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garbage_mcsmutly's reviews
1629 reviews
Text Appeal by Amber Roberts
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.5
This was extremely mid. I bumped up my star rating half a point because of the pro sex worker and sex positive messaging, but the book didn't have a lot else to recommend it. It was fine-not-great most of the way through but then really dropped the ball at the end IMHO.
🎧 The narrator (single POV, 1st person FMC) did a good job, I think the material just wasn't great?
🌶️ 3/5 honestly kinda minimal sexytimes considering the FMC is a sex worker but yeah it's technically open door
🏳️🌈✊ FMC is bisexual. FMC's best friend is a lesbian and also, we find out later,aromantic . I think everyone else was straight? And I'm pretty sure everyone was white.
🎧 The narrator (single POV, 1st person FMC) did a good job, I think the material just wasn't great?
🌶️ 3/5 honestly kinda minimal sexytimes considering the FMC is a sex worker but yeah it's technically open door
🏳️🌈✊ FMC is bisexual. FMC's best friend is a lesbian and also, we find out later,
Content Warnings
Moderate: Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual content, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Sexual harassment
Minor: Bullying, Infidelity, Stalking, Acephobia/Arophobia, Alcohol
Unromance by Erin Connor
emotional
funny
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
📚 I really liked this one! It started off a bit slow and almost closed door, but things picked up wrt plot and spice as the book progressed. (I mean it's still not spice-forward, but the spice was well done when it was done.)
I really appreciated that FMC was estranged from her family, and that she is able to live her life regardless of that fact. As is said in the book, damaged characters deserve HEAs too, and we don't have to wrap up every single conflict in a character's life in order for them to get a HEA. Tbh I wish more romance books would embrace the idea that you can cut toxic people out of your life even if they happen to be related to you.
🎧 Dual POV, 3rd person, two narrators. I'm not too familiar with either narrator, and I thought they both did a great job.
🌶️ 3.5/5 There were a few sex scenes with varying degrees of explicitness. The scenes were well choreographed and emotive.
🏳️🌈✊ FMC is bisexual. MMC and his family and his best friend are Latine.
I really appreciated that FMC was estranged from her family, and that she is able to live her life regardless of that fact. As is said in the book, damaged characters deserve HEAs too, and we don't have to wrap up every single conflict in a character's life in order for them to get a HEA. Tbh I wish more romance books would embrace the idea that you can cut toxic people out of your life even if they happen to be related to you.
🎧 Dual POV, 3rd person, two narrators. I'm not too familiar with either narrator, and I thought they both did a great job.
🌶️ 3.5/5 There were a few sex scenes with varying degrees of explicitness. The scenes were well choreographed and emotive.
🏳️🌈✊ FMC is bisexual. MMC and his family and his best friend are Latine.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Cursing, Grief, Alcohol
Minor: Biphobia, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Infidelity, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Religious bigotry
Phantasma by Kaylie Smith
Did not finish book. Stopped at 39%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 39%.
Just not that interesting? I was reading for a book club but missed the deadline. Also it was an eyeball read and those are always harder for me.
Lord of Scoundrels by Loretta Chase
medium-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
IDK I feel like this book gets hyped a lot but for me it was meh? The MMC is kind of terrible, which I sort of get because of his upbringing, but his sudden character growth near the end felt forced/unrealistic. The FMC was portrayed as a little too close to flawless for my taste (a great beauty, incredibly clever, always right, endless compassion, etc etc).
🎧 Only one narrator for this multi POV book. The performance was adequate, but I was underwhelmed by it too.
🌶️ 2.5/5 A rating right in the middle. There are some sex scenes but they're kinda forgettable.
🏳️🌈✊ No real diversity to speak of. The MMC is judged and bullied for having darker skin but he's still white by our standards.
🎧 Only one narrator for this multi POV book. The performance was adequate, but I was underwhelmed by it too.
🌶️ 2.5/5 A rating right in the middle. There are some sex scenes but they're kinda forgettable.
🏳️🌈✊ No real diversity to speak of. The MMC is judged and bullied for having darker skin but he's still white by our standards.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Gun violence, Sexual content, Abandonment, Classism
Moderate: Addiction, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Toxic relationship, Violence, Vomit, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Animal cruelty, Drug abuse, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Blood, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Deportation
You're the Problem, It's You by Emma R. Alban
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
This was another cute one! I really liked the accepting and loving environment that the MC's extended family provides. Some of the tropes: enemies to lovers, longtime crush, abusive step-parent, matchmakers, loving family/found family.
🎧 Both narrators were good and distinct. They had accents that tracked with the characters (to me, an American). I liked that there were two narrators. Often in historicals we only get one POV, or we get both POVs but only one narrator.
🌶️ 3/5 There were just a couple sexy scenes but they were well done.
✊🏳️🌈 There is of course gay and queer representation. Not much variety in race, ethnicity, class, etc.
🎧 Both narrators were good and distinct. They had accents that tracked with the characters (to me, an American). I liked that there were two narrators. Often in historicals we only get one POV, or we get both POVs but only one narrator.
🌶️ 3/5 There were just a couple sexy scenes but they were well done.
✊🏳️🌈 There is of course gay and queer representation. Not much variety in race, ethnicity, class, etc.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Pregnancy
Moderate: Bullying, Homophobia, Panic attacks/disorders, Toxic relationship, Outing, Gaslighting, Classism
Minor: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Violence
The CW for Outing is about someone blackmailing them with the concept of outing them. It's hanging over their heads for most of the book but ultimately does not come to pass.
Business or Pleasure by Rachel Lynn Solomon
emotional
funny
hopeful
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
4.75
I like Rachel Lynn Solomon's writing and this was another good one!
🎧 First person POV, single character/narrator (FMC). I really enjoyed the narrator's acting. My one complaint is that it was sometimes hard to tell whether she was doing an inner monologue or speaking out loud to another character, so I got a bit confused at a couple points.
🌶️ 3.5/5 The whole premise is that she's giving him sex lessons, so yes there's sex, there are several explicit scenes. Even though she's teaching him, the scenes still manage to be hot. There is also one scene with the teeniest tiniest bit of kink (impact play).
✊🏳️🌈 Both MCs are white and Jewish. The story is pretty tightly woven around just the two of them so there's not much ethnic diversity to speak of. The MMC's best friend is South Asian and queer though. One thing I really liked, that you don't see nearly as often in books as happens in real life, is that the FMChad an abortion while she was in college. It's casually mentioned and then discussed in a bit more depth but there's no waffling about it, it's just a thing that happened in her life and there's no moralizing or bargaining about it. So, A+ for that.
🎧 First person POV, single character/narrator (FMC). I really enjoyed the narrator's acting. My one complaint is that it was sometimes hard to tell whether she was doing an inner monologue or speaking out loud to another character, so I got a bit confused at a couple points.
🌶️ 3.5/5 The whole premise is that she's giving him sex lessons, so yes there's sex, there are several explicit scenes. Even though she's teaching him, the scenes still manage to be hot. There is also one scene with the teeniest tiniest bit of kink (impact play).
✊🏳️🌈 Both MCs are white and Jewish. The story is pretty tightly woven around just the two of them so there's not much ethnic diversity to speak of. The MMC's best friend is South Asian and queer though. One thing I really liked, that you don't see nearly as often in books as happens in real life, is that the FMC
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content
Moderate: Ableism, Abortion
Minor: Bullying, Emotional abuse, Antisemitism, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail
Dream Girl Drama by Tessa Bailey
emotional
hopeful
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.75
This one was fine. The spice was spicing in that good Tessa Bailey way, but the story just didn't grab me the same as her stuff usually does. It was very yearn-y which I usually appreciate but IDK something just felt off? I also am not a huge fan of either narrator, so that probably didn't help.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Sexual content, Classism
Moderate: Bullying, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Gaslighting, Abandonment
Minor: Animal death, Sexism, Blood, Pregnancy, Injury/Injury detail
Adam & Evie's Matchmaking Tour by Nora Nguyen
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.5
📙 This was a sweet book ("sweet" in the normal sense of the word; there is some spice in it) in which the MCs worked through some tricky feelings of grief, parentage, filial obligation, family expectations, bravery, personal identity, and of course love. It was emotional but not in a tear jerker way. The side characters all felt real and fleshed out.
🎧 Dual 3rd person present tense POV, which was slightly hard to get in to at first. But both narrators did a great job. I'm not familiar with the Vietnamese culture/language but I'm pretty sure the narrators are natively bilingual, which the MCs are as well, so that was good.
🌶️ 3/5 There were a few explicit scenes. The chemistry was good and the on page action was all vanilla.
✊🏳️🌈 I'm pretty sure everyone on the tour is East Asian. There are a few white characters in the FMC's life in America but this is mostly a book about Asian people. The book touches a bit on the feelings of being part of the Asian diaspora (FMC) as well as a native Vietnamese perspective (MMC). A character on the tour that the FMC becomes good friends with is pansexual. There's a pretty big class discrepancy between the FMC and everyone else in the sphere of the tour (she is newly unemployed, previously a low status professor; everyone else is very wealthy).
🎧 Dual 3rd person present tense POV, which was slightly hard to get in to at first. But both narrators did a great job. I'm not familiar with the Vietnamese culture/language but I'm pretty sure the narrators are natively bilingual, which the MCs are as well, so that was good.
🌶️ 3/5 There were a few explicit scenes. The chemistry was good and the on page action was all vanilla.
✊🏳️🌈 I'm pretty sure everyone on the tour is East Asian. There are a few white characters in the FMC's life in America but this is mostly a book about Asian people. The book touches a bit on the feelings of being part of the Asian diaspora (FMC) as well as a native Vietnamese perspective (MMC). A character on the tour that the FMC becomes good friends with is pansexual. There's a pretty big class discrepancy between the FMC and everyone else in the sphere of the tour (she is newly unemployed, previously a low status professor; everyone else is very wealthy).
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Bullying, Emotional abuse, Grief, Alcohol, Classism
Minor: Cancer, Death, Drug use, Infidelity, Racism, Sexism, Terminal illness, Violence, Vomit, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, War