Scan barcode
railway1721's reviews
171 reviews
Trick Shot by Kayla Grosse
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.0
DNFed @ 37% I just couldn't anymore. I couldn't even bring myself to spite finish it. I also tried to read this like 3 times.
Overall reco: Yeah.. me and Kayla Grosse just don't vibe. Plot was interesting enough for me to pick it up, but then I was just bored. Spice was very hot but the book was rotting my brain. I couldn't go 10 minutes without needing to do something else. Technically I'd give it 1.2 stars, but I'm rounding down here.
Plot: 2/5
Spice: 4/5
Characters: 2/5
(The Good)
I will give Kayla props. The spice was HOT. Very HOT. I have read 50 pagers that were less spicy.
(The Bad)
I'm going to have to put this behind spoilers:
Right so. First thing: the lying
Elephant in the room. To be fair I didn't really care about it at the start, when he didn't correct her about him not being his twin. But when he decided to take her home and didn't come clean that felt gross. Even at a one night stand. Gross behavior. Then he keeps thinking about it. As does Jace. And that felt like.. a kink to keep thinking about it and bringing it up mentally. I didn't read far enough though find out the reveal, but I did read the first like 2 pages of the epilogue and its clear it gets revealed but I didn't read that. That also sort of sealed the DNF decision. I didn't care to find out what happened.
Second: we just met but we complete ourselves
I don't usually mind insta-love. Like it's a take it or leave it trope for me. Sure I prefer the ETL or a slow burn but I can still enjoy the insta-love trope. This felt so.. odd. When the characters were having internal thoughts i was usually in this format: Memory about the long term partner, something kinky, then how much his new person fits into their dynamic. It gets old. SO FAST.
Third: The constant walk throughs of memory lane
There was far to many throwbacks. I don't give a shit the first time Daddy Jace came out, and we don't need to keep thinking about it. Its like the narrator (no matter which person was leading the chapter) would get like stuck thinking about the past for MOST of the chapter and honestly? I stopped giving a fuck. Even during sex scenes!
Fourth:For all that exposition, the characters felt like paper
I didn't connect to any of them. Jace and Leo came off and predatory, but not in the good 'morally grey' way. Just Gross and skeevy. Riley came off as fucking spacey and ditzy and naive as hell. 37% and I found myself rolling my fucking eyes and not in a good way. This felt faker than porn. like dude I READ A BOOK ABOUT A FUCKING MAGIC PEBBLE THAT FUCKED A WOMAN AND IT HAD MORE GOD DAMN INTERESTING CHARACTERS THAN THIS..
Overall reco: Yeah.. me and Kayla Grosse just don't vibe. Plot was interesting enough for me to pick it up, but then I was just bored. Spice was very hot but the book was rotting my brain. I couldn't go 10 minutes without needing to do something else. Technically I'd give it 1.2 stars, but I'm rounding down here.
Plot: 2/5
Spice: 4/5
Characters: 2/5
(The Good)
I will give Kayla props. The spice was HOT. Very HOT. I have read 50 pagers that were less spicy.
(The Bad)
I'm going to have to put this behind spoilers:
Elephant in the room. To be fair I didn't really care about it at the start, when he didn't correct her about him not being his twin. But when he decided to take her home and didn't come clean that felt gross. Even at a one night stand. Gross behavior. Then he keeps thinking about it. As does Jace. And that felt like.. a kink to keep thinking about it and bringing it up mentally. I didn't read far enough though find out the reveal, but I did read the first like 2 pages of the epilogue and its clear it gets revealed but I didn't read that. That also sort of sealed the DNF decision. I didn't care to find out what happened.
Second: we just met but we complete ourselves
I don't usually mind insta-love. Like it's a take it or leave it trope for me. Sure I prefer the ETL or a slow burn but I can still enjoy the insta-love trope. This felt so.. odd. When the characters were having internal thoughts i was usually in this format: Memory about the long term partner, something kinky, then how much his new person fits into their dynamic. It gets old. SO FAST.
Third: The constant walk throughs of memory lane
There was far to many throwbacks. I don't give a shit the first time Daddy Jace came out, and we don't need to keep thinking about it. Its like the narrator (no matter which person was leading the chapter) would get like stuck thinking about the past for MOST of the chapter and honestly? I stopped giving a fuck. Even during sex scenes!
Fourth:For all that exposition, the characters felt like paper
I didn't connect to any of them. Jace and Leo came off and predatory, but not in the good 'morally grey' way. Just Gross and skeevy. Riley came off as fucking spacey and ditzy and naive as hell. 37% and I found myself rolling my fucking eyes and not in a good way. This felt faker than porn. like dude I READ A BOOK ABOUT A FUCKING MAGIC PEBBLE THAT FUCKED A WOMAN AND IT HAD MORE GOD DAMN INTERESTING CHARACTERS THAN THIS..
Axes & O's by Kayla Grosse
Plot: 4/5
Spice: 4/5
Characters: 3/5
(The Good)
The spice was great, once it got going it was plentiful and enjoyable. Well described, positioning felt fine except for some things but it's a book and whatever.
The characters had some development, not a lot, but helped them no feel so terribly flat.
(The Bad)
Got to love a 3rd part breakup scene in a book where the group isn't officially together.
ALSO. Jefus fucking christ how many times are Morgan and Fox going to inner monologue about how much they love each other and how important the other one is to them. Like fuck you are the weird super lovey mountain couple. right. i get it.
I noticed the characters said each others names a lot, even in places it wasn't necessary. "Grab her hips, fox" says nathan. It just became something that stuck out towards the end.
The other issue was just.. for a book that happened over 2 days, It felt like it was a month. They fucked a lot and had a lot of drama in those 2 days, and it still felt like it was taking a long time to get anywhere. At page 100 I was ready to be done with the book and we'd barely gotten into the spice. The spice helped keep me in for the rest but honestly... I'm questioning my 4 stars. BUT I would read this over other books in my 3 star list so it stays.
adventurous
funny
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Man tries to drive into the mountains during the worst snowstorm, has accident, gets found by lumberjacks, has best Christmas ever?
Overall reco: I liked the premise and the book felt like it was a good length and well written BUT.. I struggled? I found myself getting distracted and having to sort of fight to my normal 30 minute reading blocks that I do. I had this issue with the Trick Play novella, and that was a novella? Maybe Kyla Grosse and me just don't vibe? which is weird because the spice is great. Really 3.5 stars, but rounding up
Overall reco: I liked the premise and the book felt like it was a good length and well written BUT.. I struggled? I found myself getting distracted and having to sort of fight to my normal 30 minute reading blocks that I do. I had this issue with the Trick Play novella, and that was a novella? Maybe Kyla Grosse and me just don't vibe? which is weird because the spice is great. Really 3.5 stars, but rounding up
“For showing me that it’s not wrong.”
Plot: 4/5
Spice: 4/5
Characters: 3/5
(The Good)
The spice was great, once it got going it was plentiful and enjoyable. Well described, positioning felt fine except for some things but it's a book and whatever.
The characters had some development, not a lot, but helped them no feel so terribly flat.
(The Bad)
ALSO. Jefus fucking christ how many times are Morgan and Fox going to inner monologue about how much they love each other and how important the other one is to them. Like fuck you are the weird super lovey mountain couple. right. i get it.
I noticed the characters said each others names a lot, even in places it wasn't necessary. "Grab her hips, fox" says nathan. It just became something that stuck out towards the end.
The other issue was just.. for a book that happened over 2 days, It felt like it was a month. They fucked a lot and had a lot of drama in those 2 days, and it still felt like it was taking a long time to get anywhere. At page 100 I was ready to be done with the book and we'd barely gotten into the spice. The spice helped keep me in for the rest but honestly... I'm questioning my 4 stars. BUT I would read this over other books in my 3 star list so it stays.
Only Santas in the Building by Alexis Daria
funny
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
2 adorkable neighbors have a serious of meet cutes that they don't act on. Until a Building holiday party in which Mariah Carey saves the day.
Overall reco: Adorable. The last 2 of the 5 novella's are killing it. I was invested, cared about the characters and gave a damn. I will probably keep Alexis Daria on my list of readers to check out. I like their vibes.
Plot: 3/5
Spice: 3/5
Characters: 4/5
(The Good)
I liked the take on the miscommunication trope. It's been the staple of these novellas (except the 4th) and this is the first one that felt like it wasn't heavy handed. Yes, there were plot points that the ready figured out right away but sometimes that is okay, this time, it was okay.
Theo was great, very adorable. Evie was great and likable and just fun to see the world from her eyes, I laughed at her jokes
(The Bad)
I could have let without theresolution of the shitty uncle. We could have kept hating him. I still hate him. fuck that guy
Overall reco: Adorable. The last 2 of the 5 novella's are killing it. I was invested, cared about the characters and gave a damn. I will probably keep Alexis Daria on my list of readers to check out. I like their vibes.
Plot: 3/5
Spice: 3/5
Characters: 4/5
(The Good)
I liked the take on the miscommunication trope. It's been the staple of these novellas (except the 4th) and this is the first one that felt like it wasn't heavy handed. Yes, there were plot points that the ready figured out right away but sometimes that is okay, this time, it was okay.
Theo was great, very adorable. Evie was great and likable and just fun to see the world from her eyes, I laughed at her jokes
(The Bad)
I could have let without the
Merriment and Mayhem by Alexandria Bellefleur
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Trouble has a name, and that name is DANGERFIELD.. and her cute fireman.
Overall reco: Adorable. This book was exactly what I was looking for and expecting in the series. Stupid amount of dumb luck. Cute moments. Great spice. 5 Stars for a novella.
Plot: 4/5
Spice: 3/5
Characters: 4/5
(The Good)
There was backstory but it wasn't more than a few lines that really just ironed out a few quick questions. We didn't have multiple flashbacks of sad moments and woe is the FMC or the MMC. It was just right into it with a lot of unfortunate events that worked out in the readers favor.
I feel like I need to add here that I read this on a plane with a screaming child in the row next to me and I turned my music up and got lost in this sweet little slice of heaven.
It's fast paced and the book FLIES a lot happens in those pages, sooo much.
And the spice was good, well described, HOT.
(The Bad)
I NEED TO KNOW THEY WORKED OUT. PLEASE. Jokes aside, for a novella this was pretty much perfect.
Overall reco: Adorable. This book was exactly what I was looking for and expecting in the series. Stupid amount of dumb luck. Cute moments. Great spice. 5 Stars for a novella.
Plot: 4/5
Spice: 3/5
Characters: 4/5
(The Good)
There was backstory but it wasn't more than a few lines that really just ironed out a few quick questions. We didn't have multiple flashbacks of sad moments and woe is the FMC or the MMC. It was just right into it with a lot of unfortunate events that worked out in the readers favor.
I feel like I need to add here that I read this on a plane with a screaming child in the row next to me and I turned my music up and got lost in this sweet little slice of heaven.
It's fast paced and the book FLIES a lot happens in those pages, sooo much.
And the spice was good, well described, HOT.
(The Bad)
I NEED TO KNOW THEY WORKED OUT. PLEASE. Jokes aside, for a novella this was pretty much perfect.
All by My Elf by Olivia Dade
funny
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
A perfect chance for a thruple.. dashed again by a wiener mobile. Though.. uh.. I didn't like Claudia. So we can leave her at her parents house.
Overall reco: I liked this one more than the last one (Tessa Bailey and her 'too large man') but I had issues with the characters. It was ok. Not the weakest of the 5 top but close.
Plot: 2/5
Spice: 2/5
Characters: 3/5
(The Good)
The FMC was plus sized and while I occasionally felt weird about descriptions, it felt way better than the 2nd book of the series.
The puns were spot the fuck on. I was snickering while reading this in an airport.
MMC was a cute nerd. Loved the adjust professor.
(The Bad)
So Claudia and Nina are 'besties' as Nine likes to remind us over and over again. But Claudia seems like a really shitty friend and/or bestie...Nina admits that she told Claudia of her attraction, but didn't think Claudia remembered. Had it been that they were drinking I might let it like.. go.. but Nina then goes on to say that claudia doesn't remember anything except her research topics. Like. Cool. That's find if she's scatterbrained. Why is she your bestie? Then that brings up another question.. why did you only tell her when you were drinking? Nina later on goes on to say that she don't look at men like potential dates and its been a long time since she has. So this crush is pretty monumental. Then Claudia and Will start like have secret convos and Nina never thinks to ask? Like SURE you BFF forgot what you said and then started dating/hooking up and didn't think to confide in you OR you couldn't ask her about it? What the fuck is this relationship? GIRL.
I know this is a novella and short and that's not a lot of pages to setup and tell a story in. But the first good part of the novella was gearing the reader up to HATE Claudia. Like I was so mad at the girl that when the misunderstanding is cleared up I was still just annoy with her. Like WTF.
And even with the misunderstanding.. The thing in the back of the van with sharing body heat. I'm sorry if I suspected a guy of being with another girl and I was in that moment? Nah. At least, not that early. They had gas left, they were on an interstate with cars around. Yes its a squall and bad things happen but they were all of an HOUR inside the backup?
Maybe I'm being too critical. But much like the 2nd book of the series, I don't know if I vibe with this author.
Overall reco: I liked this one more than the last one (Tessa Bailey and her 'too large man') but I had issues with the characters. It was ok. Not the weakest of the 5 top but close.
Plot: 2/5
Spice: 2/5
Characters: 3/5
(The Good)
The FMC was plus sized and while I occasionally felt weird about descriptions, it felt way better than the 2nd book of the series.
The puns were spot the fuck on. I was snickering while reading this in an airport.
MMC was a cute nerd. Loved the adjust professor.
(The Bad)
So Claudia and Nina are 'besties' as Nine likes to remind us over and over again. But Claudia seems like a really shitty friend and/or bestie...
I know this is a novella and short and that's not a lot of pages to setup and tell a story in. But the first good part of the novella was gearing the reader up to HATE Claudia. Like I was so mad at the girl that when the misunderstanding is cleared up I was still just annoy with her. Like WTF.
And even with the misunderstanding.. The thing in the back of the van with sharing body heat. I'm sorry if I suspected a guy of being with another girl and I was in that moment? Nah. At least, not that early. They had gas left, they were on an interstate with cars around. Yes its a squall and bad things happen but they were all of an HOUR inside the backup?
Maybe I'm being too critical. But much like the 2nd book of the series, I don't know if I vibe with this author.
Merry Ever After by Tessa Bailey
Plot: 3/5
Spice: 3/5
Characters: 2/5
I felt like if I had changed 1 thing about this novel, it could have been a monster fucker novel. Seriously. The way these 2 characters described each other felt like.. he was an oddly shaped alien. Like he shouldn't exist.
(The Good)
There was spice and it was short?
(The Bad)
I'm not sure I like Tessa Bailey. Her writing style kept getting in my way, and while that's okay, and part of the reason I'm reading these shorties, It was.. odd. I kept picturing the characters as being different and then they would do something and I'd realize I pictured them wrong. I had to reread a bunch because I misunderstood. And while the spice was spicing.. but it felt.. weird. I've watched and read some crazy shit but I think I just couldn't pin down body types in a way that made sense and so they were changing and becoming comical? Which ruined it for me.
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
edit: I lowered this to 2 stars after a think about it. the "BIG MAN" is haunting me.
Just a big town girl, living in a small town world, waiting for the ant to finally carry her away
Overall reco:Eh? It's short and I think this might be just a me and this author's style not vibing.
Just a big town girl, living in a small town world, waiting for the ant to finally carry her away
Overall reco:Eh? It's short and I think this might be just a me and this author's style not vibing.
Am I jealous of an ant statue? Christ, I think I am.
Plot: 3/5
Spice: 3/5
Characters: 2/5
I felt like if I had changed 1 thing about this novel, it could have been a monster fucker novel. Seriously. The way these 2 characters described each other felt like.. he was an oddly shaped alien. Like he shouldn't exist.
(The Good)
There was spice and it was short?
(The Bad)
I'm not sure I like Tessa Bailey. Her writing style kept getting in my way, and while that's okay, and part of the reason I'm reading these shorties, It was.. odd. I kept picturing the characters as being different and then they would do something and I'd realize I pictured them wrong. I had to reread a bunch because I misunderstood. And while the spice was spicing.. but it felt.. weird. I've watched and read some crazy shit but I think I just couldn't pin down body types in a way that made sense and so they were changing and becoming comical? Which ruined it for me.
Cruel Winter with You by Ali Hazelwood
Plot: 3/5
Spice: 2/5
Characters: 4/5
(The Good)
I haven't read a lot of Ali Hazelwood, but I probably should. I feel like she's real good at the 'tragically beautiful girl'. It's like she watched WICKED on Broadway as a child, heard Kristen Chenowith since the link about Nessa and now models just about every FMC around that line. This is not a complaint though, least not yet. Jamie was adorable and broken and ticket all the boxes I needed.
(The Bad)
I wanted a little more spice. Well.. a lot more spice. but I'm spoiled.
I wanted more (this this really bad?) like.. I wanted 100 more pages, and an epilogue, and kids, and a pool.
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Recipe for a cute novella: 1 copper ham pan, 2 humans who have been dancing around each other for years, 1 big ass snowstorm, 1 bottle of tequila, 1 asshole cat
Overall reco: Short and cute, low spice but it is there. Like.. pg-13 level there. I found myself a bit 'over' the history of the characters and then it got better. Cliché as fuck, but it's a god damn Christmas novella...
Overall reco: Short and cute, low spice but it is there. Like.. pg-13 level there. I found myself a bit 'over' the history of the characters and then it got better. Cliché as fuck, but it's a god damn Christmas novella...
She has lost so much in her life, she can’t imagine a scenario in which a romantic relationship works out.
Plot: 3/5
Spice: 2/5
Characters: 4/5
(The Good)
I haven't read a lot of Ali Hazelwood, but I probably should. I feel like she's real good at the 'tragically beautiful girl'. It's like she watched WICKED on Broadway as a child, heard Kristen Chenowith since the link about Nessa and now models just about every FMC around that line. This is not a complaint though, least not yet. Jamie was adorable and broken and ticket all the boxes I needed.
(The Bad)
I wanted a little more spice. Well.. a lot more spice. but I'm spoiled.
I wanted more (this this really bad?) like.. I wanted 100 more pages, and an epilogue, and kids, and a pool.
Unfix me by Emory Weste
Plot: 3/5
Spice: 3.5/5
Characters: 5/5
(The Good)
The characters were so easy to get into and so easy to love and easy to sympathize with. I felt the jokes and banter were great. I laughed and gasped a few times. I really did like this book, it hit me right in the spot where I needed it too, that said, it did feel kinda light in terms of the angst. So if you are looking for deep, heart wrenching angst, this is like a snack.
(The Bad)
There were some inconsistencies that kept this from being higher and just some minor problems.
First, Time felt weird. The first part of the book felt like it took much longer in the timeline, but I think its because we were basically going day by day. At some point things are going by weeks. Like Halloween happens, then Thanksgiving, then Christmas is right there were like the first part of the book felt like days spanned weeks. IT made the ending feel a bit rushed too.
Second So about Travis... Several times Sen mentions having seen Travis hanging. Specifically remembers the creak of rope, or seeing Travis hanging there. but then we find out that he didn't see that and that Travis isn't dead. This felt so weird. Like did he imagine that? Maybe? Like I get that he'd never look stuff up about the camp, but the whole seeing a dead body thing just felt like a huge loose end.
Third, the epilougewas not about Kai and Sen. It was about West, which was frustrating. Like. I'm good with a teaser at the end for the next book, especially on an interconnected series like this one. But it was an epilogue. I expected to get a hint of the boys later on. Maybe years after college. Don't get me wrong, I liked West and I understand that there is like an almost concurrent story with him and Sen/Kai but it felt like I got robbed at the end.
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
medium-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
4.0
2 boys, broken for different reasons, struggle with their baggage.
Overall reco: Looking for a book that will make you heart hurt? Well come on in. I enjoyed this book and I swear it felt way longer than the 264 pages it actually is. The characters are charming and heart breaking. and I was fully in love with each of them by the end. My heart broke for Sen and I was right there with Kai most of the time while he struggled with with his life AND trying to figure out Sen's issues. The ending was worth the journey for this one for me.
Overall reco: Looking for a book that will make you heart hurt? Well come on in. I enjoyed this book and I swear it felt way longer than the 264 pages it actually is. The characters are charming and heart breaking. and I was fully in love with each of them by the end. My heart broke for Sen and I was right there with Kai most of the time while he struggled with with his life AND trying to figure out Sen's issues. The ending was worth the journey for this one for me.
“And more, and more, and more.”
Plot: 3/5
Spice: 3.5/5
Characters: 5/5
(The Good)
The characters were so easy to get into and so easy to love and easy to sympathize with. I felt the jokes and banter were great. I laughed and gasped a few times. I really did like this book, it hit me right in the spot where I needed it too, that said, it did feel kinda light in terms of the angst. So if you are looking for deep, heart wrenching angst, this is like a snack.
(The Bad)
There were some inconsistencies that kept this from being higher and just some minor problems.
First, Time felt weird. The first part of the book felt like it took much longer in the timeline, but I think its because we were basically going day by day. At some point things are going by weeks. Like Halloween happens, then Thanksgiving, then Christmas is right there were like the first part of the book felt like days spanned weeks. IT made the ending feel a bit rushed too.
Second So about Travis...
Third, the epilouge
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse
Moderate: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Forced institutionalization, Vomit, Dementia, Religious bigotry, and Gaslighting
Conversion therapy is discussed and while not super explicit detail, its enough
Love Hate: MM College Bully Standalone Romance by Dakota Rebel
Plot: 2/5
Spice: 3/5
Characters: 3/5
Did I like the book? Kinda. Do I have rants? fucking yes.
I'm going to spoiler tag these, since most of my rants have to do with shit that's hinted at or 'comes out' halfway into the book.
Don't spiral -Trevor and Andy's first sexual encounter in that classroom. Andy is gay, has known he's gay, and had spent a year in a BDSM club learning his limits but is taken by surprise by this encounter? Like.. fishy but okay. The thing that sticks out here is fucking TREVOR, who just did some googling, recognized subdrop? THEN just runs off? Gives a reason that seems legit and then it's like not? I dunno it felt glossed over. Also, he's still pretty straight here and he absolutely does not struggle with accepting that he's gay? Like, I LOVE a good subdrop bit after an intense scene but this just felt like Trevor shouldn't know that yet. The man is just reading about that life,and like distracted with accepting himself, and LATER ON says he needs to look more into it again because he needs to understand andy better. like WTF. And yes, not every gay person has to struggle to acceptance. Trevor didn't once question his sexuality prior to college. And while, good on him if he can just change his fundamental world view, but I'd expect him to spend more time on it than he did.
Book layout and formatting - This book is listed at 372 pages, my kindle says more but that's because there is a preview for another book at the end. Even so, this book had lots of extra space. There was a full line break between each paragraph, which effectively doubled the size of the book. I read roughly 40-50 pages an hour I read 85 pages an hour for this book. So this book isn't really 300+ pages. The pacing felt like it was a shorter book, and that makes sense with how fast I read it.
Jesus christ. Sorry - The religiousness of this book was.. weird. I'm not catholic, and now no longer religious in any form. I am not super familiar with the priesthood part of shit, just some basics. That said, the religion parts of the book felt fucking weird. Like the college and people AT the college seemed much more cool with 'gay' than I have experienced. Like, Mark was an outlier and honestly, from growing up in NJ and having friends and family that went to catholic HS and colleges.. Mark's behavior except for the beating maybe was much more normal. ESPECIALLY for groups that were going to mass that much. What I'm saying is.. this college and the people attending it and the families of the people attending it, seemed much more progressive than my East Coast liberal as fuck towns.
Superficial as fuck - It never really felt like this book went into anything too deep. We got a lot of like superficial stuff and it would like HINT at it and then just never go further into it. Andy's Parents we get told they only seemed to care when he decided he wanted to be a priest but nothing beyond that. Andy barely acknowledges their lack of love or even fucking attention. Fuck, his SISTER IS RIGHT FUCKING THERE when they basically cold shoulder him. and YEAH Andy has said he doesn't care but if my parents were cold fucking shouldering my brother like and I was close as she is with him. I'd be PISSED. I'd call them out on it or cut them off. Like holy fuck and then there is the year off that was apparently spent in a BDSM club? That no one seemed to know about but then did? Like he went off on his own? Did he live at the club? Or with someone from the club? His sister didn't seem to know anything about it until she was told and seemed SURPRISED that he was off doing something. like... maybe she didn't know what he was doing but seemed like she'd have an idea. And then.. its like every character is superficial as fuck, the only one we seem to get any depth too is Mark! Oh and back to the 'dark shit' For someone who spent a year in the BDSM culture and PAIN PLAY and maybe slept at a club, Andy didn't seem to have a good grasp on fucking rules. 'rules are there to keep us safe' oh yeah? Why the fuck didn't you have a safe word conversation? or a boundaries conversation? Also, Trevor read and understood subdrop but didn't happen to read about any of the rules and safety stuff? fucking what?
But the spice must be spicing?! No. For an MMC into pain play we didn't get much. The spice felt about fleshed out as the characters. No depth, hollow, there but nothing amazing. Like I'm giving it a 3 because there are a little bit of things but it's NOTHING like how its sort of hinted at being.
God, as I'm writing this I want to drop it below a 2 but I actually think it was better written than the items I normally give 1 star too.
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
2.0
Dude bound for priesthood ends up at the same college as his high school bully, even through he tried to avoid going to the same college, then they are forced together and sparks fly.
Overall reco: It was okay? I went looking for a book that I wanted to almost rip my heart out but not totally. Like an MMC that was hurt and abused and had pain and the blurp and sample I read felt like this was going to hit the spot. It didn't. I finished it, because it was so fast. but the whole thing felt rather superficial and flat. My chest never clenched for these characters, not even in their worst moments.
Overall reco: It was okay? I went looking for a book that I wanted to almost rip my heart out but not totally. Like an MMC that was hurt and abused and had pain and the blurp and sample I read felt like this was going to hit the spot. It didn't. I finished it, because it was so fast. but the whole thing felt rather superficial and flat. My chest never clenched for these characters, not even in their worst moments.
And when the time came that I had to let him go, I would. Because the only thing in the world I wanted more than to be with him, was for him to be happy.
Plot: 2/5
Spice: 3/5
Characters: 3/5
Did I like the book? Kinda. Do I have rants? fucking yes.
I'm going to spoiler tag these, since most of my rants have to do with shit that's hinted at or 'comes out' halfway into the book.
Don't spiral -
Book layout and formatting - This book is listed at 372 pages, my kindle says more but that's because there is a preview for another book at the end. Even so, this book had lots of extra space. There was a full line break between each paragraph, which effectively doubled the size of the book. I read roughly 40-50 pages an hour I read 85 pages an hour for this book. So this book isn't really 300+ pages. The pacing felt like it was a shorter book, and that makes sense with how fast I read it.
Jesus christ. Sorry - The religiousness of this book was.. weird. I'm not catholic, and now no longer religious in any form. I am not super familiar with the priesthood part of shit, just some basics. That said, the religion parts of the book felt fucking weird. Like the college and people AT the college seemed much more cool with 'gay' than I have experienced. Like, Mark was an outlier and honestly, from growing up in NJ and having friends and family that went to catholic HS and colleges.. Mark's behavior
Superficial as fuck - It never really felt like this book went into anything too deep. We got a lot of like superficial stuff and it would like HINT at it and then just never go further into it. Andy's Parents
But the spice must be spicing?! No. For an MMC into pain play we didn't get much. The spice felt about fleshed out as the characters. No depth, hollow, there but nothing amazing. Like I'm giving it a 3 because there are a little bit of things but it's NOTHING like how its sort of hinted at being.
God, as I'm writing this I want to drop it below a 2 but I actually think it was better written than the items I normally give 1 star too.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Homophobia
Minor: Emotional abuse
Trick Play by Eden Finley
Plot: 3/5
Spice: 3/5
Characters: 5/5
(The Good)
The burn of this relationship was great. Noah grabbed hold of my attention from the rip and didn't let go. I was with him on every up and down in this book. Matt was.. fun? He was a great counterpoint for Noah, if just a little dry. I loved the banter, as always, it was fun and sassy. That was big part of the first book that I liked. I feel like the spice was better in this book, but it could have been like a 2.5. objectively, I felt it was better and maybe that just because I of the dynamic.
(The Bad)
I felt like nothing was really resolved with Matt's back story. Yeas,JJ is there now but aside from a quick call and then some lip service it doesn't really feel like we find out what happens there. Maybe that's ok? but I'm still curious.
side note
So usually these "can be read as a standalone" aren't really that much of a standalone. Like there stuff you don't get told and NEED to know. I absolutely didn't really need to know ANYTHING in the first novel to enjoy this one. I feel like that something to let people know because sometimes I just wanna read the 3rd novel and not the ones before it and the "oh it can be a standalone but it'll help to understand the universe" line is like "yeah there like 1/3 of the book that you won't understand because you did't read the others. that is NOT the case here. It added and maybe enhanced but absolutely didn't need to be done. So yay!
emotional
funny
lighthearted
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Broken asshole with commitment issues agrees to fake a relationship with another broken asshole. They proceed to plow so hard into the miscommunication trope, they never fucking say anything.
Overall reco: I joke, I joke. I actually loved Noah. After the first book I was hesitant, he could have just stayed the resident asshole, but we got to peal the layers and a bit and see him better. I really felt for him and teared up a few times in this book. I loved it. It was just as enjoyable as the first book actually, more so. I love the broken ones though. Who don't know they are broken until someone shows them. Overall, I enjoyed it. Good read. I recommend.
Overall reco: I joke, I joke. I actually loved Noah. After the first book I was hesitant, he could have just stayed the resident asshole, but we got to peal the layers and a bit and see him better. I really felt for him and teared up a few times in this book. I loved it. It was just as enjoyable as the first book actually, more so. I love the broken ones though. Who don't know they are broken until someone shows them. Overall, I enjoyed it. Good read. I recommend.
Our relationship may’ve been fake, but I’ve never felt anything more real.
Plot: 3/5
Spice: 3/5
Characters: 5/5
(The Good)
The burn of this relationship was great. Noah grabbed hold of my attention from the rip and didn't let go. I was with him on every up and down in this book. Matt was.. fun? He was a great counterpoint for Noah, if just a little dry. I loved the banter, as always, it was fun and sassy. That was big part of the first book that I liked. I feel like the spice was better in this book, but it could have been like a 2.5. objectively, I felt it was better and maybe that just because I of the dynamic.
(The Bad)
I felt like nothing was really resolved with Matt's back story. Yeas,
side note
So usually these "can be read as a standalone" aren't really that much of a standalone. Like there stuff you don't get told and NEED to know. I absolutely didn't really need to know ANYTHING in the first novel to enjoy this one. I feel like that something to let people know because sometimes I just wanna read the 3rd novel and not the ones before it and the "oh it can be a standalone but it'll help to understand the universe" line is like "yeah there like 1/3 of the book that you won't understand because you did't read the others. that is NOT the case here. It added and maybe enhanced but absolutely didn't need to be done. So yay!