i have been loving the new found family at briar u. but despite how much fun i had while reading this, and almost rating it 5 stars, there was just some things i couldn’t overlook.

1. ⚠️ the lack of content warnings was startling. i read the ebook version and mine didn’t have any mention or warnings despite there being some very triggering scenes that happen in the book. it completely caught me off guard and overwhelmed me while i was reading.

please be advised of the following trigger warnings before reading (contains spoilers):

- ex stalking fmc
- ex assaulting (punching/kicking) fmc
- death of parent
- mentions of terminal illness (cancer)

2. so like even though the book was pretty funny for a good 80% of it before it got incredibly traumatizing, i was still expecting more. the non-ending ending was lackluster. there was something missing. kinda feels like elle ran out of steam which is a bummer.

despite all that, i still want to applaud elle because she has a special talent of writing books with no real plot but still somehow manages to make them entertaining, especially with little random arcs all the main and side characters go on.

shane and diana were so much fun and their banter was top notch. their bickering was hilarious too. i personally wouldn’t classify them as “enemies”-to-lovers as this book was marketed, but they sure enjoyed annoying each other.

fake dating tropes are always a hit or miss and this one was… all over the place? personally i think shane initially wanting to fake date to get back at his ex was *yawn* but diana’s reasoning for wanting to fake date made more sense. i give it a solid 7/10 on the fake dating trope execution.

shane and diana always had a lot of chemistry, as we first saw in TGE, but i was still impressed by how well they were written in their own book. their chemistry was hot. like a lot of romance books have been missing the chemistry between their main characters but this book actually delivered! i knew she would bust his balls outside the bedroom and he’d thank her! shane needed a woman who’d challenge him and diana needed a man to challenge her. perfect match. oh, and that scene between shane, diana, AND will… that was fucking hot…

although i questioned it at first, the ballroom dancing side quest and trashy reality TV show binging incorporated into shane and diana’s story was charming in the end. it suited their personalities. they’re both weird.

i loved the moments where we saw gigi and ryder (and their wedding!), mya, and all the hockey team!! all the other appearances from the previous gens and possibly future gens too…? hello, blake logan and eli di laurentis…

WHO THE FUCK IS CHARLIE?! WHY ARE THEY GETTING A BOOK!?? WHAT ABOUT BECKETT AND WILL!!!