Isn’t It Bromantic by Lyssa Kay Adams
Bromance Book Club #4
Contemporary Romance
July 20, 2021, by Berkley
ARC

Review by Angela

I swear, this series gets better and better with each new release. When I picked up the first book in the series I expected a bunch of laughs and hijinks, especially given the title of the series as a whole and the premise that this was a bunch of guys getting together to research romance novels in order to help them with their love interests. And don’t get me wrong, there were some laugh-out-loud moments in The Bromance Book Club, but there was also a tender marriage in trouble romance with a heartfelt HEA. And since then this series has grown into something special.

This time readers get Vlad’s story, and I’m sure if you are like me, you were wondering just what was going on with his marriage and eager to finally meet his wife. The Russian hockey player, who is easy to laugh and cry, loves animals and has been a dedicated and loyal friend to this found family group of bromance book club members deserved nothing less than an epic love story.

When Elena first walked onto the page, I didn’t know what to expect exactly. She’s been mentioned so many times that I was intrigued, but seriously… who wouldn’t want the wonderfully soft-hearted Vlad? Who wouldn’t want to eat this man up with a spoon and come back for seconds? Who would stay away so long? Turns out Elena and Vlad have this incredibly complicated backstory that starts out in Russia and has continued on after their marriage in the United States. So much longing! So much miscommunication!

Just when Elena finally tells Vlad she wants a divorce and is headed back to Russia, he gets hurt in a game and she thinks this is her chance to take care of him and make up for all of the times she felt like she was a burden. Vlad has finally come to terms with the fact that his wife wants to leave him, but he also really wants her to stay. But while in the close quarters of a shared home, and with the help of all of their friends, this is the chance they need to work out all of their misunderstandings and actually talk. Get to know each other again. HAVE SEXY TIMES. Learn that their love for each other is real and true and worth everything.

This was a mix of marriage in trouble, forced proximity, and friends to lovers tropes and I really enjoyed my reading experience. There is a pretty dark external conflict having to do with Elena’s work as a journalist and her backstory with her dad, but it didn’t overshadow the main romance and actually made Elena’s motivations for returning to Russia make sense. I really loved this couple. The secondary characters all make appearances and there is a new group of outrageous, but loveable friends introduced. I’m keeping my fingers crossed we see them again in the future. Especially, Cheese Man.

This was another great addition to the series, and I wholeheartedly recommend.

Final Grade- B+

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