Scan barcode
emptzuu's review against another edition
I should have taken Colleen Hoover's praise for this book as a warning sign, but I ignored it and kept reading. Big mistake. This book, written by women for women (and particularly for heterosexual audiences), is highly problematic and is unfortunately touted as a modern classic in M/M relationships. I've since learned that both authors have troubling histories: Sabrina Bowen often includes misogyny in her books. At the same time, Elle Kennedy fetishizes lesbian relationships and body-shames women, and her works frequently contain misogynistic themes. Starting Pride Month with a book filled with homophobia, biphobia, lesbophobia, a hint of transphobia, M/M fetishization, sexism, and racism was incredibly disheartening.
The clichés in this book are unbearable, and the "dude-bro" dialogue and behavior are even worse. Wes and Jamie interact like stereotypical teenage girls, despite their macho exteriors. Despite being friends, they never discuss their issues, feelings, or thoughts. Everything is centered around sex.
The bisexual representation is poorly executed. Jamie is depicted as being bi only for Wes. He mentions missing being with girls because of how soft they are and constantly checks out girls even when he's with Wes. Jamie's struggle with his new sexuality is minimal, which felt unrealistic. There's a minor scene where Wes squeezes Jamie's ass in public, and Jamie looks around nervously, but that's about it. When he realizes he is bi, his response is, "My family will love me anyway," which seemed too easy. I wanted more conflict, inner struggles, and mixed feelings. This portrayal reinforces harmful stereotypes about bisexual people being promiscuous or obsessed with sex.
Wes's biphobia towards Jamie is another issue. Wes believes Jamie can't be bi because he has a girlfriend and sleeps with women, a narrow-minded view. Wes fears Jamie will leave him for a woman, reinforcing the stereotype that bisexual people are cheaters or prone to polyamory. It's hypocritical that Wes, a gay man, can flirt with women, but Jamie, a bisexual man, gets called out for merely looking at a woman. Wes also corrects Jamie for a gay stereotype but then calls him "too gay" for anything remotely gay.
The book also fetishizes lesbians. When Jamie is "struggling" with his sexuality, he watches lesbian porn, claiming he loves seeing two women together. Jamie, you can like women without fetishizing lesbians. Additionally, there's a tasteless comment about trans people: "I could announce I wanted to live my life as a transsexual vampire yeti, and they’d still say, ‘Oh, Jamie. You’re so cute.'"
The misogyny in this book is appalling. Women are depicted as bitches, puck bunnies, a pair of tits (or a nice rack), desperate, a good lay, and little else. Wes is portrayed as so attractive that any woman literally foams at the mouth upon seeing him. There are random instances where a woman simply exists, and Wes mentally dismisses her with, "Those (boobs, idk dude) don't work on me sweetheart." Wes constantly calls women "doll," like a caricature from 1920s New York City.
Wes's tribal tattoos are another issue. Though the specifics aren't mentioned, it's in bad taste for an author to include tribal tattoos without cultural context. These tattoos hold deep meaning for the cultures they originate from, and appropriating them is damaging. Wes having "golden-toned" skin is another questionable detail. Moreover, the book includes a racial slur, further highlighting its insensitivity.
The clichés in this book are unbearable, and the "dude-bro" dialogue and behavior are even worse. Wes and Jamie interact like stereotypical teenage girls, despite their macho exteriors. Despite being friends, they never discuss their issues, feelings, or thoughts. Everything is centered around sex.
The bisexual representation is poorly executed. Jamie is depicted as being bi only for Wes. He mentions missing being with girls because of how soft they are and constantly checks out girls even when he's with Wes. Jamie's struggle with his new sexuality is minimal, which felt unrealistic. There's a minor scene where Wes squeezes Jamie's ass in public, and Jamie looks around nervously, but that's about it. When he realizes he is bi, his response is, "My family will love me anyway," which seemed too easy. I wanted more conflict, inner struggles, and mixed feelings. This portrayal reinforces harmful stereotypes about bisexual people being promiscuous or obsessed with sex.
Wes's biphobia towards Jamie is another issue. Wes believes Jamie can't be bi because he has a girlfriend and sleeps with women, a narrow-minded view. Wes fears Jamie will leave him for a woman, reinforcing the stereotype that bisexual people are cheaters or prone to polyamory. It's hypocritical that Wes, a gay man, can flirt with women, but Jamie, a bisexual man, gets called out for merely looking at a woman. Wes also corrects Jamie for a gay stereotype but then calls him "too gay" for anything remotely gay.
The book also fetishizes lesbians. When Jamie is "struggling" with his sexuality, he watches lesbian porn, claiming he loves seeing two women together. Jamie, you can like women without fetishizing lesbians. Additionally, there's a tasteless comment about trans people: "I could announce I wanted to live my life as a transsexual vampire yeti, and they’d still say, ‘Oh, Jamie. You’re so cute.'"
The misogyny in this book is appalling. Women are depicted as bitches, puck bunnies, a pair of tits (or a nice rack), desperate, a good lay, and little else. Wes is portrayed as so attractive that any woman literally foams at the mouth upon seeing him. There are random instances where a woman simply exists, and Wes mentally dismisses her with, "Those (boobs, idk dude) don't work on me sweetheart." Wes constantly calls women "doll," like a caricature from 1920s New York City.
Wes's tribal tattoos are another issue. Though the specifics aren't mentioned, it's in bad taste for an author to include tribal tattoos without cultural context. These tattoos hold deep meaning for the cultures they originate from, and appropriating them is damaging. Wes having "golden-toned" skin is another questionable detail. Moreover, the book includes a racial slur, further highlighting its insensitivity.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Biphobia, Lesbophobia, Racial slurs, Transphobia, Homophobia, Misogyny, and Cultural appropriation
leahkarge's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I’m conflicted on how to rate this. Overall, the plot was enjoyable and a good friends to lovers storyline. But there are a lot of issues that I would’ve expected to be edited out or modified when it was re-released in 2021. I probably would’ve enjoyed this more if I’d read it in 2015 when it was initially published and before I started learning how to really tackle my own internalized misogyny, fatphobia, and queerphobia.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Homophobia, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Biphobia, and Transphobia
gmelrose's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
2.0
So. Elle Kennedy is undoubtedly one of the worst current, more famous authors out there.
The book was fine, readable, up until the casual misogyny, racism (that I assume both authors shouldn't have written in) and homophobia, coupled with multiple f-slurs (which also- authors, queer or not- shouldn't have tried to reclaim). What really made me lose it was at 95% of my ebook, where one of the characters says, and I quote, "I could announce I wanted to live my life as a transsexual vampire yeti, and they’d still say ‘Oh, Jamie. You’re so cute.’" I might be reading too much into this, but since when is being trans- (-sexual or -gender) a bad thing? Where one shouldn't need the love they deserve for being who they are? Which is also a big plot of the book, being queer and homophobia. The irony.
Anyways, this book really... sucked. But seriously. Making being trans out to be a bad thing was the cherry on top.
The book was fine, readable, up until the casual misogyny, racism (that I assume both authors shouldn't have written in) and homophobia, coupled with multiple f-slurs (which also- authors, queer or not- shouldn't have tried to reclaim). What really made me lose it was at 95% of my ebook, where one of the characters says, and I quote, "I could announce I wanted to live my life as a transsexual vampire yeti, and they’d still say ‘Oh, Jamie. You’re so cute.’" I might be reading too much into this, but since when is being trans- (-sexual or -gender) a bad thing? Where one shouldn't need the love they deserve for being who they are? Which is also a big plot of the book, being queer and homophobia. The irony.
Anyways, this book really... sucked. But seriously. Making being trans out to be a bad thing was the cherry on top.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Homophobia, Transphobia, Sexism, and Racism
lexa's review against another edition
3.5
Steamy, best friends to lovers, hockey camp.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Biphobia, Homophobia, and Sexual content
Minor: Transphobia, Alcohol, and Vomit
More...