The Partner Plot

January 1, 2024

A drunken, fake Las Vegas wedding upends the lives of two former high school sweethearts in Forest's (The Neighbor Favor) enjoyable romantic comedy. After a chance encounter leads jet-setting celebrity stylist Violet Greene and high school teacher and basketball coach Xavier Wright to rekindle their young love, a lot of alcohol causes them to wake up in bed together with a photo of them at a (fake) wedding chapel. They aren't able to go their separate ways, though, when a little white lie to a reporter about being married becomes grist for the rumor mill in their hometown, and soon Violet and Xavier find their lives entwined once again, under the watchful eyes of a cast of small-town characters. The story hits all the beats of a customary marriage-of-convenience romance and incorporates several of the best tropes, but Violet's unconventional career raises the stakes in a way that makes the novel feel fresh. Both main characters have believable baggage that keeps them apart, even if their fake-marriage scheme strains credulity. VERDICT A fun, breezy rom-com that will please fans of fake relationship stories.--Jenny Kobiela-Mondor

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February 5, 2024
Forest (The Neighbor Favor) offers a witty take on fake marriage in this fun second-chance romance. High school sweethearts Violet Greene and Xavier Wright once dreamed of a life together, with Violet working as a celebrity stylist and Xavier playing in the NBA. Things did not go according to plan, however, and Xavier broke Violet’s heart to allow her to follow her dreams. Ten years later, Violet is professionally thriving, but her heart has never recovered—and it takes another hit when her famous ex-fiancé, Eddy Coltrane, publicly humiliates her. Xavier, now a high school basketball coach, has many regrets—but his biggest is pushing Violet away. During a chance meeting in a Vegas casino, Violet and Xavier rediscover their connection—so much so that, after a reckless and drunken night, they wake up married. Instead of going for a quick annulment, they decide to milk the marriage for the professional benefits it can bring to both their careers. Along the way, their old flame reignites, leading both to learn a sweet and insightful lesson about what is truly important in life. Readers will root for Violet and Xavier as they come to understand that career success means little without a special person to share it with. Agent: Sara Crowe, Sara Crowe Literary.

February 1, 2024
Two high school sweethearts reconnect in Vegas, where their relationship goes from nonexistent to newlyweds. When Violet Greene and Xavier Wright met on their first day of 11th grade, they knew they'd found their person for life. Through the ups and downs of cafeteria arguments, prom, and late-night rendezvous, the two always found their way back to each other, vowing to stay together through the long-distance college years and beyond. But Xavier's NBA dreams were sidelined after he tore his Achilles tendon, and, not wanting to hold back Violet, who was on the fast track to becoming a stylist for the stars, he ended things, and they haven't seen each other since. Now, nine years later, Violet dresses A-listers from New York to Los Angeles, while Xavier has settled down as an English teacher and assistant basketball coach at their former New Jersey high school. Neither of them has been able to hold a steady partner, and when they run into each other at a club in Las Vegas, they somehow end up at a pretend wedding chapel and wake the next morning with rings on their fingers and no memory of how they got there. They each chalk it up to liquor and old feelings, and Violet hopes to leave their reunion in the past...until she impulsively tells a magazine interviewer that she just got married. Word travels fast, so to save further embarrassment, Violet and Xavier agree to keep up the ruse for a month, which means living together and being, well, married. As they reconnect, they begin to realize that maybe their relationship is more real than fake, but they have to decide whether they're willing to reopen old wounds. Forest's novel is a sweet portrayal of first love and second chances. Violet and Xavier are memorable, real, and vulnerable as they struggle with career sacrifices and the fear of more heartbreak. Yet they were destined from the start--and Forest's romance never misses a shot. A second-chance slam-dunk.

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