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Reviews tagging 'Panic attacks/disorders'
You're a Mean One, Matthew Prince by Timothy Janovsky
62 reviews
decklededgess's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-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
4.0
trigger warnings: anxiety/panic attacks, financial problems, infidelity, toxic friendships, sexual content, alcohol
This book was so fucking cute!! I loved the Grinch x Schitt's Creek combination of plot. The tension between the two leads that sets up the enemies to lovers dynamic was exquisite. They both had valid reason to PROPERLY hate each other but the gradual growth and understanding of each other felt honest and symbiotic as they worked together to host the gala event. Matthew's grinch heart thawing as he learnt to appreciate the humanity in interaction instead of the social clout in appearance was really wonderful as well. A really well rounded and fun winter read!
This book was so fucking cute!! I loved the Grinch x Schitt's Creek combination of plot. The tension between the two leads that sets up the enemies to lovers dynamic was exquisite. They both had valid reason to PROPERLY hate each other but the gradual growth and understanding of each other felt honest and symbiotic as they worked together to host the gala event. Matthew's grinch heart thawing as he learnt to appreciate the humanity in interaction instead of the social clout in appearance was really wonderful as well. A really well rounded and fun winter read!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Infidelity, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol
patricktreads's review against another edition
emotional
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
tense
medium-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
4.75
At first, this book was haaarrrddd to get through. The narration was good but the personality of the protagonist was grating. Even I didn’t want him and Hector to get together.
Thankfully that calmed down and it became more bearable.
Overall though, I did enjoy it and would happily read another one of his books.
Thankfully that calmed down and it became more bearable.
Overall though, I did enjoy it and would happily read another one of his books.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
brandyrae's review against another edition
3.25
It was cute and sweet but it took 8 chapters before I cared about the main character and 12 before I cared about the romance.
And weirdly this had way too much original plot and not enough tropey goodness to be a super fun romcom but not an interesting enough plot to be super engaging and self propelled without the romance. So it was good but not terribly satisfying.
Also, while the romantic parts felt decently earned, the quick mental health turnaround did not. Like that was all definitely wish fulfillment. Something 40 year old me would write for 20 year old me so that I could believe everything would work out eventually. Which, yeah that's fine, but it felt forced and inorganic.
And another thing I thought was weird, like as a brown person, I like seeing brown people in books, especially as main characters that aren't stereotypes. But Hector was not it for me. Like his heritage was so incidental, I don't know why it was ever mentioned. I have more opinions on all that but they're hard to articulate. Just yeah, it was awkward.
I don't know. It was a good book just not a very good book.
One last thing A first edition of Don Quixote??? That would be like $2 million dollars, at least, and for both books? Plus it's so exceedingly rare it would have been on the news that it had sold. There are like 3 copies of the 1605 edition of the first book in the whole world. And Hector believes it to be a first edition and just touches it with his bare hands??? No reverence for what is considered one of the rarest books in the world not in a museum. Just of all the unbelievable things I read on the regular, this felt the most unbelievable.
And weirdly this had way too much original plot and not enough tropey goodness to be a super fun romcom but not an interesting enough plot to be super engaging and self propelled without the romance. So it was good but not terribly satisfying.
Also, while the romantic parts felt decently earned, the quick mental health turnaround did not. Like that was all definitely wish fulfillment. Something 40 year old me would write for 20 year old me so that I could believe everything would work out eventually. Which, yeah that's fine, but it felt forced and inorganic.
And another thing I thought was weird, like as a brown person, I like seeing brown people in books, especially as main characters that aren't stereotypes. But Hector was not it for me. Like his heritage was so incidental, I don't know why it was ever mentioned. I have more opinions on all that but they're hard to articulate. Just yeah, it was awkward.
I don't know. It was a good book just not a very good book.
One last thing
Content Warnings
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders and Toxic friendship
purplepenning's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Cursing, Drug abuse, Drug use, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, and Classism
Minor: Infidelity, Miscarriage, and Misogyny
kalynaobyrne's review against another edition
emotional
funny
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
5.0
I loved this book! It’s been a while where I listened to an audiobook that I didn’t want to put down but I listened to this one in about 3 days. There were so many things I loved about this book! I loved the depth and character development we got from Matthew. Matthew has generalized anxiety disorder and throughout the story we see how some of his mistakes could have been appeals for attention from the people around him and his parents. I thought the narrator conveyed these emotions in the audio book fantastically. I loved Hector as a love interest and was rooting for him and Matthew this whole time.
I do think the idea of class with Matthews family could have been expanded on a little bit more but I still really enjoyed it. I thought the narrator was fantastic throughout the story!
This is such a fun holiday read!
Thank you to Dreamscape Media and NetGalley for a copy of this audiobook arc in exchange for an honest review.
I do think the idea of class with Matthews family could have been expanded on a little bit more but I still really enjoyed it. I thought the narrator was fantastic throughout the story!
This is such a fun holiday read!
Thank you to Dreamscape Media and NetGalley for a copy of this audiobook arc in exchange for an honest review.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Toxic friendship and Classism
juffnstuff's review
emotional
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
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Sexual content and Classism
duckyreads's review against another edition
emotional
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
I really lost myself in Hector and Matthew's love story! Timothy Janovsky
successfully created depth with our main character Matthew Prince, when it would've been easy to write him off as a typical spoiled rich kid. Matthew has a generalized anxiety disorder, and as the story continues we see how some of his mistakes could've been appeals for attention from his parents. The resulting conversations that he has with them are heartbreaking. The narrator did a very great job conveying the emotions and growth that Matthew experienced.
Hector is such a sweet love interest, and although they started off on the wrong foot, I really rooted for them. Hector's vulnaribility and his honest communication was so lovely.
There were definitely ideas surrounding class and race that could've been exponded on more as a critique of Matthew's family's lifestyle especially with the people that his family hired to work in their household. Overall I really enjoyed this story, and I recommend it for anyone looking for a queer holiday, coming-of-age romance featuring a beautiful found family.
Thank you to Dreamscape Audio and Netgalley for a copy of the audiobook ARC in exchange for an honest review.
successfully created depth with our main character Matthew Prince, when it would've been easy to write him off as a typical spoiled rich kid. Matthew has a generalized anxiety disorder, and as the story continues we see how some of his mistakes could've been appeals for attention from his parents. The resulting conversations that he has with them are heartbreaking. The narrator did a very great job conveying the emotions and growth that Matthew experienced.
Hector is such a sweet love interest, and although they started off on the wrong foot, I really rooted for them. Hector's vulnaribility and his honest communication was so lovely.
There were definitely ideas surrounding class and race that could've been exponded on more as a critique of Matthew's family's lifestyle especially with the people that his family hired to work in their household. Overall I really enjoyed this story, and I recommend it for anyone looking for a queer holiday, coming-of-age romance featuring a beautiful found family.
Thank you to Dreamscape Audio and Netgalley for a copy of the audiobook ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Toxic relationship, and Classism
Minor: Abandonment
tearexmama's review against another edition
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
3.5
This was a delightful holiday read which I thoroughly enjoyed outside of the holiday season 😅
It's fun to have the story told from the POV of the "Grinch" character for a change. I thought the romance was very cute and believable.
I did struggle with how terrible Matthew's parents were. They did not in any way behave as parents to their child, and I feel like their intense harm got swept under the rug way too easily.
Ultimately the HEA was satisfying and the story was cute so that's all that really matters.
3.5 🌟
It's fun to have the story told from the POV of the "Grinch" character for a change. I thought the romance was very cute and believable.
I did struggle with how terrible Matthew's parents were. They did not in any way behave as parents to their child, and I feel like their intense harm got swept under the rug way too easily.
Ultimately the HEA was satisfying and the story was cute so that's all that really matters.
3.5 🌟
Content Warnings
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, and Abandonment
Moderate: Cursing, Panic attacks/disorders, Toxic friendship, and Classism
Minor: Drug use, Outing, and Gaslighting
bookstarbri's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
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
4.5
This is my first read by Timothy Janovsky! Never Been Kissed is on my TBR for sure and definitely boosted after reading this one! I wasn't expecting to love this as much as I did (I don't read a lot of holiday romances), but oh my gosh I adored this! It was definitely giving Schitt's Creek vibes which was amazing since that's one of my favorite shows. Matthew was an expected surprise. He can come off a bit unlikable in the first few pages, but he quickly shows his true colors and everything that's layered underneath. He's much more than his money, designer clothes, and family name. It was such a joy to get to learn the true pieces of his identity and why he became the he did. I loved the allusions to the Grinch we got in this book. It didn't feel over the top or anything like that. Matthew's heart had definitely grown three sizes by the end of the book and I was smiling really big reading some parts especially :')
Then there's the side characters! LOVEDDDDDDD Hector with my whole heart. Loved Noelle as well (wish we could've gotten more of her somehow, more on that in a sec). Matthew grandparents were fantastic too! The town was so easily imaginable to me and I liked that we got to see so much of it through Matthew's eyes, especially as he grew during his time there.
Now, what kept me from giving this a full 5 stars were two things. One, I've seen other reviews comment on this, and I hate to add to it, but it must be said: "dude" was said too much here. Like there was a reason why Hector said it so frequently and that reason was fine and it became a running joke between them, but I think the point that he said it a lot still could've been made if the number of "dudes" was cut down by half. It was annoying at first but then distracting. It did calm down some by the second half of the book, but the first half was riddled with them. Of course, I did read the ARC so I'll return to this and adjust my rating if that seems to have changed for the finished copy! Second, and more importantly, I wished we could've gotten a smidge more development from some characters/relationships. In particular, it would've been nice to have a few more one-on-one/group scenes with Noelle. She was very sweet and a good friend to Matthew when he really didn't have one and seeing more of that, and especially its influence on him, would've been great! And I also think it would've been nice to have a bit more clarity on where his relationship with his father was by the epilogue.
But those are overall very minor gripes because I loved this story a lot. It really got me into the holiday spirit even in September. Can't wait to read more from Janovsky!
Big thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!
Then there's the side characters! LOVEDDDDDDD Hector with my whole heart. Loved Noelle as well (wish we could've gotten more of her somehow, more on that in a sec). Matthew grandparents were fantastic too! The town was so easily imaginable to me and I liked that we got to see so much of it through Matthew's eyes, especially as he grew during his time there.
Now, what kept me from giving this a full 5 stars were two things. One, I've seen other reviews comment on this, and I hate to add to it, but it must be said: "dude" was said too much here. Like there was a reason why Hector said it so frequently and that reason was fine and it became a running joke between them, but I think the point that he said it a lot still could've been made if the number of "dudes" was cut down by half. It was annoying at first but then distracting. It did calm down some by the second half of the book, but the first half was riddled with them. Of course, I did read the ARC so I'll return to this and adjust my rating if that seems to have changed for the finished copy! Second, and more importantly, I wished we could've gotten a smidge more development from some characters/relationships. In particular, it would've been nice to have a few more one-on-one/group scenes with Noelle. She was very sweet and a good friend to Matthew when he really didn't have one and seeing more of that, and especially its influence on him, would've been great! And I also think it would've been nice to have a bit more clarity on where his relationship with his father was by the epilogue.
But those are overall very minor gripes because I loved this story a lot. It really got me into the holiday spirit even in September. Can't wait to read more from Janovsky!
Big thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Sexual content and Toxic friendship
dobbsthedog's review against another edition
4.0
Received from NetGalley, thanks!
CW: on page panic attack
I quite enjoyed this book! I’m usually not too much into holiday romances, but this one worked.
It’s basically a modern, queer retelling of A Christmas Carol and I think it was really well done. Plus, the characters in the book (Matthew and Hector) both love A Christmas Carol, which felt a bit meta, but also pretty sweet.
For some reason I did not expect Matthew to be the POV character in this book. I think the title made me think that the book wouldn’t be from his POV, and while he was a bit much to begin with, I did end up liking him.
Some things I really liked about this book: the queer rep, the way the sex scenes were written, lots of open communication between the MCs, that Matthew’s previous relationship was poly and that this wasn’t portrayed in a negative or fetishizing way, it was just the relationship he was in. I also liked the side characters and thought they had depth.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book and it would recommend it if you’re looking for a cute, queer, holiday romcom.
CW: on page panic attack
I quite enjoyed this book! I’m usually not too much into holiday romances, but this one worked.
It’s basically a modern, queer retelling of A Christmas Carol and I think it was really well done. Plus, the characters in the book (Matthew and Hector) both love A Christmas Carol, which felt a bit meta, but also pretty sweet.
For some reason I did not expect Matthew to be the POV character in this book. I think the title made me think that the book wouldn’t be from his POV, and while he was a bit much to begin with, I did end up liking him.
Some things I really liked about this book: the queer rep, the way the sex scenes were written, lots of open communication between the MCs, that Matthew’s previous relationship was poly and that this wasn’t portrayed in a negative or fetishizing way, it was just the relationship he was in. I also liked the side characters and thought they had depth.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book and it would recommend it if you’re looking for a cute, queer, holiday romcom.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders