I received and ARC of this book on Edelweiss+. Pub date: 6 October

Own voice review.

First, I loved that the characters are 36 and 40, a huge thumb-up for an almost 40 romance reader such as I am (and this is not the own voice part).
Onto the couple. Meet Marcus: the sexy main actor of a super popular TV-series - I was picturing him like a match of Nikolaj Coster-Waldau (THEY EVEN SHARE THE HYPHEN)/Robert Pattinson/Brad Pitt. He's stuck with the vain dumb persona he made up as a way to hide from an issue he has not entirely dealt with; and April, the curvy red-haired geologist (geologist!) who likes going way beyond appearances, and has her own demons to face. The two meet first on a fan-fiction chat (the whole book id a Ode to fan-fiction writers basically) and then on a date thanks to Twitter. Enough with the plot.

I loved all the references (Scully and Mulder, be still my heart), the cosplay mentions, and the period talking(!) tampons and bloodstains (omg thank you Olivia Dade, you're my hero!), and the way these all too real characters find to get rid of their burdens, the relationships they both have with their parents is tremendously real. Mostly I loved the path April takes towards a certain exposure, and ultimately towards body-acceptance, which she didn't lack but had the last steps to go, especially a confrontation with her personal demon. Being curvy myself (here the own voice review takes off) I know all too well what the well-meant advice on exercise and diets are, the nasty comments, the fear of being criticised and ridiculed by your family first and foremost. This book resonated so much, from the way April talks about and appreciate food, to the subtle comments her mum makes on the clothes she should wear and what shouldn't, the way she, the mother, gets on the scale every single day and not even just once.
Not much steam, but there are a few meaningful sexy times.

I'm going to read all Olivia Dade's romances, btw. Huge thanks to the writer who made me feel really seen in a romance world.