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120 דייטים ראשונים
קוראים לי ליילה תומפסון ואני גרועה בדייטים.
ברצינות, אני בת עשרים ושמונה ומעולם לא היה לי חבר.
עכשיו שאני מתקרבת לגיל שלושים, אני מתחילה לאבד את הסבלנות.
למזלי, יש לי שלושה חברים טובים ומגוננים, שלהוטים מאוד לעזור לי ללטש את כישורי הדייטינג שלי.
זאק — שחקן רוגבי עצום עם חיוך חצוף ושרירי זרוע מסותתים.
ג'וש — חתיך ורציני, מתחשב ומתוק ,עם לסת מפוסלת ועיניים מהפנטות.
ולוק — גרוש סקסי עם שיער כסוף ו... המורה שלי לשעבר.
אחרי דייט גרוע שגורם לי לבכות על כתפיהם, שלושת הגברים נחושים לעזור לי למצוא חבר. הם מסכימים להעמיד פנים ולהיות בני הזוג שלי לצורך תרגול, ומכינים מערך שיעורים עמוס בדייטים מזויפים, פגישות לימוד ושיעורים בהתכתבויות פלרטטניות. בתמורה, אני רק צריכה להשתתף פעם בשבוע בפודקאסט שלהם לעצות בענייני זוגיות. קלי קלות.
אבל ככל שהשיעורים מתקדמים, אנחנו מגלים ששקענו בזה עמוק מדי. כל מגע מעורר פרפרים ונמשך קצת יותר מדי. כל נשיקה מסתיימת בניצוצות. לא עובר זמן רב עד שאני מבינה שיחסי החברוּת איתם כבר לא מספיקים לי. אני רוצה יותר.
הבחורים לימדו אותי איך להשיג חבר, ועכשיו הגיע הזמן להעמיד את השיעורים שלהם למבחן.
שלוש פעמים.
120 דייטים ראשונים הוא ספר רומנטי שופע דייטים מזויפים, מערכות יחסים מזויפות, תשוקה לוהטת והרבה אהבה, עד האושר הנצחי והמתוק במיוחד.
ברצינות, אני בת עשרים ושמונה ומעולם לא היה לי חבר.
עכשיו שאני מתקרבת לגיל שלושים, אני מתחילה לאבד את הסבלנות.
למזלי, יש לי שלושה חברים טובים ומגוננים, שלהוטים מאוד לעזור לי ללטש את כישורי הדייטינג שלי.
זאק — שחקן רוגבי עצום עם חיוך חצוף ושרירי זרוע מסותתים.
ג'וש — חתיך ורציני, מתחשב ומתוק ,עם לסת מפוסלת ועיניים מהפנטות.
ולוק — גרוש סקסי עם שיער כסוף ו... המורה שלי לשעבר.
אחרי דייט גרוע שגורם לי לבכות על כתפיהם, שלושת הגברים נחושים לעזור לי למצוא חבר. הם מסכימים להעמיד פנים ולהיות בני הזוג שלי לצורך תרגול, ומכינים מערך שיעורים עמוס בדייטים מזויפים, פגישות לימוד ושיעורים בהתכתבויות פלרטטניות. בתמורה, אני רק צריכה להשתתף פעם בשבוע בפודקאסט שלהם לעצות בענייני זוגיות. קלי קלות.
אבל ככל שהשיעורים מתקדמים, אנחנו מגלים ששקענו בזה עמוק מדי. כל מגע מעורר פרפרים ונמשך קצת יותר מדי. כל נשיקה מסתיימת בניצוצות. לא עובר זמן רב עד שאני מבינה שיחסי החברוּת איתם כבר לא מספיקים לי. אני רוצה יותר.
הבחורים לימדו אותי איך להשיג חבר, ועכשיו הגיע הזמן להעמיד את השיעורים שלהם למבחן.
שלוש פעמים.
120 דייטים ראשונים הוא ספר רומנטי שופע דייטים מזויפים, מערכות יחסים מזויפות, תשוקה לוהטת והרבה אהבה, עד האושר הנצחי והמתוק במיוחד.
464 pages, ebook
First published December 14, 2021
6090 people are currently reading
90892 people want to read
About the author
Lily Gold
7 books7,844 followersLily Gold is a sweet and spicy #whychoose romance author living in London, England.
She has a soft spot for strong guys with big hearts, and thinks the only thing better than one book boyfriend is TWO book boyfriends... or maybe three 😜; When she's not writing, she's usually reading, accidentally killing her potted plants, or finding a pet to cuddle.
To keep up to date with all book news, and receive bonus epilogues from all of her books, you can subscribe to her newsletter at:
https://www.lilygoldauthor.com/
Happy reading!
She has a soft spot for strong guys with big hearts, and thinks the only thing better than one book boyfriend is TWO book boyfriends... or maybe three 😜; When she's not writing, she's usually reading, accidentally killing her potted plants, or finding a pet to cuddle.
To keep up to date with all book news, and receive bonus epilogues from all of her books, you can subscribe to her newsletter at:
https://www.lilygoldauthor.com/
Happy reading!
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Displaying 1 - 29 of 8,299 reviews
November 27, 2022
4.5 ⭐️ A ROMCOM REVERSE HAREM? say no more. i’m immediately there. imagine new girl.. but if jess was with all of her roomies instead of just nick.. ✨BAM✨ you have this book.
this was one of the few reverse harems i’ve read that had the perfect mix of likable characters, fun plot & amazing spice. i’ll definitely be reading more lily gold because BOY DID I HAVE FUN.
my favorite guy was zack, do w that what u will.
“just sit on his face, and if he dies, he dies.” 🤪
this was one of the few reverse harems i’ve read that had the perfect mix of likable characters, fun plot & amazing spice. i’ll definitely be reading more lily gold because BOY DID I HAVE FUN.
my favorite guy was zack, do w that what u will.
“just sit on his face, and if he dies, he dies.” 🤪
February 9, 2022
It seems as though I'm part of the minority here but oh fucking well.
It was boring. The book was pretty boring in my opinion, but it did manage to capture my attention for a good 35% of it and make me annoyed enough to write this.
WARNING: This review is coming straight out of reading this longer than necessary book and WILL contain minor spoilers.
I read hundreds of books a year yet not one book has made me feel the urge to immediately, not five minutes after finishing the book, made me want to pick up my laptop and type up a review. But maybe it's my fault; I read a series some weeks ago that puts all five star books to shame, so now I'm in a slump where every other book pales. And I was so desperate that I was picking random books like this one that I thought that I would maybe like. BUT. I would not have liked this book even before I read that series. Perhaps I would've been kinder, but I would probably rate it the same.
Short rundown, we have the heroine, a 27 or 28 year old woman who think she's completely hopeless and undateable because of her awkwardness. So she asks her three best friends who host a podcast where they give out dating advice, so in exchange for their help, she goes on the podcast with them. There's Zack, who's a fucking bitch by the way , Luke, who is her former teacher in high school, and Josh who honestly is the only one I can confidently say that I liked the most.
Lemme preface this by saying, I hate the dead lover trope. Absolutely hate it. I will refuse to pick up a book solely for that reason. And had I known this, I would have never picked this book up; if you guys have no problem with this trope, then you can most likely move along because this is like 70% of the reason why I'm rating this book what I'm rating it.
Let's just start off with Zack because he just makes me giggle and kick my feet in the air! This hotshot washed out ex-rugby player is going through some of his own issues that don't really surface until a bit later into the book. He had some girlfriend who died from some illness when they were young and he planned on proposing to her straight out of high school. And most of the book, he's moping around swearing off love because he couldn't bear to "cheat" on Emily (dead ex). And you're probably like "Oh, well he's grieving cut him some slack...blah blah blah" Yeah sure whatever, but she has also been dead for 12 years and this is a book where I know what's about to happen because it always seems to happen with romance books that have this trope. But okay fine- maybe they had a deep connection. I honestly would have been able to look past this if it weren't for when this motherfucker really said in his sorry excuse of a "groveling" scene:
"'Look. I'll always love Emily...I'll always love her...'"
or this...
"'She was The One for me,'"
Annnnnnd instant ick.
Yeah that last one? He broadcasted that to the world, because what's more of a romantic gesture than your lover telling the world in his strive to win you back that it's his dead ex that is the one for him but she's dead, but that's okay because you know what? He has a replacement. YOU!
If part of his storyline was actually him trying (keyword: trying) to get over the past then I probably would have been able to silently deal with it, but I kid you not, 80% into the book, he's still obsessed with his dead ex- like he lost a ring that was his ex's and went ballistic and now this, I understand. You lose something of importance of someone you loved (oh shit my bad, I mean LOVE) and it's the only thing you have left. But what I couldn't get past was the fact that he was so torn up about this after ditching Layla but all of a sudden, he doesn't need it anymore? Because he finally realized that he loves Layla? Here's a better part of his obsession. He was so obsessed that he in fact decided to break up with Layla but wait- no he couldn't simply do that. INSTEAD he decided to give it one last hoorah and break up with her while pulling out just after she confesses her feelings for him. The man just doesn't think. He has no brain.
I swear to god, if Emily somehow magically resurrected from the dead, this dude would drop Layla in a split second. Which is exactly why I avoid the whole dead lover trope all together, because chances are, are that they're going to say some stupid BS like that, or suggest like 90% into the book that they will forever love their dead ex and give off the impression that they would drop the heroine instantly if they came back to life.
So. Yeah.
As for Layla, I actually kind of liked her, she was sweet and also kind of funny and I kept liking her up until the 80% mark. For a split moment, she was sooooo close to making them grovel on their hands and knees and I was cheering her on from the sidelines. But all it took, was less than an ounce of their desperation for her to grab a taxi and head home. At that point I was rolling my eyes and gagging, BUT. I held out. When she gets there, and they're doing whatever, blah blah blah AND SHE HAS A REDEMPTION BECAUSE SHE TELLS THEM THAT SHE DOESN'T WANT THEM ANYMORE AND DOESN'T TRUST THEM. She even goes as far as to finally telling that bitch Zack what I've been screaming the entire book, and that was how she didn't want to be runner up, and how she didn't want that thing to always be wishing she were Emily instead. And I cheer.
But of course, just like the rest of the book, it was a disappointment. Because less than like five pages later, she's all like "I trust him". And they kiss and make up.
And just to add on to the I-hate-Z*ck-Train, he doesn't even show that she won't be runner up. Like at all. He says that she's not, but he follows it up by talking about how he'll never stop loving Emily. So. No.
But guys- it's okay because he says "'But she was a part of my past, not my future.'"
Yeah, okay. it's not like you wouldn't shut the fuck up about her for over 85% of the book to make that even sound believable that you could actually fully commit.
Now as for the other guys, Luke was whatever, he lost his appeal like halfway into the book, but Josh was the only one I can say I liked because he actually had some sign of life in his head which is fantastic and that's the reason this book got an extra star. She honestly should've just ditched Zack entirely because Josh makes him look like moldy shit on the road.
Anyways. The review is purely my own opinion, do what you will with this information. I'm out.
It was boring. The book was pretty boring in my opinion, but it did manage to capture my attention for a good 35% of it and make me annoyed enough to write this.
WARNING: This review is coming straight out of reading this longer than necessary book and WILL contain minor spoilers.
I read hundreds of books a year yet not one book has made me feel the urge to immediately, not five minutes after finishing the book, made me want to pick up my laptop and type up a review. But maybe it's my fault; I read a series some weeks ago that puts all five star books to shame, so now I'm in a slump where every other book pales. And I was so desperate that I was picking random books like this one that I thought that I would maybe like. BUT. I would not have liked this book even before I read that series. Perhaps I would've been kinder, but I would probably rate it the same.
Short rundown, we have the heroine, a 27 or 28 year old woman who think she's completely hopeless and undateable because of her awkwardness. So she asks her three best friends who host a podcast where they give out dating advice, so in exchange for their help, she goes on the podcast with them. There's Zack, who's a fucking bitch by the way , Luke, who is her former teacher in high school, and Josh who honestly is the only one I can confidently say that I liked the most.
Lemme preface this by saying, I hate the dead lover trope. Absolutely hate it. I will refuse to pick up a book solely for that reason. And had I known this, I would have never picked this book up; if you guys have no problem with this trope, then you can most likely move along because this is like 70% of the reason why I'm rating this book what I'm rating it.
Let's just start off with Zack because he just makes me giggle and kick my feet in the air! This hotshot washed out ex-rugby player is going through some of his own issues that don't really surface until a bit later into the book. He had some girlfriend who died from some illness when they were young and he planned on proposing to her straight out of high school. And most of the book, he's moping around swearing off love because he couldn't bear to "cheat" on Emily (dead ex). And you're probably like "Oh, well he's grieving cut him some slack...blah blah blah" Yeah sure whatever, but she has also been dead for 12 years and this is a book where I know what's about to happen because it always seems to happen with romance books that have this trope. But okay fine- maybe they had a deep connection. I honestly would have been able to look past this if it weren't for when this motherfucker really said in his sorry excuse of a "groveling" scene:
"'Look. I'll always love Emily...I'll always love her...'"
or this...
"'She was The One for me,'"
Annnnnnd instant ick.
Yeah that last one? He broadcasted that to the world, because what's more of a romantic gesture than your lover telling the world in his strive to win you back that it's his dead ex that is the one for him but she's dead, but that's okay because you know what? He has a replacement. YOU!
If part of his storyline was actually him trying (keyword: trying) to get over the past then I probably would have been able to silently deal with it, but I kid you not, 80% into the book, he's still obsessed with his dead ex- like he lost a ring that was his ex's and went ballistic and now this, I understand. You lose something of importance of someone you loved (oh shit my bad, I mean LOVE) and it's the only thing you have left. But what I couldn't get past was the fact that he was so torn up about this after ditching Layla but all of a sudden, he doesn't need it anymore? Because he finally realized that he loves Layla? Here's a better part of his obsession. He was so obsessed that he in fact decided to break up with Layla but wait- no he couldn't simply do that. INSTEAD he decided to give it one last hoorah and break up with her while pulling out just after she confesses her feelings for him. The man just doesn't think. He has no brain.
I swear to god, if Emily somehow magically resurrected from the dead, this dude would drop Layla in a split second. Which is exactly why I avoid the whole dead lover trope all together, because chances are, are that they're going to say some stupid BS like that, or suggest like 90% into the book that they will forever love their dead ex and give off the impression that they would drop the heroine instantly if they came back to life.
So. Yeah.
As for Layla, I actually kind of liked her, she was sweet and also kind of funny and I kept liking her up until the 80% mark. For a split moment, she was sooooo close to making them grovel on their hands and knees and I was cheering her on from the sidelines. But all it took, was less than an ounce of their desperation for her to grab a taxi and head home. At that point I was rolling my eyes and gagging, BUT. I held out. When she gets there, and they're doing whatever, blah blah blah AND SHE HAS A REDEMPTION BECAUSE SHE TELLS THEM THAT SHE DOESN'T WANT THEM ANYMORE AND DOESN'T TRUST THEM. She even goes as far as to finally telling that bitch Zack what I've been screaming the entire book, and that was how she didn't want to be runner up, and how she didn't want that thing to always be wishing she were Emily instead. And I cheer.
But of course, just like the rest of the book, it was a disappointment. Because less than like five pages later, she's all like "I trust him". And they kiss and make up.
And just to add on to the I-hate-Z*ck-Train, he doesn't even show that she won't be runner up. Like at all. He says that she's not, but he follows it up by talking about how he'll never stop loving Emily. So. No.
But guys- it's okay because he says "'But she was a part of my past, not my future.'"
Yeah, okay. it's not like you wouldn't shut the fuck up about her for over 85% of the book to make that even sound believable that you could actually fully commit.
Now as for the other guys, Luke was whatever, he lost his appeal like halfway into the book, but Josh was the only one I can say I liked because he actually had some sign of life in his head which is fantastic and that's the reason this book got an extra star. She honestly should've just ditched Zack entirely because Josh makes him look like moldy shit on the road.
Anyways. The review is purely my own opinion, do what you will with this information. I'm out.
June 4, 2022
came for the smut, stayed for the angst 😭 this was so good and has been my only reprieve of sadness today as i have covid lol
lily gold NEVER misses.
lily gold NEVER misses.
June 10, 2024
3.5⭐️ first re-read of the year 🥰🥰 just because I missed them and I needed some smut 😚
I fear it was more a 3 star read than a 4 star this time around. I can't believe it didn't bother me how quickly they jumped into bed with each other the first time around (with the exception of Luke).
the smut was good and the chemistry between this four way couple was 🥵👌🏾👌🏾, still easily my favorite one by Lily Gold but I still don't get why they started out hooking in guise of coaching Lily on how to date. the dates were great, the kissing tutorials were good but I don't get why they needed to continue to be with sexually in the guise of date coaching.
I think I'd have liked it better if the only reason why they got to the sex part was solely because they were fake dating and couldn't resist the sexual tension and if I had been drawn out a bit, it felt like it happened too fast. I know, I know, they have been and neighbors and friends for years but they had barely been on 2 fake dates.
other than that, I enjoy my reread!! I doubt I'll be back for a third time but we'll find out someday 😅
I fear it was more a 3 star read than a 4 star this time around. I can't believe it didn't bother me how quickly they jumped into bed with each other the first time around (with the exception of Luke).
the smut was good and the chemistry between this four way couple was 🥵👌🏾👌🏾, still easily my favorite one by Lily Gold but I still don't get why they started out hooking in guise of coaching Lily on how to date. the dates were great, the kissing tutorials were good but I don't get why they needed to continue to be with sexually in the guise of date coaching.
I think I'd have liked it better if the only reason why they got to the sex part was solely because they were fake dating and couldn't resist the sexual tension and if I had been drawn out a bit, it felt like it happened too fast. I know, I know, they have been and neighbors and friends for years but they had barely been on 2 fake dates.
other than that, I enjoy my reread!! I doubt I'll be back for a third time but we'll find out someday 😅
September 18, 2022
3.5 stars
This book was like taking The Ugly Truth, making the contents a podcast instead of a talk show and adding two more surly assholes to the mix. That equals Reverse harem, fake dating, and friends to lovers.
And yes...three men giving relationship advice on a podcast does radiate some ALPHA MALE energy
But they were all very feministic or whatnot, which was actually 10x funnier, so I just choose to forget the embarrassment of their professions and move on (except I clearly NEVER move on as you will soon see💀).
🛑SPOILERS🛑
I was more distracted with how freaky relatable I found the heroine.
Hello... mf I've been trying to find the words to explain why I act so cold even though I feel the total opposite, but he simply said....."Shy and hard" and I went 🤯
Triggered. Personally attacked.
Felt unintentionally psychoanalysed. Maybe following the advice of three straight men with a podcast isn't such a bad idea🥰 Layla was cured.
🡻Layla's highschool bully
And those are the golden words when it comes to bullying, aren't they? I don't want to say this book is heavy, because it is relatively light, but I was surprised with how many important topics it covered: cyber bullying, cancel culture, slut shaming, the rigged schools who turn a blind eye at clearly tormented kids, the way everything still affected the adult heroine in tiny little ways.
Unforunately, I'm not as enthusiastic about the heroes as I am about Layla.
🥺 Josh is bae, the only guy who had zero ex drama and just pined all day. Unproblematic king. Get you a man who is so in love with you he will arrange a whole ass dating experiment just so he can have an excuse to be close to you. His biggest downside was him...you guessed it...starting a podcast.
🥱 Luke is the first ever example of a boring student-teacher relationship. I also never understand how heroes can have such blatantly horrible exes?? Like there is no way you were THAT blind???
😵💫 Zack needs to calm down...fr that dude sounds like he swallows energy drinks with all his meals. He was the typical harem clown (not a very funny one at that) and annoyed me from the very beginning. The dead ex thing was all very sad, but it wasn't excuse enough for his immature behaviour. Man, you are literally 30, get your shit together.
I also sort of imagined him as Sam Ryder and that butchered my entire experience💀
Why you doing this to me😭
I didn't really like how Zack basically gaslighted Layla into thinking she could never be happy in New York? That entire scene was presented as "oh I know you Layla, you're too antisocial, you'll be miserable, I'm just thinking about you Layla".
Mhm okay. She's a grown 28 year old woman with aspirations and professional goals. I'm sure she'll figure out her social life, she's not a child. We all know you don't want her to leave for selfish reasons and I wish he would admit that to himself, then I would classify that as intetnionally conniving manipulations which IM ALL HERE FOR🥰
I feel like it's a rule for rom coms to have the worst third act conflicts in history. Either they're stupid as fuck or they get resolved horribly. In this case it's the latter. Pissed me the hell off, especially now that I feel a kinship with the heroine. Of course it was mostly Zack's fault, that wrangly bitch, but each hero failing to defend Layla when it really mattered was the most disappointing.
yea "poor Layla". I hate this guy🤣🤣🤣🤣
But I won't sit here and lie. I did love the final chapters w the high school reunion. The boys (even Zack) left me satisfied in the end, I dare say they even...redeemed themselves.
PS: I swear I have nothing against men with podcasts
This book was like taking The Ugly Truth, making the contents a podcast instead of a talk show and adding two more surly assholes to the mix. That equals Reverse harem, fake dating, and friends to lovers.
And yes...three men giving relationship advice on a podcast does radiate some ALPHA MALE energy
But they were all very feministic or whatnot, which was actually 10x funnier, so I just choose to forget the embarrassment of their professions and move on (except I clearly NEVER move on as you will soon see💀).
🛑SPOILERS🛑
I was more distracted with how freaky relatable I found the heroine.
I thought she was cold. Aloof. Kinda stuck up. The more I got to know her, though, the more I realised that she’s not really any of those things. She’s just shy. Some girls are shy and soft; Layla is shy and hard.
Hello... mf I've been trying to find the words to explain why I act so cold even though I feel the total opposite, but he simply said....."Shy and hard" and I went 🤯
“Do you never try anything new?” Luke asks, studying me closely.
I shift uncomfortably. “Not if I can avoid it. Or I spend a few months privately learning in secret, so I’m not embarrassingly bad at it.”
Triggered. Personally attacked.
"I overheard twenty different rumours about me. I’d screwed three guys at once. I’d whacked off my maths teacher for a better grade. I had crabs, I had herpes, I was a diagnosed sex addict.” She laughs bitterly.
Felt unintentionally psychoanalysed. Maybe following the advice of three straight men with a podcast isn't such a bad idea🥰 Layla was cured.
🡻Layla's highschool bully
“I’m, like.” He rubs the back of his head, his mouth twisting. “Sorry. Or whatever. It’s not… it had nothing to do with you, like, as a person. You were just… there. You know? Everyone was doing it.”
And those are the golden words when it comes to bullying, aren't they? I don't want to say this book is heavy, because it is relatively light, but I was surprised with how many important topics it covered: cyber bullying, cancel culture, slut shaming, the rigged schools who turn a blind eye at clearly tormented kids, the way everything still affected the adult heroine in tiny little ways.
Unforunately, I'm not as enthusiastic about the heroes as I am about Layla.
🥺 Josh is bae, the only guy who had zero ex drama and just pined all day. Unproblematic king. Get you a man who is so in love with you he will arrange a whole ass dating experiment just so he can have an excuse to be close to you. His biggest downside was him...you guessed it...starting a podcast.
🥱 Luke is the first ever example of a boring student-teacher relationship. I also never understand how heroes can have such blatantly horrible exes?? Like there is no way you were THAT blind???
😵💫 Zack needs to calm down...fr that dude sounds like he swallows energy drinks with all his meals. He was the typical harem clown (not a very funny one at that) and annoyed me from the very beginning. The dead ex thing was all very sad, but it wasn't excuse enough for his immature behaviour. Man, you are literally 30, get your shit together.
I also sort of imagined him as Sam Ryder and that butchered my entire experience💀
Why you doing this to me😭
I didn't really like how Zack basically gaslighted Layla into thinking she could never be happy in New York? That entire scene was presented as "oh I know you Layla, you're too antisocial, you'll be miserable, I'm just thinking about you Layla".
Mhm okay. She's a grown 28 year old woman with aspirations and professional goals. I'm sure she'll figure out her social life, she's not a child. We all know you don't want her to leave for selfish reasons and I wish he would admit that to himself, then I would classify that as intetnionally conniving manipulations which IM ALL HERE FOR🥰
I feel like it's a rule for rom coms to have the worst third act conflicts in history. Either they're stupid as fuck or they get resolved horribly. In this case it's the latter. Pissed me the hell off, especially now that I feel a kinship with the heroine. Of course it was mostly Zack's fault, that wrangly bitch, but each hero failing to defend Layla when it really mattered was the most disappointing.
Zack adds morosely. “Poor Layla. We romanced her half to death, then dropped her as soon as she got the balls to tell us how she felt.
yea "poor Layla". I hate this guy🤣🤣🤣🤣
But I won't sit here and lie. I did love the final chapters w the high school reunion. The boys (even Zack) left me satisfied in the end, I dare say they even...redeemed themselves.
PS: I swear I have nothing against men with podcasts
September 3, 2022
4.75⭐️ OBSESSED WOULD BE AN UNDERSTATEMENT! Everything about this book was amazing. Not only was the spice immaculate but the plot and characters were just so likeable. This book gave me new girl vibes with a reverse harem twist.
I can confidently say this is my fav RH. I can’t wait to read more of this authors work! Also if you were wondering who my fav was it was definitely Josh. I have a special place in my heart for cinnamon roll fictional men.
“If you were mine, I’d want you all to myself.” 🥵
I can confidently say this is my fav RH. I can’t wait to read more of this authors work! Also if you were wondering who my fav was it was definitely Josh. I have a special place in my heart for cinnamon roll fictional men.
“If you were mine, I’d want you all to myself.” 🥵
June 12, 2022
The way i hate myself for reading this whole book
September 5, 2022
⌠ ★★☆☆☆ ⌡
this book captured my attention from the very beginning. i literally could not put it down. i do have to say that it started out strong and then it just plummeted. :(
so let’s see, we have layla, sweet, boss bitch, and very single layla who’s on the lookout for a boyfriend. after 120 failed dates and a very drunk proposition, her 3 best friends, josh, zach, and luke, offer to become her love coaches. they do this by becoming her fake boyfriends. zach and josh jump right into it, however, luke takes some time to warm up to the idea.
so now:
zach. i absolute loved him at the start. he was funny, cute, charismatic, and flirty. i loved his scenes simply because he always found a way to make the story entertaining and sexy. he was not one to shy away from his attraction to layla and called the guys out on their bullshit when they denied their attraction to layla. (how ironic) HOWEVER, he quickly became my least favorite to the point where i hated reading about him at the end and his jokes lost their humor. so *spoilers* zach had a previous lover who sadly passed away when he was 18. emily has been dead for 12 years. yes! you read that right, 12 years. and he still hasn’t gotten over it or at least tried to work through his grief. so, what does he do when he realizes he’s falling in love with layla and she reciprocates his feelings? he sleeps with her and then immediately breaks up with her and tells her that everything was fake and to never expect for him to fall in love with her. and why? because he feels as though he’s cheating on emily. cheating on a dead girl. PLS. after spending the entire books trying to get layla to open up to him and trust him, he just completely shatters her trust and tries to GASLIGHT her. that’s right! he tries to tell her that everything was in her head whilst admitting to loving her in his POV. absolute garbage. 🍅🍅🍅.
and then when he apologizes to her, which they do on a live podcast (absolute cringe) he says that emily was the one for him (how romantic!) and that he will never forget her but that he needs to move on in order to finally love layla the way she deserves. boo-hoo! cry me a river! his apology was half-assed and the way her worded it made it seem like layla was his second choice. absolutely hated him afterwards.
luke. jesus. it took me sometime to warm up to him just because he was very cold towards layla at the beginning but i have to say, the sex scenes with him were 10/10. he was incredibly sexy and an absolute delight to read about. he was also very sweet to read about but like zach, he completely ruined everything. *spoiler* luke has an argument with his ex-wife in which she calls layla a slut and this man does and says NOTHING to defend layla. he just accuses his ex-wife of being a horrible person. 🍅🍅🍅. mind you, layla listened to this conversation. so, more 🍅🍅🍅. he then proceeds to break up with layla (right after zack broke up with her) and in his explanation, which is an incredibly pathetic version of ‘it’s not you, it’s me’, he implies that layla is easy. he was just an overall coward, from the very beginning. and it can be argued that it’s because he was insecure but his insecurities don’t justify his mistreatment of layla.
finally, josh. my sweet broody and love sick puppy josh. he was my favorite from the beginning and probably the only one who i truly forgive because he did nothing but lookout for layla the entire book and actually screwed his balls on tight and planned on telling layla how he felt. this was before luke and zach ruined everything. there’s nothing i can say about josh other than i loved him and he’s my favorite. 💘💘💘
the book was fun to read about. at some point it had me giggling and blushing but then gold completely shattered that and did very little to repair the damage. i wish we got to see the guys grovel more rather than a useless high school reunion that did absolutely nothing for the story. i’m still confused as to why it was even added to the story…????? idk. that chapter could have been used on a proper apology and some groveling. layla was too forgiving after the guys did nothing to protect her *spolier* from the online bashing and slut shaming. in addition to the damage it caused her small business. in my opinion, what luke and zach did was unforgivable because they spent the whole book pouring honey in her ear about the importance of trust in a relationship and making her feel safe only to completely slip the rug from under her without a warning. they broke her trust and she just forgave them. i do have to say, i LOVED layla. she’s one of the few female characters that i actually enjoyed reading about. she did NOT take anyones shit until she did. she was setting boundaries, which i think laid a good groundwork for groveling but the author just threw it away, and then just rolled over and let them step all over her.
this book captured my attention from the very beginning. i literally could not put it down. i do have to say that it started out strong and then it just plummeted. :(
so let’s see, we have layla, sweet, boss bitch, and very single layla who’s on the lookout for a boyfriend. after 120 failed dates and a very drunk proposition, her 3 best friends, josh, zach, and luke, offer to become her love coaches. they do this by becoming her fake boyfriends. zach and josh jump right into it, however, luke takes some time to warm up to the idea.
so now:
zach. i absolute loved him at the start. he was funny, cute, charismatic, and flirty. i loved his scenes simply because he always found a way to make the story entertaining and sexy. he was not one to shy away from his attraction to layla and called the guys out on their bullshit when they denied their attraction to layla. (how ironic) HOWEVER, he quickly became my least favorite to the point where i hated reading about him at the end and his jokes lost their humor. so *spoilers* zach had a previous lover who sadly passed away when he was 18. emily has been dead for 12 years. yes! you read that right, 12 years. and he still hasn’t gotten over it or at least tried to work through his grief. so, what does he do when he realizes he’s falling in love with layla and she reciprocates his feelings? he sleeps with her and then immediately breaks up with her and tells her that everything was fake and to never expect for him to fall in love with her. and why? because he feels as though he’s cheating on emily. cheating on a dead girl. PLS. after spending the entire books trying to get layla to open up to him and trust him, he just completely shatters her trust and tries to GASLIGHT her. that’s right! he tries to tell her that everything was in her head whilst admitting to loving her in his POV. absolute garbage. 🍅🍅🍅.
and then when he apologizes to her, which they do on a live podcast (absolute cringe) he says that emily was the one for him (how romantic!) and that he will never forget her but that he needs to move on in order to finally love layla the way she deserves. boo-hoo! cry me a river! his apology was half-assed and the way her worded it made it seem like layla was his second choice. absolutely hated him afterwards.
luke. jesus. it took me sometime to warm up to him just because he was very cold towards layla at the beginning but i have to say, the sex scenes with him were 10/10. he was incredibly sexy and an absolute delight to read about. he was also very sweet to read about but like zach, he completely ruined everything. *spoiler* luke has an argument with his ex-wife in which she calls layla a slut and this man does and says NOTHING to defend layla. he just accuses his ex-wife of being a horrible person. 🍅🍅🍅. mind you, layla listened to this conversation. so, more 🍅🍅🍅. he then proceeds to break up with layla (right after zack broke up with her) and in his explanation, which is an incredibly pathetic version of ‘it’s not you, it’s me’, he implies that layla is easy. he was just an overall coward, from the very beginning. and it can be argued that it’s because he was insecure but his insecurities don’t justify his mistreatment of layla.
finally, josh. my sweet broody and love sick puppy josh. he was my favorite from the beginning and probably the only one who i truly forgive because he did nothing but lookout for layla the entire book and actually screwed his balls on tight and planned on telling layla how he felt. this was before luke and zach ruined everything. there’s nothing i can say about josh other than i loved him and he’s my favorite. 💘💘💘
the book was fun to read about. at some point it had me giggling and blushing but then gold completely shattered that and did very little to repair the damage. i wish we got to see the guys grovel more rather than a useless high school reunion that did absolutely nothing for the story. i’m still confused as to why it was even added to the story…????? idk. that chapter could have been used on a proper apology and some groveling. layla was too forgiving after the guys did nothing to protect her *spolier* from the online bashing and slut shaming. in addition to the damage it caused her small business. in my opinion, what luke and zach did was unforgivable because they spent the whole book pouring honey in her ear about the importance of trust in a relationship and making her feel safe only to completely slip the rug from under her without a warning. they broke her trust and she just forgave them. i do have to say, i LOVED layla. she’s one of the few female characters that i actually enjoyed reading about. she did NOT take anyones shit until she did. she was setting boundaries, which i think laid a good groundwork for groveling but the author just threw it away, and then just rolled over and let them step all over her.
April 17, 2023
POLYGAMY IS ILLEGAL AND STILL I CAN'T RUN FROM THE MARRIAGE HEA SEND HELP
whoops so i lied! i said rtc but the review is not to come because i’m in a funk 😔
anyways 4.0/5 stars!!
it’s funny and cute and for the first time in forever, podcast bros didn’t really give me the ick!
it was one of those reads that you get into and blink and it’s 3am <3
but THEY SHOULD HAVE GROVELED MORE-
also if anyone learns what fingers she has her three rings on, and how much they costed, and whether or not that hand is insured, i’d love to know 🤭
whoops so i lied! i said rtc but the review is not to come because i’m in a funk 😔
anyways 4.0/5 stars!!
it’s funny and cute and for the first time in forever, podcast bros didn’t really give me the ick!
it was one of those reads that you get into and blink and it’s 3am <3
but THEY SHOULD HAVE GROVELED MORE-
also if anyone learns what fingers she has her three rings on, and how much they costed, and whether or not that hand is insured, i’d love to know 🤭
May 31, 2022
yeah there was literally zero groveling and honestly none of them deserve her except for josh. luke and zach can go to hell❤️ and i didnt even finish this because it infuriated me so much
February 15, 2023
3.5 stars
Faking with Benefits is my first Lily Gold book and it was a good one. Honestly, it had so many funny parts and was super steamy. I saw someone else compare it to the show New Girl if Jess dated all the guys and I kinda see it. I love fake dating and this one was a lot of fun. I honestly would have given it a 4 if there had been better groveling at the end. Only Josh deserved her and that’s the truth.
Faking with Benefits is my first Lily Gold book and it was a good one. Honestly, it had so many funny parts and was super steamy. I saw someone else compare it to the show New Girl if Jess dated all the guys and I kinda see it. I love fake dating and this one was a lot of fun. I honestly would have given it a 4 if there had been better groveling at the end. Only Josh deserved her and that’s the truth.
December 17, 2021
❤Warning, I got a little emotional. Okay... a lot emotional, writing this review. ❤
By the end of the first page I knew I was going to love this book. After stumbling across her books following a lengthy book slump, Lily has become one of my favorite authors.
Faking With Benefits is a fresh well written story that follows a FMC that is hard not to love as a reader but is having difficulty finding it herself. While you're able to foreshadow just a bit, it's so intricate that you can't tell you're falling in love with the characters until you realize their pain is hurting you too. Fictional Schmectional. This book freaking hurts and has given me the best happy feeling I've had since the last book of hers I've read. Now I'm gushing over the author too much and I think reviews get flagged for that nonsense... moving on.
Here's the emotional part: This story, much like the others, has hit way too close to home. As someone who was labeled as a sl*t in high-school by teachers wives, my classmates, classmates parents, and even my own parents... this read hurt. I purposefully kept my V card until I was 18 to prove a point to myself thay they were all liars. This book helped me realize though that it wasn't my fault. That teacher failed me, my parents failed me, my best friend whose boyfriend lied and said I kissed him when I didn't, failed me.
It's hard to read a book that hits so close to home and not treat it like a good therapy session. Of the three books (out of four) I've read of this author's, each one has left me feeling as if I need a smoke (from the spicy scenes) and a good healthy soul-cleansing cry. I can't wait to keep reading what she writes for years to come. Thank you for writing such a piece.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
By the end of the first page I knew I was going to love this book. After stumbling across her books following a lengthy book slump, Lily has become one of my favorite authors.
Faking With Benefits is a fresh well written story that follows a FMC that is hard not to love as a reader but is having difficulty finding it herself. While you're able to foreshadow just a bit, it's so intricate that you can't tell you're falling in love with the characters until you realize their pain is hurting you too. Fictional Schmectional. This book freaking hurts and has given me the best happy feeling I've had since the last book of hers I've read. Now I'm gushing over the author too much and I think reviews get flagged for that nonsense... moving on.
Here's the emotional part: This story, much like the others, has hit way too close to home. As someone who was labeled as a sl*t in high-school by teachers wives, my classmates, classmates parents, and even my own parents... this read hurt. I purposefully kept my V card until I was 18 to prove a point to myself thay they were all liars. This book helped me realize though that it wasn't my fault. That teacher failed me, my parents failed me, my best friend whose boyfriend lied and said I kissed him when I didn't, failed me.
It's hard to read a book that hits so close to home and not treat it like a good therapy session. Of the three books (out of four) I've read of this author's, each one has left me feeling as if I need a smoke (from the spicy scenes) and a good healthy soul-cleansing cry. I can't wait to keep reading what she writes for years to come. Thank you for writing such a piece.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
December 28, 2022
4.5✨ Well I absolutely adored this. Lily Gold does such an amazing job depicting these characters. I LOVED how much each of the men loved her. Layla was such a fun character to read. While the fake dating starts off as a way to teach Layla how to date, she really teaches them. Zach is by fav my favorite. Luke and Josh was sweet af but Zack was hysterical and I lost count how many times I laughed out loud. There was also a lot of depth and character development which took me by surprise. I was expecting a light hearted read (which it totally was) but the topics of grief, divorce, trust issues, and childhood bullying were also gracefully portrayed.
PS this is going down as one of the hottest books I’ve ever read ✌️
Read if you like
💞 why choose
💞 fake dating
💞 friends to lovers
💞 emotional rom coms
PS this is going down as one of the hottest books I’ve ever read ✌️
Read if you like
💞 why choose
💞 fake dating
💞 friends to lovers
💞 emotional rom coms
April 10, 2024
More like 4.5⭐️
I freaking loved this book! It’s the first time I read a reverse harem book done RIGHT.
It’s not just smut and smut non stop. There was a relationship development and it was written beautifully.
Layla needs help from her hot 3 best friends/neighbours to teach her how to date. So they start an experiment and of course feelings get involved. All three guys have their own emotional baggage too. It was more realistic this way. I loved them all but my fave is Josh. He is just a puppy. But like a sexy brooding one.
I’m only reducing half a star because when the fight or break up happens, I feel like she forgave them so easily?? Like girl let them pine for a bit longer.
I might or might not want multiple boyfriends now🌚
P.S. if you sign up for the author’s newsletter, you’ll get a bonus content and it’s so damn cute🤧
I freaking loved this book! It’s the first time I read a reverse harem book done RIGHT.
It’s not just smut and smut non stop. There was a relationship development and it was written beautifully.
Layla needs help from her hot 3 best friends/neighbours to teach her how to date. So they start an experiment and of course feelings get involved. All three guys have their own emotional baggage too. It was more realistic this way. I loved them all but my fave is Josh. He is just a puppy. But like a sexy brooding one.
I’m only reducing half a star because when the fight or break up happens, I feel like she forgave them so easily?? Like girl let them pine for a bit longer.
I might or might not want multiple boyfriends now🌚
P.S. if you sign up for the author’s newsletter, you’ll get a bonus content and it’s so damn cute🤧
October 18, 2022
eh, they could’ve grovelled a little more
September 15, 2022
IM FREEEEEE!!!!!!!! WORST EXPERIENCE OF MY FUCKING LIFE
August 26, 2022
Thrice the friendship, thrice the care, thrice the angst, thrice the love, thrice the heartbreak so why not thrice the GROVEL? 👀
December 29, 2022
I wish she only ended up with josh. Genuinely liked him from start to end and wish he wasn't lumped in the other two rats.
I stand by the thought that josh should have told her about his feelings for both his and layla's sake but ultimately didn't do anything wrong. He treats her like a whole person and genuinely respects her and her boundaries.
The whole reason he doesn't tell her about his feelings is because 1) he wasn't ready and he's allowed that discretion and 2) she wasn't ready to hear it.
AND I was extremely disappointed by the resolution with zack and luke. They both treat her like shit and barely apologize.
Hated luke from page 1 - he's so damn annoying. And zack took a turn for the worse as the story progresed. Honestly, don't know how you forgive someone after the shit they pulled.
My girl layla deserved better than them for real. She was so headstrong and called them out for their major bs. Layla put up with so much shit for what???? For these two whiney ass losers to be all woe is me. Get help, adult men!!!! Go to therapy!!! Stop podcasting and develop some useful emotion management skills!
And so, I felt like layla was possessed with 'out of character'-itis during that final resolution scene.
Anyways, Lily Gold still does a fantastic job building up intense societal and personal issues while handling them realistically and carefully. This one was particularly harrowing at parts but didn't feel as satisfactory as her other novels sadly.
Loved the little kiddos in the epilogue though. Man am I a sucker for a kind extended epilogue.
The stars I've given are only for layla and josh who deserve love, cool pillows, warm laundry, and to have all their dreams come true.
P.S. I wish zack and luke a very bad day.
I stand by the thought that josh should have told her about his feelings for both his and layla's sake but ultimately didn't do anything wrong. He treats her like a whole person and genuinely respects her and her boundaries.
The whole reason he doesn't tell her about his feelings is because 1) he wasn't ready and he's allowed that discretion and 2) she wasn't ready to hear it.
AND I was extremely disappointed by the resolution with zack and luke. They both treat her like shit and barely apologize.
Hated luke from page 1 - he's so damn annoying. And zack took a turn for the worse as the story progresed. Honestly, don't know how you forgive someone after the shit they pulled.
My girl layla deserved better than them for real. She was so headstrong and called them out for their major bs. Layla put up with so much shit for what???? For these two whiney ass losers to be all woe is me. Get help, adult men!!!! Go to therapy!!! Stop podcasting and develop some useful emotion management skills!
And so, I felt like layla was possessed with 'out of character'-itis during that final resolution scene.
Anyways, Lily Gold still does a fantastic job building up intense societal and personal issues while handling them realistically and carefully. This one was particularly harrowing at parts but didn't feel as satisfactory as her other novels sadly.
Loved the little kiddos in the epilogue though. Man am I a sucker for a kind extended epilogue.
The stars I've given are only for layla and josh who deserve love, cool pillows, warm laundry, and to have all their dreams come true.
P.S. I wish zack and luke a very bad day.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 29, 2024
Edit: After a lot of thought, I'm cutting down my rating from 4.5⭐️ to 3⭐️ and the reasons for that are first and foremost Zach and Luke.
‼️SPOILERS‼️
I'm sorry to say this, but Zach is not it. I really, really, REALLY wanted to like him - and in fact, did for the first half of the book. But then he had to go and ruin it by hurting Layla in the worst possible way. I mean, I get it. It hurts when you lose someone you love. But buddy, it's been 10 whole years. You can't cling onto that flimsy excuse and think of it as cheating when you finally start to feel something for another woman. And then you dump her in a very, VERY brutal way. That shit hurt me so bad and if I was Layla, I would dump kick Zach outta the harem NO SHIT. Moving onto Luke...he wasn't as bad as Zach per se. But he wasn't much better either. The way he couldn't even defend Layla against his ex-wife and the fact that it took him sooooo long to finally realise his feelings, only to doubt them and then dump her as well with the clichéd line "it's not you, it's me"???? Not cool bruh, NOT COOL. What's sad is the fact that they thought they could apologise over radio/a podcast instead of grovelling their ass of for deserving Layla's love again. What's even more ridiculous is that Layla gives in and forgives them. No girlie, noooooo why'd you do that hunny?!?!??! She shoulda dumped their sorry asses and should have ridden into the sunset with mi precioso Josh. Josh was literally the only character who didn't have to be sorry for anything and had the guts/was ready to at least man up and tell Layla how he felt about her. God I love that man sm. Also his lil crush on Layla? SO FUCKING CUTE OMGAJSJSJKS. One more thing to finish off this rant btw. That epilogue fyi (extended, I think???) was disappointing asf. Zach, sweetheart, your wife's fucking pregnant with your kid and you're STILL thinking about your dead fiancée. Even after all this time? Granted, it was her death anniversary but he didn't have to be so depressed. Like, SIR LAYLA WAS NERVOUS TO TELL YOU THAT SHE WAS PREGGO BECAUSE OF YOUR MOPING. I felt like Zach was stuck in the past and not ready to be in the present and move forward into the future. So sad tbh. Despite this review, I actually do love Lily Gold and the rest of her books and I'm excited to read NYB soon!!!! TEAM JOSH ALL THE WAY WOOP WOOP🥰🥰🥰
4.5⭐️
Ummm excuse me? Why was this so good??? Like it legit had no right to be this fucking perfect omg😭😍🤌🏻
‼️SPOILERS‼️
I'm sorry to say this, but Zach is not it. I really, really, REALLY wanted to like him - and in fact, did for the first half of the book. But then he had to go and ruin it by hurting Layla in the worst possible way. I mean, I get it. It hurts when you lose someone you love. But buddy, it's been 10 whole years. You can't cling onto that flimsy excuse and think of it as cheating when you finally start to feel something for another woman. And then you dump her in a very, VERY brutal way. That shit hurt me so bad and if I was Layla, I would dump kick Zach outta the harem NO SHIT. Moving onto Luke...he wasn't as bad as Zach per se. But he wasn't much better either. The way he couldn't even defend Layla against his ex-wife and the fact that it took him sooooo long to finally realise his feelings, only to doubt them and then dump her as well with the clichéd line "it's not you, it's me"???? Not cool bruh, NOT COOL. What's sad is the fact that they thought they could apologise over radio/a podcast instead of grovelling their ass of for deserving Layla's love again. What's even more ridiculous is that Layla gives in and forgives them. No girlie, noooooo why'd you do that hunny?!?!??! She shoulda dumped their sorry asses and should have ridden into the sunset with mi precioso Josh. Josh was literally the only character who didn't have to be sorry for anything and had the guts/was ready to at least man up and tell Layla how he felt about her. God I love that man sm. Also his lil crush on Layla? SO FUCKING CUTE OMGAJSJSJKS. One more thing to finish off this rant btw. That epilogue fyi (extended, I think???) was disappointing asf. Zach, sweetheart, your wife's fucking pregnant with your kid and you're STILL thinking about your dead fiancée. Even after all this time? Granted, it was her death anniversary but he didn't have to be so depressed. Like, SIR LAYLA WAS NERVOUS TO TELL YOU THAT SHE WAS PREGGO BECAUSE OF YOUR MOPING. I felt like Zach was stuck in the past and not ready to be in the present and move forward into the future. So sad tbh. Despite this review, I actually do love Lily Gold and the rest of her books and I'm excited to read NYB soon!!!! TEAM JOSH ALL THE WAY WOOP WOOP🥰🥰🥰
4.5⭐️
Ummm excuse me? Why was this so good??? Like it legit had no right to be this fucking perfect omg😭😍🤌🏻
July 30, 2022
I feel like this book was 80% sex and 20% plot… but weirdly enough, there was enough of a story to keep me interested.
This book definitely wasn’t perfect in my eyes and there were a handful of stuff that I didn’t love about it… like some things about how Laylas character was built up, how it was over 500 pages of basicly just porn, and some other random things about the small amount of plot we got (like Luke’s ex being a total bitch)… but i was honestly thoroughly entertained the entire time - so that’s all that should really matter.
I didn’t completely hate Layla, but she was definitely my least favorite of the group. I really enjoyed all the guys and liked how they were all so different. Zack is an ex rugby player, Luke was her teacher in highschool and is 12 years older than her, and Josh has been secretly in love with her since he met her... plus they’ve all been good friends for years - so there were a bunch of different and entertaining dynamics going on.
Even though it was very heavily sex focused, I still think the characters and their background stories were all built up really well - so if you’re ever in the mood for a very long, very steamy reverse harem romance, I’d recommend giving this one a shot.
April 24, 2023
4.8 star rating
4/5 spice level
ohhh what I would do to be a fly on the wall. BIG SLAY
4/5 spice level
ohhh what I would do to be a fly on the wall. BIG SLAY
![Profile Image for ⊹ ࣪ ˖ ꒰ঌ mimi ໒꒱ ⊹ ࣪ ˖ [semi-ia].](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fi.gr-assets.com%2Fimages%2FS%2Fcompressed.photo.goodreads.com%2Fusers%2F1717798941i%2F161661704._UX200_CR0%2C0%2C200%2C200_.jpg&w=128&q=75)
June 9, 2024
reverse harem books make me want to have more than one boyfriend 🤭
lowered my rating because the third act breakup was stupid and those men should’ve groveled more
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pre read: i heard things about this book 👀
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pre read: i heard things about this book 👀
May 10, 2023
→ 3.5 ☆
i don't really know what to say for this one, because i fairly enjoyed it. of course, there were moments where i was screaming at my screen. hm. 😊 cough cough anyway, i liked it, nevertheless.
i'm team josh, by the way.
folds. sigh. he's so lovely, i just adore him. my favorite. he's so sweet and caring, and him liking her for years, but not telling her because he values their friendship and her feelings more than anything? a little sad, but also, he's just so AH. love him. i just wanted to give him a big hug the entire time.
luke. he's okay. i mean, he was swoon-worthy once he stopped being afraid to touch her knee. but keep in mind, he isn't involved in the ‘experiment’ until like the 50% mark because he was quite literally afraid to touch her knee because he taught her ela for 1 year in high school (among other things, but that's trauma-related and you don't know that until the 90% mark). he was very... aggressive 🤭 giving very much caveman (in a hot way). it's so interesting to see the shift from a relatively calm, sweet, history-teacher (even though he taught ela) vibes guy turn into some demanding, single-world, freak in the sheets.
zack... i mean he's funny, and whatnot, but like that shit he pulled at the 80% mark? aw, fuck no. that was soo messed up, there's no way i would've forgave him. sigh. besides that, atrocity, i love his humor.
layla was interesting. it's awkward, because i couldn't read her name without thinking of mine. anyway, she's alright, i guess. she's a mix of strong independent and the biggest pick-me i've ever read. i don't have any strong feelings about her, except that she should've made the boys grovel more. also, this may just be me, but it was SO obvious what her problem on dates was. she's talking about how many children they would have 30 minutes in, it's not rocket science. she was reading off of a list with tense body language, this book could've been 300 pages shorter if they weren't in love with her.
overall, i fairly liked it. it was entertaining, to say the least. the smut wasn't completely terrible, even though sometimes i was concerned. why is zack roaring? what is this, sjm? sigh. anyway, bye bye.
mwah,
alayla. 📖
“i want you. i want to see you happy, and proud, and sad, and tired. i want your low moments, as well as your high ones. i want all of you. i want as much of you as you’ll give me.”
i don't really know what to say for this one, because i fairly enjoyed it. of course, there were moments where i was screaming at my screen. hm. 😊 cough cough anyway, i liked it, nevertheless.
i'm team josh, by the way.
“if you were mine, i’d want you all to myself.”
“it occurred to me,” he says slowly, “that a data set of one is completely useless.”
folds. sigh. he's so lovely, i just adore him. my favorite. he's so sweet and caring, and him liking her for years, but not telling her because he values their friendship and her feelings more than anything? a little sad, but also, he's just so AH. love him. i just wanted to give him a big hug the entire time.
luke. he's okay. i mean, he was swoon-worthy once he stopped being afraid to touch her knee. but keep in mind, he isn't involved in the ‘experiment’ until like the 50% mark because he was quite literally afraid to touch her knee because he taught her ela for 1 year in high school (among other things, but that's trauma-related and you don't know that until the 90% mark). he was very... aggressive 🤭 giving very much caveman (in a hot way). it's so interesting to see the shift from a relatively calm, sweet, history-teacher (even though he taught ela) vibes guy turn into some demanding, single-world, freak in the sheets.
luke has pulled a paperback out from somewhere and is reading it, completely ignoring the chaos around him.
“he’s all ‘kneel. lick. blow.’ i know you can do whole sentences, mate. you’re well clever.”
zack... i mean he's funny, and whatnot, but like that shit he pulled at the 80% mark? aw, fuck no. that was soo messed up, there's no way i would've forgave him. sigh. besides that, atrocity, i love his humor.
“you’re so scary,” zack says into my ear. “where’s the bathroom? i need to jump out the window to get away from you.”
“most of my dates feel a similar urge. breathe deep, it’ll pass.”
“teach zack how to fold a fitted sheet.”
“hey! they’re tricky!” zack protests.
layla was interesting. it's awkward, because i couldn't read her name without thinking of mine. anyway, she's alright, i guess. she's a mix of strong independent and the biggest pick-me i've ever read. i don't have any strong feelings about her, except that she should've made the boys grovel more. also, this may just be me, but it was SO obvious what her problem on dates was. she's talking about how many children they would have 30 minutes in, it's not rocket science. she was reading off of a list with tense body language, this book could've been 300 pages shorter if they weren't in love with her.
overall, i fairly liked it. it was entertaining, to say the least. the smut wasn't completely terrible, even though sometimes i was concerned. why is zack roaring? what is this, sjm? sigh. anyway, bye bye.
mwah,
alayla. 📖
April 22, 2023
can we all agree that josh is superior?? ngl it should've ONLY been josh, why add the other two
December 17, 2021
I read a lot. I mean A LOT. Over 200 books a year, lot. So, romance has been heavily covered, and I've delved into reverse harems as well. I'm going to give it to you straight. This was a very worthwhile read for me. I hear people calling many romance novels akin to Hallmark Channel storylines, and I'd like to point out that Hallmark stole the tropes from books, but this book transcends the usual fare. The underlying theme is fear, and it's done well. We all have fear, emotions are frequently rooted in fear. Rage, hate, anger, sadness, even grief is rooted in fear. The author explores this emotion deeply with the four protagonists. Layla explores fear of being humiliated and having her life plans taken from her. Zack is really good at avoiding truth, and his personal truth about grief. Josh avoids being vulnerable because he fears rejection. Luke avoids emotional intimacy because he fears being hurt again badly. Lily also manages to explore the human bias against anything perceived to be "other". Polygamous relationships are scorned by our society. But why? Monogamy really is a social construct, so if all parties are consentual, why would we deign to have an opinion?
While I will concede that the steamy scenes were scorching, and I fully recommend that you be prepared, and don't read this in public, I was very pleased with how Lily brought her A game with this story. I fully enjoyed the read, and I only have one issue, otherwise this would be five stars, and that is during love scenes, I get a bit confused with how bodies are positioned. Since I can't give half stars, I would like to let you know that I've given this book a solid four and a half stars. Well worth the effort.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
While I will concede that the steamy scenes were scorching, and I fully recommend that you be prepared, and don't read this in public, I was very pleased with how Lily brought her A game with this story. I fully enjoyed the read, and I only have one issue, otherwise this would be five stars, and that is during love scenes, I get a bit confused with how bodies are positioned. Since I can't give half stars, I would like to let you know that I've given this book a solid four and a half stars. Well worth the effort.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
February 5, 2023
Everyone you love will hurt you, in some way. Most of them, I hope, will do it by accident. Some of them will do it on purpose. Don't let them win by letting it harden you. Stay trusting. And hopeful. Fall in love again, and again, and again. It'll be okay. I promise. And ladies, pee after sex.
Do I...like friends to lovers???? I was obsessed with this. Absolutely obsessed. Fake dating? Check. Great sex? Check. Ugh. I devoured this in a day.
Do I...like friends to lovers???? I was obsessed with this. Absolutely obsessed. Fake dating? Check. Great sex? Check. Ugh. I devoured this in a day.
August 21, 2022
niiiiiiiiiiice. full rtc
November 3, 2022
One of these days, after I've read everyyyyythingggg that Lily Gold has written so far, I'll write a proper review for this one - because I can't declare this one her best RH until I've done my homework. This book is definitely better than 'Nanny for the(her?) Neighbours' in some ways, though that is scorching hot too.
Definitely one of the best contemporary RH romances I've read so far despite how the boys behaved during the third-act thingamajig. I will say this: the grovelling for that was pretty awesome (I will always say more grovelling could have been done in most situations, I'm not easily pleased after a fuck-up but isss ok read this book it won't hurt you too bad), the sex overall KILLED me and the epilogue is wonderful and unconventional. Also, overall, I liked their personalities and how (I don't wanna use the word-) "woke" these guys were, good for the year 2022 and beyond.
I recommend this book 🤠 Die and be reborn in the flames of eternal lust.
✌️
❗TW: a meddling ex-wife, slut shaming and bullying from h's past
Definitely one of the best contemporary RH romances I've read so far despite how the boys behaved during the third-act thingamajig. I will say this: the grovelling for that was pretty awesome (I will always say more grovelling could have been done in most situations, I'm not easily pleased after a fuck-up but isss ok read this book it won't hurt you too bad), the sex overall KILLED me and the epilogue is wonderful and unconventional. Also, overall, I liked their personalities and how (I don't wanna use the word-) "woke" these guys were, good for the year 2022 and beyond.
I recommend this book 🤠 Die and be reborn in the flames of eternal lust.
✌️
❗TW: a meddling ex-wife, slut shaming and bullying from h's past
September 18, 2022
Yeah that’s a no from me honestly.
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