Jasmine Guillory, The Proposal

Nikole Paterson is at an LA Dodgers game with her boyfriend Fisher. She’s been seeing him casually for about five months, but she doesn’t consider their relationship particularly serious. So she’s shocked when Fisher urges her to look at the JumboTron just as it’s flashing a proposal to her, from him — and her name isn’t even spelled correctly! Nik is completely mortified; luckily, Carlos Ibarra is sitting just a couple rows behind her, sees the whole thing, and decides to help extricate her from the situation. Grateful for the save, Nik invites Carlos for a drink with her and her friends. Then they start texting each other, and soon they’re getting to know each other (and, ahem, “know” each other) and spending a ton of time together. Neither one of them is looking for a serious relationship, but as they grow closer despite themselves, they realize they’ve accidentally fallen in love.

I liked but didn’t love Guillory’s previous novel, The Wedding Date, and I find myself having a similar reaction to this book. It’s definitely a fun read, and both Nik and Carlos are likable characters whom I wanted to succeed and be happy. But as in The Wedding Date, there’s very little conflict: this is a book about nice people who are almost uniformly nice to each other. Now, I enjoy books with minimal angst and characters who communicate well; but Nik and Carlos’s relationship is so drama-free that it’s a little boring to read about, honestly. A lot of interesting conflicts lurk beneath the surface — Carlos’s belief that he has to be the rock his family depends on, for example, or Nik’s past relationship with an emotionally abusive man — but they’re barely touched on in the novel. Instead, the only obstacle between them is that they both want a casual fling, then realize they have Feelings. So while I found this a pleasant enough read, I definitely wanted more in terms of dramatic tension.