Reviews with content warning for Sexism - The Ex Talk

Reviews tagging 'Sexism'

The Ex Talk by Rachel Lynn Solomon

127 reviews

whackettreading's review

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emotional lighthearted sad medium-paced

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

3.75

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bbygirl21's review

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emotional funny lighthearted slow-paced

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

3.0

I enjoyed this book. I just probably wouldn't read it again. It was a great story and has some great characters. But my issue is that I've read something really similar to this before and i felt this one was a little too slow for me.

I'd still recommend it. The plot was good, I loved the characters, and there were a lot of really funny moments scattered throughout.

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naturally's review against another edition

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emotional informative medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

the concept of fake-exes-to-lovers and the public radio setting really sell the ex talk. dominic and shay have enjoyable banter and chemistry - their relationship is a fun and smart spin of the fake-dating trope. it's fresh, and different, and rachel lynn solomon's writing style made the story a compelling read. additionally, i adore the level of detail given to shay's occupation as a producer/radio host. there was a lot to learn about the radio industry and podcasting too.

i'll hold my hands up and say that i enjoy a problematic/unlikeable heroine from time-to-time. shay starts out having a dose of sympathy

the death of her dad, her mother and best friend in loving relationships while shay is single and unlucky in lover etc

to balance out her flaws. but she becomes insufferable by the third act.

the exploration of sexism in the workplace was okay...but under-baked. shay's thinking lacks intersectionality. her mantra of What Would A Mediocre White Man do was...weird considering she doesn't often acknowledge her own white privilege. as a white woman, she doesn't give much thought to how dominic may face barriers as a man of colour. moving onto the depiction of characters of colour...i liked the diversity, however i felt there were maybe missed opportunities to integrate different cultures/practices beyond Judaism. e.g. shay's (future) stepfather was nigerian, but he and his children all had anglican names and there was no mention of their culture.

dominic was a cute love interest, but he felt a little too put-together for a gen z/zillenial man. overall, he was a lot more patient and mature than shay was. he's never done anything wrong a day in his life, in fact!!! and i don't think he was in any way at fault in the third act!

the ex talk is a fun time! there was a lot to love, but also a lot to loath. the plot was very messy too

like, did PPR not have a HR manager? bc how was the company able to just pay for an Air Bnb with one ONE bed, so shay and dominic could get to know each other???

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olpapi's review against another edition

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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? It's complicated

5.0

CHEMISTRYYYYY! The electricity jumps off the page.

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readbycarina's review against another edition

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funny lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

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dorianablu83's review

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emotional 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? N/A

5.0

loved it so much omg

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mengzhenreads's review against another edition

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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

2.5

I really liked learning more about public radio and that aspect of journalism and for me that was honestly really interesting and fun. The romance itself was cute-ish, but I didn't like how much the author emphasized their age gap even though I feel like the gap wasn't that big (5 years), and it was kind of uncomfortable to read about it over and over again. Also this book is AGGRESSIVELY millennial and full of pop culture references which was very cringe. Also, the characters are literally copy paste of the main couple from Hating Game which is either very good news or very bad depending on how you liked the book. Overall it was cute and fluffy, with smut scenes that really go full out with the details, but this was really nothing special. The only thing unique about this was the setting that the characters worked in.

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