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tenderbench's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
sad
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
3.25
hideyourspoons's review
4.0
If you're rebounding with your crush's brother, but that brother is pining for the crush's fiancé, is that a love square? Yes, you read that correctly - a love square. Let me simplify:
Marcela loves Ben.
Ben is engaged to Alice.
Theo (Ben's brother) is in love with Alice.
Marcela & Theo agree to be each other's rebound fling.
Maybe its not a square. Maybe instead its a telenovela / CW network drama with secrets & lies, steamy attraction, miscommunication, and grand gestures.
Seriously can not over emphasize the melodrama of it all. I wanted to cry when Marcela self-sabotaged. Had to restrain myself when Ben showed some toxic behavior. Was absolutely baffled by Alice's choice of brothers. Meanwhile, if I could protect Theo from all harm, I would.
This is the book you buddy read with a beatie or a club. Because you'll have opinions about who was right or wrong in each conflict. And sometimes its not so easy to judge when you k ow the deep history amd hurts of these very real-to-life characters.
A critical note, I feel the story was hampered by repetitive conflicts. The number of times Ben & Alice gave Marcela cryptic vague warnings drove me crazy. Theres also a few bookish references that elicited a LeoPoints.meme reaction that took me out of the story. But! If a book can inspire more reading - diverse reading - then yes please give me more name drops and help me build a TBR.
Thank you Netgalley & Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for this advance copy in exchange for my honest review.
Marcela loves Ben.
Ben is engaged to Alice.
Theo (Ben's brother) is in love with Alice.
Marcela & Theo agree to be each other's rebound fling.
Maybe its not a square. Maybe instead its a telenovela / CW network drama with secrets & lies, steamy attraction, miscommunication, and grand gestures.
Seriously can not over emphasize the melodrama of it all. I wanted to cry when Marcela self-sabotaged. Had to restrain myself when Ben showed some toxic behavior. Was absolutely baffled by Alice's choice of brothers. Meanwhile, if I could protect Theo from all harm, I would.
This is the book you buddy read with a beatie or a club. Because you'll have opinions about who was right or wrong in each conflict. And sometimes its not so easy to judge when you k ow the deep history amd hurts of these very real-to-life characters.
A critical note, I feel the story was hampered by repetitive conflicts. The number of times Ben & Alice gave Marcela cryptic vague warnings drove me crazy. Theres also a few bookish references that elicited a LeoPoints.meme reaction that took me out of the story. But! If a book can inspire more reading - diverse reading - then yes please give me more name drops and help me build a TBR.
Thank you Netgalley & Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for this advance copy in exchange for my honest review.
jkowalski87'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
4.5
readsbykatj's review
Dnfing this @ 42%. I made it so far so this is kinda ruining my brain rn but this book and I were NOT getting along!!!! I didn’t love the writing, the FMC was so annoying to me. And so nosy. And so annoying. And the mmc was just there? Like he was so boring to me. And they had zero chemistry (in my opinion) and read more like friends? And not love interests??? I don’t know, it was just not my favorite. But I loved the poc & plus size representation!!!!!!!!!!!
Thank you NETGALLEY and Forever for this arc!!!
Thank you NETGALLEY and Forever for this arc!!!
kimberpoi's review
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
andreadanielle29's review against another edition
4.0
This was a really cute romance from 2 characters that had their hearts broken in similar ways. The FMC was very relatable. She constantly overthought every little detail which I have caught myself doing too many times. This story was full of romance, friendships and focused on a librarian obsessed with reading just like many of us!!
ambeesbookishpages's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
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? Yes
5.0
RATING: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
SPICE: 🌶️🌶️🌶️
I never have felt more seen by a book then I have by The Next Best Fling in a very long time. Gabriella’s debut romance novel did not disappoint and I loved it from page one. Featuring a curvy FMC, former football player MMC, best friends brother trope and healing a broken heart, The Next Best Fling brings something to the table for all romance lovers.
I adored Marcela’s character. A a curvy girl myself who also goes through phases of loving their body and then phases of hating it. I understood her struggles in trying to understand why Theo desired her and if he really wanted her. Let me tell you, the way he soothed and proved those thoughts wrong for her 😮💨😮💨😮💨 I also loved that Marcela is a YA librarian, which is so cool to me. YA books are what made me a reader and seeing references from books that I read and loved in the past was almost like a full circle moment for me. I can not express how much I loved the characters in this book and how much I wanted to wrap both Marcela and Theo up in a giant hug and reassure them that everything was going to be okay.
The Next Best Fling does contain open door spice, but to me it wasn’t anything crazy and I feel as if it was used to further the plot and the characters then used for filler. Marcela’s thought process during the spicy scenes and the way she viewed herself I know will be relatable to many readers, I know it especially was for me.
Again, Gabriella’s romance debut did no disappoint, it has been several days since reading and I am still thinking about Marcela and Theo’s story. I am excited to see what Gabriella has in store next, she will definitely be an author to add to my TBR list going forward!
***I received a review copy of The Next Best Fling through NetGalley from Forever. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Thank you for the opportunity to review this book!***
SPICE: 🌶️🌶️🌶️
I never have felt more seen by a book then I have by The Next Best Fling in a very long time. Gabriella’s debut romance novel did not disappoint and I loved it from page one. Featuring a curvy FMC, former football player MMC, best friends brother trope and healing a broken heart, The Next Best Fling brings something to the table for all romance lovers.
I adored Marcela’s character. A a curvy girl myself who also goes through phases of loving their body and then phases of hating it. I understood her struggles in trying to understand why Theo desired her and if he really wanted her. Let me tell you, the way he soothed and proved those thoughts wrong for her 😮💨😮💨😮💨 I also loved that Marcela is a YA librarian, which is so cool to me. YA books are what made me a reader and seeing references from books that I read and loved in the past was almost like a full circle moment for me. I can not express how much I loved the characters in this book and how much I wanted to wrap both Marcela and Theo up in a giant hug and reassure them that everything was going to be okay.
The Next Best Fling does contain open door spice, but to me it wasn’t anything crazy and I feel as if it was used to further the plot and the characters then used for filler. Marcela’s thought process during the spicy scenes and the way she viewed herself I know will be relatable to many readers, I know it especially was for me.
Again, Gabriella’s romance debut did no disappoint, it has been several days since reading and I am still thinking about Marcela and Theo’s story. I am excited to see what Gabriella has in store next, she will definitely be an author to add to my TBR list going forward!
***I received a review copy of The Next Best Fling through NetGalley from Forever. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Thank you for the opportunity to review this book!***
bookishbunny_'s review against another edition
3.0
This started off as a great read, but the last half wasn't my favorite. Honestly the whole situation was kind of toxic and I didn't love how Theo and Marcela got together and handled everything. Initially, I liked how Theo and Marcela were both aware of needing to move on and they found comfort in each other. However, Marcela grew to be a frustrating character. There was transparency from Theo but Marcela was so focused on choosing to blindly read into his words and she was overcomplicating things. There was a lot of miscommunication at the end of the book and it was starting to get silly. I think it would have helped if we saw their relationship develop more, especially beyond a physical level. Marcela felt like a very juvenile character and my biggest issue with her was how messy she was making everything. There's not much to the plot but it started to feel like they were running in circles at the end and it would have been less frustration if there had just been more communication between all the characters. Theo was a great character and I love how clear he was about his feelings/stance but the excuses Marcela was trying to use were disappointing. Overall, there were lots of red flags in the characters and I wasn't invested in the story enough to be convinced about their relationship. Even at the end, it still felt like a rebound relationship and the character development wasn't enough. There were definitely some cute moments though! I wouldn't have minded if we got to see the librarian side of Marcela more.
Thank you to Netgalley and Forever for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!
Thank you to Netgalley and Forever for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!
booktribe's review
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Before I picked up this book, I was in a HUGE romance slump. I was DNF-ing romance after romance & I had only enjoyed one ALL YEAR. I had decided to take a break from the genre for a while, but I randomly picked this book up and I’m so glad I did. This book has renewed my love for romance🥰
This is the perfect romance read! It had everything I ever want in a love story. It had lovable main characters, so many adorable moments, lots of pining, and even drama👀
I loved the characters so much. Marcela and Theo were so great. They had such amazing chemistry. Their relationship had such depth. And the characters individually, had so much depth as well. ALL of the characters were so well developed to the point where I understood everyone, both the good and the bad parts. Theo has made his way into my book boyfriend hall of fame. From his grand romantic gestures to how attentive he was to her feelings. He was the perfect man.
Fake dating is my favorite trope and this was fake dating done well. The scenario which caused the fake dating felt so natural to the story. And this book had a third act breakup that made perfect sense. It wasn’t just some miscommunication where grown people don’t know how to explain their emotions. There were layers to it that they really had to sort through in order to come back together.
I feel like this review doesn’t even begin to convey how much I loved this book. This story had me cheesing and giggling at all the cute moments & beautiful confessions. It had me cussing people out. It had me tearing up. It just took me through so many emotions, in the best way. It was literal perfection from beginning to end. This book is for the real lovers! I can’t wait to read more from this author!
Thank you to Forever and NetGalley for this arc. All opinions are my own.
TW: abandonment & fatphobia
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment
Moderate: Fatphobia