another ali hazelwood miss for me 😭😭😭 I’m either all in or all out for her novels, and for this one, it left me with a feeling of “oh that’s it?” 🫠

before the story even starts, ali does point out that it’s more of a hate sex erotica rather than a romance, which is not usually my groove, but her characters are so quirky and lovable I was in for it anyway! however, there was absolutely nothing lovable about rue and mr. killgore I’m sad to say

I’m just not a fan of the trope where the characters pretend not to care for each other because it’s “easier” or “they don’t do relationships” - and maybe this is touching on my own personal relationship trauma a bit 😅 BUT I’m all for honesty in relationships and when you’re holding something back, it’s just unfair to both parties involved

and other than good spicy scenes, I didn’t see the connection between rue and eli at all 🙃 and while the majority of that blame is on rue being introverted and anti-social solely based on the fact that she hates people, it still takes two to tango!!! and rue was a limp noodle dance partner!!!! 

in romance, I do crave that solid foundation between the two MCs while creating a likable storyline surrounding the side characters and environment - and this one threw all of that out the window 😅 if you’re in it for the science and spice, I’d say it’s worth it - but otherwise, pick up another one of ali’s books instead…

thank you to berkley for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review! 

rating: 2.5 stars
wine pairing: columbia valley chardonnay