Meant to Be Yours

The fifth book in the series follows Renee the wedding coordinator and novelist Jasper, both are convinced (and solidly so) that they aren’t interested in a relationship that involves any sort of commitment. Jasper comes with a pile of issues -> he’s got PTSD, and while he uses his personal experience to fuel his hard-hitting detective on his search for serial killers. Unfortunately, his writing hasn’t helped to allay his own recurring thoughts, and his editor and publisher decide that he needs to stretch his character to include a relationship – either girlfriend or wife – something Jasper has no interest or experience with. Here is where Renee can help – if only he’ll let her in. The oft-used premise of two people who claim to not want relationships but fall into one in a pseudo friends-with-benefits and no commitments to relying on one another is familiar, and their friendship and conversations build naturally despite the recurring use of the trope. Both Renee and Jasper have plenty of opportunity for growth, and there are some wonderful “chick flick” moments and pop-culture references that will ‘date’ this story for readers in several years, but they mix nicely to add a pop of ‘familiar’ to a situation that, while plausible, is fictional and not of this world. Having only read the first book in this series before this one, even with no current grounding in the Happily, Inc. world, this story stands on its own two feet, and brings a sense of place and people without needing the background. With behind the scenes wedding moments and the gradual incorporation of the couple, together and separately, into the community with often laughable moments, the story was easy to read and engaging. The addition of a short story that left a smile, the story leaves you with a sense of completeness and belief in ‘a lid for every pot’ as both Jasper and Renee find their new normal and it’s far different than they ever expected. I received an eArc copy of the title from the publisher via NetGalley for purpose of honest review. I was not compensated for this review: all conclusions are my own responsibility.

I've been waiting for a while to learn more about Jasper as we met him in previous stories and learned he previously had a 'little r', relationship with Wynn. I was so happy for him to find a pet that could break through some of his barriers and never thought that he could develop a connection with wedding planner, Renee. Renee wasn't going to make things easy for Jasper. After years of pushing people away and building barriers against long term relationships, Renee and Jasper seemed like a perfect match if they could just get over themselves. The story had parts where I thought we were going in a different direction (her illness, his involvements in the weddings) but ultimately I loved the outcome. My favorite part of Mallery's stories are the connections and the characters who you get to revisit with each new book in a series. We returned to Happily Ever After for more fun and got to check in with the newlyweds and new babies and Millie the giraffe even made an appearance.

She had plenty of reasons to protect her heart and one of them was her mother. Now that she had found some where no one knew of her past and she had friends all she had to do was keep her mom away. He said he was broken and used that as an excuse to keep people at bay, he had all he needed with his writing. While these two thought they had it all worked out they were about to find out otherwise. This is my first read by this author and I absolutely loved the read and her characters too. It's a fun read with some serious tones but mostly it's about two people finding out there's room in their hearts for so much more. I love the camaraderie in the book, the friends for each of them are supportive but also unafraid of telling things like they are. It is a standalone read that has carry over characters which is always a plus. Love this author's style and I will be reading more.