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lezreadalot's review against another edition
3.0
“How is it possible no one saw you until now? You’re beautiful. Sweet. Funny. Caring. Intelligent. I just don’t get it.”
“Maybe I was waiting to be seen by you.”
3.5 stars. This pretty much perfectly encapsulates the definition of a rom-com. There's comedy, there are steamy scenes, there are hijinks, there are a few shenanigans, and there's a baby goat. And it all works. It's also a holiday romance, which I love. I've been bingeing them throughout the start of this month. To be honest, it's only barely a holiday romance, because most of it takes place before Christmas, or even Thanksgiving, but the fact that the bulk of the plot happens on a remote little island in a small town really helps give it that nice cosy feel that I think most people are looking for when they think of holiday romance. And of course, our main characters are named Holly and Ivy, which is adorable. I really liked both of them for the most part, and their romance progressed in a way that I found both believable and charming. Neither of them fit into any strict character archetypes (though I suppose Holly is a bit of a grump, and Ivy is a little sunshine) but their chemistry was natural and came off the page.
Some elements of this just didn't work for me on a personal level. This is rich girl/poor girl, which historically I don't love as a trope. When someone in a book is as rich as Holly is, I can never completely turn the left side of my brain off from hollering "REDISTRIBUTE YA WEALTH MOTHERFUCKER!!" It didn't ruin the book for me or anything though, and Holly did come to some realisations that were pertinent and helpful. And besides, the book's natural comedy and charm helped me see past a lot of that. But speaking of the comedy, some of it just wasn't quite to my taste. There's Betty, Ivy's irreverent septuagenarian friend who's scandalous and says whatever she wants. At times she's hilarious, but at other times the jokes fell completely flat for me. Not just her jokes, but some of the overall humour.
There are several more serious elements to the book which I really enjoyed, and which weren't out of place at all, even given the overall light-hearted nature of the romance. I wish the writing were a little more profound around those issues? The topic, for example, of Holly's depression and burnout were brought up a couple times throughout the book, and looked at more closely near the end, and I just didn't think it was enough. It all felt very surface level; too shallow. I still think this would have been a great success as a rom-com, even if the authors had let themselves get a little more serious.
Still, this was overall a winner. If you're looking for a fun lesbian holiday romance, look no further.
pencilspeaker's review against another edition
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Sweet, but at times too long and warning: a serious lengthy amount of spice.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Minor: Addiction and Suicide attempt
banrions's review against another edition
paused at 56%... i'm not rlly feeling this (the friends are super annoying) and i'm kinda over a holiday read atm. maybe i'll pick it back up again next year since i grabbed this one on a kindle sale.
smyth21's review against another edition
4.0
4.5/5 stars: Holy Batman, SO. MUCH. SEX.
That’s really the only thing I can think of. This was a cute listen. Holly, CEO/millionaire, takes a mental heath break form her company to a island (forced by her best friend) and meets and falls for Ivy, the islands sweetheart.
Their first interaction was adorable, Ivy’s babbling, Holly’s initial attraction, it was very cute and their intense, relationship kicks off from there, a misunderstanding at the start, a misunderstanding in the middle and a happy ending.
That’s really the only thing I can think of. This was a cute listen. Holly, CEO/millionaire, takes a mental heath break form her company to a island (forced by her best friend) and meets and falls for Ivy, the islands sweetheart.
Their first interaction was adorable, Ivy’s babbling, Holly’s initial attraction, it was very cute and their intense, relationship kicks off from there, a misunderstanding at the start, a misunderstanding in the middle and a happy ending.
misthios_pat's review against another edition
5.0
I don't have much to add here, I love stories with weird/quirky people and this one delivered. Overall it's a very funny and light reading, all the characters are very likeable and the MCs just work; there isn't much of drama to cloud the weather, just enough to keep the ball rolling. Smooth.
A shame that blue bell didn't appear much more lol
A shame that blue bell didn't appear much more lol
angieinbooks's review against another edition
3.0
3.5
This is a cute opposites-attract story about a socially awkward code developer (Holly) who struck it rich after creating a popular dating app and a social worker (Ivy) with absolutely no money to her name, in part because she give the shirt off her own back if it would help someone else.
I liked a lot about this novel and really enjoyed the dynamic between the two leads. It’s a cute romance and I was rooting for them the whole way. But a few things didn’t work for me:
- Too much time was spent on Ivy’s friends, Scarlett and Betty. I think they’re supposed to provide humor? The problem is I didn’t find them funny.
- For a “holiday romance” that takes place between October and December, I didn’t feel like the holidays played a significant enough role. Thanksgiving probably gets the most time. Halloween isn’t mentioned. But given the cover, I expected Christmas to play a bigger role and it really doesn’t. This story could have been set between January and March and told the same exact story. I saved it for the week of Christmas hoping for a Christmasy story and I didn’t get that here.
This is a cute opposites-attract story about a socially awkward code developer (Holly) who struck it rich after creating a popular dating app and a social worker (Ivy) with absolutely no money to her name, in part because she give the shirt off her own back if it would help someone else.
I liked a lot about this novel and really enjoyed the dynamic between the two leads. It’s a cute romance and I was rooting for them the whole way. But a few things didn’t work for me:
- Too much time was spent on Ivy’s friends, Scarlett and Betty. I think they’re supposed to provide humor? The problem is I didn’t find them funny.
- For a “holiday romance” that takes place between October and December, I didn’t feel like the holidays played a significant enough role. Thanksgiving probably gets the most time. Halloween isn’t mentioned. But given the cover, I expected Christmas to play a bigger role and it really doesn’t. This story could have been set between January and March and told the same exact story. I saved it for the week of Christmas hoping for a Christmasy story and I didn’t get that here.
rainbow_grace's review against another edition
1.0
I hated all the characters right away and the writing style wasn't good enough to keep me going to see if things got better. DNF.
rakhya's review against another edition
3.0
Full disclosure: I received a copy of Holly & Ivy from a giveaway organised by the authors.
Holly & Ivy is an enjoyable romance between a burned out millionaire genius and a small town social worker.
I liked the humour, loved the side character of Morgan, and would gladly pay for more scenes with Blue Bell the yogi goat.
Murphy's narration was as good as usual, and suited the story well.
Despite all this, my rating is a bit low this time due to a couple of issues I have with the story.
The first one is a matter of personal preference, related to how the sexual attraction between the two leads develops throughout the story. I am not a huge fan of the approach the authors chose, and struggled to feel a connection between the sex scenes and the characters' arcs.
Again, this is extremely personal and I'm sure other listeners will appreciate the authors' choice.
The second is related to Holly's decision to use personal data collected by her company for her own purpose.
Data privacy is a huge issue for anyone in Holly's position, and I find it hard to like a character who resorts to this kind of unprofessional, unethical conduct on a whim. I suppose this is also something listeners might overlook, depending on their level of awareness on the matter.
Overall, Holly & Ivy is a good listen and an audiobook many listeners will love.
Holly & Ivy is an enjoyable romance between a burned out millionaire genius and a small town social worker.
I liked the humour, loved the side character of Morgan, and would gladly pay for more scenes with Blue Bell the yogi goat.
Murphy's narration was as good as usual, and suited the story well.
Despite all this, my rating is a bit low this time due to a couple of issues I have with the story.
The first one is a matter of personal preference, related to how the sexual attraction between the two leads develops throughout the story. I am not a huge fan of the approach the authors chose, and struggled to feel a connection between the sex scenes and the characters' arcs.
Again, this is extremely personal and I'm sure other listeners will appreciate the authors' choice.
The second is related to Holly's decision to use personal data collected by her company for her own purpose.
Data privacy is a huge issue for anyone in Holly's position, and I find it hard to like a character who resorts to this kind of unprofessional, unethical conduct on a whim. I suppose this is also something listeners might overlook, depending on their level of awareness on the matter.
Overall, Holly & Ivy is a good listen and an audiobook many listeners will love.
sarah_bell's review against another edition
Didn't enjoy the miscommunication/misunderstanding as it felt contrived.