Doing it for Love by Cassie Mae

I received an e-book copy of Doing it for Love by Cassie Mae as an advanced reader copy from Net Galley. It will be released on September 29th.

The plot: An engaged woman, Elizabeth, already feels like she and her fiance are "peas and carrots" in bed, rather than chocolate mousse. She makes a challenge with Landon (the fiance) - nothing but kissing until the wedding, and if one caves first, the other gets to pick the honeymoon destination.

Doing a little research on amazon.com, it looks like Cassie Mae has a fairly good following for YA romance, plus a few other books both on her own and co-authored, all seeming to be set in high school or college. Looking a little further, it does look like this is her first full large-publisher adult contemporary. I had not heard of her before, but the premise sounded interesting and I tried this book. It's going to be a Random House Loveswept line novel when it comes out, so it's a little short and slightly sweeter than I had anticipated based on the blurb.

I don't know, since I haven't read the YA novels, if this is her first foray into full adult romance and "the act" or not, but it kind of seems like it. Sadly, this novel fell very flat for me. Rather than being full of fun and  sexual tension, it felt full of annoyance and whining, and I was over it within the first few chapters.

Elizabeth and Landon live in NYC. Landon is a film-school graduate and has a grant to make a movie, which he works on 20 hours a day. Elizabeth has left college and is only 21 (22?), and works retail. The book begins with some "peas and carrots" sex (if you happen to read this, get used to that phrase. You'll hear it over and over and over) followed by an unexpected proposal. Elizabeth is determined to put the spark back into their love life, and Landon wants their honeymoon to be at the Sundance Film Festival. She has no interest in Utah in February (I do, but hey...) so she comes up with the idea that they can't kiss or do anything below the neck until the wedding night. If she caves, he gets Utah, if he caves, she gets a beach honeymoon.

They are a cute couple when they are not whining, and clearly do love each other. There are some funny best friends, and some humor here and there. But I admit that I am probably not the target audience here. Coming from a middle-aged perspective, they're idiots. Landon's mother is a witch and apparently always has been, and she hates the idea of Lizzie and thinks they are too young. Lizzie's parents are more supportive, but also have age concerns. Frankly, I do, too. One of the major plot points is that they are always broke and at one point, Lizzie breaks a bowl with their last box of mac and cheese and they supposedly have nothing to eat until payday. So, what on earth makes her think it makes sense to get married in the boathouse in Central Park, or plan a beach getaway??? Supposedly she has a lot saved, and she is responsible and wants to keep the nest egg, but to worry about food and not use that? Isn't that what the emergency savings are for? I don't even think I'd care if they went to City Hall, but to plan an elaborate wedding in that situation (yes, the parents save the day. Yay, parents.) seems beyond stupid.

Anyway, that perspective aside, some of the "let's break each other" scenes are funny and hot. Others just feel like a slog. They are totally ignorant of the fact that intimacy can help you feel connected and bonded to your partner, and so they both are just grouchy, all the time. She whines and eats too much and can't fit into the dress she wants. He whines and needs more money for his movie and picks fights. Fun. Not.

The grammar was fine, but the overuse of food metaphors annoying, the characterization thin, the mood blah, and overall, I didn't much like it. Sorry, Net Galley.