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rissa53's review
5.0
I couldn't stop reading! :) I literally read this the whole way through! I loved it! Of course I did! An imaginative story told over phone calls, text messages, and emails? You know I'm all over that! I felt for Riley, I did. Did I get frustrated over his refusal to meet Cameron? OF COURSE. But that was the story being told and I ate it up because I love fairytales and hearts and crap like that. This is why I read M/M ROMANCE!!!!! LMAO
Cameron was awesome but he wasn't perfect either and that made them meant to be in my eyes. Sure it was dragging at times because of course I was all, come on already, but to me it didn't take away anything. I still would have kept on reading! So yes, I thoroughly enjoyed it because the HUMOR WAS FREAKING AWESOME lol. Now, this author promised a continuation for early 2014...not to be impatient but WHERE IS IT?;)
Cameron was awesome but he wasn't perfect either and that made them meant to be in my eyes. Sure it was dragging at times because of course I was all, come on already, but to me it didn't take away anything. I still would have kept on reading! So yes, I thoroughly enjoyed it because the HUMOR WAS FREAKING AWESOME lol. Now, this author promised a continuation for early 2014...not to be impatient but WHERE IS IT?;)
squirrely007's review
4.0
This is a 4.5 - this book could have been a big pile of annoyance but the author wrote two terrific characters that it was so much fun watching them slowly fall in love. I really enjoyed it and can't wait for more on these two now that dynamics of the relationship has changed.
aug3zimm's review
2.0
This easily could have gotten a much higher rating for me if there were a couple minor differences. First off, I get Riley's self-conciousness about his scars so I got his hesitancy to meet Cam face to face. The world is a superficial place and that makes it really hard when you have a deficiency or self-perceived deficiency. But to still refuse to meet him afterRiley realized that Cam knew that he was the guy from the coffee shop ? That was just dragging it out for angst, no other reason. Minus one star.
Minus another star for the ending.Post-sex, Riley decides Cam is trustworthy and he needs to show that by removing Cam's blindfold. The end. Stay tuned for the next book. Seriously? No. I hate required sequels with the burning of a thousand suns. I bought a book for the whole story, not 90% of one.
Theoretically you could say that end is enough and ignore the second book or you could do exactly what the publisher wants and buy the second book the moment it comes out. But really, all this book needs to fully complete it is one more chapter. Shoot, depending on how it is done, a handful of paragraphs could have been enough to give that warm fuzzy "awww!" feeling that I need to get from a romance for it to be a fav. But no. They want to sell another book so they don't give that "aww, happy ending" ending and then put out another book that will most likely have some ridiculous drama in it just to give the book some conflict and make me question the characters' ability to have a happy, healthy relationship with each other. (Because book two conflicts between established couples are usually either contrived and ridiculous to the point where it makes me feel the relationship is doomed to failure when they can't easily get over such an issue or it is something big like cheating, which makes me not want the two to stay together anyway.)
So yeah, good writing, cute character interaction that feels very natural, fun pop culture references - but it did drag a bit. Honestly, I could have forgiven the angst-for-the-sake-of-angst part of the program if the ending had been a proper ending. But it wasn't and I'm pretty ticked at that because I think it's a money-grubbing stunt so this book is lucky it is getting the generous score of two stars.
Quite frankly, I'm just pleased I was able to get through this review without dropping an f-bomb. Five stars for me!
Minus another star for the ending.
Theoretically you could say that end is enough and ignore the second book or you could do exactly what the publisher wants and buy the second book the moment it comes out. But really, all this book needs to fully complete it is one more chapter. Shoot, depending on how it is done, a handful of paragraphs could have been enough to give that warm fuzzy "awww!" feeling that I need to get from a romance for it to be a fav. But no. They want to sell another book so they don't give that "aww, happy ending" ending and then put out another book that will most likely have some ridiculous drama in it just to give the book some conflict and make me question the characters' ability to have a happy, healthy relationship with each other. (Because book two conflicts between established couples are usually either contrived and ridiculous to the point where it makes me feel the relationship is doomed to failure when they can't easily get over such an issue or it is something big like cheating, which makes me not want the two to stay together anyway.)
So yeah, good writing, cute character interaction that feels very natural, fun pop culture references - but it did drag a bit. Honestly, I could have forgiven the angst-for-the-sake-of-angst part of the program if the ending had been a proper ending. But it wasn't and I'm pretty ticked at that because I think it's a money-grubbing stunt so this book is lucky it is getting the generous score of two stars.
Quite frankly, I'm just pleased I was able to get through this review without dropping an f-bomb. Five stars for me!
astoryuntold's review
2.0
This book had so much potential-lovely story, with plenty of room for character development without sex always getting in the way since 90% of the book is phone conversations between the MCs. However, it fell flat for me and it was a bit childish imo, something that I didn't expect from a book with that kind of premise.
I didn't have a problem with Cam, apart from the complete lack of his history/past. We literally learn 2 things about him: his family disowned him, and his ex's name is Chris. Still, he was definitely more likable than Riley, who:
1. survived a terrible fire that left the left side of his face disfigured
2. is in pain because he's terrified what other people think of him
3. because of that he hasn't been intimate with anyone for 3 years
4. is a hipster/flamboyant writer who writes in cafes
and I still couldn't bring myself to like him!
Look, I'm not even going to begin to imagine what it is like for a person to have to go through a terrible ordeal like that, and what it did to his self esteem(we are told that Riley was a bit of a player pre-fire). And I get his initial hesitation to meet Cam in person, I really do.
But within reason. His insistence on not meeting Cameron face to face became, from a matter of self loathing, to a matter of self absorption real fast. Poor Cameron had all the patience in the world (he was a saint, imo) and when he found himself falling in love with Riley and he asked him out on a date, Riley got angry and upset because he didn't respect his boundaries. What freaking boundaries?? You had phone sex a bunch of times and you sent him nude, and may I say very lewd pictures, which someone else shot btw! After Cameron being rejected a couple of times for a meet, Riley's behavior was almost laughable. I tried to be sensitive and understand him, but it was impossible.
Like I said, 90% of the book is comprised of phone conversations between Riley and Cam "getting to know each other". I don't think they did, tbh. Riley was obsessed about Cam never finding out who he is, and Cam was trying to appease, what sometimes seemed like, a stubborn child. Some conversations dragged on longer than necessary, making them awkward and stiff. Hey, I love Ewan as much as the next girl (top 5 for sure) but that was just too much, even for me! Also, I don't like it when writers make their characters have the same interests as them, and throw a bunch of pop culture references around, which some readers have no idea about. It's cool when you add a couple here and there (you draw from your experiences, after all) but this one had tons. It's like the writer is telling me "look how cool I am, I like this and this and this" and I am really not interested. I also have a thing about adding song lyrics in a book, unless it's very well done and it fits the story and characters. Otherwise, I find it corny as hell.
That being said, TTAR had its moment, but not enough to make me like it. Shorter, more to the point with a more likeable MC, would have been much better.
I didn't have a problem with Cam, apart from the complete lack of his history/past. We literally learn 2 things about him: his family disowned him, and his ex's name is Chris. Still, he was definitely more likable than Riley, who:
1. survived a terrible fire that left the left side of his face disfigured
2. is in pain because he's terrified what other people think of him
3. because of that he hasn't been intimate with anyone for 3 years
4. is a hipster/flamboyant writer who writes in cafes
and I still couldn't bring myself to like him!
Look, I'm not even going to begin to imagine what it is like for a person to have to go through a terrible ordeal like that, and what it did to his self esteem(we are told that Riley was a bit of a player pre-fire). And I get his initial hesitation to meet Cam in person, I really do.
But within reason. His insistence on not meeting Cameron face to face became, from a matter of self loathing, to a matter of self absorption real fast. Poor Cameron had all the patience in the world (he was a saint, imo) and when he found himself falling in love with Riley and he asked him out on a date, Riley got angry and upset because he didn't respect his boundaries. What freaking boundaries?? You had phone sex a bunch of times and you sent him nude, and may I say very lewd pictures, which someone else shot btw! After Cameron being rejected a couple of times for a meet, Riley's behavior was almost laughable. I tried to be sensitive and understand him, but it was impossible.
Like I said, 90% of the book is comprised of phone conversations between Riley and Cam "getting to know each other". I don't think they did, tbh. Riley was obsessed about Cam never finding out who he is, and Cam was trying to appease, what sometimes seemed like, a stubborn child. Some conversations dragged on longer than necessary, making them awkward and stiff. Hey, I love Ewan as much as the next girl (top 5 for sure) but that was just too much, even for me! Also, I don't like it when writers make their characters have the same interests as them, and throw a bunch of pop culture references around, which some readers have no idea about. It's cool when you add a couple here and there (you draw from your experiences, after all) but this one had tons. It's like the writer is telling me "look how cool I am, I like this and this and this" and I am really not interested. I also have a thing about adding song lyrics in a book, unless it's very well done and it fits the story and characters. Otherwise, I find it corny as hell.
That being said, TTAR had its moment, but not enough to make me like it. Shorter, more to the point with a more likeable MC, would have been much better.
georgiewhoissarahdrew's review
2.0
Pleasant enough riff on The Shop Around the Corner, with Cam & Riley developing a phone friendship while Riley hides away, horrified by his own post-fire scarring.
I'd give this a higher rating but there's a lot of tell, not show, and it takes forever for Riley to meet Cam. There's slow-burn and there's "get a bleeding move on". Slightly surprising that Riley's sensible mother hasn't raised therapy with him.
I'd give this a higher rating but there's a lot of tell, not show, and it takes forever for Riley to meet Cam. There's slow-burn and there's "get a bleeding move on". Slightly surprising that Riley's sensible mother hasn't raised therapy with him.
pauliree's review
4.0
I think this is the first romance I've ever read where the protagonists don't officially meet until right at the end. It was a sweet book, full of romance and laughter and heroes with hearts of gold but some sever insecurities. I cried at the end, big fat tears rolling down my cheeks. Lovely
alisreads's review
4.0
Sungguh bacaan yang membuat frustasi. Bagaimana tidak? Ketika sedang menikmati saat-saat mendebarkan, mendadak saja kata "END" menghadang dan cerita ini berakhir hanya sampai situ.
Meskipun dengan alur lambat, dan beberapa bagian yang terkesan terlalu kebetulan, buku ini menyuguhkan humor dan sesuatu yang begitu romantis. Di akhir halaman terakhir, aku baru menyadari bahwa Cameron benar-benar membuatku jatuh hati.
4 bintang, dan ngomong-ngomong, buku keduanya sangat dinantikan. #usapusapdagu
Meskipun dengan alur lambat, dan beberapa bagian yang terkesan terlalu kebetulan, buku ini menyuguhkan humor dan sesuatu yang begitu romantis. Di akhir halaman terakhir, aku baru menyadari bahwa Cameron benar-benar membuatku jatuh hati.
4 bintang, dan ngomong-ngomong, buku keduanya sangat dinantikan. #usapusapdagu
wendylu4's review
5.0
This story will touch your heart and make you believe in love. Riley was a gorgeous man who was burned and scarred in a fire. It takes everything he has to go out in public. He has been shot down the few times he has flirted so he has given up. He meets Cameron over the phone and the develop a wonderful friendship. They both want more but Riley is too scared to meet in person. This is a journey of love and learning to live again.
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