The Playboy Bachelor by Rachel Van Dyken Pages: 352
Series: The Bachelors of Arizona #2
Genres: Contemporary Romance
Source: ARC, NetGalley
Also in this series: The Bachelor Auction
Also by this author: The Consequence of Loving Colton (Consequence, #1), The Consequence of Revenge, Capture, The Dark Ones, Untouchable Darkness, The Consequence of Seduction, Empire, The Matchmaker's Playbook, The Bachelor Auction, Enrage, Eulogy, The Consequence of Rejection, Envy, Risky Play, Ruthless Princess, Surrender, Scandalous Prince, Mafia Casanova, Destructive King, Mafia King, Office Hate, Falling for the Villain, My Summer in Seoul, Broken Crown , Office Date, The Anti-Fan and the Idol, The Godparent Trap, Dissolution, Exposing the Groom, The Unperfects, Office Mate, Ciao Bella
Goodreads
She's no Sleeping Beauty. And he's definitely no prince . . . Margot McCleery could have lived her whole life without seeing Bentley Wellington again-her ex-best friend and the poster boy for Hot, Rich Man-Whores everywhere. But Margot's whiskey-augmented grandmother "buys" Bentley at a charity bachelor auction, and now suddenly he's at her door. Impossibly charming. Impossibly sexy. And still a complete and utter jackass. Bentley's just been coerced by his grandfather to spend the next thirty days charming and romancing the reclusive red-haired beauty who hates him. The woman he abandoned when she needed him the most. Bentley knows just as much about romance as he knows about love-nothing. But the more time he spends with Margot, the more he realizes that "just friends" will never be enough. Now all he has to do is convince her to trust him with her heart . . .
In The Playboy Bachelor we meet Margo, a smart woman hiding her damaged heart, and Bentley, the family glue that wanted more from life! Both Margo and Bentley were interesting characters because they are layered. Each is more than they appear!
Margo and Bentley’s story is a bit of a second chance romance/former friends-to-more trope. They were friends in high school until an accident tore them apart and cost Margo her parents. They are thrown together again thanks to meddling grandparents. Margo isn’t willing to go easy on Bentley! If witty banter is your thing, you will fall in love with these two! I was furious at Bentley for his actions after the accident, and honestly, I’m not sure I ever really rooted for him throughout the rest of the book. However, they were in HS, so I tried to remind myself that teenagers are hormonal and make terrible decisions. But still….
Margo’s pain and emotional turmoil is believable and it really tugs at your heart. I loved that she was a romance author! Books about authors always win me over a little. Bentley hides his caring nature behind his jokes and playboy antics, but Margo sees through him. My biggest struggle with this book was the lack of communication about real things. Witty banter abounds, but REAL conversations about their issues were minimal for most of the book. I expect this type of lack of communication from YA characters, but in adults, I find it incredibly frustrating!
My feelings on the story were so mixed at times! I liked Margo, but I wanted better for her than Bentley. I understood Bentley, but I still thought he was a horses ass. I wanted them to talk, but understood they hid pain behind witty banter. The whole book was a constant back and forth for me.
I am beginning to think that RVD’s contemporary romances aren’t for me. I LOVE her darker, mafia series and her PNR series. I really enjoyed her romantic comedy series too. But, I haven’t really come across a contemporary romance of hers that was a 5 star read.
- POV: 1st
- Tears: no
- Trope: friends to lovers, second chance
- Triggers: none
- Series/Standalone: stand alone within an interconnected series
- Cliffhanger: View Spoiler »
- HEA: View Spoiler »
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Disorderly Conduct by Tessa Bailey, Ignite by Karen Erickson, Her Cowboy’s Promise by Jennifer Hoopes…then you will probably like The Playboy Bachelor!
The Playboy Bachelor
oh I just love witty banter and romances now don’t have enough of it to satisfy me. Gotta pick this one up. Thanks for sharing your thoughts on this one.
Ooo too bad you didn’t warm up to the hero.
It sounded like it would be a good one, but its too bad it didn’t work out that way for you.
“I still thought he was a horses ass” This made me laugh pretty hard. That sounds like something I would say. Sorry that RVD’s contemporaries haven’t been working for you. I’m glad you were still able to enjoy parts of this one even though you had some issues with it. I hope you end up enjoying your next read much more! Great review
I haven’t read Van Dyken’s darker stuff, but I like the Seaside Pictures and the Consequence books. From what you said, I might actually like this one, because I like emotionally wounded MCs and witty banter. Great review!