Reviews tagging 'Emotional abuse'

Pulling Doubles by Christina C. Jones

7 reviews

kaynova's review against another edition

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funny lighthearted fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? N/A
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

though i don’t like the crazy exes trope nor do i like unplanned pregnancies in books, i absolutely LOVED devyn and joseph’s relationship. their chemistry was flying the moment i opened up the book. they were witty, funny, and flirtatious. they were also pretty healthy with their conversations about their relationship, whether it was physical or romantic.

i will say i didn’t like the comparison of joseph’s teasing behavior to school yard boys picking on a girl because they ‘like’ them. though i know in this setting it was to be lighthearted, it’s harmful rhetoric and he’s grown, if you’re attracted to someone, say that!

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givemaribooks's review against another edition

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emotional medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.0

There was a lot I liked about this book and I wish I could give it a higher rating, but the fatphobia through out the book was too much for me. I liked the couple, and despite disliking how childish Joseph behaved at the beginning and the fact that he was hazing her at work while there was a power imbalance, I enjoyed their relationship. My problem is that although we are supposed to dislike the ex for being fatphobic and controlling, we are told over and over again how Devyn is the "right kind of fat" or just "curvy" or "fat but healthy" or "the right weight for her height" by all the characters. It really ruined the book for me because it (wrongly) implied that being fat automatically means that the person is unhealthy, and the way it was constantly mentioned it made it seem like Devyn had to prove and explain her weight to everyone in order to be treated as an adult capable of making her own food decisions and of being worthy of love. 

Spoilers: I also did not like the surprise pregnancy that early in their relationship and that close to the most abrupt ending ever. I legit thought my phone had messed up the audiobook and not that the book had ended. 

Although the first book was ok, I don't think I am going to continue with the series, especially seeing where the other books are heading. 

I listened to the audiobook and I enjoyed the narrators. 

CW: emotional abuse, toxic relationship, misogyny, harassment, gaslighting, body shaming, fatphobia slut shaming, chronic illness (diabetes), medical setting

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readlexread's review against another edition

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fast-paced
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
I was kinda of bracing myself not to enjoy this one as much as the first book since that seemed to be the general consensus (plus second books in series tend to have that little struggle anyway). The tone and pacing was different but I don’t think I enjoyed it any less! This one had more technical, medical terms and Joseph had to grow on me because the whole “I’m mean to you because I like to make you mad and I like you” can be a bit irritating to me when adults do it buut I still liked the two of them, the hospital setting, and the chronic illness rep.

Per usual, CCJ is a romcom queen and this had me almost having to pull over to laugh because there were some really funny moments. I also love Black romance for the fact that there is always a friend or family unit that gathers the MCs when necessary and keeps them grounded. 

I’m glad Marcus got punched and I hope that Devyn’s momma gets a good talking to. 

Mind the content warnings!

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weelasswithabook's review

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funny lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

CW controlling abusive relationship (inc food control), pregnancy and complications (placenta previa, detailed c section surgery, premature labour), casual homophobia, passing references to cancer, fatshaming, discussion of the discrepancy in BIPOC maternity care

⭐ Enemies to lovers
⭐ Coworkers
⭐ Black romance

🌈 Black MCs
🌈 Chronic illness rep (diabetic heroine)
🌈 Plus size heroine 

Yet another CCJ book with snarky banter and an enemies to lovers story that stole my heart 😍

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violentlyagitated's review against another edition

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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? No

4.0


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ashleycmms's review

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emotional funny hopeful lighthearted tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? N/A
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5


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naika's review

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fast-paced

3.0

Unfortunately, this was a mixed bag. 

What I enjoyed: 
- The hospital setting: I am a huge sucker for medical dramas 
- A take-no-shit heroine: Devyn is smart, ambitious, and damn good at her job and she will not tolerate any type of undermining 
- The friend/family group: I definitely wanted to see more of Aviva and Eric!

What I did not enjoy/ What I found underwhelming:
- The initial interactions between Devyn and Joseph: I just could not get behind the whole "I choose to get under your skin because I like you" thing. Are we not adults? Can we not flirt and express romantic interest without the disrespect? 
- The structure/ pacing: Some elements of the story seemed to be repeated over and over, while other parts seemed to come and go rather quickly. 
- The ending: When I realized where the story was headed, I groaned internally. Given everything else the love interests endured throughout the rest of the book, I was hoping for a different conclusion. 

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