I want to start by saying that I may be in the minority on my feelings about this book but unfortunately, I did not enjoy this one as much as I thought I would. I think this author is still someone I want to read more from because I feel like all of their stories make the reader think.
First let's talk about the characters we are following Agatha a middle-aged lesbian college professor who has come to Arkansas to write a book about weddings, Millie the RA in the college's scholarship dorm, and Millie one of the residents of Millie's dorm who has a secret from her past. All three of these characters were interesting on their own and I found their backstories separately interesting. I feel like there was so much going on in these women's lives that didn't make sense to me in the overarching plot.
I felt like for me this book wasn't meant to have a plot other than being a slice-of-life story about these three women and their experiences during the first semester of the school year. I don't know what I wanted more of but I just wanted more of a plot to the story.
The writing on the other hand I believe is one of the stronger parts of this book. Reid knows how to keep the reader engaged and to make the reader think. That is one of my favorite things about this author is that the topics that she brings up in her writing make me as a reader ponder what my views are on certain situations.
The setting of the college dorm and college town was great it felt like the author had spent time in a college town to be able to get the vibes of what those places look like which I appreciated.
My overall enjoyment was just the middle of the road. I was reading and kept wondering when we were going to get the story moving and I feel like the story didn't take off until the 60% mark. I think that this has important topics that need to be discussed but I think the execution could have been better.

I just don’t think I am in the right head space for this one right now 

This was such a fun story and I can not wait to read more about this family and the animal shenanigans 

Really just wasn’t a story I was connecting with 

Juno know that to keep her family safe they have to follow the seven commandments. This is a thriller that looks at the dark side of family dynamics and could be triggering to some readers. There is child abuse and kidnapping in this story. This is also translated fiction so some of my issues with this book may be because things change in translation.
For me the characters were interesting and kept me wanting to learn more about them. From the very beginning the reader knows that there is something weird about Juno and Boy's life but we are figuring out things the same way that they are and seeing how each character handled the information was intersting.
The plot was good but I had some issues with the pacing. I felt like the events were happening quickly but also it felt like there should have been more time then just a few days for the whole plot to happen. I found the plot still interesting and was on the edge of my seat wanting to know what happened.
I think that the writing was one of the best parts of this book. It is definitely obvious that this author has honed his craft and I am excited to see more from this author.
The setting was my second favorite part because the isolated setting was very claustrophobic and I loved that element of this book. If you love isolated setting I feel like this is a book to pick up.
I had fun reading this book so my enjoyment was high I think that it also helped that I was able to sit down and binge the second half of this book in one day.

If you are looking for a story about sisters who truly love each other no matter what this is the story for you. I found this story so engaging and was surprised at the things that I learned because I am not very well versed in WWI history. 

My least favorite part of this book was probably the pacing just because we went from watching these characters day to day life and then months and almost a year jumped. I do understand the need to jump time the way the book did I just wish we could have seen a little more of our characters during those time jumps. 

My dislike aside I thought that the story of this book was fantastic and enjoyed the conversations that this book brings up. I thought that both of the sisters felt fleshed out and stood on their own. I do think I preferred Phoebe's point of view the most but Celia's point of view was definitely not bad. I also loved both of the male love interest. 

I think that this book does a great job of giving those of us who love the War type stories a new and interesting time period to explore and I will be picking up more of this authors work.

 

If you are in the mood for something that is cozy and a little spicy this is the book for you. I enjoyed my time when reading this book but some of the language in this book felt very modern for such a not modern setting. I enjoyed the characters and thought that their motivations were done well for this kind of story. The wording of some of the spicy scenes was a little cringey for me. This is the kind of book that I may continue with the series, but I am not rushing to pick up the next one. 

This was such an interesting exploration into the world of publishing. The main character was very unlikeable but in such a genuine way. I think that this book has so much to unpack.