A Very Merry Bromance

Finished August 3

A Very Merry Bromance by Lyssa Kay Adams

I really enjoy this series of couples romance novels. This fifth novel in the series picks up from an encounter at the wedding of the couple in book two. Country music star Colton Wheeler had instant chemistry with immigration lawyer Gretchen Winthrop, but she ghosted him after that. They've both been avoiding each other until Gretchen gets approached by her family to ask Wheeler to be their brand ambassador. Gretchen grew up very wealthy, in the family of a company that has made whiskey going back several generations. But it wasn't a happy upbringing and she is really only close to one member of the family, her Uncle Jack, who doesn't have any kids of his own. 

Gretchen has also been applying for a seat on the board of the charitable foundation that the family runs, and they are now offering that role to her. She has put most of the money she had accessible to her into her legal clinic, where she handles immigration cases. She is very busy and many of her clients don't have much financial resources to pay her, so she does a lot of pro bono work. 

Colton has never gotten over Gretchen and he takes the opportunity of her coming to him to negotiate for a few dates with her while he considers the offer. 

Watching the two spending time together doing seasonal activities is fun, and had me thinking about my own Christmas traditions. There are several references to Dickens' A Christmas Carol in the book that connect some of the themes of need and happiness, a nice touch.

There is also a lot of information on the music business and how it functions that was really interesting to learn. Some I was aware of, but there were complexities beyond what I had known.

This novel, as with many of the others in the series, has the main characters dealing with a past that they've managed to ignore for a long time, but that needs to be faced for them to fully move on with their lives. 

I could hardly put it down.