leasummer's review against another edition
4.0
Once I had time for this book I finished it in one day.
The childhood frenemies reunited in adult life and still having attraction is a great trope. They rediscover each other with the wisdom of adulthood but they have the connection of a shared past. The family element in this book, from Nico, helped pull me in. The mystery and suspense with the "fancy stalker" left me intrigued and I wasn't expecting it to become such a part of the story as it did.
I do love how Penny Reid has strong female characters. I don't understand how a strong, independent woman can be completely speechless and unable to function by a man, especially one she knows - this is outside the realm of believability (is that a word) for me. Nico's The Face show, meh, I totally see why it is what it is, trying to make a statement about how just because you were a bikini on tv doesn't mean you don't have brains. But for that point to really be authentic, I would have liked to be introduced to those women, I needed proof. And I felt like Elizabeth would have wanted that proof as well. I also hate that the word slut appears in her books. The heroines are so smart and competent that doesn't seem to be needed.
The childhood frenemies reunited in adult life and still having attraction is a great trope. They rediscover each other with the wisdom of adulthood but they have the connection of a shared past. The family element in this book, from Nico, helped pull me in. The mystery and suspense with the "fancy stalker" left me intrigued and I wasn't expecting it to become such a part of the story as it did.
I do love how Penny Reid has strong female characters. I don't understand how a strong, independent woman can be completely speechless and unable to function by a man, especially one she knows - this is outside the realm of believability (is that a word) for me. Nico's The Face show, meh, I totally see why it is what it is, trying to make a statement about how just because you were a bikini on tv doesn't mean you don't have brains. But for that point to really be authentic, I would have liked to be introduced to those women, I needed proof. And I felt like Elizabeth would have wanted that proof as well. I also hate that the word slut appears in her books. The heroines are so smart and competent that doesn't seem to be needed.
saucyknits's review against another edition
2.0
DNF 75%. I’m not wasting anymore time on this dumb book! Nico is a good character, but 1) why does he have a thick Italian accent when he was raised in the Midwest (from age 5 on, if not from birth) & was part of the Us school system? 2) How does he have such a thick accent but then Elizabeth is surprised at 75% through the book that he speaks Italian? WTF? Especially since he’s been sprinkling in Italian words from the beginning?
Elizabeth is sooo boring! Where’s the sarcasm? The whole
premise behind her attitude (woe is me, I was 15 when I decided I’ll never love again….Please!!)
Parts of the this book were ok, but it needed more knitting and more time with the friend circle to make it bearable. I took off a ⭐️ because the narrator was incredibly flat throughout most of the book & this didn’t help the book be less boring.
Luckily, I read Neanderthal gets Married (excellent book!) and I know how Elizabeth gets her HEA, so I’m moving on. Neanderthal 1 & 1.5 are both FAB books that I’ll read over and over…this one just doesn’t have the sparkle or wit.
Elizabeth is sooo boring! Where’s the sarcasm? The whole
premise behind her attitude (woe is me, I was 15 when I decided I’ll never love again….Please!!)
Parts of the this book were ok, but it needed more knitting and more time with the friend circle to make it bearable. I took off a ⭐️ because the narrator was incredibly flat throughout most of the book & this didn’t help the book be less boring.
Luckily, I read Neanderthal gets Married (excellent book!) and I know how Elizabeth gets her HEA, so I’m moving on. Neanderthal 1 & 1.5 are both FAB books that I’ll read over and over…this one just doesn’t have the sparkle or wit.
jlanewalker's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
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? Yes
4.0
laurenjodi's review against another edition
2.0
Friends Without Benefits
2 Stars
Dr. Elizabeth Finney is convinced that her only chance at true love is long since gone. As such, all that interests her is the "benefits" without the irritation of friendship or relationships. But all of Elizabeth's plans are obliterated when her childhood nemesis, Nico Manganiello, reappears in her life.
Unfortunately, this is an exceedingly disappointing sequel to Neanderthal Meets Human. Elizabeth is one of the most unlikeable heroines I have ever encountered. She is shallow, selfish, and self-absorbed. There is one moment around the halfway mark that is completely inexcusable. It is clear at this point that she and Nico are entering into a romantic relationship yet.
Nico on the other hand is sexy, charming, and intriguing. His backstory with Elizabeth has such tremendous potential, but her awfulness ruins any possibility of an entertaining second chances romance, and his attraction to and affection for her is completely incomprehensible.
The minor suspense plot involving a stalker adds some tension and suspense, but that cannot compensate for the lackluster romance.
A final note on Devra Woodward's narration of the audiobook, which is very good in terms of tone and intonation. Nevertheless, her choice of accent for Nico is unclear. He is a US-born Italian-American raised in Iowa, so why has Woodward used an Italian accent for him? Does she think it will make him sexier? Newsflash - it doesn't!
In sum, not a good sequel. That said, the other members of the knitting circle are endearing and Reid's writing is well-paced and entertaining. As such, I will continue with the series.
2 Stars
Dr. Elizabeth Finney is convinced that her only chance at true love is long since gone. As such, all that interests her is the "benefits" without the irritation of friendship or relationships. But all of Elizabeth's plans are obliterated when her childhood nemesis, Nico Manganiello, reappears in her life.
Unfortunately, this is an exceedingly disappointing sequel to Neanderthal Meets Human. Elizabeth is one of the most unlikeable heroines I have ever encountered. She is shallow, selfish, and self-absorbed. There is one moment around the halfway mark that is completely inexcusable. It is clear at this point that she and Nico are entering into a romantic relationship yet
Spoiler
she still agrees to no strings sex with a colleague. While she doesn't actually cheat, her intent to do so is there.Nico on the other hand is sexy, charming, and intriguing. His backstory with Elizabeth has such tremendous potential, but her awfulness ruins any possibility of an entertaining second chances romance, and his attraction to and affection for her is completely incomprehensible.
The minor suspense plot involving a stalker adds some tension and suspense, but that cannot compensate for the lackluster romance.
A final note on Devra Woodward's narration of the audiobook, which is very good in terms of tone and intonation. Nevertheless, her choice of accent for Nico is unclear. He is a US-born Italian-American raised in Iowa, so why has Woodward used an Italian accent for him? Does she think it will make him sexier? Newsflash - it doesn't!
In sum, not a good sequel. That said, the other members of the knitting circle are endearing and Reid's writing is well-paced and entertaining. As such, I will continue with the series.
angie_stl's review against another edition
5.0
Nick is a pretty great character, especially considering his job. Elizabeth is at times would tighter than seemingly possible, but once she shrugs that off to knit or try to pull a prank, watch out!! Literally! You never know what’s going to happen.
I was very impressed to see CF featured so prominently in this book, though reading what little Angelica goes through is difficult. I know more than one family affected by this disease and awareness can mean so much!! Take a few moments to learn about cystic fibrosis, please!
I was very impressed to see CF featured so prominently in this book, though reading what little Angelica goes through is difficult. I know more than one family affected by this disease and awareness can mean so much!! Take a few moments to learn about cystic fibrosis, please!
geo_ix's review against another edition
2.0
I’m going to give this series one more shot, but basically I couldn’t quite enjoy this one because of the constant slit shaming and the awful way they spoke about the ‘crazy lady’. There were a lot of ways they described her mental instability and there were also times characters just spoke that made me cringe. There was a weird description of his eyes being ‘Gypsy eyes’ which I genuinely don’t even understand but it was 100% not necessary, and while I enjoyed the fact the book was super emotive, I really, really hated the heroine and how she thought/spoke.
I knew I wouldn’t like her from the start when she acts all annoyed that they’re taking her ‘pranks’ as something serious and not a joke. Like, you’re in the fucking workplace dude and you’re not getting paid to fuck around, do your job and stop doing stupid shit. (Also the porn switch prank she mentioned has me side eying, how did HR not track her down for that?) I think it was meant to make her look like she wasn’t always serious, maybe that she had a funny element in common with Nico, but it wasn’t. If it was anywhere but work (April fools or not) I wouldn’t have cared, but that shit was so fucking lame of her.
Then she goes on to insinuate she’s a slut, and it turns out that including the hero she’s had sex four times but she thinks she’s slutty because she slept with four men with no intention of ever being with them again. Says she hasn’t dated since first love, but she went on dates and courted the dudes before sleeping and ditching (but she says they’re not dates because she paid for herself lololol)
She goes on about how her dad can’t love his new girlfriend who is young because he will always love her mother (saw him proposing coming a mile away) and in all honesty all of these things just showed how... immature she was? She kept saying she’d changed since Nico knew her, but she was acting like she was still 17.
I get a lot of it was trauma from losing her boyfriend at a young age, but DAMN. Her head was so just not a place I liked to be.
Also, was the epilogue needed? I don’t really think so. Also, had an issue with one of the chapters in my audible copy, where it got to the end of a scene and then repeated.
Overall, this was kinda over-long and didn’t need quite as much to the story as there was, I’m hoping I enjoy the next but at this point I’m not expecting much.
I knew I wouldn’t like her from the start when she acts all annoyed that they’re taking her ‘pranks’ as something serious and not a joke. Like, you’re in the fucking workplace dude and you’re not getting paid to fuck around, do your job and stop doing stupid shit. (Also the porn switch prank she mentioned has me side eying, how did HR not track her down for that?) I think it was meant to make her look like she wasn’t always serious, maybe that she had a funny element in common with Nico, but it wasn’t. If it was anywhere but work (April fools or not) I wouldn’t have cared, but that shit was so fucking lame of her.
Then she goes on to insinuate she’s a slut, and it turns out that including the hero she’s had sex four times but she thinks she’s slutty because she slept with four men with no intention of ever being with them again. Says she hasn’t dated since first love, but she went on dates and courted the dudes before sleeping and ditching (but she says they’re not dates because she paid for herself lololol)
She goes on about how her dad can’t love his new girlfriend who is young because he will always love her mother (saw him proposing coming a mile away) and in all honesty all of these things just showed how... immature she was? She kept saying she’d changed since Nico knew her, but she was acting like she was still 17.
I get a lot of it was trauma from losing her boyfriend at a young age, but DAMN. Her head was so just not a place I liked to be.
Also, was the epilogue needed? I don’t really think so. Also, had an issue with one of the chapters in my audible copy, where it got to the end of a scene and then repeated.
Overall, this was kinda over-long and didn’t need quite as much to the story as there was, I’m hoping I enjoy the next but at this point I’m not expecting much.
violetamethyst's review against another edition
4.0
I was hoping this would be kinda like the Rock Chick Series but nope. It was actually pretty boring, barely and sex and like zero romance! Just a whole lot of nostalgia. Oh, and the formatting towards the end, the optional chapters or whatever, were really annoying. I won't be reading any more in this series, but I think I will go looking for another hot Italian hero.
what_alice_saw's review against another edition
5.0
The book was great-I’m a huge Penny Reid fan. This is more about the audiobook. The voice actress was amazing. Debra Woodward has a perfect voice for Elizabeth & I swear, I fell in lust with her version of Nico. Please listen to this on audio & spread the word. This book & audiobook pushed all the right buttons.
thegeekyblogger's review against another edition
4.0
Read/Listened for Fun (Romance Package/Kindle)
Overall Rating: 4.00
Story Rating: 4.00
Character Rating: 4.00
Audio Rating: 4.00 (not part of the over all rating)
Quick Thoughts: Fun Listen/Read---this is only my 2nd Penny Reid book but she is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors. I love her humor! Nico was hot. Elizabeth was a hot mess. They were a great couple. I like characters with flaws that recognize them but don't always have the answer to overcome it. It makes the journey a lot of fun!
Audio Thoughts: Devra Woodward did a good job with the narration. I think she does one more in the series. This series does not have consistent narrators and while normally that drives me nuts so far the two different females have similar styles. That made the transition easy :)
Overall Rating: 4.00
Story Rating: 4.00
Character Rating: 4.00
Audio Rating: 4.00 (not part of the over all rating)
Quick Thoughts: Fun Listen/Read---this is only my 2nd Penny Reid book but she is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors. I love her humor! Nico was hot. Elizabeth was a hot mess. They were a great couple. I like characters with flaws that recognize them but don't always have the answer to overcome it. It makes the journey a lot of fun!
Audio Thoughts: Devra Woodward did a good job with the narration. I think she does one more in the series. This series does not have consistent narrators and while normally that drives me nuts so far the two different females have similar styles. That made the transition easy :)