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emotional
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: Sexual content
Minor: Emotional abuse, Medical trauma, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Injury/Injury detail
emotional
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Toxic friendship, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Death of parent
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
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
This was actually insanelyyyy good - I’ve loveddd all of Ali Hazelwoods books I’ve read but this might be one of my favorites :) I loved literally everything about it so much
Also I will say that this might be the horniest book I’ve ever read lmaoo - I’ve read some straight up smut books but this somehow was hornier than those
Also I will say that this might be the horniest book I’ve ever read lmaoo - I’ve read some straight up smut books but this somehow was hornier than those
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Toxic friendship, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Bullying, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Death of parent
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
I had high hopes for this book and it was just a let down. I liked the premise of the book and the characters backstory. I had a hard time caring about the book after half way through. I almost dnf it but I did finish.
Now I think about it was most Pen why I didn’t love the book and how Lukas and Scarlet didn’t cut Pen out of their relationship.
Now I think about it was most Pen why I didn’t love the book and how Lukas and Scarlet didn’t cut Pen out of their relationship.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Toxic friendship, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Grief, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Emotional abuse
With how many positive tiktoks I saw about this book, my expectations were for epic romance and unproblematic representation of kink. The reviews must have been all paid off marketing though, there's neither in this book. Instead of romance you have lust. Lust that starts when one of the characters is in a relationship. Instead of personality the characters have abs, accents and olympic level sports, all while having mastered complicated computer science algorithms and phd level microbiology at high school. Writing how to cure cancer on each others palms. Super relatable. About this kink. While the characters don't know anything about each other (and one's relationship status is questionable), they repeatedly mention to each other liking BDSM. Without having talked more than 5 minutes, the male character sends an email that the woman should consider him for fuckbuddy. Cheating and sexually harassing colleagues just isn't my thing, 1*. And eww. Epic level ick.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity, Panic attacks/disorders, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship
emotional
funny
hopeful
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
My first book I read by this author and I liked it. The book itself with the sprayed edges to resemble pool water is very unique. Overall, a great read. I'm happy that Scarlett and Luk ended up being together despite Scarlett's uncertainty. The epilogue was a nice touch and I'm glad they achieved their dreams outside of the pool!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Toxic friendship
Minor: Bullying, Domestic abuse, Death of parent
emotional
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:
Complicated
Strong 4☆, not really my kinda kink but still a really fun read. Could not stand Penelope though.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Minor: Emotional abuse, Death of parent, Toxic friendship, Injury/Injury detail
challenging
emotional
inspiring
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:
No
“Because sometimes I can’t breathe when you’re around.”
Read as a buddyread with Amanda (we did get a towel when I bought a physical copy of the book).
This book was so binge-worthy, we had to break the rule of reading only a hundred pages a day. We overall finished the book within three days instead of four because how can we stop when we were already halfway - where everything was really good by that point.
Scarlett and Lukas, oh boy, you two are match-made in heaven for sure. How your kinks are aligned and really, that's the most important thing, right? I thought so too but apparently, you guys are really just more than that. From being the athlete you both are to having a dream of being a doctor, you guys really suit each other. Even though it started as just sex, it wasn't really, right? The connection was there and I was just itching for you guys to finally be together. To be glad you guys fell in each other's laps. But of course, the third act conflict just have to bring the rating down.
I freaking hate the third act conflict - Pen???? Pen being that kind of person by the end was so out of character for her. There's no excuse for how she acted and even by the end, I was sad that only 2-3 pages, everything is alright between the two. It's so hard to imagine Pen breaking down like that and actually denying that she knew of the relationship between Lukas and Scarlett. I was heartbroken for the couple. I was talking to Amanda about it and I was ranting so much about this because we did expect her to be a cause of the conflict, just not in that way.
Either way, it was a really good and quick read. Enjoyed it thoroughly, as I had with most of Ali Hazelwood's books.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Medical content, Medical trauma, Toxic friendship, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Sexual assault