A review by wardenred
Him by Elle Kennedy, Sarina Bowen

emotional funny lighthearted slow-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

3.0

I’m comfortable with him. I have fun with him. I’m not trying to impress anyone. It’s…easy. Like splashing in the lake. But with orgasms.

This was firmly an okay book for me! I had a few fun evenings with hit, laughed at plenty of lines, got a big helping of The Feels, and overall enjoyed the characters, the banter, and the relationship. I liked how all the misunderstandings between Wes and Jamie were firmly grounded into the experiences that shaped each of their personalities and it was very clear why they couldn't immediately see things each other's way. At the same time, at some point I got a little tired of how much effort it kept costing them to actually talk things out instead of sweeping them under the rug and hoping for whatever. Especially because it was so clear that whenever they did let each other in, they worked wonderfully together.

I also liked how the main story intersected with the characters' memories of their shared teenage year—not just the event that pushed them apart for a long while, but also all the little things that brought them together in the first place. The side plots with the teenagers they were coaching and all the little moments around the camp were nice additions: entertaining and adding to the central storyline instead of distracting from it. I liked how the sex scenes were written—fun and hot and ultimately pushing the character arcs along instead of just existing for the hotness. Oh, and one more thin: I really liked Holly, even though she was supposed to be a bit of a threat to the MCs' relationship. :D

I appreciated how the story made a point of how homophobia sucks and how people can and should do better, even/especially in the competitive masculine sports environments, though I did feel it got a bit preachy on at least one occasion. At the same time, there was some oddness about how Wes treated Jamie's bi awakening that made me uncomfortable, and sometimes I felt the vibe there bordered on biphobic. "OMG, I hoped he might be bi, but I saw him about to enthusiastically have sex with a girl!" — well, how does that prove he's not bi? Having romantic and sexual relationships with the opposite gender is PART of the bi experience, not a contradiction! There was also a lot of small bits casual misogyny. Like, did you know there are two approaches to confusing mornings after: the chick way, where you actually talk things out with words, and the dude way, where you stew in your own feelings and act like nothing happened and maybe actually hurt yourself and the other person by all the extra confusion? And "the chick way" is somehow supposed to be worse. Ugh. Toxic masculinity makes so little sense when you look at it closely!
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