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3.09 AVERAGE
3.09 AVERAGE
I was attracted to this title because I loved reading the Brontës in school, but I don’t think I was the ideal reader for this one. Told in third person from dual points of view, the beginning of this story put me off a bit because it was a little too cheesy and cliched for me at times, but I persevered and eventually began to enjoy parts of the story.
I thought the relationship that Athena and Thorne had with the customers in the café is where the story shined. I enjoyed the comradery and cajoling that was prevalent in those passages. I’m not much of a second (or third) chance at love reader, so the usual foibles that go along with those were annoying for me. The ‘why did they break up’, ‘what’s their history’ and ‘why is it being kept a secret from the reader’ type questions were abundant for me throughout, though the answers to those questions were satisfying in the end, even if the identity of CL Garland was too predictable. Ultimately, I think if you love Brontë references and second chance at love stories, you will probably enjoy this one more than me.
Thank you to Netgalley and Forever for the free copy provided for an honest review.
I thought the relationship that Athena and Thorne had with the customers in the café is where the story shined. I enjoyed the comradery and cajoling that was prevalent in those passages. I’m not much of a second (or third) chance at love reader, so the usual foibles that go along with those were annoying for me. The ‘why did they break up’, ‘what’s their history’ and ‘why is it being kept a secret from the reader’ type questions were abundant for me throughout, though the answers to those questions were satisfying in the end, even if the identity of CL Garland was too predictable. Ultimately, I think if you love Brontë references and second chance at love stories, you will probably enjoy this one more than me.
Thank you to Netgalley and Forever for the free copy provided for an honest review.
I think if you are an extremely big fan of the Bronte sisters' work, this would be an okay book for you to pick up! Otherwise, I found this book pretty lacking. Sometimes it felt like entire paragraphs of dialogue had been removed because the main characters' conclusions and actions just didn't match up with what was happening.
The premise of the main character just knowing she would be able to find the hidden author made no sense to me, and setting out to uncover the identity of someone who obviously wanted to stay private didn't either. The town and the coffee shop were really cute, but I think this same storyline had more potential than what was delivered.
I'm a casual Bronte fan (I've only read Jane Eyre), and that wasn't enough for me to get even remotely invested in this one.
The premise of the main character just knowing she would be able to find the hidden author made no sense to me, and setting out to uncover the identity of someone who obviously wanted to stay private didn't either. The town and the coffee shop were really cute, but I think this same storyline had more potential than what was delivered.
I'm a casual Bronte fan (I've only read Jane Eyre), and that wasn't enough for me to get even remotely invested in this one.
This books was given to me by Netgalley, but this review is fully my own opinions and thoughts!
To start off, this book is a 3.5 star. I found it in the YA section of Netgalley, but there were a lot more mature themes. Nothing of great detail, but with the main character and love interest both way older than college students, I’d market this as a new adult or adult. I loved how classic literary books were incorporated into Blame it on the Brontes. The characters were fun and Athena was super fun and witty. Thorne is smart, charming and a perfect mix of alpha and feminist. There is lgbtq representation for any curious people.
The pace was excellent and the complicated nature of humans was well shown. The romance was easygoing or first try, but shows the messiness of real love as well as real family drama.
All in all, it was a good book and I’m glad I got to read it!
To start off, this book is a 3.5 star. I found it in the YA section of Netgalley, but there were a lot more mature themes. Nothing of great detail, but with the main character and love interest both way older than college students, I’d market this as a new adult or adult. I loved how classic literary books were incorporated into Blame it on the Brontes. The characters were fun and Athena was super fun and witty. Thorne is smart, charming and a perfect mix of alpha and feminist. There is lgbtq representation for any curious people.
The pace was excellent and the complicated nature of humans was well shown. The romance was easygoing or first try, but shows the messiness of real love as well as real family drama.
All in all, it was a good book and I’m glad I got to read it!
This book sits on a throne of lies. Literally everyone in this book is lying to each other or telling half truths. If I was Athena and found out that this many people were lying to me I would not be uprooting my life in San Francisco to move back to my hometown. I definitely would not be dating a man whose lies messed with my career. I really wanted to like this book. It was full of literary references that were fun, but the story just did nothing for me. The romance between Athena and Thorne felt forced. Their relationship was a mix of coldness, issues from the past that were never fully explained or explored, and lust that somehow wasn't steamy. The big reveal was so obvious from the get go that I was really hoping there would be more to it, but there wasn't There were a few side characters that I liked but they could not save this book for me.
Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC
I really enjoyed this book BUT here’s the thing: I wanted more of this story from Thorne, he had a more interesting story line and honestly? Athena was so over dramatic and annoying. She’s upset about having to write a book as if that wasn’t obvious from the time you got the AP job- it’s true that you have to publish or perish so I’m not sure why she thought she was immune. Also, I called who Garland was from the first time Thorne was introduced and it blows my mind that it really took her an entire novel to figure it out.
Her relationships were so weird too- how do you know nothing of your parents like that? How can you give advice to everyone but not seem to fix your own problems? I was just so aggravated by her and I wanted to see her less honestly.
I really enjoyed this book BUT here’s the thing: I wanted more of this story from Thorne, he had a more interesting story line and honestly? Athena was so over dramatic and annoying. She’s upset about having to write a book as if that wasn’t obvious from the time you got the AP job- it’s true that you have to publish or perish so I’m not sure why she thought she was immune. Also, I called who Garland was from the first time Thorne was introduced and it blows my mind that it really took her an entire novel to figure it out.
Her relationships were so weird too- how do you know nothing of your parents like that? How can you give advice to everyone but not seem to fix your own problems? I was just so aggravated by her and I wanted to see her less honestly.
There were parts and pieces of this book that I just adored: literary-centered main characters, a right person wrong time/second chance romance, a cozy, small-town atmosphere.
But unfortunately, something was lacking for me. I can't seem to put my finger on it, but perhaps the fade-to-black nature of the writing didn't help. Romantic, yes. Steamy, no. I would recommend this to my grandmother and not blink an eye, which is great in one respect, but also leaves something to be desired. I just wanted more from Thena and Thorne, and didn't love that so much of story was spent focused on the secondary characters.
This would be a fun + quick beach read if you're looking for something that won't rock the boat around family ;)
But unfortunately, something was lacking for me. I can't seem to put my finger on it, but perhaps the fade-to-black nature of the writing didn't help. Romantic, yes. Steamy, no. I would recommend this to my grandmother and not blink an eye, which is great in one respect, but also leaves something to be desired. I just wanted more from Thena and Thorne, and didn't love that so much of story was spent focused on the secondary characters.
This would be a fun + quick beach read if you're looking for something that won't rock the boat around family ;)
emotional
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
*Sigh* I probably had too high expectations for this one. I love the Brontes and I guess in my head I imagined this as a homage to them or a very loose retelling of one of their classics.
Overall this is an okay story. I feel like the marketing for it is misleading. This isn't really a romcom. It's more of a finding yourself kind of book. The main character isn't particularly likable; she comes off as really annoying and immature for her age. The lead male character was tolerable since I could get where a lot of his angst was stemming from.
I think another problem I had was that the book could be repetitive and didn't seem to know what direction it wanted to go in.
Again, I had different expectations and I feel the book fell short of them.
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the arc. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Overall this is an okay story. I feel like the marketing for it is misleading. This isn't really a romcom. It's more of a finding yourself kind of book. The main character isn't particularly likable; she comes off as really annoying and immature for her age. The lead male character was tolerable since I could get where a lot of his angst was stemming from.
I think another problem I had was that the book could be repetitive and didn't seem to know what direction it wanted to go in.
Again, I had different expectations and I feel the book fell short of them.
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the arc. All thoughts and opinions are my own.