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3.29 AVERAGE
3.29 AVERAGE
Oh, how I love Meg Cabot’s books. From her hilarious protagonists to her enviable love interests, her books have always had a special place in my heart. No Judgments is certainly no exception.
It follows Bree, a law school dropout turned waitress living in the small Florida town of Little Bridge Island. A massive hurricane is headed for Little Bridge Island but Bree isn’t worried. She’s prepared to hunker down with her sick rescue cat Gary. When the storm destroys the bridge to the mainland, Bree takes it upon herself to take care of the pets left behind by people evacuating…begrudgingly accepting help from her boss’ handsome nephew Drew in the process.
Admittedly I started this one while hunkering down for Hurricane Dorian, which made it all too real. While it is about the hurricane, it’s also really about the relationship between Bree and Drew, and the love people have for their pets.
I’ll be honest, I really didn’t like Drew’s character until part of the way into the book where he steps in to rescue a dog from a bad situation. After that, he had pretty much won me over.
Bree, I liked from the beginning. The book is told in the first person from her perspective and her commentary was hilarious and relatable. While at times I was frustrated with her decisions (like choosing not to evacuate when a category 5 hurricane was headed for her island home), it was easy to see where she was coming from and respect her for it.
This is definitely one to check out if you like contemporary romance, rescue animals, or Meg Cabot books.
It follows Bree, a law school dropout turned waitress living in the small Florida town of Little Bridge Island. A massive hurricane is headed for Little Bridge Island but Bree isn’t worried. She’s prepared to hunker down with her sick rescue cat Gary. When the storm destroys the bridge to the mainland, Bree takes it upon herself to take care of the pets left behind by people evacuating…begrudgingly accepting help from her boss’ handsome nephew Drew in the process.
Admittedly I started this one while hunkering down for Hurricane Dorian, which made it all too real. While it is about the hurricane, it’s also really about the relationship between Bree and Drew, and the love people have for their pets.
I’ll be honest, I really didn’t like Drew’s character until part of the way into the book where he steps in to rescue a dog from a bad situation. After that, he had pretty much won me over.
Bree, I liked from the beginning. The book is told in the first person from her perspective and her commentary was hilarious and relatable. While at times I was frustrated with her decisions (like choosing not to evacuate when a category 5 hurricane was headed for her island home), it was easy to see where she was coming from and respect her for it.
This is definitely one to check out if you like contemporary romance, rescue animals, or Meg Cabot books.
Cute but I felt that the ending was rushed. There was a bit of conflict resolution but not to the extent that the synopsis hinted at.
There's a sequel coming out next year, I'll probably pick it up since it involves a librarian.
There's a sequel coming out next year, I'll probably pick it up since it involves a librarian.
Review posted on The Book Addict's Guide 10/7/19: Meg Cabot was one of the authors that got me back into reading all those years ago and so her books always hold a special place in my heart! It’s been a long time since I’ve read a new one and I was so excited to read NO JUDGMENTS!
It was so much fun to be back in the world of Meg Cabot’s writing again! She always has such a fun feel with the perfect mix of sass and goofy and NO JUDGMENTS was no exception! It was such an easy read with some great things to ground it as well and I especially enjoyed the setting of the little island in the Florida Keys too. I haven’t been to the Keys but I could just so clearly picture it and I loved the little island feel, including all of its residents!
I did enjoy the romance aspect of it and I thought Sabrina and Drew had some great chemistry! I think there could have been a little bit more somewhere because while I fully enjoyed it, I didn’t quite love it. I think Bree was just a little too stubborn at times, which can bother me, and there were moments where I felt the hate-to-love was a little too drawn out and I was ready to get to the romance part.
I have to admit, I was expecting just a bit more from this book. Maybe I built it up too much in my head because I love Meg Cabot so much and her contemporary novels always sit well with me but I felt like it took a long time to get to a few different plot points. I think it was about halfway through when we finally go to why it’s called “NO JUDGMENTS” and I wished it had been introduced sooner. Ultimately what didn’t do it for me were the characters. I kind of felt like the island had more personality than the characters did and I wanted so much more backstory from them. They had good histories and I would have loved to see more of that in their every day encounters. Drew did have some good family moments but those were kind of more about than family than they were about him and I found some of the island residents more interesting than our main characters at times.
It was so much fun to be back in the world of Meg Cabot’s writing again! She always has such a fun feel with the perfect mix of sass and goofy and NO JUDGMENTS was no exception! It was such an easy read with some great things to ground it as well and I especially enjoyed the setting of the little island in the Florida Keys too. I haven’t been to the Keys but I could just so clearly picture it and I loved the little island feel, including all of its residents!
I did enjoy the romance aspect of it and I thought Sabrina and Drew had some great chemistry! I think there could have been a little bit more somewhere because while I fully enjoyed it, I didn’t quite love it. I think Bree was just a little too stubborn at times, which can bother me, and there were moments where I felt the hate-to-love was a little too drawn out and I was ready to get to the romance part.
I have to admit, I was expecting just a bit more from this book. Maybe I built it up too much in my head because I love Meg Cabot so much and her contemporary novels always sit well with me but I felt like it took a long time to get to a few different plot points. I think it was about halfway through when we finally go to why it’s called “NO JUDGMENTS” and I wished it had been introduced sooner. Ultimately what didn’t do it for me were the characters. I kind of felt like the island had more personality than the characters did and I wanted so much more backstory from them. They had good histories and I would have loved to see more of that in their every day encounters. Drew did have some good family moments but those were kind of more about than family than they were about him and I found some of the island residents more interesting than our main characters at times.
lighthearted
medium-paced
I don't remember Meg Cabot books being this shallow and vapid and just plain awful? I thought it would just be a light breezy read but it was embarrassing to read. Why did Bree hate Drew so much??? There was no reason for it and then they just decided they were in love?? Everything was bizarre to the max.
Cute and lighthearted overall, I was a little underwhelmed with this one. I think I liked the setting more than the actual story. Drew & Bree were cute but I thought things escalated too quickly - I didn't feel the great connection between them that I think needed to be there.
Spoiler
One major thing that really took me out of this story though was its casual use of threatening gun violence in order to solve her problem. It felt incredibly out of place and awkward, like a last-ditch effort to create a climactic moment in the story.
3.5 - FMC was a little annoying at first, but she was not overreacting about her "incident." I hate the way her ex, ex's friend, and her mother were gaslighting her over it. I loved the sense of community that the town had. The pet rescue storyline was just so awesome. I love an animal lover MMC.
This was just a bad romance novel. The main character makes one stupid decision after another, the ending is telegraphed from the first chapter, and the sex scenes are mortifyingly cringy. Two stars for the adorable pets described, though.
funny
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated