This is genuinely one of the best romance novels I've read this year. It's a mix of genre romcom, skilled litfic prose, and women's fiction character This is genuinely one of the best romance novels I've read this year. It's a mix of genre romcom, skilled litfic prose, and women's fiction character work that is so incredibly real. Books about millennial lesbians figuring their lives out are my weakness, and this was just so well done. Her commentary was on point lmao. Though I agree with another reviewer who said this book severely lacked mascs. Like, idk how you can have a book with a dozen WLW and yet there's only one butch...
The main reason this is a 4.5 is because I felt like it was way too long. Once we hit the halfway mark, I got frustrated by the repetition. Whenever a new woman entered the picture, I wanted to shake Bette. JUST GO BACK TO RUTH!! CLEARLY SHE'S THE ONE YOU TRULY WANT!! And once I reached that point, I also realized how annoying Bette was as a person. Which is not the writer's fault. But all of her friends were 10x more interesting tbh.
That said, if you want to read more sapphic romances but don't like how the genre has been oversimplified for consumerism (ie: bare bones writing with copy paste everything), then I highly recommend Experienced. I wish more sapphic romances were like this, genuinely....more
This is an “It’s not you; it’s me” situation. The book is beautifully written with an incredible slowburn friends to lovers situation. Unfortunately, This is an “It’s not you; it’s me” situation. The book is beautifully written with an incredible slowburn friends to lovers situation. Unfortunately, it is TOO slow for my taste. I am not a fan of timeskip books wherein majority of the story takes place when the MCs are children and adolescents. I also need more romance in my… romances and there was barely any of that. A blooming friendship and lots of one-sided yearning, sure, but maybe this should have just been one book instead of a duology… I also needed more plot.
That said, Mia Darling is a really promising author. Maybe I’ll enjoy her future books if they pick up the pace.
Thank you to Gay Romance Reviews for the ARC....more
I probably shouldn't have read this on my period because I spent the final three chapters just crying...
It took me a long time to get into this book. I probably shouldn't have read this on my period because I spent the final three chapters just crying...
It took me a long time to get into this book. Rosemary is incredibly annoying, both women are immature, and the writing is not great. I also felt like they had very little chemistry until we got halfway through the book. (Spoiler: their fifteen year feud is solved by a single conversation wherein they both learn they had a simple misunderstanding. You've got to be kidding me!!) It's a very chronically online millennial trad pub romance... But wait. It's more than that!! Specifically, I enjoyed it because it's so much more than a romance.
I loved the road trip aspect. I loved their relationship with Joe. I loved the painful reality of grieving and loving someone with a terminal illness. I loved the character development and how both women genuinely change their worst traits. I loved how this novel celebrated queer elders and queer history. I loved what it said about allowing gay people to grow old and fall in love. I loved how both heroines dealt with their parental issues and how they realized they were perpetuating their traumas. I loved the shoutout to queer kids imprinting on their English teachers.
I'm not usually a romcom girl anymore, but this novel made my cold little heart twitch. Okay, Logan and Rosemary were pretty cute at the end. I'm so proud of them....more
BOOK LOVERS HAS CONVERTED ME INTO AN EMILY HENRY FAN. I get the hype now. I loved this so much. I loved Nora and Charlie. I loved the sisters subplot BOOK LOVERS HAS CONVERTED ME INTO AN EMILY HENRY FAN. I get the hype now. I loved this so much. I loved Nora and Charlie. I loved the sisters subplot and Sunshine Falls. I loved the writing, the sense of humor, the cliches that were just so comforting. Haven't been this excited about a book in a while!...more
So… The tropes advertised here are not accurate. This is not your average bi awakening story. In fact, it’s about an asexual (demisexual?) MC who has So… The tropes advertised here are not accurate. This is not your average bi awakening story. In fact, it’s about an asexual (demisexual?) MC who has never felt attraction to anyone until he becomes close to his new roommate/best friend… and slowly learns what sexual attraction is like in the process. It is genuinely an ace book, and I think it will appeal to my friends who seek ace rep! It was so carefully done and detailed, and the MC is never pressured to define himself immediately since even he doesn’t know. It even takes him time to realize that what he’s feeling IS a crush and IS sexual attraction. It’s very interesting!
As for the bi awakening part, I don’t think that’s accurate either since at the end of the book the MC Cruz comes out as “gay” to his friends. He also mentions how he’s never felt sexual attraction to any women, and the only person he’s been attracted to is his male roommate. He panics over what labels to use and settles on gay ace. Yes, this is a mild spoiler but I don’t understand why the novel was mis-marketed to this extent. It’s otherwise pretty great!!
Beautifully Fractured is a very sweet, low angst, friends to lovers romance. It’s very very smutty but also pretty cute because MC Cruz has a kind, tenderhearted Golden Retriever personality. Love interest Liam is the grumpy (gay, family trauma, loner) to Cruz’s sunshine, but despite some bad first impressions, they develop a very soft relationship.
No, seriously, I think this could be defined as a cozy romance because of how nice everyone is. Liam came from a homophobic high school but everyone in their college and everyone in Cruz’s family is welcoming and accepting. Liam stresses out over whether or not his feelings are returned, but there is no dramatic angst, no depressing third act heartbreak. Both MCs are athletes but as the author mentioned, this isn’t actually a sports romance — just a romance between two sporty guys.
That said, due to their young ages (college freshmen) they read annoyingly young to me (oh no, signs of aging). At one point the book became pure smut so like lol this is kinda repetitive. And the love confessions were kinda cringe… I’m sorry. Otherwise, I’m pleasantly surprised by this and I think it will find its audience! As long as they are corrected by the advertising.
Thank you to Gay Romance Reviews for providing me with the ARC. ...more
Marginalized authors reclaiming the cosmic horror genre is my favorite thing. Jordan Hawke's Widdershins series was my introduction to the queer equivMarginalized authors reclaiming the cosmic horror genre is my favorite thing. Jordan Hawke's Widdershins series was my introduction to the queer equivalent, but Providence Girls is another lovely sapphic, feminist addition.
Dante's writing is so beautiful, wow. The romance between Azzie and Vin went by kinda fast but it was so sweet and emotional. A good chunk of the book involves hurt/comfort, sickfic, and slice of life cottagecore sapphic shenanigans. But after a while, I honestly got bored of all the sweetness and light. Thankfully, this is a cosmic horror book, and things get freaky really fast. But the horror isn't really in the monsters or old gods from the deep. All those monsters are human (or, close to human). All those monsters are loved. As Dante retells the Lovecraft canon from the perspective of the women and monsters, we realize they were merely victims to all this violence and trauma. And holy hell, there is a lot of trauma in our MCs's pasts. The real villains here are the human men.
Don't come in here looking for an ordinary kinky romance. Yes, there is some monsterfucking but it's mainly a character study in trauma recovery. Also, I'm kinda salty that we spent the whole book thinking it's going to be a tragic ending for the two women, only for the epilogue to go "jokes on you! They lived happily ever after for 15 years afterwards!" then why make me so SAD, damn it. ...more
I don't remember anything about this book except the plot twist ending OTL lmaoI don't remember anything about this book except the plot twist ending OTL lmao...more
Today we learned Seong-Jae is a kinky power vers and was potentially a power bottom with Aanga Amen. I love how stunned Malcolm is about the whole thiToday we learned Seong-Jae is a kinky power vers and was potentially a power bottom with Aanga Amen. I love how stunned Malcolm is about the whole thing lmao his brain definitely stopped working once he realized what his sweet awkward black cat boyfriend is really into
NOW YES MALCOLM PLEASE MEET MAMA AND PAPA YOON!!! MEET THE IN-LAWS ALREADY!!
On a more serious note, am I right in reading the subtext that Sila is potentially related to the Golden Ratio Killer??? That's one messed up gene pool man....more
When we first met Aanga in Season One, I was instantly intrigued. I don't like love triangles but I do love the jealousy trope so seeing Malcolm jealoWhen we first met Aanga in Season One, I was instantly intrigued. I don't like love triangles but I do love the jealousy trope so seeing Malcolm jealous over Seong-Jae's ex-boyfriend FBI agent who's definitely not over him was delicious :P
Seong-Jae, just admit you have a type for dangerous older men. This is so funny. My boy collects red flags like they're about to be discontinued lmao.
That said, I'm immediately obsessed with Season Two! I love the new overaraching serial killer. I love the new location and setting. I love the new characters. I love the new dynamics introduced, and I love how this adds a new layer to the central romance. This new guy is chilling and gives me total Hannibal Lecter vibes. We love to see it.
Btw, someone tell Cole McCade that Nepal is in South Asia. Not Southeast Asia....more
What a stunning, emotional, beautiful and mysterious end to season one ❤️
As you can tell, Criminal Intentions has been the book series of my heart thWhat a stunning, emotional, beautiful and mysterious end to season one ❤️
As you can tell, Criminal Intentions has been the book series of my heart this year. Malcolm and Seong-Jae are THAT couple and sweeping everyone else in the romantic suspense slowburn realm out of the water
Admittedly season one was not perfect — it was kinda frustrating how much filler we had near the end, after they got together. I feel like a few books could’ve been combined into one to make them more substantial. Luckily I switched to Kindle Unlimited when I reached the halfway point so I could save money. But the series finale was really satisfying with all the reveals about Seong-Jae’s past, and him and Malcolm’s relationship upgraded finally after truth comes to light. I also enjoy Anjulie and Gabi’s growing closeness. Admittedly I dont really care about the Sade and Jason plotline, but eh, they’re easy enough to skim through.
Also I just realized, with how sensitive Seong-Jae is about formality and not being called his given name by just anyone, why doesn’t his sister use honorifics with him and call him big bro in Korean? What immigrant Asian family lets that slide lol
Anyway, even if the series is not perfect, I genuinely had so much fun reading it. It’s bingeable and so brainrot worthy. Thank you, Cole McCade! I’m diving into season 2 now. ...more
Cara best girl! "Yoon is my friend. You're just the tagalong I tolerate."
Seong-Ja best girl!! Seong-Jae's relationship with his sister was so cute andCara best girl! "Yoon is my friend. You're just the tagalong I tolerate."
Seong-Ja best girl!! Seong-Jae's relationship with his sister was so cute and it was so nice to see them together ;w; I'm going to miss her...
Honestly this was another filler book but I really appreciated the character interactions. Looking forward to Seong-Jae meeting Malcolm's parents ehehe ...more
This book kinda felt like thin filler material until the twist at the end. Of course I will immediately read Book 9 now to see how the MCs deal with tThis book kinda felt like thin filler material until the twist at the end. Of course I will immediately read Book 9 now to see how the MCs deal with the situation. That said, this is the kind of series where I don't mind reading filler; I genuinely love the MCs so much that I'd read them doing anything....more
SDLFKJS;DF;SDF THIS BOOK IS BASICALLY ENDLESS CHAPTERS OF FLUFF AND SMUT AND THEM BEING SICKLY IN LOVE AND POOR SEONG-JAE BEING HAUNTED BY HIS PAST!!!SDLFKJS;DF;SDF THIS BOOK IS BASICALLY ENDLESS CHAPTERS OF FLUFF AND SMUT AND THEM BEING SICKLY IN LOVE AND POOR SEONG-JAE BEING HAUNTED BY HIS PAST!!!
Guys I literally cannot stop reading these books. They are so addicting. I don't know how to stop. It hasn't even been A WEEK.
I'm also intrigued by the build-up between Gabi and the captain. I know they probably won't have a conventional romance but I hope they end up in a relationship together <3 I burst into laughter when the caption called out Malcolm and Seong-Jae for walking into the office basically half-dressed and a clearly they just rolled out of bed together omgkdslgsjg;fs;f boys could you at least please change and shower first.
Seong-Jae surprisingly being the kinky one is so woof.
I still screamed out loud though. Sorry neighbors. I'm so kilig :''')...more
To reiterate, I read books 3-5 in one day. I could not stop reading. I am down bad. And my suspicions about the mysterious serial killer following SeoTo reiterate, I read books 3-5 in one day. I could not stop reading. I am down bad. And my suspicions about the mysterious serial killer following Seong-Jae around were correct ;)
Speaking of, he's my baby and I need to know more about his past. omg....more
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