this was a hard one for me to rate, because the first 50% was absolutely fabulous sexy fun but the last 50% felt like quite the slog. i think that's tthis was a hard one for me to rate, because the first 50% was absolutely fabulous sexy fun but the last 50% felt like quite the slog. i think that's the potential downfall of a sex heavy romance.
the characters basically hook up on page one and continue their "love affair" without much change or growth until very late in the book. there's multiple times that the characters have opportunity to come clean to the people around them around their relationship but they just... keep putting it off.
also i'm coming to find that characters coming to sudden realizations really doesn't work for me. feels kinda lazy.
all of that being said, i still appreciated the sex appeal here and would read more from this author in the future....more
i must be coo coo for fucking cocoa puffs because this book had a "lemme shave ur pubes, baby" moment and a "lemme lotion ur dogs, snookums" moment ani must be coo coo for fucking cocoa puffs because this book had a "lemme shave ur pubes, baby" moment and a "lemme lotion ur dogs, snookums" moment and it's still a 5 star read.
i loved this. the characters were exactly what i like to see. emotionally damaged hero meets outspoken but slightly, realistically, insecure heroine who just wants dick? be still my beating heart. i loved the tone and pacing. liked the reveals. was dying for them to sleep together!! tbh can't remember the last time i didn't skim at least one smutty scene in a romance. but hey, elsie silver is a miracle worker.
live laugh love chestnut springs. sad to see it end but excited for the next series!...more
dnf @ 15%... i really do love a good age gap romance and i was willing to overlook some of the OTT speech & red flags but the repeated use of "my lolidnf @ 15%... i really do love a good age gap romance and i was willing to overlook some of the OTT speech & red flags but the repeated use of "my lolita" was gag inducing....more
hard to tell if this one was just not my cuppa or if it was truly mid. i truly enjoyed books 2 and 3 in this series but 1, 4 and 5 are not my faves fohard to tell if this one was just not my cuppa or if it was truly mid. i truly enjoyed books 2 and 3 in this series but 1, 4 and 5 are not my faves for various reasons
things i liked: now that i'm sitting here trying to think of words to write i'm drawing blanks. the writing was pretty good? i'm really not trying to be bitchy... i didn't hate this book. but i can't think of any standout "likes" here.
things i didn't like: - how big the age gap was. that's a totally personal thing. but i guess my age gap romance love does know bounds. - daisy and her decision making... fr the conflict here made her look like a total dumb ass. she was also pretty whiny. makes sense given her age but it makes u wonder what a supposedly mature dude sees in her besides her youth. - the kink and sex scenes. again. personal preference. but i found myself wanting to skim over the amount of sex scenes in this book. and i am fully aware this series is kink centered and has a lot of sex because of that. but the scenes here did nothing for me and felt boring after a while.
this was a quick read and it was fine. but i think i'm realizing that the palate cleansers and quick reads i'm looking for now don't tend to be smutty stories....more
such a promising start but from the 50% mark on i was genuinely gobsmacked by some of the shit that happened. but i guess good for tinsley falling forsuch a promising start but from the 50% mark on i was genuinely gobsmacked by some of the shit that happened. but i guess good for tinsley falling for a former billionaire priest?...more
sometimes i want to jump out of a plate glass window, but never more than when a book has great bones but the execution is all gristle.
age gap romancesometimes i want to jump out of a plate glass window, but never more than when a book has great bones but the execution is all gristle.
age gap romance with a marriage of convenience and meaty back stories for both hero and heroine? sign me the hell up. but unfortunately this was just a long drawn out push and pull with some steamy sex scenes. total missed opportunity.
we only passively see the heroine working on herself and her trauma. the hero? immature to the very end. don't get me wrong, listening to the audiobook wasn't a total chore but if i'm going to pick up a book with a taboo storyline it's gotta be sweetly complex. and these 2 didn't really seem like puzzle pieces....more
reread 1/6/22: was this better the second time around? well no. but it was still entertaining as hell.
though i dabble in reading romance of all genresreread 1/6/22: was this better the second time around? well no. but it was still entertaining as hell.
though i dabble in reading romance of all genres and tropes, i have pretty specific taste and this scratched an itch. i like messy angst filled forbidden drama.
fucking your shitty boyfriend's younger brother who has been pining for you for ages? yeah i'm very much into that. i stand by everything i said in my review below :) --------------
the most fun i've had in a while
this isn't an award winner or a new favorite, but it was a genuinely good time. the description of this book and the lil tag line on the cover tell you exactly what it's going to be and it definitely delivered. seriously, it hits the ground running from the first page.
you're got a lil bit of an age gap with a younger dude (which is something i've only ever read once in romance) who has been pining for the heroine. some forced proximity. some ~forbidden~ aspects.
there are some things that prevent this from being rated higher from me and i'll be quick with letting you know what those were:
1. i had no expectations going in other than a steamy read so i was able to overlook some things that would be creepy irl. if you're not a big wattpad style story reader this might not be something you can easily overlook.
2. this book probably should have been a novella. i appreciate tension but the first 25% of this book were lead up enough to the relationship that happened. it leaned SO heavily into the boyfriend's brother trope that i don't think the change in tone at the 40% mark really worked for me.
3. if this book were going to really work as a full length novel, it needed a little more development and a little less will they won't they. we knew they were inevitable. i liked some of the tension. but i think some flashback scenes would have helped the story & explaining the "why" of their relationship. and maybe a few mentions of what the characters liked in each other besides "you were always mine" and "i had to have her the moment i saw her at age 12." idk... i just wanted more.
all of that to say: i still liked this. i flew through this book in a way i haven't flown through a book in a while. and it was hot! i'd definitely be interested to read more from this author for a fun escape....more
yeah i dunno, i usually sum up my thoughts in bold but i can't think of a good tag line for this book. first thoughts though: much bettyeetus deletus
yeah i dunno, i usually sum up my thoughts in bold but i can't think of a good tag line for this book. first thoughts though: much better than dirty headlines (which is a book i wish i could forget forever).
i think i'm starting to realize a pattern with lj's books and tbh once i start seeing patterns it's all downhill from there. 98% of lj's heroes are dickheads. i mean BEYOND dickheads. and you always fall for them which is fine and dandy. except that it's really hard to believe in their love. she does this thing at like 80-90% into the book where the hero comes to this epiphany that he loves the heroine and it's always done the same way. like 2 pages of him waxing poetic on how he's treated her like garbage but he can't live without her.
and that was barely ok the first time it showed up in her books, but it's getting hard to sympathize with after 3+ times. get creative, lady.
what didn't bug me
you're going to see a lot of reviews mentioning other woman/other man drama. and there is. but it didn't really bother me. neither character truly cheats on the other. if anything it just shows how juvenile the two main characters are.
beyond that, if the plot interests you at all i would say give this a try. it's certainly not a bad book it's just a little repetitive with the lack of trust and endless cycle of trying to one up each other. the chemistry is definitely there between the main characters tho.
trigger warning though for: (view spoiler)[dubious consent when heroine is losing her virginity. it was mildly disturbing. (hide spoiler)]...more
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