Tag: New Adult

New Adult, New Adult Romance

My Review: The Chase (Briar U #1): by Elle Kennedy

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Publish Date: August 26th, 2018
Number of Pages: 372 Pages
Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing
Genre(s): New Adult, New Adult Romance

Total Star Rating: 3.75 Stars

The Off-Campus series is one of my absolute favorite romance series to date with Elle Kennedy’s ability to perfectly mix humor and steam into one heck of a juicy story, so imagine my excitement when I learn that there’s another series set to release that’s in the same world! If I like something enough, of course I’m like every other member of a fandom who begs and pleads and prays to the creator of whatever it is to PLEASE GIVE US MORE, and it’s insanely satisfying when they do, add some extra YAY in there when it’s not terrible and a total cash-grab.

The Briar-U spinoff series definitely feels like the former in that sense when I got to reading this title as soon as I was able to find a hard copy. Even though it’s a new batch of main characters, the same chemistry and the same amount of angst, banter, sexual tension, and love scenes were all present in how the previous characters may have been so memorable for you like they were for me.

If anyone read my review of The Goal (Off-Campus #4), you’ll remember that I was less than thrilled about it. It’s not that I hated it, but it was definitely the weakest of the series, and that’s rather unfortunate considering it was the finisher to the series. My point is that this time around I was way more behind the couple from the get-go; their chemistry was plain as day and I couldn’t get enough of it all! It was a great bounce back from the less-than-stellar previous book for me.

It was a smart decision for the author to bring back some somewhat familiar faces from the previous books too: There was Hunter: the freshman who Dean kind of took under his wing, there was Collin Fitzgerald or “Fitzy,” the quiet, tattooed, game design student, and then there was also Summer, who is Dean’s younger sister. They were all really minor characters before, but now it’s great to see them get the spotlight this time around!

That doesn’t mean there also aren’t plenty of new faces to add to the bunch: there’s Summer’s instant new BFF, Brenna, who also happens to be the coach’s daughter, and Hollis, who’s Hunter and Fitz’s roommate. I think it’s also cool to add that these guys live in the same house that Garrett, Logan, Dean, and Tucker all lived in; it’s a great way to further connect the two series together like that.

For the most part, this book is pretty light in tone, there are some major social issues that are brought to light within the story, but I go more into that later down in the review.

What It’s About:

With the start of a new semester at Briar University, and while some faces have graduated and moved away, there are plenty of new faces to stir up some entertaining drama and romance much like the previous Off-Campus series! Some of the characters are some familiar names; they were underclassmen Hunter and Fitzy who have taken over the very same house that Garrett, Logan, Dean, and Tucker lived in their junior and senior years.

Another returning character is Summer DiLaurentis, Dean’s younger sister, who’s transferred from her previous ivy league university under some mysterious circumstances…but she has nowhere to go. Even as a legacy to join one of the top sororities on campus, they reject her due to her circumstances at her previous school, so she calls in a favor to her brother, and believe it or not, winds up rooming with Hunter, Fitzy, and another teammate named Hollis.

The issue with this set up? The obvious spark that’s between Summer and Fitzy that only grows bigger and bigger as they live under the same roof. He tries to act like there’s nothing going on, but just perhaps the lady doth protest too much…It’s total opposites attract: Fitzy’s an introverted, broody, heavily tattooed, and has Game Design as his major while Summer is kind of a total Elle Woods: Blonde, bubbly, gorgeous, and a Fashion Design major. On paper, it appears like there’s no way they’d be right for each other, but that certainly doesn’t stop the sexual tension to keep rising and rising until someone’s about to explode!

What I Liked:

  1. The Familiar Faces! I really enjoyed seeing some returning characters like Summer, Hunter, and Fitzy; they were really minor characters in the previous series and didn’t get a whole lot of attention, so it was enticing to see them get the spotlight on them this time around. There were also some cameos from some previous Briar University students like Garrett, Hannah, Tucker, and of course Dean and Allie. Happy to see that the couples are all still together and moving forward with the next step of their lives. It was like paying homage to the base this series grew from and you kind of got that jolt of excitement you usually get when you get to have a big reunion with your friends.
  2. The Social Issues Brought Up! Learning disabilities, sexual assault on college campuses, girl-on-girl hatred, judging people based off appearances, and broken families are issues that a lot of us face in our daily lives. These were some serious issues that were brought up in this book that I also think were handled incredibly well and respectfully by the author. It made the story feel a lot more meaningful and relatable because yeah, I definitely have experience with at least one of them myself. These were much more realistic than some of the other issues Elle Kennedy has brought up in her books, so you can tell there’s been some maturing of her writing ability by this point!
  3. The Laughs! Hilarious one-liners, ongoing jokes with certain characters, and the steamy banter all make what I believe make Elle Kennedy an incredibly popular author within the NA Romance genre.
  4. The Love Triangle! I know….weird to say since everyone seems to be completely over this whole trope indefinitely, but I can say I still enjoy it from time to time depending on how it’s handled. There’s some major angst that brews between Summer, Fitzy, and Hunter (who also shows major romantic interest in her). Kind of awkward since they literally all live in the same house together, and of course you know who Summer is going to end up with, so part of me was also torn on how Hunter reacts later on, but I can say it made me wonder how in the heck the two main characters will end up together!
  5. Nerd Culture! Fitzy’s a Game Design major and is also a pretty intelligent guy, he falls pretty far from the stereotypical dumb jock, so of course that means he’s going to have a vast knowledge of video games and technology in general. Someone else pointed it out on Goodreads too, but I had to agree that it seemed like Elle Kennedy really did her research and made all the terms and platforms she mentions feel authentic and genuine. I’m by no means a game nerd in any way so I’m not the most legit source on whether this part was done correctly, but it for sure felt real to me.

What I Didn’t Like:

  1. The Slow-Burn…I mean, the sexual tension was good, don’t get me wrong, but part of me was kind of hoping for more steamy smut scenes than what we actually got in this book. What we did get was some absolutely scorching, off the charts hot stuff, but based off what’s gone down in the books of the previous series, I was just kind of hoping for more.

Conclusion:

It was a total joy to come back into the world of Briar University with all the hockey players and the ladies who rock their skates off, one by one with each new installment! I’m so happy that there’s going to be even more books, because like the Off-Campus series, this new cast of characters seem like an exciting bunch who’ll make you excited to see what will possibly happen next, and also wonder who’ll end up together.

If you loved the previous series, you’re going to adore this one too, and I can also say you’ll even enjoy this book even if you haven’t read them at all. First: I definitely say you SHOULD read them because of how amazing I think they are as a series, and second: The beginning might be a little jarring with the listing of so many names of people—the characters of the previous series—who make a cameo return before the story goes to focus more on the newer batch of the cast. Just want to throw that out there for anyone’s consideration.

Elle Kennedy continues to be a favorite Romance genre author for me with this new spinoff series, I’m really looking forward to the next three books too!

Thanks for Reading!

— Nick Goodsell

Fantasy, New Adult, New Adult Romance

My Review: The Bridge Kingdom (The Bridge Kingdom #1): by Danielle L. Jensen

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Publish Date: August 13th, 2019
Number of Pages: 354 Pages
Publisher: Context Literary Agency LLC
Genre(s): Fantasy, New Adult Romance

Total Star Rating: 4 Stars

A princess who’s secretly a trained assassin…

An ACTUAL enemies-to-lovers where one of them tries to kill the other at one point…

A marriage of Convenience…

Twisty political intrigue and espionage…

Lots of exciting action scenes…

Slow burning sexual tension mixed with distrust up the WAZOOOO…

Tropical and lush scenery…

Snarky grandmas…

Um…Yes, LOVE that journey for me!

The Bridge Kingdom was a book that’s been thrown around multiple Facebook groups I follow for Sarah J. Maas and Jennifer Armentrout, and I’ll admit that upon looking into this book that I was definitely curious! I hadn’t heard much about the author nor have I read anything by her—Although I do have a hardcover copy of Dark Shores on my shelf at home to be read soon!—but with how often I saw this title brought up, I knew it’d eventually end up in my hands.

I must say this book surprised me because I was instantly hooked! We have a Game of Thrones Red Wedding-esque scene almost right away in the beginning of the story, and within the first three chapters I’m slightly terrified of our heroine, and emotionally invested in her when a big secret is revealed right away afterwards in explanation of her shocking scene beforehand, and can’t wait to see what else she can do!

The story itself is nothing too groundbreaking or unique or innovative, but my higher rating simply is because of how this story is told. I feel like I’ve read plenty of ‘deadly girl infiltrates enemy kingdom and plans to kill the king after marriage-by-convenience, but falls in love instead,’ but the author just tells it so well; it really draws you in. She also has vivid descriptions of the world as you explore it with one of the main characters, and the pacing keeps you riveted and turning the pages when you convince yourself “Just 1 more chapter…” like 5 chapters ago. The action, plus the agonizingly slow romance building between the two main characters kept my attention, then thankfully making me satisfied when it finally happens (Although, it would’ve been fine to have happened, like, fifty pages ago too, but whatever…) The growth that the main character goes through was also fun to read, both her and her love interest discover the important lesson of how maybe we shouldn’t give in to certain prejudices about people from another culture, but then again, if there’s tension and the threat of war between the two kingdoms, it’s kind of inevitable…but there’s also the idea to consider that you also shouldn’t believe everything someone tells you about a certain group of people either.

Despite how short the book appears, it felt like a really long story; It was like there was a lot more words crammed in on every page than most other published books, so after reading fifty pages it actually felt like I’d read an additional hundred with all the material that fits just in that small chunk of pages.

A fair heads up, not really a warning, but despite this being within the Fantasy genre, there’s not a whole lot of typical Fantasy elements: namely, a magic system and mythological creatures. It’s a tropical climate setting with islands that makes me think of exotic destinations like Hawaii, Thailand, or the Caribbean with a lot of snakes that inhabit the land while the sharks make several appearances when the characters travel by boat through the water. Not that I’m trying to knock the worldbuilding because it’s still a fictional land and is still wonderfully done, but let me just say that you shouldn’t go into this book expecting wizards casting spells or any dragons flying around. While these aspects of Fantasy may be lacking, the world is still rife with lots of political intrigue and militaristic strategies being made around a particular landscape phenomenon referred to as “The Bridge” (hence the title of the book/series), and for any of you visual learners, the bridge is like the Chinese Wall that travels for miles and miles, except this time it’s not man-made.

Like I said, this book surprised me by how much I found myself enjoying it, and I even already ordered the sequel because that ending……oofda! I need to read on and get some more answers and just see what will possibly happen next! I loved how the author tied in the very beginning of the book to let you see how much the character has changed throughout the story and how the stakes have changed so drastically. If this is the first book I finish reading in 2021, I can happily say that the new year for books is already looking pretty bright!

What It’s About:

The official blurb:

What if you fell in love with the one person you’d sworn to destroy?

Lara has only one thought for her husband on their wedding day: I will bring your kingdom to its knees. A princess trained from childhood to be a lethal spy, Lara knows that the Bridge Kingdom represents both legendary evil – and legendary promise. The only route through a storm-ravaged world, the Bridge Kingdom controls all trade and travel between lands, allowing its ruler to enrich himself and deprive his enemies, including Lara’s homeland. So when she is sent as a bride under the guise of fulfilling a treaty of peace, Lara is prepared to do whatever it takes to fracture the defenses of the impenetrable Bridge Kingdom.

But as she infiltrates her new home – a lush paradise surrounded by tempest seas – and comes to know her new husband, Aren, Lara begins to question where the true evil resides. Around her, she sees a kingdom fighting for survival, and in Aren, a man fiercely protective of his people. As her mission drives her to deeper understanding of the fight to possess the bridge, Lara finds the simmering attraction between her and Aren impossible to ignore. Her goal nearly within reach, Lara will have to decide her own fate: Will she be the destroyer of a king or the savior of her people?

What I Liked:

  1. The Characters, Especially Lara Veliant! I personally liked them and thought lara especially went through a lot of growth as the story developed. I liked that she was already an established assassin by the time the story takes place, and you aren’t treated to her training and coming into her deadly skills. She gives me some major Aelin Galathynius-Whitethorn vibes with her looks, her attitude, and her physical prowess. I liked Aren too, but not quite as much and didn’t feel like he changed except for his feelings towards Lara. I also feel like he didn’t stand out as much from other male hero/love interests in these types of stories. Sure, he’s brave and noble and caring and charming, but so is every other male character in his position! Hopefully he gets more characterization in the second book.
  2. Good Pacing! There was a lot of action to keep you excited that mixed perfectly with the slower moments where dialogue and character is revealed. I found this surprising since they’re wasn’t an actual villain present for a large chunk of the story; it was more about Lara’s change in attitude and swerving of which side she truly belonged to by the end of the story. I think this also added to why I found this book so easy to want to keep reading, even if I was so familiar with basically all the story’s elements.
  3. They’re Actually Enemies-to-Lovers! A lot of the time people say a romance storyline is this trope when in actuality it really isn’t…I don’t feel like going into examples, but what I liked about this story with the trope is that the two characters actually almost kill each other on several occasions. When they say “enemies,” I want instances where they’re nearly coming to blows, they plot to assassinate the other, and actually have an animosity towards the other…sure, it eventually burns into a passionate love, but they always love and hate have a varied line between them!

What I Didn’t Like:

  1. Not As Much Romance As I’d Liked… What I mean is that it’s a really really slow slow-burn of a romance, which if I think about it, makes total sense. Lara and Aren are from two different kingdoms and have been raised to believe certain prejudices about each other, so I can say the romance grew rather realistically, but I don’t know…I kind of just wanted some more romance scenes. Maybe there will be a lot more in the next book!
  2. Not Many Fantasy Elements… I mentioned this earlier, but for a book that falls under the Fantasy genre, there’s not a whole lot of elements that show up in this story. There’s no magic, there’s no mythological creatures, no charmed/cursed item or relic, and so on…The world is entirely fictional, but that’s about it. The animals are snakes and sharks; I feel like the author could’ve reimagined them as some sort of creature that’s similar, but more on the mythological side.

Conclusion:

The Bridge Kingdom is an adventurous and exciting enemies-to-lovers tale with plenty of distinctive characters, slow burning romance thick with tension and distrust, bloody action and military strategization, and of course beautiful and exotic locations that are used incredibly well into the story: you could say I definitely recommend this title, just maybe…

…no but actually, READ this book!

Specifically, if you loved books like The Falling Kingdoms series by Morgan Rhodes, Serpent and Dove by Shelby Mahurin, The Folk of the Air series by Holly Black, Truthwitch by Susan Dennard, and of course, just about ANYTHING by Sarah J. Maas or Jennifer Armentrout, I know you’ll most likely also enjoy this book as well. It’s got all the same elements that these other authors offer to the genre, and is yet another beautifully told story that will wrap you up and drag you in without a second thought.

Thanks for Reading!

— Nick Goodsell

New Adult, New Adult Romance, Romance

My Review: The Goal (Off-Campus #4): by Elle Kennedy

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Publication Date: September 26th, 2016
Number of Pages: 334 Pages
Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing
Genre(s): New Adult Romance

***Warning!!! This review contains spoilers for this book plus the previous books in the series, continue reading at your own risk! You’ve officially been warned!!!***

To see my full review of book #1 – The Deal – Click HERE

To see my full review of book #2 – The Mistake – Click HERE

To see my full review of book #3 – The Score – Click HERE

Total Star Rating: 2.25 Stars

Footsteps approach the kitchen. Garrett wanders in, wiping sweat off his brow. When he notices Sabrina, he brightens. ‘Oh good. You’re here. Hold on—gotta grab something.’

She turns to me as if to say, Is he talking to me?

He’s already gone, though, his footsteps thumping up the stairs.

At the table, Hannah runs a hand through her hair and gives me a pleading look. ‘Just remember he’s your best friend, okay?’

That doesn’t sound ominous.

When Garrett returns, he’s holding a notepad and a ballpoint pen, which he sets on the table as he sits across from Sabrina. ‘Tuck,’ he says. ‘Sit. This is important.’

I’m so baffled right now. Hannah’s resigned expression doesn’t help in lessening the confusion.

Once I’m seated next to Sabrina, Garrett flips open the notepad, all business. ‘Okay. So let’s go over the names.’

Sabrina raises an eyebrow at me.

I shrug, because I legitimately don’t know what the fuck he’s talking about.

‘I’ve put together a solid list. I really think you’re going to like these.” But when he glances down at the page, his face falls. ‘Ah crap. We can’t use any of the boy names.’

‘Wait.’ Sabrina holds up a hand, her brow furrowed. ‘You’re picking names for our baby?’

He nods, busy flipping the page.

My baby mama gapes at me.

I shrug again.

‘Just out of curiosity, what were the boy names?’ Grace hedges, clearly fighting a smile.

He cheers up again. ‘Well, the top contender was Garrett.’

I snicker loud enough to rattle Sabrina’s water glass. ‘Uh-huh,’ I say, playing along. ‘And what was the runner-up?’

‘Graham.’

Hannah sighs.

‘But it’s okay. I have some kickass girl names too.’ He taps his pen on the pad, meets our eyes, and utters two syllables. ‘Gigi.’

My jaw drops. ‘Are you kidding me? I’m not naming my daughter Gigi.’

Sabrina is mystified. ‘Why Gigi?’ she asks slowly.

Hannah sighs again.

The name suddenly clicks in my head. Oh for fuck’s sake.

‘G.G.,’ I mutter to Sabrina. ‘As in Garrett Graham.’

She’s silent for a beat. Then she bursts out laughing, triggering giggles from Grace and eventually Hannah, who keeps shaking her head at her boyfriend.

‘What?’ Garrett says defensively. ‘The godfather should have a say in the name. It’s in the rule book.’

‘What rule book?’ Hannah bursts out. ‘You make up the rules as you go along!’

‘So?'”

– Elle Kennedy, “The Goal”

This is merely a taste of the humor that is Elle Kennedy whenever you read a new adult romance by this amazing author! As I’ve said before in plenty of my past reviews of her work, It’s just so incredibly hilarious, heartfelt, steamy, and genuine; I wonder if she literally just sits down in her home and thinks up these scenes so full of banter? Maybe that’s what I need to start doing as a writer in order to even get close to her level and quality of craft.

Here we are at the fourth and final book of this college hockey romance series, and I’m sad to say that despite all the praise I usually give these books and the author in general, The Goal has to be my least favorite book of them all. It’s a damn shame because it’s the end and a book series should never have the final book be the weakest, it leaves such a sour taste in the mouth of the reader.

It’s not that I don’t think the two main characters, Tuck and Sabrina, go through their own growth and change throughout this book, it’s more just that I didn’t feel as connected to them compared to the others like Graham, Hannah, Dean, Allie, and Logan. I just found I wasn’t as interested in them; I like Tuck just fine, but that’s about it, I literally have nothing to add to him as a character…Sabrina was a hard-headed, strong willed female protagonist who is fiercely ambitious and determined to go where she wants to end up, but there just wasn’t really anything to make me care about her as much. This is all of course my opinion, but feel free to take all this criticism with a grain of salt.

While the two main characters are rather subpar for my taste, at least all the others whom I mentioned earlier still make their appearances! It’s always good to see them continue to make wise-cracks and give each other a hard time like an actual group of friends, although Garrett Graham seems much more like a typical airheaded hockey bro when the story doesn’t focus so much on him. Nonetheless, him and all the others are always welcome to make appearances and live inside my head rent free.

What It’s About:

The Official Blurb:

She’s good at achieving her goals…

College senior Sabrina James has her whole future planned out: graduate from college, kick butt in law school, and land a high-paying job at a cutthroat firm. Her path to escaping her shameful past certainly doesn’t include a gorgeous hockey player who believes in love at first sight. One night of sizzling heat and surprising tenderness is all she’s willing to give John Tucker, but sometimes, one night is all it takes for your entire life to change.

But the game just got a whole lot more complicated…

Tucker believes being a team player is as important as being the star. On the ice, he’s fine staying out of the spotlight, but when it comes to becoming a daddy at the age of twenty-two, he refuses to be a bench warmer. It doesn’t hurt that the soon-to-be mother of his child is beautiful, whip-smart, and keeps him on his toes. The problem is, Sabrina’s heart is locked up tight, and the fiery brunette is too stubborn to accept his help. If he wants a life with the woman of his dreams, he’ll have to convince her that some goals can only be made with an assist.

What I Liked:

  1. The Humor! This never disappoints whenever I read an Elle Kennedy novel, I can always count on her to make me laugh out loud at least once every time I open a book of hers, whether she’s written it by herself or if it’s with Sarina Bowen!
  2. The Return of All the Other Characters! It’s always a warm welcome to see characters like Garrett, Hannah, Grace, Logan, Dean, and Allie all make reappearances once again, even as their perspectives are no longer being centralized. It’s also adorable to see them as couples now that they’ve all had their little “happily ever afters” with their previous books.
  3. Plenty of New Characters! There’s a certain amount of new characters introduced by now that are worth being mentioned, most of them are underclassmen teammates like Hunter, Fitzy, and even Dean’s little sister. I guess I can kind of spoil this, but pay attention to these characters because they’ll be getting their own spin-off set of books!

What I Didn’t Like:

  1. I Just Didn’t Connect With the Two Main Characters…Like I said earlier in this review, I just didn’t care as much for Tuck and Sabrina in this book. It’s not that I don’t like them, I just wasn’t as interested in them when compared to the others.
  2. How Was it Tucker Who Got Someone Pregnant?…For some reason, I always considered Tuck to be the smartest of the bunch, so I just find it ironic that he ended up being the one to get a girl pregnant first out of the four guys in that house! I would’ve pegged Logan for sure, or maybe even Dean, but I thought Tuck being the guy to get a bun in the oven first was a little unrealistic to say the least!
  3. Not As Memorable…To be honest, I’m not a big fan of these kinds of stories where, whoops!…someone ends up pregnant, and now the two must quickly learn to readjust everything in each other’s lives to revolve around that notion, plus navigated their now much more complicated relationship. I think babies are absolutely adorable, at least when they’re not crying, but I’m just not as interested in reading stories so heavily involving them so much.

Conclusion:

My goal, once upon a time, was to succeed. I didn’t realize that success wasn’t grades or scholarships or achievements, but the people I was lucky enough to have in my life.”

– Elle Kennedy, “The Goal”

I was disappointed with how much I didn’t care about the two main characters in this final installment of the Off-Campus series by Elle Kennedy, and I say that while literally everything she includes in her stories that I love are all included within this book: the banter, the humor, the friendships, the scorching romance, and I still wasn’t entirely sold on this!

Luckily, the story is actually NOT over entirely, and there’s going to be a spinoff series named the Briar U series that I know will star some of the newer side characters like Hunter, Fitzy, Dean’s younger sister, Summer, and plenty of others! While the original gang’s time is up and they’re all set to graduate, I’m so glad the fun at Briar University is not quite over yet!

I recommend these books to anyone who’s looking for a sweet, humorous, and sexy romance novel that’s light and easy to read through. Anyone who’s a fan of hot college jocks and the sassy female protagonists who put them in their place like the characters in these books will fall in love just like I did.

Thanks for Reading!

— Nick Goodsell

LGBT, New Adult, New Adult Romance

My Review: Damaged Like Us (Like Us #1): by Krista Ritchie and Becca Ritchie

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Publish Date: June 27th, 2017
Number of Pages: 347 Pages
Publisher: Everafter Romance
Genre(s): New Adult Romance, LGBT

Total Star Rating: 4 Stars

Another book to check out for those who love M/M romance novels, Damaged Like Us was a fun addition to the genre. The relationship that grows between a hollywood heir and his roguish bodyguard is one that can be absolutely addicting to other readers to binge-read.

That relationship is, of course, the main driving force for most of those who’d want to read this book; it was also my favorite aspect of the book as a whole. The two main characters complimented each other very well, and helped each other grow as the story developed. The banter was funny, playful, sexy, and also just so spectacularly done. As you can probably tell by now in this review, It’s hard to say anything bad about the romance of this book.

The theme of family was also something important to take out of this book as Maximoff goes to extraordinary lengths for those he truly cares about. It may not seem like it to some who know me outside of this website and in real life, but the idea of a warm, close knit family is so incredibly important to me, and I always love to see it shown in even fictional families like the one in this book, who are also really popular reality TV stars. The main character even alters his appearance and carefully chooses what color clothes he wears in order to show his pride and loyalty to his father!

There are some parts of the story that I was less than enthused about as well. The writing was questionable in one aspect with the author’s going into 2nd person when describing a character’s path to fame and how you (the reader) should feel about them as a character. It’s a very minor critique from me, but this happened more often than I’d hoped in the story, so I wanted to point it out. The conflict of fame and the downsides to it seemed way too dramatic and over the top at some points as well, and the fact that this new series is actually a spin-off of not one, but TWO other series that are written by the authors. Some readers would love that, but as someone who hasn’t read the others, I also thought this was worth pointing out. I go into more detail on these matters below!

Overall, this was a fun book to read, and a great M/M romance for anyone to check out if they like those kinds of stories. Fans of Him by Elle Kennedy and Sarina Bowen and Red, White, and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston will probably really like this book too!

What It’s About:

This story revolves around Maximoff Hale, the oldest son of what appears to be American royalty with his family being well known reality TV stars, and all his life he’s had to deal with having absolutely no privacy from the public. Paparazzi constantly follow him and his family around; even going to the gas station to fill up a car would have him end up all over the tabloids as “Stars: They’re Just Like Us!” (Basically, picture his life as being like the Kardashians mixed with the actual British royal family).

Because of this, him and his family have always had bodyguards to keep them safe and protected, but Maximoff’s longtime bodyguard is retiring after the many years they’ve been together. Anxious, he learns he’s getting a new one almost immediately after. Enter Farrow Keene, who’s Maximoff’s crush from his teenage years, and of course is now his new personal bodyguard whom he’s going to be spending countless hours a week with.

Almost immediately, they bash heads together about basically EVERYTHING…but beneath the snarky and cynical remarks, there’s definitely something building between the two. Romantic feelings soon resurface, and sexual tension boils to the surface, but are they willing to cross a line, break a integral code to end up together?

What I Liked:

  1. The Romance Brewing Between Maximoff and Keene! It’s hard to believe this is the writer duo’s first M/M romance title! It was an obvious highlight of this book, the romance that develops between these two characters was one of my favorite parts of the whole story. They start off as reluctant partners as Farrow is assigned to be Maximoff’s new personal bodyguard, they get on each other’s nerves, sure…but as they spend more and more time together, they start to see sides of each other that no one else sees, and they understand each other a lot better. The attraction only becomes more intense from there, and soon they find themselves in a sexy, secret romance that they must hide from not only the public, but also they’re colleagues and Moffy’s family. Is it worth it? What if someone finds out?
  2. The Theme of The Importance of Family! Besides the secret, forbidden romance, family is another huge theme to take away from this book, and probably the rest of the series as well. Even with fame, Maximoff is extremely close to his family and will do just about everything he can to help them, protect them, and make them proud. For every 10,000 fans, there’s probably another 1,000 that hate them, and some people will go out of their way to bring them down, and Maximoff will literally break his back in order for that to not happen. From his many siblings, to his best friend and cousin, and his father with a spotty past, Maximoff is so proud of his family, and I found it to be incredibly noble of him and is so obviously a huge part of his character. Very admirable how far he goes for those he loves.

What I Didn’t Like:

  1. This Series Branches Off from Others…So I first notice there’s A LOT of side characters in this book, like, way too many even to keep track of at some points. It turns out, this series is a continuation off both the author’s two other book series: The Addicted Series and the Calloway Sisters. The parents, the uncles, and basically all the other older adults are actually stars of previous works, and that’s why they’re so prominent in this book because it’s going off the fans who’ve read their previous books and are familiar with all of them. Unfortunately, I am not one of those readers…the book is still enjoyable and is able to be read despite this, but you definitely feel like there’s quite a bit that goes over your head in reference to this fact. It’s also annoying because all the books in total equate to, like, 13 books to read, which is commitment I’m honestly not feeling up to doing at this moment.
  2. The Instances of 2nd Person Narrating…This is a small tidbit that kind of bugged me because it happened more often than it probably should’ve, at least in my own opinion. It was lines that felt like: “You know this person because of….You feel this way about them because…” It just felt like lazy storytelling and could’ve been shown to me and not told to me, you know?
  3. The Fame Seemed Over The Top…It feels bad to be criticizing this aspect of the story since it’s the cause of the whole story taking place, but it simply felt like it was overly dramaticized at times. Maximoff is like an American version of Prince Harry, but it seems like even an actual royal prince is able to live a somewhat low-key life. The paparazzi are constantly following Maximoff around, always chasing him in cars on the freeway, and sometimes even going out of their way to offend him and get a rise out of him. Sure, this stuff may actually happen in real life—I don’t truly know since I’m not famous—but the amount of it all that Max has to deal with felt over the top and highly exaggerated.

Conclusion:

A great M/M romance for anyone looking for that kind of story to read, I think readers will love how Farrow and Maximoff’s relationship forms and deepens as the story develops. It’s got the perfect amount of steam and heart that any great romance needs, and that any reader absolutely eats up. It’s not the perfect book; parts of it are way over the top and overly dramatic, but I do believe this book is incredibly enjoyable as long as you can’t take it too seriously. It’s just fun, sexy romance.

I can definitely say that even though there’s a HEA-style ending, I plan to read on in this series to see what happens next. There’s a few things that are left up in the air that will be answered in later books, and I’m interested enough to keep going to find out some of those answers that I specifically seek. Plus, I do really like both the main characters and see where their relationship will go next!

Thanks for Reading!

— Nick Goodsell

New Adult, New Adult Romance, Romance

My Review: The Roommate: by Rosie Danan

nicholasjgoodsell
Publish Date: September 15th, 2020
Number of Pages: 336 pages
Publisher: Berkeley
Genre(s): Contemporary Romance, New Adult Romance, Romance

Total Star Rating: 4.25 Stars

Once I read the blurb for this contemporary romance title, I was immediately into the idea of a story of an uptight upper east sider inadvertently becoming roommates with a laid back, Californian porn star; think of the sitcom-like humor you’d get when two people who are two total opposites are forced to live under one roof! You can’t write this stuff…. oh wait.

While reading, this book was definitely a fun debut that I had a fun time reading; I liked both main characters more and more as the story developed, and really saw them grow throughout, especially the female main character: Clara Wheaton. She really learned to let a lot of things go and to not put so much on her shoulders, especially things that she couldn’t control. She definitely had a lot more growth than the other main character and her love interest: Josh Darling (porn name). It’s not that he didn’t have some growth of his own, but it felt like it didn’t really come until much later in the story and the rest of it was all about him trying to figure out his attraction to her in the first place while also figuring out his tricky job situation.

The sitcom-like setup was a definite part of the whole book that I liked; the more the two characters interacted and flirted, bantered, and had hot little scenes between the two of them, I truly did believe the growing chemistry more and more. I really thought they were cute together! I was also a huge fan of how one of the themes of this book was about being so sex positive, and how the author totally flipped what may seem like pretty cliché side characters. I go into more details about these further down in my review!

Some things I wasn’t a big fan of was how this story is set up just like any other rom com kind of story that you’ve probably read before. Not that this made me dislike the book in a big way, but part of me does wish more romance titles tried to veer away from the stereotypical setup we see in literally every book that falls within the genre and be more original. I also wasn’t the biggest fan of how the book ended…I mean, it was fine and all but it could’ve been a whole lot better too. Once again, I go into more detail about these further along in this review.

What It’s About:

The Official Blurb:

House Rules:
Do your own dishes
Knock before entering the bathroom
Never look up your roommate online

The Wheatons are infamous among the east coast elite for their lack of impulse control, except for their daughter Clara. She’s the consummate socialite: over-achieving, well-mannered, predictable. But every Wheaton has their weakness. When Clara’s childhood crush invites her to move cross-country, the offer is too much to resist. Unfortunately, it’s also too good to be true.

After a bait-and-switch, Clara finds herself sharing a lease with a charming stranger. Josh might be a bit too perceptive—not to mention handsome—for comfort, but there’s a good chance he and Clara could have survived sharing a summer sublet if she hadn’t looked him up on the Internet…

Once she learns how Josh has made a name for himself, Clara realizes living with him might make her the Wheaton’s most scandalous story yet. His professional prowess inspires her to take tackling the stigma against female desire into her own hands. They may not agree on much, but Josh and Clara both believe women deserve better sex. What they decide to do about it will change both of their lives, and if they’re lucky, they’ll help everyone else get lucky too. 

What I Liked:

  1. Opposites Attract! It’s a sitcom-y rom com with two totally opposite people forced under one roof together! Clara is the uptight, proper, and kinda prudish Upper East Side WASP who’s never done something like moving across the country before, and Josh is the charismatic, charming, and brow raising porn star who Clara inadvertently becomes roommates with in a small house in LA. You can’t write this kind of stuff! Oh wait……….Anyways, despite coming from different backgrounds, these two were a joy to read about, and their relationship was so enjoyable to see develop as they go from just roommates, to friends, and to lovers. There was definitely some chemistry there I thought, and the buildup of sexual tension was also fun. It was obvious that Josh’s feelings for her were way stronger than hers off the bat, and I love stories where the guy gets smitten first, but they were both feeling the urge as they lived in such a small space together for a hot LA summer.
  2. Sex Positivity! This book sheds some light on sex workers and the topic of sex in general. I’m never one to slut shame anyone or judge someone as “beneath me” because they work in adult entertainment, and I like that one of the themes of this book is that there’s not “one pleasure to fit them all,” That couples need to be willing to open up to another, trust each other, listen to each other, and be willing to try new things that work specifically for them. It’s also a good message that no one should feel ashamed about pursuing their own pleasure out of something because of societal expectations and judgements; it sounds a little hedonistic, but there is some valuable life lessons that I think everyone should consider! So long as you’re not hurting yourself or others, I say go for whatever your heart desires.
  3. Trope Flipping! One small thing I really enjoyed was how the author totally flipped two types of characters we’ve seen so many times before: the boy next door and the ex. Clara has had a crush on Garrett Bloom ever since he moved next door way back when they were kids, but as you meet him and learn more about him, he’s not really as much of a golden boy as the role usually has been in the past. Then there’s Naomi Grant, who’s Josh’s ex, but instead of being a woman scorned, she actually becomes friends with Josh and Clara and even works together with them on a business venture. It was refreshing to see these tropey character arcs get a new direction given to each of them.

What I Didn’t Like:

  1. The Same Old Setup…I suppose this is a minor thing, but the storyline is set up like any other rom com storyline, so there’s nothing new there with how it develops. There’s nothing too original about it in this sense, but then again, it’s not like most readers are really looking for something like that in this genre to begin with.
  2. Once Again, A Rushed Ending…I don’t know what it is about romance novels, but lately almost every single one of them feels so cramped and shoved together when it could’ve totally benefited to include another 25-50 pages, or maybe another chapter or two. It’s become a consistent thing with romance novels, and man oh man do I wish it’d stop!

Conclusion:

Overall, another pretty good contemporary romance to enjoy for anyone who’s looking for something cute and lighthearted to read! It’s nothing groundbreaking or extraordinary, but it definitely fulfills the expectations you have upon starting reading it. Sure, you’d think it’d be a little steamier since the male character is a porn star—and a pretty good one at that—but there’s other books out there if you’re looking for a much steamier read. Some readers would even go as far to say this book would be so much better if it went further in either the humor or the steam. I can believe that and support that, but I still say this book is an enjoyable addition to the genre. I know I really liked this story, and it’s a keeper on my shelf for sure!

I definitely recommend this title to those who love the rom com stories with familiar tropes that are given new and thoughtful changes to them to switch things up and make them feel fresh. I’d also say fans of books by authors like Christina Lauren, Elle Kennedy, and Sarina Bowen will probably also like this book.

It’s a pretty impressive debut novel, and if this is where the author is starting at, I’d say I’m definitely going to be on the lookout for whatever she comes up with next, she has another title already hyped to release in 2021, The Intimacy Experiment, which will star one of the side characters of this book, so I will for sure check it out upon its release!

Thanks for Reading!

— Nick Goodsell