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daintydoe's review against another edition
emotional
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
3.75
It was a fun romantic read but the love making scenes were… kinda terrible. Author should’ve skipped it all together tbh. So if you want some spice, this ain’t the book for you. If you want a very sweet love story with tons of character development & some laughs then this is the book for you!
Content Warnings
Minor: Grief, Emotional abuse, and Miscarriage
cassielaj's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
medium-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
4.5
I forgot how sweet and hilarious this one is. Nik and Carlos are fantastic characters and an entertaining couple to follow. I love how JG gives her characters believable backgrounds and storylines outside of their relationship… that’s what makes a good romance novel.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Grief, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Death of parent and Toxic relationship
onefineelephant's review against another edition
lighthearted
reflective
medium-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? Yes
2.5
5/10. The majority of the book was decent, if a bit bland. I was a bit confused about where the story was going considering both characters insisted on having a casual relationship. Also, both of the characters were slightly lackluster but I was certain that it would pick up once the characters realized that they were in love. However, I could not have been more wrong. The characters seemed to progress along nicely in their romance. But all of a sudden there's a declaration of love that literally came out of nowhere and the one mc gets mad at the other for not saying it back and then they say all kinds of nasty things that I would never consider forgivable. Then, the other mc realizes that they love the other in such an anticlimactic way and they just forgive the other after the awful things they said. Seriously, page 264 on I was flabbergasted at the absurdity and non-romance in a romance book nonetheless! At this point, I'm only going to read the last book in the series because I am holding out hope that the antagonistic nature is going to save it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Sexual content, Alcohol, Toxic relationship, Pregnancy, and Grief
Moderate: Miscarriage, Emotional abuse, and Stalking
bzliz's review against another edition
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
I previously read The Wedding Date and it was pretty average but enjoyable enough that I wanted to read more from Jasmine Guillory. Unfortunately, I think this book has killed that desire in me. I thought I was in for a very similar experience until I hit about 75% through the book and it took a sharp turn downward.
The premise was intriguing to me- a woman gets proposed to publicly by a man she was barely “dating” and she’s rushed out of the bad situation by our MMC Carlos and his sister- but the characters fell so flat. They all speak with a lack of maturity that does not fit their ages. Our FMC Nik at least has friends she talks to in this book- which is more than some romance characters get- but their only function is to orbit around her and childishly echo events that we as readers just saw transpire. Carlos is a caricature of a hyper masculine guy but he listens to women. Nik is supposed to be super independent and motivated but we don’t get to see her be great at her job and she regularly wastes her time with subpar dudes for no reason.
Guillory seems to favor a “tell, don’t show” approach to writing that doesn’t leave anything to the imagination, except the spicy scenes which fade-to-black and are pretty bland. To borrow a phrase from comedian Lou Wilson-that’s a salsa everyone at the table can enjoy. She also makes a few weird assertions that don’t line up with my life experience, such as insisting women are bombarded with messages about hiding money and purchases from their partners like it’s a normal thing to do. It reads like an out of touch boomer (which she is not) trying to relate to younger generations.
Much like The Wedding Date, Nik and Carlos spend most of their on page time eating or about to get steamy but I didn’t feel any chemistry between them. I was fine with that but once we hit the third actand Carlos has his realization and makes his declaration that he’s in love with Nik, he expects her to immediately jump into a full relationship with him despite their clearly defined desires to stay casual at the beginning of their tryst. She was right to be mad about it and he starts slinging pretty harsh accusations at her right away, such as suggesting she gets off on making men fall in love with her then leaving them. He ends up being pretty shitty to her and I don’t know how anyone could possibly forgive and move forward in a relationship with that person like Nik does once she realizes she’s also in love with Carlos.
I was prepared to give this another perfectly average rating but the ending really tanked it for me. Maybe I’ll give Guillory another shot in the future but for now I’m going to steer clear.
Content warnings:
Sexual content (on/off page):Mostly fade to black, mostly contains breast touching. No vulgar language used.
Pregnancy, medical content (on/off page):A pregnant side character has pre-eclampsia and is put of bed rest. Lots of page space is used discussing how she is doing and Carlos’ worry for her. She goes to the hospital and has an emergency c-section. Both she and the baby are fine but if you are triggered by discussion of difficult pregnancies, do not read.
Alcohol (on page):These people drink a lot for every occasion. I’m not sure they’ve heard it’s okay to have water.
Death of parent, grief (off page):Carlos’ dad passes prior to the start of the book and he still experiences grief from that. He does not handle his feelings or express them typically thanks to his alpha male mentality of needing to provide for his family. He needs therapy.
Body shaming, emotional abuse, toxic relationship, biphobia, miscarriage (off page):Nik interviews Natalie for a potential article and Natalie discusses wanting to start her gym because her ex-husband became emotionally abusive: he made her quit her job as a trainer because he didn’t want her touching anyone else, he isolated her from her friends and family, and when she miscarried he immediately demanded she lose the weight she had gained and monitored her physical activity on a fitness watch.
Racism (on page):A few minor mentions. Nik and Carlos are in a broken down car and she mentions that people who look like them aren’t necessarily safe while waiting for assistance to arrive. Nik’s ex tells her people “like her” are lucky when they get to be with people like him, aka white.
The premise was intriguing to me- a woman gets proposed to publicly by a man she was barely “dating” and she’s rushed out of the bad situation by our MMC Carlos and his sister- but the characters fell so flat. They all speak with a lack of maturity that does not fit their ages. Our FMC Nik at least has friends she talks to in this book- which is more than some romance characters get- but their only function is to orbit around her and childishly echo events that we as readers just saw transpire. Carlos is a caricature of a hyper masculine guy but he listens to women. Nik is supposed to be super independent and motivated but we don’t get to see her be great at her job and she regularly wastes her time with subpar dudes for no reason.
Guillory seems to favor a “tell, don’t show” approach to writing that doesn’t leave anything to the imagination, except the spicy scenes which fade-to-black and are pretty bland. To borrow a phrase from comedian Lou Wilson-that’s a salsa everyone at the table can enjoy. She also makes a few weird assertions that don’t line up with my life experience, such as insisting women are bombarded with messages about hiding money and purchases from their partners like it’s a normal thing to do. It reads like an out of touch boomer (which she is not) trying to relate to younger generations.
Much like The Wedding Date, Nik and Carlos spend most of their on page time eating or about to get steamy but I didn’t feel any chemistry between them. I was fine with that but once we hit the third act
I was prepared to give this another perfectly average rating but the ending really tanked it for me. Maybe I’ll give Guillory another shot in the future but for now I’m going to steer clear.
Content warnings:
Sexual content (on/off page):
Pregnancy, medical content (on/off page):
Alcohol (on page):
Death of parent, grief (off page):
Body shaming, emotional abuse, toxic relationship, biphobia, miscarriage (off page):
Racism (on page):
Content Warnings
Graphic: Medical content, Pregnancy, and Sexual content
Moderate: Body shaming, Death of parent, Grief, Emotional abuse, Miscarriage, Toxic relationship, Alcohol, and Biphobia
Minor: Racism
acas29's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Minor: Pregnancy, Miscarriage, Toxic relationship, Emotional abuse, Grief, and Death of parent
tiredfangirl's review against another edition
emotional
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
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Death of parent
jenna_justi2004's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
sad
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Biphobia, Bullying, Domestic abuse, Fatphobia, Gore, Grief, Mental illness, Misogyny, Alcohol, Child abuse, Cultural appropriation, Emotional abuse, Medical content, Miscarriage, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Chronic illness, Classism, Body shaming, Car accident, Cursing, Racism, Stalking, Gaslighting, Homophobia, Infertility, Medical trauma, Sexism, Sexual harassment, Death, Hate crime, Gun violence, Panic attacks/disorders, Pregnancy, and Physical abuse
rebecca_arielle's review against another edition
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
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief
Moderate: Medical trauma
Minor: Emotional abuse and Domestic abuse
kaitlinlovesbooks's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
medium-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
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death of parent, Medical content, Pregnancy, Sexual content, and Grief
Minor: Racism, Biphobia, Fatphobia, and Xenophobia
onemorepagecrew's review against another edition
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? No
4.5
The Proposal by Jasmine Guillory is a cute, lighthearted romance novel that features two people who were absolutely not looking for love yet find it anyway. In it we meet Nik on one of the most publicly weird days of her life, as she rejects a wedding proposal on the jumbotron in Dodger stadium. But before you go judging her, the person who proposed to her didn’t even spell her name correctly and you won’t be rooting for him. You know who you will be rooting for? Carlos. He and his sister meet her on the same day of her fateful proposal, and I won’t say more so you can experience the witty scene.
I’ve been making my way through the Jasmine Guillory books, whenever I want something fun and flirty. This is number 2 in the series, and you truly can read them in any order because while there are nods to characters in each book you don’t lose any key plot points by jumping around.
In terms of heat factory, this one is tame. The focus is on the character development and witty banter, which is well done. Nik has a great friend group, Carlos has a great family and is friends with the couple from the first book, and all together it’s an entertaining circle of people around them that adds to their stories.
There is some personal growth that each person needs to address as they couple up, however it’s not too deep. This book is a great choice if you are looking for a beach read or easy page-turner, and you want to keep the spice level low.
Content warnings: Death of parent, Grief, Pregnancy, Premature birth
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Grief, and Pregnancy