I read A Brush With Love in the beginning of the year and fell head over heels in love with its entire cast of characters, the romance, the m2.5 stars
I read A Brush With Love in the beginning of the year and fell head over heels in love with its entire cast of characters, the romance, the mental health representation that made me feel incredibly seen, and Mazey Eddings' writing - Eddings is a phenomenal writer who manages to make you feel so much for these characters she creates and writes stories that are funny engaging and endearing. Suffice to say, I was so excited for Lizzie Blake's Best Mistake, I didn't even care to read the synopsis (a common thing I do when a favorite author of mine announces a new book); well, that was MY mistake because I went into it without the knowledge that this book has my least favorite trope ever: unexpected pregnancy.. I immediately regretted requestinhg an ARC because i knew that my review wouldn't be that fair, considered my biased opinion, but since loving Edding's first book so much, I thought it wouldn't hurt to give it a shot.
Honestly, at the end of the day, the trope did hinder my ability to enjoy the story quite a bit. Not only that, but I just didn't feel the chemistry between the two characters at all. To me, what they had was lust. From the beginning of the story to the very end, I didn't feel the romantic love that characters and author attempted to describe, and it felt really hard for me to care about where the romance was going, and led me to care much more about the main character, Lizzie, and her friends.
The writing style paired with the hilarious main character definitely made for an entertaining story and Lizzie was an absolutely charming and lovable character. But that also took away from Rake's POV and made him a boring and depthless character compared to Lizzie's warm and larger than life personality. Every time we got to a Rake POV, I just wanted to go back to Lizzie's. I just feel like there wasn't much to him that made me care. Although the book overall wasn't a favorite, Lizzie will be going into my favorite characters list for sure, and was the best thing about this book for me.
I also always love the way Eddings incorporates mental health into her stories and writes it with a lot of care and respect. Lizzie's personal growth as she struggles with managing her ADHD and the supportive group she surrounds herself with, it was so heartwarming to read about.
At the end of the day, I think this one just wasn't for me. It wasn't necessarily bad and if you enjoy the unexpected pregnancy trope, i believe this to be surely enjoyable to you. I personally just had a hard time believing in the romance, and the pregnancy itself is never something I care much about reading. The male character lacked depth and the romance lacked chemistry, but the main character was amazing and so was her funny and loving friends. I will still be reading anything else that Mazey Eddings releases in the future, as, like I said before, this is more a case of "it's not you, it's me" than the quality of the story....more
I’m sad to say this as I’ve loved the other books in this series SO MUCH and really liked getting to know Oliver in the previous books but… this was aI’m sad to say this as I’ve loved the other books in this series SO MUCH and really liked getting to know Oliver in the previous books but… this was a huge disappointment for me.
Firstly, It felt like reading a Ted Lasso fanfiction and Gavin was a badly executed wannabe Roy Kent. I really loved Oliver’s POV but Gavin just wasn’t an interesting character to me.
The romance felt like it lacked some buildup, which I think is the fault of the 4 year time jump in the beginning and the fact that due to that we barely saw the evolution from hate to love since most of the hate happened in those 4 years.
Even the family dynamic annoyed me in this book, which upsets me because I love this family so much.
I’m so sad I disliked this but hoping the next book will make up for it!...more
This book had a lot of potential but at the end of the day it just feel short and was pretty forgettable. I didn’t really care for any of the characteThis book had a lot of potential but at the end of the day it just feel short and was pretty forgettable. I didn’t really care for any of the characters - actually, they both annoyed me quite a bit - and the romance just happened so fast. One of the things I love the most in romance novels and contemporary ya is when a couple has a bit of a longer development before they get together… specially if they were strangers before. Don’t get me wrong, it doesn’t need to take 80% of the book for them to get together, but I also don’t want them to already date way before 50%. It really makes me feel more of their chemistry and honestly I just love the process of going from strangers to friends to dating.. I would’ve loved to see that with Amber and Jack. I guess I just expected more from the story; I was so excited when I read the synopsis! A female football player and a cheerleader, like, are you kidding me?!!! I wanted to love it so bad, but I guess it just wasn’t exactly what I wanted it to be in the end. I did think Amber and Jack were super cute, I just think the story could’ve been a bit longer with a bit of a better development so that I could have created a better connection to the characters.
The narration also wasn’t my favorite, and maybe that contributed to my overall mixed feelings. It wasn’t bad at all but it also wasn’t comparable to some of my top favorite audiobooks at all.
Overall, it was a bit disappointing for me, but I would still add it to some of my recommendation lists!...more
Knox was unbearable and exactly the type of male character I dislike. The romance was so underwhelming. Some of the plot was intriguing and that’s whyKnox was unbearable and exactly the type of male character I dislike. The romance was so underwhelming. Some of the plot was intriguing and that’s why I kept on reading, along with the fact that I was rooting for Naomi and loving the relationship she was developing with her niece so much. Some scenes were also pretty funny! But I couldn’t understand Knox’s appeal at all....more
I want to start by pointing out that ever since starting this series, the romance has never been a favorite part... not So this was... disappointing.
I want to start by pointing out that ever since starting this series, the romance has never been a favorite part... not even a top 5. Honestly, Aldrik was a pretty unpleasant love interest to read about, and he treats Vhalla so badly throughout 99% of Air Awakens which just made me unable to really enjoy him. I did enjoy the plot, magic system and world building, and writing was pleasant, and so even with the disappointing romance, I decided to continue the series. And honestly, I was happy I did; I ended up LOVING Fire Falling. Yeah it is slower, and definitely fell under the second book syndrome when it comes to plot, but the characters had such great developments, the romance was much better and Vhalla finally found good friends that weren't unbearable. After finishing book 2 I was so excited to continue the series and dive into Earth's End. But this book was... a mess.
I will start with what I enjoyed, which unfortunately was not much but did stand out enough to make me want to continue the series and read book 4.
The first positive was Vhalla. What a great character development! I love that she got the chance to use the knowledge she acquired during her time working in the library, I loved seeing her embrace her powers even more and slowly become a real badass. I love that she feels less naive and more sure of who she is. Some things about her character still annoy me (I will get to that soon) but I also like that she is not perfect. Yes, she got a great development but she feels more real having flaws than she would if she was a pitch perfect. She feels more human and i really like that.
Second positive was of course the Golden Guard. I read the first book in the Golden Guard series before I started Air Awakens, and although I truly believe it was a mistake plot-wise, I loved the excitement I felt seeing Jax and Erion again. He is by far one of my favorite characters in this universe. I also of course loved every Baldair scene in this, as usual. I loved the slow friendship he is creating with Vhalla and honestly, I could just read a whole book about him breathing and I would probably give it 5 stars. i love him so much.
Third positive... I did like the plot. I felt a bit all over the place sometimes but it was pretty engaging and made me want to keep reading, so thats always a good thing.
So now for the negative...
Aldrik. What the hell happened to him? He was a completely different character in this book. And listen, I did believe he needed a development. I hated him in the first book, and i felt like with book 2 we were going somewhere with him, he was getting better.... but he just woke up from what happened to him in Fire Falling and just.... took a completely one 180 and become this love sick puppy whose only apparent purpose is to call Vhalla "My lady, my love" 825672457624857 times and to profess his love to her in 10 thousand different cheesy and cringy ways. He literally felt like a different character from the one i had come to know in the first two books and the difference was so sudden it just didn't feel like a realistic character development at all.
now, were there some positives about the romance? sure. I liked that Aldrik gave Vhalla the floor to talk about things in front of the other nobles. he empowered her and was incredibly supportive and I really appreciated that, but I felt like it was overshadowed the cheesiness of it all. By the cringy declarations of love and the annoying pet name.
And then, at the end, Aldrik does another 180 and turns back into the rude prince he was in Air Awakens FOR ABSOLUTE NO FREAKING REASON. He literally slut shames her along with many other terrible degrading names he calls her, hits her (and I don't care that it was by accident, it was still inexcusable).
Not to mention how toxic their relationship had become even before this stupid "conflict" at the end. They rely on each other for everything. There are so many lines throughout the book that scream codependency. Even after everything Aldrik degrades Vhalla, she still constantly thinks about him and doesn't seem that mad (more sad than anything else) and honestly, I wanted to scream at her that she deserves so much better!
I'm in too deep to not finish this series now but knowing the fate of my favorite character (yes I know this spoiler, don't judge me but I'm actually glad I know.. I've been preparing since book 1, lol) I keep wondering if its worth it. I'll be taking a quick break from the series to read a few other books and meanwhile i will be deciding what i will do with the rest of the series.. I am so disappointed and sad....more
I really enjoyed this book. All the characters are fun, the story kept me engaged and I absolutely love some of the tropes featured. But eve3.5 stars
I really enjoyed this book. All the characters are fun, the story kept me engaged and I absolutely love some of the tropes featured. But even though I had a great time reading it, compared to most of Penny’s other books, there were a few details that fell short for me.
A big one was the lack of a dual POV. For a few books with characters like Rex (broody, quiet, etc) single POV books work. I didn’t feel like it worked with this one. I think my problem is that maybe if this book was a bit longer, with more scenes between the characters, I would’ve bought the big reveal that Rex was in love with Abby. I think I was just as confused during him revealIng his feelings for her as Abby was when he told her. they spent such a big part of the story just chatting via messages, and a lot of those messages didn’t even show up on page, they were mentioned by the heroine, so it was hard to believe him. Maybe if he had some POV chapters, and the reader was able to get inside his head and understand more of his thought process, this progress of their relationship would’ve felt more believable to me, specially the hero’s side. I thought Abby had a very well done, organic development of big (love) feelings for Rex, but with Rex everything just felt too sudden for me.
The second thing is kind of connected to the first. The first half-ish (maybe a bit more than 50%) was a great slow burn! I did wish they could’ve spent more time physically together (like I mentioned previously) but I was enjoying that their actual romantic feelings for each other seemed to be developing slowly and for most of that first half the book definitely felt like a slow burn. But as soon they got together, the book felt rushed. It’s hard to explain this, but every milestone as soon as they got together just happened too fast for my taste. If the book could’ve been a few pages/chapters longer, with a few more scenes of Abby and Rex getting to know each other while fake married, and then a few more scenes of them slowly falling in love, I think maybe this book would’ve been a huge win for me! I swear, it had so much potential!
The characters were great. Abby stood on her own. Even though I did feel like the book suffered with the lack of Rex POVs, Abby was interesting, and fun enough that the book that never felt draggy or boring. I loved getting to know her! Penny always does write amazing and strong female characters that I always fall in love with and relate to. Homecoming King wasn’t any different.
Rex, on the other hand, was difficult to get to know. I think if he had gotten a POV of his own I would’ve absolutely ADORED him. I loved broody-but-is-actually-very-soft character and he was a genuinely nice guy! But i didn’t create any emotional connection to him since I just didn’t know him. He avoided Abby a lot, and when he talked to her it was through text message for a big chunk of the story, so he was barely on page as it was! Like I mentioned, this book might’ve become a favorite if it wasn’t for this important detail.
I loved the side characters. I loved Cyrus (HE NEEDS A BOOK PLEASE!), Walker, Vanessa and Rex’s aunt and uncle were so sweet! I am definitely excited for the next book in the series.
Even though this wasn’t a favorite by the author, it was still enjoyable! It was a great Christmas story with a few of my favorite tropes: marriage of convenience and the grumpy and quiet guy who is in love with the girl but the girl is clueless. I recommend it to any Penny Reid and Wall of Winnipeg fan!...more
I’m disappointed in this one! I just had to force myself to finish, and I found the romance to be super bland and lacking chemistry! I loved Dallas anI’m disappointed in this one! I just had to force myself to finish, and I found the romance to be super bland and lacking chemistry! I loved Dallas and Beau though! And I’m excited to read Wicked Hearts....more
I already had many problems with this story after book 2 but was still hoping book 3 would be better... but I had so many problems right offDNF @ 11%
I already had many problems with this story after book 2 but was still hoping book 3 would be better... but I had so many problems right off the bat with the book I would rather read something else!...more
I’m not gonna lie, this was super boring. The romance didn’t have much developed, and I just didn’t care about the two main characters much.2.5 stars
I’m not gonna lie, this was super boring. The romance didn’t have much developed, and I just didn’t care about the two main characters much. I’m not a huge fan of the pregnancy trope so that might’ve also contributed to my overall dislike of the book. The one thing that saved it was for sure the ward family moments! I loved those so much! I’m excited to start Forbidden!...more
I have to say... I’m disappointed. I was so excited about this book! The tropes, the cover.. I was so sure I was going to love it. But this one reallyI have to say... I’m disappointed. I was so excited about this book! The tropes, the cover.. I was so sure I was going to love it. But this one really missed the mark for me, which makes me really sad because I love this author’s books!
Here are the few things I had a problem with:
• Elizabeth, the main character, had more chemistry with the hero’s brother than the hero himself. Her and Walt barely talk! And when they do, it just feels completely one sided. It doesn’t feel like Walt can stand her at all. I know he is supposed to be broody, but like, there was nothing that hinted at the fact that he had growing feelings for her at all. Their relationship was poorly developed and even though it can definitely consider it a “slow burn” because they take quite a while to actually get together, it still felt rushed because of the lack of development. Their scenes didn’t really have any spark at all. And the lack of communication!!! Dear God, that infuriated me to no end. • Walt needed chapters! He was, like I mentioned previously, a broody character that has a hard time showing his true emotions. And I’m fine with that! I really enjoy characters like that, specially when their love interest is the complete opposite. But with this book, he didn’t give any indication whatsoever he had any type of feelings for Elizabeth. It actually constantly felt like he was annoyed at her. I think this book would’ve benefited from dual povs because it would’ve been easier to understand Walt... I just didn’t feel like his character was well fleshed out. • Elizabeth was kind of annoying and extremely immature. The way she handles her problems was so childish. I also normally love bubbly and talkative characters specially when they are funny, but I just didn’t like her personality. • also the way Elizabeth’s mom and sister treat her throughout the story!!! And she just lets them walk all over her and by the end there are no satisfying closures to this part of the story. I would’ve loved to see her defend herself or stand up for herself.
I won’t lie and say there weren’t some moments I enjoyed in this book, I did give it 2 stars so it wasn’t ALL bad. I loved how Walt went to Paris to see her, I thought that was super cute! And I loved Matthew and would love to read a book about him! But it’s definitely one of my least favorite books by the author unfortunately. I’m really disappointed overall which makes me so upset because I love R.S. Grey’s books! ...more
this was okay, but I think it was a little bit underwhelming for me.
Things I liked:
• JIA! My favorite part of this book. I loved loved loved her! Sucthis was okay, but I think it was a little bit underwhelming for me.
Things I liked:
• JIA! My favorite part of this book. I loved loved loved her! Such a great character to read about. She had an amazing, loving personality, and I loved getting to know her more! • Luna! She stole the show for me. She was sooo great! • The friendship between Jia, Rhiannon and Katrina, and later on how Jia and Lakshmi became friends! I loved their scenes together and how they worked out their silly differences and started to like each other. I’ve been wanting to read more about Lakshmi since The Right Swipe so I really hope she gets her own book! This series always hits the mark perfectly when it comes to the friendships!! I’m always a fan of their scenes.
Things I didn’t like:
• unfortunately what missed the mark for me with this book was the romance. It had absolutely no depth, no development, no chemistry.. nothing. These two barely knew each other and were already so sure they were a perfect match and would make a great couple. This book is the definition of instant love and I just wasn’t a fan. I didn’t feel their connection at all. I got excited when it seemed like they would start fake dating but then things went a completely different route after that and just moved too fast for my liking. • dev.. he was just so bland. I didn’t care about his character or his POV. he barely had a personality! he was just boring in my opinion. I did enjoy how supportive he was of Jia, of course, but that was the only highlight of his character for me.
I did really enjoy Jia and the girls in this book, but I feel like this series is a constant hit or miss for me. I thought The Right Swipe was just ok, but loved Girl Gone Viral, and this one didn’t hit the mark for me either. I loved Jia in the other books so I was excited for it, and I’m glad I still loved her so much in this book, but aside from that and the scenes with the girls, I just found I had to force myself to pick it up unfortunately! ...more
although I enjoyed the plot (I think these “living through the same days over and over stories are really fun tbh) and I loved the family dy2.5 stars
although I enjoyed the plot (I think these “living through the same days over and over stories are really fun tbh) and I loved the family dynamic so much, this book might be my least favorite by Christina Lauren in the end, unfortunately.
What fell short for me was the romance. I’ve read plenty of childhood friends to lovers and I love love love this trope, it’s one of my all time favorites, but this one wasn’t as well executed as I would’ve liked. I didn’t feel like Andrew and Mae had any chemistry whatsoever. I didn’t feel anything for their scenes at all - absolutely no emotion, no even negative. There just wasn’t anything about them that I cared about, and I didn’t feel the chemistry between them at all. The last few chapters also felt incredibly rushed and underdeveloped.
I did enjoy Mae and she was a good narrator, so the story was fun/easy to read because of her POV. But overall this one just didn’t really leave a mark for me, and the romance left a lot to be desired. I’m so upset because it had a lot of what I love in romance and such an awesome family dynamic, but hopefully CL’s next book will be more of a hit for me, because this one was for sure a miss....more
I’m so disappointed! I was so excited for this book. It sounded like it would be such a good romcom. But 100 pages in, I knew it wasn’t for me.
To staI’m so disappointed! I was so excited for this book. It sounded like it would be such a good romcom. But 100 pages in, I knew it wasn’t for me.
To start off, Annika was infuriating. She was childish and petty and just an overall brat for pretty much the entirety of this book. She never got any type of development or growth, in the end everything just worked out exactly like she wanted it to. Also Annika goes from accusing Hudson of stealing an idea she had for years and told him about the first time they met to telling him she had this idea partly because of him? What? What is the truth? That made no sense!
Hudson wasn’t much better either. He just had no personality, I had absolutely no interest in him. His excuse for why he created such a terrible app was so stupid... you knew her for 7 days! get over yourself. He annoyed me so much from the very first few moments he showed up. He says he has been in love with Annika since their first meeting but I just did not see that all with the way he treated her/acted (and his excuse of doing that because he wants to have her close? yeah, I’m sorry but did not buy that. At all).
Both of these characters treated each other so badly. They were so damn childish with their fights and trying to one up each other. There was absolutely no chemistry between them at all. The enemies to lovers aspect was anticlimactic at best, there was barely any development. I couldn’t stand any of their scenes together, they literally sounded like children. There was no spark between them at all.
Honestly, I didn’t even care about the side characters either. They weren’t bad or anything like that, but at the end of the day they also were not memorable at all either.
The only reason I’m giving this 2 stars is because I enjoyed the girl power in this book quite a lot. If there is one thing I admired about Annika is how she didn’t give up and how she was so focused on her business and on her dream, and how she made sure to inspire young girls to do the same. That was a positive in the story for me.
Overall, this was a let down. I’m disappointed as i was so excited for the book and happy when I got the opportunity to read and review it early! But it just wasn’t for me. ...more
The only reason why I am giving this 2 stars is because despite everything I enjoyed the first part of the story. It’s when the second part hit that IThe only reason why I am giving this 2 stars is because despite everything I enjoyed the first part of the story. It’s when the second part hit that I lost my interest in the book.
See, like most R.S. Grey books, I thought it was a very funny story! She is great with the humor and it’s why I love her stories so much: they never fail to make me laugh. But aside from that, I didn’t care about anything else in the book at all unfortunately.
The second part is filled with so much miscommunication from both Maddie and Aiden, it just drove me nuts. I’m not a miscommunication hater because I feel like when done well (like, when it adds satisfying angst to the story) it can be satisfying but in this instance the characters were just so damn childish and made me want to scream at kindle.. I was just so annoyed. What was supposed to be angsty plot was just overall annoying and to be honest, quite stupid. Both of these characters constantly blamed one another for their loss of touch, when neither Aiden or Maddie did anything about it when Aiden leaves for NYC. Aiden claims he has “always loved Maddie” but his lack of POV in the first half and even his actions towards her in the first half don’t really hint towards that. You don’t really imagine he likes her until you get his side of the story in part II, and by then it’s just hard to believe because you never SAW it happen. So the first part just feels like the usual annoying “girl pinned again womanizing male friend while friend has absolutely no idea,” and I absolutely hate that trope.
I was excited for this as I feel like RS Grey doesn’t write enough friends to lovers and also because I love her books and her humor, but it’s probably my least favorite book by her. I just wasn’t a fan. I had to force myself to finish it. I just didn’t like any of these characters.
I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review....more
I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. I really enjoy Kandi’s books, I’m a big fan of her work and although I haveDNF @ 60%.
I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. I really enjoy Kandi’s books, I’m a big fan of her work and although I have not read everything she has written, I’ve enjoyed and even added some of her works to my all time favorites list! Unfortunately, this is by far my least favorite book I’ve ever read by her. I’m all for a soft hero, that’s something I’m always hoping for more of in romance, but this one just really missed the mark for me. The outright lying/not telling the heroine who he is really made me not be able to enjoy this book at all, and I couldn’t get myself to finish. It just annoyed me to no end. Lying is a big no no for me in romance specially to this extent (60% in and he still had no plans to tell the heroine who he was! yikes).
I’m sad to DNF a Kandi book as I love her writing and romances but this one just wasn’t for me! ...more
DNF @ 57%. There wasn’t anything wrong with this book but there also wasn’t anything that urged me to keep going. I loved The Hunger Games trilogy bacDNF @ 57%. There wasn’t anything wrong with this book but there also wasn’t anything that urged me to keep going. I loved The Hunger Games trilogy back in the day, and was excited to read this one. But it just didn’t keep my interest enough and I don’t want to force myself to read something I’m not enjoying. It was intriguing to see how much of the games has changed before katniss, but aside from that I don’t really care about the plot, or any of the characters. ...more
“I do. Trust you. Tell me the sky is purple. Convince me two and two is five.” He made a face that told me exactly how disturbed he was at the math. ““I do. Trust you. Tell me the sky is purple. Convince me two and two is five.” He made a face that told me exactly how disturbed he was at the math. “Tell me you love me,” I said. With a slow smile, he leaned in and whispered, “Now that I can do.”
2.5 stars :(
I absolutely love this series. Anyone who knows me knows this. I’ve been fortunate to review both Coming Up Roses & Gilded Lily, and the latter is my favorite Staci Hart to date. So, obviously, this was one of my most anticipated March releases, and I kept counting down the days until this dropped on my kindle. It pains me so much to say that Mum’s the Word did not live up to my expectations at all.
I want to start off by saying that there was nothing wrong with this book. This is a big case of it’s not you, it’s me. There were actually a lot of positives about it, but in the long run, I don’t think I cared about the bigger plot points of this book to give it a higher rating.
I will start off with the positive and say that I loved Maise and Marcus as individuals. They were both great characters. There was no moment in the book where I got annoyed by either of them, or disliked a POV more than the other. Maise’s journey was great, I loved seeing her stand up for herself and find her ground by the end. Her relationship with her dad was also so nice, I absolutely loved their scenes. And Marcus was also great too. I loved seeing how love changed him. He wasn’t someone to jump head first, blind, but his love for Maise made him do that. He stopped being so uptight all the time, and I enjoyed that.
I also loved the scenes between the Bennets. I love their mom, and I specifically loved her relationship with Marcus the most. And I just love all of the siblings. I can’t wait for the twin’s story! Super excited for Pride and Papercuts.
Now, for the reason this wasn’t a hit for me: quite honestly, the romance threw me off. It was love at first sight to the T, and although this is not the most terrible trope in the word, and I’ve enjoyed several books with it in the past, this one just really wasn’t executed that well in my opinion. I wish it had been more of an infatuation first, and I wish they had had a better first convo where I could’ve SEEN why they had this huge connection right off the bat. I feel like their romance wasn’t shown as much as it was described, and that made me not buy it as much as I wished, and because of that, I just genuinely found myself not caring at all about the romance, and in many moments cringing during a line or two. It was poor development in my eyes, and it just upset me so much because of how much I enjoyed these two characters.
In the end, like I mentioned, this is going to be a case of “it’s not you, it’s me.” Which is so sad, because of how much I love this series & how excited I was. It’s the last book, I wanted to love it! I’ll still look forward to Staci Hart’s releases in the future, as I’ve enjoyed much more by her than I’ve disliked (I really think this is the first one I just didn’t like).
Please don’t let this one review with a lower rating stop you from starting the series. The 2nd book in this series is like, by far my favorite book ever by Staci, so that should tell you something. This was just unfortunate bad luck!
*i received an arc from the author in exchange for an honest review*...more
I didn’t think this was exactly bad, but I did find the dialogue extremely cringy, and I think that took away from my overall enjoyment. I en2.5 stars
I didn’t think this was exactly bad, but I did find the dialogue extremely cringy, and I think that took away from my overall enjoyment. I enjoyed the female character, and I’m actually very intrigued about the rest of the characters and their books. It was a fast paced book, and I liked that it was one of the first books with the brother’s best friend trope where the best friend is the one that has the crush on his best friends’ sister first, before she ever notices her feelings for him. But honestly I just couldn’t look past the cringy dialogue, I really disliked that.
overall not a bad book but I feel like it could for sure have been better. My family has a pizza store tho so it was fun to read about that dynamic! ...more
This one started super strong for me. The beginning was so fun, and the interactions between Jo and Emma were making me smile so much. But I 3.5 stars
This one started super strong for me. The beginning was so fun, and the interactions between Jo and Emma were making me smile so much. But I don’t know why, halfway through, something shifted. It’s not that I didn’t enjoy the book as a whole. I was still enjoying the romance quite a lot and the build up was done beautifully, not to mention the writing, which I adored! I also absolutely loved the setting, as well as the amazing cast of side characters.
Unfortunately, I felt like the drama between the two main character was a little frustrating and left me confused because it felt a little silly, as well as all the miscommunication that happened between the two main characters later on in the book. I also found myself being annoyed with Jo quite a bit throughout the novel, and not agreeing with some of her actions.
Emma though, was my favorite character! I adored pretty much everything about her! She was such a great character to read about, and it was so easy to fall for her and her personality.
Overall, this was a fun debut, with amazing writing and great characters! The romance was super cute and it’s build up was so well done. It just missed the mark for me on a few aspects, but it was still such a solid and beautifully done debut and I look forward to reading more by Meryl Wilsner in the future for sure!...more
“I can’t wait to make more music with you, Bette. I missed your terrible poetry.” Stroking my fingers across his cheek, I lost myself in his brown eye“I can’t wait to make more music with you, Bette. I missed your terrible poetry.” Stroking my fingers across his cheek, I lost myself in his brown eyes. “And I love your clumsy notes.”
3.5
As soon as I finished The Moth and the Flame a few days ago, I was super excited to finally read this one! I loved Jamie since The Peer and the Puppet, and Bee always intrigued me, although there wasn’t that much info about her yet for me to form a real opinion on her.
And, surprisingly, upon finishing this book, my favorite part of it was definitely Bee! She was such an awesome surprise. She was nothing like what I imagined she would be, but that didn’t take away from my enjoyment of her character at all.. in fact, in think canon Bee is 10x better than what I ever imagined she would be like. One of the strongest characters I’ve ever read about, she broke my heart a million times over, but she also made me smile just as much. Bee quickly infiltrated my heart, and I think I love her just as much as I love Lou!
I also really loved the romance. There were a few things about it that I wasn’t a fan of, but that might more of a personal opinion than actual problems to be honest. Regardless, I think it’s a reason why at the end, what I predicted didn’t really become true: I thought Jamie and Bee were going to become my favorite couple, but after finishing this one I have to say that Wren and Lou continue to hold that spot! Although, that is not to say I don’t love JamieBee, they are definitely a close second. But even with all of that, I just thought JamieBee had amazing chemistry, which was always there from the very first book, but seeing it from their POV was truly something else entirely. I also loved the flashbacks and seeing their younger selves so much, and watching them fall in love for the first time.
There were a few other things about this one that I wasn’t a fan of, like chapter 21... and how Four and Bee’s relationship played out... that was a bit disappointing for me to be honest. I just keep imagining if people’s reactions to it wouldn’t be different if Four was a guy. I don’t know, maybe, like I mentioned above, it’s just me. But to me that entire “plot” felt unnecessary and made me a little bit uncomfortable.
Lastly, I am very very excited for Vaughn’s book now. I don’t really like what we found out about him and Tyra’s relationship in the end, but, if Tyra really ends up being his LI, which I don’t see how it wouldn’t be her, I’m definitely excited to see how BB plays it out! I love Tyra so I do hope she is his Li, and Vaughn and Tyra caught my attention from their very first interaction in The Peer and the Puppet, so I do feel like their book could potentially become a favorite, and it definitely made its way into one of my most anticipated books of 2020(?)
All in all, I really loved this. I feel like this series improves with each book, and although it was not my favorite so far, it was still SO good, I truly could not stop reading it, and Bee was SUCH a pleasant surprise!!! Love her to pieces!!...more
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