Reviews

The Ex by Abigail Barnette

mrsbooknerd's review against another edition

1.0

I have read all of the 'The Boss' series by Abigail Barnette up to 'The Ex' and found the earlier novels to be quite enjoyable. They lack the high-drama and hysteria that other series such as FSoG, Crossfire and This Man series have, but because they are more grounded they tend to be less repetitive and more emotional. However, I really didn't like this novel at all. It was shallow and lacked focus and I almost gave up a few times.

Based on the title, I assumed that the main plot would be Steven's tell-all book and the impact that it would have on Neil personally and emotionally, the impact on the wedding and the impact on Emma during her pregnancy.

Spoiler

Instead, it was set up and then wasn't dealt with at all except for passing comments about it and then toward the end there was a really unsatisfactory 'confrontation' which fizzled out. By the end of the book, I'd almost forgotten that it had even been a plot point. We were told about Neil's reaction through Sophie, but she was barely with Neil, so we never really saw it ourselves, so it was easy to brush it aside as unimportant. Emma wasn't impacted at all, in fact she wasn't even told until after Olivia was born. The wedding didn't suffer a bit, no paparazzi turned up to ask questions, no other exes coming out of the woodwork… It just faded.

There was an absolute reel of subplots in this novel, but none of them were really dealt with in any depth, so they lacked all impact and emotion. They should have been cut down to one or two alongside the main plot so that each one wrung us out emotionally. Subplots were - if you can keep up -

Spoiler

Neil's mother dying, Neil taking a cocktail of drugs and alcohol to deal with his grief, Neil going into therapy and giving up alcohol, Neil and Sophie getting married, Sophie's mother losing her home in a fire and coming to live with them, Sophie's mother hating Neil, Valerie still being in love with Neil. Elizabeth turning up in a baby shop, Amir parting ways with Neil and Sophie, Ian and his wife (I've totally forgotten her name) being introduced, Sophie realising that she is also bisexual, Ian and his wife divorcing, Emma going into labour prematurely…

I'm probably forgetting some but you can see why no one plot had any depth. So much content with so little impact. Some of them were only ever mentioned in one chapter and then we moved on and it was barely spoken of again. It read like a series of shorts in one binding.

Neil was an absolute immature, detestable prick arse in this novel. I didn't particularly like him in the previous books, but there is no way that I would ever consider him a 'hero' now. He picked fights like a teenager, he took drugs and alcohol and let his fiancé, pregnant daughter and her husband deal with the fall out. He was rude and unsympathetic. He came across as entitled and lacking in empathy or understanding for those in a worse situation than him. I really, really disliked him. At one point I was even hoping that Sophie would turn her eye to Ian instead and Neil would be gone.
Sophie wasn't much better in this book. She was barely around Neil and spent most of her time worrying about shallow and superficial pursuits instead of the bigger topics that were dealt with.

Overall I just didn't think that this came together as a book. It just read like a collection of short stories about the same characters. There was no emotional impact despite the topics handled and the main characters were like sulking teenagers instead of adults.

queenoferebor's review

4.0

I'm pleasantly surprised with these books. They are sooo good and so real!
Moaaar, give me moaaaar!

karma_narwhal's review

5.0

I cannot wait for the next book!! As always it was hot without being over the top and kept you guessing a bit as to what was going to happen.

eg_m's review

4.0

My favorites are still "The Boss" (book 1) and "The Bride" (book 3). That said, The Ex delivers on the promise of the other books with excellent character and relationship development between the Neil and Sophie with lots of additional interest from the other characters. The steamy bits are excellent and reflect the growing trust between Sophie and Neil and are in no way redundant or repetitive which is so often the case. I found some of Sophie's reactions over the top and more extreme than warranted (can't say more without spoilers) and I could have lived without the overly sentimental personal wedding vows but they were true enough to character that they may not bother others.

katyhaller's review against another edition

dark emotional funny slow-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

onlyadream223's review against another edition

3.0

I am finally done with this book, it seemed like a never ending story.

First, the synopsis given on amazon about this book is terrible. The parts described are only just a small scratch at the surface.

My problem with this book is the never ending Sofie-esque ranting/bitching/just overall complaining. Because this was about Neil and his "experience", I expected more from his perspective.

Anyway, overall, the story was okay. I just wished it moved along a lot faster than it did.

nikkijoy's review against another edition

5.0

I absolutely Adore Neil and Sophie

This book picked up right where the bride left off. And it's made me live and adore the characters more than before. Seeing how life is turning out for them after they have been through so much. It's very inspiring ! L

samantha_89's review against another edition

4.0

Another amazing addition to this series. A wonderful balance of sexy times and hard times. Barnette does a wonderful job of balancing both the steamy scenes and the intense plot lines of this novel. While at times certain things felt a bit outlandish, I think that's part of this series. There is a fantasy element to these stories and some of the happenings in The Ex can be written off as plausible in this world.

My one harp about this book is that there were some really heavy plot lines that dealt with rape, suicidal thoughts and disordered eating. While eventually two of those things were dealt with nicely and led for some great character development, one heavy item in the novel was glossed over in a single conversation. It seemed a bit forced for these characters that we've gotten to know over the past four novels. It was an interesting story idea, but I didn't care for how it was dealt in one conversation and then never brought up again.

The Ex also dealt with a lot of arguments from Sophie and Neil (which might be quite scary considering the title! never fear though; this novel doesn't even have a cliff hanger). I felt that these arguments were handled with care and were realistic; couples fight and then make up, that's how it goes. Not every fight is a relationship ending one or one that needs to end in days of separation for some angst before the big finale of the novel.

We also really saw Sophie coming in to her own in this novel. I really liked how she was coming to terms with her place in society now that she was a billionaire. That mental journey for Sophie was handled well and it was nice to see that happen very naturally.

I felt like The Ex wrapped up Sophie and Neil's storylines very well, however, there's another book on the way. I'm excited and impatient to see where this next story takes them.

wanderlustdamsel's review against another edition

2.0

Too repetitive problems since book one against a background of something new that just gets focused during the first and last few chapters.

imabrunette23's review against another edition

5.0

Awesome.