Reviews with content warning for Homophobia - Virgin Hearts

Reviews tagging 'Homophobia'

Virgin Hearts by Emmy Sanders

5 reviews

madscientistcat's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful 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? Yes

4.25

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wildatheart1339's review against another edition

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4.75

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briochebun's review against another edition

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lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

3.5 out of 5 ☆’s.

“Don't let me run,” he whispers. “If you do, I'll follow.”

ੈ✩‧₊˚

I was soo excited to read Hawthorne and Mateo’s story after finishing ”Fool Hearts”! I was a fan of Hawthorne’s character & was excited to learn some more about Mateo & I can confidently say that ”Virgin Hearts” was an enjoyable novel overall!

I’m not a fan of third act breakups / separations - so I wasn’t a huge fan of that aspect - but I am excited to continue this series! :)

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meggiemine's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful lighthearted 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? No

3.0

This was sweet and felt pretty low angst compared to Fool Hearts. I like Sanders' writing for the most part. Her characters aren't flat or underdeveloped and their actions and motivations make sense. But, they seem too perfect, like Sanders is trying hard to be inoffensive. I prefer more flawed and messy characters and I think they make for more interesting plot conflict and emotional tension. For example, Hawthorne doesn't bat an eye about Mateo being a porn star. Which isn't necessarily a bad thing. It's a bit refreshing that Hawthorne doesn't become super jealous or possessive. But he's weirdly blasé and incurious about what Mateo's day-to-day job is like or how Mateo feels about his work. Sanders sanitizes the porn industry and sex work in a way that made the story kind of bland. Also, she is often too on the nose (there is an actual conversation where Hawthorne tells Mateo he has a "virgin heart"), and the ending drags on way too long. There are exceptions, but most of the time I don't need to see proposals, weddings, or kids in an HEA. If those things are included I think they should stay in an epilogue. Anyway, I still plan to read more of Sanders' books, and am especially curious to see how she handles the porn industry in the spin-off series Elite 8 Studios. I will just have to wait until I'm in the mood for Sanders' particular style.

Endnotes: M/M, contemporary romance, sex worker (porn actor) MC, cowboy MC, opposites attract, age gap (12 years, 24 & 36), virgin/inexperienced MC, small town, long-distance relationship, lite Dom/sub elements, 1st-person dual POV (present tense), novel (93k words), Kindle Unlimited

Heat Index: 4/5

8 full, moderately explicit sex scenes. There's a high quantity of scenes, but they're not very long or detailed. The Dom/sub dynamic is strongest in the first sex scene and becomes pretty lite after that. I would have liked to see that dynamic explored a bit more in depth. Also, I'm not sure if this is what the author intended, but there's almost a conflation between the Dom/sub dynamic and top/bottom roles. Like, Hawthorne is considered submissive because he prefers to bottom.

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readingtotravel's review against another edition

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funny hopeful lighthearted medium-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

3.75

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