Release Day: Degrees of Engagement, Jennifer Hennessy

Happy release day for Jennifer Hennessy’s Degrees of Engagement! If you’re looking for a fake engagement romance (and a very funny cat), then check it out. Have a read of my review below for more.

– Em

Thank you to the publisher for the free copy from NetGalley!

⭐⭐⭐ (3/5)

TW: spice, not suitable for younger readers

Hands down my favourite part of Degrees of Engagement is the absolute shade thrown to the British Museum over the Parthenon Marbles, and I cannot applaud Hennessy enough for this. Onto the review.

Degrees of Engagement follows Bianca, a recent PhD graduate who shows up for everyone else when they need her, only to discover that they aren’t prepared to do the same for her. Cue a drunken proposal from Xavier, her friend, to finally get Bianca the attention she deserves from her friends and family after they fail to show up for her graduation party. The fake engagement trope is always a little far fetched, but I felt like it had a really good set up with Bianca’s party. Hennessy is making a great point too, that there is more to life than relationships and traditional milestones like marriage and kids. But I’ll be honest, once Xavier and Bianca are ‘engaged’, it feels like very little happens until the third act break-up. I hit the ⅔ mark and had to force myself to finish, skimming to the end of a story I just wasn’t that invested in.

As far as characters go, I did genuinely like Bianca and I was absolutely rooting for her to be a little more selfish after being there for everyone else in her life. Xavier could be charming, but he was definitely a lot flatter and whilst the supporting characters were varied enough to be distinct, they weren’t particularly strong additions to the book. Hats off to Hennessy though, as I have never read a cat so accurately written. 

Considering that this is a romance book, the romance is, you know, important. I hate to say it, but Bianca and Xavier’s relationship was unsatisfying and underdeveloped. The fact that these two are living together during their fake engagement was the perfect setting for some charged and awkward moments, but the chemistry between them just wasn’t there for me. They also had sex pretty quick meaning you don’t get to see much sexual tension between them. Again, the physical side of things overtook the relationship too much when they finally confessed their feelings and it was so quick that I genuinely missed it. Now, don’t get me wrong, Bianca and Xavier had some good moments together (although I will say that sexting before a job interview seems extremely unwise) and their friends to lovers arc was a refreshing read compared to the common enemies to lovers. Ultimately,  Bianca and Xavier were entertaining enough, but their relationship throughout felt like it changed very little – they liked each other and that was that. I appreciate that they already had feelings, but I would have preferred to see some more development.

All in all, Degrees of Engagement was an okay book with an okay romance – I’ve certainly read worse but I’ve most certainly read better. That being said, I would definitely be interested to see more of Hennessy’s work with a few more books under her belt.