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bookish_dinkleberg's review
funny
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
I was so excited to read a figure skating romance and was, unfortunately, let down by the lack of actual figure skating in the book. There's a lot of practice in the book, which was fun to read, but we don't ever really get to read about the competitions the characters have been preparing for.
What I liked about the book:
- flawed main character whose faults and insecurities impact the plot and her relationships with other people
- the figure skating that was in the book seemed well-researched and realistic to me (I'm no expert though haha)
- the slow-burn aspects of the romance
What I didn't like about the book:
- the writing (it seemed a bit overwritten, a lot of detailed dialogue tags like " said the red-haired woman who gave birth to me")
- the inner monologue was funny at times and I can understand why the author might have wanted to leave all that in there, but for me (this is a personal preference) it was way too much and slowed down the pace of the book
- fat-shaming - What was the point of all that?
- the ending felt a little bit rushed and as I said above, we don't actually get to read about the competitions in detail and just get a summary of everything that happened in the epilogue
What I liked about the book:
- flawed main character whose faults and insecurities impact the plot and her relationships with other people
- the figure skating that was in the book seemed well-researched and realistic to me (I'm no expert though haha)
- the slow-burn aspects of the romance
What I didn't like about the book:
- the writing (it seemed a bit overwritten, a lot of detailed dialogue tags like " said the red-haired woman who gave birth to me")
- the inner monologue was funny at times and I can understand why the author might have wanted to leave all that in there, but for me (this is a personal preference) it was way too much and slowed down the pace of the book
- fat-shaming - What was the point of all that?
- the ending felt a little bit rushed and as I said above, we don't actually get to read about the competitions in detail and just get a summary of everything that happened in the epilogue
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body shaming, Sexual content, and Stalking
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Car accident and Pregnancy
rachrreads's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
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
4.5
Had to take off half a star bc the beginning was so slow. Nothing but inner dialogue for the first like 5 chapters. Also I’m sorry I can’t get over the nickname Meatball. It almost grew on me but nope.
Now for what I love:
Ivan Lukov I love you. Jasmine I love you <3
The tension, the banter, the ice skating. YES
“I believe in you. In us. Regardless of what happens, you will always be the best partner I've ever had. You'll always be the hardest working person I've ever known. There will only ever be you.”
WHY TF IS THIS CALLED “FROM LUKOV WITH LOVE” WHEN THERES NOT A LETTER SAYING FROM LUKOV, WITH LOVE?! I was clowning to my friend about some lovely letter *sighs*
Now for what I love:
Ivan Lukov I love you. Jasmine I love you <3
The tension, the banter, the ice skating. YES
“I believe in you. In us. Regardless of what happens, you will always be the best partner I've ever had. You'll always be the hardest working person I've ever known. There will only ever be you.”
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Cursing, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual harassment, and Stalking
Moderate: Car accident and Pregnancy
aratoo's review
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
- her inner dialogue and the spoken one always felt too long. It was very repetitive. Most paragraph just consist of the smae statement written over and over in different words
- i liked the first half of the book
- the book was kinda slow-burnish but then in the last five chapters everything went way to fast. He said i love you, three pages later they fuck and then comes the epilogue where they are married and HAD THREE CHILDREN. I should have known bc of the babysitting chapter. Why do all romance book have to end with Children and marriage ???? At least in this one it was once (!) kinda mentioned that she would like children.
- Why did he tell Jasmine that they only have one year???? It makes no sense
- we never really see him vulnerable, but she breaks down multiple times in his arm despite that we always get told she’s oh so strong. (Was that correct english?)
- their “hatred” toward each other in the beginning didn’t really feel justified
- i liked the first half of the book
- the book was kinda slow-burnish but then in the last five chapters everything went way to fast.
- Why did he tell Jasmine that they only have one year???? It makes no sense
- we never really see him vulnerable, but she breaks down multiple times in his arm despite that we always get told she’s oh so strong. (Was that correct english?)
- their “hatred” toward each other in the beginning didn’t really feel justified
Content Warnings
Minor: Pregnancy
sofiarmz13's review
emotional
funny
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Sexual harassment, and Stalking
Moderate: Body shaming, Fatphobia, Injury/Injury detail, and Medical content
Minor: Abandonment, Animal death, Bullying, Car accident, Pregnancy, Vomit, and Alcohol
michellemaas's review
emotional
funny
inspiring
reflective
tense
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
4.5
* Beware of minor spoilers
4.5 - ⭐⭐⭐⭐💫
Standalone New Adult Sports Romance, featuring the "rivals-to-lovers", "hurt/comfort", and "forced proximity" tropes.
I liked it overall. The relationship was excellently developed, the banter was on point, the characters were complex, and there were high emotional and physical stakes. It was however too long, causing it to drag at times.
"But if I’d learned anything over the last year and a half, it was the reality of how tough it was to live with your mistakes. I’d learned how hard it was to face them, and how much harder it was to own them. We all did things we regretted; we all said things we regretted, and guilt was a crushing weight on a person’s soul. And I wanted to be better. For me. Not for anyone else."
At 26, Jasmine either has to get a new figure skating partner or quit doing the one thing she has dedicated her entire life to. In comes Ivan Lukov . . . This partnerless, world-winning champion is willing to join forces since neither of them has any other options. The problem? They can't stand one another. But with Ivan being her last hope at her dreams, Jasmine is willing to do anything to make this arrangement work.
"Love to me was honesty. Being real. Knowing someone’s best and worst. Love was a push that said someone believed in you when you didn’t. Love was effort and time."
My biggest criticism is that it was longer than it should have been. I had to put it down at 80% and struggled for a long time to pick it back up. Once I did get back to it I thoroughly enjoyed the end, but like with most Mariana Zapata books the reading experience could have been greatly improved if the book was 100 or so pages shorter because while the story was enjoyable overall there were a bunch of scenes that were totally unnecessary for both plot and character development and that slows down the pace of what would have been a gloriously medium to fast-paced book.
I also disliked the fact that there was so little plot. Ivan and Jasmine's relationship was so good that I surprisingly didn't mind it for the most part, but when I'm sitting here and reflecting at the end of the book I realize that it does bother me. It made it hard to pick back up when it lost my interest. That's why there needs to be a plot.
"Because I’m okay with you having ten other people be your favorite. But you’re always going to be my favorite person,” he finished. “Always. No matter what.”
On to the good stuff, I loved Jasmine's character. She was so real and moody and flawed yet loyal and she spoke to me in a way I wasn't expecting. The slowburn was also undoubtedly one of the best I've read to date. It was paced well while also being realistic and felt very natural. Finally, I really enjoyed the social commentary about not needing a degree to be considered successful in life, because sometimes it's just enough to be doing what you love.
"If I had to choose anyone to help me bury a body, eat dinner with, or watch television with, it would be you, every time for everything."
From Lukov with Love includes learning disability representation along with a heavy emphasis on both romantic and familial relationships, and the importance of pursuing your dreams while working on becoming the best version of yourself. Would recommend it if any of those themes resonate with you, or you just want to experience the brilliance that is Ivan Lukov. The book may have been too long, but Ivan Lukov was worth every page.
4.5 - ⭐⭐⭐⭐💫
Standalone New Adult Sports Romance, featuring the "rivals-to-lovers", "hurt/comfort", and "forced proximity" tropes.
I liked it overall. The relationship was excellently developed, the banter was on point, the characters were complex, and there were high emotional and physical stakes. It was however too long, causing it to drag at times.
"But if I’d learned anything over the last year and a half, it was the reality of how tough it was to live with your mistakes. I’d learned how hard it was to face them, and how much harder it was to own them. We all did things we regretted; we all said things we regretted, and guilt was a crushing weight on a person’s soul. And I wanted to be better. For me. Not for anyone else."
At 26, Jasmine either has to get a new figure skating partner or quit doing the one thing she has dedicated her entire life to. In comes Ivan Lukov . . . This partnerless, world-winning champion is willing to join forces since neither of them has any other options. The problem? They can't stand one another. But with Ivan being her last hope at her dreams, Jasmine is willing to do anything to make this arrangement work.
"Love to me was honesty. Being real. Knowing someone’s best and worst. Love was a push that said someone believed in you when you didn’t. Love was effort and time."
My biggest criticism is that it was longer than it should have been. I had to put it down at 80% and struggled for a long time to pick it back up. Once I did get back to it I thoroughly enjoyed the end, but like with most Mariana Zapata books the reading experience could have been greatly improved if the book was 100 or so pages shorter because while the story was enjoyable overall there were a bunch of scenes that were totally unnecessary for both plot and character development and that slows down the pace of what would have been a gloriously medium to fast-paced book.
I also disliked the fact that there was so little plot. Ivan and Jasmine's relationship was so good that I surprisingly didn't mind it for the most part, but when I'm sitting here and reflecting at the end of the book I realize that it does bother me. It made it hard to pick back up when it lost my interest. That's why there needs to be a plot.
"Because I’m okay with you having ten other people be your favorite. But you’re always going to be my favorite person,” he finished. “Always. No matter what.”
On to the good stuff, I loved Jasmine's character. She was so real and moody and flawed yet loyal and she spoke to me in a way I wasn't expecting. The slowburn was also undoubtedly one of the best I've read to date. It was paced well while also being realistic and felt very natural. Finally, I really enjoyed the social commentary about not needing a degree to be considered successful in life, because sometimes it's just enough to be doing what you love.
"If I had to choose anyone to help me bury a body, eat dinner with, or watch television with, it would be you, every time for everything."
From Lukov with Love includes learning disability representation along with a heavy emphasis on both romantic and familial relationships, and the importance of pursuing your dreams while working on becoming the best version of yourself. Would recommend it if any of those themes resonate with you, or you just want to experience the brilliance that is Ivan Lukov. The book may have been too long, but Ivan Lukov was worth every page.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Cursing, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Stalking, Abandonment, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Medical content, Body shaming, Bullying, Injury/Injury detail, Pregnancy, Racism, and Alcohol
n0m_de_grr's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
relaxing
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Minor: Car accident, Cursing, Panic attacks/disorders, Pregnancy, and Stalking
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