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theluckiestlucy 's review for:
Well, That Was Unexpected
by Jesse Q. Sutanto
Thank you to NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review!
What a slog to get through. This book provided bland characters, a plot both unbelievable and boring, terrible dialogue, and cringe-inducing romance. While aspects of the premise were appealing (who doesn't love a good fake dating story?), how they were carried out left much to be desired.
Following the story of Sharlot, taken to Indonesia by a mother after a near-miss with a scandal, and George, under pressure during a time of great publicity before an important event for his family, nothing about the plot was compelling. Even moments of supposed suspense or romance produced nothing but yawns.
As for the characters themselves, bleh. Sharlot in particular seemed almost like a parody of herself, at one moment blushing and stuttering with George but constantly bursting out with frustrated feminist declarations. Hardly any character traits or development showed up beyond these showy statements. I have almost nothing to say about George because he had no characteristics beyond "Hey, I'm a nice hot guy!"
A small development late in the story (70%) provided some very small relief from the tedium, but that development was dropped almost as suddenly as it was brought up, aside from a tiny mention at the very end.
I found it difficult to keep track of which chapters were from Sharlot or George's perspectives because their inner monologues were the. Exact. Same. And not in a good way.
1.5/5 with the extra .5 for the representation of Indonesian culture (especially the food!) and the small development. I regret having requested my early copy of this book.
What a slog to get through. This book provided bland characters, a plot both unbelievable and boring, terrible dialogue, and cringe-inducing romance. While aspects of the premise were appealing (who doesn't love a good fake dating story?), how they were carried out left much to be desired.
Following the story of Sharlot, taken to Indonesia by a mother after a near-miss with a scandal, and George, under pressure during a time of great publicity before an important event for his family, nothing about the plot was compelling. Even moments of supposed suspense or romance produced nothing but yawns.
As for the characters themselves, bleh. Sharlot in particular seemed almost like a parody of herself, at one moment blushing and stuttering with George but constantly bursting out with frustrated feminist declarations. Hardly any character traits or development showed up beyond these showy statements. I have almost nothing to say about George because he had no characteristics beyond "Hey, I'm a nice hot guy!"
A small development late in the story (70%) provided some very small relief from the tedium, but that development was dropped almost as suddenly as it was brought up, aside from a tiny mention at the very end.
I found it difficult to keep track of which chapters were from Sharlot or George's perspectives because their inner monologues were the. Exact. Same. And not in a good way.
1.5/5 with the extra .5 for the representation of Indonesian culture (especially the food!) and the small development. I regret having requested my early copy of this book.