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kristinallard's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Minor: Body shaming, Cancer, Religious bigotry, Sexism, Antisemitism, and Death of parent
ashleycmms's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
lighthearted
reflective
medium-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? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Death, Death of parent, Grief, Misogyny, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Cancer, Violence, and Religious bigotry
emfass's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Hovering between a 2 and a 2.5.
There was a brief shining moment somewhere in the middle of this book, maybe right around the part where Naomi and Ethan decide to take the plunge and admit their feelings and give their relationship a try, that I thought, "Holy shit, is this gonna be a 4-star read for me??" The beginning had been choppy and it was difficult for me to find the rhythm of the storytelling, but when we got to that point of the story, there was something about these two characters drawing together and leaping into vulnerability and intensity of feelings that I found so compelling and wonderful.
And then...oh, it all just went so terribly wrong.
I can't even speak to specific examples right now, I'm so spitting mad at how wildly inconsistent and messy everything became/continued to be: the characterization, the scene writing, the plotting. It seemed like multiple people had written various parts of this book and then barely bothered to Franken-stitch them together. And let's be clear: I am mad because I was falling SO HARD for Naomi and the way she was learning to soften, and I ESPECIALLY fell for Ethan fucking Cohen. What a perfect cinnamon roll mensch. But everything fell completely apart for me in the final quarter of the book. I desperately read on hoping things would be salvaged, but alas, my heart kept breaking with every page turn.
I agree with much of JenReadsRomance's review, and she articulates some of the structural downfalls way more intelligently than I can, especially the trap of Ethan and Naomi's relationship following the path set down for them by the syllabus they created for their lecture series, and how this forced the characters into a plot structure instead of letting them drive the story. Also, for a book called The Intimacy Experiment, these characters generally do a horrible job of actually talking to each other about their feelings.
Lastly, I want to say I'm kind of let down by both The Roommate and The Intimacy Experiment in that both of the sex worker main characters in these books are allowed to be the focus of the love story only because they're no longer engaged in the having-sex-with-other-people part of their sex work. Maybe the genre just isn't there yet, but it sure would've been cool to see them still actively working that way and being deemed worth of love/a love story.
There was a brief shining moment somewhere in the middle of this book, maybe right around the part where Naomi and Ethan decide to take the plunge and admit their feelings and give their relationship a try, that I thought, "Holy shit, is this gonna be a 4-star read for me??" The beginning had been choppy and it was difficult for me to find the rhythm of the storytelling, but when we got to that point of the story, there was something about these two characters drawing together and leaping into vulnerability and intensity of feelings that I found so compelling and wonderful.
And then...oh, it all just went so terribly wrong.
I can't even speak to specific examples right now, I'm so spitting mad at how wildly inconsistent and messy everything became/continued to be: the characterization, the scene writing, the plotting. It seemed like multiple people had written various parts of this book and then barely bothered to Franken-stitch them together. And let's be clear: I am mad because I was falling SO HARD for Naomi and the way she was learning to soften, and I ESPECIALLY fell for Ethan fucking Cohen. What a perfect cinnamon roll mensch. But everything fell completely apart for me in the final quarter of the book. I desperately read on hoping things would be salvaged, but alas, my heart kept breaking with every page turn.
I agree with much of JenReadsRomance's review, and she articulates some of the structural downfalls way more intelligently than I can, especially the trap of Ethan and Naomi's relationship following the path set down for them by the syllabus they created for their lecture series, and how this forced the characters into a plot structure instead of letting them drive the story. Also, for a book called The Intimacy Experiment, these characters generally do a horrible job of actually talking to each other about their feelings.
Lastly, I want to say I'm kind of let down by both The Roommate and The Intimacy Experiment in that both of the sex worker main characters in these books are allowed to be the focus of the love story only because they're no longer engaged in the having-sex-with-other-people part of their sex work. Maybe the genre just isn't there yet, but it sure would've been cool to see them still actively working that way and being deemed worth of love/a love story.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Death of parent, Grief, and Misogyny
Minor: Alcoholism, Antisemitism, Blood, Cancer, and Violence
Main character had naked photos of herself shared around school by her high school boyfriend.decklededgess's review
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
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
5.0
Trigger warnings: sex and sexual content, sex work related traumas (written well imo), anti semitism and microaggressions, sexual harassment, physical altercation, alcohol, sexist and misogynistic slurs, death of parent, cancer mention, grief
BRO I LOVED THIS
BRO I LOVED THIS
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual assault, and Sexual content
Moderate: Violence, Toxic relationship, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Cancer, and Antisemitism
Minor: Cancer, Mental illness, and Religious bigotry
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