Twisted Love

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3.5 stars

I had a hard time with the first half of the book. I felt like Ava was reading like a high schooler, so I wasn’t really connecting with her as a character. She just seemed so young, like a late teen based on her internal dialogue. I know she’s young and in her early twenties but something about her perspective put me off.

I didn’t see the twists coming about Michael and how the trauma was so much more than what Ava was told as a child. I did end up figuring out Alex’s uncle was controlling him and he would double cross him. Didn’t realise Alex was playing a long game with Josh and Ava’s dad. He could have ended it way early on rather than establishing such a close friendship with Josh.

The last half of the book was more interesting for me. It was sweet that Alex finally woke up and did all that he could to prove his worth to Ava. After their break up, I figured they would end up together, but it was good that he worked for it after lying and stuffing Ava around.

I’ve bought this whole series, so hoping the others deliver!

Loathe to Love You

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I read this as part of a tandem collective read along and I can say I was not disappointed.

First time Ali Hazelwood reader over here and my only gripe is that I wish these stories were actual novels rather than novellas. I really enjoyed the 3 leading ladies and their interconnected relationships. Loved that they were all STEMinists and it gave me a glimpse into the lives of women in these industries. This book gave me the opportunity to diversify my reading.

My favourite out of the 3 books was definitely Under One Roof. I enjoyed the story of Mara having such a close relationship with her professor that Mara received a portion of a house in her will. I liked how Liam and Mara would purposely try and get back at one another.

I am not a lover of the miscommunication trope, so I wasn’t overly into Stuck With You, but can appreciate the characters and who they were as people.

Below Zero was interesting with all the concepts integrated from NASA and honestly I loved Hannah’s sass. Would have been nice to explore her feelings surrounding why she holds potential partners at arm’s length.

Overall I thought it was a pretty decent novella set and would like to read more from the author.

Knot My Type

⭐️⭐️⭐️🌟

I read this as part of a collective voices read along with tandem collective. This had disability representation (obviously) and was a very exploratory read.

If you’re not a fan of Insta love, then this won’t be a read for you as the MCs Frankie and Jay were instantly attracted to one another and fell in love fast.

I didn’t always like the bedroom language coming out of Jay’s mouth. Some of it was cringe worthy and also repeated.

What I did like was Frankie and Jay’s dynamic. I feel like they were sarcastic and teasing in a loving way. It would have been nice to have more deeper conversations, as it felt like it only occurred during their “frating” moments and I wanted a bit more. Whatever happened in Jay’s past could have been brought up earlier to avoid the abrupt scenes with his ex. We definitely got a sense of who Frankie was through her dreams and goals, though not as much with Jay.

I think I would have liked the book to be longer so we could have had more depth to the characters. Felt like it was more sex than story and I’m not really convinced by their marriage at the end. Don’t get me wrong, sex in the story is good, but I wasn’t really buying that these characters had more of a connection.

Appreciate Jay growing as a character and doing something about his trauma. He definitely needed to make something happen with that. Really loved Frankie’s personality and her friend group. I’m interested enough to continue reading the series.

Not Your Valentine

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Thanks NetGalley, the author and publisher for having this available as an ARC.

I had so much fun reading this book. Helen’s internal thoughts had me laughing a lot! The whole premise with her ex dumping her on Valentine’s Day and have that break up go viral would be so devastating! In todays world, that really could happen, which is a bit sad as no one’s personal life should be on display like that!

I thought Taylor was so cute! Their friendship or should I say conversation did seem a bit odd when they met for lunch. It seemed as though Taylor was a bit short in his answers. I thought maybe he was reserved and when Helen asked to fake date, it’s like it opened his personality. I guess we found out later why that was.

I thought the pacing was good and length of the book was perfect. Loved Helen’s mum as it just reminded me of a typical Asian parent. Would have loved more scenes with Helen’s friends, so if this is made into a series, I’d be there for it.

This is easily a read that can be done in a few hours because it flowed so well.

Maybe She’ll Stay

**ARC review**

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Available 28th February

Thank you Netgalley, the author and publisher for having this available as an ARC.

I read this in one day as it has a steady flow throughout the book. This book is really about self acceptance and knowing your self worth.

The MC Nancy clearly had self esteem and worth issues that stemmed from her narcisstic mother. I never had a parent who was a narcissist, though I do know what it's like to have a partner who is, so could really relate to what was happening.. This is where Nancy failed in her three marriages and every relationship after that. The toxicity of the commentary from her mother played on her own thoughts and feelings.

Even though Hank had it tough, going to jail twice, he never stopped appreciating his children and the beauty they brought to his life. With all the feeling of being unloved, it was Hank that uplifted Nancy to realise she was so much more to people and there were those that cared. I think because of her tumultuous relationship with her mum, Nancy held people at an arm's length because in some way she was always sabotaging those connections.

With all the self sabotage, it was evenly distributed to Ashish too. I don't think she fully believed that she could be his equal because she thought she'd lose him eventually. Hank's words cemented into Nancy's growth as a character.

Would love to see if Nancy's mum ever mellows out from her narcisstic behaviour with therapy or something like that, but since this seems like a stand alone, I won't get that answer.