It’s a mini review! I’m clearing out my review queue of all the books I can’t seem to convince myself to finish, for one reason or another. That doesn’t mean these are negative reviews, it simply means that something isn’t compelling me to keep reading at the moment. Maybe I’ll go back to them another day, maybe I won’t!
DNF Details:
How far did I get? Around 100 pages – and it took four attempts to get that far.
Why did I stop? It really wasn’t working for me. The instant enemies dynamic felt forced and both characters seemed to be over the top judgmental. I also just struggled with the writing itself – I’m not a big fan of third person POV, but when the story is good enough I barely notice it. Not the case here. Those factors all combined to leave me feeling disconnected from the story, and I was pretty bored. Since I’m a mood reader, I tried to give it the benefit of the doubt and jump back in on different days, but the experience never went smoothly. So I finally set it aside.
Was I enjoying it initially? Not really, no. I hate the cover art, so I wouldn’t have picked this up on my own, but I had heard good things and decided to give it a go. I do love the concept and some of the themes that are explored. These two are instant enemies who are stuck together for a wedding trip, and they clash despite the fact that they actually have a lot in common. All that should’ve worked for me, but the devil is in the details and those were amiss. I will say that I appreciated seeing representation of pelvic floor issues, which is not something I’ve read about in the past. There are definitely some unique, promising elements to the story that set it apart, so I wish I had enjoyed it more.
Would I finish this? Unlikely. I gave it several tries and I received this as an ARC, so it says something that I’m still leaving it unfinished.
Who would I recommend this to? Fans of third person POV who want an instant enemies to lovers romance with underrepresented themes.
Amazon: https://amzn.to/3X3im7l
Blurb:
Carly Montgomery has only one goal as she arrives in Sydney, Australia: Be the world’s best maid of honor. And then, when she gets back to New York City, she’s going to figure out how to get promoted so she doesn’t spend the rest of her ballet career in the corps de ballet playing Peasant Maiden #4.
But the second she steps off the plane, she runs into trouble—and into Nick Jacobs, the most uptight, judgmental, inconveniently attractive man she’s ever met. And to their mutual horror, Nick is also in Sydney for a wedding. The same wedding. In which he is the best man.
Carly will do anything for her best friend, including running all over Sydney with Nick—Nick who has his life together, Nick who’s made the transition out of ballet into photography so perfectly, Nick who has the most irritatingly sharp cheekbones and stormy blue eyes. And when the director of New York Ballet announces that she’ll be making her decision about promotions ahead of schedule, Carly chooses to stay in Sydney, even if it means shelving her pride to ask Nick for help.
Nick Jacobs is coming back to Sydney with a secret. His life in Paris, where he recently retired from ballet, has fallen apart. With no girlfriend and no new career to speak of, Nick can’t bear to tell his friends at home the humiliating truth. And after fifteen years dancing overseas, what does home even mean anymore?
Nick doesn’t want to team up with Carly Montgomery, a human hurricane who creates chaos every time she walks in the room, but sparring with her makes him feel the most alive he’s felt in months. When she asks him for help securing her promotion, he sees an opportunity to kickstart his own flagging career. Looking at Carly through his lens all day starts to change how Nick sees her, and soon, he can’t stop staring. Carly’s a human hand grenade, but suddenly Nick wouldn’t mind pulling the pin.
When she finds out the truth about him, though, the explosion might destroy them both.
Amazon: https://amzn.to/3X3im7l
About the Author:
Chloe Angyal is the author of the novel Pas de Don’t as well as Turning Pointe: How a New Generation of Dancers Is Saving Ballet from Itself, which the Boston Globe called “incisive and unsparing” and “an important read for ballet lovers and an essential part of any conversation moving forward.” Chloe holds a BA from Princeton and a PhD in arts and media from the University of New South Wales. She lives in Iowa.
Follow Jeeves on social media!
As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases
Jeeves Reads Romance 