Unlikely Match by Fiona RileyUnlikely Match by Fiona Riley is the second book in her Perfect Match series. Fans of Miss Match will have a lot to be excited about with this installment, and people who haven’t read it can still pick this one up and enjoy it just as much.

Shelly White is the ultimate geek girl who’s managed to turn her passion and know-how around coding into a successful business. The only thing missing is the right woman to walk through life with her, even after a year of working with Samantha Monteiro and her matchmaking business. When it’s time for Shelly to hire someone to plan the campaign on her next big tech breakthrough, she immediately thinks of Claire Moseley, the beautiful PR professional Samantha introduced her to at a fundraiser.

Claire is too focused on her career to look for love, especially now that she’s been promoted into the role of PR and marketing executive. An invitation from her boss’s fiancee, Samantha, brings her into contact with Shelly White, which leads to the biggest account she’s ever handled. Claire’s attracted to Shelly, even though they couldn’t be more different. Can she risk her career by dating a client?

The Characters

Shelly and Claire are both brilliant and incredibly likeable, and even though they’re very different in terms of their interests and abilities, they complement each other well. Shelly’s had quite the journey from when we first met her in Miss Match—she’s much more confident and is finally able to do things like ask Claire out on a real date without falling apart. We didn’t get to know Claire as well in Miss Match, so I was excited to learn that she’s Shelly’s love interest in this book, and she definitely turned out to be a worthy partner for her.

It was great getting to spend more time with Samantha and Lucinda in the run up to their wedding. They’re just as adorable as they were in Miss Match, and I hope we see a lot more of them in the future. I was also happy to meet Sasha McCray, a firefighter that Shelly had dated, because her book is next!

The Writing Style

Unlikely Match is super easy to read with its great pacing, character work, and dialogue that’s fun and engaging.

The Pros

Shelly was the highlight of the book for me. I love unapologetic geek girls! That said, as a marketer, I also found myself interested and invested in Claire.

Oh, and that barista isn’t bad either 🙂

The Cons

I was a little confused and surprised by how things went down with Shelly’s business partner. I know this isn’t really saying anything and doesn’t make a lot of sense, but it’s not a content warning, so I don’t think it’s worth spoiling.

The Conclusion

Whether you’ve read Miss Match or not, Unlikely Match is worth picking up. It was the perfect romance to balance out a tough week at work and I’m looking forward to seeing what Fiona Riley has in store for us next!

Excerpt from Unlikely Match by Fiona Riley

Wondering if this was her chance, Shelly decided to try on that flavor of bold Samantha always coached her about. “Would you like to dance?”

“Oh, sure.” Claire looked surprised, but not put off. That was a good sign.

“Great.” Shelly awkwardly handed her glass to an unsuspecting Elijah walking by, as she guided Claire toward the center of the room. She could do this. She could dance and flirt and talk. She’d been training for months. It was go time.

As the music picked up and transitioned into a new song, Shelly rested one hand gently on Claire’s midback and clasped Claire’s hand with the other, slowly initiating a sway from side to side.

“You’re a pretty good dancer.” Claire looked amused.

“I’ve had some practice.” Shelly turned them toward a quieter area of the dance floor. “You’re good, too, though.”

Claire smiled. “So, Shelly, besides dancing, what do you do?”

“I run an IT company with my partner. Well, I’m supposed to be doing the background work and he’s supposed to be running the business side of things, but he’s been a little absent lately, so…Sorry, I’m rambling. I work with computers. Clearly, I’m still mastering the art of socialization.”

Claire laughed and Shelly swooned a little at the sound.

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[tweetthis]“Consent is sexy.” Samantha gave her a serious nod. “Go on.”[/tweetthis]

Bits and Bobs

  • ISBN number: 9781626398917
  • Publisher: Bold Strokes Books

Fiona Riley Online 

Note: I received a free review copy of Unlikely Match by Fiona Riley. No money was exchanged for this review. I will always review books as honestly as possible and on occasion I refuse to review books.