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kindlemmromancereader's review
4.0
***ARC Review***
This is my honest review for the ARC I received.
Love/Hate by Quinn Riley is definitely an enemies-to-lovers romance. It’s also a bully romance, revenge romance, and a second chance romance. So there’s lots to digest, but it definitely held my interest.
Lyric Blackmore used to be an innocent kid until Korbin Rose and his group of friends mercilessly bullied him starting freshman year of high school. They definitely played up the “wrong side of the tracks” label and use circumstances beyond Lyric’s control against him. He’s been Korbin’s target since he first laid eyes on him. We later learn the reason behind Korbin’s malicious behavior. He’s harboring a secret that he can’t stand and is using his mistreatment of Lyric as a way to cope with those feelings. Lyric develops anxiety, compulsions, and panic disorder as a direct result of being bullied by Korbin and his friends.
That said, there’s an unwanted attraction between both MCs. Their chemistry is incendiary. As their relationship turns physical, Lyric makes a plan to get back at Korbin. He’s going to make Korbin fall for him and break his heart in return. Emotions get really complicated and confusing though, so both characters fall for one another. There is a moment of miscommunication in the story that ends up separating the MCs for 5 years.
A lot changes during their time apart. At 23, the pair reunite and must decide if they should attempt another shot at a relationship. Both men have obstacles (internal and external) that they need to overcome in order to earn their hard won HEA. There are some heavy topics in this book. There’s raw and complex emotions. It’s a thought provoking story with interesting characters, compelling dialogue, and nuanced pacing. Pay attention to the author’s disclaimer at the beginning of the book.
Side note: I am soooooo intrigued about what went down between Zane and Maddox. I cannot wait to read their story!
This is my honest review for the ARC I received.
Love/Hate by Quinn Riley is definitely an enemies-to-lovers romance. It’s also a bully romance, revenge romance, and a second chance romance. So there’s lots to digest, but it definitely held my interest.
Lyric Blackmore used to be an innocent kid until Korbin Rose and his group of friends mercilessly bullied him starting freshman year of high school. They definitely played up the “wrong side of the tracks” label and use circumstances beyond Lyric’s control against him. He’s been Korbin’s target since he first laid eyes on him. We later learn the reason behind Korbin’s malicious behavior. He’s harboring a secret that he can’t stand and is using his mistreatment of Lyric as a way to cope with those feelings. Lyric develops anxiety, compulsions, and panic disorder as a direct result of being bullied by Korbin and his friends.
That said, there’s an unwanted attraction between both MCs. Their chemistry is incendiary. As their relationship turns physical, Lyric makes a plan to get back at Korbin. He’s going to make Korbin fall for him and break his heart in return. Emotions get really complicated and confusing though, so both characters fall for one another. There is a moment of miscommunication in the story that ends up separating the MCs for 5 years.
A lot changes during their time apart. At 23, the pair reunite and must decide if they should attempt another shot at a relationship. Both men have obstacles (internal and external) that they need to overcome in order to earn their hard won HEA. There are some heavy topics in this book. There’s raw and complex emotions. It’s a thought provoking story with interesting characters, compelling dialogue, and nuanced pacing. Pay attention to the author’s disclaimer at the beginning of the book.
Side note: I am soooooo intrigued about what went down between Zane and Maddox. I cannot wait to read their story!
imme_van_gorp's review
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
Oh my god, this was awful. It felt like it was written by a 14-year old girl who didn’t even bother to check whether any of her writing made a lick of sense before publishing it. The sentences had no structure whatsoever, the plot gave me whiplash, and the characters were as ridiculously unbelievable as possible.
The romance had to be the most random and underdeveloped thing I’ve ever encountered; it’s a bully romance, but the book starts with the bully being halfway in love with his victim from the get-go, so the very first time we see them interact he says “sorry”, they hook up, and start a relationship. This all happened in the first damn pages, and it was simply insane.
Anyway, after I’d read about 20% of this book I knew it was utter trash, so I decided to skim the rest of it. I’ll just recap the gist of the plot, because wow, it was so dumb and I feel like people need to know just how dumb it is before choosing to waste their time on it:
Okay, so the book starts with the arsehole bully having an epiphany about lusting after the guy he’s tormented for years, so he decides to have some sort of hate make-out session with him (which the victim was totally okay with for some reason?), and then they immediately start dating and talking about love. It was super random and had no build-up. However, it gets worse, because some big “misunderstanding” happens that has the victim running away for five years, which leads to the bully being all pissy and angry at him (hypocrisy is a foreign concept for him, I guess). Anyway, this means that after the victim comes back he spends the whole rest of the book groveling and trying to win the bully back. Like… excuse me!? You’re telling me the bully gave his victim severe anxiety, OCD and dissociative disorder with his abuse, but the book decides to focus on the grovel the VICTIM gives to the bully? A grovel we NEVER got from the bully in the first place?? And the victim has to grovel for leaving for <i>very valid reasons</i>, because who can blame the guy for not assuming the best about his abusive bully when everyone tells him horrible lies about what the bully was planning to do to him?? I’d have left too! Well, I’d never have forgiven the bully in the first place, so the whole point is moot, but still. Just… What a mess. So frustrating.
P.S. The victim’s dad casually ended up dating and impregnating his recently legal son’s closest friend, which was totally accepted by everyone and the dad was considered the <i>good guy</i> in this story. I feel like that should tell you all you need to know about the quality of this book and the decency of the characters.
The romance had to be the most random and underdeveloped thing I’ve ever encountered; it’s a bully romance, but the book starts with the bully being halfway in love with his victim from the get-go, so the very first time we see them interact he says “sorry”, they hook up, and start a relationship. This all happened in the first damn pages, and it was simply insane.
Anyway, after I’d read about 20% of this book I knew it was utter trash, so I decided to skim the rest of it. I’ll just recap the gist of the plot, because wow, it was so dumb and I feel like people need to know just how dumb it is before choosing to waste their time on it:
Okay, so the book starts with the arsehole bully having an epiphany about lusting after the guy he’s tormented for years, so he decides to have some sort of hate make-out session with him (which the victim was totally okay with for some reason?), and then they immediately start dating and talking about love. It was super random and had no build-up. However, it gets worse, because some big “misunderstanding” happens that has the victim running away for five years, which leads to the bully being all pissy and angry at him (hypocrisy is a foreign concept for him, I guess). Anyway, this means that after the victim comes back he spends the whole rest of the book groveling and trying to win the bully back. Like… excuse me!? You’re telling me the bully gave his victim severe anxiety, OCD and dissociative disorder with his abuse, but the book decides to focus on the grovel the VICTIM gives to the bully? A grovel we NEVER got from the bully in the first place?? And the victim has to grovel for leaving for <i>very valid reasons</i>, because who can blame the guy for not assuming the best about his abusive bully when everyone tells him horrible lies about what the bully was planning to do to him?? I’d have left too! Well, I’d never have forgiven the bully in the first place, so the whole point is moot, but still. Just… What a mess. So frustrating.
P.S. The victim’s dad casually ended up dating and impregnating his recently legal son’s closest friend, which was totally accepted by everyone and the dad was considered the <i>good guy</i> in this story. I feel like that should tell you all you need to know about the quality of this book and the decency of the characters.
dawa's review
emotional
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
2.75
elizabethbaker's review
2.0
I wanted to like this book- the cover is really pretty and the blurb sounded good. I’ve seen it rated nightly and recommended by quite a few people but I feel like I read a different book than they did. I like the tropes in it but I think the editor and proofreader really let the book down. Many times it was unclear who was saying what, or the dialogue didn’t make sense. There were numerous formatting and grammatical errors, missing words etc… Another round of editing and proofreading would really improve the book in my opinion.
yurieslays's review
emotional
inspiring
sad
tense
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
5.0
monismmreviews's review
4.0
This might be one of those books that have too much going on, twists and turns just coming at you … but in the end I really liked it and it stayed with me as a great second-chance romance.
Lyric is a unique combination of snarky and vulnerable. Having been abandoned by his mother and bullied throughout high school, he developed extreme anxiety disorder. He is hoping to become an artist, working closely with a tattoo studio in town. Rich boy Korbin has always been fascinated by Lyric, but it isn’t until a drunken kiss that his world is completely shaken. He cannot stay away from Lyric … who is happily planning on taking his heart and crushing it. But as he is working on his revenge against his bully, he starts to realize who Korbin really is deep down, and Lyric’s hate turns to something else entirely. What neither of them counting on is a tragedy that completely derails both of their lives. Five year goes by and they are thrown together again in the same little town, so finally there is a chance for the truth to come out. As the title says, there is a thin line between love and hate and both Korbin and Lyric are balancing on that line throughout most of the book. I loved that tension between them, all the angst, even if it was painful to see their separation and their fights. Keep an open mind, there are a lot of twists and a few tropes in this book that I cannot talk about because they’d be major spoilers but in the end, they are all worth it.
Please check the TWs for sensitive content!
Lyric is a unique combination of snarky and vulnerable. Having been abandoned by his mother and bullied throughout high school, he developed extreme anxiety disorder. He is hoping to become an artist, working closely with a tattoo studio in town. Rich boy Korbin has always been fascinated by Lyric, but it isn’t until a drunken kiss that his world is completely shaken. He cannot stay away from Lyric … who is happily planning on taking his heart and crushing it. But as he is working on his revenge against his bully, he starts to realize who Korbin really is deep down, and Lyric’s hate turns to something else entirely. What neither of them counting on is a tragedy that completely derails both of their lives. Five year goes by and they are thrown together again in the same little town, so finally there is a chance for the truth to come out. As the title says, there is a thin line between love and hate and both Korbin and Lyric are balancing on that line throughout most of the book. I loved that tension between them, all the angst, even if it was painful to see their separation and their fights. Keep an open mind, there are a lot of twists and a few tropes in this book that I cannot talk about because they’d be major spoilers but in the end, they are all worth it.
Please check the TWs for sensitive content!
moonqueen95's review
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
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
5.0
aboulle's review
5.0
Wow! This is one of those rare books that caught me by surprise. The angst level was perfect, and the two main characters were so flawed yet overcame so much to be what each other needed. While it was hard to see how long these two were apart from one another, they truly needed that time to grow into who they needed to be.
I highly recommend this read as I have not read a book this good in quite a while!
I highly recommend this read as I have not read a book this good in quite a while!
dinohakari's review
5.0
I'm not sure where to start with this review. This book is filled with so many emotions that it is difficult to describe them.
This story is about two teenagers who did not have an easy childhood. One of them raised in poverty, albeit with a father who loved and supported him, and the other raised in opulence within a family that only cared about appearances and with a controlling and abusive father.
Korbin made Lyric's life at school hell, not realizing the internal damage he was causing, to the point of affecting his mental health. But then, school ended and during that summer, Korbin begins to realize that he can't go down that path, that he must begin to accept himself and his attraction to Lyric.
Lyric feels damaged, broken, but something about Korbin won't let him go and he accepts and tries to forgive him and they start a relationship. But Korbin's environment, his family and his friends take the toxicity to the maximum and manage to separate them, causing Lyric to leave town.
Years pass, and Lyric decides to visit his father and finds out about the illness of someone who was close to him, which puts him in front of Korbin again, and everything he thought he knew, everything he thought had happened. ... It was not so.
During those years, both go through internal growth, a maturity that this time allows them to meet again halfway and realize that they were always meant to be.
A good story, with the right dose of anguish and a very accurate representation of mental illness, and also the trauma that an abusive family can generate.
One thing that I really liked was that they didn't heal from one day to the next, that it wasn't looking into each other's eyes and saying oops, we love each other, we're healed! No, they struggled and suffered to get to where they are at the end of the book. It was a long and painful road, but they knew how to get to the other side of the road, with the help of those people who really loved and supported them.
I was given an advanced copy and voluntarily wrote a review.
This story is about two teenagers who did not have an easy childhood. One of them raised in poverty, albeit with a father who loved and supported him, and the other raised in opulence within a family that only cared about appearances and with a controlling and abusive father.
Korbin made Lyric's life at school hell, not realizing the internal damage he was causing, to the point of affecting his mental health. But then, school ended and during that summer, Korbin begins to realize that he can't go down that path, that he must begin to accept himself and his attraction to Lyric.
Lyric feels damaged, broken, but something about Korbin won't let him go and he accepts and tries to forgive him and they start a relationship. But Korbin's environment, his family and his friends take the toxicity to the maximum and manage to separate them, causing Lyric to leave town.
Years pass, and Lyric decides to visit his father and finds out about the illness of someone who was close to him, which puts him in front of Korbin again, and everything he thought he knew, everything he thought had happened. ... It was not so.
During those years, both go through internal growth, a maturity that this time allows them to meet again halfway and realize that they were always meant to be.
A good story, with the right dose of anguish and a very accurate representation of mental illness, and also the trauma that an abusive family can generate.
One thing that I really liked was that they didn't heal from one day to the next, that it wasn't looking into each other's eyes and saying oops, we love each other, we're healed! No, they struggled and suffered to get to where they are at the end of the book. It was a long and painful road, but they knew how to get to the other side of the road, with the help of those people who really loved and supported them.
I was given an advanced copy and voluntarily wrote a review.