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A review by freadomlibrary
A Love By Design by Elizabeth Everett
2.0
Actual rating 2.5 stars
Trigger warnings: death, physical abuse, war, lying, manipulation, attempted murder, fraud, injuries
I have to say right off the bat that this rating is more about me than about the book. I spent about a month trying to read this book (borrowed it from the library twice) and it was so hard for me to get into. That was mostly about my mental health this last month, but this series also really lost me after the second book. The charm that I'd enjoyed in the first book was completely lost in the second and because of that, even though it tried to come back in this book, I still wasn't able to fully invest in the story. I also have a hard time accepting a lot of dishonesty between characters and I found it hard to understand Margaret's perspective. I really enjoyed Grantham as a character, he's funny and charming, but at the same time, he tended to get on my nerves with his disregard for people's boundaries. I feel like if I had been in a better headspace, the romance and plot would've been much more entertaining and the issues I had might've been more annoying than frustrating. But I definitely don't think I would've completely fallen in love. It might've been a 3/3.5 star book in another time, but I really wanted to complete this series this year so I just pushed through it haha. I'm not sure if I'll continue with these authors books (I tend to feel like the pacing is always a little bit off), but I will think about it for sure.
Trigger warnings: death, physical abuse, war, lying, manipulation, attempted murder, fraud, injuries
I have to say right off the bat that this rating is more about me than about the book. I spent about a month trying to read this book (borrowed it from the library twice) and it was so hard for me to get into. That was mostly about my mental health this last month, but this series also really lost me after the second book. The charm that I'd enjoyed in the first book was completely lost in the second and because of that, even though it tried to come back in this book, I still wasn't able to fully invest in the story. I also have a hard time accepting a lot of dishonesty between characters and I found it hard to understand Margaret's perspective. I really enjoyed Grantham as a character, he's funny and charming, but at the same time, he tended to get on my nerves with his disregard for people's boundaries. I feel like if I had been in a better headspace, the romance and plot would've been much more entertaining and the issues I had might've been more annoying than frustrating. But I definitely don't think I would've completely fallen in love. It might've been a 3/3.5 star book in another time, but I really wanted to complete this series this year so I just pushed through it haha. I'm not sure if I'll continue with these authors books (I tend to feel like the pacing is always a little bit off), but I will think about it for sure.