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athenian_frog's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- 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
4.25
I really enjoyed the discussions of sexuality and the ace spectrum, I think it’s good to touch on the fact that you don’t have to instantly know what to label yourself, or to even label yourself at all. Some of the discussions of love and feeling like you don’t deserve love really hit me in the gut.
Also another thing this book did that I don’t see very much: Dev seems very considerate of Charlie’s physical boundaries, and he asks permission a lot when it comes to contact. He also makes an effort to clean his hands/be extra sanitary around Charlie bc he’s aware it sth that bothers him. The affectionate little touches and the sleeping in the same bed without it necessarily being sexual, just intimate…I ADORED this aspect of their relationship.
The dates were also very personalized to each character, and focused on them opening up, which I thought was really cool. That sounds like a “duh” kind of thing to have in a romance but I can’t recall the last time I kicked my feet up for a single date like that…
Another plus: Diverse cast in general, but also the women who were in the show were pretty solid. I really liked watching their dynamic and I wish I saw more of them TBH.
I think the main things that bugged me were:
- the amount of vomiting/mentions of vomiting that happened (it gets better in the latter half but the start feels p noticeable).
- Maureen felt a little flat and kind of like an obvious evil figure 😭 wanted a little more depth to her.
- I wanted some more out of Dev and Charlie’s families, they felt pretty glued to the background of everything.
NOTE: if you’re looking for something steamy and explicit, this doesn’t have a lot in that department. There’s plenty of kissing and making out but the sex is fairly vague. I didn’t really care kissing and cuddling is my shit but just as a heads up!!
Even with these issues in mind I still had a blast reading this. Kudos to Ms. Cocheron!
Also another thing this book did that I don’t see very much: Dev seems very considerate of Charlie’s physical boundaries, and he asks permission a lot when it comes to contact. He also makes an effort to clean his hands/be extra sanitary around Charlie bc he’s aware it sth that bothers him. The affectionate little touches and the sleeping in the same bed without it necessarily being sexual, just intimate…I ADORED this aspect of their relationship.
The dates were also very personalized to each character, and focused on them opening up, which I thought was really cool. That sounds like a “duh” kind of thing to have in a romance but I can’t recall the last time I kicked my feet up for a single date like that…
Another plus: Diverse cast in general, but also the women who were in the show were pretty solid. I really liked watching their dynamic and I wish I saw more of them TBH.
I think the main things that bugged me were:
- the amount of vomiting/mentions of vomiting that happened (it gets better in the latter half but the start feels p noticeable).
- Maureen felt a little flat and kind of like an obvious evil figure 😭 wanted a little more depth to her.
- I wanted some more out of Dev and Charlie’s families, they felt pretty glued to the background of everything.
NOTE: if you’re looking for something steamy and explicit, this doesn’t have a lot in that department. There’s plenty of kissing and making out but the sex is fairly vague. I didn’t really care kissing and cuddling is my shit but just as a heads up!!
Even with these issues in mind I still had a blast reading this. Kudos to Ms. Cocheron!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Vomit
Moderate: Biphobia, Homophobia, Panic attacks/disorders, Mental illness, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Child abuse
Some mentions of biphobia and homophobia from one of the lead producers. This is not at all supported, it is actively condemned by the story and its characters. Several descriptions/mentions of dry heaving or vomiting. One of the main characters suffers from an anxiety disorder and OCD. There are (what I personally found to be) respectful discussions about living with these conditions. One of the main characters has a form of depression. There are discussions around this topic (that also seemed respectful)mattyb's review against another edition
emotional
funny
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Toxic relationship, Mental illness, and Abandonment
Moderate: Addiction, Alcohol, Bullying, Child abuse, Biphobia, Homophobia, and Misogyny
Minor: Vomit
cozy_tea_reader's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
I really liked the idea of the book it being set around a hetero-normative reality dating show. I think at times it felt like I loved the idea of the book but often felt like the writing didn’t live up to the potential and that the representation of mental health often fed into stereotypes - especially the portrayal of OCD.
While I was glad the characters got their happy ending it felt like as a reader we were robbed from seeing a proper conclusion to Dev and Charlie’s romance.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Sexual content, Sexism, Vomit, Homophobia, Acephobia/Arophobia, and Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Misogyny, Child abuse, Racism, and Ableism
Minor: Eating disorder and Sexual assault
The book heavily discusses the mental health of its main characters and while I agree this should be de-stigmatised I don’t think this was a good representation of mental health problems particularly OCD.kuroshiro_35's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, and Mental illness
Moderate: Ableism, Homophobia, and Child abuse
Minor: Alcoholism
lqvekanej's review against another edition
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny, Biphobia, Homophobia, Racism, Child abuse, Ableism, and Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Alcohol
therubyjailcell's review against another edition
emotional
funny
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
i do not know how to explain how i feel, all my thoughts. i adored this book. it shattered my heart and soul. it put me back together. it gave me things to think about, but made things clearer. it made me laugh and cry and cry-laugh and laugh-cry.
i connected to charlie, and his mindset, and his perception of things, and how he spoke, behaved, so much. his anxiety, his clumsiness, his perception of himself and the world, his identity. i related to dev a lot too, his depression, his brain.
i felt seen, a lot, throughout the book. and at the same time, it was in such a wildly different setting than anything ive ever been through, it was so surprising to connect that much to something, yk what i mean?
it’s amazing, and i wouldve read it so much faster if work had allowed me that, because it was just so captivating, seeing them grow together, and evolve, and get better and worse and better again. but at the same time, i think it wouldve destroyed me to read it in one sitting the first time. it made me cry, so hard, over and over again, and i dont think there wouldve been enough tears if i had read and discovered it all at once.
imma need to reread it before i can actually formulate opinions and thoughts that sound coherent, but i can already say that i am obsessed and that i will read it a lot again and again as we go.
the writing style really really worked for me, as well, and i loved being able to follow both povs without it being too repetitive and thus actually following the story alongside them switching povs rather than seeing both on each little scenes. it was amazing.
and little shoutout to my sunshine for recommending this book, it was the best thing ever, and i adore you, and i love that you made me so hyped about this book bc it was exactly as hyped as i should’ve been, it was so good.
i connected to charlie, and his mindset, and his perception of things, and how he spoke, behaved, so much. his anxiety, his clumsiness, his perception of himself and the world, his identity. i related to dev a lot too, his depression, his brain.
i felt seen, a lot, throughout the book. and at the same time, it was in such a wildly different setting than anything ive ever been through, it was so surprising to connect that much to something, yk what i mean?
it’s amazing, and i wouldve read it so much faster if work had allowed me that, because it was just so captivating, seeing them grow together, and evolve, and get better and worse and better again. but at the same time, i think it wouldve destroyed me to read it in one sitting the first time. it made me cry, so hard, over and over again, and i dont think there wouldve been enough tears if i had read and discovered it all at once.
imma need to reread it before i can actually formulate opinions and thoughts that sound coherent, but i can already say that i am obsessed and that i will read it a lot again and again as we go.
the writing style really really worked for me, as well, and i loved being able to follow both povs without it being too repetitive and thus actually following the story alongside them switching povs rather than seeing both on each little scenes. it was amazing.
and little shoutout to my sunshine for recommending this book, it was the best thing ever, and i adore you, and i love that you made me so hyped about this book bc it was exactly as hyped as i should’ve been, it was so good.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Mental illness, and Homophobia
Moderate: Sexual content
Minor: Child abuse
shoohoob's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
I so desperately needed this book and I’m so glad I read it! I literally ate this book up in like 6 hours and I don’t regret it at all.
I always cry at aspec rep, no matter what it’s in. Getting to see a part of me in a book like this is indescribable.
The discussions of mental health in this book were so unexpected but so welcome! I loved seeing both sides of the coin with Dev and how it had affected his relationship with Ryan. I also love seeing the care and understanding with Charlie and Dev :’)
also I wanna say that I was screaming “HIS MIC IS ON” the whole time and I was so scared they were going to be outed!!! but i’m so happy this book subverted that and that Charlie got to come out on his own terms :’) AND ALSO that the footage of Dev and Charlie was used to change the season!!
Love love love this book and I can’t wait to read Alison Cochrun’s other book!
I always cry at aspec rep, no matter what it’s in. Getting to see a part of me in a book like this is indescribable.
The discussions of mental health in this book were so unexpected but so welcome! I loved seeing both sides of the coin with Dev and how it had affected his relationship with Ryan. I also love seeing the care and understanding with Charlie and Dev :’)
Love love love this book and I can’t wait to read Alison Cochrun’s other book!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Biphobia, Mental illness, and Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Child abuse and Sexual content
Minor: Religious bigotry
cateemma's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Biphobia, Panic attacks/disorders, Mental illness, Ableism, Alcohol, and Vomit
Moderate: Alcoholism and Addiction
Minor: Bullying and Child abuse
headachesince03's review against another edition
emotional
relaxing
fast-paced
- 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
2.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness
Moderate: Acephobia/Arophobia, Alcohol, Biphobia, Sexual content, Lesbophobia, Outing, Alcoholism, Classism, Racism, Abandonment, Child abuse, Cursing, Homophobia, Religious bigotry, Panic attacks/disorders, and Sexism
williamgideon's review against another edition
emotional
funny
fast-paced
- 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
3.5
I really liked this book! The characters are so sweet I could die. Me and who honestly. I loved the discussion of mental health and how to deal with that within a relationship.
The last third of the book felt like it dragged on tbh, a lot of the conflict felt forced, but other than that it was a really fun read.
The last third of the book felt like it dragged on tbh, a lot of the conflict felt forced, but other than that it was a really fun read.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Biphobia, Mental illness, and Panic attacks/disorders
Minor: Emotional abuse, Sexual harassment, and Child abuse