Walk of Shame

by Lauren Layne

• ASIN: B01M0CAK31
• Publish Date: 2017 (first published 25 July 2017)
• Publish Status: Unknown
• Format: eBook (Kindle)
• Pages: 218
• Language: English

Reviews

[Leigha]

Heiress Georgianna Watkins meets her match in this disappointing adult contemporary romance.

I really, really, REALLY wanted to love this romance. Many people compared it to the Disney movie Enchanted, but it’s not nearly as cleaver or original as the film. Part of my problem is Georgianna. She’s just not as interesting or charismatic enough character to hold the story. Her party lifestyle left me feeling exhausted. Honestly, do people seriously go out and party almost every night? God, why? WHY? She just…didn’t feel real to me. And if one of the characters doesn’t feel real or relatable, it makes it hard to invest in the story or the romance. Andrew Mulroney was a far more interesting character until he started dating her. While I could see the lust between the two, I never quite understood how they found themselves in love. The plot, setting, and secondary characters were all as boring and unoriginal as the main character. I know other reviews connected to this story, but, unfortunately, I was not one of them.

tl;dr While I didn’t connect to the characters or the story, other may find this contemporary romance enjoyable.

[chymerra]

I had to giggle at the title of this book. Everyone knows what a “Walk of Shame” is but I will refresh those who don’t know. The definition is taken from Urban Dictionary:

“Walk of Shame
The walk from another person(s) house, apartment, condo, dorm, van, bar, park bench or other; to your place of residence wearing the same clothes you had on the night before.

Typically used when someone leaves the home of a sexual escapade (quite possibly with someone you met the night before) in the morning; hair sticking out in all directions, lines on your face, and missing at least one article of clothing.

In the event that your “Walk of Shame” did include sex, you may be wearing your partner’s clothes. If you did not have sex you probably did get into a fight, damaged property was escorted off someone’s premises, or in some way embarrassed yourself. In any case, you will need to check yourself for injuries.

Still half-drunk, I began the walk of shame to my room and made a futile attempt to recall all that I had done on Friturday.”
Now there are other more to the point on the Urban Dictionary website but I chose the more reader friendly. If you want to read the slightly raunchy, totally not PC definition, just click on the link above.
So, based on the definition I put up and my own personal experiences with walks of shame, I really was expecting a book that started and ended with sex and didn’t really have a plot. But what I read, instead, really surprised me.
Georgi was a sweetheart….once you got past her party girl exterior. I was actually kind of put off by that at first because she was rolling in as most people were getting up and going to work. But her sweetness and her positive outlook on life won me over. Plus, she knew how to dish it and take it, like a pro. Her interactions with Andrew had me laughing my butt off and I loved the Wizard of Oz references.
I couldn’t get a handle on Andrew at first. Because the story is mainly told from Georgi’s perspective, I really didn’t know what he felt about her. Actually, I felt the vibe I got from him is that he thought she was annoying. So, I was pretty surprised when the author turned to 3rd person to tell his part of the story and when I learned that he had feelings for Georgi and had feelings for her since he met her. I did a “Whaaa” when I read that because it did kind of blindside me (and yes, I knew they were getting together….I can still be blindsided).
I loved the romance between Georgi and Andrew because it was more real life (forgetting that she was an heiress and he made money hand over fist). They were frenemies first, then true friends and then the romance kicked in. I loved it!!
What I liked, even more, was that the sex was put off on in the book. The author allowed for her characters to develop feelings for each other before they bumped uglies. It was refreshing to read that because the sex didn’t take over the book.
I did figure out the plot twist that added drama to the book. I actually figured it out as it was happening but still, it was sad to read and I felt bad for all involved.
The end of the book was great and I loved the happy endings for everyone involved!!
How many stars will I give Walk of Shame: 3.5 (rounded up to 4 for Goodreads and Amazon)
Why: Written wonderfully with a good plot line and great characters
Will I reread: Yes
Will I recommend to family and friends: Yes
Age range: Adult
Why: Sex and language
**I received a free copy of this book and volunteered to review it**

[Lynn]

'perfectly ridiculously.'

Walk of Shame didn't win me over until around the half way mark. I wanted to smash the protagonist's heads together to knock some sense into them both because of their constant bickering. But as I got to know and love both Georgie and Andrew, after they calmed down enough to stop sabotaging their tentative relationship, my overall perception of this novel changed from meh, to enjoyable.
The supporting characters are fun, the banter is hilarious and Georgie and Andrew are likeable and loveable. All this and more is wrapped up in a satisfying Happy Ever After.

[whisperingchapters]

3.5!

[Rowena]

Lauren Layne strikes again. She has written another fabulous contemporary romance that hit me in my feels and made me laugh. She has a knack for writing great characters that are completely relatable and super funny and that’s really my jam so I’m super happy that I read this one.

Georgie Watkins is a rich girl who is an expert in socializing. She spends her days recovering from her partying nights and when her neighbor Andrew Mulroney starts his day at 5AM, she’s usually coming in from ending hers. On top of being a workaholic, Andrew is a health nut who looks down his nose at Georgie bringing in donuts every morning for the doormen that work at the front desk of their apartment building.

They meet each other in the lobby every morning and they share a witty banter that just filled me up with goodness and I enjoyed each of their daily chats. They don’t like each other and they love to antagonize one another and I thought it was the cutest thing.

Georgie was a great heroine who seemed to sense in herself, a quiet unrest that she didn’t understand until interacting with the snob, Andrew Mulroney. She realized that she was bored. She was growing up and she wanted more out of her life than nightly visits to the club where she danced the night away with her friends and flirted with cute boys who lived their lives, the exact same way that she lived hers. She wanted more and she also had a huge ol’ crush on Andrew, who seemed to take great pleasure in putting her down every chance he got. She didn’t understand her crush but ran with it anyway because it wasn’t going anywhere. The best part of her days were her morning arguments with Andrew and she wasn’t going to give those up.

Andrew doesn’t like Georgie. At least, he doesn’t think he does. She’s everything that he doesn’t have time for. A spoiled rich girl who isn’t doing a damn thing with her life other than partying with her friends. He’s too smart and too driven to throw away his life by doing…nothing. But that doesn’t stop him from looking forward to battling wits with her at 5AM, every morning. It also doesn’t stop him from admiring just how pretty she is. When a particular battle of wits ends with him challenging her to spend a day in his shoes (he doesn’t think she’ll last a day), she accepts and things change for the two of them.

The romance between these two was adorable and just so much fun. The chemistry was strong and the sexual tension made its presence known from the very beginning. They were both such great characters on their own that bringing all of that awesomeness together made for a very enjoyable story. This is a story that I didn’t even know I wanted and I’m glad that Lauren Layne provided because she delivered the goods with this one. I definitely recommend.

Grade: 4.25 out of 5