Reviews

Barista and the Bear by Rebel Carter

amykastigar's review

1.0

DNF @ 33%. Started out frustrating, then switched gears to boring. Sleep seemed like a better option.

Went back and finished it, on the recommendation of the Fated Mates podcast. It didn't improve. I think this is the first time their recommendation let me down!

alejandra_guerrero's review against another edition

1.0

I hated this.

Spoiler

He shows up in her house, and kidnaps her. She's screaming that she doesn't want to go and asking for help. Her "friend" is totally OK with the kidnapping, and doesn't even call the police or try to stop him (some fuckin' friend). Later, her boss and his son are chasing the asshole bear's truck, and when they got them I tought this was gonna be OK, but no, they talk to the asshole and basically ignore her when she says she doesn't want to stay with him. And all the time everyone is talking about how the mating bond has to be willing (I'm not sure what the author thinks the word "willing" means) while ignoring her UNWILLINGNESS. And the worst part? she wasn't even rejecting the guy (although at this point I wished se had), just asking for space and some time to assimilate things. But no, they're mates, so what she wants is unimportant because their bond is super strong. I was so angry at this point that I DNF'd it.

Oh, and reading other reviews, I found out the FMC is supposed to be "diverse" and "culturally relevant" WTF? the only latina feature she has is the name.

fe_reads's review

1.0

I have so many bad things to say I can't even take the time to list them all here. This had so much potential to be great, but alas, it was not. Saw it on TikTok and I'm mad about it.

jessalittlenerdy's review

lighthearted

2.5

mrscosmiclatte's review

fast-paced

2.0

izzy_happyfornow's review

4.0

3.5
This is such a fun cute fated mates novella. I just felt happy the whole time I was reading it.

hwilliams's review

fast-paced

3.5

alexis_booknerd's review

lighthearted relaxing 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

2.5

emlickliter's review

lighthearted medium-paced

4.0

Barista and the Bear by Rebel Carter – A really sweet urban fantasy that follows the fated mates trend. Happy Reading!

redhairedashreads's review

DNF 60%

As a fan of Rebel Carter’s historical series, Gold Sky, I figured I would enjoy her take on paranormal romance. Sadly this one didn’t work for me. I didn’t really like Teresa or Cliff. Both felt very flat and needed more character development, especially Cliff.

One of my biggest issues was the pacing of this story though. It was off and felt very choppy in some scenes which made it hard to enjoy the book. We also get thrown into this world and there is very little backstory or explanation for it. The story really needed more world development for me to understand the dynamics of this magical world.

I just couldn’t stay interested in this book which is why I am DNFing. I will still continue to read her books but this one just didn’t work for me.

This review was originally posted at Red-Haired Ash Reads.