resoundingjoy's review
2.0
I was thrilled to read about an interracial couple with a Chinese American lead who was not the stereotypical prim China doll, though as a manager I would be horrified to have to deal with a lot of these employees. But I was NOT aware this was erotica before I started it!
xakyr's review
2.0
FTC DISCLAIMER: I RECEIVED AN E-ARC FROM THE PUBLISHER THROUGH NET GALLEY IN EXCHANGE FOR AN HONEST REVIEW. RECEIPT OF THIS BOOK IN THIS MANNER DOES NOT AFFECT MY OPINION OF THE BOOK OR THE CONTENT OF MY REVIEW!
I was kinda hoping that this book would be better than it was. Librarians make an interesting character for me, but I found myself rolling my eyes at a lot of what these characters went through.
Much of the conflict in this story stemmed from the fact that these two characters couldn't actually sit down and communicate with one another because they were being too childish or stubborn! They had great physical attraction, but I wasn't able to believe what attracted them to each other as a couple.
Constance or Con, as she's nicknamed, was very harsh and unbending when it came to some of Sam's desires. Has this woman never heard of compromising?! Why should Sam have had to do all the changing for her? Relationships work because of compromise, and she wasn't one to do that. It made me hate her overall, despite the fact that she was a kick-butt type of heroine.
Sam came across entirely too needy, even for a self-proclamed geek like he was. He was totally fine with letting go of all of his dreams to be with Con, which made him rather spineless in my eyes. He was also rather dense and clueless overall, so I didn't care for him as a hero either.
I thought it was good to check back in with the other couples from the series, but I didn't really feel like this was a stand-alone novel. I think I would have been lost if I hadn't binge read the entire prior series before this. Not sure I'd purchase or recommend this book to others, based on that.
I was kinda hoping that this book would be better than it was. Librarians make an interesting character for me, but I found myself rolling my eyes at a lot of what these characters went through.
Much of the conflict in this story stemmed from the fact that these two characters couldn't actually sit down and communicate with one another because they were being too childish or stubborn! They had great physical attraction, but I wasn't able to believe what attracted them to each other as a couple.
Constance or Con, as she's nicknamed, was very harsh and unbending when it came to some of Sam's desires. Has this woman never heard of compromising?! Why should Sam have had to do all the changing for her? Relationships work because of compromise, and she wasn't one to do that. It made me hate her overall, despite the fact that she was a kick-butt type of heroine.
Sam came across entirely too needy, even for a self-proclamed geek like he was. He was totally fine with letting go of all of his dreams to be with Con, which made him rather spineless in my eyes. He was also rather dense and clueless overall, so I didn't care for him as a hero either.
I thought it was good to check back in with the other couples from the series, but I didn't really feel like this was a stand-alone novel. I think I would have been lost if I hadn't binge read the entire prior series before this. Not sure I'd purchase or recommend this book to others, based on that.
phoenixinthecity's review
4.0
My first Olivia Dade and I was intrigued because the heroine was Chinese and the series is called Lovestruck Librarians.
I really enjoyed this and a large part of it is probably because I can totally relate to Constance's desire to NOT have kids because she raised her siblings-children. I did not expect her permanent solution to get sterilized - that seemed extreme to me because isn't it a rather invasive procedure? - but I respect her conviction.
Sam was the perfect teddy bear for her - 5 years younger and with his own hang-ups of feeling abandoned by his mother, who he comes to terms with in the end, and his father who died to young, leaving him with a half-sister who he feels insecure about. He thinks he wants a big family so he'll never be alone, and I will give him props for suggesting adoption when he misunderstood Con not wanting to have kids, but after 3 weeks miserably apart, his sister Penny makes him realize what he actually wants and they live HEA.
**this really only took me a couple days to read - I paused it to re-read the VIP series prompted by the Fated Mates episode on Managed.**
I really enjoyed this and a large part of it is probably because I can totally relate to Constance's desire to NOT have kids because she raised her siblings-children. I did not expect her permanent solution to get sterilized - that seemed extreme to me because isn't it a rather invasive procedure? - but I respect her conviction.
Sam was the perfect teddy bear for her - 5 years younger and with his own hang-ups of feeling abandoned by his mother, who he comes to terms with in the end, and his father who died to young, leaving him with a half-sister who he feels insecure about. He thinks he wants a big family so he'll never be alone, and I will give him props for suggesting adoption when he misunderstood Con not wanting to have kids, but after 3 weeks miserably apart, his sister Penny makes him realize what he actually wants and they live HEA.
**this really only took me a couple days to read - I paused it to re-read the VIP series prompted by the Fated Mates episode on Managed.**
calabrag's review
It's kind of pathetic, but this is the most realistic depiction of librarianship I've ever seen in fiction.
Also, I'm wondering if anyone else has noticed that Niceville and Nice County appear to be a fictionalized version of Frederick and Frederick County, MD. The real give-away is when the bookmobile's wifi is disrupted when it drives into the vicinity of Camp David.
Also, I'm wondering if anyone else has noticed that Niceville and Nice County appear to be a fictionalized version of Frederick and Frederick County, MD. The real give-away is when the bookmobile's wifi is disrupted when it drives into the vicinity of Camp David.
beckymmoe's review
3.0
This one had such a strong start--the bookmobile librarian and the geeky IT guy who have all kinds of sexual tension going on, both believing that they can't be together (he's the brother of one of her best friends and younger than her; she doesn't want/have time for a relationship) competing against each other for department of the year at the library...at the beginning, this was all kinds of fun. It was a bit frustrating that Con was so dead set against any kind of a relationship beyond the purely physical, but Sam put his all behind changing her mind on that point, and it was great to see him bring her around to the idea. Oh, the presents he leaves for her--made me melt every. Single. Time. He plays hockey, and she cheers him on using hockey terms that are perfectly valid but manage to sound totally dirty at the same time :) So fun.
But...
The major conflict in their relationship changed everything for me. First, it took them 80% of the book for them to figure out what their conflict was...I really have a hard time believing that they would have gotten to the point that they did without having the talk that they clearly needed to have before committing to a future together, but they didn't. They actively avoided it, both just assuming what they wanted to believe about the other until they couldn't believe it anymore. Then they broke up. Then they reconsidered, and of course got back together in the end--with another really big
BUT...
It was really hard to buy the way this whole issue was resolved. One person completely turned around on their position, thanks to a single conversation and the events of a weekend, and the other person...didn't. They pretty much said, "Yeah, I suppose I could possibly, maybe change my mind eventually in the far distant future, but I strongly doubt it." As much as I had wanted them together early on (and there were more awesome gifts involved in the reconciliation!) the way they managed it in the end left me unconvinced that they really should be together, which made me sad.
Still, I love the idea of a series built around public librarians. How awesome is this? I'll definitely try some of the other books in this series--the one excerpted at the end, book 4 [b:Ready to Fall|27208570|Ready to Fall (Lovestruck Librarians, #4)|Olivia Dade|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1458569683s/27208570.jpg|47250290], looks cute--in the hopes that this one was a one-off. The series characters all work together and are friendly with each other, and so the MCs of the other books were in and out of the pages of this one. Not having read the other books yet, I wasn't familiar with their stories but still enjoyed seeing their relationships here with Con, Sam, and each other--as a standalone, it worked okay; those who have read the other books, though, will definitely enjoy seeing the stories of those librarians continue here.
Rating: 3 stars / C
I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book.
But...
The major conflict in their relationship changed everything for me. First, it took them 80% of the book for them to figure out what their conflict was...I really have a hard time believing that they would have gotten to the point that they did without having the talk that they clearly needed to have before committing to a future together, but they didn't. They actively avoided it, both just assuming what they wanted to believe about the other until they couldn't believe it anymore. Then they broke up. Then they reconsidered, and of course got back together in the end--with another really big
BUT...
It was really hard to buy the way this whole issue was resolved. One person completely turned around on their position, thanks to a single conversation and the events of a weekend, and the other person...didn't. They pretty much said, "Yeah, I suppose I could possibly, maybe change my mind eventually in the far distant future, but I strongly doubt it." As much as I had wanted them together early on (and there were more awesome gifts involved in the reconciliation!) the way they managed it in the end left me unconvinced that they really should be together, which made me sad.
Still, I love the idea of a series built around public librarians. How awesome is this? I'll definitely try some of the other books in this series--the one excerpted at the end, book 4 [b:Ready to Fall|27208570|Ready to Fall (Lovestruck Librarians, #4)|Olivia Dade|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1458569683s/27208570.jpg|47250290], looks cute--in the hopes that this one was a one-off. The series characters all work together and are friendly with each other, and so the MCs of the other books were in and out of the pages of this one. Not having read the other books yet, I wasn't familiar with their stories but still enjoyed seeing their relationships here with Con, Sam, and each other--as a standalone, it worked okay; those who have read the other books, though, will definitely enjoy seeing the stories of those librarians continue here.
Rating: 3 stars / C
I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book.
conniejoy529's review
4.0
I'm a little confused about the order of the books in this series, Goodreads says this is book 5, but amazon says its book 3. Anyway I enjoyed this book as well as the others in this series. This one had the heaviest subject matter in my opinion and I'm not sure I could believe the ending if it had been with real people I know. But this is a romance novel and some suspension of disbelief is necessary. Anyway, once again I really like the characters in this book. I feel like Dade's characters are always just regular good people who are relatable, which for me is a great thing. The humor was great and I especially loved Con's constant misuse of simile and metaphor.
kiwicoral's review
4.0
4.5 breath-of-fresh-air stars.
The first 80% of this was good. The heroine was delightfully foul mouthed, good at her job and a good friend. The hero was a very sexy geek, and their fights and banter to try and distract from their mutual attraction were hilarious. We got good depth of character for both. The hero was an awesome and supportive partner, and together they are dynamite. You could see them both changing for the better, because of each other.
But what really made this book stand out was the climax and ending.
In this book, Con is so sure she didn't want kids that she got sterilised ages before she met Sam (let's not even get into how difficult it is for women in their 20s to find a doctor in the US who is willing to do this). When she finds out Sam wants kids, she does the hard but right thing of letting him go, because she knows she won't change her mind and wants him to have what he wants. Instead of the breakup depression making the heroine question her choice, the hero is the one who actually has to figure out what family means to him. He decides that his chosen family is already fulfilling. It is so nice that children are not considered the be all, end all for a happy ending for this couple.
Why not five stars? The supporting cast was difficult to keep track of. Now this is number five in a series, so if I had read it in order, it probably wouldn't have mattered. But it was difficult as a new reader.
The first 80% of this was good. The heroine was delightfully foul mouthed, good at her job and a good friend. The hero was a very sexy geek, and their fights and banter to try and distract from their mutual attraction were hilarious. We got good depth of character for both. The hero was an awesome and supportive partner, and together they are dynamite. You could see them both changing for the better, because of each other.
But what really made this book stand out was the climax and ending.
Spoiler
It is so rare to have a heroine who doesn't want children and then doesn't change her mind because of twue wuv. Yes, I know that women can change their mind, but so many romance novels with women who start off not wanting kids are then converted with the power of the hero's magic penis.In this book, Con is so sure she didn't want kids that she got sterilised ages before she met Sam (let's not even get into how difficult it is for women in their 20s to find a doctor in the US who is willing to do this). When she finds out Sam wants kids, she does the hard but right thing of letting him go, because she knows she won't change her mind and wants him to have what he wants. Instead of the breakup depression making the heroine question her choice, the hero is the one who actually has to figure out what family means to him. He decides that his chosen family is already fulfilling. It is so nice that children are not considered the be all, end all for a happy ending for this couple.
Why not five stars? The supporting cast was difficult to keep track of. Now this is number five in a series, so if I had read it in order, it probably wouldn't have mattered. But it was difficult as a new reader.
pattydsf's review
3.0
I like almost any type of book set in a library. This one met my expectations - fun, humorous and a good happily ever after. I have to wonder about the boss's socks and how they play in other volumes of this series.
mindfullibrarian's review
5.0
Oh MAN. Seriously, librarian romances are the best thing ever and this one upended all kinds of tired stereotypes and really set an example of how modern romances should be written. Olivia Dade is now a favorite author of mine and I'm excited to continue this series!
NOTE: I have only read this book in the Lovestruck Librarians series bc Amazon claims it is book 3 and doesn't carry, in any form, books 1 and 2. I see Goodreads states that it's book 5 so I'm all kinds of confused and will need to investigate more! This book was on Kindle Unlimited, which was a major win!
NOTE: I have only read this book in the Lovestruck Librarians series bc Amazon claims it is book 3 and doesn't carry, in any form, books 1 and 2. I see Goodreads states that it's book 5 so I'm all kinds of confused and will need to investigate more! This book was on Kindle Unlimited, which was a major win!