A review by careliza
Voyeur by Fiona Cole

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

I wanted so badly to love this book, but I just didn’t. I have too many problems with the MMC. He’s incredibly immature for a 29 year old. The fact that he was SO angry about her working at voyeur even if she was only working at the bar is incredibly possessive in a toxic way. Not to mention that’s where he met her in the first place but now he finds it unacceptable that she works there. Their relationship in the book was filled with constant ups and downs due to the unhealthy nature of their relationship. There were also so many moral problems: not only is he 29 when she’s 19, he’s her professor, and worse than that he is a patron at voyeur where they have a strict policy about no mingling between patrons and adult actors. While the book is called “Voyeur,” their sex is quite vanilla. Cal went back to drinking every night that Oaklyn told him she had to work. I’m sorry, that is so dramatic and unacceptable. You are now pulling a 19 year old into your 29 year old life, where you have clearly not worked through any of the things you need to work through. His mental health is awful, and the two week break they took wouldn’t fix  what has been going on for over a decade.

The one thing I really appreciated was the inclusion and exploration of the impact childhood sexual assault by a family member can have. I appreciated this and I thought the way Cal and Oaklyn worked through this was sweet.