The Laughing Listener
April 2019
Format: Audiobook
Narrator: Elizabeth Louise
Length: 16 hours & 49 minutes

Story Rating:1 Stars
Performance Rating: 3 Stars
Overall Rating: 2 Stars

“‘It must be exhausting,’ he says.
‘What?! What must be exhausting?!’
‘Acting like you don’t want me when we both know you do.’” *Gags*

YESSSSSSSS!! GATHER ‘ROUND it’s time to review another garbage fire! I’m kinda proud of myself for making it through this whole book. I don’t know why I love rejoicing in terrible pop culture so much, but it brings me so much joy. It doesn’t matter what it is—book, movie, music—if it sucks ass I’m going to have a lot of fun judging the crap out of it. And when I heard this was once a Harry Styles fanfiction, I grabbed a front row seat with some popcorn.

Man, where do I even START with this mess?? This is the exact middle ground between [b:Twilight|41865|Twilight (Twilight, #1)|Stephenie Meyer|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1361039443s/41865.jpg|3212258] and [b:Fifty Shades of Grey|10818853|Fifty Shades of Grey (Fifty Shades, #1)|E.L. James|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1385207843s/10818853.jpg|15732562]. Literally. If you wanted a more skin in Twilight, but without all the weird bondage of Fifty Shades then LOOK NO FURTHER. Like seriously guys, the parallels are astounding. This book has EVERYTHING.



- Hawt romantic love interest with a “troubled past” who’s also emotionally abusive and awful. BUT WHO CARES RIGHT?? WE LOVE HIM, HE’S SO BROODING

- Bland main character with no personality who’s never had sex before. Because her sexual history is really super important for some reason???

-It’s set in the rainy green lands of Washington state

- A main character who is SO DEEP AND SMART because she “loves classic literature” but only references [b:Pride and Prejudice|1885|Pride and Prejudice|Jane Austen|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1320399351s/1885.jpg|3060926] and [b:Wuthering Heights|6185|Wuthering Heights|Emily Brontë|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1388212715s/6185.jpg|1565818] (WHY IS THIS A THING? THERE ARE OTHER BOOKS!)

- A main character who doesn’t think anything through because WHO THE HECK NEEDS COMMON SENSE AMIRIGHT??

- Cast of “friends” who are actually terrible people and not real friends at all?????

- Dysfunctional, codependent romantic relationships

- Terrible parental figures

- A main character that wants to be a writer and works in publishing

- A suuuuuuuper long story with barely any plot that takes place in the span of like, two days

- DRAMA DRAMA DRAMA DRAMA DRAMA DRAMA DRAMA DRAMA



This book is too much. Any time Hardin said anything I would picture Harry Styles saying it and cracked up. I laughed so much reading this damn thing, which is how it got two stars instead of one. Bonus points for pure entertainment value. There was just so much screaming??? They would all go from having a conversation to shouting in mere seconds. God forbid anyone has a normal argument without it turning into a friggin’ Jerry Springer episode. And the writing?? Oh my god, it’s awful. It’s all awful. I’m pretty sure you could cut this book in half and it would still be too long.

Also, is it just me or is there something extra creepy about fanfiction written about a REAL person. Books and fictional characters are one thing, but so much time must have been put into stalking the hell out of Harry Styles for this. So many vivid descriptions of his torso and tattoos. I just… UGH.

The movie of this is going to be…….. Interesting…



But just to give credit where credit’s due, I have to hand it to Todd for that ending. I was NOT prepared for that plot twist and it kind of blew my mind. In hindsight I guess I should have seen it coming, but I definitely did NOT. And damn, that was some Desperate Housewives level drama right there. This is a four or five book series, so I know these two crazy, dysfunctional kids probably end up together, but let me just say that if this happened to me there is NO F*CKING WAY. NO F*CKING WAY I WOULD EVER TALK TO THESE PEOPLE AGAIN. Are you serious??? I can’t believe Tessa would even CONSIDER letting them back in her life after this crap. HELL. TO. THE. NO.

Oh, and if I had to hear Hardin ask Tessa for “just one more chance” one more goddamn time, I was gonna reach through the book and punch him in the face.

FINAL WORD