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Youngblood #2

Perfectly Unmatched

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Benelli Youngblood is dedicated to her family. Unlike her unpredictable, selfish siblings, Benelli plans to do what’s expected of her: get married to a good, stable man who will help her father save his floundering business. And she’s sure her current boyfriend is that man.

When she catches said boyfriend sleeping with his secretary, she hops the first plane to her family’s summer house in Hungary armed with a list of eligible men from solid families to go on dates with so she can find the perfect marriage partner. It may sound old-fashioned, but it’s what’s always worked for her family, and it’s how she’ll mend her shattered heart.

What she doesn’t plan on is falling for Cormac Halstrom. The witty, sexy professor with no interest in business or marriage couldn’t be further from the right choice for her. But his hot kisses and sweet words make her feel something she hasn’t in years; she finally feels like herself.

When things go too far with Cormac and her family shows up unexpectedly, Benelli will have to decide if she’s going to listen to her heart or her head when it comes to finding her perfect match.

PERFECTLY UNMATCHED is a new adult novel that contains mature language, sexuality, and adult situations.

209 pages, Nook

First published December 19, 2012

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About the author

Liz Reinhardt

22 books1,801 followers
Liz Reinhardt is a perpetually homesick NJ native who migrated to the deep South a decade ago with her funny kid, motor-head husband, and growing pack of mutts. She's a fanatical book lover with no reading prejudices and a wide range of genre loves, but her heart will always skip a beat for YA. In her spare time she likes to listen to corny jokes her kid reads to her from ice-pop sticks, watch her husband get dirty working on cars, travel whenever she can scrape together a few bucks, and gab on the phone incessantly with her bestie, writer Steph Campbell. She likes Raisinets even if they aren't real candy, the Oxford comma even though it's nerdy, and airports even when her plane is delayed. When she isn't writing, Liz Reinhardt teaches a fantastic group of diverse 8th graders in Savannah, GA. Rebels Like Us, her latest YA novel, is full of hot kisses, angst, homesickness, and laughs that are almost as good as the ones that come from the stick of a melty ice-pop.​

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5 stars
301 (24%)
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441 (36%)
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345 (28%)
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90 (7%)
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38 (3%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 90 reviews
Profile Image for Christy.
4,268 reviews35.2k followers
December 26, 2012
“If you never listen to a word I say for the rest of our lives, listen now. Choose love. Don’t take the easy way out. Choose someone who will push you and challenge you. Okay? Do that because thats what you deserve.”

Benelli Youngblood’s family is falling apart. Her oldest brother Remi is in rehab, Winch has left the family with his girlfriend Evan and is on a career path of his own, and her younger brother Colt is planning on going to college on a football scholarship, and Ithaca is still upset over her family interfering with her relationship. Her parents are stressed out, and her father believes Benelli marrying a man to help with the business is the only thing that will save them. So thats what Benelli is prepared to do. Benelli goes to Hungary to stay with her aunt while she dates appropriate suitors. She has a list. She has a plan to find a man that can fit into her family.

She doesn’t plan on running into Cormac. Cormac is a graduate student working on his thesis and translation of the Odyssey. He is a gentleman, he is smart, sexy, and witty. They become friends fast and as there relationship grows, they develop strong feelings for each other. Benelli realizes that she can be herself with Cormac, not who her family expects her to be. Benelli has a huge decision to make. Do what she has to do for her family’s sake, or finally do something for herself.

Now, the best part of the book: Cormac!

“Mr. Hotass Professor?”
I straight up love this stupid, crazy, funny, sweet, perfect guy.

I liked Benelli, I did... but she aggravated me a times. The chemistry between Benelli and Cormac was smoking hot! Loved them together! Cormac was perfect. The way he looked, the way he spoke, his attitude. Everything! He was geeky, but sexy at the same time! And the sweetest! Not the typical alpha male, but he stood up for himself and Benelli when he needed to. My favorite Cormac lines:

“I choose you right now. You go in the book in my heart, and you’re the only name there.”

“Yes. And I enjoy calligraphy and don’t want to have meaningless sex with you. If they ever bothered to issue me a man card, I would surrender it to you right about now.”

“You could call anytime and I’d come running. There isn’t a chance in hell you’d need me, and I wouldn’t come to you.”

“So, I’m thinking we can safely categorize you as a screamer?”

“You really need to stop watching so many movies. Books, love. Books will open up new worlds for you.”

“I love studying this crazy stuff. But I don’t love it more than you. I don’t love anything more than you... These books, these papers, aren’t my life. You are. You are my life.”


Overall a really good read, I personally liked it just as much as Fall Guy, if not a tiny bit more! Looking forward to the next one!
Profile Image for Laura's Book Addiction.
2,731 reviews456 followers
January 20, 2013
"One simple word that my brain will tell me to ignore, but my body and my heart will be unable to resist. One word that will forever change this summer and all the summers after it along with the springs and winters and autumns. One word that will make it impossible for me to just walk away."


Before reading Perfectly Unmatched this was my pre-review
"I'm going to sound like a two year old having a tantrum but I WANT IT NOW *stamps feet and falls to the floor crying" and boy was it worth my waiting. I loved it from start to finish Benelli and Cormac pulled me in there love story.

Benelli and Cormac shouldn't work as a couple together on paper but boy do they work and they are soo freaking adorable together. Cormac just one word WOW!!! I'm in love with him. I love that he's a bit of a geek but hot as well and smart. Benelli has such a strong sense of family that I love and how she fights to be with Cormac.

All in all a great 2nd book in the Younbloods series and a amazing New Adult novel. I want the 3rd book NOW please!!!!!

My favourite quotes

"I don't want epic. I want everyday" Benelli

"He looks nerdy. But kind of adorable" Benelli

"The wish morphs into an ache"

"She and I draw identically sharp breathes in and our eyes nail down twin looks of blatant want" Cormac
Profile Image for Lauren.
30 reviews22 followers
December 22, 2012
First off, I want to apologize to Liz Reinhardt for having the tiniest sliver of a doubt when I started this book. I didn't connect to Benelli right away and I got nervous. I've learned my lesson to absolutely trust this woman with ANY story ever. Like, ever. Seriously, write the phonebook and I'll love it.

Benelli, Winch's younger sister (from Fall Guy), is the glue to the Youngblood family. She takes pride in that fact but it restricts her. When she's sent to Hungary to find a suitable man to help her father run the company and one who will make an acceptable husband (in that order), she meets Cormac.

I didn't connect with Benelli until she was away from the Youngbloods and finally able to be herself. We got a glimpse of this family in Fall Guy but the extent of their insanity is revealed through their treatment of Benelli. It's an emotional manipulation that I struggled to wrap my head around. But when she's in Hungary, away from her parents and the expectations they hold her to, she reveals how amazing she is.

"They let you think you were a woman without treating you with the respect a woman deserves. They gave you all the shallow trappings but didn't fortify you with the foundation you needed."

Cormac is the sweet, nerdy, overly-intelligent guy Benelli starts hanging out with. One amazing thing about the writing is the distinctiveness of the language used for each POV. Cormac thinks like a PhD student. You could tell how much research and attention to detail went into this book and it was worth every second.

Cormac is a seriously romantic guy and he had me swooning. Can I keep him? I was rooting for him to just sweep Benelli off her feet the entire time.

Thank you for Perfectly Unmatched and I can't wait to see what's next!!
Profile Image for Madison.
184 reviews87 followers
December 31, 2012
Read this and other reviews at Madison Says.

By now, most people that’ve followed my blog since the beginning know that I love Liz Reinhardt’s writing. Her Brenna Blixen series is one of my favorites. From that series, we met Evan Lennox…and from Evan came the Youngblood crew. Perfectly Unmatched is the second book in the Youngblood series and is focused on Benelli, the younger sister to Winch, but eldest daughter of the family.

After finding out her boyfriend, whom she thought would be the perfect guy to bring into the family business, was cheating on her, Benelli flees to Hungary for an earlier summer vacation with her extended family. While it’s a vacation, it’s also her time to try and find the guy that’s going to help save the Youngblood family, whose businesses are crumbling under the surmounting pressure felt by her father. She knows she won’t find love, but she hopes that come later. But, in an attempt to escape an awkward acquaintance one day, she stumbles upon (quite literally) Cormac Halstrom.

I loved Cormac almost immediately. He was a little nerdy, but still had this studious sexiness to him, which I totally found attractive. As much as I love the bad boy rockers and all that jazz, my real life romance is with a web designer, who I swear gets turned on talking about HTML and logos and analytics and Google rankings. So for me, I could relate to the attraction that Benelli felt for him. And he made me laugh. He was honest about his goofiness, and made me laugh. I love that.

“Also, my Hungarian is fairly limited, so we got all this by the grace of some complicated sign language and something resembling a rain dance on my part. Not very pretty.”


Now – here’s where she drove me crazy a bit. But for good reason. She was naive. And a princess. She’s spent her life sheltered, and while she’s tough as nails, and thinks she’s doing something selfless by marrying for business, she doesn’t have much regard for Cormac’s feelings in the beginning. Luckily, though, he stood his ground with her, and she did grow and come around. I particularly loved seeing a bit of Winch and Evan too – and the advice he had for Benelli.

“If you never listen to a word I say for the rest of our lives, listen now. Choose love. Don’t take the easy way out. Choose someone who will push you and challenge you. Okay? Do that because that’s what you deserve.”


Liz has the crazy talent for creating dynamic characters that you fall in love with, as well as stories that can seem so far off from your life, but you somehow end up relating to. This was no exception. Oh – and wanna know what else she’s great at? STEAM IN THE NA GENRE! HOLY HOTNESS. I think this was her hottest one yet, and it was not gratuitous or trashy. It was perfect and fitting given the age and circumstances for the characters. And I loved every second of it. Oh my god, did I ever.

So anyways, Cormac and Benelli, they have soooo many hurdles to jump. So many. Like the fact that he’s not at all the cookie cutter guy she needs to fill the hole in her family, but more than that, she can’t stop thinking about him, even while going on dates with other potential suitors. Oh, and then when her family gets involved, there’s a whole other set of issues for them. In the end, though, I was happy to see how it all came together. It wasn’t an easy journey, and for a decent chunk of the story, I thought ‘there’s no way in hell this can work, especially without Cormac sacrificing himself completely.’ Thankfully, however, both characters made the necessary changes to make the relationship work for them. Oh and they were sexy while doing that. Did I mention that?

“You could call anytime and I’d come running. There isn’t a chance in hell you’d need, and I wouldn’t come to you.”


I give this story 4 stars (if I’m being honest, which, let’s face it, I must), it could have used some proofing and editing clean up, but really, it always amazes me how Liz continues to top her stories. I haven’t read something of hers yet that wasn’t poetic, moving, sexy, relatable and just awesome. I cannot recommend her books enough, and as always when finishing a book of hers, cannot wait for the next to come out. And knowing how fast she pumps books out, it won’t be that long of a wait. :)

I had to include this passage – perfect example of her amazing way with words!

I ask, wanting her to weave this story and make it intimate for me. I don’t want to be Pan at the window, looking in on what I desire. I want to accept the thimble from my Wendy, and fly away with her on foreign adventures, then stay by her side when I bring her back home.
Profile Image for Calia.
Author 19 books2,906 followers
May 8, 2013
Holy Mother of steam! Probably the hottest New Adult book I've read.

Review to come.
51 reviews2 followers
December 21, 2012
I pretty much read anything Liz Reinhardt writes. Well not pretty much, I do. Right away. When it releases. I see it on fb or twitter and immediately go to Amazon and download. I don't pass go, I don't collect $200. I just do it. Rightfully so, that woman is a genius.

So that's what I did yesterday as soon as I saw this book was released. I knew I would get little sleep and at some point, very little work would get done but it was worth the sacrifice because yet again, Liz writes a great story. We already know the Youngbloods from "Fall Guy" and I couldn't wait to learn more. Benelli is the oldest girl and she is determined to save her family, be the kid her parents always wanted and needed. She goes off to find the perfect husband for her family and instead finds something she didn't expect. Ok, that story has been told a million times, lets admit that first. However, they didn't have Liz's mind creating the story because this one was different, unique, special. Cormac is the unexpected and boy is he. He's sweet, academic, geeky, poetic and socially awkward. His thoughts and dialogue are hilarious and sweetly awkward. He's honest and self-deprecating but not in that same old story fo the bad guy who thinks he's no good fro the girl. He really believes he's unworthy because she's beautiful and he's a geek and says weird things sometimes. He loves books, stories and sweeping epics. He does Calligraphy on the side. I mean, come on! He's geekishly delicious and it makes this book even more awesome! I simply fell in love with him. Simply, which rarely happens. I fall in love or lust with the heros all the time, but to simply fall in love, sweetly, tenderly, calmly? That has never happened.

"Funny how something that was so gorgeous just a few minutes before can lose its luster when compared to Benelli's beauty."

"I want you, but I said no because you were drunk, and I would never take advantage of you like that. Also, you want a f&*kbuddy, and I don't particularly enjoy heartbreak, so I'm trying to convince myself to sidestep your very appealing offer." Seriously, he talks like this! *SWWWWOOOONNN*


"I read Lala's text twice: Your pet is off his leash. His tears are a buzzkill and hes a cockblocker. Save me" hahahah laugh out loud part!

"Love is hard. It's forgiving your best friend when you want to shove her away. It's admitting you played a hand in ruining your sister's relationship, then accepting her cold shoulder even after you've poured your heart out over and over in tearful apologies. It's fighting to make sure the person you love gets to do the weird thing he loves, even if you know he could have unbelievable power and success doing other things. It's being generous to your brother's girlfriend because you've been forced to admit you laid blame at her feet and his when there was no reason to."

A great read and one I recommend to everyone!
Profile Image for Amy SM.
1 review
December 23, 2012
I don't know what it is about Liz Reinhardt, but she knows how to create characters with depth like no other.

Her leading man in this one is a breath of fresh air. He isn't an angry, controlling, reformed bad boy/borderline psycho path. Can I just say, fina-freaking-ly!!! I have a weak spot when a guy is sharp, witty, funny, nerdy/goofy, humble and down right sexy.

The connection between Benelli and Cormac is pretty dang awesome. First off, they both hold their own. Often times I am bored by the heroine having no spine or being a bit dull or to proper/goody goody. Benelli is the farthest thing from dull. I really liked the battle she went through of choosing being true to her family or true to her self. The way Benelli and Cormac interact is pretty dang awesome to behold. I love how fast they can switch from intense and emotional to straight up goofy. I loved that they BOTH had a sense of humor, and I actually smiled and laughed out loud at their back and forth banter. It wasn't a straight up brooding romance from start to finish, and that made it all the more appealing to me.
Profile Image for Trinity (A Love Affair with Books).
137 reviews54 followers
December 30, 2012

We were first introduced to Benelli in Fall Guy the first in the Youngblood series (which I loved.) Benelli came off as very straight laced and not all that likable in Fall Guy so I was curious to see where her book would go.


Benelli is very much entrenched in her family and trying very hard to succeed where her siblings failed. She understands that to fulfill her role as dutiful daughter she must marry the right guy and soon. When her secret romance with a “perfect on paper” guy fails she decides to take matters in her own hands. She sends herself to Hungary where she is determined to find the perfect husband and protégé to her father’s business.


“I think about my family every single minute of every single day. Sometimes I think I’m the only one of my siblings, who cares about our parents at all, and it weighs on me to have no one to share my worry with, no one to help me lift the cement bag of our family’s complicated problems.”

In Hungary she proceeds to date all the eligible bachelors from good families that she can find. With only a checklist of qualities she hopes she can find her future husband by the end of the summer. After a series of boring and lackluster dates she meets Cormac.


Cormac is everything she is NOT looking for. He is a very sweet but geeky professor. Cormac was such a breath of fresh air from the usual male leads in books. He was a sweet and earnest character with a quick wit and hilarious sense of humor. He brought out all the qualities that Benelli has been trying so hard to hide. Will she do what is expected of her or take a chance and follow her heart?


I loved the alternating POV between the two characters because they were so very different. Cormac is the sweet, romantic, witty guy that many girls overlook. He wasn’t afraid to fight for her and convince her to believe in in him and in love. He definitely made the book for me. I loved that he wasn’t this self-assured alpha male but instead he was someone who wanted to prove his worth in her eyes.


“You run away for freedom. You run away because you can’t be trapped by the people who love you but don’t understand you. You run away because you want to be missed, you want them to start a worried search party combing far and wide for any scrap of evidence that you’re going to be back, safe and sound. Running away is a way to play a dirty trick on the perfect fate that will suffocate you if you’re not careful.”
“He’s kissing like he doesn’t have a minute to waste, like I’ll evaporate under his hands if he doesn’t keep pace.”

“He smells like the pages of books, ink, and tea leaves. And, under all those comforting smells, he also smells like guy. It’s a salty, clean smell mixed with the tingling pang of aftershave that makes my girly hormones spin in excited pirouettes,”

“To hold you. To smell your hair and hope you don’t notice and think I’m some sort of psychotic. To watch the way the light moves over your skin. I want you to get chilly and sleepy and need to press your body tight to mine, and I want to wrap my arms around you. I want whatever you write in that secret book of yours about me to be worth all the other rotten shit you’re going to wind up accepting down the line.”

Profile Image for Word ~Heather  Halloran.
35 reviews26 followers
February 6, 2013
www.xwordx.blogspot.com
2.5 Stars:

“You run away for freedom. You run away because you can’t be trapped by the people who love you but don’t understand you. You run away because you want to be missed, you want them to start a worried search party combing far and wide for scraps of evidence that you’re going to be back, safe and sound. Running away is a way to play a dirty trick on the perfect fate that will suffocate you if you’re not careful.”

Benelli Youngblood has her whole life mapped out in front of her. She has the perfect boyfriend that will be the perfect man to take over her father’s business when the time comes, alongside Benelli. But when she catches her perfect boyfriend cheating, she must change her gameplan. Benelli goes to her family’s cottage in Hungary, seeking out a husband and business partner her father will approve of. While dating, she meets Cormac, the complete opposite of what she’s looking for, during her quest to find the perfect arranged marriage.

Now for my honest thoughts. I wanted to like this story, but it didn’t make a whole lot of sense to me. Why can’t Benelli run her family business herself? It was because she is a woman, and women cannot run a business. This is 2013, women run companies just as well as men do. Cormac was everything Benelli needs in a husband. But for some reason, she took most of the book to see that her happiness is more important than her families outdated views on business and life. Then there is her best friend Lala, who gives Cormac an ultimatum. She has sway with Benelli, and will be an alibi for them to be together for the summer, but he will have to let her go when she finds a husband. He either agrees to this, or she thinks Benelli will listen to her and be done with him.
Cormac is the redeeming character in this story, he is not the typical hero. He was so likeable, nerdy, smart, adorable, and willing to fight for the girl he loved.

What do you want? “To hold you. To smell your hair and hope you don’t notice and think I’m some sort of psychotic. To watch the way the light moves over your skin. I want you to get chilly and sleepy and need to press your body tight to mine, and I want to wrap my arms around you. I want whatever you write in that secret book of yours about me to be worth all the other rotten shit you’re going to wind up accepting down the line.” That’s, um, that’s incredibly romantic.”

Benelli was a strong-minded, educated woman, whom was treated as a child by all of the people surrounding her. The love story was enjoyable, but the supporting cast brought my views down significantly. I truly believe this could be a fun, easy read for many readers, it just wasn’t the one for me.

“If you never listen to a word I say for the rest of our lives, listen now. Choose love. Don’t take the easy way out. Choose someone who will push you and challenge you. Okay? Do that because that’s what you deserve.”
Profile Image for Allison.
47 reviews
February 22, 2013
Meh. Maybe I'm spoiled cause I've read so many great love stories, but this one was just okay for me...

The Youngbloods are at it again with pressuring their kids into being who they want them to be for the family's sake, and this time it's Benelli's turn to be the rebel.

Again, I hate to basically give cliff notes on a whole book when writing a review so I'll just point out my pros and cons.

My pro is that I really liked Cormac and I wish I would've learned more about his past and family instead of the brief paragraphs those two topics got.

The cons were that this story took place over such a short time period, and the whole time it's building up to Benelli deciding to be with who she wants to be with despite her parents wishes of arranging her with someone who could help the family business...but here's the kicker...when her family meets him, they love him and its hardly a fight. So you're like "ok, that was easy" and then you're like "well what the hell were all those pages of nervousness about then?" There is minimal drama, and darn it, I just wanted more.

Maybe Benelli didn't need a book? I dunno. Lala's character is a huge mess so perhaps she'll get a book next. I could see her story being interesting...

Profile Image for Francesca.
214 reviews26 followers
January 16, 2013
Alas, I've come to the conclusion that Liz Reinhardt's books and I do not get along. I've read books Liz has co-authored with Steph Campbell and have liked them. However, every time I try to read one that just Liz has written, I can't get into them.

Long story short, I find them pretty boring. I read the first book in the Youngblood series and didn't particularly enjoy it (Fall Guy). So why did I decide to buy this book? Maybe I'm a glutton for punishment. Either way it's time for my self-inflicted punishment to end because unlike the first book, I've decided to not finish this one.
Profile Image for Sofia Lazaridou.
2,804 reviews138 followers
December 20, 2012
Look at the cover first.Isn't is nice?Yes it is.Look at the synopsis.Doesn't it seems like the book is going to be worth 6 stars?Yes it is.Now take a look inside the book.Is it was you expected?No it wasn't.<--- This is what I said to myself.I was dissapointed from this one.I would find acceptable Benelli's behaviour and way of thinking only if she was in high school.1 hour after reading it and it's a miracle I remember 2 scenes from the book.The plot and the main idea seemed wonderful...Dammit!I wanted things to work out between me and perfectly Unmatched!I pushed so many books behind in my to-read list to make room from this one.And I got that.I have some books from Reinhardt on my to-read list and I hope that they would be better than this one.
Profile Image for Corinne.
100 reviews
February 8, 2013
Another great read! Benelli is definitely a strong-headed woman, and I really wish I could be like her. Strong and sexy. (All women's dream right?) and then comes Cormac, a nerdy as hell yet sexy classics professor. Did I mention I love to have a partner who can recite poetry to me all day, quoting Shakespeare and all the other great romantic poets of all times. Well ladies, this book can realize your fantasies!

Loved it!
Profile Image for Christina Lyn.
543 reviews
December 31, 2012
Yup just finished this one this morning. I'm pretty much mixed up of my emmotions right now. And yeah I pretty much enjoyed reading this. Their love scenes is soooo freaking HOT and same goes to Cormac Halstrom. I enjoyed every conversation they have especially where Beneli introduced Cormac to her family. Such a fool but I like it.

You did one helluva great job on this Liz Reinhardt.
Profile Image for Natalia Paez.
783 reviews35 followers
June 10, 2018
My rating for this book is 3.0 stars.

En esta ocasión tenemos a la mayor de las chicas Youngblood, quien fue afinada y construida con pensamientos un poco arcaicos sobre el amor, el matrimonio y el noviazgo. Cuando fuimos introducidos a la vida de la familia Youngblood nos dimos cuenta de que era un poco extraños, y tenian pensamientos un poco extremistas que provocaban conflictos dentro y fuera de casa.
En esta ocasión Benelli descubre que todo lo que pensaba que estaba bien porque así lo decía su familia, pues en realidad no lo es tanto.

Ella experimenta de primera mano el trato de su familia cuando las cosas no van como quiere, y empieza a entender porque su hermano decidió alejarse de su familia. Benelli busca ayudar a su familia, pues son su prioridad pero también quiere el amor de un hombre fiel que la ame sin importar el que... desgraciadamente descubre que si quiere a su familia feliz y proporcionar ayuda debe escoger un marido acorde a parámetros establecidos por ella misma y las necesidades de su familia, es decir conseguir un marido a pesar de que no exista amor entre ellos.
Pero, ¿que es el amor? Benelli no lo sabe hasta que se tropieza, literalmente con este chico nerd aficionado a la literatura clásica, todo un profesor y lo que su familia no necesita, pues él no quiere dirigir un negocio sino leer y hacer traducciones del griego clásico a lenguas modernas.

En esta ocasión, el amor puede mas que las necesidades de la familia, y si Benelli da el ultimátum de un cambio a su familia, pues algunas tradiciones deben romperse para que la familia Youngblood pueda seguir unida. Y ella junto a nerd (futuro marido) aprenden que hay batallas que se necesitan hacer juntos para poder salir ilesos.
Profile Image for Anncleire.
1,297 reviews96 followers
October 14, 2013
I want to march upstairs and fall asleep, forget every single tangled snare this day tripped me with. I want to refocus, detail a new game plan, and eradicate distractions like Cormac Too Hot For His Own Damn Good Halstrom.
But something about Akos’s comment about my father jarred me, and that ripple of unease has tremored through me all day.


“Perfectly Unmatched” il secondo volume della serie “Youngblood Books” della bravissima Liz Reihardt che segue direttamente “Fall Guy” è uno di quei libri che aspettavo con ansia e che volevo leggere immediatamente. Appena uscito, a dicembre, è finito nelle mie mani ed è rimasto poi non recensito per quasi un anno. E pensare che l’ho adorato completamente e ho molto ammirato la figura di Benelli. Una serie da iniziare in puro stile Reinhardt.


Benelli Youngblood ha la sua attenzione completamente rivolta alla sua famiglia. Al contrario dei suoi imprevedibili ed egoisti fratelli, Benelli progetta di fare quello che ci si aspetta da lei: sposarsi con un buon partito, un uomo capace di aiutare il padre a salvare i suoi affari traballanti. Ed è sicura che il suo attuale ragazzo è proprio quell’uomo. Quando scopre che questo ragazzo ha una tresca con la sua segretaria, Benelli salta sul primo aereo diretto per la casa delle vacanze della sua famiglia in Ungheria armata di una lista degli scapoli d’oro di alcune rispettabili famiglie con cui uscire così da trovare il marito ideale. Potrebbe sembrare un po’ all’antica, ma è quello che ha sempre funzionato per la sua famiglia, ed è quello che farà per sanare il suo cuore spezzato.
Quello che non ha programmato è innamorarsi di Cormac Halstrom. Il simpatico, sexy professore con nessun interesse negli affari e la scelta per il matrimonio più sbagliata che possa esistere. Ma i suoi baci e le sue dolci parole le fanno sentire qualcosa che non provava da anni, si sente di nuovo se stessa. Quando le cose vanno troppo lontano con Cormac e la sua famiglia si presenta inaspettatamente, Benelli deve decidere se dare ascolto al suo cuore o alla sua testa, quando si tratta del suo match perfetto.


Ho scoperto Liz Reinhardt grazie a @Soniadolfa e non dimenticherò mai una delle mie serie preferite, quella di Brenna Blixen (ah Saxon *_*) di cui mi sono innamorata lo scorso anno. La Reinhardt ha la meravigliosa capacità di far innamorare il suo lettore a prima lettura, fin dalla prima pagina, e di certo succede anche in questo caso. Se nel precedente avevamo visto Trent e la migliore amica di Brenna protagonisti, qui si ha un altro elemento della famiglia Youngblood, da cui trae nome la serie, come protagonista, l’inossidabile Benelli. La maggiore delle figlie, la preferita del padre per la sua tenacia, il suo attaccamento alla famiglia e la voglia di accontentare tutti mettendo al primo posto i membri della sua famiglia, Benelli ha rinunciato a molto della sua personalità pur di far contento il capofamiglia. Una di quelle ragazze devote, che vorrebbe essere indipendente e mettersi a capo degli affari di famiglia, ma siccome donna deve sottomettersi al volere degli uomini di casa. La narrazione, che procede alternata in prima persona nel punto di vista di entrambi i protagonisti, è veloce e ci troviamo in breve immersi nell’atmosfera ungherese, dove Benelli scoprirà non poche magagne. Irreprensibile fino a quel momento, si lascia andare ad una sorta di libertà condizionata, mentre cerca un marito da portare a casa, in America. Ma mentre cerca, il suo sguardo indugia su Cormac, e in breve, non c’è più speranza per nessuno. Nonostante la ragazza provi a resistere, pure la loro attrazione e i loro sentimenti sono innegabili.
La cosa interessante è che, al contrario di quello che si possa pensare, Cormac non è un bad boy, anzi è un bravo ragazzo. Un po’ nerd, uno studente che sta studiando per il dottorato e spera di diventare professore, impegnato in una serie di ricerche per un articolo. Assolutamente sexy con i capelli scompigliati e gli occhiali, immancabili mentre legge, Cormac farà aprire gli occhi a Benelli, che non può e non deve accontentarsi, mai.

Il particolare da non dimenticare? Una bottiglia di vino.

Dolce, assolutamente irresistibile, ambientato in una località insolita e speciale, questo libro è assolutamente sconvolgente e una lettura rapida e di intrattenimento vero. Cormac è sicuramente un valido motivo per leggere il libro. Pur essendo il secondo volume della serie è possibile leggerlo come uno stand alone. Non si hanno al momento ulteriori notizie riguardo la serie, se e quando sono previsti altri libri.
Buona lettura guys!

Profile Image for Karla Mae (Reads and Thoughts).
700 reviews147 followers
January 26, 2013
In reading, we all get to the point where we're torn from loving or hating a book. Well, now I'm on that dilemma with Perfectly Unmatched.

The Youngblood family is perfectly good on the outside but once you’re inside or one of them you could see the imperfectness to it. With Winchester (from Fall Guy) being the former fall guy of the family, Perfectly unmatched gives us the story of the glue to this family – Benelli Youngblood.

Taking care of her family is her first priority. Her own life may be put to trash just as longs as she may be able to help her father and mother that's why she was set off to Hungary to find a suitable man to work with her father and would also be a husband to her. But then plans are put into halt when she met Cormac.

Now here's my dilemma:

I really like Benelli. I like the strong façade that she puts up just to hold her family together. Reading her story made me like her more because I get to see the life that she’s living in – which for me is completely like hell.
But at the same time, she also annoys with her endless I-need-to-get-married-coz-my-father-needs-soebody-to-manage-the-business-bla-blah. This subject is the main attraction to this story but it rubs off into me. I know she really really really needs to find a man and blah blah but if she really need to do that why not put up with the first guy that fits the category she’s looking for? It’s a tough decision I know, but when worse comes to worse she cannot afford to be choosy.

Cormac, on the other hand makes me feel like a dreamy little girl who sits near a window watching beautiful scenery while he's reading sonnets and poems to me. From the get go, I was really rooting for him to sweep Benelli off her feet and he really did that. He was understanding and a great guy till the end but I don't think he did enough to prove himself on the story. He didn’t need to prove anything to me but I guess he just didn’t do anything remarkable that would make me feel at awe with him. Yes, he stands by Benelli all throughout but there is still a huge lacking portion to his character I just cannot place my finger on it.

Contradicting right opinions about the characters eh?? Though I'm under a dilemma with them, one thing I know for sure is how fucked up Mr. and Mrs. Youngblood. I already caught a glimpse of their family on the first book, but I didn’t get to see them as clear as this. The way they treat Benelli was literally insane. It was a hard case of emotional manipulation! Benelli is already a lady who is capable of living on her own and making her own decision but they treat her as if she’s still a young incapable lady. They try to manipulate her like a puppet. I know they would say that they’re doing this for her good but God! They’re manipulating people and that falls under the insane category!

Mr. and Mrs. Youngblood is one of the most effective villain characters I’ve ever read they really get on my nerves. I simply hate their insane side. Anyhow, I'm expecting to see what Mr. and Mrs. Youngblood were really up to, but unluckily I still don’t know. I hope the upcoming books to this series would enlighten me on why Mr. and Mrs. Youngblood acts like that to their children. Being blunt and all, they’re so fucked up.

Perfectly Unmatched was okay. I'm not that satisfied but it was good because Benelli did get her HEA. I'm still looking forward on the upcoming books tho.
Profile Image for Morgan.
521 reviews265 followers
December 26, 2012
CLICK HERE TO READ MY FULL REVIEW AT READING, EATING AND DREAMING I WAS BLAIR WALDORF

Perfectly Unmatched was a great addition to the Youngblood series by Liz Reinhardt.

"Benelli Youngblood is dedicated to her family. Unlike her unpredictable, selfish siblings, Benelli plans to do what’s expected of her: get married to a good, stable man who will help her father save his floundering business. And she’s sure her current boyfriend is that man.

When she catches said boyfriend sleeping with his secretary, she hops the first plane to her family’s summer house in Hungary armed with a list of eligible men from solid families to go on dates with so she can find the perfect marriage partner. It may sound old-fashioned, but it’s what’s always worked for her family, and it’s how she’ll mend her shattered heart.

What she doesn’t plan on is falling for Cormac Halstrom. The witty, sexy professor with no interest in business or marriage couldn’t be further from the right choice for her. But his hot kisses and sweet words make her feel something she hasn’t in years; she finally feels like herself.

When things go too far with Cormac and her family shows up unexpectedly, Benelli will have to decide if she’s going to listen to her heart or her head when it comes to finding her perfect match."

I LOVED Cormac. He's definitely not my typical hero. He isn't a dominant, macho man. In fact, he's quite the opposite. He's attractive, but he's not the sexiest man on the planet. He's a little geeky and even a little awkward at times. Like I said, he's definitely not my typical hero. But what makes Cormac such an amazing guy is his patience, his optimism, his wit and intellect, and his love for Benelli. He's just such a GREAT guy. I will admit, I fell head over heels in love with his geeky, charming personality.

Benelli, on the other hand, wasn't as lovable. I liked her. I really did. I just didn't love her. At the beginning of the novel, Benelli is a spoiled, naive princess. Throughout the novel, she definitely grows as a person. The more her character matured the more I liked her, but I still had trouble seeing her as a real person. Her character just never really came to life for me.

I love the Youngblood family. I was happy to see Evan and Winch again, even if it was only for a short while. I also loved the update on Remi, Ithaca, and Colt's lives. The Youngbloods are a dramatic, entertaining family, that's for sure.

I gave Perfectly Unmatched (Youngblood #2) by Liz Reinhard 3 STARS (3.5 STARS). I really enjoyed this novel, not quite as much as Evan and Winch's story, but I still really enjoyed this novel. I recommend Perfectly Unmatched to fans of New Adult romance.

-XOXO

READING, EATING AND DREAMING
Profile Image for Jen.
710 reviews5 followers
December 31, 2012
Cute story - i don't think I have as much enthusiasm for it as everyone else though. It was cute, I enjoyed it, but there were things I just didn't get. Hungarian humor I think .. sorry :)

The book starts off with Banilli doing what she does best. Taking care of her family. Her family means everything to her. And no matter what, she'll do whatever she has to, in order to keep it happy.
Since her brother Winch ran off with the woman he fell in love with, and her oldest brother is in Rehab. Her two younger brother and sister are too young, so it all falls down to her.

She goes to the summer cottage in Hungary. She isn't there to play and enjoy her summer, she is there to find the husband that will best fit in with the family business. She has a list of suitors that her parents came up with. So she has to go on dates with them all, and pick the one that she connects with the most.

The guys she dates are not as exciting as it should be though. She doesn't feel that connection with them. She knows it's not love she's looking for, but she is hoping one of them will have SOME kind of click with her.

It's during one of the times that she's trying to get away from a date, when she stumbles over a tree root and falls literally into Cormac's lap.
With a few tangling of arms and legs, they finally stand upright. He helps her escape, and asks her out to coffee.

They find out they have an instant attraction towards each other, and they just click with each others personalities.

But when Benilli tells Carmac what her summer plans are, he can't help but feel hurt. But he's ok with doing whatever he can to spend any amount of time with her. Even though she's trying to find a husband, and he's defiantly not worthy of her father's approval.

They spend more and more time together, even though they don't mean to, and they end up getting deeper and deeper with their feelings.

But can Benilli go against her father's wishes and marry for love instead of the family business? Can Carmac find it in his heart to let Benilli go when her parents get into town, knowing they want her to be with someone else?

Cute story - it was a fun different change of pace with a new idea of getting together.

I understand this is book #2 - I read it first, and I see Benilli's brother and his girlfriend in the book. I'm assuming they're book one.
I'm curious about book #3 now though. Lala needs her HEA - and so does Ithica ... I'll probably pick up book #1 and check it out. I'm curious about learning more about the "family business" that's going on in this series :)
Profile Image for Samia Ruponti.
343 reviews
January 3, 2013
2.5 stars. Hmm...I think from future I'll steer clear off Reinhardt books, no matter how awesome their covers are! I'm not saying this because the book was written in a bad way. As usual, the writing was awesome. It's the characters (or, a single character), that makes me say that.

This is the second book of Youngblood series, and the story of Benneli and Cormac. I feel like at this point, I should know what exactly Benneli's father does and what kind of business he owns. But, again as usual, no clue.

Here comes my "issue" with the book. For about three quarter of the book, Benneli goes on and on how she needs to marry because her father needs somebody to manage the business and the business needs to be arranged. My reaction was WTF? She is a mature, educated woman. So why in this world she needs a husband to manage her father's business? Women work today just as much as man, maybe the ratio is low in top managerial positions, but that is not an issue in Benneli's position. She has her father to train her. So why in this world she was whining about marriage and not persuading her father to train her? Yes, she was afraid. and if you ask me, lazy. She wanted to be pampered in someone else's expense. I have no respect for girls who just want to enjoy everything without working. I don't mean that you have to have a job. You can just manage your own home, and THAT is a full time job. Benneli didn't have any of that. She didn't have any job, managing home or otherwise, but just wanted to enjoy pampering. In the end, she did start working for her father, but wasted a lot of time in the process. If she didn't waste my and Cormac's time whining for not finding the perfect groom, I would have liked the book a lot better. And what's the deal with arranged marriage? First, there was pressure with Winch and Lala, now for Benneli? I felt like I was reading a badly written historical romance.

What I liked was Cormac. He is a genuine sweet guy and in my opinion, gave too much up for Benneli. I didn't like Fall Guy, but still I was rooting for Winch and Evan, but here, I honestly wanted Mr. Youngblood to forcibly break their pair up.

I still have no idea why the youngblood family is so clannish and it's a major bummer. I have no idea if Ms. Reinhardt plans to reveal the nature of their business at the very last book and if she is doing it to preserve curiosity, it is not working in my case. It just makes me extreemely irritated when the characters behave like that stating family excuses and I can't sympathize because I have no valid reason to.
Profile Image for Beeg Panda.
1,468 reviews494 followers
November 10, 2013
I admit I read this book 2 in the Youngblood series cos I wanted to catch up with the Hxh from book 1. I'm glad I did.

I liked the nerdy undergrad, Scholar of the Arts, gamma, almost beta hero. I love his voice and his thoughts. The story was different to the usual New YA, if not the plot then the outcome of the situation they find themselves in. In the beautiful descriptive writing and the absolute adoration he feels for her. He's a good boy, shy, adorkable. She is an entitled, passionate, aggressive, tstl, yes-mom-yes-dad, rich, protected, princess-type girl who doesn't want to leave the lap of her wealthy family. A selfish little twit who almost doesnt deserve him. Almost....

But they make it work. She gives a little, he gives alot. Yet somehow he has the upper-hand - that's why I love this author's writing. She makes this weird scenario work. He isn't any less masculine than an alpha - its just a different kinda masculinity.

Lots of entertaining drama and superbly written as usual. I loved the artistic slant. Reading about Odysseus has never been more interesting.

Sweet sexy Cormac - he is her staunchest supporter and wants to smack (after downing some liquid courage) the teeth out of an idiot who's just hurt her:

“I down the shot and do not whimper, although I’m half sure I’ve lost three-quarters of my esophagus. Despite the loss of pieces of my vital organ, there are positives to chugging such a strong brew. I’m already unsteady on my feet and full of piss and vinegar.”

“No matter that my brawn is significantly less spectacular than my brains. I have no choice except to use what will work best in the situation.
I know, deep in the marrow of who I am, that I have a twisted, shithead pinch of bloodlusting bully that can, hopefully, help me give Akos a lesson he won’t soon forget.
I just wish my rousing internal battle cry would tame the knocking of my knees.”

LOL.....and no, he is NOT a skinny malinky. He has the requisite "bulges and dips", "long and lean and wiry build" all courtesy of his rowing team workouts.

The next book is about her bff - NOT my favourite character at all. Loose bloody cannon, that one - cant wait to see how Mz Reinhardt redeems her - cos she will - that's how good an author she is.
Profile Image for zelle1016.
16 reviews
January 29, 2013


surprisingly a great read!!!
i was not really excited to read this sequel because benelli was not at all likable and even a bit antagonistic in the first book, but this sequel showed how she really is, and that is fiercely loyal to her family. now i absolutely understand her. i even like Lala, her bestfriend and winch's ex now, who was a bitch, where before reading this, i would have loved to call names and swear to hell and back. way to teach me about changing perceptions. lol!

and about cormac halstrom, where every ya/na book nowadays features a bad boy as the lead, cormac is like a breath of fresh air. the adorably dorky, and goofy, but surprisingly hot scholar who has not one bad bone in his body. because even though he can be awkward, and self-deprecating, he is also heroic and brave and romantic. i love that he never wavered about his love for benelli, just when i thought he's had enough of her father, he surprised me by doing the most romantic thing a girl could dream of, because that's how he loves.
Unconditionally.
that no matter what he has to give up, he will do so as long as he will be with her. his devotion to benelli is absolutely overwhelming.
and because of that, sometimes, good boys really do finish first.

their love story is amazing and beautiful. and the way they love each other is borderline epic. i love that there is no question about their love for each other, no other guy/girl confusing the whole scene. it was between the family and the guy. it was about how benelli will choose or how she will make it work. and in the end where cormac is prepared to do the change, she was the one who wont let him. because she loves him that much too.

sooooo now, even though i love my bad boys, i can say that one good boy named cormac halstrom, occupies a significant space in my list of dream book boyfriends.
Profile Image for Kassi.
606 reviews1 follower
December 31, 2012
Love this book more than the first one in the series. It was definitely a page turner. Geez..where to begin? Lets start with Cormic. He's not the typical alpha male, badass tattooed broody hero, but a quirky, dorky, hot and funny as hell professor. Oh my...just thinking about him makes me giggle and swoon because he was soooo swoon-worthy. The love he has for Benelli and the things he was willing to sacrifice to make her parents accept him.....I think I die a lil bit. :-D

Benelli is definitely a fierce loyal heroine. I love how she is so careless of herself but so assertive when it comes to others' needs. She's so determined and if I were to meet her...I would be intimidated. I love the chemistry bite these 2 and how much they differ from social backgrounds to personality-wise. Like the title of the book, they are PERFECTLY UNMATCHED but the relationship works perfectly together.

The writing was so much better and matured in this one. The intelligent banters and the symbolism of the Odysseus fit well into the storyline.

It was great seeing Winch & Evan again. I love how his mind works. I really hope e author writes about Ithaca next. Her love story is intriguing and there are so many ways that it could plays out. Please make my wish come true!
Profile Image for Autumn Review.
1,023 reviews528 followers
April 2, 2013
I was really curious to see what Liz Reinhardt would do for Benelli's story. In the first book, I can't honestly say I liked her all that much. Mostly because she wasn't very nice to my girl Evan. However, in Perfectly Unmatched I saw Benelli in a different light. She definitely has a lot of pressure from her family. She's been the peace keeper and helps manage the family. When it comes to relationships though, she's vulnerable. She's supposed to meet a nice Hungarian boy, who will help in the family business. So, after a bad break-up, she heads off to Hungary in search of a good husband. What she finds are men who are less than appealing. She also learns some family secrets along the way too.

Early in her trip, she meets Cormac. He is an English Graduate student and pretty much the polar opposite of what her family wants to her settle down with. Let me just say that I LOVED Cormac. He's a bit geeky, but he sure is sexy (and a dirty talker). He knows how to get Benelli going, but he also sees who she really is.

Overall, I loved this second installment of the Youngbloods series. Benelli and Cormac are such a great couple. It was great to see Winch and Evan again too. If you're looking for a great NA series to start, check out the Youngbloods!
Profile Image for *Ritzrenee*.
470 reviews69 followers
August 26, 2016
It was a coincidence that this book came out after I finished reading 'fall guy'. Well, I thought it would be better if I read it immediately since I'm quite aware of the characters and happenings in the earlier book. I was looking forward to this book but... I would say that Benneli's relationship is starting off way too fast in this book. It's like the first time she saw Cormac, the next moment she was talking to him like they were good friends. Initially, this book gradually gave me a reason to like Benneli as compared to the 'fall guy'. However, after knowing about her circumstances, I could not connect with Benneli and pity Cormac who is falling really hard for her. Cormac was Benneli's secret partner and oh boy poor guy! Well, I like Cormac's character -- innocent smart Alec who gets sentimental and jealous. Somehow this book describes more about their infatuation for each other rather than the romantic developments. There are little plots as to how their romance started to brew. I was thinking if Itacha, Benneli's younger sister could be the female protaganist I'm sure her story would be great!
Profile Image for Gabriela Chacana.
51 reviews2 followers
April 3, 2013
I absoultely loved this book! it was one that I could not put down, and was sad to finish.

I loved how well-defined the characters were. Cormac... so dork and adorable; Benelli, such a confused darling. I liked how the characters were defined by their actions, thoughts and opinions, instead of the author just giving constant and shallow descriptions of their personalities. Cormac's pov was amazing, every line I read from his perspective captured his essence, every word he thought and said was true to his character, while Benelli's povs were always so confused and torn between her responsibilities and her true desires; between what she should want and what she really wanted.

It was a surprising and adorable book. I was glad, for once, to read about people who hadn't experienced tragic events in their lives like death or accidents and all that, it was just about people who while living their lives and pursuing their goals... found happiness.
Loooooved it!
Profile Image for Mary Mary.
1,024 reviews49 followers
September 7, 2014
well, unfortunatelly it was not as good as Fall guy and i really missed characters like Winchester and Evan, strong, funny, jist two young people that knew exactly what they were doing and what they wanted. this story was not bad, i liked it and it was just fine, but although i could understand Benelli at the beggining, that she wanted to be loyal to her family and do what her father planned, the longer she acted like a little, undecided and scared girl the more annoyed i was. bleh. seriously. she was irritating. and then comes Cormac. he was a fine guy, i have nothing against him, but he was soooo unbelievably boring i wanted to slap him. ugggh, i prefer hot, tatooed bad boys so maybe that's the reason, but i couldn't stand him. and then sex, it wasn't bad, but it felt like they had every singe, serious conversation during or right after sex and after a while it really got on my nerves.
Profile Image for Jillian.
31 reviews
March 13, 2013
Cormac is a-may-zing, he is quirky and hilarious and adorable and about a million other adjectives. Plus he had a British accent and lots of fun British-isms so you know.. there's that. Benelli grew on me and by the end I didn't despise being inside her head nearly as much as in the beginning, but honestly she's still not my favorite character. At the start she was very entitled and thankfully she learned from her mistakes and grew as a person and didn't repeat past mistakes. Overall I liked the story and couldn't help but grin ridiculously every time I read from Cormac's POV, or pretty much anytime he opened his mouth to speak. Another bonus was getting to see Winch and Evan again briefly and get to talk to them a bit. I really hope we get a story from Remington, he intrigues me and who wouldn't want more from the crazy siblings in this family ;)
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