Reviews

Always Alex by Robin Alexander

rickosborne'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? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Things I enjoyed:

• Good sense of humor and funny, as always with Robin Alexander
• Good execution of friends-to-lovers, if a bit short due to the short nature of the story
• Teenage daughter who acts and talks like a teenager
• The scenes between the changed-old-man father and estranged daughter were touching

But also:

• As with many (most?) Robin Alexander books I've read, the side-characters can be a bit one-note
• It's a bit too short, so we don't get to see much of the slow realizations and struggles

Overall, this is pretty solid Robin Alexander.  If you like her, you like her.

Sex:

two soft-R-rated scenes of relatively low graphic detail

Tags: #AnxiousNeutralPair #Awakening #BackHomeAgain #ClosetedVsOut #DualPOV #FearOfRuiningFriendship #FriendsToLovers #SecondChance #SingleParent #SmallTown #ThirdPersonPOV

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Content Warnings

Minor: Death

Brief mentions of a sister who died pre-story due to

driving while intoxicated

and the occasional emotional baggage which comes with that.

willraths's review

adventurous funny lighthearted fast-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

4.5

elvang's review

4.0

3.5 stars

Well written entertaining story with lots of witty dialogue. Enjoyed watching Dana make peace with her father. Clara his housekeeper was a highlight as a character in this story arc. She was drawn with a love and earnestness that was hard to resist.

Alex's family were a bit too over the top for me. The treehouse,as her mother described it was great. The whole idea of a house up on stilts and the comedic moments with the pineapple wallpaper in the bathrooms were cute. Memaw and her smoking, drinking irreverent ways went from cute to campy to awkward and predictable in a short period of time. Floating wiglets while amusing, get old fast.

Overall a nice romance.

Spoiler

Dana's transition from straight to always knew I was gay seemed rushed and patched together. Alex finally rewarded for her undying love was lovely to watch.

mjsam's review

3.0

I read this after reading The Fall and found them to be fairly similar, which sort of detracted from this one, even though it was written first. I found a second story with multi-generation lesbians and multiple couples a bit much. But this is a typical Robin Alexander story, in that the characters are likeable and there's not much drama (that's good because Robin doesn't add unnecessary conflict), so it's an enjoyable read anyway. Alex and Dana were sweet and I enjoyed how they reconnected and started a relationship. Not my favourite of Robin's stories, but worth a read.

lsnack's review

5.0

You can’t help but laugh out loud when listening to one of Robin’s stories. Alex has been pining for Dana since childhood. Dana is trying to rebuild her life and relationship with her father. You can always find outrageous family members in Robin’s stories and they really add to the wonderful story. Lori Prince is an excellent choice to narrate. She has some unique voices that are so perfect for the characters. This is a wonderful friends to forever story.