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A review by kingrosereads
A Brush with Love by Mazey Eddings
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
fast-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 book had me by the heartstrings after the first couple chapters. And instalove is my least favorite trope, it’s super cringe to me, but I LOVED this book. It had me laughing OUT LOUD and I even teared up a few times. A Brush with Love is this fluff filled, instalove but also kind of friends to lovers romcom that literally made my heart dance. It even have a decent spicy scene (not quite smut) definitely like a 🌶🌶/5.
TW: This book also contained sexism, grief, deaths of a parent, ableism, and mental illness.
Okay, this book follows Harper Horowitz and Dan Craig’s who are 26-year-old dental students. Harper’s in her final year and Dan’s in his first year. The timeline’s a bit weird but I think it starts in November then goes through January before the last few chapters each take place in March, April, and May (like one chapter per month). I only say that because that kind of makes this an Autumn/wintery romance and the perfect cuddle-by-the-fire book. It also takes place in Philadelphia. Which only matters because it’s a contemporary romance not taking place in NYC or LA for once, but also near where I grew up.
It’s the first chapter, and Harper enters the scene. She’s a serious student that’s passionate about oral surgery and she’s anxious about matching with a program after she graduates. Then suddenly, BAM, she falls down a flight of stairs in the middle of the dentistry school and crashes into our unsuspecting love interest, Dan. They’re fine but Dan’s teeth impression mold is not fine. Immediately the two are attracted to one another. I mean, they’re both ogling one another when they nearly died from a tumble down the stares. The physical attraction was intense. Sexual tension could be cut with a knife. #cantrelate. Harper offers to help Dan make another model as she is a dental rockstar. Thus beginning their relationship.
Despite obviously liking one another (like a lot), Harper insists they can’t act on it and should just remain friends because she’s leaving in 5 months and she doesn’t think they can just be sex. Dan reluctantly agrees. And for the next few weeks they build a very flirty friendship.
Harper has this friend group Thu (a fellow dental student), Indira (a med student at the school), and Lizzie (a barista and Indira’s roommate). Now her friend group is hilarious, but also pushy, meddling, and teases Harper relentlessly. They never seem to notice that she has severe anxiety, but Dan can at least see the signs after only knowing her for a few weeks? Alex Huang is Dan’s friend and roommate, and he’s…there. And Alex and Thu start a thing.
There were several scenes where Harper is really struggling with her anxiety. She has a lot of internalized abelism and tries very hard to be “normal”. She’s always been anxious and had panic attacks, but it got worse after her mom died when she was 12. Her aunt and uncle raised her and took her to psychiatrists and she had a terrible experience. So now she strives to be perfect and doesn’t believe she needs therapy. She eventually has a panic attack at a party, and just as she and Dan are about to leave, she gets harassed by a sexist fellow student. But after she puts him in his place, Dan puts the fear of god into this guy. And let me tell you, that maybe a red flag, but it was soooooo hot.
Dan has had a few eye openers in the book about what it’s like to be a women in STEM and how patients, colleagues, and advisors will belittle her or ask how she’ll have a family AND be a surgical resident. Dan on the other hand, isn’t even in dental school because he wants it and he’s only able to attend the school, because he’s a legacy. Dan’s dad is a dental legend who was a shit father to Dan because Dan didn’t want to be a dentist. He went for finance in undergrad and had a successful, blooming career before his dad dies. After his death, his mother guilts him into leaving NYC and his job, return to school, and help her keep his father’s practice going.
Eventually the heat turns up in their friendship and they cross that line. It’s great for a while until the pressures of her final year catch up to Harper and she ends up blaming Dan for distracting her.
Then a bunch more happens. There’s arguing, a break up, healing, and reuniting. Yaaaay. All very heartfelt and cute and sad.
When I tell you this book had me smiling like an idiot I am telling you I was giggling and grinning throughout the whole thing. It’s so very cheesy and funny. I think the mental illness representation was pretty spot on, though I hated that Harper lashed out on her friends and Dan several times and they just instantly forgave her. Having a mental illness doesn’t give you a license to be a shitty friend, and I feel like the forgiveness shouldn’t have been automatic. I think the struggle to admitting you need help and actually getting it was depicted well. I was also happy that Dan recognized he needed help dealing with his guilt and grief.
The Jewish and Arab representation are very minimal. It’s basically just them saying they’re Jewish and Arab without actually diving into what that means for their identities. I guess Dan gets a pass since his dad forces his mom to assimilate to Western culture. But Harper claims that being Jewish is this big part of her identity, yet it’s only mentioned in the very beginning, then they go to a Jewish deli, and then she does Sabbath once. After these first few chapters it’s never brought up again. I mean the bulk of the book takes place between November and January but there’s no mention of Hanukkah? It doesn’t need to be a Hanukkah themed book, it’s just odd it’s never brought up.
I also have a hard time believing a 26 year old would drop their life and career and be guilt tripped into going to dentistry school (a subject they vehemently hate) to then take over his late father’s practice (which he also hates). I could see his guilt forcing him to somehow use his finance degree to help with the business aspect of the private practice, but to go back to graduate school and switch careers? Nah. Maybe if he was younger or already in a different graduate program. Because he wouldn’t have an established career and fresh graduates and grad students have lower social and emotional development since they’ve been in school for 13+ years straight, i think it would’ve been easier to guilt them. I actually would’ve liked it better if Dan was a couple years younger than Harper. They didn’t need to be the same age. It’s just weird how Harper’s friend group were all the same age and at the same point in their education. I think Alex was the only one that wasn’t 25-27. He’s probably 21/22.
I don’t care what anyone says, I love a man in a book who falls in love first and does the chasing. Like full on simps after this woman. And it’s nice to see a guy be as consumed by a crush as women are. I also love that Harper had the technical and academic advantage over Dan. And Dan didn’t mind it, and he actually wanted to learn from her. And Harper didn’t tease him about it. She was patient and tried to teach him. Dan might have been conventionally hot with his brown hair, tanned ski, muscles, and green eyes, but he was such a softie. So in touch with his feelings.
After all that, I think it did well balancing comedy, romance, and spice with the serious topics of sexism, grief, the deaths of a parent, mental illness and ableism. It’s a solid debut novel.
TW: This book also contained sexism, grief, deaths of a parent, ableism, and mental illness.
Okay, this book follows Harper Horowitz and Dan Craig’s who are 26-year-old dental students. Harper’s in her final year and Dan’s in his first year. The timeline’s a bit weird but I think it starts in November then goes through January before the last few chapters each take place in March, April, and May (like one chapter per month). I only say that because that kind of makes this an Autumn/wintery romance and the perfect cuddle-by-the-fire book. It also takes place in Philadelphia. Which only matters because it’s a contemporary romance not taking place in NYC or LA for once, but also near where I grew up.
It’s the first chapter, and Harper enters the scene. She’s a serious student that’s passionate about oral surgery and she’s anxious about matching with a program after she graduates. Then suddenly, BAM, she falls down a flight of stairs in the middle of the dentistry school and crashes into our unsuspecting love interest, Dan. They’re fine but Dan’s teeth impression mold is not fine. Immediately the two are attracted to one another. I mean, they’re both ogling one another when they nearly died from a tumble down the stares. The physical attraction was intense. Sexual tension could be cut with a knife. #cantrelate. Harper offers to help Dan make another model as she is a dental rockstar. Thus beginning their relationship.
Despite obviously liking one another (like a lot), Harper insists they can’t act on it and should just remain friends because she’s leaving in 5 months and she doesn’t think they can just be sex. Dan reluctantly agrees. And for the next few weeks they build a very flirty friendship.
Harper has this friend group Thu (a fellow dental student), Indira (a med student at the school), and Lizzie (a barista and Indira’s roommate). Now her friend group is hilarious, but also pushy, meddling, and teases Harper relentlessly. They never seem to notice that she has severe anxiety, but Dan can at least see the signs after only knowing her for a few weeks? Alex Huang is Dan’s friend and roommate, and he’s…there. And Alex and Thu start a thing.
There were several scenes where Harper is really struggling with her anxiety. She has a lot of internalized abelism and tries very hard to be “normal”. She’s always been anxious and had panic attacks, but it got worse after her mom died when she was 12. Her aunt and uncle raised her and took her to psychiatrists and she had a terrible experience. So now she strives to be perfect and doesn’t believe she needs therapy. She eventually has a panic attack at a party, and just as she and Dan are about to leave, she gets harassed by a sexist fellow student. But after she puts him in his place, Dan puts the fear of god into this guy. And let me tell you, that maybe a red flag, but it was soooooo hot.
Dan has had a few eye openers in the book about what it’s like to be a women in STEM and how patients, colleagues, and advisors will belittle her or ask how she’ll have a family AND be a surgical resident. Dan on the other hand, isn’t even in dental school because he wants it and he’s only able to attend the school, because he’s a legacy. Dan’s dad is a dental legend who was a shit father to Dan because Dan didn’t want to be a dentist. He went for finance in undergrad and had a successful, blooming career before his dad dies. After his death, his mother guilts him into leaving NYC and his job, return to school, and help her keep his father’s practice going.
Eventually the heat turns up in their friendship and they cross that line. It’s great for a while until the pressures of her final year catch up to Harper and she ends up blaming Dan for distracting her.
Then a bunch more happens. There’s arguing, a break up, healing, and reuniting. Yaaaay. All very heartfelt and cute and sad.
When I tell you this book had me smiling like an idiot I am telling you I was giggling and grinning throughout the whole thing. It’s so very cheesy and funny. I think the mental illness representation was pretty spot on, though I hated that Harper lashed out on her friends and Dan several times and they just instantly forgave her. Having a mental illness doesn’t give you a license to be a shitty friend, and I feel like the forgiveness shouldn’t have been automatic. I think the struggle to admitting you need help and actually getting it was depicted well. I was also happy that Dan recognized he needed help dealing with his guilt and grief.
The Jewish and Arab representation are very minimal. It’s basically just them saying they’re Jewish and Arab without actually diving into what that means for their identities. I guess Dan gets a pass since his dad forces his mom to assimilate to Western culture. But Harper claims that being Jewish is this big part of her identity, yet it’s only mentioned in the very beginning, then they go to a Jewish deli, and then she does Sabbath once. After these first few chapters it’s never brought up again. I mean the bulk of the book takes place between November and January but there’s no mention of Hanukkah? It doesn’t need to be a Hanukkah themed book, it’s just odd it’s never brought up.
I also have a hard time believing a 26 year old would drop their life and career and be guilt tripped into going to dentistry school (a subject they vehemently hate) to then take over his late father’s practice (which he also hates). I could see his guilt forcing him to somehow use his finance degree to help with the business aspect of the private practice, but to go back to graduate school and switch careers? Nah. Maybe if he was younger or already in a different graduate program. Because he wouldn’t have an established career and fresh graduates and grad students have lower social and emotional development since they’ve been in school for 13+ years straight, i think it would’ve been easier to guilt them. I actually would’ve liked it better if Dan was a couple years younger than Harper. They didn’t need to be the same age. It’s just weird how Harper’s friend group were all the same age and at the same point in their education. I think Alex was the only one that wasn’t 25-27. He’s probably 21/22.
I don’t care what anyone says, I love a man in a book who falls in love first and does the chasing. Like full on simps after this woman. And it’s nice to see a guy be as consumed by a crush as women are. I also love that Harper had the technical and academic advantage over Dan. And Dan didn’t mind it, and he actually wanted to learn from her. And Harper didn’t tease him about it. She was patient and tried to teach him. Dan might have been conventionally hot with his brown hair, tanned ski, muscles, and green eyes, but he was such a softie. So in touch with his feelings.
After all that, I think it did well balancing comedy, romance, and spice with the serious topics of sexism, grief, the deaths of a parent, mental illness and ableism. It’s a solid debut novel.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness and Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Grief and Death of parent
Minor: Ableism