A review by kelliemw
For Real by Alexis Hall

emotional tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

Thank you to the Author, publisher and NetGalley for the eARC. 
Age gaps are not my thing, reading the synopsis and knowing that this book contained one I chose to request it anyway. I have read other of Hall’s books and genuinely loved them. This is a rerelease of the book with bonus materials and I hadn’t read it before so I thought I’d give it a shot. Overall I found both MMC to be genuinely hard to like. They both came with way too many hang ups and while some of them were resolved, I didn’t find the resolutions to be satisfying. As far as the kink in this, I am not an expert in the BDSM scene but the lack of negotiation, and sometimes what felt like coercion was uncomfortable for me. The lack of even using safe words and joking once about the use of a safe word after an attempted scene was uncouth. 
I wish I could have enjoyed it more considering how much I enjoyed other books by this author but not every book is for everyone.