Deep End

Ugh. I really tried to like it. It just wasn’t it for me. And not even because of the kinky stuff, and by the way, not even that kinky. Like, idek. Stuff like holding her wrists, slapping her butt, calling it “fucking”, going down on each other were all things that were portrayed as “so kinky, bdsm, crazy deranged stuff” and I was like… all of these things are so normal in other romance books too. Like… yall aren’t that out there. Like there were definitely some dom/sub stuff, and I definitely was cringing during all of those parts (not my thing but you do you boo), but it wasn’t crazy. And ultimately, that wasn’t even why I disliked the book. The pacing sucked. Sometimes she focused way too much on small things or would glaze over big things fast. And bro from like one week to the next in the very next sentence. The author made way too many stupid over exaggerated comparisons that felt out of place. She would say shit like “it felt like a billy goat from the Swiss alps ran full force into my abdominal cavity” but she’s just talking about being surprised. Like, calm down. For a while there, it just felt like Lukas was this looming presence just waiting to show up in the story. (Which I guess is kinda the point, he’s supposed to be seen as this “overbearing” presence) but it was like making me on edge just waiting for when he was gonna get brought up again. He would show up in the most random places, and him being a part of her study group was just cheesy. I did end up loving Lukas though, was totally rooting for them. He was so sweet and loving and treated Scarlett in the best possible ways. Glad Scarlett finally got help and was more mentally healthy cause she was kinda unbearable for a bit there. Hateddd the way she handled the conflict in the end, but def am in full support of the “flying to Sweden” grand gesture. The book annoyed me, but I also got invested. So idk, I guess it did its job, but I also kinda feel like I wasted my time. 3 stars lol.

“That’s where it lives, my love for him. In the space between the things he could do, and what the chooses instead.” Once again, my true life purpose (being a hater) has been renewed with the release of a new Ali Hazelwood book! My primary takeaway from this story is that I can’t believe this is what I nominated for my book club to read, and my second is that I can’t believe I am still willingly purchasing the same book in different covers. I refuse to believe that there are this many tall, brooding, sturdy, scientific men who are quietly falling into obsessive love with quirky, traumatized young scientific women. My disbelief can no longer be suspended! And yet, there is not a doubt in my mind I will buy a copy of the next book she releases…

Different strokes for different folks…Without revealing too much, I’ll say this was a steamy romance novel with forced complications. I never understood why Vandy thought she was betraying her friend. How could she be ok with one thing but not about the other?

Meh. I had high hopes for this book after reading the author’s introduction, and it didn’t quite deliver. I’m not really into kink, and while the book promised it, it was really just some light BDSM. I’m also over the kind of story where we get a smart female lead who still has to be rescued by a big, strong man. That trope feels tired and overdone. Book #47 in 2026

First Ali hazelwood book and I ate it up! It left me wanting more, definitely will be reading others she has written.