Too Good to be Real By Melonie Johnson

Too Good to be Real

By Melonie Johnson

I read an advanced reader copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

If you enjoyed the immersive roll playing of Austenland by Shannon Hale and/or love rom coms - this is the book is for you. 

As far as the role playing went they spent less time “in character” than in Austenland but the concept was reminiscent though taking place in a modern world. 

This is my first ARC. I was drawn to this book first by the cover and second by the description. For me the books that I have read with this animated style cover have been in the line of rom com humorous reality based stories that have a sense of relatability and while there is a swoon factor, are not what some might consider overly steamy and that is an accurate representation of this book.

To me the thing that really sparked my interest with this specific cover was not the couple but the corgi because I find corgis hilarious. They have so much personality!

The corgi portion of the book was giggle inducing but for those who feel dogs and pets can sometimes be used as a crutch plot device in a book that was certainly not the case here. Their presence was more in the nature of laughable background scenery but definitely worth including. 

I very much appreciated that there was not an over reaction to a predictable misunderstanding. There were a few times where I thought ‘oh no! they’re going to see this thing and take it the wrong way and it’s going to be a whole unnecessary drama’ which can be wearing in some books but that did NOT happen. The conflict that did occur stemming from miscommunication was understandable in the way that miscommunications on some level are natural in the course of all developing relationships. 

The rom com book and movie reference game was strong, accurate, well researched, and thoroughly delicious. 

Alternating points of view were utilized for the primary love interest which I always appreciate hearing what they each think of each other. There was not an epilogue. I almost always love an epilogue and while sometimes I am down right put out when one is not included especially if future goals or unsolved problems are left hanging (- well what about this though? I need to know!) This was not the case for this particular book. While an epilogue would have been perfectly appropriate. The resolution for this book does not feel lacking because of the absence of one. It is easy to imagine the path that is taken. 

The hero was refreshingly not a chiseled specimen of man that we see in so many romance books. Being from the Midwest myself, like these characters, I can tell you I personally have literally never seen a 6 pack in real life. He reminds me remarkably of my husband and was terribly endearing. The heroine was smart and her behavior reflected her intelligence, pragmatism and sense of humor; unlike some heroines who are billed as smart but then make choices we do not understand. 

I would love to get to know the side characters in other books. They were full dimensional characters that I enjoyed spending time with.  

The writing was clean, not repetitive, drew you in and kept you turning pages. The copy I read was uncorrected but even with that, I only noted 6 minor errors. One punctuation out of place and 5 small words like “I” or “as” that were either deleted or doubled. 

This is the kind of book I want to read when I need cheering up. I read with an almost continuous grin. It rated for me on par with The Hating Game by Sally Thorne, Fix Her Up by Tessa Bailey, Beach Read by Emily Henry and the entire Boy series by Meg Cabot. With the exception that the lows were not as low and therefore the second hand stress/anxiety was minimal. Which sometimes you need. This is not to say that the characters did not know hardship in their lives. They did and the revelation of their histories felt like peeling back layers to know them better. However while they were affected and shaped by their past, as we all are, they were not tragically emotionally scarred as can be the case in romance. Their reactions, reflection and growth were understandable and relatable. 

This is 5/5 for me. Will purchase and read again and again.