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apappashorii's review against another edition
3.0
Cup of Joe by Annabeth Albert is the first of the Bold Brew series which centers on the romances of employees and patrons of Bold Brew, a LGBTQ+ and kink-friendly coffee shop. Switching between the first-person POV of Levi, a young Bold Brew barista, and Joe, an older and regular client of the coffee shop, the novel is written in a very smooth and easy-to-read manner.
Though Levi and Joe weren't a couple I felt particularly connected to, I really enjoyed how Albert developed their budding love and introduced kink into their story. To be honest, when the brat/daddy-dom side to Levi and Joe's relationship was first introduced, I wasn't quite sure how to react. This is a kink that is overall subject to quite a bit of stigma and that I am personally not the most comfortable with. That being said, I think this book does a great job at encouraging people to put their judgement aside by offering a representation of how this dynamic truly works in a healthy and consensual relationship. While I cannot speak definitively on whether Albert's representation was 100% accurate, it definitely pushed me to be more open-minded and reconsider some previously held conceptions. The reader gets to learn and explore this kink with the characters in a delightful and thoughtful manner. I also loved the inclusion of Joe as a male character who is self-conscious of his body. It was beautiful watching him learn how to trust Levi's admiration for his clear beauty and become more comfortable in his own skin.
Aside from this praise, the reason for the 3 stars is because I wasn't absolutely blown away by this opening book. I wished for a bit more tension and build-up between Joe and Levi. The book felt a bit short and rushed at times. Levi sometimes came across a little too beagle-like for my liking, which has probably more to do with my overly-introverted self than Levi being an obnoxious character.
That being said, this book was overall a good start to the series and I'm excited to continue with the rest of the books, each of which are written by a different author. So far, I'm loving the close-knit Bold Brew community and I can't wait to meet the other cast of characters! Suffice to say, I'm already wishing there was a Bold Brew in my neighborhood!
Though Levi and Joe weren't a couple I felt particularly connected to, I really enjoyed how Albert developed their budding love and introduced kink into their story. To be honest, when the brat/daddy-dom side to Levi and Joe's relationship was first introduced, I wasn't quite sure how to react. This is a kink that is overall subject to quite a bit of stigma and that I am personally not the most comfortable with. That being said, I think this book does a great job at encouraging people to put their judgement aside by offering a representation of how this dynamic truly works in a healthy and consensual relationship. While I cannot speak definitively on whether Albert's representation was 100% accurate, it definitely pushed me to be more open-minded and reconsider some previously held conceptions. The reader gets to learn and explore this kink with the characters in a delightful and thoughtful manner. I also loved the inclusion of Joe as a male character who is self-conscious of his body. It was beautiful watching him learn how to trust Levi's admiration for his clear beauty and become more comfortable in his own skin.
Aside from this praise, the reason for the 3 stars is because I wasn't absolutely blown away by this opening book. I wished for a bit more tension and build-up between Joe and Levi. The book felt a bit short and rushed at times. Levi sometimes came across a little too beagle-like for my liking, which has probably more to do with my overly-introverted self than Levi being an obnoxious character.
That being said, this book was overall a good start to the series and I'm excited to continue with the rest of the books, each of which are written by a different author. So far, I'm loving the close-knit Bold Brew community and I can't wait to meet the other cast of characters! Suffice to say, I'm already wishing there was a Bold Brew in my neighborhood!
hijinx_abound's review against another edition
3.0
Age gap; some dom/sub elements but not anything formal.
I adored Joe. He is such a centered, confident man. He's capable and sexy.
Levin is adorable and the two of them was great.
I adored Joe. He is such a centered, confident man. He's capable and sexy.
Levin is adorable and the two of them was great.
nic55's review against another edition
3.0
2.5 stars rounded up. Not bad at all! This was a lovely, sexy, low-angst story with two main characters I enjoyed. Joe and Levi made sense for each other and complemented each other very well. I thought there was a good amount of depth shown about their own insecurities and background, considering this was a novella.
I just know for a fact that I won't be thinking about this story/these characters in a week. Overall, it was a nice and quick reading experience. My complete indifference towards this book, though, makes it hard for me to rate it any higher than a 2.5.
So far, I've read 2 books from this series and been underwhelmed both times. There's a couple more books in this series I'd be willing to try in the future, mostly because the tropes are ones I enjoy. Besides those...I'm good.
I just know for a fact that I won't be thinking about this story/these characters in a week. Overall, it was a nice and quick reading experience. My complete indifference towards this book, though, makes it hard for me to rate it any higher than a 2.5.
So far, I've read 2 books from this series and been underwhelmed both times. There's a couple more books in this series I'd be willing to try in the future, mostly because the tropes are ones I enjoy. Besides those...I'm good.
sarahbook's review against another edition
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
4.0
I liked this book quite a bit! The audiobook was well narrated, the characters were sweet, the sex was interesting, and it all was relatively believable.
ramintah's review against another edition
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
vicki_williams's review against another edition
4.0
Sweet with heat
This is an enjoyable, low angst, easy to read age gap romance with a dash of kink thrown in.
Levi, an adorable barista and Joe, a bear of an electrician, are two very loveable main characters who come together at the Bold Brew coffee shop.
There’s wonderful chemistry between them and they begin to explore certain areas of that together. This leads to many steam filled moments as they jointly discover what they truly need.
The road to their HEA doesn’t include any real major conflict and this makes for a very enjoyable and engaging read.
I’m looking forward to more in the multi author Bold Brew series.
This is an enjoyable, low angst, easy to read age gap romance with a dash of kink thrown in.
Levi, an adorable barista and Joe, a bear of an electrician, are two very loveable main characters who come together at the Bold Brew coffee shop.
There’s wonderful chemistry between them and they begin to explore certain areas of that together. This leads to many steam filled moments as they jointly discover what they truly need.
The road to their HEA doesn’t include any real major conflict and this makes for a very enjoyable and engaging read.
I’m looking forward to more in the multi author Bold Brew series.
flattrash's review against another edition
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
0.75
Levi (22); Joe (35, electrician)
Doug Simmons (Joe's dad); Inez (crush on Doug)
Levi's Mom (40, married to Ed, pregnant)
Levi is a new barista at Bold Brew. Joe sees him struggling and orders just a plain black coffee. Repeats this until he gets outed by Blake.
Blake offers Joe to look at Levi's malfunctioning smoke detector. Pays in pizza. Discuss Levi's past and kiss. Interrupted because Joe's dad needs a jump.
Next night: Go over their kinks, preferences, safe words, 🌶.
Invites Levi over to meet his dad, 🌶, takes him to the housing site to help out.
Joe is uncomfortable with his body and thinks he's only a fling to Levi. HEA.
Doug Simmons (Joe's dad); Inez (crush on Doug)
Levi's Mom (40, married to Ed, pregnant)
Levi is a new barista at Bold Brew. Joe sees him struggling and orders just a plain black coffee. Repeats this until he gets outed by Blake.
Blake offers Joe to look at Levi's malfunctioning smoke detector. Pays in pizza. Discuss Levi's past and kiss. Interrupted because Joe's dad needs a jump.
Next night: Go over their kinks, preferences, safe words, 🌶.
Invites Levi over to meet his dad, 🌶, takes him to the housing site to help out.
Joe is uncomfortable with his body and thinks he's only a fling to Levi. HEA.
pinesandpages's review against another edition
3.0
After 5 min I could immediately tell which kinks we would be diving into and I was indeed correct! Low on plot, high on smut. Low angst, as everyone else says which is nice.
This book wasn’t good or bad, just straight forward: you know what you’re getting and it delivers.
This book wasn’t good or bad, just straight forward: you know what you’re getting and it delivers.
unravelanelephant's review against another edition
4.0
Couldn't put this one down. The chemistry between these two was unbeatable.