Reviews with content warning for Gaslighting - Ilusão de Amor à Espanhola

Reviews tagging 'Gaslighting'

Ilusão de Amor à Espanhola by Elena Armas

35 reviews

stormeno's review against another edition

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emotional lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

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just_one_more_paige's review against another edition

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emotional funny lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

This romance got a lot of hype when it came out a couple years ago, so I added it to my "when you are wanting a romance" list. And, having lived for a few months in Spain, I am always excited to revisit the country in literature. Even though I was in southern Spain, and this (the parts set in Spain) is in the northern part of the country, there is some similar slang and food and vibes that are just different than Latin and South American Spanish-speaking settings and it's familiar and comfortable and fun to be back in sometimes. Anyways, it was time for a basic contemporary romance and this was the winner.

Catalina (Lina) Martín's white lie to her family about the American boyfriend she's bringing as a date to her sister's wedding in Spain has backed her into a bit of a corner. She needs to find someone to play that role, and time is running out. And desperation leads her to say yes to the offer to help from her coworker Aaron Blackford. Sure, he's handsome, but he was super condescending to her when they first met and, since then, they've kind of developed into office enemies. Beggars can't be choosers though. And so Lina finds herself on a flight across the Atlantic with Aaron...who turns out to be a fantastic fake boyfriend. Like, they're totally succeeding in fooling her nosy and close-knit family. And Lina realizes that perhaps it's time to work though/past some of her past relationship trauma, because her feelings towards this fake relationship are developing into something real. And it seems that Aaron is right there with her.

Well, this was a solid romance. I, of course, really enjoyed all the parts in Spain. And NYC is honestly always a fun setting, too. The opening vibes were *very* The Hating Game. I was actually questioning, for a second there, if this was a lowkey fanfic situation. The workplace enmity (and how it played out in dialogue/action), along with the "guy has clearly fallen but can't figure out how to say something about it so the girl has no idea," was so similar. Thankfully, the parallels chilled out after the story left the office environment. At which point, I was pleased with the way it developed. The hole Aaron had to dig out of, because he'd spent so long settling into it and not really doing anything to get out before this offer to be a fake "date," was pretty big. So, I honestly don't hate how long it took (effort and time wise), because you can't rush that and maintain a sense of authentic emotional development. That genuine growth/change was worth if from the perspective that it made the story more believable. However, the internet told me this was spicy. And...having to wait until three quarters of the way in to the novel to get a first kiss, hot as it was, just doesn't leave enough time for smut for me to consider this spicy. Personally. I mean, it was definitely steamy - the build up and tension and "closeness-but-not-quite" vibes - were spot on. And I am in full support of this romanticization of tenderness, the small touches and looks and acts, because that’s such real connection-type stuff, meaningful and beautiful in it's own, lovely, way. Truly. But the consummation of all that was late, and there were only a couple fully detailed, open-door, sexy scenes. And I just had been hoping for more based on reviews I'd read (which is an expectation issue. not a delivery-by-the-author issue, to be clear).

Random other things... The individual side characters were all pretty basic. I enjoyed the Martín family as a whole, as a vibe (I always love a rowdy family situation), but mostly everyone that wasn't Lina and Aaron blended into the background for me. There was entirely too much repeated inner monologue from Lina, about the past boyfriend trauma and the boss thing and the boundaries and heart barriers stuff. I mean, I get it; it's understandable and realistic that she'd be constantly dwelling on it, bur it was just a bit too tiresome, as a reader. Speaking of repetition, there were just a couple too many mentions of how sculpted/strong Aaron’s body is, tbh. We get it and it kind of started to feel a bit icky/objectifying. And finally, my biggest issue is the miscommunication trope (in this case, disguised as the "I'm too unsure/insecure to just talk about wanting to fix how we got off on the wrong foot an/or what's stopping me from taking this emotional jump") that is so highly featured in this novel. It's just not a favorite of mine and it was all over this story, so that was tough. But again, personal.

At the end of the day though, even with all the little things I wasn't a fan of, or wanted more/less of, or the tropes I didn't love (shoutout here to the "one bed" trope - which I do like - because how it happened was kind of hilarious), this novel grew on me. In part, it was just well written and the emotional pacing/development was so realistic. I always appreciate that type of believability. But also, if I'm being honest, mostly because of the softie romantic interest. I do love a “he falls harder” situation and this one delivers that all out.

“Because his words were, without a doubt in my mind, the most beautiful thing I would ever hear said about me. To me. And for me.”

“It was in that precise moment that I felt like something had finally clicked into place, unhinging everything I had been keeping on a short leash. I couldn’t know how or why. Didn’t even have the slightest idea. And wasn’t that part of the mystery of life? Part of what made it breathtakingly exciting? Unexpectedly beautiful? We couldn’t control and tame emotions to our convenience.”

Ignited. That was exactly how I felt. It was what Aaron had done to me. He had lit me up.”

“I’ll give you the world,” he said against my mouth. “The moon. The fucking stars. Anything you ask, it’s yours. I’m yours.”

“Your family loves you, and that’s a kind of bond you can’t force. It’s a kind of love one doesn’t find anywhere else. It can be overwhelming, but that’s only because it’s always honest.”

“Life changed constantly, wickedly fast and terribly slow, when one least expected it to or after a long time of chasing that change. Life could be turned around, inside out, backward and forward, or it could even transform into something else entirely. And it happened regardless of age, but most importantly, it didn’t care for time. Life-altering moments spanned from a few seconds to decades. It was part of the magic of life. Of living.”

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whynotreadwithalex's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Fun. Witty. Laugh-out-loud funny. At moments I thought I was gonna die from second-hand embarrassment, but so grateful I didn't and managed to live long enough to eat up this delightful summer read.
This book definitely took me on an emotional rollercoaster ride. I laughed. I cried. And there may have been a few moments when I debated chucking the book across the room -- in the best way, I promise.

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fromjuliereads's review against another edition

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funny hopeful lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

While I had quite a few issues with this book, it was ultimately fine and I did enjoy reading it to an extent. I'm confused by all of the hype praising this book though.
The writing was... not great. Clunky sentences, things were worded strange for characters, and there were whole paragraphs and pages of "filler" that felt repetitive - all of the things going on in Lina's head that seemed to just loop. I admit to skimming a lot of those sections. Also the part in Spain was a shockingly small part of the book?
I did like Aaron's character. Sure he could be stand offish and cold, definitely didn't deal with things in the right way and said "baby" way too much - but I felt like his character had more depth in some ways than Lina.

Anyways. The banter was fun, I liked the fake dating aspect. This is NOT enemies to lovers though. It was a fine read.

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jpfortmiller's review against another edition

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funny fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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brookey8888's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful lighthearted relaxing 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

3.75

I really enjoyed this! I always love a good fake dating story(even though it was like 5 chapters). I really liked Lina was a character I felt like she was so strong and sweet. Her family was so cute. I loved Aaron. I thought he was the sweetest honestly. The reason this isn’t a full five star is because during the dialogue it wasn’t that well written at times. It was always you are, we are( never you’re, we’ll). So that would always take me out of the story. Other than that I liked everything else.

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annahamburger's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.75

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vj_thompson's review against another edition

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emotional lighthearted reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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yllenia's review against another edition

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slow-paced

Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.0

I was definitely deceived.. into reading this book - dnf @ 73% (νέο ρεκόρ για εμένα)

Αυτό το βιβλίο προχωράει βασανιστικά αργά. Για να καταλάβεις, η πλοκή βασίζεται σε μια κοπέλα που φέρνει ένα ψεύτικο ραντεβού στο γάμο της αδερφής της, και δεν φτάνουμε καν στο μέρος που γίνεται ο γάμος με τη σελίδα 240 (!).

Το παραπάνω πιθανά δεν θα με πείραζε εάν ένιωθα ότι έγινε για να δώσει βάθος στους χαρακτήρες και τις περιπέτειες τους. Αντί για αυτό αναλωθήκαμε σε περιστατικά μεμονωμένα και χωρίς την απαραίτητη ροή ή σύνδεση, τα οποία πήραν τη διπλάσια έκταση από αυτή που τους αναλογούσε.

Παράλληλα το βιβλίο προσπάθησε να δημιουργήσει σασπένς κρατώντας από εμάς πληροφορίες για τα μεγάλα συμβάντα της ζωής της πρωταγωνίστριας μέχρι (φαντάζομαι) το τέλος του βιβλίου. Κατάφερε όμως να γίνει τόσο βαρετό που δεν θα μάθω ποτέ.

#bookstagram #booktok #booktokwaswrong #willievercomebackfromthis

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thereadhersrecap's review against another edition

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lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

You are light. And passion. Your laughter alone can lift my mood and effortlessly turn my day around in a matter of seconds Even when it's not aimed at me. You . .. can light up entire rooms, Catalina. You hold that kind of power. And it's because of all the different things that make you who you are. Each and every one of them, even the ones that drive me crazy in ways you can't imagine.
You should never forget that"

This book was everything I needed when I needed it.

In an act of desperation Catalina tells her family she’s being her “boyfriend” to Spain for her sister’s wedding. Truth be told she very much single. Now Catalina has a few weeks to 1) find a date 2) convince her family that he’s head over heels in love with her.

So Aaron (her workplace nemesis) volunteers to accompany her to the wedding! Catalina is shocked but she’s desperate so she agrees.

My thoughts:
If I have a dollar for every time the books mentions how tall Aaron is and how blue his eyes are I’d be filthy rich. But ngl, I do love a big burly man who can carry me around like I’m a piece of paper 😍

Catalina is just amazing. She’s sweet, loud, funny & quirky. Her family is to die for. She suffers from a pretty bad previous relationship that she still carries with her years later.

This book is definitely a mix of feel good romance and escapism. It’s told from Catalina’s pov (not usually my style) but you can feel Aaron’s longing through her perspective and I’m here for it. We love a pining, love sick man 😍

This book definitely didn’t change my life but it was fun and spicy. I‘ve also decided I won’t stand for walking on my own two feet anymore - I demand to be carried everywhere 💁🏽‍♀️

⚠️ CW: teacher/student relationship, death of a parent, gaslighting, sexism, cancer

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