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manola's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
tense
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? Yes
4.25
Really enjoyable read. From the synopsis, I was afraid the story might become long-winded in the waiting of both protagonists getting together (especially since they weren't seeing each other or ever meeting in person), but thankfully the story unfolded and became so much more than what I expected it to be.
Tiffy is incredible as a protagonist. She does have an air of this stereotypical movie-quirkiness recurrent in romance stories (mismatched clothing, being 'awkward' in social situations, etc.), but she manages to come across as such a lovely human being you're just glad to listen her talk about her life. Sometimes I did find the work-related shenanigans a bit slower to get through, but the author usually managed to pull something in at the last minute to turn the situation around and throw more conflict into the story.
Leon I also really liked. At first, his POV chapters felt odd and choppy because of his writing style (pretty robot-like, almost), becoming a bit annoying at times. But I eventually warmed up to him and it's interesting to see his writing style evolve as he changes as a character as well.
The rest of the cast was also enjoyable. Tiffy's best friends are a solid presence in the story and don't feel like background stuffing to give more depth to her personal life. Some characters did feel a bit too cartoonish (thinking of Martin here, specifically), and others slipped out of the plot without much reason to (a sort of fling Tiffy has that felt like a device for her development, and an old man-JW-who's suddenly out of the picture at the half-way point without explanation).
But overall, the characters do reel you into the story and push you into becoming invested. Both protagonists have their own personal drama to manage throughout, and some heavier themes are discussed (check trigger warnings here). The story manages to balance a sweet slow-burn romance with issues that carry a darker tinge. The characters feel real because they deal with shitty things that are uncomfortable to think about and more uncomfortable to read about, and they deal with them with a messiness that simply feels... human.
Truly recommend :)
Tiffy is incredible as a protagonist. She does have an air of this stereotypical movie-quirkiness recurrent in romance stories (mismatched clothing, being 'awkward' in social situations, etc.), but she manages to come across as such a lovely human being you're just glad to listen her talk about her life. Sometimes I did find the work-related shenanigans a bit slower to get through, but the author usually managed to pull something in at the last minute to turn the situation around and throw more conflict into the story.
Leon I also really liked. At first, his POV chapters felt odd and choppy because of his writing style (pretty robot-like, almost), becoming a bit annoying at times. But I eventually warmed up to him and it's interesting to see his writing style evolve as he changes as a character as well.
The rest of the cast was also enjoyable. Tiffy's best friends are a solid presence in the story and don't feel like background stuffing to give more depth to her personal life. Some characters did feel a bit too cartoonish (thinking of Martin here, specifically), and others slipped out of the plot without much reason to (a sort of fling Tiffy has that felt like a device for her development, and an old man-JW-who's suddenly out of the picture at the half-way point without explanation).
But overall, the characters do reel you into the story and push you into becoming invested. Both protagonists have their own personal drama to manage throughout, and some heavier themes are discussed (check trigger warnings here). The story manages to balance a sweet slow-burn romance with issues that carry a darker tinge. The characters feel real because they deal with shitty things that are uncomfortable to think about and more uncomfortable to read about, and they deal with them with a messiness that simply feels... human.
Truly recommend :)
Content Warnings
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Stalking, Gaslighting, Toxic relationship, and Domestic abuse
Minor: Chronic illness
amy_in_the_city's review against another edition
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gaslighting, Stalking, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Chronic illness, Cancer, and Confinement
futureofmydays's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Forced institutionalization, Confinement, Alcohol, Bullying, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Toxic relationship, Stalking, Medical content, and Violence
Minor: Blood, Chronic illness, War, Infidelity, Medical trauma, Body shaming, Cancer, Fatphobia, and Grief
danicam's review against another edition
emotional
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, and Stalking
Moderate: Chronic illness
kangaroux's review against another edition
emotional
funny
medium-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
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Chronic illness, Stalking, Cancer, Emotional abuse, and Terminal illness
lahars_little_library's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
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? It's complicated
4.5
Love love Love! This was so much deeper than I expected!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gaslighting, Emotional abuse, Stalking, and Mental illness
Moderate: Cursing, Panic attacks/disorders, Chronic illness, Confinement, Racism, Sexual content, and Terminal illness
Minor: Cancer, Vomit, Homophobia, War, Drug use, and Body shaming
pinkfloydian's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Stalking, Toxic relationship, and Domestic abuse
Minor: Cancer, Chronic illness, and Terminal illness
lulafanx's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
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
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Emotional abuse
Minor: Chronic illness and Racism
izziepng's review
emotional
funny
inspiring
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? Yes
4.5
I loved this book
I loved all the characters and their different personalities (Rachel cracked me up and i’d love to have Tiffys friends)
This book moves SO SLOW in the beginning or at least the romance does (obviously they’re only speaking throught notes)
I knew it was creepy when Justin kept showing up randomly everywhere she went and i just figured he was like hacking into her stuff (is Marvin completely dense)
Okay the actual romance LEON IS A LITTLE SWEET HEART (not in bed ig though 😏 not even joking when he was being you know all dirty and stuff my jaw DROPPED i was shocked)
Id love to see Tiffys wardrobe and her outfits because i had such a hard time visualizing it.
Richie made me giggle (was rooting for either gerty and richie or rachel and richie ngl)
Gerty being with Mo was SUPER OBVIOUS if you just look at all the hints but i was not focused on them AT ALL especially not Mo (sorry) love a supportive friend and all and you need that like angel on Tiffys shoulder but Gertys just bluntness also made me giggle
I was reading this book in between my classes (having no friends and also having 1/2 hour to 1 1/2 hour long breaks between classes sucks ass) and i’m SO GLAD i didn’t read the last like 5 chapters while there because I COULD NOT BE QUIET I GASPED WHEN JUSTIN PROPOSED and practically cried when leon was all sad and tiffy was struggling.
I loved all the characters and their different personalities (Rachel cracked me up and i’d love to have Tiffys friends)
This book moves SO SLOW in the beginning or at least the romance does (obviously they’re only speaking throught notes)
I knew it was creepy when Justin kept showing up randomly everywhere she went and i just figured he was like hacking into her stuff (is Marvin completely dense)
Okay the actual romance LEON IS A LITTLE SWEET HEART (not in bed ig though 😏 not even joking when he was being you know all dirty and stuff my jaw DROPPED i was shocked)
Id love to see Tiffys wardrobe and her outfits because i had such a hard time visualizing it.
Richie made me giggle (was rooting for either gerty and richie or rachel and richie ngl)
Gerty being with Mo was SUPER OBVIOUS if you just look at all the hints but i was not focused on them AT ALL especially not Mo (sorry) love a supportive friend and all and you need that like angel on Tiffys shoulder but Gertys just bluntness also made me giggle
I was reading this book in between my classes (having no friends and also having 1/2 hour to 1 1/2 hour long breaks between classes sucks ass) and i’m SO GLAD i didn’t read the last like 5 chapters while there because I COULD NOT BE QUIET I GASPED WHEN JUSTIN PROPOSED and practically cried when leon was all sad and tiffy was struggling.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Stalking, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Chronic illness, Terminal illness, and Body shaming
jadawhooreads's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
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
5.0
I loved this book! I really enjoyed Beth O’Leary’s casual and fun writing style; especially reading the differences in how Leon and Tiffy think with their split POVs. I thought it was very well paced and I didn’t want to put it down for long. Tiffy and Leon as characters were well fleshed out and I enjoyed their dynamic with each other and their slow burn attraction. I squealed a good amount of times while reading, I felt like I was reading fan fiction it was so wholesome at times! Even with Tiffy and Leon aside, I was interested in other characters and I didn’t find myself ‘skim reading’ over them (which is rare for some books I can’t lie). I would definitely read a sequel of Gerty and Mo and Richie and see how they’re getting on; I loved their different energies and they felt real, not just there to serve Tiffy and Leon. ALSO, can I just say I ADORE how Tiffy was clearly written as a plus sized woman and YET it wasn’t her only character trait and it didn’t affect how people were attracted to her, or how people treated her. I ALSO ADORE how Leon (and Richie) was both Black and Irish and yet again, it wasn’t his defining trait, and it wasn’t the defining reason why Tiffy was attracted to him. Sometimes when I read heterosexual romances it can be a bit bland or problematic, but this was full of life and making them both inclusive and yet not having Tiffy’s body or Leon’s race be the only thing they talk about was so refreshing; massive props!
I literally don’t have any criticisms of the book, perfect sized, well paced goodness! 🥰
I literally don’t have any criticisms of the book, perfect sized, well paced goodness! 🥰
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gaslighting, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Emotional abuse, Rape, Toxic relationship, and Violence
Moderate: Chronic illness
Minor: Body shaming and Fatphobia