Adams, Sarah. Practice Makes Perfect. Random House/Ballantine, 2023. 352 pp. ISBN 9780593500804 $17.00

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Florist Annie has had a series of bad dates and is lusting after her brother’s fiance’s hot tattooed bodyguard Will, who is in town to provide security for Amelia and brother Noah’s upcoming wedding. Will kindly offers to help Annie with practice dates to boost her confidence, and they fall for one another along the way…but convince themselves the other would never actually be interested. After all, Annie loves romantic books and movies and has a thing for pirates. Will is a thrillseeker who fears not being loved back. She wants a committed relationship and white picket fence, and he hesitates to put down roots and is unsure of his assignment once this gig is done. They do hit it off, and the kissing and foreplay is luscious (the consummation happens behind closed doors). A misunderstanding about what the other really wants is their undoing.

I really loved the whole cast of characters, though they mostly seemed to good to be true. The small town setting is charming, but it’s not wholly believable the whole town would vote on the future of Annie and Will’s prospective relationship. There’s a nice sibling moment with Annie and Noah where they process the loss of their parents. The wedding happening in the background adds color and drama and alluded to When in Rome, the first book in the series.

I received a free advance reader’s review copy of #PracticeMakesPerfect from #NetGalley.