firewhiskeyreader

When Grumpy Met Sunshine
by Charlotte Stein

Alfie is a famous grumpy footballer (soccer player) who is under contract to write his memoir and despite the fact that Alfie actually does enjoy writing, his publisher has assigned him a ghost writer, Mabel. I really enjoyed this one so much. I listened to the audio (that I purchased myself because, of course) and it was such a fun and quick read. Mabel is a curvy heroine and she’s mostly body positive, but she still lives in a world where there isn’t exactly full body positivity so to speak. There were times when that really irked me because sometimes Mabel would get really caught up in what Alfie’s prior relationships looked like. That said, I really liked how this book transitioned into fake dating and then transitioned into more. Ultimately, I think back on this book really positively, but it definitely wasn’t perfect. The second book though? Absolutely loved that one.

The Déjà Glitch by Holly James

I think this book takes a very unique spin on the Groundhog Day trope and I appreciated it so much. And I also think that if you’re not a big insta love fan, you’re not going to appreciate it at all. For me, my struggle was that this romance felt extremely unequal because Gemma is having her first day with déjà vu, but Jack’s been reliving this day for months. The two do have great chemistry, but there’s also a lot going on packed into this one 24 hour period that had me flabbergasted that someone could do this many things in 24 hours. As a person who is willing to leave her home once per day unless under very specific circumstances, the amount of things packed into this 24 hours would have had me unconscious in the floor somewhere and definitely not in a place to be falling in love with someone. Also, there’s a lot going on emotionally during this 24 hour period as well, so that was a lot of content here too. That said, if you’re in the mood for a book with a quick pace, this one certainly fits the bill!

Ruined by Sarah Vaughn
Illustrated by Sarah Winifred Serle and Niki Smith

This graphic novel is essentially a historical romance with a full cast of characters that I wanted to love so, so badly. Unfortunately, the full cast of characters was so full that I had a really hard time keeping track of each individual person’s identity and therefore I didn’t quite jive with this one. That said, I do think if you’re a more experienced graphic novel reader, you would likely have a much better and easier time. I did appreciate the representation so much and wish that the format had been a better reader match for me.

Closing Thoughts

Have you read any of these? They’ve all been out for a while and I would love to hear your thoughts if you’ve read any of them!

xx