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lin00's review against another edition
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
✔️forced proximity
✔️workplace romance
✔️ enemies to lovers
✔️ family drama
3.75
This is not your typical rom-com. I was sort of expecting a fluffy, cute romcom but found this heart-clenching, emotional, and even sad at times but sweet love story.
Helen and Grant got my attention rather quickly. Their story seemed so intriguing that I was excited to see where it would lead. I loved reading how they fell in love and opened up to each other. Also, it was so fun to read about screenwriting and book adaptations!
There was beautiful character growth, and the love was so raw and honest that it made my heart clench more times than I can count. Helen's emotional journey was one that, as a reader, you not only witnessed but also experienced. I truly felt her anger, grief, loneliness, happiness and love. The ending brought me to tears, and I didn't expect that at all!
The second half of the book got a bit repetitive, and the story dragged on because of that. As much as I liked Helen, she exasperated me a lot at times, especially in the second half of the book. Also, I loved the fact that she made true friends, but I feel like those friendships lacked depth. I didn't feel how close she had become with Nicole and Saskia as it was described.
Despite that, it was a beautiful and poignant story about love, not only romantic love but sisterly. Those letters to her sister made me ugly cry. I know many people will love this book. After reading Yulin I'm even more excited to watch Emily Henry's adaptations.
Thank you so much to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
✔️workplace romance
✔️ enemies to lovers
✔️ family drama
3.75
This is not your typical rom-com. I was sort of expecting a fluffy, cute romcom but found this heart-clenching, emotional, and even sad at times but sweet love story.
Helen and Grant got my attention rather quickly. Their story seemed so intriguing that I was excited to see where it would lead. I loved reading how they fell in love and opened up to each other. Also, it was so fun to read about screenwriting and book adaptations!
There was beautiful character growth, and the love was so raw and honest that it made my heart clench more times than I can count. Helen's emotional journey was one that, as a reader, you not only witnessed but also experienced. I truly felt her anger, grief, loneliness, happiness and love. The ending brought me to tears, and I didn't expect that at all!
The second half of the book got a bit repetitive, and the story dragged on because of that. As much as I liked Helen, she exasperated me a lot at times, especially in the second half of the book. Also, I loved the fact that she made true friends, but I feel like those friendships lacked depth. I didn't feel how close she had become with Nicole and Saskia as it was described.
Despite that, it was a beautiful and poignant story about love, not only romantic love but sisterly. Those letters to her sister made me ugly cry. I know many people will love this book. After reading Yulin I'm even more excited to watch Emily Henry's adaptations.
Thank you so much to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide and Grief
spindere11a's review against another edition
emotional
funny
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Helen’s kind of an uptight dick (but I guess that’s kinda the point, no?) who’s a challenge to root for for most of the book, but dannnng do I ever love Grant, and that he’s *emotional* yet still *manly* 🫶🫶
Funny coincidence (?)/overlap with another recent novel I’ve read - Abby Jimenez’s Just For the Summer - in the pre-date Google survey offering choices for “level of fancy” 😃💕
Funny coincidence (?)/overlap with another recent novel I’ve read - Abby Jimenez’s Just For the Summer - in the pre-date Google survey offering choices for “level of fancy” 😃💕
Content Warnings
Moderate: Grief, Panic attacks/disorders, Car accident, and Suicide
Minor: Addiction
hellosarahpham's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Sexual content, Child death, Grief, and Suicide
bookishbrenbren's review against another edition
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Um what. This book make no fking sense. Bc the characters are underdeveloped and have no internal arc/growth. So their decisions and choices make no sense and are not connected to who they supposedly are as people. The story is all plot *things are happening and there is sex!* but I need something deeper to believe true love is real lmao this book made me feel nothing except these two horndogs have sexual chemistry.
The very icky premise is laid out in the first chapter: the pair is a woman whose sister committed suicide and the man who was driving the car when she ran into traffic. Um why??? Why did that need to be a couple?!?! so anyway, i go on reading because it's so highly hyped, waiting for the ickiness to smooth itself out and for all these characters to like work through their collective, shared trauma and like let that emotional work bring them closer lol no none of that happens. For some reason, the main character is not turned off enough by her own grief and her partner's role in that grief - or at least his connection to it - to not have sex with him. And it's very weird like all around like have any of the people on the production side of this book ever lost a family member and/or experienced grief?? Like I know they must have, but I'm just wondering how this book ends up the book that it is. Idk call me crazy but grief is not a huge turn on for me. Much less grief by suicide! Were there sensitivity readers? I'm dying to know because some of the language used in this book seems very yeah I'm just gonna say it again icky.
If this was real like and the girl you ran over's sister asked you to fuck off their show's adaptation writing team, why would you say No!? Obviously he's not hurting for opportunities. And why would you EVER forgive him for saying no???? Can I not just suffer once, you want me to suffer every day I show up to work? Again I return to the idea that none of these editors, agents, writer, have ever actually lost anyone close to them.
Anyways. Ultimately the biggest issue here is that there is no character development. The pair has sexual chemistry as I mentioned before, but we have no idea why they do the things they do. Like it's clear, given their shared trauma, why they would *not* want to get together but what is making them ignore all of that self preservation? We'll never know because these characters are like an inch deep.
The very icky premise is laid out in the first chapter: the pair is a woman whose sister committed suicide and the man who was driving the car when she ran into traffic. Um why??? Why did that need to be a couple?!?! so anyway, i go on reading because it's so highly hyped, waiting for the ickiness to smooth itself out and for all these characters to like work through their collective, shared trauma and like let that emotional work bring them closer lol no none of that happens. For some reason, the main character is not turned off enough by her own grief and her partner's role in that grief - or at least his connection to it - to not have sex with him. And it's very weird like all around like have any of the people on the production side of this book ever lost a family member and/or experienced grief?? Like I know they must have, but I'm just wondering how this book ends up the book that it is. Idk call me crazy but grief is not a huge turn on for me. Much less grief by suicide! Were there sensitivity readers? I'm dying to know because some of the language used in this book seems very yeah I'm just gonna say it again icky.
If this was real like and the girl you ran over's sister asked you to fuck off their show's adaptation writing team, why would you say No!? Obviously he's not hurting for opportunities. And why would you EVER forgive him for saying no???? Can I not just suffer once, you want me to suffer every day I show up to work? Again I return to the idea that none of these editors, agents, writer, have ever actually lost anyone close to them.
Anyways. Ultimately the biggest issue here is that there is no character development. The pair has sexual chemistry as I mentioned before, but we have no idea why they do the things they do. Like it's clear, given their shared trauma, why they would *not* want to get together but what is making them ignore all of that self preservation? We'll never know because these characters are like an inch deep.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Medical content, Car accident, Child death, Cursing, Grief, Alcohol, Death, Panic attacks/disorders, and Suicide
ali_is_a_panda's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I wish that the romance was a slower pace, but the book was good and I finished it in two sittings.
Content Warnings
Minor: Car accident, Grief, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicide, and Death
storiesatstarfall's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Car accident
Moderate: Grief, Suicide, and Panic attacks/disorders
kerosenelit's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I'm truly torn on this one. I loved the first half. The trauma entwined around these characters is what I live for. With an accident thirteen years ago forever connecting them, the initial anger Helen holds against Grant was so understandably complicated. The separation of painful memories from the growing fondness Helen develops for Grant made my heart ache.
Despite the weirdly uncomfortable interactions between the group of colleagues within the writing room, I really enjoyed seeing the process of bringing a TV show to life (Grant is a screenwriter for the adaptation of Helen's successful YA novels). And at the same time, seeing Helen work through her feelings of imposter syndrome was so lovely.
I majorly lost interest in the romance in the second half, though. The bedroom scenes filled with over-the-top dirty talk did not fit the emotional undertone of the story for me. It was unexpected, to say the least. Chapter after chapter, I found it focused too heavily on their sexual relationship.
That said, I absolutely loved Yulin Kuang's writing. The way she captures emotions is truly beautiful. Depending on the spice level in future books, I wouldn't hesitate to try something from her again.
(heat level: multiple open-door scenes, moderate to explicit details)
Despite the weirdly uncomfortable interactions between the group of colleagues within the writing room, I really enjoyed seeing the process of bringing a TV show to life (Grant is a screenwriter for the adaptation of Helen's successful YA novels). And at the same time, seeing Helen work through her feelings of imposter syndrome was so lovely.
I majorly lost interest in the romance in the second half, though. The bedroom scenes filled with over-the-top dirty talk did not fit the emotional undertone of the story for me. It was unexpected, to say the least. Chapter after chapter, I found it focused too heavily on their sexual relationship.
That said, I absolutely loved Yulin Kuang's writing. The way she captures emotions is truly beautiful. Depending on the spice level in future books, I wouldn't hesitate to try something from her again.
(heat level: multiple open-door scenes, moderate to explicit details)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Death, and Car accident
gwenswoons's review against another edition
dark
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Liked a lot about this - it didn’t feel entirely successful to me, but I would certainly read more by Yulin Kuang in the future! I really appreciated that the author dived into complex familial relationships (especially with the female MC’s first-generation immigrant parents) and the specific nature of grief after losing someone close to suicide. I loved the chemistry between the two central characters and thought the sex scenes (VERY open door 😂😜) were super hot throughout and really gorgeously written.
I did find the characters’ arcs disappointing and flat - somehow their individual growth in order to find their way back to each other didn’t quite register or land believably. I also guess I struggled (though I am a voracious rom-com and romance reader and actually very rarely say this!) with the believability of the basic premise: there were just a few too many neat/tidy coincidences to the overall romance plot, and though I get the plot device of this very specific enemies-to-lovers bent, it was so on the nose (like…there’s enemies and there’s “was driving the car when your teenage sister, who had no access to mental health support, jumped in front of it and died by suicide”) that it felt sort of heavy-handed ultimately. As I said - lots that was interesting, and also not totally satisfying for me ultimately.
I did find the characters’ arcs disappointing and flat - somehow their individual growth in order to find their way back to each other didn’t quite register or land believably. I also guess I struggled (though I am a voracious rom-com and romance reader and actually very rarely say this!) with the believability of the basic premise: there were just a few too many neat/tidy coincidences to the overall romance plot, and though I get the plot device of this very specific enemies-to-lovers bent, it was so on the nose (like…there’s enemies and there’s “was driving the car when your teenage sister, who had no access to mental health support, jumped in front of it and died by suicide”) that it felt sort of heavy-handed ultimately. As I said - lots that was interesting, and also not totally satisfying for me ultimately.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Injury/Injury detail, Car accident, Medical trauma, Panic attacks/disorders, Mental illness, Grief, Suicide, Child death, and Medical content
Moderate: Body horror, Blood, Bullying, Alcohol, Addiction, Drug abuse, and Drug use
litbrett's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Drug abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Grief, Sexual content, Suicide, Car accident, Child death, Mental illness, and Suicide attempt
sdupont's review against another edition
emotional
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
I did enjoy this book overall but I felt like the resolution from the third act conflict was quickly resolved. I wanted the characters to talk out the issue more. It felt rushed after the hurt. I really liked Grant he was very vulnerable and honest about his feelings, truly begging to be loved. I needed our girl Helen to put in a little more work. She was in denial and we didn’t get to really see her growth. It felt like she all of a sudden decided she was in love and ready during the resolution. This book covers a lot of emotional topics. I think fans of Emily Henry will like this one, I can see why Yulin was slated to adapt Beach Read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide and Grief
Moderate: Car accident and Panic attacks/disorders
Minor: Drug use