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karlapardo's review against another edition
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
4.5
I liked this book. I thought it was well written (I mean is Lauren Asher, I didn't expect otherwise) and the relationship was super cute. I think that each character had good development but they were also their own person, meaning that their whole identity was in their relationship, they were just two individual people who fell in love and a relationship blossomed out of that but they didn't lose their own individual identity. I would have liked more back story on the characters, I think it was just very what's happening in the moment and because of that there were times where I would be confused by some things because we didn't know the back story. I just needed more on the back story aspect. We got some info but not a lot. Zahra is just a great character, I think she is very fun and bubbly but also knows how to be a business woman and is so responsible and passionate about her job and I love that. She is also clear in what she wants out of the relationship, she made it clear to Rowan when he messed up that he needed to work on that and fix it because she wouldn't be putting up with it if it kept going, and I think that is so powerful. Rowan was so cute. He fell in love with Zahra but struggled so much with that realization but as a reader you can see his development very clearly. I think that he made it very hard for us readers to not love him once we saw his development and I am here for it. Their relationship is so cute, the banter, the tension, and spice, the respect they have for each other, and the way he won her heart over and over again was so cute. Would read again
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Death of parent, and Sexual content
Moderate: Alcoholism, Cancer, and Grief
Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Pregnancy, and Blood
siriuslyz's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
It's been a while since I've read these types of books, and I can say that it's been comforting to start doing it again.
This is your typical grumpy-sunshine, I-love-my-boss kind of book. It's nothing too exciting, but leaves you wanting for more.
The main characters are Rowan and Zahra. Rowan is your typical alluring, brooding, mysteriously silent boss, while Zahra is a ray of sunshine. Don't worry though, she has a backbone and knows her worth.
Zahra's personality is so inspiring, the way she knows her worth and when to put her foot down is admirable. She has a strong personality and is so selfless it hurts. Treating everyone with the utmost respect, she is the kind of female main character we've all needed.
I also loved Claire, Zahra's best friend, and Ani, Zahra's sister, and the support they have for Zahra and the amount of care for her wellbeing.
Rowan was alright, but I kind of think that his personality is too cliché. He makes mistakes, but he makes up for them and Zahra makes him grovel. A little. Because Rowan understands his actions and faults, he finds a way to make up for them in thoughtful ways.
All in all, I did like this book, but for me it was just lacking (if you know what I mean). I didn't get the excited tingles I feel when I really love a book, and it is kind of like all the other books that are currently trending. You don't need a Rowan, just go read the Twisted series and you'll have the same guy, the same outcome. This book wasn't anything special.
This is your typical grumpy-sunshine, I-love-my-boss kind of book. It's nothing too exciting, but leaves you wanting for more.
The main characters are Rowan and Zahra. Rowan is your typical alluring, brooding, mysteriously silent boss, while Zahra is a ray of sunshine. Don't worry though, she has a backbone and knows her worth.
Zahra's personality is so inspiring, the way she knows her worth and when to put her foot down is admirable. She has a strong personality and is so selfless it hurts. Treating everyone with the utmost respect, she is the kind of female main character we've all needed.
I also loved Claire, Zahra's best friend, and Ani, Zahra's sister, and the support they have for Zahra and the amount of care for her wellbeing.
Rowan was alright, but I kind of think that his personality is too cliché. He makes mistakes, but he makes up for them and Zahra makes him grovel. A little. Because Rowan understands his actions and faults, he finds a way to make up for them in thoughtful ways.
All in all, I did like this book, but for me it was just lacking (if you know what I mean). I didn't get the excited tingles I feel when I really love a book, and it is kind of like all the other books that are currently trending. You don't need a Rowan, just go read the Twisted series and you'll have the same guy, the same outcome. This book wasn't anything special.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Minor: Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Pregnancy, Suicidal thoughts, Ableism, Alcoholism, Blood, Cancer, Cursing, and Death of parent
sierrabowers's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
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
5.0
I really liked this book! It is about two people who work at Dreamland aka a knock off of Disney. There is a family secret involving billions of dollars at stake. I really enjoyed the fact that her sister had a disability. I think that people with disabilities aren’t mentioned enough in popular books so it came as a nice surprise, especially at the end when he proposed that Dreamlands character costumes include prosthetics, wheelchairs, and other types of disabilities.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Classism, Death of parent, Grief, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Child abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Cancer, Panic attacks/disorders, Blood, Death, and Gaslighting
platypusd10's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
sad
tense
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
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Cancer, Grief, Blood, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Sexual content, Cursing, Death, and Terminal illness
maxthedinosaur's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
sad
tense
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
4.5
I did not think I would love this book so much but I did. Rowan and Zahra are one of my favorite book couples of all time. All of the characters were amazingly written and I especially loved Ani, she's definitely my favorite character. The only thing that ticks off some points for my rating is around the 2/3 mark we had like 4 sex scenes in like 100 pages and I think it was a bit excessive and I felt like they just did like the same thing in all of them and I don't really feel like there was much need for as many of them as there were. Especially since only like 2 of them came back up in conversation. Overall I love this book and I am happy to give it my first kind of 5 star of the year
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief and Alcoholism
Moderate: Bullying and Death of parent
Minor: Toxic relationship, Blood, Cancer, Suicidal thoughts, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, and Ableism
nursestern's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
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
4.5
Loved the setting of this book and it’s similarities to another popular Florida theme park. The romance and spice levels were just right, although there wasn’t much of a cat and mouse game between the two main characters. This book was enjoyable and I’m looking forward to the next brothers story.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content and Death of parent
Minor: Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Alcoholism, Medical content, Grief, Cursing, and Cancer
abigail_moffat's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
sad
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
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Cursing, and Sexual content
Moderate: Blood
Minor: Pregnancy
bbygirl21's review
challenging
hopeful
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
I was a little disappointed in this book. Don't get me wrong I still quite enjoyed reading this book. I liked the Disneyland type aspect of the story and I loved how it talked about inclusivity and diversity in all ways. It's just the pacing of the whole story was too slow in my opinion.
And I didn't like that there were two major conflicts/break up scenes in this book and I think it could've only done with one at most. I can't tell you which one I would get rid of, because quite frankly I didn't like either of them, but I do know having two portions of the book focused on that was unnecessary when they're could've only been one section focusing on a conflict/breakup period.
I also have mixed feelings on both MC's. Rowan (MMC) was an asshole through and through for a giant portion of this book. And while I'm understanding of Zahra's feelings on the things Rowan said and did to her, I felt a bit frustrated with her. The way she didn't let Rowan explain anything and the way she jumped to conclusions a lot made me very anxious and frustrated. Like I said, I'm not excusing Rowan's actions/behavior, because it was quite unforgivable even coming from a place of understanding of his past, but I just felt like they should've talked things out like adults and that's what Rowan was trying to do, whereas Zahra wasn't. In my opinion it seemed she just wanted to avoid things until they're unavoidable.
There are things I liked about both characters, like I loved that Zahra had a very sunshine outlook on life. Yes it is sometimes just a way to cover up her true feelings, but for the most part, she tries to exude positive energy especially around others so she doesn't negatively affect others. And I love how deep down Rowan has this sweet caring nature for others. Despite the way he presents himself to the general public, he has this deep seeded care for people in less fortunate situations. You can clearly see that with how he is with Ani and how he immediately helped Martha when he found out she has to work to jobs with a hurt foot/leg. But for the most part Rowan and Zahra were a big letdown to what I was expecting going into this. And how much I like the MC's plays a big part into my overall enjoyment of book.
I think my favorite part of this book were the side characters and the theme park storyline. I loved seeing the progression toward making the park more inclusive and diverse. I loved Ani, she's such a little sweetheart, wanting to help her sister be happy. And she's so adorable with her boyfriend JP. I also really liked Martha as well.
So would I recommend this, maybe, I'd like to say yes but I'm not entirely sure. I'll let the other two books decide for whether it's worth it to read this one or not. I'll most likely say yes, but will see. I thought it was an enjoyable for the most part. Enough for me to keep going until I finished it. It had a great plotline and some great character development in the long run. I loved the ending seeing how Rowan's final plans for Dreamland start to come into effect and I loved seeing him and Zahra together despite their toxic and rocky beginning.
And I didn't like that there were two major conflicts/break up scenes in this book and I think it could've only done with one at most. I can't tell you which one I would get rid of, because quite frankly I didn't like either of them, but I do know having two portions of the book focused on that was unnecessary when they're could've only been one section focusing on a conflict/breakup period.
I also have mixed feelings on both MC's. Rowan (MMC) was an asshole through and through for a giant portion of this book. And while I'm understanding of Zahra's feelings on the things Rowan said and did to her, I felt a bit frustrated with her. The way she didn't let Rowan explain anything and the way she jumped to conclusions a lot made me very anxious and frustrated. Like I said, I'm not excusing Rowan's actions/behavior, because it was quite unforgivable even coming from a place of understanding of his past, but I just felt like they should've talked things out like adults and that's what Rowan was trying to do, whereas Zahra wasn't. In my opinion it seemed she just wanted to avoid things until they're unavoidable.
There are things I liked about both characters, like I loved that Zahra had a very sunshine outlook on life. Yes it is sometimes just a way to cover up her true feelings, but for the most part, she tries to exude positive energy especially around others so she doesn't negatively affect others. And I love how deep down Rowan has this sweet caring nature for others. Despite the way he presents himself to the general public, he has this deep seeded care for people in less fortunate situations. You can clearly see that with how he is with Ani and how he immediately helped Martha when he found out she has to work to jobs with a hurt foot/leg. But for the most part Rowan and Zahra were a big letdown to what I was expecting going into this. And how much I like the MC's plays a big part into my overall enjoyment of book.
I think my favorite part of this book were the side characters and the theme park storyline. I loved seeing the progression toward making the park more inclusive and diverse. I loved Ani, she's such a little sweetheart, wanting to help her sister be happy. And she's so adorable with her boyfriend JP. I also really liked Martha as well.
So would I recommend this, maybe, I'd like to say yes but I'm not entirely sure. I'll let the other two books decide for whether it's worth it to read this one or not. I'll most likely say yes, but will see. I thought it was an enjoyable for the most part. Enough for me to keep going until I finished it. It had a great plotline and some great character development in the long run. I loved the ending seeing how Rowan's final plans for Dreamland start to come into effect and I loved seeing him and Zahra together despite their toxic and rocky beginning.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Blood, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Injury/Injury detail, and Medical content
Minor: Death of parent, Gaslighting, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Terminal illness, Grief, Sexual harassment, Infidelity, Pregnancy, Addiction, Cancer, and Death
neverlandpages4's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
sad
fast-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
5.0
One of the best grumpy x sunshine books I’ve read, it’s fast-paced, and I immediately fell in love with Lauren Asher’s writing.
I loved Zahra, even though she’s a bit annoying, she’s the typical sunshine-y character who’s always laughing at everything, but by halfway through I felt for her and was hoping she’d get the happy ending she deserves
Rowan is the typical grumpy billionaire he was a jerk for the majority of the book and loved seeing Zahra humble him and how he had a change of heart by the end.
I loved everything about this book except for how much it dragged on. Rowan is a commitment-phobe so despite them knowing that they’re 100% in love, they don’t “officially” get together till the end. And the third act breakup dragged on quite a bit but the rest of the book was entertaining.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, and Grief
Moderate: Cancer, Infidelity, and Classism
Minor: Blood, Suicidal thoughts, Vomit, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Emotional abuse, Eating disorder, and Medical trauma
kiwij96's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
funny
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
I literally sat and read this in like 12 hours. I completely fell in love with the story and the characters. Granted Rowan is a teensy bit on the manipulative side, and I don't excuse his actions at times but his history is enough to understand why he is that way. And praise to the author for writing Zahra as someone who knows her worth.
I am not usually someone who reads contempory romance, but I fell in love with this book and will happily read more as a result.
I am not usually someone who reads contempory romance, but I fell in love with this book and will happily read more as a result.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Grief, Sexual content, Cancer, Alcoholism, and Death of parent
Minor: Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Classism, Pregnancy, Blood, and Death