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A review by kikyorin
Trapped with Mr. Walker by Elle Nicoll
4.0
TW: mentions of rape in review
I would have given this book 5 stars. I absolutely loved this book aside from the fact that it had a martyr/misunderstanding trope in it. Harley works for a man whose best friend loves to antagonize her, Reed Walker. They have great banter. Reed is running for mayor in NYC. He needs a fake girlfriend and one thing leads to another and Harley is being paid 4k to be his fake girlfriend. I really liked that the fake aspect is never a huge blow-up. Their relationship grows and grows into the most natural thing. They are literally made for each other. I absolutely adore Bruce, Harley's bonsai plant, and Beryl, a plant she saved. The quirks from the sloth mug used for Harley's period to her pink slippers to her caticorn pajamas. There was something so real in the details about those items that made Harley more endearing as an FMC.
I mentioned the martyr/misunderstanding trope, and here's why: Harley assumes too much. She assumes that Reed loves Bea, his ex, still and that she broke his heart. She didn't. Harley assumes that Reed's sister, Riley, was raped when it was Reed who had been raped. Reed and Harley grow together, putting the pieces of their own trauma in a space that remembers but doesn't hurt as badly. My favorite moments are when they comfort each other through that pain.
A favorite moment of mine is when Harley is trying to break up with Reed and he ends up smashing the wall and Harley jumps and breaks Bruce's pot. The significance of how much he joked around about her talking and caring for her plants to that moment when they were falling apart. Reed knew how much Bruce means to her and it broke him to break something that she loved that he also grew attached to.
There is a lot of sex in this book. Normally, if it is almost every chapter it becomes too repetitive. Even though there was a lot, it didn't feel like a burden. Sex between them helped move the plot along and it also was just for entertainment. Overall, this book was really good and a great start to 2023.
I would have given this book 5 stars. I absolutely loved this book aside from the fact that it had a martyr/misunderstanding trope in it. Harley works for a man whose best friend loves to antagonize her, Reed Walker. They have great banter. Reed is running for mayor in NYC. He needs a fake girlfriend and one thing leads to another and Harley is being paid 4k to be his fake girlfriend. I really liked that the fake aspect is never a huge blow-up. Their relationship grows and grows into the most natural thing. They are literally made for each other. I absolutely adore Bruce, Harley's bonsai plant, and Beryl, a plant she saved. The quirks from the sloth mug used for Harley's period to her pink slippers to her caticorn pajamas. There was something so real in the details about those items that made Harley more endearing as an FMC.
I mentioned the martyr/misunderstanding trope, and here's why: Harley assumes too much. She assumes that Reed loves Bea, his ex, still and that she broke his heart. She didn't. Harley assumes that Reed's sister, Riley, was raped when it was Reed who had been raped. Reed and Harley grow together, putting the pieces of their own trauma in a space that remembers but doesn't hurt as badly. My favorite moments are when they comfort each other through that pain.
A favorite moment of mine is when Harley is trying to break up with Reed and he ends up smashing the wall and Harley jumps and breaks Bruce's pot. The significance of how much he joked around about her talking and caring for her plants to that moment when they were falling apart. Reed knew how much Bruce means to her and it broke him to break something that she loved that he also grew attached to.
There is a lot of sex in this book. Normally, if it is almost every chapter it becomes too repetitive. Even though there was a lot, it didn't feel like a burden. Sex between them helped move the plot along and it also was just for entertainment. Overall, this book was really good and a great start to 2023.