bringing down the upline

Emerson Pierce is a kindergartener teacher with a bunch of student loan debt. She doesn’t make much money, so she is looking for a side hustle. And when Nora first invited her to a skincare convention, Emerson had envisioned a spa, with soothing music in the background and fluffy robes and facials and massages. Instead, she found herself in a conference room with a bunch of other women getting really excited about skincare products and sunscreen. The products were for a company called Petunia Lemon, and everyone in that room is all in.

Emerson had planed to resist spending any money, but the excitement and the talk of a luxury vacation on their own island for the top earners, and she definitely wants a luxury vacation. Nora tells her that if she does decide to give Petunia Lemon a try, anything she buys can be returned. Emerson decides to take a chance and buy in, despite not having much money to spare. But once she starts selling, she will be able to make the extra money that can get her our of debt.

To celebrate her becoming a hashtag girl boss, Emerson goes to a bar that is known for its Old Fashioned, her favorite drink. Although she’s alone, she manages to score a table, and then the most handsome man she’d ever seen asks to sit down with her. Lucas Miller is charming, and their chemistry is obvious. So much so that they don’t really talk much that night. They just make their way to Lucas’s room. It’s not until the next morning that Emerson finds out that Lucas is a reporter, and he’s doing a takedown piece on Petunia Lemon. Emerson is disappointed and leaves, despite their fantastic night together.

Emerson gets caught up in getting ready for school to start again. She decorates her room and gets everything set for that first day, when she gets to meet the kids and their parents. One parent is late for pick-up, so Emerson sits with Isla and plays Candy Land with her until her dad shows up. And when he does, it’s the most handsome man Emerson had ever seen. Again. Lucas had mentioned that he had a kid, but Emerson had no idea she would show up in her kindergarten class for the year.

Over the next few weeks, Emerson learns that they reason Lucas and his wife split up was because of Petunia Lemon. She had spent all their savings and put them into debt to be a part of Petunia Lemon, and he resented that she had chosen the company over their family. That was the basis of the piece he was writing on the company, and why he called it cult-like.

The more Emerson learns about Petunia Lemon, the more she realizes that the company is not for her. She tries to get her money back, like Nora promised she could, but she gets nowhere. So she decides to team up with Lucas and try to take Petunia Lemon down. But that will mean going against Lucas’s ex-wife, several of Emerson’s friends, and Nora, who brought her into the company and is the principal at her school. Will Emerson have anything left after she helps take Petunia Lemon down? Or will moving on from the MLM make room in her life for a new love?

How to Sell a Romance is a sweet and spicy romcom about new beginnings. These characters leap off the page. Even with the strong story of the MLM, these characters, particularly Emerson, is so strong that she steals all the scenes she’s in. There are adoptable pets and adorable kids, crazy Colorado weather and car troubles, but it is still Emerson who steals the show. She feels like a real person, and someone I would love to know, so I loved this book all about her.

I am also a fan of stories about MLMs, and Petunia Lemon definitely fits that bill. I thought it was fascinating to see the inner workings of this one. From the pyramid-like structure to the matching tattoos, the desperation and the manipulation, this group embodies the worst type of MLMs, and I loved that this was a big part of the story.

I had trouble putting How to Sell a Romance down. I just wanted to stay in that universe and keep reading. I will say that I don’t think it’s a great title, but that’s the worst thing I can say about the book. This is a fun rom com, and a sweet reminder of what it feels like to go back to school as a kid (or as a teacher).

Egalleys for How to Sell a Romance were provided by Berkley through NetGalley, with many thanks, but the opinions are mine.