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smallmac's review
emotional
funny
lighthearted
fast-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
3.0
Some of the references are going to age really fast (Jujutsu Kaisen), but I enjoyed the depictions of online chat interactions. They felt pretty accurate to experiences I've had playing MMOs, even if they were a bit verbose. Overall a nice, breezy romance with little friction. It could have gone further into the sticky parts of Maggie and Aiden's lives, but it didn't have to.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Biphobia, Homophobia, Outing, Toxic relationship, Bullying, and Emotional abuse
mels_reading_log's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-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? It's complicated
5.0
10 out of 10, no notes!
This is a friends to lovers romance where the people in the couple are 50ish year old introverts who met through an online gaming guild. I love a romance novel that gives me a couple that’s not just young, hot and cis! This book is all about accepting yourself and finding your people who will love you no matter what.
This is a friends to lovers romance where the people in the couple are 50ish year old introverts who met through an online gaming guild. I love a romance novel that gives me a couple that’s not just young, hot and cis! This book is all about accepting yourself and finding your people who will love you no matter what.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Outing, Homophobia, Biphobia, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Panic attacks/disorders, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail and Grief
claire_riach's review
emotional
funny
lighthearted
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? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Homophobia, Outing, and Biphobia
Minor: Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, and Acephobia/Arophobia
sunnyd76's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
relaxing
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
Content Warnings
Moderate: Toxic relationship, Biphobia, Homophobia, and Acephobia/Arophobia
annahamburger's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
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? It's complicated
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Biphobia, Mental illness, Acephobia/Arophobia, and Homophobia
Moderate: Outing, Cursing, Toxic relationship, Religious bigotry, Sexual content, and Xenophobia
Minor: Violence, Death of parent, Fatphobia, Gaslighting, Cancer, Chronic illness, Emotional abuse, Dysphoria, Medical content, Abandonment, Domestic abuse, Alcohol, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Animal death, Car accident, Dementia, Pregnancy, and Racism
amy_in_the_city's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
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
5.0
I loved this book so much! Introverts finding the one person that doesn't drain them is literally my dream! It was funny at times, heartbreaking at others. I liked that it didn't romanticize small towns and acknowledged small towns aren't a good fit for everyone. It also had some LGBTQIA+ representation, with a biromantic demisexual main character. The scene where Maggie tears into Aiden's biphobic relatives was one of the most satisfying things I've ever read, as was seeing Aiden stand up for himself.
As someone on the ace spectrum, I appreciated that this book had a main character, especially an older character, discovering that they were demisexual. However, the book got some things wrong about asexuality. At one point, Maggie explains that "Ace is also called 'graysexual.'" A quick Google search would have confirmed that those two terms don't mean the same thing and that "graysexual" is actually just one of many different types of asexuality. It's clear from other terms used in explaining asexuality that the author did research various terminology. It just seems like she got confused at some point with a couple of terms, but I wish there had been a sensitivity reader or an editor that could have caught this before it made it into the final book. I also thought Aiden seemed pretty clearly demiromantic as well, but this was never brought up and his demiromantic traits were lumped in with his demisexual traits. Terminology issues aside, I thought the demisexuality was represented well, and Aiden felt authentically demi in how he experienced the world and in how he reacted to learning there was a word for how he was.
Overall, this was a cute romance, and I had a great time reading it!
As someone on the ace spectrum, I appreciated that this book had a main character, especially an older character, discovering that they were demisexual. However, the book got some things wrong about asexuality. At one point, Maggie explains that "Ace is also called 'graysexual.'" A quick Google search would have confirmed that those two terms don't mean the same thing and that "graysexual" is actually just one of many different types of asexuality. It's clear from other terms used in explaining asexuality that the author did research various terminology. It just seems like she got confused at some point with a couple of terms, but I wish there had been a sensitivity reader or an editor that could have caught this before it made it into the final book. I also thought Aiden seemed pretty clearly demiromantic as well, but this was never brought up and his demiromantic traits were lumped in with his demisexual traits. Terminology issues aside, I thought the demisexuality was represented well, and Aiden felt authentically demi in how he experienced the world and in how he reacted to learning there was a word for how he was.
Overall, this was a cute romance, and I had a great time reading it!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Biphobia, Outing, Emotional abuse, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Misogyny, Sexism, Bullying, Cursing, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Racism, Sexual content, and Xenophobia
Minor: Infidelity, Acephobia/Arophobia, Addiction, Alcohol, Car accident, Drug abuse, and Grief
mspilesofpaper's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Maggie a grumpy 48-year-old introvert (with a touch of social anxiety) who lives more or less like a hermit ever since her son went to college. Divorced since five years, she's not even keen to find a new man in her life or to find friends in the small town of Fool's Falls. Until her son makes a deal with her: he will become more social when she does the same. So, she joins an online gaming guild that is led by the calm and friendly healer named Otter whom she believes to be a college student. Otter, who is Aiden in real life and a 50-year-old introvert who takes care of his mother (against her will) and uses the guild as an emotional outlet from his family drama. Otter who becomes quickly friends with Maggie who he only knows as Bogwitch and "I'm old enough to be your mothers". When they finally meet face-to-face, they have to realise that their online friendship works well in real life as well. There's only the issue of being attracted to each other ...
TW: toxic family members, homophobia, latent racism
I didn't realise it when I got the book via Kindle Unlimited but I did read another book by Cathy Yardley; Love, Comment, Subscribe, which I disliked so much because it was very swallow and was based on stereotypes and had a clunky writing style. (Also, there's the issue of it being marketed as "enemies to lovers". I hate marketing that is just based on tropes and not on the plot.) It's good that I didn't realise it because otherwise I wouldn't have gotten Role Playing. While it won't win any literary awards, it's a cute and cosy romance with older main characters and bi- and demisexual representation.
Character-wise, it's the reversed "sunshine and grumpy" trope because Maggie is the grumpy, bitter one (though it's more hard shell, soft flesh) while Aiden is the cinnamon roll who's extremely positive in his outlook (and tends to let people steamroll over him). Neither of them is fit or ripped. They are very normal and I prefer such characters. My critique, character-wise, is that they sometimes felt a lot younger than they are in terms of behaviour because they tend to be rather indecisive and not as mature as you would a Gen X to be. If the age and grey hair hadn't been mentioned, these two could be easily in their 20s.
Story-wise, it could have been better in terms of pace. There's a lot of repetition of how introverted they are/how anti-social/lonely/... (not just monologue-like but also comments from other characters), which gets boring. While it's a large part of the plot that Maggie is certainly too anti-social and that Aiden requires a date for an event, I don't need to read constant comments about it. Plot-wise, it's pretty much a slow-burn small-town romance novel that is built on the "friends to lovers" and "reversed sunshine and grumpy" trope. There's not a lot going on but I liked the focus' on their relationship's development instead of having a case of insta-lust/insta-love.
Spice-wise: it's 2.5 🌶️ from me. There are two somewhat explicit scenes towards the end but they aren't extremely graphic. Compared to other sex scenes, I didn't mind reading them because they felt natural and realistic (including laughing etc) and not like a porno.
As for the bi- and demisexual representation: we need more asexual/demisexual (and aromantic) representation in books, movies and series. Personally, I'm asexual and I struggled for years with "Am I broken? What is wrong with me? Why don't I feel like this?" when everyone around me talked about their crushes and how they wouldn't mind having sex with a specific real-life crush/a celebrity crush/... - Granted, the internet allowed me to realise my own sexuality earlier than Aiden because I stumbled upon asexuality and aromanticism and had my moment of enlightenment, but I wish I had it earlier. It would have made things easier in my 20s. And it hurts me to read 1-star reviews that criticise the representation because "it's silly" and "progressive ideal". It isn't silly. It isn't some political movement. It's someone's sexuality and representation matters.
Read if you like:
✔️ Slow Burn Romance
✔️ Small Town Romance
✔️ Older Characters
✔️ Reverse Sunshine & Grumpy trope
✔️ Friends to Lovers
TW: toxic family members, homophobia, latent racism
I didn't realise it when I got the book via Kindle Unlimited but I did read another book by Cathy Yardley; Love, Comment, Subscribe, which I disliked so much because it was very swallow and was based on stereotypes and had a clunky writing style. (Also, there's the issue of it being marketed as "enemies to lovers". I hate marketing that is just based on tropes and not on the plot.) It's good that I didn't realise it because otherwise I wouldn't have gotten Role Playing. While it won't win any literary awards, it's a cute and cosy romance with older main characters and bi- and demisexual representation.
Character-wise, it's the reversed "sunshine and grumpy" trope because Maggie is the grumpy, bitter one (though it's more hard shell, soft flesh) while Aiden is the cinnamon roll who's extremely positive in his outlook (and tends to let people steamroll over him). Neither of them is fit or ripped. They are very normal and I prefer such characters. My critique, character-wise, is that they sometimes felt a lot younger than they are in terms of behaviour because they tend to be rather indecisive and not as mature as you would a Gen X to be. If the age and grey hair hadn't been mentioned, these two could be easily in their 20s.
Story-wise, it could have been better in terms of pace. There's a lot of repetition of how introverted they are/how anti-social/lonely/... (not just monologue-like but also comments from other characters), which gets boring. While it's a large part of the plot that Maggie is certainly too anti-social and that Aiden requires a date for an event, I don't need to read constant comments about it. Plot-wise, it's pretty much a slow-burn small-town romance novel that is built on the "friends to lovers" and "reversed sunshine and grumpy" trope. There's not a lot going on but I liked the focus' on their relationship's development instead of having a case of insta-lust/insta-love.
Spice-wise: it's 2.5 🌶️ from me. There are two somewhat explicit scenes towards the end but they aren't extremely graphic. Compared to other sex scenes, I didn't mind reading them because they felt natural and realistic (including laughing etc) and not like a porno.
As for the bi- and demisexual representation: we need more asexual/demisexual (and aromantic) representation in books, movies and series. Personally, I'm asexual and I struggled for years with "Am I broken? What is wrong with me? Why don't I feel like this?" when everyone around me talked about their crushes and how they wouldn't mind having sex with a specific real-life crush/a celebrity crush/... - Granted, the internet allowed me to realise my own sexuality earlier than Aiden because I stumbled upon asexuality and aromanticism and had my moment of enlightenment, but I wish I had it earlier. It would have made things easier in my 20s. And it hurts me to read 1-star reviews that criticise the representation because "it's silly" and "progressive ideal". It isn't silly. It isn't some political movement. It's someone's sexuality and representation matters.
Read if you like:
✔️ Slow Burn Romance
✔️ Small Town Romance
✔️ Older Characters
✔️ Reverse Sunshine & Grumpy trope
✔️ Friends to Lovers
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Toxic relationship, and Biphobia
Minor: Death of parent and Racism
ravenk28's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
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? It's complicated
4.0
Who knew a story about two people finding each other through their love of video games would be so sweet.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Biphobia, Outing, and Homophobia
Moderate: Acephobia/Arophobia, Toxic relationship, and Emotional abuse
Minor: Racism, Cancer, and Death of parent
ta2dlibrarian's review
challenging
emotional
inspiring
lighthearted
tense
fast-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
The perfect, inclusive romance for gamers doesn't exi . . . *record scratch*
Calling all MMORPG fans! This is the romance you've been waiting for. The author has done their gamer research and it shows!
My only gripe is the quick resolution between the protagonists and their toxic past, which is anything but realistic.
Calling all MMORPG fans! This is the romance you've been waiting for. The author has done their gamer research and it shows!
My only gripe is the quick resolution between the protagonists and their toxic past, which is anything but realistic.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Biphobia, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, Outing, and Sexual content
garbage_mcsmutly's review against another edition
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Biphobia, Toxic relationship, and Sexual content