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A review by bookishrealm
Virtually Yours by Jeremy Holt
emotional
funny
tense
slow-paced
3.0
This was an interesting indie graphic novel especially in regard to the premise; however, it left me wanting more especially because of the ending. CW: physical abuse off page.
Virtually Yours focuses on two characters Eva and Max. Eva is attempting to focus on her career all while attempting to appease to her family’s desire (specifically her mother) for her to have a significant other. Max, a former child star, is attempting to distract himself from his messy divorce. To help he applies to work for Virtually Yours an on-line fake dating service. This is the same agency that Eva signs up with to acquire a fake boyfriend. As with a lot of rom-coms, readers were able to tell the direction of the story early on. It doesn’t make the story bad, it just begins to reads a little on the predictable side. I found the storyline interesting in the earlier parts of the graphic novel especially those parts that address Max’s previous relationships; however, I lost interest in this towards the end. While not every romance has to end in an HEA, I was very confused about the change of direction of the story. In the beginning it felt as though readers were getting a romance between Eva and Max; however, towards the end readers get an emphasis on the importance of friendship. I’ve learned from my reading this month that friendships can be romantic just as those relationships in which the individual is seen beyond a friend; however, this was constructed in a way that presented a possible non-friend romantic connection between the main characters. Honestly, if that was the intent of the story it should have been clearer from the beginning. To go from what could have been a romantic partnership to a friendship disturbed the story in some ways. Overall, it was an interesting read. I loved the diversity of the characters and the artwork which was absolutely phenomenal. I’m hoping that the author would consider revisiting this world and giving readers a glimpse into the what happened to Eva and Max after the graphic novel ended.
Virtually Yours focuses on two characters Eva and Max. Eva is attempting to focus on her career all while attempting to appease to her family’s desire (specifically her mother) for her to have a significant other. Max, a former child star, is attempting to distract himself from his messy divorce. To help he applies to work for Virtually Yours an on-line fake dating service. This is the same agency that Eva signs up with to acquire a fake boyfriend. As with a lot of rom-coms, readers were able to tell the direction of the story early on. It doesn’t make the story bad, it just begins to reads a little on the predictable side. I found the storyline interesting in the earlier parts of the graphic novel especially those parts that address Max’s previous relationships; however, I lost interest in this towards the end. While not every romance has to end in an HEA, I was very confused about the change of direction of the story. In the beginning it felt as though readers were getting a romance between Eva and Max; however, towards the end readers get an emphasis on the importance of friendship. I’ve learned from my reading this month that friendships can be romantic just as those relationships in which the individual is seen beyond a friend; however, this was constructed in a way that presented a possible non-friend romantic connection between the main characters. Honestly, if that was the intent of the story it should have been clearer from the beginning. To go from what could have been a romantic partnership to a friendship disturbed the story in some ways. Overall, it was an interesting read. I loved the diversity of the characters and the artwork which was absolutely phenomenal. I’m hoping that the author would consider revisiting this world and giving readers a glimpse into the what happened to Eva and Max after the graphic novel ended.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Physical abuse