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caribougoat's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
It has been ages since I’ve had that “book boyfriend” feeling and Spencer has my whole heart.
The atmosphere is just divine. The author captures the harshness of the environment from the weather to its people, yet still manages to bring the cozy small town side of it out. Penny Harbour isn’t perfect but it’s home nonetheless. I loved the chapters in between that showed a flash of life from other townsfolk to further immerse you into the world.
As I said, Spencer has my whole heart. It was such a nice change to not read about some tall, gravely voiced manly man. Spencer is in touch with his feminine side and is also capable of being strong and brutal. It was also nice to read about characters over 30! Spencer and Laurel are emotionally mature and have a healthy communication between them. Their moments feel real and my god did I gobble them up! Not some insta-love craziness, but a relationship born out of need, likeness, trust, and respect for one another.
The atmosphere is just divine. The author captures the harshness of the environment from the weather to its people, yet still manages to bring the cozy small town side of it out. Penny Harbour isn’t perfect but it’s home nonetheless. I loved the chapters in between that showed a flash of life from other townsfolk to further immerse you into the world.
As I said, Spencer has my whole heart. It was such a nice change to not read about some tall, gravely voiced manly man. Spencer is in touch with his feminine side and is also capable of being strong and brutal. It was also nice to read about characters over 30! Spencer and Laurel are emotionally mature and have a healthy communication between them. Their moments feel real and my god did I gobble them up! Not some insta-love craziness, but a relationship born out of need, likeness, trust, and respect for one another.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Misogyny, and Blood
Moderate: Death and Homophobia
nikereadsbooks's review against another edition
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
3.5
Many thanks to the author for an ARC in exchange for a review.
There were so many things I liked about this book, but unfortunately I didn't completely enjoy the story as a whole.
The friendship between Laurel, Mary-Jo and Emma was definitely one of the highlights of the book. It was just wonderful to see them stick together and support each other, not just in the action-packed scenes, but also in the everyday life. Many romance-focused stories seem to forget about friends and I was so glad this one didn't. It made Laurel more nuanced, gave her character more depth. MJ and Emma were also great characters on their own. Both had their specific problems and made the town of Penny Harbor seem closer to me as a reader.
That is also something that shows in the additional Penny Harbor parts of each chapters. I feel like it definitely added depth to the story, introduced more lore, that would be otherwise limited by the dual POV. It brought enough foreshadowing for the final twist in the plot to make more sense.
The twist. I kinda liked it. It was ambiguous enough to be creepy, and the foreshadowing wasn't too obvious to spoil it.I loved the bear fight! It was so bizzare to see such creature plagued by the coal and how it then affected the people, too.
I felt more connected to Laurel than Spencer, even though they both had qualities that I like to see in characters. Their romance was very sweet and it was impossible not to root for them as they both discovered their feelings. Spencer's backstory and heartbreak paired well with Laurel's personal problems, and I really liked their whole meet cute.
But, I didn't completely click with the author's writing style and that made my reading experience worse. The story didn't really flow for me and the final part of the story felt a bit anticlimatic. Fine would be the word I would use to describe the overall vibe I got from the book.
There were so many things I liked about this book, but unfortunately I didn't completely enjoy the story as a whole.
The friendship between Laurel, Mary-Jo and Emma was definitely one of the highlights of the book. It was just wonderful to see them stick together and support each other, not just in the action-packed scenes, but also in the everyday life. Many romance-focused stories seem to forget about friends and I was so glad this one didn't. It made Laurel more nuanced, gave her character more depth. MJ and Emma were also great characters on their own. Both had their specific problems and made the town of Penny Harbor seem closer to me as a reader.
That is also something that shows in the additional Penny Harbor parts of each chapters. I feel like it definitely added depth to the story, introduced more lore, that would be otherwise limited by the dual POV. It brought enough foreshadowing for the final twist in the plot to make more sense.
The twist. I kinda liked it. It was ambiguous enough to be creepy, and the foreshadowing wasn't too obvious to spoil it.
I felt more connected to Laurel than Spencer, even though they both had qualities that I like to see in characters. Their romance was very sweet and it was impossible not to root for them as they both discovered their feelings. Spencer's backstory and heartbreak paired well with Laurel's personal problems, and I really liked their whole meet cute.
But, I didn't completely click with the author's writing style and that made my reading experience worse. The story didn't really flow for me and the final part of the story felt a bit anticlimatic. Fine would be the word I would use to describe the overall vibe I got from the book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Violence, and Blood
Minor: Addiction, Alcoholism, Homophobia, Sexual assault, and Vomit