Sometimes three stars are because a book was overall average, and sometimes it’s because of an actual mean — a combination of one-star and five-star moments that leave me confused and with whiplash. Here’s your Heroine: Not that she literally fights crime, but she’s described by her best friend like this: “… big boobs, small waist, big butt, long legs, amazon woman thing you have going on. Pair that package with your curly auburn hair and big hazel-green eyes.” So, naturally, she’s hideous. JOKES! She’s […]
“You Can’t Just Make a Unilateral Statement That the Sky Is Blue”
Truth or Beard is the first book in the Winston Brothers contemporary romance series, but the Winston sister already had her turn in a book I liked better, Beauty and the Mustache. Jessica: If I said the sky was blue you would say it was purple. Duane: Sometimes the sky is purple. Right now it’s indigo, almost black. You can’t just make a unilateral statement that the sky is blue. Ah, that’s the stuff. Banter gives me life. Penny Reid writes great banter, friendships, and […]
A Bearded Mess is Still a Mess
Uhhhhhnnnnnnn. I had such hopes for this book. I pre-ordered it and everything. It started out fine, but the problems quickly piled up. I can’t really get into the stuff that bothered me without spoilers, so there will be mild spoilers. Duane is one of Ashley Winston’s (Beauty and The Mustache) seven brothers. The brothers will be contributing names like Cletus and Jethro to Mrs. Julien’s Romance Novel Name Tally over the next couple of years. Jessica is the new math teacher in town. She […]
The Prolixity of it all.
Dictionarily, the word prolixity means to write, or speak, at great or even excessive, length. Prolixity is probably not meant as a compliment, but as a lover of words, I empathize with the wordy. It is also the nom de Internet of long time Cannonballer and kiss book reading enabler, Mrs. Prolixity Julien. Mrs. Julien has previously reviewed Penny Reid’s Neanderthal Seeks Human as well as other books in the Knitting in the City series. When Mrs. Julien, among others, says she likes a book, […]
Not New Adult So Much as Latent Adult
I’ve read enough Penny Reid now that I can tell you what I like about her books. She’s very funny and she uses first person narration incredibly effectively. Often one’s inner life can be so different from one’s public persona and that juxtaposition, when done well, greatly adds to the characterization. That said, Elements of Chemistry also got this response from me, spoken out loud and with a great deal volume: She needs to be punched in the head. But more on that later. Kaitlyn […]
“Without Benefits”? More Contemporary Romance
These are books two and six from Penny Reid’s Knitting in the City series: Neanderthal Seeks Human Friends Without Benefits – see below Neanderthal Marries Human (novella) Love Hacked Beauty and the Mustache Scenes from the City: A Knitting in the City Surprise (novella) – also below Happily Ever Ninja – 2015 Friends Without Benefits I enjoy the unrequited love trope, especially as the romance genre always allows for the besotted character’s vindication, but having said that, Friends Without Benefits was just okay and not as […]