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thepaperbackcompany's reviews
14 reviews
Red, White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston
5.0
I based my entire personality on this single book. Should I say anything more?
Binding 13 by Chloe Walsh
5.0
For whatever reason, chapter 3 and 4 of this book served more chemistry than those in the so called romance books that are famous on booktok.
This is, hands down, one of the cutest books I have read in a while. With hilarious pointless banters and the funniest scenes ever, it made me laugh out loud like I am fckng crazy. I felt the author's writing style as so similar to Elle Kennedy's. Both of them rant so very well in their books. The book is both plot-driven and character- driven. So it's gonna be a nice ride whatsoever.
Characters: Shannon and Johnny are my new favourite couple. They are gold. Shannon is a pure soul. She was bullied at school and abused by her own father since childhood. Throughout the book, I wanted to hug her so tight and protect her from all those who broke her. And Johnny, one of the youngest international rugby players, also the school rugby team captain, was a rich but humble, workaholic (playing international at 17 calls for obsessive practice), the most popular boy at school. Both of them had the perfect slow burn chemistry which would make us blush without any kinky smut. Johnny tried to give a wide berth between them, cause he was crazy stuck on how Shannon was just fifteen while he was this big oldie at seventeen. In my country, this age difference would be nothing. I can count atleast half a dozen teenager couples with much bigger age difference.
Johnny had a great character development. He was this aggressive, immature, short tempered boy (who secretly has a heart made of gold, was a real workaholic, focused entirely on his sport and crazy diets) in the beginning but he turned out to be sweet, responsible and a real baby, to be exact. One of the last chapters were so funny that it would have it's own fan base.
Every grumpy MMC has a talkative annoying best friend, so let me introduce ***drum rolls**** the great Gerard Gibson aka Gibsie. He is something else. Johnny and Gibsie actually gave Alex and Josh.
Gibsie and his love interest, Claire ( Shannon's bsf) gave the best soon to be second couple romance. I hope they have their own book. While Shannon and Johnny are all about heated looks and plummeting hearts, Gibsie is full on flirting with Claire with no filter out his mouth.
Now, the character who deserves the whole world, Joey Lynch, Shannon's older brother.
He is Shannon's everything. The one who stepped in to help and raise his younger siblings when their own father became a dumb shit and their mother, a dummy in his hands. He did get trapped in wrong connections, but it may have been a surprise if he didn't, considering everything he went through. I am looking forward to read his book.
One major con I found while reading is that the narration was repetitive. It was like the author was trying so hard to explain how a character is or what's happening. It was more like an unedited rambling. To give an example, the emphasis on how attractive Johnny is and how hard it was for him to be training since young age was used more than necessary. It made the narrative long and boring, which may turn out to be minus points for the whole book.
P.S. the book cover calls for dirty smut but believe me it's far from it.
This is, hands down, one of the cutest books I have read in a while. With hilarious pointless banters and the funniest scenes ever, it made me laugh out loud like I am fckng crazy. I felt the author's writing style as so similar to Elle Kennedy's. Both of them rant so very well in their books. The book is both plot-driven and character- driven. So it's gonna be a nice ride whatsoever.
Characters: Shannon and Johnny are my new favourite couple. They are gold. Shannon is a pure soul. She was bullied at school and abused by her own father since childhood. Throughout the book, I wanted to hug her so tight and protect her from all those who broke her. And Johnny, one of the youngest international rugby players, also the school rugby team captain, was a rich but humble, workaholic (playing international at 17 calls for obsessive practice), the most popular boy at school. Both of them had the perfect slow burn chemistry which would make us blush without any kinky smut. Johnny tried to give a wide berth between them, cause he was crazy stuck on how Shannon was just fifteen while he was this big oldie at seventeen. In my country, this age difference would be nothing. I can count atleast half a dozen teenager couples with much bigger age difference.
Johnny had a great character development. He was this aggressive, immature, short tempered boy (who secretly has a heart made of gold, was a real workaholic, focused entirely on his sport and crazy diets) in the beginning but he turned out to be sweet, responsible and a real baby, to be exact. One of the last chapters were so funny that it would have it's own fan base.
Every grumpy MMC has a talkative annoying best friend, so let me introduce ***drum rolls**** the great Gerard Gibson aka Gibsie. He is something else. Johnny and Gibsie actually gave Alex and Josh.
Gibsie and his love interest, Claire ( Shannon's bsf) gave the best soon to be second couple romance. I hope they have their own book. While Shannon and Johnny are all about heated looks and plummeting hearts, Gibsie is full on flirting with Claire with no filter out his mouth.
Now, the character who deserves the whole world, Joey Lynch, Shannon's older brother.
He is Shannon's everything. The one who stepped in to help and raise his younger siblings when their own father became a dumb shit and their mother, a dummy in his hands. He did get trapped in wrong connections, but it may have been a surprise if he didn't, considering everything he went through. I am looking forward to read his book.
One major con I found while reading is that the narration was repetitive. It was like the author was trying so hard to explain how a character is or what's happening. It was more like an unedited rambling. To give an example, the emphasis on how attractive Johnny is and how hard it was for him to be training since young age was used more than necessary. It made the narrative long and boring, which may turn out to be minus points for the whole book.
P.S. the book cover calls for dirty smut but believe me it's far from it.
Heated Rivalry by Rachel Reid
4.0
- gay romance
- ice hockey players
- rivals to lovers
- very spicy, I mean, very very very spicy
- cutesttttt MCs
The first three pointers here is enough to explain why I picked this book up. When I started the book, i thought it would be just two hundred pages of smut. And it was, almost 70% of it. And the very forbidden half naked bodies on the book cover did encourage that opinion of mine. Almost 70% into the book was when the rivals-with-benefits started turning to something more. I do wish there had been more seggs-free encounters between the boys. The ones we got was extremely cute and i will tell you, they deserved more pages. Shane and Ilya had chemistry to be adored and explored more. And the author thought so too, cause there is a sequeeeeel!!! Yay!!! We didn't get to know more about the side characters but I did read an excerpt of another book in the series which I think is interesting and would be as cute and more angsty as this one.
Ilya's backstory didn't affect me much but it was a good one. It gave space to a lot of situations. I hope he would get the family life he deserved with Shane without any homophobic bastards interfering. Oh yes, Ilya is Russian. So imagine his cute English with the sexy accent. When Ilya was the intimidating, bad boy figure, Shane was the golden retriever good boy. It's quite hard to imagine Shane to be on the ice, furious and playing such a dangerous sport. He is a baby. They have plans to raise children in the future, maybe they could adopt me. But it would be hella awkward cause I just read all their spicy encounters and eww! They are my parents and I know what they like when they have****well, moving on****The book was easy to read but not beginner friendly. A smut virgin mind would blow up overwhelmed by the amount of smut in it.
Overall, it is a solid 4 star read. Yeah, i took that one out of it, cause I didn't get enough scenes to swoon over. But to conclude, i love this book.
- ice hockey players
- rivals to lovers
- very spicy, I mean, very very very spicy
- cutesttttt MCs
The first three pointers here is enough to explain why I picked this book up. When I started the book, i thought it would be just two hundred pages of smut. And it was, almost 70% of it. And the very forbidden half naked bodies on the book cover did encourage that opinion of mine. Almost 70% into the book was when the rivals-with-benefits started turning to something more. I do wish there had been more seggs-free encounters between the boys. The ones we got was extremely cute and i will tell you, they deserved more pages. Shane and Ilya had chemistry to be adored and explored more. And the author thought so too, cause there is a sequeeeeel!!! Yay!!! We didn't get to know more about the side characters but I did read an excerpt of another book in the series which I think is interesting and would be as cute and more angsty as this one.
Ilya's backstory didn't affect me much but it was a good one. It gave space to a lot of situations. I hope he would get the family life he deserved with Shane without any homophobic bastards interfering. Oh yes, Ilya is Russian. So imagine his cute English with the sexy accent. When Ilya was the intimidating, bad boy figure, Shane was the golden retriever good boy. It's quite hard to imagine Shane to be on the ice, furious and playing such a dangerous sport. He is a baby. They have plans to raise children in the future, maybe they could adopt me. But it would be hella awkward cause I just read all their spicy encounters and eww! They are my parents and I know what they like when they have****well, moving on****The book was easy to read but not beginner friendly. A smut virgin mind would blow up overwhelmed by the amount of smut in it.
Overall, it is a solid 4 star read. Yeah, i took that one out of it, cause I didn't get enough scenes to swoon over. But to conclude, i love this book.
The American Roommate Experiment by Elena Armas
3.0
Okay readers, i finally understand why Lucas Martin is trending.
The book is a light romance read. If you need to get out of a slump, maybe it would help.
The characters are the usuals. The 'trying too hard to be strong all the time' heroine and the handsomest spanish man who is so supportive despite his own problems. The only diversion from the typicals is that Lucas isn't a grump. He is a sunshine even tho he has a scarred past which he is trying to overcome.
Let's talk about Lucas a bit. He looks good as per Rosie's constant swooning. He is well mannered and respectful. A total gentleman. But the main thing is that HE COOKS. Delicious meals at that. The absolute book boyfriend adored my millions. Also, the spanish at times is really sexy even tho i don't know the first thing about thr language. Aaron + Catalina slip ups may entertain you too if you are a TSLD fan. I was not particularly looking forward for them but I really like it when there are references of characters from other books.
Rosalyn Graham! She is cute and hilarious. The awkwardness of the mc - even if over used by authors will never cease to entertain the readers. She is strong and will always try to keep her shit together. She is ballsy
The book is a light romance read. If you need to get out of a slump, maybe it would help.
The characters are the usuals. The 'trying too hard to be strong all the time' heroine and the handsomest spanish man who is so supportive despite his own problems. The only diversion from the typicals is that Lucas isn't a grump. He is a sunshine even tho he has a scarred past which he is trying to overcome.
Let's talk about Lucas a bit. He looks good as per Rosie's constant swooning. He is well mannered and respectful. A total gentleman. But the main thing is that HE COOKS. Delicious meals at that. The absolute book boyfriend adored my millions. Also, the spanish at times is really sexy even tho i don't know the first thing about thr language. Aaron + Catalina slip ups may entertain you too if you are a TSLD fan. I was not particularly looking forward for them but I really like it when there are references of characters from other books.
Rosalyn Graham! She is cute and hilarious. The awkwardness of the mc - even if over used by authors will never cease to entertain the readers. She is strong and will always try to keep her shit together. She is ballsy
Daughter of the Moon Goddess by Sue Lynn Tan
3.0
MY RATING: 3.5/5
MY JOURNEY : The book had a really interesting start with an introduction of a whole new fantasy world and intriguing characters. However, at some point, it lost my eagerness and I struggled a bit to carry on. A good part of it seemed bland and lagging, but it can be overlooked. The boring part was long over after it took up the pace and started the main-main plot. I finished the book after this at a record speed. The end was okay but not as fulfilling as it should be after this long a journey. Minus the boring part, you get a cool fantasy novel with a badass MC and a good adventure.
CHARACTERS: Even though she won't enter my top fav FMC list, I loved Xingyin. She was strong willed and powerful. Liwei was sort of a disappointment. I really liked him in the first few chapters he was introduced but he lost his charm as the story proceeded and became more of a background character.
I really expected him to deliver a good romance. About Wenzhi, unexpectedly I liked him more in the end than at the beginning. I sympathized for him. I probably might be sick at the head to do that but I did. I am not sorry. The love triangle had so much potential but it didn't get there. I can't complain cause it is most parts a fantasy book and not a complete romance. Xingyin was def the main character. Everything was about her. Her main goal was to free her mother and do what's expected of her. So the boys faded to the background. I didn't feel that attachment to the boys because unlike other fantasy mcs, Xingyin was not a girl who went boy crazy and ponder over a stupid love triangle. Her POV didn't serve it. The boys were legit side characters. So don't go looking for a cute romance in it or some boys to make book boyfriends of cause neither of them impressed me.
I will recommend it to anyone who needs a light fantasy. Also, sources say that it's inspired by the legend of Chang'e, the chinese moon goddess. Mythology fans!!! assemble!!! Written by an Asian author, it gave me the vibes. Worth the try tho.
MY JOURNEY : The book had a really interesting start with an introduction of a whole new fantasy world and intriguing characters. However, at some point, it lost my eagerness and I struggled a bit to carry on. A good part of it seemed bland and lagging, but it can be overlooked. The boring part was long over after it took up the pace and started the main-main plot. I finished the book after this at a record speed. The end was okay but not as fulfilling as it should be after this long a journey. Minus the boring part, you get a cool fantasy novel with a badass MC and a good adventure.
CHARACTERS: Even though she won't enter my top fav FMC list, I loved Xingyin. She was strong willed and powerful. Liwei was sort of a disappointment. I really liked him in the first few chapters he was introduced but he lost his charm as the story proceeded and became more of a background character.
I really expected him to deliver a good romance. About Wenzhi, unexpectedly I liked him more in the end than at the beginning. I sympathized for him. I probably might be sick at the head to do that but I did. I am not sorry. The love triangle had so much potential but it didn't get there. I can't complain cause it is most parts a fantasy book and not a complete romance. Xingyin was def the main character. Everything was about her. Her main goal was to free her mother and do what's expected of her. So the boys faded to the background. I didn't feel that attachment to the boys because unlike other fantasy mcs, Xingyin was not a girl who went boy crazy and ponder over a stupid love triangle. Her POV didn't serve it. The boys were legit side characters. So don't go looking for a cute romance in it or some boys to make book boyfriends of cause neither of them impressed me.
I will recommend it to anyone who needs a light fantasy. Also, sources say that it's inspired by the legend of Chang'e, the chinese moon goddess. Mythology fans!!! assemble!!! Written by an Asian author, it gave me the vibes. Worth the try tho.
The Reaper by RuNyx
5.0
Okay so this book was not supposed to make me giggle so much. It was so cute, i mean it when i say i kicked my feet onto the air atleast after every single Tristan×Morana scene. The dimples, the tattoo and the baby snores. I just fell in love with them more and more after every chapter. I fed on the thrill and the plot twist. I thought all of it ended very quick, like all those suspense for nothing, but i am more than happy for that cause i don't need more drama. I just need them to be happy. I am worried and excited about Dante and Amara. So i will be reading their book pretty soon. My favourite is Morana. She is brave, funny and a genius. I just love how she was clear on everything. And well, the caveman is now high on top of my favourite book boyfriends list.
(giggle inducing, swoon-worthy, adorable Caveman+Wildcat romance)
(giggle inducing, swoon-worthy, adorable Caveman+Wildcat romance)
King of Wrath by Ana Huang
3.0
The plot:
Almost 80% of the book was Dante and Vivian, getting to know each other, sexual tensions, Dante getting jealous, Vivian just existing, them having sex. It wasn't boring. Just the regular stuff. They were cute together, but after so many romance books like this, they failed to impress me. You can read it as a book you read when you don't have anything else to read or to get the whole of twisted universe.
The smut was disgusting. I hated it more than I hated "crawl to me".
I mainly read this book for the drama that will make it's way through after the plot twist. I wanted to feel the pain and the betrayal. Insert flashbacks of me sobbing about twisted hate. But unfortunately the plot twist fell flat, and the chapters after that felt so dragged, mostly cause all my excitement was washed down by then.
After twisted hate, i expected a huge one from Ana.
The characters:
Dante is an idiot more than an asshole and
Vivian is a sweetheart, tho she gotta put those huge family values aside and think for herself. Kai and Isa were intriguing.
Just when i thought it couldn't get any more clichéd, Dante's groveling lines were so corny. "The way your eyes crinkle when you laugh"
"You take the most ordinary or unexpected things and make them extraordinary. You see the silver lining in every situation and the good in everyone, even if they don’t deserve it"
The man was so deprived of genuine human connection that Vivian just existing made him worship her. Yeah well, love does crazy things to people.
I like Dante and Vivian. They are not this extraordinary duo of lovers, but yeah well, i didn't despise them.
Overall, it was a good book.
NOT BAD, NOT GOOD.
Almost 80% of the book was Dante and Vivian, getting to know each other, sexual tensions, Dante getting jealous, Vivian just existing, them having sex. It wasn't boring. Just the regular stuff. They were cute together, but after so many romance books like this, they failed to impress me. You can read it as a book you read when you don't have anything else to read or to get the whole of twisted universe.
The smut was disgusting. I hated it more than I hated "crawl to me".
I mainly read this book for the drama that will make it's way through after the plot twist. I wanted to feel the pain and the betrayal. Insert flashbacks of me sobbing about twisted hate. But unfortunately the plot twist fell flat, and the chapters after that felt so dragged, mostly cause all my excitement was washed down by then.
After twisted hate, i expected a huge one from Ana.
The characters:
Dante is an idiot more than an asshole and
Vivian is a sweetheart, tho she gotta put those huge family values aside and think for herself. Kai and Isa were intriguing.
Just when i thought it couldn't get any more clichéd, Dante's groveling lines were so corny. "The way your eyes crinkle when you laugh"
"You take the most ordinary or unexpected things and make them extraordinary. You see the silver lining in every situation and the good in everyone, even if they don’t deserve it"
The man was so deprived of genuine human connection that Vivian just existing made him worship her. Yeah well, love does crazy things to people.
I like Dante and Vivian. They are not this extraordinary duo of lovers, but yeah well, i didn't despise them.
Overall, it was a good book.
NOT BAD, NOT GOOD.
Cursed Fates by Caroline Peckham, Susanne Valenti
3.0
The whole series has been a 5 star read. Very addictive and extreme. But that was until book five and they started acting a bit too much like animals. Well, i know they are not humans. They are fae and they have their own animal orders but still. It was a major turn off for me. I am trying to forget that part of the story cause I don't want it to ruin the rest of it. Call me old fashioned or conservative or whatever, that threesome Darius and Caleb played with Tory was so disgusting, weird, illogical and unnecessary. I expected more from their huge plans to bring torydarius back. The heirs always disappoint me with their plans. Idk how they believe they are gonna change the kingdom for better. So foolish. They have half a brain cell and the four are sharing it. Like they planned so freaking much for Tory and Darius to be together and they planned a freaking threesome. And Darius said yes to it. You are supposed to be a dragon with a lot of possessiveness. And the same with Tory. wtf is wrong with her brain and it's capability to make better decisions. Caleb was just so enjoying it. Jerk! I am mentally scarred rn. They could have used the time there to talk and sort out things between them. But no let's have some steamy porn level blindfolded sex.
And yeah, the mates written by stars thing feels like some bullshit theory for having a person you are destined to have mad sex with.
Is that supposed to be like that or did I just misinterpret? I heard about stars and mates, and without much thought connected it to love. I don't feel there’s any love between Tory and Darius at all. More like a lot of lust and hunger for each others' bodies. Thinking of that, every relationship in this story is based on lust. Lance and Darcy may have touched some other grounds but still they do come under my scrutiny. I do feel great about how the author unapologetically wrote them like the animals they are, even tho i don't like it. That's kinda brilliant and stupid at the same time.
I didn’t dnf it at this point. I read till the court case and what finally made me break is the miscommunication “i will take the fall for you” shit between Darcy and Lance.
The story might have taken a turn to the better and I wouldn’t know. So, i am not totally qualified to give a review on the series, but yeah i hated the threesome so here it is!
And yeah, the mates written by stars thing feels like some bullshit theory for having a person you are destined to have mad sex with.
Is that supposed to be like that or did I just misinterpret? I heard about stars and mates, and without much thought connected it to love. I don't feel there’s any love between Tory and Darius at all. More like a lot of lust and hunger for each others' bodies. Thinking of that, every relationship in this story is based on lust. Lance and Darcy may have touched some other grounds but still they do come under my scrutiny. I do feel great about how the author unapologetically wrote them like the animals they are, even tho i don't like it. That's kinda brilliant and stupid at the same time.
I didn’t dnf it at this point. I read till the court case and what finally made me break is the miscommunication “i will take the fall for you” shit between Darcy and Lance.
The story might have taken a turn to the better and I wouldn’t know. So, i am not totally qualified to give a review on the series, but yeah i hated the threesome so here it is!
Good Girl Complex by Elle Kennedy
4.0
An Elle Kennedy original includes the following :
• interesting, sharp tongued and confident characters
• endless banters
• cocky male love interest
• hardbound friendships
• daddy/mommy issues
• an fmc who can be named as a new aesthetic
Good girl complex checks most of the boxes mentioned here. Cooper, the townie mmc, hates the rich snobs, or clones in his language, that infiltrate his small but lovely town. Mackenzie is exactly a clone or he thought so at first glance. Well, she's not and she is trying so desperately to get out of the "cloning" system. They are a hardworking, strong and always put together couple, and they are a pain in the ass to each other. The story follows a really clichéd but one of the best tropes - revenge to romance. Small beach town element was used almost really well.
Like I said, it is started with a revenge plan. And we know how a romance will go from then. I am disappointed only at one thing. The drama was lacking. I need more drama. I think the big revealing about the revenge plan should have been more heart aching and things didn't go as haywire as I wanted it to be. I must be crazy to be bummed that things went well for the characters.
Elle, being the found family expert, created another amazing friend circle even though they don't seem to have the same bond as the off-campus boys. Also, the romance between Cooper and Mac seemed more like an attraction thing than ✨️TRUE LOVE✨️ If we put that aside, they make a great couple.
This book is no where near the off campus series if you want to compare the author's titles and I wouldn't rec it often as i do with the others.
• interesting, sharp tongued and confident characters
• endless banters
• cocky male love interest
• hardbound friendships
• daddy/mommy issues
• an fmc who can be named as a new aesthetic
Good girl complex checks most of the boxes mentioned here. Cooper, the townie mmc, hates the rich snobs, or clones in his language, that infiltrate his small but lovely town. Mackenzie is exactly a clone or he thought so at first glance. Well, she's not and she is trying so desperately to get out of the "cloning" system. They are a hardworking, strong and always put together couple, and they are a pain in the ass to each other. The story follows a really clichéd but one of the best tropes - revenge to romance. Small beach town element was used almost really well.
Like I said, it is started with a revenge plan. And we know how a romance will go from then. I am disappointed only at one thing. The drama was lacking. I need more drama. I think the big revealing about the revenge plan should have been more heart aching and things didn't go as haywire as I wanted it to be. I must be crazy to be bummed that things went well for the characters.
Elle, being the found family expert, created another amazing friend circle even though they don't seem to have the same bond as the off-campus boys. Also, the romance between Cooper and Mac seemed more like an attraction thing than ✨️TRUE LOVE✨️ If we put that aside, they make a great couple.
This book is no where near the off campus series if you want to compare the author's titles and I wouldn't rec it often as i do with the others.