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noellegrace8's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
This Jimenez is plot-heavy, which I love. The celebrity plot is interesting and authentic, even though it seems like it would easily be inauthentic. The characters, as usual for Jimenez, have perfect chemistry and are both fully fleshed out. I love her dual POV style. They are respectful of one another, fully in sacrificial love, and help one another through their struggles.
That being said, my lack of 5⭐s is the usual - the random poor decision or trauma dump near the end! I wouldn't hate a last-minute wrench in the love story. What I do hate is a poorly chosen last-minute wrench. What Jason did was completely out of character!
Also, I have empathy for what Lola went through with the music industry, but NOTHING, absolutely *NOTHING* excuses sexual harassment and assault. If the genders of Jason & Lola had been reversed, the assault would have been considered unforgivable by everyone. It was unacceptable for the woman they were touring with to push Jason toward helping Lola. There are professional mental health specialists and, if push comes to shove, police, for a reason.
I give Erin Mallon 3.5/5⭐. I hate her male voice! It sounds like an old wizard haha. And she enunciates with her mouth kind of closed. Plus, I think she was sick while recording this? She sounds stuffed up. But her female voice is average/good. As usual, Zachary Webber gets 5/5 ⭐ from me. Always a perfect delivery - he IS the voice of The Book Boyfriend.
That being said, my lack of 5⭐s is the usual - the random poor decision or trauma dump near the end! I wouldn't hate a last-minute wrench in the love story. What I do hate is a poorly chosen last-minute wrench. What Jason did was completely out of character!
Also, I have empathy for what Lola went through with the music industry, but NOTHING, absolutely *NOTHING* excuses sexual harassment and assault. If the genders of Jason & Lola had been reversed, the assault would have been considered unforgivable by everyone. It was unacceptable for the woman they were touring with to push Jason toward helping Lola. There are professional mental health specialists and, if push comes to shove, police, for a reason.
I give Erin Mallon 3.5/5⭐. I hate her male voice! It sounds like an old wizard haha. And she enunciates with her mouth kind of closed. Plus, I think she was sick while recording this? She sounds stuffed up. But her female voice is average/good. As usual, Zachary Webber gets 5/5 ⭐ from me. Always a perfect delivery - he IS the voice of The Book Boyfriend.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Grief, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Alcoholism, Bullying, Death, Drug abuse, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Violence, Vomit, Car accident, and Alcohol
Minor: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Toxic relationship, Medical content, Suicide attempt, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail
amanda_reads13's review
emotional
lighthearted
fast-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
4.5
Sloan's life fell apart when she lost Brandon 2 years ago. But an incident with a dog named Tucker on the highway leads her to the most unexpected person and a life she never imagined.
This book is so adorable. I love that it shows the reality of fame and not some washed over version of it. We often get this fantasy version of what fame is, but that's not the reality. In this book, we see the true struggles and complications that Jason has to endure, and by extension Sloan. His life is not simple, it is complex and anything but private. Life on the road is hard and can break even the strongest person.
I liked that this showed the real trials of life and not a fluffed up version. We saw the real ups and downs of Sloan and
I loved seeing Sloan's characters grow throughout the book. Yes, Jason definitely helped her work through some of her trauma, but her growth was all her own. She is such a strong woman who, after enduring unfathomable loss, pulls herself back up and finds her passions again. Is it perfect, no, but nothing is perfect. She falls again and again, only to find a way to pull herself back up. We get to see her grow into herself as a talented artist.
Jason is the ultimate cinnamon roll. He is such a sweet and kind man who wants to give Sloan the world, even if that means he needs to remove himself from the equation. He knows that his life is going to be a constant struggle for privacy and safety and he will do anything to protect Sloan, even leaving her. As much as I wish he had been upfront and honest with her about thefact that his label was responsible for trying to scare her away (phonecalls, smashed car), I completely understand why he lied to her about sleeping with Lola. She never would have left unless he absolutely crushed her heart. She hung on to things until their last dying breath. He wanted her to have a normal and happy life where she could have a family and paint and he couldn't see how he could give that to her.
I love that we get glipses into Josh and Kristen's life and that we get to see the evolution of Kristen and Sloan's relationship.
Yes, the ending was cheesy, but it was adorable and exactly what I expected to happen
Tropes: musician, found family, insta-love
This book is so adorable. I love that it shows the reality of fame and not some washed over version of it. We often get this fantasy version of what fame is, but that's not the reality. In this book, we see the true struggles and complications that Jason has to endure, and by extension Sloan. His life is not simple, it is complex and anything but private. Life on the road is hard and can break even the strongest person.
I liked that this showed the real trials of life and not a fluffed up version. We saw the real ups and downs of Sloan and
I loved seeing Sloan's characters grow throughout the book. Yes, Jason definitely helped her work through some of her trauma, but her growth was all her own. She is such a strong woman who, after enduring unfathomable loss, pulls herself back up and finds her passions again. Is it perfect, no, but nothing is perfect. She falls again and again, only to find a way to pull herself back up. We get to see her grow into herself as a talented artist.
Jason is the ultimate cinnamon roll. He is such a sweet and kind man who wants to give Sloan the world, even if that means he needs to remove himself from the equation. He knows that his life is going to be a constant struggle for privacy and safety and he will do anything to protect Sloan, even leaving her. As much as I wish he had been upfront and honest with her about the
I love that we get glipses into Josh and Kristen's life and that we get to see the evolution of Kristen and Sloan's relationship.
Yes, the ending was cheesy, but it was adorable and exactly what I expected to happen
Tropes: musician, found family, insta-love
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Grief, and Gaslighting
akswhy's review against another edition
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
1.0
The premise had potential, but the drama was unbelievable and the plot was all over the place. My biggest issue, however, is the codependence of the main characters and the lack of any kind of consequences for the blatant sexual harassment and abuse that happens.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Self harm, Sexual assault, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Alcoholism, Drug abuse, Medical trauma, Car accident, Pregnancy, and Alcohol
ju_harue's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Perto dos outros livros da autora, esse não me pegou tanto, achei que muitas partes foram repetitivas (mas por ter sido o primeiro de fato que ela escreveu, segundo a nota da autora no Goodreads, até faz sentido a evolução da escrita), quase beirando a motonia, com acontecimentos similares.
O que gosto muito escrita da Abby, é que são experiências bem pessoais, colocadas na ficção, isso me pega, fazendo ler todo os agradecimentos para não perder nada.
De resumo, estava com expectativas de ser arrebatada pelo casal, mas não fui, isso prejudicou o ritmo da leitura. Entendo que Sloan está a sua forma, se "re-adaptando" ao que quer viver, como, novas formas, novas relações, mas ainda assim, não me apeguei. O instalove não é uma trope literária que gosto, e nessa história em especial, parece bem impulsivo e até com sinais de dependência afetiva, que me deixam menos "coração quentinho".
Uma coisa que achei importante, que faltou no livro anterior, foi a questão da adoção, que Abby resolveu bem por cima no epílogo deste livro, mas ainda assim, achei importante ela retornar a isso.
Vou seguir lendo os demais livros, para concluir esse Abbyverso criado. Mas reforço que os outros livros, em especial a segunda série, me arrebataram.
O que gosto muito escrita da Abby, é que são experiências bem pessoais, colocadas na ficção, isso me pega, fazendo ler todo os agradecimentos para não perder nada.
De resumo, estava com expectativas de ser arrebatada pelo casal, mas não fui, isso prejudicou o ritmo da leitura. Entendo que Sloan está a sua forma, se "re-adaptando" ao que quer viver, como, novas formas, novas relações, mas ainda assim, não me apeguei. O instalove não é uma trope literária que gosto, e nessa história em especial, parece bem impulsivo e até com sinais de dependência afetiva, que me deixam menos "coração quentinho".
Uma coisa que achei importante, que faltou no livro anterior, foi a questão da adoção, que Abby resolveu bem por cima no epílogo deste livro, mas ainda assim, achei importante ela retornar a isso.
Vou seguir lendo os demais livros, para concluir esse Abbyverso criado. Mas reforço que os outros livros, em especial a segunda série, me arrebataram.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction and Grief
Moderate: Alcoholism, Death, Drug abuse, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Blood, Pregnancy, and Alcohol
a_sprinkling_of_books's review against another edition
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? It's complicated
3.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death and Mental illness
Minor: Addiction, Drug abuse, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, and Stalking
sami_leigh's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
sad
medium-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
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief
Moderate: Alcoholism, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Violence and Pregnancy
reading_between_the_trees's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
relaxing
sad
fast-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
I loved the format of this book. It made me want listen to music more often while I read, and in my opinion the playlist associated with the book was awesome. I discovered some new artists and enjoyed listening to some favorite artists. It was also a cute love story with good pacing and fresh plot points. My main issue was the heteronormativity and the toxic gender roles that were perpetually present throughout reading. It was a big distraction for my while reading and took away from my enjoyment of the story. It was woven into the dialogue, the relationship tensions, and pretty much every aspect of the plot.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Death, Drug abuse, Infidelity, and Grief
Moderate: Misogyny, Self harm, Toxic relationship, and Violence
Minor: Emotional abuse and Vomit
jenniekolakoski's review against another edition
emotional
tense
slow-paced
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
1.0
Based on the plethora of glowing, five star reviews, I suspect readers aren’t picking up on how toxic the relationship is between the main characters in this book.
I had an incredibly codependent and emotionally abusive relationship in the past and saw so many parallels to it depicted in this book.
I actually hate-read until the end of the book to see if the author in SOME way redeemed the characters or their relationship with each other. I am upset to say that she idealized their relationship to the very end.
I understand that people are allowed to write what they want and that people should be trusted to form their own opinions regarding the portrayal of relationships in media. I also think, however, that it is incredibly irresponsible to glorify something so damaging as codependent/abusive relationships without including some sort of additional commentary.
I had an incredibly codependent and emotionally abusive relationship in the past and saw so many parallels to it depicted in this book.
I actually hate-read until the end of the book to see if the author in SOME way redeemed the characters or their relationship with each other. I am upset to say that she idealized their relationship to the very end.
I understand that people are allowed to write what they want and that people should be trusted to form their own opinions regarding the portrayal of relationships in media. I also think, however, that it is incredibly irresponsible to glorify something so damaging as codependent/abusive relationships without including some sort of additional commentary.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, and Grief
Minor: Panic attacks/disorders