In Heartbreak for Hire by Sonia Hartl, When Brinkley Saunders began working at Heartbreak for Hire (aka: H4H) two years ago, she 
was still overcoming a mountain of hurt feelings. Not only had her boyfriend broken up with her, but her lack of focus meant she had to quit her Master’s program–and she lost the friends they had in common, seeing as they were all immersed in academia. That was when Margo found her. And she soon had Brinkley working at H4H in the “Egos” division, where women hired her to give men a taste of their own medicine after they manipulated or outright stole promotions and other opportunities from them.
‘Two years of my life spent baiting and trapping men, and what did I have to show for it? Half a master’s degree, no dating prospects, and a cat I was pretty certain was just waiting for me to die so she could feast on my remains.’
After many successful cases, Brinkley is still riding high on the revenge train. Well, that is until she has to take adjunct anthropology professor Mark Cavanaugh down a peg or two. He’s so different from her previous targets. Not to mention how sexy and adorably nerdy he is. Brinkley’s attraction puts a crimp in her plans and she ends up leaving things with Mark in an awkward spot. Which wouldn’t be an issue if her boss Margo didn’t decide to hire a few men as Heartbreakers–including Mark. As Brinkley comes to terms with her feelings for him, her future plans to open her own art gallery, and whether H4H is the right fit for her still, she’ll have a lot of soul searching to do to make sure she’s on the right path.
He ran a hand through his hair. “Christ. I just mauled you like an animal in the bar I come to every week. I’m so sorry.”
“I’ll accept your apology if you do it again.”
Heartbreak for Hire was a feel-good romantic comedy with a modern premise and a lovely offbeat cast. Sonia Hartl’s whip-smart, hilarious dialogue made this reader chuckle almost as much as the predicaments our heroine Brinkley often found herself in.
‘I was a spider. A devourer of egomaniacs. Karma personified. And I would not be deterred by a strong jaw, pouty lips, and whatever he was packing beneath his academic attire.’
Although I loved Sonia Hartl’s writing voice, I was honestly a little iffy on the whole revenge premise. It made me worry that some of Heartbreak for Hire’s (aka H4H) “customers” could use it to be petty and get what they wanted, not that they had necessarily been wronged by a man. Plus, would it actually teach the guy a lesson–or humiliate him and then he’d be even more bitter or mean? I also had to wonder if the company’s owner, Margo, was truly helping her Heartbreakers heal and move on, or was she feeding their animosity? So many questions!
The good thing was that Brinkley–and some of the other Heartbreakers–eventually questioned the same things. And that’s when I became fully invested in what happened at H4H. I was already hooked on the chemistry between Brinkley and Mark, thankfully. Things started off on the wrong foot between them, so it was awkward when they were forced to work together. But the attraction was there from their first meeting. And where there were both sparks of desire between them *and* sparks of frustration/anger, we had lots of yummy fireworks going off. That really amped up the tension between Mark and Brinkley, making for some memorable moments.
The conversations Brinkley had with Mark, her best friend Emma, her mom, and really, everyone else we met in the story, were ridiculously fun. She basically had no filter, so whatever she thought was what she said. It actually came in handy for Brinkley where she had to think things up on the fly while doing her job as a Heartbreaker–every case was quite different. I have a feeling her outrageous comebacks will be a highlight for a lot of readers. Just like you’ll be hard pressed to *not* giggle over Brinkley’s cat Winnie who hated her–well, except for when they were bonding over feline fashion. (Wait until you read those scenes, lol)
If you’re looking for a beach read that will keep you laughing and give your heart something to flutter over, Heartbreak for Hire will be just the book for you.
Book Info:
Publication: July 27, 2021 | Gallery Books |
Brinkley Saunders has a secret.
To everyone in the academic world she left behind, she lost it all when she dropped out of grad school. Once a rising star following in her mother’s footsteps, she’s now an administrative assistant at an insurance agency—or so they think.
In reality, Brinkley works at Heartbreak for Hire, a secret service that specializes in revenge for jilted lovers, frenemies, and long-suffering coworkers with a little cash to spare and a man who needs to be taken down a notch. It might not be as prestigious as academia, but it helps Brinkley save for her dream of opening an art gallery and lets her exorcise a few demons, all while helping to empower women.
But when her boss announces she’s hiring male heartbreakers for the first time, Brinkley’s no longer so sure she’s doing the right thing—especially when her new coworker turns out to be a target she was paid to take down. Though Mark spends his days struggling up the academic ladder, he seems to be the opposite of a backstabbing adjunct: a nerd at heart in criminally sexy sweater vests who’s attentive both in and out of the bedroom. But as Brinkley finds it increasingly more difficult to focus on anything but Mark, she soon realizes that like herself, people aren’t always who they appear to be.
