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paigeofstories's review against another edition
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
1.5
I love romance, and I’ve generally always enjoyed LJ Shen’s writing—but this book was painful. Shen is known for her quirky women and witty writing, but this was the most forced draft of a novel I have ever read by her. Every other line was a witty quip, which made it difficult for the actual story to be told, and the entire premise of the story was built on a foundation of slut shaming and woman-on-woman hate. Not my thing at all.
On top of everything else, which I detail below the spoiler line, the main character in this book refuses to curse. I genuinely thought Shen had been shadowbanned and was trying to work her way around curse words when it finally dawned on me that lines like “pluck this” and “bull-peep” are just another quirky personality trait of Tennessee. In this land of prioritizing cringe-quirk over actual storytelling, there was little left to take seriously.
When I sat down to write this review, I changed my rating from 2 stars to 1… because this should have never been published. All of her other works, which are perfectly fine and even enjoyable reads, will no doubt suffer because of this novel.
The Premise
Tennessee has a kid at 16, the father bails and she’s left as the joke of the town… but make it sexist.
The Emotional Abuse
Everyone in this book bullies the main character, who they call “Messy Nessy”. None of the abuse endeared me to Tennessee, because it wasn’t funny and she never once stood up for herself. Even when she was on the cruise, the random guests (who had no way of knowing about her son) were abusive towards her and she did nothing but encourage it. The love interest is constantly love bombing her, negging her (including telling her she needs “guidance” in her blowjob skills) and patronizing her for every decision she’s ever made. This entire book has got to be the weirdest glamorization of emotional abuse I’ve read in a very long time, and it was drenched in misogyny.
The Misogyny
When Tennessee is working, she’s sexually harassed by teenagers. When she’s with Cruz, he’s spending his time trying to give her a makeover and change her to fit his desires. When she’s on a cruise and surrounded by strangers, Shen still finds a way for Tennessee to play victim and encourage other people bullying and slut-shaming her.
But even worse than that, the friends and family in this book are horrible. They’re constantly chipping away at Tennessee’s self esteem, while also making sure she knows that she will never be respected as a human while she is single. As she’s damaged goods, however, this comes with strings attached: she must stay away from the good doctor and settle for a disgusting man, because she’s not allowed to have standards. Yet, when the father of her son comes back into town, he’s welcomed with open arms—despite 13 years of silence. Wonderful double standard, that.
On top of that, we’re cheated out of an actual character arc. Rather than Tennessee growing over the course of the book (because I don’t count the spontaneous ability to curse as character growth), the plot boils down to Cruz deciding that he doesn’t care if people judge him for being with a slut for the romance to unfold. Not only is this insultingly misogynistic, it falls flat. He says he loves her as she is, but then invests in an entirely new wardrobe for her and encourages her to stop wearing makeup (because makeup is the callsign for whores).
The Selective Poverty
Speaking of prostitution, I understand that Shen was going for Pretty Women vibes… but she failed. The main character cosplayed a poor stereotype of a bimbo, and if there is one thing I cannot stand, it is when authors write selective poverty. Tennessee was so poor, she couldn’t afford an X-Box game for her kid—yet she was the one responsible for booking and paying for two spots on an all-inclusive cruise, one of which wasn’t even for her kid? No. She was so poor that she couldn’t afford clothes that were “respectable”, yet she spends enough money on makeup (which has to be replaced much more frequently than clothes) to slather on a second skin every time she leaves the house? No. Tell me you’ve never been poor in your life without telling me you’ve never been poor, Shen. It also really didn’t sit well with me that the moment Tennessee started dating Cruz, she started wearing tights and whatnot—as if the only way a woman can be “respectable” by the standards of this book is if she is in a relationship and her ankles are covered. It’s 2022. Let’s stop judging the value of women based on the men they associate with and whether or not they look like they’ve just stepped out of a church.
Finally, it is insane to me that Shen put this woman into poverty and then had her decide—based solely off of seeing a billboard—to take out thousands in loans to go to school for something that does not actually require a degree. This would have been a much better story Tennessee had been a personal stylist all along and had decided at the end to start her own business instead of remaining under the thumb of somebody else. It would have at least given her some agency, and made the character less pathetic—because the fact that this idea was only possible after a man took interest in her is just completely ridiculous.
The Summary
Women don’t need men to be whole. If you want to read LJ Shen, go find one of her alpha billionaire stories. At least those aren’t offensive to the entirety of the female population.
On top of everything else, which I detail below the spoiler line, the main character in this book refuses to curse. I genuinely thought Shen had been shadowbanned and was trying to work her way around curse words when it finally dawned on me that lines like “pluck this” and “bull-peep” are just another quirky personality trait of Tennessee. In this land of prioritizing cringe-quirk over actual storytelling, there was little left to take seriously.
When I sat down to write this review, I changed my rating from 2 stars to 1… because this should have never been published. All of her other works, which are perfectly fine and even enjoyable reads, will no doubt suffer because of this novel.
Tennessee has a kid at 16, the father bails and she’s left as the joke of the town… but make it sexist.
The Emotional Abuse
Everyone in this book bullies the main character, who they call “Messy Nessy”. None of the abuse endeared me to Tennessee, because it wasn’t funny and she never once stood up for herself. Even when she was on the cruise, the random guests (who had no way of knowing about her son) were abusive towards her and she did nothing but encourage it. The love interest is constantly love bombing her, negging her (including telling her she needs “guidance” in her blowjob skills) and patronizing her for every decision she’s ever made. This entire book has got to be the weirdest glamorization of emotional abuse I’ve read in a very long time, and it was drenched in misogyny.
The Misogyny
When Tennessee is working, she’s sexually harassed by teenagers. When she’s with Cruz, he’s spending his time trying to give her a makeover and change her to fit his desires. When she’s on a cruise and surrounded by strangers, Shen still finds a way for Tennessee to play victim and encourage other people bullying and slut-shaming her.
But even worse than that, the friends and family in this book are horrible. They’re constantly chipping away at Tennessee’s self esteem, while also making sure she knows that she will never be respected as a human while she is single. As she’s damaged goods, however, this comes with strings attached: she must stay away from the good doctor and settle for a disgusting man, because she’s not allowed to have standards. Yet, when the father of her son comes back into town, he’s welcomed with open arms—despite 13 years of silence. Wonderful double standard, that.
On top of that, we’re cheated out of an actual character arc. Rather than Tennessee growing over the course of the book (because I don’t count the spontaneous ability to curse as character growth), the plot boils down to Cruz deciding that he doesn’t care if people judge him for being with a slut for the romance to unfold. Not only is this insultingly misogynistic, it falls flat. He says he loves her as she is, but then invests in an entirely new wardrobe for her and encourages her to stop wearing makeup (because makeup is the callsign for whores).
The Selective Poverty
Speaking of prostitution, I understand that Shen was going for Pretty Women vibes… but she failed. The main character cosplayed a poor stereotype of a bimbo, and if there is one thing I cannot stand, it is when authors write selective poverty. Tennessee was so poor, she couldn’t afford an X-Box game for her kid—yet she was the one responsible for booking and paying for two spots on an all-inclusive cruise, one of which wasn’t even for her kid? No. She was so poor that she couldn’t afford clothes that were “respectable”, yet she spends enough money on makeup (which has to be replaced much more frequently than clothes) to slather on a second skin every time she leaves the house? No. Tell me you’ve never been poor in your life without telling me you’ve never been poor, Shen. It also really didn’t sit well with me that the moment Tennessee started dating Cruz, she started wearing tights and whatnot—as if the only way a woman can be “respectable” by the standards of this book is if she is in a relationship and her ankles are covered. It’s 2022. Let’s stop judging the value of women based on the men they associate with and whether or not they look like they’ve just stepped out of a church.
Finally, it is insane to me that Shen put this woman into poverty and then had her decide—based solely off of seeing a billboard—to take out thousands in loans to go to school for something that does not actually require a degree. This would have been a much better story Tennessee had been a personal stylist all along and had decided at the end to start her own business instead of remaining under the thumb of somebody else. It would have at least given her some agency, and made the character less pathetic—because the fact that this idea was only possible after a man took interest in her is just completely ridiculous.
The Summary
Women don’t need men to be whole. If you want to read LJ Shen, go find one of her alpha billionaire stories. At least those aren’t offensive to the entirety of the female population.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny
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