Not Here to Make Friends
A Novel
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- $16.99
Publisher Description
A New York Times Best Romance of 2024
In this “full-on villain romance” (The New York Times) a group of women on a reality dating show should be vying for the love of their Romeo, but it turns out one of them only has eyes for the showrunner.
Murray O’Connell is standing on the greatest precipice of his career. As showrunner of the reality dating show Marry Me, Juliet, Murray is determined to make this season a success.
Nothing and nobody will stand in his way.
Except perhaps Lily Fireball, the network’s choice for this season’s villain. Lily has classic reality TV appeal: She’s feisty, dramatic, and never backs down from a fight. She also happens to be Murray’s estranged best friend and former co-showrunner.
What was once a perfectly planned season turns to chaos as the two battle for control. Working in reality television, they’re used to drama, secrets, and romance. But what happens when suddenly they’re at the center of the storyline?
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
McAlister takes readers on a reality show romp in her soapy third Marry Me, Juliet romance (after Can I Steal You for a Second?). Best friends Murray O'Connell and Lily Ong, both producers on a Bachelor-esque dating show, have orchestrated some of reality TV's most memorable moments and brought together its best loved couples. But after Lily's husband, Jeff, dies, she becomes hell-bent on blowing up her life, destroying both her reputation and her career by going on the show herself and playing the part of villain. As Lily schemes to shake things up among the contestants, Murray faces his own complicated feelings for Lily and how they play into the reality show story arc unfolding in front of them. McAlister makes room for some truly fraught emotional moments, particularly as Lily struggles with her longtime attraction to Murray, which predates her marriage and complicates her grieving process. The plot strikes a fine balance between showing how the sausage is made on reality TV and sensitively addressing love and loss. The central friends-to-lovers romance is complicated and sometimes tortured but always believable. This is an easy pick for the beach bag.
