A grumpy lobster fisherman tosses a fashion influencer’s impeccably curated life overboard in the next romantic comedy from international bestselling author Amy Lea.
In a last-ditch effort to rescue her brand from the brink of irrelevance, Boston fashion influencer Melanie Karlsen finds herself in a rural fishing village on the east coast of Canada. The only thing scarier than nature itself? The burly and bearded B and B owner and fisherman, Evan Whaler—who single-handedly disproves the theory that Canadians are “nice.”
After a boating accident lands Evan unconscious in the hospital, Mel is mistaken for his fiancée by his welcoming yet quirky family, who are embroiled in a long-standing feud over the B and B. In a bold attempt to mend family fences, Mel agrees to fake their engagement for one week in exchange for Evan’s help with her social media content.
Amid long hikes and campfire chats, reeling in their budding feelings for each other proves more difficult by the day. But is Mel willing to sacrifice her picture-perfect life in the city for a chance at a true, unfiltered love in the wild?
Christy's Review:
Melanie is a different kind of influencer than her two best friends. The kind you think of when influencers come to mind. Highly edited photos, fashion, travel, etc. She is sort of at a crossroads with her career and goes out of the country to review a resort, but not everything goes to plan.
Mel ends up at an only partially operational AirBnB run by two cousins, Lucy and Evan. Evan is a grumpy fisherman but there are sparks between him and Mel, even if neither wants to admit it. Evan was the best part of this book. I adored him. And his entire family. The fake dating was fun, but some of the third-act stuff made me eye-roll some.
The ending of this book was bittersweet. I was happy with how things turned out for this couple, but I’ll miss these characters!
“Put me down! My underwear is showing,” I demand as a gust of wind hits my ass cheeks. At least I’m wearing a cute lace thong.
“Rest assured, I’m not looking,” he mutters as I flail like an eel the entire ascent up the staircase. He doesn’t put me down until we’re outside my bedroom.
“I’m taking a star off your Airbnb review for manhandling,” I warn as he attempts to steady me against the wall just as Lucy passes by with a mini garbage can.
“Double bagged. Just in case. Looks like she might need it,” she says, giving Evan a troubled look as she turns to get out of my vicinity. “Sorry, I’m out. I don’t do puke. Night, guys.”
“I won’t puke. I’m feeling fan-tas-tic!” I shout after her with unfounded confidence. I push the door open the tiniest crack, revealing the disaster I left my room in. My cheeks flush with embarrassment. I’m a secret slob—someone who looks neat and tidy to others but is most comfortable in my own chaos (when no one’s looking).
“I can take it from here,” I assure Evan, righting myself.
His expression is quizzical. “No. You can barely stand.”
“I’m great. You can retire to your underground candlelit lair now.” I take an eager stride into my room, which to me was pretty smooth, but apparently I’m useless.
He leads me to the bench at the foot of the bed, where I proceed to topple face-first into the mattress, legs spread like a mannequin. The compromising position isn’t lost on me.
“I feel the need to warn you, I have some pretty lethal hair spray. Just as effective as bear mace, according to Cosmo,” I say, voice muffled by the mattress.
“What are you gonna do? Blind me with it?” he asks, bending over to retrieve it from under the bed.
“If you try anything, I’ll have no choice.”
“You don’t have to worry about that, Mel.” He softens his tone considerably, which is comforting. I’m pretty sure this is the first time he’s ever referred to me by name.
Any lingering appreciation is short lived when he jabs my shoulder without an ounce of delicacy. I must have drifted out of consciousness for a minute or two, because when I open my eyes again, Evan is placing a garbage bin next to me.
“It’s right beside the bed if you need it,” he says slowly, like I’m a small child. “Do you need me to ask Lucy to help you change? A glass of water?”
“No. I’m perfectly fine,” I mumble, flopping over onto my side. He’s weirdly attractive from a horizontal perspective, and I don’t like it one bit.
He watches me for a couple of peaceful breaths before abruptly pivoting on his heel. “This is going in your Airbnb guest review, by the way.”
I glare at him, blowing at the hair stuck to my lip gloss. “The intoxication? Or my veiled threat?”
“Both. Mostly the drunk part. I did warn you about the Screech,” he reminds me, hands flexing at his sides.
“It wasn’t the Screech. Your friends were the ones pouring shots down my throat. Who am I to deny Canadian hospi-taly?”
He cocks his head. “Hospitality, you mean. And you’re wasted.”
“Perfectly sober,” I mumble, sliding under the covers without taking my shoes off.
“Wears shoes in bed. Another star off,” he mutters.
“Mean host. One and a half stars off,” I retort, squeezing my eyes shut when the room starts to spin.
“Scratched the shit out of me with those claws. Minus two stars,” he says, pretending to rub a hand over his shoulder. I definitely scratched him while holding on for dear life as he hauled me up the stairs.
“Hey, I paid a lot for these nails.”
Despite my questionable eyesight in my current state, I’m pretty sure I catch his lips draw upward into the tiniest smile before my eyes close.
Excerpted from The Catch by Amy Lea Copyright © 2024 by Amy Lea. Excerpted by permission of Berkley. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Amy Lea is the international bestselling author of romantic comedies for adults and teens, including Mindy Kaling’s Book Studio selection Woke Up Like This. Her acclaimed works have been featured in USA Today, Entertainment Weekly, Cosmopolitan, Elle Magazine and has been long listed as a CBC Canada Reads finalist. They have also been optioned for film and sold to over a dozen foreign territories.
When Amy is not writing, she can be found fan-girling over other romance books on Instagram (@amyleabooks), eating potato chips with reckless abandon, and snuggling with her husband and two goldendoodles in Ottawa, Canada.
- Author photo credited to: Amy Lea
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