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abidavisf's review
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
I’ve waited thirteen years for a book like this. As someone with suspected endometriosis who lives everyday in pain, who consistently feels misunderstood, like a burden, and worries what those in my life really think when I have to cancel plans or tell them I’m hurting or stumble over my words because I can’t catch my breath let alone form a sentence, Finding Gene Kelly was the reassurance I needed.
For one, several of Evie’s symptoms are things that I’ve experienced but nobody else in my life has, even my friends with endo. To read about Evie having the same issues reassured me that it isn’t just me and also that I am right to keep pushing for a diagnosis. The mental journey that Evie goes through hit me so hard, from never feeling like it’s possible to have a normal day to feeling like attempting to make or hold down relationships is pointless because who would want to stick around for this?
Thank you, Torie Jean, for sharing this story with us. I feel so seen. I cannot begin to explain how much I needed these words.
For one, several of Evie’s symptoms are things that I’ve experienced but nobody else in my life has, even my friends with endo. To read about Evie having the same issues reassured me that it isn’t just me and also that I am right to keep pushing for a diagnosis. The mental journey that Evie goes through hit me so hard, from never feeling like it’s possible to have a normal day to feeling like attempting to make or hold down relationships is pointless because who would want to stick around for this?
Thank you, Torie Jean, for sharing this story with us. I feel so seen. I cannot begin to explain how much I needed these words.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Chronic illness
Moderate: Body shaming, Fatphobia, Infertility, Panic attacks/disorders, Medical content, and Pregnancy
carlaah1984's review
funny
hopeful
inspiring
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
I'm biased toward this book, but as someone with endometriosis, I loved how it's shown and written about here. Evie has many relatable experiences, feelings, and fears it was great to see it in a book. Showing Liam, Eli, Maria, and others as caring and supportive is wonderful to see for people with endo, and I would hope for people with different chronic illnesses as well. I also love old musicals, thanks to my grandma, and former football players, and faking dating is my preferred troupe, so it feels like this book was written for me.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Chronic illness
Minor: Emotional abuse, Infertility, and Gaslighting
banksa's review
emotional
funny
lighthearted
sad
medium-paced
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Body shaming, Chronic illness, Fatphobia, Infertility, Sexual content, Medical content, Pregnancy, and Gaslighting
anniereads221's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
medium-paced
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Body shaming, Chronic illness, Emotional abuse, Infertility, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Grief, and Pregnancy
Endometriosis chronic illness Toxic relationship with mother Survivors guiltdarknesslighttt's review
emotional
hopeful
informative
lighthearted
medium-paced
4.5
𝗧𝗿𝗼𝗽𝗲𝘀: fake dating, childhood friends to lovers, enemies to lovers, he falls first, brother's best friend
𝗧𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗴𝗲𝗿𝘀: chronic pain, endometriosis, toxic parental relationship, mentions of depression and anxiety, vomiting, mourning a loved one who passed many years ago, discussions of infertility
I LOVED THIS BOOK SO MUCH!!!
Evie is brave, funny and struggling with her insecurities. I really enjoyed watching her grow and star to love herself.
Liam is very supportive, full of charm, tender and would do anything for Evie.
The book makes you feel many things. It makes you have butterflies in your stomach but at the same time you also feel Evie's pain. I really appreciate that the author didn't hide from all the aspects related to endometriosis and that she brought aspects to light that I didn't even know about.
I loved the author's writing style and I am really looking forward to the next books written by her.
𝗧𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗴𝗲𝗿𝘀: chronic pain, endometriosis, toxic parental relationship, mentions of depression and anxiety, vomiting, mourning a loved one who passed many years ago, discussions of infertility
I LOVED THIS BOOK SO MUCH!!!
Evie is brave, funny and struggling with her insecurities. I really enjoyed watching her grow and star to love herself.
Liam is very supportive, full of charm, tender and would do anything for Evie.
The book makes you feel many things. It makes you have butterflies in your stomach but at the same time you also feel Evie's pain. I really appreciate that the author didn't hide from all the aspects related to endometriosis and that she brought aspects to light that I didn't even know about.
I loved the author's writing style and I am really looking forward to the next books written by her.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Chronic illness, Toxic relationship, and Vomit
Minor: Infertility
mossbelle's review against another edition
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.25
🌶
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infertility and Panic attacks/disorders
crackedspines_'s review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
CONTENT WARNING: I discuss diet culture and weight loss briefly in the “themes” section.
OVERALL: I really enjoyed Finding Gene Kelly! I had some issues with certain scenes and characters but they were mostly minor and I still 100% recommend this book.
PLOT: This is a really fun storyline. In addition to the romance it revolves around the way Evie’s endo affects her life. Jean did a fantastic job balancing realism and honesty with hopefulness - Evie isn’t magically cured by love but there is some reasonable happiness and hope infused into her life.
STRUCTURE: I didn’t love the pacing. The entire plot builds up to Evie’s brother’s wedding but the event doesn’t take place until fairly late in the book, which made the entire first part feel quite slow.
SETTING: Both settings - Paris and Portsmouth - were so fun to read about. Both were charming in their own way and it definitely tempted me to book a flight to Paris immediately 😂
THEME: The endo rep was SPOT ON. My experience is different than Evie’s in some ways but it hit me really hard, even the parts I didn’t specifically relate to. It was both comforting and painful to see endo laid out on page. I also appreciated the body positive/body acceptance themes in the book - Evie is a size 14 and faces a lot of shaming but it is challenged and she continues to eat what she wants freely. It’s also really nice to see Liam tell her she is beautiful directly in response to her overhearing some fatphobic comments towards her. There is one discussion that bothered me about Liam cutting out carbs, which is later revealed to be to impress Evie. This is so unnecessary and furthers harmful diet culture . It was especially jarring in a book that is otherwise pretty body positive. The author addressed this briefly but she said it was “never a conversation on the body” but when Evie and Liam discuss it later Liam says “It was worth it watching you gape at me” which is a clear indication he did it to lose weight. I also want to note that Torie Jean did state she modeled Evie’s body off her own so be mindful with critiques of Evie’s body and behavior.
CHARACTERS: Evie and Eli are two of my favorite characters. I find Evie very relatable in a lot of ways, and Eli was basically the best friend ever. I also thought his romance was really cute. However, Maria was a toxic friend. She was condescending and often acted like she knew Evie better than she did. Evie talks a lot about how she’s an amazing friend and I just didn’t see it. I also thought there were some issues with Liam, namely that he too acted like he knew Evie’s illness better than she did. Evie has a tendency to downplay her symptoms and push through and while I know from experience it helps to have loved ones remind you to take care of yourself, Liam was too pushy and almost treated her like a child. They clearly needed to discuss this more than they did so Liam understood a bit better.
I hope you consider picking up this book! If you do please comment/dm me your thoughts because I’d love to hear.
OVERALL: I really enjoyed Finding Gene Kelly! I had some issues with certain scenes and characters but they were mostly minor and I still 100% recommend this book.
PLOT: This is a really fun storyline. In addition to the romance it revolves around the way Evie’s endo affects her life. Jean did a fantastic job balancing realism and honesty with hopefulness - Evie isn’t magically cured by love but there is some reasonable happiness and hope infused into her life.
STRUCTURE: I didn’t love the pacing. The entire plot builds up to Evie’s brother’s wedding but the event doesn’t take place until fairly late in the book, which made the entire first part feel quite slow.
SETTING: Both settings - Paris and Portsmouth - were so fun to read about. Both were charming in their own way and it definitely tempted me to book a flight to Paris immediately 😂
THEME: The endo rep was SPOT ON. My experience is different than Evie’s in some ways but it hit me really hard, even the parts I didn’t specifically relate to. It was both comforting and painful to see endo laid out on page. I also appreciated the body positive/body acceptance themes in the book - Evie is a size 14 and faces a lot of shaming but it is challenged and she continues to eat what she wants freely. It’s also really nice to see Liam tell her she is beautiful directly in response to her overhearing some fatphobic comments towards her. There is one discussion that bothered me about Liam cutting out carbs, which is later revealed to be to impress Evie. This is so unnecessary and furthers harmful diet culture . It was especially jarring in a book that is otherwise pretty body positive. The author addressed this briefly but she said it was “never a conversation on the body” but when Evie and Liam discuss it later Liam says “It was worth it watching you gape at me” which is a clear indication he did it to lose weight. I also want to note that Torie Jean did state she modeled Evie’s body off her own so be mindful with critiques of Evie’s body and behavior.
CHARACTERS: Evie and Eli are two of my favorite characters. I find Evie very relatable in a lot of ways, and Eli was basically the best friend ever. I also thought his romance was really cute. However, Maria was a toxic friend. She was condescending and often acted like she knew Evie better than she did. Evie talks a lot about how she’s an amazing friend and I just didn’t see it. I also thought there were some issues with Liam, namely that he too acted like he knew Evie’s illness better than she did. Evie has a tendency to downplay her symptoms and push through and while I know from experience it helps to have loved ones remind you to take care of yourself, Liam was too pushy and almost treated her like a child. They clearly needed to discuss this more than they did so Liam understood a bit better.
I hope you consider picking up this book! If you do please comment/dm me your thoughts because I’d love to hear.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Body shaming, Chronic illness, Fatphobia, Panic attacks/disorders, Pregnancy, and Alcohol
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Vomit, Medical content, and Gaslighting
Minor: Infertility
toxic mother/daughter relationship, details of endometriosis, depictions of depression and anxietyclairophy's review
emotional
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Vulnerability is like a weapon when you have a chronic illness, and the author does an amazing job at highlighting this.
However she also highlights the joys of allowing yourself to find love and a support system despite your so-called “flaws.”
I absolutely adored this book from the cheesy puns, the romance that makes you kick your feet and giggle, and the endo representation.
If you are going to read this book and have a chronic illness, I recommend reading the content warnings and being kind to yourself <3
However she also highlights the joys of allowing yourself to find love and a support system despite your so-called “flaws.”
I absolutely adored this book from the cheesy puns, the romance that makes you kick your feet and giggle, and the endo representation.
If you are going to read this book and have a chronic illness, I recommend reading the content warnings and being kind to yourself <3
Content Warnings
Graphic: Chronic illness and Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Ableism, Body shaming, Medical trauma, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Infertility, Medical content, and Pregnancy
kbairbooks's review
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Thank you Netgalley, and the publisher, for giving me an ARC of this book and allowing me to experience it in exchange for an honest review.
Thank you to the author for being so incredibly vulnerable and sharing this piece of you with us.
This book has me speechless. I normally don’t rate books that have no magic/fantasy elements with five stars but this… THIS. Is beyond five stars. The humor had me genuinely laughing out loud. Multiple times. Genuinely the funniest book I’ve read in a long time if ever. There was so much personality and soul this book felt like a hug. The own voice chronic illness representation was incredibly honest, vulnerable, and raw. I want to put myself in financial distress to buy a copy for every single person I love so they can experience this magic for themselves. Beautiful. Brava!
Thank you to the author for being so incredibly vulnerable and sharing this piece of you with us.
This book has me speechless. I normally don’t rate books that have no magic/fantasy elements with five stars but this… THIS. Is beyond five stars. The humor had me genuinely laughing out loud. Multiple times. Genuinely the funniest book I’ve read in a long time if ever. There was so much personality and soul this book felt like a hug. The own voice chronic illness representation was incredibly honest, vulnerable, and raw. I want to put myself in financial distress to buy a copy for every single person I love so they can experience this magic for themselves. Beautiful. Brava!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Infertility, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexism, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Blood
bottleblondebookworm's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-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? It's complicated
4.0
I loved this Parisian inspired romance novel! I found myself transported to Paris, walking along the banks of the Seine right next to Liam and Evie. I loved the nods to old Hollywood and Gene Kelly. It made me want to watch An American in Paris and Singing in the Rain again!
Now, let’s get into the romance. Fake dating is always a good idea, right? To be honest, it’s one of my favorite tropes, and I felt like it was done well here. Liam surprises Evie in Paris and she is not pleased to see her high school tormenter in her favorite place. However, her brother’s wedding is coming up and she needs a date before her mom completely steamrolls her. Enter Liam Kelly. From the get go you know Liam is head over heels for Evie, but she absolutely refuses to see it!! While I found myself frustrated with Evie and her constant self doubt and insecurities, I did understand why she felt that way. When she finally set aside some of that doubt and started trusting Liam, oh it was so cute!! Liam Kelly is such a sweetheart!!! He takes care of Evie when she needs him, but doesn’t ever try to fix her illness like everyone else in her life, he’s just there to support her in whatever way she needs. It was really beautiful to see Evie lean into that trust and let herself fall in love.
I did take off one star due to the third act breakup. I understand why the author made that decision, but I felt she could have resolved the issue without Evie and Liam breaking up. The epilogue was cute and provided some closure I felt was needed, but I would have loved to have seen a bit more of Evie and Liam’s life after the final resolution.
This book does cover some heavy topics, but the author put a wonderful note and content/trigger warning at the beginning of the book that lays it all out without giving away any of the story. Why don’t more authors do this?? It’s brilliant!
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the arc!! All opinions are my own.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Chronic illness and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Body shaming, Bullying, and Infertility