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alizirrah's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
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
5.0
Funny, sweet, sexy, heartwarming - this book was a delight. I went into it knowing it had been very popular in the contemporary romance genre and not much else, and was pleasantly surprised to find one of my favorite reads of the year.
It really took off for me about 30% in (that's been a theme this year - taking about a month to read the first 30-40% of a book until it grabs me, and then devouring the rest in a few days.) The banter gets SO good and the chemistry crackles. Love the represention here with the disabled/chronically ill POC main character, the interracial/class differences in the romantic relationship, fat-positivity and more. There is discussion of chronic illness, abusive/manipulative past relationships, abandonment, burn out, mental health/therapy... this book has a lot of depth!
It's also just a really beautiful love story, demonstrating how paying attention and sharing the load can make such a difference. Red is one of the sweetest and kindest men I've encountered in fiction in a long time, truly a pleasure to read. And Chloe is so incredibly sympathetic, clever and lovely as well. Looking forward to reading the other books in the series featuring her sisters!
It really took off for me about 30% in (that's been a theme this year - taking about a month to read the first 30-40% of a book until it grabs me, and then devouring the rest in a few days.) The banter gets SO good and the chemistry crackles. Love the represention here with the disabled/chronically ill POC main character, the interracial/class differences in the romantic relationship, fat-positivity and more. There is discussion of chronic illness, abusive/manipulative past relationships, abandonment, burn out, mental health/therapy... this book has a lot of depth!
It's also just a really beautiful love story, demonstrating how paying attention and sharing the load can make such a difference. Red is one of the sweetest and kindest men I've encountered in fiction in a long time, truly a pleasure to read. And Chloe is so incredibly sympathetic, clever and lovely as well. Looking forward to reading the other books in the series featuring her sisters!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Chronic illness, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, and Sexual content
Moderate: Car accident and Mental illness
ariep'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
5.0
Loved this book! Has been my favorite in this series. I think Hibbert is a really fun, engaging storyteller and writer. Her characters are so human and multifaceted. I love the representation of all kinds of healthy relationships throughout the book!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Chronic illness and Sexual content
Moderate: Car accident, Alcohol, Classism, Emotional abuse, Ableism, and Domestic abuse
zadsavage's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Chronic illness, Cursing, and Sexual content
Minor: Bullying, Car accident, Grief, Abandonment, Classism, Death, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Domestic abuse, and Physical abuse
katybradley888's review against another edition
funny
inspiring
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
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Chronic illness
Moderate: Classism, Sexual content, and Car accident
Minor: Mental illness, Toxic relationship, Self harm, Emotional abuse, Cursing, and Ableism
behindherpages's review against another edition
emotional
funny
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, and Alcohol
Minor: Car accident
ashlikes's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Chronic illness, Cursing, Drug use, and Sexual content
Moderate: Grief, Domestic abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Ableism, Alcohol, and Emotional abuse
Minor: Car accident, Classism, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, and Medical trauma
gabyhat's review against another edition
emotional
funny
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
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Medical content, Emotional abuse, Domestic abuse, Medical trauma, and Chronic illness
Minor: Car accident and Mental illness
bzliz's review against another edition
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
4.5
Chloe Brown has a near death experience and realizes she needs to “get a life” after too long of insulating herself from hurt after being abandoned by friends and a fiancé due to her chronic illness. Red is her building’s handyman and they Do Not get along, thanks to how tongue tied and blurty she gets around him. Of course, he recognizes her type of family wealth due to a previous abusive relationship and initially tries not to get sucked in by Chloe’s beauty. That doesn’t last long and they learn to grow together despite their fears.
The pacing is perfect and I knew this was going to be something special right away. I’m absolutely thrilled to find a main character with a chronic illness that doesn’t spend the whole book consumed with woes about it. Chloe has her good days and her bad days and either way she still has a personality. Similarly, Red is supportive and thoughtful without infantilizing Chloe or sexualizing her disability, and he also has a personality outside of her, plus his own issues that he’s dealing with. It’s refreshing to see a diverse cast that feel like real people and doesn’t seem to be ticking off boxes for representation. The spice was also excellent without feeling overly vulgar which is a serious achievement.
Mind the trigger warnings!
Abandonment: off pageChloe discusses (both out loud and in her thoughts) how once her chronic illness manifested, she lost her friends and was left by her fiancé
Car accident: on page story starts here- a drunk driver nearly hits Chloe and runs into a building, prompting her to want to change her life to be less closed-off. An EMT expresses to Chloe that the driver will be okay.
Chronic illness: on pageChloe has fibromyalgia and experiences chronic fatigue, headaches, etc.
Panic attacks/disorder: on pageAfter a misunderstanding near the end of the book, Red experiences feelings of panic that lead to him running away. Might not technically be a panic attack but it’s worth mentioning
Sexual content: on pageincludes descriptions of arousal, semi-public fingering, and penetrative sex
Toxic relationship, emotional abuse, gaslighting, physical abuse: off pageRed’s previous relationship was toxic and abusive. He describes to Chloe how his former partner would gaslight and emotionally manipulate him into believing he was the one who had done something wrong whenever he was upset and how sometimes their altercations got physical, including a time she stabbed his hand with a fork
The pacing is perfect and I knew this was going to be something special right away. I’m absolutely thrilled to find a main character with a chronic illness that doesn’t spend the whole book consumed with woes about it. Chloe has her good days and her bad days and either way she still has a personality. Similarly, Red is supportive and thoughtful without infantilizing Chloe or sexualizing her disability, and he also has a personality outside of her, plus his own issues that he’s dealing with. It’s refreshing to see a diverse cast that feel like real people and doesn’t seem to be ticking off boxes for representation. The spice was also excellent without feeling overly vulgar which is a serious achievement.
Mind the trigger warnings!
Abandonment: off page
Car accident: on page
Chronic illness: on page
Panic attacks/disorder: on page
Sexual content: on page
Toxic relationship, emotional abuse, gaslighting, physical abuse: off page
Content Warnings
Graphic: Chronic illness, Toxic relationship, Car accident, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, and Sexual content
Moderate: Abandonment
monicalaurette'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? It's complicated
4.0
“You are a woman who, in a life filled with pain, came here to ask about love.”
The speed in which I read this book once I finally sat down and just did nothing for hours but just enjoy the story of Chloe and Red. I don’t know why it took me so long to read this book but am so glad that I finally did pick it up finally. I can say right now that I really enjoy Talia Hibbert’s writing and can’t wait to read about the other two Brown sisters soon.
One of the main reasons I picked this book up was that Chloe was a bigger girl and she found love in the book - and I love seeing plus size girls and women falling in love and being happy forever. The other reason I wanted to read this was how much people loved it online and I wanted to see some of the rep in the book.
While reading I found myself giggling, kicking my feet in the air, and having such a fun time with the characters here. I found myself relating a bit to Chloe in different aspects of her life and feeling happy to know that she was in her early 30s finding this love, so me in my late 20s still has time to find it myself with my own Redford.
I am giving this book four stars because I really enjoyed the book. The only thing I didn’t like was how often there was miscommunication between the characters (JUST TALK! USE YOUR WORDS!) even though it made sense with who they were and maybe if they had had some sort of revenge against Pippa & Henry - like just revenge by showing how much happier Chloe & Red were together and without the others! . However other than that - a great book and I highly suggest it!
“Bliss should be held on to with both hands.”
Content Warnings
Graphic: Chronic illness, Sexual content, and Car accident
Moderate: Drug use, Medical content, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Racism
_alyssar_'s review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content and Chronic illness
Minor: Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Domestic abuse, Gaslighting, Ableism, Car accident, Cursing, Death, and Racism