Title: Fluffy
Author: Julia Kent
Narrator: Erin Mallon
Series: The Do-Over Series, Book 1
Genre: Romance
Publisher: Julia Kent
Publication: 4/30/2019
Read: February 2020
Format: Audio
Length: 7 hours & 4 minutes
Rating: 3 1/2 Caffeinated Stars

Goodreads Summary:

An all-new STANDALONE from New York Times bestselling author Julia Kent

It all started with the wrong Help Wanted ad. Of course it did.

I’m a professional fluffer. It’s NOT what you think. I stage homes for a living. Real estate agents love me, and my work stands on its own merits.

Sigh. Get your mind out of the gutter. Go ahead. Laugh. I’ll wait.

See? That’s the problem. My career has used the term “fluffer” for decades. I didn’t even know there was a more… lascivious definition of the term.

Until it was too late.

The ad for a “professional fluffer” on Craigslist seemed like divine intervention. My last unemployment check was in the bank. I was desperate. Rent was due. The ad said cash paid at the end of the day. The perfect job!

Staging homes means showing your best angle. The same principle applies in making a certain kind of movie. Turns out a “fluffer” doesn’t arrange decorative pillows on a couch.

They arrange other soft, round-ish objects.

The job isn’t hard. Er, I mean, it is — it’s about being hard. Or, well… helping other people to be hard.

Oh, man…

And that’s the other problem. A man. No, not one of the stars on the movie set. Will Lotham – my high school crush. The owner of the house where we’re filming. Illegally. In a vacation rental.

By the time the cops show up, what I thought was just a great house staging gig turned into a nightmare involving pictures of me with an undressed star, Will rescuing me from an arrest, and a humiliating lesson in my own naivete.

My job turned out to be so much harder than I expected. But you know what’s easier than I ever imagined?

Having all my dreams come true.

My Thoughts:

Back in April, it seemed that this book was everywhere. A lot of the bloggers I followed posted review after review of this book, so it wore me down, and I had to buy it. Unfortunately, with how busy my review schedule was, this book sat on my kindle for months. On a whim, I checked the audible escape package and was so excited to find Fluffy on it! I downloaded it right away and eagerly started the audiobook.  

Unfortunately, I wasn’t a fan of Erin Mallon’s narration. It was almost like every sentence was a question. There was a perpetual question intonation that left me perplexed and annoyed. I would have liked this book better if the narrator was someone else. Honestly, I keep having to remind myself that it’s not the book’s fault that I didn’t enjoy the narrator.  

Fluffy is one of those books that will make you laugh. The characters are witty, but I admit, I wasn’t a massive fan of how the humor verged on sitcom. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed watching Friends, but there were multiple times where I expected a laugh track. I will admit, the plot became a little too sitcom-y for me, and I wish that it held a bit more of an emotional punch. 

Though the humor at times fell flat, I did enjoy the characters. I’m a character-driven reader, so I enjoyed watching the interaction between Mallory, Will, and all the side characters. I do wish I would have gotten to know more about the side characters, but I’m sure I’ll find out more if I continue in the series. 

All in all, this is a cute book that kept me engaged and wanting to know more. The comedy wasn’t my favorite, but it still was good. I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys Rom-Coms with no emotional punch to them. 

Want to give this book a chance?

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