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takarakei's review against another edition
lighthearted
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? Yes
3.75
- Dancing With the Stars reality tv show
- she's a dancer on the show aiming to make it to the finals
- he's a backwoods Alaska man from his own reality tv show
I really enjoyed the character growth of both MCs. Wished they had dual narration for this audio.
3.5/5 🌶️
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol and Sexual content
Moderate: Sexism and Sexual harassment
Minor: Racism and Emotional abuse
bookiecharm's review against another edition
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism, Emotional abuse, Abandonment, and Sexism
danileah07's review
lighthearted
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? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Alcohol and Sexism
thesmutsister_emma's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
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? Yes
4.25
It's Always a Good Time to Examine Things
I'm going to get very blunt with y'all but I feel like it's necessary for this one. As a white woman growing up in the south, I have always known a fair amount of privilege. Over the years, I have tried to look at that privilege and take inventory of it while attempting to be a better ally. It doesn't always happen until I am face to face with it. This was one of those cases.
Our FMC, Gina, is a Puerto Rican woman in her late 20s on a competition dance show that is vaguely like Dancing With The Stars. She is one of their regular cast members during the show and is paired with Stone, who is a reality TV "star" from a survivalist show that includes his family. Throughout the book, as we see Gina and Stone falling for one another, something Gina kept coming back to was being insistent that she would not be involved in a "showmance." Gina says she does not want to be seen as the sexy Latina and does not want it to ruin her image. At first I totally understood where she was coming from, as I can understand being a woman it impacting her image. The further the story went on, though and the more Gina pushed back with this excuse, I was understanding less and less. By our third act breakup when Gina was using this to tell Stone why they needed to breakup, I was extremely frustrated. I didn't get why it was that big of a deal. Then I sat on it. Of course I wouldn't understand it. I'm a white woman. It was not meant for me to relate to, but it was made for me to learn from. I needed to look at my own privilege where I was saying, "It can'treally be that bad. It can't affect her this badly," and realize that while it might not affect me that badly, it surely could affect Gina that badly.
I was able to take things from this book and learn from them as I hope to continue to do throughout my reading journey. Now, onto my review.
The Characters
Gina: I loved Gina so much, especially after I reflected on why her decisions didn't make a whole lot of sense to me. I love how powerful she was and that she was unwavering in the fact that she would not let anyone stand in her way of getting what she wanted when it came to her career or even the trophy. She was going to do it her way, and by god, she was going to do it the right way without faking anything. This was so strong to see and I loved it.
Stone: I really enjoyed Stone, but I thought his arc was going somewhere completely different, especially by the end of the book with the way he felt about everything going on around him. It was something I was not expecting, but not in a bad way.
Things I Loved
I really loved the chemistry between the two of them. It was something I could tell even off the page. I also really enjoyed the writing style a lot. I liked the development I saw in both characters.
Things I Didn't Love
I felt like the pacing and timeline were a little weird. I felt like there was going to bye more buildup to the third act breakup rather than just kind of a bam moment. The casual sexual harassment (at the least) of Stone bay Lauren also really bothered me because it was just kind of played for laughs. This wouldn't bother me as much if it wasn't for Gina's whole thing being that she wants to be objectified and sexualized as little as possible then for our MMC to beg SAed by a side character in the last few chapters and it to just be shrugged off immediately really bothered me.
The Final Verdict
This was such a good book and had definitely solidified my opinion that I need the rest of Alexis Daria's books in physical copy. I'm super excited for this rerelease and can't wait for everyone else to read it as well.
I'm going to get very blunt with y'all but I feel like it's necessary for this one. As a white woman growing up in the south, I have always known a fair amount of privilege. Over the years, I have tried to look at that privilege and take inventory of it while attempting to be a better ally. It doesn't always happen until I am face to face with it. This was one of those cases.
Our FMC, Gina, is a Puerto Rican woman in her late 20s on a competition dance show that is vaguely like Dancing With The Stars. She is one of their regular cast members during the show and is paired with Stone, who is a reality TV "star" from a survivalist show that includes his family. Throughout the book, as we see Gina and Stone falling for one another, something Gina kept coming back to was being insistent that she would not be involved in a "showmance." Gina says she does not want to be seen as the sexy Latina and does not want it to ruin her image. At first I totally understood where she was coming from, as I can understand being a woman it impacting her image. The further the story went on, though and the more Gina pushed back with this excuse, I was understanding less and less. By our third act breakup when Gina was using this to tell Stone why they needed to breakup, I was extremely frustrated. I didn't get why it was that big of a deal. Then I sat on it. Of course I wouldn't understand it. I'm a white woman. It was not meant for me to relate to, but it was made for me to learn from. I needed to look at my own privilege where I was saying, "It can'treally be that bad. It can't affect her this badly," and realize that while it might not affect me that badly, it surely could affect Gina that badly.
I was able to take things from this book and learn from them as I hope to continue to do throughout my reading journey. Now, onto my review.
The Characters
Gina: I loved Gina so much, especially after I reflected on why her decisions didn't make a whole lot of sense to me. I love how powerful she was and that she was unwavering in the fact that she would not let anyone stand in her way of getting what she wanted when it came to her career or even the trophy. She was going to do it her way, and by god, she was going to do it the right way without faking anything. This was so strong to see and I loved it.
Stone: I really enjoyed Stone, but I thought his arc was going somewhere completely different, especially by the end of the book with the way he felt about everything going on around him. It was something I was not expecting, but not in a bad way.
Things I Loved
I really loved the chemistry between the two of them. It was something I could tell even off the page. I also really enjoyed the writing style a lot. I liked the development I saw in both characters.
Things I Didn't Love
I felt like the pacing and timeline were a little weird. I felt like there was going to bye more buildup to the third act breakup rather than just kind of a bam moment. The casual sexual harassment (at the least) of Stone bay Lauren also really bothered me because it was just kind of played for laughs. This wouldn't bother me as much if it wasn't for Gina's whole thing being that she wants to be objectified and sexualized as little as possible then for our MMC to beg SAed by a side character in the last few chapters and it to just be shrugged off immediately really bothered me.
The Final Verdict
This was such a good book and had definitely solidified my opinion that I need the rest of Alexis Daria's books in physical copy. I'm super excited for this rerelease and can't wait for everyone else to read it as well.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Abandonment, Sexism, and Misogyny
sdupont's review
emotional
lighthearted
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? Yes
4.0
This is a solid romance from Alexis Daria, perfect for fans of Dancing with the Stars. Gina and Stone have chemistry from the start that both try to avoid but that can only be denied for so long with forced proximity as dance partners on a reality show. I enjoyed the fun behind the scenes aspects of the show. As a dancer myself I appreciated that the difficulty and skills required were highlighted in this story. This book did leave me wanting more of an emotional connection to be shown on the pages not just the characters sexual chemistry. I would recommend this book for a light fun read!
*I received the ARC for free from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.*
*I received the ARC for free from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.*
Content Warnings
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders, Sexism, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Racism and Medical content
le3713's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Sexual harassment and Sexism
Minor: Racism
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