You're the Problem, It's You (Mischief & Matchmaking, #2)
Emma R. Alban
The enemies-to-lovers queer Victorian romance follow-up to Don’t Want You Like a Best Friend, in which a young lord and a second son clash, but find themselves thrust together again and again by their meddling cousins. “That man is, without a doubt, the absolute most obnoxious… Bobby Mason is sick of being second: born the spare, never trusted with family responsibility, never expected to amount to much. He’s hungry to contribute something that matters, while all around him his peers are squandering their political and financial power, coasting through life. Which is exactly why he can’t stand the new Viscount Demeroven. …insufferable… James Demeroven, just come of age and into the Viscountcy, knows that he’s a disappointment. Keeping his head down and never raising anyone’s expectations is how he’s survived life with his stepfather. To quiet, careful James, Bobby Mason is a blazing comet in his endless night, even more alive than he was at Oxford when James crushed on him from afar. But Mason is also brash and recklessly unapologetic, destined to shatter the fragile safety of James’s world. Worst of all, he keeps rubbing James’s failures in his face. …hottest man to ever walk the ton.” They can barely get through a single conversation without tensions boiling over. Neither Bobby nor James has ever met a more intriguing, infuriating, infatuating man. If only they could avoid each other entirely. Bad enough their (wonderful but determined) cousins Beth and Gwen keep conveniently setting up group outings. But when an extortionist starts targeting their families, threatening their reputations, Bobby and James must find a way to work together, without pushing each other’s buttons (or tearing them off) in the process…
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0Thanks to Avon and NetGalley for access to an ARC in return for an honest review!
While I enjoyed the first book in this duology [b:Don't Want You Like a Best Friend|127823335|Don't Want You Like a Best Friend (Mischief & Matchmaking #1)|Emma R. Alban|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1690465841l/127823335._SX50_.jpg|148676937] , You're the Problem, It's You was an improvement in a lot of ways. Structurally, the story is much more focused on the central romance. It does still have Beth and Gwen as prominent side characters and a lot of familiar faces from the first book but they complement the central romance rather than distracting from it.
One of my favorite things about Don't Want You Like a Best Friend was the characters and that is also true of one. While Bobby and James frequently butt heads and cause each other pain and frustration, I found both deeply sympathetic characters. Bobby is the second son trying to find his place and be helpful to the family while feeling left out of a lot of things. And James is someone who's grown up in a fairly toxic family, having to hide who he is just to get by and not even sure what he wants out of his new role as Viscount Demeroven.
Initially there's a lot of miscommunication between the two men, but given their individual frustrations and pride, it made sense to me that they wouldn't share more than they did. If you're really sensitive to the trope, it might bother you more but I didn't think it was unreasonable. There were some elements here that reminded me of the dynamic of Pride and Prejudice. It's not full-on enemies to lovers but definitely two very different people trying to deal with bad first impressions on both sides and slowly coming to understand each other.
I also really liked the historical detail in this one, much like in the first one. I'm not a stickler for exact historical adherence but it's really fun to see more queer representation in a historical context and a wide array of how they handled not being able to legally express that love. I also deeply loved seeing some lavender marriage rep, it feels so rare to see in historical romances and it made me want to do a deep dive on queer history for the period so I could learn more. There were some sections where it was so focused on the parliamentary struggles of the period that I lost a bit of interest but I appreciated the level of detail and focus on social commentary.
Overall, while not perfect in terms of some pacing issues, I still really enjoyed You're the Problem, It's You. It's very closely connected to the first book in the series so I think it would be tough to read this one without having read the first but it builds really well on what was already set up and improves it in a lot of ways.
0**I received an electronic ARC from the publisher through NetGalley.**
Actual rating: 3.5
Emma R Alban returns to the Regency with You're the Problem, It's You. The second novel in the Mischief & Matchmaking series, You're the Problem, It's You is a direct sequel to the events in Don't Want You Like a Best Friend. This installment follows newly titled Lord James Demeroven and second son Bobby Mason as they navigate the need for discretion in their partners while receiving pressure from the peerage of the ton to marry respectably. Unfortunately, past dalliances could lead to ruin for them both.
While I acknowledge that this is a sequel, I admittedly didn't read book one. I don't think I suffered for it as it was perfectly understandable what had occurred previously. I do think readers who have read book one will feel more attachment to Lady Gwen and Beth along with their family.
For me, the coming together of James and Bobby was a tad slow. Both parties were more inclined to bicker than have an actual conversation, due in great part to James' sincere fear of ruination. Perhaps I simply wasn't in the mood to have the patience for that, but it did bring my enjoyment level down a bit. Otherwise, this was an enjoyable read with a good bit of spice.
I would recommend this series to fans of Cat Sebastian and KJ Charles. I look forward to future works from Alban.
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