Review: The Bro-Magnet by Lauren Baratz-Logsted

Title: The Bro-Magnet (Nice Guy #1)
Author: Lauren Baratz-Logsted
Publisher: TKA Distribution, 2011

Johnny Smith’s the guy who gets asked to be the best man at his mates’ weddings, and always seems to say or do the right things so far as they’re concerned. But when it comes to the fairer sex, it would seem that his luck has permanently run out.

Basically, Johnny is very much a man’s man. He loves his sport – and specifically supports supports the Mets, who seem to be experiencing a losing streak. Johnny’s regular poker evenings with the boys are, from what I gather, pretty legendary.

Just when Johnny fears that he will never find the right woman, chance lets him cross paths with the rather vivacious Helen Troy, a district attorney. From the outset, the pair seem to be completely incompatible. Johnny is a painter and Helen is at the top of her game in the legal profession.

Yet… Despite this, there is a spark, and Johnny isn’t one to let their vastly different backgrounds act as an impediment on the path to true love. He is way out of his depth, however, and so doesn’t want to muck up this opportunity the same way he’s wrecked previous attempts at having a long-term relationship.

Johnny’s a resourceful kinda guy, even if his solutions can be unorthodox (just ask Fluffy the cat about learning to walk on a leash like a dog). Johnny therefore enlists the help of his friends, and based on their advice sets about changing himself into the man he thinks would snag Helen’s heart.

Already there I could see trouble brewing, and some of the unintentionally hilarious and cringe-worthy results of Johnny’s quest to be Mr Right make this book.

For someone who is every dude’s best friend, Johnny is gloriously inept when it comes to his own affairs – yet his intentions are in the right place. He is not a bad bloke, and I was rooting for something to eventually go right for the guy.

All I will say further is that I saw hints of the final outcome from quite far off, even if Johnny remained maddeningly oblivious, and was happy with how the author resolved everything. Yeah, yeah, I know, this is so not my usual reading fodder, but I totally enjoyed this light-hearted, humorous romp.