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A review by lezreadalot
Bishop by A.E. Via
3.0
3.5 stars. Writing-wise, this wasn't my favourite thing, but I still had a pretty good time with this romance just because it features characters that you don't read about very often. Bishop is a ex-gang member, ex-convict, trying to put this life back together, do the job he loves, and overcome his illiteracy. Edison is shy and introverted, struggling with his self-esteem after years of being made fun of for his weight, and still mourning the loss of his father. They meet when Bishop's landscaping crew get's a job at Edison's place of work. It's a sweet, slow romance, though not exactly slow burn. I really enjoyed the sympathetic treatment of ex-cons, and even more so, Bishop's illiteracy and the struggles he went through in trying to learn. That part felt super true to life. The romance was really cute. They were super sweet together, so supportive of each other. It made me smile so much, especially the way Bishop got smitten so fast, and his little pet names for Edison. An interesting titbit is how they were both best friends with their fathers, but in very different ways.
I didn't always love the way Edison's weight was written about. A lot of the time, his attractiveness seemed to hinge on the fact that he'd lost of lot of weight in the past years, before the book began. The plot involves secret keeping, which I didn't mind at all at first, because it's the kind of secret where you 100% understand why someone wouldn't be comfortable with revealing it until good solid trust is built up. I just wish it hadn't come out at like the 99th hour. It would have been nice to explore the vulnerability it created before the book ended. The most annoying thing was definitely the conflict with the "villain". I am so tired of romance books that create villains without giving me a concrete reason as to why they're antagonistic. And I mean, we did get a reason. It was just flimsy as heck and not believable. You can only stretch irrational jealousy so far.
Listened to the audiobook as read by Tor Thom, which was really enjoyable, save a few hiccoughs here and there. I probably will continue the series at some point, because the relationship in the next book looks like it will be an interesting one. I haven't read many ex-con romances; I'm glad that this was a mostly good one.
Content warnings:.
I didn't always love the way Edison's weight was written about. A lot of the time, his attractiveness seemed to hinge on the fact that he'd lost of lot of weight in the past years, before the book began. The plot involves secret keeping, which I didn't mind at all at first, because it's the kind of secret where you 100% understand why someone wouldn't be comfortable with revealing it until good solid trust is built up. I just wish it hadn't come out at like the 99th hour. It would have been nice to explore the vulnerability it created before the book ended. The most annoying thing was definitely the conflict with the "villain". I am so tired of romance books that create villains without giving me a concrete reason as to why they're antagonistic. And I mean, we did get a reason. It was just flimsy as heck and not believable. You can only stretch irrational jealousy so far.
Listened to the audiobook as read by Tor Thom, which was really enjoyable, save a few hiccoughs here and there. I probably will continue the series at some point, because the relationship in the next book looks like it will be an interesting one. I haven't read many ex-con romances; I'm glad that this was a mostly good one.
Content warnings: