Review: Maybe I Do by Nicole McLaughlin

She doesn’t believe in fairy tales. He’s married to his job. Maybe whiskey is the secret ingredient that will bring them together—and give true love a shot?

Wedding photographer Charlotte Linley loves her work—even though she hates weddings. Sure, she still holds a grudge after being left at the altar by her high-school sweetheart. But today Charlotte is just happy to have complete control over her career, which is flourishing. Especially since she joined forces with one of the three gorgeous owners of The Stag, a boutique distillery that has become Kansas City’s hottest wedding venue.

Dean Troyer, bitter after the end of his own marriage, knows that Charlotte is the real deal—beautiful, talented, and successful. He may flirt with her every time she comes to The Stag but Dean is determined to keep his professional distance. . .particularly now that she’s helping him with his own sister’s wedding. The only problem? The more time Dean spends with Charlotte, the deeper their connection grows. Is this a rom-com cliché or could it be that these two jaded souls in the wedding business have finally found their real-life happily ever after?

It's really easy for me to gravitate to romances featuring weddings. I really loved all the minor details about the set-up of this series too:  the secondary characters, The Stag.  And while I thought Charlotte and Dean were cute together, their romance didn't really knock me flat, if you know what I mean.  

Charlotte has been hanging around The Stag for a few years, taking pictures of wedding receptions, so she knows Dean in a polite, professional way. Despite trying to maintain her professionalism, she is also highly attracted to him. Dean feels the same way about Charlotte. When Dean asks for Charlotte's help in planning his sister's wedding, it's a no-brainer that she'll say yes.  

Some of the conflicts Charlotte and Dean experience -- exes, for example -- seem manufactured and a little contrived. I think readers are missing out a bit in the newness of Charlotte and Dean, the beginning of their relationship, their initial attractions. Maybe that would add the spark of chemistry that's needed for the final third of the book. 

Still, I enjoyed Maybe I Do, and I plan to read the second in the series. Maybe This Time.  

(A very special thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of Maybe I Do.)