The Worst Best Man: A Novel

by Mia Sosa

USA TODAY BESTSELLER!

"A romantic comedy that's fun and flirty, young and fresh." – PopSugar 

Named one of the Best Romances of 2020 by EW, Cosmo, OprahMag, Buzzfeed, Insider, and NPR! 

Mia Sosa delivers a sassy, steamy #ownvoices enemies-to-lovers novel, perfect for fans of Jasmine Guillory, Helen Hoang, and Sally Thorne!

A wedding planner left at the altar? Yeah, the irony isn’t lost on Carolina Santos, either. But despite that embarrassing blip from her past, Lina’s offered an opportunity that could change her life. There’s just one hitch… she has to collaborate with the best (make that worst) man from her own failed nuptials. 

Marketing expert Max Hartley is determined to make his mark with a coveted hotel client looking to expand its brand. Then he learns he’ll be working with his brother’s whip-smart, stunning—absolutely off-limits—ex-fiancée. And she loathes him. 

If they can nail their presentation without killing each other, they’ll both come out ahead. Except Max has been public enemy number one ever since he encouraged his brother to jilt the bride, and Lina’s ready to dish out a little payback of her own. 

Soon Lina and Max discover animosity may not be the only emotion creating sparks between them. Still, this star-crossed couple can never be more than temporary playmates because Lina isn’t interested in falling in love and Max refuses to play runner-up to his brother ever again...

"The Worst Best Man is rom-com perfection. . . Sosa has a gift with words that’s infectious and wry, one that keeps the pages turning in delight." — Entertainment Weekly

• ISBN10: 0062909878
• ISBN13: 9780062909879
• Publish Date: 19 March 2020 (first published 4 February 2020)
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Avon Books
• Format: Paperback
• Pages: 368
• Language: English

Reviews

[mrs_mander_reads]

This was cute! I really enjoyed all the Brazilian culture references - I learned a lot. It was also a great romance storyline.

[pagingserenity]

Eh, it's more like a 3.5 star read, but I'm willing to round up for Goodreads.

I had a nice time reading it but that's it. It was just nice. The characters, Max and Lina, were relatable and had great chemistry. I loved their storyline but their banter wasn't as fun as I'd like. While I found some of their jabs at each other amusing, some also fell pretty flat. And I wasn't a big fan of the pacing either. It spent so much time building up the tension and conflict only to have every resolved rather quickly and easily. Maybe the sequel will change my mind? I'm looking forward to reading it when it comes out.

[leahrosereads]

Least favorite trope (lying) vs. one of my favs (sharing one bed) plus fantastic characters really made this story for me. I really, really liked Lina and Max, and their dynamics throughout the book were a major highlight. Lina's family was also wonderful. And Dean stole every scene he was in. Definitely looking forward to reading his story.

Overall, what I'm realizing with romance is this: a trope can suck but not break a story, as long as the characters and the rest of the plot are strong (which was absolutely the case here).

[bookperson]

amazing novel! can't wait to read books by the author in the future.

[stefu1]

Super neat book! I loved the chemistry between the two and am a sucker for these types of sort lines. I had mixed feelings about this book because half of me thought it took too long for the two to get together but the other half appreciated all the back story. Lina is a great character and Max was decent. I think I just wanted more umph in the book. Would I read it again? Probably not. We’re there scenes that I will re-read again? 100% yes.

[whisperingchapters]

Everyone knows I love rom-coms. But it's been a long time since I've read one like The Worst Best Man. I was laughing so hard, and the pranks had to be one of the best parts!

Carolina Santos was, unfortunately, left at the altar, but the runaway groom didn't feel like delivering the news, so he told his brother, Max, to tell Carolina. This didn't sit well with Max because he also might have been the cause for his brother running out on his wedding day.

Fast-forward and we have Carolina being an excellent wedding planner! She has the opportunity to pitch an idea to an amazing hotel chain. What she doesn't expect is meeting her ex-fiance, Andrew, and Max. She ended up acting like she didn't know either them; sadly, she had to work with one of them, and of course, she picked Max. What came out of it was some glorious pranking I was totally in for!

By the time Lina's through with me, I won't just be a shell of myself; no, I'll be a mutated version that wears V-neck cashmere sweaters, relaxes in Adirondack chairs, and chortles when someone tells a joke.

The romance was absolutely amazing. Max and Lina fit so well together. I especially loved how Max took everything in stride when it came to Lina pranking him all the time. Kudos to Max for being mature and accepting that he deserved all of these pranks coming to him.

"Let me in again, baby. Let me be the one who'll have your back. [...] The one who'll make you cry for the sappiest reasons."

Lina's family goes in the books of one of my top fave families! They remind me so much of my own family. It comes to show that Hispanics are loud and we are freaking proud of it! The author brought so much Brazilian culture to the book, which had me falling in love with Brazil. The food sounded absolutely delicious! I'm now wanting to plan a trip to Brazil and eat everything I can find there.

Overall, The Worst Best Man is hilarious, boisterous in the best way possible, full of pranks and a love so sweet and swoony, you will want to steal Max from Lina.

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[Sam@WLABB]

After being left at the alter, Lina had moved on with her life. She was enjoying success as a wedding planner, and her hard work wasn't going unnoticed. She was shortlisted for the position as the in-house wedding coordinator for a high end hotel, but there was a catch. She had to commit to a competition type interview, paired with one of the hotel's marketing team members, and who does she get paired with? Her ex-fiancee's brother, who was better known for his role in ruining her wedding.

This was my very first Mia Sosa reading experience, and I have to say, it was a great one. The Worst Best Man had so many elements I love, AND Sosa did them very well.

✓ Hate-to-Love

I see so many people extoll their praises for the hate-to-love trope. It's always sort of fun to see two people's animosity towards each other morph into a different sort of passion, and that's exactly how I felt watching Lina and Max fall in love.

Lina always blamed Max for the demise of her relationship with his brother, and therefore, her hatred seemed justified. She couldn't go full attack on him, as she really did want to win the job of her dreams, but she was determined to make him pay, at least a little. She tricked him into some situations, which made me laugh, but what I really enjoyed, was when she began to see him in a different way. Lina couldn't fail to notice how much Max had changed over the years, and how those changes were for the better. Max also started to see Lina in a new light, now that she was not attached to his brother, and neither could deny their attraction, nor what grew from it.

✓ Rom-com

Sosa has a great sense of humor, and she passed that on to her characters. There were many genuine rom-com moments in this story. From the cake tasting to the Virginia shenanigans, Max and Lina kept ending up in those classic situations, that were both funny and meaningful for the evolution of their relationship. That's a dose of double joy for me, because I love to laugh, and I am all about seeing a love match happen.

✓ Fantastic family

Though Max and his brother, Andrew, had one of those competitive relationships, Max did enjoy a nice rapport with his mother. They didn't get too many scenes together, but they shared some lovely moments on-page. However, it was Lina's family that stole the show. They were a lively bunch, and I found myself looking forward to any and all family gatherings. Every time they were together held the promise of laughter, but as I laughed, I did so with a warm heart, because there was also a lot of love between them all.

✓ Quality bromance

Mia Sosa - Can Dean get his own book, please? I mean, how awesome were the interactions between him and Max? Their friendship was so wonderful! The way they spoke openly, and showed up, when they thought they were needed. That sleepover had me in stitches, but also made me a bit jealous of the strength of their bond.

✓ Swoonworthy hero and fabulous heroine

I found Max utterly wonderful! He was charming and sweet, and he just fit into Lina's life so well. I will admit, I struggle with relatives having had relationships with the same people, but I enjoyed these two together so much, I was able to erase Lina's previous relationship from my mind. There was a lot more to than sexy times and chemistry to sell me on this pairing, too. Both Max and Lina thought they had a lot to prove. They never felt like they were enough, but together, they were unstoppable. They pushed each other, encouraged each other, and elevated each other. It's the type of dynamic that has you wishing you were part of that couple.

I really loved this book, though, I do wish Sosa had given me an epilogue. The ending was fine. It was happy and good, but perhaps, a bit abrupt. Still, I am left with nothing but good feelings about Lina and Max's romance, and am eager to read more of Sosa's work.

*ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.

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*ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.

BLOG | INSTAGRAM |TWITTER | BLOGLOVIN | FRIEND ME ON GOODREADS