Reviews

Mechanics of Love by Meka James

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iselenris's review

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emotional inspiring lighthearted 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

4.5

LOVEEE

kathleenmcg's review

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emotional hopeful medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

I love the story, the tension between the two leads, who are over forty, is strong. Push/pull, butch/femme, exuberant to quiet, class tension. I loved that the parents were all respectful as the relationship developed. I fell a little in love with Remi.

sadepetlele's review

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emotional funny hopeful lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

lezreadalot's review

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3.0

“As you’ve said, I like to get my way.”
And I apparently was keen to give in.

3.5 stars. A sweet slow burn romance about sorta childhood enemies to lovers, reconnecting after years spent outside of each other's orbit. Irene is travelling back to her small hometown after serving divorce papers on her cheating husband. When she gets into some car trouble, the mechanic that shows up is the woman she's always sorta butted heads with, but always been attracted to: Remi. It's a very opposites attract romance; they come from different social circles and have pretty different personalities, and they're really prickly with each other at first. I really liked their banter, how they poked at one another, how it took a long time for them to really start trusting and opening up. Especially on Remi's side. There were a few time skips I really wish we hadn't had; I think it would have been beneficial for the reader to see their thoughts in the three weeks they spent apart. But I appreciated the slow burn, and when things do get started, it's real hot. <3 I think I needed a few more points of connection for them, and a few more scenes to really show why they worked together? I don't think we really got that.

Listened to the audiobook as read by Denim Striker and Alana Grace; I liked it! This was a pretty short read, but it had a lot of heart behind it. I really loved reading about women in their forties; it's a simple storyline that fits how mature they are. Definitely always willing to read from this author.

Content warnings:

Spoiler

discussion of infertility, cheating (not in main couple)

tinatswe's review

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3.0

This was cute in a very hallmark way. Don’t expect any complex writing or a story that’s out of this world. It’s just two black lesbians falling in love and having sex. Which is fine. I used this to dilute the thrillers I was reading and that worked out lol.

kristenmonique's review against another edition

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4.0

I really really enjoyed this book - the grumpy/sunshine small-town lesbian romance was just what I needed. Irene and Remi were genuinely so cute I wish this book was at least 100 pages longer so I could see a little more into their world.

The only issue I had was that their character development seemed a little stilted - Irene went from extremely stuck up to trying to apply all the pressure to Remi in what felt like a few pages, and Remi went from completely standoffish and disinterested for 80% of the book to being semi emotional for the last 20%.

While I absolutely loved these two characters and their love story, I think it could have been done and elaborated in a way that made it feel much more like a smoother slow burn with less awkward transitions.