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A review by banjax451
Midnight Duet by Jen Comfort
emotional
funny
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? Yes
4.0
I enjoyed the heck out of this book. The author has written a (VERY) loose gender swapped take on Phantom of the Opera (VERY loose - it is similar but only superficially), set outside Las Vegas and featuring a German hair metal rock band. The comedy is real (I found myself laughing aloud at multiple moments, particularly involving the side characters in Nachtmusik), the romance is sweet and the spice is spicy. Is it over the top at times? Oh yeah. But the novel is very self-aware and I enjoyed that the author is laughing at the rom-com genre (and at musical theature) just as much as loving it.
For the last year as I've explored my previously unknown love of rom-coms, I've been mentally BEGGING authors to break out of the tropes that seem overused. Not every MMC needs to be a secret millionaire/billionaire/alpha. Not every FMC needs to be in need of saving and needs to be pursued. Here Erika is pursuing Christof just as much (if not way more) than Christof pursues Erika. If there were any complaints I had, it would have been more time for the side characters to shine. More characters from the town of Paris, Nevada. And maybe a bit of a less predictable ending. These aren't complaints, though - more hopes for the future. Looking forward to future reads from Jen Comfort.
For the last year as I've explored my previously unknown love of rom-coms, I've been mentally BEGGING authors to break out of the tropes that seem overused. Not every MMC needs to be a secret millionaire/billionaire/alpha. Not every FMC needs to be in need of saving and needs to be pursued. Here Erika is pursuing Christof just as much (if not way more) than Christof pursues Erika. If there were any complaints I had, it would have been more time for the side characters to shine. More characters from the town of Paris, Nevada. And maybe a bit of a less predictable ending. These aren't complaints, though - more hopes for the future. Looking forward to future reads from Jen Comfort.