ka_ke's review against another edition
hopeful
lighthearted
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
4.0
I do love a good romance, especially one that gives the og supporting characters substance. Is it predictable? Yes. Is it cheesy? Also yes. Will you love it? Absolutely.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Gaslighting, Sexism, and Sexual content
Moderate: Bullying, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Infidelity
alclvdl's review against another edition
emotional
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
sad
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? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexism and Sexual content
Moderate: Infidelity, Emotional abuse, and Death of parent
kyrstin_p1989's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
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
4.0
Sweet. Sentimental. Not a lot of spice but the parts that are spicy are exceptionally well written. Grumpy sunshine meets friends to lovers meets taboo sexual encounter. Exactly what you want a romcom novel to be.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Body shaming, Bullying, Sexism, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Sexual harassment, Toxic relationship, Grief, Infidelity, and Sexual content
chloereadds's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Sexism
Minor: Death of parent and Infidelity
vixenreader's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
If you are frustrated by people with bad self esteem issues, then this book may not be for you. However, the chemistry between the leads, and the message, is really good.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Cursing, and Sexism
Moderate: Infidelity and Death of parent
Minor: Injury/Injury detail and Medical content
There is shame towards men who are seen as “ladykillers” and some shaky parent-son relationship issues addressed.now_booking's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
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
4.0
I feel like it’s pretty much impossible not adore the characters in this series- even when they’re kind of out-of-touch like Piper in Book 1, or incredibly damaged by toxic masculinity and society’s hypersexualisation of handsome boys and men like with Fox, in this book, this author creates something angsty and beautifully broken out of characters that on the surface could be perceived as flaky and sort of vacuous.
The premise of this rom-com-ish but angsty romance is that from childhood, Fox has been told he will be a heartbreaker and a massive success in sexual exploits much like his ain’t ish father. As a result, feeing the need to live up to society’s expectations and also getting burned the one time he tried to buck that weight, he’s a commitment-phobic womanizer. A commitment-phobic womanizer who is best friends with sweet but lacking in confidence, Hannah. This genesis of this friendship is mentioned several times in this book but makes much more sense and makes this a richer read if you’ve read book 1 in this series (Piper’s book). Everybody loves Hannah and feels protective over her and Fox has been warned to keep his filthy reputation away from everyone’s favourite little sister (Hannah).
I liked that there was a lot of growth realised by both characters. Hannah finds her inner leading lady and begins to believe in herself and her worth, while Fox begins to heal from years of low self-worth and the damage being hypersexualised from a young age made on him. I think sometimes this was angstier and more love triangular than necessary- especially in situations where a single conversation would have solved the angst and would have fit in the narrative as Fox and Hannah have excellent communication and were quite open and honest with each other. I think another weakness of this was that even though we clearly knew and had affection for Piper and Brendan from the first novel, the supporting characters somehow didn’t pop as much as they did in the first book. That said, this was a really solid romance that took me on an emotional journey that felt deep and real and heartfelt and that really tackled a male main character’s emotions and society’s normalization of sexualisation of young boys and men with a lot of nuance and heart, and it’s not something I’ve read thematically before in a romance. Recommend if you’re looking for angst with some laughs.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from Avon Books via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
The premise of this rom-com-ish but angsty romance is that from childhood, Fox has been told he will be a heartbreaker and a massive success in sexual exploits much like his ain’t ish father. As a result, feeing the need to live up to society’s expectations and also getting burned the one time he tried to buck that weight, he’s a commitment-phobic womanizer. A commitment-phobic womanizer who is best friends with sweet but lacking in confidence, Hannah. This genesis of this friendship is mentioned several times in this book but makes much more sense and makes this a richer read if you’ve read book 1 in this series (Piper’s book). Everybody loves Hannah and feels protective over her and Fox has been warned to keep his filthy reputation away from everyone’s favourite little sister (Hannah).
I liked that there was a lot of growth realised by both characters. Hannah finds her inner leading lady and begins to believe in herself and her worth, while Fox begins to heal from years of low self-worth and the damage being hypersexualised from a young age made on him. I think sometimes this was angstier and more love triangular than necessary- especially in situations where a single conversation would have solved the angst and would have fit in the narrative as Fox and Hannah have excellent communication and were quite open and honest with each other. I think another weakness of this was that even though we clearly knew and had affection for Piper and Brendan from the first novel, the supporting characters somehow didn’t pop as much as they did in the first book. That said, this was a really solid romance that took me on an emotional journey that felt deep and real and heartfelt and that really tackled a male main character’s emotions and society’s normalization of sexualisation of young boys and men with a lot of nuance and heart, and it’s not something I’ve read thematically before in a romance. Recommend if you’re looking for angst with some laughs.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from Avon Books via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Sexual harassment, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Abandonment, Infidelity, and Sexism
Minor: Grief
siob___'s review against another edition
emotional
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
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content and Sexism
arthur_ant18's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
relaxing
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Sexism, and Sexual content
Moderate: Death of parent, Toxic friendship, Cursing, Gaslighting, Infidelity, Emotional abuse, and Bullying
Minor: Grief
meghanm404's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
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
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Grief, Death of parent, and Sexism
cluckieduck's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
slow-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
4.0
Fox - you dirty talker, you. The so-called maestro of feminine wetness - I absolutely loved getting to know him in this book. It Happened One Summer was just an ok read for me - nothing ground-breaking, merely a cute, little rom-com, but HL&S was a fantastic addition to the duology (with a fabulous epilogue - I'm gonna need a novella or something to expand on that whole sitch, 'cause what was given in the epilogue isn't nearly enough)!!
Fox had a third, and most important, reason for keeping his hands off Hannah. She was his friend. She was a woman who genuinely liked him for something other than his dick. And it made him feel terrifyingly good to be around her. To talk to her. They had fun. Made each other laugh.
I found the relationship between Fox & Hannah was well-fleshed out. Normally I don't enjoy mind-games played out for the sake of creating conflict, but the cat-and-mouse game that they participate in lent really well to the story, as both fight against their own perceived roles - Fox as the player and Hannah as the supporting act. Hannah's anger at the objectification of Fox was entertaining to read, and her unwavering support and confidence in Fox (which he lacked) helped make me fall in love with both.
She thought that compassion made her a supporting actress instead of a leading one, and didn't realize that her empathy, the fierce way she cared, made her something bigger. Hannah belonged in a category far more real than the credits of a movie. A category all her own.
For such a promiscuous male lead, I'm glad that this ended up being quite the slow-burn romance because we were able to really dive deep under Fox's skin and witness Hannah's rise to the leading lady of her own story.
You can't live life worrying about what people will think. You'll wake up one day, look at a calendar, and count the days you could have spent being happy.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Sexism, Cursing, and Sexual content
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders
Minor: Grief, Drug use, and Blood