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stephanie_inman's Reviews (228)
Cute, short read. Jason is totally in love with his neighbor, Noah. It's nearly Christmas, and Jason decides to make this the best Christmas ever for Noah. He wants to do something really special to show Noah how he feels about him. Unfortunately, Jason soon finds out he has some competition for Noah's affection in the almost too perfect, Dave. Very little angst. Just a good, sweet story.
If you look at my shelves, you will see I am a huge fan of Anyta Sunday. I rarely rate her books below four stars. In fact, a few of them have hit five star status, and a few of them are on my favorite books of all time list. Still, I couldn't get into this one. Maybe it's a "me" problem, because this one seems to rate pretty high on her list with other readers. I just had a hard time connecting to the characters. I also didn't feel a connection between the characters.
The story revolves around Nathan, who is nearing 18, and takes a job at the circus, selling cotton candy. There he meets a performer named "Blue" or "Stardust" (as Nathan thinks of him). He is mesmerized by the performer. They become friends, although it's clear there is more to it than just friendship. Still, there is an age difference, and "Blue" isn't one to settle down, preferring his life in the circus.
Time passes. Nathan grows up and has a pretty good life going. The circus returns to town. Will his "Stardust" still be there? And what will it mean for them now that Nathan is a grown man and no longer the naïve teenager who fell in love with "Blue"?
This is a slow burn romance.
The story revolves around Nathan, who is nearing 18, and takes a job at the circus, selling cotton candy. There he meets a performer named "Blue" or "Stardust" (as Nathan thinks of him). He is mesmerized by the performer. They become friends, although it's clear there is more to it than just friendship. Still, there is an age difference, and "Blue" isn't one to settle down, preferring his life in the circus.
Time passes. Nathan grows up and has a pretty good life going. The circus returns to town. Will his "Stardust" still be there? And what will it mean for them now that Nathan is a grown man and no longer the naïve teenager who fell in love with "Blue"?
This is a slow burn romance.
This is another book where I read it once, didn’t write the review immediately, and as time went on, I sort of forgot the specifics of it.
So, I read it again.
I remembered liking this the first time, and I did give it four stars, so one would think this would be a more memorable read. Pretty much all I remembered was that this is a brother’s best friend trope.
Allison has been crushing on Ed since she was a teenager. Now that they are grown, Ed, along with Allison’s brother, Harry and their other best friend, Fritz own a bakery. This puts Allison in close proximity of Ed, who has now been noticing Allison. He, of course is worried because she is Harry’s sister.
This book is a short read, so it’s not really necessary for me to delve too heavily into the plot. If I did, it would likely include way too many spoilers.
I quickly figured out why I gave this one four stars.
It’s sweet. All of the characters, from our main couple to their friends are likable. The plot moves quickly, there’s no unnecessary drama. Allison and Ed, once they are together, they are together. No misunderstandings. No OW/OM to contend with. It’s pretty much angst free!
This is a just a fun read.
So, I read it again.
I remembered liking this the first time, and I did give it four stars, so one would think this would be a more memorable read. Pretty much all I remembered was that this is a brother’s best friend trope.
Allison has been crushing on Ed since she was a teenager. Now that they are grown, Ed, along with Allison’s brother, Harry and their other best friend, Fritz own a bakery. This puts Allison in close proximity of Ed, who has now been noticing Allison. He, of course is worried because she is Harry’s sister.
This book is a short read, so it’s not really necessary for me to delve too heavily into the plot. If I did, it would likely include way too many spoilers.
I quickly figured out why I gave this one four stars.
It’s sweet. All of the characters, from our main couple to their friends are likable. The plot moves quickly, there’s no unnecessary drama. Allison and Ed, once they are together, they are together. No misunderstandings. No OW/OM to contend with. It’s pretty much angst free!
This is a just a fun read.
I'll start by saying I feel like I'm sort of all over with this book. It was very up and down for me. While there are aspects I loved, there also seemed to be just as many that I didn't enjoy.
I'll start with what I loved: the characters. Characters are the core element to any good book. If you don't have interesting ones, then the rest is all going to fall apart. I will say Violet, while I definitely didn't hate her, was my least favorite character. And, yes, I know that she is our mc, so that should bother me. It doesn't. Maybe that's because we get so much of the other characters. I loved each and every monster in this story. And Anna? She brought the necessary lightness to this otherwise fairly dark tale. I think she was absolutely pivotal to me liking this book at all.
I also enjoyed the relationship between our monsters. They have YEARS of history between all of them. They seem to have settled into a nice rhythm, mainly trying to forget the existence of one another. Then Violet shows up. Now they are once again pulled into one another's orbit. The interaction between the monsters was by far the best part of this book.
And I have to mention how fucking gorgeous these covers are.
What I didn't like: This book is LONG. And very slow moving. I lost interest several times while reading. I felt like there were too many pages where the story didn't progress at all. I understand that Ms. Cunning is setting up a fantasy world here, and that takes time. However, I needed a bit more seeing, and a little less telling.
I read this back in April. I still haven't read the remaining books. I do plan on picking the series up again. Usually, when I wait this long to write a review, I re-read the book. I just skimmed this one. I had no interest in doing an entire re-read. For me, that is the most telling thing about this book.
I'll start with what I loved: the characters. Characters are the core element to any good book. If you don't have interesting ones, then the rest is all going to fall apart. I will say Violet, while I definitely didn't hate her, was my least favorite character. And, yes, I know that she is our mc, so that should bother me. It doesn't. Maybe that's because we get so much of the other characters. I loved each and every monster in this story. And Anna? She brought the necessary lightness to this otherwise fairly dark tale. I think she was absolutely pivotal to me liking this book at all.
I also enjoyed the relationship between our monsters. They have YEARS of history between all of them. They seem to have settled into a nice rhythm, mainly trying to forget the existence of one another. Then Violet shows up. Now they are once again pulled into one another's orbit. The interaction between the monsters was by far the best part of this book.
And I have to mention how fucking gorgeous these covers are.
What I didn't like: This book is LONG. And very slow moving. I lost interest several times while reading. I felt like there were too many pages where the story didn't progress at all. I understand that Ms. Cunning is setting up a fantasy world here, and that takes time. However, I needed a bit more seeing, and a little less telling.
I read this back in April. I still haven't read the remaining books. I do plan on picking the series up again. Usually, when I wait this long to write a review, I re-read the book. I just skimmed this one. I had no interest in doing an entire re-read. For me, that is the most telling thing about this book.