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inkdrinkers's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
"A man who lets you each cheese, encourages it even! This really is the dream!"
Ris, Lurielle, and Silva all want to get away from their stressful office jobs for the weekend, and what better place than an orc community outside of town known for its clothing-optional rules and fun resort culture? Except Lurielle never expected to meet someone who made her feel so seen, Silva never expected to fall head over heels for a bad boy, and Ris never anticipated being so disappointed by her lack of luck. When the weekend is over, all three girls have to decide if their trysts were just flings of the moment, or if something more could be gleaned from them.
I feel like Girls Weekend is weirdly exactly what my brain needed as a break, but also didn't deliver on what I wanted at the same time. Was this short little novella a fun romp with lots of random orcs and the promise of more? Yes, but it also had me frustrated multiple times with the characters and wishing that the heartfelt scenes were a little longer. I adore Nascosta's other books in the Cambric Creek world, but this one felt like it was missing a spark that the other's have.
Out of all of the girls, I loved Silva the most. I wanted Lurielle to be my favorite, but her insecurities started to grate on my nerves when she kept trying to foil Khash's sweetheart behavior from the start. Along that same vein, Ris just didn't mesh with me at all and though I want her to have a HEA, I feel like I'm not rushing to read more about her. Silva and Tate were my favorites for a lot of reasons and I'm definitely picking up the sequel to see more about their story, but I felt like this was overall just missing something for me.
Content warnings: sexual content (scenes vary, one MFF scene, one MFM scene), talk about cultural expectations/strict parents, negative body talk from Lurielle about herself, alcohol consumption, emotional abuse/toxic relationship (mentions in Lurielle's past, Silva's present), non-linear timeline and writing style (as with most of Nascosta's work! I feel like this one it's more prominent though.)
Ris, Lurielle, and Silva all want to get away from their stressful office jobs for the weekend, and what better place than an orc community outside of town known for its clothing-optional rules and fun resort culture? Except Lurielle never expected to meet someone who made her feel so seen, Silva never expected to fall head over heels for a bad boy, and Ris never anticipated being so disappointed by her lack of luck. When the weekend is over, all three girls have to decide if their trysts were just flings of the moment, or if something more could be gleaned from them.
I feel like Girls Weekend is weirdly exactly what my brain needed as a break, but also didn't deliver on what I wanted at the same time. Was this short little novella a fun romp with lots of random orcs and the promise of more? Yes, but it also had me frustrated multiple times with the characters and wishing that the heartfelt scenes were a little longer. I adore Nascosta's other books in the Cambric Creek world, but this one felt like it was missing a spark that the other's have.
Out of all of the girls, I loved Silva the most. I wanted Lurielle to be my favorite, but her insecurities started to grate on my nerves when she kept trying to foil Khash's sweetheart behavior from the start. Along that same vein, Ris just didn't mesh with me at all and though I want her to have a HEA, I feel like I'm not rushing to read more about her. Silva and Tate were my favorites for a lot of reasons and I'm definitely picking up the sequel to see more about their story, but I felt like this was overall just missing something for me.
Content warnings: sexual content (scenes vary, one MFF scene, one MFM scene), talk about cultural expectations/strict parents, negative body talk from Lurielle about herself, alcohol consumption, emotional abuse/toxic relationship (mentions in Lurielle's past, Silva's present), non-linear timeline and writing style (as with most of Nascosta's work! I feel like this one it's more prominent though.)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body shaming, Fatphobia, and Sexual content
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, and Alcohol
kbairbooks's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
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
4.25
I listened to this as an audiobook so excuse my if I spell the names wrong but I really enjoyed this book! I liked Luriel and Silva a lot! I didn’t like the other woman as much and felt like she wasn’t as well developed as the other two characters and therefore could have been left out of this book altogether. BUT I can’t wait to read book two! I want to experience more of the relationships they formed :) so happy!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body shaming, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, and Alcohol
Minor: Physical abuse and Blood
lotte5322's review against another edition
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body shaming
Minor: Emotional abuse
frantic_vampire's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Girls Weekend was such a fun read! I really love this world, it’s a cozier version of urban fantasy that just hits all the right notes. Seriously, this world is just so detailed and lovely and I can’t get enough of it!
I really loved all the girls, but I think my favorite would definitely have to be Lurielle. I loved that she’s described as being a mid-to-plus-sized character. She has insecurities about her body, she’s learning to love herself, and she’s learning to not care what everyone else thinks about her. I really loved that about her. And let’s not forget about Khash! He was an absolute sweetheart and made Lurielle feel beautiful. The two of them made me squeal in delight!
I also really liked Silva’s story. She’s just beginning to break away from her parents expectations and I loved that. Oh, and Tate! For the majority of this book I thought he was some sort of mafia boss. I mean, it could still be a possibility, right?? It’s just a vibe that he gives off. But! I really loved that he treated Silva with such love. Now Ris, she didn’t get much airtime this go around, but I liked what I saw in the preview for the next book for her.
Girls Weekend is just such a fun monster romance. It’s soft, sweet, and a little angsty. I’m giving it a solid four stars.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Body shaming, Bullying, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, and Misogyny
emfass's review against another edition
I reallllly want to read Morning Glory Milking Farm but am a bit of a stickler for reading things in order, so wanted to read this one first for the world building.
Apparently my grumpy slump continues. I have no patience for this book's confusing POV switches with no labeling, plus this representation of just-in-it-for-the-casual-sex (at least, so far) is just not doing it for me. Plus Lurielle's body image struggles are also hard to take the way they're presented. Also so far the depiction of these three women's titular girls' weekend is cruising for guys and dining out, but with, like, absolutely no substance or relationship building amongst them. Sad to say I am very bored.
Still gonna try Morning Glory Milking Farm, though!
Apparently my grumpy slump continues. I have no patience for this book's confusing POV switches with no labeling, plus this representation of just-in-it-for-the-casual-sex (at least, so far) is just not doing it for me. Plus Lurielle's body image struggles are also hard to take the way they're presented. Also so far the depiction of these three women's titular girls' weekend is cruising for guys and dining out, but with, like, absolutely no substance or relationship building amongst them. Sad to say I am very bored.
Still gonna try Morning Glory Milking Farm, though!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Body shaming and Fatphobia
Minor: Emotional abuse
after_i_finish_this_chapter's review against another edition
lighthearted
slow-paced
2.0
This was not the light, funny, good time read I was expecting. The writing was also disjointed. Two of the characters had alot of insecurities and the other one we barely got time with but what we did get was concerning. I hope she finds her happiness in the next book(s). The 3 of them also felt more like coworkers than close friends
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship
Moderate: Body shaming and Fatphobia
Minor: Emotional abuse
wanderingtales's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Emotional abuse and Fatphobia
amanda_p's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
4.0
An enjoyable first offering by a new on the scene author. If I were not already a fan of monster romance—especially orcs—I would be now.
GW is the story of Ris, Silva, and Lurielle, 3 elven coworkers who are as different as can be, as they go on a long weekend to an orc nudist colony to unwind and blow off some steam.
<img src="https://media.giphy.com/media/14lUlhL7fi2NUY/giphy.gif"/>
At this colony, they're known for being very open and free with the lovin'. And it's a popular destination for people of all races, but especially the ladies.
This story is told from all three of their points of view, switching it up in each chapter to tell what they each did on a given day of their vacay. Two of them pair off pretty quickly and develop some unexpected and unlooked for feelings with two very different men, while another plays the field as planned, and then seems to be punished for it—I was not keen on the implied moral nagging and amatonormative direction that character's story <i>seems</i> to be going ( though I very much like who appears to be coming her way ). Plenty of people have amazing sex without getting romantic love involved. There was a lot going on here with that character and how all of the male orcs were behaving because Feelings were not involved that doesn't sit well with me. Despite this, the generous amount of consent-driven, protected sex in this book made me super happy and is very rare for monster erotica/romance, which often has a strong breeding kink paired with it. Even the encounters intended to leave an icky feeling behind were both of these things. I'm looking forward to seeing where the second book leads, as things are sure to hit some bumps, even for our HFN ladies.
While this is a first work, it appears the author already has plans to expand this universe with more monster bait stories that go beyond these three ladies. (And the art based on these have been a favorite for a long time. So many exciting, monstrous possibilities!)
Overall, the editing on this looked pretty decent. However. There was one character in particular that the author could not seem to find enough synonyms to work with when describing their voice. The word "syrupy" should never be used so many times in a single work, let alone 3 times on a single page.
But that's pretty minor in the bigger picture. This is a fun and steamy read worth a perusal, even if monsters are not usually your bag.
GW is the story of Ris, Silva, and Lurielle, 3 elven coworkers who are as different as can be, as they go on a long weekend to an orc nudist colony to unwind and blow off some steam.
<img src="https://media.giphy.com/media/14lUlhL7fi2NUY/giphy.gif"/>
At this colony, they're known for being very open and free with the lovin'. And it's a popular destination for people of all races, but especially the ladies.
This story is told from all three of their points of view, switching it up in each chapter to tell what they each did on a given day of their vacay. Two of them pair off pretty quickly and develop some unexpected and unlooked for feelings with two very different men, while another plays the field as planned, and then seems to be punished for it—I was not keen on the implied moral nagging and amatonormative direction that character's story <i>seems</i> to be going (
While this is a first work, it appears the author already has plans to expand this universe with more monster bait stories that go beyond these three ladies. (And the art based on these have been a favorite for a long time. So many exciting, monstrous possibilities!)
Overall, the editing on this looked pretty decent. However. There was one character in particular that the author could not seem to find enough synonyms to work with when describing their voice. The word "syrupy" should never be used so many times in a single work, let alone 3 times on a single page.
But that's pretty minor in the bigger picture. This is a fun and steamy read worth a perusal, even if monsters are not usually your bag.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Toxic relationship
Minor: Body shaming, Emotional abuse, and Fatphobia
thereadinghammock's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
4.0
A fun romp, a great lazy weekend read. Very steamy, but loved the different experiences each character had during their weekend excursion. Totally get what several other reviews said about Ris' storyline being a bit of an afterthought (especially since she organized the trip!) But I think we'll see a lot more of that story in the sequel, which I can't wait to pick up when it comes out (kind of wish it had all just been one longer story, but beggars can't be choosers)!
I really loved the relationship dynamics of Khash and Lurielle. It wasn't all just about the sex. They had a fantastic, and wonderfully supportive dynamic that developed so quickly and it made me so unreasonably happy. I also appreciated how Tate was able to help crack Silvia's "perfect" armor and help her realize how miserable she would be if she spent her whole life worrying about what everyone else was saying, thinking, and expecting of her. The elf she ended up with after her weekend with Tate was EXACTLY what she needed to experience (sucky, but confirmation of exactly what her told her) to realize her life could be so much more. I can't wait or the next book
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Minor: Body shaming and Emotional abuse
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