gingerlaura's review against another edition
emotional
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
2.0
<b>2 stars✨</b>
This book could have been a great, cozy winter read. It had all the ingredients to be that perfect story you'd curl op on the couch with, while the rain is pouring down outside but you're nice and warm and sipping a cup of hot chocolate. Unfortunately, this book turned out to be quite awful.
Overall, what I missed most in this book, is the chemistry. Everything felt forced, the romance, the friendships, supposedly funny or heartwrenching moments... it didn't make me <i>feel</i> anything. It all fell flat which made it boring to read. Part of this maybe due to the writing style. Some sentences flowed awkwardly, which made me reread a few sentences while still not completely understanding them.
For example: <i>He [Graham, male interest] was a lot taller than her [Zoey, main character], but seated on the ground as he was, it wasn't hard to drape her arm across his shoulders. ''You just want to cop a feel.'' Graham sighed. ''Women are all the same.'' Which wasn't true at all, because Ash [female friend of Graham] was amazing. As her fingers strummed the strings, Zoey found herself entranced, drawn into the music that somehow fit perfectly with the low crash of the waves against the storeline.</i>
Like ????? It just doesn't make much sense, and this is just one of the many clumsy sentence constructions.
I could've easily overcome this if the rest was great, but that wasn't the case unfortunately. Lana, Zoey's supposedly 'best friend', is absolutely THE worst best friend I've encountered in any book. She's the biggest red flag in the book, and made me want to DNF this several times. It starts off with Lana getting Zoey dunk and drugged after a long flight in a diner, than leaving her there in said diner with a bunch of strangers. She also cancelled the 4 or so trips Zoey has planned with her on her so called 'dream vacation' (because let's be honest, you won't stay in the same small village and planning so little activities when you saved up money for it for over a year to go there). On top of that she doesn't trust Zoey with information about her 'event', even when Zoey literally knows no one yet upon her first day of getting in Alaska and therefore has no way to spill the <i>secret</i>. She also takes Zoey out with her horrible friends, and does little to stop her friends from insulting Zoey. I could go on and on, but trust me when I say that Lana is one of the most terrible book best friends I've ever read about.
The plot is also non-existent in this book. There is a bit of a mystery surrounding the 'secret event' of Lana, but in the end it's dismissed because Zoey and Graham's romance is apparently more important than the whole town. And these characters aren't any to write home about.
So yeah.
Read at your own risk, but don't let the cute cover of this book fool you. There are better cozy winter reads out there.
This book could have been a great, cozy winter read. It had all the ingredients to be that perfect story you'd curl op on the couch with, while the rain is pouring down outside but you're nice and warm and sipping a cup of hot chocolate. Unfortunately, this book turned out to be quite awful.
Overall, what I missed most in this book, is the chemistry. Everything felt forced, the romance, the friendships, supposedly funny or heartwrenching moments... it didn't make me <i>feel</i> anything. It all fell flat which made it boring to read. Part of this maybe due to the writing style. Some sentences flowed awkwardly, which made me reread a few sentences while still not completely understanding them.
For example: <i>He [Graham, male interest] was a lot taller than her [Zoey, main character], but seated on the ground as he was, it wasn't hard to drape her arm across his shoulders. ''You just want to cop a feel.'' Graham sighed. ''Women are all the same.'' Which wasn't true at all, because Ash [female friend of Graham] was amazing. As her fingers strummed the strings, Zoey found herself entranced, drawn into the music that somehow fit perfectly with the low crash of the waves against the storeline.</i>
Like ????? It just doesn't make much sense, and this is just one of the many clumsy sentence constructions.
I could've easily overcome this if the rest was great, but that wasn't the case unfortunately. Lana, Zoey's supposedly 'best friend', is absolutely THE worst best friend I've encountered in any book. She's the biggest red flag in the book, and made me want to DNF this several times. It starts off with Lana getting Zoey dunk and drugged after a long flight in a diner, than leaving her there in said diner with a bunch of strangers. She also cancelled the 4 or so trips Zoey has planned with her on her so called 'dream vacation' (because let's be honest, you won't stay in the same small village and planning so little activities when you saved up money for it for over a year to go there). On top of that she doesn't trust Zoey with information about her 'event', even when Zoey literally knows no one yet upon her first day of getting in Alaska and therefore has no way to spill the <i>secret</i>. She also takes Zoey out with her horrible friends, and does little to stop her friends from insulting Zoey. I could go on and on, but trust me when I say that Lana is one of the most terrible book best friends I've ever read about.
The plot is also non-existent in this book. There is a bit of a mystery surrounding the 'secret event' of Lana, but in the end it's dismissed because Zoey and Graham's romance is apparently more important than the whole town. And these characters aren't any to write home about.
So yeah.
Read at your own risk, but don't let the cute cover of this book fool you. There are better cozy winter reads out there.
brennakaye's review against another edition
2.0
2.5⭐️? 3⭐️? I don’t know. It was cutesy but felt like it was trying to hard to be witty. Overall too cheesy for my tastes.
thebranchlibrary_'s review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Good banter. No spice. Very drawn out.
aspygirlsmom_1995's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
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
5.0
leasummer's review against another edition
4.0
3.5 stars rounded up - this was a really entertaining read. The characters are complex and well developed. There’s a moose! There’s a lot of characters in this one, being book one of the series. Some of the dialogue is cheesy and a bit much, but the excitement of Zoey and the reluctance of Graham is engaging.
I already preordered the next book.
I already preordered the next book.
erinj254's review against another edition
2.0
I had high hopes for this one, but it ended up being very boring and contrived.
sb_reads23's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
3.5
5 hrs, this book was cute but slow for me to get into, I really liked Zoey and Graham together and I love all the supporting characters. Cute book and sweet story, even cried at the end with the sweet proclamations. Jake the collie and Ulysses the moose were both fan favorites
sprinklesofspooky's review against another edition
4.0
Super cute, super fun rom com from Sarah Morgantheler. I do think she is setting up for future stories, which I will definitely be excited to read.
Fans of Christina Lauren will delight in The Tourist Trap!
Definite four star read.
Thank you so much to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Fans of Christina Lauren will delight in The Tourist Trap!
Definite four star read.
Thank you so much to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.