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nina_the_reader's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
tense
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
3.5
corrie's review
5.0
With Eastside / Westside / Love author Eliza Andrews tackles city and school politics and gentrification and racism in the United States. Not an easy topic to write about but extremely relevant at present. I thought it was a good effort and Andrews managed to write an entertaining story.
Kasey James, the newly divorced mother of two uptown girl falls like a brick for downtown gal Drea Robbins who has her own cleaning business. Kasey is white, bi-sexual, impulsive, messy and somewhat flaky. Drea is black, lesbian, strong, neat, independent and not really looking for trouble. But trouble is what she gets when she sees that freckled nose and a smile that lights up the room.
The romance is very sweet although there were a few dick moves done by Kasey that made me feel butt-hurt on behalf of Drea. I would have reacted the same to be honest.
I have a feeling the sexy times in this book were more explicit than in Reverie but I can be mistaken (and I’m not complaining!). I also didn’t get that intense experience as when I was reading Reverie but that can be because of the subject matter. School boards and city politics are just not sexy nor is it jaw dropping material. But I love Eliza Andrews’ style and I will always recommend her work.
f/f explicit
Themes: “I want you” “You have me”, look before you leap, I had some troubles with Kasey but she redeemed herself, neighborhood activist, color diversity.
4.7 stars
Kasey James, the newly divorced mother of two uptown girl falls like a brick for downtown gal Drea Robbins who has her own cleaning business. Kasey is white, bi-sexual, impulsive, messy and somewhat flaky. Drea is black, lesbian, strong, neat, independent and not really looking for trouble. But trouble is what she gets when she sees that freckled nose and a smile that lights up the room.
The romance is very sweet although there were a few dick moves done by Kasey that made me feel butt-hurt on behalf of Drea. I would have reacted the same to be honest.
I have a feeling the sexy times in this book were more explicit than in Reverie but I can be mistaken (and I’m not complaining!). I also didn’t get that intense experience as when I was reading Reverie but that can be because of the subject matter. School boards and city politics are just not sexy nor is it jaw dropping material. But I love Eliza Andrews’ style and I will always recommend her work.
f/f explicit
Themes: “I want you” “You have me”, look before you leap, I had some troubles with Kasey but she redeemed herself, neighborhood activist, color diversity.
4.7 stars
synth's review
1.0
I did not like any of the characters, especially not the main characters, and I felt the book didn't show any reasons for them to have chemistry.
Additionally, although I commend the effort, I found the commentary and discussion of everything ranging from race to gentrification to homophobia very lacking in nuance and too white centering (e.g. any significant black character pushing the white main character into positions of power, the main white character talking over the black characters and it being depicted as her standing up for them and justified by her "free-spirited, impulsive" nature, the black main character justified concerns and anger at the blindness and privilege of her white love interest being blown out of proportion to show how unreasonable she is, etc...) to feel anything but inefficient at best and performative at worst.
This is compounded by the attempts of the author to write black characters who, although steering clear of a "ghetto" depiction, end up being the epitome of the perfect black people who throw the entirety of their community under the bus with respectability politics, even as the author tries to avoid it. It is no better for the Latinx characters, with the only representation being a cheating ex-girlfriend and a "I don't want affirmative action handouts, and I want my children to have the whitest of names" ex-husband.
Additionally, although I commend the effort, I found the commentary and discussion of everything ranging from race to gentrification to homophobia very lacking in nuance and too white centering (e.g. any significant black character pushing the white main character into positions of power, the main white character talking over the black characters and it being depicted as her standing up for them and justified by her "free-spirited, impulsive" nature, the black main character justified concerns and anger at the blindness and privilege of her white love interest being blown out of proportion to show how unreasonable she is, etc...) to feel anything but inefficient at best and performative at worst.
This is compounded by the attempts of the author to write black characters who, although steering clear of a "ghetto" depiction, end up being the epitome of the perfect black people who throw the entirety of their community under the bus with respectability politics, even as the author tries to avoid it. It is no better for the Latinx characters, with the only representation being a cheating ex-girlfriend and a "I don't want affirmative action handouts, and I want my children to have the whitest of names" ex-husband.
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