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beyourownprincess's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship, Addiction, Alcohol, and Alcoholism
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders, Mental illness, Sexual violence, and Sexual assault
Minor: Pregnancy and Vomit
debosmitathereader's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- 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
3.75
The only reason I will continue the series because of Connor Cobalt. He will insult you and still make it sound nice and exotic. Man have me wrapped around his finger. Otherwise,Lily and Lo are two exhausting people to read about. I mean yes I am not against the journey but the two addicted people don't do for me. Can you imagine reading series because you are smitten with a side character(he gets his own book though)? I do very much.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Mental illness, Vomit, Toxic relationship, Sexual content, and Alcoholism
Minor: Infidelity
meeklovestoread's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
I'm sorry in advance for how long this is.😅
Okay I'm really surprised by this book. I've been putting it off since I've heard about it on the book side of social media for about a year now. It has alot of popularity, but all the tropes I heard people listing weren't favorites of mine. Plus the main thing that made me put this book off for so long was that I heard it depicts a toxic relationship. And I personally loathe reading about toxic relationships.
However, I've finally conformed. It's been on my reading list for a while so I finally decided to pick it up and I can say that I'm pretty surprised on how much I enjoyed it.
Don't get me wrong the relationship between the main characters Lily and Lo is nothing to emulate your relationship after. But in my opinion their relationship is more so "dysfunctional" rather than flat out toxic. Throughout the book both parties have displayed on numerous occasions how much they care, love, and appreciate one another. (the shower scene) They have the potential for an honest, heartfelt, and healthy relationship.
However like I stated previously, their current relationship is nothing to emulate your romantic relationships on. They enable each other's addictions with knowledge that it's not gonna help them out in the long run. there's an scene in the book where Lily and Lo are at a Halloween party and Lo breaks into the owner's cabinet of expensive booze and she just let's him have at it. By the end of the night Lo almost gets into disastrous dibocal and then passes out leaving Lily to clean up his mess. And she's so desensitized to his problem that when Ryke and Connor (especially Ryke) are looking and Lo passed out in concern Lily sorts just brushes it off because "he's always like this". And she's always taking care of him when he goes over the limit. And I also think Lily can be too occupied with her own addiction to really realize that Lo is down bad. I hope we get more insight into how these addictions started.
Lo also becomes desensitized to Lily's actions as well. Up until he found her having sex with two guys at the same time and hooking up with random guys through random phone exchanges, and even considered Craigslist was when he decided to drop the ball on her. And urge her to dile it down. He was so desensitized that it was said that he'd often offer the men that come out if Lily's bed coffee.
Lo can be pretty nasty towards Lily especially when she tries to interfere with his drinking. And when they do start dating for real Lo literally expects Lily to cheat on him because Lily is constantly fighting her sexual compulsions in order to stay celibate/monogamous to Lo. Of course in a healthy relationship you shouldn' t have to constantly worry that your partner is being unfaithful. And the fact that Lo has a tendecy to be pretty hot and cold with Lily (one minute he's a sweetheart, the next a dickhead) is a big red flag. Also Lo's aggressive tendencies are not ideal either (he doesn't hit her at all; there is no physical abuse depicted in this book; he just always has a tendecies to pick up fights with other people). He's just very immature and lacks ambition. They both defintely have alot of growing and maturing to do before they can reach consummate and stability in their lives and relationship.
So dysfunctional and unhealthy. Like I said nothing to aspire to, but definitely not damaged beyond repair. Plus they do seem to be trying to fix themsleves towards the end of the book. And I think that maybe what the writers' objectives are. To showcase the ugly parts of their relationship so they can commence on the journey towards healing. At least that's what I hope the other books are about.😅
Also, I actually like how the authors depicted their addictions and them as characters. Lily being all shy and introverted with a sex addiciton and Loren battling his was really well depicted. And her inner dialogue that she has with herself where she talks about on herself for having her addiction, her social anxiety, and her friendship with Lo, and their background was very entertaining to read about. I was really it was dual POV.
Oh and we also got to meet the future characters of this book series which was cool. So here are my first impressions:
Connor - superficial privileged prick who says out of pocket and insensitive comments and thinks he's above everyone else due to his wealth and intelligence, but deep down has a decent, loving heart (he's okay but certainly my least favorite out of the bunch)
Rose - superficial mean judgmental privileged girl, but the way she scares about Lily and her family warms my heart (also I have to admire how unapologetically smart she is)
Ryke - nosy, but really means well; I liked him and I admired how much he stood up for girls (didn't appreciate him the comment he made about Lily's weight though) so far he's my favorite guy I saw the twist of him being Loren's brother a mile away, but it sure it make the book more emotional
I'm more into plot driven books so it took me a while to get through this because a whole lot of nothing was happening. So this is definitely a character based book. I think when it was around the 70-80% mark was when I started to feel it just a little bit (it was still entertaining though) and because I read this as in e-book it did take me quite a while to get through this, but I surprisingly enjoyed the read and will be continuing on with the second book.
Okay I'm really surprised by this book. I've been putting it off since I've heard about it on the book side of social media for about a year now. It has alot of popularity, but all the tropes I heard people listing weren't favorites of mine. Plus the main thing that made me put this book off for so long was that I heard it depicts a toxic relationship. And I personally loathe reading about toxic relationships.
However, I've finally conformed. It's been on my reading list for a while so I finally decided to pick it up and I can say that I'm pretty surprised on how much I enjoyed it.
Don't get me wrong the relationship between the main characters Lily and Lo is nothing to emulate your relationship after. But in my opinion their relationship is more so "dysfunctional" rather than flat out toxic. Throughout the book both parties have displayed on numerous occasions how much they care, love, and appreciate one another. (the shower scene) They have the potential for an honest, heartfelt, and healthy relationship.
However like I stated previously, their current relationship is nothing to emulate your romantic relationships on. They enable each other's addictions with knowledge that it's not gonna help them out in the long run.
Lo also becomes desensitized to Lily's actions as well.
Lo can be pretty nasty towards Lily especially when she tries to interfere with his drinking. And when they do start dating for real Lo literally expects Lily to cheat on him because Lily is constantly fighting her sexual compulsions in order to stay celibate/monogamous to Lo. Of course in a healthy relationship you shouldn' t have to constantly worry that your partner is being unfaithful. And the fact that Lo has a tendecy to be pretty hot and cold with Lily (one minute he's a sweetheart, the next a dickhead) is a big red flag. Also Lo's aggressive tendencies are not ideal either (he doesn't hit her at all; there is no physical abuse depicted in this book; he just always has a tendecies to pick up fights with other people). He's just very immature and lacks ambition. They both defintely have alot of growing and maturing to do before they can reach consummate and stability in their lives and relationship.
So dysfunctional and unhealthy. Like I said nothing to aspire to, but definitely not damaged beyond repair. Plus they do seem to be trying to fix themsleves towards the end of the book. And I think that maybe what the writers' objectives are. To showcase the ugly parts of their relationship so they can commence on the journey towards healing. At least that's what I hope the other books are about.😅
Also, I actually like how the authors depicted their addictions and them as characters. Lily being all shy and introverted with a sex addiciton and Loren battling his was really well depicted. And her inner dialogue that she has with herself where she talks about on herself for having her addiction, her social anxiety, and her friendship with Lo, and their background was very entertaining to read about. I was really it was dual POV.
Oh and we also got to meet the future characters of this book series which was cool. So here are my first impressions:
Connor - superficial privileged prick who says out of pocket and insensitive comments and thinks he's above everyone else due to his wealth and intelligence, but deep down has a decent, loving heart (he's okay but certainly my least favorite out of the bunch)
Rose - superficial mean judgmental privileged girl, but the way she scares about Lily and her family warms my heart (also I have to admire how unapologetically smart she is)
Ryke - nosy, but really means well; I liked him and I admired how much he stood up for girls (didn't appreciate him the comment he made about Lily's weight though) so far he's my favorite guy
I'm more into plot driven books so it took me a while to get through this because a whole lot of nothing was happening. So this is definitely a character based book. I think when it was around the 70-80% mark was when I started to feel it just a little bit (it was still entertaining though) and because I read this as in e-book it did take me quite a while to get through this, but I surprisingly enjoyed the read and will be continuing on with the second book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Addiction, Alcohol, Alcoholism, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Abandonment, Sexual assault, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Vomit, and Sexual violence
Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Infidelity, and Body shaming
saraohneh's review against another edition
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
it's so hard for me to sum up this book. i feel like you're physically tense throughout the whole book. you're not even able to enjoy the few good parts of the story bc the addiction is constantly looming over you. which is totally brilliant in terms of emotion portrayal but it's also exhausting bc you just want the best for these deeply flawed but loving characters and everyone they're hurting with their addictions.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Sexual violence, Emotional abuse, and Addiction
Moderate: Sexual content
wickedgrumpy's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
What did I just read? Why did I even read it?
I don't know what I was expecting, but it definitely did not deliver. Also, the twist was obvious from a mile away.
I think I was swayed by those that said they loved the couple. I've read darker romances before and they've been meh to okay so I figured, maybe this is the one. It was not the one.
I don't know what I was expecting, but it definitely did not deliver. Also, the twist was obvious from a mile away.
I think I was swayed by those that said they loved the couple. I've read darker romances before and they've been meh to okay so I figured, maybe this is the one. It was not the one.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual content, Addiction, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Addiction, Body shaming, Bullying, Emotional abuse, Child abuse, Classism, Eating disorder, Grief, Infidelity, Sexism, Abandonment, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Mental illness, Self harm, Sexual harassment, Outing, Pregnancy, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Sexual violence
smasson13's review against another edition
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I originally read the sequels to this series first and am now returning to meet the parents.
I already loved Lily and Lo, so I'm glad that I still do! It's really neat to see how it all started.
The whole situation with Ryke though felt very random and unbelievable, there was probably a less abstract and more realistic way for him to wiggle into their lives.
The romance was not a spicy as their later books, the pace felt a little slow, but overall was still a great book. The best thing about this book over the sequels is that there are actual problems and real angst. Much appreciated.
I already loved Lily and Lo, so I'm glad that I still do! It's really neat to see how it all started.
The whole situation with Ryke though felt very random and unbelievable, there was probably a less abstract and more realistic way for him to wiggle into their lives.
The romance was not a spicy as their later books, the pace felt a little slow, but overall was still a great book. The best thing about this book over the sequels is that there are actual problems and real angst. Much appreciated.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Cursing, Sexual content, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, and Addiction
Moderate: Sexual assault
Minor: Drug use, Infidelity, Sexual violence, and Domestic abuse
jsfbec's review
emotional
funny
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? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Sexual harassment, Sexual assault, Classism, Sexual content, Alcohol, Alcoholism, and Sexual violence
phoebegrace06's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Not my favourite book however the characters alone have hooked me on this series! The last 3 chapters sold me!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Alcoholism, Gaslighting, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Addiction, Vomit, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, and Sexual violence
constellationsvale's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual violence, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Addiction, Alcohol, Alcoholism, and Sexual assault
Moderate: Acephobia/Arophobia and Abandonment
Minor: Drug use
fatherkrystal's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
guys…omg this book has easily made its way on my top 10 list. i just finished it and i’m literally sobbing . this has been the only book to ever make me cry , i’m so serious . there were so many heartfelt , funny , and heart wrenching moments in this book like i have no words rn . i cant even formulate a proper review , i only have three things to say:
1. if you haven’t read this book yet, read it!!
2. i’m so excited to start on the next book in the series
3. lilo and coballoway supremacy 🤞🏽
loren hale , connor cobalt , ryke meadows … my best boys fr 🛐
1. if you haven’t read this book yet, read it!!
2. i’m so excited to start on the next book in the series
3. lilo and coballoway supremacy 🤞🏽
loren hale , connor cobalt , ryke meadows … my best boys fr 🛐
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content and Alcoholism
Moderate: Body shaming and Sexual violence
Minor: Dysphoria