Lizzie Blake’s Best Mistake
Book: Lizzie Blake’s Best Mistake by Mazey Eddings
Synopsis:
Lizzie has made endless mistakes. Kitchen fires, pyramid schemes, bangs (of the hair and human variety), you name it, she’s done it… and made a mess of it too. One mistake she’s never made is letting anyone get closer to her than a single hook-up. But after losing yet another bakery job due to her uncontrolled ADHD, she breaks her cardinal rule and has a two-night-stand that changes everything.
Once burned, twice shy, Rake has given up on relationships. And feelings. And any form of intimacy for that matter. Yet something about charming, chaotic Lizzie has him lowering his guard. For two nights, that is. Then it’s back home to Australia and far away from the pesky feelings Lizzie pulls from him. But when Lizzie tells him she’s got an unexpected bun in the oven, he’ll do whatever it takes to be a part of his child’s life… except be emotionally vulnerable, obviously. He’s never going to make that mistake again.
Through a series of mishaps, totally “platonic” single bed sharing, and an underground erotic baking scheme, Lizzie and Rake learn that even the biggest mistakes can have the most beautiful consequences.
Rating: ⭐⭐.5/5
My Thoughts: For the most part this was a fun rom-com, and I enjoyed the fact that there was neurodiverse representation. Seeing Lizzie succeed, love, and be loved alongside her ADHD and not in spite of it was a really nice change of pace versus the way neurodiversity is usually treated. I liked Lizzie’s friends and the way you could tell they’d long ago established a dynamic and therefore Lizzie’s energy wasn’t anything new for them to react to — they knew how she worked and she knew how they worked and they all fit together like different pieces of a puzzle. I also liked how while Lizzie and Rake were immediately attracted to each other, they still were honest and realistic about how they were closer to strangers than partners for a while.
A big thing I didn’t like was how Rake’s ex’s abortion was handled. Blaming Rake’s emotional withdrawal on his ex’s abortion almost entirely negated all the things both Rake and Lizzie said about how abortion is a valid choice for a pregnant person. You can’t simultaneously validate abortion while also using it as the reason one of the main characters was so messed up. It felt like the book was trying to play both sides of the coin and it was really frustrating and disappointing.
For the most part this was a funny yet thoughtful romance. I really just wish it had either taken more care when talking about abortion or not even tried to shoehorn such a sensitive topic into the story.
Thank you to St. Martin’s Press for allowing me early access through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Lizzie Blake’s Best Mistake is slated to come out on September 6 and you can pre-order it here or request it from your local library.
Disclosure: I am an affiliate of Bookshop.org and I will earn a commission if you use my link to make a purchase.
