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tayking 's review for:
The Switch
by Beth O'Leary
lighthearted
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I really wanted to love this book -- it has a lot of elements that really resonate with me in romance novels:
- career-focused/ambitious lead
- return to places from your past to address trauma
- bad-ass elderly people
- focus on community and friendships outside of the romance
Bitter rivalry that is sustained for the sake of rivalry but secretly one party is pining for the other
On a surface level, this should have been a home run, it was such a slog to get through. Leena especially was so unlikable and unrelatable -- I found myself wishing for Eileen's perspective in half of her chapters. Her motivations and story felt flat and undeveloped. I could not find myself to care about what she was going through.
In all, the two stories woven together had good ideas behind them, but ultimately suffered by splitting our attentions -- resulting in a thin plot and even thinner characterizations.