thesmutsister_emma's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
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
4.75
Here's to Breaking the First Rule of Book Club.
I'm not going to lie. I was worried about this one. I was soworried in fact, that I broke my own habits and rather than buying the whole series at once, I only bought the first book. I can (thankfully) say I was pleasantly surprised. I truly loved this book and have to have the rest of the series PRONTO.
The Characters
Thea: Look girlie pop... I loved you. And I loved you because I saw WAY too much of myself in you. With my parents' divorce just finalized November 15th, I truly related to the way Thea felt about her father. I liked seeing the way she handled everything because my parents' divorce has impacted me as well. It was interesting watching one of my worst fears at this point play out in a way and see the way that I as a person might deal with it. Thea honestly had just as much character development as Gavin did and it was something that made me happy because in these situations, it's easy to put all of the blame on one party, but the fact that Thea made it back to who she truly feels she is meant a lot to me.
Gavin: I honestly liked Gavin a lot. I felt like he was extremely dense and prideful at times, but I liked his character. Once he was willing to let go of his manhood and be vulnerable. I honestly liked him more than Thea 😅 I was worried that he was never going to wise up and do it, but we were able to get there.
Things I Loved
I loved the way that Thea dealt with Gavin, just in general through the whole thing. I also really liked the rest of the Bromance Book Club so much. They were amazing and I honestly can't wait to read about the rest of them.
Things I Didn't Love
I think my biggest problem with the book was how long it felt like it dragged out. It was very realistic, but it felt to me as though it went on for ages.
The Final Verdict
I feel like this will end up being a book I read over and over. I loved it so much and plan on coming back to it as a comfort read.
I'm not going to lie. I was worried about this one. I was soworried in fact, that I broke my own habits and rather than buying the whole series at once, I only bought the first book. I can (thankfully) say I was pleasantly surprised. I truly loved this book and have to have the rest of the series PRONTO.
The Characters
Thea: Look girlie pop... I loved you. And I loved you because I saw WAY too much of myself in you. With my parents' divorce just finalized November 15th, I truly related to the way Thea felt about her father. I liked seeing the way she handled everything because my parents' divorce has impacted me as well. It was interesting watching one of my worst fears at this point play out in a way and see the way that I as a person might deal with it. Thea honestly had just as much character development as Gavin did and it was something that made me happy because in these situations, it's easy to put all of the blame on one party, but the fact that Thea made it back to who she truly feels she is meant a lot to me.
Gavin: I honestly liked Gavin a lot. I felt like he was extremely dense and prideful at times, but I liked his character. Once he was willing to let go of his manhood and be vulnerable. I honestly liked him more than Thea 😅 I was worried that he was never going to wise up and do it, but we were able to get there.
Things I Loved
I loved the way that Thea dealt with Gavin, just in general through the whole thing. I also really liked the rest of the Bromance Book Club so much. They were amazing and I honestly can't wait to read about the rest of them.
Things I Didn't Love
I think my biggest problem with the book was how long it felt like it dragged out. It was very realistic, but it felt to me as though it went on for ages.
The Final Verdict
I feel like this will end up being a book I read over and over. I loved it so much and plan on coming back to it as a comfort read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Abandonment, Vomit, and Cursing
Moderate: Alcohol
Minor: Pregnancy and Miscarriage
atamano's review against another edition
emotional
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
2.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Bullying, Abandonment, and Alcohol
Minor: Vomit
mandaraffe's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Vomit, Toxic friendship, Ableism, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, and Alcohol
Moderate: Emotional abuse and Abandonment
Minor: Child abuse, Miscarriage, Pregnancy, Xenophobia, and Fatphobia
macykey's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
I don’t typically like books that center a couple that’ve already been established, but this one was done so well. I loved how realistic the conflict was and even though I don’t like miscommunication, it seemed more realistic. The side characters also seemed fleshed out even though they didn’t have lots of page time. The only things I’ll say about this book that I didn’t like was the fact that the guys went to such great lengths to keep the book club and the fact that they were reading romance books a secret. These guys were in an excellent position to legitimize romance books amongst cisgendered men, yet they fell into the same trap that they were talking about in the book.Â
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Alcohol and Abandonment
Minor: Vomit
jamiejanae_6's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
inspiring
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
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Bullying and Vomit
courtnoodles's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Bullying, Cursing, and Sexual content
Moderate: Vomit and Abandonment
Minor: Pregnancy
sinilukee's review against another edition
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
2.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Abandonment, Alcohol, Bullying, Cursing, Emotional abuse, and Vomit
notalightbulb's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content and Vomit
Minor: Miscarriage and Pregnancy
haley49's review against another edition
emotional
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
This was a fun and fast read. I loved how it tackled the rarely talked about topic of conflict post marriage and what it means to have a healthy, long-lasting love. I am sure that those themes will/do resonante with a lot of couples. I loved Gavin and his group of guy friends (we don’t see enough great bromances in literature!) I also liked the discussions on trauma (or backstory) and how it showed how both characters needed to unlearn some things and grow in order to better themselves and their marriage. I also appreciated the lisp representation with Gavin. Definitely would reccomend and I’m excited to read Mack’s book.Â
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Pregnancy, Vomit, and Ableism
tacoshark's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
There were things I liked about this book - it’s unusual, in my experience, for romances to be set in an existing marriage, so that was a nice change of pace. The main concept of the book is interesting - but the execution is … not great. I could pick this book apart in a hundred ways (exactly how old are those girls supposed to be? Bc according to the plot, it’s like 3, max, and they’re written as, like, 5? 6? It makes no sense) but overall I’ll just say that this was at best okay and at worst, somewhat creepy and offensive. At least it was brief?Â
Content Warnings
Graphic: Vomit and Ableism
Moderate: Abandonment