Loved the ADHD rep in this! Was afraid at first that the author just put it in to be more inclusive as it was mentioned for a minute and then nothing, but was glad to read more about it! Quite liked this unique story!

SCREAMING 5 stars! This was hilarious, sweet, easy read that just hit all the right spots for me.
Its such a mix of Schitts Creek, Heart of Dixie and even some Gilmore Girls elements. I will be rereading this a million times, I enjoyed it more than life.

Lindy and Pat is just the sweetest, and also had a lot of elements of Tools of Engagement by Tessa Bailey but still original as its own story.

Tropes I loved:
⭐️ Second chance romance
⭐️Marriage of convenience
⭐️Small Town romance
⭐️Group of gorgeous besties
⭐️Swoon worthy hero
⭐️Absolute fierce but sweet female lead
⭐️ADHD representation
⭐️Dual POV
⭐️Grumpy/Sunshine( the male is the sunshine - I mean?!? My heart)

The development in the book was just *chef’s kiss* , and Pat opening up and showing his emotional side had me swooning and fanning myself. Damn.

This was beyond cute! I can’t wait for the second book!😍 I absolutely fell in-love with the Graham family, and all the craziness that comes with Sheet Cakes, Texas.

I am in angst waiting for James and Winnie’s story! I need it like tomorrow!

“You deserve so many good things, Lindy. You are my solid ground. My place of rest. My forever home.”

Lindy and Pat used to date until he broke her heart and left without saying goodbye. When Pat’s dad announces that he bought a small town, he was shocked to find out that it’s the one where Lindy lives. Now he’s back in her life and is determine to win her back. Except Lindy has too much on her plate: taking care of her 5 year old niece while in the middle of a custody battle with her sister. Pat finds out that Lindy needs help to win custody and the only way to do so is: a marriage of convenience.

The Buy-In was a charming story! I enjoyed the banter and obviously the romance! Pat is a cinnamon roll hero who is so protective over Lindy and Jo. A super cute story!

READ IF YOU LIKE:
- dual POV
- small town in Texas
- marriage of convenience
- second chance
- former pro football player
- brilliant & precocious 5 year old
- forced proximity
- witty banter
- Schitt’s Creek vibes
- grand gestures
- Neighborly app (cross between Facebook & Reddit)

cw: abandonment, dementia, substance abuse, commitment issues, death of loved ones, mention of misogyny

I really thought this book was going to be super cute and fun...I found it a little cringey and not engaging. I didn't like how the characters discussed the show Schitt's Creel...while the book is trying to be just like it-that felt weird. I don't like how the feelings were over discussed and explained...it was a DNF around 40% for me...

What a great start to a new series! My first and definitely won’t be the last book I read by Emma St. Clair. A hilarious story with plenty of heart.

I voluntarily reviewed this book.

So cute! I always love any of Emma St. Clairs books but this one might be a new favorite of mine. This book had me actually laughing out loud at some points. 5 stars for sure!

The Buy-In was a great start to a series! It was a super sweet second chance, small town romance with lots of laughs and a teensy bit of heart-tugging. The perfect balance for a rom-com! I can't wait to read more from this family!!

I did not like this one at all. I thought it sounded really cute. But I did not enjoy it. The story seem really boring and just did not keep my attnetion.

this book was fantastic!! i really like emma st clairs writing style!! i want to read her other stuff. overall a really cute book i would highly recommend

The Buy In by Emma St. Clair

Review - ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

This book was amazing. Oh My God I cant say enough good things. I got the arch of this book on Netgally and I was so excited.

This book is a small town romance, marriage of convenience and a second-chance romance . Its a story between Pat and Lindy and I would say they are both amazingly loveable characters and I think the relationship between Jo and Pat was so well written and I loved every minute of it. This book shows a man completely in love and fighting to fix all the things he did wrong. He is so smitten and I love how he shows her he really wants to be with her!

This book is the first book in the Graham Brothers series and I cant wait for the next book to be released in September 2022.

(SPOILERS!!)

The ending made my heart melt, I was sobbing… honestly. The fact that Pat and Lindy adopted Jo and the Surprise wedding Lindy did for Pat. I cant fault it.

This book was a fun treat! I loved it! It was a good reset after I read a heavier book. It kept me flipping pages well past my bedtime!!

A Second Chance Romance/ Marriage of Convenience ... Two of my favorite tropes.

Pat's father bought a town and it just happened to be the home town of his ex Lindy. The ex that his siblings call "the woman", the one he run away from, the one who got away..
He thought she was living the life of her dreams traveling the world but the whole time she was in Sheet Cake raising her niece whose mother abandoned her.. And when she needed a husband to help her win custody of her niece, Pat show up..

I loved and enjoyed reading this romance,
I'm so excited to read the next book!!

Stop: If you haven't read the Love Clichés series also by Emma St. Clair, turn around and go read those before starting this. While this can be read as a standalone series, it's so much more fun and relatable to read that first.

What happens when your dad buys a town called Sheet Cake 45 minutes away from home and it happens to be the hometown of the only woman you have every loved?

Pat Graham has been floundering since he left pro football. When his father comes up with this crazy idea of buying a whole town, he decides to help out. It doesn't hurt that a woman he used to love still lives there with her adorable niece. When he accidentally gets arrested and is forced to stay in Sheet Cake, he proposes to the girl of his dreams. Lindy was supposed to travel the world but ends up in her hometown taking care of her niece. She wouldn't imagine life any other way, but when her sister tries to take custody of her niece, she'll do anything to keep Jo including marrying the man who broke her heart.

I absolutely love this book which is no surprise because I love Emma St. Clair books. Pat is so full of life and such a positive influence in Lindy's life. Their chemistry is off the charts and I love all the small things that Pat did throughout the book to show his appreciation and love of Lindy. I also think it's so refreshing to see a male character who is not shy about their emotions.

One thing that I have to admire about Emma St. Clair books is that she includes characters who have disorders and have to overcome their difficulties every day. It's fantastic to see the people closest to these characters accept them and make changes to their lives without judgment. I think normalizing this behavior is what makes these books so great.

I receive an ARC via NetGalley for an honest review.

4 stars!
This book is a small town romance and I have never read her books before but I was giggling and feeling a bunch of emotions reading this book! former football player buys a small town and ya know what is going to happen... falls in love with the people they least expect LOL

I enjoyed this book, It was fun and the characters were quirky, I liked the style and you can’t go wrong with a good romcom.

I would recommend this book to anyone who is in a slump and needs a feelgood book.

It didn’t wow me but it was enjoyable.

Is it better or worse to have the characters discuss the premise of Schitt's Creek that is being ripped off as the basis of the book? Felt a little lazy to me. As did the whole super-precocious child, antagonistic non-custodial parent, BFFs and family members that explain the main characters' life and feelings to them, and cringey depictions of non-native English speakers:

E.g.:
'“You were both so young,” Mari says. “Maybe the time has come to let the troll go under the bridge?”

'Mari moved here from Costa Rica fifteen years ago when Val’s mom took off. It was the same summer Winnie’s mom died of cancer. Worst summer break ever! Mari’s English is almost perfect, but her idioms … not so much. She told Val recently that she needed to stop dating so many losers and find a man who would sweep her feet off.

'Based on context here, I think she means water under the bridge, not trolls.'

Worst stereotype ever!

Anyway, there is just a lot of hand-wringing about the main characters' past relationship, and with no steamy payoff on the horizon.... I DNF'd this one around 30%. Hope things worked out with that town they bought, as that is a normal thing that people do.

Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for the opportunity to review a temporary digital ARC in exchange for an unbiased review.

Book: The Buy-In
Author: Emma St. Clair
Rating: 4/5

Synopsis:
"You can't Schitt's Creek a town, Tank."

"And you can't verb a noun, son."


When a family of former pro football players buy a small Texas town, they didn't intend to start a war with its residents ... or to fall in love.

Ever since his career-ending injury, Pat has bounced from job to job, idea to idea, short-lived relationship to short-lived relationship. But when his father purchases the town of Sheet Cake, Pat suddenly sees his life with clear purpose: get his brothers on board with his dad's wild idea and win back the one woman who got away.

Lindy was supposed to be traveling the world, not stuck in a small town, caring for her niece. But she would do anything to keep custody of Jo--even if that looks like a marriage of convenience with the man who already broke her heart once.

Now if she can only keep herself from falling back in love with her husband...

This is a small town, marriage of convenience romantic comedy with plenty of sizzle while keeping the bedroom door closed. Perfect for fans of Sarah Adams and Sariah Wilson!

Review:
I really enjoyed this book! This is the first Emma St. Clair novel I have read, and I will definitely be reading more. The humor in this book was spot on, and enhanced the plot in the right places. I have not read many books with the marriage of convenience trope, but this book definitely made me want to read more - I loved it, and it definitely worked.

I not only loved the characters, Pat and Lindy, but I also loved the entire town. Emma did a great job of painting a picture of the town's ambience and townspeople that it made me feel like I was there, and made me wish that it was a real town so I could go visit! The way Pat and Lindy's romance unfolded was also very sweet to watch. The only drawback to this book was I felt like it was a little long, but other than that I thoroughly enjoyed it and cannot wait for the next book in the series.


Thank you to Netgalley for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

The Buy-in is out now, so grab your copy today!

Lovely book by a lovely author.

I have long been a fan of Emma St. Clair's books. In this first installment of a new standalone romcom series, we follow two flawed but lovable characters as they give their love a second chance. The lead male is a complete cinammon role of a love interest and the leading lady is relatable and driven. Full of witty dialogue, character complexity and depth, swoony romance, and hilarious situations, The Buy-In is a must read for sweet romance fans everywhere.

The Buy-In is everything a small-town RomCom should be and more. The characters are so lovable and fun. I really enjoyed how the author makes the reader feel like a part of the town. She did such a great job of making it all come to life. I don’t think I’ve ever wanted to visit a fictional town more than I do Sheet Cake, Texas! The romance is slow-burn, swoony goodness, and let me with a huge smile on my face. Definitely pick this one up!

this book was so sweet! i really enjoyed getting to read this one early!! it was so much fun and exciting and full of surprises! please check this one out soon!!!!