NJ
Jane Austen has been around for long enough that Austen inspired fics rarely read as fanfiction . But this book was full of so many traditional fanfic tropes that it seemed to have more in common with Fifty Shades than it did with Pride and Prejudice.
> The hero buys the heroine a red convertible for her birthday
> She ends up working in a company that he owns
> The heroine's boss is inappropriate with her, and the hero steps in to fire said boss.
> It's way longer than it needs to be
> Casual slut-shaming (her roommate is literally referred to as skanky-[insertname])
> Casual transphobia
> Very not like other girls. Most women aside from the heroine and her few friends are oh so horrible, and are botox-, clothing-, status-obsessed harpies
3.5 stars
There's so much here to like but the last 80% was irritating. The hero keeping his identity a secret from Cori was out of line. I also didn't enjoy that he constantly shamed her about her Met matches. At the end I wasn't really rooting for the hero. however, for a debut this was well-written and generally enjoyable. I will probably pick up Camille Baker's next book.
I liked the characters but the ending felt a little rushed and anti-climactic. There were also times when I was a little confused because there was a lot going on in this book. The construction of the religions was really well done. The East and South had different belief systems centred on the same deities (this was reminiscent of the Abrahamic religions). I really enjoyed this book, I just wish it ended better.
Norah had no personality, friends or aspirations outside of her fake relationship. She quits her jobs to become Paddy's girlfriend and that's all she is. She seamlessy inserts herself into Paddy's life because she has no life of her own. While we meet Paddy's friends and his team, there is little mention of Norah's friends. Norah's lack of a life isn't even mentioned in the book, perhaps an explanation could have been given that would have shed more light on her character.
For a book whose main character spouts feminist ideals, it is interesting that the very same main character's life seemed solely centred around her romantic relationship. Initially, in Norah and Paddy's relationship, Norah is a replaceable woman who simply serves to boost Paddy's career. It doesn't particularly matter who Norah is, as long as she's a good girl who can salvage Paddy's reputation. I think in a sense that is precisely the role her character plays in this book, Norah exists so the reader can imagine being with a movie star. It doesn't matter who Norah is, as long as she's an everyday, down on her luck woman whose life is vastly improved by a rich man. But, it makes for a disappointing and regressive reading experience. Especially coupled with the ridiculous ultimatum she gives him when his ex comes to the house
3.5 stars
It seems Alexis Hall's main characters are always messy but in this case, I really liked Rosaline.
I, however, was not crazy about the fact that she was in a relationship with another man for most of the book. It took away from the 'relationship-building' time that Rosaline and Harry could have been having.
This feels sacrilegious because this book is so well-loved, but I really disliked the book and its hero. In my opinion, he never really felt remorseful for possibly breaking the heart of an innocent, unsuspecting girl. I just couldn't get over the premise. Additionally, there was a throwaway comment about someone with spots being unattractive. This is one of my personal pet peeves as someone who has adult acne. Please let us live
3.5 stars
It is likely that if I didn't go into this expecting a romance, this book would have been a 4-star read. The hero and heroine both went on such beautiful journeys. But I feel like their romantic connection suffered as a result. They both had a few big emotionally meaningful moments where the other person was not present. This is a more realistic view of life in general, people have emotional journeys outside their partners. However, when I sign up for a romance, I'm signing up to see the journey these two individuals . Which means I'm expecting that most of the on-page, emotionally vulnerable interactions will be between the main characters. I expect that even when they have emotionally charged conversations with other people, we will at least get to see the two of them discussing those conversations. We will get to see the mcs be open and honest about the most important moments in their lives. For me, those are the moments that make me buy into the depth of connection between two romantic leads. In this book, I felt their connection was sorely lacking.
This was ok but I really struggled with Teddy as a hero. I just couldn't understand his appeal the give and take tattoos really irked me. The constant reminder of how much he was 'taking' just irritated me more and more . As I was reading this, there was one quote from [b:Red, White & Royal Blue 41150487 Red, White & Royal Blue Casey McQuiston https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1566742512l/41150487.SY75.jpg 61657690] that kept ringing in my head. Worst of all, Henry is good. Alex doesn't pretend to care about the rules of the game, but his primary turn-on has always been competence. I think this quote perfectly encapsulates my own feelings towards romantic heroes. I love heroes who are good at something , anything really. We are told over and over again how good Henry is at tattooing but we never get to see him in his element. Instead, we get this seemingly aimless Henry who doesn't struggle too much to achieve his goals because of a string of good Samaritans and a rich daddy.Teddy aside, this still wasn't a perfect book. The ending fell flat and Melanie felt like a token character of colour, very much like the throw-away line at the end about making Providence more inclusive
