Fix Her Up by Tessa Bailey

Fix Her Up by Tessa Bailey is the first in the Hot & Hammered trio.  Georgie's family runs a home renovation company, but she's out on her own, providing entertainment at children's parties, frequently in a clown costume. Her family treats her like a child, but she's just purchased a house and is excited for what the future of her business might be. Meanwhile, across town, Travis Ford has moved back in to town after his professional baseball career has fizzled out. Georgie's been in love with him since he was her brother's best friend in high school, and soon the sparks are flying between the two of them.

Interesting characters: I do not know where to start with this. 

Georgie is a doormat. Her family treats her like absolute crap. They treat her like a child, ignore her when she speaks, and don't listen to anything she says. Early on in the book, she invites her brother and sister-in-law over to brunch and we see her remind him twice, but he doesn't tell his wife and they don't show up. What does Georgie do? She calls her parents and tells them that she slept in and the brunch is off, despite having spent all morning preparing for the brunch. Why would she not just tell her parents that her brother screwed up? Why take the blame herself?  

And then there's Travis, who is gross, gross, gross. He calls Georgie "baby girl" and spends the first half of the book spending way too much time thinking about her virginity status. He sexualizes her every move. Once she cuts her hair and starts wearing dresses, he's unbearable. He's also a man who has so much privilege (he's an attractive white man who was a professional athlete with no money concerns) and he's so full of self-pity that it's hard to take him seriously.  

And then there's this scene. I'm going to abbreviate some of it, but here it goes:

Morty [Georgie's father] held up a hand. "Let the adults talk, Georgie."

Travis's fist slammed on the table so fast, everyone jumped. He hadn't planned it. But anger went ripping through him so fast, his hand moved on its own. That single action hadn't taken the air our of his ire, either. Not even a speck. "I have a lot of respect for you, Mr. Castle...But I can't sit here and listen to you treat Georgie like her voice doesn't count for something. You're better than that. And she's damn sure too important to be cut off or spoken to like a child." 

Everyone had a different reaction to his outburst...He got even angrier, actually, because this girl who'd forced him to climb out his hole all those week ago looked so grateful when she should have expected someone to come to her defense. (page 236-237)

Let's interrogate this scene this for a minute, shall we?  Why is Travis so quick to lose his temper?  His hand moving of its own accord sounds quite dangerous to me. This is like the set-up for a scene in which he's throwing around furniture and handing out black eyes.  

Okay, well, let's move beyond the implied violence, then. This girl who'd forced him to man up and stop being a whiny baby because his career ended?  This girl? He'd literally just lectured her father about speaking to her like a child, but his inner monologue thinks of her as a girl? 

I can't believe I read this entire book.

This was published in 2019, not 1969. Why are the parents behaving like that? Why is she not standing up for herself? Why is the male lead such a jerk?

(Here's time for me to say that Georgie's brother is an absolute caveman when it comes to how he treats his wife. He's constantly coming into rooms and grabbing her and making her leave. I don't know if this is how all Bailey's male characters are, but it felt really nasty and abusive in a modern context.)

(And the title of this book? Fix Her Up? WTF? I'm pretty sure Georgie would have figured her mess out without Travis. Even if it's referring to her home, I find the double entendre of the name quite off-putting. I had to look up synonyms for gross and revolting because I've already used those. This book clearly ticked some "NGS doesn't like" boxes.)

Believable conflict: Look, if you believe their characterizations, of course Travis is never going to stop thinking of Georgie as a girl he used to know. Of course Georgie is still flying high on her crush from several years ago finally giving her some attention. Regardless, the stakes seem low. 

Emotional tension: There is no tension. They're fake dating, having steamy sex for real, and there's no doubt that these two have feelings for each other. It's just going to take one conversation and that will be that. 

Happily ever after: I...guess? There was a proposal. He has a new job. She's doing well in her business. But have they really dealt with the baggage from the past? I don't know. Maybe it will be fine. Maybe it will.  But I'm glad I don't have to deal with Travis. 

There are a lot of charming elements to this book - in particular, I think Georgie's very funny and I like the interactions between Georgie, her sister, and their friend Rosie. I didn't realize that authors writing female friendships was something I was so hungry for, but I latch onto it whenever I see it in books these days.  That being said, Georgie's inability to speak for herself and an incredibly unlikeable hero who I sometimes read as abusive cannot be redeemed by a few funny lines.  1.5/5 stars