Nikole, a freelance writer, gets an unexpected proposal at a baseball game, leading to a rebound romance with Carlos, a Latino hero, and a roller coaster of emotions. The story is set in Los Angeles and explores themes of friendship, love, family, and cultural diversity. The book features a strong female protagonist, witty dialogue, and light-hearted humor, making it a fun and engaging romcom with relatable characters.

Characters:

The characters are relatable, diverse, and grappling with real-life issues, which makes their development and interactions feel authentic.

Writing/Prose:

The prose is characterized by a breezy, engaging style that effectively blends humor with emotional depth.

Plot/Storyline:

The narrative centers on Nikole's public proposal disaster and her ensuing recovery through a rebound relationship with Carlos, highlighting their emotional journeys and the societal pressures they face.

Setting:

The dynamic setting of Los Angeles plays an essential role in establishing the novel's mood and character interactions.

Pacing:

The novel's pacing is criticized for being rushed, potentially detracting from the depth of character relationships and development.

Nik Paterson looked around at the perfect Los Angeles day: clear blue sky, bright green baseball field, warm sun shining down on the thousands of people with her at Dodger Stadium. There was only one ...

Notes:

The book begins with a public proposal at a baseball game, which goes terribly wrong.

Nik, the main character, is proposed to by her boyfriend, but she doesn't want to marry him and says no.

Carlos, a pediatrician, and his sister Angela rescue Nik from the ensuing media frenzy after her rejection.

Nik and Carlos start as friends but develop a friends-with-benefits relationship.

The story addresses issues of self-worth and vulnerability, particularly for women and people of color.

Guillory's characters are diverse, featuring a Black female lead and a Latino male lead.

The book touches on themes of family responsibility and personal growth.

Nik takes a self-defense class after her traumatic public proposal experience, showcasing empowerment.

The writing includes humor and relatable moments about friendships and relationships.

The pacing of the story is criticized for being too fast, taking place over about four weeks.

There are appearances from characters in Guillory's previous book, The Wedding Date, which enhances the connection within the series.

Sensitive Topics/Content Warnings

The book addresses themes of public humiliation, social media scrutiny, and issues surrounding societal expectations.

Has Romance?

The romantic elements are a central focus of the book, with significant development between the main characters.

explicit steam level

From The Publisher:

THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

A Reese Witherspoon x Hello Sunshine Book Club Pick

"There is so much to relate to and throughout the novel, there is a sharp feminist edge. Loved this one, and you will too."-New York Times bestselling author Roxane Gay

The New York Times bestselling author of The Wedding Date serves up a novel about what happens when a public proposal doesn't turn into a happy ending, thanks to a woman who knows exactly how to make one on her own…

When someone asks you to spend your life with him, it shouldn't come as a surprise-or happen in front of 45,000 people.

When freelance writer Nikole Paterson goes to a Dodgers game with her actor boyfriend, his man bun, and his bros, the last thing she expects is a scoreboard proposal. Saying no isn't the hard part-they've only been dating for five months, and he can't even spell her name correctly. The hard part is having to face a stadium full of disappointed fans…

At the game with his sister, Carlos Ibarra comes to Nik's rescue and rushes her away from a camera crew. He's even there for her when the video goes viral and Nik's social media blows up-in a bad way. Nik knows that in the wilds of LA, a handsome doctor like Carlos can't be looking for anything serious, so she embarks on an epic rebound with him, filled with food, fun, and fantastic sex. But when their glorified hookups start breaking the rules, one of them has to be smart enough to put on the brakes…

Ratings (10)

Incredible (1)
Loved It (6)
Liked It (1)
Did Not Like (1)
Hated It (1)

Reader Stats (20):

Read It (13)
Want To Read (5)
Not Interested (2)

1 comment(s)

madisonmf

Did Not Like

7 months

Oh boy, this was hot stinky mind garbage. But here’s the thing, we all need a little mind garbage from time to time. I kept reading because I enjoyed the mindless distraction.

There are lots of reasons why I didn’t love this book, but the one I’ll note here is the way representation was handled. It was refreshing to read about diverse characters in a romance, but representation became the story, which didn’t allow for the story to be the story. There really wasn’t much of a plot to speak of. However, this scratched the itch it needed to, and I’m grateful for that.

What can you read after
The Proposal?

See the list (100 books)

About the Author:

Jasmine Guillory is the New York Times bestselling author of six romance novels, including The Wedding Date, The Proposal, and the upcoming While We Were Dating. Her work has appeared in O, The Oprah Magazine, Cosmopolitan, Bon Appetit, and Time….

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The Proposal

Jasmine Guillory

Book 2 in the series:The Wedding Date