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ameliabee33's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
3.25
The tropes:
- Grumpy x sunshine
- Small, southern town romance
- Fat fmc
- Mental health rep
- Found family
- Winning the lottery??
This is an easy romance to pick up when you're looking for something that doesn't require a lot of brain power. There is romance, the grumpy x sunshine trope, finding oneself in a small town. What isn't to love?
This book leans VERY heavily on the grumpy x sunshine vibes coming from Rose and Angus. I mean, his name is literally Angus and he does home improvement. Rose has always had it rough - in life and in romance - but she remains good to her core, always looking for the best in herself and other people. Angus is a vet wanting to settle the scoreboard with life, needing to do good to make it a better place. But that doesn't mean he has to be smiling all the time. Obviously one thing leads to another and Angus and Rose have a tough start but end up not being able to fight their attraction for one another.
The relationship Angus has with Rose relies heavily on him being a sort of knight in shining armor. He thinks she is has money issues (because she doesn't tell him about her lottery money) and thay he has to protect her. He has to he the man who provides. Lots of kind of misogynistic/male way of thinking for a character that is meant to be progressive. He is CONSTANTLY inner monologuing about how she doesn't handle $$ well and how he can help and be the man and provide and god near the end it just got annoying. It was hard to see a lot of romance around that.
Rose was a character that had some good depth. She has sexual, relationship, and family trauma that all compounds when she wins the lottery. She becomes desirable for her money only. As I said, I feel like her character was the best fleshed out, there was a reason she was the way she was.
Overall u thought the romance and break up/make up was rushed and could have benefited from the two love interests actually getting to know one another. The conflict was all based on Angus thinking he had to be the provider and Rose - validly might I add - not telling anyone about her lottery $$. It was an easy read with a predictable plot, I just kind of wanted more from the romance which was the whole point of the book.
- Grumpy x sunshine
- Small, southern town romance
- Fat fmc
- Mental health rep
- Found family
- Winning the lottery??
This is an easy romance to pick up when you're looking for something that doesn't require a lot of brain power. There is romance, the grumpy x sunshine trope, finding oneself in a small town. What isn't to love?
This book leans VERY heavily on the grumpy x sunshine vibes coming from Rose and Angus. I mean, his name is literally Angus and he does home improvement. Rose has always had it rough - in life and in romance - but she remains good to her core, always looking for the best in herself and other people. Angus is a vet wanting to settle the scoreboard with life, needing to do good to make it a better place. But that doesn't mean he has to be smiling all the time. Obviously one thing leads to another and Angus and Rose have a tough start but end up not being able to fight their attraction for one another.
The relationship Angus has with Rose relies heavily on him being a sort of knight in shining armor. He thinks she is has money issues (because she doesn't tell him about her lottery money) and thay he has to protect her. He has to he the man who provides. Lots of kind of misogynistic/male way of thinking for a character that is meant to be progressive. He is CONSTANTLY inner monologuing about how she doesn't handle $$ well and how he can help and be the man and provide and god near the end it just got annoying. It was hard to see a lot of romance around that.
Rose was a character that had some good depth. She has sexual, relationship, and family trauma that all compounds when she wins the lottery. She becomes desirable for her money only. As I said, I feel like her character was the best fleshed out, there was a reason she was the way she was.
Overall u thought the romance and break up/make up was rushed and could have benefited from the two love interests actually getting to know one another. The conflict was all based on Angus thinking he had to be the provider and Rose - validly might I add - not telling anyone about her lottery $$. It was an easy read with a predictable plot, I just kind of wanted more from the romance which was the whole point of the book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and War
Minor: Death and Death of parent
rachminick's review
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
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? It's complicated
4.25
I am a sucker for anything set in Western North Carolina. The author captured the magic and character of a small town in Western NC perfectly, I can picture Galway as the town next door.
A book full of helpers and “salt of the earth” kinds of people. More of this!
MMC is a therapist - (and great great representation of the field) and FMC is finding herself after a windfall of money and a hard life up to that point.
The author doesn’t shy away from difficult topics, but weaves real-world problems into this fictional little town nicely.
The side characters make the story and setting a place I want to spend a little more time- please tell me we get to hear July’s story next!
A book full of helpers and “salt of the earth” kinds of people. More of this!
MMC is a therapist - (and great great representation of the field) and FMC is finding herself after a windfall of money and a hard life up to that point.
The author doesn’t shy away from difficult topics, but weaves real-world problems into this fictional little town nicely.
The side characters make the story and setting a place I want to spend a little more time- please tell me we get to hear July’s story next!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fatphobia
Moderate: Bullying, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Death of parent
Minor: Suicide
Sexual Assaultcallidoralblack's review against another edition
emotional
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Cursing and Sexual content
Minor: Body shaming, Cancer, Fatphobia, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, Grief, Abortion, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Alcohol, War, and Injury/Injury detail
dogoodwithbooks's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
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
4.5
Happy publication day!
I would like to thank NetGalley and Sourcebooks - Casablanca for providing me with a free e-ARC of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.
After winding up with $80 million from the lottery, Rose Barnes escapes the constant hounding from her old life in Indianapolis and finds herself in the town of Galway, North Carolina to start over. She gets herself some new friends and ends up hiring the local grump, Angus, to renovate her new home. Yet, as she tries to keep her winnings a secret and her relationship with Angus develops, she wonders if love can conquer all.
Now, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that Curves for Days addresses some heavier topics. I encourage you all to check out my content warnings at the top of my review and decide whether this is a title to read or not.
Curves for Days is a delightful small town rom-com that you want to keep an eye on this summer. Moher is able to bring out all the Southern charm and hospitality that I love into book form. I really like the dual POV approach that Moher utilizes in Curves for Days and does a great job with creating authentic personalities for Rose and Angus. Though, I would have liked it better if the dual POV was separate into chapters instead of line breaks.
Rose and Angus are great MCs and I enjoyed rooting for them throughout the book. Both go through their own growth during the course of this book and I feel that Curves for Days does a great job with showing how their relationship strengthens due to their pasts.
I would definitely recommend Curves for Days to anyone looking for a fat-positive rom-com that has small town charm, such as Abby Jimenez’s Part of Your World, and grit, a la the Knockemout series by Lucy Score or if you’ve been searching for a secret millionaire rom-com.
I would like to thank NetGalley and Sourcebooks - Casablanca for providing me with a free e-ARC of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.
After winding up with $80 million from the lottery, Rose Barnes escapes the constant hounding from her old life in Indianapolis and finds herself in the town of Galway, North Carolina to start over. She gets herself some new friends and ends up hiring the local grump, Angus, to renovate her new home. Yet, as she tries to keep her winnings a secret and her relationship with Angus develops, she wonders if love can conquer all.
Now, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that Curves for Days addresses some heavier topics. I encourage you all to check out my content warnings at the top of my review and decide whether this is a title to read or not.
Curves for Days is a delightful small town rom-com that you want to keep an eye on this summer. Moher is able to bring out all the Southern charm and hospitality that I love into book form. I really like the dual POV approach that Moher utilizes in Curves for Days and does a great job with creating authentic personalities for Rose and Angus. Though, I would have liked it better if the dual POV was separate into chapters instead of line breaks.
Rose and Angus are great MCs and I enjoyed rooting for them throughout the book. Both go through their own growth during the course of this book and I feel that Curves for Days does a great job with showing how their relationship strengthens due to their pasts.
I would definitely recommend Curves for Days to anyone looking for a fat-positive rom-com that has small town charm, such as Abby Jimenez’s Part of Your World, and grit, a la the Knockemout series by Lucy Score or if you’ve been searching for a secret millionaire rom-com.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fatphobia and Mental illness
Moderate: Bullying, Sexual violence, Suicide, Car accident, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Cancer and Death of parent
Other content warnings: post-traumatic stress disorder, death of grandparents, poverty, divorce (recounted)imskylow's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Having won the lottery from a ticket she was gifted by a dying friend, everything in Rose Barnes life is turned upside down and sends her running away. She finds herself in a small town full of wonderful people and decides to stay, keeping her money a secret while she builds the humble life of her dreams. She quickly falls in love with her grumpy contractor who shows her curvy girls deserve love too. However, she keeps her money and the charity work uses it for a secret, hoping that her new home, friends, community, and love won’t change their opinion of her with the knowledge of it.
I gotta be honest, I love everything about this book except for the love interest, Angus, and his toxic masculinity. He really broke it for me. I was really hoping he’d have a big realization about how many of his beliefs are just plain wrong or hurtful and really change for the better. Had he done that, this book would have gotten five stars. Everything else about the book is so charming and sweet, I love all of the friends Rose makes in the small town of Galloway and the people that she helps with her money. All of this is soured by Angus’ and his failure to convincingly realize his toxic beliefs and show a legitimate change of heart.
I once watched a video of a couples therapist that mentioned the occupations of the men most likely to get divorced. She listed heroic jobs like firefighter, policemen, and doctors. Soldiers were also included. As Angus is a veteran and a counselor, I think it would have been nice if we could have seen the hero complex that is so interwoven into his character completely dismantled. It would have been great to see him to understand that he can’t help, fix or save everything on his own. Sometimes, he too, needs caring for. Instead, we find a man that is constantly trying to balance everything even when people are being kind to him out of love. All of his relationships are transactional and money focused. If he can’t balance interactions or pay back kindness immediately then he becomes rude. Rose buys him a meal, he tips the restaurant all the money back. She makes him coffee, he gets extremely pissy and refuses the offering— not drinking a single drop. Alternatively, he doesn’t mind showering others in his love even if they can’t pay him back. He’s perfectly happy paying for meals and groceries helping people with car trouble. At some point it starts to feel very sexist like Angus believes he has to be the breadwinner and take care of his woman and their joint needs. Obviously, when he comes to find out about Rose’s money, he doesn’t know what to do or how to process it. He feels absolutely worthless if he can’t bring his income to the table. His plan was to save her from what he thought was money struggles. He was prepared to pay off all her debts but instead when he finds she has lots of money, he’s distraught.
Of course, Rose then ends up feeling bad about hurting him and apologizes for keeping her wealth under wraps— for good reason, might I add!! She does get annoyed that he thought their entire relationship was transactions, and I cheer as she argues how horrible that is. Ultimately the book ends soon when Angus realizes he’s too horny and feels bad about making her cry. He apologizes that he got upset and hurt her and the story ends.
‘Twas a completely unsatisfying amount of character development.
Sure, he can’t picture life without Rose but and she adores him but attraction does not a relationship make. I really wished they could have worked through their issues and had a legitimate breakthrough.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Fatphobia, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Dysphoria
Minor: Cancer, Death, Sexism, Terminal illness, Death of parent, and War
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