MW

2nd chance small-town romance

Reviewed: 09-03-24

This was readable enough, if a little too long, considering the MFC and MMC got together around a quarter of the way into the story. I had issues with the plot and characters. The first break up was not very plausible and the cartoon cut out evil other woman was bordering on the unhinged. Add to that some annoyingly interfering relatives and it makes me recall why small-town romances are not my favourite genre.

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3.5 stars rounded up to 4

Reviewed: 17-02-24

I was so looking forward to this book, having loved "Just a heartbeat away" and this author's writing style. In many ways, it did not disappoint. I gobbled up the audio version in a day and a half. As I savoured the author's wonderful prose, which was so well crafted, I honestly believed this was going to be a 5 star read. So why isn't it?

Firstly, for a book that purported to be a romance, I felt the actual romantic element took a backseat to the pregnancy part of the narrative. This was more a work of women's fiction, telling the story of a clueless millennial who accidentally gets knocked up and how she deals with it, than a romance.

Then, there was the fact that I found all the main characters unlikeable - even Shep (the saint), the supposed hero of this romance. He was no such thing. He was so passive, so utterly emasculated and far too unselfish to be real or to be appealing as a romantic hero. I would hate to have somebody like that as a partner - highlighting my own human weaknesses at every turn with his selfless perfection.

Perhaps too, the reason why this book, in the end, did not land well with me was the very of its time wokish and slightly preachy tone to it - which reminds me a little of "Out on a limb" by Hannah Bonam-Young, yet another accidental pregnancy story. I can well imagine it being fodder for anthropologists of the future wanting to understand the peculiarities of societal norms of this decade. Picture an academic some hundred years from now, lecturing her students with, "It became a cultural norm for people in the 2020s to introduce themselves with the stating of their preferred pronouns," and then using the birthing class scene as exhibit A.

Final verdict? A well written work of fiction that provides an entertaining vignette into contemporary New York millennial society, but fails epically as a romance.

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2 people found this helpful

The preacher's son and the sex club worker

Reviewed: 01-10-23

Firstly, kudos to the narrators who did a great job.

This was well written, as is all work by Sara Cate, but I just found myself not really buying into the romance as it felt a little clichéd to me.

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Touching and sexy young adult gay romance

Reviewed: 06-04-23

This is the story of Joshua and Caleb, two young men (20 years old) who grow up in a misogynistic religious cult and have to hide their sexuality. Events happen which result in the two of them running away and starting a new life with Maggie, a former runaway from the same cult. The story is very touchingly told as these two young men, particularly Joshua, navigate their way in the outside world and explore their sexuality, learning to overcome the conditioning of their strict upbringing.

I really enjoyed this story, especially listening to the superb narration on audio. It was heartfelt, romantic, spicy... everything one would wish for in a romance. I was so gripped that I stayed up half the night to finish it. Well recommended.

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There's a cliffhanger - be warned

Reviewed: 02-02-23

Would have been a 5 star read if it weren't for the cliffhanger at the end. I hate it when authors do that to their unsuspecting readers, and I shall reward this treachery by not purchasing the follow up book. Otherwise, fab spicy story of a love triangle featuring a president, his vice president and an American princess. I listened to the audio of this and enjoyed the narration. Even though this was a one POV novel, the narrator did a great job voicing the male characters.

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1 person found this helpful

Pleasant as far as it goes

Reviewed: 21-12-22

This was a pleasant read, with a very likeable cast of characters, particularly the male lead, Blake, who is the epitome of a romance hero. My only problem with this was the lack of plot, as I didn't feel anything actually happened apart from them meeting, getting together and easily falling into love. I would have liked to have seen a little more conflict and a little more of an actual story.

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Beautifully plotted dystopian novel

Reviewed: 21-12-22

This is a dystopian novel set in a post-apocalyptic world where ninety-nine percent of the population has been wiped out by a deadly virus. What makes this book special is that it doesn’t simply follow the usual trajectory of post-apocalyptic fiction, which tends to focus on survival in the immediate aftermath of a catastrophe. While the book touches on such things – and does so eloquently – the author also gives us a richly imagined meditation on humanity and on how people cope and adapt to the loss of civilization, through telling the stories of different characters whose lives are cleverly intertwined.

The narrative takes us back and forth to different points in the characters’ lives, spanning the years before the deadly pandemic to two decades afterwards. Emily St John Mandel uses great skill to effectively bring all these different strands of the plot together to create a poignant elegy for the death of civilization. It’s in the small details that she conveys this palpable sense of loss. In one scene, a character eats an orange in an airport lounge and realises it will probably be the last one he will ever eat in his lifetime. But while there is loss, horror and bleakness aplenty, this is also a story of hope. St John Mandel leaves us with a positive message. In the face of unimaginable destruction, humanity is resilient and can survive.

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1 person found this helpful

Disappointing

Reviewed: 21-12-22

I finally gave in and read this highly hyped book, and it wasn't bad, but it wasn't great either. The classic tropes of the romance genre were there: fake dating, forced proximity, enemies to lovers. My main problem with this story was that it was just so long winded - talk about a slow burn! By the time the lovers finally got it on, I was heartily bored with them and couldn't get invested in their relationship.

Each of the main characters irritated me at times. Catalina, for being a bit of a doormat and letting people walk all over her (both at work and in Spain), and Aaron for failing to stand up to blatant sexual harassment that happened right under his nose in a work meeting.

I know miscommunication is another classic trope, but these two people could have saved each other, and us, a lot of time by having a grown-up discussion about their feelings for each other. I think it's clear that I'm not a fan of this book.

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2 people found this helpful

Beautiful slow-burn romance

Reviewed: 21-12-22

This was such a beautifully written book. I have read and enjoyed a few other stories by Cara Bastone, so I know what an intelligent and insightful writer she is. This one did not disappoint at all.

The romance was slow-burn (not usually my favourite), but it made the coming together at the end all the sweeter - and what an epic melding of two souls it was! I am still reeling from the kitchen/bedroom scene at the end, not just because it was spicy (that it was!) but because the author was able to infuse such a deep emotional connection into their lovemaking, something I rarely see in other romances. Sebastian was just lovely, my new book boyfriend. This had all the feels. So good!

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2 people found this helpful

Ice hockey jocks romance

Reviewed: 21-12-22

I loved this story. It had everything - steam, feels, and a beautiful epilogue. I know there's a follow up book, but honestly, this story was concluded well enough that I don't feel the need to read what happens next. This was a bit of a slow burn, following the relationship of Shane and Ilya, rival hockey players, over the course of 7 years with them hooking up occasionally when their teams played against each other. The build up of the relationship was beautifully done. All in all, a very satisfying read in the midst of my current reading slump.

P.S. I listened to the audiobook and enjoyed the narration by Thor Thom, who brilliantly brought to life the character of Ilya.

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1 person found this helpful