The Proposal by Jasmine Guillory

 How I didn't know about Jasmine Guillory before one of my badass co workers introduced me to her is absolutely beyond me.  To be completely up front, she graduated from my Alma Mater, in June of the year that I began (abeit I was there in September, she graduated in June prior to me beginning - I graduated in 2001 so we just missed each other). I'm so glad that I learned about her though.

In this novel, which is actually the second in the series (I read them out of order!), Nikole is a successful writer that we meet for the first time at Dodgers Stadium in LA. She's attending a baseball game with her boyfriend, Fisher (a hipster!) and his friends in honor of his birthday.  Fisher catches Nik completely by surprise by then proposing to her at the game, and the proposal is up on the Jumbotron as it's occurring. Nik says no for a few reasons - they had been dating for only five months and had never even discussed this route (Nik had no desire to marry Fisher). Nik declines and Fisher leaves very irately, while Nik is swarmed by cameras. Also in the stadium are Carlos, a doctor, and his sister Angela. Carlos and Angela, seeing Nik's distress, assist Nik in getting away from the cameras.

The book then details Nik's and Carlos' interactions with one another and each other's friends.  I enjoyed this book. I really liked Nik - she is someone that is very real and could be someone you meet anywhere. I liked Carlos too and both he and Nik were dealing with issues that were particularly realistic. The book itself moved quickly and was broken down into quick little snippets that made it easy to digest. I also loved that the characters were all so diverse. The friendships between the women were especially strong too - we need to see more of the women supporting women material that was encapsulated in these books instead of the insidious competition between women that seems to often jump out at us.

Loved this book.