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camillatd's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
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
5.0
*Thank you to NetGalley, Anita Kelly, and Forever Publishing for the eARC in exchange for my honest review*
I absolutely loved this book: a meaningful romance with characters that just stole my heart. I love Anita Kelly’s writing—they always create characters that feel so authentic. Alexei and Ben are two characters that really had to grow on their own and together throughout the plot. They communicated (and failed to communicate) in ways that felt real and tender and complicated. They had funny and awkward sex, sex with feelings, sex driven by lust and physicality. All of this felt very real to me, even in the context of a romance novel.
Anita Kelly strikes a masterful balance of meaningful thematic content and delicious tropey ridiculousness. They explored a lot of themes that resonated deeply with me: faith and queerness, finding your own family, processing feelings, healing by being in nature; it also, of course, had lots of the sweet, tropey goodness that I love in a romcom (Only One Tent, grumpy/sunshine, love letters, horny nonsense).
Some heavier topics (and potentially difficult for some readers) include religious trauma/homophobia, family estrangement, coming out, and implied sexual assault/dubious consent. In my opinion, all of these were handled with grace and care. Highly recommend for fans of queer romance with depth!
I absolutely loved this book: a meaningful romance with characters that just stole my heart. I love Anita Kelly’s writing—they always create characters that feel so authentic. Alexei and Ben are two characters that really had to grow on their own and together throughout the plot. They communicated (and failed to communicate) in ways that felt real and tender and complicated. They had funny and awkward sex, sex with feelings, sex driven by lust and physicality. All of this felt very real to me, even in the context of a romance novel.
Anita Kelly strikes a masterful balance of meaningful thematic content and delicious tropey ridiculousness. They explored a lot of themes that resonated deeply with me: faith and queerness, finding your own family, processing feelings, healing by being in nature; it also, of course, had lots of the sweet, tropey goodness that I love in a romcom (Only One Tent, grumpy/sunshine, love letters, horny nonsense).
Some heavier topics (and potentially difficult for some readers) include religious trauma/homophobia, family estrangement, coming out, and implied sexual assault/dubious consent. In my opinion, all of these were handled with grace and care. Highly recommend for fans of queer romance with depth!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Religious bigotry and Homophobia
Moderate: Sexual content
Minor: Injury/Injury detail
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