title: The Matchmaker
author: Catherine Walsh
publisher: Bookouture/Kindle
publication date: April 18, 2023
pages: 281
peppers: 2 (on this scale)
warnings: parents die in a car crash years before the book takes place
summary: Katie loves her tiny town in Ireland and her job as a bartender at the only pub in town, so she's furious when a big building corporation buys up most of the town's land, starts noisy construction on a hotel near her home, and threatens to raze the bar to put up a golf clubhouse. She keeps crossing paths with the building projects site manager, which is problematic because he seems like a good guy. To try to prevent the construction from demolishing her favorite places, Katie revives the town's famous matchmaking festival.
tropes:
- enemies to lovers
- small town v corporate greed
- feuding brothers
- dead parents
- raised by granny
- disobedient dog
- matchmaking festival
what I liked:
- good characters
- slow burn
- grand gestures and good speeches
- good side characters
what I didn’t like:
- not too many real obstacles in their path
overall rating: 4 (of 5 stars)