Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.7 AVERAGE
3.7 AVERAGE
Rating 3.5
Happy with the ending. I was actually mortified for Holland on multiple occasions so this story definitely invokes emotion.
Happy with the ending. I was actually mortified for Holland on multiple occasions so this story definitely invokes emotion.
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
emotional
funny
hopeful
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I liked this one. I read most of it with an Irish accent in my head, which was fun. I felt like Holland never really hit her stride in a tangible way in the book, and the end felt rushed, but it was good.
It probably would have been a four star read until the last 30% of the book, where we suddenly got a million more conflicts and thus, a load more drama. It was already dramatic enough without the extra conflicts. It made it much less enjoyable
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
I started this book loving it. Halfway through, I could not imagine what would be the heartbreak to come and it hit so fast and was so dragged out... A tiny miscommunication becomes this thing that lasts the entire ending of the book and is only solved in the last three pages. Kind of sad that I had gotten to love these characters and it left me with such a bad feeling.
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:
No
This was p good! Not rly a deep story or anything but this is a good consistent writing duo I would say
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
It was a fun retelling of the basic "Green Card" plot, with a marriage of convenience for an immigrant subway guitar busker with a Midwest girl living in NYC who wants to help him get his big break on Broadway. They were mostly likeable, but I was a little annoyed that every 'conflict' in this book could have been solved with an honest conversation.
The fun twist is that she was secretly lusting after this busker for months before their first actual meeting and this situation. Nice twist, as she's frequently mortified, and this is fertile grounds for that particular source of humiliation.
As far as marriages of convenience stories go, I've made a scale:
Top = The Wall of Winnipeg and Me by Mariana Zapata. God, I love that book. It is hard for anything to compare for me.
Better than average = Vinegar Girl by Anne Tyler, which was a re-telling of Taming of the Shrew with a marriage of convenience for a green card the reason for Kate & her Petruchio being together, given that we no longer require elder daughters marry first (thankfully)
Average, I have a tie between:
The Proposal - 2009 movie with Ryan Reynolds and Sandra Bullock. The movie is silly, but I loved their chemistry so much. And ironically Canadian Reynolds played an American in comparison to American Bullock's Canadian character. ACTING! :)
Roomies - this book. It was fun, but ended up in the middle of my lovely scale. I wondered, would the INS have gone so easy on him if he'd immigrated from a non-European country? I have my doubts.
Worse than average = French Kiss (movie) a Meg Ryan vehicle with Kevin Kline. Aren't they both Americans? I was confused.
Bottom = Green Card (movie) because Gerard Depardiue as a romantic lead. Eek!
This story's busker was way hotter than Depardiue, and pretty much anyone on this list except Ryan Reynolds. And I like Irish accents better than French ones anyway.
Also, format note, I listened to the audiobook. It was not great. The book is first person POV by the main heroine, so it made sense to have a single reader. BUT, the Irish accent, which was decent, was mysteriously not just for Calvin, the only Irish character. It showed up as the accidental accent for Holland's uncles (who were not Irish), Holland herself, just randomly showing up, making me wonder who was talking. Honesty moment - I would do the same thing if I were reading this book aloud. But then, no one is paying me to do it professionally.
The fun twist is that she was secretly lusting after this busker for months before their first actual meeting and this situation. Nice twist, as she's frequently mortified, and this is fertile grounds for that particular source of humiliation.
As far as marriages of convenience stories go, I've made a scale:
Top = The Wall of Winnipeg and Me by Mariana Zapata. God, I love that book. It is hard for anything to compare for me.
Better than average = Vinegar Girl by Anne Tyler, which was a re-telling of Taming of the Shrew with a marriage of convenience for a green card the reason for Kate & her Petruchio being together, given that we no longer require elder daughters marry first (thankfully)
Average, I have a tie between:
The Proposal - 2009 movie with Ryan Reynolds and Sandra Bullock. The movie is silly, but I loved their chemistry so much. And ironically Canadian Reynolds played an American in comparison to American Bullock's Canadian character. ACTING! :)
Roomies - this book. It was fun, but ended up in the middle of my lovely scale. I wondered, would the INS have gone so easy on him if he'd immigrated from a non-European country? I have my doubts.
Worse than average = French Kiss (movie) a Meg Ryan vehicle with Kevin Kline. Aren't they both Americans? I was confused.
Bottom = Green Card (movie) because Gerard Depardiue as a romantic lead. Eek!
This story's busker was way hotter than Depardiue, and pretty much anyone on this list except Ryan Reynolds. And I like Irish accents better than French ones anyway.
Also, format note, I listened to the audiobook. It was not great. The book is first person POV by the main heroine, so it made sense to have a single reader. BUT, the Irish accent, which was decent, was mysteriously not just for Calvin, the only Irish character. It showed up as the accidental accent for Holland's uncles (who were not Irish), Holland herself, just randomly showing up, making me wonder who was talking. Honesty moment - I would do the same thing if I were reading this book aloud. But then, no one is paying me to do it professionally.