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yvo_about_books's review against another edition
2.5
Finished reading: June 25th 2023
"People screw up. A lot. The key to a lasting relationship is the ability to forgive over and over again."
Right... I wasn't expecting this to be honest. I really enjoyed the first two Bromance Book Club books, and I fully expected Crazy Stupid Bromance to be a new favorite of the series. I liked Noah and Alexis in the previous book, and I've been looking forward to get to know them better. Add the fact that it's a friends-to-lovers romance and that it has a cat cafe angle, and it sounded like a perfect match. Sadly, the real focus seem to be elsewhere in this sequel, and this family drama and live-donor/long-lost-family angle truly put a damper on things for me. I'm never a fan of family drama in stories in the first place, and the whole long lost family showing up suddenly because they need a kidney donor made me SO angry. Especially with the horrible way the whole family (yes, including Candi) treats Alexis, how they basically see her as a walking organ bank and then the story STILL taking the direction it took. I was left wanting to throw my kindle against the wall, and it sure didn't make me think better of Alexis as a character (doormat syndrome, anyone?). It's such a shame, because I was hoping for lots of cat cafe scenes with adorable cats and all. Sure, we get Beefcake, who is hilarious, but still... The friends-to-lovers romance I had mixed thoughts about as well, because the transition was a bit too abrupt (and the consequent sexy time WAY too long and steamy). Sure, I did like the chemistry between Alexis and Noah, but I wish we could have had more focus on the friendship part of their relationship and a slower build up to the transition. The bromance book club members were hilarious as always, but they weren't exactly as present in Crazy Stupid Bromance either. And what is with all the unnecessary side stories to create extra drama (Karen, Mack)?! You would think the whole long-lost-family-wants-a-kidney plot would be enough drama for one story... I was expecting a fun contemporary romance read, but this sequel was mainly just sad and extremely frustrating instead.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault, Grief, Death, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Cancer, Abandonment, Death of parent, and Medical content
Moderate: Infidelity, Bullying, Toxic relationship, Cursing, War, Violence, Misogyny, and Sexism
what_karla_reads's review
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
sad
tense
fast-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? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Abandonment, Terminal illness, Chronic illness, and Cursing
Minor: Grief, Bullying, Infidelity, and Death of parent
macykey's review against another edition
emotional
funny
reflective
medium-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
4.25
I loved the themes of this book and how it dealt with grief. One of the things I hate with romance novels is sometimes things can seem far fetched and that wasn’t the case this time. I also love that, even though we didn’t spend too much time with Noah and Alexis in previous books, their chemistry wasn’t lacking because of that.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Medical content, Sexual content, and Cursing
Moderate: Death of parent and Abandonment
Minor: Sexual harassment and Sexual violence
meredith_williams_'s review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
medium-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
2.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Cursing, and Death of parent
Moderate: Cancer, Infidelity, and Sexual harassment
travelthrupages's review
emotional
funny
inspiring
reflective
sad
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
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Cancer, Death, Death of parent, and Grief
Moderate: Alcohol, Cursing, Emotional abuse, and Sexual content
Minor: Medical content and Sexual assault
100_pages_hr's review against another edition
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content and Cursing
Minor: Alcohol, Violence, Medical content, Infidelity, Grief, Death of parent, Chronic illness, and Blood
Organ donationtheespressoedition's review
emotional
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This is quite possibly my favorite of the Bromance Book Club series. I was immediately excited by the best friends-to-lovers trope and found both Noah and Alexis to be very likable characters.
My itty bitty issues with it:
- Considering how much the book club has helped everyone in their friend group, I have to inwardly groan when yet another guy thinks the concept is stupid or the books won't be beneficial. Like, come on Noah, you've seen the positive results, so stop your moaning about it and just read the dang book.
- I can't imagine a hospital being okay with all the back-and-forth regarding a kidney transplant. One day they're doing it, the next they might not, and medical procedures aren't that flippant.
- Gosh, do these people have superpowers? Because if not, wouldn't they get worn out with the literal constant sex? I mean constant.
Regardless of how I felt about those minor details, I really adored the story. Alexis and Noah felt like real, relatable people who didn't want to screw up their friendship and miscommunicated because they didn't want to hurt one another in the process.
One of the things I loved the very most was how Noah made a point to talk with Alexis about everything when it came to their sex lives, since she had been sexually assaulted and abused in the past. As someone who has experienced that myself, I appreciated the nonstop conversation. That's so, SO necessary in an intimate relationship moving forward after an experience of that nature.
The found family plot was a little wild, but in the long run, I really liked how it played out. There were some natural dynamics of distrust and anger, of course, as well as understanding themselves and the role that each person would be playing in their lives moving forward. There were so many emotions behind this and it made me feel for Alexis and everything she had walked through in her life.
Okay, so yeah, definitely my favorite of the series so far. I think The Russian is hysterical, so I can't wait to read his story next.
My itty bitty issues with it:
- Considering how much the book club has helped everyone in their friend group, I have to inwardly groan when yet another guy thinks the concept is stupid or the books won't be beneficial. Like, come on Noah, you've seen the positive results, so stop your moaning about it and just read the dang book.
- I can't imagine a hospital being okay with all the back-and-forth regarding a kidney transplant. One day they're doing it, the next they might not, and medical procedures aren't that flippant.
- Gosh, do these people have superpowers? Because if not, wouldn't they get worn out with the literal constant sex? I mean constant.
Regardless of how I felt about those minor details, I really adored the story. Alexis and Noah felt like real, relatable people who didn't want to screw up their friendship and miscommunicated because they didn't want to hurt one another in the process.
One of the things I loved the very most was how Noah made a point to talk with Alexis about everything when it came to their sex lives, since she had been sexually assaulted and abused in the past. As someone who has experienced that myself, I appreciated the nonstop conversation. That's so, SO necessary in an intimate relationship moving forward after an experience of that nature.
The found family plot was a little wild, but in the long run, I really liked how it played out. There were some natural dynamics of distrust and anger, of course, as well as understanding themselves and the role that each person would be playing in their lives moving forward. There were so many emotions behind this and it made me feel for Alexis and everything she had walked through in her life.
Okay, so yeah, definitely my favorite of the series so far. I think The Russian is hysterical, so I can't wait to read his story next.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Death of parent, Infidelity, and Sexual content
Moderate: Sexual assault
Minor: Medical content
zombiezami's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
I liked this much more than the previous two books in the series. I feel like the pacing was good and the conflicts weren't there just for the sake of having a conflict. I also liked these romantic leads as characters more than the romantic leads of the previous books.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Medical content, Grief, Sexual content, and Death
Moderate: Cancer, Sexual assault, and Cursing
Minor: Animal death, Blood, Alcoholism, and Drug abuse
nicoleh's review
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Medical content
Minor: Sexual assault, Chronic illness, Cursing, and Emotional abuse
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