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garbage_mcsmutly's Reviews (1.74k)
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Okay so for the first 30% of the book I despised the FMC. She was like, too stupid for words. The remaining 70% though was better than the beginning. It was a decent personal growth story. It was not, however, much of a romance. While her relationship with the MMC does take up a lot of the book, it seems almost like an afterthought. Not because she doesn't think about him a lot (she does) but because there doesn't seem to be much chemistry between them, and it seems like she sort of just falls into a relationship with him. We don't get much in the way of the big moments when an MC feels their love towards the other MC grow, or really appreciates them, or whatever. I get that he's supposed to be the steady to her flighty, but he was so steady that he seemed like a statue. The Wordle gimmick was a cute idea (also she's very bad at Wordle, which I kind of judge her for lol) but not enough to hold up this story.
🎧 Single POV, female narrator. She did justice to the story, but the story ultimately wasn't that good.
🌶️ 2/5 The first time they hook up, it's on page, but very glossed over. All the rest is closed door.
🏳️🌈 ✊ This book takes place mostly in Canada, in a small town in Price Edward Island. Most of the characters appear to be white. The MMC's mom is Latine. I think a few of the side characters later in the book may be non white, and there's one woman married to another woman. One thing in favor of this book: both MCs discuss that they don't want kids and are secure in that decision, which we don't see very often in romance.
🎧 Single POV, female narrator. She did justice to the story, but the story ultimately wasn't that good.
🌶️ 2/5 The first time they hook up, it's on page, but very glossed over. All the rest is closed door.
🏳️🌈 ✊ This book takes place mostly in Canada, in a small town in Price Edward Island. Most of the characters appear to be white. The MMC's mom is Latine. I think a few of the side characters later in the book may be non white, and there's one woman married to another woman. One thing in favor of this book: both MCs discuss that they don't want kids and are secure in that decision, which we don't see very often in romance.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Classism
Minor: Death, Sexism, Sexual content, Medical content, Pregnancy
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
This was a cute story of two people in instalust who quickly fall for each other, and also their journey into (lightish) kink.
🌶️ 4.5/5 for several explicit scenes with light to medium kink stuff, includingDom/sub dynamics, spanking, yes Daddy (no ddlg), necklaces of both the hand and belt variety .
🏳️🌈✊ I can't think of any diversity in this book really. Some of the MMC's teammates had non white sounding names, but the MCs and the significant side characters all seemed to be white, straight, cis, straight sized, able bodied, etc.
🌶️ 4.5/5 for several explicit scenes with light to medium kink stuff, including
🏳️🌈✊ I can't think of any diversity in this book really. Some of the MMC's teammates had non white sounding names, but the MCs and the significant side characters all seemed to be white, straight, cis, straight sized, able bodied, etc.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Sexual content
Moderate: Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual harassment
Kink shaming (moderate)
emotional
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
This was a fun little human/alien romp. Some cross species misunderstandings and a hidden identity make things interesting. There's plenty of spice too, this book sort of walks the line between romance and erotica (but I think it ultimately lands on the romance side).
🎧 Dual POV with two narrators. The male narrator has a voice that's different than what I'm used to but I think it really worked.
🌶️ 4.5/5 for several explicit scenes, one or two of which get a bit kinky.
🏳️🌈✊ This story is about the only human on a space station (and the alien she loves), so diversity can't really be accounted for since everyone else is non-human. There is gender diversity among the different alien species. Oh and the FMC is fat.
🎧 Dual POV with two narrators. The male narrator has a voice that's different than what I'm used to but I think it really worked.
🌶️ 4.5/5 for several explicit scenes, one or two of which get a bit kinky.
🏳️🌈✊ This story is about the only human on a space station (and the alien she loves), so diversity can't really be accounted for since everyone else is non-human. There is gender diversity among the different alien species. Oh and the FMC is fat.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Cursing, Drug use, Fatphobia, Alcohol
Minor: Body shaming, Misogyny, Violence, Stalking, Classism
The body shaming and fatphobia is internal to the FMC (her against herself) rather than external.
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Okay so yes this was a baseball romance but I kinda could've done with less baseball lol
Overall this was a great story. The relationship between the two MCs, between the one MC and his best friend, and the MCs' personal journeys. All worthwhile.
🎧 Single POV, single narrator.
🌶️ 4/5 for only a few scenes but it gets a bump up for depicting explicit gay trans sex because I rarely see that (this is at least partially my own fault in the books I pick but anyways it's underrepresented is my point)
🏳️🌈✊ The protagonist is a trans man (so is the author). His love interest is Latine. Theyare both gay . I don't have any lived experience as a trans person, a man, or a gay person. But from my perspective this story honored the characters' experiences and humanity by creating complex beings with multiple motivations who were very relatable. So it really worked IMHO.
Overall this was a great story. The relationship between the two MCs, between the one MC and his best friend, and the MCs' personal journeys. All worthwhile.
🎧 Single POV, single narrator.
🌶️ 4/5 for only a few scenes but it gets a bump up for depicting explicit gay trans sex because I rarely see that (this is at least partially my own fault in the books I pick but anyways it's underrepresented is my point)
🏳️🌈✊ The protagonist is a trans man (so is the author). His love interest is Latine. They
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Cursing, Homophobia, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Transphobia, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Deadnaming, Vomit, Alcohol
emotional
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Oof, this was a tear jerker! It was good though.
CW There's a lot of stuff surrounding grief and survivor's guilt from the death of a parent.
🌶️ 3.5/5 for a few explicit scenes
🎧 1st person POV (FMC), single female narrator, good acting.
🏳️🌈✊ The MMC is biracial, he has a white father and a Samoan mother. The FMC is bisexual. One member of their close friend group is Black and trans, and her partner is Honduran. The other couple in the friend group, from book 1 in this series, have a non traditional family structure (young adults raising their siblings).
CW There's a lot of stuff surrounding grief and survivor's guilt from the death of a parent.
🌶️ 3.5/5 for a few explicit scenes
🎧 1st person POV (FMC), single female narrator, good acting.
🏳️🌈✊ The MMC is biracial, he has a white father and a Samoan mother. The FMC is bisexual. One member of their close friend group is Black and trans, and her partner is Honduran. The other couple in the friend group, from book 1 in this series, have a non traditional family structure (young adults raising their siblings).
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Grief, Car accident, Death of parent
Moderate: Cursing, Alcohol
Minor: Biphobia, Body shaming, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Homophobia, Toxic relationship, Transphobia, Vomit, Medical content, Classism
emotional
hopeful
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Confinement, Cursing, Fatphobia, Gun violence, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Death of parent, Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Body shaming, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Transphobia, Police brutality, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Car accident, Murder, Sexual harassment, War, Classism
emotional
funny
hopeful
medium-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
This was another great installment in the Palace of Rogues series. This might actually be my favorite of the series so far. Oh and it's got jokes! This wasn't a rom-com but there were a ton of dry jokes and banter that I thoroughly enjoyed.
🎧 unfortunately, we need to talk about the audio. The POV shifts throughout the book, and Justine Eyre, histrom royalty, has been the narrator for this whole series. She always does such a good job! But the MMC is supposed to be Welsh, and his accent is referenced multiple times in the book, and the accent JE does for him is.... I'm not sure what it is, but it's not Welsh. Perhaps Northern with a hint of Irish? Anyways that was really disappointing for me, since the Welsh accent is perhaps my favorite accent. But JE's performance, accent notwithstanding, was still great.
🌶️ 4.25/5 There were multiple explicit scenes and they were a delight.
🏳️🌈✊ No significant representation/diversity that I can think of. I suppose both MCs being from working class backgrounds might be as diverse as things get.
🎧 unfortunately, we need to talk about the audio. The POV shifts throughout the book, and Justine Eyre, histrom royalty, has been the narrator for this whole series. She always does such a good job! But the MMC is supposed to be Welsh, and his accent is referenced multiple times in the book, and the accent JE does for him is.... I'm not sure what it is, but it's not Welsh. Perhaps Northern with a hint of Irish? Anyways that was really disappointing for me, since the Welsh accent is perhaps my favorite accent. But JE's performance, accent notwithstanding, was still great.
🌶️ 4.25/5 There were multiple explicit scenes and they were a delight.
🏳️🌈✊ No significant representation/diversity that I can think of. I suppose both MCs being from working class backgrounds might be as diverse as things get.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Grief
Moderate: Bullying, Cursing, Terminal illness, Classism
Minor: Sexism, Violence, Blood, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
This was a solid read. The emotions, the chemistry, the trauma, the friendships were all great. I don't want to give anyone away in my review so that's all I'll say about the plot.
🎧 This audiobook had a single female narrator, as the whole book is first person from the FMC's perspective.
🌶️ 4.25/5 for a handful of explicit scenes
🏳️🌈✊ We have Latine rep in the FMC and several side characters in her life. Another side character is East Asian. We also have an asexual side character. FMC is also fat.
🎧 This audiobook had a single female narrator, as the whole book is first person from the FMC's perspective.
🌶️ 4.25/5 for a handful of explicit scenes
🏳️🌈✊ We have Latine rep in the FMC and several side characters in her life. Another side character is East Asian. We also have an asexual side character. FMC is also fat.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Toxic friendship, Alcohol
Moderate: Fatphobia, Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Cancer, Vomit, Grief, Pregnancy
emotional
hopeful
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This was a cute quick read. Kind of heavy subject matter but not done in a super heavy/depressing way. There was a lot of emotional vulnerability within the MCs. It was good to see how they coped with that to be together.
POV was first person, FMC only. Single narrator.
🌶️ 3.5/5 Things got explicit once or twice but this was mostly a slow burn.
🏳️🌈✊ FMC is adopted. One of the central characters (MC's brother, who lives with them) is Deaf. One of FMC's best friends is Black and trans. It's unclear whether many of the side characters are white or BIPOC.
POV was first person, FMC only. Single narrator.
🌶️ 3.5/5 Things got explicit once or twice but this was mostly a slow burn.
🏳️🌈✊ FMC is adopted. One of the central characters (MC's brother, who lives with them) is Deaf. One of FMC's best friends is Black and trans. It's unclear whether many of the side characters are white or BIPOC.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Abandonment
Moderate: Ableism, Addiction, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Drug abuse, Medical content
Minor: Drug use, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, Death of parent
emotional
funny
hopeful
medium-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
I'm enjoying this series. It's cool getting to see more facets of the Winstons and the other characters. I like how the timeline of this story overlapped with the previous book.
🎧 Dual POV with two narrators. The male narrator is a repeat for the MMCs in this series.
🌶️ 4/5 A handful of explicit scenes, they were decently done. Not particularly out there or anything, kinda vanilla, but still a good time.
🏳️🌈✊ The FMC has OCD. This is central to her character as it's pretty severe and she is working hard to control her actions/compulsions. I think the author did a really good job of showing what life with OCD can be like and still respecting the FMC as a full person with many different sides to her, who is capable and deserving of loving and being loved.
🎧 Dual POV with two narrators. The male narrator is a repeat for the MMCs in this series.
🌶️ 4/5 A handful of explicit scenes, they were decently done. Not particularly out there or anything, kinda vanilla, but still a good time.
🏳️🌈✊ The FMC has OCD. This is central to her character as it's pretty severe and she is working hard to control her actions/compulsions. I think the author did a really good job of showing what life with OCD can be like and still respecting the FMC as a full person with many different sides to her, who is capable and deserving of loving and being loved.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Sexual content
Moderate: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Self harm, Grief, Abandonment
Minor: Cancer, Cursing, Infidelity, Toxic relationship, Violence, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Alcohol