Title: No Love Allowed
Author: Kate Evangelista
Published by: Swoon Reads | 19 April 2016
Date Read: 20 February 2016
Rating: 4/5 stars
Synopsis from Goodreads:
Caleb desperately needs a fake girlfriend. Either he attends a series of parties for his father’s law firm with a pretty girl on his arm, or he gets shipped off to Yale to start a future he’s not ready for and isn’t sure he wants. And sadly, the last unattached girl in his social circle has just made the grievous mistake of falling in love with him. Fortunately, Didi, recently fired waitress and aspiring painter, is open to new experiences. As the summer ticks by in a whirl of lavish parties, there’s only one rule: They must not fall in love!
REVIEW
*ARC provided by Kate Evangelista (the author) thru Pinoy Book Tours for review. *
I’m so grateful and excited to be able to join the blog tour for this book. This is my first novel by Kate Evangelista and I did enjoy reading it.
The plot of No Love Allowed is – let’s be honest – nothing new. Two people pretending to be in a relationship to escape some life matters is honestly nothing new if you’ve been an avid reader of YA, NA or even romance novels. I myself am really partial to fake-relationship kind of stories but wth if it sounds good and it captured my interest I will really be up for it. And No Love Allowed is one of those stories that I’m happy to jump into. And I’m definitely happier because I actually devoured this book in one sitting. 😉
The pretty setting of Dodge Cove was really suitable for the story of Caleb and Didi. Two people who lives on the both ends of a small town. Literally and socially. They may both live at Dodge Cove but they are galaxies apart.
Caleb is the good-looking, rich and emotionally unavailable guy who goes out of his relationships once feelings start to mixed in.
Didi , on the other hand, is a painter who has a Bipolar Disease who’s job is to wait tables to help her mom with her medical bills.
The first few pages into reading this, I did quite have a hard time adjusting on how the story was written. Connecting with Caleb and Didi didn’t happen in an instant. We actually don’t have the sparks on the first few pages. In fact, I actually had a hard time connecting with them. But luckily, as the story progress, we get to know more about these two main characters.
The secondary characters – Nathan, Natasha and Preston all add up major squad goals for this story.
Caleb and Didi are both awesome characters however; I do have some hold backs about them. Caleb and Didi’s characters did open up as the story progress but I didn’t really see their characters developed.
“It’s all fun and parties until someone falls in love.”
The thing about this book that really sold me out is that though insta-love is “quite” there but there is a slow-burn on their relationship as well. In the beginning we saw Caleb and Didi confident enough that none of them will fall for each other as they make their arrangements. They come from different lives and social ladder for God’s sake, but who would’ve thought that something deep inside them, they have a lot of similarities. Yes, it started as faux and they are actually annoyed with each other at the beginning. But we saw how their fake relationship turned into something that is real. I’m a huge sucker for sweet and romantic moments and those moments of Caleb and Didi are really endearing to read.
Overall, No Love Allowed is one quick, fun and sweet read. I definitely love Caleb and Didi’s chemistry. And I will definitely be on the lookout for more of Kate Evangelista.
Reads and Thoughts 