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ladyhawke's review against another edition
4.0
Lotus doesn’t have the emotional intensity or depth of Still Beating or The Wrong Heart, but it’s still a good read, even if it does have some cheesy lines. The story is unique though I was expecting something darker initially. Interesting plot twist and reveals towards the end. It was fun watching Oliver’s character unfurl and evolve; His innocence and directness were so refreshing on the page, and also a stark contrast to Sydney’s annoying but very real self-sabotaging that so many people often do in real life. Some interesting lessons there.
I think my biggest hangup with the story was the connection drawing Sydney and Oliver together even after all those years apart. They were 8-9(?) years old when Oliver was kidnapped. I can understand Oliver holding on to some distant, blurry version of Syd real or not because he only had himself. But for Sydney to have had and held onto such strong childhood feelings of love for 22 years — hmmm. Seems a stretch. [not that most of the books I enjoy reading are rooted in much reality]. Still— weird.
I think my biggest hangup with the story was the connection drawing Sydney and Oliver together even after all those years apart. They were 8-9(?) years old when Oliver was kidnapped. I can understand Oliver holding on to some distant, blurry version of Syd real or not because he only had himself. But for Sydney to have had and held onto such strong childhood feelings of love for 22 years — hmmm. Seems a stretch. [not that most of the books I enjoy reading are rooted in much reality]. Still— weird.
lqveletters's review against another edition
4.0
This Book. This book was a solid 4.5 read, i absolutely adored it!
The characters Sydney and Oliver are so beautiful, flawed and easy to relate to and that's what makes it so easy and quick to be empathizing for them and feeling their emotions throughout the book. And every twist and turn was so unexpected, i was truly so enamored by it.
Sydney Neville is a sarcastic, funny and beautiful woman who owns mine... And Oliver's heart. Her flaws and her habit to quickly retreat back into her own shell or build up stone walls around her is something so many people out there can relate to.
Oliver Lynch is the picture perfect guy. He's shy and calm, sweet and careful. He has a wonderful vocabulary AND he cooks and cleans. The author truly brought all cards to the table when writing this wonderful character. He was so relatable for me as a person gone through trauma that i found myself crying over some parts.
Overall, Jennifer Hartmann I LOVE YOU AND YOUR BOOK LOTUS WITH ALL MY HEART. This is soon going to be someone else's 5 star read and i can't wait for it!
4.5/5 ⭐
100% recommend!
The characters Sydney and Oliver are so beautiful, flawed and easy to relate to and that's what makes it so easy and quick to be empathizing for them and feeling their emotions throughout the book. And every twist and turn was so unexpected, i was truly so enamored by it.
Sydney Neville is a sarcastic, funny and beautiful woman who owns mine... And Oliver's heart. Her flaws and her habit to quickly retreat back into her own shell or build up stone walls around her is something so many people out there can relate to.
Oliver Lynch is the picture perfect guy. He's shy and calm, sweet and careful. He has a wonderful vocabulary AND he cooks and cleans. The author truly brought all cards to the table when writing this wonderful character. He was so relatable for me as a person gone through trauma that i found myself crying over some parts.
Overall, Jennifer Hartmann I LOVE YOU AND YOUR BOOK LOTUS WITH ALL MY HEART. This is soon going to be someone else's 5 star read and i can't wait for it!
4.5/5 ⭐
100% recommend!
steph2307's review against another edition
dark
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
slow-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
3.5
rrr18's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
cc0906's review against another edition
dark
emotional
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Child abuse, Gun violence, Fire/Fire injury, Pregnancy, Kidnapping, Sexual assault, Confinement, and Stalking
exquisite_tragedy's review against another edition
3.0
Tropes/Themes:
-dark romance (see TWs below)
-friends to lovers
-damaged hero
-slow burn
TWs for child abduction, sexual assault of a child, physical assault
I'm a little bummed I didn't like this as much as Still Beating, but this was still such an addicting and heart wrenching read. I think my biggest issue here was that I just couldn’t connect to Sydney (h) like I wanted to. I found her a little frustrating and selfish at times. Oliver (H) was a sweet baby angel that deserved all of the happiness in the world, so there were several times where I wanted to shake Oliver and tell him he deserved so much better. Regardless, there were a lot of really beautiful moments between the two and the ending made me SOB.
This book is a standalone but does contain some references and characters from Still Beating. You don’t need to read Still Beating first in order to enjoy this one.
-dark romance (see TWs below)
-friends to lovers
-damaged hero
-slow burn
TWs for child abduction, sexual assault of a child, physical assault
I'm a little bummed I didn't like this as much as Still Beating, but this was still such an addicting and heart wrenching read. I think my biggest issue here was that I just couldn’t connect to Sydney (h) like I wanted to. I found her a little frustrating and selfish at times. Oliver (H) was a sweet baby angel that deserved all of the happiness in the world, so there were several times where I wanted to shake Oliver and tell him he deserved so much better. Regardless, there were a lot of really beautiful moments between the two and the ending made me SOB.
This book is a standalone but does contain some references and characters from Still Beating. You don’t need to read Still Beating first in order to enjoy this one.
tmager's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
ashleylynnreads's review against another edition
5.0
Oh my gosh, I have not read a book to where it was like a three star reading the beginning and then it turned into a five star like wow! Jennifer Hartmann again you have made me a fan! The book start out slow. I will give it that but those last 150 pages oh my goodness. It saved the whole book. I was brought to this author by Booktok for still beating, and I am not disappointed I will be buying more of this author
virgobabe's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
bamblambooks's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0