NJ
Loved Deja and Alejandro. Loved the depiction of academia. What I didn't like so much was that the two main antagonists were women. I would have liked a bit more balance in that department as I feel like romance novels often villainises women who are not the heroine or in the heroine's inner circle. This however is a bit balanced by the strong female relationships depicted in the book.
I find SEP's themes problematic but I like the banter. I will continue reading her books and continue being irritated by them. C'est la vie.
This was not my cup of tea. It was fairly easy to read; however, the characters had very little depth. I did think that the trope of a subordinate and their boss getting together was relatively well done in some aspects. It didn't really feel like the boss was creeping on their subordinate or making their workplace uncomfortable; this is mainly because the two main characters had established some sort of relationship before learning that they worked in the same company.
This is the second book I've read where the female character quits her job after her relationship with her colleague has been established ([b:Unfinished Business|21964811|Unfinished Business (Strictly Professional #2)|Christina C. Jones|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1398132074l/21964811._SX50_.jpg|41259611]). I don't like the subtle messaging of these choices. Blakely tries to suggest that Bryn wanted to branch out on her own and that her decision had nothing to do with her relationship. However, that is a difficult pill for the reader to swallow when we are told over and over again how much she enjoys her job and her colleagues, and at no point do we see her entertaining any ideas to jump ship or set up her own business. Perhaps Blakely wanted Bryn's decision to serve as a twist, however, it did not work. If anything it sent some troubling messages about women sacrificing their career for love and also served to highlight just how little she did to fully flesh out her characters.
It's a shame because there were some enjoyable parts of the book but it didn't fully come together for me.
I liked the characters. I especially loved that the author highlighted the many negative aspects of saying ‘the right woman was needed to save the hero'. I clearly need to read more Jackie Lau
2.5 stars. Never really warmed to the hero and couldn't care less about their relationship in general.
2.5 starsI thought I went into this book with my eyes wide open because I had read the reviews that warned that this was not a warm and fluffy book, but the book still disappointed me. I really enjoyed [b:A Million Junes 30763950 A Million Junes Emily Henry https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1487956862l/30763950.SX50.jpg 49844163] and since this dealt so heavily with grief, I thought that I might similarly enjoy it but this wasn't the case. I never really cared for either of the characters, if anything I was more interested in the details of the heroine's parents relationship than I was with the relationship between the two main characters. I didn't find the book funny at all despite a few reading a few reviews where readers had had different experiences. Although I generally don't mind grumpy characters, I found some of the hero's behaviour to be veering very deeply into controlling asshole territory. I was troubled by the hero's insistence that the heroine, was too 'bright and fairy-like' to see the site of the cult. There was nothing cute or sweet about that sentiment. If anything it seemed clear to me that he was taking away her agency and under the guise of putting her on a pedestal, making crucial decisions for an adult woman who was capable of deciding things for herself. I felt like after a while, this 'you're too bright to see the darkness in the world' would become stifling for the heroine. and their relationship would not survive the test of time. Meanwhile, his whole point seemed to be that despite what life threw at her she still remained bright and happy. Shouldn't he then trust her ability to remain happy despite whatever she would see in the cult site? Before I started writing this review, I toyed with giving this book 3.5 stars but after considering how little of the book I actually enjoyed, I bumped it down to 2.5 stars. I think because I like [a:Emily Henry 13905555 Emily Henry https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1573928938p2/13905555.jpg]'s writing, I was tempted to give this book a higher rating than it truly deserved.
Within the first 100 pages or so, the hero texts the heroine pretending to be his friend (who she gave her number to) and asks her on a date. I just couldn't continue the book after that, it seemed too skeevy for me. Maybe the book gets better and addresses the hero's actions well, but I just couldn't be bothered to continue reading to find out.
The cover art and marketing is deceptive. This is not a romance. In fact in a generally unimpressive book, the romance was the most lackluster aspect. The characters were bland and there was very little plot. The heroine's love interest was extremely irritating. I didn't believe in their reconciliation and felt the heroine was making a mistake. That is not how you should feel after reading what is billed as a feel-good romance.
The message of the importance of mental health and sexual assault awareness for young gymnasts was important. The book however, was not very captivating.
As with the first book in this series, I have mixed feelings about this book.
The book is wonderfully and unapologetically feminist in so many ways, that certain aspects were a joy to read. However, for most of the book, I was extremely frustrated with both characters and I just wanted the book to be over so I could stop reading about their antics.
Firstly, the heroine is over the top and has zero empathy. As much as she was fighting against sexual harassment in the workplace, she seemed more concerned about the principle itself, than about the survivors and the effect her actions could have on them. She is told by several characters that she needs to cool off and be more cautious in her approach but even to the very end, she just charges in high on righteous indignation and moral superiority. It's excruciatingly irritating to read about. Also, there's a point at which one of her friends calls her out for this behaviour and she goes to the hero, and instead of also (kindly) pointing out that she has a tendency to blame the very people she's supposed to be protecting, he just tells her that her friend is wrong about it (she wasn't). Sure, getting close to the end of the book she has a heart-to-heart with the very same friend and acknowledges her shortcomings but by that point, I was so frustrated with the character that I hardly cared. I get what the author was trying to do with the character but in my opinion, it was not executed well.
And then the hero. I should have loved him except I couldn't stand him either. For all that he spouts feminist ideals because of the sheer amount of romance he has read, some of his actions are extremely concerning. He breaks into the heroine's apartment at one point because she promises to call him in two days but doesn't. Umm... what? Sure the heroine calls the cops and physically hurts him but after that, the entire incident is brushed under the rug instead of being called out for the stalkerish nonsense it is. A woman tells you she will call you and doesn't and your solution is to go to her apartment, despite the clear signals she has given for you to leave her alone. Okay! Cool! . Then he spends the entire novel “protecting” the heroine. This is a trope I particularly hate in romance novels and is the exact reason I largely stopped reading romantic suspense. Yet its something the hero persists in doing, despite having a discussion with one of the other book club members about how inherently sexist that trope is. A bit of his personal background serves to explain why he consistently acts in this way but as in the case of the heroine, this explanation came late and by that point, I disliked the character so much that I really couldn't care less.
I think my biggest problem with this book can be traced to the same source. The author hopes to create some interesting dialogue both about romance tropes and sexual assault in the workplace by making different characters hold differing viewpoints. The issue with her execution is that the motivations of the main characters are not revealed until the very end, by which point the reader is already tired of them and cannot sympathize with the choices they have made. Also, revealing their motivations so late gives them little chance to bond over the more sensitive aspects of their respective pasts and it gives them little time to develop and grow as characters. What is left is a romance novel about extremely unlikable characters who are somewhat redeemed in the end.
The first book in this series was also a meh read for me. I might have to give up on the whole series after this.
So cute. I need to read more Caroline Linden, because I really enjoy her characters. Also, I have realised that I like reading historical romances where the formerly indolent hero becomes a man who is dedicated to his work. I think this may be because one of my first historical romances was [b:Devil in Winter 114166 Devil in Winter (Wallflowers, #3) Lisa Kleypas https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1309220205l/114166.SY75.jpg 1823830], in which St.Vincent follows the path from rake to prosperous business owner. ALthough it is interesting to consider that both these heroes grew in part because they inherited businesses that their wives father's had built and which then became theirs after marriage.
Can we please reserve the cartoon covers for light, swoony romance?!? Because this was definitely not that. It struck me more as literary fiction with some romantic elements thrown in and I did not enjoy the reading experience at all. I read the first few chapters, saw the direction it was going in and quickly skimmed the rest. I am so happy I didn't spend time finishing this book.Much like [b:People We Meet on Vacation 54985743 People We Meet on Vacation Emily Henry https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1618913179l/54985743.SX50.jpg 67832306], this is a story about two people who have been in love with each other for years, during which time they are in relationships with other people. The difference between the [b:The Roughest Draft 57933316 The Roughest Draft Emily Wibberley https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1622091718l/57933316.SX50.jpg 77336310] and [b:People We Meet on Vacation 54985743 People We Meet on Vacation Emily Henry https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1618913179l/54985743.SX50.jpg 67832306], is that the former spends a lot of time on the MCs relationships with other people. Thus, we are forced to reckon with the betrayal of their love and it really dulled the “romance” of the book for me. If this book had been marketed as literary fiction, I would have gone in with different expectations and probably enjoyed it for what it was. As it stands, I am a moody reader who was hoping for light, swoony romance and was instead hit with this. I just wish this book had been marketed as what it was
I have complex emotions about this book.
From the first few pages, I sank into the narrative of the book. There was something so comforting and familiar about the writing. It made it easier to read some of the more difficult aspects of the book. However, as thought-provoking as this book was for me, I felt removed from the characters. This is not to say that there were not complex or nuanced, they definitely were; I just couldn't connect with them the whole way. I loved this book though, and will still be thinking about it in the months to come.
I'm so happy I did not stop reading after the first book. Seeing the character development of Ali, Nahra even Dara was amazing. This trilogy was such an interesting exploration of oppression, revenge and radicalisation and I honestly can't wait to read more of what S.A Chakraborty has to offer.
I preferred this to the first book. I liked that Dani wasn't sanitised, that she still remained a sex-positive, adventure-seeking woman even as the main character. In fact, she was actively seeking a partner who would party through the night with her but still manage a successful career during the day. In that sense, she and Dylan were a very good fit.
It was also good to have the gender dynamics flipped so that in the friends with benefits situation, it was the woman who kept seeing other people in the beginning; usually, it is the other way round. I, however, wish we didn't get that stereotypical moment of I may be seeing other people but how dare you also date other partners? . Luckily it was resolved pretty quickly.
The main reason this did not get a higher rating despite the aforementioned positives, is because Dani and Dylan's final reconciliation scene was a bit concerning. As her original date pointed out he could very well have been a stalker ex-boyfriend who was about to kidnap her. Dani's date finally let Dylan replace him because he (Dani's date) had a phone conversation with Cat who then vouched for Dylan; however, the date had presumably never met Cat before so how did he know that Dylan wasn't just asking some random woman to pretend to be Dani's friend? The whole situation seemed a bit off to me. I don't know why romance authors insist on making their heroes do such creepy things in the name of love. There must be a million other ways to make the leads resolve their issues without making the hero seem like a stalker
This barely counts as a read because I started skimming through the pages at about 50%. Not even the murder mystery was gripping enough to keep me invested. For a book titled A lady's guide to mischief and mayhem, there was very little of either.
Kate is a widow who inherited a newspaper company from her late husband. While attempting to report on the spate of killings that has gripped London, she becomes entangled with Inspector Eversham, whose professional reputation is in tatters partly due to the unintended effects of her reporting.
Kate and Eversham are boring. They are supposedly fighting their attraction to each other, but to me their chemistry was nonexistent. I was far more interested in Caro and Valentine, who at least seemed to be repressing some strong emotions.
I will say however, that the author's commentary on women's rights/suffrage in this period was one of the few highlights of this book. I like that HRs are consciously adding social commentary. I just think that other books manage to talk about feminism while also being interested and this book filed to achieve that.
I'll probably end up reading the next book because I enjoyed Caro and Valentine. However, this book failed to impress. Leaving it unrated on the off chance that I change my mind upon a reread.
This is my 2nd Chloe Liese book, and like the first book of her's that I read this was a disappointment. Her characters actions don't always seem rational to me and the book was boring. I also find that books that have this sort of ‘the characters are crazy/madcap' humor really irritate me. They often strike me as trying too hard to be funny and I struggle to get through them.
1.5 stars
There were some funny moments but the book was irritating.
The circumstances of the main character's relationship with her love interest were inappropriate and should have gotten his niece barred from the school.
2.5 rounded up to a 3. Something about this book didn't quite come together for me. The last few books I've read have all been middling at best and I wonder if this has to do more with my mood than with the quality of the books I am reading. I may have to read an old favourite in order to recalibrate my reading senses.
I don't know yet if it's my favourite of the series. It'll depend on how much I reread it in the next few months, but I really enjoyed this.
Eve and Jacob are so sweet together. But while I enjoyed their romance a lot, my favourite part of the book was Eve's journey of self-acceptance. This was such a great book and I'm really sad to see this series end.
