Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.9 AVERAGE
3.9 AVERAGE
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Second chance romance and film industry drama.
More of an ode to the author's failed film dreams than a romance between the main characters.
This novel has more angst than yearning, and there weren't enough scenes of the couple together or dialogue and banter between them.
The book comes with discussion questions at the end, which I think is really cool.
More of an ode to the author's failed film dreams than a romance between the main characters.
This novel has more angst than yearning, and there weren't enough scenes of the couple together or dialogue and banter between them.
The book comes with discussion questions at the end, which I think is really cool.
emotional
funny
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
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This was all right, i personally didn’t like how she did more of the pining than him but that’s just my opinion.
I did enjoy the Kaliya’s character development, I think it was really vital to the storyline and enjoyed the way it was portrayed.
The romance in this didn’t really sell me out but other might feel differently.
I did enjoy the Kaliya’s character development, I think it was really vital to the storyline and enjoyed the way it was portrayed.
The romance in this didn’t really sell me out but other might feel differently.
emotional
funny
hopeful
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
emotional
funny
hopeful
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
im gonna forget everything ab this book soon, and it was rlly corny but i also dont love books ab movies. very basic and not super offensive, just not for me.
This was such a great listen. I enjoyed the narrators. This was definitely a second chance that had a real slow burn. Although I don’t really like slow burns the storyline kept me interested with hating ass Celine. I did wish Kaliyah & Danny communicated more instead of tryna think for the other.
3.5 stars ✨
Kaliya, you could’ve been Mrs. Kim 😭 There was more chemistry in one night than the rest of the book with Danny.
Outside of her dating life, everything about Kaliya felt so genuine. She was a very smart, talented woman who struggled in pursuit of her breakthrough and grew unsure of her skills because of it. As a woman of color who also studied the arts and finds themselves stuck in an unrelated role, her character resonated with me and I loved seeing how she rebuilt that trust in herself and acknowledge her own potential.
Danny is… trash. Sure, he has a smooth and charming energy, but that man kept pissing me off. He needed to get his priorities straight before dragging Kaliya’s reputation and professional opportunities through the mud. He’s just full of excuses. There was no self-improvement journey, he’s practically the same person from 8 years ago. It was way too easy for him to let go of Kaliya each time. Honestly, did he really want a life with her or was he going with familiarity?
In terms of their relationship, everything about these two felt so icky. The flashbacks to their overlapping year in college didn’t convince me that they were actually in love. The writing focused so much on describing what happened and it lacked any emotional portrayals. It was more tell than show.
The lack of romance in their past made the breakup seem so mediocre. Apparently they were both super heartbroken but I didn’t care, and honestly preferred their relationship as collaborators. The blandness aside, my girl Kaliya didn’t deserve to be iced out like that. Also, you want me to believe that he didn’t betray Kaliya all those years ago based on a technicality?!?! Nope. I’m not accepting that weakass story, especially considering he didn’t actually explain the physical side of things while his supposed love was being pushed away. This made it all the more infuriating to find out that Kaliya believed his crap and took him back so easily each time.
Also, I didn’t like how Danny spoke about her lack of experience. One of his favorite things about her is her purity?! Excuse me?! I found it so annoying how often they emphasized Kaliya’s lack of romantic experience AS A COLLEGE FRESHMAN. Do we really believe that 18 is a late bloomer?
Then we have Celine, the evil girlfriend for the first half of the book and ex-girlfriend for the second half. Siri, play “traitor” by Olivia Rodrigo. Off the bat, she feels very stand-off ish and bitchy toward Kaliya. However, let’s not forget that our protagonist asked her boyfriend to keep their romantic past a secret and then she had to witness said boyfriend sharing inside jokes and longing glances with his ex. There was way too much back and forth with her character. We’re supposed to hate her by the time Kaliya asks how they got together, but then Danny shares this winded story about how she’s basically just a woman who’s been through a lot but didn’t stop working hard. At this point, I now hate her. If that was her background, why is she hellbent on giving Kaliya that same mistreatment? Ex-girlfriend or not, this is like when you’re in the bathroom and your nemesis asks for a tampon. You help a girl out, or at least don’t push her down. Then the major reveal happens and I hate her for other reasons, but I didn’t like that part of the storyline. Honestly, it felt so misplaced. It’s like the author wanted a way of making readers feel okay about Kaliya and Danny, but let’s not forget, emotional cheating is still cheating.
From the past to the present, there was a serious recurrence of miscommunication. The constant back and forth was so annoying. They needed to have conversations early on about their intentions and what was holding them back, but they kept overlooking this! Also, I need the guy to be utterly obsessed, head over heels in love with the girl and Danny was not that. Their relationship felt so bland.
Honestly, this should’ve been the love story that led to Kaliya Wilson-Kim.
The major scandal toward the end was interesting in theory because it’s so realistic and reflective given the context of the story, but the aftermath diluted it. The solution was so obvious—clearly, they were able to sort out the legal side of things, so why did they hold off for so long on releasing the truth? Bella could’ve stepped up for the reveal. We all know her background would’ve protected her from getting anything worse than a slap on the wrist.
My favorite part about this book was the commentary on the wider entertainment industry and nepotism. It was also interesting to learn about Danny’s film and his intentions for it (lowkey felt more romance through Danny’s parent’s story than our leads).
As an artist, my favorite quote is: “We’re led to believe that being perpetually overworked, underappreciated, and, even worse, underpaid is some sort of rite of passage or ticket to entry. When the worst-kept secret is that so much of the key to success in this town is based on who you know, what you look like, or what you own.” (312).
Lastly, let’s stop it with the celebrity mentions. Meryl Streep sending a birthday card every year? Really?
Overall, this book could’ve been so much more. Kaliya could do so much better than Danny. I’m not against second chances, but did they really have a chance in the first place? What fire was there to reignite? I just kept reading because I loved the insightful pieces about women of color in the arts.
Audiobook side note: DeWanda Wise narrates. It was decent. Didn’t really change up her voice enough for the other female characters.
Kaliya, you could’ve been Mrs. Kim 😭 There was more chemistry in one night than the rest of the book with Danny.
Outside of her dating life, everything about Kaliya felt so genuine. She was a very smart, talented woman who struggled in pursuit of her breakthrough and grew unsure of her skills because of it. As a woman of color who also studied the arts and finds themselves stuck in an unrelated role, her character resonated with me and I loved seeing how she rebuilt that trust in herself and acknowledge her own potential.
Danny is… trash. Sure, he has a smooth and charming energy, but that man kept pissing me off. He needed to get his priorities straight before dragging Kaliya’s reputation and professional opportunities through the mud. He’s just full of excuses. There was no self-improvement journey, he’s practically the same person from 8 years ago. It was way too easy for him to let go of Kaliya each time. Honestly, did he really want a life with her or was he going with familiarity?
In terms of their relationship, everything about these two felt so icky. The flashbacks to their overlapping year in college didn’t convince me that they were actually in love. The writing focused so much on describing what happened and it lacked any emotional portrayals. It was more tell than show.
The lack of romance in their past made the breakup seem so mediocre. Apparently they were both super heartbroken but I didn’t care, and honestly preferred their relationship as collaborators. The blandness aside, my girl Kaliya didn’t deserve to be iced out like that. Also, you want me to believe that he didn’t betray Kaliya all those years ago based on a technicality?!?! Nope. I’m not accepting that weakass story, especially considering he didn’t actually explain the physical side of things while his supposed love was being pushed away. This made it all the more infuriating to find out that Kaliya believed his crap and took him back so easily each time.
Also, I didn’t like how Danny spoke about her lack of experience. One of his favorite things about her is her purity?! Excuse me?! I found it so annoying how often they emphasized Kaliya’s lack of romantic experience AS A COLLEGE FRESHMAN. Do we really believe that 18 is a late bloomer?
Then we have Celine, the evil girlfriend for the first half of the book and ex-girlfriend for the second half. Siri, play “traitor” by Olivia Rodrigo. Off the bat, she feels very stand-off ish and bitchy toward Kaliya. However, let’s not forget that our protagonist asked her boyfriend to keep their romantic past a secret and then she had to witness said boyfriend sharing inside jokes and longing glances with his ex. There was way too much back and forth with her character. We’re supposed to hate her by the time Kaliya asks how they got together, but then Danny shares this winded story about how she’s basically just a woman who’s been through a lot but didn’t stop working hard. At this point, I now hate her. If that was her background, why is she hellbent on giving Kaliya that same mistreatment? Ex-girlfriend or not, this is like when you’re in the bathroom and your nemesis asks for a tampon. You help a girl out, or at least don’t push her down. Then the major reveal happens and I hate her for other reasons, but I didn’t like that part of the storyline. Honestly, it felt so misplaced. It’s like the author wanted a way of making readers feel okay about Kaliya and Danny, but let’s not forget, emotional cheating is still cheating.
From the past to the present, there was a serious recurrence of miscommunication. The constant back and forth was so annoying. They needed to have conversations early on about their intentions and what was holding them back, but they kept overlooking this! Also, I need the guy to be utterly obsessed, head over heels in love with the girl and Danny was not that. Their relationship felt so bland.
Honestly, this should’ve been the love story that led to Kaliya Wilson-Kim.
The major scandal toward the end was interesting in theory because it’s so realistic and reflective given the context of the story, but the aftermath diluted it. The solution was so obvious—clearly, they were able to sort out the legal side of things, so why did they hold off for so long on releasing the truth? Bella could’ve stepped up for the reveal. We all know her background would’ve protected her from getting anything worse than a slap on the wrist.
My favorite part about this book was the commentary on the wider entertainment industry and nepotism. It was also interesting to learn about Danny’s film and his intentions for it (lowkey felt more romance through Danny’s parent’s story than our leads).
As an artist, my favorite quote is: “We’re led to believe that being perpetually overworked, underappreciated, and, even worse, underpaid is some sort of rite of passage or ticket to entry. When the worst-kept secret is that so much of the key to success in this town is based on who you know, what you look like, or what you own.” (312).
Lastly, let’s stop it with the celebrity mentions. Meryl Streep sending a birthday card every year? Really?
Overall, this book could’ve been so much more. Kaliya could do so much better than Danny. I’m not against second chances, but did they really have a chance in the first place? What fire was there to reignite? I just kept reading because I loved the insightful pieces about women of color in the arts.
Audiobook side note: DeWanda Wise narrates. It was decent. Didn’t really change up her voice enough for the other female characters.