jennyoli96's review
5.0
*ARC received from the author*
Luke thinks he's going to spend a peaceful summer vacation at his girlfriend's cottage, the one that happens to have a beach where he can surf. Upon meeting her cousin Theo, however, he realizes things aren't going to be as easy as he'd thought...
I have mixed feelings about this book, but all in all I'd say I loved it. I reacted to it. Everytime there was tension, I felt it. Everytime something sad happened, I wanted it to be solved. Everytime the main character did something I questioned it and weighted the pros and cons with him. And granted, Luke and I didn't agree on a lot of things. He's a flawed character, but that simply makes him a real teenager.
I had some issues with the way some things were dealt, I felt like I did not get enough closure at the end of the book when it came to some characters, as if they had suddenly disappeared.
I really enjoyed Meredith's character, she was one of my favorites. Very down to earth, this sort of "mom friend". Zara, however... Well, you'll have to read it to understand, and I certainly recommend that you do ;)
Overall, this is a great, fast read. A true page turner. I can't wait to read more from this author.
Luke thinks he's going to spend a peaceful summer vacation at his girlfriend's cottage, the one that happens to have a beach where he can surf. Upon meeting her cousin Theo, however, he realizes things aren't going to be as easy as he'd thought...
I have mixed feelings about this book, but all in all I'd say I loved it. I reacted to it. Everytime there was tension, I felt it. Everytime something sad happened, I wanted it to be solved. Everytime the main character did something I questioned it and weighted the pros and cons with him. And granted, Luke and I didn't agree on a lot of things. He's a flawed character, but that simply makes him a real teenager.
I had some issues with the way some things were dealt, I felt like I did not get enough closure at the end of the book when it came to some characters, as if they had suddenly disappeared.
I really enjoyed Meredith's character, she was one of my favorites. Very down to earth, this sort of "mom friend". Zara, however... Well, you'll have to read it to understand, and I certainly recommend that you do ;)
Overall, this is a great, fast read. A true page turner. I can't wait to read more from this author.
elvenavari's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 stars. The characters in this novel were really well done, very believable. I loved the setting, though it did take a little longer than I liked to wrap my head around it. I did feel that the drama dragged on a bit longer than it should have. My biggest issue, and it's no one's fault but my own, was understanding some of the terminology... I'm guessing to "blank" someone is to stare at them blankly?
mollyringle's review against another edition
5.0
I was lucky enough to read this book pre-release, and ate it up avidly. A gorgeous Cornwall seaside setting, and a group of characters harboring secrets both shameful and romantic—what more could I want? I fell in love instantly, and adored the emotional ride all the way through to the triumphant end.
The writing is tight and alive, and the group thrown together on holiday is rife with awkwardness and tension in all the fun ways. I especially fell for Theo and Luke, our star-crossed lovers, trapped by the social situation they find themselves in, blindsided by this new attraction and unsure what to tell everyone. Their romance hits all the right range from bittersweet to swoonily happy, enough to make me daydream about them while I was reading it. And, yeah, can I please have a vacation to Cornwall now too?
The writing is tight and alive, and the group thrown together on holiday is rife with awkwardness and tension in all the fun ways. I especially fell for Theo and Luke, our star-crossed lovers, trapped by the social situation they find themselves in, blindsided by this new attraction and unsure what to tell everyone. Their romance hits all the right range from bittersweet to swoonily happy, enough to make me daydream about them while I was reading it. And, yeah, can I please have a vacation to Cornwall now too?
pam_h's review against another edition
2.0
2.5 stars
It's well-written and a quick read, but I can't give it three stars since I didn't actually *enjoy* it. Mostly because there's way more of the bad kind of tension than the good kind.
The teenage drama didn't bother me from, like, a moral perspective or anything. I mean...they're teenagers. The MC actually handles the situation with his "girlfriend" pretty well from that standpoint -- if you take the initial decision out of the equation :)
But I didn't feel like there was enough buildup between him and the cousin before the drama started. The pieces were there, and it was quickly building in that direction, but the author jumped the gun on bringing in the other characters and changing the dynamic. And then it was just Non. Stop. TENSION. I don't know how the MC could handle living it because I could barely handle reading it!
Everyone is just constantly arguing and the new dude is so fucking MEAN. The way he treats the MC for the majority of the book is plain unacceptable, and the "girlfriend" and the cousin both brush it off "because he's not usually like that," "he's just being protective," blahblahblah "reasons" that leaves the MC in a seriously shitty position that they're majorly underestimating because of how well he's handling something that he shouldn't have to handle at all.
So obviously the writer is talented because I truly *felt* all of this, but this was also the stretch where most of the relationship-building with the cousin was happening, and that's the part I wanted to read about. But those were all short scenes in between these long, drawn-out angsty scenes that were making me feel violent!!
Then we went through all that for an ending that felt abrupt and therefore extremely unsatisfying. So I don't know. The author is definitely a talented writer, but I'm not sure we're on the same page as far as what I want to read in my romances.
It's well-written and a quick read, but I can't give it three stars since I didn't actually *enjoy* it. Mostly because there's way more of the bad kind of tension than the good kind.
The teenage drama didn't bother me from, like, a moral perspective or anything. I mean...they're teenagers. The MC actually handles the situation with his "girlfriend" pretty well from that standpoint -- if you take the initial decision out of the equation :)
But I didn't feel like there was enough buildup between him and the cousin before the drama started. The pieces were there, and it was quickly building in that direction, but the author jumped the gun on bringing in the other characters and changing the dynamic. And then it was just Non. Stop. TENSION. I don't know how the MC could handle living it because I could barely handle reading it!
Everyone is just constantly arguing and the new dude is so fucking MEAN. The way he treats the MC for the majority of the book is plain unacceptable, and the "girlfriend" and the cousin both brush it off "because he's not usually like that," "he's just being protective," blahblahblah "reasons" that leaves the MC in a seriously shitty position that they're majorly underestimating because of how well he's handling something that he shouldn't have to handle at all.
So obviously the writer is talented because I truly *felt* all of this, but this was also the stretch where most of the relationship-building with the cousin was happening, and that's the part I wanted to read about. But those were all short scenes in between these long, drawn-out angsty scenes that were making me feel violent!!
Then we went through all that for an ending that felt abrupt and therefore extremely unsatisfying. So I don't know. The author is definitely a talented writer, but I'm not sure we're on the same page as far as what I want to read in my romances.
lacyduckie's review against another edition
4.0
Loved It
Hi, Caught Inside is my favorite movie in book form. Highkey please watch Shelter (2007) and cry with me. Ok, thank you. Also, I highly recommend the audiobook. Joe Jameson has a lovely voice. It reminded me of Hero Fiennes Tiffin. I'd love to read a sequel and/or companion novel.
Hi, Caught Inside is my favorite movie in book form. Highkey please watch Shelter (2007) and cry with me. Ok, thank you. Also, I highly recommend the audiobook. Joe Jameson has a lovely voice. It reminded me of Hero Fiennes Tiffin. I'd love to read a sequel and/or companion novel.
shmadsie's review against another edition
4.0
Full disclosure: I received an ARC (yes, an advanced copy, yes, two years ago, I'm like friggin' Sonic over here) through a Goodreads giveaway.
I'm all about LGBTQIA romances so I was more than excited to win this but infidelity, on the other hand, does not thrill me. At all. I was really worried that element would destroy this for me and instead it was handled rather well. The reasons for staying quiet weren't manufactured—not knowing if this orientation would even "stick," Luke knowing he'd have to leave the second the jig was up and not ever knowing if this thing with Theo could've been something, not wanting to destroy Zara and Theo's relationship for something that might amount to nothing—and I actually felt the same temptation that Luke and Theo gave into. It didn't make me sympathize with them but it did make me understand them, which is what good writing is meant to do. Place you in the shoes of the characters so you at least know why they're doing the things they do.
I mean I still think they shouldn't have been impatient little snots, told Zara the second something happened between them, let Luke leave Cornwall, and Theo (who more than has the means) track him down in his hometown and take things from there, see where things went at a more leisurely pace. There was a better answer, naturally, but it's not as though it's difficult to understand wanting to seize a moment like that when it happens. So instead of becoming about two characters I couldn't stand (as is what usually happens when characters cheat), it just became a fond, 'well let's see what these two impatient little snots are up to now.'
The writing was strong (and I adored the Britishisms), the romance followed a predictable plot but, let's be real, you pick up contemporary romance to read pretty much exactly that plot and the chemistry was definitely there. All in all, an enjoyable and quick read that I felt did a solid job with a topic that often leaves me uneasy.
I'm all about LGBTQIA romances so I was more than excited to win this but infidelity, on the other hand, does not thrill me. At all. I was really worried that element would destroy this for me and instead it was handled rather well. The reasons for staying quiet weren't manufactured—not knowing if this orientation would even "stick," Luke knowing he'd have to leave the second the jig was up and not ever knowing if this thing with Theo could've been something, not wanting to destroy Zara and Theo's relationship for something that might amount to nothing—and I actually felt the same temptation that Luke and Theo gave into. It didn't make me sympathize with them but it did make me understand them, which is what good writing is meant to do. Place you in the shoes of the characters so you at least know why they're doing the things they do.
I mean I still think they shouldn't have been impatient little snots, told Zara the second something happened between them, let Luke leave Cornwall, and Theo (who more than has the means) track him down in his hometown and take things from there, see where things went at a more leisurely pace. There was a better answer, naturally, but it's not as though it's difficult to understand wanting to seize a moment like that when it happens. So instead of becoming about two characters I couldn't stand (as is what usually happens when characters cheat), it just became a fond, 'well let's see what these two impatient little snots are up to now.'
The writing was strong (and I adored the Britishisms), the romance followed a predictable plot but, let's be real, you pick up contemporary romance to read pretty much exactly that plot and the chemistry was definitely there. All in all, an enjoyable and quick read that I felt did a solid job with a topic that often leaves me uneasy.
bfdbookblog's review against another edition
3.0
I have recently been trying to stay away from the YA/really young NA books because I can’t handle the immaturity or the sex between kids half my age. This one sounded interesting so I gave it a shot. It is definitely a coming of age and coming out story. And there is a lot of angst which I really didn’t care for, especially since the happy part of the story was really, really short. There were also love triangles – two manufactured and one organic – and I do not read books with triangles because I don’t like that someone ALWAYS gets hurt.
There were quite a few ‘main’ characters. I think I liked Luke best of all, even though he was basically cheating on his girlfriend and part of a triangle. He was the most mature out of the lot and he was the youngest. Theo ended up being decent but I didn’t like the way he treated Luke when he was trying to deny his feelings or hide what they were doing. Giles was an absolute, complete a$$hole and never totally redeemed himself. I never liked him, even with Theo describing what a great friend he was after the blow up. Meredith was the better of the girl characters but she lacked self-confidence and should have let Giles go long before she witnessed his behavior on their summer holiday. Zara was an absolute, complete spoiled brat and I honestly didn’t feel sorry for her when I should have. She was being cheated on by her boyfriend and cousin and I was actually happy about it. She was as miserable a person as Giles.
The writing was pretty good – I don’t have any complaints there. And I would definitely check out a story that didn’t have angst or triangles and that had older characters if written by this author.
There were quite a few ‘main’ characters. I think I liked Luke best of all, even though he was basically cheating on his girlfriend and part of a triangle. He was the most mature out of the lot and he was the youngest. Theo ended up being decent but I didn’t like the way he treated Luke when he was trying to deny his feelings or hide what they were doing. Giles was an absolute, complete a$$hole and never totally redeemed himself. I never liked him, even with Theo describing what a great friend he was after the blow up. Meredith was the better of the girl characters but she lacked self-confidence and should have let Giles go long before she witnessed his behavior on their summer holiday. Zara was an absolute, complete spoiled brat and I honestly didn’t feel sorry for her when I should have. She was being cheated on by her boyfriend and cousin and I was actually happy about it. She was as miserable a person as Giles.
The writing was pretty good – I don’t have any complaints there. And I would definitely check out a story that didn’t have angst or triangles and that had older characters if written by this author.
heyitsdaliiii's review
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
crunden's review against another edition
5.0
❧ audiobook review
Another Joe Jameson narration and an absolute find. [Other great Jameson narrations I've reviewed are: An Honest Man, The Prince of Thorns, The Last Romeo and The Magnificent Sons.]
THIS BOOK IS SUCH CUTE ROMANCE, UGH. ❤❤❤ Luke and Theo are fantastic together and so adorable. They have such good chemistry, it's insane.
This is a perfect summer romance read! Beaches and new love. And the constant surfing descriptions just made me think of Shelter.
Totally a compliment, FYI. I adored this book so much. Jamie Deacon's writing is so evocative and lush and lovely.
*SPOILERS BELOW*
This book totally stole my heart. That said, despite how shippable Luke and Theo are, I do feel bad for Zara. She really deserved much better than everyone keeping secrets from her. Giles was such a prick at pretty much every point, although he was a good friend to Theo.
Really hard not to picture Rupert Giles:
But this Giles was decidedly less Watcherly. I got so annoyed at him throughout the book. He's a good character, though, so there's that.
One of the things I loved, but found myself shaking my head and laughing at, was how Luke is so DRAMATIC. He ought to get an award for epic overreactions, yet he's written so well and so sympathetic, that even when he is a DISASTER, you end up rooting for him. I really adored Theo, too, although a lot of his decisions left me so frustrated.
Meredith is definitely a queen ❤
☆ Blog | Twitter ☆
Another Joe Jameson narration and an absolute find. [Other great Jameson narrations I've reviewed are: An Honest Man, The Prince of Thorns, The Last Romeo and The Magnificent Sons.]
THIS BOOK IS SUCH CUTE ROMANCE, UGH. ❤❤❤ Luke and Theo are fantastic together and so adorable. They have such good chemistry, it's insane.
This is a perfect summer romance read! Beaches and new love. And the constant surfing descriptions just made me think of Shelter.
Totally a compliment, FYI. I adored this book so much. Jamie Deacon's writing is so evocative and lush and lovely.
*SPOILERS BELOW*
This book totally stole my heart. That said, despite how shippable Luke and Theo are, I do feel bad for Zara. She really deserved much better than everyone keeping secrets from her. Giles was such a prick at pretty much every point, although he was a good friend to Theo.
Really hard not to picture Rupert Giles:
But this Giles was decidedly less Watcherly. I got so annoyed at him throughout the book. He's a good character, though, so there's that.
One of the things I loved, but found myself shaking my head and laughing at, was how Luke is so DRAMATIC. He ought to get an award for epic overreactions, yet he's written so well and so sympathetic, that even when he is a DISASTER, you end up rooting for him. I really adored Theo, too, although a lot of his decisions left me so frustrated.
Meredith is definitely a queen ❤
☆ Blog | Twitter ☆
yona's review
4.0
I got a free copy to review, so thank you so much for that!
I didn't know what to think going in. I had just finished reading [b:Amanzimtoti: The Ridge|29301891|Amanzimtoti The Ridge (Amanzimtoti, #1)|Carmen-Shea Hepburn|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1456326580s/29301891.jpg|49541488], which is also an LGBTQ+ book about a surfer, the first thing I read a lot of lately, the latter being something I am entirely unfamiliar with.
This book is really really good. It wasn't perfect, and it probably won't end up on my favourite shelf, but it was still a really enjoyable read.
Something that really put me off at times was the writing of the character reactions. I loved the dialogue, really much actually, but the way they sometimes react made me want to smash my kindle against my wall. Giles, I happily wish you to go and jump into an open fire. Also, I really didn't like the whole love triangle situation going on, which, looking back, was the main focus of this book.
What I did love was the way it was structured, either Jamie Deacon or the editor did an amazing job. The Dialogue was also really nicely written.
Go read it.
I didn't know what to think going in. I had just finished reading [b:Amanzimtoti: The Ridge|29301891|Amanzimtoti The Ridge (Amanzimtoti, #1)|Carmen-Shea Hepburn|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1456326580s/29301891.jpg|49541488], which is also an LGBTQ+ book about a surfer, the first thing I read a lot of lately, the latter being something I am entirely unfamiliar with.
This book is really really good. It wasn't perfect, and it probably won't end up on my favourite shelf, but it was still a really enjoyable read.
Something that really put me off at times was the writing of the character reactions. I loved the dialogue, really much actually, but the way they sometimes react made me want to smash my kindle against my wall. Giles, I happily wish you to go and jump into an open fire. Also, I really didn't like the whole love triangle situation going on, which, looking back, was the main focus of this book.
What I did love was the way it was structured, either Jamie Deacon or the editor did an amazing job. The Dialogue was also really nicely written.
Go read it.
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