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stephsnextread's Reviews (390)
The was the perfect summer read! Tropical location, marriage-of-convenience, and captivating family drama. Anna and Liam were married in college for access to family housing, but they barely got to know each other. Anna thought the marriage dissolved when they moved out, but she’s not great at reading documents thoroughly. This story takes place a few years later, when it turns out they are still married! Liam must be married for 5 years in order to have access to his inheritance, and he needs Anna to accompany him to his sister’s wedding in order to convince his family that he is happily married.
Anna is a hilariously outspoken character who just doesn’t fit with Liam’s family. Anna and Liam together are perfect, with great chemistry. I loved the journey they took from being strangers to friends to lovers. And the epilogue was incredible! I highly recommend this book as a vacation read, or a book to transport you on vacation in your mind.
Anna is a hilariously outspoken character who just doesn’t fit with Liam’s family. Anna and Liam together are perfect, with great chemistry. I loved the journey they took from being strangers to friends to lovers. And the epilogue was incredible! I highly recommend this book as a vacation read, or a book to transport you on vacation in your mind.
Jasmine Guillory is queen of the meet-cute! She always has such creative ways the characters meet, and this book is no exception. Nik (Nikole) is at a baseball game with her boyfriend of 5 months, who points to the JumboTron and proposes to her! With her name spelled wrong! 🤦🏼♀️Obviously, she says no and he leaves her sitting in the stands alone. Enter Carlos and his sister, Angie, who pretend to know Nik to save her from the cameras.
Of course, the romance between Carlos and Nik was cute and fun to follow. But my favorite part of this book was Nik’s relationship with her two besties. They know each other so well and always speak the truth. I appreciate it so much when female characters have strong friendships that are featured.
This is the 2nd book in a series of 6 interconnected stand-alones. I don’t think they need to be read in order, but if you want to recognize some of the characters, read The Wedding Date first.
Of course, the romance between Carlos and Nik was cute and fun to follow. But my favorite part of this book was Nik’s relationship with her two besties. They know each other so well and always speak the truth. I appreciate it so much when female characters have strong friendships that are featured.
This is the 2nd book in a series of 6 interconnected stand-alones. I don’t think they need to be read in order, but if you want to recognize some of the characters, read The Wedding Date first.
Gwen is a violinist with a bit of imposter syndrome. She has a spot in the Manhattan Pops and is thankful for the opportunity to make a living doing what she loves. Enter Xander Thorne, the arrogant and often inconsiderate cellist of Gwen’s favorite band, Thorne and Roses. He has joined the Manhattan Pops and immediately becomes Gwen’s enemy/rival. Things change quickly when Gwen and Xander realize that they play music beautifully together.
This book was a page turner, and I found the world of professional musicians fascinating. Julie Soto did an amazing job making the music world accessible to someone with little to no music knowledge. Do I want to go see a live orchestra after reading this book? YES! Will I be paying particular attention to the first violinist and who they have in their direct line of sight? Also YES!
While I usually love enemies-to-lovers, I didn’t completely buy into this love story. For a while, I felt like Xander only liked Gwen because she played music beautifully and she only liked him because he liked her. I did eventually come around, and I thought the ending was adorable.
Thank you to NetGalley, Forever (Grand Central Publishing), and Julie Soto for the chance to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
This was a heartwarming book with a stunning cover 😍 It takes place in such a serene setting—a small town on the river, and many scenes take place right on the docks. I was immediately transported to the town in my mind.
The characters were so real and well-developed. When Georgie temporarily moves back to her home town, she meets Levi, a misunderstood MMC with a very complicated family. Georgie and Levi complement each other perfectly—Georgie is chaotic and “expansive”, Levi is soft and guarded. Somehow, they just get each other. Levi falls hard and fast, and Georgie becomes his soft place to land.
This is a beautifully written story of love, forgiveness, and understanding.
The characters were so real and well-developed. When Georgie temporarily moves back to her home town, she meets Levi, a misunderstood MMC with a very complicated family. Georgie and Levi complement each other perfectly—Georgie is chaotic and “expansive”, Levi is soft and guarded. Somehow, they just get each other. Levi falls hard and fast, and Georgie becomes his soft place to land.
This is a beautifully written story of love, forgiveness, and understanding.
How would your life be different if you made one small decision differently? The Love of Her Lives explores all the possibilities through Millie’s point of view. Millie accidentally discovers a way to move to alternate realities of her life, and she continues exploring the multiverse in hopes of finding a reality that she likes better than the one she has been in so far.
The author’s note mentions that this book was partly inspired by The Midnight Library, and I definitely see some similarities, but it is also entirely its own book. I really enjoyed the story alternating between flashbacks to important moments in Millie’s life and various alternate realities of her life. Millie is in love with her (married) co-worker, and she hopes to find a reality in which she ends up with him. Will it be all she ever hoped for? Or would she be happier with one of the other partners she had throughout the multiverse?
I have found myself thinking about this book many times since finishing it. I find it so interesting to think about how life would be different with just one different decision, and this book is the perfect avenue to explore that through a fictional story. Thank you to NetGalley, Joffe Books, and C.J. Connolly for this eARC in exchange for an honest review.
I absolutely binged this book! It was so fun and an amazing debut novel. Bex is hilarious and I adored her relationships with her brothers. I’d love to read their stories in the future 🤞🏻In most brother’s best friend books, the MMC takes a while to admit his feelings, but Anders tells Bex pretty quickly and it’s refreshing. They were so cute together and I loved that each chapter started with a very short flashback that gave you a peek into how long they’ve truly had crushes on each other.
This book has a good amount of spice, and the author includes a list of spicy chapters at the beginning of the book so you can choose your own adventure depending on how much you’re comfortable with. I have seen content creators on Bookstagram do this for popular books, but it’s the first time I’ve seen it within the actual book and I think it a genius way to make the book appeal to a variety of readers.
Thank you so much to Rachel Lewis for the opportunity to read this ARC.
Note: There are lots of content warnings for this book. Some are spoilers so you can look them up if you’re interested. I will mention infertility though, because it is a main plot point throughout the book.
I absolutely love how Abby Jimenez writes about mental health. She uses metaphors that tell the true story of what it is like to have mental health struggles. In this book, Kristen compartmentalizes trauma by closing off heavy doors in her mind. It gives such a clear picture of what is going on in her brain that allows her to keep going.
The meet-cute in this book is adorable and starts the book out with a hint of what’s to come. Josh is a great book friend-turned-boyfriend. He pays attention to the little things about Kristen, down to never letting her get hangry. You could just tell that they each felt at home with the other. There was a lot of miscommunication/lack of communication that got frustrating at times. However, I could empathize with Kristen’s insecurities and hesitation to talk with Josh about the situation. The second half of the book is an emotional rollercoaster, and the ending makes me want to read the next book in the series right away (but don’t make the mistake of reading The Happy Ever After Playlist’s synopsis before reading The Friend Zone, because it has spoilers!)
I absolutely love how Abby Jimenez writes about mental health. She uses metaphors that tell the true story of what it is like to have mental health struggles. In this book, Kristen compartmentalizes trauma by closing off heavy doors in her mind. It gives such a clear picture of what is going on in her brain that allows her to keep going.
The meet-cute in this book is adorable and starts the book out with a hint of what’s to come. Josh is a great book friend-turned-boyfriend. He pays attention to the little things about Kristen, down to never letting her get hangry. You could just tell that they each felt at home with the other. There was a lot of miscommunication/lack of communication that got frustrating at times. However, I could empathize with Kristen’s insecurities and hesitation to talk with Josh about the situation. The second half of the book is an emotional rollercoaster, and the ending makes me want to read the next book in the series right away (but don’t make the mistake of reading The Happy Ever After Playlist’s synopsis before reading The Friend Zone, because it has spoilers!)
After the action-packed ending of ACOWAR, this book felt really slow. It was short and cozy though, all taking place around the Winter Solstice. I loved that we got to have chapters from other characters’ points of view…but it drove me nuts that Feyre/Rhys’s chapters were written in first person and everyone else was third person 😡
There were moments I really enjoyed (like the snowball fight) and there were parts that felt repetitive (so much shopping for gifts!). I am curious about Nesta though, so her (very small) storyline made me excited for the next book!
There were moments I really enjoyed (like the snowball fight) and there were parts that felt repetitive (so much shopping for gifts!). I am curious about Nesta though, so her (very small) storyline made me excited for the next book!