{"id":29565,"date":"2022-10-25T07:00:00","date_gmt":"2022-10-25T02:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/?p=29565"},"modified":"2022-10-17T06:16:27","modified_gmt":"2022-10-17T01:16:27","slug":"review-the-stand-up-groomsman-by-jackie-lau","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/2022\/10\/25\/review-the-stand-up-groomsman-by-jackie-lau\/","title":{"rendered":"Review \u2764\ufe0f The Stand-Up Groomsman by Jackie Lau"},"content":{"rendered":"<!--themify_builder_content-->\n<div id=\"themify_builder_content-29565\" data-postid=\"29565\" class=\"themify_builder_content themify_builder_content-29565 themify_builder tf_clear\">\n    \t\t\t<!-- module_row -->\n\t<div  data-lazy=\"1\" class=\"module_row themify_builder_row tb_bbbcac8 tb_first tf_w tf_clearfix\">\n\t    \t\t\t<div class=\"row_inner gutter-narrow col_align_top tb_col_count_2 tf_box tf_rel\">\n\t\t            <div  data-lazy=\"1\" class=\"module_column tb-column col3-1 tb_49667e8 first\">\n                                                        <div class=\"tb-column-inner tf_box tf_w\">\n                        <!-- module image -->\n<div  class=\"module module-image tb_7036296 rounded drop-shadow customBorderRad_top image-center auto_fullwidth tf_mw\" data-lazy=\"1\">\n        <div class=\"image-wrap tf_rel tf_mw\">\n\t\t    <img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"333\" height=\"500\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/the-stand-up-groomsman-jackie-lau.jpg?resize=333%2C500&#038;ssl=1\" class=\"wp-post-image wp-image-29566\" title=\"the-stand-up-groomsman-jackie-lau\" alt=\"the-stand-up-groomsman-jackie-lau\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/the-stand-up-groomsman-jackie-lau.jpg?w=333&amp;ssl=1 333w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/the-stand-up-groomsman-jackie-lau.jpg?resize=200%2C300&amp;ssl=1 200w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/the-stand-up-groomsman-jackie-lau.jpg?resize=400%2C600&amp;ssl=1 400w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 333px) 100vw, 333px\" \/>\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<!-- \/image-wrap -->\n    \n    \t<\/div>\n<!-- \/module image --><!-- module text -->\n<div  class=\"module module-text tb_a1982ef customBorderRad_bottom repeat \" data-lazy=\"1\">\n        <div  class=\"tb_text_wrap\">\n    <p style=\"text-align: justify;\">They say to never meet your heroes, but when Vivian Liao&#8217;s roommate gets engaged to her favorite actor\u2019s costar, she has no choice but to come face-to-face with Melvin Lee again. He&#8217;s just as funny and handsome as he is on-screen&#8230;but thinks she is a snob and a sellout. It&#8217;s none of his business how she chooses to live her life, no matter how charismatic he is.<br \/>\u00a0<br \/>Mel is used to charming audiences as an actor and stand-up comedian but can&#8217;t connect to Vivian. She&#8217;s a smart, talented artist\u2014which is why he thinks she\u2019s wasting her life as a corporate finance drone. The only thing uniting them is their goal for the wedding to go off without a hitch.<br \/>\u00a0<br \/>As they collaborate on wedding cake and karaoke parties, Mel realizes he might have seriously misjudged this bridesmaid, while Vivian discovers the best man might just be as dazzling off-screen as he is on. With the wedding underway, maybe more than one happily ever after is in the future.<\/p>    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<!-- \/module text -->                    <\/div>\n                            <\/div>\n                        <div  data-lazy=\"1\" class=\"module_column tb-column col3-2 tb_23787e9 last\">\n                                                        <div class=\"tb-column-inner tf_box tf_w\">\n                        <!-- module text -->\n<div  class=\"module module-text tb_2d1ea91  repeat \" data-lazy=\"1\">\n        <div  class=\"tb_text_wrap\">\n    <p><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-25879 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/smitten-top-pick-banner-1-2.png?resize=296%2C72&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" width=\"296\" height=\"72\" \/><\/p><hr \/><p><strong>Release Date:<\/strong> Oct 25, 2022<br \/><strong>Series:<\/strong>\u00a0<em>Donut Fall in Love<br \/><\/em><strong>Book:\u00a0<\/strong>2<br \/><strong>Heat Level:<\/strong> Hot<br \/><strong>Publisher:<\/strong>\u00a0Penguin Group<br \/><strong>Imprint:<\/strong>\u00a0Berkley<br \/><strong>Price:<\/strong> $10.99<\/p><hr \/><p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><em>Lau wins an award\u2014she made me cry.<\/em><\/p><p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Let\u2019s preface this review by saying very few books make me cry. I can probably count them on two hands. Beverley Kendall, our lovely Smittenbybooks.com blog runner is one of them. <strong>Jackie Lau<\/strong> also joins this prestigious group because her second entry in the Donut Fall In Love series spoke to me on a visceral level, especially our heroine Vivian Liao.<\/p><p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><strong>Vivian<\/strong> is an older child (like me), a career woman (like me) with a private hobby (like me) and is queer (like me). She\u2019s so me it\u2019s crazy and we still have very different backgrounds. But all of those like <em>mes<\/em> had me crying for Vivian repeatedly as this story evolved. At first on the inside and then on the outside. She\u2019s this strong woman who\u2019s used to fielding everything on her own and never expecting anyone to take care of her, ever.<\/p><p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Enter our hero, <strong>Melvin Lee<\/strong>. A stand-up comic that Vivian has always admired, but he\u2019s a goofball, and from their first meeting in <strong>Donut Fall In Love,<\/strong> these two clash. It\u2019s horrible and I didn\u2019t know how Lau could ever repair what was already broken, but she did. Mel is the person Vivian needs the most. Someone who just wants to be with her any way he can with no expectations for change. Mel has his own battles to fight from being constantly doomed with short-term relationships and always searching for someone to belong to, a place to be himself where he isn\u2019t \u2018too much\u2019. I cried for Mel too.<\/p><p style=\"text-align: justify;\">After I read this book I kept thinking how there was a high emotional draw for me and yet this wasn\u2019t one of those fast-paced reads. It\u2019s not witty one-liners or hooks, but just slice of life style romance that if you\u2019ve read the first book in the series you can appreciate more. So, while this book can stand alone, I highly recommend reading <strong>Donut Fall In Love<\/strong> first for the whole experience.<\/p><p style=\"text-align: justify;\">This one blew me away, and while that\u2019s highly subjective, based on my personal connection to the characters, I\u2019d say this is one read I\u2019ll be coming back to.<\/p><p><em>~ Landra<\/em><\/p>    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<!-- \/module text --><!-- module text -->\n<div  class=\"module module-text tb_eb0616c customBorderRad repeat \" data-lazy=\"1\">\n        <div  class=\"tb_text_wrap\">\n    <p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong><span class=\"s1\"><a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3D08gtG\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Amazon<\/a><\/span><span class=\"s2\">\u00a0|\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/apple.co\/3D2JLMt\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span class=\"s3\">iBooks<\/span><\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.barnesandnoble.com\/w\/the-stand-up-groomsman-jackie-lau\/1140838916?ean=9780593334331\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span class=\"s3\">B&amp;N<\/span><\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.kobo.com\/us\/en\/ebook\/the-stand-up-groomsman\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span class=\"s3\">Kobo<\/span><\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/play.google.com\/store\/books\/details\/Jackie_Lau_The_Stand_Up_Groomsman?id=ROdaEAAAQBAJ\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span class=\"s3\">Google Play<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<!-- \/module text -->                    <\/div>\n                            <\/div>\n            \t    <\/div>\n\t    <!-- \/row_inner -->\n\t<\/div>\n\t<!-- \/module_row -->\n\t<\/div>\n<!--\/themify_builder_content-->","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>They say to never meet your heroes, but when Vivian Liao&#8217;s roommate gets engaged to her favorite actor\u2019s costar, she has no choice but to [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":29566,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"pagelayer_contact_templates":[],"_pagelayer_content":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[83,112,128,48],"tags":[153,216,217,238,404,405,419,485],"class_list":["post-29565","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-berkley","category-landra","category-penguin-group","category-reviews","tag-4-5-stars","tag-contemporary","tag-contemporary-romance","tag-diverse-romance","tag-recommend","tag-recommended-reads","tag-rom-com","tag-top-picks"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.4 - 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He's just as funny and handsome as he is on-screen...but thinks she is a snob and a sellout. It's none of his business how she chooses to live her life, no matter how charismatic he is.<br \/>\u00a0<br \/>Mel is used to charming audiences as an actor and stand-up comedian but can't connect to Vivian. She's a smart, talented artist\u2014which is why he thinks she\u2019s wasting her life as a corporate finance drone. The only thing uniting them is their goal for the wedding to go off without a hitch.<br \/>\u00a0<br \/>As they collaborate on wedding cake and karaoke parties, Mel realizes he might have seriously misjudged this bridesmaid, while Vivian discovers the best man might just be as dazzling off-screen as he is on. With the wedding underway, maybe more than one happily ever after is in the future.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/smitten-top-pick-banner-1-2.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"296\" height=\"72\" \/><\/p><hr \/><p><strong>Release Date:<\/strong> Oct 25, 2022<br \/><strong>Series:<\/strong>\u00a0<em>Donut Fall in Love<br \/><\/em><strong>Book:\u00a0<\/strong>2<br \/><strong>Heat Level:<\/strong> Hot<br \/><strong>Publisher:<\/strong>\u00a0Penguin Group<br \/><strong>Imprint:<\/strong>\u00a0Berkley<br \/><strong>Price:<\/strong> $10.99<\/p><hr \/><p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><em>Lau wins an award\u2014she made me cry.<\/em><\/p><p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Let\u2019s preface this review by saying very few books make me cry. I can probably count them on two hands. Beverley Kendall, our lovely Smittenbybooks.com blog runner is one of them. <strong>Jackie Lau<\/strong> also joins this prestigious group because her second entry in the Donut Fall In Love series spoke to me on a visceral level, especially our heroine Vivian Liao.<\/p><p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><strong>Vivian<\/strong> is an older child (like me), a career woman (like me) with a private hobby (like me) and is queer (like me). She\u2019s so me it\u2019s crazy and we still have very different backgrounds. But all of those like <em>mes<\/em> had me crying for Vivian repeatedly as this story evolved. At first on the inside and then on the outside. She\u2019s this strong woman who\u2019s used to fielding everything on her own and never expecting anyone to take care of her, ever.<\/p><p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Enter our hero, <strong>Melvin Lee<\/strong>. A stand-up comic that Vivian has always admired, but he\u2019s a goofball, and from their first meeting in <strong>Donut Fall In Love,<\/strong> these two clash. It\u2019s horrible and I didn\u2019t know how Lau could ever repair what was already broken, but she did. Mel is the person Vivian needs the most. Someone who just wants to be with her any way he can with no expectations for change. Mel has his own battles to fight from being constantly doomed with short-term relationships and always searching for someone to belong to, a place to be himself where he isn\u2019t \u2018too much\u2019. I cried for Mel too.<\/p><p style=\"text-align: justify;\">After I read this book I kept thinking how there was a high emotional draw for me and yet this wasn\u2019t one of those fast-paced reads. It\u2019s not witty one-liners or hooks, but just slice of life style romance that if you\u2019ve read the first book in the series you can appreciate more. So, while this book can stand alone, I highly recommend reading <strong>Donut Fall In Love<\/strong> first for the whole experience.<\/p><p style=\"text-align: justify;\">This one blew me away, and while that\u2019s highly subjective, based on my personal connection to the characters, I\u2019d say this is one read I\u2019ll be coming back to.<\/p><p><em>~ Landra<\/em><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3D08gtG\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Amazon<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/apple.co\/3D2JLMt\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">iBooks<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.barnesandnoble.com\/w\/the-stand-up-groomsman-jackie-lau\/1140838916?ean=9780593334331\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">B&amp;N<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.kobo.com\/us\/en\/ebook\/the-stand-up-groomsman\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Kobo<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/play.google.com\/store\/books\/details\/Jackie_Lau_The_Stand_Up_Groomsman?id=ROdaEAAAQBAJ\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Google Play<\/a><\/strong><\/p>","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29565","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=29565"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29565\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":29569,"href":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29565\/revisions\/29569"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/29566"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=29565"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=29565"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=29565"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}