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Campus Diaries #3
The Charlie Method
The third in the steamy, hilarious Campus Diaries series by New York Times bestselling author Elle Kennedy, set in the same world as Off Campus and Briar U.
College senior Charlotte Kingston is living two lives―and she's nailing both of them. By day, she's the perfect sorority girl, a STEM student in biomedical engineering, and the adopted daughter of an overachiever family. At night, she's Charlie: a risk-taking daredevil looking for fun who finds herself chatting on a dating app with two anonymous hotties.
Will Larsen may seem like the breezy boy next door, but his congressman father is a constant thorn in his side. After a scandal hits another Division 1 hockey program, Will's dad is determined to distance his son from it, hiring a journalist to prove how squeaky-clean Will and his team are. Which means the last thing Will wants is for anyone to find out he and his best friend Beckett Dunne―a laidback Aussie shielding secret heartache―sometimes share girls in the bedroom.
When Charlie finally meets them in person and realizes she's been chatting with two gorgeous Briar U hockey players, things get steamy―fast. But all their messy secrets are piling up, and real life soon threatens to shatter the fantasy. With Charlie, Will, and Beckett all coming to terms with what they want and what others want for them, difficult decisions will need to be made.
Especially when lust starts to look a lot like love.
College senior Charlotte Kingston is living two lives―and she's nailing both of them. By day, she's the perfect sorority girl, a STEM student in biomedical engineering, and the adopted daughter of an overachiever family. At night, she's Charlie: a risk-taking daredevil looking for fun who finds herself chatting on a dating app with two anonymous hotties.
Will Larsen may seem like the breezy boy next door, but his congressman father is a constant thorn in his side. After a scandal hits another Division 1 hockey program, Will's dad is determined to distance his son from it, hiring a journalist to prove how squeaky-clean Will and his team are. Which means the last thing Will wants is for anyone to find out he and his best friend Beckett Dunne―a laidback Aussie shielding secret heartache―sometimes share girls in the bedroom.
When Charlie finally meets them in person and realizes she's been chatting with two gorgeous Briar U hockey players, things get steamy―fast. But all their messy secrets are piling up, and real life soon threatens to shatter the fantasy. With Charlie, Will, and Beckett all coming to terms with what they want and what others want for them, difficult decisions will need to be made.
Especially when lust starts to look a lot like love.
530 pages, Kindle Edition
First published February 25, 2025
7148 people are currently reading
70885 people want to read
About the author
Elle Kennedy
179 books87.9k followersA New York Times, USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestselling author, Elle Kennedy grew up in the suburbs of Toronto, Ontario, and holds a B.A. in English from York University. From an early age, she knew she wanted to be a writer, and actively began pursuing that dream when she was a teenager.
Elle currently writes for various publishers. She loves strong heroines and sexy alpha heroes, and just enough heat and danger to keep things interesting!
Elle currently writes for various publishers. She loves strong heroines and sexy alpha heroes, and just enough heat and danger to keep things interesting!
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 8,641 reviews
July 24, 2025
2.95!
What was 'The Charlie Method' trying to achieve? It certainly didn't feel like mfm and it certainly felt way too distant from the other off campus books. In short, this book just did not feel that good and yeah I am a little mad because I don't think I have ever given an Elle Kennedy book a 3 its always 4 and above and I was so excited about this book. I don't even read m/m at all but I think this should've been one and before you guys come at me I wasn't opposed to the idea of this book either because Elle had been teasing about writing a threesome so I thought hmm, maybe she has something good to write but no I was so wrong. Also can we talk about the length of this book? This book did not need to be this long, it could have easily be cut down because at one point I just wanted it to end and I was considering skimming the book because I was bored AND THAT NEVER HAPPENS WITH THIS AUTHOR!
Now, this is three stars because I did enjoy the book overall, there were scenes that I really enjoyed reading and those were mainly in the first half, the og off campus crumbs were everything and the dad chat + HollisRupi crumbs were also so good, this book felt more like a setup for Blake and Issacs book lol.
Charlie, she was an okay character, not one of my favorites but I didnt have any negative feelings about her either, I liked her perspective and did enjoy reading about her storyline where she was trying to find out about her family, the whole secret identity persona was also fun and those few starting chapters had me really hooked but there came a time when I just wanted things to pick up....but they didn't/ Will, I loved his character the most!!! He delivered. HIs personal story was so well done and I really liked how he faced his narcissistic father, I was more hooked on his perspective than anyone else's and tell me why I liked his internal conflict more than the actual romance???. Moving on, we have Beckett, I was expecting sm from him but he just didnt deliver :( Idk his character felt so one dimensional at times and I really couldn't connect with him, the only parts where shined were the spicy parts, out of that he was meh and its sad because his character had so much potential.
The romance.....I honestly didn't buy any of it. I liked Chalie's turmoil because of this aspect but the actual romance?? nahhh. I do not think they would be able to continue as a throuple. Will and Charlie were barely together and they didn't have that much chemistry to be honest, it would have been better if they had a threesome Will went and found someone else and Charlie ended up with Beckett because honestly Will felt like a thirdwheel, Charlotte spent most of her times with Beckett, most of her intimate scenes are with him and they even managed to live for a long time without him so I dont see how Elle tried to make us believe that they could ever be a thing :( and Will and Beckett not be together the whole time felt so weird lmaoo like I feel it felt more distant because Will and Beckett weren't intimate either so it's very weird to be in a throuple where not everyone is in love.
I also did feel that the smut was very overpowering in this book. It could have easily been shortened a bit because it took away the time for development and for the story to progress.
Overall, a very lackluster release from one of my favorite authors and I am being veryyy generous with the rating >:(
My rating for the series:
The graham effect: 5 stars!
The Dixon Rule: 4.75!
The Charlie Method: 2.95!
_
This is easily the weakest Elle Kennedy book and this is coming from someone who only give four or fives to her works.
__
The perfect weekend to binge this on!! Elle Kennedy yk what you're doing 🤭
___
WE GOT ANSWERS 📢‼️
•It's an M/F/M -- M/M/F
•The FMC is Charlotte/Charlie we haven't met her yet but she's a briar girl who's studying stem 👀 and sorority girl.
•Beckett and Will are the MMCs
•WE WILL GET A BOOKS ABOUT GRACE AND LOGAN'S CHILD ‼️ THIS IS NOT A DRILL ‼️ (Blake will also be in this book a lot with her parents ofc) you dk hiw much I love Logan and grace 🫠
• We'll get to see more second gen kids
I think this is a whole package that Elle just dropped!!
(Got everything from the newsletter)
What was 'The Charlie Method' trying to achieve? It certainly didn't feel like mfm and it certainly felt way too distant from the other off campus books. In short, this book just did not feel that good and yeah I am a little mad because I don't think I have ever given an Elle Kennedy book a 3 its always 4 and above and I was so excited about this book. I don't even read m/m at all but I think this should've been one and before you guys come at me I wasn't opposed to the idea of this book either because Elle had been teasing about writing a threesome so I thought hmm, maybe she has something good to write but no I was so wrong. Also can we talk about the length of this book? This book did not need to be this long, it could have easily be cut down because at one point I just wanted it to end and I was considering skimming the book because I was bored AND THAT NEVER HAPPENS WITH THIS AUTHOR!
Now, this is three stars because I did enjoy the book overall, there were scenes that I really enjoyed reading and those were mainly in the first half, the og off campus crumbs were everything and the dad chat + HollisRupi crumbs were also so good, this book felt more like a setup for Blake and Issacs book lol.
Charlie, she was an okay character, not one of my favorites but I didnt have any negative feelings about her either, I liked her perspective and did enjoy reading about her storyline where she was trying to find out about her family, the whole secret identity persona was also fun and those few starting chapters had me really hooked but there came a time when I just wanted things to pick up....but they didn't/ Will, I loved his character the most!!! He delivered. HIs personal story was so well done and I really liked how he faced his narcissistic father, I was more hooked on his perspective than anyone else's and tell me why I liked his internal conflict more than the actual romance???. Moving on, we have Beckett, I was expecting sm from him but he just didnt deliver :( Idk his character felt so one dimensional at times and I really couldn't connect with him, the only parts where shined were the spicy parts, out of that he was meh and its sad because his character had so much potential.
The romance.....I honestly didn't buy any of it. I liked Chalie's turmoil because of this aspect but the actual romance?? nahhh. I do not think they would be able to continue as a throuple. Will and Charlie were barely together and they didn't have that much chemistry to be honest, it would have been better if they had a threesome Will went and found someone else and Charlie ended up with Beckett because honestly Will felt like a thirdwheel, Charlotte spent most of her times with Beckett, most of her intimate scenes are with him and they even managed to live for a long time without him so I dont see how Elle tried to make us believe that they could ever be a thing :( and Will and Beckett not be together the whole time felt so weird lmaoo like I feel it felt more distant because Will and Beckett weren't intimate either so it's very weird to be in a throuple where not everyone is in love.
I also did feel that the smut was very overpowering in this book. It could have easily been shortened a bit because it took away the time for development and for the story to progress.
Overall, a very lackluster release from one of my favorite authors and I am being veryyy generous with the rating >:(
My rating for the series:
The graham effect: 5 stars!
The Dixon Rule: 4.75!
The Charlie Method: 2.95!
_
This is easily the weakest Elle Kennedy book and this is coming from someone who only give four or fives to her works.
__
The perfect weekend to binge this on!! Elle Kennedy yk what you're doing 🤭
___
WE GOT ANSWERS 📢‼️
•It's an M/F/M -- M/M/F
•The FMC is Charlotte/Charlie we haven't met her yet but she's a briar girl who's studying stem 👀 and sorority girl.
•Beckett and Will are the MMCs
•WE WILL GET A BOOKS ABOUT GRACE AND LOGAN'S CHILD ‼️ THIS IS NOT A DRILL ‼️ (Blake will also be in this book a lot with her parents ofc) you dk hiw much I love Logan and grace 🫠
• We'll get to see more second gen kids
I think this is a whole package that Elle just dropped!!
(Got everything from the newsletter)
March 1, 2025
To quote a legendary vine: what the hell is even that
wouldnt-touch-with-a-barge-pole
May 15, 2024if Will and Beckett aren’t endgame…
July 25, 2025
You’re telling me I just suffered through that absolute dumpster fire all for their swords to not even cross ONCE????!!
February 28, 2025
"Look at what you do to him. He can't get enough of you. Neither of us can. You're ours. Fucking ours, baby. And we're yours."
Elle Kennedy delivered once again!!
જ⁀➴°⋆ What to expect:
🏒 hockey romance
🏒 poly / MFM
🏒 found family
🏒 woman in STEM
🏒 cinnamon roll mmc's
🏒 family drama
🏒 multi pov
🏒 spicy 🌶️🌶️🌶️
Charlie is a sorority girl, perfectionist and academically competitive but she has secret second life that would make people question her squeaky clean reputation. I instantly liked Charlie off the bat — she's strong minded and knows what she wants. Most of the time it's the girl chasing after emotional unavailable men, whereas Charlie takes control of her life. Her character explores her experience with adoption and her identity struggle as a Korean-American.
To think I was most excited to see Will before reading this but Beckett ended up being my fave!! Well at least she didn't need to choose 🤭 Beckett is a young Chris Hemsworth in my mind. He was so freaky in this, I was eating it up 🫦 We love a man who is secure of himself 🔥 He has a fun guy exterior but he's deeply emotional and mature.
I also have so much love for Will, I did not know his game was like that since he's so reserved in public 🤭 He's such a sweetheart and I felt he was the glue to this dynamic and balanced their personalities well. His side plot was interesting but it did feel a bit out of character to me.
Elle puts so much effort into creating engaging character arcs for all 3 main characters. One of my fave things about this series is it offers great plot and character depth in addition to top tier spicy scenes. I loved the dynamic between Charlie, Will and Beckett. The spice was SPICIN' in this book, I was losing my mind 🔥 I will forever be sad this wasn't MMF but I can't hold it against her when I knew that going into this. All things considered, these characters all have a lot of love for each other so they work perfectly.
This series has been so much fun to read - one of my fave aspects is the found family with the OG characters from the off-campus series but I've also managed to fall in love with all of the new gen characters. I loved seeing the cross over and the dad chat was hilarious. Coach Hollis, definitely got the "she doesn't even go here" treatment 🤣 (mean girls anyone?!) I laughed out loud so many times while reading this.
Blake got her time to shine here and I don't think this will be the last we see of her 🤭 Charlie and Blake's sorority big sis relationship was a perfect way to introduce some more characters as the seniors start to graduate. She's such an IT girl and deserves her own book 💅
The Queen Elizabeth 1st x Alexander the Great fanfiction was funny the first time but it ended up taking up too many pages. It made the book feel choppy and cut short moments I wanted explored more. The career discussions towards the end took me off guard and I felt like I missed something as this wasn't discussed throughout. Lastly, the adoption storyline felt messy and rushed towards the end.
I loved this overall and I can't wait to see where this series goes next!!
Release: 25/02/2025 - Thank you NetGalley, Little, Brown Book & Hambright PR for the arc!
જ⁀➴°⋆ Series rankings
✨ The Dixon Rule (#2) - 4.5 stars
✨ The Graham Effect (#1) - 4 stars
✨ The Charlie Method (#3) - 4 stars
Elle Kennedy delivered once again!!
જ⁀➴°⋆ What to expect:
🏒 hockey romance
🏒 poly / MFM
🏒 found family
🏒 woman in STEM
🏒 cinnamon roll mmc's
🏒 family drama
🏒 multi pov
🏒 spicy 🌶️🌶️🌶️
Charlie is a sorority girl, perfectionist and academically competitive but she has secret second life that would make people question her squeaky clean reputation. I instantly liked Charlie off the bat — she's strong minded and knows what she wants. Most of the time it's the girl chasing after emotional unavailable men, whereas Charlie takes control of her life. Her character explores her experience with adoption and her identity struggle as a Korean-American.
To think I was most excited to see Will before reading this but Beckett ended up being my fave!! Well at least she didn't need to choose 🤭 Beckett is a young Chris Hemsworth in my mind. He was so freaky in this, I was eating it up 🫦 We love a man who is secure of himself 🔥 He has a fun guy exterior but he's deeply emotional and mature.
I also have so much love for Will, I did not know his game was like that since he's so reserved in public 🤭 He's such a sweetheart and I felt he was the glue to this dynamic and balanced their personalities well. His side plot was interesting but it did feel a bit out of character to me.
Elle puts so much effort into creating engaging character arcs for all 3 main characters. One of my fave things about this series is it offers great plot and character depth in addition to top tier spicy scenes. I loved the dynamic between Charlie, Will and Beckett. The spice was SPICIN' in this book, I was losing my mind 🔥 I will forever be sad this wasn't MMF but I can't hold it against her when I knew that going into this. All things considered, these characters all have a lot of love for each other so they work perfectly.
This series has been so much fun to read - one of my fave aspects is the found family with the OG characters from the off-campus series but I've also managed to fall in love with all of the new gen characters. I loved seeing the cross over and the dad chat was hilarious. Coach Hollis, definitely got the "she doesn't even go here" treatment 🤣 (mean girls anyone?!) I laughed out loud so many times while reading this.
Blake got her time to shine here and I don't think this will be the last we see of her 🤭 Charlie and Blake's sorority big sis relationship was a perfect way to introduce some more characters as the seniors start to graduate. She's such an IT girl and deserves her own book 💅
The Queen Elizabeth 1st x Alexander the Great fanfiction was funny the first time but it ended up taking up too many pages. It made the book feel choppy and cut short moments I wanted explored more. The career discussions towards the end took me off guard and I felt like I missed something as this wasn't discussed throughout. Lastly, the adoption storyline felt messy and rushed towards the end.
I loved this overall and I can't wait to see where this series goes next!!
Release: 25/02/2025 - Thank you NetGalley, Little, Brown Book & Hambright PR for the arc!
જ⁀➴°⋆ Series rankings
✨ The Dixon Rule (#2) - 4.5 stars
✨ The Graham Effect (#1) - 4 stars
✨ The Charlie Method (#3) - 4 stars
October 14, 2025
i had real high expectations for this book, but it just didn’t deliver. up until about 40% of the way through, I was ready to hand 4 stars maybe even 5 if things turned around but that never happened.
for starters I want to mention that I skipped Off Campus, Brair U, and the first two Campus Diaries books altogether and jumped right into this one as a standalone because I received an arc. you won’t feel lost at all. a quick Google search on the family tree and character connections was all I needed so props to the author for keeping the world accessible even to newcomers. didn’t feel lost for a second.
and dw i know off campus is basically a classic now and i am planing to go back and read everything 😭
now, onto the heart of the story: we meet charlotte, a 21 years old woman with a mountain of personal issues. She feels like she’s constantly hiding her true self behind a mask of perfectionism, trying to meet her parents’, sorority’s, and society’s expectations. deep down, though, she’s a free spirit who craves adrenaline, loves fast cars, and one of her other secrets is her very strong libido so much so that her ex once called her a sex addict (I hate mitch)
enter Charlie—Charlotte’s alter ego, the side of her she keeps under wraps. one day, she matches with two guys on an app, she had a fantasy of a threesome. these two guys turn out to be Will and Beckett, both students at Brair U (where charlotte studies) she ends up meeting them regularly: Beckett shows up in her classes, and Will is her lab partner in STEM. little did she know, these encounters were with the very guys she’d already matched with online so we also had this hidden identity trope as well which i loved.
the book was going nicely until it suddenly wasn’t, and that really stung because I had genuinely gotten into it. It felt like the author lost her way and started throwing in random spicy elements just to keep things interesting. One minute, we’re deep in Charlotte’s tangled, conflicted personality filled with self-doubt, shame, and the need to please everyone and the next, we flip to her bold, uninhibited alter ego, Charlie. I’m all for multi-dimensional characters, but it seemed like Charlotte’s inner turmoil was more of a plot device than a genuine exploration of who she is. the family drama, too, sometimes felt forced. I get that being adopted can leave someone feeling out of place (even if I haven’t experienced it myself, I can sympathize), but the way it was written here felt more like dramatic filler than an authentic struggle. that said, I really loved the scene where she finally opened up to her parents about her doubts. they cleared the air in a way that felt real. and speaking of her parents, that last dinner scene was an absolute riot 😭 Oliver dropping the divorce bomb, her sister coming out as lesbian, and char revealing she’s in a polyamorous relationship. I just laughed so hard at how it went. loved it! and then another is used is Harrison because what’s his deal? His constant shaming of Charlie over things beyond her control just pissed me the fuck off. I’m glad she found him, really. but I couldn’t bring myself to like him at all after acting that way.
so for me while Charlie had her fun moments, but her many complexities often came off as mere plot mechanics rather than genuine parts of her personality to me… sorry 🫣
beckett and will were truly fun and hot in the beginning, but after about halfway through, their spark fizzled out, and they turned bland. It seemed like every encounter with Charlie was reduced to just hookups, with no real emotional depth. I was hoping for moments where they’d actually unpack their emotional baggage and connect on a deeper level but every time one of them had an issue where I wished it will get talked about between them it turns to the same old “take your pants off, let’s fuck it out” routine. even as someone who enjoy spice, that made me feeling so disappointed because this book felt reduced to just sex!!
now, speaking of spice… let me backtrack a bit. although I hadn’t read the first two books in the series, I did some homework and read a few reviews. apparently, in the Graham effect and the Dixon rule, many readers were expecting this book to be a mm because will & Beckett had some hot cameos (this is what I saw from reviews!!) Instead, it turned out to be mfm with both guys laser focused on Charlie from start to finish. That really let me down. I was craving some serious sword crossing. I wanted to see Will and Beckett share some hot moments together. there was even a line where will hinted that if Beckett touched him, he wouldn’t brush it off, and I was totally ready for a steamy scene between them. But it never happened, and I was left frustrated. also giving the they are a throuple you’ll naturally expect a wild threesome, but you’re in for a letdown if you thought that. the guys just take turns with Charlie, which felt flat and boring and lame. it should’ve been an mm. sue me 😑
when it comes to the throuple dynamic, I expected way more bonding and emotional depth especially since poly relationships aren’t exactly very normalised in the world I wanted a deeper genuine emotional connection so they can face people’s judgment stronger. It would have made their union so much more deeper. what I got from the character monologues and actions, it felt like Beckett ultimately wanted a traditional couple relationship with Charlie, which I wasn’t cool with at all. i want to add that I did appreciate that Will didn’t join them on their Sydney trip from the start. I really wanted to see him grow and avoid future regrets by at least trying out that path but his comeback scene was utterly sad to me. It seemed like Charlie was the only one truly happy with it, while Beckett suddenly wanted to lock things down exclusively with her.
now this is how I personably felt so don’t attack me 😭 but throughout the book, on top of that it felt like Charlie was much closer to Will than to Beckett. In a poly setup, I was hoping for equal attention for all parties. till 60% It seemed to me that Beckett was all about the physical, using sex as a way to move past his ex until he actually fell for her and then he eventually tried to force exclusivity with Charlie. and another major gripe was Will barely got his fair share of chapters. That really bothered me since he’s my absolute favorite character.
so yeah I go back to the point that the book leaned heavily on using sex as an escape from personal struggles, but it never captured the feel of an emotionally authentic relationship. That’s just how I felt. If the author kept it as a purely smut book with no relationship it would’ve been better than this closure.
I also have issue with the scene on page 408, where Charlotte demands that Beckett open up emotionally. until about 60% of the book, she was the one dodging vulnerability and wallowing in shame. It’s totally normal, and I’m not blaming her, but you can’t expect him to share his feelings when you haven’t been willing to do the same just a few chapters earlier. It came off like she was only ready to be open on her own terms, expecting him to catch up at her pace. this is a three way road now char!!
but OH MY GOD the most infuriating moment was the departure scene when Will announced he was going to Sydney, and then Beckett punched him! when will authors stop using this tired stereotype of violence? I’ve seen this in some books books, and it really gets on my nerves. Just because both characters are guys doesn’t give a free pass for throwing punches. If one of them hit Charlie, it’d be labeled as abuse so why is it acceptable here? It reminded of that scene in god of fury…
on a brighter note, I absolutely loved the coach! He’s hilarious, and his relationship with his wife is what i aspire to have. When he said his daughter is off-limits to the players? now I want his daughter with one of them!! (also please add hollis to the dad chat 😭) I absolutely adored Diana, so I’m pumped to go back and read her book, god she seem like an angel and I heard her book is painful. and also, I’m begging for a book for Blake and Isaac! I need to see the notorious fuckboy transform into a down bad boyfriend for her. and it’s gonna be fun because her dad don’t approve of him. I caught elle’s Instagram stories today, and apparently, this is the final book in the Campus Diaries trilogy. but it’s not the end of the Brair Universe. Since I’m planning on going back and reading the earlier books, I’m excited that there’s a chance she might give us more books focusing on the characters I mentioned. all in all, this book had so much potential, but it was ultimately let down by its flaws. But I’m glad I read it because I got to read about the sweetest angel will. I love him so much and yes it should’ve been an MM.
***ARC provided by the publisher—Little, Brown Book Group—in exchange for an honest Review.***
for starters I want to mention that I skipped Off Campus, Brair U, and the first two Campus Diaries books altogether and jumped right into this one as a standalone because I received an arc. you won’t feel lost at all. a quick Google search on the family tree and character connections was all I needed so props to the author for keeping the world accessible even to newcomers. didn’t feel lost for a second.
and dw i know off campus is basically a classic now and i am planing to go back and read everything 😭
now, onto the heart of the story: we meet charlotte, a 21 years old woman with a mountain of personal issues. She feels like she’s constantly hiding her true self behind a mask of perfectionism, trying to meet her parents’, sorority’s, and society’s expectations. deep down, though, she’s a free spirit who craves adrenaline, loves fast cars, and one of her other secrets is her very strong libido so much so that her ex once called her a sex addict (I hate mitch)
enter Charlie—Charlotte’s alter ego, the side of her she keeps under wraps. one day, she matches with two guys on an app, she had a fantasy of a threesome. these two guys turn out to be Will and Beckett, both students at Brair U (where charlotte studies) she ends up meeting them regularly: Beckett shows up in her classes, and Will is her lab partner in STEM. little did she know, these encounters were with the very guys she’d already matched with online so we also had this hidden identity trope as well which i loved.
the book was going nicely until it suddenly wasn’t, and that really stung because I had genuinely gotten into it. It felt like the author lost her way and started throwing in random spicy elements just to keep things interesting. One minute, we’re deep in Charlotte’s tangled, conflicted personality filled with self-doubt, shame, and the need to please everyone and the next, we flip to her bold, uninhibited alter ego, Charlie. I’m all for multi-dimensional characters, but it seemed like Charlotte’s inner turmoil was more of a plot device than a genuine exploration of who she is. the family drama, too, sometimes felt forced. I get that being adopted can leave someone feeling out of place (even if I haven’t experienced it myself, I can sympathize), but the way it was written here felt more like dramatic filler than an authentic struggle. that said, I really loved the scene where she finally opened up to her parents about her doubts. they cleared the air in a way that felt real. and speaking of her parents, that last dinner scene was an absolute riot 😭 Oliver dropping the divorce bomb, her sister coming out as lesbian, and char revealing she’s in a polyamorous relationship. I just laughed so hard at how it went. loved it! and then another is used is Harrison because what’s his deal? His constant shaming of Charlie over things beyond her control just pissed me the fuck off. I’m glad she found him, really. but I couldn’t bring myself to like him at all after acting that way.
so for me while Charlie had her fun moments, but her many complexities often came off as mere plot mechanics rather than genuine parts of her personality to me… sorry 🫣
beckett and will were truly fun and hot in the beginning, but after about halfway through, their spark fizzled out, and they turned bland. It seemed like every encounter with Charlie was reduced to just hookups, with no real emotional depth. I was hoping for moments where they’d actually unpack their emotional baggage and connect on a deeper level but every time one of them had an issue where I wished it will get talked about between them it turns to the same old “take your pants off, let’s fuck it out” routine. even as someone who enjoy spice, that made me feeling so disappointed because this book felt reduced to just sex!!
now, speaking of spice… let me backtrack a bit. although I hadn’t read the first two books in the series, I did some homework and read a few reviews. apparently, in the Graham effect and the Dixon rule, many readers were expecting this book to be a mm because will & Beckett had some hot cameos (this is what I saw from reviews!!) Instead, it turned out to be mfm with both guys laser focused on Charlie from start to finish. That really let me down. I was craving some serious sword crossing. I wanted to see Will and Beckett share some hot moments together. there was even a line where will hinted that if Beckett touched him, he wouldn’t brush it off, and I was totally ready for a steamy scene between them. But it never happened, and I was left frustrated. also giving the they are a throuple you’ll naturally expect a wild threesome, but you’re in for a letdown if you thought that. the guys just take turns with Charlie, which felt flat and boring and lame. it should’ve been an mm. sue me 😑
when it comes to the throuple dynamic, I expected way more bonding and emotional depth especially since poly relationships aren’t exactly very normalised in the world I wanted a deeper genuine emotional connection so they can face people’s judgment stronger. It would have made their union so much more deeper. what I got from the character monologues and actions, it felt like Beckett ultimately wanted a traditional couple relationship with Charlie, which I wasn’t cool with at all. i want to add that I did appreciate that Will didn’t join them on their Sydney trip from the start. I really wanted to see him grow and avoid future regrets by at least trying out that path but his comeback scene was utterly sad to me. It seemed like Charlie was the only one truly happy with it, while Beckett suddenly wanted to lock things down exclusively with her.
now this is how I personably felt so don’t attack me 😭 but throughout the book, on top of that it felt like Charlie was much closer to Will than to Beckett. In a poly setup, I was hoping for equal attention for all parties. till 60% It seemed to me that Beckett was all about the physical, using sex as a way to move past his ex until he actually fell for her and then he eventually tried to force exclusivity with Charlie. and another major gripe was Will barely got his fair share of chapters. That really bothered me since he’s my absolute favorite character.
so yeah I go back to the point that the book leaned heavily on using sex as an escape from personal struggles, but it never captured the feel of an emotionally authentic relationship. That’s just how I felt. If the author kept it as a purely smut book with no relationship it would’ve been better than this closure.
I also have issue with the scene on page 408, where Charlotte demands that Beckett open up emotionally. until about 60% of the book, she was the one dodging vulnerability and wallowing in shame. It’s totally normal, and I’m not blaming her, but you can’t expect him to share his feelings when you haven’t been willing to do the same just a few chapters earlier. It came off like she was only ready to be open on her own terms, expecting him to catch up at her pace. this is a three way road now char!!
but OH MY GOD the most infuriating moment was the departure scene when Will announced he was going to Sydney, and then Beckett punched him! when will authors stop using this tired stereotype of violence? I’ve seen this in some books books, and it really gets on my nerves. Just because both characters are guys doesn’t give a free pass for throwing punches. If one of them hit Charlie, it’d be labeled as abuse so why is it acceptable here? It reminded of that scene in god of fury…
on a brighter note, I absolutely loved the coach! He’s hilarious, and his relationship with his wife is what i aspire to have. When he said his daughter is off-limits to the players? now I want his daughter with one of them!! (also please add hollis to the dad chat 😭) I absolutely adored Diana, so I’m pumped to go back and read her book, god she seem like an angel and I heard her book is painful. and also, I’m begging for a book for Blake and Isaac! I need to see the notorious fuckboy transform into a down bad boyfriend for her. and it’s gonna be fun because her dad don’t approve of him. I caught elle’s Instagram stories today, and apparently, this is the final book in the Campus Diaries trilogy. but it’s not the end of the Brair Universe. Since I’m planning on going back and reading the earlier books, I’m excited that there’s a chance she might give us more books focusing on the characters I mentioned. all in all, this book had so much potential, but it was ultimately let down by its flaws. But I’m glad I read it because I got to read about the sweetest angel will. I love him so much and yes it should’ve been an MM.
***ARC provided by the publisher—Little, Brown Book Group—in exchange for an honest Review.***
February 28, 2025
3 stars
The Charlie Method by Elle Kennedy centres on Charlotte Kingston, a college senior who leads a double life—an accomplished sorority girl and biomedical engineering student by day, and a daring, anonymous risk-taker named Charlie by night, engaging with two mysterious guys on a dating app. Will Larsen, the laid-back son of a politician, and Beckett Dunne, a carefree Aussie, each have their own secrets, including sharing romantic interests. When Charlotte meets them in person, their intense chemistry is undeniable, but their hidden truths add complexity to their growing bond. What begins as a physical attraction slowly transforms into something deeper and more meaningful.
➸ This book was a fun surprise, blending romance, humour, and emotional depth. While I wasn’t expecting to be so invested in the characters, the dynamic between the leads kept me engaged. I don’t usually gravitate toward MFM romance, and I didn’t love Elle Kennedy’s Off-Campus series (though I did enjoy Briar U), but I’m really liking this Campus Diaries series, and this book reinforced that.
I loved Charlie’s character. She’s confident, knows what she wants, and is unapologetically herself. At the same time, she’s dealing with more complex struggles, particularly around her identity as a Korean-American and adopted child. Her journey to figure out who she truly is, especially as she searches for her biological roots, added a poignant layer to the story that I really appreciated.
Charlie’s character is also relatable, especially for anyone who’s ever felt the pressure to be a people pleaser. She often bends to the expectations of others, constantly shifting her personality to fit the roles people want her to play. Watching her realise this and understand that it’s not sustainable was a meaningful part of the story. I think a lot of readers will see themselves in Charlie as she starts embracing her true self.
Beckett—He has such golden retriever energy. At first, he comes across as the carefree, fun-loving guy who’s always joking around. But as the story unfolds, we realise there’s so much more to him. Beckett is carrying some heavy emotional baggage, especially from a past heartbreak. This added depth to his character, making him even more endearing. The way he struggles to open up emotionally only makes you root for him even more. On the surface, he may seem laid-back, but underneath, he’s dealing with real pain and trauma.
Will is quiet and reserved, with a calm, controlled exterior that conceals a lot of complexity, particularly regarding his family. His father, a politician, places heavy expectations on him, which creates tension between them. I loved how Will served as the emotional anchor of the group. He’s the calm in the storm, and while he’s reserved, there are moments where his strength and decisiveness truly shine. He’s the glue that holds the trio together.
One of the things that stood out to me in this book was the theme of identity. Each of the main characters is wrestling with their own sense of self. Charlie’s quest to find her biological parents leads to an emotional journey. Alongside Charlie’s story, Beckett’s struggles with opening up about his past and Will’s relationship with his father added further layers to their emotional journeys. I loved how this book shows how everyone is shaped by their past and their family, and how difficult it can be to find your own identity amidst all of that.
The romance—The chemistry between Charlie, Will, and Beckett is undeniably spicy—and I’m not just talking about the heat between them, although that’s definitely present. What made the romance stand out to me was how it evolved emotionally. The trio doesn’t just dive straight into physical passion; they each work through their personal issues and growth before they can fully come together. The intimacy that develops isn’t just about lust; it’s about learning how to be vulnerable and trust one another. And while the romance is certainly steamy, it’s the emotional journey of all three characters that made it feel authentic and meaningful.
That said, I didn’t give this a higher rating because the pacing didn’t always work for me. Some sections dragged, and I found myself getting a little bored at times—the writing didn’t always keep me fully engaged, and certain moments felt flat. And while this is a long book, the ending still felt rushed. After all the buildup, I wanted a more satisfying resolution, but everything wrapped up a little too quickly for my liking.
Overall, I didn’t think this was perfect, but I had a lot of fun! This book balances spice, humour, and emotional depth in a way that kept me interested from start to finish. It’s not just about the romance (though the spice is definitely there), but also about personal growth, identity, and navigating the complexities of relationships. The Graham Effect is still my favourite in this series, but this was a solid addition. Elle Kennedy is great at delivering fun, bingeable reads, and while this one didn’t fully hit the mark for me, I still enjoyed the experience.
Thank you to NetGalley and Dreamscape Select for the ARC.
The Charlie Method by Elle Kennedy centres on Charlotte Kingston, a college senior who leads a double life—an accomplished sorority girl and biomedical engineering student by day, and a daring, anonymous risk-taker named Charlie by night, engaging with two mysterious guys on a dating app. Will Larsen, the laid-back son of a politician, and Beckett Dunne, a carefree Aussie, each have their own secrets, including sharing romantic interests. When Charlotte meets them in person, their intense chemistry is undeniable, but their hidden truths add complexity to their growing bond. What begins as a physical attraction slowly transforms into something deeper and more meaningful.
➸ This book was a fun surprise, blending romance, humour, and emotional depth. While I wasn’t expecting to be so invested in the characters, the dynamic between the leads kept me engaged. I don’t usually gravitate toward MFM romance, and I didn’t love Elle Kennedy’s Off-Campus series (though I did enjoy Briar U), but I’m really liking this Campus Diaries series, and this book reinforced that.
I loved Charlie’s character. She’s confident, knows what she wants, and is unapologetically herself. At the same time, she’s dealing with more complex struggles, particularly around her identity as a Korean-American and adopted child. Her journey to figure out who she truly is, especially as she searches for her biological roots, added a poignant layer to the story that I really appreciated.
Charlie’s character is also relatable, especially for anyone who’s ever felt the pressure to be a people pleaser. She often bends to the expectations of others, constantly shifting her personality to fit the roles people want her to play. Watching her realise this and understand that it’s not sustainable was a meaningful part of the story. I think a lot of readers will see themselves in Charlie as she starts embracing her true self.
Beckett—He has such golden retriever energy. At first, he comes across as the carefree, fun-loving guy who’s always joking around. But as the story unfolds, we realise there’s so much more to him. Beckett is carrying some heavy emotional baggage, especially from a past heartbreak. This added depth to his character, making him even more endearing. The way he struggles to open up emotionally only makes you root for him even more. On the surface, he may seem laid-back, but underneath, he’s dealing with real pain and trauma.
Will is quiet and reserved, with a calm, controlled exterior that conceals a lot of complexity, particularly regarding his family. His father, a politician, places heavy expectations on him, which creates tension between them. I loved how Will served as the emotional anchor of the group. He’s the calm in the storm, and while he’s reserved, there are moments where his strength and decisiveness truly shine. He’s the glue that holds the trio together.
One of the things that stood out to me in this book was the theme of identity. Each of the main characters is wrestling with their own sense of self. Charlie’s quest to find her biological parents leads to an emotional journey. Alongside Charlie’s story, Beckett’s struggles with opening up about his past and Will’s relationship with his father added further layers to their emotional journeys. I loved how this book shows how everyone is shaped by their past and their family, and how difficult it can be to find your own identity amidst all of that.
The romance—The chemistry between Charlie, Will, and Beckett is undeniably spicy—and I’m not just talking about the heat between them, although that’s definitely present. What made the romance stand out to me was how it evolved emotionally. The trio doesn’t just dive straight into physical passion; they each work through their personal issues and growth before they can fully come together. The intimacy that develops isn’t just about lust; it’s about learning how to be vulnerable and trust one another. And while the romance is certainly steamy, it’s the emotional journey of all three characters that made it feel authentic and meaningful.
That said, I didn’t give this a higher rating because the pacing didn’t always work for me. Some sections dragged, and I found myself getting a little bored at times—the writing didn’t always keep me fully engaged, and certain moments felt flat. And while this is a long book, the ending still felt rushed. After all the buildup, I wanted a more satisfying resolution, but everything wrapped up a little too quickly for my liking.
Overall, I didn’t think this was perfect, but I had a lot of fun! This book balances spice, humour, and emotional depth in a way that kept me interested from start to finish. It’s not just about the romance (though the spice is definitely there), but also about personal growth, identity, and navigating the complexities of relationships. The Graham Effect is still my favourite in this series, but this was a solid addition. Elle Kennedy is great at delivering fun, bingeable reads, and while this one didn’t fully hit the mark for me, I still enjoyed the experience.
Thank you to NetGalley and Dreamscape Select for the ARC.
March 10, 2025
– 2.25 stars
The Campus Diaries started out so well with The Graham Diaries and The Dixon Rule and ended very weakly. Sadly The Charlie Method wasn't a good book to end. Beckett, Will and Charlie didn't have any chemistry together that all of their scenes felt meh to me. None of the smut hit the same as TGE or TDR. Elle Kennedy made a mistake not making this book MMF... Will and Beckett probably had more chemistry with each other than with Charlie. The book was also drawn out for no fucking reason.. almost 600 pages for what. It was mostly so boring to read 😭
There were a few things I liked though:
✨ Charlie being Korean and wild with a lot of sex positivity .. that girl had an insane sex drive and good for her 😌
✨ Charlie and Faith's friendship was so cute.. they are truly girl's girls <3
✨ Charlie's family was so supportive (I'm talking about the mom and dad.. the siblings? ehhh)
✨ DAD CHAT!! I don't have to say more
✨ Blake and Isaac.. idk if Blake's book is next or if Isaac is even endgame, but they were giving black cat x golden retriever vibes and I'm here for it
┍━━━━━━━━»•» «•«━┑
CAMPUS DIARIES
#1 The Graham Effect - 4 stars
#2 The Dixon Rule - 4.25 stars
#3 The Charlie Method - 2.25 stars
┕━»•» «•«━━━━━━━━┙
The Campus Diaries started out so well with The Graham Diaries and The Dixon Rule and ended very weakly. Sadly The Charlie Method wasn't a good book to end. Beckett, Will and Charlie didn't have any chemistry together that all of their scenes felt meh to me. None of the smut hit the same as TGE or TDR. Elle Kennedy made a mistake not making this book MMF... Will and Beckett probably had more chemistry with each other than with Charlie. The book was also drawn out for no fucking reason.. almost 600 pages for what. It was mostly so boring to read 😭
There were a few things I liked though:
✨ Charlie being Korean and wild with a lot of sex positivity .. that girl had an insane sex drive and good for her 😌
✨ Charlie and Faith's friendship was so cute.. they are truly girl's girls <3
✨ Charlie's family was so supportive (I'm talking about the mom and dad.. the siblings? ehhh)
✨ DAD CHAT!! I don't have to say more
✨ Blake and Isaac.. idk if Blake's book is next or if Isaac is even endgame, but they were giving black cat x golden retriever vibes and I'm here for it
┍━━━━━━━━»•» «•«━┑
CAMPUS DIARIES
#1 The Graham Effect - 4 stars
#2 The Dixon Rule - 4.25 stars
#3 The Charlie Method - 2.25 stars
┕━»•» «•«━━━━━━━━┙
May 8, 2024
I’m hoping this book is for Will & Beckett + their girl!!!
I’ve been wanting their book since the first in the series and I’ve not stopped thinking about them.
I’m honestly making grabby hands towards this book.
I cannot wait!!!
I’ve been wanting their book since the first in the series and I’ve not stopped thinking about them.
I’m honestly making grabby hands towards this book.
I cannot wait!!!
March 10, 2025
and im being generous
April 4, 2025
“𝑰𝒇 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒘𝒂𝒏𝒕 𝒕𝒐 𝒃𝒆 𝒌𝒊𝒔𝒔𝒆𝒅, 𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒓𝒍𝒊𝒆, 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒅𝒐 𝒊𝒔 𝒂𝒔𝒌.”
4.5 ⭐
The only reason this is not a 5-star read (rounding down) is because I didn't see equality between my two gorgeous men. The Charlie Method was a wonderful book that, to be honest, is not perfect, but I had so much fun reading it and rooting for Charlie that it turned out to be a solid 4.5 🤷♀️
I do want to say that there were moments where I wanted to shake the characters and be like, "you are all idiots", but then I remembered they’re in college, and we were all there..being young, stupid, and free. And honestly, I love reading about it lol 🤣 It gives out the whole "I can't believe you did that, tell me more" attitude the entire time.
Charlotte is a STEM student who has to be "picture perfect" for her colleagues and parents, reflecting a standard of being put together. But she has another side of her she calls Charlie which, I’m not judging, but man, this was tricky to be okay with because you just know having different personas is not going to end well. Thankfully (i guess), she only uses "Charlie" for her sexual escapes, which is how she starts talking to Bennett and Will through an app without either of them knowing who is who 🥵
𝑨𝒏𝒅 𝒏𝒐𝒘 𝑰’𝒎 𝒄𝒖𝒓𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒎𝒚𝒔𝒆𝒍𝒇 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒕𝒂𝒌𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒂 𝒃𝒊𝒕𝒆, 𝒃𝒆𝒄𝒂𝒖𝒔𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒔𝒂𝒎𝒑𝒍𝒆𝒓 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒎𝒐𝒔𝒕 𝒅𝒆𝒍𝒊𝒄𝒊𝒐𝒖𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑰’𝒗𝒆 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒂𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒅. 𝑯𝒐𝒘 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒉𝒆𝒄𝒌 𝒂𝒎 𝑰 𝒔𝒖𝒑𝒑𝒐𝒔𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒊𝒔𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒇𝒆𝒂𝒔𝒕?
Bennett is the typical playboy flirt who, after a broken heart, vows never to love again, but he still plays the game and worships women. And when he finds out who Charlie is… well, let’s just say he worships on his knees and in very interesting places (like the closet 🧎… lmao)
His character was obviously my favorite in the book. I mean, I see the appeal you know, blonde, Australian accent, the whole "I don’t need to open up" but eventually does kind of guy. I totally get why he got most of the screen time (iykyk). His story was beautiful, and it connected so well with Charlie’s, even though it started with witty banter.
Will, on the other hand… AGHHHH. He’s also trying to battle the "perfect image" his family expects of him. He is portrayed as the nice one and the one that is the "face of the relationship" and grounds Charlie in a way no one else can. He wants Charlie as something more and fights for her in a way that made my heart melt. HE DESERVED MORE SCREEN TIME OKAY?! I’M SO MAD BECAUSE HE IS SO HOT. Sorry for the vent, but it had to be said ‼️‼️
The book has its hiccups...one of them being the imbalance in screen time. Another is Charlotte’s family background, which was just so toxic that it made me roll my eyes a bit. As a reader, this part was mainly why I wasn’t as hooked to the book compared to the rest of the book series.
The feelings between the three were sometimes so clear, and other times, they felt tangled and out of sync with the timeline. And don’t even get me started on that last scene at Briar U… I was like ???. I get where it was coming from, but as a reader, it didn’t resolve a ton of questions I had. It’s hard to say more without spoilers, so I’ll just leave it at this: I loved the vibes, but if I get into the nitty-gritty, my rating would be a little all over the place
⋆. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁⋆.⋆. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁⋆.
➳ 𝗽𝗿𝗲-𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱｡ꪆৎ ˚⋅EXCUSE ME WHILE I SCREAM 😱 I can’t believe i’m starting this babyyyy 😭😭😭😭😭
Thank you Hambright PR 💓
4.5 ⭐
The only reason this is not a 5-star read (rounding down) is because I didn't see equality between my two gorgeous men. The Charlie Method was a wonderful book that, to be honest, is not perfect, but I had so much fun reading it and rooting for Charlie that it turned out to be a solid 4.5 🤷♀️
I do want to say that there were moments where I wanted to shake the characters and be like, "you are all idiots", but then I remembered they’re in college, and we were all there..being young, stupid, and free. And honestly, I love reading about it lol 🤣 It gives out the whole "I can't believe you did that, tell me more" attitude the entire time.
Charlotte is a STEM student who has to be "picture perfect" for her colleagues and parents, reflecting a standard of being put together. But she has another side of her she calls Charlie which, I’m not judging, but man, this was tricky to be okay with because you just know having different personas is not going to end well. Thankfully (i guess), she only uses "Charlie" for her sexual escapes, which is how she starts talking to Bennett and Will through an app without either of them knowing who is who 🥵
𝑨𝒏𝒅 𝒏𝒐𝒘 𝑰’𝒎 𝒄𝒖𝒓𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒎𝒚𝒔𝒆𝒍𝒇 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒕𝒂𝒌𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒂 𝒃𝒊𝒕𝒆, 𝒃𝒆𝒄𝒂𝒖𝒔𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒔𝒂𝒎𝒑𝒍𝒆𝒓 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒎𝒐𝒔𝒕 𝒅𝒆𝒍𝒊𝒄𝒊𝒐𝒖𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑰’𝒗𝒆 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒂𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒅. 𝑯𝒐𝒘 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒉𝒆𝒄𝒌 𝒂𝒎 𝑰 𝒔𝒖𝒑𝒑𝒐𝒔𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒊𝒔𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒇𝒆𝒂𝒔𝒕?
Bennett is the typical playboy flirt who, after a broken heart, vows never to love again, but he still plays the game and worships women. And when he finds out who Charlie is… well, let’s just say he worships on his knees and in very interesting places (like the closet 🧎… lmao)
His character was obviously my favorite in the book. I mean, I see the appeal you know, blonde, Australian accent, the whole "I don’t need to open up" but eventually does kind of guy. I totally get why he got most of the screen time (iykyk). His story was beautiful, and it connected so well with Charlie’s, even though it started with witty banter.
Will, on the other hand… AGHHHH. He’s also trying to battle the "perfect image" his family expects of him. He is portrayed as the nice one and the one that is the "face of the relationship" and grounds Charlie in a way no one else can. He wants Charlie as something more and fights for her in a way that made my heart melt. HE DESERVED MORE SCREEN TIME OKAY?! I’M SO MAD BECAUSE HE IS SO HOT. Sorry for the vent, but it had to be said ‼️‼️
The book has its hiccups...one of them being the imbalance in screen time. Another is Charlotte’s family background, which was just so toxic that it made me roll my eyes a bit. As a reader, this part was mainly why I wasn’t as hooked to the book compared to the rest of the book series.
The feelings between the three were sometimes so clear, and other times, they felt tangled and out of sync with the timeline. And don’t even get me started on that last scene at Briar U… I was like ???. I get where it was coming from, but as a reader, it didn’t resolve a ton of questions I had. It’s hard to say more without spoilers, so I’ll just leave it at this: I loved the vibes, but if I get into the nitty-gritty, my rating would be a little all over the place
⋆. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁⋆.⋆. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁⋆.
➳ 𝗽𝗿𝗲-𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱｡ꪆৎ ˚⋅EXCUSE ME WHILE I SCREAM 😱 I can’t believe i’m starting this babyyyy 😭😭😭😭😭
Thank you Hambright PR 💓
March 5, 2025
Oh this was bad, this was really bad.
———
Nah, I don’t do throuples, specially if it’s for woke reasons.
———
Nah, I don’t do throuples, specially if it’s for woke reasons.
February 24, 2025
sadly i’m not sold on this happily ever after. they’re sweet for a short time tho
~~~~
the chokehold elle kennedy had on me with off campus series back in 2021 strikes again🤭 i’m already obsessed with willbeckett so i have high hopes about this!!🫦🪭
~~~~
the chokehold elle kennedy had on me with off campus series back in 2021 strikes again🤭 i’m already obsessed with willbeckett so i have high hopes about this!!🫦🪭
May 25, 2025
2 ˖⁺‧✮
i am honestly such a huge fan of elle kennedy and her sport romances; she writes them in a unique style that i absolutely adore. so when she announced a mfm romance, i melted immediately. since the book was announced i couldn’t stop thinking about it, i tried to get an arc, copy or just anything. when i say i was desperate for it…
this book was such a disappointment. let’s go over the reasons:
1. you can’t convince me both guys never interacted with each other, they were together for over a year and they never touched?
2. i don’t understand the need for showing different: charlie and charlotte. i can’t see much of a difference when it comes to her. she was very blended and the only issue was society shame, which is understandable, but i can’t wrap my head around her personality.
3. beck was confusing. he was switching emotions every other page.
* i liked him better.
4. the last chapters had no sense. they were sad but they still continued to fuck but then they accepted the arrival? whatever this one was
5. it felt more like fm and fm rather than mfm. 🤷♀️
6. some of charlotte friends were not really as friendly. i don’t remember who exactly it was, but i remember someone was so annoying and mean for no reason.(great explanation)
7. DAD GROUP. what was that????? i was a huge fan of the off campus series but why was this chat included??? it had no sense to the plot and it felt very pushed. it was nice to see dads but… it was poorly done.
8. guys were so unique at the beginning but at the end they became the same person. i couldn’t differentiate them.
i do believe some percentage of my disappointed was the anticipation. i was waiting for this book for so long so at the end my expectations were just too high🤷♀️
i am honestly such a huge fan of elle kennedy and her sport romances; she writes them in a unique style that i absolutely adore. so when she announced a mfm romance, i melted immediately. since the book was announced i couldn’t stop thinking about it, i tried to get an arc, copy or just anything. when i say i was desperate for it…
this book was such a disappointment. let’s go over the reasons:
1. you can’t convince me both guys never interacted with each other, they were together for over a year and they never touched?
2. i don’t understand the need for showing different: charlie and charlotte. i can’t see much of a difference when it comes to her. she was very blended and the only issue was society shame, which is understandable, but i can’t wrap my head around her personality.
3. beck was confusing. he was switching emotions every other page.
* i liked him better.
4. the last chapters had no sense. they were sad but they still continued to fuck but then they accepted the arrival? whatever this one was
5. it felt more like fm and fm rather than mfm. 🤷♀️
6. some of charlotte friends were not really as friendly. i don’t remember who exactly it was, but i remember someone was so annoying and mean for no reason.(great explanation)
7. DAD GROUP. what was that????? i was a huge fan of the off campus series but why was this chat included??? it had no sense to the plot and it felt very pushed. it was nice to see dads but… it was poorly done.
8. guys were so unique at the beginning but at the end they became the same person. i couldn’t differentiate them.
i do believe some percentage of my disappointed was the anticipation. i was waiting for this book for so long so at the end my expectations were just too high🤷♀️
February 28, 2025
I only kept reading for Blake’s cameos and the DAD CHAT!!! Otherwise, it was just blah and sex. The fan fiction was pointless—I skipped most of it. Too many unnecessary details, not enough depth in their relationship. It felt like it was just Charlie and Beckett… I feel bad for Will (he deserves better) It all seemed unrealistic, and even the ending—I don’t see them lasting long-term. And Beckett punching Will? That was just too much… completely unnecessary.
***Plus, the whole throuple thing made Will and Beckett lose the closeness and chemistry they had in the first two books. Their bond just wasn’t the same anymore.***
I’m impatiently waiting for BLAKE AND ISAAC😩 (even though I wished it was Beau with her🤭..or AJ🫢)
***Plus, the whole throuple thing made Will and Beckett lose the closeness and chemistry they had in the first two books. Their bond just wasn’t the same anymore.***
I’m impatiently waiting for BLAKE AND ISAAC😩 (even though I wished it was Beau with her🤭..or AJ🫢)
May 20, 2025
ੈ♡˳ rating: four of five stars
ੈ♡˳ summary: the charlie method by elle kennedy is the third book in the campus diaries series and follows charlotte “charlie” kingston, a college senior with a squeaky-clean image by day… and a chaotic, anonymous dating app persona by night. after a few spicy anonymous chats, she finds herself entangled with will and beckett—two hockey players who have a history of sharing—and suddenly she’s not just balancing a secret identity, she’s also juggling her feelings for two very different guys. things get messy fast as charlie tries to figure out what (and who) she really wants.
ੈ♡˳ thoughts: i wanted this to be a five-star read so bad. it was soooo close. the writing was great, the spice was spicy, and i was super invested in every character’s backstory. charlie, will, and beckett were all well-developed, and even the side characters added so much to the story (aside from the obvious annoying ones).
this is a “why choose” book, but it lowkey felt like charlie should’ve chosen. her connection with beckett was so much deeper, more emotional, more everything. will was fun, but beckett had my whole heart. honestly, beckett and will probably should’ve ended up together at this point. their tension was off the charts.
still, it was a really good book overall. it just had a few details that pulled it back from perfection.
me and elle kennedy might have to square up because i want to love these books with my whole chest—but there’s always one thing holding me back!
ੈ♡˳ tropes:
ꕥ why choose
ꕥ sports romance
ꕥ secret identity
ꕥ friends to lovers
ꕥ college setting
ੈ♡˳ fave quotes:
➼ “you shouldn't have to change to keep anyone around. that's not love. that's… control.”
➼ “even when i was perfect, he’d still find something wrong. it got to the point where even just being myself felt like a risk.”
➼ “that kind of consent line is way too blurry for me. for us.”
-----
pre read: elle kennedy i’m so sorry for not getting to the book right away my queen.
ੈ♡˳ summary: the charlie method by elle kennedy is the third book in the campus diaries series and follows charlotte “charlie” kingston, a college senior with a squeaky-clean image by day… and a chaotic, anonymous dating app persona by night. after a few spicy anonymous chats, she finds herself entangled with will and beckett—two hockey players who have a history of sharing—and suddenly she’s not just balancing a secret identity, she’s also juggling her feelings for two very different guys. things get messy fast as charlie tries to figure out what (and who) she really wants.
ੈ♡˳ thoughts: i wanted this to be a five-star read so bad. it was soooo close. the writing was great, the spice was spicy, and i was super invested in every character’s backstory. charlie, will, and beckett were all well-developed, and even the side characters added so much to the story (aside from the obvious annoying ones).
this is a “why choose” book, but it lowkey felt like charlie should’ve chosen. her connection with beckett was so much deeper, more emotional, more everything. will was fun, but beckett had my whole heart. honestly, beckett and will probably should’ve ended up together at this point. their tension was off the charts.
still, it was a really good book overall. it just had a few details that pulled it back from perfection.
me and elle kennedy might have to square up because i want to love these books with my whole chest—but there’s always one thing holding me back!
ੈ♡˳ tropes:
ꕥ why choose
ꕥ sports romance
ꕥ secret identity
ꕥ friends to lovers
ꕥ college setting
ੈ♡˳ fave quotes:
➼ “you shouldn't have to change to keep anyone around. that's not love. that's… control.”
➼ “even when i was perfect, he’d still find something wrong. it got to the point where even just being myself felt like a risk.”
➼ “that kind of consent line is way too blurry for me. for us.”
-----
pre read: elle kennedy i’m so sorry for not getting to the book right away my queen.
September 21, 2025
➳ midtown atlanta frat bros core ☆
one thing about me, i am finally free!
this was a HAWT fucking mess. just a load of masala. time of death @page 300. i just can't do this anymore. originally, i was going to write a one liner review and move on, but the more i thought about it, it's probably easier if i explain WHY i didn't like this book. the whole time, i felt like i was missing something, but thankfully, the other reviews expressed the same opinion as me. as always, this review might have some minor spoilers about the relationship and relationship dynamics, but other than that, i don't think this book is worth reading. this is a book, it's never that serious. take all of this with a bucket of salt and read whatever you like.
first of all, this book was a complete mess from page one. we start off this book with our main character, charlie, hooking up with some jock in her car. the dirty talk in question was so cringy, i couldn't believe my eyes. from here, charlie is thrust into this world of nothingness and everything that happened to her, happened because of plot armor. she reads as one of the most unlikeable, whinny, and selfish characters with ZERO depth. in the entire 300 pages i suffered through this book, i could not tell you one trait about her personality or her temperament. she is a STEM girlie...so you know what that means. unlikeable dumbass assuming the entire world revolves around her—expect shocker; she hates attention. yeah, fuck off. it's clear elle kennedy wanted to write more smut in this book—and she did that. i have no issues with authors exploring new concepts, but this truly doesn't gel with this universe. i still need an explanation on this half ass baked story about three very irritating individuals with NO goals or aspirations. she wrote almost 600 pages of what...? please, someone tell me.
talking about the romance makes me cringe even more. where is the chemistry? where is the tension? where is the slow burn? zilch. none of that is present in this book. on their first official meet up as a trio, they are making out with her back-to-back and inviting her home to fuck...i mean? what in the hell is happening? i don't even like elle's books like that, but this is a new low even for me. this is a burger ass novel if i've read one. i know these books are preponderantly romance filled, so i am not expecting literary masterpieces or world-renowned literature. i know some books can be lighthearted and fun. this book has none of that. there was no believable factor—just none. the two guys in this book—will and becket had so much more chemistry. the entire time, i assumed they were also going to get together, so color me surprised when that never happens. just duplicitous behavior. elle really missed out on this being an MMF, since she clearly does not know how to write a why choose. elle took almost no time to explore the dynamics—the potential what if's with any of the characters. how are you going to tell your readers—your audience—these characters are in love, when you as an author don't even believe it?
lastly, i did choose the audiobook for this, since i'd heard of all the terrible ass reviews and oh my god...even teddy hamilton COULD NOT save this foolishness. i'm going to be frank here when i say, the female narrator sucked ass and her voice sounded like it should be on calliou. for some reason, her infliction and her vocal tone, did not work for this story and was severely taking me out of the narrative. sean and teddy were absolutely carrying this performance on their back, but i had had enough at that point. even they couldn't save the horrendous dialogue and over the top theatrical melodrama. the pacing was honestly torturous, and the chapters were filled with so much nonsense, i was done. this was sloppy, uneventful, and beyond fucking embarrassing. this is why she should've stuck to SECOND GEN...and not whatever the fuck this was.
sending screenshots of this tomfoolery to my korean friends was the highlight of my experience. they were not impressed in the slightest.
one thing about me, i am finally free!
this was a HAWT fucking mess. just a load of masala. time of death @page 300. i just can't do this anymore. originally, i was going to write a one liner review and move on, but the more i thought about it, it's probably easier if i explain WHY i didn't like this book. the whole time, i felt like i was missing something, but thankfully, the other reviews expressed the same opinion as me. as always, this review might have some minor spoilers about the relationship and relationship dynamics, but other than that, i don't think this book is worth reading. this is a book, it's never that serious. take all of this with a bucket of salt and read whatever you like.
first of all, this book was a complete mess from page one. we start off this book with our main character, charlie, hooking up with some jock in her car. the dirty talk in question was so cringy, i couldn't believe my eyes. from here, charlie is thrust into this world of nothingness and everything that happened to her, happened because of plot armor. she reads as one of the most unlikeable, whinny, and selfish characters with ZERO depth. in the entire 300 pages i suffered through this book, i could not tell you one trait about her personality or her temperament. she is a STEM girlie...so you know what that means. unlikeable dumbass assuming the entire world revolves around her—expect shocker; she hates attention. yeah, fuck off. it's clear elle kennedy wanted to write more smut in this book—and she did that. i have no issues with authors exploring new concepts, but this truly doesn't gel with this universe. i still need an explanation on this half ass baked story about three very irritating individuals with NO goals or aspirations. she wrote almost 600 pages of what...? please, someone tell me.
talking about the romance makes me cringe even more. where is the chemistry? where is the tension? where is the slow burn? zilch. none of that is present in this book. on their first official meet up as a trio, they are making out with her back-to-back and inviting her home to fuck...i mean? what in the hell is happening? i don't even like elle's books like that, but this is a new low even for me. this is a burger ass novel if i've read one. i know these books are preponderantly romance filled, so i am not expecting literary masterpieces or world-renowned literature. i know some books can be lighthearted and fun. this book has none of that. there was no believable factor—just none. the two guys in this book—will and becket had so much more chemistry. the entire time, i assumed they were also going to get together, so color me surprised when that never happens. just duplicitous behavior. elle really missed out on this being an MMF, since she clearly does not know how to write a why choose. elle took almost no time to explore the dynamics—the potential what if's with any of the characters. how are you going to tell your readers—your audience—these characters are in love, when you as an author don't even believe it?
lastly, i did choose the audiobook for this, since i'd heard of all the terrible ass reviews and oh my god...even teddy hamilton COULD NOT save this foolishness. i'm going to be frank here when i say, the female narrator sucked ass and her voice sounded like it should be on calliou. for some reason, her infliction and her vocal tone, did not work for this story and was severely taking me out of the narrative. sean and teddy were absolutely carrying this performance on their back, but i had had enough at that point. even they couldn't save the horrendous dialogue and over the top theatrical melodrama. the pacing was honestly torturous, and the chapters were filled with so much nonsense, i was done. this was sloppy, uneventful, and beyond fucking embarrassing. this is why she should've stuck to SECOND GEN...and not whatever the fuck this was.
sending screenshots of this tomfoolery to my korean friends was the highlight of my experience. they were not impressed in the slightest.
July 7, 2025
someone get me a fan and a whole ice bath because i need to just cool down after reading this. will and beckett were so afkngsdfjaoisjdm i loved this sm !!! elle kennedy does not miss !!!
pre-read:
i'm on page one. five stars.
pre-read:
i'm on page one. five stars.
March 9, 2025
me when I read the first half: 🙂↕️💕😍😋🤩
me when I read the second half: 🌚😒🤦♀️😐🤨😑🫨
me when I read the second half: 🌚😒🤦♀️😐🤨😑🫨
March 19, 2025
My first one star of the year and my first one star for Elle Kennedy
July 21, 2025
GO GIRL GIVE US NOTHING
February 28, 2025
fastest dnf of the year so far goes to…
alright so i was already insanely hesitant on even giving this book a try after finding out it was mfm. i personally feel as though will and becketts build up in the previously two books was extremely queer baited, so by no means did i go into this book thinking i would like it but when i saw the audio posted i thought “well i have loved 15+ elle kennedy books so far so maybe this one will be better than i thought”… wrong. i was over charlie mid chapter 1. i knew right from the get go that i was not going to enjoy this book and honestly, chapter 2 solidified that for me.
so yeah, horribly fast dnf. it is very clear to me that i have no interest in these characters so there is no reason for me to prolong my suffering by trying to force the listen. take my rating with a grain of salt
alright so i was already insanely hesitant on even giving this book a try after finding out it was mfm. i personally feel as though will and becketts build up in the previously two books was extremely queer baited, so by no means did i go into this book thinking i would like it but when i saw the audio posted i thought “well i have loved 15+ elle kennedy books so far so maybe this one will be better than i thought”… wrong. i was over charlie mid chapter 1. i knew right from the get go that i was not going to enjoy this book and honestly, chapter 2 solidified that for me.
so yeah, horribly fast dnf. it is very clear to me that i have no interest in these characters so there is no reason for me to prolong my suffering by trying to force the listen. take my rating with a grain of salt
February 25, 2025
5 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
“You’re ours,” I say in her ear. “Fucking ours, baby. And we’re yours.” 😭
omg guys I absolutely adored this book! I do love a romance book but often they fall bit flat for me as once the couple get together I can often get bit bored but not with this book! All 3 of the characters have depth, they all have their own little side stories and plot running along side the main plot and the romance 😮💨😮💨 This is a MFM book and it's done so well! I absolutely adore all 3 of the main characters so much 🥺🥺
Spoilers below:
Characters ࿐ ࿔*:･
Charlotte/Charlie is our FMC and I adore her. She's smart, confident, funny I really love her personality and how she interacts with other characters. Charlie is adopted which further adds to the plot as well as her character as she's on a quest to try and find some of her biological family. Beckett our loveable Aussie is such a golden retriever 🥺 He's so funny and thoughtful and love the side he brings out of Charlie. Will is such a calming influence and love how his strong firm side comes out. Also love how he takes control when they are altogether 😮💨
Plot ࿐ ࿔*:･
I loved this plot because it wasn’t just about the romance there were subplots happening throughout as well! The main storyline follows Charlie’s search for her biological parents through the use of a dna website. She doesn’t find her parents but she does find out she has a biological brother, that she messages and doesn’t get a response from. She ends up meeting him later as he tracks her down and they try to get to know each other although it’s strained as his brother has a lot of resentment as he wasn’t adopted with Charlie to a good family and his adopted dad abused him. They do ultimately manage to work through these issues and Charlie and her brother end up getting along 🥺 As well as hockey that both Will and Beckett play, Will is also going through some family stuff with his dad. His dad works in politics and forcing a lot of expectations on Will, resulting in a strained relationship between the two; they don’t get on. Will ends up working for one of his dads rivals and their relationship unfortunately (or fortunately cos tbh Will deserves better) doesn’t get better. Beckett is also going through some stuff mentally as he is just a broken hearted boy. Although, he tells Charlie and Will that his ex broke his heart by cheating we later find out that his ex actually died of cancer and it was really traumatic on Beckett. Charlie and Will are hurt that Beckett didn’t tell him but it provides insight to my Beckett doesn’t feel like he can commit as he’s worried he will loose Charlie or Will.
The Romance (aka what we are really here for) ࿐ ࿔*:･
Charlie is swiping on a dating app when she comes across a profile of 2 guys (she can’t see their faces). She ends up liking them, they like her back and then begin chatting over messages. She has really good chats with them some really funny and some really kinky😮💨 Charlie has never been with 2 guys before so she’s abit apprehensive but she’s in to it so she asks to see a picture of their faces. The guys sends a photo to Charlie who realises she knows both of them as she has classes with both Beckett (teases her in class) and Will (who’s her lab partner). At first she freaks out but finally agrees to meet them for a date and the romance grows from there. The scenes when all 3 of them are together are so good, Elle really knows how to write a good romance 👌🏻 As the book progresses the guys realise they both have feelings for Charlie and Charlie has feelings for both of them and they want to make it work but are worried about the perceptions of others. Finally, they agree to try make it work with all 3 of them and decide to move to Aus as Charlie and Beckett have got offers there. Everything seems to be decided but Will decided not to come last min 🥺🥺 leaving Beckett and Charlie in Aus and Will on his own. After Will finishes the campaign for his dad’s rivals campaign he realises he misses Beckett and Charlie too much, rejects the job offer and surprises them in Aus.
Reading updates ࿐ ࿔*:･
Guys this might be my fave romance I’ve ever read 🤭🤭
Pre-reading ࿐ ࿔*:･
I'm so excited for this one! ☝🏻
thanks so much NetGalley and Little Brown Books Group for this arc
“You’re ours,” I say in her ear. “Fucking ours, baby. And we’re yours.” 😭
omg guys I absolutely adored this book! I do love a romance book but often they fall bit flat for me as once the couple get together I can often get bit bored but not with this book! All 3 of the characters have depth, they all have their own little side stories and plot running along side the main plot and the romance 😮💨😮💨 This is a MFM book and it's done so well! I absolutely adore all 3 of the main characters so much 🥺🥺
Spoilers below:
Characters ࿐ ࿔*:･
Charlotte/Charlie is our FMC and I adore her. She's smart, confident, funny I really love her personality and how she interacts with other characters. Charlie is adopted which further adds to the plot as well as her character as she's on a quest to try and find some of her biological family. Beckett our loveable Aussie is such a golden retriever 🥺 He's so funny and thoughtful and love the side he brings out of Charlie. Will is such a calming influence and love how his strong firm side comes out. Also love how he takes control when they are altogether 😮💨
Plot ࿐ ࿔*:･
I loved this plot because it wasn’t just about the romance there were subplots happening throughout as well! The main storyline follows Charlie’s search for her biological parents through the use of a dna website. She doesn’t find her parents but she does find out she has a biological brother, that she messages and doesn’t get a response from. She ends up meeting him later as he tracks her down and they try to get to know each other although it’s strained as his brother has a lot of resentment as he wasn’t adopted with Charlie to a good family and his adopted dad abused him. They do ultimately manage to work through these issues and Charlie and her brother end up getting along 🥺 As well as hockey that both Will and Beckett play, Will is also going through some family stuff with his dad. His dad works in politics and forcing a lot of expectations on Will, resulting in a strained relationship between the two; they don’t get on. Will ends up working for one of his dads rivals and their relationship unfortunately (or fortunately cos tbh Will deserves better) doesn’t get better. Beckett is also going through some stuff mentally as he is just a broken hearted boy. Although, he tells Charlie and Will that his ex broke his heart by cheating we later find out that his ex actually died of cancer and it was really traumatic on Beckett. Charlie and Will are hurt that Beckett didn’t tell him but it provides insight to my Beckett doesn’t feel like he can commit as he’s worried he will loose Charlie or Will.
The Romance (aka what we are really here for) ࿐ ࿔*:･
Charlie is swiping on a dating app when she comes across a profile of 2 guys (she can’t see their faces). She ends up liking them, they like her back and then begin chatting over messages. She has really good chats with them some really funny and some really kinky😮💨 Charlie has never been with 2 guys before so she’s abit apprehensive but she’s in to it so she asks to see a picture of their faces. The guys sends a photo to Charlie who realises she knows both of them as she has classes with both Beckett (teases her in class) and Will (who’s her lab partner). At first she freaks out but finally agrees to meet them for a date and the romance grows from there. The scenes when all 3 of them are together are so good, Elle really knows how to write a good romance 👌🏻 As the book progresses the guys realise they both have feelings for Charlie and Charlie has feelings for both of them and they want to make it work but are worried about the perceptions of others. Finally, they agree to try make it work with all 3 of them and decide to move to Aus as Charlie and Beckett have got offers there. Everything seems to be decided but Will decided not to come last min 🥺🥺 leaving Beckett and Charlie in Aus and Will on his own. After Will finishes the campaign for his dad’s rivals campaign he realises he misses Beckett and Charlie too much, rejects the job offer and surprises them in Aus.
Reading updates ࿐ ࿔*:･
Guys this might be my fave romance I’ve ever read 🤭🤭
Pre-reading ࿐ ࿔*:･
I'm so excited for this one! ☝🏻
thanks so much NetGalley and Little Brown Books Group for this arc
March 10, 2025
2.5💫
what can i say? charlie AND charlotte (because she believes she is two different people) are both so boring. u aren’t edgy or cool. i disliked u, annoying girl.
i loved will and beckett in the other books, but they just didn’t hit the same in this one😭 they kinda blended into the same guy imo. we just lost their individual personalities, and it felt like each guy was dating charlie/charlotte separately but just in the presence of the other if that makes sense.
there were also way too many plot lines in this book. so much going on all at once and it just seemed to chaotic.
is the next book going to be blake’s book tho…🤞🏻🤞🏻
what can i say? charlie AND charlotte (because she believes she is two different people) are both so boring. u aren’t edgy or cool. i disliked u, annoying girl.
i loved will and beckett in the other books, but they just didn’t hit the same in this one😭 they kinda blended into the same guy imo. we just lost their individual personalities, and it felt like each guy was dating charlie/charlotte separately but just in the presence of the other if that makes sense.
there were also way too many plot lines in this book. so much going on all at once and it just seemed to chaotic.
is the next book going to be blake’s book tho…🤞🏻🤞🏻
February 28, 2025
1 star
I have a lot to say about this one, but I'm gonna try and keep it polite and brief
In general, I'm not really a fan of throuple books, however I decided to give this a try because I read all of elle kennedy's off campus universe and I really enjoyed beckett and will in both the graham effect and the dixon rule.
that being said, this book was a huge mess for a lot of reasons, beginning with charlotte (charlie). she's very much a pick-me "not-like-other-girls" girl who just looks soooooo prim and proper all the time but loves to drive fast cars (an underdeveloped plot point that existed only so that she and beckett could have sex on a car) and has such a high and demanding sex drive that her ex-boyfriend just can't handle it.
she (along with the boys) talk about charlie and charlotte as though they are two entirely different people for the majority of the book and the entire thing seemed to just be a plot device to make her seem more interesting when really it was just kind of annoying (think dark betty from riverdale).
then there are the boys. so when I was originally reading the graham effect, I was hoping that will and beckett's book would be M/M. they had a lot of chemistry and I felt like that was where kennedy was going with this one but I was sorely mistaken. that's my bad, I guess, but I thought that in this book it would be at least MMF, but it was MFM.
the book is so abundantly clear, over and over again, about saying that will and beckett won't touch each other, that it felt almost homophobic? idk. I just feel like if you're gonna do it, why not just do it.
they don't even say "I love you" to each other even though they're literally living together, sleeping in the same bed and having sex with the same woman. they clearly love each other to some degree, even if it's not romantic. the whole book just feels like it's qualified with a "no homo though" in a way that just felt strange and stilted.
additionally, (and this is probably what pissed me off the most) is that charlie/elle kennedy had a clear preference toward beckett throughout the entire book. I almost felt bad for will, in a way. it was just so clear in both the lack of povs and page-time that will gets and the language used toward beckett versus him, that beckett was the preferred choice, even if the entire book's premise is about how she "doesn't have to choose".
oh also beckett's weird bow/school-girl fetish grosses me out. and the fact that he calls her sugar puff gives me the ick.
also, usually one of the few things I enjoy about elle kennedy's work is the dynamic between the hockey guys, but this book had almost none of it. rather, she just focused on providing repetitive smut scenes that had lost their shine after the second one.
this is true for almost all of the side plots, from the stupid car racing thing to charlie's biological brother. it just lacked any sort of character work and was way too dedicated to writing sex scenes over anything else.
the best part of the entire book was dad chat and I'm not even kidding.
I have a lot to say about this one, but I'm gonna try and keep it polite and brief
In general, I'm not really a fan of throuple books, however I decided to give this a try because I read all of elle kennedy's off campus universe and I really enjoyed beckett and will in both the graham effect and the dixon rule.
that being said, this book was a huge mess for a lot of reasons, beginning with charlotte (charlie). she's very much a pick-me "not-like-other-girls" girl who just looks soooooo prim and proper all the time but loves to drive fast cars (an underdeveloped plot point that existed only so that she and beckett could have sex on a car) and has such a high and demanding sex drive that her ex-boyfriend just can't handle it.
she (along with the boys) talk about charlie and charlotte as though they are two entirely different people for the majority of the book and the entire thing seemed to just be a plot device to make her seem more interesting when really it was just kind of annoying (think dark betty from riverdale).
then there are the boys. so when I was originally reading the graham effect, I was hoping that will and beckett's book would be M/M. they had a lot of chemistry and I felt like that was where kennedy was going with this one but I was sorely mistaken. that's my bad, I guess, but I thought that in this book it would be at least MMF, but it was MFM.
the book is so abundantly clear, over and over again, about saying that will and beckett won't touch each other, that it felt almost homophobic? idk. I just feel like if you're gonna do it, why not just do it.
they don't even say "I love you" to each other even though they're literally living together, sleeping in the same bed and having sex with the same woman. they clearly love each other to some degree, even if it's not romantic. the whole book just feels like it's qualified with a "no homo though" in a way that just felt strange and stilted.
additionally, (and this is probably what pissed me off the most) is that charlie/elle kennedy had a clear preference toward beckett throughout the entire book. I almost felt bad for will, in a way. it was just so clear in both the lack of povs and page-time that will gets and the language used toward beckett versus him, that beckett was the preferred choice, even if the entire book's premise is about how she "doesn't have to choose".
oh also beckett's weird bow/school-girl fetish grosses me out. and the fact that he calls her sugar puff gives me the ick.
also, usually one of the few things I enjoy about elle kennedy's work is the dynamic between the hockey guys, but this book had almost none of it. rather, she just focused on providing repetitive smut scenes that had lost their shine after the second one.
this is true for almost all of the side plots, from the stupid car racing thing to charlie's biological brother. it just lacked any sort of character work and was way too dedicated to writing sex scenes over anything else.
the best part of the entire book was dad chat and I'm not even kidding.
April 15, 2025
This book would've been very different if Charlie went to therapy.
😪😪😪
The best things in this book? Lourdes' historical fan-fic and the Dad Chat.
Which if you don't know, both have nothing to do with the MCs.
Will -after all the hype and dilemma in The Dixon rule- was robbed.
I'll say this about the spicy scenes:
All 3 together: 5 scenes + 1 short one
Beckett & Charlie (alone): 4
Will & Charlie: 1 technically alone BUT Beck was watching... so... not alone?
Texting: 2 (one with each)
Charlie (self): 1
Charlie & Random hookup: 1
Special treat (completely unrelated): 2 scenes - yeah Lourdes' fanfic got 2 spicy scenes and Will got 3/4 of a one with Charlie alone.
This is so disproportionate....
Also, DO NOT TELL ME THE CHARACTERS ARE KINKY when they don't have basic kinks and all their smut is VANILLA!
Yes, threesomes can be Aaaaa kink, a, just 1!! It does NOT make someone kinky!!
Elle Kennedy started by flooding us with a lot of Will's POV.
Then went full-on Beckett POV and absolutely sidelined all of Will's real issues and story -the things he wanted and needed to deal with- and that showed the most towards the end.
If Charlie went to therapy, this book would have been so different and actually better.
Half of it is wasted on her being an insecure perfectionist who is scared and wants her parents' approval just because she decided since she is adopted then she's dispensable even tho from her childhood and throughout all the book her parents showed her nothing but absolute love, acceptance, and unconditional support.
PS: I don't claim to understand the feeling of being adopted, nor do I want to minimise the experience of anyone. What I'm merely saying is that Charlie's issues were self-made and could have been dealt with pretty easily if she had done therapy.
So, had Charlie gone to therapy, then we would have time to spend on Will and Beckett appropriately, with their deep concerns, real questions, and issues.
And the irony? Charlie didn't even come to the realisation that she doesn't need to be perfect 😂
She was just reassured by everyone around her. So, she still didn't deal with it.
That girl is so loved, and she doesn't know the first of it.
And the timeline in relation to the other books in the series?! What was that? I had to literally figure out as I'm going where the hell I am.
Timeline should have been clarified, especially with Beckett and Will's roles and cameos in other books.
I'm also aware that Blake is getting her own book, but that girl is getting quite the page count in these stories before her own. 🤷🏻♀️
--
Pre-read:
I'm a bit worried because the reviews are underwhelming, but I am feeling like hockey and nice smut. 🤞🏻
😪😪😪
The best things in this book? Lourdes' historical fan-fic and the Dad Chat.
Which if you don't know, both have nothing to do with the MCs.
Will -after all the hype and dilemma in The Dixon rule- was robbed.
I'll say this about the spicy scenes:
All 3 together: 5 scenes + 1 short one
Beckett & Charlie (alone): 4
Will & Charlie: 1 technically alone BUT Beck was watching... so... not alone?
Texting: 2 (one with each)
Charlie (self): 1
Charlie & Random hookup: 1
Special treat (completely unrelated): 2 scenes - yeah Lourdes' fanfic got 2 spicy scenes and Will got 3/4 of a one with Charlie alone.
This is so disproportionate....
Also, DO NOT TELL ME THE CHARACTERS ARE KINKY when they don't have basic kinks and all their smut is VANILLA!
Yes, threesomes can be Aaaaa kink, a, just 1!! It does NOT make someone kinky!!
Elle Kennedy started by flooding us with a lot of Will's POV.
Then went full-on Beckett POV and absolutely sidelined all of Will's real issues and story -the things he wanted and needed to deal with- and that showed the most towards the end.
If Charlie went to therapy, this book would have been so different and actually better.
Half of it is wasted on her being an insecure perfectionist who is scared and wants her parents' approval just because she decided since she is adopted then she's dispensable even tho from her childhood and throughout all the book her parents showed her nothing but absolute love, acceptance, and unconditional support.
PS: I don't claim to understand the feeling of being adopted, nor do I want to minimise the experience of anyone. What I'm merely saying is that Charlie's issues were self-made and could have been dealt with pretty easily if she had done therapy.
So, had Charlie gone to therapy, then we would have time to spend on Will and Beckett appropriately, with their deep concerns, real questions, and issues.
And the irony? Charlie didn't even come to the realisation that she doesn't need to be perfect 😂
She was just reassured by everyone around her. So, she still didn't deal with it.
That girl is so loved, and she doesn't know the first of it.
And the timeline in relation to the other books in the series?! What was that? I had to literally figure out as I'm going where the hell I am.
Timeline should have been clarified, especially with Beckett and Will's roles and cameos in other books.
I'm also aware that Blake is getting her own book, but that girl is getting quite the page count in these stories before her own. 🤷🏻♀️
--
Pre-read:
I'm a bit worried because the reviews are underwhelming, but I am feeling like hockey and nice smut. 🤞🏻
October 16, 2024
Elle is always a hit 😮💨 and the dirty talk in this book was on another LEVEL.
Spice spice and more spice 🔥
#YourSmileIsAbsolutelyEfflugent
*manuscript read*
Spice spice and more spice 🔥
#YourSmileIsAbsolutelyEfflugent
*manuscript read*
February 21, 2025
I’ve sat on this review all day and if I don’t get it out now I never will. I don’t know what happened here, how did this one miss the mark? I’m actually quite confused on what happened. It was meant to be MMF but I feel like it really wasn’t. I didn’t vibe with the three of them “together” or separately, whatever you called what they were doing.
Quite honestly this book was all over the place. The plot was weird, we had so much going on that just seemed unnecessary. Charlie and her car thing? Where was that going? The brother showing up, but no follow up? So much was left hanging.
But wait, the best part was the random fan fiction that absolutely made no sense it hurt my brain 🫠 The dad chat. The first one was ok, but the second was just weird and made no sense. Blake was the highlight for me, John Logan’s daughter and in my opinion it should have been her book and not about a random throple. I literally had no idea how they would make this “relationship” work but a happily ever after in Australia was NOT on my list 😂
It took me a while to get into this book and I was really hopeful that it picked up and I would love it but unfortunately and I hate to say it because I LOVE Elle Kennedy, this one was a massive flop for me.
Quite honestly this book was all over the place. The plot was weird, we had so much going on that just seemed unnecessary. Charlie and her car thing? Where was that going? The brother showing up, but no follow up? So much was left hanging.
But wait, the best part was the random fan fiction that absolutely made no sense it hurt my brain 🫠 The dad chat. The first one was ok, but the second was just weird and made no sense. Blake was the highlight for me, John Logan’s daughter and in my opinion it should have been her book and not about a random throple. I literally had no idea how they would make this “relationship” work but a happily ever after in Australia was NOT on my list 😂
It took me a while to get into this book and I was really hopeful that it picked up and I would love it but unfortunately and I hate to say it because I LOVE Elle Kennedy, this one was a massive flop for me.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 22, 2025
Charlotte Kingston has two identities. For her parents, she’s the quintessential college senior, studying STEM and a member of her Mom’s sorority. But her alter ego, Charlie, is a risk taker looking for fun and the regular hookup. When she meets two guys on an online dating site who are interested in a threesome, she jumps at the chance. But no one is more surprised than Charlie when it turns out they are non other than her schoolmates and hockey team heroes, Will and Beckett.
I can’t lie, I was kind of hoping for a Beckett/Will HEA but the next best thing is BW + Charlie. I love how each book in the series is wholly unique while also having the interconnected qualities we have grown to expect from these different Briar U series. The chemistry was smoking hot between these three, and those who love the doors off the hinges steam, will go crazy for this book.
And yet, there is a really unique emotional component that I enjoyed so much too - Charlie coming to terms with her feelings around being adopted and finding a missing family member. The push and pull Charlie feels between not only the duality of her family, but also her identity, resonated with me and I found myself completely intrigued with the chapters featuring her family, most notably Harrison.
🎧 The duet narrated audio was a lot of fun, especially when it came to hearing Beckett’s Australian accent (narrated by Sean Masters). Co-narrators Teddy Hamilton and Persephone Lee also did a fantastic job. All in all, It was fun, flirty and highly entertaining. While I don’t always enjoy steam on audio, the narrators voices were so spot on, it didn’t distract me as much as it usually does.
It’s always sad to see a series end, but I think Charlie, Will and Beckett’s story is a fantastic way to close out this chapter.
Read if you like:
▪️new adult
▪️sports romance
▪️why choose
▪️forced proximity
▪️MFM romance
▪️adoption rep
▪️college setting
Check out my Bookstagram post here ♥
Thank you Elle Kennedy, Bloom Books, Get Red PR, and Dreamscape for the gifted copies.
I can’t lie, I was kind of hoping for a Beckett/Will HEA but the next best thing is BW + Charlie. I love how each book in the series is wholly unique while also having the interconnected qualities we have grown to expect from these different Briar U series. The chemistry was smoking hot between these three, and those who love the doors off the hinges steam, will go crazy for this book.
And yet, there is a really unique emotional component that I enjoyed so much too - Charlie coming to terms with her feelings around being adopted and finding a missing family member. The push and pull Charlie feels between not only the duality of her family, but also her identity, resonated with me and I found myself completely intrigued with the chapters featuring her family, most notably Harrison.
🎧 The duet narrated audio was a lot of fun, especially when it came to hearing Beckett’s Australian accent (narrated by Sean Masters). Co-narrators Teddy Hamilton and Persephone Lee also did a fantastic job. All in all, It was fun, flirty and highly entertaining. While I don’t always enjoy steam on audio, the narrators voices were so spot on, it didn’t distract me as much as it usually does.
It’s always sad to see a series end, but I think Charlie, Will and Beckett’s story is a fantastic way to close out this chapter.
Read if you like:
▪️new adult
▪️sports romance
▪️why choose
▪️forced proximity
▪️MFM romance
▪️adoption rep
▪️college setting
Check out my Bookstagram post here ♥
Thank you Elle Kennedy, Bloom Books, Get Red PR, and Dreamscape for the gifted copies.
April 10, 2025
2 stars
This book put me in an over a month reading slump. Their chemistry made me cringe. It wasn’t fun. It wasn’t sexy. It wasn’t emotional. It was just cringy and blander than an unseasoned salad. The book was so unnecessary long and boring. To sum it up, they were boring, which is such a shame because the series started off so strong with the first two books being so freakin good and enjoyable to read.
On a side note. I need Isaac and Blake’s story.
#1 The Graham effect ~ 4.25 stars
#2 The Dixon rule ~ 4.5 stars
#3 The Charlie method ~ 2 stars
This book put me in an over a month reading slump. Their chemistry made me cringe. It wasn’t fun. It wasn’t sexy. It wasn’t emotional. It was just cringy and blander than an unseasoned salad. The book was so unnecessary long and boring. To sum it up, they were boring, which is such a shame because the series started off so strong with the first two books being so freakin good and enjoyable to read.
On a side note. I need Isaac and Blake’s story.
#1 The Graham effect ~ 4.25 stars
#2 The Dixon rule ~ 4.5 stars
#3 The Charlie method ~ 2 stars
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