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A review by luluwoohoo
For Real by Alexis Hall
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
For Real by Alexis Hall
☀️☀️🌤️
▪️A BDSM romance story that attempts to balance those two worlds, though not successfully enough for me
▪️The premise for this novel was so strong and subversive - a young, naive dominant with an older, introverted submissive - that I had high hopes for it. The characterisation was well done for both love interests but I never really believed in their chemistry or understood what it was that made each other THE solution. Most of the sex scenes felt mechanical, and the casual interpretation of BDSM practices toed the line of comfort way too much for my tastes
▪️I found this book far too long for what it ultimately achieved - the tangents focusing on Laurie's old Oxford life and Toby's career struggles did aid with the character development but they also stagnated the pace that had been building nicely in the first third
▪️What I always enjoy is Hall's unique brand of humour, which invariably pops up in quippy dialogue as a nice contrast to the more poetical prose he tends to write. I do wish there was more humour to balance the darker themes here, though
▪️I wanted to enjoy this but ultimately a romance lives and dies in its romantic believability and I couldn't connect with the love story enough to call this a success
☀️☀️🌤️
▪️A BDSM romance story that attempts to balance those two worlds, though not successfully enough for me
▪️The premise for this novel was so strong and subversive - a young, naive dominant with an older, introverted submissive - that I had high hopes for it. The characterisation was well done for both love interests but I never really believed in their chemistry or understood what it was that made each other THE solution. Most of the sex scenes felt mechanical, and the casual interpretation of BDSM practices toed the line of comfort way too much for my tastes
▪️I found this book far too long for what it ultimately achieved - the tangents focusing on Laurie's old Oxford life and Toby's career struggles did aid with the character development but they also stagnated the pace that had been building nicely in the first third
▪️What I always enjoy is Hall's unique brand of humour, which invariably pops up in quippy dialogue as a nice contrast to the more poetical prose he tends to write. I do wish there was more humour to balance the darker themes here, though
▪️I wanted to enjoy this but ultimately a romance lives and dies in its romantic believability and I couldn't connect with the love story enough to call this a success
"When he kisses me there, it's hot and cold and sort of bright all at once, as if my veins are full of light[...] And I'm glad I've got something to hold on to because I could fall through the cracks in the universe on feeling this good."