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ashction's review against another edition
4.0
I love Sophie Gonzales so much! Though this didn't quite hit the mark for me, the casual queerness Sophie writes in these characters made my heart so happy and I still had a pretty fun time.
I definitely loved the story more once Maya and Skye are able to move past their entangled relationships with Jordy and on to revenge and falling in love. As much as I loved them, the stakes were always very low and I didn't fully feel the trust that becomes central to their conflict is very developed. I didn't really care since this is YA and they don't always need to be so developed because teen emotions are messy, but since part of my brain wanted this to be NA on some level (mostly because I couldn't buy into the show otherwise), I wanted more regardless.
My biggest complaints are definitely that 1) this novel does not feel quite right for a YA audience, and 2) it leans heavily into the assumption that anyone reading this has watched dating shows to the point of production awareness. The entire concept being 18 year-old girls competing on a show themed around second chances felt odd, given how few high school relationships make it into the real world. But even disregarding that, the time spent on the dating show just believes too much that readers know the scheming that goes behind the scenes. I definitely do, but I can see how readers who don't care about dating shows but do like revenge might be confused. Also... this show is so tame that I even found my ability to suspend belief difficult here too lol.
I still adore Sophie and all her books. This is a 4 star read for a number of reasons, including positive dating show girl power! But this is definitely my least favorite so far and it's a bummer. How did a dating show revenge plot not land with me? We may never know.
I received a digital ARC of this title in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to Macmillan for providing me access!
I definitely loved the story more once Maya and Skye are able to move past their entangled relationships with Jordy and on to revenge and falling in love. As much as I loved them, the stakes were always very low and I didn't fully feel the trust that becomes central to their conflict is very developed. I didn't really care since this is YA and they don't always need to be so developed because teen emotions are messy, but since part of my brain wanted this to be NA on some level (mostly because I couldn't buy into the show otherwise), I wanted more regardless.
My biggest complaints are definitely that 1) this novel does not feel quite right for a YA audience, and 2) it leans heavily into the assumption that anyone reading this has watched dating shows to the point of production awareness. The entire concept being 18 year-old girls competing on a show themed around second chances felt odd, given how few high school relationships make it into the real world. But even disregarding that, the time spent on the dating show just believes too much that readers know the scheming that goes behind the scenes. I definitely do, but I can see how readers who don't care about dating shows but do like revenge might be confused. Also... this show is so tame that I even found my ability to suspend belief difficult here too lol.
I still adore Sophie and all her books. This is a 4 star read for a number of reasons, including positive dating show girl power! But this is definitely my least favorite so far and it's a bummer. How did a dating show revenge plot not land with me? We may never know.
I received a digital ARC of this title in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to Macmillan for providing me access!
applepie10's review against another edition
hopeful
lighthearted
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
2.25
christinamarie96's review against another edition
funny
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? It's complicated
4.0
Cute little reality show hellscape with a dumpster fire of man and precious queer feelings. Would recommend.
tia_f's review against another edition
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
swettstein1's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? Yes
3.0
mbray341's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
brechtjebooks's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
tense
fast-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 book was amazing! I loved the characters development so so much! I think I might be in love with Skye too...
I loved Maya's character arc, how she realises she was so busy hating Jordy that she littarly chose revenge over the love of her life. Loved all the characters! Even the girls that in the beggining were a bit annoyong, you came to love. You rooted for them because you rooted very much against Jordy. Loved all the characters in this book!
I loved Maya's character arc, how she realises she was so busy hating Jordy that she littarly chose revenge over the love of her life. Loved all the characters! Even the girls that in the beggining were a bit annoyong, you came to love. You rooted for them because you rooted very much against Jordy. Loved all the characters in this book!
azalia's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
cam_shopaholic's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
3.75
cherrypopgirlielibrary's review against another edition
3.0
I was going to give this book 2.5 stars, but Mia's realization at the end brought it up to a solid 3 stars.
This book is about Mia and Skye, 2 of the women that Jordy Miller dated in his past. With his sister now becoming royalty by marriage, he's been snagged to star on a reality show about second chances with his past flames. Mia and Skye are enemies due to extreme misunderstanding. Once the issue is sorted, however, they embark on a plan of revenge that turns into falling in love.
I started this book today and finished it today. About 9.5 hours of audio and I regret nothing. I really enjoyed this book. Mia and Skye are interesting characters, as are the other women in the book. Jordy is a piece of work, and that's putting it mildly. The fact that any of these women potentially wanted to get back with that man is beyond me. He is pretentious, sexist, and just entirely unpleasant to be around.
The women were all fairly interesting. Frankly, the best part of the novel was watching Mia and Skye each come into their own, respectively. However, what continually threw me for a loop was the ages of the characters. The oldest character was 21, the youngest was 18. For some reason, this is advertised as a young adult novel, which just confuses me, because the narration would suggest otherwise. It flips between Mia's and Skye's points of view. Mia is supposed to be 18, Skye is 19. But having the characters be so young just doesn't really mesh with their voices or the story. It feels like they should be in their late 20s or early 30s. Having them be this young just doesn't make sense to me.
I found the story itself interesting and enjoyed the writing. It's a cute little contemporary romance that's a quick read and a good time, with LGBTQ+ representation. Overall, I would recommend this book.
This was an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
(FROM PREVIOUS ACCT)
This book is about Mia and Skye, 2 of the women that Jordy Miller dated in his past. With his sister now becoming royalty by marriage, he's been snagged to star on a reality show about second chances with his past flames. Mia and Skye are enemies due to extreme misunderstanding. Once the issue is sorted, however, they embark on a plan of revenge that turns into falling in love.
I started this book today and finished it today. About 9.5 hours of audio and I regret nothing. I really enjoyed this book. Mia and Skye are interesting characters, as are the other women in the book. Jordy is a piece of work, and that's putting it mildly. The fact that any of these women potentially wanted to get back with that man is beyond me. He is pretentious, sexist, and just entirely unpleasant to be around.
The women were all fairly interesting. Frankly, the best part of the novel was watching Mia and Skye each come into their own, respectively. However, what continually threw me for a loop was the ages of the characters. The oldest character was 21, the youngest was 18. For some reason, this is advertised as a young adult novel, which just confuses me, because the narration would suggest otherwise. It flips between Mia's and Skye's points of view. Mia is supposed to be 18, Skye is 19. But having the characters be so young just doesn't really mesh with their voices or the story. It feels like they should be in their late 20s or early 30s. Having them be this young just doesn't make sense to me.
I found the story itself interesting and enjoyed the writing. It's a cute little contemporary romance that's a quick read and a good time, with LGBTQ+ representation. Overall, I would recommend this book.
This was an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
(FROM PREVIOUS ACCT)