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sirenricobooks's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Classism, Grief, and Sexual content
Moderate: Toxic friendship and Death of parent
Minor: Toxic relationship
frantically's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
So so good and definitely one of my 2023 highlights!
I'd started this once before and was so annoyed at Piper that I just stopped not even halfway through the first chapter but I saw the reviews and decided to give her second chance and now I absolutely love her ❤
Piper & Brendan are the epitome of the sunshine x grumpy trope and all of their scenes just gave me allll the gushy feelings. They try to fight against their attraction at first but it's soon clear that there's really no stopping it.
I loved how upfront Piper is about hating manual labor & loving shopping (a girl after my own heart), it's really the opposite of all the pick-me girls we have to suffer through. And Brendan's so happy to spoil her, ugh I just love these two!
The ending did feel a bit rushed and I would've loved a few more chapters of them together but I hope the second book will deliver on that!
I'd started this once before and was so annoyed at Piper that I just stopped not even halfway through the first chapter but I saw the reviews and decided to give her second chance and now I absolutely love her ❤
Piper & Brendan are the epitome of the sunshine x grumpy trope and all of their scenes just gave me allll the gushy feelings. They try to fight against their attraction at first but it's soon clear that there's really no stopping it.
I loved how upfront Piper is about hating manual labor & loving shopping (a girl after my own heart), it's really the opposite of all the pick-me girls we have to suffer through. And Brendan's so happy to spoil her, ugh I just love these two!
The ending did feel a bit rushed and I would've loved a few more chapters of them together but I hope the second book will deliver on that!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury and Sexual content
Moderate: Death, Death of parent, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Grief
myhandmadehell's review
emotional
funny
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
I am not really sure what to say about this. I’ll start I guess by saying that I am aware this book scratches a lot of itches for a lot of people - but as I learn more about myself in my romance reading journey, I have learned that this kind of story - specifically these kinds of people - do not scratch any itches I have.
What I liked:
The character voice (both for Piper and Brendan) was very good, consistent, and specific to each person. I laughed out loud several times at each of their internal perceptions and clever little phrases. For example, a passage I highlighted:
“Was he annoyed? Yes. Did he want to be anywhere else in the world? No. And that was fucking frustrating but apparently it was what he enjoyed now.”
It was overall humorous, and I enjoyed the setting and the story set up. Hannah in particular, Piper’s sister, was a great character: supportive, loving, protective, but also her own person who didn’t need to emulate her sister in order to love her or be loved by her.
The spice was plentiful and explicit. That’s how I prefer it so the book did not disappoint on that front. I’ve heard Tessa Bailey is referred to as “the queen of dirty talk” or something - some reviews here indicated that the dirty talk was cringey and awful, but I found it was fine at worst, pretty hot at best.
What I didn’t like:
Just their whole relationship really. Every conflict they had came from Brendan being incapable of having a relationship. I don’t hate a possessive MMC but possessive doesn’t have to mean abusive - and yes I said it, and tagged it in the spoilers. He is emotionally abusive of her. And based on the sheer number of times he physically restrains her from walking away from him, when she clearly wants to, I’d also consider tagging in a warning of mild physical abuse as well. In fact, Brendan doesn’t let her do much of anything that he doesn’t approve of. He doesn’t let her finish sentences when she’s struggling to explain her feelings (which are, to say the least, confusing and new to her). He doesn’t give her time or space to think through those feelings. He doesn’t allow her to adjust to her dramatically different life. This sounds extra picky, but he unilaterally buys her jeans she said she doesn’t like! It’s played off as cute and “spoiling her” but it’s just one more way Brendan outs himself as a controlling asshole.
Again, I know this is part of the fantasy for some readers, this gender essentialism that categorizes all actions, appearances, attitudes, and behaviors as solely “male” or “female”, and allows people to explore and revel in the idea of a woman submitting to a man’s emotional and intellectual dominance. And I’m not here to shame anybody for that.
Just saying, for those who didn’t know that this is a book that explores those themes, and it isn’t your cup of tea? It does, and it is pretty blatant.
2.75 stars, losing 2 for all of the above, losing 1 more for the sentence “even a casual mention of Brendan’s name and her pussy started pumping out a slow jam”, and gaining back 3/4 of a star for what turned out to be a reasonably good apology on his part - a good start but not the end of their struggles, I fear.
The spice was plentiful and explicit. That’s how I prefer it so the book did not disappoint on that front. I’ve heard Tessa Bailey is referred to as “the queen of dirty talk” or something - some reviews here indicated that the dirty talk was cringey and awful, but I found it was fine at worst, pretty hot at best.
What I didn’t like:
Just their whole relationship really. Every conflict they had came from Brendan being incapable of having a relationship. I don’t hate a possessive MMC but possessive doesn’t have to mean abusive - and yes I said it, and tagged it in the spoilers. He is emotionally abusive of her. And based on the sheer number of times he physically restrains her from walking away from him, when she clearly wants to, I’d also consider tagging in a warning of mild physical abuse as well. In fact, Brendan doesn’t let her do much of anything that he doesn’t approve of. He doesn’t let her finish sentences when she’s struggling to explain her feelings (which are, to say the least, confusing and new to her). He doesn’t give her time or space to think through those feelings. He doesn’t allow her to adjust to her dramatically different life. This sounds extra picky, but he unilaterally buys her jeans she said she doesn’t like! It’s played off as cute and “spoiling her” but it’s just one more way Brendan outs himself as a controlling asshole.
Again, I know this is part of the fantasy for some readers, this gender essentialism that categorizes all actions, appearances, attitudes, and behaviors as solely “male” or “female”, and allows people to explore and revel in the idea of a woman submitting to a man’s emotional and intellectual dominance. And I’m not here to shame anybody for that.
Just saying, for those who didn’t know that this is a book that explores those themes, and it isn’t your cup of tea? It does, and it is pretty blatant.
2.75 stars, losing 2 for all of the above, losing 1 more for the sentence “even a casual mention of Brendan’s name and her pussy started pumping out a slow jam”, and gaining back 3/4 of a star for what turned out to be a reasonably good apology on his part - a good start but not the end of their struggles, I fear.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Cursing, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Death of parent
Minor: Alcohol, Child death, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, and Toxic relationship
cwatson1234's review
adventurous
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
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Death of parent, Toxic relationship, and Fire/Fire injury
mhairi_reads's review
emotional
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice: 🌶️🌶️
Tropes: Grumpy x Sunshine, small town romance, guy falls first, enemies-friends-lovers.
POV: Third person
We follow Piper - the “It Girl.’ Known for throwing the most outrageous parties and being a bit of a good time in Los Angeles. She was raised by her Mum and Step-Dad in Bel-Air with more money than sense.
After throwing an impromptu party that ended in her being arrested her Step-Father cuts her off, sending her off to Westport for three months to live in her late Father’s pub and see what life is like for the majority of people. Cue my sexy bearded fisherman.
Sea-Captain and king crab fisherman Brendan is a widowed fisherman who was born and raised in Westport. It’s all he’s ever known and that’s just how he likes it. He is a man who lives a strictly scheduled and routine life - after all strong routine is what keeps his crew and him safe on the water. He is content eating his fish and chips on a Monday night and spending is life out at see. That is until he meets Piper. She is from a different world and completely out of his league. So why is he so damned drawn to her?
I have read a few Tessa Bailey books and I thought she might just not have been for me as an author. Then I read It Happened One Summer and fell in love with this quaint little fishing town.
I didn’t know if I was going to get on with this book because I did take a few chapters to warm to Piper. But after she stripped off the fake exterior she was just a sweet girl who wanted to feel seen.
I can be in a room full of people that I know and still not feel like I belong.
Brendan on the other hand. I absolutely adored Brendan from the get go❤️. Rough round the edges, a real man’s man but a big teddy bear inside. What more could you want?
I fell in love with the characters, the town and all the townies! It was just so wholesome.
But I really want to pick up Hook, Line, and Sinker - RIGHT NOW!! I need Fox and Hannah’s story. Hannah was a sweetheart and I love me a bit of a player being tamed.
⚠️ Content Warnings: Death of parent, death of spouse, death of a child (adult child), drowning.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Sexual content, Alcohol, and Death
Moderate: Classism, Medical content, Misogyny, Toxic friendship, Death of parent, Medical trauma, Cursing, Fire/Fire injury, and Sexism
Minor: Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Pregnancy, Toxic relationship, Abandonment, Blood, Bullying, and Child death
hrtlss_grl's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
I enjoyed this book way more than I thought I was going to, since the main character is so ditzy at the beginning. But being a product of the 90s, I love Clueless, and this book really gives off those vibes. I did have a few issues with the very NSFW scenes and how most of the last 40% of the book was smut. I enjoy a good scene here or there, but these were graphic cheesy messes that were everywhere. Most of their 4 week relationship is sex, and honestly after thinking about it, there isn't much else to them. Very Insta-Love, and a little bordering on controlling for my tastes, but still fairly enjoyable. I think I'll prefer Hannah and Fox's story. Hopefully.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Toxic friendship, Injury/Injury detail, and Abandonment
Minor: Toxic relationship, Bullying, and Death of parent
mim72's review against another edition
1.0
I couldn't actually finish this book, it was so bad... mostly it just made me ANGRY, I wanted to throw the book. But I still read most of it, so I'm definitely counting it as a read (gotta get something out of this nightmare..).
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship
Moderate: Physical abuse
thatswhatshanread's review
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Well. IT definitely happened.
I was really drawn into this story from the beginning—it seemed like a great, light romcom for the summer, and I loved that the MC is based off of Alexis Rose from Schitt’s Creek. The characters were endearing and fun, the love interest was intense but also adorable and soft at heart, the setting was quaint and cute. In a word, this book is fun.
However. About halfway through, it started to lose its magic for me. I felt the main relationship got too serious too fast, and the (very NSFW) intimate scenes… idk they really made me cringe. And there were multiple. Bailey’s descriptions and dialogue in these parts was just uncomfortable to me and really made it hard for me to get past them. And then the story after that really just centered around sex and lost a lot of its substance to me. There’s a HEA of course, everything in its perfect place.
Piper and Brendan were cute, and I loved Piper’s close relationship with her sister. Idk, maybe it’s the depression speaking since I know this book has such great reviews, but I tried and I just didn’t love it.
If you’re wanting a summer romcom mainly for the steam, some laughs, and the promise of a ending where everyone is happy, then this one’s for you.
I was really drawn into this story from the beginning—it seemed like a great, light romcom for the summer, and I loved that the MC is based off of Alexis Rose from Schitt’s Creek. The characters were endearing and fun, the love interest was intense but also adorable and soft at heart, the setting was quaint and cute. In a word, this book is fun.
However. About halfway through, it started to lose its magic for me. I felt the main relationship got too serious too fast, and the (very NSFW) intimate scenes… idk they really made me cringe. And there were multiple. Bailey’s descriptions and dialogue in these parts was just uncomfortable to me and really made it hard for me to get past them. And then the story after that really just centered around sex and lost a lot of its substance to me. There’s a HEA of course, everything in its perfect place.
Piper and Brendan were cute, and I loved Piper’s close relationship with her sister. Idk, maybe it’s the depression speaking since I know this book has such great reviews, but I tried and I just didn’t love it.
If you’re wanting a summer romcom mainly for the steam, some laughs, and the promise of a ending where everyone is happy, then this one’s for you.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Grief, Sexual content, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Abandonment, Alcohol, Classism, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Blood, Drug use, Pregnancy, and Toxic relationship
hapalyn's review
adventurous
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Alcohol, Cursing, Death, Death of parent, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Toxic relationship, and Fire/Fire injury
anigoose's review against another edition
dark
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
I finished this book out of sheer fascination and horror. This is a book about lovebombing, manipulation and taking advantage of a person in a very vulnerable state. Brendan is possessive and grooms Piper masterfully. He does not help her find her worth, he tells her what her worth is and demands she comply. He even has grand gestures for her sister, to get her to comply when she is clearly very skeptical.
When Piper keeps things to herself, he sees it as extreme betrayal and forces her promise that she will never keep anything from him. They have been together 4ish weeks at this point. When she is not complying with his wishes, he yells at her and exploits the two biggest vulnerabilities that she has shown him - her fear of losing him in the ocean like she lost her father, and her fear of being abandoned again.
Brendan makes it clear to Piper that he never loved his first wife, that she was just a means to an end. His mourning for her was a show. This is supposed to show his love for Piper as more real, but all it shows is his lack of empathy and ability to love. Ffs do we even find out if Desiree lived with him in his house? There's no traces of her, no stories of her, no fond memories, only obligation. I have fond memories with all of my exes, even the abusive ones, even the boring ones. It's downright creepy.
Enemies to lovers doesn't work if the reason he felt such animosity towards her was that immediately upon seeing her, she looked like a woman he couldn't control.
This book is an insult to love, an insult to Annie Murphy who played Alexis Rose, to Dan Levy who created Alexis Rose, and to survivors of Narcissist Abusers. There's so much more that is horribly wrong with this book, from the assumption that a fisherman smelling of the ocean smells like anything but rotten fish - believe me, I grew up in a fishing town in the Oregon Coast, it's just rotten fish, babes - to the complete absurdity of the idea that a man who has been celibate for 7 years and who had zero interest in his wife before that is super fucking talented at sex, to...god, I just can't hit on all the things that are warped and awful in this book.
When Piper keeps things to herself, he sees it as extreme betrayal and forces her promise that she will never keep anything from him. They have been together 4ish weeks at this point. When she is not complying with his wishes, he yells at her and exploits the two biggest vulnerabilities that she has shown him - her fear of losing him in the ocean like she lost her father, and her fear of being abandoned again.
Brendan makes it clear to Piper that he never loved his first wife, that she was just a means to an end. His mourning for her was a show. This is supposed to show his love for Piper as more real, but all it shows is his lack of empathy and ability to love. Ffs do we even find out if Desiree lived with him in his house? There's no traces of her, no stories of her, no fond memories, only obligation. I have fond memories with all of my exes, even the abusive ones, even the boring ones. It's downright creepy.
Enemies to lovers doesn't work if the reason he felt such animosity towards her was that immediately upon seeing her, she looked like a woman he couldn't control.
This book is an insult to love, an insult to Annie Murphy who played Alexis Rose, to Dan Levy who created Alexis Rose, and to survivors of Narcissist Abusers. There's so much more that is horribly wrong with this book, from the assumption that a fisherman smelling of the ocean smells like anything but rotten fish - believe me, I grew up in a fishing town in the Oregon Coast, it's just rotten fish, babes - to the complete absurdity of the idea that a man who has been celibate for 7 years and who had zero interest in his wife before that is super fucking talented at sex, to...god, I just can't hit on all the things that are warped and awful in this book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, and Misogyny
Moderate: Death of parent
Lovebombing, narcissist, manipulation.