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leweylibrary's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
I read this for a book club and was so resistant because I do not like romances lol. I do largely think it was surprisingly good, I just have two main gripes really.
First, I just do not enjoy many romance tropes, especially when there's so many jam-packed into one book like this. Friends to lovers, enemies to lovers, grumpy sunshine, one bed, opposites attract, stuck together/forced proximity, second chance, 3rd act breakup, etc. It was just too much for me and I saw it coming a mile away and not in a way that was fun for me 🤷♀️
Second, I wish every single phrase like "Oscar fucking Wilde" with random famous gay people had been left the fuck out. Wow that was annoying and it was like every other page throughout the whole book! Cochrun tried to make it this endearing, quirky thing about one of the MCs and it just was not that at all. It took me out of the story and made me gag and roll my eyes every single time because NO ONE TALKS LIKE THAT, stop trying to make this the character's thing. We get it, she's gay, and I love her for that, but THIS? No. Stop. And it would always be used in moments when I was actually getting into and enjoying the book and then BAM, I'm out of it and annoyed.
Which is a bummer because overall I did enjoy it. I resonated a lot with the characters and some of the situations. I appreciated and loved the queer (sapphic and asexual) representation and the two very different portrayals of ADHD. Something about their relationship still feels toxic to me, but their relationship with Joe was very cute, especially as someone who also was very close with her teachers, including my English teacher in high school. I appreciated the overall message of doing bold things and living your life to the fullest because you're going to die anyway no matter how safe and secure you try to keep your life. The writing was great, and there were definitely scenes that got me choked up--even if they were usually closely followed with that damn phrase thing that drove me insane and ruined the moment. The ending is obviously sad, but not in a bad way at all.
I have a feeling a feeling the others in my book club are going to love it though lol ugh.
Coming back to say JUST KIDDING lmao they did not like it 😂 I feel better.
First, I just do not enjoy many romance tropes, especially when there's so many jam-packed into one book like this. Friends to lovers, enemies to lovers, grumpy sunshine, one bed, opposites attract, stuck together/forced proximity, second chance, 3rd act breakup, etc. It was just too much for me and I saw it coming a mile away and not in a way that was fun for me 🤷♀️
Second, I wish every single phrase like "Oscar fucking Wilde" with random famous gay people had been left the fuck out. Wow that was annoying and it was like every other page throughout the whole book! Cochrun tried to make it this endearing, quirky thing about one of the MCs and it just was not that at all. It took me out of the story and made me gag and roll my eyes every single time because NO ONE TALKS LIKE THAT, stop trying to make this the character's thing. We get it, she's gay, and I love her for that, but THIS? No. Stop. And it would always be used in moments when I was actually getting into and enjoying the book and then BAM, I'm out of it and annoyed.
Which is a bummer because overall I did enjoy it. I resonated a lot with the characters and some of the situations. I appreciated and loved the queer (sapphic and asexual) representation and the two very different portrayals of ADHD. Something about their relationship still feels toxic to me, but their relationship with Joe was very cute, especially as someone who also was very close with her teachers, including my English teacher in high school. I appreciated the overall message of doing bold things and living your life to the fullest because you're going to die anyway no matter how safe and secure you try to keep your life. The writing was great, and there were definitely scenes that got me choked up--even if they were usually closely followed with that damn phrase thing that drove me insane and ruined the moment. The ending is obviously sad, but not in a bad way at all.
I have a feeling a feeling the others in my book club are going to love it though lol ugh.
Coming back to say JUST KIDDING lmao they did not like it 😂 I feel better.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Cursing, Death, Mental illness, Medical content, Grief, Death of parent, Acephobia/Arophobia, and Abandonment
Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Homophobia, Panic attacks/disorders, Outing, and Alcohol
Minor: Ableism, Bullying, Drug abuse, and Drug use