Being a woman of a certain age I remember Sixteen Candles (and Jake Ryan) fondly. Although I didn't see the movie twenty years ago like our leading lady Mackenzie...it was more like thirty-five for me. As soon as I saw the title (and cover) of this book I knew I wanted to read it. Oh to be Molly Ringwald in a John Hughes film. *sigh*

“Aaaaaaagh! It feels like a watermelon’s coming out of my butt!”

And so starts our story of Chicago obstetrician Mackenzie Huntress. and as you can tell it was a pretty funny start and stayed so throughout. I really needed this book right now, too many lock-downs and too many thrillers can make a girl blue.

This was was a cute and fun read. I loved the idea of the book and was drawn into Mac’s story instantly and loved how she was an obstetrician!. I enjoyed watching Mac live out her own romantic comedy and couldn’t wait to see how it would all unfold.

I really enjoyed all the almost moments and the tension between the characters. This story was easy to read and light on the drama. In the end, I was hooked on Mac and couldn’t help but root for her to find her happily ever after.

Sixteen Candles is my favorite movie. When I read the title of the book I knew I had to read it. It is such a good read. It’s hilarious, quirky, and will keep readers surprised at all the twists in the story, even to the end. There is a huge shit show in the book, but in a good way. My favorite thing about the book was all the references to the movie and of course Jake Ryan. J. T had me from the moment he appeared on the scene and the more I discovered about the more I liked. Even the overbearing mother times out not to be so bad. One of the funniest scenes is,the rehearsal dinner table talk. The ending was perfect. If you like John Hughes, this is a must read.

The premise of this story is that Mac, an obstetrician, has made up a fictional boyfriend to ward off her mother’s nagging and matchmaking. But now she needs a real date for her sister’s wedding. But she just can’t find a guy because she has set unreasonable expectations for a boyfriend ever since she first watched the movie, “Sixteen Candles.” Not my favorite fictional boyfriend, but I can relate.

She does start falling for the contractor fixing up her house, but he’s rather snakebit on relationships because of the way his former girlfriend treated him. Misunderstandings that are totally predictable put up roadblocks to the inevitable happy ending.

I voluntarily reviewed an advanced reader copy of this book that I received from Netgalley; however, the opinions are my own and I did not receive any compensation for my review.

Once I picked up this book, I could not put it down. Seriously. The movie, “16 Candles”, has been a favorite of mine ever since I watched it as a tween when it came out. (Yes, I am aging myself!). I remember the flustered feeling I got during the scene where Jake Ryan is waiting by the car after Sammy exits the church. OMG. Somehow, someway, Bethany Crandell lassoed that exact feeling and beautifully weaves it throughout this story. However, what I love most about this book is how Bethany conveys the raw feelings and experiences of the main character, “Mac”. We are right there with her as she reflects on not only her own expectations of what the perfect man should be, but also others’ expectations for her. This book hits all the points – it’s filled with laugh out loud humor, deep heartache and everything in between. I LOVED it!

This one didn't work for me at all. I found the book to be full of insipid characters who weren't engaging or interesting. Not to mention characters whose behavior belied their given ages.

DNF.

My thanks to Bethany Crandell, Montlake, and NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

This book wasn’t necessarily my cup of tea it was still good but I don’t see that this was very believable

Definitely a cliche read that we have all read but it was still interesting and fun to read. It went by quickly so you probably won't spend too much time with this book but the easy-to-read flow never leaves you having to re-read.

That title definitely caught my attention. Who doesn't know Jake Ryan. Premise is a successful obstetrician in her late 30's realizes her relationships don't work cause she compared them all to Jake Ryan. She loves 16 candles literally. So when her sister's wedding comes up and her mom keeps nagging her about a date required she invents someone.

Fast forward to Mac meeting handy man/contractor JT working on her neighbors house. She thinks he's the perfect Jake Ryan. A bit of circling around the other because you know she thought he was married etc and her crush is crushed. But he isn't. So they end up dating all is well until her mom butts in and reveals all. That's not all there's also a mix up with a patient of Mac's baby and paternity along to throw things up.

I admit Mac and JT were cute together and with the dog of course. A PG romance wise but it's fine. I just think the reveal took too long about the fake boyfriend cause JT wasn't up to mom's high standards. Plus the other stuff that felt like a throwaway. Last minute resolutions and all but all tied up well. Had potential this one. New author but has a good interesting premise but not for women power ideal.

I had high hopes for this story and loved the synopsis but unfortunately this book just wasn’t for me. I just couldn’t get into it and wasn’t very invested in the characters.

This book was super good. It was super original and I flew through it. It didn't feel like anything I've read in the past. Can't wait to read more from the author!! This book was unputdownable.

Uh, so the eye-catching cover and the blurb misled me.

This was promising, but I didn't like how it was executed, nor did it connect with the characters. My main problem was with Mackenzie, who is going through a "crisis" because she is 39 and single. Now, I've read this type of plot a lot of times and I have no problem with it, but Mackenzie had the demeanor and personality of a thirteen-year-old, there was nothing about her that was relatable and rather she was VERY annoying. Also, it is one thing to seek love and quite another to be completely desperate, so I don't like how all the romance was handled here, and it didn't help that love interest was bland too.

What a fun rom-com. This book was the perfect distraction. Who doesn’t measure their guys to Jake Ryan?! Really liked it!

Mac works with women in labor. I loved the main characters want for love and a baby for herself. I didn't like the cussing. I loved the characters.

Well I thought this was going to be a generic ‘fake date’ plot but it wasn’t. The wedding is the centre of the story with Mac needing a date and the plot is her trying her best to find one.
I think there were a couple of subplots that felt unnecessary, and one particularly that I really didn’t love. This particular one didn’t even pay off in the end so felt completely pointless and really just for drama.
Generally the plot was very straight forward and easy to follow and the pacing was generally pretty good.

There were parts of this book I loved — the main character, especially — but also aspects of the plot that felt over the top. The main conflict felt so easily avoidable that it was hard to get excited about the last third of the book. However, the homage to teen movies, especially Sixteen Candles, was wonderful. This might not have been the best fit for me, but I'm sure there are other romance lovers out there who will enjoy it.

So as I am an 80's girl when I read this title it was an automatic request for me, I mean common-Jake Ryan, I was just too excited....and then poor me because yup that is how I feel, I was sad, sad people that you could take, Jake Ryan and utterly ruin it. The fact that we were reading about a 39 year old woman who was not married, and no I have no issues with that but I have issues with the topic that she is a doctor (ahhh how can that be and that you a doctor) is not married. Supposed friends set her up with ridiculous men (the nerve of them) you know because she is a doctor! A doctor that at the age of 39 lies to her Momma, puhlease don't mess with 80's people, those are fighting situations.

This was a fun and whimsy summer read focusing on Mac, a doctor, and her quest to find a date for her sister's upcoming wedding. The book was a quick and easy read, which was nice on a hot summer day. I loved JT, Mac's unexpected love interest; he and Mac's dog were my favorite part of the story. I wish some of the characters were more developed, but overall, a solid 3.5 star read that I rounded up to 4.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

A fun and nostalgic read. I identify with this character on so many levels, the way she feels about Jake Ryan is exactly how I am with Mr Darcy. No man can live up to our literary heroes.

I did enjoy this read, it was a light and fun read. It was not an instant favourite but it is a book that you can read and stay engaged with.

I received this book from Netgalley in return for my honest opinion.

Cover: I actually really like this cover. I love the vibrant colours and how simplistic it is. The perfect romance cover!

Main Character: I really liked Mac as the main character. She is really interesting as we see her insecurities and how they affect the plot and the choices she makes. She seemed like a really realistic character as was definitely the most developed character.

Side Characters: We do meet a lot of other characters through the book including: Mac’s family, all of which are developed enough that they’re interesting characters, We meet Mac’s friends and colleagues, who are really fun and the catalyst of Mac’s realisation, and we also meet JT. JT who should have been the most developed of the bunch but instead felt like a Mary Sue who had some more realistic issues thrust upon him. It felt like he was perfect, but life had tarnished him up, instead of making him a three dimensional character.

Plot: Well I thought this was going to be a generic ‘fake date’ plot but it wasn’t. The wedding is the centre of the story with Mac needing a date and the plot is her trying her best to find one.
I think there were a couple of subplots that felt unnecessary, and one particularly that I really didn’t love. This particular one didn’t even pay off in the end so felt completely pointless and really just for drama.
Generally the plot was very straight forward and easy to follow and the pacing was generally pretty good.

Genre: This is adult fantasy, it’s on the tamer side with no smut but I wouldn’t recommend it to YA readers too much as Mac is a lot older so they may not connect to her as well.

Strength: I loved how natural the story felt. I could see how Mac had created this very unlikely situation and how her mind went down the path it did. It made the book feel more grounded and realistic.

Weakness: My biggest issues with this book was actually all to do with the love interest. He felt almost too much like a cookie cutter perfect guy. I would have liked if we’d seen something a bit more from him as I felt he was underdeveloped.
I also think the pacing of their relationship was a little off too. It felt almost insta-loveish as they didn’t actually have too many interactions before getting into a relationship. I think the interactions they had prior to the beginning of their relationship, or even making their relationship less intense at the beginning would have improved this.

My Opinion: Overall I really enjoyed this book. I was a cute, fast read perfect for anyone looking for an adorable romance. It was light on the development of anyone but Mac (and her mum really!) but Mac is a interesting and engaging main character who is instantly likeable and she more than carried the story.
I laughed quite a lot in the first half of the book when we were treated to Mac’s many bad dates but this petered out later on for a slightly more serious tone that I don’t think gave the story the softness it deserved. The humour was the highlight of the book and not having it for a large section felt like a bad tonal shift.
I think there were certain tropes and plot points that felt cheap and unnecessary and I would have liked them to have been more thought through so that we could get a similar outcome without the theatrics.
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Star Rating: 3.5🌟

This was a nice retelling of Sixteen Candles, with a different but great cast of characters. There were some heavy topics tackled, but there were enough lighthearted moments to keep it in the rom-com arena. It was funny, sweet, well-written, and I enjoyed reading it.