Reviews with content warning for Eating disorder - The Spanish Love Deception

Did i read the same book as everyone else? The starting of the book was okay and it was kinda interesting but the more i read the worst it got. It took way too long for them to go to Spain, and the whole premise of the book is the wedding in Spain yet the wedding was just skimmed over and ended so quickly. Everything after Spain was unnecessary. Lina is the most annoying main character I've ever read, she doesn't have a personality other than either wanting Aaron or hating him. My biggest problem with the book, however, is the writing. It's so repetitive that it gets exhausting to read the same thing over and over again. We get it, his eyes are blue, he's big, he's going to be your boss. You don't have to repeat that multiple times. I could not stand the amount of time we were in Lina's head and reading her thoughts, because they were the same thoughts over and over again. I have so much issues with this book, but this is one of the big issues that i rarely hear from others, which is how i couldn't get to feel the atmosphere of the book. As a person who is an imaginative reader, this book for some reason was just difficult to be in my head. I just didn't feel like it was in Spain, the descriptions just didn't do it for me. Overall this was just not for me.

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amarenora's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

i love it. though at first it feels a bit boring bcs it did took me a few weeks to actually read the book but in the middle chapters, i fell in love with it. "Your Thea" part really did something emotional for me. I recommend reading it.

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rianneso's review against another edition

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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

4.0

I've seen people compare this to the Hating Game (and say they prefer THG), and I can see the comparison in some ways, but I much preferred this book. Something that really annoyed me in THG was the petty/childish games they played, and I just didn't feel that was a realistic portrayal of the behaviour of two supposedly grown adults.
With the way this book started (Lina addressing Aaron via her friend), I was afraid this would go the way of childish petty behaviour as well, but it turns out it was only that scene that was annoying in a similar way to THG. After that, it got better and I really enjoyed reading this.
Lina was cute and I think her worries about relationships/trust were understandable given her past. Aaron is basically the perfect man and I thought it was amazing how he made consent sexy.

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