Start Us Up
A Park Avenue Promise Novel
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4.4 • 49 Ratings
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- $5.99
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- $5.99
Publisher Description
From New York Times bestselling author Lexi Blake, discover The Park Avenue Promise Series...
Three young women make a pact in high school—
to always be friends and to one day make it big in Manhattan.
She’s a high-tech boss who lost it all…
Ivy Jensen was the darling of the tech world, right up until her company fell apart completely after she trusted the wrong person. Her reputation in tatters, she finds herself back in the tiny apartment she grew up in, living with her mom. When a group of angel investors offer her a meeting, she knows she has to come up with the new big idea or her career is over.
He’s an up and coming coder…
Heath Marino has always been fascinated with writing code. He’s worked on a dozen games and apps and is considered one of the industry’s more eccentric talents. But now he’s back in New York to spend time with his grandmother. She was known as one of the city’s greatest matchmakers, and he wants to know why. Surely there’s some kind of code in his grandmother’s methods, and he’s going to find them.
When Ivy meets Heath it’s instant attraction, but she’s got a career to get back to and he just might be her on-ramp. It could be a perfect partnership or absolute heartbreak.
Reviews for Start Us Up:
“This book is funny, emotional, swoony and basically has everything a romance book should have. It’s certainly one of my top reads of 2023!” ~ Dutchiereadsromance
“Start Us Up was so much fun to read, I couldn’t put it down and read it in one day.” ~ Tcantstopreading
“With START US UP, Blake writes what may be my favorite book of hers and is a showcase for the women of her newest series, Park Avenue Promise.” ~ Reads & Reviews
“So many great messages, such honest representations of relationships encountered in life, laughs, tears, smiles, this is one epic read you definitely don't wanna miss.” ~ bookreviewsbyjames
“I loved this book. L-O-V-E-D IT.” ~ bookshelfofmydreams
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
In this fun and witty romance, the worlds of coding and love collide. Ivy Jensen was riding high in the tech world—until she wasn’t. Now she’s back home with her grieving, difficult mom, trying to find her feet again after she lost it all very publicly. Then she meets Heath Marino, who’s working on an app based on his Sicilian grandma’s matchmaking business. The two need each other to succeed in business, but it quickly becomes way more than that. In the first book in the Park Avenue Promise series, author Lexi Blake introduces a wonderful cast of characters, from Ivy’s group of ride-or-die besties to the formidable businesswoman CeCe. The complex dynamic between Ivy and Heath feels super realistic, with lots of twists and turns on the road to love. (Remember, never mess with a Sicilian nonna.) Entertaining and emotional, this sweet rom-com has a lot of heart.
Customer Reviews
It’s Ivy’s world…
4.4 stars
This is a new world that the author has opened up for readers that centers around Ivy Jensen and her two friends as they navigate life. This first book has Ivy who loses her job after being touted as the tech world’s guru. Heath is a coder who returns to New York to care for his grandmother and gets Ivy’s information from a mutual friend to help him with some code that he is struggling with. From the moment they meet it is instant attraction, but will they be able to make it work, or will they crash and burn? Ms. Blake’s writing style is engaging, and the characters are a wonderful balance similar to yin and yang when it comes to the obstacles that they each face. It took a bit to get into the storyline, but the overall message is that women can thrive in a male dominated environment.
Start Us Up
Start Us Up is book 1 in the Park Avenue series by Lexi Blake. What a great start to this new series about three friends since high school, who are determined to make it big in Manhattan.
First up is Ivy Jensen, high tech boss, who had her own company and lost it all after trusting the wrong person. Now back home, living with her mother, she’s looking for angel investors to start over…she gets an invitation to attend a party where she might get offers but needs a big idea to bring to the table. In comes Heath Marino, a brilliant coder, who has a match making app patterned after his grandmother…buts needs Ivy’s help with getting it running and securing funding…
Good read
Start Us Up is more what I would catagorize as a women's lit book, rather than the romance I am used to from Lexi Blake. This isn't a complaint, just an observation and my opinion. I liked Ivy, our FMC and loved that she's in the tech field. That's not the profession often held by female characters, so it intrigued me. She and her quirky besties were very different, proving that opposites attract in friendships and romantic partners.
Heath is a little cutie and more like the "romance" MMC I'm used to. I liked him and Ivy together, but they didn't have the hot chemistry I hoped for. Heath's grandma...she was the firecracker! She bought the spunk to this nice but sort of bland pairing.
Ultimately, I enjoyed this book. It's not my beloved M&M series, but it still contains tons of that Lexi Blake humor I love.