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yepdatjj's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
One of my new favorite enemies-to-lovers. A well written, funny, feel-good story, with witty banter wrapped up in a medical romance. It has a dash of spice, some choice food foreplay, and great dialogue. Enjoyed the slow burn building of their relationship and Regina's character arc.
Now excuse me while I find some lava cake. You'll understand after you read it.
Now excuse me while I find some lava cake. You'll understand after you read it.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Medical content, Medical trauma, and Addiction
Minor: Drug use, Drug abuse, and Fire/Fire injury
scarlettereads's review
emotional
hopeful
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Thank you to NetGalley, Tantor Audio, and Jae for this audio ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Story: ⭐️⭐️✨✨ Two point seven-five stars
Audio: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️✨ Four and a half stars
Total: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ Three stars
Bachelorette Number Twelve by Jae follows cinnamon-roll hopeless romantic Ellie Fisher, an emergency department nurse, and no nonsense ice queen Regina Novak, an attending in the same ED.
At work Ellie and Regina don't see eye to eye. You might say they're rivals of a sort. Their dislike for each other is mutual, and while they try to avoid each other at work, a mishap at the hospital's annual singles auction fundraiser brings them together despite both women's wishes—Ellie accidentally bid on a date package with bachelorette number twelve, Dr. Regina Novak, who was forced to volunteer in place of a colleague.
Now, for better or worse, the two women are bound together for the span of four dates in the name of a good cause, and for the sum of nine-hundred dollars.
From Ellie teaching Regina how to ice skate, to a baking class turned competition, and from axe throwing to a very flashy (and disastrous) dinner, the nurse and doctor get to know each other and they find that the conclusions they'd drawn about one another couldn't be more misguided, and that their attraction to each other is worth fighting for.
For most of Bachelorette Number Twelve I felt like the book could've been two-thirds, or even half as long as it is. The pacing was a bit off for where I could see the story was going, but the last few hours of the book—let's not forget that it's a thirteen and a half hour long audiobook—really picked up and in total were much more interesting than the prior chapters.
I felt like the story dragged on a little too much for just four dates when not much of the time between was actually spent at the hospital. I expected the emergency department to be a bit of a character in itself. I didn't expect this book to serve up Grey's Anatomy realness, but I went into it thinking it would have at least some of the drama of Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital. The only thing it had in common with <i>Grey's</i> at all was that there were lesbians that just so happened to work in a hospital, and there was flirting via coffee cart and hot beverages. That part was actually pretty cute, and very, very sweet.
While there were secondary plot lines for both Ellie and Regina I think they took too much of a back seat. Both were only truly explored in the last quarter of the book (right where the story picked up and held my interest), but they were resolved super quickly—and after too little angst on Ellie's part. While I found Regina's background story and subsequent trauma compelling it was wrapped up too seamlessly for me. For the length of the book I feel like it could've been explored more thoroughly.
I enjoyed the inclusion of queer pop-star Jenna Blake and Ellie's adoration of her, but I think it was a missed opportunity not to have her be involved in Regina's efforts to win Ellie over after their misunderstanding. I think it was a waste to have Regina mention on the fourth date that she tried to get Jenna to play at the restaurant for Ellie but there was too much red-tape to allow for that, when if that hadn't been mentioned then there would be nothing stopping Regina from organising such a grand gesture for the big redo date. Would it have been believable? Probably not. But this is fiction and can you imagine how romantic gesture it would have been for Ellie's favourite musician to play a private concert for them? Huge missed opportunity.
In terms of the audiobook, I love a good Tantor Audio read, and I love Lori Prince as a narrator, but the true letdown of this book is that Prince pronounced "ugh" as "UGG" which really took me out of the moment. Other than that the audio performance was wonderful.
Bachelorette Number Twelve was an enjoyable read towards the end, but it just didn't do enough for me to warrant the length of the book. Had it contained the same core plot but been even three-quarters of the length I'd no doubt have enjoyed it more, but as it is I really needed the story to be a bit meatier in the way of drama and backstory. Give a bit more time to Ellie's relationship with her parents, have Ellie talk to her sister about her blossoming romantic relationship with Regina. Have her sister talk more about her not-a-relationship relationship—which I imagine might be where book two is headed, so a bit more of a build-up would've been delightful. If for some reason the inclusion of disc golf is truly integral to the plot of this book then give Regina at least one solid friendship with a fellow sportsperson. They were certainly trying to win her over. Had that been a side-plot I'd have found the focus on such a specific sport to make more sense in the long run.
While Bachelorette Number Twelve isn't a five star read for me it's definitely worth a read if you're dipping your toe into the glittering waters of the queer contemporary romance genre. At the end of the day it's a book by a sapphic author, about sapphic characters, and for sapphic readers. And it's a great one to include if you're doing this year's Sapphic Book Bingo or I Heart Sapphfic Reading Challenge.
Story: ⭐️⭐️✨✨ Two point seven-five stars
Audio: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️✨ Four and a half stars
Total: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ Three stars
Bachelorette Number Twelve by Jae follows cinnamon-roll hopeless romantic Ellie Fisher, an emergency department nurse, and no nonsense ice queen Regina Novak, an attending in the same ED.
At work Ellie and Regina don't see eye to eye. You might say they're rivals of a sort. Their dislike for each other is mutual, and while they try to avoid each other at work, a mishap at the hospital's annual singles auction fundraiser brings them together despite both women's wishes—Ellie accidentally bid on a date package with bachelorette number twelve, Dr. Regina Novak, who was forced to volunteer in place of a colleague.
Now, for better or worse, the two women are bound together for the span of four dates in the name of a good cause, and for the sum of nine-hundred dollars.
From Ellie teaching Regina how to ice skate, to a baking class turned competition, and from axe throwing to a very flashy (and disastrous) dinner, the nurse and doctor get to know each other and they find that the conclusions they'd drawn about one another couldn't be more misguided, and that their attraction to each other is worth fighting for.
For most of Bachelorette Number Twelve I felt like the book could've been two-thirds, or even half as long as it is. The pacing was a bit off for where I could see the story was going, but the last few hours of the book—let's not forget that it's a thirteen and a half hour long audiobook—really picked up and in total were much more interesting than the prior chapters.
I felt like the story dragged on a little too much for just four dates when not much of the time between was actually spent at the hospital. I expected the emergency department to be a bit of a character in itself. I didn't expect this book to serve up Grey's Anatomy realness, but I went into it thinking it would have at least some of the drama of Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital. The only thing it had in common with <i>Grey's</i> at all was that there were lesbians that just so happened to work in a hospital, and there was flirting via coffee cart and hot beverages. That part was actually pretty cute, and very, very sweet.
While there were secondary plot lines for both Ellie and Regina I think they took too much of a back seat. Both were only truly explored in the last quarter of the book (right where the story picked up and held my interest), but they were resolved super quickly—and after too little angst on Ellie's part. While I found Regina's background story and subsequent trauma compelling it was wrapped up too seamlessly for me. For the length of the book I feel like it could've been explored more thoroughly.
I enjoyed the inclusion of queer pop-star Jenna Blake and Ellie's adoration of her, but I think it was a missed opportunity not to have her be involved in Regina's efforts to win Ellie over after their misunderstanding. I think it was a waste to have Regina mention on the fourth date that she tried to get Jenna to play at the restaurant for Ellie but there was too much red-tape to allow for that, when if that hadn't been mentioned then there would be nothing stopping Regina from organising such a grand gesture for the big redo date. Would it have been believable? Probably not. But this is fiction and can you imagine how romantic gesture it would have been for Ellie's favourite musician to play a private concert for them? Huge missed opportunity.
In terms of the audiobook, I love a good Tantor Audio read, and I love Lori Prince as a narrator, but the true letdown of this book is that Prince pronounced "ugh" as "UGG" which really took me out of the moment. Other than that the audio performance was wonderful.
Bachelorette Number Twelve was an enjoyable read towards the end, but it just didn't do enough for me to warrant the length of the book. Had it contained the same core plot but been even three-quarters of the length I'd no doubt have enjoyed it more, but as it is I really needed the story to be a bit meatier in the way of drama and backstory. Give a bit more time to Ellie's relationship with her parents, have Ellie talk to her sister about her blossoming romantic relationship with Regina. Have her sister talk more about her not-a-relationship relationship—which I imagine might be where book two is headed, so a bit more of a build-up would've been delightful. If for some reason the inclusion of disc golf is truly integral to the plot of this book then give Regina at least one solid friendship with a fellow sportsperson. They were certainly trying to win her over. Had that been a side-plot I'd have found the focus on such a specific sport to make more sense in the long run.
While Bachelorette Number Twelve isn't a five star read for me it's definitely worth a read if you're dipping your toe into the glittering waters of the queer contemporary romance genre. At the end of the day it's a book by a sapphic author, about sapphic characters, and for sapphic readers. And it's a great one to include if you're doing this year's Sapphic Book Bingo or I Heart Sapphfic Reading Challenge.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Drug abuse and Addiction
ryinwonderland's review against another edition
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Enemies to lovers, f/f, steam level 4/5 (good chemistry, one or two on-the-page spicy scenes). Ice Queen Doctor and lovable nurse. What starts as the nurse unintentionally bidding on and winning a date package with the doctor at a fundraiser auction turns into her discovering the vulnerable layers beneath the hard shell and falling for her. There’s good communication and misunderstandings get resolved quickly.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Addiction and Death
Mild spoiler explaining the content warningspenandpages's review
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Medical content
Moderate: Sexual content
Minor: Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Addiction, and Vomit
rakhya's review
funny
lighthearted
relaxing
slow-paced
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.0
A well written book, with likeable characters (yes, even Dr. McIcy) and its fair share of funny moments.
A good read that meets the quality level I've come to expect from Jae, despite my inability to form a special connection with it.
A good read that meets the quality level I've come to expect from Jae, despite my inability to form a special connection with it.
Content Warnings
Minor: Drug abuse and Addiction
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