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opalmars's Reviews (350)
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
I enjoyed the story well enough, though I think it was too “small” for me, if that makes sense. The plot was a little meh, and the bad guy was quite forgettable. The story just felt very contained and didn’t explore as much of the world as I would’ve liked. With that said, I know this series is well-beloved, so I might continue it to see if it lives up to the hype. I’m hoping the rest of the series opens up this world and provides grander adventures.
Although I didn’t care much for the plot, I did enjoy the characters! Adam, especially; he’s my fave rn! ^-^
Also – unpopular opinion – but I kinda dreaded the audiobook. I just didn’t think an old man with a raspy voice was the best choice for this story. But apparently everybody loves this narrator. Good for y’all, I guess.
Overall, I’m just a little sad this wasn’t a banger and I didn’t love it as much as I thought I would, but oh well.
Although I didn’t care much for the plot, I did enjoy the characters! Adam, especially; he’s my fave rn! ^-^
Also – unpopular opinion – but I kinda dreaded the audiobook. I just didn’t think an old man with a raspy voice was the best choice for this story. But apparently everybody loves this narrator. Good for y’all, I guess.
Overall, I’m just a little sad this wasn’t a banger and I didn’t love it as much as I thought I would, but oh well.
lighthearted
slow-paced
Yawn. 🥱 This book had such a great premise and seemed right up my alley, but for some reason I just couldn’t connect with it. I liked Dora as a MC, and her banter with Elias was fun, at times, but I never *felt* their romance, you know? At some point she says she’s in love with him and I was genuinely taken aback, because I didn’t see that coming AT ALLLLLL. I just didn’t feel their connection and didn’t care about the romance.
The plot also had the chance to be intriguing, but I think it was too surface-level for me to care. I feel like the villain only became a Big Deal ™ near the end, and was kind of irrelevant throughout most of the book. This is the kind of pointless and tedious story that I’ll forget about in a week.
Also, these people became aware that poverty exists and started feeling bad about it. Okay. Congratulations. What a discovery. 🥴 Just silly, and not in a fun way, just a *yawn* way. Nothing about this story was compelling. The audiobook was decent, though.
The plot also had the chance to be intriguing, but I think it was too surface-level for me to care. I feel like the villain only became a Big Deal ™ near the end, and was kind of irrelevant throughout most of the book. This is the kind of pointless and tedious story that I’ll forget about in a week.
Also, these people became aware that poverty exists and started feeling bad about it. Okay. Congratulations. What a discovery. 🥴 Just silly, and not in a fun way, just a *yawn* way. Nothing about this story was compelling. The audiobook was decent, though.
lighthearted
medium-paced
This didn’t fully work for me. I enjoyed the characters and the premise, but something about this was too simple. Yes, it is a cozy fantasy, so I wasn’t expecting anything too crazy, but still. I think the plot was a little basic and everything felt a bit too convenient and easy for the characters. You reeeally have to suspend your disbelief, and even then, nothing was that compelling, for me. This book is fairly short, and yet took me 2 WEEKS to finish!!! Idk why 😭
The characters were nice, but I didn’t fully understand their connection. They were both willing to help the other despite being basically strangers. I kind of get it in Shao Qing’s case (he was intrigued by the feelings he suddenly felt with Zhi Lan), but I feel like Zhi Lan wasn’t close enough to Shao Qing yet to be so intent on finding his soul. Perhaps if the story spanned a longer time period I’d feel more of their bond. Then, after only knowing each other for 3 days, they were in love (????), and thenthey don’t see each other in months, and when they reunite, they get engaged… After spending a total of 3 DAYS with each other… Once again, their time together should’ve spanned longer.
Despite that, I still think this book was enjoyable, and I’m excited for Ireen Chau’s next book!
The characters were nice, but I didn’t fully understand their connection. They were both willing to help the other despite being basically strangers. I kind of get it in Shao Qing’s case (he was intrigued by the feelings he suddenly felt with Zhi Lan), but I feel like Zhi Lan wasn’t close enough to Shao Qing yet to be so intent on finding his soul. Perhaps if the story spanned a longer time period I’d feel more of their bond. Then, after only knowing each other for 3 days, they were in love (????), and then
Despite that, I still think this book was enjoyable, and I’m excited for Ireen Chau’s next book!
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Unfortunately, this did not move me. 😐 Since this is a historical romance, I was expecting a slow burn full of yearning. Instead, Viola and Gracewood were IMMEDIATELY into each other, and simply spent the book saying they couldn’t be together, while full on acknowledging that they were in love, which got repetitive and tiring.
While Viola already knew and loved Gracewood before the book even began, Gracewood actually didn’t recognize Viola immediately. But, even though she was a stranger to him, he was instantly into her, for some reason…………… His instant attraction just made no sense, to me. And then they were touching and caressing each other only a couple of hours after meeting (so improper, for the time period!), AND they were ready to kiss (and marry!) after ONE singular week… 🫠🫠🫠 Yeah… The book could’ve been done after only *1/3*…… This was the opposite of a slow burn.
The other 2/3 of the book were just them talking about how they couldn’t be together, yet acting completely in love, sleeping together, etc. I appreciated the trans rep A LOT, though, and I’m happy this was still, for the most part, a happy book.
The characters were decent. I especially liked how caring and reassuring Gracewood was. He’s a great LI. I didn’t care much for the SCs, so the whole climax of the book was quite boring to me. Though the rest of the book was boring as well, so… 🤷🏻♀️ Oh, also, the audiobook was okay, except for some of the voices the narrator chose to do, especially for little children, and some of the female SCs. Quite distracting, at points, but whatever.
Anyways. I’m sad this was so disappointing. Goodbye.
While Viola already knew and loved Gracewood before the book even began, Gracewood actually didn’t recognize Viola immediately. But, even though she was a stranger to him, he was instantly into her, for some reason…………… His instant attraction just made no sense, to me. And then they were touching and caressing each other only a couple of hours after meeting (so improper, for the time period!), AND they were ready to kiss (and marry!) after ONE singular week… 🫠🫠🫠 Yeah… The book could’ve been done after only *1/3*…… This was the opposite of a slow burn.
The other 2/3 of the book were just them talking about how they couldn’t be together, yet acting completely in love, sleeping together, etc. I appreciated the trans rep A LOT, though, and I’m happy this was still, for the most part, a happy book.
The characters were decent. I especially liked how caring and reassuring Gracewood was. He’s a great LI. I didn’t care much for the SCs, so the whole climax of the book was quite boring to me. Though the rest of the book was boring as well, so… 🤷🏻♀️ Oh, also, the audiobook was okay, except for some of the voices the narrator chose to do, especially for little children, and some of the female SCs. Quite distracting, at points, but whatever.
Anyways. I’m sad this was so disappointing. Goodbye.
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Okayyyyy this was GOOD!! I was a little intimidated going into this – high fantasy, really long book, from an author I’d never read… But, turns out, the book is just really fun!
There is A LOT going on in this story – orphaned prince of a colonized nation hiding his identity in the middle of the colonizers, being adopted by an important man who wants him to work as a spy, an academy full of secrets and cutthroat students, a cast system based on draining people’s energy through magic, a secret rebellion, a bunch of political intrigue – and the author managed to make all these storylines blend PERFECTLY!
The story was compelling the whole way through, and I’m reeeally excited to see where the story goes!
Vis was a great MC. He’s a bit of a Special Boy ™ (being super good at fighting and managing to rank up in the academy fairly easily), which could be annoying, but honestly I didn’t mind. His past training as a prince + the fighting he was doing for money as an orphan made it make sense, to me. I liked that he was curious and smart, so that I was never annoyed by him lol.
Callidus and Eidhin were great friends, and Aequa was probably one of the most intriguing SCs! I wish we’d seen more of her… Can’t wait to see more of these characters in book 2! 🙂↕️
Emissa, however, was kind of meh….. 😕 She just wasn’t that interesting, to me, and her romance with Vis was super boring. It doesn’t take up much of the story, so I didn’t mind, but I’m kinda sad that the author lost the opportunity of making the romance more interesting. It felt like Emissa was only in the book to serve as Love Interest ™; there was nothing much to her. Vis’ relationships with Eidhin and Aequa were much more compelling, and would’ve made for a much better romance!When, near the end, Emissa stabs Vis, I was actually SOOOOOO EXCITED! I thought it would turn out that Emissa was actually just manipulating Vis and getting him to be on her side so she could exploit him, since he was so good in every class. But noooooooooo. 🙄🙄🙄 I’m pretty sure that she’ll have a good excuse for what she did, which means that the author won’t actually use her character in an interesting way. Boooooooooooo! There is soooo much potential there! + If she doesn’t end up being the LI, we could put Vis with a character he has actual chemistry with… But alas. 😒
Anyways. That was genuinely my only complaint! Overall, I really liked this book! And the audiobook was sooooo good, too! I definitely recommend this!
There is A LOT going on in this story – orphaned prince of a colonized nation hiding his identity in the middle of the colonizers, being adopted by an important man who wants him to work as a spy, an academy full of secrets and cutthroat students, a cast system based on draining people’s energy through magic, a secret rebellion, a bunch of political intrigue – and the author managed to make all these storylines blend PERFECTLY!
The story was compelling the whole way through, and I’m reeeally excited to see where the story goes!
Vis was a great MC. He’s a bit of a Special Boy ™ (being super good at fighting and managing to rank up in the academy fairly easily), which could be annoying, but honestly I didn’t mind. His past training as a prince + the fighting he was doing for money as an orphan made it make sense, to me. I liked that he was curious and smart, so that I was never annoyed by him lol.
Callidus and Eidhin were great friends, and Aequa was probably one of the most intriguing SCs! I wish we’d seen more of her… Can’t wait to see more of these characters in book 2! 🙂↕️
Emissa, however, was kind of meh….. 😕 She just wasn’t that interesting, to me, and her romance with Vis was super boring. It doesn’t take up much of the story, so I didn’t mind, but I’m kinda sad that the author lost the opportunity of making the romance more interesting. It felt like Emissa was only in the book to serve as Love Interest ™; there was nothing much to her. Vis’ relationships with Eidhin and Aequa were much more compelling, and would’ve made for a much better romance!
Anyways. That was genuinely my only complaint! Overall, I really liked this book! And the audiobook was sooooo good, too! I definitely recommend this!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Blood, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Xenophobia, Death of parent, Colonisation
Minor: Suicide
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
This book is as deep as a puddle. And, listen: I don’t necessarily need a super deep book. I love simple, fluffy stories! However, in this case, the book was so surface-level that it became detrimental to the story. This book could’ve and SHOULD’VE had *more*.
Leah is riddled with insecurities, most of which stem from a couple years prior. She would often mention off-handedly that she used to be bullied and then decided to change her appearance and “become hot” to overcome that, but it’s clearly something that still affects her. This was the most interesting part of the book, but it could’ve really benefited from flashbacks, so we could actually see Leah’s struggles from before. I think this plot point would’ve been more effective and hard-hitting if we’d experienced everything with Leah.
The same could be said for the romance. Leah and Cyrus were supposedly childhood “enemies”, but Cyrus liked Leah all along (because of course he did). Leah would often mention that he was one of the only people who knew her really well (since he knew her before her “transformation”), but because WE didn’t get to see their past relationship, it all felt really unearned. The vague mentions of how well Leah and Cyrus know each other didn’t help me *feel* the supposed depth of their bond.
Overall, this book DESPERATELY needed flashbacks / dual-timeline, so we could delve deeper into Leah’s past and understand her insecurities better + actually get to understand Leah and Cyrus’ bond.
Other notes:
➤ The romance was mediocre. As I mentioned, it was difficult to fully understand their past bond, so it all became very stale. Their banter wasn’t funny. Leah was always mentioning how hot Cyrus is (which became repetitive and annoying 🙄). And Cyrus is a creepy stalker??????Like, if a dude I hadn’t seen in YEARS *stalked me* to the point where he infiltrated MY family member’s wedding – strangers to him! – just so he could see me??? I’d be FREAKED OUT??? THE FUCK??? 😰😰😰 Ann Liang THAT AIN’T CUTE??? 😬 And then we had the stupid 3rd act conflict that got resolved in 5 pages, and then they were saying “I love you” after like, 2 weeks, which like……… 🙄 Okay. Whatever. Overall, the romance could’ve been much better. Such a let down! Also, Cyrus’ audiobook voice was reeeeeally bad lol.
➤ The SCs were mostly irrelevant. Oliver was kinda fun, and Daisy was definitely… there. But like, Leah mentions several times that those people from the China-trip were now her friends and really liked her and like…… we barely saw them??? If the author really wanted these friendships to mean something, she should’ve shown more of these people and actually develop these bonds. 🫤
I can’t believe Ann Liang peaked with her very first books…… Girl please go back to that formula, because these past like, 4 books, haven’t been good… 😬😬😬😬😬
Leah is riddled with insecurities, most of which stem from a couple years prior. She would often mention off-handedly that she used to be bullied and then decided to change her appearance and “become hot” to overcome that, but it’s clearly something that still affects her. This was the most interesting part of the book, but it could’ve really benefited from flashbacks, so we could actually see Leah’s struggles from before. I think this plot point would’ve been more effective and hard-hitting if we’d experienced everything with Leah.
The same could be said for the romance. Leah and Cyrus were supposedly childhood “enemies”, but Cyrus liked Leah all along (because of course he did). Leah would often mention that he was one of the only people who knew her really well (since he knew her before her “transformation”), but because WE didn’t get to see their past relationship, it all felt really unearned. The vague mentions of how well Leah and Cyrus know each other didn’t help me *feel* the supposed depth of their bond.
Overall, this book DESPERATELY needed flashbacks / dual-timeline, so we could delve deeper into Leah’s past and understand her insecurities better + actually get to understand Leah and Cyrus’ bond.
Other notes:
➤ The romance was mediocre. As I mentioned, it was difficult to fully understand their past bond, so it all became very stale. Their banter wasn’t funny. Leah was always mentioning how hot Cyrus is (which became repetitive and annoying 🙄). And Cyrus is a creepy stalker??????
➤ The SCs were mostly irrelevant. Oliver was kinda fun, and Daisy was definitely… there. But like, Leah mentions several times that those people from the China-trip were now her friends and really liked her and like…… we barely saw them??? If the author really wanted these friendships to mean something, she should’ve shown more of these people and actually develop these bonds. 🫤
I can’t believe Ann Liang peaked with her very first books…… Girl please go back to that formula, because these past like, 4 books, haven’t been good… 😬😬😬😬😬
Content Warnings
Minor: Bullying, Eating disorder
emotional
lighthearted
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
Oh, this was so good! Everything about this book was an absolute delight! It’s the 1st book in a looong time that made me want to stay up late reading!
Eliza is such a great MC! She’s flawed, but in such a realistic way. I loved following her journey throughout this story. Her relationship with her mum was so compelling, and I really enjoyed how it wrapped up.
The storyline with her friends was also really interesting! I was kind of surprised by how captivated I was by this side-plot. Though, I have to say, that while Eliza wasn’t perfect, I’m still completely on her side in that situation. Like, what do you meeeeean Eliza was the one apologizing??Her friends literally started icing her out to see if she would “care enough” to ask why they’re excluding her, and Eliza didn’t ask because she didn’t want to pry or intrude. The friends should be the ones apologizing bro. 😭😭😭
Regarding the romance: it was reeeeeally sweet! 🥺 I really liked Wesley as a LI! He’s sweet, open, honest and caring, and, as a character, he was really compelling! His relationship with his mum, his interest in cooking and his doubts about his future were all interesting to read about. I love that Eliza started liking him when she noticed how focused and competent he is; it really makes sense for her character to fall for somebody with those traits haha. 🙂↕️ And I really enjoyed Wesley and Eliza’s dynamic! Their banter was super funny! And I liked that Eliza was confident around him. It really felt like they were on the same level, which made their banter feel really equal, and not one-sided. Just a super nice relationship!
Overall, this was just a really good book! Also, @ Sophia Lee: do NOT apologize for your old YT videos!!! That’s how I found you, and I LOOOOVED your videos!!! I’m so happy you’re a published author now! Can’t wait for your next book!
Eliza is such a great MC! She’s flawed, but in such a realistic way. I loved following her journey throughout this story. Her relationship with her mum was so compelling, and I really enjoyed how it wrapped up.
The storyline with her friends was also really interesting! I was kind of surprised by how captivated I was by this side-plot. Though, I have to say, that while Eliza wasn’t perfect, I’m still completely on her side in that situation. Like, what do you meeeeean Eliza was the one apologizing??
Regarding the romance: it was reeeeeally sweet! 🥺 I really liked Wesley as a LI! He’s sweet, open, honest and caring, and, as a character, he was really compelling! His relationship with his mum, his interest in cooking and his doubts about his future were all interesting to read about. I love that Eliza started liking him when she noticed how focused and competent he is; it really makes sense for her character to fall for somebody with those traits haha. 🙂↕️ And I really enjoyed Wesley and Eliza’s dynamic! Their banter was super funny! And I liked that Eliza was confident around him. It really felt like they were on the same level, which made their banter feel really equal, and not one-sided. Just a super nice relationship!
Overall, this was just a really good book! Also, @ Sophia Lee: do NOT apologize for your old YT videos!!! That’s how I found you, and I LOOOOVED your videos!!! I’m so happy you’re a published author now! Can’t wait for your next book!
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Yeah… idk wtf happened here. I’ve been a fan of Venessa Kelley for several years now, and I read this fanfic as it was coming out – and I really liked it! However, in book form, this just didn’t work for me. 🥲
The story is slow and not much happens. You go into this book knowing it’s about a merman being captured to be part of a “Human Oddities Menagerie” and falling in love with a man who works there, who later tries to release the merman. After reading, you realize that that’s the whole story. Nothing else happens at all.
And listen: this languid pace worked for the fanfiction! I enjoy a slice of life romance. I enjoy seeing my favourite characters falling in love in 100 different ways! But this book was longer than the fanfic, and was just filled with nothing.It’s just annoying to see Benny refuse to release Río for like 200 pages, even after he “fell in love” with him… Like… Just fucking HELP RÍO??!!!?!!??!!!?! 🤨 It got suuuuper repetitive! And when he bashed Sonia for not helping Río, as if Benny himself hadn’t spent MONTHS refusing to do it?? Lmaooo okay. And, because I didn’t care about these new characters the same way I cared about the ones in the fic, this just kind of fell flat, for me. I mean, I did like Benny and Río! But I could not understand why they fell so deeply in love… I just didn’t feel their romance at all. I do appreciate, however, that the romance was really sweet and tender!
Regarding the side characters: they were… fine. They were developed enough, but I honestly never cared much about them. And I didn’t really understand why they were so close to Benny, and especially Río! Towards the end, the whole crew just quickly accepts to risk their livelihoods to help release the merman, even though they barely knew him?? You could say that they were doing it for Benny, and not necessarily the merman, but I also feel like their bond with Benny wasn’t strong enough to justify risking everything they had… Idk… I just wish we’d seen more of these friendships.
Aff… Overall, I’m just really sad I didn’t love this, not only because I’ve been a fan of Venessa for so long and loved her writing already, but also because I had literally already enjoyed this story (when it was a snowbaz fanfiction)… With that said, I plan on reading more of her work. And I’d still recommend this one if you enjoy languid love stories. This was really tender and unique, and the illustrations are to die for!
The story is slow and not much happens. You go into this book knowing it’s about a merman being captured to be part of a “Human Oddities Menagerie” and falling in love with a man who works there, who later tries to release the merman. After reading, you realize that that’s the whole story. Nothing else happens at all.
And listen: this languid pace worked for the fanfiction! I enjoy a slice of life romance. I enjoy seeing my favourite characters falling in love in 100 different ways! But this book was longer than the fanfic, and was just filled with nothing.
Regarding the side characters: they were… fine. They were developed enough, but I honestly never cared much about them. And I didn’t really understand why they were so close to Benny, and especially Río! Towards the end, the whole crew just quickly accepts to risk their livelihoods to help release the merman, even though they barely knew him?? You could say that they were doing it for Benny, and not necessarily the merman, but I also feel like their bond with Benny wasn’t strong enough to justify risking everything they had… Idk… I just wish we’d seen more of these friendships.
Aff… Overall, I’m just really sad I didn’t love this, not only because I’ve been a fan of Venessa for so long and loved her writing already, but also because I had literally already enjoyed this story (when it was a snowbaz fanfiction)… With that said, I plan on reading more of her work. And I’d still recommend this one if you enjoy languid love stories. This was really tender and unique, and the illustrations are to die for!
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Cute debut! I definitely want to read more from this author in the future!
❥ The story was fun! I enjoyed both storylines (the fake-dating and the scavenger hunt), though I think sometimes the scavenger hunt was kind of forgotten about. Also, the scavenger hunt was sometimes too easy. Like, they’d just conveniently find someone who knew Avery’s mum and could help them find the next clue. They’d stumble upon a clue that, somehow, nobody had found in 25 years, even though it was in a publicly accessible place and not very well hidden. Idk, it was a little too easy at times.
❥ The fake-dating was quite silly. But the characters acknowledged how silly it was, which I really appreciated. The book was really self-aware in that way!There is a misunderstanding / 3rd act breakup (because of course there is; this is a romance book, afterall….), and although it was annoying, I could actually understand both of their reasonings (Charlie hiding her chronic illness bc Avery was still mourning her mum + Avery not being able to be there for Charlie bc it reminds her of her mum’s situation).
❥ A couple of things sometimes happened off-page, which was a little… :/ Nothing major, but it happened enough times that I noticed (and wished I had seen those things happen).
❥ I reeeeally liked the chapter titles!!! Bring back fun chapter titles yessss!!!!!!!!!!
❥ The MC was well-written and I enjoyed her arc. Seeing her deal with her mother’s passing and her father clamming up was interesting. Charlie was a cute LI and I like that her and Avery became friends first. And I also liked the SCs (and lowkey wish we’d spent more time with them). They were all quite nice and well-rounded.
❥ The character descriptions were inconsistent. Avery was described as having hazel eyes, then later her eyes are described as blue. Charlie’s eyes are light brown, then dark brown, then hazelnut, then hot cocoa. Charlie’s hair is described as honey-brown, then strawberry-blond, then hazelnut. Charlie has tan skin, but later pale skin. Avery’s mum is described as having pale blond hair, then auburn-brown.
❥ There were also a handful of typos (and, towards the end, Maddi goes from using they/them to she/her…. I’m assuming it was also a mistake?). Overall, this book definitely needs another round of editing.
ARCs available for everyone to download on Netgalley. (review written on 07/05/2025)
❥ The story was fun! I enjoyed both storylines (the fake-dating and the scavenger hunt), though I think sometimes the scavenger hunt was kind of forgotten about. Also, the scavenger hunt was sometimes too easy. Like, they’d just conveniently find someone who knew Avery’s mum and could help them find the next clue. They’d stumble upon a clue that, somehow, nobody had found in 25 years, even though it was in a publicly accessible place and not very well hidden. Idk, it was a little too easy at times.
❥ The fake-dating was quite silly. But the characters acknowledged how silly it was, which I really appreciated. The book was really self-aware in that way!
❥ A couple of things sometimes happened off-page, which was a little… :/ Nothing major, but it happened enough times that I noticed (and wished I had seen those things happen).
❥ I reeeeally liked the chapter titles!!! Bring back fun chapter titles yessss!!!!!!!!!!
❥ The MC was well-written and I enjoyed her arc. Seeing her deal with her mother’s passing and her father clamming up was interesting. Charlie was a cute LI and I like that her and Avery became friends first. And I also liked the SCs (and lowkey wish we’d spent more time with them). They were all quite nice and well-rounded.
❥ The character descriptions were inconsistent. Avery was described as having hazel eyes, then later her eyes are described as blue. Charlie’s eyes are light brown, then dark brown, then hazelnut, then hot cocoa. Charlie’s hair is described as honey-brown, then strawberry-blond, then hazelnut. Charlie has tan skin, but later pale skin. Avery’s mum is described as having pale blond hair, then auburn-brown.
❥ There were also a handful of typos (and, towards the end, Maddi goes from using they/them to she/her…. I’m assuming it was also a mistake?). Overall, this book definitely needs another round of editing.
ARCs available for everyone to download on Netgalley. (review written on 07/05/2025)
Content Warnings
Moderate: Chronic illness, Death of parent
DNF @ 24% – I was sooooo excited to read this book! But, unfortunately, I didn’t like it. AJ and Dax meet and are immediately attracted to each other. They look at each other and their stomachs flutter, they feel electricity when they accidentally touch, etc. MIND YOU! At this point they’re still COMPLETE STRANGERS!!! 🙄🙄🙄🙄🙄🙄 They kiss after hanging out TWICE and at that point I was like 😑😑😑…… Yeah, okay.
I am soooo fucking tired of insta love!!!!! This isn’t even the worst case I’ve ever seen, but, to me, this romance completely lacked buildup and their instant attraction guaranteed that I won’t rate this book any more than 3 stars, so I’m not even gonna waste any more time with it, hence the DNF.
Other notes I have:
➤ A couple of typos (though it’s self-published so I’ll let that slide)
➤ Everyone was always laughing but there was nothing funny to me. This kind of felt like when you’re hanging out with people and they’re talking about some things they went through together and their own inside jokes. No matter how much they explain them to you, you’ll never fully understand them and you’ll always feel a little detached from the conversation.
I am soooo fucking tired of insta love!!!!! This isn’t even the worst case I’ve ever seen, but, to me, this romance completely lacked buildup and their instant attraction guaranteed that I won’t rate this book any more than 3 stars, so I’m not even gonna waste any more time with it, hence the DNF.
Other notes I have:
➤ A couple of typos (though it’s self-published so I’ll let that slide)
➤ Everyone was always laughing but there was nothing funny to me. This kind of felt like when you’re hanging out with people and they’re talking about some things they went through together and their own inside jokes. No matter how much they explain them to you, you’ll never fully understand them and you’ll always feel a little detached from the conversation.