Reviews tagging 'Medical content'

A Merry Little Meet Cute by Julie Murphy, Sierra Simone

14 reviews

alisoun's review

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4.0

Bee and Nolan. 

This was going to be a five star read for me but I think Nolan's fuck up and apology was rushed through far too quickly. He fucked up big time. Like Big Time. 

Overall it's good - a very diverse and queer cast, the sex was amazing, the concept hilarious, the stakes definitely high enough. I feel in contemporary novels that the stakes for the drama are never that high but they definitely are in this book! Nolan needs a regular check and healthcare for his mentally unwell mother - who he loves and never shames and has good supports in place but damn the USA health are system is BROKEN. And Bee definitely wants to have a longer career than porn can give her. Her stakes aren't as high as Nolan's but they feel real regardless. 

I wish that Bee hadn't fully pulled back from porn in the epilogue. Maybe something about working with her friend Jack would have worked for me better than a full pull back. 

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cozycritiques's review

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funny lighthearted medium-paced

5.0

”And then, there it was: the collapse of all my gingerbread-infused effort. With a single kiss from Bee, all my control burned away, and my body stirred for her. I was going to have a problem hiding my response after this, but that didn’t stop me from deepening the kiss, from holding her tight as she explored my mouth with a soft, sweet greed. I’d figure out what was going on later.”
 - A Merry Little Meet Cute

Thank you, NetGalley and Avon, for the e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Tropes: Holiday Romance, Celebrities (Porn Star, Actors, Former Musician), Forced Proximity, Secret Identity, Hidden Relationship, Image Rehab, Small Town, Childhood Crush
Representation: Plus Size, LGBTQ+ (Bisexual)
Spice Scale: 🌶🌶🌶🌶
CW: Mental Illness (Bipolar Disorder), Fatphobia, Body Shaming, Sexism, Medical Content 

I requested this ARC because I loved Julie Murphy’s If the Shoe Fits last year. I’ve never read anything by Sierra Simone before, but I know from BookTok that her writing is ✨spicy✨ so I had to see how their two styles worked together. It did not disappoint.
I absolutely loved the Christmas town setting and holiday references. You would think a holiday-themed strip club or gingerbread line would be a little over the top, but it worked so well. I also loved how positive this book was about body and sex. Bee was completely comfortable with her size and career choice. Her size was just one aspect of who she was, not her entire person, and although she kept her job secret for the majority of the book, she never felt shame for working in adult film. More importantly, her love interest never made her feel shame for either of these things either, which was a major green flag.
Bee and Nolan’s relationship was the perfect mix of sweet and spicy. The fact that they were both each other’s celebrity crushes was adorable, and their chemistry and banter were off the charts. Also, they were both bisexual disasters, which I am a total sucker for.
If you’re looking for something that captures the spirit of a Hallmark Christmas movie but is smutty as hell, A Merry Little Meet Cute is a must-read. Simone and Murphy’s writing flowed so seamlessly that I honestly couldn’t tell it was written by two people. I loved the world they created and can’t wait for more in this series.

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monicalaurette's review

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emotional funny lighthearted sad 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? It's complicated

4.25

Cries because this book was so cute and so much fun to read around the holiday season. I even found myself loving the fluff moments more than the smut ones because it was just so heartwarming to see those two in love and sneaking around in this small, Christmas-loving town.

I think it was also fun to see a character like Bee/Bianca that was so confident in her body and into an industry like that because it’s not as common. And that Nolan was just so into her before they even met. I think both of them having an obsession with the other before they met helped it be like…not as creepy when you think about it. Like it cancels each other out.

One thing that got me in this book to not give it a full 5 stars would be how some of the characters behaved because it just seemed too much and too over the top at times. But maybe that was also just me because I wanted more scenes of Bee and Nolan cuddling together.

Also, it was nice that we got to see the truth of the events in Duluth too because it showed that Nolan was always just a caring person and not just with his family or bandmates. And is it wrong for me to compare Dominic Diamond to another certain tabloid-esque person that is just a terrible person? I don’t want to name names but they popped right in my head and I think a lot of people would agree with me.

For the ending the coming back down from the climax (pun sort of intended) I really liked how it was a biggish moment and then it was more personal with the cross-country driving. Having the book also start and end with Teddy’s POV I thought was a fun way to begin the tale and then bring it to a close while opening us up to the next book with Kallum (who might be my favorite?).

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bookcheshirecat's review

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emotional funny lighthearted medium-paced
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

“Everything smelled like sex, and coffee, and Christmas, and I didn't want it to end.”

A Merry Little Meet Cute is a fun, steamy Christmas Romance! I loved the premise of a Hallmark-type Christmas movie being secretly produced by the owner of a porn studio who accidentally casts one of his clients in the lead role! The potential for chaos was there from the beginning, especially as part of the cast and crew gets in an accident and has to be replaced with his own people who have never worked in a traditional movie before. The setting of Christmas Notch was also nice, it's a festive small town that is often the set for Christmas movies and consists of appropriately themed stores and streets! 🎄 The writing was witty and fun, so I had a good time reading this!

Bee is an adult film star under the name of Bianca Von Honey, but now she wants to branch out! She's proud of her work and ClosedDoors Account (something like OnlyFans), but dreams of acting in a mainstream movie. Her producer Teddy gives her the chance to do so, but no one can know that she does porn, as the Hope Channel is known for its squeaky-clean image. I really liked Bee as I felt her passion for expanding into acting, but also her sex positivity and pride for her job. As a plus-size performer, she knows the fatphobia of the industry too well, especially coupled with the misogyny that's also present.

Nolan is a former boy band idol ... but now he's broke! He has a reputation as the bad boy, but he's trying to clean up his image. Despite his rough edges, I liked the love he has for his family and how he's doing his best to use the Christmas movie in order to be able to support them better. It was nice to see the close bond with his family and how he tried to be there for his little sister Maddie and his mother, who is struggling with bipolar disorder. He loves Bee, but knows that dating a porn star could very well be the end of the revival of his career!

I really liked the romance, Bee and Nolan had some great chemistry! I liked that it wasn't only Nolan who was a secret fan, but also Bee who used to moon over him when he was in the boy band. The fact that they were both hiding a parasocial crush that turned into real attraction made their dynamic feel more even! I personally liked the balance between their more steamy scenes and also them getting to know each other. There was some slight miscommunication at times, but having a dual POV really helped it not get too frustrating!

The book felt slightly too long though! With over 400 pages it's on the longer side for a Romance and at times the pace slowed down, so shortening the book slightly would have helped. It was also a bit disappointing that there was so much talk about Bianca's toys and the lube she specifically brought in her suitcase ... yet it never gets used in any of the sex scenes.

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rockyroadbutch's review

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hopeful lighthearted relaxing 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? No

4.75


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wilybooklover's review against another edition

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funny lighthearted medium-paced

3.0

This was cute, but it was waaay too long and felt a bit lacking in emotional connection for me. It was hard for me to suspend disbelief that anyone in this book actually thought the lead actress and producer being in the porn business would never get out. It also wasn’t as hot as I expected it to be given the premise. So many references to kinks and toys and lube but barely any of it used on page! 

It was quite enjoyable though and I did love the sex (and sex work) positivity, body positivity, and how virtually everyone was queer, including the two leads. 


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uranaishi's review

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adventurous emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective tense 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? It's complicated

4.25


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livermoresweetheart's review

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funny lighthearted medium-paced

3.0

<b> A Merry Little Meet Cute by Julie Murphy and Sierra Simone  </b> 
<b>PoV:</b> First person, past tense, dual pov
<b>ToN (Type of Narration):</b>   Dual by Joy Nash and Sebastian York
<b>Audio book length:</b> 11h
<b>Genre and Sub genre:</b> Romcom, Christmas
<b>Location:</b> Christmas Notch, Vermont; Arlington, TX; Los Angeles, CA
<b>Time(s):</b> Current/Contemporary
<b>Tropes:</b> Secret identity, secretly dating, famous
<b>TW/CW's:</b>
  mental health, body shaming, misogyny, biphobia, chronic illness, alcohol, drug use, medical, medical drama detailed, grief, death, death of a parent, sexual harassment,  ableism, domestic abuse, vomit, bullying, panic attacks, stalking

<b>Language Rating:</b> 5/5
<b>Sex Rating:</b> 5/5  <b>graphic sex warning:</b>
oral, spanking, desecrating of a religious alter  (a Sierra Simone specialty) 

<b>Representation:</b> LGBT+

Synopsis: Bee Hobbes (a.k.a. Bianca Von Honey) a successful plus-sized adult film star with a huge following online has been cast last minute to step in to fill a role for another star who got sick at a hot yoga retreat. Many other adult-film workers were also brought on when a bunch of workers were hurt at a burning-man type venue, because the director is “going straight” and rebranding from the adult film industry to the very family friendly industry. Bee’s co star will be the former boy-band pop sensation she has been madly in love with since her teen years. 

All of the adult-film workers have been asked to keep their pasts quiet so that the director can make this squeaky clean family movie. Except that the workers spend their after hours at places like The North Pole, and getting drunk at the local bar, all spouting their mouths off about themselves, and everyone already knows who they are anyway.

Nolan Shaw has some skeletons in his past that he is trying to bury, and is hoping to do so with this fluffy family movie. And he was on track to do so.. Until his sex idol Bianca Von Honey waltzes onto the set, and now Nolan wants nothing more than to put his hands all over her every chance he gets. He has been following her ClosedDoor account for 6 years now, he’s a top tier member! Now he is trying to hide his feelings for Bee, when the reporter who ruined his career comes waltzing onto the Christmas set, snooping around for the new scoop, hoping at every turn that Nolan will live up to his bad boy rep. 

This book was full of funny one liners, and a few well written scenes, but it seriously needed a heavy handed editor and possibly a rewrite. The premise was great, but this book could have been amazing if it had gone through a few more editing processes! Here are some things I hated-

-The words “gingerbread lotion” is used no less than 11 times. And if I have to ever read that again in this context I might be sick. Gross. 

-The reader is lead to believe toys would come into play WAY more often than they actually did, and I for one was quite disappointed that the fun trunk was never utilized. 

-The horrible euphemisms need to stop. Like. Right. TF. NOW. Now, I get it, we don’t want to use the same words over and over, that is repetitive and boring! But when you describe ladybits as a “well” and her cl*t as a “needy button”, it makes me think of the big, red “easy” button on the staples commercial that one can just press and org*sms just occur. In our dreams, ladies, in our dreams… 

-Honestly, the way Nolan keeps talking about Bee’s body as if it is his to own, just because he paid for a subscription to it for the past 6 years makes me really sick. In fact, they both have these weird fascinations and infatuations with each other as objects and not as people, and that is super cringy. 

-I love a good plus-size FMC or MMC! Seriously, make all the characters plus size! But there is a difference between subtle hints that the readers can infer from, and the constant reminder that yes, she is in fact over weight. That is what we hear. All.the.time. The inner dialogue is about the size. The characters mention the size. Everything revolves around the size (like, her not fitting into any of the dresses, or the chairs, or things were made for skinny people, etc etc etc)

-I also love a good story about business women (and for that matter, good business practices, and ethical managers and businesses) but again, every few sentences all the book talked about was how Bee was a p0rn star. We hear ya, she, and the others, worked in the adult-film industry. Loud.and.clear.

-Again, I love books with good representation! But every few sentences it talked about how Bee had two moms. She was OBSESSED with having two moms. We RARELY hear about any of the other characters' parents, why is that? Why is it so important we know that Bee has two moms? Did you know Bee had two moms? Bee has two moms. Two moms. The two moms Bee has. Two moms had Bee. Two moms. One mom, two mom. 

-We are told over and over how Christmassy this Christmas town is. From the snow, to the silly street names, even to the “North Pole” pole dance/strip club with strippers with reindeer names. Clever? Maybe. Or maybe just over the top. 

I love Sierra Simone, I have read all of her work! And I love Julie Murphy, I have read most of her work! This is the first time I have been *meh* about their books. I have more to rant about, but 2 pages is more than enough….  After all of this, though, I do hope they write two more books. I'd love to have books about Kallum and Isaac. BUT ONLY if the editing is done SO MUCH BETTER!!

<b>Audio book review:</b> The audiobook narrators were good. Sebastian York could read me the childhood story “The Night Before Christmas” and it could sound sexy. He is probably the only reason I listened to this book as long as I did. 

**Audio book notes do not change my GR/SG book rating, it is only here for reference. This entire review is also cross posted to Amazon and Audible**

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megj23's review

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funny hopeful lighthearted 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

3.0


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annahamburger's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

A very sweet and spicy holiday romance. This book is self aware which is to its benefit! It easily and skillfully plays on tropes from holiday films, and the fact that our MCs are former boy and members and a sex worker. 

I was not sure how they were going to pull off a HEA, but I think they managed to do it in a sugarcoated but realistic way. 

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