Scan barcode
islandbookwyrm's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
sad
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? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Minor: Death of parent, Biphobia, Cancer, and Grief
kj468's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
rep: MLM, Bi MC, Gay LI, Turkish LI, ADHD side character
narration style: 1st person, single POV
First and foremost: This book lost an entire star rating due to (in my opinion) completely unnecessary biphobia from the love interest (Evren). I easily would have given this book 4.5 stars if the biphobia just didn't exist. I dive into the biphobia in my first dislike bullet point.
Things I liked:
narration style: 1st person, single POV
First and foremost: This book lost an entire star rating due to (in my opinion) completely unnecessary biphobia from the love interest (Evren). I easily would have given this book 4.5 stars if the biphobia just didn't exist. I dive into the biphobia in my first dislike bullet point.
Things I liked:
- KNITTING!!!! So much fun to have a queer romance that so heavily focuses on knitting! If you love knitting (or crocheting, or any crafting), you'll probably love this aspect too. Every chapter opens with a small snippet from Evren's ( the LI) knitting blog, even though the rest of the book is told from Brady's POV (the MC). I loved these small snippets into Evren's head, and how they brought the theme of knitting to the forefront.
- I liked the integration of Evren's Turkish culture into his character. His culture shows up in the way he interacts with Mira (his aunt), the food he cooks, and the pet names he uses. Overall, it was difficult to forget that Evren was Turkish, but his culture didn't feel performative.
- The spice was great. 10/10. If you like toppy, dommy energy (and the subsequent submissive begging energy), this is the book for you.
- As an asexual person, I really loved Evren's discomfort around mess, particularly in the bedroom. He's not comfortable with the mess of bodily fluids, or even lube really, and it very consistently affects the way he has sex with Brady. Brady was absolutely excellent about this facet of Evren -- very respectful, never once pushed Evren to do things he was uncomfortable with, and found compromises that worked for both of them without making Evren uncomfortable.
Things I didn't like: (these two caveats are why I responded "it's complicated" to the loveable characters question, instead of yes).
- Biphobia: Early in the book, Evren explicitly states that he "does not usually do... bisexual" guys (a direct quote, page 26). It seemed pretty clear that this biphobia was used to give Evren trust issues to complicate the plot, and was "justified" by the fact that the two previous bisexual guys he dated were unfaithful to him. Biphobia is a real and powerful thing, and if the author was trying to explore that, there needed to be better conversations in the latter half of the book to heal the biphobic comments and make the lesson clearer. I think it is reckless to portray biphobia and unkind stereotypes about biphobia ("unfaithful", "unable to pick a gender") without having on-page conversations about why those stereotypes are harmful and damage the bisexual community. Granted, Brady does push back against the comments, both in his head and verbally, directly to Evren, but I guess I just didn't see the full growth from Evren I would have liked to have seen in order to make this plot line palatable. In the end, Evren is okay with Brady's biphobia and seems to fully trust him -- but there's no conversation about how he feels about bisexual people at large. For all I know, he could think Brady is completely trustworthy, but that he's the "exception to the rule".
- I didn't love Brady's relationship with his oldest sibling (Renee, 19). I understand it was supposed to be strained because of stress and her age, but to me, she just came out selfish and unlikeable. While she makes amends after fights and says she loves her brother, she is barely physically present (and not at all mentally present), even at key points like Brady's birthday. I think she could have been written to be a more balanced, complex character.
tw explanations:
biphobia: see dislike bullet point #1
cancer; terminal illness:
death of a parent, grief:
homophobia:
Content Warnings
Graphic: Terminal illness, Biphobia, Death of parent, and Sexual content
Moderate: Grief and Cancer
Minor: Homophobia
cheye13's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Coffeeshop crossed with fiber arts? Perfection.
Felt a little weird to be giving this five stars, but there's nothing about it I would change or add. The implied accent in Evren's dialogue did feel a little off and I sometimes zoned out trying to reconcile it with my recollection of a Turkish accent, but it wasn't too distracting. The focus on "either gender" rather than "all genders" was a bit of a snag but it wasn't pervasive. I didn't mind the biphobia because it came off as an organic character flaw rather than an independent argument.
The story felt whole and complete, the characters tangible and unique. The undercurrent of mourning was so human. The elements of family and community were lovely, and I really enjoyed the focus on both coffee & knitting. I really appreciated that the story was mainly Brady's point of view while we got peeks into Evren's perspective through his blog posts.
I know I'd get even more out of it if I read the series in order, but as a bisexual, crocheting coffee addict, I loved this one on its own.
Felt a little weird to be giving this five stars, but there's nothing about it I would change or add. The implied accent in Evren's dialogue did feel a little off and I sometimes zoned out trying to reconcile it with my recollection of a Turkish accent, but it wasn't too distracting. The focus on "either gender" rather than "all genders" was a bit of a snag but it wasn't pervasive. I didn't mind the biphobia because it came off as an organic character flaw rather than an independent argument.
The story felt whole and complete, the characters tangible and unique. The undercurrent of mourning was so human. The elements of family and community were lovely, and I really enjoyed the focus on both coffee & knitting. I really appreciated that the story was mainly Brady's point of view while we got peeks into Evren's perspective through his blog posts.
I know I'd get even more out of it if I read the series in order, but as a bisexual, crocheting coffee addict, I loved this one on its own.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Death, and Grief
Moderate: Biphobia
Minor: Death of parent and Homophobia
the biphobia - and all content - is in service to the story and faults of the characters, clearly not statements of the author
More...