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A chance encounter between a Black lawyer and a white politician becomes a relationship worth rooting for in romance author Jasmine Guillory’s fifth novel. Olivia Monroe has just moved from New York to Los Angeles, where she recently started her own law firm. She’s not looking to date anyone—until she randomly starts chatting about dessert with a cute guy at a hotel bar. The two hit it off, but when Olivia learns that the handsome stranger is actually junior senator Max Powell, she’s apprehensive. The two continue to date, in secret, which Guillory captures with charming scenes filled with funny disguises and romantic getaways. But when they eventually go public, the media starts ripping into Olivia’s past, forcing her to wonder if Max is really worth it. In exploring the tensions of this high-profile interracial relationship, Guillory elevates Party of Two far beyond its rom-com premise.

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