Rachel WintersCritiques

Looks like my romance reading rut keeps chugging along! Here's another one that's centered on the idea of the "meet cute" that we all know so well from rom-com movies.

Will Evie fall in love while trying to force a meet cute to satisfy the whims of the smarmy screenwriter she's been hired to assist? Will her boss fire her for being a bad assistant? Will the screenwriter turn out to be a nice guy after all? Can she make it in the cutthroat world of the entertainment industry?

If you are the type who would pick up this book I think you can guess what happens! It's cute and I enjoyed it.

3.5 stars
This was a really cute book

Evie's stuck as an assistant to an agent dealing in screenplay acquisitions. She dreams of being an agent herself -- well, actually, she dreamed of being a writer, before she was told that she just didn't have the talent for it. Now she files paperwork and runs errands for one of the most exclusive agencies in London. Unfortunately, the agency is so exclusive that they're about to run out of business if they can't get their star writer to turn in the romantic comedy that he agreed to write. Evie is sent over to get him to sign some paperwork, and ends up entering into a personal agreement with him: if she can prove that romantic comedy meet-cutes really exist, he'll write the screenplay. Now she has three months to find someone through a rom-com scenario -- but things are not working out the way she had hoped...

I enjoyed this book very much. It had the potential to be cringe-inducing, with Evie basically embarrassing herself all over London, but I found myself smiling at her meet-cute attempts instead. Plus, the secondary characters were great -- Evie's friend group is strong, and there's a kid in the story who is neither obnoxious nor precocious. Fans of contemporary romance, especially lovers of the romantic comedy, check this one out!½

Evie Summers has been working as the assistant for a prominent Hollywood agent ever since she gave up on being a writer. Her biggest challenge is Oscar winning writer Ezra Chester who has been assigned to write a rom-com, which is not his forte. Evie and her friends began to call him NOB when she finds that he hasn't even begun to write the script. So to give him incentive, she makes a deal to involve herself in as many meet cutes as possible and report them to him. When she encounters Ben and his daughter for the first time at a local coffee shop, they are witness to a disastrous meet cute.

Would Like to Meet is an enjoyable women's fiction story that includes romantic elements. The character of Evie is well developed, but others are not. So much of the story has to do with Evie's struggles with Ezra, that it's difficult to connect with the rest of the characters and the romance. However, the many meet cutes in the story are humorous and entertaining, but would have been far more effective if they had all been directly related to the romance. One strength of the novel is that each chapter begins with a script style opening to parallel the script being written in the story. Overall, Would Like to Meet is a fairly average women's fiction novel that had potential to be so much more.

Bravo!!! Every aspect of this was SO DARN FABULOUS! I was so engrossed from the very first scene. Evie's friends, the JEMS, were superb in how supportive they were although I was having such panic when Evie screwed up the reservation. That gave me a lot of anxiety. I loved her mum, I loved her history with her dad, I loved the assistant drinks and how well depicted they were as someone who has planned such assistant drinks. I loved the romance, and how sweet it was. I loved its predictability but how there were enough red herrings that it didn't feel too predictable. I loved Monty. This book just made me feel so happy and optimistic and put my heart in my mouth and was just like a warm cosy blanket. The best romcom!

Rating: ★★☆☆☆ (2/5 Stars)
Title: Would Like to Meet
Author(s): Rachel Winters
Character(s):
― Evelyn "Evie" Summers: 29 years old, Red,
― Ezra Chester: 33 years old, Blonde, Blue Eyed
― Ben Williams: Black, Brown Eyed
Setting: London, New England
Tag(s): Romance, Contemporary
Content Rating: PG
POV: First Person (Heroine)
Smexy Level: Subtle
Favorite Quote(s):
― "Evie, don’t you dare back out now. Go get your Hugh Grant."
― “Whatever you write, Evie, ‘Make it mean something.’”
Overall Opinion:
I wanted to like this. I really did but for whatever reason it just fell flat. It was missing that spark to really connected me with the storyline and toward half way through the book, I found myself skimming far more pages than I would've liked too. Besides Ben, Anette, and Evie friends I was not a big fan Evie or Erza (for obvious reasons) nor did I like how Erza story concluded. I don't know, but it was just blah. You know? This novel had so much potential that I am somewhat disappointed with the end result.

*A Big Thank you to Edelweiss , Rachel Winters, and G.P. Putnam's Sons for allowing me to read this book and give an honest and unbiased review*

Hello My Fellow Readers!

*Possible Spoilers Beware* So when I read the synopsis for Would Like to Meet I knew I had to read it, and I am so glad I did! Winters did a good job of making me love Evie, while I usually don't like the nice, clumsy, overworked protagonist there is something different about Evie. Maybe because she has a backbone, but she is just struggling with self-confidence, and we are made apparent early on, on why she has this issue.

I like that while this was supposed to be a Romantic Comedy, this book doesn't just focus on the romance aspect but we get Evie's self-love journey as well. Stuck in a job that doesn't appreciate her, still reeling from a break-up, and planning a hen-do (bachelorette party), Evie isn't happy. She keeps telling herself that she is and everyone who asks that she is but it's apparent that she is not.

While I loved reading the book, it was pretty apparent how the plot was going to go. There was a couple of twists I didn't see but overall it was pretty predictable. Did this ruin my reading experience? Not at all! I still enjoyed the book immensely. I do wish we would have gotten a bit more to what happened after the climax of events, a year later prologue but I don't blame the author. Might I suggests a Would like to Marry sequel?

Read this with Prosecco: by, at least, the fourth reference, you will be asking yourself “and why am I not relaxing with a happy book and a little bubbly?”

Yes, it was predictable, but the genre is and it was still well delivered. The heat level was low (while there was frank references to a roommate’s sexual predilections, there was no explicit scenes and no fade to black). It was sweet, and we sure could all use a little sweetness. First person narrative.

I rather liked the HoH/Deaf secondary character. There was not a lot of explanation with the character, or reference to her status. For most of the story, she was just living her life and had more primary labels to her identity. While there was the odd quirk related to her status, and some remarks from the narrator of being left out of the discussion for not speaking BSL, there was only really two scenes that referenced her hearing and related behaviour outside of her speaking the language with her Dad. I like that. I am biased as a person of hearing, but -as someone with a disability- I like when we just exist in the world and the story doesn’t revolve around our differences. That’s often how I like representation, especially if an author doesn’t have that experience.

However, I do wish she had described some of the signs. This may be a bias as I am describing some ASL in my book. Part of this is wishing there was more consideration for international readers; while the most important thing is describing whether the narrator understands or not, which she did, but she understood the BSL sign for “okay,” because it is well-known enough, and I just could not picture Annette doing it, since the sign is different in different countries. I was often debating, for the BSL and British terms, whether I stop reading to research what was happening-this destroying the momentum and emotional involved- or do I just keep going? I wish there was a fuller picture, especially since the narrator was a writer.

Comment: Mmm. Only listened to a bit of this but it didn't work for me.

If you are a fan of rom-com films, this is the book for you. I mean, our heroine attempts to re-make all of my favorite meet-cutes? What could go wrong? (Answer - everything, basically.)

I'm not going to lie - I figured out the real romantic interest early on AND I knew what was going to happen with Ezra, her uncooperative screenwriter - I am a rom-com junkie, after all - and I didn't care. Evie's meet-cutes were so hilariously disastrous, Anette was so delightful, Ben made the perfect straight-man, grounding element in the book.

Evie has her flaws - she's so focused on the task at hand that she makes it all about her, to the detriment of her friendships. I could overlook it because she is not some superstar agent who has trampled people to get to the top - she's an underdog through it all.

This was a light, fast, entertaining read - just what I needed when I picked it up.

It's a British rom-com in a book! If you need a light-hearted and easy-read book to fill your self-quarantine day, I recommend reading this one. It's very comedic and witty, with a good portion of cheesiness (well every rom-com has it). Reading the synopsis, I can agree that the protagonist is cynical indeed, and I relate to that part so much. I am also very interested in the world of screenwriting in Hollywood. And this book depicts the struggle of being in that world as a woman.

This book was... ok. Fun idea, but not great.

Evie is an assistant to a screenwriters' agent and herself a former aspiring screenwriter. With the vague promise of a long-overdue promotion, her boss convinces her to take on the task of cajoling a one-hit-wonder screenwriter to finally write the romcom he's been under contract to write for some time. Evie and I-think-his-name's-Ezra-but-I've-already-forgotten come to an agreement wherein, to show him the power of the romcom, Evie will act out the meet-cutes from various famous romcom movies and attempt to find true love while doing so.

The setup with the various meet-cutes was, I though, pretty creative, and the stories of Evie's various disastrous attempts to find true love via meet-cute were pretty funny. At the same time, though, the overall "serious" plot of the book is entirely predictable--well beyond the usual predictability of the romcom genre. A quick and reasonably enjoyable read, but absolutely zero suspense. Also, this book really, really pushed suspension of disbelief in some ways--for example, I found it virtually impossible to believe that a seven-year-old would ever act or talk like one of the book's supporting characters did.

DNF

I'm on a Contemporary Romance kick and have been enjoying some very funny and lovely books. This one was okay but a bit more of a miss for me. The idea is good: heroine must reenact Meet-Cute scenarios for an author with writer's block, but the execution fell flat for me. I thought the author just tried too hard, making farce into slapstick, not my favorite type of humor. Evie was pretty clueless - how could she not realize Ezra was stealing her ideas. The best part was Ben and Annette, the father and daughter she meets while enacting one of her meet-cutes, but they weren't enough to redeem the story.

This was a sweet story-really all about the heroine's trajectory. I wouldn't say this is centered around the romance in any sense, so know that.

It was funny. Would I read it again? No, because part of the fun was watching it all play out. That's fine, honestly, but it just won't be one I need to revisit. I will read this author again though!

This is purposely kept vague, sorry. And kisses only. You know, just in case.

This book was super cute. A writing assistant tries to find love by recreating Meet Cutes from romantic comedy movies. It’s a bit light and fluffy for my mood, but I did enjoy it for what it was.

That said, the main character did annoy me - she’s not one of those characters that is “Too Stupid to Live” but damn, how many times does one person get to screw up and still have someone fall for them!? Yikes.

However, I would recommend this to maybe a younger reader who is just getting introduced to the genre. There’s no sex and barely any kissing, if I’m honest. But I didn’t find that detracted from the book for me. So have a look at this one if you’re in the mood for cute, funny and light reading.

Evie wants to be an agent for authors. In order to get a promotion she has to get the only author at her agency to finish his script. He makes a bargain with her. His script from her meet-cutes for inspiration.. She agrees and humiliatingly fulfills her side of the bargain but will he?

After a slow start this gets better. I was afraid Evie's actions would cause me to cringe. Some did but not in the way I expected (I always cringed during I Love Lucy for her embarrassment/humiliation. I did not for Evie.) Of course, she is caught in many of her meet-cutes humiliation by Ben and his daughter Anette. She does explain to him what she is doing and he asks one pertinent question which has her questioning her motives and rationale. As she develops a relationship with Ben and Anette she comes to rely on his steadiness and help (not with the meet-cutes, much) but with the hen do for her friend Sarah and other things. I liked Evie. She was funny but sincere. She really wanted to help author Ezra but he was a pain. Oh boy, was he a pain! Her boss was just as bad. Why were there so many boychilds in her life? I was quite satisfied by the ending. It was perfect!

I look forward to more by Rachel Winters. She can write rom-com real good!

This was such a light and dare-I-say fun read! It was fairly predictable but that didn’t stop me from loving it in the same way I love Hallmark movies! Evie is a charmingly relatable main character and it was so much fun reliving my favorite rom-coms at her expense! And spoiler alert- who doesn’t love a happy ending??

This was such a light and dare-I-say fun read! It was fairly predictable but that didn’t stop me from loving it in the same way I love Hallmark movies! Evie is a charmingly relatable main character and it was so much fun reliving my favorite rom-coms at her expense! And spoiler alert- who doesn’t love a happy ending??

4.5 stars.

Would Like to Meet by Rachel Winters is a charming, humorous romance.

Twenty nine year old Evie Summers is hoping to finally get promoted from assistant to agent. Dangling the promotion, her boss, Monty, assigns her to obtain the long delayed rom-com movie script from Oscar winning screenwriter Ezra Chester. Evie forces a meeting with the narcissistic Ezra who agrees to fulfill his obligation only if she can prove a "meet cute" can culminate with love. With her job on the line, Evie reluctantly agrees to his conditions and gamely recreates scenes from her favorite rom-coms. As she writes up her escapades and emails them to Ezra, she is delighted to discover he is actively writing the script. But Evie is continually frustrated by his refusal to show her the pages he has compiled. With the deadline looming, will Evie fall in love through one of her "meet cutes" and save her job in the process?

Evie's dream of becoming a screenwriter were quickly dashed years earlier and she is now set on becoming an agent. She has a great circle of friends but since her move to London, she does not get to see them often enough. They reluctantly support Evie as she begins her meet cutes but their dislike of Ezra does not lessen.

During one of her "meet cute" set ups at a local coffee shop, Evie meets widower Ben and his precocious daughter Anette. She begins to look forward to their weekly meetings, but her relationship with Ben is a bit contentious since he is very disapproving of her "meet cutes". Anette is a darling little girl who is very mature for her age. Evie learns just enough about Ben's background to try to gently nudge him to step out of the quiet life he has created for himself and Anette. But will he resent her interference?

In between her funny escapades, Evie is growing and evolving as she takes a hard look at her career. Is she completely fulfilled working for Monty? Will he follow through and give her the promised promotion when Ezra delivers the script? More importantly, does Evie still want to become an agent?

Would Like to Meet is an engaging novel with a fun cast of characters. Evie is a plucky heroine but she is a little naive and too trusting. Ben and Anette are absolutely wonderful and their scenes are quite heartwarming. Ezra is an arrogant jerk who completely takes advantage of Evie. The storyline is creative and clever yet it is also a bit implausible. In true rom-con fashion, Rachel Winters brings the novel to a swoon-worthy conclusion. I greatly enjoyed and highly recommend this entertaining debut to fans of the genre.

Digital audio performed by Laura Hobson

From the book jacket: Can you fall in love like they do in the movies? It’s Evie Summers’s job to find out. Because if she can’t convince her film agency’s biggest client, Ezra Chester, to write the romantic-comedy screenplay he owes producers, her career will be over. The catch? He thinks rom-coms are unrealistic – and he’ll only put pen to paper if Evie shows him that it’s possible to meet a man in real life the way it happens on the big screen.

My reactions:
As a reader, I’ve been there, done that, and seen the movie multiple times. It’s a cute rom-com of a novel, but totally predictable. I did like the father-daughter team of Ben and Annette, although I’m not sure having Annette be deaf was necessary.

I’m sounding much like a “romance Grinch” here, but that isn’t really what I mean to convey. It’s an enjoyable rom-com, and I liked listening to it. It’s just not anything I’ll remember much more than a day after finishing it.

Now … who will be cast in the movie?

Laura Hobson does a good job performing the audio version. She sets a good pace and kept this listener engaged.

For me, summer is about feel good, fun reads. Would Like to Meet is the perfect definition of this, tying together a unique story with something a lot of us are familiar with, the meet-cutes of romantic comedies. What is a meet-cute? (It’s OK if you don’t know!) It’s the way two characters meet and fall in love in a film that is quirky, funny or sweet. Like spilling a drink on someone. A holiday romance. A road trip. Putting your phone number inside a book. Joining a book club.

These are things our heroine our heroine Evie has done not in the name of love or science, but in desperation. You see, Evie is a long-suffering assistant to an agent and she wants a promotion, but the agency also needs to keep afloat. The magical carrot that will solve everything is a romantic comedy script from hot, Oscar winning from Ezra Chester. Who also happens to be very, very difficult. Ezra can’t write the romcom (or won’t) and Evie wants a job. So in the name of saving everyone, Evie decides to prove to Ezra that it is possible in real life to fall in love via a meet-cute. She will re-enact ways of meeting someone as seen on screen and fall in love, writing up her adventures as she goes. Ezra will then write his romcom and everyone will live happily ever after. Of course, this is a book so nothing goes to plan. The meet-cutes turn out to be the wrong genre from screwball comedy to horror. Add in a Bridezilla to be (aka one of Evie’s best friends), a bridesmaid’s dress from hell and a forgotten booking and Evie’s friendships are falling apart. But there are upsides, like meeting Anette and her father Ben in a café and that Ezra could weirdly have feelings for her…

Would Like to Meet is more than just a romcom in a novel. As the plot progresses, things get a little more serious and there’s some men that need to take a good, long look at their behaviour. This is nicely balanced out with an event involving a cake, toilet and a vibrator which is hilarious plus a fight scene worthy of Bridget Jones. Some of the characters have hidden depths that I didn’t expect, but are fitting with their earlier behaviours. I admire Winters’ ability to write characters where your perception of them changes as more of their personality is revealed (both for good and for bad). At the hallway point of the novel I really didn’t know if I wanted to be Team Ben or Team Ezra. I thought this was great, because usually the hero and the unsuitable guy are pretty clearly defined early on. I like a little mystery to my romcoms! Evie’s friends are well written too. I don’t know if I was meant to love or hate Sarah (the Bridezilla) who was rather ‘me me me’ at all crises in Evie’s life. She does have a couple of redemptive scenes during the novel (including one that would understandably not be forgivable) but she’s not that big a character. Evie’s flatmate Jane is also quirky in an unusual way, it’s a pity she didn’t get a lot of page time.

There are some very funny moments in Would Like to Meet. I’m not usually one to laugh out loud in novels, but there are some moments that you can’t help but giggle at. Befittingly, Would Like to Meet would also make a fantastic movie.

Thank you to Hachette for the copy of this book. My review is honest.

http://samstillreading.wordpress.com½

This British chick lit story falls flat on both characterization and plot. Evie has three friends who are a retread of Bridget Jones's friends--two galpals and a gay friend--only this trio is far less likeable, and the love interest and the bad guys (Evie's ex and Ezra) just don't work. While the author does a good job of adding email and text dialogue to the narrative, the emails and text messages do nothing to make the story any better or to fill out the characters, so they are just filler.

The plot is bizarre and unappealing: Evie is a screenwriter agent's assistant who wants to be promoted to agent. Toward that end, Evie is trying to get the agency's star screenwriter, an unbearable narcissist named Ezra, to write something even though it's not her job in the first place, so, in an informal secret contract (in addition to his actual contract with her agency), she promises him she will stage "meetups" with men in scenarios from various rom-coms and write up the results for no earthly reason, and Ezra agrees that he will write something if she submits reports of the meetups to him. The fact that Ezra is not writing anything even though he has promised to do so comes up over and over again. and yet Evie continues to do the idiotic meetups and faithfully send them to Ezra.

One of Evie's girlfriends is getting married and being a bridezilla. She's obsessed with the mandatory perfection, not of her wedding, but of her "hen do" (???) which is occasionally funny but mostly adds another layer of annoyance. The protagonist seems helpless in the face of absurd expectations all around.

The bizarre plotlines leave the actual romance on standby for the entire novel and the climax (wedding and declaration by love interest) seem ridiculous and forced.

Some girl-power/feminist stuff is thrown into the mix just because. The romance and career story lines progress along predicable lines. I had to force myself to finish.

I received an advanced readers copy from the publisher and was encouraged to write a review.½

I wanted to like this, I did I tried but I couldn't I didn't like Ezra and I didn't care much for Evie, I did however like her friends that was what kept me going for the majority of the book, and yes there were times that I cracked up but not enough for me to give it a three star or for me to read another book by this author..

rcvd an ARc at no cost to author..(netgalley) Voluntarily reviewed with my own thoughts and opinions