Fix Her Up by Tessa Bailey
Genre: NA Realistic Fiction/Romance
Blurb (on back of book):
A brand new romantic comedy from New York Times bestseller Tessa Bailey! Georgette Castle’s family runs the best home renovation business in town, but she picked balloons instead of blueprints and they haven’t taken her seriously since. Frankly, she’s over it. Georgie loves planning children’s birthday parties and making people laugh, just not at her own expense. She’s determined to fix herself up into a Woman of the World... whatever that mean
s.
Phase one: new framework for her business (a website from this decade, perhaps?)
Phase two: a gut-reno on her wardrobe (fyi, leggings are pants.)
Phase three: updates to her exterior (do people still wax?)
Phase four: put herself on the market (and stop crushing on Travis Ford!)
Living her best life means facing the truth: Georgie hasn’t been on a date since, well, ever. Nobody’s asking the town clown out for a night of hot sex, that’s for sure. Maybe if people think she’s having a steamy love affair, they’ll acknowledge she’s not just the “little sister” who paints faces for a living. And who better to help demolish that image than the resident sports star and tabloid favorite?
Travis Ford was major league baseball’s hottest rookie when an injury ended his career. Now he’s flipping houses to keep busy and trying to forget his glory days. But he can’t even cross the street without someone recapping his greatest hits. Or making a joke about his… bat. And then there's Georgie, his best friend’s sister, who is not a kid anymore. When she proposes a wild scheme—that they pretend to date, to shock her family and help him land a new job—he agrees. What’s the harm? It’s not like it’s real. But the girl Travis used to tease is now a funny, full-of-life woman and there’s nothing fake about how much he wants her...
MY OPINION: *****
I absolutely loved this book! After my less-than-stellar opinion of Tessa Bailey's Window Shopping I am happy to state that this book redeemed the author in my eyes and I will continue to read her books. I wasn't expecting to like this one as much as I did but I ended up having lots of fun with it and really falling in love with the characters and the plot.
This was yet another one of the books in my long rom-com binge. I read it over Thanksgiving Break in the span of one day, which I haven't done in a long time (there's just no time left these days!). I will say I am not too big on reading the next books in the series only because I wasn't a huge fan of the side characters that those are centered on.
Georgie Castle's family are known in their small town as the owners and managers of the best home renovation company. However, as the "baby" of the family and the fact that she is never treated seriously by her own siblings and parents, she has strayed away from the family business in favor of acting as a clown at kid's birthday parties. She has a soft spot in her heart for kids and after being treated as a joke her entire life, she has begun to embrace the statement.
I felt really bad for Georgie and the way her family treated her. She is a twenty-three year old woman, strong and independent, and in charge of her own business, and yet her family still saw her as a baby. I am glad that she started to grow out of that label as the book progressed, especially with the help of Travis.
Speaking of... Travis Ford is a baseball star. However, after an injury that has become the downfall of his career, he has returned back to his hometown and basically become a "lowlife" and has given up on his dreams. Georgie has been in love with him ever since they were kids but he, like everyone else, has never really noticed her and treats her like a little sister, if that. However, she is determined to help Travis get his life back together and is still hopelessly in love with him, though he is none the wiser. He at first is quite reluctant to accept this happy, loving girl's help but begins to open up as the book progresses. It's a classic grumpy/sunshine trope and I am completely here for it.
Georgie basically decides to get her life together, turn her clown-job into a more professional business, change her wardrobe, upgrade her newly-bought home, and get over Travis. I absolutely loved Georgie's independent mindset and determination to not let the disparaging opinions of those around her stop her from doing what she wanted to do (though of course she is not quite successful with her last goal).
Travis is then offered a possible job to become a commentator for a baseball team. However, his image of "manwhore" and the nickname "Two Bats" (I'll let you figure that one out for yourself) is not helping his prospects at getting the job. Seemingly out of nowhere, Georgie proposes a shocking plan: they fake date so she can show her family she isn't a kid anymore and he can maintain an image of having a steady relationship and get the job of his new dreams.
I absolutely love the fake dating trope and the way that this was executed in this book in particular was beautiful. Georgie is fighting her feelings for Travis and pretending that she's fine with the "fake" aspect while Travis is starting to see Georgie in a whole new light. Oh, and did I mention that her brother is his best friend? My favorite trope in rom-coms just so happens to be the brother's-best-friend trope and I was ecstatic to learn that this book featured that trope and quite beautifully as well.
My ONLY criticism of this book was the ending. I won't spoil anything but I think it was a little rushed and seemed to come out of nowhere. It felt very out of character for both Travis and Georgie and I wish the book had been concluded in a different way that felt more natural for each person. However, it was pretty cute and we do get the happily-ever-after we were all waiting for so I guess there's no real harm.
I absolutely loved the Just Us League, a women's club dedicated to helping women in their relationships and with each other. I also loved the opportunities it gave to Georgie to step out of the labels assigned to her and really become a leader of a massive group of women. It gave her that final push that she needed to get out of the spotlight as the "baby" and finally be seen as a woman of her own.
Overall, I adored this book. I would highly recommend it to anyone looking for a cute, angsty, fun romance novel.
Main Character: Georgie, Travis
Sidekick(s): Bethany, Rosie, friends, etc
Villain(s): Misconceptions, misunderstandings, etc
Realistic Fiction Elements: This book was all very real to life.
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