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ladyalireadsalot's review
5.0
Let me start off by saying that I was not all in on THE CHECKLIST - the first book in this series by Addie Woolridge. I didn't connect with Dylan as a character and I wished there had been a bigger deep dive into WHY she is the way she is.
Now, let me say that is the OPPOSITE of how I feel about Neale & THE BOUNCE BACK. I absolutely loved Neale as a character & the MANY insights we got into her mind. We saw her inner turmoil as she tried to figure out what her passion is & why everything she had tried in the past just wasn't working out. And, as I write that, I wonder if maybe I loved Neale & reading her story (as well as her blossoming connection with Anthony) because I relate to her in a way.
Finding your passion is hard.
Finding your path is even harder.
After literally crashing & burning at an art show, Neale decides that she has GIVEN up on art & is going to find a real job in the real world. She's going to do what everyone keeps telling her to do & move out of her parents house and try to support herself. She finds a job kind of - oddly - in a peripheral field to performing arts at a greeting card company who seems to work as a middle man for other companies who need music for their cards. There she starts to find a place among her coworkers & immediately develops a connection with the on-staff artist, Anthony.
The slow burn (pun intended) of Neale & Anthony was satisfying in a complete way. A lot of romance books really rely on avoiding the fade to black scenes when the heat is turned on, but I appreciated that Woolridge allowed you to see the foreplay and then shut the curtains. It left Neale & Anthony a little bit more innocent (even if what they were doing was far from).
In summary, I love Neale & I would read another book all about her self-discovery and watching her commit to challenge after challenge.
10/10 would recommend.
Favorite quotes:
- "...especially since she had been invited to the workout and declined because only monsters chose spin over sleep."
- "You don't want the pain that comes with pursuing what you love, so you only put half of yourself into something That way, if you fail, you can walk away and say you never really tried. You are half-in, half-out."
Now, let me say that is the OPPOSITE of how I feel about Neale & THE BOUNCE BACK. I absolutely loved Neale as a character & the MANY insights we got into her mind. We saw her inner turmoil as she tried to figure out what her passion is & why everything she had tried in the past just wasn't working out. And, as I write that, I wonder if maybe I loved Neale & reading her story (as well as her blossoming connection with Anthony) because I relate to her in a way.
Finding your passion is hard.
Finding your path is even harder.
After literally crashing & burning at an art show, Neale decides that she has GIVEN up on art & is going to find a real job in the real world. She's going to do what everyone keeps telling her to do & move out of her parents house and try to support herself. She finds a job kind of - oddly - in a peripheral field to performing arts at a greeting card company who seems to work as a middle man for other companies who need music for their cards. There she starts to find a place among her coworkers & immediately develops a connection with the on-staff artist, Anthony.
The slow burn (pun intended) of Neale & Anthony was satisfying in a complete way. A lot of romance books really rely on avoiding the fade to black scenes when the heat is turned on, but I appreciated that Woolridge allowed you to see the foreplay and then shut the curtains. It left Neale & Anthony a little bit more innocent (even if what they were doing was far from).
In summary, I love Neale & I would read another book all about her self-discovery and watching her commit to challenge after challenge.
10/10 would recommend.
Favorite quotes:
- "...especially since she had been invited to the workout and declined because only monsters chose spin over sleep."
- "You don't want the pain that comes with pursuing what you love, so you only put half of yourself into something That way, if you fail, you can walk away and say you never really tried. You are half-in, half-out."
lovesbooksandtea's review against another edition
3.0
Although this is being marketed as a rom-com, it is definitely not. It’s just straight-up Fiction, possibly Women’s Fiction. Once you get over that misinformation, you can enjoy the book for what it is. The story is told from Neale’s point of view and focuses on her growth from someone who is kind of failing in a career as an artist and living with her parents, to someone who has a job and is willing to be more brave and open with her art and with her life.
I found this book tough to get through because Neale reads like a teenager. I get the sense that that’s what the author intended, but it didn’t work for me. I also never got the sense that she was all that into the idea of being an artist and for half the book I was expecting her to realize that she was only on that path because of her parents and sister. I found the second half of the book more satisfying because she began to “grow up” but even then it felt like a lot of telling and very little showing.
Probably the most frustrating thing was that she starts her first “real” job, at the age of 28, and she somehow manages to completely revolutionize the company after having worked there for one month and not having any prior experience in the sector or in any business environment. It was weird to have the book start off by saying she’s not very competent only to turn around and have her be more competent than those around her (who have been successfully doing these jobs for years) without any actual on-page growth occurring. It made it hard for me to connect with her.
The very big pro for this story is that it is incredibly inclusive in terms of race, gender identity, and sexuality, which is so refreshing and lovely to read. The second half also picked up in terms of pacing which made it a breeze to finish.
I found this book tough to get through because Neale reads like a teenager. I get the sense that that’s what the author intended, but it didn’t work for me. I also never got the sense that she was all that into the idea of being an artist and for half the book I was expecting her to realize that she was only on that path because of her parents and sister. I found the second half of the book more satisfying because she began to “grow up” but even then it felt like a lot of telling and very little showing.
Probably the most frustrating thing was that she starts her first “real” job, at the age of 28, and she somehow manages to completely revolutionize the company after having worked there for one month and not having any prior experience in the sector or in any business environment. It was weird to have the book start off by saying she’s not very competent only to turn around and have her be more competent than those around her (who have been successfully doing these jobs for years) without any actual on-page growth occurring. It made it hard for me to connect with her.
The very big pro for this story is that it is incredibly inclusive in terms of race, gender identity, and sexuality, which is so refreshing and lovely to read. The second half also picked up in terms of pacing which made it a breeze to finish.
amiefiremoon's review against another edition
2.0
I struggled to get into the book. The main character, Neale, reads as really immature and I didn't like her at all. I also wasn't engaged with the storyline, even though the premise seemed really cute. This was a DNF for me after 30%, so I am rating it as a 2/5.
donnareadathon2021's review against another edition
3.0
I kindly received an eARC advance copy of this book to read and review though NetGalley.
Almost all of Neale’s close family members are artists apart from her older sister. Neale is putting on performance art using fire one evening but the audience is not getting her and then her coat catches alight.
She is asked to leave the art Collective and the whole episode is recorded and goes viral. Then her boyfriend breaks up with her and her parents ask her to grow up and leave home.
She finds an office job working at a card company, and meets kind and thoughtful co-worker Anthony, who also happens to have a hot body and great looks.
This is a cute story about being honest with your loved ones and putting effort into the things that are important to you. There is a lot of finding-yourself-angst though that ran on a bit longer than was maybe necessary.
Almost all of Neale’s close family members are artists apart from her older sister. Neale is putting on performance art using fire one evening but the audience is not getting her and then her coat catches alight.
She is asked to leave the art Collective and the whole episode is recorded and goes viral. Then her boyfriend breaks up with her and her parents ask her to grow up and leave home.
She finds an office job working at a card company, and meets kind and thoughtful co-worker Anthony, who also happens to have a hot body and great looks.
This is a cute story about being honest with your loved ones and putting effort into the things that are important to you. There is a lot of finding-yourself-angst though that ran on a bit longer than was maybe necessary.
romance_pdf's review against another edition
4.0
* aspiring artist
* f/m coworkers romance
* black heroine x black hero
* Asian side character
* non binary side character
* sapphic side character
Neale is a twenty eight years old artist. After burning down her and her friends show, she was not only compared to her successful family but also told that her carrier is over. Not wanting to disappoint her parents, who find her irresponsible and dependent on them, Neale finds a job and moves into her boyfriend's house. Well, expect she's not, because her boyfriend broke up with her and she lied about the job. The only solution is to find a new place to live, find a job (a real one this time), and give up men altogether.
So, this is how Neale ends up with weird roommate, boring nine-to-five job and cute coworker. She tries to fits into real, adult world.
At first, I thought it would be JUST a rom com but it's so much more than that. Even though, the romance is a part of this story, this book is about
a journey of self-discovery and getting out of a comfort zone. Neale is a messy and chaotic character. Wherever she moves there is a fire (sometimes literally).
I think Sarah's and Neale's "conflict" was unnecessary. I don't like when women are presented as mean just to make other women feel insecure. Especially if it was never mentioned ever again.
On the one hand, I didn't like how Neale treated Anthony. He was the most considerate man and I wish she wouldn't deceive him. I understand she wasn't in the right place but she kept changing her mind about their relationship, and no wonder it could have confused him. But, on the other hand, it has so much to do with her character development. It was amazing to see her fighting for her dreams, pride, herself and relationship.
Thank you NetGalley for giving me an ARC in exchange for an honest review!
* f/m coworkers romance
* black heroine x black hero
* Asian side character
* non binary side character
* sapphic side character
Neale is a twenty eight years old artist. After burning down her and her friends show, she was not only compared to her successful family but also told that her carrier is over. Not wanting to disappoint her parents, who find her irresponsible and dependent on them, Neale finds a job and moves into her boyfriend's house. Well, expect she's not, because her boyfriend broke up with her and she lied about the job. The only solution is to find a new place to live, find a job (a real one this time), and give up men altogether.
So, this is how Neale ends up with weird roommate, boring nine-to-five job and cute coworker. She tries to fits into real, adult world.
At first, I thought it would be JUST a rom com but it's so much more than that. Even though, the romance is a part of this story, this book is about
a journey of self-discovery and getting out of a comfort zone. Neale is a messy and chaotic character. Wherever she moves there is a fire (sometimes literally).
I think Sarah's and Neale's "conflict" was unnecessary. I don't like when women are presented as mean just to make other women feel insecure. Especially if it was never mentioned ever again.
On the one hand, I didn't like how Neale treated Anthony. He was the most considerate man and I wish she wouldn't deceive him. I understand she wasn't in the right place but she kept changing her mind about their relationship, and no wonder it could have confused him. But, on the other hand, it has so much to do with her character development. It was amazing to see her fighting for her dreams, pride, herself and relationship.
Thank you NetGalley for giving me an ARC in exchange for an honest review!
stuck_in_a_leabhar's review against another edition
3.0
Book: The Bounce Back
Author: Addie Woolridge
Star Rating: Three Stars
Publication Date: 26th October 2021
I was pretty disappointed as I was looking forward to reading a fun romantic comedy as advertised but this was a. women's fiction through and through.
The Bounce Back is all about how the lead character is trying to get her life back on track but a complicated relationship with her family isn't helping anything.
The novel is full of humour and it was written in a very lighthearted manner which is an element that I really did enjoy.
Maybe if I had read Woolridge's previous book 'The Checklist' I would have enjoyed this one more as 'The Bounce Back" is based on a minor character from that previous novel I believe.
Overall, I found this book a slow burn and tough to get through as I think I delved into it with the wrong mindset. I might give it another go after I read 'The Checklist'.
Thanks so much to NetGalley and Montlake Publishing for the Advanced Reader Copy in exchange for an honest review.
Author: Addie Woolridge
Star Rating: Three Stars
Publication Date: 26th October 2021
I was pretty disappointed as I was looking forward to reading a fun romantic comedy as advertised but this was a. women's fiction through and through.
The Bounce Back is all about how the lead character is trying to get her life back on track but a complicated relationship with her family isn't helping anything.
The novel is full of humour and it was written in a very lighthearted manner which is an element that I really did enjoy.
Maybe if I had read Woolridge's previous book 'The Checklist' I would have enjoyed this one more as 'The Bounce Back" is based on a minor character from that previous novel I believe.
Overall, I found this book a slow burn and tough to get through as I think I delved into it with the wrong mindset. I might give it another go after I read 'The Checklist'.
Thanks so much to NetGalley and Montlake Publishing for the Advanced Reader Copy in exchange for an honest review.
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