Reviews tagging 'Abandonment'

Better Than Fiction: The perfect bookish, opposites-attract rom-com to curl up with! by Alexa Martin, Alexa Martin

11 reviews

amy_sutt's review against another edition

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emotional medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.5

I enjoyed the overall story. It was an interesting twist to have the bookstore owner who isn't really a fan of reading (she inherits the store) and her relationship with a romance author.  I did find the FMC a bit unlikeable for the early part of the book, although I did like her internal monologue.  There is a lot of page devoted to Drew's grief for her Grandmother and how that dictated her actions over the year following her Grandmother's death. I didn't find this unrealistic because their relationship was really important to Drew, but it's good to know going into it.
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notsobinaryart's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.5

Very cute easy read! Love the concept and how relaxing and chill the book was. I wouldn’t come into it looking for super deep plot, or big character and internal questioning or changes. I’m a sucker for a lighthearted romance, but the book being a bit more surface level made this a less memorable option for me. 

Better Than Fiction had a big pet peeve of mine in the first chapter or two, which was using slang abbreviations in the internal monologue. I can forgive that in dialogue, but it feels forced to say super informal abbreviations like “obvi” while reading the text.

An additional issue I experienced is we don’t learn much about the love interest as a person, other than the fact he’s an author, hot, and obsessed with the main character immediately. No friends, family,  hobbies, or flaws to be seen other than the third act breakup, which is less of a character flaw and more of a one time thing.

If you want a light, easy read with low amounts of thinking, this is a good book for you! Love the side characters, love how even with stressful topics like grief and family trouble that it never feels too heavy.
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beepbeep101's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted fast-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

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megs23's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective sad slow-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? It's complicated

4.0

I loved the friendship between Drew and Elsie, and the growing sister friendship with Daisy. I appreciated the exploration of grief and Drew’s pursuit of her passion in photography. The imagery with all the adventures/trips was great and made me excited to explore Colorado one day. I also loved the Dirty Birds book club gals. I wish there were less fade-to-black moments between each scene. Jasper was a lovable interest and seemed like a great man. I wish there was more depth to his character and we learned more about him other than that he’s a romance author who travels and he didn’t camp as a child. Overall sweet, although slower read. 
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samchase112's review against another edition

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emotional 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

3.0

A lovely exploration of moving through grief and fostering personal growth…with some romance added in. There were a ton of elements crammed into this book, and they were all interesting — and could've used more fleshing out. Honestly, I think I would've appreciated this more if there were no romance, because it would've left room for everything else to breathe. Anyway, I'm glad I read this, even if I quickly forget it :)
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simone_elizabeth's review against another edition

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emotional funny 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? Yes

3.5

I had mixed feelings about this book. I really liked the main character and I thought her struggles with her grandmother’s death were compelling and realistic. However, the romance plot didn’t feel as fully realized in my opinion and compared to the grief plot it fell a little flat. Also, the writing style was not something I am used to, and cringed a couple of times remembering my teenage writing style from 2010. Loved the outdoorsy theme though
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kfmcf's review against another edition

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slow-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

3.25

First off - this cover is gorgeous. I know that isn't super important but it's a big reason I picked it up.

I want to like this one more than I did. I think the FL was relatable and her struggles with her grief and understanding of her grandmother post-passing are the most interesting part of the boom.

I think the biggest failing of this book is the development of its other relationships, namely with the ML. Jasper has no, and I mean 0, personality. He is just big and hot and he is immediately smitten with Drew to the point where it's confusing and unbelievable. Also they're supposed to have this bucket list deal but we never really get to see Drew falling in love with reading or even responding to that half of the deal. A lost opportunity imo. Also the third act break up and reunion were forced af, oy.

Also, the relationship with her half sister also felt like a wash. Daisy was really interesting but had the depth of a wading pool. I think having both Elsie and Daisy together just got too busy. I think having Dani be the friend and cutting Elsie would have tightened it up (even though I did *like* Elsie).

The Dirty Birds were alright but I got them all mixed up.

All and all I didn't mind the book as a light lit read but as a romance it was lacking.
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toffishay's review against another edition

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adventurous funny 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? No

3.0

A really cute read. The characters are fun, but a little flat. That holds true for the side characters and our main duo of Drew and Jasper. I would have liked a dual POV because Jasper ends up being really perfect and so the drama at the end feels more contrived because he wasn't presented with really any flaws or perspective before the third act breakup. And then the reason for the breakup was weak, which some readers might enjoy because it made it really easy for them to get back together at the end. The sex scenes were really good though :) And there are some beautiful descriptions of nature for the outdoorsy types.
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mamaashley's review against another edition

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adventurous hopeful lighthearted 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

4.0

Would’ve loved to see the HEA have more depth to it. It just kinda happened and the book was over in just a couple pages. 

Drew was a pessimistic character who swore books were for the ones living in their heads, who can’t accept reality. Her love for her family and carrying her grandmothers legacy was so heartwarming. Even though she had to give up herself to finally put herself back together. 
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headinthepages's review against another edition

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emotional funny lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Loveable characters? Yes

3.5

I thought this was the perfect set up for a book loving romance reader.
I loved the legacy behind the bookshop and liked the imperfect, realistic family dynamics.

I have to say I definitely preferred the first half, it was engaging and I enjoyed the dialogue and character interactions, but in the 2nd half the relationship felt a little rushed and 2 dimensional. I didn’t love the sex scenes - they felt a bit rushed.
And the “twist” was predictable (which is fine) but also rushed, like no built up, just sort of an information dump.

I did enjoy the book overall and would definitely read this author again, I just wish those few things were tweaked and it would have been an amazing reading experience for me.
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