1.5* rounded up. I’ve had this book hanging out in my KU queue for a while and, since I’m playing chicken with cancelling my subscription, I decided t1.5* rounded up. I’ve had this book hanging out in my KU queue for a while and, since I’m playing chicken with cancelling my subscription, I decided to finally try it. And it started well! The first section, set in the mid-1990s in the midlands and told from the perspective of Matt, a neglected gay kid from a council estate, has a beguiling narrative voice. His love affair with posh Alex, a rugby playing blonde Viking from the suburbs, comes across as heartfelt. It was hands down the best part of the book - like Heartstopper but grungier. There were some lovely friendships outside the romance too, which I was perhaps more emotionally invested in than the central pairing.
Unfortunately, everything that came after poisoned it in my mind. We have two time jumps, first to 2005 and then to the present, during which time Matt and Alex are ripped apart by life circumstances and Matt’s struggles with mental illness. We are treated to a barrage of the worst mm romance tropes - misogyny, internalised bi and homophobia, plus a trauma pile-on that goes on and on. Matt is made to suffer the lion’s share of this and I can only say, for those in the know, thank god for Phil and Cartwright. The women and girls of the novel are treated appallingly as either nags or sluts (always off page), unless they are nice boy’s mums. It made me so uncomfortable!
So, good writing is the best I can say - good enough that I’d try Fearne Hill again if it weren’t for all the ways in which this misses the mark for queer rep....more
I read this while I was in Paris and the vibes were immaculate - Laura Florand knows the city and it’s special, almost secret, places so well. I walkeI read this while I was in Paris and the vibes were immaculate - Laura Florand knows the city and it’s special, almost secret, places so well. I walked the same streets as Magalie; I ate the same falafel; I gorged on (slightly cheaper) pastries; I drank chocolate chaud on the Ile St Louis. So, even though it’s not a perfect romance and it’s dated in lots of ways, I loved it with all my heart. It will always be tangled up with my memories of an incredible trip. ...more
2.5*, most of which are for the first third of this debut from Emily Henry’s screenwriter. I went into it with super high expectations - the premise i2.5*, most of which are for the first third of this debut from Emily Henry’s screenwriter. I went into it with super high expectations - the premise is so angsty and the early reviews looked good. And for the first 125 pages or so things were going great. Our two protagonists have every reason to avoid each other, given their difficult shared history. Helen’s younger sister Michelle died by suicide when she ran in front of Grant’s car just before they graduated high school. Now, 13 years later, they’re thrown back into each other’s lives to work on a screenplay of Helen’s highly successful YA series - a scenario that brings their past experiences to the surface in painful, antagonistic ways. Nevertheless, they’re also drawn to each other and feelings start to develop, despite their doubts and resistance. There are some lovely early moments of tenderness and dawning connection. You see what I mean about angsty? I fully expected to bawl my eyes out.
But then, the middle gets bogged down in repetitive sex scene after sex scene, and the final third completely jettisons the deep emotional challenge of the premise and parachutes in an external conflict that rewrites the arc of the novel. Everything that made it subtle and interesting to me gets exploded. By the final chapter I had lost all sense of nuance and I didn’t believe in the characters or their HEA. It was such a deflating reading experience, made all the more frustrating by seeing the potential of the beginning. Kuang can write; she knows how to hook in the reader; her dialogue - perhaps unsuprisingly - is sharp and quick. Argh. I wish I liked it better! I’ll still be interested to see what she writes next. ...more
She did it again! Kate Clayborn has never missed for me; and her seventh novel is no different. What gets me every time is the way the characters - inShe did it again! Kate Clayborn has never missed for me; and her seventh novel is no different. What gets me every time is the way the characters - in this case, emotional lockbox Jess and earnest, gentle Adam - exist in each other’s space with such intensity. They don’t just have chemistry, it’s like their bodies are electrically charged by being in proximity. It makes every scene feel hugely significant, because you’re hyperaware of the physical and emotional storm between these two people. Add on top of that the care Clayborn takes with secondary characters - and making sure Jess and Adam have meaningful important relationships outside of each other - plus a surprisingly tense plot, and you have a propulsive, compulsive book.
A healthy 3.5* rounded up. I’ve very much enjoyed Jen Comfort’s first two books and I liked this third one too: her writing is bold; her characters arA healthy 3.5* rounded up. I’ve very much enjoyed Jen Comfort’s first two books and I liked this third one too: her writing is bold; her characters are individuals; her plots are bananas; and her style is best described as melodramatic. Although What is Love never rises to the heights of Midnight Duet (a phantom of the opera retelling, where the MMC is the lead singer of a German hair metal band) or The Astronaut and the Star (actual astronaut teaches Hollywood movie star how to pretend to be an astronaut) in that latter regard, it has the same larger-than-life-usually-allows vibes. The story is simple - Maxine and Teddy, high-ranking rivals on a Jeopardy-esque game show, agree to a mutually beneficial trivia training pact ahead of a final $2m tournament - but the execution is sparky and smart. It’s like a romcom written to star Natasha Lyonne and Nicolaj Coster-Waldau - just imagine the snark and the smoulder they would generate and you’ve got the tone of this romance. Let me tell you, the heat level is high and the execution is pristine.
That said, there were things I didn’t like so much. Teddy’s initial academic snobbery gives strong ‘white male professor’ energy, the ultimate turn off combo of smuggery, condescension and privilege. He sheds this persona pretty quickly but we don’t get enough penance for it imho, and it wasn’t clear how conscious of it he was. The professor/student dynamic that briefly follows is also a big nope for me, given my professional life, but others mileage will vary. I also find the endings of Jen Comfort’s books a Bit Too Much, in the HEA department. She really leans into to the climax. While I enjoy the schlockiness, it always robs from the emotional hit....more
The operative word in most reviews of this seems to be ‘cute’, and that tracks. For the most part, this is a very lovely coming**spoiler alert** 3.5*
The operative word in most reviews of this seems to be ‘cute’, and that tracks. For the most part, this is a very lovely coming-of-age story about Hollis, a nerdy fat girl with anxiety who, in trying to impress her absolute douche of a boyfriend, joins a table top gaming group and unexpectedly finds her people. And also discovers new and confusing feelings about Aini, a fellow player and out-and-proud lesbian, at the same time.
There was a lot to like here. While their respective characters get closer and closer in the game, Hollis and Aini do too, dodging around naming their feelings. I really enjoyed the slow burn of their friendship and the little moments when it tips over into something more: the arms around waists; the holding hands; the thoughtful gifts. It reflected my own first forays into exploring my sexuality at around the same age. I mean, who hasn’t ‘pretended’ to be girlfriends with someone ‘because it would be funny’? *whistles* The support and solidarity of their gaming friends is great - Gloria, Maggie, Iffy and (most of all) FRAN (if you know, you know) were a joy.
However, the situation with Hollis’ boyfriend was over-the-top infuriating - did Chris have to be such a gaslighting villain for the story to work? At times it felt less like Hollis was finding herself and more like she was escaping an abusive relationship. Chris treats her terribly - and facilitates persistent bullying by his friends. He is jealous of her friendships; he likes her meek and anxious; he excludes her from his social life. When they argue, Hollis is always the first and only one to apologise, even though she knows she did nothing wrong. And all the while, she believes that he’s her closest and most comfortable friend. It was so blatantly wrong that I couldn’t believe no one was saying anything about it, to the point where I wanted to reach through the pages and start shouting myself. In the end I wasn’t satisfied with how this was handled and how little Chris was held to account for being The Worst Apart from Landon (who is such an asshole that I have no words). I wanted Hollis to really go for his jugular! I wanted someone to call him out for his behaviour, not only for the sake of the characters but for the readers. I needed that catharsis.
But, my desire to see violence aside, I’d recommend this - it’s a strong debut ff contemporary and I’ll look forward to what the author writes next....more
I ended up enjoying this a ton more than expected. My experience is: if you go in expecting a Charlotte Stein novel in the vein of previous Charlotte I ended up enjoying this a ton more than expected. My experience is: if you go in expecting a Charlotte Stein novel in the vein of previous Charlotte Stein novels, you are going to be disappointed. But if you go in expecting Very British Ted Lasso Fic with outstanding sex scenes - and that sounds like something you might like - it’s more likely to work for you. Look, it’s uneven in parts; the writing style is so ‘romcom’ that it sometimes gets tiresome; the secondary characters are so off page it starts to feel like they barely exist; and the central misunderstanding only works if you believe the MCs have the emotional capacity of toddlers. But. There is a lot of sneaky loveliness here! There’s excellent getting-to-know-each-other talking; there’s a ton of fun banter; there are half a dozen care-taking scenes; there is dirty talk; there is a wanton delight in All The Tropes; there is the most heartfelt love declaration. A tear snuck into my eye! And, did I mention the dirty talk???
I’ll definitely be carrying on the series, even though I barely know the names of the friends who are going to star in them....more
Anita Kelly did it again! They wrote a book that made me feel all the potential for queer joy and love in this world, amidst a cast of characters thatAnita Kelly did it again! They wrote a book that made me feel all the potential for queer joy and love in this world, amidst a cast of characters that I adore with all my heart. ❤️ this is an incredible end to the trilogy, except I hope it isn’t the end, because we need more Hank amiright?!? ...more
You can chalk my enjoyment of this series up to the fact that I am deeply sentimental and as squishy as pudding for the four elder members of the ThurYou can chalk my enjoyment of this series up to the fact that I am deeply sentimental and as squishy as pudding for the four elder members of the Thursday Murder Club. Gawd I even cried a bit at the end of this one. Which means there is literally no hope for me; no hope at all. I’m going to read book three right away and no one can stop me so there. ...more
This was a sweet little holiday treat and I really enjoyed spending time with River and Cassidy, but still, I found myself yearning for the emotional This was a sweet little holiday treat and I really enjoyed spending time with River and Cassidy, but still, I found myself yearning for the emotional heights of RP’s pre-Garnet Run work. Everything is just so aggressively nice, especially Cassidy, whose only characteristic is being an absolute sweetheart. I’m also - and I feel like a criminal saying this - not much of a cat person? So all that content was only cute in a purely academic sense. However there is a sex scene at the end which is absolutely smouldering and, imho, was worth the price of admission alone. ...more
This book continues my annual Boxing Day tradition of reading something that makes me sob and send photographs of my tear-stained face to friends. LasThis book continues my annual Boxing Day tradition of reading something that makes me sob and send photographs of my tear-stained face to friends. Last year it was The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy, this year it was Logan and Mattie’s story: the best romance that centres childhood trauma that I think I’ve ever read. Kacen Callender has done an incredible job of writing MCs who really do the work to get their HEA, making space for the hurt and harm they cause each other in the meantime. This is definitely one where you need the CWs - I recommend Leigh’s review for a very comprehensive list, but the book also has them at the front. If you’re able to tackle this one, it is going to reward you many times over.
A new favourite, that I’m going to reread often in the years to come....more
Oh this was bad. It was so so bad. An abusive, gaslighting asshole rancher belittles and degrades a ‘spirited’ city girl, whereupon she falls madly inOh this was bad. It was so so bad. An abusive, gaslighting asshole rancher belittles and degrades a ‘spirited’ city girl, whereupon she falls madly in love with him for no discernible reason except for his violent masculinity. And the prose is… it’s unbelievably poor. We really are scrapping the bottom of the barrel in our romance ‘canon’ reading project - please save yourself and leave this where it belongs, on the bonfire of history. ...more
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