abicaro17's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
In theory its cute but both characters need serious therapy. Like watching them get back together was almost painful. They're cute sure and the message about doing something new without abandoning who you are is great. Its just kind of a boring and unbelievable way to do it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity, Misogyny, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Body shaming, Cursing, Classism, Emotional abuse, and Religious bigotry
plsnotanotherdamselindistress's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
3.75
What stood out positively in this story for me was how self-reflective both MCs were and thank you to the author for making them really good at communication, not only in a sexual context(about their desires, safe-words and so on), but also in general when it came to their feelings.
Another big plus was the way the mMC loves how the fMC is a bigger girl and notices/loves small details like the soft belly or the jiggling thighs.
These where the things making this book stand out positively in the new adult romance genre.
(Even if I was hesitant to pick this book up because of religion being a main topic especially the extreme sides like purity culture and while I am more critical towards it than how the author portayed this way of life I still found it interesting to read about it and how there were different characters with differents views on it portrayed in this book. Even if I almost dnf because of the amount of religious bigotry.)
It still felt like the story could have needed a little bit more polishing (e.g. a bit more character depth, more of them as "united front" so not only the unhealthy part of their relationship is portrayed and other stuff) but as I have not read something similar this story was interesting.
Spice(quantity&quality):
2/5
only few scenes but definitely not pg-13 while still having room to improve
Another big plus was the way the mMC loves how the fMC is a bigger girl and notices/loves small details like the soft belly or the jiggling thighs.
These where the things making this book stand out positively in the new adult romance genre.
(Even if I was hesitant to pick this book up because of religion being a main topic especially the extreme sides like purity culture and while I am more critical towards it than how the author portayed this way of life I still found it interesting to read about it and how there were different characters with differents views on it portrayed in this book. Even if I almost dnf because of the amount of religious bigotry.)
It still felt like the story could have needed a little bit more polishing (e.g. a bit more character depth, more of them as "united front" so not only the unhealthy part of their relationship is portrayed and other stuff) but as I have not read something similar this story was interesting.
Spice(quantity&quality):
2/5
only few scenes but definitely not pg-13 while still having room to improve
Content Warnings
Graphic: Religious bigotry and Sexual content
Minor: Cursing, Alcohol, Misogyny, Body horror, Body shaming, Infidelity, and Drug use
hazelgirl21's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
medium-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
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity
Moderate: Sexual content
xismax's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
tense
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
3.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Infidelity
claudia_moreira's review against another edition
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
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
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Cursing
Minor: Infidelity
mels_reading_log's review against another edition
emotional
tense
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
3.5
I love an angst filled, steamy, romance novel, and this was exactly that.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Alcohol, Infidelity, Religious bigotry, and Sexual content
nyx_999's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
reflective
medium-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
3.0
Not bad but not a fan.
2½ smut scenes. 2 spicy scenes. One good sex scene.
I had a hard time not taking brakes in the first 100 pages or so.
I actually didn't know how heavy this book is on Christianity and purity culture until read the foreword. I still read it and no bad feelings about it.
2½ smut scenes. 2 spicy scenes. One good sex scene.
I had a hard time not taking brakes in the first 100 pages or so.
I actually didn't know how heavy this book is on Christianity and purity culture until read the foreword. I still read it and no bad feelings about it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny and Sexual content
Moderate: Toxic friendship and Religious bigotry
Minor: Infidelity, Cursing, and Emotional abuse
kayaks's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.75
2.75/5 ⭐️’s
I’m shaking. I’m actually shaking…from a kiss.
My relationship this book is a mess. One minute I like it the next I want to bang my head against the wall and throw my kindle. I came across Purity on Booktok yesterday and immediately downloaded it after reading a singular quote. I really need to start doing more research because I could have helped lower my expectations.
This whole book centers on purity culture. I’m an atheist who has never practiced religion so there was never that aspect of truly understanding what our main character Livvy was struggling with. Still, I understood the heart of what she was saying, that society is not only incredibly toxic but also loves a good double standard. Even while being non-religious there are so things on Libby’s ‘Summer before Senior year of college Impurity List’ that made me scratch my head but it wasn’t that big of deal since it wasn’t an important part of the plot.
My main disappointment and frustration with this book is that Livvy and Cole exhibited some of the best communication skills I’ve seen in a romance book while simultaneously never actually communicating about things that matter. There was a few times where I thought it was legit dream sequence because the things they were saying was far fetched (and no I’m not even talking about the spicy things, those were fine).
Cole…he is incredibly toxic and possessive. I like my heroes and heroines morally grey most of the time but he was getting on my nerves. As was Livvy. I was rooting for her to stand up for herself and stop being so passive—but when she did I still felt like could have done better. Same thing with Cole. He went through some development that I appreciated but it all felt too fast. I’ll excuse that because the book itself is only 200 pages but I just wish the pacing was more even.
I’m not sure if I’ll continue with the next book in the series—I believe it’s about Livvy’s younger sister Vanessa but who knows. The short chapters and writing makes reading a breeze but I’m worried that it’s just going to be a repeat of this book (innocent naive girl x playboy douche bag). That trope is a fun guilty pleasure but sadly this book wasn’t that fun.
The 🌶 was excellent though. Got a lot spicier than I thought it would. I also did genuinely like the characters together when they weren’t being idiots. There were a few adorable scenes between the pair and I wish that energy would have stayed for the rest of the book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Mental illness and Infidelity
teachreadrepeat's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
This was... underwhelming. I did like that it called out purity culture, but both Livvy and Cole made me angry. I don't mind friends-to-lovers, but this was more "we've secretly been in love with each other since the day we met but made up stupid internal excuses so we can't be together." That's not the same thing; it felt like one huge miscommunication trope tied to religious beliefs instead which I found incredibly frustrating. Also, there was only 1 real spicy section in the book... I don't NEED copious amounts of spice in a romance book, but the premise of this one kinda calls for it in my opinion. The divorce storyline with Cole's parents also felt odd and did not serve the purpose I think the author wanted it to. From a girl who turned her back on purity culture in her 20s at a private Christian university and really struggled with it, I was hoping for so much more agency from the FMC and fulfillment from both parties involved.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Sexism, Sexual content, Misogyny, and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Toxic friendship
Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Infidelity, Cursing, and Emotional abuse
kristirose's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
A recommendation from BookTok. I grew up in Purity culture, so I couldn't resist this book when it came across my feed.
The story is okay, but not spectacular. The subplots concerning both of the leads parents were a bit distracting and depressing. The main characters themselves are best friends; however, they didn't really talk to each other much. To me, communication defines friends to lovers plots.
The story is okay, but not spectacular. The subplots concerning both of the leads parents were a bit distracting and depressing. The main characters themselves are best friends; however, they didn't really talk to each other much. To me, communication defines friends to lovers plots.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Minor: Infidelity