Scan barcode
A review by girlgetsbook
Love and Other Words by Christina Lauren
emotional
hopeful
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
3.75
Finally a romance I feel just okay about, I've been struggling since 2021 to find a romance that I neither loved and gave 5 stars nor disliked and wanted to wash my eyes with bleach afterwards because how bad the writing was. This is a straight up good romance.
It is not a five-star for me because of a few things that may be just nitpicking on my part but nevertheless I will list.
1. The Brazilian thing: Brazilian here and I've never seen a representation so... non-existent as this one, it's just kind of a quirky thing about our main girl, something to throw away in conversation, even the only time someone speaks Portuguese (and it's her MOM), they make a mistake (it's not "meu docinha" it's "meu docinho").
2. The letters: are a bit excessive and it took me out of the story, it feels unrealistic to plan out a whole life like that, every time it appeared I cringed a bit.
3. Most of this book is a YA novel, I wasn't expecting that. Yes I knew they met as kids and this is totally my fault for not realizing they were going to spend so long exploring the awkward stages of adolescence and the dramas and questions that came with it. Still I think the past kind of carried the whole book, with the present not having enough tension or development for my taste. Which leads me to another topic.
4. There was no pay-off or reward when it came to their relationship in the present, it was way too rushed, I'd loved if we could see some mystery when it came to Elliot's POV or how he was feeling, I feel like making him be so honest took off the tension. Which also brings me to another topic.
5. Elliot was too perfect. He was too perfect even as a kid (and boys are not perfect, and that's okay). It is okay to have a few flaws on your main guy, it actually makes for an interesting story to have him develop as time goes on just as Macy did. Overall I think this book holds up as being a universally loved classic contemporary romance.
It is not a five-star for me because of a few things that may be just nitpicking on my part but nevertheless I will list.
1. The Brazilian thing: Brazilian here and I've never seen a representation so... non-existent as this one, it's just kind of a quirky thing about our main girl, something to throw away in conversation, even the only time someone speaks Portuguese (and it's her MOM), they make a mistake (it's not "meu docinha" it's "meu docinho").
2. The letters: are a bit excessive and it took me out of the story, it feels unrealistic to plan out a whole life like that, every time it appeared I cringed a bit.
3. Most of this book is a YA novel, I wasn't expecting that. Yes I knew they met as kids and this is totally my fault for not realizing they were going to spend so long exploring the awkward stages of adolescence and the dramas and questions that came with it. Still I think the past kind of carried the whole book, with the present not having enough tension or development for my taste. Which leads me to another topic.
4. There was no pay-off or reward when it came to their relationship in the present, it was way too rushed, I'd loved if we could see some mystery when it came to Elliot's POV or how he was feeling, I feel like making him be so honest took off the tension. Which also brings me to another topic.
5. Elliot was too perfect. He was too perfect even as a kid (and boys are not perfect, and that's okay). It is okay to have a few flaws on your main guy, it actually makes for an interesting story to have him develop as time goes on just as Macy did. Overall I think this book holds up as being a universally loved classic contemporary romance.