A review by dianaschmidty
Done and Dusted by Lyla Sage

adventurous funny hopeful lighthearted sad tense 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

4.5

This book was really fun! I love when a couple already knows each other and bicker a lot, only to discover that they never really actually knew each other before. That seems to often happen with brother’s bestie, which is a large part of the reason that it’s one of my favorite tropes. I also just flew through this book! One moment I was a quarter of the way through the book. The next moment, I was at the 80% point. This book ended up being a slower burn than I was anticipating, but it does not feel that way at all.

Emmy and Luke were both great characters! I loved being in both of their POVs, with their funny intermonologues about being confused about having feelings for the other person and their great banter with each other. They were honestly adorable, especially during the sweet moments in the second half of the book. They also had amazing chemistry!

I really liked them individually. I thought Luke’s story of having an extremely rough childhood but still managing a way through to be a successful business owner was pretty inspiring. I loved how Emmy had the sports career, subverting normal gender roles in many books. I also thought the storyline with her mental block was super interesting and very unique to this story and her character. I also have ADHD and I really appreciate when I see aspects of myself, no matter how quirky, reflected in the characters I read, which is exactly what happened with Emmy!

Overall, this was a really fun romance and I’m really excited to travel back to Rebel Blue Ranch for Gus’ (even if he really annoyed me at the end there) and Wes’ love stories! Mostly, I’m excited to see Teddy refuse to take Gus’ crap!
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