When I saw that there was a romance novel about Cupid that was doing so well on Wattpad that they were publishing it, I was definitely intrigued. I mean, when that many people already love it, it has to be a good read! So I took a read of Lauren Palphreyman’s novel (in stores October 1) to see if it was worth all the hype.

Synopsis
Lila Black doesn’t believe in matchmaking, let alone soul mates. So then why is she constantly being hassled by the Cupids Matchmaking Service? But this gilded, cherub-bedecked dating agency isn’t exactly what it seems… and it’s about to turn Lila’s entire world upside down.

It turns out that Cupids Matchmaking is the real deal. As in, it’s run by actual cupids—who don’t look at all like they do in the paintings—and they have a serious problem with Lila’s “match.” Because this guy shouldn’t be in the system. He shouldn’t have a match. And while he’s irresistibly hot, he’s also incredibly dangerous. Because Lila’s true love match is Cupid. The original bad boy of love. And he wants her.

Now Lila’s once-normal teenaged world has exploded into a mythological nightmare overrun by crime-lord sirens, wrathful cupid hit men, magic arrows that cause no end of trouble, and a mischievous, not-so-angelic love god she can’t seem to stop herself from falling for…

My musings
Let me put one thing out there right away: This is not a romance. Even by the standards of YA (which I read a lot of), this is not a romance novel. I’m not saying that it’s a bad thing, necessarily, but it is definitely much more of an adventure story than a love story. Sure, there are some love elements (I mean, we are talking about cupids and their arrows), but there is much more to the plot than just a budding taboo romance. And there is a lot of mythology in here, both Greek and Roman.

The setup of the story reminded me a lot of Twilight in the sense of “boy that has an eternal life pretends to be a high school student and woos teenage girl,” and I don’t know if it’s because I’m in my 30s now, but it was a little bit creepy to me. Not only is he so much older than her, but how does he expect this relationship to last when she ages and he doesn’t…and when she’ll eventually die. I know this is a series of books, so maybe they’ll address it in the future.

I did really like the adventure aspect of the book. It did get a little bit mythology crazy near the end, but I didn’t mind it. Because I was familiar with all the characters (or most of them), it made it easier to visualize what was happening.

All in all, it was a good read. I wish there was a bit more romance in it, and I wish the character’s name wasn’t Cupid (it just takes me out of the story), but that doesn’t mean I won’t continue the rest of the series when it becomes available.

3 STARS

“Hesitantly, I pull my gaze up to Cupid. A mixture of longing and regret swirls behind his eyes. I touch my lips. I can feel the memory of the kiss bruised onto them. What have we done?” —Lauren Palphreyman, Cupid’s Match

Thank you to NetGalley and Wattpad Books for the advanced copy, and to Mick C on Flickr for the featured photo of Cupid’s arrow.