NJ
Hated the heroine's sister. Just didn't enjoy the book after the big betrayal was revealed. Her sister was not remorseful for most of the book and continued blaming the heroine for their distance.
I didn't like [b:Beach Read 52867387 Beach Read Emily Henry https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1589881197l/52867387.SX50.jpg 67832247], but I enjoyed this. I've been looking for a good contemporary romance for a while and this ticked the box.
I like this a lot. So much of what I enjoy about the newer [a:Caroline Linden 115012 Caroline Linden https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1398778890p2/115012.jpg] books are present here; this book is just a bit less polished.I would have liked to see them interact as a couple more. Quite a bit of this book was dedicated to the more outlandish parts of the plot (which I admit were fun), but it did detract from the romance storyline a bit.
Courtney Milan doesn't disappoint. I loved Chloe from the start and while Jeremy took some warming up to, by the end I was a full convert. I think I initially struggled with Jeremy because I'm personally attracted to ambition and competence so the idea of a hero who didn't really do much of anything was a hard pill to swallow. I was fully on board with Chloe's mandate that he get serious . I should have trusted more in Milan's ability to create complex, compelling characters because by the time more of Jeremy's true nature was revealed I was a little bit in love with him.
The romance between he and Chloe was sweet and cute, mostly because he loved her so unabashedly from the beginning. I will most probably be rereading this in the future.
3.5 stars
I should have enjoyed this more than I did, primarily because I usually can't get enough of fake-dating romances. Additionally, the characters were likeable and their romance was sweet but I just couldn't get emotionally invested.
It sometimes felt like the book was trying to mark all these important scenes of an imaginary checklist. Their first date, for example, felt like too much. They went bowling, then to the fair (where he got her a huge stuffed animal), before finally ending up in a restaurant where they engaged in, and won a cake eating competition. Usually one of these first date cliches is enough for one book and it almost felt like a sensory overload here. Although in theory all these cute and swoony moments were happening, they didn't feel cute and swoony.
That said, the book was easy to read and I could see myself reading more of Mimi Grace's books.
By the end, these two were so gentle and considerate with each other and romances like this are my favourite.
It was generally sweet but I felt uncomfortable about the circumstances surrounding their first date
This was so disappointing.
The series description and initial set-up make it seem as if the novel will be invested in upsetting the systems of power that create severe inequity and oppression. Instead, by the end of this book, I'm left with the impression that the author is truly more invested in a world that is peaceful rather than just.
I don't know if the issues I have with the book are more to do with its themes or the poor execution of what is otherwise a good idea. I think that in more recent books, readers and authors have become enamoured with the idea of a sympathetic villain; one whose motives and emotions you can sympathize with even if you don't agree with their means. However, I think that sort of villain is incredibly difficult to pull off without absolutely invalidating their worldview, which is what I think happened here. If you make me sympathize with your villain's goals (particularly if they are fighting to end systemic inequity), then I need to see narrative and character investment in ending those inequities even after your villain has been nullified. Otherwise, it seems as if the book is suggesting (which is what happened here), that rather than incredibly flawed systems, the real problem is individuals like the villain. And really, the world as it currently is is not that bad wouldn't you know
I usually love anything by [a:Christina C. Jones 7465914 Christina C. Jones https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1444941408p2/7465914.jpg]. However, I couldn't bring myself to finish this. Halfway through there was already so much drama that I just had to quit. I don't enjoy romances where either the hero/heroine tries to make the other jealous by hitting on other people. It seems needlessly petty. I also hate the jealous outbursts that necessarily follow such displays. They often have overtones of 'I own this person'. I'm not a fan..
This is the 5th book I've dnfed in the past week. It's probably me and not the book but I struggled to stay interested
So cute. It was really great that all couples were above 40. Each of these stories was so good. Usually, for a novella anthology, I like one, maybe two stories, but all 3 were really sweet.
It's only 5 days after I read this book but I can barely remember the plot. I remember vaguely enjoying it though
3.5 stars
It is likely that if I didn't go into this expecting a romance, this book would have been a 4-star read. The hero and heroine both went on such beautiful journeys. But I feel like their romantic connection suffered as a result. They both had a few big emotionally meaningful moments where the other person was not present. This is a more realistic view of life in general, people have emotional journeys outside their partners. However, when I sign up for a romance, I'm signing up to see the journey these two individuals . Which means I'm expecting that most of the on-page, emotionally vulnerable interactions will be between the main characters. I expect that even when they have emotionally charged conversations with other people, we will at least get to see the two of them discussing those conversations. We will get to see the mcs be open and honest about the most important moments in their lives. For me, those are the moments that make me buy into the depth of connection between two romantic leads. In this book, I felt their connection was sorely lacking.
3.5 stars
I'm in the minority here but this was a bit disappointing. Mostly because it seemed there was too much going on and I didn't enjoy many of the subplots that were thrown in. The actual interactions between Dom and Sylvie were swoony and had the trademark Lucy Parker banter but in my opinion, we didn't have nearly enough of those. . I find this particularly frustrating the subplot of the female intern who is hell bent on ruining/ripping of the mcs to further the cause of their male relative/partner had already been used in [b:Headliners|52069082|Headliners (London Celebrities, #5)|Lucy Parker|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1569971230l/52069082._SX50_SY75_.jpg|71670067]. Why exactly was it necessary here? We already had Libby being sneaky in the show, and Johnny being stalked and assaulted, we didn't need to throw Penny's recipe espionage into the mix either. Admittedly, the final showdown between Penny and Mabel was very funny but prior to that any time that very obvious
This book was not what I expected at all. From the summary, I was expecting his love interest to play a much larger role than she ended up playing. I was therefore jarred by how focused it was on the hero. I kept expecting to learn more about her but I didn't, ultimately that distracted me and took away from my enjoyment of the book. If I had gone in with different expectations this might have been a 5-star read for me.
Didn't expect a short HR novella to have such good mental health representation. Really enjoyed it.
