The Dating Dare: A Novel

Jayci Lee

Aug 2021 · Sold by St. Martin's Griffin

About this eBook

Buzzfeed's 2021 Romance Novels You Need To Read This Summer

With witty characters and heartrending romance, Jayci Lee, author of A Sweet Mess, returns with The Dating Dare—where two people might just find out how hard it is to resist falling in love with the right person.

No serious relationships. This is the one rule Tara Park made for herself and it has been working swimmingly, thank you very much. The occasional fling is fine, especially since she’s busy with Weldon Brewery. But when Seth Kim, temptation personified and her best friend’s new brother-in-law walks into her life, Tara might be willing to bend her golden rule...but only for four dates—the four dates she agreed to after a few good rounds of beer and a game of truth or dare. It’ll be fun. No biggie.

Seth Kim can’t believe Tara agreed to his dating dare. He’s leaving for a new job in Paris in a month and a no-strings attached fling seemed like a nice little distraction for both... But their secret dates, while sweet and sexy, always hit roadblocks straight out of a romantic comedy. Thankfully, their non-dates and chance meetings are smoother, frequent, and heated. However, the more Seth sees of Tara, the less willing he is to let her go—and what was supposed to be a fun little game turns into something that neither of them are ready for.

But sometimes, the best things in life are the ones we never see coming.

Ratings and reviews

The Dating Dare by Jayci Lee, book two in the A Sweet Mess series, sounded cute but I struggled with reading the story. Tara and Seth are undeniably attracted to each other, but Tara has sworn off serious relationships and Seth is leaving in a month to go to Paris. Tara is not looking for a serious relationship, ever. She doesn't do love and is happy with her very casual hook-ups every once in a while. Seth is known as a playboy. He's a successful fashion photographer and it's constantly seen with a new fling. After the wedding between Seth's brother (Landon) marries Tara's best friend (Aubrey), these two end up drunk while playing a game of Truth or Dare. That's how the Dating Dare began; they must go on four dates and not fall in love with each other. The premise is outlandish but cute. This was a light rom-com, but, from the very first chapter, the dialogue seemed so awkward. It was extremely difficult to connect to the characters. The beginning of this book took me a long time to get into and it wasn’t until the middle that I started to enjoy the story. That’s when Tara and Seth spent more time together and were truly falling for each other; but the ending was frustrating and left me really annoyed with Tara. They would get mad at each other for not communicating, but then they themselves wouldn't communicate. When one would communicate, the other freaked out because they had sworn off serious relationships and didn't really want to hear how the other one was feeling. It was just tiresome. The plot was very cheesy and predictable and it got a tiresome reading how they were fascinated with each other but ignoring their feelings over and over again. One positive was Tara's job as a master brewer. It's not every day that you read about a heroine that works brewing beer, and that was refreshing. Ms. Lee’s premise of The Dating Dare sounded entertaining, it just didn’t deliver. Her fanfic style writing made the plot feel contrived with a cheesy and predictable story. While I didn’t totally enjoy parts of this story, I’m giving The Dating Dare a three-star rating for some of its entertaining value. I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book.

The Dating Dare is my first book by the author, and although I started in Book 2 (versus Book 1), I didn't feel that I needed to read Book 1 to appreciate the story entirely. Of course, it would be cool to read it in sequence, but even starting Book 2 will not negate the remarkable story. The story is told from both main character's first-person POV, and it worked so well! Themes truly to character background and heritage. I love the Asian terms that were true to the main characters' heritage and representation. I know a few and understand this, and even if they were injected in scenes often, it did not feel overwhelming. The importance of family in the story was something I relate very well as an Asian reader. I can see everything - the protective and Characters that are opposite yet similar in many cases. I like how different yet the same Tara and Seth were in the book. Their pasts are eerily similar, yet the course each took for the dare is very different. Seth is a unique, creative, and thoughtful guy. A far cry to how Tara initially described him to be at the start. I think his reputation is all a front to protect him, not only temporarily but also to shut him out of any possibility of love. Seth is LOVE! Seth was so easy to love! He was a sweetheart from the very beginning, though calculative (in a good way) from the start with Tara. Seth has been the most honest with his feelings between the two main characters. Given his rocky past, he was still willing to give being with Tara a chance at the cost of his career. I did not realize...Tara is BRAVE and AMAZING! Tara is a strong yet flawed, brave yet fragile character. I didn't realize how damaged she is. I empathized with what Tara went through and wished no one would go through such an event, but she shows readers that she is a survivor! Tara shows strength from within and learned to stand up for herself to live through the trauma. I love how the author made Tara grow and look outside Seth's reputation as they have "dates" and "accidental meet-ups." With Tara seeing Seth's genuine emotions, their chemistry starts to get interesting, as Tara starts opening her heart and mind to "many possibilities." The plot twist...went beyond expectations! I love the author's decision with the twist on what happened between the main characters - the big tear-jerking moments. I can say that I didn't expect this particular main character to be the first "to confess," which drastically altered the course of the story, BUT, apart from keeping "the dare" a secret to everyone in town, many crazy surprises were spilling out up to the end! I was an emotional wreck! Every element with the "big reveal" surprised me because basing which past is more traumatic; it would have been this character. Get those tissues out! I cried so much! I cried ugly when both main characters started remembering their pasts - the ones that inevitably changed how they perceive love and commitment. Both got hurt in epic proportions that they were surprised to come out unscathed - that is, until Tara and Seth found each other. Note: the book is not all angst and pain. There is a good rhythm between Tara and Seth. It was light enough and made me laugh a lot, which is an unexpected one, given the heaviness of certain moments. Too much internalization was tough, but the funny parts balanced the book very well. In summary, I highly recommend The Dating Dare to readers who love their romance, friends-to-lovers, second chances, and soul-mates tropes. It has the right amount of passion, angst, and drama to have readers coming out feeling good about "finding the one" and still having one's identity promoted/supported by a supportive partner. Readers will come out feeling right with the ending the author provided. I am excited to read through this author's other works!

The Dating Dare by Jayci Lee is the second book in Jayci Lee’s A Sweet Mess series. It’s just so cute, funny, and adorable. It’s a quick read and has a satisfying end. Tara Park works in a brewery with her brothers and is not interested in relationships. When she goes to her best friend, Audrey’s wedding, she can’t help but notice the best man, Audrey’s new brother-in-law, Seth. After the wedding, and a few drinks, Tara and Seth engage in a friendly game of truth or dare, and Seth proposes a dating dare. Seth has only one month before he leaves for Paris for an exciting photography job, but before he leaves, they have to go on four dates, with the stipulation that neither of them can fall in love. A no-strings relationship sounds simple enough, and with an expiration date on their dating, Tara believes this is the perfect time for a little bit of fun. This book is just so cute. Both Tara and Seth are easy to like, and I just rooted for them both throughout the book. I found their motivations to be believable, and angst-worthy. Their progression into falling in love was also believable, and fun to read. This book is set in a cozy small town, and I love small-town romances, lots of small-town quirky characters to enjoy here. Although this is the second book in a series, it is easily a stand-alone book. It’s fast-paced and is a lovely book to read on a weekend. I received a complimentary copy of this book. The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

About the author

JAYCI LEE writes poignant, sexy, and laugh-out-loud romance every free second she can scavenge and is semi-retired from her fifteen-year career as a defense litigator. She loves food, wine, and travelling, and incidentally so do her characters, in books like The Dating Dare and A Sweet Mess. Jayci lives in sunny California with her tall-dark-and-handsome husband, two amazing boys with boundless energy, and a fluffy rescue whose cuteness is a major distraction.