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thatcozycoffeecup's reviews
377 reviews
Poverty, by America by Matthew Desmond
challenging
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
5.0
Raised my consciousness
Leaned:
- landlords make greater profit off of low income individuals, and always have. Renters in slums have always paid more because discrimination prevents them from accessing the larger housing market
- middle class actually benefits more from govt subsidies than lower class
Leaned:
- landlords make greater profit off of low income individuals, and always have. Renters in slums have always paid more because discrimination prevents them from accessing the larger housing market
- middle class actually benefits more from govt subsidies than lower class
- More social programs potentially succeeded in Europe because people could unite as workers against corporations because they didn’t blame race and let it divide them
Very Nice by Marcy Dermansky
1.0
Each character felt terribly the same. I think this is supposed to be an exploration of peoples selfish natures, but it was horribly executed. The writing was awful and repetitive. I don’t think the author knows how to write anything but short sentences. None of the characters have any depth, just a lot of random things that have happened/are happening to them. I have no idea why so many backstories and subplots were added but never concluded. The ending felt like it was copy and pasted from another book entirely. Finished the thing just to see if there would be some grand purpose to all of it. (There wasn’t.) At least the dog was there.
To Love and to Loathe by Martha Waters
4.0
3.5 stars
Diana Templeton is a funny and independent woman who has curated her life very carefully to get to where she is. She is a young widow who enjoys flirting at balls and hanging out with her two best friends, Emily and Violet, and her brother and his friends. One of her brother's friends is Jeremy, the Marquess of Willingham, who Diana is notorious for having a bickering relationship with. At one ball, Diana bets Jeremy 100 pounds that he will marry within the year.
A few days later, Jeremy pays Diana an unexpected visit and proposes a different wager - a much more scandalous one. Jeremy's manhood had been questioned, and he wants the most truthful woman he knows to either confirm or deny his anxieties. And what does Diana get? Her first lover since the death of her not-so-beloved husband.
But what happens when feelings - and Jeremy's nosy grandmother - get involved during an end of summer hunting party?
Overall, this book was a fun, quick read with well rounded characters and an immersive setting. The plot twists are engaging and the chemistry between these two characters works. It was a great historical rom-com, one that often makes fun of itself at points.
I liked the social commentary Diana often expressed, such as the complications of homosexuality and female pleasure. Seeing lesbian characters be included in a historical romance was a good unexpected surprise, but the fact that Diana learned of that character's sexuality in a manipulative way was disappointing. The blase way that Diana then outed that character to her friends was also troubling. I would rather read about a good friend of the MCs being gay than a nemesis of the MC being gay and then using the sexuality purely for the sake of plot. Especially when homosexuality was a crime in England at the time.
I definitionally love a lot of the modern historical romances that are being published lately and how they are exploring more complex subjects while still being an enjoyable rom-com. I can't wait to read the third novel in this series and possibly more of this gang's encounters.
Diana Templeton is a funny and independent woman who has curated her life very carefully to get to where she is. She is a young widow who enjoys flirting at balls and hanging out with her two best friends, Emily and Violet, and her brother and his friends. One of her brother's friends is Jeremy, the Marquess of Willingham, who Diana is notorious for having a bickering relationship with. At one ball, Diana bets Jeremy 100 pounds that he will marry within the year.
A few days later, Jeremy pays Diana an unexpected visit and proposes a different wager - a much more scandalous one. Jeremy's manhood had been questioned, and he wants the most truthful woman he knows to either confirm or deny his anxieties. And what does Diana get? Her first lover since the death of her not-so-beloved husband.
But what happens when feelings - and Jeremy's nosy grandmother - get involved during an end of summer hunting party?
Overall, this book was a fun, quick read with well rounded characters and an immersive setting. The plot twists are engaging and the chemistry between these two characters works. It was a great historical rom-com, one that often makes fun of itself at points.
I liked the social commentary Diana often expressed, such as the complications of homosexuality and female pleasure. Seeing lesbian characters be included in a historical romance was a good unexpected surprise, but the fact that Diana learned of that character's sexuality in a manipulative way was disappointing. The blase way that Diana then outed that character to her friends was also troubling. I would rather read about a good friend of the MCs being gay than a nemesis of the MC being gay and then using the sexuality purely for the sake of plot. Especially when homosexuality was a crime in England at the time.
I definitionally love a lot of the modern historical romances that are being published lately and how they are exploring more complex subjects while still being an enjoyable rom-com. I can't wait to read the third novel in this series and possibly more of this gang's encounters.
The Soulmate Equation by Christina Lauren
2.0
*2.5*
The premise seemed really interesting to me. Jess is a single mom who doesn't have time for dating. She's a freelance statistician who went to a big name school and worked for Google. Although she's in love with math and numbers, she seems to be pretty bad at her job because she barely makes enough to survive.
Jess spends a lot of her day complaining about her appearance and "frumpiness." It gets to a point where I felt like screaming yes, we get it, you're never looking hot. Let's move on.
Her best friend, Fizzy, is a fun loving, hilarious romance writer. Though she and Jess's interactions are the most cringe-worthy, cheesy dialogue I might have ever read - Fizzy is my favorite part of this entire novel.
Fizzy convinces Jess to take a DNA test for a scientific version of Tinder and Jess ends up matching extraordinarily well with the River - the very guy who annoys her in every interaction they've ever had. Oh, and he's a founder of the DNA Tinder company. He wants to date her, but she's too busy trying to work enough to make ends meet. The solution? The company will pay her $30,000 to date him and do some press releases for three months.
What follows is River instantly transforming from an antisocial, awkward, ignorant scientist into Jess's dream man. The idea is that he's enthralled because he's finally found a *diamond* match with the added incentive of it looking great for the company. What I don't buy is that he is genuinely falling in love with her after two interactions at what are essentially press conferences ... or that Jess falls in love with him so fast? It seems like she really is physically attracted to him, but emotionally they never really connect on anything.
He goes from being annoyed by Jess to melting for her without them ever really having time to talk and connect. Although he is an ultra-busy CEO with a launch on the horizon, he is able to drop everything whenever Jess asks.
*stop reading now for spoilers*
AND THEN, once Jess uncovers that their match was a facade and tells River, he gets upset and disappears for over a week. When he re appears, he pleads that he still loves Jess anyways. I'm not buying it. Jess spent the whole first half of the novel showing us examples of how River is a stuck up scientist. I feel like just a month of press appearances with Jess where they hardly connect emotionally just would not be enough for the man to drop his entire scientific belief system and ideology for insta-love. Even if he think's Jess's daughter is cute.
Especially with how he just dumps his best friends so easily once he finds out they lied to him. I understand it's a huge rift in their bond, but he tells Jess that he's cut them out so nonchalantly. The man just obviously is shallow.
Also, for as much as Jess griped about wanting to keep her daughter separate from their agreement, she sure failed terribly. And I think it made Jess try to convince herself to fall for River and stay with him just for the sake of keeping him in her daughter's life.
It also irked me at the end of the novel how Jess is proud of herself for cutting her mom, Jamie, out of her life ... but she still gave her $10,000? We all know the next time Jamie comes to Jess for help, Jess will let her boundaries fall again. She didn't put an end to their unhealthy relationship cycle at all.
The premise seemed really interesting to me. Jess is a single mom who doesn't have time for dating. She's a freelance statistician who went to a big name school and worked for Google. Although she's in love with math and numbers, she seems to be pretty bad at her job because she barely makes enough to survive.
Jess spends a lot of her day complaining about her appearance and "frumpiness." It gets to a point where I felt like screaming yes, we get it, you're never looking hot. Let's move on.
Her best friend, Fizzy, is a fun loving, hilarious romance writer. Though she and Jess's interactions are the most cringe-worthy, cheesy dialogue I might have ever read - Fizzy is my favorite part of this entire novel.
Fizzy convinces Jess to take a DNA test for a scientific version of Tinder and Jess ends up matching extraordinarily well with the River - the very guy who annoys her in every interaction they've ever had. Oh, and he's a founder of the DNA Tinder company. He wants to date her, but she's too busy trying to work enough to make ends meet. The solution? The company will pay her $30,000 to date him and do some press releases for three months.
What follows is River instantly transforming from an antisocial, awkward, ignorant scientist into Jess's dream man. The idea is that he's enthralled because he's finally found a *diamond* match with the added incentive of it looking great for the company. What I don't buy is that he is genuinely falling in love with her after two interactions at what are essentially press conferences ... or that Jess falls in love with him so fast? It seems like she really is physically attracted to him, but emotionally they never really connect on anything.
He goes from being annoyed by Jess to melting for her without them ever really having time to talk and connect. Although he is an ultra-busy CEO with a launch on the horizon, he is able to drop everything whenever Jess asks.
*stop reading now for spoilers*
AND THEN, once Jess uncovers that their match was a facade and tells River, he gets upset and disappears for over a week. When he re appears, he pleads that he still loves Jess anyways. I'm not buying it. Jess spent the whole first half of the novel showing us examples of how River is a stuck up scientist. I feel like just a month of press appearances with Jess where they hardly connect emotionally just would not be enough for the man to drop his entire scientific belief system and ideology for insta-love. Even if he think's Jess's daughter is cute.
Especially with how he just dumps his best friends so easily once he finds out they lied to him. I understand it's a huge rift in their bond, but he tells Jess that he's cut them out so nonchalantly. The man just obviously is shallow.
Also, for as much as Jess griped about wanting to keep her daughter separate from their agreement, she sure failed terribly. And I think it made Jess try to convince herself to fall for River and stay with him just for the sake of keeping him in her daughter's life.
It also irked me at the end of the novel how Jess is proud of herself for cutting her mom, Jamie, out of her life ... but she still gave her $10,000? We all know the next time Jamie comes to Jess for help, Jess will let her boundaries fall again. She didn't put an end to their unhealthy relationship cycle at all.
When a Scot Ties the Knot by Tessa Dare
2.0
It was short, fun, enjoyable, but I finished it feeling like it was lacking a certain ... something?
Maddie is a 26-year-old woman living in a Scottish castle with her spinster Aunt. Many years ago, during her London debut, Maddie made up a fictional suitor so she wouldn't have to go to large gatherings - which give her big panic attacks. She sent letters to this "suitor," and finally a decade later "killed him off" so she could go to Scotland and live in peace to be an illustrator for scientific journals. This was a fine life, until one day her suitor shows up - very real and very not dead.
The pacing was fine, but the way Tessa Dare led from scene to scene and the short time jumps were just a bit agitating. The first 25% of the book was definitely the most entertaining. The rest was a bit boring. There were no stakes and no emotional depth. All the characters were quite ... shallow.
I was intrigued at the initial presence of Maddie's panic attacks, as I thought maybe Dare was including a character with generalized anxiety disorder or social anxiety in her historical romance, which would be very unique. However, Maddie's panic attacks seem to come from a weird childhood situation that gave her lifelong PTSD. This childhood trauma is mentioned once (as a way to give Maddie a bigger backstory???) and then never mentioned again.
Logan's character also has a big emotional holdup on how Maddie killed him off in her mind. Which stunned me. Like, ??? How is that Maddie's fault? She didn't do it to intentionally hurt his feelings? She killed off someone who was, to her, a fictional character. For him to be upset about that was weird and seemed like a poor way to create conflict.
I did love the lobsters, though.
Overall, if you're looking for a quick, surface-level romance book to read, this will probably be fine.
Maddie is a 26-year-old woman living in a Scottish castle with her spinster Aunt. Many years ago, during her London debut, Maddie made up a fictional suitor so she wouldn't have to go to large gatherings - which give her big panic attacks. She sent letters to this "suitor," and finally a decade later "killed him off" so she could go to Scotland and live in peace to be an illustrator for scientific journals. This was a fine life, until one day her suitor shows up - very real and very not dead.
The pacing was fine, but the way Tessa Dare led from scene to scene and the short time jumps were just a bit agitating. The first 25% of the book was definitely the most entertaining. The rest was a bit boring. There were no stakes and no emotional depth. All the characters were quite ... shallow.
I was intrigued at the initial presence of Maddie's panic attacks, as I thought maybe Dare was including a character with generalized anxiety disorder or social anxiety in her historical romance, which would be very unique. However, Maddie's panic attacks seem to come from a weird childhood situation that gave her lifelong PTSD. This childhood trauma is mentioned once (as a way to give Maddie a bigger backstory???) and then never mentioned again.
Logan's character also has a big emotional holdup on how Maddie killed him off in her mind. Which stunned me. Like, ??? How is that Maddie's fault? She didn't do it to intentionally hurt his feelings? She killed off someone who was, to her, a fictional character. For him to be upset about that was weird and seemed like a poor way to create conflict.
I did love the lobsters, though.
Overall, if you're looking for a quick, surface-level romance book to read, this will probably be fine.