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leatherboundriot's review against another edition
5.0
I don’t understand why this book has a community rating of only 3.7! It was so much more than I ever expected.
shaunnah511's review against another edition
4.0
"All I want now is to be a man who is worthy of you, Xanthe."
Ten Thousand Words is the story of Xanthe, a dorky, hipster author, who meets her match in Oliver, her photographer turned cover model.
There are so many of my favourite things here. A sexy love story that draws you in right away, with characters you can't help but love. I absolutely love author stories (a la [b:Mud Vein|18246727|Mud Vein|Tarryn Fisher|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1379536072s/18246727.jpg|25697736]), because I feel like authors make super interesting and relateable characters. Xanthe is adorkable, but also empowered and self-conscious at the same time. You get dual POV here, and each of the voices were unique enough that I enjoyed that aspect.
Ollie is the definition of swoon-worthy. He becomes enamored with her quite quickly, but I wouldn't classify this as insta-love. He's quick to anger, but also quick to realize his mistakes and make up for them, in the most adorable ways possible.
There are several elements of suspense that keep the plot going. Xanthe has secrets and a lot of past baggage, but I liked the way things were handled for the most part.
I really loved the inclusion of positive LGBTQ references. There are several great side characters, but also smaller lines that could be easily passed-by. For instance, when referencing her fan base, Xanthe notes, "...he'd made my panties catch fire, so my readers - who'd had their panties, or boxers, catch fire while reading about Donovan...". I love that the author made the fan base inclusive!
The secondary characters were varied and well-done. I'm excited to see them again in future books in this soon-to-be series.
I will say though, this one was long! And a bit repetitive. I can't even count how many times Xanthe references her pits and boobs sweating. There is a TON of detail, that sets scenes up very well, but also causes the plot to drag at some points. If you like a lot of detail in your stories, you'll love this one.
One great scene I made note of, was Xanthe sitting with her cat. The author sets the scene, "[the cat] spread out over my tummy, his happy little face between my boobs." The cat also becomes his own little character throughout the book and often made me laugh or smile.
Overall, I definitely recommend Ten Thousand Words. Kelli Jean created some great characters and a story that was unique and engaging!
ARC was provided by the author in exchange for an honest review
Ten Thousand Words is the story of Xanthe, a dorky, hipster author, who meets her match in Oliver, her photographer turned cover model.
There are so many of my favourite things here. A sexy love story that draws you in right away, with characters you can't help but love. I absolutely love author stories (a la [b:Mud Vein|18246727|Mud Vein|Tarryn Fisher|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1379536072s/18246727.jpg|25697736]), because I feel like authors make super interesting and relateable characters. Xanthe is adorkable, but also empowered and self-conscious at the same time. You get dual POV here, and each of the voices were unique enough that I enjoyed that aspect.
Ollie is the definition of swoon-worthy. He becomes enamored with her quite quickly, but I wouldn't classify this as insta-love. He's quick to anger, but also quick to realize his mistakes and make up for them, in the most adorable ways possible.
There are several elements of suspense that keep the plot going. Xanthe has secrets and a lot of past baggage, but I liked the way things were handled for the most part.
I really loved the inclusion of positive LGBTQ references. There are several great side characters, but also smaller lines that could be easily passed-by. For instance, when referencing her fan base, Xanthe notes, "...he'd made my panties catch fire, so my readers - who'd had their panties, or boxers, catch fire while reading about Donovan...". I love that the author made the fan base inclusive!
The secondary characters were varied and well-done. I'm excited to see them again in future books in this soon-to-be series.
I will say though, this one was long! And a bit repetitive. I can't even count how many times Xanthe references her pits and boobs sweating. There is a TON of detail, that sets scenes up very well, but also causes the plot to drag at some points. If you like a lot of detail in your stories, you'll love this one.
One great scene I made note of, was Xanthe sitting with her cat. The author sets the scene, "[the cat] spread out over my tummy, his happy little face between my boobs." The cat also becomes his own little character throughout the book and often made me laugh or smile.
Overall, I definitely recommend Ten Thousand Words. Kelli Jean created some great characters and a story that was unique and engaging!
ARC was provided by the author in exchange for an honest review
mandy_pandy's review against another edition
4.0
This is the first book I have read by this author and I really enjoyed it. The characters and story were really unique. It was different than I was expecting . I loved the characters, the humor and the romance was really sweet (and hot!) Looking forward to reading more by this author.
Spoiler
more action and suspense than I had anticipatedbobsvoid's review against another edition
1.0
The main issue I had with this is the slurs the Hero used. He called the heroine's best friend a fairy on multiple occassions. That's not fucking okay. And then the heroine's grandma was making jokes that were borderline homophobic, even if she wasn't intentionally being nasty. It's not funny, especially to do that to a stranger. I think when you're friends with someone you know they're limits, but you don't call gay men fairies or refer to them as pound cake.
I've been wanting to read this book for over a year. The synopsis was promising and so were the first few chapters. But dear God, it only got worse.
28% in and I was over it. Around that point I realized that while the write was decent, the plot and characters were average at best. Four days and suddenly they're in love? On rare occasions I'll enjoy a book that has insta-love. BUT, it has to be written delicately because I refuse to believe you can fall in love that quick. Loving someone happens when you develop a connection. To truly love someone you need to know them, and these characters didn't.
There were just other bad aspects of this story. Other than the slurs, insta-love, there were random facts thrown into the story. I think it was around 75% in and suddenly we find out the heroine isn't just an author, but part of an unnamed organization too.
I just want to say that I'm not a sensitive Sally or a huge nitpicker. But this was just plain horrible and I regret wasting hours reading this mess. I actually feel horrible because I know authors put in a lot of work, but seriously. This was just unbearable.
I've been wanting to read this book for over a year. The synopsis was promising and so were the first few chapters. But dear God, it only got worse.
28% in and I was over it. Around that point I realized that while the write was decent, the plot and characters were average at best. Four days and suddenly they're in love? On rare occasions I'll enjoy a book that has insta-love. BUT, it has to be written delicately because I refuse to believe you can fall in love that quick. Loving someone happens when you develop a connection. To truly love someone you need to know them, and these characters didn't.
There were just other bad aspects of this story. Other than the slurs, insta-love, there were random facts thrown into the story. I think it was around 75% in and suddenly we find out the heroine isn't just an author, but part of an unnamed organization too.
I just want to say that I'm not a sensitive Sally or a huge nitpicker. But this was just plain horrible and I regret wasting hours reading this mess. I actually feel horrible because I know authors put in a lot of work, but seriously. This was just unbearable.
rubyn's review against another edition
Aaaaaaaaarrrrgghhhh I dislike absolutely dislike leaving me in the dark.
How do I feel about this book.....
1. This novel has been apart of my recommendation list(s) for like EVER and I don't know why I had always skipped it. I wasn't exactly disappointed but that ending, may I repeat arrrrggghhhh
2. Xanthe,that NAME, awesommmmeee. She was odd, weird and cool. So many layers which Ollie enjoyed peeling
3. Oliver, Ollie, player player who fell HARD and had no inkling of what to do about it so he did some shitty things though he paid well for them. Definitely enough groveling was done by Ollie plus a knife to the stomach, literally.
4. Almost all the secondary characters had names starting with R, kinda got confused there, truly, what was up with that, Rex, Ricki, Ronen some Renee in there 🤔
5. All in all, it was enjoyable truly truly
Will I read the next one, hmmmmm it's about Ricki and Jaime, not so excited since they are already hooked up
Will see!!!
How do I feel about this book.....
1. This novel has been apart of my recommendation list(s) for like EVER and I don't know why I had always skipped it. I wasn't exactly disappointed but that ending, may I repeat arrrrggghhhh
2. Xanthe,that NAME, awesommmmeee. She was odd, weird and cool. So many layers which Ollie enjoyed peeling
3. Oliver, Ollie, player player who fell HARD and had no inkling of what to do about it so he did some shitty things though he paid well for them. Definitely enough groveling was done by Ollie plus a knife to the stomach, literally.
4. Almost all the secondary characters had names starting with R, kinda got confused there, truly, what was up with that, Rex, Ricki, Ronen some Renee in there 🤔
5. All in all, it was enjoyable truly truly
Will I read the next one, hmmmmm it's about Ricki and Jaime, not so excited since they are already hooked up
Will see!!!
megansendlessreads's review against another edition
5.0
Ten Thousand Words...
I really liked the concept for this book going into it. I mean, the idea of an author and cover model dating seems like a really unique and interesting novel and I was wondering how exactly the meat up would turn out and how the characters would interact. The author used a lot of sound choices in terms of plot that really boosted this book into the five star range.
The author did a great job of creating characters that were completely independent from each other and kind of balanced each other out. I felt there were things about both of the main characters which challenged thier relationship and caused emotions to run high. Yet I loved these parts of the book because it made the characters seem real and not just some happy-go-lucky people who have the perfect relationship. There is definitely a depth in this novel that is absent in other books within this genre.
"I wanted to be the one to discover all the things that made Xanthe who she was."
I really loved the alternating perspectives in this book surprisingly. I don't always like the way authors switch perspectives within a novel but Kelli Jean does a great job of making the transition clear and concise while still keeping the tempo of the book constant and smooth. A lot of the switched perspectives were at the perfect parts to get a unique spin on the characters and situation. I was able to not only understand the reasons behind some of the characters reactions but also part of their secrets and get a more in-depth look into thier past and some of those driving forces behind their actions. When this switching perspective is done properly, it really adds another dimension to the novel, like in Ten Thousand Words.
I have a lot of respect for Xanthe (pronounced "Zan - thee") as a character because of just her pure acceptance for who she is and her non-judgement attitude combined with a no-bullsh*t tollerance. I feel like this combination creates the perfect female lead within this novel for it perfectly balances some of the imperfections of Oliver (the male lead). Xanthe faces so much opposition from so many different people in her life that it really surprised me that she was able to be so strong.
Oliver was a character that I equally disliked and liked. Especially at the start of the novel, I felt as if he came off as arrogant and a little rude. He was almost predisposed to make snap judgements of people which were often a little offensive. For this reason, I found it took me longer to become infatuated with Oliver compared to the average romance novel. Yet this also added to the charm of the book overall because the characters weren't perfect.
"There was a darkness within her, and it was quite profound. She had described horrors as though she had seen them in the flesh."
Overall this book was pretty darn amazing and I loved the unique twist within the novel. The characters were uniquely complex and I really like the story of an author and cover model and just the circumstances of Xanthe and Oliver meeting was fun and interesting.
I really liked the concept for this book going into it. I mean, the idea of an author and cover model dating seems like a really unique and interesting novel and I was wondering how exactly the meat up would turn out and how the characters would interact. The author used a lot of sound choices in terms of plot that really boosted this book into the five star range.
The author did a great job of creating characters that were completely independent from each other and kind of balanced each other out. I felt there were things about both of the main characters which challenged thier relationship and caused emotions to run high. Yet I loved these parts of the book because it made the characters seem real and not just some happy-go-lucky people who have the perfect relationship. There is definitely a depth in this novel that is absent in other books within this genre.
"I wanted to be the one to discover all the things that made Xanthe who she was."
I really loved the alternating perspectives in this book surprisingly. I don't always like the way authors switch perspectives within a novel but Kelli Jean does a great job of making the transition clear and concise while still keeping the tempo of the book constant and smooth. A lot of the switched perspectives were at the perfect parts to get a unique spin on the characters and situation. I was able to not only understand the reasons behind some of the characters reactions but also part of their secrets and get a more in-depth look into thier past and some of those driving forces behind their actions. When this switching perspective is done properly, it really adds another dimension to the novel, like in Ten Thousand Words.
I have a lot of respect for Xanthe (pronounced "Zan - thee") as a character because of just her pure acceptance for who she is and her non-judgement attitude combined with a no-bullsh*t tollerance. I feel like this combination creates the perfect female lead within this novel for it perfectly balances some of the imperfections of Oliver (the male lead). Xanthe faces so much opposition from so many different people in her life that it really surprised me that she was able to be so strong.
Oliver was a character that I equally disliked and liked. Especially at the start of the novel, I felt as if he came off as arrogant and a little rude. He was almost predisposed to make snap judgements of people which were often a little offensive. For this reason, I found it took me longer to become infatuated with Oliver compared to the average romance novel. Yet this also added to the charm of the book overall because the characters weren't perfect.
"There was a darkness within her, and it was quite profound. She had described horrors as though she had seen them in the flesh."
Overall this book was pretty darn amazing and I loved the unique twist within the novel. The characters were uniquely complex and I really like the story of an author and cover model and just the circumstances of Xanthe and Oliver meeting was fun and interesting.
beckiebookworm1974's review
5.0
Riveting
First book by this author and it was a fantastic experience, Ten thousand words was a gem of a novel that I really enjoyed , the character's actions emotionally seemed totally believable very few people are perfect so very refreshing to read a tale with warts and all loved Oliver, even when i wanted to strangle him for his temper tantrums and adored Xanthe she had a heart so big bless and man these two could set the sheets on fire with there bedroom aerobics, I also loved the touch of mystery and intrigue which I'm sure we will get to see more of in future books ,this was a total winner for me.
First book by this author and it was a fantastic experience, Ten thousand words was a gem of a novel that I really enjoyed , the character's actions emotionally seemed totally believable very few people are perfect so very refreshing to read a tale with warts and all loved Oliver, even when i wanted to strangle him for his temper tantrums and adored Xanthe she had a heart so big bless and man these two could set the sheets on fire with there bedroom aerobics, I also loved the touch of mystery and intrigue which I'm sure we will get to see more of in future books ,this was a total winner for me.
leatherboundriot's review
5.0
I don’t understand why this book has a community rating of only 3.7! It was so much more than I ever expected.
mamabookwyrm's review
5.0
Kelli Jean has done it again; she has created a rich, colorful world that I wanted to dive in headfirst. Forget the real world, I want to live in her head! Ten Thousand Words was fantastic. I couldn’t put it down. She has interwoven humor, romance, mystery and hot sex into a beautiful tapestry of words that pulls the feelings out of you. I was crying, laughing and cheering…sometimes all at the same time. My husband was looking at me like I was crazy. Her characters are so well written and complex, they feel real. I want to Aunt Ellen to adopt me. I want to go to Wurther’s with the group. Kelli Jean has easily become a one-click author for me.
**Arc provided for an honest review**
**Arc provided for an honest review**