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lenoreo's reviews
2146 reviews
The Best Men by Lauren Blakely, Sarina Bowen
funny
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.5
https://celebrityreaders.com/2022/01/18/the-best-men-by-sarina-bowen-lauren-blakely/
I received a free copy through the author in exchange for an honest and unbiased review/opinion.
3.5 stars — This was a fun, light and steamy romance!
As always, Teddy Hamilton and Jacob Morgan gave fantastic performances. I was a little thrown off by Mr. Morgan’s choice to give Mark an accent, but that’s what I do…notice irrelevant stuff.
I hate writing reviews like these, because I genuinely enjoyed the book, but all I can focus on is how I didn’t enjoy it as much as my friends did. I don’t mind marching to my own drum in pretty much everything, but I hate being the odd duck on a book. I don’t know if it’s the January blues or what, but I had a harder time getting (and staying) sucked into this book. I’m not sure if the pace was a bit slower? Or maybe I just didn’t connect with the characters quite as strongly. I found that the romance was very lust heavy, which is aces for most people, but I think I was missing that extra oomph from the emotional connection. I would get glimmers of it, but it was just never quite as strong as I was hoping for I guess. But seriously, if you’re looking for strong steamy content, you will be rewarded.
Mark surprised me on quite a few occasions! Like Asher, I thought I had him pinned, but he was so much more complex than that. I loved that while he could be a bit buttoned up in some aspects of his life, he was the exact opposite of repressed in so many other aspects. He was surprisingly brave, adventurous, forthright with his desires. He didn’t shy away from challenges. And wow, he genuinely cared for and had a close relationship with his sister. Sometimes I felt like his relationship with Rosie was a bit more background than I was expecting. It contributed in some areas, but at other times I felt like it was just an extra thing about him. But again, that might have just been me.
Asher surprised me too! He had these vulnerable moments that made me want to hug him. I saw these glimmers of depth to him, but I will admit that I wanted even more…I’m a greedy fucker like that.
I LOVED their banter with one another — the way they pushed and pulled and teased. Great chemistry, and I loved that the enemies part didn’t last very long. And as I said, their steamy chemistry was off the charts.
So yeah. A solid fun m/m read with lots of great steam!
I received a free copy through the author in exchange for an honest and unbiased review/opinion.
3.5 stars — This was a fun, light and steamy romance!
As always, Teddy Hamilton and Jacob Morgan gave fantastic performances. I was a little thrown off by Mr. Morgan’s choice to give Mark an accent, but that’s what I do…notice irrelevant stuff.
I hate writing reviews like these, because I genuinely enjoyed the book, but all I can focus on is how I didn’t enjoy it as much as my friends did. I don’t mind marching to my own drum in pretty much everything, but I hate being the odd duck on a book. I don’t know if it’s the January blues or what, but I had a harder time getting (and staying) sucked into this book. I’m not sure if the pace was a bit slower? Or maybe I just didn’t connect with the characters quite as strongly. I found that the romance was very lust heavy, which is aces for most people, but I think I was missing that extra oomph from the emotional connection. I would get glimmers of it, but it was just never quite as strong as I was hoping for I guess. But seriously, if you’re looking for strong steamy content, you will be rewarded.
Mark surprised me on quite a few occasions! Like Asher, I thought I had him pinned, but he was so much more complex than that. I loved that while he could be a bit buttoned up in some aspects of his life, he was the exact opposite of repressed in so many other aspects. He was surprisingly brave, adventurous, forthright with his desires. He didn’t shy away from challenges. And wow, he genuinely cared for and had a close relationship with his sister. Sometimes I felt like his relationship with Rosie was a bit more background than I was expecting. It contributed in some areas, but at other times I felt like it was just an extra thing about him. But again, that might have just been me.
Asher surprised me too! He had these vulnerable moments that made me want to hug him. I saw these glimmers of depth to him, but I will admit that I wanted even more…I’m a greedy fucker like that.
I LOVED their banter with one another — the way they pushed and pulled and teased. Great chemistry, and I loved that the enemies part didn’t last very long. And as I said, their steamy chemistry was off the charts.
So yeah. A solid fun m/m read with lots of great steam!
The Deepest Cut by J.A. Templeton
3.0
Grumble grumble...I have to stop reading books unless I know the entire series is finished. Cause when you end a good book with a cliffhanger....AHHHHH!!! So yeah, I really enjoyed it.
UPDATE: changing review to 3.5. Got so caught up in the ending, forgot how much I didn't like the corporealness of the ghost (with all the hugging and kissing)....I couldn't change my view from ghosts being untouchable, and so it was distracting...but it wouldn't have been as much fun if they couldn't touch. So this was mostly a problem on my end.
UPDATE: changing review to 3.5. Got so caught up in the ending, forgot how much I didn't like the corporealness of the ghost (with all the hugging and kissing)....I couldn't change my view from ghosts being untouchable, and so it was distracting...but it wouldn't have been as much fun if they couldn't touch. So this was mostly a problem on my end.