Oops!

Oops. Alexandra Warren. 2020. 250 pages. [Source: Kindle Unlimited.]

Well this one rips the bandage right off – Oops! is a tale of an unplanned pregnancy. And not just any unplanned pregnancy. It’s with a guy Camryn sworn to hate, but can’t avoid because she works for his mother.

Camryn’s about her business and in her opinion, Maverick is a social media obsessed playboy. She doesn’t take him seriously, and considers him a nuisance. But when he saves the day for a fundraiser she’s planning, then shows just how selfless he can be — at least where she’s concerned — she hooks up with him in a moment of weakness.

And cue positive pregnancy test. What follows is Camryn and Maverick’s attempt to come to terms with impending parenthood, which runs the gamut from deciding whether to keep the pregnancy, dealing with Maverick’s tendency to end up on gossip blogs, and figuring out whether raising a child together equates to them being in a relationship. Theirs isn’t an easy dynamic to navigate, but Warren covers the gamut of issues that pop up with realism and thoughtfulness.

I think what I appreciated most in this book is that Camryn and Maverick are both likable, despite their faults. I founnd it hard to dislike either of them, even when their flaws were flying high. Maverick worked really hard to overcome Camryn’s misguided perceptions about him. He seemed like a good guy whose carelessness caught up to him, but wanted to do right. Camryn didn’t cow to Maverick’s good guy efforts, though. She stood her ground and held him accountable, but was flexible and reasonable when the situation called for it.

Despite the situation, this book is filled with humor. There were more than a few moments when the stark reality of raising a child together is balanced with levity, such as when Maverick tags along on a trip Camryn takes to visit her parents. While the situation Camryn and Maverick find themselves in certainly isn’t funny, her best friend Andria certainly is, and often steals the scene. She stays at the ready with a quip to point out the obvious or add some levity to a heavy moment. Other side characters also serve to add much needed humor, so while the book’s plot is stressful, there’s always balance. I genuinely laughed out loud multiple times, which is a testament to Warren’s ability to write realistic and relatable dialog.

I definitely enjoyed this read. It had a realism that made the characters and their situation easy to believe and become invested in. Despite the awkwardness of the situation, Oops is such an enjoyable book. It’s heartwarming and nerve-wracking, and Camryn and Maverick are characters whose story I thoroughly enjoyed seeing unfold.