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imstephtacular's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
3.75
I liked that this book was funny, full of tropes, and tackled some tough topics.
That said, I felt like it tried to do too much. 400 pages was too long for my liking and the meta-ness didn’t quite hit for me. I liked that it got into industry details. That was fascinating! But the “is this romance or is it women’s fiction” ended up feeling muddled for me overall
I liked the characters and the mixed media elements (texts, emails) but this one wasn’t a knockout for me personally
That said, I felt like it tried to do too much. 400 pages was too long for my liking and the meta-ness didn’t quite hit for me. I liked that it got into industry details. That was fascinating! But the “is this romance or is it women’s fiction” ended up feeling muddled for me overall
I liked the characters and the mixed media elements (texts, emails) but this one wasn’t a knockout for me personally
Content Warnings
Graphic: Medical content, Medical trauma, Injury/Injury detail, and Dementia
Moderate: Sexism, Grief, Racism, Alcohol, Sexual content, and Misogyny
Minor: Death of parent, Animal death, Violence, Suicide attempt, Pregnancy, Panic attacks/disorders, Mental illness, Ableism, and Vomit
sunkissed_aidie's review
emotional
funny
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
5.0
This book was honestly so fun to go through, there were moments where I wanted to cry, scream and others where it had me giggling and kicking my feet. It was a fast read but still great nonetheless, it’s a simply romance book that was given a great twist in who the characters are and what they are going through, especially learning to be and love themselves before loving someone else. I loved it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Dementia
Moderate: Alcoholism, Panic attacks/disorders, Medical content, Body shaming, and Medical trauma
marleywrites's review
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? It's complicated
4.0
This book was great. I loved the author’s sense of humor and was really enjoying the banter between the main characters Nick and Sawanee. They were both so interesting and the author revealed little bits of them at a time which kept me intrigued the whole book.
I adored the side characters of this book. They were great supports for the story and kept the pace moving. All the scenes with the Seasons folks were hilarious. I loved the best friend characters.
This book was, on one hand, light hearted and fun. On the other, it also dealt realistically with working in an industry that’s toxic, an industry that takes more than it gives, and what it’s like to love someone with dementia. It was very much “the highs were high and the lows were low.”
I listened to this book on audiobook and I am loving the hype for it. I’m so glad people are falling in love with audiobooks because of this story! The author/narrator was incredible. What a performance!
I rated this four stars, because some parts of it I didn’t fully resonance with, but it’s more of a personal thing. The parts I liked, I really loved, and I hope that others enjoy this story with great disability representation as well.
I adored the side characters of this book. They were great supports for the story and kept the pace moving. All the scenes with the Seasons folks were hilarious. I loved the best friend characters.
This book was, on one hand, light hearted and fun. On the other, it also dealt realistically with working in an industry that’s toxic, an industry that takes more than it gives, and what it’s like to love someone with dementia. It was very much “the highs were high and the lows were low.”
I listened to this book on audiobook and I am loving the hype for it. I’m so glad people are falling in love with audiobooks because of this story! The author/narrator was incredible. What a performance!
I rated this four stars, because some parts of it I didn’t fully resonance with, but it’s more of a personal thing. The parts I liked, I really loved, and I hope that others enjoy this story with great disability representation as well.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Grief, Alcohol, and Dementia
Moderate: Medical trauma, Ableism, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicide attempt, Cursing, and Death
Minor: Blood and Alcoholism
cady_sass's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
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? Yes
4.0
I am *very* picky about audiobooks, to the point that I know it’s unfair and illogical and so I tend to not listen to them at all, but I like Julia Whalen. A lot. I find her very talented and enjoyable to listen to. Now, bring me a book of written by an audiobook narrator ABOUT audiobook narrators and it seems only fair (and totally obvious) that it need to be consumed via audio. Right? So, of course, I did. Now please refer back to my comment about being unfairly judgmental and illogically picky about audiobooks and take my review with a grain of salt. I believe this book is good and if I had read it on page I would’ve loved it more, possibly. The characters are unique and flawed and diverse, the banter is funny and witty and cute. BUT…. But… you can tell an audiobook narrator wrote this. There are characters who exist solely for the purpose of the narrator [author] showing off her skills in accents. Which, for the record, is good (with the exception of the Bostonian ex boyfriend with the most horrendous Boston accent I’ve ever hear and take person offense to), but there’s no real reason for them. I also have mixed feelings about a white author writing about the plight of a black woman in Hollywood… but it does seem (to me, another white woman, to note) to be handled somewhat carefully. Just perhaps not her story to tell, again, as a white woman who was a former actress. I guess all this to say some of this felt inauthentic but it’s hard to parse that from what I HEARD and wish I would’ve just read the book 🤷🏻♀️ don’t come for me. I still gave it 4 stars!! There’s quality story here and a lot of fun.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug abuse, Addiction, Grief, Panic attacks/disorders, Alcoholism, Chronic illness, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Blood, Body horror, Cursing, Death of parent, Medical trauma, Dementia, Sexual content, Racism, Suicide, Abandonment, Eating disorder, Self harm, Terminal illness, Alcohol, Drug use, and Suicide attempt
nadia's review
emotional
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.75
This started off real strong for me! I thought it was going to get at least 4⭐️.
But, somewhere along the way, it fell a little bit flat, some of the spark was lost, and it seemed to drag a little. Some parts felt a little too contrived, especially with regards to trying to create tension. I was rooting for the central relationship, but just didn't end up feeling as emotionally invested or as excited for it as I thought I'd be given the first third of the book.
Still, the cast of characters was super fun, heavy topics are dealt with incredibly well, there's a real clever "meta" nature to this book, and, especially given that, this is definitely one to go for on audio if that's a format you consume books in!
But, somewhere along the way, it fell a little bit flat, some of the spark was lost, and it seemed to drag a little. Some parts felt a little too contrived, especially with regards to trying to create tension. I was rooting for the central relationship, but just didn't end up feeling as emotionally invested or as excited for it as I thought I'd be given the first third of the book.
Still, the cast of characters was super fun, heavy topics are dealt with incredibly well, there's a real clever "meta" nature to this book, and, especially given that, this is definitely one to go for on audio if that's a format you consume books in!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Dementia, Death, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Sexual content and Death of parent
Minor: Panic attacks/disorders
romancewithem's review
emotional
funny
inspiring
reflective
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 kinda went into this book blind, I'd seen it around a bit on bookstagram but not really seeing any reviews raving about it so had no clue what to expect. I knew of Julia Whelan from her narrating Emily Henry books and enjoyed her style however I wasn't prepared for the masterclass in narration that was this book. Also I had no clue on what to expect from a writing point of view, I was a fan of Whelan from the narrations side of things and didn't know if that would translate into writing.
I can confirm I love the storyline and writing as well as the narration. This book was so funny, had me laughing out loud from the get go. It also was very raw and emotional at times as well.
I previously said that this was a masterclass in narration as I'm truly not sure how one person could do so many different voices/characters/accents and do all of them well. It blew me away, like it's actually insane
Desperately need more people to listen to this and rave about it cos I really don't see it spoken about enough online(or maybe I need to expand my circles and find people who do)
I can confirm I love the storyline and writing as well as the narration. This book was so funny, had me laughing out loud from the get go. It also was very raw and emotional at times as well.
I previously said that this was a masterclass in narration as I'm truly not sure how one person could do so many different voices/characters/accents and do all of them well. It blew me away, like it's actually insane
Desperately need more people to listen to this and rave about it cos I really don't see it spoken about enough online
Content Warnings
Graphic: Dementia
Moderate: Sexual content
Minor: Suicide attempt, Panic attacks/disorders, and Injury/Injury detail
jess_segraves's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
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
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Abandonment and Alcohol
Minor: Alcoholism, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicide attempt, Death, and Death of parent
kimveach's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
reflective
relaxing
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
5.0
You have to listen to this book! I don't know how good it would be in print. This narrator is fantastic, and her book showcases all her gifts: male and female voices, accents, younger vs. older voices, and other sounds. It was an amazing listen. It's a romance book, but it's got more substance than you would expect. And there are a few laugh-out-loud parts that are so worth it!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Drug abuse, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Alcohol, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Alcoholism, Body horror, Cursing, Dementia, Death, Medical trauma, and Ableism
takarakei's review
emotional
funny
lighthearted
medium-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
4.25
Really fantastic audiobook. I had heard a lot of hype, but the narrator/author really does a great job (lots of voices!). It's a cute and refreshing romance book. Lots of poking fun at the romance book industry (in the way only someone who loves it can do). Banter is phenomenal. Definitely lots of laugh out loud moments. The "twist" is predictable, but it's still fun to read. Disability rep (MC). Wish there was a bit more spice, especially with so much build up of them literally working on recording a romance audiobook.
I really loved towards the end when they were like "we don't need a big 3rd act drama/breakup" !!!
2.5/5 🌶️
2.5/5 🌶️
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Dementia, and Sexual content
Moderate: Grief, Ableism, Alcohol, and Medical content
Minor: Addiction, Misogyny, and Panic attacks/disorders
A main plot point of this book is the MC dealing with her grandmother's dementia.meliroo's review against another edition
emotional
funny
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Dementia and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Death of parent, Death, Panic attacks/disorders, and Sexual content