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olpapi's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Racism
Moderate: Sexual assault
Minor: Death of parent
hannahleewhite's review against another edition
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Moderate: Death of parent and Sexual assault
Minor: Racism
rachelkreadsbookz's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Moderate: Sexual assault
Minor: Death of parent
mollyrook's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
What I didn’t love were the enemies-to-lovers arc and the third-act breakup. As I found with The Matzah Ball, I find “I’m mad at you for something I think you did when we were 13” to be uninspiring. They also got over it so fast in this book that they might as well have just known each other from camp without it being an enemies thing.
I also didn’t think the third-act breakup was super necessary in this book. I know that Liyah has a lot of baggage to work through, but I never really bought her belief that she is unlovable. I think he could have helped her through those feelings with it just being a fight and not a full breakup.
Overall, I really liked this book, and I think it’s a great book for anyone who wants to expand their horizons of what it means to be Jewish.
Moderate: Racism, Grief, Death of parent, and Sexual assault
hoagie's review against another edition
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Moderate: Death of parent, Grief, and Rape
violentlyagitated's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Daniel spent the whole time apologizing over and over and over, poor guy, while Liyah kept tearing his head off for the biggest non-reasons ever. I get that she has a lot of trauma from past experiences, but her aggression towards just(!) Daniel and her awfully skewed self-perception made it very hard to feel for her. It's like her best friend Neen said, it gets old (and, frankly, unrealistic)! I don't think it was unjustified of Daniel to call Liyah "unfeeling" only this one time, you can be kindhearted deep down but if you're only ever being borderline insulting to those around you, people might start to consider you a bitch. He was made to apologize for it, anyway...
Apart from these grievances, the story mostly bored me, even with little tidbits about Jewish culture and anthropology sprinkled in. Nothing much happened, plot-wise or charater delevopment-wise. I think even Siobhan and Jordan as side-characters got more of both, actually. The addition of the Speakeasy Survival Club felt very random to me as well, though the club meeting notes ended up being the most entertaining part of the book.
Minor: Rape, Racism, and Death of parent
rachelshubin's review against another edition
- 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
5.0
Moderate: Rape and Death of parent
womanwill's review
- 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
5.0
Liyah and Daniel find themselves saddled with a joint work project years after a Jewish summer camp disaster ended their blossoming friendship. As they work closely together to craft events to raise millennial memberships at the Field Museum, the sexual tension inevitably simmers.
Runya Katz delivers not only thoughtfully crafted characters but layers to the story. Liyah works through a deep trauma from her past that left her unable to trust in romantic love while Daniel grapples with the death of his father. Their Jewish faith and biracial identities (Liyah is half Black and Daniel is half Korean) bridge a safe space for their love to grow.
On top of all this, Runya Katz also injects the story with the importance of friendship and family, both chosen and birth, as a support network. Both Daniel and Liyah have therapy sessions on the page (swoon) and regularly turn to their loved ones for support working through their traumas.
The short:
- childhood friends-to enemies-to adult friends-to lovers
- agitation-to-love
- only one bed
- airplane meet disaster
- forced proximity
- workplace romance
- dual biracial Jewish rep
- bi rep
I cannot wait to read what Runya Katz puts out next!
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the e-ARC. All thoughts my own.
Graphic: Death of parent and Sexual assault
Moderate: Grief
what_karla_reads's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
1.5/5 spice
Tropes:
Childhood friends to enemies to lovers
Reverse Grumpy/sunshine
Work together
Forced proximity
Trauma/healing
Jewish rep
BIPOC MCs
LGBTQIA rep
Dual POV
At first it was a struggle for me to get through this book because it starts off with a big misunderstanding/miscommunication issue that is brought up several times throughout the story and doesn't seem to be completely resolved until Liyah is forced to confront her trust and self worth issues towered the end. It was also a struggle because I was very upset with Liyah for the majority of the story. I had moments that I loved her personality, but every time she was confronted with her aversion to love and relationships, I wanted to shake her. But I'm really glad I kept reading.
I really enjoyed the friend group dynamic, and Liyah's bestie, Neen, was my favorite. They really brought Liyah out of her destructive behavior and forced her to confront her feelings... and they held nothing back. I honestly feel like they saved the story... because there's no way Liyah would've been able to get out of her funk without their help.
I also really enjoyed reading about Liyah and Daniel's experiences as Jews of color and how they've had to cope with prejudice and racism. There are a lot of raw, emotional moments that go beyond the surface conflicts, and it's for these moments that I was able to get through the initial struggle with reading this book. It was definitely a reminder that everyone handles trauma/grief differently, and I need to be more open and empathetic to people and situations that I've never experienced.
Overall, I highly recommend for fans of second chance or childhood friends to lovers. This is a well-rounded story with a diverse set of characters that are relatable and real.
Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own and offered voluntarily.
Trigger/Content warnings:
SA (mentioned as a memory), death of parent (past tense), racism, grief, misogyny, sexual content
Graphic: Grief and Racism
Moderate: Misogyny and Sexual content
Minor: Sexual assault and Death of parent
adinarj's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Moderate: Grief, Death of parent, and Sexual assault