Book Review: Most Eligible
Most Eligible by Isabelle Engel will be published on Jan 13, 2026 in the United States.
Most Eligible, a fun and funny contemporary romance, felt energizing (because I flew through this book) like your favorite iced coffee and fun and frothy like vanilla cold foam. And to continue my poetic metaphor, this sassy romance seemed like it would be a sweet love story without much depth on the surface but was unexpectedly a little complex like the best coffee.
When I read the author blurbs for this book, many said it was “laugh out loud” funny, and I did not believe that at first, but yes, it was actually true! The book had a lot of hilarious parts and one-liners; the hilarity of some of the group dates and absurdity of getting drunk in formalwear while pretending to fall in love among 20 other women was developed fully! For example, when the main character Georgia says that she is expected to fall “head over boobs” in love while wearing a tiny bikini for a hot-tub date, I had to laugh. There were lots of funny parts that were also seriously satirical, poking fun at the “marriage-industrial complex” and the false industry of true love built around the Bachelor-esque “find love on TV” franchises.
The main character, Georgia, looks the part of a reality TV show for love contestant; with her blond, tall, California surfer girl look, she is conventionally pretty and acts perfectly moldable in her audition. Yet surprise, surprise, she is NOT here for the right reasons! She is hoping that the “role” she plays on the show will lead to a better job in music journalism.
Georgia is also known as Gracie Hart, investigative journalist, yet only two people know her by that name: Rhett, her former one-night-stand and hot country star she can’t forget who has turned up to host Love Shack after his failed marriage (as a former Love Shack contestant), and her boss, Serena, who has sent her undercover as a contestant on Love Shack to reveal more about the toxic environment, especially head producer Lainey (who reminded me of the Quinn King producer character on the Lifetime TV Show UnREAL). I also love it when the FMC is falling for the wrong person (bad boy Rhett instead of lead bachelor/tennis star/lead of Love Shack Roland), so this was an enticing part of the plot. Lots of tense and sexy moments with between Rhett and Georgia!
For the girlies who wished there was one more season of UnREAL, this book is for you. While I have never watched a full season (but I have seen clips here and there, of the Bachelor or Bachelorette) I love the behind-the-scenes look at reality TV’s toxic machinations, and while I have read other books that were similar, this book had a fresh voice and characters and was definitely worth reading!
Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
