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ysette9 's review for:
The Build Up
by Tati Richardson
Pros:
1) Strong black characters and a diverse secondary cast. If a white face shows up, it is a bit part like a waitress with two lines.
2) Fat main character who is described and seen unequivocally as sexy by the other main character.
3) Descriptions of characters enjoying FOOD. Oh my, I was jealous of what they were eating at more than one point in the book.
Cons:
1) I was told a lot about how the main characters found each other attractive, but I didn't feel it. I prefer romance novels where more time is spent building up the relationship so I really feel invested in the characters and what they have together.
2) A number of the supporting characters felt flat, like tropes pulled off the shelf to fill a spot rather than full dimensional human beings. The douchebag villain bosses, the over-the-top asshole coworker blatently violating HR rules, the mother and best friend cheerleading from the corner with no nuance. I wish the story had delved more into the "trust fund" aspect of the male protagonist as this presents a potential power imbalance that could impact a relationship. I also never figured out why such a handsome and rich guy was still single well into his 40s.
3) Though the male character found the female character attractive just as she was, not in spite of her body, I wish the female character had used the word "fat" to describe herself. Instead we got a smorgasbord of euphemisms. Per the fat activists I follow, using "fat" as a neutral descriptor is important to supporting the understanding that "fat" isn't negative, but just another aspect of being human like short or blonde.
I did get into the book in the end and the story wrapped up neatly (a little too neatly?). It was a diverting read, but it lacks the depth of writers like Talia Hibbert, Jasmine Silvera, or Helen Hoang.
1) Strong black characters and a diverse secondary cast. If a white face shows up, it is a bit part like a waitress with two lines.
2) Fat main character who is described and seen unequivocally as sexy by the other main character.
3) Descriptions of characters enjoying FOOD. Oh my, I was jealous of what they were eating at more than one point in the book.
Cons:
1) I was told a lot about how the main characters found each other attractive, but I didn't feel it. I prefer romance novels where more time is spent building up the relationship so I really feel invested in the characters and what they have together.
2) A number of the supporting characters felt flat, like tropes pulled off the shelf to fill a spot rather than full dimensional human beings. The douchebag villain bosses, the over-the-top asshole coworker blatently violating HR rules, the mother and best friend cheerleading from the corner with no nuance. I wish the story had delved more into the "trust fund" aspect of the male protagonist as this presents a potential power imbalance that could impact a relationship. I also never figured out why such a handsome and rich guy was still single well into his 40s.
3) Though the male character found the female character attractive just as she was, not in spite of her body, I wish the female character had used the word "fat" to describe herself. Instead we got a smorgasbord of euphemisms. Per the fat activists I follow, using "fat" as a neutral descriptor is important to supporting the understanding that "fat" isn't negative, but just another aspect of being human like short or blonde.
I did get into the book in the end and the story wrapped up neatly (a little too neatly?). It was a diverting read, but it lacks the depth of writers like Talia Hibbert, Jasmine Silvera, or Helen Hoang.