stuckinatimeloop's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
honestly, there are better YA romcoms out there. it just wasn't that great.
there's nothing wrong with clichés in my opinion, they just have to done well and this was not the case in this book.
the mc was annoying and self absorbed to a fault. none of the characters had much of a personality. there wasn't much chemistry between reid and nat. there's no development of their feelings really. she hates him then one day he wears a suit and she decides she's in love.
sometimes some of the side characters felt like there were there only for diversity points.
the plot had some unexplored potential. the idea of the play/musical was interesting but it was never properly described to us.
the plus points might be that the writing was put together, if repetitive and slow at times. the sisters sideplot wasn't too bad.
there's nothing wrong with clichés in my opinion, they just have to done well and this was not the case in this book.
the mc was annoying and self absorbed to a fault. none of the characters had much of a personality. there wasn't much chemistry between reid and nat. there's no development of their feelings really. she hates him then one day he wears a suit and she decides she's in love.
sometimes some of the side characters felt like there were there only for diversity points.
the plot had some unexplored potential. the idea of the play/musical was interesting but it was never properly described to us.
the plus points might be that the writing was put together, if repetitive and slow at times. the sisters sideplot wasn't too bad.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Religious bigotry and Antisemitism
bookwormbullet's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
relaxing
slow-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
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Antisemitism
liorae's review against another edition
lighthearted
medium-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
3.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Antisemitism
blackveilbeccy's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
I liked this quite a bit, and the Jewish representation was authentic and great - both the protagonist and love interest are Jewish (Reform) and it flavoured lots of the plot. There was a lot of drama in between the family dynamics and the enemies to lovers romance but all ended on a nice fluffy note. The extended case were great, too. I would have really liked for this to not end so abruptly or for there to be an epilogue as the ending was too open-ended for my preference.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Antisemitism
Moderate: Bullying and Toxic relationship
Minor: Alcohol and Gaslighting
calamitywindpetal's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-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
Content Warnings
Minor: Antisemitism
half_bloodreader's review against another edition
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.0
Jewish mc
Diverse cast
Diverse cast
Written in 1st person, present tense.
I was invested in their student written play turned musical, Melted (an opposite Frozen about the climate crisis), and it was that plot line that kept me reading the story - wish we had more details than we got.
The characters? Not so much. Fitz is like the exception!
Or the romance. The blurb tells us it's an enemies to lovers story, the goal ship being Natalie + Reid (their language is pranking). Alas, I couldn't stand behind them!
When I read Better than the Movies, also a childhood playmate/neighbour enemies to lovers, I was more than okay with Wes.
But Reid frustrates me!! When he took the credit for the song's key change, I was done. I cannot support someone who takes credit for creative ideas. Every contribution should be honoured in a project. That's final.
Things got uglier from there with almost everyone starting a trash fire, especially the mc. It just proves my point: the characters, the romance, the relationships - I can't even with her father - are big nopes.
So the only worthwhile plot point was the students championing for the importance of arts, how cathartic it can be, and calling out the hypocrisy of a society that loves to consume art, it is literally everywhere, but doesn't want to pay for it.
Good on the story for raising awareness to how people just get away with casual antisemitism, how insidious it is, and how they downplay fascism. Adults and young adults should know better after studying the historical repercussions of fascism, the atrocities perpetuated by the Nazi.
Regardless, important social commentary does not a good story make.
Every single person who wears glasses, wears plastic ones, especially clear.
The proofreader did leave too many typos for my taste.
CW: Microaggressions
Content Warnings
Minor: Antisemitism
elyssam's review against another edition
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
what i liked:
1. reid (but not at the end lol)
2. the discussion of microagressions, how common they are, how they hurt folks
3. the romance in the middle of the book because i am a hopeless romantic
4. the arts! i love art in every form and can appreciate that.
what i did not like:
1. choppy writing style — some pieces were omitted and some things got way too much detail. it felt like reading an outline. random characters were introduced then never brought up again. they skipped whole chunks of dialogue and then moved on with the story.
2. natalie committing a federal crime and facing little to no consequences lol
3. the timeline? it just didn’t make sense. so many pop culture references and for what? all they did was confuse me bc they were watching movies at the theater that came out months ago. i had to laugh.
4. edited bad? idk what edition i was reading but it was an ebook and some words were misspelled
5. the pacing. along with the choppy style the pacing was off too. people were having weirdly timed conversations and rushing into things. i didn’t like that.
6. some things were wrapped up poorly. left me going “huh?” but not in a good way
1. reid (but not at the end lol)
2. the discussion of microagressions, how common they are, how they hurt folks
3. the romance in the middle of the book because i am a hopeless romantic
4. the arts! i love art in every form and can appreciate that.
what i did not like:
1. choppy writing style — some pieces were omitted and some things got way too much detail. it felt like reading an outline. random characters were introduced then never brought up again. they skipped whole chunks of dialogue and then moved on with the story.
2. natalie committing a federal crime and facing little to no consequences lol
3. the timeline? it just didn’t make sense. so many pop culture references and for what? all they did was confuse me bc they were watching movies at the theater that came out months ago. i had to laugh.
4. edited bad? idk what edition i was reading but it was an ebook and some words were misspelled
5. the pacing. along with the choppy style the pacing was off too. people were having weirdly timed conversations and rushing into things. i didn’t like that.
6. some things were wrapped up poorly. left me going “huh?” but not in a good way
Content Warnings
Minor: Antisemitism
kgorobets's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Antisemitism