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katiechia8's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
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
3.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Body shaming and Bullying
Minor: Homophobia and Death of parent
dlrosebyh's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
fast-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
1.0
finally saying goodbye to these characters, even if i’m not in favor of it.
controversial to a lot of opinions, i actually loved the dare. yes, it’s a romance book just like the other books in the series, but compared to the other books, it has more depth to it. it tackles relevant topics like fatphobia, sexual harassment, sexual assault, and body shaming— in a non-misleading way.
i agree that it may not be the best closing novel for a series, but as a stand-alone, it’s a pretty good book.
conor and taylor’s relationship is very realistic in terms of college romance. it pisses me off that they won’t talk about their problems first and always ends up taking a break from their relationship. but as i’ve said, it showcases a realistic relationship, so i couldn’t bother to give it at most 4 stars.
still bittersweet about leaving these characters, but it is what it is.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body shaming, Bullying, Fatphobia, Sexual assault, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Eating disorder, Homophobia, and Religious bigotry
sierrachenee's review against another edition
lighthearted
medium-paced
3.5
I only rate it that high because Conor Edwards is a treasure and I love him. I didn’t care much about him in other books but him in this book could have easily made it one of my favorites in the series. This book had some of the worst most infuriating things in all 8 off campus/briar u books however.
Taylor was great. I liked her a lot. I just did not appreciate how she was written. Taylor is a curvy girl and every chapter it is brought up how insecure she is about it. Conor is constantly reassuring her and it just becomes grating. At some point you have to find that confidence within yourself and not rely on a guy for it. A persons weight should not be written as their personality trait. Having some mentions does make sense but the sheer amount was absolutely appalling. Even my precious boy Conor made a comment putting down skinny bodies in the book. Like why
I’m also not a big fan of how one of the only gay characters in the whole series just had to go through a traumatic moment near the end that really didn’t need to happen at all.
On top of that I just hate miscommunication so having it happen twice in a short span was aggravating. Taylor and Conor could have been great and they really did have a lot in common and worked on the same wave length so there was no reason for it.
The lows in this book were so low but the highs were also really high too.
Conor already started off great. He is a big sweetheart, respectful, funny, laidback, and just an all around decent person. He manages to grow so much in the book and it made me so happy to see. He deserves the best.
I also loved seeing Coach finally get some romance in his life. It was long over due and hilarious.
Conor also has some of the better interactions with all of the guys in the Briar U series and seems to be friends with them where as previous books it could be more disjointed. It didn’t have as much hockey sadly but it was nice to see otherwise.
Taylor was great. I liked her a lot. I just did not appreciate how she was written. Taylor is a curvy girl and every chapter it is brought up how insecure she is about it. Conor is constantly reassuring her and it just becomes grating. At some point you have to find that confidence within yourself and not rely on a guy for it. A persons weight should not be written as their personality trait. Having some mentions does make sense but the sheer amount was absolutely appalling. Even my precious boy Conor made a comment putting down skinny bodies in the book. Like why
I’m also not a big fan of how one of the only gay characters in the whole series just had to go through a traumatic moment near the end that really didn’t need to happen at all.
On top of that I just hate miscommunication so having it happen twice in a short span was aggravating. Taylor and Conor could have been great and they really did have a lot in common and worked on the same wave length so there was no reason for it.
The lows in this book were so low but the highs were also really high too.
Conor already started off great. He is a big sweetheart, respectful, funny, laidback, and just an all around decent person. He manages to grow so much in the book and it made me so happy to see. He deserves the best.
I also loved seeing Coach finally get some romance in his life. It was long over due and hilarious.
Conor also has some of the better interactions with all of the guys in the Briar U series and seems to be friends with them where as previous books it could be more disjointed. It didn’t have as much hockey sadly but it was nice to see otherwise.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fatphobia, Homophobia, Sexual content, and Outing
psydneigh's review against another edition
funny
fast-paced
4.5
I loved this one. It felt the most realistic to me. Hunter’s anxiety made me legitimately anxious. The way his character described situations just clicked with me and I really felt it. The boys CRACK ME UP. I could read a whole book of just the guys doing dumb shit together. I wish we had seen Taylor and her mom confront their past in a conversation.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Body shaming, Bullying, Homophobia, and Religious bigotry