obstinateheadstrongcurl's Reviews (1.37k)

Problematic Summer Romance

Ali Hazelwood

4.5

lighthearted medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Ali Hazelwood has done it again. I knew nothing going into this other than it was age gap (love), and I was so excited to realise it was the sequel to Not in Love, which I really enjoyed. It truly feels like a sequel, not just an interconnected series, because we get a lot of Eli and Rue and they are just as perfect this time around. Plus we get cameos of Lukas and Scarlett and mentions of Jack. Maya and Conor are so good together, from their banter to their chemistry. And the setting here is lush. Planning a trip to Sicily ASAP.

All Superheroes Need PR

Elizabeth Stephens

4.25

lighthearted medium-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

My second book by Elizabeth Stephens, and I would say her heroines seem to fall into an archetype. However, the plot here feels really unique and fresh: how the supers arrived, how they’re divided up into villains and champions and the fact that they need PR. Roland was really cute with Vanessa, and I loved her family and friends. Definitely a series I’ll continue.

Seduced In A Storm

Royaline Sing

4.5

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

I love a second chance novella and this one didn’t disappoint. Short, sweet and spicy, and all of it happening in a storm. Straight up my alley.

Pleasure of a Dark Prince

Kresley Cole

3.75

lighthearted fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Complicated

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

I enjoyed Lucia and Garreth as characters, and I liked their relationship. These books always work better for me when both characters want to be together but can’t because of reasons, rather than when the MMC is chasing the reluctant FMC. Outside of the main characters, a few things bothered me about this one: Garreth mispronouncing Lucia’s name the whole time, the clumsy handling of Izabel/Charlie, and Robert Petkoff mispronouncing the word Gaelic.

Guarding Temptation

Talia Hibbert

5.0

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

Every trope Talia Hibbert writes is my favourite, but I have a weak spot for age-gap-brother’s-best-friend and whew does this deliver. Perfectly sweet, angsty and spicy, and even more impressive considering it’s under 100 pages.

Colliding With Fate

A.E. Valdez

2.5

lighthearted slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

This has a lot of potential but could have used more editing. Kyrell starts off as a pretty slimy character, and while he does change by the end, I don’t think there was enough reckoning with some of his earlier actions.

Devil in Winter

Lisa Kleypas

4.0

lighthearted fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Whatever it was that installed my buttons, I can say that Sebastian is the romance archetype I’m the weakest for. A domineering rake who’s also incredibly competent in his business scratches my romance brain itch in the best way, even though I know I’d hate him in real life. The whole book feels very old-school, classic hist-rom (in good ways and bad – the way Cam’s character is handled is pretty gross,

and I don’t know whether to be glad or not that he isn’t the hero in Daisy’s book

American Sweethearts

Adriana Herrera

4.0

lighthearted fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

This was never going to be my favourite because Priscilla is a cop (and I don’t feel it was handled quite as deftly as Easton being a prosecutor). And while you can’t exactly set that aside since Priscilla’s job is so integral to her character, I did really enjoy the rest of the book. One of my favourite things about this series is how strong and soft all the heroes are, and they’re all so comfortable with themselves. Juan Pablo is no different, he’s done the work before the story even starts and spends the whole time showing Priscilla how much he’s changed. We get some great side characters in this one, outwith the main group, and now I really want books for Bri and Yariel.