wished your guy would read some of your books and get the freaking hint? Darn, I wish all men were required to read romance. Sigh….

I loved Gavin. He wanted to make his wife happy so badly but he had no clue how. He was really clueless…but what really annoyed me was that IT WASN’T HIS FAULT. SHE is the one who has been lying for all this time. How would he know that she’s not happy if she was going to lie about it? And don’t even get me started on her sister.

"From the moment I first saw you, I have been half a man, because you’ve always held the other half of me."

Likes:

•Such a fun and unique premise!
•I loved the guys in the club.
•Gavin was a sweetheart who loved his wife so much.
•I loved the way the historical novel they were reading weaved through the book, including the narration. “Courting the Countess” was cheesy but added some lighthearted humor.
•I loved that he had a stutter and how she helped him through.
•The Russian made me laugh.
•I usually don’t love 3rd person books, but honestly I didn’t even notice it. Sometimes it makes you feel detached, but here, perhaps because it was a male narrator, I never felt that.
•The Nashville setting. (My son lives there, it was nice to recognize what they were talking about).
•It was over-the-top silly at times (the feminist men) interspersed with some pretty heavy moments. They balanced each other well.
•That cover!

Dislikes:

•Liv. Thea’s sister was so hateful to Gavin and so selfish. I couldn’t stand her.
•I thought Thea was way too rough on him. The marital problems seemed way more like her fault than his.

The Narration:
I am so glad to hear a not- overused narrator and love him. I especially enjoyed that there was a different British author for the “Courting the Countess” scenes. I definitely hope to hear more from both narrators.

The Down & Dirty:
I really enjoyed this unique and fun audiobook. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve said men need to read romance! The Bromance Book Club was a good mix of emotion, laughs, silliness and fun, but it tackled some pretty serious issues. I loved the book club guys and I am so excited to grab the next in the series, Undercover Bromance.

Rating: 4.25 Stars, 3 Heat, 5 Narration

3 people found this helpful

closer to 5 stars

I had to give this one 5 even if I had a minor problem here and there. It was fun, well written and funny. I absolutely adored Gavin and his friends. His issue touched me so much and explained a lot. Very much looking forward to the next book.

3 people found this helpful

Romance novels as how-to manuals

Setting: Nashville, TN Contemporary
Genre: Romance

Gavin Scott is a professional baseball player whose marriage is in trouble. It all started when he found out his wife had been faking orgasms as long as they’d been together, after which he had moved into the guest room and given her the silent treatment, and culminated with her telling him to leave and asking for a divorce. After being on a month-long drunk, his best friend and teammate, Del, along with some other guys, come around and tell him that they can help him save his marriage. And it all involves a book club and reading romance books or, as Mac calls them, manuals. So they give him a Regency romance called Courting the Countess, about an Earl trying to win the love of his wife, as his first assignment. The thing is, Gavin thought the problem with his marriage was the lie of Thea faking orgasm, but it went much deeper than that. Thea had lost herself, had become subsumed in being a good little pastel baseball WAG (Wives and Girlfriends).when they met, she had been a bit of a bohemian, studying art at college. Then she got pregnant, they married, and she had to give up school for domestic responsibilities.
The plot is well written, and the characters are fully developed. I did not like Thea’s sister Liv. She was too much rah rah yay divorce! in regards to her sister’s marriage. I mean, it’s all fine and good to be supportive, but to criticize her for working toward reconciliation? No. But I did like the other characters, even The B*tch, who was just so... bitchy.
The narration was good. It was nice that, given the book, as well as the book-within-the-book, were mainly from a male perspective, that the narrators were male. Andrew Eiden did an excellent job, even with the feminine voices. Maxwell Caulfield, who read the book-within-the-book, isn’t quite as good at the feminine, but portrayed a stuffy Regency era Earl very well — if a little over the top.

2 people found this helpful

Contemporary romance with comedy and a twist

I enjoyed this book so much that when I finished it, I turned it over and read it again! The second time I listened to it with my husband, and we had many laugh-out-loud moments.

Imagine a professional baseball player for the Nashville Legends named Gavin Scott. His wife Thea has recently kicked him out of the house and requested a divorce. He is devastated and not willing to give up on their marriage. When his buddies find out, they invite him into the fold of the book club they formed in which they read romance novels to learn more about what their wives and girlfriends want. They study them and discuss what works and what falls flat. They choose a title just for Gavin titled “Courting the Countess.”

What Gavin isn’t telling the guys is the reason for their breakup. On the night of a grand slam home run, Gavin discovers that his wife has been faking orgasms their entire marriage because she has a real one, and he can tell the difference. The sexual tension in the book runs high. The ball players even have a term for their own arousal from a book. Each has been in Gavin’s shoes and has words of advice. Gavin begins to court his wife taking her on dates, meeting at their twins’ school play, flirting, and paying close attention to her.

What sets the audiobook apart from the printed book is the narration. Andrew Eiden does wonderfully at depicting the guys, especially during one very funny scene in which Gavin is hung over and the idea of reading romance novels is introduced. But it is the very proper British narrator Maxwell Caulfield who takes the cake as he reads the passages that are the actual romance novel within this novel. His first passage may be a few pages, but each quip gets shorter and shorter until the character Gavin and the regency romance “author” seem to start exchanging barbs with each other.

While the book is very funny, it is also quite touching. This is a couple trying to find romance and get past their inner struggles to find each other again. Do Gavin and Thea get back together? Well, I can’t answer that or I would spoil the book. They, and we, sure enjoyed their courtship. I’m looking forward to a sequel.

1 person found this helpful

10 Stars for the narration!!!

You NEED to LISTEN to this book!!! This was my first experience with Lyssa Kay Adams, but it definitely won't be my last. I LOVED everything about this book! The story is so clever and uniquely presented. In this book the couple, Gavin and Thea are already married with twin daughters, but living apart. Thea is ready to give up and move on with a divorce while Gavin desperately wants to save their marriage and realizes he is willing to do anything it takes. His friends, and baseball teammates, come to his rescue with the invitation to join their secret book club and the suggestion that he read romance novels to learn what women want. What follows is Gavin's clumsy, funny and sweet attempts to follow their advice and win back Thea. Not much of this story involves baseball, so if you're not into sports, don't let that hold you back.

The duet narration of Andrew Eiden as Gavin and Maxwell Caulfield as Benedict, the Seventh Earl of Latford (sp?), hero of the Regency romance book Gavin is assigned to read, and whom Gavin reluctantly attempts to emulate, is brilliant!!! It's like we're treated to two audiobooks in one. I can't emphasize enough how much the narration adds to this book. The author manages to tie the stories together in a way that provides relevant examples of behavior for Gavin to apply in his attempts to win back his wife. Gavin's increasingly grumpy internal conversations with Benedict are great.

When I purchased this book, I didn't realize it was the first of a series, now I can't wait for the next book. Well worth the credit.

1 person found this helpful

A fun unique read

4.5 Stars
This book was such a fun read. After reading the blurb I knew I needed to get my hands on it. I love how the roles were reversed when it came to the book club. The Bromance Book Club will keep you entertained.

Gavin is a baseball player for the Nashville Legends and trying to figure out how to make things right with his wife. All Gavin wants is to make things right with his wife Thea but he needs help. After finding out Thea had been faking it when they were together has crushed him. He doesn’t know how to fix things and his friends decide to help him.

The lengths Gavin goes to in order to win his wife back was so sweet. Thea was stubborn most of the time instead of giving in to her feelings she has for her husband. She has realized she wants to achieve things she gave up when she married Gavin. She doesn’t expect Gavin to be supportive of her dreams.

If you’re looking or a fun fast paced read grab this book. It was such a fun read and I can’t wait for more in this series.

1 person found this helpful

LOVED IT!!!

I stalked the author because I so enjoyed this book. I ha r a new fav!! Can’t wait for Mack and Liv’s story next. Great writing and even greater narration!!

1 person found this helpful

loved this!

it was well written and made me laugh out loud many times. I cant wait to read the Rest of the series!

Loved this story!

What a wonderful take on a relationship that his having troubles. Every marriage goes through up's and down's, and it's so great to see a love story about working through those . The relationships between the men in the book club is hilarious and so cute. Both narrators did a great job. Andrew Eiden's performance, with the stutter, was endearing and sweet. I especially liked it when the narrators went back and forth as if in a conversation.