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sebondurant's review against another edition
- 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
Moderate: Pandemic/Epidemic
Minor: Death of parent, Cancer, Alcoholism, Addiction, Dysphoria, and Excrement
penandpaper's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
For me, COVID is also a trigger, so the explicit illness was too almost much.
Graphic: Chronic illness
Moderate: Addiction, Terminal illness, Suicide, Eating disorder, Drug use, Drug abuse, and Death of parent
Minor: Sexism
ncoletti's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Moderate: Addiction and Alcoholism
airin_reads's review against another edition
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
This book is incredibly relatable, inspiring, funny, reflective, and asks examines how men and women perceive themselves in hetero-relationships in society. The pacing, for a book that is only three chapters was riveting. I could not put this book down, and would have stayed true to that metaphor if not for the human physiological need for sleep and sustenance.
It borrows from tropes of the genre to which it gives its name, but never reinforces the negatives from it. The story is faithful to the structure of a typical rom-com without being predictable or stereotypical.
One of the most refreshing aspects I found, as an avid romance reader- was that both main characters are in their 30's (mid-late!) and are the same age. Too often romances are about/for women in their 20's, and while men often get to be 30+ in these stories, the women very rarely are. That alone is reason enough to read it, but it only gets better from there.
The only detractions, which were minor for me are that the book is structured differently- that might be a turn off to some readers but I found it didn't take away from my enjoyment at all, just took some getting used to. There are also a lot of names mentioned in the first part of the story- every minor character is given a name which never really paid off.
Graphic: Pandemic/Epidemic
Minor: Addiction and Misogyny
jourdanicus's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
So for me this was a slow burn, but it did end up being worth it in the end. I absolutely prefer character-driven stories and that was this book's strength, and ultimately what won me over.
This one is a little pandemic-heavy, which definitely got to me and not in the best way, but that theme had a purpose so I was able to accept it.
Graphic: Medical content and Pandemic/Epidemic
Moderate: Body shaming and Death of parent
Minor: Sexual content, Addiction, and Alcohol
patedm's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Minus some points bc y’all know I despise
Anyways I really enjoyed and def recommend for a fun and cute little read!!
Graphic: Pandemic/Epidemic
Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Body shaming, and Death of parent
milesofkiles's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
Moderate: Death of parent, Chronic illness, Terminal illness, Death, and Cancer
Minor: Alcohol, Alcoholism, and Addiction
jg34's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Moderate: Pandemic/Epidemic
Minor: Sexual content, Addiction, Panic attacks/disorders, and Death of parent
The second half of the book happens during covid lockdowns but does not go into much detail about the pandemic itself, more of just a settingkelly_e's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
Author: Curtis Sittenfeld
Genre: Romance
Rating: 2.75
Pub Date: April 4, 2023
T H R E E • W O R D S
Observant • Light • Clever
📖 S Y N O P S I S
Sally Milz is a sketch writer for "The Night Owls," the late-night live comedy show that airs each Saturday. With a couple of heartbreaks under her belt, she’s long abandoned the search for love, settling instead for the occasional hook-up, career success, and a close relationship with her stepfather to round out a satisfying life.
But when Sally’s friend and fellow writer Danny Horst begins dating Annabel, a glamorous actor who guest-hosted the show, he joins the not-so-exclusive group of talented but average-looking and even dorky men at the show—and in society at large—who’ve gotten romantically involved with incredibly beautiful and accomplished women. Sally channels her annoyance into a sketch called the "Danny Horst Rule," poking fun at this phenomenon while underscoring how unlikely it is that the reverse would ever happen for a woman.
Enter Noah Brewster, a pop music sensation with a reputation for dating models, who signed on as both host and musical guest for this week’s show. Dazzled by his charms, Sally hits it off with Noah instantly, and as they collaborate on one sketch after another, she begins to wonder whether there might actually be sparks flying. But this isn’t a romantic comedy; it’s real life. And in real life, someone like him would never date someone like her...right?
💭 T H O U G H T S
Well, well, well if Romantic Comedy isn't the first 2023 release where I fell complete victim to an intriguing title, catchy cover, and false marketing. This book was not on my radar until it started to pop up absolutely everywhere and was selected as a BOM pick. And I'll be the first one to admit it sounded promising - not the case!
What I like:
• characters in their 30s. It was a breath of fresh air to be introduced to more mature, thriving adults.
• a healthy romance. Sally and Noah's relationship felt mature with open communication, and a mutual respect and understanding for one another.
• the email corresponding. I am here for epistolary (in this case emails) novels every. single. time. As someone who communicates better in written form, I appreciate this aspect in a new relationship.
• the friendships. There are some seriously strong friendships sprinkled throughout and I liked these better than the actual romance.
What I didn't like:
• the chemistry. I definitely wasn't convinced. Maybe it was the structure. Maybe it was my lack of caring about the two characters involved. I'm really not sure. The romance definitely takes a back seat.
• the structure. There's a prologue, three 'chapters' and an epilogue divided over 300 pages. Even without doing the math, it's easy to tell those aren't really chapters! Each section jumped in time and it felt scrambled and rushed at times. It just didn't seem to work.
• it's not all that funny. A couple of funny lines from characters with cameo appearances and that's about it.
• the extensive detail. There's so much detail on the creative process and behind-the-scenes of working in the industry that I just didn't need or enjoy.
A solid plot idea but very poorly marketed and executed. Additionally, at this point in time I am just not sure I'm ready for novels with a focus on the pandemic as a central theme and plot. If you're looking for a book with romance and/or comedy this likely isn't it.
**Reminder to self: falling victim to the buzz surrounding books not already on your radar rarely works out.**
📚 R E C O M M E N D • T O
• SNL fans
• readers looking for a take on modern love
🔖 F A V O U R I T E • Q U O T E S
"It was a belated realization to have, but it occurred to me that perhaps this was how grown-up conversations worked—not that your communication didn’t falter, but that you both made good-faith attempts to rectify things after it had."
Graphic: Sexual content, Fatphobia, and Body shaming
Moderate: Excrement, Addiction, Drug use, Drug abuse, Pandemic/Epidemic, Cursing, Medical content, Sexism, Pregnancy, Alcohol, Alcoholism, and Eating disorder
Minor: Grief, Death, Death of parent, and Cancer
divorceleahfoko's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
4.0
Another thing I really liked about this book was that the relationship between the two characters when they meet up during covid was very realistically awkward. Lots of romances sort of making everything seem rosy and perfect and that is fun of course but I liked that their conversations were awkward and uncomfortable at times when the main character would make a joke in poor taste or would say something because of her insecurities that would make for an awkward situation. I also thought their honest conversations about alcohol were really cool to include and I appreciated the slightly awkward nature of those conversations as well because I think it speaks well to what it’s like to talk about something like that when you have a challenging history with alcohol. I liked the realistic nature of that, combined with the very practical description of what comes with dating a celebrity/the weird daily experience that a celebrity goes through as seen through Sally’s eyes. While of course aspects of the story are still not completely accurate and are definitely romanticized a little, I liked that the author made an effort to make choices that wouldn’t fit in the traditional romantic comedy in order to point out those flaws in many of those stories. I thought it was really well written and unique, and I had a lot of fun reading this book.
At times I felt that the descriptions of TNO at the beginning went on a little bit long and too into the details, but I think that might be personal preference due to the fact that I am not super interested in what the process of writing for a late night show is like so I wasn’t quite as engaged by that aspect of the story, but I think if that’s something you’re really interested in then that section might be a lot more interesting to you.
Overall this book had a really fun concept/story, unique writing style, and sweet romance. I would recommend!
Graphic: Sexual content, Medical content, Pandemic/Epidemic, and Excrement
Minor: Alcoholism, Cancer, Addiction, and Death of parent