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3.83 AVERAGE
3.83 AVERAGE
No strong representations of diverse characters or minority identities.
Overall: 4/5 stars
Despite how many issues both the Hero, Jude, and Heroine, Lia, had, I didn’t find either of them frustrating. In fact, I thought their relationship in its entirety was very sweet. They both dealt with difficult and life changing information through avoidance which is normally annoying to read but because they were both complicit, it didn’t seem like so much of an issue. Both are obviously struggling with where they’re currently at in their life and find comfort in their relationship. Jude is struggling come to terms that his career is entering its twilight stages and Lia still doesn’t know what she wants to do with her master’s degree and feels her future is just a big question mark. Obviously, neither expected their one night stand to result in a pregnancy.
I liked how after their initial blunder (Jude asking if it’s really his and Lia lashing out in fury), they decided to spend time getting to know each other and just go with the flow while Lia finished her semester abroad at Oxford.
The worst part of the novel was how horrible Jude’s parents treated him after he decided to become a professional footballer. The disdain was heartbreaking to read. And I didn’t really like how Lia made that discovery about her... yes, Jude should have told her about his fractured relationship with his parents. But, you can see why being emotionally vulnerable has never been rewarding for Jude. Also, I was really annoyed that Jude’s brother kept trying to get Jude to give his parents a second chance. There was no respect for Jude’s boundaries and it just sucked realizing that at the end of the day, Jude had no one in *his* corner.
I didn’t really understand Lia’s tendency to run away when things got hard. I did appreciate that when everything Lia and Jude weren’t talking about came to head, she acknowledged she was equally complicit. Neither talked about their family traumas and neither was ever clear about a need to define their relationship or even say what they wanted their relationship to look like. The best part about Lia and Jude working at their relationship was their recognition they had to work on themselves first—finally a romance novel that introduces therapy in way that shows it’s for everyone, even the Heroes.
Lia’s Oxford storyline was a lot of fun—I liked her thesis about how Charlotte’s hatred of teaching (a profession she was forced into because of the time in history and her sex) yielded one of the classics most feminist characters: Jane Eyre. Obviously I respect the Bronte sisters but I don’t read their books for fun. However, I liked seeing the sisters through Lia’s POV.
I LOVED getting to see where everyone else in the Ward family is at in their lives. Lia is in constant contact with her sisters, nephew and Logan and Paige. They’re all chaotically loving—their family is such fun to read about. I got teared up reading the birth scene and what Lia and Jude named their kid.
Also, I’m SO excited for Isabel’s book—it has so many awesome tropes to explore: employee-boss relationship, single dad & widower Hero and an ex-elite athlete.
Safety Rating: Safe with Exceptions
• No cheating
• No OW/OM drama
• Does have the Hero and Heroine pushing each other away
• Does have a separation (months but they are still in contact) between the Heroine and Hero
Possible Triggers:
• Parental neglect
• Parental abandonment
• Death of a parent
Ending:HFN
Overall: 4/5 stars
Despite how many issues both the Hero, Jude, and Heroine, Lia, had, I didn’t find either of them frustrating. In fact, I thought their relationship in its entirety was very sweet. They both dealt with difficult and life changing information through avoidance which is normally annoying to read but because they were both complicit, it didn’t seem like so much of an issue. Both are obviously struggling with where they’re currently at in their life and find comfort in their relationship. Jude is struggling come to terms that his career is entering its twilight stages and Lia still doesn’t know what she wants to do with her master’s degree and feels her future is just a big question mark. Obviously, neither expected their one night stand to result in a pregnancy.
I liked how after their initial blunder (Jude asking if it’s really his and Lia lashing out in fury), they decided to spend time getting to know each other and just go with the flow while Lia finished her semester abroad at Oxford.
The worst part of the novel was how horrible Jude’s parents treated him after he decided to become a professional footballer. The disdain was heartbreaking to read. And I didn’t really like how Lia made that discovery about her... yes, Jude should have told her about his fractured relationship with his parents. But, you can see why being emotionally vulnerable has never been rewarding for Jude. Also, I was really annoyed that Jude’s brother kept trying to get Jude to give his parents a second chance. There was no respect for Jude’s boundaries and it just sucked realizing that at the end of the day, Jude had no one in *his* corner.
I didn’t really understand Lia’s tendency to run away when things got hard. I did appreciate that when everything Lia and Jude weren’t talking about came to head, she acknowledged she was equally complicit. Neither talked about their family traumas and neither was ever clear about a need to define their relationship or even say what they wanted their relationship to look like. The best part about Lia and Jude working at their relationship was their recognition they had to work on themselves first—finally a romance novel that introduces therapy in way that shows it’s for everyone, even the Heroes.
Lia’s Oxford storyline was a lot of fun—I liked her thesis about how Charlotte’s hatred of teaching (a profession she was forced into because of the time in history and her sex) yielded one of the classics most feminist characters: Jane Eyre. Obviously I respect the Bronte sisters but I don’t read their books for fun. However, I liked seeing the sisters through Lia’s POV.
I LOVED getting to see where everyone else in the Ward family is at in their lives. Lia is in constant contact with her sisters, nephew and Logan and Paige. They’re all chaotically loving—their family is such fun to read about. I got teared up reading the birth scene and what Lia and Jude named their kid.
Also, I’m SO excited for Isabel’s book—it has so many awesome tropes to explore: employee-boss relationship, single dad & widower Hero and an ex-elite athlete.
Safety Rating: Safe with Exceptions
• No cheating
• No OW/OM drama
• Does have the Hero and Heroine pushing each other away
• Does have a separation (months but they are still in contact) between the Heroine and Hero
Possible Triggers:
• Parental neglect
• Parental abandonment
• Death of a parent
Ending:
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
N/A
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I was provided and ARC via the author in exchange for an honest review.
I absolutely loved this!
Why did I not know about a chip butty before reading this book? I'm from Pittsburgh, and for those of you who aren't familiar with the area, many different nationalities settled here after coming from Europe because of the work the rivers provided. A large part of the population here is of Irish descent, and I'm not sure if that is why we put french fries on everything, but we do. I'm not kidding, salads, sandwitches, everything! When Jude makes Lia a french fry sandwich on butter bread as comfort food, I felt like I should have been eating this delicacy my entire life because butter bread and french fries are two of my favorite things ever! I feel like I need to plan a trip to England for the food alone mentioned in this book.
OK now onto the actual book review...
Lia is on her semester abroad to study the Bronte sisters at Oxford. She is missing her family terribly when her twin Claire suggests she find a cute British boy to flirt with. Lia does just that when she comes face to face with Jude McAllister. He is a soccer/football pro and she has no idea who he is. As the little sister of a pro American Football star, she is no stranger to the pro athlete lifestyle back home, but she is clueless when it comes to British footballers. They get into a heated debate on which football is the better football and their attraction is instant. The are both OK with one night of fun to fill their lonely spirits, but when Lia finds herself pregnant a few weeks later they are both in for more than they bargained for.
Jude is at the precipice of his football career and it is weighing heavily on him. He is coming to grips with the fact that he isn't as young as he used to be, meaning that there are faster players who want his spot on the team. He has the weight of the world on his shoulders when Lia drops the baby bomb on him, which is yet another stress he doesn't need. Wanting his child not to deal with the same family drama he has dealt with, he and Lia settle into a comfortable arrangement with each other. They both have family stuff in their past that they aren't really willing to discuss or deal with, but as Lia's time in England nears it's end they both have to come to terms with how their relationship is going to work and if they have real feelings for each other. I don't want to spoing anything for you because the character development and them dealing with their issues was my favorite part of the book. I really loved how Karla paired these two characters and really made them examine parts of themselves that they really didn't want to. She made them deal with their problems with each other, their past, and their families in a very realistic way and I'm a huge fan.
I absolutely loved this!
Why did I not know about a chip butty before reading this book? I'm from Pittsburgh, and for those of you who aren't familiar with the area, many different nationalities settled here after coming from Europe because of the work the rivers provided. A large part of the population here is of Irish descent, and I'm not sure if that is why we put french fries on everything, but we do. I'm not kidding, salads, sandwitches, everything! When Jude makes Lia a french fry sandwich on butter bread as comfort food, I felt like I should have been eating this delicacy my entire life because butter bread and french fries are two of my favorite things ever! I feel like I need to plan a trip to England for the food alone mentioned in this book.
OK now onto the actual book review...
Lia is on her semester abroad to study the Bronte sisters at Oxford. She is missing her family terribly when her twin Claire suggests she find a cute British boy to flirt with. Lia does just that when she comes face to face with Jude McAllister. He is a soccer/football pro and she has no idea who he is. As the little sister of a pro American Football star, she is no stranger to the pro athlete lifestyle back home, but she is clueless when it comes to British footballers. They get into a heated debate on which football is the better football and their attraction is instant. The are both OK with one night of fun to fill their lonely spirits, but when Lia finds herself pregnant a few weeks later they are both in for more than they bargained for.
Jude is at the precipice of his football career and it is weighing heavily on him. He is coming to grips with the fact that he isn't as young as he used to be, meaning that there are faster players who want his spot on the team. He has the weight of the world on his shoulders when Lia drops the baby bomb on him, which is yet another stress he doesn't need. Wanting his child not to deal with the same family drama he has dealt with, he and Lia settle into a comfortable arrangement with each other. They both have family stuff in their past that they aren't really willing to discuss or deal with, but as Lia's time in England nears it's end they both have to come to terms with how their relationship is going to work and if they have real feelings for each other. I don't want to spoing anything for you because the character development and them dealing with their issues was my favorite part of the book. I really loved how Karla paired these two characters and really made them examine parts of themselves that they really didn't want to. She made them deal with their problems with each other, their past, and their families in a very realistic way and I'm a huge fan.