ketamcreads's review
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Mental illness
vj_thompson's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I really wanted to like this book like I loved the second one, but I didn’t. Don’t get me wrong, I still liked aspects of this read. Learning more about Nina and her father’s side of the family. That was probably my favorite part.
Abbi Waxman’s books are similar to Emily Henry’s in the sense of the romance takes the back burner but it is still very relevant to the story. That’s what I was missing with this book. The romance was very dragged out and I hated the third act break up. I think there should have been more explanation or background between Nina and Tom instead of a quick they get back together like nothing happened.
I would still recommend the series as a whole. The second book was my favorite, and I cannot wait to reread it. Hopefully Polly gets her own story!!!
Abbi Waxman’s books are similar to Emily Henry’s in the sense of the romance takes the back burner but it is still very relevant to the story. That’s what I was missing with this book. The romance was very dragged out and I hated the third act break up. I think there should have been more explanation or background between Nina and Tom instead of a quick they get back together like nothing happened.
I would still recommend the series as a whole. The second book was my favorite, and I cannot wait to reread it. Hopefully Polly gets her own story!!!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Mental illness, and Death of parent
Moderate: Infidelity, Alcohol, and Abandonment
Minor: Alcoholism, Sexual content, and Grief
fatzbrekker's review
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.0
I did NOT enjoy this, and the only reason I read the whole thing was for the sake of finishing another book.
The protagonist, Nina, was quite relatable to me. I liked her a lot and understood a lot of her. But that is all I have to say about here really. She didn't stand out well enough.
There were far too many characters to the point where it got incredibly confusing. I couldn't differentiate between where each of the side characters fell into her life; none of them stood out as significant and they all seemed to mould into one personality.
Don't even get me started on the love interest. I found Tom insufferable from first meeting him. He was creepy and icky and a walking red flag. Some of the things he said to Nina were truly gobsmacking, in particular the way he acted when she initially broke up with him, and especially at the end when he said:
"What about the next time you freak out? I don't want to be with someone who's ready to throw me under the bus every time she loses her composure."
HELLO?? SHE LITERALLY HAS ANXIETY AND HAS REPEATEDLY TOLD YOU THAT!!! And I cannot fathom why Nina would choose to be with him after he said this to her PUBLICLY. So, no, I cannot accept that he was supposed to be a good love interest, or the best person for Nina, and I did not like him at all. Nina, girl, you can do so much better.
In terms of the whole "new family" aspect of the plot, I don't think it was executed as well as it could have been. It felt really forced, as though the author was trying so hard to MAKE it fit into the story. Again, the amount of characters being introduced didn't help with this at all. And the whole will reading towards the end felt so anti-climactic. Like I said, because this storyline felt forced, it didn't tie together very nicely.
Another thing that really, truly bugged the heck out of me throughout my reading process, was the writing. When you first start the book, it begins with Nina's pov, and this goes on for a while so naturally, you get used to being in the head of the protagonist and expect it to continue as such throughout. That is not the case. What made me have to stop reading a lot of the time, was the random pov changes MID-PARAGRAPH. It went from Nina one line to Tom in the next and back to Nina, And it didn't end there. Polly (one of the many side-characters, I think?) also got a pov for a few lines in one chapter. I had to go back and read it to make sure I was understanding the text properly. It didn't make for an easy, flowing read which a reader would usually expect from this type of book.
It was also very, very wordy. There was a lot of unnecessary description on characters and topics that hadn't been built up at the start. It felt congested and claustrophobic at times, reading a chunky paragraph of page on something that had no relation whatsoever to any of the characters or storylines. It definitely could have been at least 50 pages shorter, if not more.
Anyway, this was a TERRIBLE book. Don't waste your time.
The protagonist, Nina, was quite relatable to me. I liked her a lot and understood a lot of her. But that is all I have to say about here really. She didn't stand out well enough.
There were far too many characters to the point where it got incredibly confusing. I couldn't differentiate between where each of the side characters fell into her life; none of them stood out as significant and they all seemed to mould into one personality.
Don't even get me started on the love interest. I found Tom insufferable from first meeting him. He was creepy and icky and a walking red flag. Some of the things he said to Nina were truly gobsmacking, in particular the way he acted when she initially broke up with him, and especially at the end when he said:
"What about the next time you freak out? I don't want to be with someone who's ready to throw me under the bus every time she loses her composure."
HELLO?? SHE LITERALLY HAS ANXIETY AND HAS REPEATEDLY TOLD YOU THAT!!! And I cannot fathom why Nina would choose to be with him after he said this to her PUBLICLY. So, no, I cannot accept that he was supposed to be a good love interest, or the best person for Nina, and I did not like him at all. Nina, girl, you can do so much better.
In terms of the whole "new family" aspect of the plot, I don't think it was executed as well as it could have been. It felt really forced, as though the author was trying so hard to MAKE it fit into the story. Again, the amount of characters being introduced didn't help with this at all. And the whole will reading towards the end felt so anti-climactic. Like I said, because this storyline felt forced, it didn't tie together very nicely.
Another thing that really, truly bugged the heck out of me throughout my reading process, was the writing. When you first start the book, it begins with Nina's pov, and this goes on for a while so naturally, you get used to being in the head of the protagonist and expect it to continue as such throughout. That is not the case. What made me have to stop reading a lot of the time, was the random pov changes MID-PARAGRAPH. It went from Nina one line to Tom in the next and back to Nina, And it didn't end there. Polly (one of the many side-characters, I think?) also got a pov for a few lines in one chapter. I had to go back and read it to make sure I was understanding the text properly. It didn't make for an easy, flowing read which a reader would usually expect from this type of book.
It was also very, very wordy. There was a lot of unnecessary description on characters and topics that hadn't been built up at the start. It felt congested and claustrophobic at times, reading a chunky paragraph of page on something that had no relation whatsoever to any of the characters or storylines. It definitely could have been at least 50 pages shorter, if not more.
Anyway, this was a TERRIBLE book. Don't waste your time.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexism
Moderate: Mental illness
samanderson24's review
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Mental illness, and Death of parent
vanessa1982's review
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Mental illness and Death of parent
lindsayerin's review
emotional
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent and Abandonment
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders and Mental illness
Minor: Homophobia and Racism
mswarning's review against another edition
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Theoretically it would be nice to crave dense 5-star books all the time, but I was in the mood for a lighthearted palate cleanser I could speedread.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders and Mental illness
Moderate: Alcoholism and Abandonment
Minor: Death of parent and Bullying
readingwithwillo_'s review
emotional
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness
Moderate: Grief and Abandonment
angelicaw7852's review
lighthearted
slow-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
there’s so much and so little happening at the same time. definitely not a romance novel so if that’s what you’re looking for this isn’t it. it’s just meaningless fiction with some fun trivia facts. idk as an anxious book lover i thought i would be able to identify with Nina but i didn’t really. we barely get to know tom and the author sometimes includes the internal thoughts of other characters and sometimes doesn’t. it was weird. idk i felt like the editor should have chopped some of it up to free room up for the main theme which tbh idk what the point really was?
Content Warnings
Moderate: Mental illness
nicoles_reading_corner's review
emotional
funny
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent and Mental illness
Moderate: Abandonment and Alcoholism