Silly premise - cute romance
3 stars

I’m a huge fan of Avery Flynn and her writing but although it pains me to do it - I have to give this book 3 stars. It’s the first time I’ve not been raving about one of Ms. Flynn’s stories. In fact, it’s the first time I’ve not given one of her solo-written books 5 stars. Sigh.

This is the first in a new series (Last Man Standing) of 3 books featuring 3 cousins of which our hero, Dixon, is one. Each book features a different couple and completely stand alone complete with HEA. This also features Ms Flynn’s beloved Hartigan family and we do get plenty of cameos from said clan for those who have a special affection for them. For those that don’t know them - that’s fine, too - they just become a fun and quirky addition to the tale.

I’ll start with the premise for the whole series - a bet between the cousins. The prize (which I acknowledge is worthy of being won) is given to the last man standing (hence the series’ title) or the only person not married by Christmas time. But first, each man must date the first person who responds to their ad on a dating app, and then go on 6 dates organised by the other 2 men. For a premise it’s cute and quirky, sure, but it also MAKES NO SENSE! My brain almost exploded every time it was mentioned because it was ridiculous. It would be so easy to not lose this bet (because it’s not possible to win it) and while I get that that’s the point - it still made my bum twitch.

And then there’s the fact that Fiona is pretending to be someone she’s not. Again for absolutely no reason. Dixon is up front with her when they meet and while I get that she didn’t want to admit her own reason for ‘swiping right’ on his dating ad, there was no reason for her to continue with her personality subterfuge. The fact that Dixon didn’t believe it for a minute is neither here nor there.

Once the bet was no longer at the forefront of the story, the tale definitely picked up. It was cute and funny and definitely a light read. I would have preferred if Dixon wasn’t so hell-bent on winning everything, and if Fiona wasn’t so down on herself, her looks and her (real) personality, but I did enjoy them together and believed that they were good for each other. And tent shenanigans never hurts any story, in my opinion.

It would seem I’m FIRMLY in the minority regarding my opinions with this book. Which is good because that means it’s more likely I was having a bad week than Ms Flynn! My advice - ignore me and give this book a go. I truly hope you love it where I could not. Just 3 stars from me. ( )