Reviews with content warning for Body shaming - The Love Con

I quite enjoyed this book, I love reading about the cosplaying in the book as not many books will talk about it and I also learned more about the process of creating cosplays. I think that the build up for the contest was really well thought out and I think the details and descriptions were pretty good too. I LOVE the characters, they are quite complex, yet are not hard to understand. I liked seeing things from both Kenya and Cam's perspective and seeing what went through their minds in each scene. I really enjoyed reading about their love story and they were SO sweet and supportive of each other! I feel like the other characters were also done well and I HATED the producer (obviously). It's interesting that Kenya's parents can be supportive yet also are against Kenya in things. I really enjoyed this book but it wasn't a favourite.

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rebecca_arielle'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? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

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legalplanner's review

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funny lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

I went into this super skeptical, mostly because I happened to glance at reviews like they mattered. So many of them were like this was meh. Well I did not think this was meh at all.

If you're looking for fake dating, friends to more, and getting your nerdy project runway type story you'll love this. Not only is Kenya into cosplay and all things nerd, she is also a woman in STEM and that is AWESOME! Add to it that Kenya is curvy and African American and we have the start of a great own voices piece.

The concept of this is tale as old as time but the twist of being nerdy made me blow through this. The fake dating really added to this novel since her best friend has been pining over her for years. It was interesting to see her interactions with everyone and the film crew. I will say, that the failure to communicate was slightly frustrating because so much could have been fixed if they had just talked to each other. But they didn't.

Overall this was a great read and I would absolutely love to hear more about these characters.

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amberinpieces's review against another edition

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emotional funny lighthearted tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

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knunderb's review

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funny lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

A fun, funny, light read. It was predicitable, but also dealt with the complexity of cross-gender platonic friendships and interracial romantic relationships. Very enjoyable!

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essie__reads's review

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lighthearted relaxing fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

I don't usually go for friends to lovers books, but the fake dating element in this one made it exciting and kept me interested!!
Kenya and Cam are such lovable characters! Kenya might be a nerd but she has so much confidence and I love a confident female lead character who isn't going to give anyone the satisfaction of stealing her joy. This book definitely appealed to my geek side, I enjoyed all the little refrences the author included throughout.
This was my first novel by Seressia Glass but will not be my last! I enjoyed her writing style so much. As someone from the metro-Atlanta area the elements of the city she included were so great and I need to try Nubian Coffee asap!!

I highly recommend this to any of my Marvel loving friends, and anyone who considers themself a geek!

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cinderellasbookshelf's review

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funny hopeful lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

The Love Con by Seressia Glass is a book I really enjoyed reading that touched my nerdy romantic heart. It has Marvel references, the pure joy behind cosplaying, and elicits so much giddiness as two friends could be something more.

Kenya is a bonafide nerd and cosplayer who is a contestant on a reality competition show called “Cosplay or No Way.” She makes it to the final round where she is presented with one last challenge: create a cosplay of an iconic duo. The judges prefer she complete this with her significant other. So, although Kenya is single, her best friend, Cameron, is happy to pretend to be her boyfriend. The two of them have been friends for a long time, but being a fake couple may just finally make them admit how they really feel about each other.

I loved reading Kenya and Cam’s relationship go from the friend zone to the end zone 😅. Friends to lovers is my favorite trope, especially when it has dual POV. It was funny and even steamy at times reading how much they pined for each other. Designing cosplay is seriously hard work, let alone if there’s a time limit. So, I really liked those moments when they were so thoughtful and supportive of one another’s well being on and off camera.

Throughout the book, Kenya is confronted with so much passive and microaggression based on her race and how she looked. It was infuriating how people immediately judged her for having a boyfriend like Cam. Even more so when the producers tried to push her into a certain narrative that wasn’t her. I really felt for her on so many levels of empathy and frustration, especially how she had to hold back her emotions because she didn’t want to be seen as a stereotype. There was also the added pressure she received from her parents, who had been dismissive about her interests and kept insisting she focus on a more serious career. I kept rooting for her that I teared up at the end because of how proud I was after everything she faced. I liked how Seressia Glass explored these issues while still balancing it with Kenya and Cam’s romance and Kenya’s own journey.

This was a great fun read with humor and heart that’s perfect for romance lovers.

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readingsofaslinky's review

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emotional funny lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

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