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imds's review
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body shaming, Infidelity, Death, and Grief
marioosa517's review
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Gaslighting, Sexual content, Death, and Grief
Minor: Sexism
theespressoedition's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
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
4.0
I'm not sure why I was surprised by how much I liked this book. After reading and loving Evvie Drake Starts Over, I should've made the assumption that I'd adore this. However, it's been several years since I read Linda's previous book and my tastes have changed so much that part of me just thought I'd be let down. Thankfully, I wasn't let down at all!
The book opens with the most heartwarming flashbacks to Laurie's precious relationship with her great-aunt, Dot. You immediately fall in love with the tenderness they felt toward one another and you see that Laurie's adult life was greatly impacted by Dot's influence on her as a child. There's this very nostalgic feeling that takes over right away. It's comforting, even.
Then you learn about the duck. Out of context, this sounds strange. However, the mystery of the duck is way more intriguing than you can even imagine. While the answer to this mystery wound up feeling slightly predictable to me, I did enjoy the journey to finding out more about the creator of the duck and all of the hijinks they had to go through along the way to reach this conclusion. It gave the story a well-rounded feeling and brought so much more depth to the secondary characters as well as the primary cast.
I was immensely pleased by the romance aspect of this novel. Laurie's second-chance romance is sweet, meaningful, and just a little bit sexy (in all the right ways). It's also a breakthrough for her. I absolutely loved watching the character development that took place as she fell in love (all over again) and realized what that meant for her life and the way she'd been living for so long. It was impactful and well-written. There wasn't an excessive amount of grandeur or fluff. It felt real.
I truly did love Flying Solo. I can see myself picking it up again and again as a comfort read. It's entertaining and creative, with just the right balance of humor and depth. I highly recommend it.
The book opens with the most heartwarming flashbacks to Laurie's precious relationship with her great-aunt, Dot. You immediately fall in love with the tenderness they felt toward one another and you see that Laurie's adult life was greatly impacted by Dot's influence on her as a child. There's this very nostalgic feeling that takes over right away. It's comforting, even.
Then you learn about the duck. Out of context, this sounds strange. However, the mystery of the duck is way more intriguing than you can even imagine. While the answer to this mystery wound up feeling slightly predictable to me, I did enjoy the journey to finding out more about the creator of the duck and all of the hijinks they had to go through along the way to reach this conclusion. It gave the story a well-rounded feeling and brought so much more depth to the secondary characters as well as the primary cast.
I was immensely pleased by the romance aspect of this novel. Laurie's second-chance romance is sweet, meaningful, and just a little bit sexy (in all the right ways). It's also a breakthrough for her. I absolutely loved watching the character development that took place as she fell in love (all over again) and realized what that meant for her life and the way she'd been living for so long. It was impactful and well-written. There wasn't an excessive amount of grandeur or fluff. It felt real.
I truly did love Flying Solo. I can see myself picking it up again and again as a comfort read. It's entertaining and creative, with just the right balance of humor and depth. I highly recommend it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gaslighting
Moderate: Sexual content, Misogyny, and Grief
Minor: Infidelity
leighannebfd3b's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
Moderate: Grief, Infidelity, and Gaslighting
Minor: Alcohol and Body shaming
atamano's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
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
3.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual content, Death, Gaslighting, and Grief
Minor: Infidelity
caitlinjadams's review against another edition
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
This book was a hug and a vacation and I feel…settled… in a really lovely way having just finished it.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Grief
Minor: Alcohol, Death, Infidelity, and Mental illness
prettiestwhistles's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gaslighting
Moderate: Death, Grief, Infidelity, and Sexual content
Minor: Alcohol, Fatphobia, Pregnancy, and Racism
mysterymom40's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
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? It's complicated
2.25
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual content and Gaslighting
Minor: Death, Infidelity, and Grief
caseythereader's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
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? No
5.0
Thanks to Random House for the free copy of this book.
- FLYING SOLO is a wonderful exploration of living and loving outside the traditional path. I loved both Laurie and Dot (and Ginger!) and how they forged their own paths, knowing what they liked and didn't like and not letting anyone try to mold them into something else.
- I loved that Laurie knew she liked living alone and doing things just her way. I loved that this book breaks apart the idea that romantic love is worth blowing up your existing life and putting yourself into a life you otherwise did not want.
- The mystery (and small heist!) embedded in this story was great fun, too. I was on the edge of my seat for some scenes!
- FLYING SOLO is a wonderful exploration of living and loving outside the traditional path. I loved both Laurie and Dot (and Ginger!) and how they forged their own paths, knowing what they liked and didn't like and not letting anyone try to mold them into something else.
- I loved that Laurie knew she liked living alone and doing things just her way. I loved that this book breaks apart the idea that romantic love is worth blowing up your existing life and putting yourself into a life you otherwise did not want.
- The mystery (and small heist!) embedded in this story was great fun, too. I was on the edge of my seat for some scenes!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity, Cursing, Grief, and Death
Moderate: Terminal illness
Minor: Fatphobia
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