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A review by ashley_mrose530
Don't Want You Like a Best Friend by Emma R. Alban
emotional
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.75
There were things that this book did well and then there were things that it did not do well.
I think it did the chemistry between the two main characters, Beth and Gwen, well. I liked them and watching them fall in love together. Their romantic scenes were beautifully rendered and slowed down for us. It was perfect.
I also thought the plot was done pretty well. I thought it was intriguing that this romance book was based on the two main characters attempting to get their parents together and then they grew closer in the midst of it.
Unfortunately, most of the other parts of the book were not done very well. First of all, this is supposed to be a victorian-era queer romance but the writing and language and even characters thoughts weren't reminiscent of that era at all. The writing was very modern with today's mannerisms and colloquialism so it was hard to keep that in place. If it wasn't for the outfits and balls I probably would have forgotten it altogether. For example, there was one point with a side character that was very misogynistic, rude, and all around terrible and one of the main characters thought something like "he must not be well endowed" and I highly doubt anyone from that era would think that about someone. It would be very improper. Whereas today that is probably a very typical thing to think.
The pacing was also kind of all over the place. At the beginning I thought there was too much focus on the girls' plans to get their parents together and not enough time spent building their relationship. And then when the girls finally realized that they liked each other romantically, it was like one day and they were sleeping together. I wanted the angst of them worrying about how wrong and improper it all was but then ignoring it because they loved each other so much. Not to mention that during the sex scenes it was alluded that the girls masturbate which would be highly unlikely for that time period as well.
Finally, I almost DNF'd this book after the first two sentences. I absolutely hate when a book is written in third person but has sentences written like it was in first person and that's exactly how this book started off immediately in the prologue. It made me so mad. Though the rest of the book was slightly better, there were still moments of this and I think the writing could have benefited more editing because of it.
I'm really debating on reading the second one in this series when it comes out. I love the lavender marriage plot and I want to get to know the new male characters, but I don't know if I can get through this writing again.
I think it did the chemistry between the two main characters, Beth and Gwen, well. I liked them and watching them fall in love together. Their romantic scenes were beautifully rendered and slowed down for us. It was perfect.
I also thought the plot was done pretty well. I thought it was intriguing that this romance book was based on the two main characters attempting to get their parents together and then they grew closer in the midst of it.
Unfortunately, most of the other parts of the book were not done very well. First of all, this is supposed to be a victorian-era queer romance but the writing and language and even characters thoughts weren't reminiscent of that era at all. The writing was very modern with today's mannerisms and colloquialism so it was hard to keep that in place. If it wasn't for the outfits and balls I probably would have forgotten it altogether. For example, there was one point with a side character that was very misogynistic, rude, and all around terrible and one of the main characters thought something like "he must not be well endowed" and I highly doubt anyone from that era would think that about someone. It would be very improper. Whereas today that is probably a very typical thing to think.
The pacing was also kind of all over the place. At the beginning I thought there was too much focus on the girls' plans to get their parents together and not enough time spent building their relationship. And then when the girls finally realized that they liked each other romantically, it was like one day and they were sleeping together. I wanted the angst of them worrying about how wrong and improper it all was but then ignoring it because they loved each other so much. Not to mention that during the sex scenes it was alluded that the girls masturbate which would be highly unlikely for that time period as well.
Finally, I almost DNF'd this book after the first two sentences. I absolutely hate when a book is written in third person but has sentences written like it was in first person and that's exactly how this book started off immediately in the prologue. It made me so mad. Though the rest of the book was slightly better, there were still moments of this and I think the writing could have benefited more editing because of it.
I'm really debating on reading the second one in this series when it comes out. I love the lavender marriage plot and I want to get to know the new male characters, but I don't know if I can get through this writing again.