A Very Good Bad Idea by Emma Chase

Duet Narration by Sean Masters and Brooke Bloomingdale

Standalone RomCom. Currently available in audio format, only on Audible/Amazon. This post contains Amazon affiliate links.

I have been a fan of Emma Chase since Tangled in 2013, so I was so I was so excited to get A Very Good Bad Idea as an “Audible First.” Since this wasn’t actually a book exclusively made for audio, I guess that’s why it didn’t have any of the immersive audio features I was expecting. But it did have duet narration by Sean Masters and Brooke Bloomingdale, which was a definite plus.

Jade and Damon both live in the same town on the Jersey Shore that is sorely in need of redevelopment. Jade works for her father’s construction empire, and Damon has a development company with his two foster brothers. They are in direct competition and really have it out for each other.

Both Jade and Damon have been schmoozing the 100-year-old woman who lives in the dilapidated mansion on the shore that would be central to any redevelopment (even though they ended up caring for her). Each was sure that the house was left to them alone until the reading of the will. Instead, they find out they’ll split ownership of the house if they can live there together for four months with NO OUTSIDE INTERFERENCE. No phones. No TV. No internet. They can’t even go to the store. They get a delivery every two weeks, and if either one sets foot off the property for any reason during those four months, they forfeit the house. They even have to wear ankle monitors.

So, of course, they do everything in their power to make the other person quit. They play horrible Home Alone-type pranks on each other, causing the already-in-need-of-repair house to get even worse. I mean, this was a true enemies-to-lovers. The animosity and pranks lasted about half the book. When they finally stopped the ridiculousness and actually got to know each other, the book improved so much for me.

I love Emma Chase’s banter and humor, in fact a few of her books are on my all-time favorites list. I liked it here as well, but I mostly disliked both main characters and never fully rooted for them. Plus, I just couldn’t suspend reality enough to stop thinking about all the logistics. What if one of them had to go to the hospital? How were they ordering supplies? Don’t they both have businesses to run? How much income were they losing? And how was a record player somehow switching songs and artists?

The Narration

Sean Masters and Brooke Bloomingdale made A Very Good Bad Idea better for me. Their duet narration was definitely part of my enjoyment, and I’m not sure how much I would have liked this one if I had read it on Kindle instead.

The Down & Dirty

A Very Good Bad Idea by Emma Chase was a fun listen, and it’s worth making it through the mean pranks to get to the part where Jade and Damon finally move from enemies to lovers, because it just keeps getting better from there. If ridiculous, sometimes mean pranks and hijinks aren’t your thing, you may want to skip this one. But if you’re in the mood for a silly, fun romcom that’s free in Audible Plus, this is a quick, lighthearted listen.