Review ~ Well Matched ~ Jen DeLuca

A pretend relationship gives two friends more than they bargained for in a Renaissance Faire rom com filled with flower crowns, kilts, corsets, and sword fights.

Single mother April Parker has lived in Willow Creek for twelve years with a wall around her heart. On the verge of being an empty nester, she's decided to move on from her quaint little town, and asks her friend Mitch for his help with some home improvement projects to get her house ready to sell.

Mitch Malone is known for being the life of every party, but mostly for the attire he wears to the local Renaissance Faire--a kilt (and not much else) that shows off his muscled form to perfection. While he agrees to help April, he needs a favor too: she'll pretend to be his girlfriend at an upcoming family dinner, so that he can avoid the lectures about settling down and having a more "serious" career than high school coach and gym teacher. April reluctantly agrees, but when dinner turns into a weekend trip, it becomes hard to tell what's real and what's been just for show. But when the weekend ends, so must their fake relationship.

As summer begins, Faire returns to Willow Creek, and April volunteers for the first time. When Mitch's family shows up unexpectedly, April pretends to be Mitch's girlfriend again...something that doesn't feel so fake anymore. Despite their obvious connection, April insists they've just been putting on an act. But when there's the chance for something real, she has to decide whether to change her plans--and open her heart--for the kilt-wearing hunk who might just be the love of her life.

Well Matched was my favorite of the Well Met series so far. I could identify with April and her introvertedness and I felt like Mitch was the most fleshed out of the heroes thus far. This might be due to the fact that we’ve spent time with him and April in the two previous books but no matter – this book took the favorite spot regardless.

What Worked

• Characters
  April is someone I connected with because of her introverted personality as well as her being a mom. And she was a little closer to my age as well. I also got her “plans” and preoccupation with what came after her daughter went off to college. It was fascinating to see how well she thought she knew herself but with her focus shifting from Caitlyn to her own life she realized how much she’d changed…without being aware of it.
  Mitch. Well, Mitch always appears to be happy-go-lucky, taking nothing very seriously. But we saw glimpses. And here we see some of the reasons behind his facade and that he’s a person that cares deeply but also hurts deeply. I already adored him (and he’s not my type) but I feel for him in Well Matched.
• Plot
  I felt the plot was very well-done, using the fate dating trope. They’d spent a good bit of time together previously so I felt there might be an attraction. But the fake dating and then all the effort Mitch put into helping April with her plans for after Cait’s graduation moved things along.
• Romance
  The way things played out and all the time Mitch & April spent together really made this romance work. We witnessed them fall, felt their fears, celebrated their triumphs. Yeah, this romance really worked.

What Could Have Worked Better

• Conflict
  I buddy read Well Matched with my COYER friends Berls and Lillian and well all took issue with April’s hesitation to take their relationship public. While I got her introverted nature, her fixation on not wanting to be fodder for small town gossip or draw any attention to herself felt a little over the top. And it hurt Mitch.

Well Matched is the best of the bunch, so far. This was a little surprising considering jocks aren’t typically my type. Just goes to show you can’t always judge a person by their profession…or their choice to parade around in nothing but a kilt. LOL

Reading this book contributed to these challenges:

• 2023 Audiobook Challenge
• COYER 2023

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