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kaydee_reads's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
I really wanted to love this book. I loved the first one - we could be so good - and Andy and Nick’s story so much that I dove right into this one afterwards, and I think it suffers in comparison.
Mark Bailey is grieving the loss of his partner in secret. This is probably the bit of the book that worked best for me - his loss and his grief and how he’s dealing with it felt very raw and real, and his hesitance to fall in love again or be a secret lover again was understandable and sad. I teared up a few times - the cherries scene got me!
I found Eddie a lot more inaccessible as a character, however, and I also found it difficult to imagine the two of them living happily ever after. They’re just so different and they have almost nothing in common - which, sure, can work for a bit, but I could easily see this relationship falling apart in the near future.
I also found the lack of plot maddening in a way it wasn’t in We Could Be So Good. Maybe that’s because I just went on a very similar/same emotional journey in that book, which was a meditative exploration of queer identity during this time period, with one character who has long since accepted his queerness and the other only just beginning his journey, but through his exploration of his own identity, pulls out new facets for the other person. And this book… did exactly the same thing, same formula, same long meditations and inner narration. Since these books exist in the same universe, I think it is fair to compare them and I think this one should have differentiated itself more - perhaps by having a little more plot? Or just a different emotional arc.
I did love the last quarter of the book quite a bit, which pulled it up from a 3 to a 3.75, but found the first three quarters uninspiring compared to Andy and Nick’s book.
Mark Bailey is grieving the loss of his partner in secret. This is probably the bit of the book that worked best for me - his loss and his grief and how he’s dealing with it felt very raw and real, and his hesitance to fall in love again or be a secret lover again was understandable and sad. I teared up a few times - the cherries scene got me!
I found Eddie a lot more inaccessible as a character, however, and I also found it difficult to imagine the two of them living happily ever after. They’re just so different and they have almost nothing in common - which, sure, can work for a bit, but I could easily see this relationship falling apart in the near future.
I also found the lack of plot maddening in a way it wasn’t in We Could Be So Good. Maybe that’s because I just went on a very similar/same emotional journey in that book, which was a meditative exploration of queer identity during this time period, with one character who has long since accepted his queerness and the other only just beginning his journey, but through his exploration of his own identity, pulls out new facets for the other person. And this book… did exactly the same thing, same formula, same long meditations and inner narration. Since these books exist in the same universe, I think it is fair to compare them and I think this one should have differentiated itself more - perhaps by having a little more plot? Or just a different emotional arc.
I did love the last quarter of the book quite a bit, which pulled it up from a 3 to a 3.75, but found the first three quarters uninspiring compared to Andy and Nick’s book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Terminal illness, and Grief
Moderate: Bullying, Death, Homophobia, and Outing
Minor: Car accident and Death of parent
alwaysshure's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
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
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief
Moderate: Alcoholism, Death, Homophobia, and Sexual content
Minor: Death of parent
m_cant_read's review
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
I thought it was cute! I’ve been in a slight slump recently and reading this is starting the process of dragging me out, so hoorah.
Content Warnings
Minor: Death and Death of parent
katerina_l's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
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? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Bullying, Death, Grief, Death of parent, Abandonment, and Alcohol
liamaria's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcoholism, Death, Homophobia, and Grief
Minor: Racism, Antisemitism, and Death of parent
jazhandz's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
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
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia and Grief
Moderate: Alcoholism, Death, Racism, Sexual content, and Alcohol
Minor: Antisemitism, Medical content, Car accident, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail
alisonvh's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
I loved watching these two fall in love and finally admit to falling in love, but there’s a lot of sadness and grief throughout this book, too. It takes place at a time when being gay is dangerous, and far from ignoring or shying away from that fact, it becomes a major plot point. My one quibble about this book is that the audiobook narrator’s high-class, mid century NYC accent really grated on me. If I read more in this series, it won’t be on audio.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Death, Homophobia, Grief, Car accident, Death of parent, Outing, and Abandonment
Moderate: Alcohol
Minor: Alcoholism
fanboyriot's review against another edition
emotional
funny
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
4.5
Read For:
✓ 1960s
✓ Baseball ⚾️
✓ Good Humor
✓ Grumpy x Sunshine
✓ Gay Sports Romance
˗ˏˋ ★ REVIEW ★ ˎˊ˗
The dialogue was SO good! I really enjoyed this book and all the characters. Queer sport romance books will always have a special place in my heart and this is now added to that list. While I know little to nothing about baseball this book suddenly had me interested.
There is such a good balance of coping with grief and maintaining a great level of entertainment. The relationship was 10/10, Mark and Eddie had great chemistry and worked so well with one another.
Spice Level: 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
Spice Level: 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
Angst Level: 💧💧
POV: Duel, Third Person
Release Date: 07, May 2024
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Sexual content, and Grief
Moderate: Alcoholism, Death, and Alcohol
Minor: Cursing, Racism, Terminal illness, and Death of parent
koistyfishy's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
slow-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
3.0
3 Overpriced Dog Bowl Stars ⭐️
Spicy Level: 🌶️.5/5
I wanted to like this book. I wanted to adore it and love the characters and I went into it with the Mindset that I would given how much I have seen a friend gush about how much she loved and adored this book and how much this meant to her... I wanted to take a chance on this one.
𝙎𝙮𝙣𝙤𝙥𝙨𝙞𝙨:
This is a third-person historical romance set in the 1960s that follows Mark Bailey and Eddie O’Leary. Mark is a semi-retired journalist and book reviewer who is dealing with the grief of losing his partner, William. Eddie just cannot catch a break. He is a professional baseball player who has just been traded to a new team that he is not happy about. He has publicly spoken against the team and has tarnished his lovable rookie reputation. It also doesn't help that he cannot seem to hit a ball anymore. To rejuvenate and reframe his image, Mark is tasked with ghostwriting Eddie's diary in the Newspaper he works for. As Mark and Eddie spend more time together, they both realise that there is more to the other than meets the eye. Their acquaintance turns into friendship and soon that friendship develops into something more. However, this has its challenges because being Queer in the 1960s, a time rife with homophobia is super challenging and reputationally dangerous.
𝙏𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙁𝙚𝙚𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙨:
My issue with this is that the book was incredibly boring. I just felt like it was going nowhere SUPER SLOW with the plot moving at such a snail’s pace that was spiralling down, never quite going upwards...
Eddie has this cheerful presence and disposition that makes you smile and want to hug him. You just hope he gets everything he wants because he’s such a cutie, and he deserves love, happiness, and support. I loved his character as he gives off this naive, sweet, almost himbo vibe, but then he says something occasionally profound or delivers a really sweet metaphor about life but he doesn't seem to realise it's profound because he is so innocent. He carried the book for me, and every time he was present in a scene, he made it better.
Mark irritated the living daylights out of me. Like super pissed off... He is not a nice person, and I honestly don’t know what Eddie saw in him. He is overly sarcastic to the point where he is generally mean in what he says and how he acts. He has this aloof "attitude that makes him come across as if he thinks he is "better" than those around him because he happens to have "acquired tastes" and prefers quality. He just came across as snobbish and unlikeable.
The aspects of William’s death were sometimes unnecessary. I understand that Mark is processing his grief, and some moments were heartbreaking and had me on the verge of tears, especially the cherry scene. My issue is that there was a lot more focus on Mark’s grief than on the budding relationship between Eddie and Mark. Because the story was so slow, I lost track of the development of their love. It made me feel multiple times that Mark was being unfaithful to William...
Another aspect that bothered me was I didn’t like how so many aspects were thrown into the plot that went nowhere, an example being Ardolino and his potential romance. They didn't serve a purpose, and they might be "nuggets for the next books" but the developments went nowhere and dragged on not capturing my attention.
NOW despite me not liking things in the book... there were some things I REALLY DID like. The writing was sweet and I appreciated the story. This type of book is not easy to read because of the topics it deals with. Not only the grief aspect but also the historical homophobia and how difficult it would be for a queer couple in that time. The fears of being outed in a society that would ostracise them were portrayed realistically and truthfully. This book did an excellent job showing that even in a time when the world was not as accepting, you could still find a family of people willing to accept you for who you are.
𝙏𝙧𝙤𝙥𝙚𝙨 and 𝙈𝙞𝙘𝙧𝙤 𝙏𝙧𝙤𝙥𝙚𝙨:
▶ Baseball Romance
▶ ReporterXPlayer
▶ Historical Romance
▶ GrumpyXSunshine (Black Cat and Golden Retriever)
▶ Slow Burn
▶ Age Gap
Overall, it had precious moments, and underneath Mark’s surly behaviour, I do think he cared a lot for Eddie. I’m happy that he had a chance to move on from his grief over William. While slow and having a few issues it was still a sweet grumpy-sunshine dynamic that at times was utterly beautiful. I think if it had been about three hours shorter (Since I listened to the Audio), I would have enjoyed it a lot more.
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
WHY IS HE TALKING IN A WEIRD TRANSATLANTIC ACCENT???
I am pushing through cause EVERYONE SAYS THIS IS CUTE...
Spicy Level: 🌶️.5/5
I wanted to like this book. I wanted to adore it and love the characters and I went into it with the Mindset that I would given how much I have seen a friend gush about how much she loved and adored this book and how much this meant to her... I wanted to take a chance on this one.
𝙎𝙮𝙣𝙤𝙥𝙨𝙞𝙨:
This is a third-person historical romance set in the 1960s that follows Mark Bailey and Eddie O’Leary. Mark is a semi-retired journalist and book reviewer who is dealing with the grief of losing his partner, William. Eddie just cannot catch a break. He is a professional baseball player who has just been traded to a new team that he is not happy about. He has publicly spoken against the team and has tarnished his lovable rookie reputation. It also doesn't help that he cannot seem to hit a ball anymore. To rejuvenate and reframe his image, Mark is tasked with ghostwriting Eddie's diary in the Newspaper he works for. As Mark and Eddie spend more time together, they both realise that there is more to the other than meets the eye. Their acquaintance turns into friendship and soon that friendship develops into something more. However, this has its challenges because being Queer in the 1960s, a time rife with homophobia is super challenging and reputationally dangerous.
𝙏𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙁𝙚𝙚𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙨:
My issue with this is that the book was incredibly boring. I just felt like it was going nowhere SUPER SLOW with the plot moving at such a snail’s pace that was spiralling down, never quite going upwards...
Eddie has this cheerful presence and disposition that makes you smile and want to hug him. You just hope he gets everything he wants because he’s such a cutie, and he deserves love, happiness, and support. I loved his character as he gives off this naive, sweet, almost himbo vibe, but then he says something occasionally profound or delivers a really sweet metaphor about life but he doesn't seem to realise it's profound because he is so innocent. He carried the book for me, and every time he was present in a scene, he made it better.
Mark irritated the living daylights out of me. Like super pissed off... He is not a nice person, and I honestly don’t know what Eddie saw in him. He is overly sarcastic to the point where he is generally mean in what he says and how he acts. He has this aloof "attitude that makes him come across as if he thinks he is "better" than those around him because he happens to have "acquired tastes" and prefers quality. He just came across as snobbish and unlikeable.
The aspects of William’s death were sometimes unnecessary. I understand that Mark is processing his grief, and some moments were heartbreaking and had me on the verge of tears, especially the cherry scene. My issue is that there was a lot more focus on Mark’s grief than on the budding relationship between Eddie and Mark. Because the story was so slow, I lost track of the development of their love. It made me feel multiple times that Mark was being unfaithful to William...
Another aspect that bothered me was I didn’t like how so many aspects were thrown into the plot that went nowhere, an example being Ardolino and his potential romance. They didn't serve a purpose, and they might be "nuggets for the next books" but the developments went nowhere and dragged on not capturing my attention.
NOW despite me not liking things in the book... there were some things I REALLY DID like. The writing was sweet and I appreciated the story. This type of book is not easy to read because of the topics it deals with. Not only the grief aspect but also the historical homophobia and how difficult it would be for a queer couple in that time. The fears of being outed in a society that would ostracise them were portrayed realistically and truthfully. This book did an excellent job showing that even in a time when the world was not as accepting, you could still find a family of people willing to accept you for who you are.
𝙏𝙧𝙤𝙥𝙚𝙨 and 𝙈𝙞𝙘𝙧𝙤 𝙏𝙧𝙤𝙥𝙚𝙨:
▶ Baseball Romance
▶ ReporterXPlayer
▶ Historical Romance
▶ GrumpyXSunshine (Black Cat and Golden Retriever)
▶ Slow Burn
▶ Age Gap
Overall, it had precious moments, and underneath Mark’s surly behaviour, I do think he cared a lot for Eddie. I’m happy that he had a chance to move on from his grief over William. While slow and having a few issues it was still a sweet grumpy-sunshine dynamic that at times was utterly beautiful. I think if it had been about three hours shorter (Since I listened to the Audio), I would have enjoyed it a lot more.
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
WHY IS HE TALKING IN A WEIRD TRANSATLANTIC ACCENT???
I am pushing through cause EVERYONE SAYS THIS IS CUTE...
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Sexual content, and Grief
Moderate: Alcoholism, Death, and Alcohol
Minor: Racism, Terminal illness, and Death of parent
maggies's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
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
5.0
Boy oh boy do I love romance and baseball and baseball romances. Mark and Eddie made me laugh and cry and fall in love! This is a great example about how in-universe series should work—allowing the previous characters to make an entrance every once in a while but introducing new, interesting characters to steal the spotlight. The Robins baseball team was so cute, and George felt so lovely.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief
Moderate: Alcoholism, Death, and Homophobia
Minor: Death of parent