Reviews tagging 'Toxic friendship'

You, Again by Kate Goldbeck

6 reviews

alexisgarcia's review

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funny lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

this book did some things right and some things fell very VERY flat. some parts were funny and others were very cringey and hard to read. i liked and hated the characters. not sure if i would ever recommend this. (also a message to romance authors, please stop using the exact same name for all male leads. thank you)
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meghanm404's review

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challenging dark emotional funny sad tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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blissofalife's review against another edition

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funny sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

Listen. I am indeed a fanfiction reader and a Reylo shipper. I didn't know that's what this was originally going into it, but it quickly became obvious. That being said, I think if I had read this on Ao3 as a Reylo fanfic I would've really enjoyed it. You just have certain expectations about how characters are going to act and more suspension of disbelief when it comes to fanfiction. The characters in a fanfiction can be atrocious but you still love them because you loved them in their original stories, that's why you're reading the fanfiction to begin with. 

But starting a book with no background expectations or knowledge of characters is a very different experience. This as a published book? I'm conflicted. The characters were all pretty dislikable. Ari and Josh are depressed for nearly the entire book, and though they set clear boundaries and expectations of what their relationship is going to be (which I am personally a fan of, I love some good communication), when Josh's perspective is full of thoughts of Ari as more than a friend and his sexual desire for her it felt like he made no effort whatsoever to respect Ari's CLEARLY COMMUNICATED needs and wants. But later we're supposed to sympathize with him when she rejects him? And cheer for them to get together? No. I don't think so.

Everybody in this book needs therapy. It made for good storytelling for the first half of the book, but after that it became repetitive and hard to root for the characters. Toxic relationships abound. Everybody's mad all the time, nobody's happy ever, and that sucks. The ending felt forced and very rom-com-esque. I give 'em a year.
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blewballoon's review against another edition

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emotional funny lighthearted slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

If you like the movie When Harry Met Sally, this is basically a modernized and expanded book version with more sex jokes. I was in the mood for an autumn slow-burn romance in New York, and this hit the spot, really. It was neat to see how the characters' relationships and views changed as time and events went by, and their mistakes were understandable, if painful to read at times. I did get a little tired of the reliance on sex jokes for humor, but I think that's my biggest critique. I listened to this on audiobook and would recommend it, I really like this narrator.
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toofondofbooks_'s review

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emotional funny lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

My favorite romantic comedy of all time is When Harry Met Sally...so, this book was essentially written for me, so I'm not surprised that it kept me laughing and swooning throughout. I tabbed this one like crazy and my annotations are pretty unhinged- i wrote a paragraph of nonsense at the end of the third act breakup. I feel like this would've been a 5 star for me but at times I felt it dragging, or maybe it is just that it takes me longer to read thicc books lately, so maybe it isn't entirely the book's fault. I'll be rounding up to 5 on goodreads anyway.
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dianaschmidty's review

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adventurous emotional funny inspiring sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

“No one should marry the person who makes them happy. Marry the person you want by your side at your lowest point. Marry the person you…you never get sick of. Who you always want more from. Who makes you proud to be theirs.”

I wrote almost 4,900 words on my Notes App book journal about this book. It’s basically an essay on how invested I was in this book.

If you love When Harry Met Sally, HIMYM, Friends, romcom love confessions, friends to lovers, meet disasters, the idea of soulmates, or any combination, YOU SHOULD READ THIS BOOK!

This book felt like a love letter to a generation who grew up loving sitcoms, romcoms, DCOMs, or really anything with “com” in the name. It’s one of the most unique romances that I think I’ll ever read. First, the bi representation was really good and refreshing. It’s actually what drew me to the book in the first place, since it led to the basic premise of both Ari and Josh meeting because they’re sleeping with the same girl. I felt so much for Ari throughout the entire book. The girl just couldn’t catch a break! The ONE time she decides to give a relationship a chance, it ends up being with a narcissistic professor who clearly had a history of dumping her partner when she got bored then making the partner seem like they were the problem. Then we get to the complexity of Josh, a grumpy jerk who is also convinced in the idea of true love, destiny, and soulmates. It was both sweet and infuriating to see his reaction to his relationship shift with Ari at the 60% point. Together, they’re like the beginning of a bizarre joke: “a cynical, hopeless romantic and a free spirited commitment-phobe walk into a bar”—or—“an adult toy store”? 

My main biggest issue with the book was the third act conflict. While I think it made total sense, I think the wrong half of the couple was blamed for the mess! Yes, both halves admit some fault in the disaster, but one half ends up taking more of the blame, and if anything, the OTHER person deserved the blame for being incapable of listening…

No matter what, these two are the definition of literary soulmates. Like, they just KEPT finding each other again and again (he se the title), even if they were in the most bizarre ways. I’m so excited to see what Kate Goldbeck writes next!

Thank you so much to NetGalley, Dial Press, and Kate Goldbeck for providing me access to this book.
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