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DROP DEAD REVIEW
RATING: 4
GENRE: Fiction, Romance
Drop Dead is Chu’s latest romance with a hint of mystery. I really enjoyed this book. The two MCs are journalist rivals and accidentally stumbled onto a scandal. The two embark on a hunt of the secret that famed author Dot Voline is keeping. During this period, the two begin to get to know each other outside of their rivalry.
This was a light read with hints of mystery and I enjoyed reading it. There was a lot of depth to the characters as both characters work through difficult family dynamics prevalent in Asian households. I enjoy a good enemy to lovers troupe and Chu definitely hits the nail with this one.
Thank you Sourcebooks Casablanca and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this ARC.
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Pretty good for a light romance read. I enjoyed the enemies to lovers trope used, the competitive nature of Wes and Nadine was also cute. I’m happy to see that it was a slight mystery with the characters searching for a story. I enjoyed the diversity of the characters and the family dynamics talked about throughout the book. I was intrigued enough to finish this audio book quickly. Very faze to black YA vibes so not really spicy
medium-paced
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
funny
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for the ARC!
I feel like the synopsis should not have mentioned that Dot dies. Rather than hitting the ground running, we spend the first quarter of the book slowly working our way through what the reader already knows. Had Dot dying been a surprise, there would be less time spent waiting for the book to get going.
Otherwise, though, it was an all right book. No glaring issues but nothing terribly stand out about it, either. Personally, I didn't really feel much romantic chemistry between Wes and Nadine. As individuals, I really liked them and I wish we had gotten more development in their personal lives outside of their relationship with each other. Their respective family dynamics were interesting! As friends, I could really see them keeping that competitive but now respectful energy they had. I liked the friendly banter they had going. As lovers? They found each other physically attractive, which we are reminded of over and over and over again. They banged. Several times and off page. I don't think they're a bad couple but I just wasn't feeling sparks. Which could very well be a me thing. I tend to gravitate more toward romances that start emotional and then turn physical, with the rare exception. That being said, the epilogue is incredibly cute!Yeah, maybe sending your girlfriend the obituary you wrote for yourself is morbid but it was perfect! So stinking cute, if a little heavy handed.
I feel like the synopsis should not have mentioned that Dot dies. Rather than hitting the ground running, we spend the first quarter of the book slowly working our way through what the reader already knows. Had Dot dying been a surprise, there would be less time spent waiting for the book to get going.
Otherwise, though, it was an all right book. No glaring issues but nothing terribly stand out about it, either. Personally, I didn't really feel much romantic chemistry between Wes and Nadine. As individuals, I really liked them and I wish we had gotten more development in their personal lives outside of their relationship with each other. Their respective family dynamics were interesting! As friends, I could really see them keeping that competitive but now respectful energy they had. I liked the friendly banter they had going. As lovers? They found each other physically attractive, which we are reminded of over and over and over again. They banged. Several times and off page. I don't think they're a bad couple but I just wasn't feeling sparks. Which could very well be a me thing. I tend to gravitate more toward romances that start emotional and then turn physical, with the rare exception. That being said, the epilogue is incredibly cute!
It was slow & I wasn’t getting into the story. Phillipa Su & John Cho did great! Just didn’t catch my attention.
I loved The Stand-In and The Comeback wasn’t bad either (even though it didn’t delight me as much as the first one, I enjoyed it a lot). But sadly I had to DNF The Takedown. I don’t even remember why exactly, but I was bored and annoyed by the FMC. But since I really liked the first two books, I wanted to give Drop Dead a chance.
And since I listened to this until 85% you can see I really did try! But I just couldn’t stand Nadine. Is it possible that Chu’s female characters are getting more annoying from book to book? Like somehow insecure but in a super condescending and judgemental way? Not sure, just really didn’t like her and the rest of the story couldn’t make up for it since it’s also pretty boring.
Also, I personally only read clean romances. I know there are a lot of readers that read romance because of the spice and I feel that this book disappointed both sorts of readers. Like it’s nothing explicit, but still too much for my personal taste. Or maybe not too much but when they kiss and eventually sleep together it comes out of nowhere (where was the tension, the chemistry and the built-up??) and after they act like it didn’t mean anything. It seemed like they, like me as a reader, were just bored so - why not..?
Only positive thing - Philipa Soo is an amazing narrator, I probably only made it to 85% because of her.
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes