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A review by bookishlyjae
Eyes on Me by Sara Cate
dark
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
I have so many mixed feelings about this book. The parts I loved, I loved with my whole heart. But there was also quite a bit of eye rolling and cringing.
What I Loved:
Mia's character was amazing. She was well developed and interesting the whole way through. She was confident, snarky, didn't take any of Garrett's bs, and firmly set her boundaries/comfort levels. Her confidence when it came to being a cam girl both in front of and away from the camera was brilliant. She wasn't ashamed of it and wasn't afraid to be herself/show herself off. I just absolutely loved her character.
The SPICE! It was everything. The kinks, the use of toys, the language? Yes, yes, and yes. Definitely worthy of praise.
What I Didn't Love:
The plot was interesting but at times redundant. The characters, namely Garrett (who is a problem all on his own), repeated the same thoughts and phrases over and over again. I understand that the point of an obstacle is to be something the characters struggle with repeatedly. But it was the fact that Garrett basically did the same actions over and over again, expecting a different result, and having the same outcome. It just became boring after a while.
The chemistry between the two characters was good, of a little unbelievable at times. The age gap and step sibling tropes were well established and I expected them going into the novel. So they weren't necessarily a negative. But I did deduct half a star for the constant references to them being siblings and their age gap like it was a turn on or something.
Garrett. I didn't like his personality really. It was just cringey and annoying. I saw another user mention that he seemed like a guy that never grew out of his frat boy phase, and I have to agree. Sure he was hot during the spicy scenes and his mental health journey was well representative of what it's like to struggle with an illness. But he said a lot of things that made me cringe or roll my eyes and just really dislike him.
Story: 3.5/5
Spice: 4/5
What I Loved:
Mia's character was amazing. She was well developed and interesting the whole way through. She was confident, snarky, didn't take any of Garrett's bs, and firmly set her boundaries/comfort levels. Her confidence when it came to being a cam girl both in front of and away from the camera was brilliant. She wasn't ashamed of it and wasn't afraid to be herself/show herself off. I just absolutely loved her character.
The SPICE! It was everything. The kinks, the use of toys, the language? Yes, yes, and yes. Definitely worthy of praise.
What I Didn't Love:
The plot was interesting but at times redundant. The characters, namely Garrett (who is a problem all on his own), repeated the same thoughts and phrases over and over again. I understand that the point of an obstacle is to be something the characters struggle with repeatedly. But it was the fact that Garrett basically did the same actions over and over again, expecting a different result, and having the same outcome. It just became boring after a while.
The chemistry between the two characters was good, of a little unbelievable at times. The age gap and step sibling tropes were well established and I expected them going into the novel. So they weren't necessarily a negative. But I did deduct half a star for the constant references to them being siblings and their age gap like it was a turn on or something.
Garrett. I didn't like his personality really. It was just cringey and annoying. I saw another user mention that he seemed like a guy that never grew out of his frat boy phase, and I have to agree. Sure he was hot during the spicy scenes and his mental health journey was well representative of what it's like to struggle with an illness. But he said a lot of things that made me cringe or roll my eyes and just really dislike him.
Story: 3.5/5
Spice: 4/5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Mental illness
Minor: Suicide attempt