Tag: Summer

The Paradise Problem – Reviewed

On By KaylieIn FIVE STARSLeave a comment

I gave The Paradise Problem by Christina Lauren FIVE stars.

The Paradise Problem follows Liam, ultra-rich professor at Stanford who is set to inherit hundreds of millions of dollars, and Anna, an unemployed and starving artist with pink hair, who is also supporting her father and his medical bills as he battles cancer.

When Liam and Anna were in college, Anna was friends with Liam’s brother, Jake, who introduced her to Liam. Both struggling to afford a place to live, they decide to marry solely for the benefit of subsidized housing, with the intent to divorce upon leaving the apartment. However, Liam’s inheritance is contingent upon him being married for five years before he receives the full amount. Three years after leaving the apartment, Liam shows up at Anna’s door, tells her they are actually still effectively married, and asks if she will accompany him on a trip to a private island for his sister’s wedding to convince everyone they’ve been happily married the entire time. After some negotiating, Anna agrees and three days later they’re off to the private island to attend the wedding, and spend time with Liam’s absolutely terrible family! Liam assures Anna the trip will be well worth both their time, as it is necessary for him to get his inheritance, and she will be generously compensated for her time. But, just as you’d expect, this doesn’t go to plan and they just might actually fall in love.

Full disclosure, I ordered this as my Book of the Month Club pick by accident, but it was such a happy accident. I loved this book! I stayed up way too late reading it, because I just could NOT put it down. This book features points of view from both Anna and Liam, which I love. Liam and Anna come from such different backgrounds, so I think the dual POV was really necessary to effectively tell this story, and they captured their individual voices so well. 

The authors hit the ground running and didn’t waste any time in the beginning with any unnecessary background info or monotonous droning on. They get straight to the point of the book, and that was what really hooked me. The alternating points of view, relatively short chapters, and casual writing style made it so easy to keep reading. Once the book started to pick up, I was so excited to read how on earth these two people were ever going to end up falling in love, because for a bit it seemed like pigs flying was more likely.

This book really has it all. Two people from entirely different backgrounds and an unlikely love story, a little bit of spice, really good banter throughout the whole book, some heartache, some scandal, some forgiveness. I was laughing, giggling, grinning, and gritting my teeth throughout this entire book. 

I adored Anna’s character. She was quirky, genuine, lovable, relatable, and she really had everyone’s best interest at heart. Even while having to play the charade of a billionaire’s wife as someone who was for all intents and purposes the exact opposite, she still managed to not lose herself in it. She fosters meaningful relationships with a few of the people in Liam’s family, despite that seeming to be an absolutely daunting task. Even when things were up in the air, or she was being treated poorly, she was always the voice of reason, even if she didn’t actually VOICE the reason.

Liam really needed Anna’s perspective in his life, in my opinion. He probably should have just actually dated her when he married her, and he could have avoided a lot of hardship in his own life, but I digress. Good guy with a good heart, just a bit closed-minded about his situation.

An honorable mention is Alex’s character. Now, I am inclined to feel bad for him, but I really can’t decide. If you’ve read this book, let me know if you think he was the hero or the villain.

Lastly, the thing that really won me over about this book, too, was the ending. This book did not end abruptly, and I finished it feeling satisfied with the outcome. I didn’t feel like anything was missing, and the only reason I feel like I want more is just because I love Anna and Liam so much. The authors really gave the reader closure at the end of this one, and for that, THANK YOU LADIES!

Just for the Summer – Reviewed

On By KaylieIn FIVE STARSLeave a comment

I gave Just for the Summer by Abby Jimenez FIVE stars. I loved this book!

“Am I the a**hole?” Justin asks in a Reddit post where he mentions he has a curse where all of his girlfriends have found “the one” immediately after they break up with him. Emma, a travel nurse with the same curse, reads it and sends him a flirty message. The two devise a plan to fake date, fake breakup, and then find real love. What could go wrong? It’s not like they’ll fall in love, right?

Emma and her best friend, Maddy take turns deciding where they will take their next travel nursing contract, and it is Emma’s turn to choose. She moves them to a cute little cabin on Lake Minnetonka in the interest of fake-dating Justin, and falling in love after their fake-breakup.

I was so invested in all of the characters and all of the conflicts in this book. Some of the conflicts were serious, but most were just funny and unique. Two of the main conflicts in this book center around Justin’s and Emma’s mothers. Justin’s mother, whom he loves, is going to jail for six years, which leaves him now to parent his younger siblings, which is an issue for Emma because she is falling for Justin (obviously), but doesn’t want kids. This issue kind of left me feeling annoyed and like Emma was being a bit childish herself, because this situation was very unique, and Justin’s siblings were not his actual children, or even Emma’s responsibility. Justin was so genuine and sweet, and I was really sucked in to how he was handling all of these new responsibilities.

In terms of Emma’s mother, Amber, she was never rarely around, basically a dead beat, and comes and goes as she pleases. When Amber arrives, she finds someone to take advantage of, and when she leaves, she blows everything up, sometimes literally. I hated Amber, but I really couldn’t wait to read what was going to happen with her next.

At various times throughout the story, Abby Jimenez brings back all of the characters from the previous two books, and she did so in such subtle and satisfying ways. We also get justice for Alexis when something tragic happens to Neil’s house! 

There were a few twists and turns in this book that I didn’t see coming, and one that made me super angry. Like, I wanted to throw the book across the room, angry. I kept reading, though, and I am so glad I did, because the ending was the best part! We love a book that can make us feel all of the emotions, right?

Abby Jimenez brings this book full circle, when it ends with Justin, once again, asking Reddit if he’s the a**hole, but for an entirely different reason. I loved this ending, and I found it so perfect and satisfying.

I think Abby Jimenez’s writing is so easy and refreshing to read, and I enjoyed every second of this book. This is only my third Abby Jimenez book, but I also find she does character development really well, really consistently. This book is written from two different points of view, Emma’s and Justin’s, and this type of writing makes this story specifically really interesting. I love knowing how each character is perceiving what is going on. Honestly, I think all of my favorite books are written in at least dual POV!

I recommend this book to everyone, however I do recommend you read the other two books first. There are references to the previous books, and as I stated characters from both books pop up all throughout this book, and the context given from the other two books is certainly helpful.