language_loving_amateur's review against another edition
medium-paced
4.0
Jasmine is a lovable trash-fire of a person. This book is more than a wish-fulfillment romance, and her situation with her family is a major focus. The problems are realistic, and realistically, the same ones keep coming back and are solved gradually. Jasmine feels stuck, under pressure from her family, and like she is not meeting the mile markers she should. I would categorize The Donut Trap as a drama with a side of romance; it does say somethings about accepting help, and being honest and communicative.
There is a fair amount of horny-ness, but it is a closed door romance. When the characters have sex, they confirm that each other want to and then it fades to black. So, if you're looking for a mostly 'clean' romance, this might be a good one for you.
Now, I'm going to look for a strictly wish-fulfillment romance novel.
There is a fair amount of horny-ness, but it is a closed door romance. When the characters have sex, they confirm that each other want to and then it fades to black. So, if you're looking for a mostly 'clean' romance, this might be a good one for you.
Now, I'm going to look for a strictly wish-fulfillment romance novel.
Content Warnings
Minor: Drug use
nicoreads333's review against another edition
hopeful
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
The Donut Trap is a cute, coming of age tale with an immigrant family twist. The family dynamics were interesting and layered. The love story fell a little flat for me. The chemistry between the MC and main love interest just didn't feel authentic to me and the love triangle was more of a brief misunderstanding. Overall the story was good, and I'd recommend for young adults, but the writing was a little too stream-of-consciousness to keep my attention all the way through. It slowed the paced and dragged the story down just a bit.
Content Warnings
Minor: Drug use and Sexual content
ocean_the_reader's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
This was such a cute romcom. I was smiling a lot while reading it. My only complaint would be how it felt like Linh ambushed Jasmine with meeting Alex and basically rushed her into dating. My other complaint would be that there was that Michael was not needed, there was enough drama without him in there. Plus he seemed not like a great person, he totally misread situations and didn't like thay Jasmine wasn't reciprocating. But overall this was a book I feel like a lot of people could relate to.
Content Warnings
Minor: Alcohol, Drug use, and Fatphobia
i_am_selinam's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Minor: Drug use and Drug abuse
nmfcarney's review against another edition
lighthearted
fast-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? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual content, Drug use, and Alcohol
mydearwatsonbooks's review
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Fatphobia
Minor: Sexual content, Infidelity, Drug use, Xenophobia, Drug abuse, and Abandonment
yunsq's review
funny
lighthearted
tense
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
3.75
The number of times I straightened my posture when Jasmine’s mum tapped her back...
I enjoyed listening to The Donut Trap 🪤 a romcom-esque read reminding me that love can be wholesome, nourishing, yet light, at the same time. Jasmine was a very relatable main character and I really felt for her. Her problems with her parents, though trivial to people who aren’t brought up in a similar way, I felt wholeheartedly. I was rooting for Jasmine from the beginning. A lighthearted, yet heartfelt read. Best part about it???????? DONUTS. I love donuts so much and I appreciated all the donut descriptions. And the food descriptions of /that/ important dinner......... reminded me of Arsenic and Adobo. It left me very hungry after.
Aside from fatphobic comments that some of the characters made which I couldn’t look pass, I’d re-read The Donut Trap every year :)
Content Warnings
Moderate: Body shaming, Drug use, and Fatphobia
hanhoffie's review against another edition
lighthearted
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug abuse, Drug use, and War
antonique_reads's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug use
allisonwonderlandreads's review against another edition
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
This romance has a new adult feel, picking up on themes of directionlessness after college and the urge to make one's life impressive and cool even when it's anything but. Feeling stuck in her routines working at the family donut shop, Jas steps up to help draw in new customers with trendy flavors while she hunts for a career she can be excited about and tentatively starts seeing "the one who got away" from college. Through it all, she struggles with the pressures of meeting her parents' expectations and assuaging their worries about the state of her life. The story reflects on how Jas' experience as the daughter of refugees has translated into a push to be the perfect model of the American Dream™.
Jas' romance with Alex captures the stress of dating in the digital age, from overthinking texts to stalking social media accounts. Unfortunately, this part of the story didn't hold my interest very well. The single POV left Alex kind of flat. We hear often about how hot he is (Jas' words), and he's generally considerate and an ok guy. I don't have anything more enthusiastic than that. Jas' best friend instructs him on where to take her on a date and how to impress her, which left me even less certain about what he brought to the table. Several missteps on his part result in a chain of apologies throughout. The couple is always on tenuous ground, making it hard for me to get excited about.
In terms of Jas' non-romantic plot, she starts to take charge of her life right at the end of the book. While I appreciated the growth, I think it would have been nice to see more of that part of the journey compared to the majority spent on the buildup to action. If I wanted to feel that itch to stare miserably into the void, I just wouldn't pick up a book.
I think if you're interested in the non-romantic aspects of the story or don't mind that the romantic plot is largely confined to the early, rocky, get-to-know-you phase, you will find the plots about family and launching your life in a new direction to be thoughtful and multifaceted. I was lucky enough to win my copy in a Goodreads giveaway, and I appreciate the opportunity to read and review this book.
Jas' romance with Alex captures the stress of dating in the digital age, from overthinking texts to stalking social media accounts. Unfortunately, this part of the story didn't hold my interest very well. The single POV left Alex kind of flat. We hear often about how hot he is (Jas' words), and he's generally considerate and an ok guy. I don't have anything more enthusiastic than that. Jas' best friend instructs him on where to take her on a date and how to impress her, which left me even less certain about what he brought to the table. Several missteps on his part result in a chain of apologies throughout. The couple is always on tenuous ground, making it hard for me to get excited about.
In terms of Jas' non-romantic plot, she starts to take charge of her life right at the end of the book. While I appreciated the growth, I think it would have been nice to see more of that part of the journey compared to the majority spent on the buildup to action. If I wanted to feel that itch to stare miserably into the void, I just wouldn't pick up a book.
I think if you're interested in the non-romantic aspects of the story or don't mind that the romantic plot is largely confined to the early, rocky, get-to-know-you phase, you will find the plots about family and launching your life in a new direction to be thoughtful and multifaceted. I was lucky enough to win my copy in a Goodreads giveaway, and I appreciate the opportunity to read and review this book.
Content Warnings
Minor: Body shaming, Drug use, Racism, Sexism, Xenophobia, and Infidelity