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readswithgab's reviews
370 reviews
Holiday Romance by Catherine Walsh
5.0
Thank you to Netgalley & Bookouture for the E-Arc in exhange for an honest review!
I love Christmas, and I love romance, so you can imagine my excitement when I got to pick this one up. And it's just as enjoyable as it sounds! I love friends to lovers. LOVE. And I LOVE chapters that switch between then and now. And this book had both! Honestly, it's one of the best friends to lovers/then & now books I've ever read, like, I'm so serious. Not only did it have two of my favorite elements, it was soooooo funny. Like I giggled. A lot. Which is how all good romcoms are made!
It was also such a quick & easy read. I found myself waiting for work breaks & waiting to get home just so I could read more of it, that's how good it was. Like, I can't even explain how good it was, because it was just that good.
A million stars. 10/10.
I love Christmas, and I love romance, so you can imagine my excitement when I got to pick this one up. And it's just as enjoyable as it sounds! I love friends to lovers. LOVE. And I LOVE chapters that switch between then and now. And this book had both! Honestly, it's one of the best friends to lovers/then & now books I've ever read, like, I'm so serious. Not only did it have two of my favorite elements, it was soooooo funny. Like I giggled. A lot. Which is how all good romcoms are made!
It was also such a quick & easy read. I found myself waiting for work breaks & waiting to get home just so I could read more of it, that's how good it was. Like, I can't even explain how good it was, because it was just that good.
A million stars. 10/10.
Scarred by Vanessa Vale, Helen Hardt
5.0
Thank you to Valentine PR for the E-Arc in exchange for an honest review
Wow. This book. WOW.
When I picked this up, I was expecting to like it, but I wasn't expecting for it to grab me in immediately. I found myself waiting for work breaks or to get home just so I could read more - because each page had me on the edge of my seat. Even now, I'm still reeling, and I'll be anxiously awaiting the second book!
Vanessa Vale & Helen Hardt did such a fantastic job with this book. Seriously. It's one thing to write an excellent romance (which they did!) but the way they wrote Carly is something that I absolutely love. In a lot of books I've read, the female MC tends to be "broken," and the LI "fixes" her. This is not that kind of book, and it was one of my favorite things. It was so refreshing to see a character who wasn't perfect, and the love interest loved her anyway, flaws and scars and all. It's so refreshing to see a female MC who can take charge of her own life, especially after going through something terrible, and I loved that she stood up for herself, and the LI didn't do it for her. Basically, I LOVE Carly, and I love that Vanessa & Helen wrote such a tough, loveable, and scarred woman.
I could go on and on about how much I adored this book. I highly recommend that everyone pick this up upon its release.
Wow. This book. WOW.
When I picked this up, I was expecting to like it, but I wasn't expecting for it to grab me in immediately. I found myself waiting for work breaks or to get home just so I could read more - because each page had me on the edge of my seat. Even now, I'm still reeling, and I'll be anxiously awaiting the second book!
Vanessa Vale & Helen Hardt did such a fantastic job with this book. Seriously. It's one thing to write an excellent romance (which they did!) but the way they wrote Carly is something that I absolutely love. In a lot of books I've read, the female MC tends to be "broken," and the LI "fixes" her. This is not that kind of book, and it was one of my favorite things. It was so refreshing to see a character who wasn't perfect, and the love interest loved her anyway, flaws and scars and all. It's so refreshing to see a female MC who can take charge of her own life, especially after going through something terrible, and I loved that she stood up for herself, and the LI didn't do it for her. Basically, I LOVE Carly, and I love that Vanessa & Helen wrote such a tough, loveable, and scarred woman.
I could go on and on about how much I adored this book. I highly recommend that everyone pick this up upon its release.
Icebreaker by Hannah Grace
5.0
I don't make a habit of writing long reviews, but I have so much to say about this book. First of all, I wish I could give this book so much more than five stars. Not only did I have so much fun reading it (and I mean so much fun - I prolonged how long it took me to read it so I didn't have to finish it yet) it quickly skyrocketed to one of my all time favorite reads of this year. I was immediately drawn to the concept - a figure skater/hockey player romance? Sign me UP!! and I loved that it was executed perfectly, in my opinion.
also personal preference, but I LOVED how easily accessible the content warnings for this book were. Thanks, Hannah!
Second of all, I love relatable characters, and these characters felt like people I knew. I saw so much of myself in Anastasia that at times it actually broke my heart (can I give her a hug? Please?)and Nathan, Sabrina, Robbie, JJ (and the rest of my beloved hockey boys <3) all reminded me of friends and people I knew. And these characters were so realistic that it made it difficult for me to hate people who I should have (*cough* spoiler *cough* Aaron) because I felt for them in a way too.
And then, the fact that this is Hannah's DEBUT has fully blown me away. I don't know if its just my love of figure skating, or hockey, or fictional hockey men, or the book was just that good (I would say all of the above) but Hannah has stolen my heart with this book and honestly she can keep it. I can't wait to see what she does next!!
also, for those of you who like sugar and spice and everything nice, this book has a wonderful mix of all three. <3
also personal preference, but I LOVED how easily accessible the content warnings for this book were. Thanks, Hannah!
Second of all, I love relatable characters, and these characters felt like people I knew. I saw so much of myself in Anastasia that at times it actually broke my heart (can I give her a hug? Please?)and Nathan, Sabrina, Robbie, JJ (and the rest of my beloved hockey boys <3) all reminded me of friends and people I knew. And these characters were so realistic that it made it difficult for me to hate people who I should have (*cough* spoiler *cough* Aaron) because I felt for them in a way too.
And then, the fact that this is Hannah's DEBUT has fully blown me away. I don't know if its just my love of figure skating, or hockey, or fictional hockey men, or the book was just that good (I would say all of the above) but Hannah has stolen my heart with this book and honestly she can keep it. I can't wait to see what she does next!!
also, for those of you who like sugar and spice and everything nice, this book has a wonderful mix of all three. <3
Santa, Please Bring Me a Boyfriend by Sophie Ranald
4.0
What a fun read this was! Definitely gave me all the Christmas feels.
I love that this was also more than a romance. I really enjoyed how it wasn't just about finding romantic love, but that Rowan's friends helped her find herself along the way. Stories like those really warm my heart.
It was a very enjoyable read - a little slow in the beginning for me, but fun nonetheless! I really enjoyed it.
I love that this was also more than a romance. I really enjoyed how it wasn't just about finding romantic love, but that Rowan's friends helped her find herself along the way. Stories like those really warm my heart.
It was a very enjoyable read - a little slow in the beginning for me, but fun nonetheless! I really enjoyed it.
Anticipation by Rue Harlow
5.0
thank you to Social Butterfly PR for the arc in exchange for an honest review!
4.5 stars rounded up
this one was so cute!! i read it pretty quickly, which is what i loveee about a good book — not that i don’t want you savor it, but it means it’s fast-moving!
i love books that involve bakeries. like, i’m a SUCKER for baked goods, and romance, so any book that has both is right up my alley!! and i absolutely love when characters have a past like Lili and Dom did. and, i love a good hometown romance. so obviously, this book was a great read for me!
Dom & Lili are fantastic. I love good banter, and their banter plus their bets was so fun to read!!
the little bits with Annabelle & Marcus had me confused at some points, but i loved how Rue Harlow fit it into the story — and boy, was it entertaining!
this was such a cute read. def recommend!
4.5 stars rounded up
this one was so cute!! i read it pretty quickly, which is what i loveee about a good book — not that i don’t want you savor it, but it means it’s fast-moving!
i love books that involve bakeries. like, i’m a SUCKER for baked goods, and romance, so any book that has both is right up my alley!! and i absolutely love when characters have a past like Lili and Dom did. and, i love a good hometown romance. so obviously, this book was a great read for me!
Dom & Lili are fantastic. I love good banter, and their banter plus their bets was so fun to read!!
the little bits with Annabelle & Marcus had me confused at some points, but i loved how Rue Harlow fit it into the story — and boy, was it entertaining!
this was such a cute read. def recommend!
The American Roommate Experiment by Elena Armas
5.0
4.5 stars rounded up
okay, I liked this one! I didn't like it as much as [b: The Spanish Love Deception|54189398|The Spanish Love Deception (Spanish Love Deception, #1)|Elena Armas|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1610900883l/54189398._SY75_.jpg|84555384], which I was expecting, but I don't think I was expecting to like it as much as I did.
Rosie and Lucas were fun. But tbh, I felt like something was missing, which is why I just can't give this book five stars. It was cute, and fun, and made me tear up once or twice, but some things just felt underdeveloped. At some points, it felt more trope-y than plot, like things were shoved in the story just for the sake of having them. (and no, I can't think of any off the top of my head, but it didn't give me that oomph that I was looking for.)
I loved the little dating experiment. I am a sucker for that always. And I mean ALWAYS. And I loved the domestic moments between Lucas & Rosie.
Wasn't the biggest fan of the spice, but that's a personal problem.
okay, I liked this one! I didn't like it as much as [b: The Spanish Love Deception|54189398|The Spanish Love Deception (Spanish Love Deception, #1)|Elena Armas|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1610900883l/54189398._SY75_.jpg|84555384], which I was expecting, but I don't think I was expecting to like it as much as I did.
Rosie and Lucas were fun. But tbh, I felt like something was missing, which is why I just can't give this book five stars. It was cute, and fun, and made me tear up once or twice, but some things just felt underdeveloped. At some points, it felt more trope-y than plot, like things were shoved in the story just for the sake of having them. (and no, I can't think of any off the top of my head, but it didn't give me that oomph that I was looking for.)
I loved the little dating experiment. I am a sucker for that always. And I mean ALWAYS. And I loved the domestic moments between Lucas & Rosie.
Wasn't the biggest fan of the spice, but that's a personal problem.
It Starts with Us by Colleen Hoover
3.0
didn’t hate it but didn’t love it idk how to explain my feelings