Reviews with content warning for Toxic relationship - Behind the Scenes

Reviews tagging 'Toxic relationship'

Behind the Scenes by Karelia Stetz-Waters

11 reviews

madalynn_owens's review against another edition

emotional slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

The book was pretty hard to follow for no good reason, especially on audio. Having the perspectives change back and forth between the characters is a fun idea but took way longer than it should have to understand that’s what’s going on.
There were a couple key “traits” that were repeated over and over again about the characters, like one is afraid to fly on planes or has really old equipment because all they do is shoot commercials. The repetition of this information doesn’t do much for me as a reader except annoy me.

I did enjoy the older age of the main characters and that they valued their careers so much.

Content Warnings

legalplanner's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

First of all, yay older main characters who are starting to feel the pressure of that age even if society isn't actually pushing us at all. Second of all, this had amazing trauma representation. Third, this was a great slow burn.

I found our characters to be fun to read as they were total opposites. We had the buttoned-up executive and the free-spirited director. Despite or in spite of their differences they begin to realize that their attraction is major and cannot be ignored which was the whole slow burn in this. I was 70% through the book and even though it was a "romance" I wasn't missing anything, but I did want them to say how they were feeling to one another better. But seriously, I haven't read a slow burn that burned like incents and still made me turn page after page even if nothing happened.

The trauma in this book was amazingly well done, it wasn't a quick oh this happened and I'm over it and yay happy! Instead, we saw the real version of trauma and heartbreak through Ash who allowed us to see that it actually can be very difficult to get over things and it is not linear.

Age, can we talk about how almost every romance feels like 20 somethings or elder adults like 50? To find that nice in between where we're all starting to freak out about getting old and not being where we want to be, but wanting to be in a secure job is seriously what made me fall for these characters more than I did.

I was very impressed by this read as it wouldn't be something I normally went for (slow burns take me forever to read).

Content Warnings

brittttbee's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.25

Content Warnings

skudiklier's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional funny hopeful reflective medium-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

4.5

I'm giving this 4.5 stars because it was a good romance, and I was invested, and overall I enjoyed it. I had some small things I didn't like though.

Some of the pacing is weird; like their first kiss is pretty anticlimactic, and some scenes felt super drawn out while others felt brushed over, in ways that took away from the story in my opinion.

Also there was just so much repetitive stuff about their trauma and anxiety--now, please don't get me wrong, I am super down for those parts of the story. And mostly it was well-done I think, but some of it felt forced/on the nose in a way where it's like, okay I get it, this is the major conflict here, but having it brought up multiple times in every scene is a little much.

Small things I liked though: the Portland stuff, and how they clearly made sure to keep their lives separate in a healthy way. Also I would read a sequel about Ty and Emma, ngl.

Thank you to Forever (Grand Central Publishing) and Netgalley for the chance to read and review this ARC.

Content Warnings

ktdakotareads's review against another edition

Go to review page

hopeful inspiring reflective 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

3.5

Content Warnings

watson_my_shelf's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring medium-paced

Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

Thank you to Forever for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. These are my thoughts only.

I loved this book! First of all, such a great sapphic romance. One of my favorite things is that it doesn’t center around the sexy scenes. One of the main characters is experiencing trauma-related sexual dysfunction and Karelia does such a great job of navigating that and making the character feel respected by the love interest. There is just so much respect and consent between the two main characters.

I really enjoyed the plot of following them as they try to get a movie funded. It was cool to see the behind the scenes (see what I did there ;)) stuff of what it takes to pitch a movie.

I got a little emotional reading this at the end! I got really sucked into the characters’ stories, their families/friends, and their journeys. I really appreciated the supportive side characters in this book. I could just feel the strong bonds and love they all had for each other.

I recommend reading!! It’s got a little bit of humor, adventure, love, and is all around a great story

Content Warnings

emmreadsbooks's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging emotional funny informative medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

A slow burn sapphic romance with an ASMR subplot, all about processing your trauma and respecting boundaries? Y-E-S. Like... how could I not be head over heels for this book? Rose and Ash are compelling characters in their own right, but the chemistry they have is next level. This book feels like an exercise in edging, building up all of the tension and then letting it just SIT there while the drama plays out. Also, I just need to say that we STAN a book with no 3rd act break-up. It isn't necessary for this book at ALL!! But that isn't to say that there aren't some truly devastating twists along the way. I can't wait to read more from Karelia Stetz-Waters.

*Thank you to Forever and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest review*

Content Warnings

duckyreads's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional medium-paced

3.0

Behind the Scenes is my first read from Karelia Stetz-Waters, and it's a cute sapphic romance. I really enjoyed that both female leads are older and more established in their careers. Karelia tackled several heavy topics, and I loved how intimacy was discussed (especially with the inclusion of sex toys). Karelia has a very relatable writing style that makes it very easy to dive in to the story.

Although I enjoyed watching Ash and Rose get to know each other and become a safe place for each other, some aspects of their relationship/story felt slow and dragged slightly.

I recommend this for fans of slow-burn workplace romances!

Thank you to Forever (Grand Central) Publishing and Netgalley for a copy of this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Content Warnings

arthur_ant18's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted relaxing 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? It's complicated

4.5

Many thanks to NetGalley and Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for providing me with an eARC in exchange for my honest review!

I've had Satisfaction Guaranteed, the 2021 sapphic opposites-attract contemporary romance by Karelia Stetz-Waters, on my TBR pile for a while now. That's why I was eager to get the opportunity to read the ARC for Behind the Scenes, and let me tell you, it did not disappoint! Her upcoming 2023 rom-com follows the love story between Rose Josten, a business consultant who's anxious about reaching middle age (particularly since she owns the numerous pugs that are needed to qualify her for the, as it's called in the book, "pug lady" period of her life), and Ashlynn "Ash" Stewart, a former director who's been essentially blacklisted from Hollywood after undergoing a messy divorce with her ex-wife and previous filmmaking colleague Victoria and is now looking to translate a new lesbian rom-com of hers from dream to reality. This leads to Rose and Ash teaming up to work towards that goal and attain a bigwig producer's financial backing, which, of course, is when they start to fall for each other.

Behind the Scenes is a heartwarming romance that got me rooting for it all the way through. It sees Stetz-Waters reusing the opposites-attract trope while throwing in a bit of instant attraction to kick things off, although it then builds up in a slow-burn fashion for the first half of the book or so. Plenty of chemistry explodes between Rose and Ash as they get to know each other and slowly but surely become vulnerable about their ambitions and pasts. On Rose's part, I enjoyed reading about the time she spends posting ASMR videos online under the alias Cherry Covered Apron (videos that, we learn early on, an oblivious Ash has been watching to relax herself), which I felt added surprisingly sensual layers to a rom-com that's already fairly steamy in certain parts. As for Ash (with whom I easily connected as an aspiring filmmaker myself), I was compelled by the journey she went on to overcome the psychological trauma that came not only from injuries she'd incurred in a car accident, but also from her relationship with Victoria and its toxic facets that said accident dredged up. Together, Rose and Ash were an endearing power couple that I wanted nothing but pure happiness for.

Stetz-Waters does an excellent job at writing Rose and Ash's sex scenes with a sensitivity that's perfect for their sweet dynamic, and the scenes always emerge organically, never feeling as if they've been randomly tossed onto the page. Amping up the lovability is Rose's family, which I found to be as hugely entertaining and adorable as the eponymous family in the Brown Sisters series by Talia Hibbert. If possible, I'd be keen to see them pop up again in a future book.

My only major complaint is that the leads' dual perspectives mirror each other too much, often leaving me confused as to whose POV I'm in. I wish their voices had been written more distinctly. At the same time, though, this doesn't detract much from my abundance of love for Behind the Scenes. As for the third-act conflict, I initially believed it was going to be a major issue for me when it came up. But then it subverted my expectations and veered away from the misunderstanding that I thought it would revolve the whole fight around in favor of a much more convincing and satisfying direction for Rose and Ash.

Overall, Behind the Scenes is one of the most enjoyable contemporary romances I've picked up in a while, and I'm pumped for this to be published out in the open world on Jan. 31, 2023. I'll definitely have to move Satisfaction Guaranteed up my TBR pile, too.

Content Warnings

decklededgess's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional funny hopeful lighthearted fast-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? Yes

4.0

trigger warnings: death of parents, ptsd, phobia of flying, car accident, physical injury, sexual trauma related to accident, alcohol mention, grief, toxic relationship

The book starts out slow but knowing this was a Karelia Stetz-Waters book, I knew I just had to wait until the tension kicked in. I was right. It takes a couple of chapters for the exposition to wrap up but it's so needed. There is a lot of backstory to Ash and Rose that comes into play later in the book so the character set up was essential for all the emotional points of the story to hit their mark.

Rose is such a strong protagonist in every way. She's the supporter of her family after her parents died. Self sacrificing to a fault, a bad bitch through and through, and afraid of losing control and losing loved ones. To complement her, Ash has already lost control, doesn't feel like she has any control and so is grasping and any semblance of stability she can to avoid another public spectacle that led to her career demise. They're two sides of the same coin and the slow explosion of their romance as they navigated their own traumas to learn how to let go was BEAUTIFUL.

Truly a beautiful book and I really hope we see a Ty and Emma book soon!!

Content Warnings

More...