Resistance Training

by Kayley Loring

Vivian only has one big regret in life–and a million little ones if you count all the calories she didn’t consume while she was living with the guy who dumped her. But Vivian is glad she moved to Portland with her ex. She’s glad he left her for someone who lives in the city she moved from, because she can now eat her feelings and those feelings taste like wine, tacos, pastries, and gourmet ice cream.
She’s even happy when her newly-engaged sister informs her that she’s hired the toughest personal trainer in town to whip Vivian back into shape for her wedding, because it finally brings her face-to-face with that one big regret—her former best friend from high school.
Brad Mitchell, who claimed she broke his heart and disappeared after they graduated. Who never replied to all those emails about how much she regretted hurting him. The once-chubby, grumpy nerd who was the other person in their two-member book club. The one who now looks infuriatingly hot in a compression tank top and sweatpants.
Brad goes by Mitch these days. He has the same wry sense of humor, a lot of exciting new muscles, and one aggravating, old grudge. But as he puts Vivian through resistance training that tests his own stubborn resolve too, their old spark refuses to die—it just keeps doing more reps.
And those long-ignored emails sitting in Brad's archived inbox folder? They just might take these former best friends from enemies to lovers and give them the second chance they deserve—if he ever reads them.


*This standalone is a complete rewrite and much longer version of a book with a different title that Kayley unpublished.

Genres: Romance, Friends To Lovers, Second Chance, Enemies To Lovers, Contemporary Romance, Audiobook, Rom Com

304 pages, Kindle Edition

Published September 29, 2025

About the author

Amazon Top 25 and USA Today bestselling author Kayley Loring spent many years as a screenwriter (under a different name) in Los Angeles before moving to the Pacific Northwest to live out her childhood dream of being a Disney heroine who talks and sings to woodland creatures. When not trying to keep animals alive, she’s writing steamy romantic comedy novels, obviously. She’s breathing cleaner air, writing dirtier words, and staring at her computer screen until her eyeballs dry out instead of prancing around Southern California in miniskirts and going to the hair salon. Still waiting for the woodland creatures to clean her house, though.

Read or listen to Kayley’s books when you want humor, heat, and heart. You’ll enjoy top-notch banter, strong heroines, lovable characters you’d want to know in real life and you’ll swoon over perfectly imperfect book boyfriends. All Kayley Loring books are steamy open door romance. Be sure to check out her next-level audiobooks!

Learn more at www.kayleyloring.com
Come join Kayley in her Facebook reader group! https://www.facebook.com/groups/kayle...
Follow Kayley on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kayleyloring/
Listen to Kayley talk to the wildly talented narrators who narrate her audiobooks on the Multiple Eargasms with Kayley Loring podcast!

Reviews

[Michaela Roland · Rating 5 out of 5]

Resistance Training is flirty, funny, and full of so much heart and a little heartbreak(Don’t fret! There is an HEA!) Brad and Vivian haven’t spoken since high school, but you can’t help but root for them from page one. Brad has totally transformed his life since being the sweet, chubby best friend back in high school, and Vivian is embracing her newfound freedom (and her love of tacos, pie, and artisanal ice cream). Her biggest regret? The way their friendship ended years ago still lingers for her and Brad, though he is RESISTING that pull. Kayley Loring balances all of that history with sharp banter, sizzling chemistry, and those laugh-out-loud moments she’s known for. It’s a feel-good romcom with so much heart and heat, you’ll devour it as fast as Vivian devours dessert!

[Betty · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐️. This was a fun, fast, flirty read. I love Kayley Loring and this was in her typical quirky style w lots of good banter and humor.

There were, however, several plot holes (not really holes, but we’ll call them that anyway) that confused me. 🤔 👇

Vivian and Brad Mitchell were best friends in high school until she went to prom w Brad’s bully 🤷🏻‍♀️ and he got upset and ghosted her for 8 years. Just disappeared from her life. 👻🧐. That is until Vivian’s sister tracks him down and - without her knowledge - hires Brad to be her personal trainer, who now goes by the name Mitch. 🤨. All of this is just confusing to me:

🧐Why would she go w Brad’s bully to the prom??
🧐How could he just completely ghost her??
🧐Why does he agree to be her trainer??? Make it make sense.

Anyway, if you can suspend belief for a minute it’s a cute story. 😬

And anyway, anyway, they have never forgotten about each other. He was secretly head over heels in love w her and so rocked by the prom situation that he gave up his spot at Princeton and became a personal trainer. 🤦🏻‍♀️. Nothing wrong with this, but seems like a giant over-reaction.

She doesn’t know any of this. She wrote him multiple emails at the time to explain how upset and hurt she was and how much he meant to her, but he deliberately never read them. 🫩

So now they’re back in each other’s company, she’s going all out to win him back (which, I’m sorry; I’d be insanely hurt and angry after being ghosted FOR EIGHT YEARS but I’m not that nice, I guess. And also to be fair - she went to the prom w his BULLY. Aye). I actually loved her confidence and her efforts to win him back w her humor and body, that she knows is banging. Lol. She wants her friend who she still misses terribly and he tries desperately to resist her.

Lots of talk about his amazing ass and abs and lots of talk about her amazing ass and boobs. 😂

❤️. No third act break up. Thank goodness. The whole story is them working their way back to each other and to re-establish trust.
🗣️Communication. - This is fully one-sided until about 80%. She tries to get him to communicate over and over. Telling him how she feels, how sorry she is, etc being generally fun and flirty and he isn’t giving her anything. This works for the first 50% and then it’s just kind of annoying. Thankfully, we know how he feels through his entertaining fitness journal entries.
♾️ Connection - it is very clear that they had so many points of mutual interest when they were teens and it’s fun to hear about them in the present as she basically throws them in his face.
🫣 OW - there are no other women referenced; only that they each wish they have been each other’s firsts. OM - her controlling ex who left her for another woman. He’s not present in the story except to serve as motivation for her to get fit bc she’s going to see him at her sister’s wedding. (I hate this trope, but…)
🌶️ Spice - they are both fully lusting after each other. Which I find a little weird since they were platonic friends in HS. Both had unrequited feelings, but still. Anyhoo, whatevs. The spice starts at around 50% with a very weird scene where he massages her when she is naked from the waist down and then goes down on her. And then gets her water and leaves. Like very out of the blue and weird given where they are in their reunion. I would have preferred that actually talk about whatever happened and then get to the sex but that’s just me 🤷🏻‍♀️
🏡. Family/Friends - we have the meddling but loving older sister, meddling older fitness clients of Mitch/Brad, Two cute cats
👥. Dual POV; HEA. 6 month later engagement; Marriage and baby in epilogue

- best friends to ghosted to lovers
- grumpy/sunshine
- cute pets
- Twilight references
- shared love of reading
- bullying referenced; MMC was chubby in HS
- body positivity for her- she loves her curves and body even while she’s eating ice cream and moping after her breakup. She loved Brad back in HS and didn’t care about whether he was chubby.
- Chubby HS nerd to super hot fitness guy; I kind of wanted her to be somewhat indifferent to his new hot body, just bc I wanted him to know she loved him either way. But that’s just me
- an extremely forgiving, but very self confident FMC

[N Tal · Rating 3 out of 5]

honestly it was a very weird book. parts of it were touching and entertaining but something about thw pacing was off. Like why are they fucking a minute after resolving all the past issues (and during)? I thought more time should have been spent on them reconnecting. Also Brad/Mitch was super annoying and childish for most of the book.

[Rachel Santillan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Small spoiler and profanity -

I’m clearly the odd man out here, but I fucking hated - okay, maybe strongly disliked Brad Mitchell. Coach. Sir. Mitch the Whiny Bitch. Like get over your shit and man the fuck up! Yeah, shit happened in high school, but she’s the most important person to you and you throw an eight year ego tantrum? Then when she’s “back”, you try to strong-arm her while still clinging to your “pain” like it’s your personality trait? Boy, please. You’re not 17 anymore. His stubbornness and that never ending grudge grinded my damn gears.

Even when he went back and read the text messages and realized, for a nano second, it wasn’t even that bad he still chose to let his teenage heartbreak fester. Like, sir… therapy.

I liked Vivian, but I hated how much she had to fight for his attention. His personality just drove me nuts! He’s the kind of hardheaded that makes me wanna slap a motherfucker just to knock some sense into them.
Side note - there was a lot of Scorpio ♏️ references to his personality, and as a Scorpio, I’m offended, we are not like him. Those traits were all Brad, we are not the same lol

The banter was fine, the chemistry was there, and it sucked me in enough to keep reading (even while I was irritated). I kept waiting for growth that never really came. Sure, we get the HEA and Brad “comes around,” but he’s still scraping the bottom of the boyfriend barrel. There are douchebags in other books who’ve had more character development.

Anyway, that’s my rant - Oh and shoutout to the Golden Girls side characters. The seniors in this book carried it. They were hilarious and honestly the saving grace of the story.

[Jennifer Wycech · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am a HUGE Kayley Loring fan. I enjoy her heartwarming and emotional yet funny writing style.

This book found relatable. Having delt with weight issues and sometimes wanting to get a revenge body on all the haters over the years.

Vivian is eating her feelings after her boyfriend dumps her. She changed her life for him following him so he could take a new job opportunity. She decides to make some health changes after hearing her sister is engaged and the wedding is fastly approaching.

Mitch a personal trainer with one hell of a body is now Vivian’s trainer but he is also her childhood friend who was chubby and bullied all through school. They had a falling out over who Vivian went to prom with but she didn’t know that he was his bully.

The storyline was both full of heart and emotions. This is a great read and I expected nothing less from
Kayley!

[Monica (The Accidental Romance Blogger) Barbosa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Vivian's boyfriend dumped her. The same boyfriend she upended her life for so that he could accept a great job. She has been eating her feelings and wallowing in her post breakup funk, when her sister calls her to announce that she is not only engaged but that the wedding will be held in three months and that Vivian is a bridesmaid. And that said boyfriend is in the wedding party with his new fiancée! She has been worried about Vivian’s funk and love of pies and announces that she hired the best personal trainer in town to get Vivian out of that funk.
Enter Mitch, personal trainer extraordinaire, with the body of a greek statue, who makes heads turns when he walks by. But Mitch is not exactly Mitch, he is Brad Mitchell, Vivian's childhood friend. He's the chubby teenager that was her best friend in high school, the one who she had a two-person book club with, the one that she hurt terribly when she went to prom with his nemesis (the guy who unbeknownst to her bullied him). And he cut her from his life. Cold turkey.
I don't like the whole  "revenge weight loss" idea. AT ALL. But I trusted Kayley to make me like Brad/Mitch and Vivian. And she did. 
I totally understood why Brad felt the way he did. I felt sorry for Vivian too, because she lost the most important person in her life and she didn’t even know how. If only he had read those emails…
Kayley makes you like Vivian - she is a hoot - so you get teenage Vivian and root for her. And for those who think that Brad was holding a grudge for too long, well, you definitely have never been bullied. That was him switching self-preservation mode. You do what you have to do. Good for him that he turned that into a career and a new way of life.
I loved their inner monologues! They are so funny and quintessential Kayley!
Ah, and the epilogue is so cute!  I am a sucker for epilogues and I loved this one! 
We have kitties, meddling elderly folk, diary entries, old emails, banter, funny texts, 'it's always been you' and a sister who knew exactly what to do!
10/10! All the Fs!
Content notes: fat-shaming, body image issues, cheating (not main characters), bullying

[Jameson · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5⭐️

I loved everything about Vivian! The witty banter was in every page and the ridiculousness of some situations kept the story light.

[Alex Oswald · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF :( I just could not get into this book I’ve been trying to read it for 2 weeks now and never wanted to pick it up

[Randi (randi_reads) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I can always count on a Kayley Loring book to make me laugh and smile, and this one definitely did that. Vivian has recently been dumped by her fiancé and her older sister is worried about her. I don't really get why her sister was so concerned with Vivian's weight, but it fit with the story. Her sister sets her up with a personal trainer in a local gym and it turns out to be Vivian's old high school best friend, Brad--who she hasn't seen since their senior year.

It's been eight years since high school graduation and Brad doesn't like to think about those days. He was given the nickname "Fat Brad" and has some issues with Vivian with that. Since then, he has transformed his body to being muscular and fit and goes by the name "Mitch."(His last name is Mitchell.)

This story is sweet and fun. I just loved Vivian's personality. After being in a relationship with a controlling man, she now wants to have fun and do what she wants. She never forgot about Brad, though. He tries to not be affected by her, but it's cute that he can't.

Read this if you like:

Dual POV
Fast Paced
Grumpy/Sunshine
Twilight references
Steamy
Best Friends to losing touch to lovers
Humorous
Banter galore
Awesome older secondary characters

Thank you to the author for an advanced readers copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

[Trish- Late Knight Luna Reads · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brad, where have you been, Loca?!? “Resistance Training” is a flirty, fun and laugh out loud former best friends to enemies to lovers romance that was a feel good rom-com in the Kayley Loring world.

Regrets are a part of life and Vivian has a ton of them. But moving to Portland with her now ex is not one of them. And she’s thrilled that her sister is engaged and when her sister says she’s hired the toughest personal trainer to whip her back into shape… she comes face to face with her biggest regret of all, Brad Mitchell. Brad Mitchell was her best friend in school and after an unfortunate incident, his house was sold and his family had moved away. Brad had claimed that Vivian broke his heart but there are emails that she sent he’s never read. Vivian is determined to get him to read those emails and while he puts her through a tough exercise regimen, the sparks they had back then reignite.

Vivian and Brad were so much and I loved their story. Vivian is a woman a lot can relate to because of everything she’s been through. But she’s lived, she’s learned and she’s continuing on with life. I loved how her trainer was her former best friend who went from a chubby nerd to a fit and musclely nerd. Brad was hurt from a moment in time when they were in school and used that to fuel his fitness and life regimen. He thought he was over it all but having Vivian come back into his life brought back all of those feelings and he tried to build a wall. But Vivian is a determined woman and was going to climb it no matter what. Their banter was fantastic and had me laughing out loud more than once as I read their story. It was a perfect tease until they gave into their attraction to each other. There is a little bit of heartbreak but it’s worth it to get their HEA. The emails she sent Brad after he had vanished after graduating were so sweet. The ending was perfect for them and I loved this story.

[AJ · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars

A laugh-out-loud funny, kind-of-second-chance-romance, this is a fun and playful standalone romance that had a constant smile on my face. I had such a great time reading this book, and I loved it.

Vivian is on a mission of vengeance to get herself in shape for her sister’s wedding so that she can stick it to her ex-boyfriend and his new fiancé, who he cheated on her with. Her ever- supportive sister sets her up with a personal trainer, who just happens to be her best friend from high school, Brad.

Vivian and Brad were outcasts together, formed a two-person book club, and were each other’s ‘person’, but it all tragically fell apart, and they haven’t spoken since graduation. Now, eight years later, they are thrust back together and Vivian’s sweet but plain best friend is now a hotter than hell trainer who hates her.

Brad was madly in love with Vivian as a teenager, but he was left broken hearted and has done his best to forget about her since then. He has failed miserably, and now the object of all of his wildest fantasies is his new client, bending and stretching in lycra, while he gets up and personal with her body.

It’s a funny situation, made all of the more hilarious by Vivian’s antics. She is confident and sassy, and she holds nothing back when it comes to trying to reconnect with Brad… in all the ways. She flirts, teases, and openly taunts him, and the harder he tries to keep her at arm’s length, the harder she pushes. The sexual tension is fantastic, and it’s not long before all of that chemistry explodes into wild sexy time. But the anger and pain from the past is still there, and there is much soul searching needed to move on from their past hurts and learn to trust and move forward.

Surrendering to this, to her, is the bravest thing I’ve ever done, and the relief is better than anything I’ve ever known.

It’s a fast-moving story, but the build-up is so good! And when the big romantic moment comes, it’s pretty freaking epic. It’s emotional and intense, but still fun and light-hearted, fitting with this couple and their playful dynamic. I read with a huge smile on my face, feeling all the feels and full of swoon, and I just loved watching these two come together.

“We’re all the same when we’re in love – there’s nothing easier than falling in love for the first time in your life. It’s how we respond to getting our heart broken that first time that defines who we become as adults … But do you know how rare it is to have the opportunity to be healed by the person who broke your heart? For that person to be willing to heal you and grow with you, as the new people you’ve both become?” … “That shit is priceless.”

As a couple, they’re strong, playful, fun-loving and sexy, and so wildly in love. It’s a delight to see them together, and I grinned through most of this book and finished it feeling happy and supremely satisfied.

Such a fun read, I loved it – 4 stars.

An Advanced Reader Copy was generously provided by the author for an honest review.

[Erika Knickerbocker · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute friends to enemies (ish)/second chance romance to lovers

It never would have been a problem at all if he had read the emails at the time. Smh. He was really childish about the whole thing. I get being hurt but she was the most important person to you and you "loved her" but never told her how you feel and because she went to prom with someone else you never talked to her again? and still held onto the grudge 8 years later? and made her work so hard for your "forgiveness" when she didn't even really do anything that bad. and he changed everything about himself because he was hurt. it's ridiculous. and he's so immature and stubborn but not in a good way. I really didn't see any growth on his part. the spice was nice. would have loved more spice.

[Erin Lewis · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 Star Review Resistance Training by Kaylee Loring

From the first chapter I was hooked on Vivian and Brad’s second chance at love story.

Recently dumped, Vivian’s engaged sister hires Brad to help Vivian get in shape.

However these two have a past that must be confronted before they have any chance at a happily ever after.

For Brad, Vivian broke his heart and he had never forgiven her. However as much as they try they cannot ignore the heat that sizzles between them.

The characters were engaging, the story emotional at times, and it ticked all the boxes for me.

[Amber · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a story of second chances. Former best friends, turned enemies, turned trainer/trainee to lovers is the best trope of this type that I have read so far! I really liked this story of growth, redemption and holding your ground.

I loved the fact that Brad/Bradley/Mitch is a former nerd turned personal trainer. He took his pain and turned it all to gain. I liked the journal reflections to show that it didn't just happen over night. I loved all of the pop culture references as he and Vivian reconnected and grew. This book was really relatable for me.

[April ♥"LOS" ♥ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Resistance training is putting the FUN in functional workouts! When Vivian‘s older sister gifts her a gym membership along with a personal trainer, Vivian comes face-to-face with the last person she expects to see in Portland. Her best friend from childhood., Brad. has completely reinvented himself, lost weight and found a new purpose in life…fitness and personal training. But the new and improved Brad is less than happy to relive the past with Vivian.

[Ann · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.0-3.5 stars. Have been looking forward to this book. I love this author. This is a cute story. Some great laugh out loud lines that I highlighted the heck out of. Adored the addition of cats Harry Styles and Bella.

[Amanda Kintner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a fun read!

What can I say, I'm a sucker for a good second chance rom com! Brad was a tough nut to crack. Stubborn but honestly hilarious. All he needed was his Sparky! So many good parts in this book. Chefs kiss!

[Louise · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was so freaking cute.

[Caroline Storc · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was good. Nothing like I’ve ever read before and wouldn’t reread because it’s not any of my favorite tropes, but it was cute and I enjoyed it!!

[Andi · Rating 5 out of 5]

So good!
Oh my I loved Bradley & Vivian! The writing absolutely had me in stitches & smiling at so many parts.

[Jo · Rating 5 out of 5]

NOW LIVE!!

What an amazing story!! I absolutely adored every single word!

The backstory, the current story, the characters - all perfection.

The grumpy/sunshine relationship, the quirks that we come to love from Kayley's characters are, quite simply, top notch stuff.

Vivian has such a unique outlook on life and I actually highlighted a quote for the first time in a very long time because it hit me in the feels and I related so much to it!

Brad/Mitch is wonderful. He's a true cinnamon roll and the ideal man!

I didn't want to leave the book and characters behind when I got to the end (at 2am, because I just couldn't put the book down!)

[Angie Davidson · Rating 1 out of 5]

Immature. Poorly written. Weirdly body shamey? Skimmed the last half.

[Mia · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was already worried I wouldn't like this from the author's note. But I still read the first chapter... and b/c I'm a glutton for punishment, I started the second. And I didn't even make it to the second page of the second chapter. It was THAT bad. Basically read if you enjoy pre-pubescent potty humor b/c there is no other way to describe this.

DNF

[Jennifer · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book made me so mad, and I wanted to tell the FMC to run as far and fast as she could.

[Ciara · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was an awful read. Vivian was too much of a desperate pushover, the way she kept forcing herself on Bradley
. Bradley was too mean & childish. For two people to be in love since childhood they operated solely on lust.

[Jenny · Rating 4 out of 5]

I LOVED Vivian!!

Vivian gets 10+++… stars!!! She made this book. She was so hilarious and witty and charming. I loved every scene she was in. The banter and dialogue between her and Brad was so damn good. Kayley Loring has a gift for this and she did not disappoint in this book. Even though Brad was really kind of “dry”.. his inner thoughts about Vivian were also pretty hilarious. The chemistry and tension between them was very well done.

The reason this book isn’t five stars for me is because I felt it missed so many opportunities to be more emotional. The whole story line seemed to revolve around their sexual attraction to each other. I truly felt like these two were utter soulmates, but all they seemed to care about was sex. —which is fine, but like I said, it could have been so much more emotional than it was, especially in the last 25%.

[Valeen Robertson (Live Thru Books Blog) · Rating 5 out of 5]

AMAZON US / UK / CA / AU / UNIVERSAL / PB



Vivian and Brad were high school best friends until he left and ghosted her right after graduating. What led to him ghosting? She agreed to go to prom with another Brad, a Brad who was one of several jerks who bullied him. He obviously wasn't happy with her, but what really prompted his leaving was his unrequited love for his best friend, who not only went to the prom with someone else, but she didn't return his feelings, didn't acknowledge his feelings for her (or so he thought). Now in the present, they're reunited, thanks to her sister's very sneaky ways, and Brad's walls are going to be tested by Vivian's determined pursuit of his forgiveness.



Brad always told himself he'd never give into his feelings for his former best friend Vivian. The life he's built since graduation is a direct result of resisting her. Turning himself into a lean fit personal trainer with his own gym and IG following is all to make sure no one ever gets past his impenetrable exterior and into his heart again. But when she becomes his newest client, those walls are being tested like they've never been before. Soon he, his new cat, and Vivian and her cat have a chance of becoming one solid unit - if he finally reads her emails and realizes just what he's been missing all the years since he ghosted her.



Vivian and Brad are adorable. The addition of Hairy Styles and Bella the cats make for an even sweeter combo, and I could not help but fall in love with this former best friends to enemies to lovers love story. I love that Vivian was confident about her body, wasn't trying to lose weight just to impress a guy, in contrast to Brad's whole reason for transformation was not so much for impressing someone but as a sense of f-you to everyone who had hurt him. Though it didn't take Vivian long to break down his walls, the journey wasn't easy - he had a lot process, so when he finally broke down and read the emails - whew! I'm still smiling as I write this review and I know I'm going to remember this adorable couple with their snarky, witty banter, their sizzling chemistry, and that absolutely sweet, heartfelt epilogue.



ARC provided by Give Me Books Promotions for an honest review.

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[Kim Nicole · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s been a while since I’ve read a Kayley Loring book. The last time was the Beacon Harbor series, or maybe it was the Halloween themed story? Regardless, I started the Beacon Harbor series and I never read the second one. With all the books coming out, it’s definitely taken a back seat but I will get to it eventually. This one was cute and a good story, despite the awful start. Let me explain. Just when I had hope and thought this one would take me away from the string of lower rating books, aside from two of them, this one has to go and introduce Vivian. She was an exact replica of the heroine in To Fall or Not to Fall. She was over chipper, too eager, easy and her thoughts were annoying. She felt like a puppy dog, always wanting Brad’s attention, needing to be around him, darting back and forth on decisions and eating everything in sight. In her defense, she was trying to decompress after having an entirely different lifestyle with her ex. She was just embellishing doing things he didn’t like her doing or allowed her to do which included reading, eating certain things and being talked down to. I would have done the same thing, but it sounded like it messed her up pretty badly that she felt like she had to go crazy with this lifestyle. In the beginning this is the persona we get from Vivian and it made for a really rough start for me but Brad’s point of view I could stay in. He was more guarded, unsure and cautious. I would even argue and say too careful. He tried really hard to not let Vivian affect him and maintained a professional, cool facade. When he provides the background for why he felt hurt by her all those years ago. It ends up being vague and doesn’t make sense because from the story he provides it sounds like it was because Vivian went to prom with someone else. He was just holding onto this anger and hurt, essentially which ends up being the anchor for his personal training and new persona. After a while, even I got tired of it. I kept thinking to myself, you don’t need to be someone else with her right now, just be your nerdy, cute self that Vivian keeps talking about. He was desperate to not let her see that side of him anymore that it felt unnecessary. It felt like a front to me, especially with how he ends up acting at the end of the story. It clearly shows that he is an entirely different person when he isn’t professional, allows feelings to be more prominent, and watching his body all the time which apparently pays off anyway if Vivian’s description of his body is any indication. This one literally felt like a slow burn to me and it totally was. They don’t actually have sex until the 60% mark and from there it was distance, hurt feelings and Vivian not knowing where their connection was going to go. The one good thing she did do in this story is not take their relationship any further than the one time they sleep with each other and the other where he just pleasures her orally. She places the ball in his court and basically puts him in a situation where he has to think about if he wants to let her back in romantically, as a friend, or cut ties completely and just be her trainer. Actually, she ends up just making that decision and asks to have him move her with another trainer so he can think about what he wants, have the space without disturbing the client trainer relationship and look at those emails she keeps talking about throughout the book. She was getting tired of his dancing around her desire for her and avoiding any touching or opening up. At some point in the story I start to feel less annoyed by them and more into seeing where this is going to go. I’d say it happens about the 65-70% mark which is basically the whole book anyway but it was enough to get me to go from 2-3 territory to a full on 4. If I had to actually put a point in time during the book this happens, I’d say it was when Vivian asks to train with someone else and essentially gives him ultimatums if they end up giving love a try. It was the only thing that got me to respect her and I think I mentioned this earlier in the review. Sure enough, we know what happens next and from there it was smooth sailing, passion, intensity and a whole other side of Brad that I feel is the real Brad, none of this Mitch stuff or fortressing himself. It was like a switch turned on within him and got him to be the playful, flirty, sometimes dirty and romantic man he is and consumed with love for Vivian. It’s like that emotion never left him and he let it out with full force. I’ve never read so many love struck comments and felt the heart eyes radiate from a hero as much as I did with Brad after everything gets cleared and they start seeing each other. The sex is different and it feels more tender, intimate, but dirty at the same time and a far cry from the cold and quick session they have on a client’s yacht. It also gets more touchy feely and sensual. From there it’s like time never passed between them and they pick up right where they left off. I think this is the part I loved the most and Vivian gets her closure and the man she’s always wanted. Even when this happens, her personality became less and less annoying so that’s one of the reasons this shot up to a 4 for me, plus the chemistry explodes at this point and I was here for that.

[Katie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I sat on this for a few days and I still have a strong urge to get my thoughts out, so here goes.

First off, this is not a well written book. It has phrases that brought to mind Fifty Shades of Grey, and that is not a compliment. The author seems incapable of describing romantic feelings without referencing sex or genitalia. The journal entries are cumbersome to read and also cause second hand embarrassment, especially with the male lead's stupid made up "four F" system or whatever you call it.

Second, there is zero tension. You know why Persuasion works so well? We don't actually know what Wentworth is thinking. We only get glimpses and hints. From the second we see Mitch/Brad's POV, we know that he's still into Vivian. From the second he sees her, he's already fantasizing about her. So the conflict is his inability to get over something that happened in high school. It gets old, fast. Vivian acts way too happy-go-lucky given her characterization at the very beginning of the book. I'm supposed to believe that this woman has been in a depressive funk for a few months. You don't just, like, snap out of that in one day.

What really inspired me to write this, though, was the portrayal of fitness and health. Mitch/Brad has a huge conflict of interest in training Vivian, and he uses his position to force her to engage with him at a level that he wouldn't with other patients. I work in mental health and I can say that Brad/Mitch's methods of behavioral change are completely ineffective. Making a client text you a photo of their every meal so you can shame them over it later? It's an even weirder dynamic when the romance is factored in. And imo Brad/Mitch has no right to talk about healthy attitudes towards food or fitness. High school "fat" Mitch/Brad sounded a lot more fun, interesting, and happy than this adult version. My favorite thing was when he says that he allows himself two scoops of Salt n' Straw ice cream PER YEAR. I'm sorry, but that level of restriction is... something. The book at the end makes it sound like he lets that go and starts to eat ice cream again, but it doesn't actually show that happening.

The book instead acts like Vivian is the one who needs to make all of these changes, when there is no actual evidence that she does. EVERY SINGLE perspective of her suggests that she has an amazing body that dudes drool over. Sure, she likes fatty and sugary foods, but what's wrong with that? I'm not saying that's the only reason she would need to want to do physical training, like it would make sense if she just was trying to get more active and fit because it would make her feel better mentally, but the book really focuses on Vivian looking hot for her sister's wedding. On that note, in addition to Brad/Mitch noticing her attractiveness every other sentence and constant references to men checking her out or hitting on her, there are also repeated mentions that Vivian looks like Rachel Weisz in The Mummy. So, yeah, it's incredibly hard not to roll your eyes at the book's insistence that she needs a personal trainer to look good.

Do you remember that Twitter discussion about Olly Murs, the before/after pictures and how a lot of women actually preferred the "before"? I think that's a good reference for this novel. I get why Vivian liked high school Brad/Mitch. I don't get why adult Vivian liked adult Brad/Mitch. I didn't like him, that's for sure. Not only just the hot/cold and his stupid refusal to actually listen to her very reasonable explanations of what went down in high school, but he won't even let her eat croutons on her salad!

[Sandy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ok so this book was better than I expected it to be, but I still had some problems with it.

Let's start with what I liked:
- the dialogue was mostly pretty good. I liked the dynamic between the two sisters and for the most part, the dialogue between the two main characters was good. I liked a lot of the banter.
Ex. "You literally said you've known fruit flies who have longer lifespans than my relationships."
- I wouldn't call this a laugh out loud book but there were some amusing parts which kept me entertained. But no over-the-top situations, which I think was a good thing.
- The chemistry and the angst between them, particularly from his point of view I felt worked.
- The MMC and the kitten. Made him more approachable
- it kept me entertained enough to read it in one day

Ok, now what I didn't like:
- 8 years? Seriously? It just felt pathetic on both their parts. Three years? Considering they were 18 when things fell apart, that would be ok. Even 5 years would be enough time to have them grow up a little, but 8? Sorry, doesn't work for me.
- His reaction to her in high school felt way over the top and then he kept it up when reunited with her. Stubborn ass doesn't begin to describe it. I was mad at him for basically throwing away their friendship and felt she forgave him way too easily.
- Some of the time she goads him and flirts with him works, but other times she just felt a little too much like she was chasing him. I did like that at one point she switches to another trainer but I felt like she should have done more to kind of step back after making it clear she wanted him and he rebuffed her - again. Some people felt that their whole arc happening in just a week felt rushed. I kind of agree but also felt it was believable.
- the way he treats her after their first time physically together (they don't have intercourse but a little sexy time) and he doesn't even kiss her and just leaves. And it made me really not like him. But what made it worse was she just kind of let him treat her that way.
- some of the dialogue later from him felt weird. Him telling her to hydrate after sexy times - just felt weird like he was her dad or something. I think the author was going for a dominant kind of thing but it didn't come across right sometimes.
- I expected this to be more a story of a woman who got a little chubby but her former friend still loves her despite a few pounds and yes she gets a revenge body but he sees beyond her extra pounds just as she saw him despite his extra weight back in high school. But no. Literally EVERY guy in the book is checking her out and doesn't seem to have any issue except she's a little curvier - this NOT a reason to see a personal trainer.

Just some odd things that keep me from rating this higher:
- How does he have time to get texts from his clients saying what they're eating every day? But that's what he wants her to do so it's assumed he does this with all his clients. He must have only 3 clients lol.
- He ghosts her. I get it. But his entire family suddenly moves? And she knocks on his door once and then resorts to emailing him sporadically for an entire year. And some of those emails were just too long.

So if you want a quick, light read this is a decent read but don't look too closely at it. Also, be aware that this is a pair of 25 year olds and they sound like it (which is good and bad. It's realistically how 25 year olds sound but it can be a bit much if you're a more mature reader).