Scan barcode
bzliz's review against another edition
lighthearted
reflective
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
2.5
Look, I had a good time reading this but I need my star rating to reflect how good the book actually is which is pretty disappointing. It’s okay though because queer people deserve mediocre rom coms too!
Holden and Leo enter into a fake relationship to give them a better backstory for an audition to be on Madcap Market- a grocery store themed gameshow that has special meaning for Holden. Their fake relationship never really feels fake and I felt like the stakes were kind of forced. Obviously the people casting this show wouldn’t care if their backstory wasn’t truthful. They care that someone is attractive enough and can put on a good show. We also didn’t get enough of the game show. The last round is completely skipped and could’ve made for some good drama making the reader wonder if they can get the full prize. It felt to me like the author wasn’t interested in that and just wanted to make it to the third act breakup (which I always hate). I was confused about Buckley showing up to compete in the show also. Everything about this man told me he would never do anything that might make him look foolish or childish, but he suddenly reversed that for petty revenge on someone he dumped? It felt weird.
The topic of grief was handled pretty well. It’s such a hard subject for a lot of people. I liked Leo’s mom’s perspective- that death is the end of suffering- and I think that scene allowed Holden to actually confront some of his feelings. The scene near the end with his dad was also really sweet and I wish we had gotten more interaction between them. Their relationship was fundamentally changed when they lost a loved one and it was nice to see them heal and reconnect. Male characters being vulnerable with each other is too rare.
There’s plenty of spice in this including some D/s dynamics which caught me off guard at first but ended up being fine. What’s not fine is putting produce in any holes besides your mouth. Don’t do it, folks. If it’s going in your butt, it needs a flared base. Ask literally anyone who works in an ER.
Holden and Leo enter into a fake relationship to give them a better backstory for an audition to be on Madcap Market- a grocery store themed gameshow that has special meaning for Holden. Their fake relationship never really feels fake and I felt like the stakes were kind of forced. Obviously the people casting this show wouldn’t care if their backstory wasn’t truthful. They care that someone is attractive enough and can put on a good show. We also didn’t get enough of the game show. The last round is completely skipped and could’ve made for some good drama making the reader wonder if they can get the full prize. It felt to me like the author wasn’t interested in that and just wanted to make it to the third act breakup (which I always hate). I was confused about Buckley showing up to compete in the show also. Everything about this man told me he would never do anything that might make him look foolish or childish, but he suddenly reversed that for petty revenge on someone he dumped? It felt weird.
The topic of grief was handled pretty well. It’s such a hard subject for a lot of people. I liked Leo’s mom’s perspective- that death is the end of suffering- and I think that scene allowed Holden to actually confront some of his feelings. The scene near the end with his dad was also really sweet and I wish we had gotten more interaction between them. Their relationship was fundamentally changed when they lost a loved one and it was nice to see them heal and reconnect. Male characters being vulnerable with each other is too rare.
There’s plenty of spice in this including some D/s dynamics which caught me off guard at first but ended up being fine. What’s not fine is putting produce in any holes besides your mouth. Don’t do it, folks. If it’s going in your butt, it needs a flared base. Ask literally anyone who works in an ER.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Cancer, Grief, and Death of parent
Moderate: Cursing and Alcohol
Minor: Homophobia
cheye13's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
reflective
fast-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
3.0
This was a lovely romance that packed so much story into such a short page count. Despite the single POV, both characters had depth and their individual growth journeys amidst their blossoming romance and game-show shenanigans.
I tend to avoid "New Adult" romances, because in my experience they tend to be shallowly-written erotica featuring young, hot "new" adults. A general theme of "I don't know what I'm doing with my life or where to find a sense of purpose, but maybe banging my hot neighbor/coworker/etc will help." Instead, this book is what I imagine "New Adult" romances should be: a tale of a couple learning about themselves through each other, and encouraging each other to take ownership of their own adult lives.
I tend to avoid "New Adult" romances, because in my experience they tend to be shallowly-written erotica featuring young, hot "new" adults. A general theme of "I don't know what I'm doing with my life or where to find a sense of purpose, but maybe banging my hot neighbor/coworker/etc will help." Instead, this book is what I imagine "New Adult" romances should be: a tale of a couple learning about themselves through each other, and encouraging each other to take ownership of their own adult lives.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content and Grief
Moderate: Death of parent
Minor: Infidelity and Homophobia
cruthe's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
sad
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? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Death of parent and Grief
mels_reading_log's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
This book centers around Holden’s desire to participate in a supermarket game show, his version of Supermarket Sweep. It was he and his mom’s favorite show when she was alive. The only problem is he needs a partner. In walks the sexy, game loving Leo and his problems are solved. They just need to fake date for the producers, win the show and not get their hearts broken for real…easy peasy.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, and Death of parent
lauren_shilling's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
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
3.25
This book is by no means a bad book. It's a lot of fun, and I really enjoyed the chemistry between the two characters. Holden and Leo were adorable, and I loved the chaos of this story. However, I was a little disappointed, because I have loved other books by this author and have really appreciated the care he takes to give the characters enough time to grow and fall for each other in really meaningful ways, and it felt like that was missing from this book. The story felt rushed, and while I wouldn't say it was insta love, it did happen a little fast for my taste. I love when characters take time to understand realize they like each other, and I feel like they jumped into it quick in this book. It is a fake dating story, which I did enjoy a lot, but I feel like Holden and Leo went from fake dating to really falling for each other too fast, if that makes sense. But on the other hand, I love a romance about two people who really do just meet a person for them with little to no drama, and I did like that, throughout all the drama that did happen in the story, their love story was really only truly threatened by it once. They trusted each other and liked each other. My only complaint is that it went from liking each other to loving each other a little too fast. The third act conflict in this book was also something I had some issues with. While I think it was well written when it happened, there wasn't a lot of build up to it in my opinion. However, some things I really liked about this book was how fun it was. It was silly and chaotic and enjoyable, and I had so much fun with it. So if you're looking to have fun or pull yourself out of a reading slump, this is absolutely a good book to do that with! So overall, I didn't hate this book at all, and I had fun with it, but I had some issues with it that did impact my enjoyment.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content and Grief
Moderate: Alcohol, Death of parent, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Infidelity
hazelgirl21's review against another edition
emotional
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Grief, and Sexual content
Moderate: Abandonment
jazhandz's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Grief, and Sexual content
Minor: Alcohol, Homophobia, Cancer, and Infidelity
crazyras101's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
inspiring
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
Graphic: Sexual content
sarajoe80'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? Yes
3.0
First of all, thank you NetGalley, Timothy Janovsky, and the publisher for allowing me to listen to this book via ARC.
TL/DR: solid fake-dating romance, but the game show plot was not plotting.
Read if: you are looking for a queer fake-dating with a small plot and supportive family
Don't read if: you are working trough family grief. While the author deals with it respectfully, one of the main aspects of this book is Holden's grief around his late mother.
This book was a 3-star read for me. While there were some elements that I liked, it had a lot of elements that made me roll my eyes throughout the reading.
What I liked: first of all, I am a Leo fan, he is immaculate and lovely and way more mature than the main character. I liked the dynamic between Holden and Leo, even more the scenes with Leo's mother. I also loved that this book dealt a lot with family issues and trauma (especially around Grief), and I genuinely teared up a chapter from the end. Both guys have very supportive families and there was no "coming-out" trope, which, as a queer person myself, found relieving.
What I did not like: I did not like some of the tropes of this book, especially the third-act breakup 3 chapters from the end, and the miscommunication that Holden has . What mainly made me pick 3 stars is because the book seems to be all focused around the game show, yet there is only one or two chapters 70% into the book where there is an actual game show, it made me want to know more about it.
TL/DR: solid fake-dating romance, but the game show plot was not plotting.
Read if: you are looking for a queer fake-dating with a small plot and supportive family
Don't read if: you are working trough family grief. While the author deals with it respectfully, one of the main aspects of this book is Holden's grief around his late mother.
This book was a 3-star read for me. While there were some elements that I liked, it had a lot of elements that made me roll my eyes throughout the reading.
What I liked: first of all, I am a Leo fan, he is immaculate and lovely and way more mature than the main character. I liked the dynamic between Holden and Leo, even more the scenes with Leo's mother. I also loved that this book dealt a lot with family issues and trauma (especially around Grief), and I genuinely teared up a chapter from the end. Both guys have very supportive families and there was no "coming-out" trope, which, as a queer person myself, found relieving.
What I did not like: I did not like some of the tropes of this book, especially
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief and Sexual content
12dejamoo's review
emotional
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I liked that this book didn't take itself too seriously. And it was a quick read and generally an enjoyable time. I cried during the graveyard scene, and I was genuinely rooting for Holden and Leo.
I give this 3 stars just because it was just kind of okay. Like I have nothing concretely wrong with it, just never felt super compelled to read it.
I give this 3 stars just because it was just kind of okay. Like I have nothing concretely wrong with it, just never felt super compelled to read it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Death of parent, and Grief
Minor: Homophobia