sarah2438's reviews
1046 reviews

The main of the book was beautiful, hopeful, and interesting. The epilogue by his wife is, of course, all of those things plus devastating.

Carris Soto is... a bitch. And don't get me wrong, that's not always a bad thing. I love those villains that you love to hate. But she doesn't really have any depth to her at all. She just really wants to win and doesn't give a shit about anyone else around her. I think TJR was trying to do a commentary on how competitive women are seen as bitchy while competitive men are just really invested in the game, but this falls flat when your MC is, indeed, a bitch. I just spent 364 pages in her head and I don't think she's a good person, so TJR's attempt to make that point is a complete and total fail. Between that and the exhaustive recitation of all those tennis matches (which I honestly could not care less about, I read TJR books for the characters and their interpersonal drama) this book just wasn't it for me.

I enjoyed this one! For better or for worse, I found the MC very relatable. I think I expected this to be more lighthearted but it actually gets into some pretty serious topics-- DV, cancer, family expectations, trauma, alcoholism. Those are handled very well in my opinion. It reminds me quite a bit of Eleanor Oliphant but I liked this one better. Definitely recommend.

Read all three separately as audiobooks but wanted to put all reviews in one place.

Under One Roof: 3/5
This was definitely the best of the bunch. Not great, but it was fun. I think the reason this worked best for me is because it seemed like there was the most character development and it wasn't instalove. Also, I love a forced proximity trope.

Stuck with You: 2/5
Unsurprisingly, this novella was ALSO bad. Love at first sight and then holding a grudge for a month over a dumb miscommunication is NOT the vibe.

Below Zero: 2/5
What exactly is the point of an Ali Hazelwood story without the obvious slowburn and "obnoxiously quirky but still relatable enough" characterization to make me care about the characters before they do their thing? This is just randos bonking. Terrible. Can't wait to read the other two.

This was definitely the best of the bunch. Not great, but it was fun. I think the reason this worked best for me is because it seemed like there was the most character development and it wasn't instalove. Also, I love a forced proximity trope.

The oldest book on my TBR has been conquered! This one was really interesting. I added it to my TBR when I was starting my psychology degree and it reminded me why I got interested in that field to start with. Not overly sciencey, although that is certainly part of it-- it felt very approachable. And the family is talked about in such a way that I felt like I understood pretty well who the individuals were, which is a tricky thing to do with so many children, partners, and scientists to keep track of. Finally, I really respect how the various delusions were handled. The author was never dismissive or mocking of these grand delusions. It really is the story of a very complicated family with some unfortunate history, who has led to significant developments in the treatment of schizophrenia.

Why did I, a person who hates time travel tropes, pick this up? It's because I had an Aardvark subscription and this was the best pick that month. Unfortunately that was a waste of a pick. From reading other 1-3 star reviews I can see that the things that bother me continue. And while I initially liked our narrator, her attitude toward the time travel (which made no sense) was starting to grate on me. Life is too short for another 2 star read.

Worldbuilding and writing were great. Plot was boring and badly paced.

Elsie is so toxic lol I just can't with her. I can justify it when she's dealing with grief but the way she acts while dating Ben is ALSO crazy, so it just makes me think that's who she is, not so much an effect of grief. Girl needs to go to therapy. This is TJR's debut and all I have to say is I'm so glad her writing has improved since this.

Unsurprisingly, this novella was ALSO bad. Love at first sight and then holding a grudge for a month over a dumb miscommunication is NOT the vibe.