On the Corner of Love and Hate

Nina Bocci

Aug 2019 · Hopeless Romantics Book 1 · Sold by Simon and Schuster

About this ebook

For fans of Lauren Layne and Kristan Higgins comes a delightfully “fun bit of fluffy entertainment” (Publishers Weekly) in the first book of a charming new series, in which a young woman is forced to help her old friend revamp his image for the upcoming mayoral elections...and discovers that she might not be as immune to his charms as she once thought.

When Emmanuelle Peroni’s father—and current mayor of Hope Lake, Pennsylvania—suggests she help with Cooper Endicott’s campaign, she’s horrified. Cooper, one of her (former) oldest friends, drives her crazy in every way possible. But he’s also her father’s protégé, so Emma reluctantly launches her plan to help him win the local election.

It’s not as easy as it looks. Cooper’s colorful love life is the sticking point for many voters, and his opponent is digging up everything he can from his past. It seems that every time Emma puts out the flames from one scandal, another one flares up. Emma knows that if Cooper wants to win, he needs to keep his nose clean. The only problem? She might just be falling in love with the one person she promised never to pursue: the mayoral candidate himself.

Ratings and reviews

On the Corner of Love and Hate felt more like women's fiction to me than romance except that it's more fluff than fiber where the storyline and characters are concerned. That's not necessarily a bad thing, we could all use a little fluff from time to time, but the romance here is a slow burn - like the flame is barely there type of slow. I expected an enemies to lovers story, but I never really got that from Emma and Cooper. They do have some fun banter, and we're told that there were some sparks in the past, but I just didn't see much chemistry between them. They could've ended up just good friends, and I would've been fine with that. I do like small town stories and on that, this one delivers. The town is charming, and the characters are quirky and fun. I even enjoyed the politics and Cooper's double-dealing opponent made for an interesting bit of trouble in the mayoral race. I did have one pet peeve with this book, and that was the random 'Emma thoughts' that would pop up. At first they were amusing and even cute, but after so many, it was more distraction and started to wear at me. Fortunately, those do fizzle after a while and they don't happen as often in the last half of the book. In the end, this one wasn't quite what I expected or hoped for, but I did enjoy meeting the characters of Hope Lake, and I will check out other books from this author.

What an amazing start to the Hopeless Romantics series! I really enjoyed this childhood friends to enemies to lovers slow burn romance! On the Corner of Love and Hate will have you laughing out loud one moment and then tearing up the next. It's relatable and heartfelt and I fell completely in love with Hope Lake and its residents. Emmanuelle (Emma) and Cooper have a complicated history. I couldn't wait to find out what drove these once best friends apart. Sparks fly as they bicker and verbally spar, and I loved every zing of chemistry between them. As the book progresses, readers come to learn about all of their sweet and tender moments (the drawing under the desk!), but also the heartbreaking ones as well. The fates have never quite aligned for these two, and it hurt my heart over how much was left unsaid over the years. I loved all the relationships in this book so much. From parent to child and friend to friend, I loved how supportive and loyal they all were to each other. The secondary characters were absolutely amazing and I don't think I could have loved Emma's mother, Sophia, more! The Chef Boyardee incident and her fashion sense had me snort laughing every time she was mentioned or on the page. I can already tell that steadfast Henry will be my favorite of the BFF quartet though. How can I not fall in love with a character who isn't concerned with sowing his wild oats everywhere and describes himself as a sexual camel? ;) Nina Bocci's writing is witty and sharp and I laughed so hard at all the perfectly placed pop culture references. Her voice and heart really jump off the page and had me invested in these characters from the start. The epilogue left me with a huge smile on my face and I can't wait to see what's next for the town of Hope Lake! *I voluntarily read an advance review copy of this book*

**I voluntarily read an early copy of this title courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review** On the Corner of Love and Hate is Nina Bocci's solo debut and it was a good one. While it did take me some time to get into the book, in the end, I enjoyed it. This friends to lovers romance was a good start to this series. Emmanuelle (Emma) and Cooper were best friends, but there were a series of incidents that drove them apart. One of the biggest issues between the two is their communication. Emma has never shared what made her so combative and snarky toward Cooper, and Cooper has never shared his true feelings. Now that the two work together in the development office, they are constantly under one another's feet and are always bickering. When Cooper decides to run for mayor, he knows the person to help him with his campaign is Emma, but because of the state of their relationship, that is anything but smooth sailing. Will these two obviously attracted to one another people make it through the campaign unscathed? There were times throughout the book that I felt Emma was way too hard on Cooper. I know she had hurt feelings, but I really felt for him at times. I enjoyed the secondary characters a lot and felt like they helped to balance everything out. In the end, I enjoyed the book and I will be interested to see what lies ahead for the rest of the residents of Hope Lake.

About the author

Nina Bocci is a USA TODAY bestselling novelist who loves reading and writing about swoony, relatable heroes and smart, witty heroines. If the story is set in a small town, even better. You can always find her chatting on social media about her massive, crazy Italian family and her favorite person in the world, her son. Find her at @NinaBocci on Twitter and Facebook and @Ninapolitan on Instagram.