Reviews with content warning for Alcoholism - The Secret Book Club: Kein Weihnachten ohne Liebesroman

This book really took me on a rollercoaster of emotions. I struggled to fully support Gretchen and Colton in all their choices since they were being so frustrating for so long. Full warning: this book gets pretty dark so read the content warnings.

Content Warnings

rachelmerrie's review against another edition

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challenging emotional funny hopeful lighthearted reflective relaxing sad tense 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

3.5

I’m biased because I love this series. This was my least favorite of the series because there were hardly any scene with the actual book club, which was my favorite part of the others. I enjoyed reading about what the men discussed in their club and how to work through gender roles and expectations. This book really had none of that, if anything it encouraged gender roles. Additionally, any time the book club tried to give the main male character advice, it didn’t really go anywhere. I wasn’t a fan of how they immediately fell for each other then abruptly got engaged at the end in the midst of an argument.

Overall, the writing is great and keeps me engaged. I love the characters and their development and the ties from past books.

Content Warnings

literallykristen's review against another edition

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lighthearted medium-paced

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

3.0

Even though I didn't like the characters that much, the writing was so good that by the end I enjoyed it.

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zoelynn's review against another edition

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emotional funny lighthearted fast-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

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dianaschmidty's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring sad medium-paced

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

3.75

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clairestream's review against another edition

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emotional 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

3.25

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purplepenning's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No

3.25

Content Warnings

theespressoedition's review against another edition

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emotional lighthearted medium-paced

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

3.0

Let me start this off by saying that The Bromance Book Club is one of my favorite (and most-recommended) rom-com series. I've read all of the books, in order, and I truly love the cast of characters, their wild stories, and how they all blend together to create this fantastic world of inspiration, inclusivity, humor, and of course--spice. They're some of the most unique contemporary romance novels I've read and that's a huge reason why I love them so much. They've never ceased to bring a smile to my face.

Now, let me get into why I struggled with A Very Merry Bromance. The number one reason? It didn't feel like it was part of this series I've come to know and love. Despite the whole cast making appearances throughout the book, it felt wholly disconnected. If those recognizable character names hadn't shown up, I don't think I ever would've associated this installation with the rest of the books.

Despite being a bit of a self-absorbed celebrity who's unused to being told "no," Colton doesn't really take the primary spotlight in the book (even if he should have - for all the work his character needed). He also doesn't receive his advice from the romance books as the bros have in all of the other stories. He does, however, loan a romance book to Gretchen (which, by the way, we never really see have any affect on her) and constantly mentions A Christmas Carol, a story that supposedly had a huge impact on his own life and way of celebrating Christmas. So yes, there's mentions of reading, but it doesn't hold much sway on either of the characters, unless you count them both admitting they're part of a "grump and sunshine" trope a few times.

Gretchen has a lot of family issues. I mean a lot. If you're uncomfortable with the topic of familial abuse, this is not the book for you, since the story relies heavily on that element of her life. I wanted to see more growth in her character, since I loved her heart, but it felt more like Colton fought her battles for her (and not very well, I might add). I honestly wanted more of Uncle Jack!

Truthfully, I expected to walk away from this book with giddy good feelings and a tummy ache from all the laughter. Instead, I was frustrated with the protagonists, disconnected from the story as a whole, and frankly, just irritated at how different it was from the rest of the series. I wouldn't say that I hated it, and there were some things I really enjoyed (mostly the side characters--and visualizing Vlad in a Santa suit), I was disappointed by the book as a whole and can't imagine that I'd pick it up again. This one was a bit of a bust for me, sadly.

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