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sixelad03's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
This book only confirmed the opinion I had after reading The Bully’s Dare: this duet is fantastic.
I think after the last few books I’ve read, I really needed this duet. It made me feel emotions by the dozen, and I found it very hard to put my e-reader down to do any other activity in my daily life.
As with the previous book, I enjoyed the dynamic between Kenzi, Donovan and Jason. I like the way they have grown since the end of The Bully’s Dare. The teenagers are now adults, each with their own responsibilities. A new character introduced in this book that I really liked was Otto. He really is his mother’s son and has inherited her sense of humour, which I love.
Now that this duet is complete, I can’t wait to see how the series continues with Otto’s story in All I Want for Christmas Is Them.
krwarren's review against another edition
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
rebelsbutterfly's review
5.0
So real, so satisfying.
This duet is one of the most real feeling stories I've read. The way the author writes the relationships between parent and child, the little moments, it's just amazing. I liked that there wasn't a drawn out miscommunication/angry plot, just let the story drive and the characters develop. So sweet, happy ending, one of my favorites of all time. Cw: mmf, mf, pregnancy
This duet is one of the most real feeling stories I've read. The way the author writes the relationships between parent and child, the little moments, it's just amazing. I liked that there wasn't a drawn out miscommunication/angry plot, just let the story drive and the characters develop. So sweet, happy ending, one of my favorites of all time. Cw: mmf, mf, pregnancy
catet15's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
ashysixx's review
3.0
This duet was just meh.
Idk why but I really didn’t connect to the characters that much.
I did love the kid tho and I think he gets his own story? I’m really curious and I want to know what kind of man he’ll be so I’ll probably read it
Idk why but I really didn’t connect to the characters that much.
I did love the kid tho and I think he gets his own story? I’m really curious and I want to know what kind of man he’ll be so I’ll probably read it
hades_girl's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
breezybubbles's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This gave me the HEA I so wanted after the first book. I was emotionally invested and even cried a little.
lokeylez's review against another edition
it didn’t pull me in
Content Warnings
Moderate: Medical content
alexreadsthebooks's review
5.0
What’s the… I don’t want to ask what the kinkiest book you’ve read because that seems disingenuous and sensationalist. I guess what I’m asking is what is the most non-traditional romance novel you’ve read?
The two books that make up the Truth or Dare Duet, The Bully’s Dare and The Doctor’s Truth, by Adora Crooks are my first menage or “throuple” stories. I have to say I found them enlightening.
In #TheBullysDare, Kenzi is 18 spending her summer on Hansett Island, sunning herself on step dad number four’s boat. At the marina is where she meets 19 year old Donovan, the dock boy and they quickly become BFFs. Donovan is gay but has feelings for Kenzi that he’s never had for another girl. Then there’s Jason, also 19 and another Hansett Island local. He’s the quintessential as*hole jock running around with a bunch of other teenage as*holes.
Jason finds himself intrigued by Kenzi when they are thrown together, his father being friends with her stepfather. When Kenzi starts to spend time with Jason, she finds he’s maybe not quite the douche he portrays himself to be.
Ok, here comes some spoilers, but the three of them end up together on a boat and things get intimate. And then things get intense when Kenzi misses her period.
The first book ends with Kenzi leaving the island and the second book, #TheDoctorsTruth picks up 13 years later when she’s returning to the island for the first time. But this time, she’s not returning alone. She has her sick son, Otto, with her. Hansett Island has one of the best medical centers in the world and guess who turned out to be a doctor?
Actually, BOTH Jason and Donovan are top notch doctors, a transplant surgeon and an internist respectively. Can Kenzi keep her secret while relying on the men she knew as boys to figure out what’s making her kid sick? And how will picking up with them where they left off more than a decade before play into it?
Oh, can’t forget the threats from Jason’s father who knew back when what was happening and tried to pay Kenzi off to end her pregnancy. He’s added the twist that if she shares the secret of Otto’s parentage, then he’ll make it so Otto can’t be treated at Hansett.
If you’ve made it this far, thanks for sticking with me. This is a two-for-one so 2200 characters just didn’t cut it.
If you haven’t ventured into atraditional relationships in your reading yet, this duet (plus the interim novella and spin-off) make for good introductions. Crooks explores how the relationship evolves between all three collectively but also individually with each other.
For someone like me who has come across these kinds of relationships IRL or in fiction before, Crooks helps to show how these relationships can evolve naturally and work for people without fetishizing or othering them.
The second book, given the added element of Otto and his illness, is extra poignant and goes to show how families can be complete with an extra member or two. And sometimes, relying on a single romantic partner just doesn’t work for everyone; sometimes one can fill the needs another doesn’t. Sometimes, love is really all you need.
(Yep, I did just get that corny. I just can’t help myself sometimes ;) )
More reviews on IG: @alexreadsthebooks
The two books that make up the Truth or Dare Duet, The Bully’s Dare and The Doctor’s Truth, by Adora Crooks are my first menage or “throuple” stories. I have to say I found them enlightening.
In #TheBullysDare, Kenzi is 18 spending her summer on Hansett Island, sunning herself on step dad number four’s boat. At the marina is where she meets 19 year old Donovan, the dock boy and they quickly become BFFs. Donovan is gay but has feelings for Kenzi that he’s never had for another girl. Then there’s Jason, also 19 and another Hansett Island local. He’s the quintessential as*hole jock running around with a bunch of other teenage as*holes.
Jason finds himself intrigued by Kenzi when they are thrown together, his father being friends with her stepfather. When Kenzi starts to spend time with Jason, she finds he’s maybe not quite the douche he portrays himself to be.
Ok, here comes some spoilers, but the three of them end up together on a boat and things get intimate. And then things get intense when Kenzi misses her period.
The first book ends with Kenzi leaving the island and the second book, #TheDoctorsTruth picks up 13 years later when she’s returning to the island for the first time. But this time, she’s not returning alone. She has her sick son, Otto, with her. Hansett Island has one of the best medical centers in the world and guess who turned out to be a doctor?
Actually, BOTH Jason and Donovan are top notch doctors, a transplant surgeon and an internist respectively. Can Kenzi keep her secret while relying on the men she knew as boys to figure out what’s making her kid sick? And how will picking up with them where they left off more than a decade before play into it?
Oh, can’t forget the threats from Jason’s father who knew back when what was happening and tried to pay Kenzi off to end her pregnancy. He’s added the twist that if she shares the secret of Otto’s parentage, then he’ll make it so Otto can’t be treated at Hansett.
If you’ve made it this far, thanks for sticking with me. This is a two-for-one so 2200 characters just didn’t cut it.
If you haven’t ventured into atraditional relationships in your reading yet, this duet (plus the interim novella and spin-off) make for good introductions. Crooks explores how the relationship evolves between all three collectively but also individually with each other.
For someone like me who has come across these kinds of relationships IRL or in fiction before, Crooks helps to show how these relationships can evolve naturally and work for people without fetishizing or othering them.
The second book, given the added element of Otto and his illness, is extra poignant and goes to show how families can be complete with an extra member or two. And sometimes, relying on a single romantic partner just doesn’t work for everyone; sometimes one can fill the needs another doesn’t. Sometimes, love is really all you need.
(Yep, I did just get that corny. I just can’t help myself sometimes ;) )
More reviews on IG: @alexreadsthebooks