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3.68 AVERAGE
3.68 AVERAGE
I found this book on the Women of Color in Romance website and I’m really glad that I did. This book contained a lot of my favorite tropes - enemies to lovers, road trip, only one bed, grouchy hero, fun and sassy heroine. This is the author’s first book and it shows at times. Some of the plot points were a little thin, but otherwise it was well written. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and would recommend it to fans of Avery Flynn and Kate Meader.
I liked the writing (especially the dialogue!), but the story almost felt like two separate ones. The road trip is over halfway through the story, and then it’s their regular day to day the rest of the story. Since the synopsis is mostly about the road trip (plus the title and cover), I was surprised it only took up half the plot.
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Trigger warnings: theft, racial tension (IDK how to describe it - the two POC leads walk into a rural gas station, get super creeped out by the white people there and bail ASAP), sexual harassment, workplace harassment, hospitalisation of a parent.
11/1/2023
Yeah, I'm bumping this down to 3.75 stars this time around. I still thoroughly enjoyed it, and I still enjoyed the diversity, the dynamic and the romance. But there were times when this felt really slow, and given that it's a 240ish page book, that shouldn't really be the case...
8/8/2019
4 stars.
So somehow I have managed to read two books back-to-back with an African-American heroine and a Pacifika hero and I need to review them both ASAP so I don't get the details confused.
ANYWAY. I didn't like this one quiiiiiiite as much as The Right Swipe (although this cover is ten thousand times cuter) and I think part of it is that I expected more of the story to be the road trip. Don't get me wrong, there's still plenty of road trip fun times. But I think about half the book is what happens between them AFTER the road trip, and while I enjoyed that side of things, the cover had me thinking it was going to be mostly road trip shenanigans and a teeny bit of their everyday lives afterwards. Maybe that's a Me Thing though???
Still, this was the level of smut I was expecting from The Right Swipe based on what I know of Alisha Ray's writing and I did NOT expect that level of smut given how cutesy this cover is.
Minor gripe: I giggled every time he said her name a lot when they banged because you cannot say the name Jolene multiple times in a row without bursting into song.
Minor gripe #2: Jason was a dentist???? That...is not a profession I associate with romance book heroes. I...kind of didn't want to read about him doing dental stuff while thinking about Jolene because no thank you.
11/1/2023
Yeah, I'm bumping this down to 3.75 stars this time around. I still thoroughly enjoyed it, and I still enjoyed the diversity, the dynamic and the romance. But there were times when this felt really slow, and given that it's a 240ish page book, that shouldn't really be the case...
8/8/2019
4 stars.
So somehow I have managed to read two books back-to-back with an African-American heroine and a Pacifika hero and I need to review them both ASAP so I don't get the details confused.
ANYWAY. I didn't like this one quiiiiiiite as much as The Right Swipe (although this cover is ten thousand times cuter) and I think part of it is that I expected more of the story to be the road trip. Don't get me wrong, there's still plenty of road trip fun times. But I think about half the book is what happens between them AFTER the road trip, and while I enjoyed that side of things, the cover had me thinking it was going to be mostly road trip shenanigans and a teeny bit of their everyday lives afterwards. Maybe that's a Me Thing though???
Still, this was the level of smut I was expecting from The Right Swipe based on what I know of Alisha Ray's writing and I did NOT expect that level of smut given how cutesy this cover is.
Minor gripe: I giggled every time he said her name a lot when they banged because you cannot say the name Jolene multiple times in a row without bursting into song.
Minor gripe #2: Jason was a dentist???? That...is not a profession I associate with romance book heroes. I...kind of didn't want to read about him doing dental stuff while thinking about Jolene because no thank you.
First of all, I'm always in for a hate to love. Duh.
Secondly, this book has A+ diversity all around.
Thirdly, I enjoy a road trip book, but despite the cover and title, this isn't a road trip book. And I enjoyed that. The first 1/4 of the book was about the road trip, and then the rest deals with what comes next. And what comes next is a lot of swoony banging and not to swoony work drama. I liked both Jolene (if you can read that name without singing it, kudos to you) and Jason as main characters. Their quibbles with one another felt real and honest, as did the way they fell for one another. I loved their interactions with Jason's mom and aunt.
Secondly, this book has A+ diversity all around.
Thirdly, I enjoy a road trip book, but despite the cover and title, this isn't a road trip book. And I enjoyed that. The first 1/4 of the book was about the road trip, and then the rest deals with what comes next. And what comes next is a lot of swoony banging and not to swoony work drama. I liked both Jolene (if you can read that name without singing it, kudos to you) and Jason as main characters. Their quibbles with one another felt real and honest, as did the way they fell for one another. I loved their interactions with Jason's mom and aunt.
A quiet, simple romance. This story made me laugh out loud and smile more times than I could count. The love was believable. Sex scenes were tasteful. I honestly loved every minute I spent with Jason and Jolene.
My only caution to potential readers is that the road trip is not the entirety of the plot. For me, that was great. In fact, I think I would have hated it if they had been on the road for 250+ pages . . . but I know others may be looking for a full book where characters have forced proximity. This isn’t it.
Overall, I’m excited to pick up Mimi Grace’s next novel.
My only caution to potential readers is that the road trip is not the entirety of the plot. For me, that was great. In fact, I think I would have hated it if they had been on the road for 250+ pages . . . but I know others may be looking for a full book where characters have forced proximity. This isn’t it.
Overall, I’m excited to pick up Mimi Grace’s next novel.
3.5/4
I love a road trip romance and combining that with enemies to lovers I was so excited!! The beginning was great and I really loved these two characters but once the road trip was over (I felt like it was too short) their relationship became a little stagnant and the story seemed to drag on.
** I do plan following this author and I want to see what else she comes up with**
I love a road trip romance and combining that with enemies to lovers I was so excited!! The beginning was great and I really loved these two characters but once the road trip was over (I felt like it was too short) their relationship became a little stagnant and the story seemed to drag on.
** I do plan following this author and I want to see what else she comes up with**
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
It just became lackluster and disjointed at the end 😭
This is the second book I read by Mimi. Perhaps I’m biased but I enjoyed Make a Scene more than this one. The character dynamics and the quick banter was enjoyable. And I liked both of the leads but I can’t put my finger on what it was that hindered me from gushing over Jolene and Jason’s relationship. I have to admit that Jason’s anxiety and orderly driven traits reminded me of how I used to be( and occasionally still am) from start to finish. So, I guess reading the unraveling of their slow burn love bothered me on a personal level (lol who knows.) Besides that, I have to say I really wish I could’ve gotten some sort of closure/revenge against the character Mark in this book because the man IRKED me to no end.