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emmariana97's review against another edition
no one:
vanessa: 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10. i counted instead of punching his stupid god awful sexy face. his huge face set on behemoth square shoulders large enough to send people flying, his rippling ham thighs with huge gigantic ginormous colossal humongous muscles i didn't even know existed. i felt like such a huge asshole for not smiling back at him, even though he'd called me an annoying nag. he kept walking with his thunderous steps shaking the literal foundations of the building, his leviathan pectorals bouncing largely and hugely
TIMES I NEARLY DNF'D THIS
-her bffl is being abused by her shitty bf and doesn't want to tell mc. but rather than try to, idk, help her, vanessa's only response is that she's a duplicitous two faced liar that can't be trusted
-when van gets groped by christian it's (rightly!!) portrayed as a crime. when aidan gets groped by a stranger van thinks it's the funniest thing in the world. make it make sense PLEASE
-the canadians in this keep using "eh" instead of "yes". has this author ever met a canadian
-mc dresses up as a minion and goku for halloween because she hates when women dress slutty. she also yells at aidan for not knowing anime. mariana zapata i need you to be so serious with me rn
vanessa: 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10. i counted instead of punching his stupid god awful sexy face. his huge face set on behemoth square shoulders large enough to send people flying, his rippling ham thighs with huge gigantic ginormous colossal humongous muscles i didn't even know existed. i felt like such a huge asshole for not smiling back at him, even though he'd called me an annoying nag. he kept walking with his thunderous steps shaking the literal foundations of the building, his leviathan pectorals bouncing largely and hugely
TIMES I NEARLY DNF'D THIS
-the canadians in this keep using "eh" instead of "yes". has this author ever met a canadian
-mc dresses up as a minion and goku for halloween because she hates when women dress slutty. she also yells at aidan for not knowing anime. mariana zapata i need you to be so serious with me rn
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, and Sexual harassment
libellumartinae's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
I am not going to lie, I do feel a bit cheated by this book. it had so much potential and I was utterly thriving at the tropes used alongside the banter that we were first shown between the characters and although Aiden did not fully buy me over, I enjoyed Vanessa. Then the second part started and oh gods... it just felt too cheesy. Although this was supposedly a romance to me it just felt too swift especially as it created a kind of detachment between the two narrative parts of the book, that had me feeling utterly disappointed in my expectations.
I also feel like the fmc's backstory at some point was ridiculous instead of being hopeful and inspiring, especially as it lacked depth. I do feel like Aiden's own explanation behind his behavior of not being 'made for relationship' was extremely shallow and never deepened.
I also dreaded the involvement of themes of domestic violence, especially when they were just treated poorly and without an explanation that went longer than a few lines. especially when Aiden, himself, seemed a victim of domestic violence so it'd have been interesting to see something.
finally, another huge flaw, at least according to me, of this book is the fact that the harassment that Aiden faces from his fans is just ridiculed while it could have made for a good plot line, but instead Vanessa - a woman that supposedly like/love him - just ridicules him although he is clearly at unease.
I am honestly so very saddened by the disappointment of this book as it had, in the first, part all the cards to be genuinely interesting and wholesome but I felt like the romance wasn't just very good and neither the whole side characters and backstory.
I also feel like the fmc's backstory at some point was ridiculous instead of being hopeful and inspiring, especially as it lacked depth. I do feel like Aiden's own explanation behind his behavior of not being 'made for relationship' was extremely shallow and never deepened.
I also dreaded the involvement of themes of domestic violence, especially when they were just treated poorly and without an explanation that went longer than a few lines. especially when Aiden, himself, seemed a victim of domestic violence so it'd have been interesting to see something.
finally, another huge flaw, at least according to me, of this book is the fact that the harassment that Aiden faces from his fans is just ridiculed while it could have made for a good plot line, but instead Vanessa - a woman that supposedly like/love him - just ridicules him although he is clearly at unease.
I am honestly so very saddened by the disappointment of this book as it had, in the first, part all the cards to be genuinely interesting and wholesome but I felt like the romance wasn't just very good and neither the whole side characters and backstory.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, and Sexual harassment
intensej's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Vanessa "Van" Mazur has worked as a personal assistant for Aiden Graves, award winning defensive end for the National Football Organization, for two years. Aiden has never shown any interest in being friendly with Vanessa, and she is ready to move on and focus on her graphic design business. After he humiliates her and doesn't stand up for her, she quits on the spot. Aiden finds her after several weeks and asks her to come back to work for him. When Van learns that Aiden's work visa is about to expire, she jokingly suggests that he find someone to marry in order to obtain his green card. Aiden seizes on her idea and claims that he likes her as much as he likes anyone. Can Van set aside her crush on Aiden and keep to the rules of the business relationship they have established?
I loved the premise of this book. Aiden was a really charming and realistic character. I liked seeing Val's loving relationship with Aiden's roommate, another professional football player, Zac. Zapata really drags things out in this book, and the slow burn was almost too much. I felt like there should have been more sex scenes in this book for how slow the relationship moved. I found the constant references to Van's abusive childhood to be too intense for a contemporary romance. I wish there was another book that followed Zac's story, but this appears to be a standalone. Fans of sports romance and marriage of convenience tropes will love this book.
Content: mentions of child abuse, some swearing, some fighting, sex
I loved the premise of this book. Aiden was a really charming and realistic character. I liked seeing Val's loving relationship with Aiden's roommate, another professional football player, Zac. Zapata really drags things out in this book, and the slow burn was almost too much. I felt like there should have been more sex scenes in this book for how slow the relationship moved. I found the constant references to Van's abusive childhood to be too intense for a contemporary romance. I wish there was another book that followed Zac's story, but this appears to be a standalone. Fans of sports romance and marriage of convenience tropes will love this book.
Content: mentions of child abuse, some swearing, some fighting, sex
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse
Moderate: Sexual content and Violence
Minor: Sexual harassment
sebradley29's review against another edition
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Bullying, Child abuse, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Medical content, Grief, Car accident, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, and Deportation
hapalyn's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
slow-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
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Bullying, Child abuse, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Sexual content, Car accident, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Toxic relationship and Sexual harassment
kirstenpod_'s review
funny
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
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Physical abuse, and Sexual content
Moderate: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Body shaming, Confinement, Death, Drug abuse, Car accident, and Sexual harassment
kponturo's review against another edition
slow-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? No
2.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Body shaming and Domestic abuse
Minor: Sexual harassment
hecksbecks's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
fast-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
4.0
I have never felt more seen as a reader. I know, I know, there are A-LOT of authors out there that are able to conjure a character that looks like us all and reminds us of ourselves. HOWEVER, Van was just this perfect little combination of every niche imaginable and I loved her. As always with these kitschy romance novels the ending felt rushed but in this case it was okay because we were teased with a slow burn the whole damn time. The characters mesh well with one another and the prose is easy to read, I’d recommend it to someone who was a fan of these kinds of books for sure. I also see myself reading more from Zapata in the near future.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Body shaming, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Grief, Gaslighting, and Sexual harassment
xennial_reader's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
slow-paced
2.0
I’m so disappointed in this book, I had such high hopes. I’ve seen so many people rave about it and the new cover is freaking adorable. But this easily could’ve been 100-150 pages shorter.
The traumatic backstories for both main characters was over the top and with not much payoff for suffering through reading about it.
There were so many opportunities for the main characters to connect and realize their feelings for each other but then we’d get a cut scene and then it would suddenly be a week later with no progress in their relationship. It also felt like “wait until marriage” was the underlying message here, even though that’s never outwardly said.
There’s also only so much broody-ness I can handle. Aiden is a complete emotional wall. I mean, I get he’s the wall of Winnipeg but this was a lot. He gives absolutely nothing to Vanessa until she’s threatened or encroached upon in some way and even then he’s rounding it out by telling her to “shut up”.
I wish I had known more about this so I could’ve DNF’d, but then I had gotten too far and had to see it through to figure out what all the hype was about. I still don’t get it.
The traumatic backstories for both main characters was over the top and with not much payoff for suffering through reading about it.
There were so many opportunities for the main characters to connect and realize their feelings for each other but then we’d get a cut scene and then it would suddenly be a week later with no progress in their relationship. It also felt like “wait until marriage” was the underlying message here, even though that’s never outwardly said.
There’s also only so much broody-ness I can handle. Aiden is a complete emotional wall. I mean, I get he’s the wall of Winnipeg but this was a lot. He gives absolutely nothing to Vanessa until she’s threatened or encroached upon in some way and even then he’s rounding it out by telling her to “shut up”.
I wish I had known more about this so I could’ve DNF’d, but then I had gotten too far and had to see it through to figure out what all the hype was about. I still don’t get it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse and Car accident
Minor: Sexual content and Sexual harassment
readingwithaddi's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse
Minor: Sexual harassment