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A review by hsinjulit
Shake Things Up by Skye Kilaen
5.0
I believe this is my first contemporary polyam romance, and I loved it!
Previous books in the Love at Knockdown series were about Allie’s sisters—Vivi (pan) with Finn (lesbian) in [b:Get It Right|53918331|Get It Right (Love at Knockdown, #1)|Skye Kilaen|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1601386881l/53918331._SY75_.jpg|84274594] and Nora with Will (pan) in [b:Knock Me Down|54662976|Knock Me Down (Love at Knockdown #0.5)|Skye Kilaen|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1600696815l/54662976._SY75_.jpg|85285770]. In Shake Things Up, we get to spend more time with Allie (33, pan), her long-term partner Matt (31), and a new person Noelle (26, bi). Allie and Matt are in an open relationship, and when Allie almost slept with Noelle’s then-boyfriend, thinking she had Noelle’s approval, Allie ends up taking Noelle under her wings after the latter loses her living space and job in the same day. With Allie and Matt going on a road trip to a music festival soon, they plan on leaving Noelle to housesit. Or... they can take her with them.
This was so cute and funny and adorable! I love the companionship between Allie and Matt, who felt a little like best friends–with-benefits. They have open communications, and through their interactions, it is clear that they trusted each other deeply. With the addition of Noelle, neither Allie nor Matt felt threatened in any way, which depicts their open relationship wonderfully. I love that the kind-of cold Allie, who is an actuary but that doesn’t play a huge role in the story, is soft for Noelle. And Matt is so much fun! He is a doctor and his character arc is mainly about him figuring out his sexuality while forming a friendship with Allie. And Noelle has an Instagram page where she posts staged photos of her LEGO figurines!
Are they a throuple? Not quite, but each pair in this group has their own dynamics, and I really appreciated how their partnership works together. I adored the characters, especially Matt (oops, I’m playing favorites here). There are also cameos of other familiar characters, including Nora, Will, Vivi, Finn, and Oliver.
The next book in the series is going to be a queer m/f fake-dating romance featuring Oliver and his long-time crush. I cannot wait to spend more time with Kilaen’s characters as they are always so sweet and wonderful to get to know!
content warnings on author’s website
I received a digital review copy from the author and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Previous books in the Love at Knockdown series were about Allie’s sisters—Vivi (pan) with Finn (lesbian) in [b:Get It Right|53918331|Get It Right (Love at Knockdown, #1)|Skye Kilaen|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1601386881l/53918331._SY75_.jpg|84274594] and Nora with Will (pan) in [b:Knock Me Down|54662976|Knock Me Down (Love at Knockdown #0.5)|Skye Kilaen|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1600696815l/54662976._SY75_.jpg|85285770]. In Shake Things Up, we get to spend more time with Allie (33, pan), her long-term partner Matt (31), and a new person Noelle (26, bi). Allie and Matt are in an open relationship, and when Allie almost slept with Noelle’s then-boyfriend, thinking she had Noelle’s approval, Allie ends up taking Noelle under her wings after the latter loses her living space and job in the same day. With Allie and Matt going on a road trip to a music festival soon, they plan on leaving Noelle to housesit. Or... they can take her with them.
This was so cute and funny and adorable! I love the companionship between Allie and Matt, who felt a little like best friends–with-benefits. They have open communications, and through their interactions, it is clear that they trusted each other deeply. With the addition of Noelle, neither Allie nor Matt felt threatened in any way, which depicts their open relationship wonderfully. I love that the kind-of cold Allie, who is an actuary but that doesn’t play a huge role in the story, is soft for Noelle. And Matt is so much fun! He is a doctor and his character arc is mainly about him figuring out his sexuality while forming a friendship with Allie. And Noelle has an Instagram page where she posts staged photos of her LEGO figurines!
Are they a throuple? Not quite, but each pair in this group has their own dynamics, and I really appreciated how their partnership works together. I adored the characters, especially Matt (oops, I’m playing favorites here). There are also cameos of other familiar characters, including Nora, Will, Vivi, Finn, and Oliver.
The next book in the series is going to be a queer m/f fake-dating romance featuring Oliver and his long-time crush. I cannot wait to spend more time with Kilaen’s characters as they are always so sweet and wonderful to get to know!
content warnings on author’s website
I received a digital review copy from the author and am voluntarily leaving a review.