goatsrsexy's Reviews (604)

A short story collection based on Vietnamese folklore. They're ghost stories but not necessarily scary, although some were very unnerving.

This is really not my style of book, but it was okay for what it was. The social commentary and parts about the war were pretty interesting but I didn't like the romance. Having Harlan talk to the priest in his chapters didn't work for me at all and was honestly super weird.

It was ok but anticlimactic and some parts were boring 

Super fascinating sci-fi which takes place in a near future India. The world building is super dense and you might have a hard time with it if you don't really understand social media and influencers, buts it's really worth reading. Also I didn't fully understand it but I do feel I need to sit with it for a couple of days

All the good parts of a classic teen romance movie with none of the misogyny. What's not to love?! Liz is obsessed with the idea of a 'like the movies' romance, and that's all tied up with her grief over her romcom loving mom. When her childhood crush moves home, she enlists her frenemy neighbour to help her win him over. As the two of them spend time together she starts to realize that he may be a much better person than she thought, and that people aren't always the way you think of them.

This is the second Lynn Painter book I've read and I loved it just as much! I like that the side characters are actually developed and feel like real people. The references to romcoms in this book were so fun because I'm a big fan of them myself, although I wasn't as a teenager.

There was a minor focus in this book on the feeling of being an adult that doesn't feel like a 'real' adult. A pretty universal expensive from what I know, and it was portrayed quite well.

What bothered me though is that the age difference between the characters (5 years) was such a big focus and all the millenial talk. As a 28 year old with a lot of friends in their younger 20s, it felt a bit silly. Our childhoods were not that different, our life experiences weren't that difficult and as grown adults in our 20s we are peers. The dynamic between Shay and Dominic felt a bit silly and I can't help feeling that the age difference wouldn't have even been mentioned if the genders were swapped. 

Also, the moral quandary about lying... I don't get that at all. It's a white lie, they're acting basically. It's not like their lie affects anyone who doesn't know them personally, which brings me to the next point which is that it was totally weird and unnecessary to lie to their parents and coworkers about it.

Overall, I liked this book but I didn't love it as it was a bit slow and kind of annoying.

One thing I find fun about being Canadian is recognizing when an author is Canadian because of little references in the book that don't actually make sense for Americans even though that's where the book is set. Happened to me a couple times here and when I went to check if the author was Canadian I felt pretty pleased with my skills 

That aside, this was a really sweet and fun romance. Third in a standalone style series, I haven't read the other books but it didn't diminish my experience at all. I'm interested to read the other two though as the other couples seem really cute.

Hailey just started a salad shop which makes me want to like salad so bad because everyone seems to love it. She also loves dessert so I think we'd get along very well. Anyways, her and Wes are both new to the area and form a super close friendship. They also have feelings for each other but neither wants to admit it and risk hurting their friendship, they both have some issues with commitment and the idea of long term relationships, although for different reasons. They have great chemistry and both seem like really nice people which makes the story a lot more enjoyable to read. 

The only negative thing I really have to say is that at times I found it a bit boring, the chemistry was good but there wasn't much at all going on plot wise and there were big time jumps which I'm not really a fan of.

I'd still definitely recommend picking this one up if you're a fan of contemporary romance, and even though I haven't read them myself I'd say you should read the first two as well. This book will be published in January so you have just enough time to read the other two books first!

Thanks to Netgalley and St Martin's Press for the advanced copy!

Despite being a slow start, this is definitely one of the best books I've read this year.

The story revolves around three young men living in Jerusalem, Amir, Yonatan, and a lawyer who for whatever reason isn't named. It was a disturbing yet very subtle domestic thriller, but it also gave a very compelling and honest insight into Arab Israeli culture.