A review by bookcraft
Lessons in Love by Charlie Cochrane
1.0
I read this years ago and it left me feeling meh. When I saw it was available via Audible's Escape program, I figured why not listen to it and see if I liked it any better now.
Answer: Not really.
Something about the writing style seems to distance the reader from the MCs, which is fine for a mystery novel, but doesn't work in a romance. I didn't get a sense of what Jonty and Orlando saw in each other; the narrative told us, essentially, that "they sat next to each other and talked and became friends," but we didn't get to actually see that happen. I like subtlety and tiny gestures that have deep meaning, and I don't require that everything be spelled out or be (melo)dramatic, but subtext requires at least some actual text for the sub- to be attached to.
My big problem, though, is the fact that Orlando is only really pushed over the edge into sexual desire once he's jealous, which is creepy as hell; wanting to f*ck someone to stake a claim on them is not romantic, it's disturbing. Weirdly, the narrative doesn't have any difficulty reconciling Orlando's sexually possessive behavior with its stance that gentle, loving sex between an established couple is the only kind of sex that's acceptable and that anything else is animalistic and disgusting (e.g., the stories in the books Orlando burned)an assertion that's a kissing-cousin to kink shaming.
Answer: Not really.
Something about the writing style seems to distance the reader from the MCs, which is fine for a mystery novel, but doesn't work in a romance. I didn't get a sense of what Jonty and Orlando saw in each other; the narrative told us, essentially, that "they sat next to each other and talked and became friends," but we didn't get to actually see that happen. I like subtlety and tiny gestures that have deep meaning, and I don't require that everything be spelled out or be (melo)dramatic, but subtext requires at least some actual text for the sub- to be attached to.
My big problem, though, is the fact that Orlando is only really pushed over the edge into sexual desire once he's jealous, which is creepy as hell; wanting to f*ck someone to stake a claim on them is not romantic, it's disturbing. Weirdly, the narrative doesn't have any difficulty reconciling Orlando's sexually possessive behavior with its stance that gentle, loving sex between an established couple is the only kind of sex that's acceptable and that anything else is animalistic and disgusting (e.g., the stories in the books Orlando burned)an assertion that's a kissing-cousin to kink shaming.