chidimmadesiree's reviews
663 reviews

Boo, tomato, tomato, tomato.

This was not the fluffy cute romance that I originally expected when I first started this book but it ended up being so much more. This book was HEAVY so many triggering topics such as rape, abuse, sexual assault, and blackmail. These issues were handled very well by Kennedy Ryan and I understood the layers and complexities of victims of these situations and how it’s not just black and white. Iris and August felt inevitable and no matter what they would end up together, so fate. From their first encounter I felt their electricity and I knew I was in for a ride. Kennedy Ryan makes this almost 500 page romance feel like 200 pages, I flew through this book. Her writing was easy to devour but also how real her characters felt. August is literally my baby and I will not take any criticism. My girl Iris deserves the world and I’m so happy that she got it with Sarai and August.

Kennedy Ryan the woman you are! This whole book was just chef’s kiss. I melted into a pile of mush by the last page. I loved everything about Lotus and Kenan. They just fit so well together and throughout this entire story they felt like soulmates. The way this story featured Lotus healing from her past with being sexually abused as a child was done with empathy and understanding from the author. I think it was so important how it was tied into how Lotus was adamant that Kenan always chose his daughter over their relationship. Kenan being patient with Lotus was just the sweetest thing ever. I have discovered my new favorite book boyfriend in Kenan because he just felt too good to be true just everything you want in a romance hero and more. Everything about Kenan and Lotus together just felt like puzzle pieces fitting together it was so lovely. LOVE LOVE LOVE!

I read this series out of order because my gut told me I would like this one the least and I was completely right. My main issue was the cheating and the love triangle. Why would Kennedy Ryan introduce the perfect man that is Zo just to not make him the love interest. I’m so sorry but I ended up liking Zo better than Jared so I was actually rooting for Banner and Zo the whole time, oops. It’s like if Katniss chose Gale over Peeta it just doesn’t make any sense. Zo just shouldn’t have been included because when you compare Jared to him, I believe Zo is the better guy sorry not sorry. Also the cheating could have been so easily avoided it just made me unnecessarily mad. I’m starting to realize the whole “I hate everyone but you” guy is not my gig. There were multiple times throughout the book where I thought Jared was just an asshole but I guess I’m supposed to forgive him because he loves Banner oh so much. But this book did fly by and this series as a whole cemented Kennedy Ryan as one of my new favorite romance authors. I can’t deny the way she writes chemistry between her dynamic romantic leads is just amazing even through all the mess they have to go through. So happy about that!

RILEY SAGER HAS SONS! WHY DID THIS THE AUTHOR JUST COPY PASTE THE PLOT OF FINAL GIRLS BY RILEY SAGER????? I don’t know if I’m crazy but this is literally the same plot with the same plot twists maybe just a conspiracy theory I don’t know. The funny thing is that I was enjoying this book up until the plot twist reveal and then I couldn’t help but to think of the similarities. This book just felt incomplete. There were too many mysteries going on that I felt was too much for the author so he just found a way to lazily tie it all together into a messy bow in the end. Too much going on and I feel like he had no clue how to handle it so he just went with the easy solution. I guessed most of the plot twists due to the similarities to Final Girls and then inspiration from the Scream movies (I’m assuming). The plot twists were very repetitive. If it comes to the point where you have to use the same plot twist again within a span of 50 pages maybe it’s time to change a few things up or realize you have too much on your plate. Final thing, cookie cutter endings in thrillers piss me off give me an ending that will make me think about your book for years to come not whatever this was.

BLACK THRILLERS ALWAYS GOT ME IN THE END! This book was very crazy and when I thought i knew where the story was going the author turned the tables on me. It was so intricate because it had one big mystery but little secrets and other mysteries sprinkled in that all tied together seamlessly. There were layers upon layers when it came to the twists and turns. Everything felt intentional and smartly done by the author. The story had so many plot twists that I just never felt relaxed while reading this which I loved. Some reviews describe the main character, Ellice, as dumb which I agree with but at least she was self aware and acknowledged the dumb decisions she made that led to the some things spiraling in this book. I could understand her reasoning with some of the stupid things she did even if I didn’t agree with her. This book was fast paced and I felt that it never lost it’s stride. From the start I knew this book would keep me on my toes and it did exactly that.

ALL HAIL THE NEW FLUFFY YA ROMANCE SUPREME, JOYA GOFNEY! I’m in awe, I love this book that much. This book was literally everything. From the first chapter I knew I wouldn’t be disappointed. The way she writes her characters to be likable but flawed is so incredible. Her characters feel so real because they’re not perfect and I don’t want them to be because teenagers aren’t supposed to have everything 100% figured out. The main character, Monique was so relatable like that’s my sister. I could relate to being raised by traditional parents and having their views on sex being passed on to you without you even realizing it. My favorite thing about YA contemporaries is witnessing characters grow and come into their own. Joya Gofney depicted that perfectly with Monique. Monique and Reggie were just so cute I couldn’t handle it. From their very first interaction they had me hooked. Reggie being so gentle with Monique and bringing out the side of her she never knew existed, chef’s kiss. The friendships and sisterhood shown in this book was so needed and I loved how by the end of this it wasn’t just focused on the romance but about curating an entire community. The conversations dealing with religion, sex, and virginity were all so thoughtfully done. As an alleged good girl myself I approve this message.

LOVED IT! This short visual poem under 50 pages brought me to tears so if that doesn’t tell you the power Elizabeth Acevedo has I don’t know what will. As a Black girl who recently decided to wear my natural hair everyday all day this was so touching. Definitely something I would gift to my little sister and even buy for myself as a little reminder of how beautiful Black hair is, every curl and coil.

Fluffy YA contemporaries will always have my heart. Reviewers comparing this book to the movies “What a Girl Wants” and “Princess Diaries” are not wrong, I would actually say they’re very accurate. It’s the classic story of American girl doesn’t know she’s royalty and suddenly being thrusted in to the limelight. I never get tired of this trope because who didn’t dream of being a princess when they were younger. This story had a nice addition with Izumi, regular girl turned princess, connecting to her Japanese roots and dealing with her identity crisis. I really enjoyed this part of the book with her finally feeling like she belonged and finding the best of both worlds with being Japanese American. The romance of Izumi and Aiko was just so cute. They were described as enemies to lovers in the story which I thought was a stretch more like finding each other annoying to lovers. I love a forbidden romance between a princess and a bodyguard, how scandalous. This book was full of cliches and I enjoyed every second reading it.

This book was just so adorable. This author knew what she was doing make a romance book with a main character, Retta, a bake shop owner and then making the entire story so sweet. Duncan and Retta were really cute together and I loved seeing them develop real feelings while fake dating. I think the first half of this book did a better job in luring me in and building the romance than the second half did. I was hooked by the first chapter of the book but I felt that the story lost my attention at some parts of the second half. The third act breakup felt a little disjointed and abrupt I wish the author built more tension with it instead of it feeling like it came out of nowhere. It felt unnecessary too because it’s not like we spent a lot of time with the characters being broken up. I did love the dates Duncan and Retta went on and how they couldn’t seem to stay away from each other. The family dynamics of both characters was such a great layer added to this book. With the book being so short it was hard to really feel any substance with the romance but it was lighthearted and fluffy which I think was the author’s intention. The true definition of short and sweet!