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claire_fitzgibbon13's review against another edition
emotional
funny
inspiring
sad
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
4.0
Declan was a bit of a dick at first but by the end he had really changed. And i understand because of everything he went through. I hope Seth dies a painful death. And I love Iris so much she’s so real.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Sexual content, Death of parent, and Abandonment
Moderate: Violence and Pregnancy
ewatt33's review against another edition
emotional
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse and Domestic abuse
Minor: Violence, Grief, and Death of parent
hannahmcl394's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
fast-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
4.5
Definitely preferred this one to the first in the series, although I wouldn’t say there is a drastic difference as I have seen others review.
Declan appealed to me more a lot more than Rowan, despite being described as the more “robotic” or heartless of all the brothers I found him a lot more loveable and thoroughly enjoyed reading the book from his pov (most notably the secret smiles he doesn’t allow Iris to see)
The wedding in particularly coaxed a visceral reaction from me and absolutely reeked havoc with emotions.
Love love loved Iris and Cals friendship!! I only wish there was more of it (however there is always book 3) and thoroughly enjoyed the small moments of Declan’s jealously over it.
Initial rating: 5 stars
Reviewed rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4.5
While this is my favourite Lauren Asher book so far and in some ways it could deserve the five star rating when compared to books by other others (Ana Huang) the writing falls short and so it must be dropped a fraction of a star.
Spice rating: 🌶🌶🌶 3.5 spice
Not huge amounts of smut but worth the buildup and definitely integrated well into the storyline without feeling forced. Very much a slow burn romance with great pay off. <spoiler?> THE OFFICE SCENE OH MY GOD!!
Would I read again? Yes
Would I recommend? Yes
Declan appealed to me more a lot more than Rowan, despite being described as the more “robotic” or heartless of all the brothers I found him a lot more loveable and thoroughly enjoyed reading the book from his pov (most notably the secret smiles he doesn’t allow Iris to see)
The wedding in particularly coaxed a visceral reaction from me and absolutely reeked havoc with emotions.
Love love loved Iris and Cals friendship!! I only wish there was more of it (however there is always book 3) and thoroughly enjoyed the small moments of Declan’s jealously over it.
Initial rating: 5 stars
Reviewed rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4.5
While this is my favourite Lauren Asher book so far and in some ways it could deserve the five star rating when compared to books by other others (Ana Huang) the writing falls short and so it must be dropped a fraction of a star.
Spice rating: 🌶🌶🌶 3.5 spice
Not huge amounts of smut but worth the buildup and definitely integrated well into the storyline without feeling forced. Very much a slow burn romance with great pay off. <spoiler?> THE OFFICE SCENE OH MY GOD!!
Would I read again? Yes
Would I recommend? Yes
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, and Sexual content
Minor: Addiction, Alcoholism, Cancer, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Violence, Medical content, Death of parent, Pregnancy, and Alcohol
readerorwateva's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Cursing
Minor: Alcoholism, Bullying, Domestic abuse, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Violence, Medical content, Death of parent, and Pregnancy
beckyyreadss's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
I wanted to read this book because I absolutely loved the first book in this series. I wanted a Kane brother and Rowan is still my number 1, however Declan is a close 2nd. This is the second book in a series of interconnected standalones following the billionaire Kane brothers.
There are two points of view within this book. The first is Declan. He is the oldest Kane brother, and he is destined to become the next CEO of his family media empire. There is only one problem – his grandfather’s inheritance clause. His dying wish is for Declan to find a wife and have a child. This seems impossible to Declan, until his assistant volunteers for the job. Their marriage was supposed to be the perfect solution to his biggest problem. But the more they act like they are in love in public, the more unsure Declan feels about the contract. He was never planning on caring about Iris especially not when breaking her heart is bound to happen. The next point of view is Iris. Her plan to marry Declan was simple in theory. Move in together, throw a wedding, have a baby. They set rules to prevent any kind of issues. Ones that were never meant to be broken, but Declan seems to be tempting her to break them. Now she doesn’t know whether this relationship is real or fake, but she knows one thing – falling in love was never an option, at least not for me.
Oh, once again, Lauren Asher has me a CHOKEHOLD over these brothers. I want more of them. I love how Declan goes from this cold exterior at the very start of this book to like a golden retriever energy for his wife by the end. I just love how sassy he gets, like you forget that he is supposed to be running a business yet, all he can think about is how to get Iris to love him. I love Iris, she is so badass and strong, and she knows how to throw a punch (I was screaming at that chapter). At the same time, I loved the vulnerability that Iris showed with her hidden disability and her fears due to the father. I love that both Declan and Iris have daddy issues, yet they are both determined to not let them wreck each other. I love the tropes in this book being workplace romance, boss/employee, marriage of convenience, fake dating and my personal favourite grumpy x sunshine. This story worked so well and blended so well from the previous novel, and I loved seeing the previous couple of Zahra and Rowan show up and tell them how to be in love and things. I cannot wait to see more of Cal, I want more of this storyline and I cannot wait for his book to come out. The friendship between him and Iris and the sassiness he gives his brothers - I just know his book is going to be good.
I don’t have anything bad to say about this book, this book could have been 8000 pages long and I wouldn’t have complained, I want more. Lauren Asher has me in a chokehold.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, and Sexual content
Moderate: Child abuse, Death of parent, and Pregnancy
Minor: Alcoholism and Violence
ka_ke's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
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
5.0
Lauren Asher sure knows how to grab your attention with another fantastic rom-com. It was refreshing to see that not everything was resolved with Declan, and I enjoyed seeing the family dynamics on all sides. Cal may be my favourite of the Kane brothers.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, and Alcohol
Minor: Child abuse, Misogyny, Sexism, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail
culzean's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
tense
fast-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
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Body shaming, Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Classism
gelslitreviews's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Violence and Death of parent
finnickdeservedbetter's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
sad
tense
fast-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
4.25
Tropes/Themes: billionaire romance, boss x employee, grump x sunshine, fake dating, marriage of convenience, healing from trauma
Representation:poc/woc (black fmc), disability (fmc with dyslexia)
Representation:
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing and Sexual content
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Violence, and Pregnancy
Minor: Child abuse, Physical abuse, Vomit, and Injury/Injury detail
jennyslibrary's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
relaxing
slow-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
3.75
This book was so good!
I love the grumpy x sunshine trope, and the “forced marriage” sprinkled the forced proximity trope on top of it all. The appearances of Rowan and Zahra made the book ten times better, seeing as they were as happily in love as ever before. This book will make you believe in love. It has so many great sides, although I did find Declan’s attitude very frustrating at times. But this just adds to how happy I was when it all turned out great. The dual pov made it possible to see their love and grief from both perspectives, and that made the book all the quicker and easier to read. Because although not many things happen, the slow burn of them going from barely friends to getting married because they have to, makes the slow burn so much better. With almost 500 pages it still had me drooling for their love. They have their own LOVE LANGUAGE damn it!
I love the grumpy x sunshine trope, and the “forced marriage” sprinkled the forced proximity trope on top of it all. The appearances of Rowan and Zahra made the book ten times better, seeing as they were as happily in love as ever before. This book will make you believe in love. It has so many great sides, although I did find Declan’s attitude very frustrating at times. But this just adds to how happy I was when it all turned out great. The dual pov made it possible to see their love and grief from both perspectives, and that made the book all the quicker and easier to read. Because although not many things happen, the slow burn of them going from barely friends to getting married because they have to, makes the slow burn so much better. With almost 500 pages it still had me drooling for their love. They have their own LOVE LANGUAGE damn it!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse
Moderate: Grief
Minor: Alcoholism, Cancer, Child abuse, and Violence