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3.75 AVERAGE
3.75 AVERAGE
funny
hopeful
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:
No
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book annoyed me, but it kept me entertained on a long drive through me telling it how stupid it was. It was enjoyable for the fact that it was so obvious and required 0 brain power to get through.
Nothing was a surprise (who is this mystery character? That's right, you guessed it the first time they were mentioned), no one was in peril (I legit said "and Tiny Tim...WHO DID NOT DIE!"), and the tropes were troping (do Americans really last name each other all the time?!).
Not the worst thing I read, but I am not interested in the others in the series.
Nothing was a surprise (who is this mystery character? That's right, you guessed it the first time they were mentioned), no one was in peril (I legit said "and Tiny Tim...WHO DID NOT DIE!"), and the tropes were troping (do Americans really last name each other all the time?!).
Not the worst thing I read, but I am not interested in the others in the series.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Chronic illness, Sexual content, Death of parent
Minor: Toxic relationship, Medical content
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Length: 9 hours, 38 minutes - I couldn't listen patiently, and upped the speed to 1.2x after the first half.
Narrator: Natalie Naudus - Pleasant enough
Shelves: Series (New), FAH Reading Challenge (76. Book about or featuring a narcissist or influencer)
Met Expectations - For all intents and purposes, this was a well written book of the "close proximity" romance troupe, but it wasn't for me. It was too cutesy with some cringe-worthy parts.
Exceeded Expectations
Below Expectations
Why did I make myself read this?
Narrator: Natalie Naudus - Pleasant enough
Shelves: Series (New), FAH Reading Challenge (76. Book about or featuring a narcissist or influencer)
Met Expectations - For all intents and purposes, this was a well written book of the "close proximity" romance troupe, but it wasn't for me. It was too cutesy with some cringe-worthy parts.
Below Expectations
Why did I make myself read this?
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I liked this book more than the first!
I’d probably give this a 2.5** rating? Honestly I thought it was pretty well written. It’s funny and clever. Starts out with an entertaining hook. But it was pretty crass at times, had a few steamy scenes, and strong language throughout. This book felt like “Better Than The Movies” and “What’s Your Number” rolled into one. It’s totally predictable and has a few tropes running amok, but it was fun watching the characters fall for each other and seeing how their relationship unfolded. Almost too sappy at the end but it felt fitting for our character. Totally whipped that bad boy!
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
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
lighthearted
medium-paced
I struggle with writing interesting reviews about contemporary romance books more than any other type of book because they're the most subjective, at least for me. I'm sure other people adore this book, and them enjoying it wouldn't make me bat an eyelid because I know I'm picky about romance. Because of that, I want to start by saying that my favourite thing about the book was how it attempts to deconstruct the "crazy ex-girlfriend" stereotype. I also enjoyed the epilogue, as well as Trevor's relationship with his family! I hadn't realised this was the second book in a series until I was about halfway through; if I'd known, I'm sure I would've liked Tara's relationship with her family more as well.
Those were my main positives. The rest of the book felt like a collection of tropes. In fact, the main character, Tara, evencompares her love interest to a trope on two separate occasions, one of these after they start dating . The love interest, Trevor, fits the overdone archetype of a grumpy man who sleeps around and is emotionally detached, until he miraculously meets the love of his life. This can occasionally work well when done with nuance or when it offers something new, but it felt much like other romances I've read before. Tara is also much like other romance protagonists in that she appears to be the first person who tries to push Trevor to be more open about his feelings. It made me squirm every time she pushed against his boundaries, even if it was for the best in the long run, because she had no way of knowing that it would be good for him.
Tara was actually one of my main issues with the book. Again, I'm sure plenty of people love her, and I don't think she was written badly (necessarily), but she wasn't for me. She is a romance book influencer who decides to reach out to each of her ten exes in the hopes of achieving a second chance romance. Now, I love a second chance romance, it's one of my favourite tropes, but the way it was handled made me uncomfortable. She publicly talks about her exes on Instagram and receives opinions from her followers in her comments, another thing that made me squirm a lot. I hated everything about that particular aspect.
Certain non-influencer qualities of hers also made me uncomfortable, including how "clingy" and "obsessive" she could be, such as keeping memorabilia from her exes from as long as almost twenty years before. I put those adjectives in quotes because I'm having a mini crisis in which I can't tell whether I harbour internalised misogyny or not. The book tries to get away from the narrative of the "crazy ex-girlfriend", which I think is great, but am I contributing to that narrative by not liking how sentimental and nostalgic Tara is about important aspects of her life? I don't know! This is another reason why I struggle to write reviews for romance books, because there are so many social norms and dating conventions and whatever else that just don't make sense to my avoidant attachment style.
However, I don't think that detracts from another central criticism I have, which is that the book is heteronormative. Yes, it's a heterosexual romance, but it's not always as apparent as it was with this book. I don't think this list is excessively spoiler-filled, but be warned because I won't be tagging it:
Those were my main positives. The rest of the book felt like a collection of tropes. In fact, the main character, Tara, even
Tara was actually one of my main issues with the book. Again, I'm sure plenty of people love her, and I don't think she was written badly (necessarily), but she wasn't for me. She is a romance book influencer who decides to reach out to each of her ten exes in the hopes of achieving a second chance romance. Now, I love a second chance romance, it's one of my favourite tropes, but the way it was handled made me uncomfortable. She publicly talks about her exes on Instagram and receives opinions from her followers in her comments, another thing that made me squirm a lot. I hated everything about that particular aspect.
Certain non-influencer qualities of hers also made me uncomfortable, including how "clingy" and "obsessive" she could be, such as keeping memorabilia from her exes from as long as almost twenty years before. I put those adjectives in quotes because I'm having a mini crisis in which I can't tell whether I harbour internalised misogyny or not. The book tries to get away from the narrative of the "crazy ex-girlfriend", which I think is great, but am I contributing to that narrative by not liking how sentimental and nostalgic Tara is about important aspects of her life? I don't know! This is another reason why I struggle to write reviews for romance books, because there are so many social norms and dating conventions and whatever else that just don't make sense to my avoidant attachment style.
However, I don't think that detracts from another central criticism I have, which is that the book is heteronormative. Yes, it's a heterosexual romance, but it's not always as apparent as it was with this book. I don't think this list is excessively spoiler-filled, but be warned because I won't be tagging it:
- Tara's Instagram followers ship her and Trevor the moment they see him, despite him being introduced as a friend and roommate, because apparently a man and a woman cannot be friends if the man is conventionally attractive
- Too many Taylor Swift references (no, I am not explaining how that is heteronormative)
- Jealousy!!! The book is about Tara reuniting with her exes, and yet Tara is jealous the moment Trevor might reconnect with his ex!!! (He does also get a little jealous)
- She's the only person who knows all of Trevor's secrets! This might be my least favourite thing in romance books! "Let's eliminate toxic masculinity by making the love interest treat his girlfriend well!" "Should we give him good friends too?" "No, that's too far, his sole best friend and confidant should be the love of his life!" So infuriating!
- There's a part where Tara says men don't want to date women who are feminine and it was a tiny throwaway thing but it just made me think of "let men be masculine" so I had to include it
- They have feelings for each other from day one
- Tara is so horny. I do support her right to be horny but did I tune out every time she described how seeing Trevor's body made her feel? Absolutely
To conclude, the book is certainly well-written. It has no issues with structure or pacing. There was a wide but not overwhelming cast of characters, and each had their own distinct personality. Despite it being the second book in a series, it felt perfectly fine as a standalone, which is something I like about romance series. However, my feelings about contemporary romance books ultimately come down to how much I like the particular tropes and characters, and in this case they didn't work for me. That definitely won't be the case for everyone!
EDITING ONE MINUTE LATER TO ADD THAT THE TWO MAIN CHARACTERS ALSO HAD NO CHEMISTRY IN MY OPINION. THAT'S SUCH A MAJOR THING TO FORGET THAT I GENUINELY ASSUMED I'D ALREADY SAID IT. anyway let me quickly get this out of the way: they had no sexual or romantic chemistry imo, their confession scene was just infuriating, as was the third act conflict, their first kiss was also the worst thing ever. the end.
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I did not expect this to be a 5 star read. I’m so happy it was though! I love me a roommate to lovers book. I also love that she was book influencer like I’m trying to be. I loved the characters. I loved her whole mission to find love in her exes while also finding love with Trevor. I loved loved loved the back and forth between Trevor and Tara. He really is her fictional boyfriend come to life. This book was so so sweet and just good!