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A review by zareena
Her Best Shot by Shannyn Schroeder
1.0
Review originally posted on The Slanted Bookshelf.
My Rating: 1 star
This book was most definitely a disappointment. Right from the start Her Best Shot didn’t quite click for me. I felt like I’d been thrown straight into Layla’s life but instead of the author working to make me feel connected I was expected to catch up and know Layla. Yeah, that didn’t quite work for me.
Layla is a math and computer major who’s just been offered a job with the NSA so she and her friend decide to celebrate with a spring break trip. When I initially heard about the Hot & Nerdy series a couple of months ago, with each book focusing on a different girl in one friendship group, I thought friendship would play a large role in the characters’ lives. I wanted to see the relationships within the friendship group, meet the other girls and really fall in love with them but that didn’t happen. I think Her Best Shot would have been much better if I’d been able to see Layla interact with her friends more because the way the book was written she felt pretty flat.
So Layla’s car breaks down, she meets a hot guy named Phin, and she ends up staying with him while he fixes her car. This might have been me stereotyping (in which case shame on me) or just the way the summary or the book portrayed Layla, but I had expected her to be less comfortable around guys. Instead she was confident in herself and her sexuality as well as around Phin so go her :) Phin and Layla started off with amazing chemistry, which I was all for, but unfortunately the book went even more downhill from here.
Layla wasn’t the only character who felt two-dimensional and I really didn’t connect with Phin either. It was more like these characters were play a role – a lot of it either wasn’t that genuine or it just failed to capture me. Unfortunately I thought the book took a turn down the insta-love route. It’s weird because it wasn’t really insta-love at all – they’re just attracted to each other, which doesn’t bother me, but suddenly they realise it’s more than sex and then Layla is thinking of just staying with Phin indefinitely. Again, this could have worked but then she doesn’t talk to Phin about it at all (hello, communication!!!) and just expects him to be on the same page. Uh no. This led to both Layla and Phin doing stupid stuff. Kind of annoying if you ask me.
My other big problem with Her Best Shot was that the author didn’t show me stuff I wanted to see. That sounds kind of vague but, for example, let’s say something big happens, there are supposedly a truck load of feels, and the characters are left trying to sort through those emotions. Usually this is where I connect most with the characters but the author skipped it! It was like, here’s a twist, oops they’re both suffering, but let me just fast-forward a couple of months and just show you the toned down aftermath. Hello, that doesn’t do anything for me!
But despite all my complaining I didn’t hate the book. I just definitely wouldn’t recommend it or reread it. Her Best Shot started off okay and if it had continued that way it might have been a 3 star read. Instead it’s a 1 star read.
New Adult
1 star
My Rating: 1 star
This book was most definitely a disappointment. Right from the start Her Best Shot didn’t quite click for me. I felt like I’d been thrown straight into Layla’s life but instead of the author working to make me feel connected I was expected to catch up and know Layla. Yeah, that didn’t quite work for me.
Layla is a math and computer major who’s just been offered a job with the NSA so she and her friend decide to celebrate with a spring break trip. When I initially heard about the Hot & Nerdy series a couple of months ago, with each book focusing on a different girl in one friendship group, I thought friendship would play a large role in the characters’ lives. I wanted to see the relationships within the friendship group, meet the other girls and really fall in love with them but that didn’t happen. I think Her Best Shot would have been much better if I’d been able to see Layla interact with her friends more because the way the book was written she felt pretty flat.
So Layla’s car breaks down, she meets a hot guy named Phin, and she ends up staying with him while he fixes her car. This might have been me stereotyping (in which case shame on me) or just the way the summary or the book portrayed Layla, but I had expected her to be less comfortable around guys. Instead she was confident in herself and her sexuality as well as around Phin so go her :) Phin and Layla started off with amazing chemistry, which I was all for, but unfortunately the book went even more downhill from here.
Layla wasn’t the only character who felt two-dimensional and I really didn’t connect with Phin either. It was more like these characters were play a role – a lot of it either wasn’t that genuine or it just failed to capture me. Unfortunately I thought the book took a turn down the insta-love route. It’s weird because it wasn’t really insta-love at all – they’re just attracted to each other, which doesn’t bother me, but suddenly they realise it’s more than sex and then Layla is thinking of just staying with Phin indefinitely. Again, this could have worked but then she doesn’t talk to Phin about it at all (hello, communication!!!) and just expects him to be on the same page. Uh no. This led to both Layla and Phin doing stupid stuff. Kind of annoying if you ask me.
My other big problem with Her Best Shot was that the author didn’t show me stuff I wanted to see. That sounds kind of vague but, for example, let’s say something big happens, there are supposedly a truck load of feels, and the characters are left trying to sort through those emotions. Usually this is where I connect most with the characters but the author skipped it! It was like, here’s a twist, oops they’re both suffering, but let me just fast-forward a couple of months and just show you the toned down aftermath. Hello, that doesn’t do anything for me!
But despite all my complaining I didn’t hate the book. I just definitely wouldn’t recommend it or reread it. Her Best Shot started off okay and if it had continued that way it might have been a 3 star read. Instead it’s a 1 star read.
New Adult
1 star