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lauradavis129's review
5.0
Heartwarming. Amazing. Lovely. Reminded me so much of the movie “Life As We Know It”. And I sobbed at that one so this was an equally emotional rollercoaster. Beautiful!
christinereads1823's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
sad
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? Yes
2.5
Pretty good discussion of grief and how it affects people, but overall not engaging. Colby and Rip (also, lowkey terrible character names) fell very flat in both their character development and their supposed love story.
bonreviewsbooks's review
3.0
Thank you to Valentine PR for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Read if you like:
• Life As We Know It (movie)
• Life’s Too Short, Abby Jiminez
• grumpy / sunshine
• forced proximity
• opposites attract
This was a quick, lighthearted read about two people who get thrown into parenthood and have to learn to live with each other. Colby and Rip were both likable enough to me, and I felt like the romance was drawn out an appropriate amount (I hate when it moves too quickly).
We come to understand that Colby and Rip went on a date sometime before the death of their friends/family and I never really understood why he so vehemently turned her down. He tries to act like she’s too messy or all over the place which is fine, but his reasons for that not being appealing never really connected the dots for me.
My biggest criticism is that the entire time I felt like it was surface level. I kept expecting to really dive deeper into the characters, their baggage, their grief. But I continued to feel like most of these were just glazed over. They seemed sad at times about their friends/family who died, but honestly I didn’t really feel it.
*****SPOILERS*****
Read if you like:
• Life As We Know It (movie)
• Life’s Too Short, Abby Jiminez
• grumpy / sunshine
• forced proximity
• opposites attract
This was a quick, lighthearted read about two people who get thrown into parenthood and have to learn to live with each other. Colby and Rip were both likable enough to me, and I felt like the romance was drawn out an appropriate amount (I hate when it moves too quickly).
We come to understand that Colby and Rip went on a date sometime before the death of their friends/family and I never really understood why he so vehemently turned her down. He tries to act like she’s too messy or all over the place which is fine, but his reasons for that not being appealing never really connected the dots for me.
My biggest criticism is that the entire time I felt like it was surface level. I kept expecting to really dive deeper into the characters, their baggage, their grief. But I continued to feel like most of these were just glazed over. They seemed sad at times about their friends/family who died, but honestly I didn’t really feel it.
*****SPOILERS*****
bookclubwithnina's review
1.0
his name is rip and he wears skinny jeans. I deserve an award for finishing this utter shit.
mxrivna's review against another edition
4.0
oh my gosh this was just the cutest book ever. I was crying & sobbing throughout this, it was so beautiful. this is so like the move ‘Life as we know it’ & I absolutely looooove that movie!!
two people thrust into parenthood after their best friends passed away. two people who loved each other but were too scared to confront that truth. two people who thought they hated one another. two people who bicker like old married people & fell in love.
UGH I loved their dynamic so much! The way they cared for each other?! It’s so damn cute it made my stomach hurt.
two people thrust into parenthood after their best friends passed away. two people who loved each other but were too scared to confront that truth. two people who thought they hated one another. two people who bicker like old married people & fell in love.
UGH I loved their dynamic so much! The way they cared for each other?! It’s so damn cute it made my stomach hurt.
michelleantunez's review against another edition
4.0
I read this book in 1 sitting. This book was a great read and seriously entrapped you the moment you picked it up. I loved the prose and the trope. It had such real elements of grief and described how 2 people who experienced the same things could go through grief in such different ways and I think that's what makes them human. We also got to see the past grief that Rip never dealt with, which I wish we would have seen more of Colby's background which there was a glimpse of it but the author never delved into it.
This found family made me feel like home. I loved how the kids acted like actual kids and the author didn't skim over those parts and those parts were integral to the story. She didn't try to make it pretty or make it something it wasn't. My complaints about this book are that the last few chapters were quick and could have been stretched out a little bit more. I love how they included side characters, since they are such a big part of the story, however I wish they had more dimension. Overall, it was a great book and if you haven't picked it up yet you need to.
Thank you to Net Galley/ Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for gifting me an ARC copy in exchange for an honest review as always all words are my own.
This found family made me feel like home. I loved how the kids acted like actual kids and the author didn't skim over those parts and those parts were integral to the story. She didn't try to make it pretty or make it something it wasn't. My complaints about this book are that the last few chapters were quick and could have been stretched out a little bit more. I love how they included side characters, since they are such a big part of the story, however I wish they had more dimension. Overall, it was a great book and if you haven't picked it up yet you need to.
Thank you to Net Galley/ Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for gifting me an ARC copy in exchange for an honest review as always all words are my own.
hetvixcv's review
2.0
Too fairy tail-y for my taste.
Firstly, why was Rip so rude to Colby when he was literally in love with her. MAJOR RED FLAG right there. Like he said stuff that literally hurt, and the girl was like oh he’s grieving, girl you’re grieving too cmon wth. Secondly, the way the most magically stuff happened in their lives like guys be realistic, there’s no way a blue butterfly showed up and made you wanna cry the same day you realise that you were in love with the girl. NO JUST NO. I mean the cute stuff at the end after how he improved his ways and treated Colby right was fine but just not worth it. It’s a short read so I’m not that pissed, but I could have read something better honestly.
Firstly, why was Rip so rude to Colby when he was literally in love with her. MAJOR RED FLAG right there. Like he said stuff that literally hurt, and the girl was like oh he’s grieving, girl you’re grieving too cmon wth. Secondly, the way the most magically stuff happened in their lives like guys be realistic, there’s no way a blue butterfly showed up and made you wanna cry the same day you realise that you were in love with the girl. NO JUST NO. I mean the cute stuff at the end after how he improved his ways and treated Colby right was fine but just not worth it. It’s a short read so I’m not that pissed, but I could have read something better honestly.
bookedbyemily's review against another edition
3.0
This book follows a similar plot to the movie “Life as we know it” in the sense that two single adults have to become caregivers after their friends die in a car accident.
I feel like this book had amazing potential but it just fell a little flat. I didn’t have that desperation to pick the book back up after taking a break.
At the start, I felt like the MMC - Rip (I kept getting Glow flashbacks) - was unnecessarily harsh to the FMC - Colby - who has been pining after Rip since she was a teenager. As is expected, they finally get together and all the harsh words that were exchanged are suddenly forgotten. I needed more grovelling from Rip or more hesitation from Colby because it made her seem like a bit of a pushover - suddenly Rip is showing her affection and so she purposely forgets about the mean things he said (some of which were inexcusable).
I found the final third of the book particularly cringy. Some of the conversations just felt unnatural and they didn’t hit the intended mark.
Banks was a hilarious side character. He pretty much carried the whole book alongside the two kids (age 5 and age 3) who also said some of the funniest things.
I have no experience with kids and so I don’t know how realistic the story is, but I felt like it was very true to life. It didn’t blur over the struggles or bleakness of parenting children while in mourning, and so it was a very emotional read at times.
Thank you to NetGalley and ValentinePR for this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.
♡ Tropes ♡
Enemies-to-lovers
Grumpy/sunshine
Unrequited feelings
Content Warnings:
Death of a parent
Grief
ICU hospitalisation
Bullying
I feel like this book had amazing potential but it just fell a little flat. I didn’t have that desperation to pick the book back up after taking a break.
At the start, I felt like the MMC - Rip (I kept getting Glow flashbacks) - was unnecessarily harsh to the FMC - Colby - who has been pining after Rip since she was a teenager. As is expected, they finally get together and all the harsh words that were exchanged are suddenly forgotten. I needed more grovelling from Rip or more hesitation from Colby because it made her seem like a bit of a pushover - suddenly Rip is showing her affection and so she purposely forgets about the mean things he said (some of which were inexcusable).
I found the final third of the book particularly cringy. Some of the conversations just felt unnatural and they didn’t hit the intended mark.
Banks was a hilarious side character. He pretty much carried the whole book alongside the two kids (age 5 and age 3) who also said some of the funniest things.
I have no experience with kids and so I don’t know how realistic the story is, but I felt like it was very true to life. It didn’t blur over the struggles or bleakness of parenting children while in mourning, and so it was a very emotional read at times.
Thank you to NetGalley and ValentinePR for this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.
♡ Tropes ♡
Enemies-to-lovers
Grumpy/sunshine
Unrequited feelings
Content Warnings:
Death of a parent
Grief
ICU hospitalisation
Bullying
erinpurington's review against another edition
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
This one was a little more melodramatic than I care for, and the kids felt way too old for their stated ages which took me out of it. I know the MMC had trauma he had to work through, but there was literally nothing about the FMC that was actually a mess so he just came across as a judgmental jerk. But I still wanted to finish it, so there’s that.