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3.45 AVERAGE
3.45 AVERAGE
This story is about 2 actors having to work again with each other when their first experience was actually horrific. As usual there's always more than what meets the eye one of them was actually suffering internally and has grown and has now dealt with their issues. Sloane is still dealing with her issues as this project involves her whole family and she is fresh off of being unemployed.
The story is from Sloane's POV however, you're able to see Joseph's arc and how he has had to work through his grief and sobriety as well. It's an easy beach read and book you'd enjoy on vacation. I enjoyed it and the family dynamics I always love the Hollywood scenes in the book especially the celebrity tropes.
The story is from Sloane's POV however, you're able to see Joseph's arc and how he has had to work through his grief and sobriety as well. It's an easy beach read and book you'd enjoy on vacation. I enjoyed it and the family dynamics I always love the Hollywood scenes in the book especially the celebrity tropes.
I wanted to love it more than I did, but I was bored so often with the romance that it was a struggle to get to the end.
this was so sickeningly sweet it make my teeth hurt but as a film major and writer i am a huge sucker for anything set on a film set
emotional
funny
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
i really enjoyed reading this, and it was the perfect escape for my busy week. i found the family dynamic really well written and raw, and i really appreciated the depth to all the interactions and dynamics. the relationship between the fmc and her mother was quite touching as i related a little bit too much to it. and the plot climax actually involves conflict which was serious and had a lot of gravity to it, like their fight included things that were actually hurtful and it seemed all worth the spectacle that was made of it. often i think that romances don’t commit to serious enough conflicts, but this one did not hold back.
however, my main issues are that i think this could’ve used another fifty to a hundred pages. i felt some of the characters not well developed enough, and the mmc character never really gets his own exploration in the plot outisde the romance. i would’ve also appreciated more gravity and attention to the way that came affects their lives, because we didn’t get much of any of that.
this is not really a hefty critique, but i would’ve personally appreciated an epilogue which included the publics reaction to their relationship and the critic response to their film. a little plot bow to tie it all up.
however, my main issues are that i think this could’ve used another fifty to a hundred pages. i felt some of the characters not well developed enough, and the mmc character never really gets his own exploration in the plot outisde the romance. i would’ve also appreciated more gravity and attention to the way that came affects their lives, because we didn’t get much of any of that.
this is not really a hefty critique, but i would’ve personally appreciated an epilogue which included the publics reaction to their relationship and the critic response to their film. a little plot bow to tie it all up.
emotional
lighthearted
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcoholism, Death of parent
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
3.5 stars
for the most part, i really did like this book. i was excited to keep reading...until it became about the romance. don't get me wrong, i like the couple well enough but it just got sour when it became this weird will they won't they thing.
in terms of what i really liked, i think the general plotline of shooting a movie was great and i think morrissey did a fantastic job with the weaving of character storylines with those in the movie. i also really liked a lot of the supporting characters and i think there was a lot of great depth (love daya, although she seemed to be there purely to push sloane's storyline along). i also really liked joseph and i thought he had the best character arc in the entire book and we see so much growth.
ultimately, the main thing i didn't like was sloane. she lacked real motivation, especially whenever there were fights with joseph later in the book. it just felt like a lot of times there were actions that needed to happen for the storyline but they weren't as deeply woven in. i'm also a little iffy about the queer representation in this book. i think there are great comments on the kill your gays trope and it was nice to see multiple instances of queer culture. but to some degree i feel like the most prominent queer character, tyler, got the least depth of anyone in the entire family, despite being one of the biggest parts of the story. she, like daya, just felt like an accessory for sloane.
at the end of the day, this isn't a bad book, and if it's your kind of storyline, give it a go. i wouldn't reread but i'm glad i did at least read it.
for the most part, i really did like this book. i was excited to keep reading...until it became about the romance. don't get me wrong, i like the couple well enough but it just got sour when it became this weird will they won't they thing.
in terms of what i really liked, i think the general plotline of shooting a movie was great and i think morrissey did a fantastic job with the weaving of character storylines with those in the movie. i also really liked a lot of the supporting characters and i think there was a lot of great depth (love daya, although she seemed to be there purely to push sloane's storyline along). i also really liked joseph and i thought he had the best character arc in the entire book and we see so much growth.
ultimately, the main thing i didn't like was sloane. she lacked real motivation, especially whenever there were fights with joseph later in the book. it just felt like a lot of times there were actions that needed to happen for the storyline but they weren't as deeply woven in. i'm also a little iffy about the queer representation in this book. i think there are great comments on the kill your gays trope and it was nice to see multiple instances of queer culture. but to some degree i feel like the most prominent queer character, tyler, got the least depth of anyone in the entire family, despite being one of the biggest parts of the story. she, like daya, just felt like an accessory for sloane.
at the end of the day, this isn't a bad book, and if it's your kind of storyline, give it a go. i wouldn't reread but i'm glad i did at least read it.
I'm unsure what I was hoping for when I chose to read this book. It was around February, and I wanted love.
While Love Scenes is cute and romantic, it felt too gated. It's full of inside jokes and scandals in the industry. Of course, none of it was named, and it was all fictional. But, you know how complicated celebrity life is? Sloane's family is the embodiment of all of it. And, the funniest thing is, this book shows you that no matter how toxic or complex your family is, they still got your back.
I didn't really like the overall message. The romance didn't exactly work for me either.
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NOTE: Thanks to Berkley Books and the author for providing me a digital review copy via Edelweiss+ in exchange for an honest review! Any quote used in this review is taken from the provided copy, and the final print of the book may differ.
While Love Scenes is cute and romantic, it felt too gated. It's full of inside jokes and scandals in the industry. Of course, none of it was named, and it was all fictional. But, you know how complicated celebrity life is? Sloane's family is the embodiment of all of it. And, the funniest thing is, this book shows you that no matter how toxic or complex your family is, they still got your back.
I didn't really like the overall message. The romance didn't exactly work for me either.
FOLLOW ME FOR MORE WAILS: Instagram | Twitter | Goodreads | WordPress
NOTE: Thanks to Berkley Books and the author for providing me a digital review copy via Edelweiss+ in exchange for an honest review! Any quote used in this review is taken from the provided copy, and the final print of the book may differ.
I wanted to give this book 3.5 stars but alas, that's not allowed.
Love Scenes is about Sloane Ford, Joseph Donovan, and Sloane's famous family. Sloane is an actress who has been out of work for a while after she was let go as a character on a TV show. She's feeling a bit stuck. However, her famous family hires her to be a sort of production assistant/whatever they need on the set of their movie. Her sister is the director, her step-father is the writer/producer, her mother is a producer/actress, and her brother works on the music. Though she's not excited about her job, as she would rather be acting, she takes the job. Unfortunately, her least favorite former co-star is the male lead of this period romance piece, and he's flopping. She decides it's her job to make sure that he doesn't ruin the movie.
Sloane then becomes the female lead of the movie, due to an unexpected mishap with the lead actress. This forces her to work alongside a very sorry, Joseph. Their story truly begins there.
The family aspect of this book was great, I really enjoyed how it was true to real family life. It's complicated, messy, and sometimes shitty. The aspect of fame adds a great spin to it as well. The author gives flaws to all the family members, including Sloane, which makes it so much more like reality. However, at some points, it became confusing because of how large her family was. Her mother and father had three kids including her. And then her father remarried. Twice, which gave her two different stepmothers, and one half-sister. And then her mother got remarried as well. It seems like some of the family was forgotten at some points in the book and then brought back up again. Also, there were some unresolved conflicts that we see once or twice and then are never brought back up again.
And as for the love story, I liked it. It was an enemies-to-lovers/coworker romance. However, the hatred was one-sided because Joseph had no issue with Sloane. Sloane's hatred does have bearing though as you read on. As she learns more about him, they become friends and slowly start to fall in love. It's a slow burn, but not too slow. And then a bombshell is dropped by Joseph and shit hits the fan. They argue. And they finish the movie cordially but stay away from one another.
We then see Sloane realize a lot about herself and her life, and how broken she really is. After something happens with one of her family members that makes her rethink her life, she meets with Joseph (through her mother's pushes). They rekindle their romance.
I'm happy the two of them ended up together, I am. And I believe they did so in a really healthy way as well. However, I was left wanting more. This book was realistic in its portrayals of the ups and downs of life, yet the ending felt rushed and almost too on the nose. Maybe a view into their future was what I needed.
All that being said, it was a good book with great writing.
Love Scenes is about Sloane Ford, Joseph Donovan, and Sloane's famous family. Sloane is an actress who has been out of work for a while after she was let go as a character on a TV show. She's feeling a bit stuck. However, her famous family hires her to be a sort of production assistant/whatever they need on the set of their movie. Her sister is the director, her step-father is the writer/producer, her mother is a producer/actress, and her brother works on the music. Though she's not excited about her job, as she would rather be acting, she takes the job. Unfortunately, her least favorite former co-star is the male lead of this period romance piece, and he's flopping. She decides it's her job to make sure that he doesn't ruin the movie.
Sloane then becomes the female lead of the movie, due to an unexpected mishap with the lead actress. This forces her to work alongside a very sorry, Joseph. Their story truly begins there.
The family aspect of this book was great, I really enjoyed how it was true to real family life. It's complicated, messy, and sometimes shitty. The aspect of fame adds a great spin to it as well. The author gives flaws to all the family members, including Sloane, which makes it so much more like reality. However, at some points, it became confusing because of how large her family was. Her mother and father had three kids including her. And then her father remarried. Twice, which gave her two different stepmothers, and one half-sister. And then her mother got remarried as well. It seems like some of the family was forgotten at some points in the book and then brought back up again. Also, there were some unresolved conflicts that we see once or twice and then are never brought back up again.
And as for the love story, I liked it. It was an enemies-to-lovers/coworker romance. However, the hatred was one-sided because Joseph had no issue with Sloane. Sloane's hatred does have bearing though as you read on. As she learns more about him, they become friends and slowly start to fall in love. It's a slow burn, but not too slow. And then a bombshell is dropped by Joseph and shit hits the fan. They argue. And they finish the movie cordially but stay away from one another.
We then see Sloane realize a lot about herself and her life, and how broken she really is. After something happens with one of her family members that makes her rethink her life, she meets with Joseph (through her mother's pushes). They rekindle their romance.
I'm happy the two of them ended up together, I am. And I believe they did so in a really healthy way as well. However, I was left wanting more. This book was realistic in its portrayals of the ups and downs of life, yet the ending felt rushed and almost too on the nose. Maybe a view into their future was what I needed.
All that being said, it was a good book with great writing.