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kschoonbach's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
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? No
5.0
indiekay's review
4.0
I've been keen to read this one for a while, though I've seen some mixed reviews for it. Overall I enjoyed it, though I do think it's longer than it needs to be - the audiobook is 12 hours long, and it could have, and would have been better, if it were closer to 8 hours instead.
So I liked Cassie's character, and the whole light-taboo of dating a friend's relative is a trope I have read a few times (usually dating a friend's dad or brother, never a mom - which yeah I think I do have a lot to say about the sexism in regards to the popularity of this trope focusing more on DILFs and not MILFs, but I don't want to do into that). I really enjoyed the first 30% of the book - which includes the two characters realising what they've done, trying to stay away from each other, and then Cassie being invited to stay at Erin's house for Christmas. The Christmas/New Year's Eve part of the story was probably my favourite part of the whole book.
However, after the first 30% the book does kind of drag on. There's a LOT of time spent in this book just following Cassie as she does her daily college things and hangs out with her friends, which was good for the overall story, but it feels like 60% of the book was her just hanging out with friends and 40% was her and Erin's relationship. Plus this is a dual POV, but Erin doesn't get nearly as many story lines as Cassie does. Like, there's a LOT of time spent on Cassie spending time with Parker (Erin's daughter) and their other friend, and Cassie struggling with her abandonment issues over having a shitty mom, and Cassie trying to decide what to do after graduation, outside of her angsting about Erin. Meanwhile, Erin's plots are that she's working on a free clinic (which is only ever mentioned as emails she's sending, it's not an actual plot), talking to her friend about Cassie, talking to her therapist about Cassie, and angsting over her daughter. Cassie's relationship with Parker also just feels WAY more developed than Erin's relationship with her.
And on the topic of Parker - god she is a spoilt brat in the first half of the story. Salty because her parents got divorced (even though her dad is a huge misogynist). After the divorce she said something super biophobic to her mom even though she herself is ALSO bisexual. Complaining when she's home for Christmas that she has to do the dishes -- like oh wow sorry you, AN ADULT, has to do the dishes. That sounds soooooo hard for you, your mom is such an evil bitch for cooking you 3 meals a day (and Erin doesn't even expect Parker to do the dishes by the way. Cassie offers to do them and Parker gets all huffy saying no her mom will do them).
That all said, I do think Parker grew a lot in the second half of the story, and how she finally figures out the truth and reacts to it wasn't how I expected the author to go about things, and I liked the direction they took it.
I also saw some reviews of people saying there was just too much sex in this, and I don't know if I agree? Obviously the book starts out with a sex scene, but then the next sex scene only happens near the 50% mark? I was really enjoying the first 30% of the book and then got nervous that the following 70% would just be non-stop sex, but it really wasn't. I can only really remember like 5 sex scenes including the first one (which I guess IS a high amount of sex scenes - I usually think 3 is enough), and maybe there were more and I just zoned out during them, but there are plenty of m/m romances I've read that had so many repetitive boring sex scenes that I just started skipping them altogether, and I didn't feel the need to do that with this book, because at least these scenes were varied.
So overall, which I have some critics, I did enjoy this. It's not a new all-time favourite, but I never got super bored or overly frustrated with this, which is always a win in my books.
So I liked Cassie's character, and the whole light-taboo of dating a friend's relative is a trope I have read a few times (usually dating a friend's dad or brother, never a mom - which yeah I think I do have a lot to say about the sexism in regards to the popularity of this trope focusing more on DILFs and not MILFs, but I don't want to do into that). I really enjoyed the first 30% of the book - which includes the two characters realising what they've done, trying to stay away from each other, and then Cassie being invited to stay at Erin's house for Christmas. The Christmas/New Year's Eve part of the story was probably my favourite part of the whole book.
However, after the first 30% the book does kind of drag on. There's a LOT of time spent in this book just following Cassie as she does her daily college things and hangs out with her friends, which was good for the overall story, but it feels like 60% of the book was her just hanging out with friends and 40% was her and Erin's relationship. Plus this is a dual POV, but Erin doesn't get nearly as many story lines as Cassie does. Like, there's a LOT of time spent on Cassie spending time with Parker (Erin's daughter) and their other friend, and Cassie struggling with her abandonment issues over having a shitty mom, and Cassie trying to decide what to do after graduation, outside of her angsting about Erin. Meanwhile, Erin's plots are that she's working on a free clinic (which is only ever mentioned as emails she's sending, it's not an actual plot), talking to her friend about Cassie, talking to her therapist about Cassie, and angsting over her daughter. Cassie's relationship with Parker also just feels WAY more developed than Erin's relationship with her.
And on the topic of Parker - god she is a spoilt brat in the first half of the story. Salty because her parents got divorced (even though her dad is a huge misogynist). After the divorce she said something super biophobic to her mom even though she herself is ALSO bisexual. Complaining when she's home for Christmas that she has to do the dishes -- like oh wow sorry you, AN ADULT, has to do the dishes. That sounds soooooo hard for you, your mom is such an evil bitch for cooking you 3 meals a day (and Erin doesn't even expect Parker to do the dishes by the way. Cassie offers to do them and Parker gets all huffy saying no her mom will do them).
That all said, I do think Parker grew a lot in the second half of the story, and how she finally figures out the truth and reacts to it wasn't how I expected the author to go about things, and I liked the direction they took it.
I also saw some reviews of people saying there was just too much sex in this, and I don't know if I agree? Obviously the book starts out with a sex scene, but then the next sex scene only happens near the 50% mark? I was really enjoying the first 30% of the book and then got nervous that the following 70% would just be non-stop sex, but it really wasn't. I can only really remember like 5 sex scenes including the first one (which I guess IS a high amount of sex scenes - I usually think 3 is enough), and maybe there were more and I just zoned out during them, but there are plenty of m/m romances I've read that had so many repetitive boring sex scenes that I just started skipping them altogether, and I didn't feel the need to do that with this book, because at least these scenes were varied.
So overall, which I have some critics, I did enjoy this. It's not a new all-time favourite, but I never got super bored or overly frustrated with this, which is always a win in my books.
kmkasiner's review
5.0
Whoa! Such a fun, romantic, sexy read. I wasn't sure about the premise (falling in love with best friend's mom!) but Meryl Wilsner had me on board. The chemistry was sizzling and I was on the edge of my seat seeing where the relationship would go.
krichardson's review
3.0
3.5 stars. This was cute, but felt a little incomplete to me. It spent most of the book dealing with the fact that Cassie is Erin's daughter's friend (which is important!) but only one throwaway line on all the other things that a 17 year age gap implies. There were also so many inconsistencies about grad school applications it drove me up a wall.
livlovebooks's review
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.0
This book was definitely a ride. I loved the premise of the book as well as the execution. I felt like the ending fell flat for me, but I also feel like it can be hard to wrap up romances. This book is on the spicy side and I appreciated the variety of scenes.
welcometomynirvana's review against another edition
emotional
funny
slow-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
3.0
lisie_bug's review
1.0
I loved cleat cute, but I’m pretty sure this has everything I hate about a romance book in one. The plot makes absolutely no sense, the spicy scenes are all in the beginning when there’s no emotional involvement, and there’s basically no character growth. And the writing itself was a struggle to get beyond, so repetitive. Some chapters I swear I was only reading the same 3 words over and over.
All of that aside, ethically I have no desire to read an age gap romance where the only plot is that it’s her best friend’s mom. In what world is that intriguing? Just absolutely bizzare
All of that aside, ethically I have no desire to read an age gap romance where the only plot is that it’s her best friend’s mom. In what world is that intriguing? Just absolutely bizzare
gabixm98's review
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? It's complicated
3.25
stargazer3845's review
emotional
funny
tense
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
4.5
This is a 🌶️ one! At least twice the number of sexy scenes as I'm used to, and it's a "one-night-to-forever" trope (loosely - as well as age gap) so it starts off with a bang...
This one was probably a little too tense for me at this point in my life: unlike most sapphic romances I've read, this one has people making a lot of unwise decisions. (Not a spoiler because it's literally in the title.) But things do get resolved, as you would hope. That said, it was definitely the least formulaic of the romances I've read so far (I think this is #5 for me), which some readers might really appreciate.
I got very invested in the characters and really enjoyed the book, even if it made me anxious until I finished it. 😅
This one was probably a little too tense for me at this point in my life: unlike most sapphic romances I've read, this one has people making a lot of unwise decisions. (Not a spoiler because it's literally in the title.) But things do get resolved, as you would hope. That said, it was definitely the least formulaic of the romances I've read so far (I think this is #5 for me), which some readers might really appreciate.
I got very invested in the characters and really enjoyed the book, even if it made me anxious until I finished it. 😅
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content and Alcohol
Moderate: Biphobia, Infidelity, Misogyny, and Abandonment