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emotional
funny
lighthearted
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Sexual content, Injury/Injury detail
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I loved this story so much. All of the characters were so fun and nice and I loved them (excpet Pen). The way this MMC reminds me of my boyfriend, he will forever hold a special place in my heart. I genuinely loved ever aspect of this book: the diving and swimming, the STEM representation, the struggles of college life, the struggles to maintain relationships (platonic or otherwise), the way the spice was handled, recovering from an injury, therapy, nontraditional family dynamic, I could go on. This was a beautiful story
Tropes: sports romance; friends with benefits to lovers; he falls first; foreign language; PTSD and anxiety rep; mental block in sports
Tropes: sports romance; friends with benefits to lovers; he falls first; foreign language; PTSD and anxiety rep; mental block in sports
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Sexual content, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail
emotional
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I’m in shock??? This is my first Ali Hazelwood book and honestly I only decided to read it because the main character is a diver and I don’t usually read cishet romance but WOW this was a wild ride. I will say, for a book that started out with a warning about the level of kink present, I don’t think it delivered! Yes, there was a d/s dynamic explored, but what about the rest of the sheet?? They certainly had a lot of rough sex, but rough doesn’t automatically equal kink!! That man was DOWN BAD for her and honestly I loved it. When he said that she had him in the palm of her hand the whole time??? Shambles. Reading this was an out of body experience 🧍🏻♂️
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Sexual content, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Child abuse, Death of parent
emotional
funny
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
ALI MY QUEEN, YOU’VE DONE IT AGAIN!! You made me want to be swallowed into a book and never see the light again. Lukas is now my ultimate book husband and I will be serving my actual husband divorce papers later tonight. Sorry babe!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Grief
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Death of parent
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
relaxing
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
A-MA-ZING.
I think each time I read a new Ali book I think it is her best work, but gods do I mean it this time. I feel like she has teased people about Whet for YEARS and it is FINNNAAALLLLYYY here and just incredible.
Two words: Lukas Blomqvist. I don't know how Ali got her gift at writing the best men ever to grace a page, but Lukas is something extra special. Practically from the beginning we see how much he cares for Scarlett, wants to do right by her, look after her, be with her and godsssss. Just godssssss.
Scarlett is a really strong FMC. I like that Ali has moved away from "I don't want to be in relationships ever ever again in my entire life" a little bit with Scarlett. She doesn't really want a relationship, but it does seem very realistic in this book that she is BUSY. Diving and Uni sounds like a lot. I found her backstory incredibly moving, I loved the glimpses we got into her therapy and how she does finally see a purpose in it (with Lukas' help, I feel). How determined she is. How self aware she is that her determination can be a detriment, but she still really tries.
I've read and listened to this book at least three times now since owning it. The words of Lukas Blomqvist are etching themselves into my heart and I am not even sorry.
I think each time I read a new Ali book I think it is her best work, but gods do I mean it this time. I feel like she has teased people about Whet for YEARS and it is FINNNAAALLLLYYY here and just incredible.
Two words: Lukas Blomqvist. I don't know how Ali got her gift at writing the best men ever to grace a page, but Lukas is something extra special. Practically from the beginning we see how much he cares for Scarlett, wants to do right by her, look after her, be with her and godsssss. Just godssssss.
Scarlett is a really strong FMC. I like that Ali has moved away from "I don't want to be in relationships ever ever again in my entire life" a little bit with Scarlett. She doesn't really want a relationship, but it does seem very realistic in this book that she is BUSY. Diving and Uni sounds like a lot. I found her backstory incredibly moving, I loved the glimpses we got into her therapy and how she does finally see a purpose in it (with Lukas' help, I feel). How determined she is. How self aware she is that her determination can be a detriment, but she still really tries.
I've read and listened to this book at least three times now since owning it. The words of Lukas Blomqvist are etching themselves into my heart and I am not even sorry.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Sexual content
Moderate: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Medical content, Grief, Death of parent
challenging
emotional
hopeful
reflective
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
The Ali-Verse is back in full swing with Olive and Adam as secondary characters. And married this time!
This was good, I just wish I loved it more. This does not rank among my favorite books in the Ali-Verse.
Scarlett’s experience is very relatable in the way that she thinks of her life as a “before” and “after” the injury. If you have ever had a traumatic or shocking experience in your life, this is a very realistic interpretation and hits close to home.
I could have done with much less Pen in the book. I’m still sus of Pen.
Scarlett and Luke were hot and sweet. Not my favorite couple, but they rank higher than Rue and Eli.
This was good, I just wish I loved it more. This does not rank among my favorite books in the Ali-Verse.
Scarlett’s experience is very relatable in the way that she thinks of her life as a “before” and “after” the injury. If you have ever had a traumatic or shocking experience in your life, this is a very realistic interpretation and hits close to home.
I could have done with much less Pen in the book. I’m still sus of Pen.
Scarlett and Luke were hot and sweet. Not my favorite couple, but they rank higher than Rue and Eli.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Bullying, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Medical content, Death of parent, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Sexual content, Grief, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail
challenging
funny
hopeful
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Mental illness
Minor: Panic attacks/disorders, Death of parent, Alcohol
challenging
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Ali Hazelwood definitely has a type - and it's very large Scandinavian men. And, I'm mostly OK with it. While it seems like her books (other than Bride) have been a bit formulaic (i.e. nerdy science girl meets LARGE broody science guy) this one differed in that she made them both athletes as well. She focused on their relationship while being sports nerds getting to become science nerds. There wasn't the whole falling-out betrayal that has sometimes happened in her other books, which I appreciate. The sex in this one is darker, and seems to be dipping her toes in something a bit more risque and explorative. As a woman over 40, I would prefer to see her write about older characters sometimes, not college juniors, but I do appreciate she didn't make them immature.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Sexual content
Minor: Bullying, Toxic relationship, Alcohol
emotional
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I started listening to the audiobook on the way home from work and kept it going when I got home. So I guess if it had the physical book, I wouldn’t have been able to put it down. It was such a cute read with the background action playing as much importance into the story as the romance. The narrators of the book were incredible with appropriate accents when needed. It was refreshing to read a story that focused around kink without the people having some kind of deep, dark, depraved secret or secret life.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Mental illness, Medical content, Medical trauma, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Child abuse