Well, if I thought this series couldn’t get any better I was wrong. So very wrong. Well Matched, the third novel in the Ren Faire romance series by Jen Deluca, brings a hearty dose of wit, tension, conflict, longing, love, and struggle that makes this romance all the more engaging, enticing, and intriguing. To think I went this long without reading this wonderful series!

Single mother April Parker has lived in Willow Creek for twelve years with a wall around her heart. On the verge of being an empty nester, she’s decided to move on from her quaint little town, and asks her friend Mitch for his help with some home improvement projects to get her house ready to sell. Mitch Malone is known for being the life of every party, but mostly for the attire he wears to the local Renaissance Faire – a kilt (and not much else) that shows off his muscled form to perfection. While he agrees to help April, he needs a favour too: she’ll pretend to be his girlfriend at an upcoming family dinner, so that he can avoid the lectures about settling down and having a more “serious” career than high school coach and gym teacher. April reluctantly agrees, but when dinner turns into a weekend trip, it becomes hard to tell what’s real and what’s been just for show. But when the weekend ends, so must their fake relationship. As summer begins, Faire returns to Willow Creek, and April volunteers for the first time. When Mitch’s family shows up unexpectedly, April pretends to be Mitch’s girlfriend again…something that doesn’t feel so fake anymore. Despite their obvious connection, April insists they’ve just been putting on an act. But when there’s the chance for something real, she has to decide whether to change her plans – and open her heart – for the kilt-wearing hunk who might just be the love of her life.

This lovely group of characters are truly living up to the found family trope in the best way possible. There are so many moments of vulnerability and inner turmoil that these characters go through (namely April in this novel, but Mitch has certainly had his fair share) and to see them try and handle it while juggling all the other parts of adulthood, romance, life and milestones is both wholesome and heartbreaking to see. The strong loyalty and urge to stick up for loved ones, to do right by them, and to make sure that even if you don’t like the results you have given them the opportunity to make a decision for themselves. It makes this novel so relatable in my mind and even though April and I are very different I could see myself understanding her and feeling for her as she navigates these difficult series of changes in her life.

The family dynamics are once again killing it in the Parker/Graham bubble, and to see that fierce loyalty and love come into contention with Mitch’s long-running family opinions and commentary was a highlight. April is a keeper for sure. The internal conflicts she goes through and how they impact her relationships with others, especially Caitlin and Mitch, make for some engaging and polarising reading. I really like her and how she is such a strong presence, but there were undoubtedly times where I wanted to sit her down and firmly tell her to look at the bigger picture and listen to her heart. She’s great, and it is characters like April that we need in fiction because the want to shout some sense into them makes the novel all the more enjoyable in the end.

The Ren Faire vibes are still going strong in Well Matched, so I will give a warning to those who didn’t really gel with it or thought it too whimsy or fanciful – this series is heavily centred around the Ren Faire and the happenings at this small-town fair, so if you’re getting sick of it than perhaps wait this one out a bit until you are looking for a little magic or accept the fact this cosy fantasy kind of vibe is present across the series.

I really enjoyed Well Matched, and I do think that you could go from Well Met straight into Well Matched given the shift from Emily to April. You will get filled in on the important parts about Well Played within the first few chapters, but I do think for the full effect you should read them in order. In hindsight after completing the series, I am glad I read Well Played when I did even though I didn’t like it as much. It creates a great balance between the staying and going parties in the books and Well Traveled wouldn’t feel as grounded as it does without the previous on-the-road Ren Faire experience.