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tsukikomew's review
3.0
The general premise follows Kenna Starr who has a bad reputation. It's mostly undeserved. Years earlier she had a one-night stand with a college guy, got pregnant and somehow got the reputation of a slut. I'm not sure how exactly considering she never dates. Enter Dane Michaelson who is about to be her stepbrother and also the guy she had a huge crush on back in the day. Dane is all wrapped up in Kenna but can they make the relationship work when there is absolutely no actual conflict?
Can you hear my feelings about this novella? I'm sure you all can. I have a lot of issues with novellas as a rule. They are often too short to constitute much of anything. 100 pages is not enough to sell me on a romance and manage to make the story believable. Conflicts are dealt with quickly. Nothing is ever really discussed. The couple either falls in insta-love OR they've known each other for years. I typically can't stand the shortness.
The problem with this story lies with how short it is. The premise introduces a few threads that never get fully utilized. One of the main ones is the interference of the family. We're told Kenna's mother had a long-standing affair with Dane's father which eventually ended the Michaelson marriage. So now after the divorce and Kenna's father's death, the two are getting married. So you have a bitter ex-wife and Kenna's mother being a bit ridiculous. Neither of those storylines are ever dealt with even though they cause the bulk of the "conflict". Dane's mother pays people to not hire Kenna because...that's logical. Kenna's mother harps on everything Kenna does but that is never dealt with on any level. These were things that would have benefited from a longer story.
I think my biggest issue with the story was the relationship. We don't get the benefit of experiencing any of the flashbacks that shaped these two characters due to the shortness of the story. We basically see Dane fall in insta-love with Kenna. That's it. He pursues her, they sleep together and by the end of the story we're supposed to believe in them. Plus Dane gets over all of his "family" issues in about a millisecond in order to accept Kenna's daughter and get an HEA. Really?!
This story is a victim of shortness. It doesn't have enough substance to allow the story to be fleshed out and achieve a higher rating in my opinion. It's almost like the story is not finished. It's odd to me. I'll probably still try book one at some point but not for right now because the novella didn't sell me on it.
Can you hear my feelings about this novella? I'm sure you all can. I have a lot of issues with novellas as a rule. They are often too short to constitute much of anything. 100 pages is not enough to sell me on a romance and manage to make the story believable. Conflicts are dealt with quickly. Nothing is ever really discussed. The couple either falls in insta-love OR they've known each other for years. I typically can't stand the shortness.
The problem with this story lies with how short it is. The premise introduces a few threads that never get fully utilized. One of the main ones is the interference of the family. We're told Kenna's mother had a long-standing affair with Dane's father which eventually ended the Michaelson marriage. So now after the divorce and Kenna's father's death, the two are getting married. So you have a bitter ex-wife and Kenna's mother being a bit ridiculous. Neither of those storylines are ever dealt with even though they cause the bulk of the "conflict". Dane's mother pays people to not hire Kenna because...that's logical. Kenna's mother harps on everything Kenna does but that is never dealt with on any level. These were things that would have benefited from a longer story.
I think my biggest issue with the story was the relationship. We don't get the benefit of experiencing any of the flashbacks that shaped these two characters due to the shortness of the story. We basically see Dane fall in insta-love with Kenna. That's it. He pursues her, they sleep together and by the end of the story we're supposed to believe in them. Plus Dane gets over all of his "family" issues in about a millisecond in order to accept Kenna's daughter and get an HEA. Really?!
This story is a victim of shortness. It doesn't have enough substance to allow the story to be fleshed out and achieve a higher rating in my opinion. It's almost like the story is not finished. It's odd to me. I'll probably still try book one at some point but not for right now because the novella didn't sell me on it.
tamreel_stitches's review
4.0
This was a great book, I'm looking forward to reading the next three in the series.
diaryofthebookdragon's review
2.0
Usually when a novella is in question we complain how there was not enough room: either the characterization or world-building or romance suffers. The One You Want managed to squeeze in a nicely developed romance and good background story for a series into 100 pages. Great job Gena Showalter!
In the center of The One You Want is a love story between Kenna and Dane. Everything was done well. Attraction slowly building, their inner feelings, emotions changed... Her fighting with small town rumors. Him accepting that he is in love with a single mother...
BUT. Everything was exaggerated. They were both too handsome, too misunderstood, their past was too tragic. It all reminds me of a cheap tv show dramas and leaves a bad taste in my mouth. There was nothing realistic in this story.
There are a lot of people who are going to love this romance series. Me? I guess I am becoming too much of a skeptic...
In the center of The One You Want is a love story between Kenna and Dane. Everything was done well. Attraction slowly building, their inner feelings, emotions changed... Her fighting with small town rumors. Him accepting that he is in love with a single mother...
BUT. Everything was exaggerated. They were both too handsome, too misunderstood, their past was too tragic. It all reminds me of a cheap tv show dramas and leaves a bad taste in my mouth. There was nothing realistic in this story.
There are a lot of people who are going to love this romance series. Me? I guess I am becoming too much of a skeptic...
lucy_qhuay's review
3.0
A nice little treat to make us hunger for the next book in the series.
It's always fun to see a celebrated man-whore falling to his knees after being bumped by the love of his life. Karma's a bitch!
whitney0498's review
5.0
Another great installment from Gena Showalter I didn’t think her books could get any better but apparently they can. This is the first book in the Original Heartbreakers series and what a way to start off a series. This book just had me engrossed and my emotions were all over the place as I saw what each character was going through. I absolutely fell in love with Dane and Kenna and I absolutely can’t wait to see where this series goes and who I will fall in love with next.
meganmreads's review
2.0
I hate to say this because I LOVE Gena Showalter so much, but The One You Want was absolutely terrible. I don’t even know what happened. I love Gena Showater’s paranormal series Lords of the Underworld and I love her very different YA series The White Rabbit Chronicles. I had every expectation that I would enjoy The One You Want because I also love contemporary romance and was in the mood for one.
The One You Want was a jumbled, unrealistic slammed together mess. I expected a bit of a fast paced, slightly over the top romance considering this was a novella, but this one was just terrible. Kenna’s personality, history, and motivations make no sense to me. Dane Michaelson immediately fell for Kenna, which was nice, but I never really connected with him either. They had issues being together because of reputation, family drama, and the fact that Kenna has a kid and Dane isn’t known for settling down.
I think that if the author would have simplified their major issues and cut back on them, the romance could have blossomed better, but she threw in all sorts of craziness. They knew each other as kids, their parents had an affair. Kenna was assaulted or something similar and got pregnant years ago, ruining her reputation in the town. Her mom seemed to be put together, but Kenna wasn’t able to take any money from her father or his estate so she was poorer. That’s a heavy load of issues and conflict that I would have liked to have seen be better explored, and that’s not even all of it.
I think the author was trying to create a situation where she had prior history with Dane and have it make sense that she wasn’t also rich, but I think she just wrote herself into a weird corner and over explained everything. The couple, once finally getting together had a bunch of other issues like the fact that he was a man whore and the fact that he wasn’t close with her kid and it was just one thing after the other and then all I love you, let’s get married.
Basically, The One You Want was terrible. I am shocked that it came from an author I love. I will not continue her contemporary series. I would only recommend the novella to people who enjoy indie contemporary romance that is often less polished and over the top. For anyone who is a Showalter fan, I can’t imagine not feeling disappointed by this novella.
The One You Want was a jumbled, unrealistic slammed together mess. I expected a bit of a fast paced, slightly over the top romance considering this was a novella, but this one was just terrible. Kenna’s personality, history, and motivations make no sense to me. Dane Michaelson immediately fell for Kenna, which was nice, but I never really connected with him either. They had issues being together because of reputation, family drama, and the fact that Kenna has a kid and Dane isn’t known for settling down.
I think that if the author would have simplified their major issues and cut back on them, the romance could have blossomed better, but she threw in all sorts of craziness. They knew each other as kids, their parents had an affair. Kenna was assaulted or something similar and got pregnant years ago, ruining her reputation in the town. Her mom seemed to be put together, but Kenna wasn’t able to take any money from her father or his estate so she was poorer. That’s a heavy load of issues and conflict that I would have liked to have seen be better explored, and that’s not even all of it.
I think the author was trying to create a situation where she had prior history with Dane and have it make sense that she wasn’t also rich, but I think she just wrote herself into a weird corner and over explained everything. The couple, once finally getting together had a bunch of other issues like the fact that he was a man whore and the fact that he wasn’t close with her kid and it was just one thing after the other and then all I love you, let’s get married.
Basically, The One You Want was terrible. I am shocked that it came from an author I love. I will not continue her contemporary series. I would only recommend the novella to people who enjoy indie contemporary romance that is often less polished and over the top. For anyone who is a Showalter fan, I can’t imagine not feeling disappointed by this novella.
kaziteega's review
4.0
Surprising
I did not expect to really like this book. It wasn't the best book in the world but it makes me laugh and it had some pretty good lines for lightening the mood. Would I read it again? I don't know, but I know I enjoyed the book, and it was a very quick read.
I did not expect to really like this book. It wasn't the best book in the world but it makes me laugh and it had some pretty good lines for lightening the mood. Would I read it again? I don't know, but I know I enjoyed the book, and it was a very quick read.
bodebeabay's review
3.0
[b:The One You Want|21848263|The One You Want (The Original Heartbreakers, #0.5)|Gena Showalter|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1412355215l/21848263._SY75_.jpg|41119643] by [a:Gena Showalter|48192|Gena Showalter|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1581848751p2/48192.jpg]
Genres: Contemporary, Romance
2.75 Stars
A sweet, funny, little romance.
Even though that is not really my 'Cup of Tea', I did enjoy it.
It's a very quick read. There were some editing problems & the end seemed a bit rushed & gooey to me.
But all in all, if you like sweet romances with some definite humor & the prince saving the day kind of thing....
This is the book for you.
Genres: Contemporary, Romance
2.75 Stars
A sweet, funny, little romance.
Even though that is not really my 'Cup of Tea', I did enjoy it.
It's a very quick read. There were some editing problems & the end seemed a bit rushed & gooey to me.
But all in all, if you like sweet romances with some definite humor & the prince saving the day kind of thing....
This is the book for you.