Reviews with content warning for Ableism - Happily Ever Afters

This was a very fun and light-hearted book I related so much to Tessa. It has a huge cast of diverse characters starting from POC to people with disabilities. The problem for me was that there was just something missing like I can't really put my hand on it but something was missing for me.

Tbh I wanted a cute reunion scene for Sam and tessa at the end after she read the chapters like yeah that way she told us they'll be together but nahh I really wanted to see it🥲

I really wish the book will be adapted to a movie though I can tell it'd be one of my favs as a movie.

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betweentheshelves's review

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hopeful 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

3.5

First of all, if the boy baking extravagant lovely desserts isn't your first choice, why?? Anyway, I have mixed feelings about this book. Fair warning, there are a lot of references to Harry Potter, and while there are vague references to JK Rowling being a TERF, it's never really addressed.

For the most part, I liked Tessa and her friends. The characterization was pretty good, and the rom-com aspect of the story worked well for the setting. There were just some references throughout that didn't really sit well with me, particularly with the HP stuff.

Overall, it was a cute rom-com, though! Perfect for the summer!

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melizto's review

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challenging funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted fast-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

3.5

it was a kinda cute lighearted read, she made a lot of poor decisions and kinda bothered me throughout the book so she wasn't exactly my favorite character, but the side characters make up for it.

I hated how she suddenly and quickly started liking and dating Sam and then things ended and she now was with Nico and then she was not... and i know the whole plan to get her to write was to date Nico, but i didnt like that the whole book was spent trying to look for love and she didnt focus a lot on her writing??? only at the end... and im also sad that we didnt get more of Sam and Tessa dating :(

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anna_23's review

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inspiring lighthearted medium-paced

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

3.5

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invaderlinz's review

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challenging emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted fast-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

4.0

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readerforlife's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful lighthearted 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

5.0

This book could quite possibly be the best book of 2021 for me. It's got all the fluffy romance stuff, but also a lot of substance. It somehow manages to have every romance cliche but in a way that is both original and important. I loved Sam, Lenore, Theo, Miles, and Caroline. They each added something different to the story and made it something truly special. The voices of each of the main characters are so distinct. They all added something completely different to Tessa's life and story. It speaks to Elise Bryant's skill as a writer to have these characters each be memorable and unique. Tessa made some bad decisions in this book, clearly, but you do understand her motivations enough to know that she both accidentally finds herself in these situations, and is actively making decisions that put herself in said situations. I also loved Tessa's relationship with her mom, and how it showed that two people who love each other and want more or less the exact same things can still have conflicts. I also loved that this book shows two true things at once: That no matter the support system, anxiety can still be overwhelming and feel unovercomeable and that support systems are important and powerful for helping with anxiety.

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lettuce_read's review

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emotional funny lighthearted 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

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mxrumphius's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective medium-paced

Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

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