whiskers_and_lipstick's reviews
868 reviews

Jade War by Fonda Lee

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adventurous challenging dark emotional tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

Know Your Newlywed by Hillary Nussbaum, Heather Taylor

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funny hopeful lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

It was quick, super fun and light, and the immersive experience was phenomenal. I love Tyler Posey as Javi. I could have listened to them talk about food forever. KYN delivered on all the quintessential contemporary rom-com tropes. However, it did feel rushed at the time due to the length.

I feel that there was an opportunity to turn this into a full length novel. It would have given the story more time to breathe, to up the stakes, and make Cleo and Javi more three dimensional characters. I understand this was a novella produced exclusively for audio with Mary and Tyler playing the leads, but I think it would have helped to have the time and space sell the instalove between the two characters. Their chemistry was fantastic, but it would have been nice for them to have more “when I knew” moments on page. Especially because they were so resistant to any feelings and then all of a sudden one off-day with a glass of whiskey lead to immediate sex. It didn’t feel like a natural profession or that their attraction to one another reached an undeniable tipping point where they couldn’t help but get physics. Also more time in the competition and risks of being exposed could have helped add more weight.

Overall though, it was solid and fun. I just wish there was more!

Jade City by Fonda Lee

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adventurous challenging mysterious tense medium-paced