Reviews

The Hardest Fall by Ella Maise

sydneybouwman's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional slow-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

goodreadswithamila's review against another edition

Go to review page

5.0

Okay so I love Ella Maise so I went into this with high expectations and I was not disappointed. Something about her writing is just... *chefs kiss* to me. I feel like I can visually see everything play out in my head so well with her writing, and with other books/authors I have a hard time with it personally. It's funny, its cute, it has some spice as well. I was a bit hesitant to read this book in particular because I thought I wouldn't like the whole "sports" theme, or jock relationship but I actually really liked it! But man- was I heated not knowing who the HECK Mark was!!!!!!!!! Oh my god. I think that part was so frustrating because you were left guessing for a while. But, trust me- its a good read!!!

lmrivas54's review against another edition

Go to review page

4.0

Great story and great characters. This is a YA novel and is your typical football star meets excruciatingly shy girl. What made this story different was Zoe Clarke, the female protagonist. She was extremely shy, to the point that she won’t look at people in the eye, and when she’s in an uncomfortable situation, she starts babbling nonsense. She also gets very klutzy, and tends to run away embarrassed. Of course, when she meets with Dylan Reed, the university’s very well known wide receiver, she was dared to ask him for a kiss. Unfortunately, she went to look for him and found him in the bathroom peeing and with the evidence in his hands. Word vomit and klutziness ensued, then the running exit, and Dylan was delighted at this cute weirdo girl.

They have yearly sightings because she’s usually successful evading him, but when it happens, it’s the same weirdo show, except that the third time is a charm and Dylan ends up as her roommate. You will have to read the book to find how that happened. What ensues is a series of comical scenes where Zoe shows her weirdness in all of its cuteness. Dylan was captivated and so was I. She’s quirky, intelligent and very, very shy. She’s also a fiercely loyal friend to Jared and Kayla. She strives to develop a “buddy” relation with Dylan, fist bumps and all. The scene I loved best was when Dylan gets her a pizza. She’s fanatic about her pizza and doesn’t share. When one of Dylan’s friends tries to grab one piece, he gets his hand slapped and Zoe is holding the pizza box to her chest. No sharing at all LOL.

Zoe has many secrets and she’s not sharing them. The only ones in the know are her friends Jared and Kayla. Dylan suspects something strange but he’s so busy he doesn’t delve into the matter. He’s working very hard at his studies, at his football training and also as a bartender, to help cover expenses not covered by his scholarship, and send some money home to his parents. He has a strong work ethic and is not your typical football star manwhore. He doesn’t do the party, booze and hookups drill, but keeps his nose to the grind and will date a girl when he is interested, not when she stalks him. Zoe captivates him because she evades him, confuses him, amuses him, and helps when he needs it.

I loved the story and the characters, they were such a great couple and they had many zany and sweet moments together. The first part of the book was a little heavy reading because the author spent too much time on the characters minds and there was less action and dialogue. As the book progresses, the pace increased and the reading got easier. There’s no sex during the first part of the book, because Zoe is so shy that Dylan has to go extremely slow and Zoe has her secrets and her hangups. My problem was that once it started, it felt like it was a constant sex romp and I wanted more story, not sex scenes. However, it was a very yummy read, with some highly dramatic scenes.

winemakerssister's review against another edition

Go to review page

3.0

3.5 stars

I've read and enjoyed several books by Ella Maise but hesitated to pick this up because the MCs are college age/New Adult and that's not my favorite. However, I enjoyed this one, mostly because of Maise's writing. All the family drama felt a tiny bit OTT, but it made the plot more complex, and I appreciated that.

jenmcn's review against another edition

Go to review page

funny lighthearted 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? It's complicated

4.0

ashleypix's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional funny lighthearted 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

maggieleeanne's review

Go to review page

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

3.75

taniamg's review against another edition

Go to review page

4.0

I’m glad I didn’t give up on this book. At first it was a bit hard for me to get into it but then it got better.

Zoe was so shy that after a bit it got a little overbearing but then she showed parts of her that was so unexpected that made her very likeable. She met Dylan her freshman year when he was a sophomore. She just didn’t know that he was one of the best football players on the team. But Dylan wasn’t your typical college athlete. He was down to earth and humble and wasn’t a cheater. He was intrigued by the beautiful freshman and her shyness drew him in because it reminded him of his sister. Him and Zoe spoke but nothing happened and they never saw each other again.

They did see each other on and off but then time passed and they didn’t see each other or ran into each other until he was a senior and she a junior. Dylan thought it was fate because he had never forgotten the shy freshman. They started out as friends. It was cute but Dylan never had any intentions of only being her friend. Zoe was attracted to him but had other things to worry about. It was a complicated situation and when you read what she’s going thru you’ll feel sorry for her.

These two friendship was very genuine and extremely slow it started turning into something more. It was several months later until they both caved. It was beautiful to see their relationship building and not something rushed. They were incidents that will make you gasp and some that were so terrible. Things turned left for them because of misunderstandings but then it was all clarified.

The final chapter and the epilogue were funny and heartwarming. I loved it!! I read it with a huge smile on my face.

brittneyfike's review against another edition

Go to review page

3.0

A slow burn college romance. It was fine. I’m not the biggest fan of the miscommunication trope.

martibett's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional funny lighthearted relaxing medium-paced

3.75