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kaity_b's review
4.0
4 stars
Well this was cute! Haha made me smile throughout the book and I couldn’t put it down! I am excited to read the rest of the series!
Shaw and Eli were adorable, loved their banter and how they were enemies turned friends turned lovers!
Well this was cute! Haha made me smile throughout the book and I couldn’t put it down! I am excited to read the rest of the series!
Shaw and Eli were adorable, loved their banter and how they were enemies turned friends turned lovers!
bookschaosnart's review
3.0
I loved how Elijah and Shaw initially started their relationship as anonymous emails via a write in help website. It was a a fun and quirky introduction and a nice way to show their traits and insecurities that's not commonly used.
I did originally read Shaw as aromantic which led to me being a bit disappointed as the story flowed and the story slide into the "just need to find the one trope". I recognize that I probably should have anticipated that trope but it did lead to me being a bit discouraged as the story line seemed to slip into a typical story line after the unique beginning.
If you're a fan of Riley Hart or love sweet low angst romance with diverse characters you'll probably enjoy this book. I just was anticipating something else within the plot after the first couple chapters and the way the plot actually went led me to not enjoying it as much as I thought I would.
I did originally read Shaw as aromantic which led to me being a bit disappointed as the story flowed and the story slide into the "just need to find the one trope". I recognize that I probably should have anticipated that trope but it did lead to me being a bit discouraged as the story line seemed to slip into a typical story line after the unique beginning.
If you're a fan of Riley Hart or love sweet low angst romance with diverse characters you'll probably enjoy this book. I just was anticipating something else within the plot after the first couple chapters and the way the plot actually went led me to not enjoying it as much as I thought I would.
imme_van_gorp's review
3.0
|| 3.0 stars ||
This was actually pretty cute. I didn’t love it, since I had quite a few issues with it, but I did think it was sweet.
When it comes to the romance, I really liked that it was a bit of slow-burn, and that Elijah and Shaw truly got to know each other in depth. Even though they were opposites in a lot of ways, they matched well together. Their connection was genuine and extensive, and did not feel superficial at all.
They were also prepared to go to great lengths for the other’s happiness, and always managed to remember the little things. Their actual relationship was just very thoughtful and cute.
I also liked the fake-dating trope we got here, and even more so when it was paired with Shaw’s jealousy and their constant realizations of how real their feelings truly were.
However, I did think that their banter was a little annoying and I believed that their animosity towards each other at the beginning went on for a little too long. It didn’t quite make sense to me why they were so rude to each other when there was literally no reason for it (especially Elijah). Luckily, they eventually grew out of that childish behaviour a little, but still not entirely, which was a shame.
I also thought that their inability to admit that they liked, and eventually even loved, each other was a little immature and stupid. Especially Shaw was ridiculous in this aspect: I mean, I’m sure teenage heartbreak can hurt like hell, but refusing to believe in love after that for seven years straight, even when you are basically dating the perfect man for you? That’s just silly.
Anyway, long story short, this book had some things that annoyed me, but I did think these two could be plenty adorable together. Thus, it was an okay read and I enjoyed myself quite a bit.
'Stumbling into Love' series:
1. Stupid Love - 3.0 stars
2. Awkward Love - 3.0 stars
This was actually pretty cute. I didn’t love it, since I had quite a few issues with it, but I did think it was sweet.
When it comes to the romance, I really liked that it was a bit of slow-burn, and that Elijah and Shaw truly got to know each other in depth. Even though they were opposites in a lot of ways, they matched well together. Their connection was genuine and extensive, and did not feel superficial at all.
They were also prepared to go to great lengths for the other’s happiness, and always managed to remember the little things. Their actual relationship was just very thoughtful and cute.
I also liked the fake-dating trope we got here, and even more so when it was paired with Shaw’s jealousy and their constant realizations of how real their feelings truly were.
However, I did think that their banter was a little annoying and I believed that their animosity towards each other at the beginning went on for a little too long. It didn’t quite make sense to me why they were so rude to each other when there was literally no reason for it (especially Elijah). Luckily, they eventually grew out of that childish behaviour a little, but still not entirely, which was a shame.
I also thought that their inability to admit that they liked, and eventually even loved, each other was a little immature and stupid. Especially Shaw was ridiculous in this aspect: I mean, I’m sure teenage heartbreak can hurt like hell, but refusing to believe in love after that for seven years straight, even when you are basically dating the perfect man for you? That’s just silly.
Anyway, long story short, this book had some things that annoyed me, but I did think these two could be plenty adorable together. Thus, it was an okay read and I enjoyed myself quite a bit.
'Stumbling into Love' series:
1. Stupid Love - 3.0 stars
2. Awkward Love - 3.0 stars
sabrina7's review
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
2.0
this book was dumb but like i think in a good way. i need super lighthearted and predictable books to listen to when i fall asleep so that i don’t get too engaged in the story and this book fit the bill perfectly. probably won’t ready anything else from this author because a lot of the dialogue both external and internal felt repetitive and holy shit this author uses the phrase “damned if” wayyyy too fucking often jesus. also really did not enjoy how much elijah “hated” shaw and for literally no reason. it just felt inauthentic and like it was a way for the author the label this book “enemies to lovers” when it’s really not.
lalexvp's review
4.0
This was super cute, low-angst. I feel like it was a little slow and could have been shorter, though.
layla87's review
4.0
This was a cute book.
- Enemies to lovers...the guys are neighbors and rub each other the wrong way
- Fake relationship...To help one MC get his best friend jealous
- Opposites attract...these guys cannot be more different which only adds to their relationship!
- A tentative Friendship that blooms when they discover how much they enjoy each other's company.
- A serial hook-up artist who falls in love with a bendy Pilates instructor...wink wink
#happyreading
- Enemies to lovers...the guys are neighbors and rub each other the wrong way
- Fake relationship...To help one MC get his best friend jealous
- Opposites attract...these guys cannot be more different which only adds to their relationship!
- A tentative Friendship that blooms when they discover how much they enjoy each other's company.
- A serial hook-up artist who falls in love with a bendy Pilates instructor...wink wink
#happyreading
ofbooksandromance's review
5.0
4.75 “There’s no one I’d rather be stupid with than you” stars
When i’m asked who my favourite MM writer is, my automatic answer is always Riley Hart, but I expecially love her low angst books, they’re my favourites and I always keep them for when i’m in a reading slump or need a pick me up. And I really needed a pick me up at the moment, so I knew this book would be absolutely perfect for my current mood. I was expecting to love this book, which is why I chose it and it delivered perfectly on that front. This is such a feel good book, really sweet and really low angst.
I rarely read books in one sitting anymore, I really don’t have the time for that, so the fact that I read a 375 pages book in one sitting because I couldn’t put it down should be enough to explain how much I loved this book.
I can’t really explain what I loved about this book, I just know that I absolutely adored it and that it made me so fucking happy reading it. This book put the biggest smile on my face for most of it, it was so swoony and romantic and really low angst, and then it made me cry, but it wasn’t for long so I can forget it for that. This book is just a feel good book, the kind of book you read when nothing is going right in your life and you just need to lose yourself in a story for a bit. In short, it was absolutely perfect for me at this point in my life.
Quick summary: Elijah is in love with his best friend and he writes to this website that offers dating advices to get help about it. Shaw is Elijah’s neighbour and they’re kind of ennemies. Shaw doesn’t believe in love, while all Elijah wants is to be in love. Then they both catch feelings for each other.
Some things I really loved about this book were:
- The relationship the two MCs had, they were so fucking good together. I loved how they started out as ennemies and then became friends and then fell in love. It was so fucking lovely. And their banter was just the best.
- I loved Elijah, he was so precious and all he wanted was to fall in love, he was a really strong character and I really enjoyed him. Also I loved how it was shown that he fell out of love with his best friend and then fell in love with Shaw, it felt so real and was really well done.
- I really loved the way these two fell in love, it was so well done and I loved how it caught them both by surprise, they weren’t expecting to fall in love with each other but they did and it was really fucking well done.
- I really loved how honest these two were with each other, they didn’t keep any secrets from each other and they openly shared their fears, it was so nice to see.
- I really liked Shaw, he was such a strong guy and so so nice, and him opening up and starting to trust Elijah and seeing him give him his heart was so fucking lovely to read about, I really enjoyed that part.
Also, all the bonus points for that cover, it’s so damn gorgeous and looks exactly like Elijah from his description in the book. I really fucking love it!
The only reason why this isn’t a 5 stars read for me is that there was a couple things that bothered me about it, they didn’t really change my enjoyment of the book, but they bothered me enough that I had to mention them. There was a situation where there was miscommunication and it kind of annoyed me because it would have been so easy for them to talk it out, like they had done about everything before that. Also, it was resolved by a public gesture and I really don’t enjoy big public gestures, they make me really uncomfortable. But I did adore how the big public gesture didn’t fix everything, the MC who fucked up wasn’t forgiven on the spot and he still had to grovel and I adored that, so all in all, it didn’t really bother me, but I still had to mention it because I didn’t think it was necessary.
In brief, this was just the low angst book of my dreams and everything I needed at the moment. I loved it very much.
When i’m asked who my favourite MM writer is, my automatic answer is always Riley Hart, but I expecially love her low angst books, they’re my favourites and I always keep them for when i’m in a reading slump or need a pick me up. And I really needed a pick me up at the moment, so I knew this book would be absolutely perfect for my current mood. I was expecting to love this book, which is why I chose it and it delivered perfectly on that front. This is such a feel good book, really sweet and really low angst.
I rarely read books in one sitting anymore, I really don’t have the time for that, so the fact that I read a 375 pages book in one sitting because I couldn’t put it down should be enough to explain how much I loved this book.
I can’t really explain what I loved about this book, I just know that I absolutely adored it and that it made me so fucking happy reading it. This book put the biggest smile on my face for most of it, it was so swoony and romantic and really low angst, and then it made me cry, but it wasn’t for long so I can forget it for that. This book is just a feel good book, the kind of book you read when nothing is going right in your life and you just need to lose yourself in a story for a bit. In short, it was absolutely perfect for me at this point in my life.
Quick summary: Elijah is in love with his best friend and he writes to this website that offers dating advices to get help about it. Shaw is Elijah’s neighbour and they’re kind of ennemies. Shaw doesn’t believe in love, while all Elijah wants is to be in love. Then they both catch feelings for each other.
Some things I really loved about this book were:
- The relationship the two MCs had, they were so fucking good together. I loved how they started out as ennemies and then became friends and then fell in love. It was so fucking lovely. And their banter was just the best.
- I loved Elijah, he was so precious and all he wanted was to fall in love, he was a really strong character and I really enjoyed him. Also I loved how it was shown that he fell out of love with his best friend and then fell in love with Shaw, it felt so real and was really well done.
- I really loved the way these two fell in love, it was so well done and I loved how it caught them both by surprise, they weren’t expecting to fall in love with each other but they did and it was really fucking well done.
- I really loved how honest these two were with each other, they didn’t keep any secrets from each other and they openly shared their fears, it was so nice to see.
- I really liked Shaw, he was such a strong guy and so so nice, and him opening up and starting to trust Elijah and seeing him give him his heart was so fucking lovely to read about, I really enjoyed that part.
Also, all the bonus points for that cover, it’s so damn gorgeous and looks exactly like Elijah from his description in the book. I really fucking love it!
The only reason why this isn’t a 5 stars read for me is that there was a couple things that bothered me about it, they didn’t really change my enjoyment of the book, but they bothered me enough that I had to mention them. There was a situation where there was miscommunication and it kind of annoyed me because it would have been so easy for them to talk it out, like they had done about everything before that. Also, it was resolved by a public gesture and I really don’t enjoy big public gestures, they make me really uncomfortable. But I did adore how the big public gesture didn’t fix everything, the MC who fucked up wasn’t forgiven on the spot and he still had to grovel and I adored that, so all in all, it didn’t really bother me, but I still had to mention it because I didn’t think it was necessary.
In brief, this was just the low angst book of my dreams and everything I needed at the moment. I loved it very much.
missysreadingcorner's review
5.0
Perfect Pairing
Friends-to-enemies is not my favorite trope. However, it worked here. I enjoyed Elijah and Shaw’s story. There wasn’t too much angst, which I appreciated.
Friends-to-enemies is not my favorite trope. However, it worked here. I enjoyed Elijah and Shaw’s story. There wasn’t too much angst, which I appreciated.
robazizo's review
2.0
2.75 stars. Meh. Somehow this book just couldn't keep my interest. I didn't dislike it, but I didn't like it enough, so I kept putting it down. The reasons for disliking each other were vague at best, the way they discovered who was at the other end of their anonymous conversations online was unconvincing, a lot of the book felt repetitive and the final gesture by Shaw felt out of character. I did like Elijah's parents and Eli's speech in the car on the way to the family BBQ about never feeling enough on several different levels. Will's next. Maybe I'll fare better with his story, since I usually enjoy Riley's stories.
reader_of_books88's review
emotional
funny
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
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
4.0