rdelucia's review
5.0
I was given an ARC from the author for an honest review.
For fans of: rom-coms, consent, Olivia Dade, sexually confident heroines, feminist romance
Funny, clever, and hot, consensual sex! Cleo is staying at a hotel for work, and Dean is a sweet businessman who’s staying at the same hotel for a conference. Now Cleo is an actor and she does her best to appear like she’s confident all the time, but when harsh words get past her defenses we see a three-dimensional woman. Like Cleo, Dean puts up a facade of confidence in the business world, but he’s also got things he’s sensitive about that we learn over time. They keep running into each other, and throughout the week what started out as a hookup turns into a connection where they share their vulnerabilities, insecurities, and apology tacos.
This series is all about consent in romance, and I loved the way this book handled consent. It felt really natural when they checked in with each other and talked about what they wanted. It fit within their existing chemistry.
I think this twist was really well done because I didn’t see it coming at all, but then I recalled certain details, and it all fit.
I know people say this for novellas all the time, but I wish it was longer? After their week at the hotel we get a fast forward to their life in NYC and I actually would’ve liked to read about those months too. The ending was really satisfying and sweet though. I’m hoping there will be another book where we can see more about how their relationship evolved.
I’ve got straight-size privilege, so I can’t speak to the representation from a personal viewpoint. However, I love the fat representation and I think other readers will too! Cleo loves her body, Dean loves her body, and there are no apologies for that; she just happens to be fat. It isn’t like they live in a world free from fatphobia, but it’s not the focus of the story. This approach reminded me of Olivia Dade’s work. Content warnings for fatphobia from the villain-like character and briefly talking about childhood trauma of growing up with a fatphobic mother.
We also get a glimpse at the characters from the first book. And what’s cool is readers can follow along with the characters on “their” Instagrams to watch the scenes play out from their perspectives. Also, you should listen to the book’s podcast format. I haven’t heard this one yet, but I did listen to the entirety of this production company’s first book as a podcast and it blew me away. It’s so much more than a typical audiobook, plus it’s free on spotify.
Bonus: this texting exchange between Cleo and her best friend made me lol.
“Cleo: I just like. REALLY like him.
Ingrid: What about. Other L words? The big L word?
Cleo: Lick him? Yes I have licked him and I’ll do it again.
Ingrid: Oh my God.
Cleo: He’s licked me too, to be clear. Mutual licking.”
For fans of: rom-coms, consent, Olivia Dade, sexually confident heroines, feminist romance
Funny, clever, and hot, consensual sex! Cleo is staying at a hotel for work, and Dean is a sweet businessman who’s staying at the same hotel for a conference. Now Cleo is an actor and she does her best to appear like she’s confident all the time, but when harsh words get past her defenses we see a three-dimensional woman. Like Cleo, Dean puts up a facade of confidence in the business world, but he’s also got things he’s sensitive about that we learn over time. They keep running into each other, and throughout the week what started out as a hookup turns into a connection where they share their vulnerabilities, insecurities, and apology tacos.
This series is all about consent in romance, and I loved the way this book handled consent. It felt really natural when they checked in with each other and talked about what they wanted. It fit within their existing chemistry.
Spoiler
Just when it seems like this hookup is heading to a future relationship they learn they’re more professionally connected than they would have guessed, and they have to decide if they can have a future without jeopardizing Cleo’s jobI know people say this for novellas all the time, but I wish it was longer? After their week at the hotel we get a fast forward to their life in NYC and I actually would’ve liked to read about those months too. The ending was really satisfying and sweet though. I’m hoping there will be another book where we can see more about how their relationship evolved.
I’ve got straight-size privilege, so I can’t speak to the representation from a personal viewpoint. However, I love the fat representation and I think other readers will too! Cleo loves her body, Dean loves her body, and there are no apologies for that; she just happens to be fat. It isn’t like they live in a world free from fatphobia, but it’s not the focus of the story. This approach reminded me of Olivia Dade’s work. Content warnings for fatphobia from the villain-like character and briefly talking about childhood trauma of growing up with a fatphobic mother.
We also get a glimpse at the characters from the first book. And what’s cool is readers can follow along with the characters on “their” Instagrams to watch the scenes play out from their perspectives. Also, you should listen to the book’s podcast format. I haven’t heard this one yet, but I did listen to the entirety of this production company’s first book as a podcast and it blew me away. It’s so much more than a typical audiobook, plus it’s free on spotify.
Bonus: this texting exchange between Cleo and her best friend made me lol.
“Cleo: I just like. REALLY like him.
Ingrid: What about. Other L words? The big L word?
Cleo: Lick him? Yes I have licked him and I’ll do it again.
Ingrid: Oh my God.
Cleo: He’s licked me too, to be clear. Mutual licking.”
barbara_sf's review
4.0
After my not so pleasant experience with the first book (or first season as they call it on Spotify), I was hesitant to start the audiobook. But I follow Becca Morgan on Tik Tok and I really enjoy her videos, so I wanted to support her. And I ended up being greately surprised.
Normally, I'm not a big fan of insta-love romances, and at the beggining I felt like this may be one of those stories, but the narrative is so well developed that even though it does have that "love at first sight" kinda moments, it feels natural and more real life grounded if that made sense.
The chemestry between the characters was there, and I really liked that there wereren´t a misscomunication trope. I also really like the plus sized representantion and that it wasnt the focal point of the storie. Meaning that it wasnt a storie about a plus women losing weight or learning how to love herself. But instead it was a storie about this badass actress, working to get her dream job and finding love.
Overall It was a really fun romance read that made my car rides far more enjoyable.
Normally, I'm not a big fan of insta-love romances, and at the beggining I felt like this may be one of those stories, but the narrative is so well developed that even though it does have that "love at first sight" kinda moments, it feels natural and more real life grounded if that made sense.
The chemestry between the characters was there, and I really liked that there wereren´t a misscomunication trope. I also really like the plus sized representantion and that it wasnt the focal point of the storie. Meaning that it wasnt a storie about a plus women losing weight or learning how to love herself. But instead it was a storie about this badass actress, working to get her dream job and finding love.
Overall It was a really fun romance read that made my car rides far more enjoyable.
theotherboleyn's review
5.0
I really enjoyed this book, I read it one sitting, and it was so entertaining.
First off, it was hilarious. It made me laugh so many times. I can not understate how funny I thought it was. The book just overall made me really happy and smile/laugh. Also, the characters were incredibly relatable, especially Cleo. Speaking of Cleo, I loved seeing a strong plus-size character who is confident in herself and her body. Cleo had several amazing one-liners and her thoughts were on point.
The other thing I loved was a healthy relationship with enthusiastic consent. Often times romance novels don't have enthusiastic consent, which frankly needs to be mandatory. So I really liked that both Dean and Cleo were clearly consenting to everything.
The overall story was compelling and so enjoyable. Dean and Cleo's love story was so cute. I hope we can see more of them in future because I loved what we got. I would love to see more of their relationship. I am now off to listen to the podcast/ audiobook because I want more of Dean and Cleo! BTW: Honestly, I think this book needs to be made into a movie. It feels to me, like the perfect 2021 Rom-Com.
First off, it was hilarious. It made me laugh so many times. I can not understate how funny I thought it was. The book just overall made me really happy and smile/laugh. Also, the characters were incredibly relatable, especially Cleo. Speaking of Cleo, I loved seeing a strong plus-size character who is confident in herself and her body. Cleo had several amazing one-liners and her thoughts were on point.
The other thing I loved was a healthy relationship with enthusiastic consent. Often times romance novels don't have enthusiastic consent, which frankly needs to be mandatory. So I really liked that both Dean and Cleo were clearly consenting to everything.
The overall story was compelling and so enjoyable. Dean and Cleo's love story was so cute. I hope we can see more of them in future because I loved what we got. I would love to see more of their relationship. I am now off to listen to the podcast/ audiobook because I want more of Dean and Cleo! BTW: Honestly, I think this book needs to be made into a movie. It feels to me, like the perfect 2021 Rom-Com.
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